Anthony Louis's Blog, page 62

It’s in the Cards …

On Wednesday February 19, 2014, at 9 pm EST, Misha of It’s in the Cards will interview me about my new book Tarot Beyond the Basics, which Llewellyn will be releasing soon.

Tarot Beyond the Basics to be released by Llewellyn early in 2014.

The Wednesday 9 pm interview will take place on Para Encounters Network.

If you are able, please join me and Misha on Wednesday February 19th at 9 pm EST.

Learning to Pay Attention: 5 Steps to Mindfulness Meditation

Reblogged from Health & Family:

Basic meditation, the practice of doing nothing and being tuned in to your own mind at the same time, can be frustrating at first. But research shows it reduces stress and increases focus. Here are some simple steps to get you started. They are adapted  from Full Catastrophe Living, 2nd edition, by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D.,  professor of medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School where he founded the 

Read more… 123 more words

Libertarian Rand Paul

A recent article identified three main characteristics of self-identified libertarians. According to Understanding Libertarian Morality: The Psychological Dispositions of Self-Identified Libertarians,

“Compared to self-identified liberals and conservatives, libertarians showed

stronger endorsement of individual liberty as their foremost guiding principle, and weaker endorsement of all other moral principles;
a relatively cerebral as opposed to emotional cognitive style; and
lower interdependence and social relatedness. “

Rand Paul identifies himself as a libertarian and a constitutional conservative.  He is a member of the Tea Party movement and a contender for the Republican nomination for U.S. President in 2016.  I wondered whether these three traits (individual liberty, cerebral cognitive style, low inter-dependence) showed up in his chart.  Rand Paul was born on January 7, 1963 in Pittsburgh, PA, time and ASC unknown.  Here is his Noon chart with solar sign houses.

Rand Paul, Noon chart, time unknown, 7 Jan 1963, Pittsburgh, Air predominant element.

The time is not known, so unfortunately we can’t work with the ASC.  Looking at just the planets, we find the following distribution of elements and modalities:

Rand Paul, Mutable Air (cerebral Gemini) predominates in his planetary placements.  Cardinal Water (interdependent Cancer) is weakest.

Judging by Paul’s planetary placements, he has a primarily cerebral versus emotional cognitive style.  Cerebral Air is his strongest element, whereas emotional Water is his weakest element.  Air is associated with a mental and theoretic approach; water is associated with empathy and inter-dependence, traits in which he may be lacking due to the de-emphasis of Water in his chart. Mutable Air is typified by the mental sign Gemini, his chart signature.

Gemini is ruled by Mercury, which in Paul’s chart, lies in detached, objective Aquarius where it conjoins Saturn, the ruler of this Sun sign.  This Mercury/Saturn conjunction in mentally abstract Aquarius suggests a strongly cerebral cognitive style at the expense of emotions.

The Moon, primary symbol of emotions, lies in mental Gemini where she is ruled by Mercury conjunct Saturn in Aquarius.  As you can see in the above graph, Paul’s least prominent element and modality is Cardinal Water, which is typified by Cancer — the sign of mothering, nurturing, and emotional connection with others.  Caring for the helpless and needy is not his strong suit; in fact, it’s his weakest suit, according to his planetary placements.

Paul’s strong belief in individual liberty as the main guiding principle is probably shown by Mars unaspected in Leo.  Mars wants to do what he wants without restrictions from others.  Leo wants to be King of the Jungle, ruling others, and his own boss as well.  Sun is Capricorn can be very ambitious and self-reliant. Capricorn is often willing to ignore the needs to others to get to the top of the mountain.

As for inter-dependence and social relatedness, usually shown by Venus and the Moon, there is not strong evidence of either.  Moon in cerebral Gemini lies quincunx the Sun and in sesquisquare to Mercury — not much feeling for others here.  Venus in Sagittarius loves new adventures and favors personal independence in all matters.  The only aspect Venus forms with another planet is a square to Uranus, which Solar Fire delineates as, “you are willful and see anyone else’s claim on you as an obstacle to your freedom of self-expression” — how libertarian can you get?

“The pain in my soul is unbearable …” — Mikhail Kalashnikov

AK-47

Mikhail Kalashnikov, the inventor of the AK-47 assault rifle, died recently at the age of 94 on Monday December 23, 2013.  Several months before his death Kalashnikov apparently wrote to the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill:

“The pain in my soul is unbearable. I keep asking myself the same unsolvable question: If my assault rifle took people’s lives that means that I, Mikhail Kalashnikov, … am responsible for people’s deaths. … The longer I live, the more often that question gets into my brain, the deeper I go in my thoughts and guesses about why the Almighty allowed humans to have devilish desires of envy, greed and aggression.”  (Mikhail Kalashniknov, April, 2013)

As might be expected, the spiritual leader of the nation responded: ”If the weapon is used to defend the Motherland, the Church supports both its creators and the servicemen using it.”  (This reminds me of a U.S. bumper sticker during the Viet Nam War: “Kill a Commie for Christ.”)

In any case, I wondered what the chart of the AK-47 inventor looked like and found his birth data online (time unknown), so here is a Noon chart with sun sign houses:

Mikhail Kalashnikov, designer of AK-47, Noon chart (time unknown), sun sign houses.

This natal Sun in Scorpio is ruled by Mars (weapons) with Sun closely sextile Mars in meticulous Virgo.  The Sun closely squares Jupiter in Leo, suggesting an urge to do something dramatic on a grand scale.  Mars in Virgo is squared by the Moon in Gemini in the 8th house (destruction) of the solar sign chart.  Both Mars and the Moon are ruled by Mercury, perhaps indicating the intellectual wherewithal and manual dexterity to pursue the emotional investment of arms (Moon square Mars).

During the period when Kalashnikov allegedly wrote his letter to the Patriarch, transiting Jupiter was conjoining his natal Gemini Moon in the solar sign 8th and squaring his natal Virgo Mars in the solar sign 11th.  On April 27th of 2013 transiting Jupiter perfected a quincunx to his natal Scorpio Sun, perhaps prompting him to re-evaluate his life’s purpose from a spiritual perspective.

“I am not a bully” — Chris Christie

Governor Christie finds himself in the midst of a scandal this week as a core group of his aides and appointees have been exposed for plotting to snarl traffic at the Washington Bridge as political payback to a Democratic mayor who did not support Christie’s re-election campaign.

Christie abrasive style has long earned him a reputation as a bully. Among the numerous examples cited in the press, a typical one is that of Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle who questioned Christie’s use of a state helicopter to fly to his son’s baseball game (thus avoiding the snarled traffic in New Jersey sometimes orchestrated by his political appointees) and then to a political dinner.  Christie snorted in response to the assemblywoman’s inquiry: “I mean she should really be embarrassed at what a jerk she is for saying something like that.”  How dare she question his use of expensive state resources for purely personal gain!

Unfortunately, Christie’s time of birth is unknown.  Here is his sunrise chart for his birthplace with Placidus houses:

Gov. Chris Christie, sunrise chart, time unknown.  Mars square Mercury is one of his most prominent features.  Since the time of birth is unknown, his Moon is somewhere in the first 13 degrees of Sagittarius.

Interestingly, Mercury rules both the ASC and MC of the sunrise chart.  Mercury, a planet of transport and communication style, very closely squares aggressive Mars in the sunrise 10th house.  Mars in Cancer is in a fallen state.  Mars also happens to rule the 3rd house of communication of the sunrise chart.  Christie’s aggressive speaking style has become one of his most public features.  With Sun conjunct Pluto, he is at home with the use of power.

Christie’s closest aspects are Mercury semi-sextile Pluto and Mercury square Mars.  No wonder he is known for his aggressive verbal style.  Cafe Astrology delineates Mars square Mercury (his closest major aspect) as follows:

“You can be quick on the trigger when it comes to verbal reactions to others, and you are not always courteous or tactful when it comes to expressing your opinions. You often take things quite personally, and your defensiveness can make it hard for others to have peaceful or productive conversations with you at times. You might often compete for the floor when it comes to expressing your ideas, thoughts, and opinions. You might often find yourself stirring up controversy with what you say, or how you say it.“

Natal Jupiter opposite the Sun/Pluto conjunction and square the Moon (a T-square configuration) probably inflates his Sun/Pluto tendency to be domineering and his strong emotional reactions (Pluto square Moon).

The solar return of Christie’s sunrise chart cast for his birthplace suggests a stressful year for him politically:

2013-2014 Solar Return of Christie’s sunrise chart

SR Neptune on the cusp of the return 3rd of communication squares natal Moon in the 3rd house, suggesting a scandal that makes the news.  Retrograde Pluto rising in the 1st of the SR chart is a sign of significant complications during the year.  Mars, which rules the SR 12th of undoing and scandal, lies in the 8th and squares Saturn at the cusp of the 11th of his hopes and wishes — a stressful configuration.  SR Uranus (sudden disruption) conjoins the IC (family, home base) and opposes the MC (career).  Venus in Libra in the 10th and ruling the 10th is a protective factor, which indicates that he will survive the scandal and may even benefit from it.  Perhaps some of his supporters will admire the way he socks it to his political opponents.

Phil Robertson’s Duck Dynasty Flap

The news has been full of the controversy caused by the suspension of Phil Robertson from Duck Dynasty for his allegedly offensive comments about gays in a magazine interview.  Robertson’s comments went as follows:

“It seems like, to me, a vagina — as a man — would be more desirable than a man’s anus.  That’s just me.  I’m just thinking: There’s more there! … But hey, sin: It’s not logical, my man. … Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there.  Bestiality.” — Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty

The idea that homosexual behavior inevitably leads to bestiality (sexual intercourse between a person and an animal) is patently false.  Having worked over the years with young men who grew up on farms in remote areas, I can reliably state that the fascination with “a vagina — as a man —” not uncommonly leads to sexual activity by young men with farm animals.  If you know a heterosexual man who grew up on a farm, just ask what happened in the barn when he was feeling lonely and no girls were around.

Apparently A&E was not happy with Robertson’s remarks and suspended him from the show, which caused an outpouring of rage from conservative commentators.  A&E explained:

“We are extremely disappointed to have read Phil Robertson’s comments in GQ, which are based on his own personal beliefs and are not reflected in the series Duck Dynasty. His personal views in no way reflect those of A+E Networks, who have always been strong supporters and champions of the LGBT community. The network has placed Phil under hiatus from filming indefinitely.”

A&E did not mention that there is no such thing as bad publicity.

In any case, it would be interesting to look at Robertson’s chart and his transits at the time the story broke (around Dec. 18, 2013).  Robertson was born on April 24, 1946 (time unknown) in Vivian, LA.  Here is the Noon chart with the transits superimposed:

Robertson’s Noon chart with December 18th transits around the outside.

Mercury rules words and communication.  Robertson is born with Mercury stressed by an opposition from Neptune (nebulous thinking).  At the time the scandal broke and the suspension took effect, transiting Uranus was conjunct his natal Mercury, which was simultaneously being opposed by transiting Mars.

Natal Neptune is being conjoined by transiting Mars.  Interestingly, Solar Fire delineates this transit as “the willingness to take action based on faith, the power of belief, ideological success, …”  Robertson’s actions at the time were certainly based on his fundamentalist Christian faith.

Also notable is that on December 18, 2013, at the height of this “crisis” transiting Saturn was exactly trine his natal Saturn.  The planet Saturn can represent hardship but the trine of Saturn to its natal position usually indicates professional success.  In the long run this controversy may be the best thing that has happened to Mr. Roberston professionally this year.  More people are probably watching Duck Dynasty than ever before.  The powerful conservative lobby in the USA is solidly behind him (though they are ostensibly not interested in his behind).  Saturn trine Saturn symbolizes the truth of the saying, “there is no such thing as bad publicity.”

Queen Elizabeth II pardons Alan Turing for being gay

The New York Times reported today:

“Nearly 60 years after his death, Alan Turing, the British mathematician regarded as one of the central figures in the development of the computer, received a formal pardon from Queen Elizabeth II on Monday [23 Dec 2013] for his conviction in 1952 on charges of homosexuality, at the time a criminal offense in Britain.”

Turing was one of most brilliant minds of the 20th century.  Unfortunately when his house was broken into on January 23, 1952, the police investigation revealed that an acquaintance of Turing’s male lover had committed the burglary.  British justice went into action, convicting Turing of “gross indecency” for his “crimes against nature” which were outlawed under Section Eleven of the 1885 Criminal Law Amendment Act.

Despite Turing’s role in helping the British defeat Hilter in WWII and his seminal papers which led to the development of the modern computer, Mr. Cameron’s “progressive conservative” government denied Turing a pardon last year.  It’s nice to know that the USA does not have a monopoly on backwards (aka ‘progressive’) conservative thinking. Fortunately, Queen Elizabeth II is more advanced than the dimwitted Cameron, and she decided to pardon the British hero Alan Turning this year.

The tragic fact is that the British treatment of Turning led to his suicide at age 41, which deprived the world of the unimaginable scientific advances he may have made, were he to have escaped persecution by his government and survived to continue contributing to society.  As the NY Times reports:

“When Mr. Turing was convicted in 1952, he was sentenced — as an alternative to prison — to chemical castration by a series of injections of female hormones. He also lost his security clearance because of the conviction. He committed suicide by eating an apple believed to have been laced with cyanide.”  He died on June 7, 1954.

Here is Turning’s natal chart:

Alan Turing, natal chart, Placidus houses

Uranus closely conjoins the Aquarius MC.  Uranus is also sextile Jupiter and trine the Gemini ASC.  These symbols represent his fascination with mathematics and computers as well as his brilliant innovative thinking.

Mars rules the Placidus 12th cusp and occupies the end-of-life 4th, a potential indicator of death by suicide or death involving a clandestine affair.  Mars is also semisquare his natal Sun, which rules the 4th house.

Using the Morinus software, I calculated the following primary directions with Placidus semi-arc and Ptolemy’s time key:

1952: around the time of the break-in
Jan 1, 1952: MC converse -> square Sun (arc 39.52) (zodiacal)
Jan 12, 1952: Square of Pluto converse -> Jupiter (zodiacal)
Jan 23, 1952: ASC direct -> square Mercury (date of burglary) (zodiacal)
Feb 20, 1952: Neptune converse -> sequisquare Saturn (mundane)
1954: just prior to his death
May 15, 1954: Square of Mars converse -> Sun (zodiacal)
May 22, 1954: Mars converse -> square of Neptune (mundane) (arc 41.91)
Death by suicide (poisoning): June 7, 1954

Lenormand tells the tale

I recently read an enjoyable book by James  Ricklef, which he entitled Tarot Tells the Tale.  In it the author presents a series of 3-card tarot readings for notable figures from history or literature.  His goals were to show the usefulness of 3-card spreads and to illustrate how he reads the cards.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in tarot.

Since I’ve been doing more with the Petit Lenormand recently, I decided to try this technique with the Lenormand cards.  The notable figure who came to mind at the moment was O.J. Simpson, so I drew three cards with the question in mind, “Help me to understand the relationship between O.J. and Nicole, his murdered ex-wife.  Here are the three cards which I drew randomly from the deck:

Bear – Whip – Dog from an antique Belgian deck.

The bear seems like an apt symbol for O.J. — a large, powerful, imposing figure around whom you need to tread carefully lest he go on the attack and maul you for irritating him.  The whips in the center does seem to characterize the relationship of O.J. and Nicole, which was marked according to the press by domestic strife.  The dog at the end is a bit puzzling.  Perhaps it shows Nicole’s loyalty to him, despite the abusive whips in the center of the spread, or possibly O.J.’s demand for absolute dog-like loyalty even from an ex-partner.  Then again, the dog sometimes shows a young male friend, so it could represent Ronald Goldman whose presence with Nicole may have spurred the bear’s whips into action.

Thanks to James Ricklef for his interesting approach to practicing with the cards.

Adam Lanza a year later

A year has passed since the mass killings by Adam Lanza in Newtown, CT.  The state of Connecticut has issued its summary 40-page report of the event.  Adam Lanza is described as a troubled young man who was obsessed with violent video games, guns, death, and mass killings, including the Columbine massacre.  The report says that Lanza used the same strategies to carry out his killings within the Sandy Hook school as he did in his video games.  He carefully planned the attack and tragically made his video games come to life by killing 20 children and 6 adults within the school before committing suicide at around 9:40 AM.  The first shots in the school were apparently heard around 9:34 AM.

As one might expect, the Connecticut Special Report on the shootings did not include any astrological input.  Let’s look at the chart of Adam Lanza.  His time of birth is unknown, so here is a Noon chart with solar sign houses:

Adam Lanza, Noon chart, solar sign houses, time unknown.

What immediately strikes me about this chart is the station of Uranus in Capricorn in close conjunction to Neptune.  Stationary planets are immensely important factors in natal charts.  Uranus has become an astrological symbol of modern technology, which includes automated killing, drones and videogames — all of which involve a certain lack of human empathy.  The movie Terminator II comes to mind in this regard.

In Lanza’s chart Uranus assumes even more significance because it is closely square Venus, which rules his natal Taurus Sun. In the Noon chart, the Capricorn Moon applies to the Uranus/Neptune conjunction and is within traditional orb of being part of that conjunction.

None of these planets is at home in Capricorn.  The Moon is in its detriment in the sign of the goat.  The astrological literature often describes the Capricorn Moon as “cold and calculating.”  Rebellious Uranus chafes against the structure of Capricorn, and nebulous Neptune is uncomfortable with the precise boundaries of the caprine sign.  One might expect an individual with this configuration to have difficulties with emotional expression.

The Uranus/Neptune conjunction closely squares Venus, the planet of affection and relationships.  Venus in Aries adds an aggressive tinge to personal ties and a strong desire for personal independence and lack of interference from others. Venus square Uranus suggests difficulties with commitment or long-term relationships.  Venus square Neptune adds an element of fantasy and unreality to relationships.  Solar Fire interprets the Venus/Neptune square as a native’s tendency to “blame others for their perceived lack of understanding.”

The debilitated Capricorn Moon squares the mental planet Mercury in aggressive Aries, suggesting a conflict between thoughts and feelings which is intensified by an quincunx from Jupiter in its detriment in Virgo.  Jupiter in Mercury-ruled Virgo is associated with obsessive preoccupation with a set of ideas.

At the time of the shootings (December 14, 2012) transiting Pluto, Moon and Mars were activating the natal Moon/Uranus/Neptune conjunction in Capricorn.  In addition, transiting Uranus was activating the natal Mercury/Jupiter quincunx from Aries to Virgo.  Here is Lanza’s natal chart with the December 14th chart superimposed:

Adam Lanza’s natal chart with 14 Dec 2012 9:34 a.m. chart superimposed.

A horary question

Recently in a horary astrology group, Jennie posted the following question which she asked in May of 2012: “Will I be able to renew my professional license in 2013?”  She added (in early December 2013): “In and of itself, it is a long story and I had honestly given up on this until last month when some unexpected circumstances brought the need for my license renewal back to the forefront suddenly.”

Today she wrote that she just learned that her license had been renewed.  The question was asked on May 13, 2012 at 8:09:01 PM in Wilmington, Delaware.  With her permission, let’s look at the chart:

Horary: able to renew license in 2013? Placidus Houses.

The Scorpio ASC rules the querent, whose significator is Mars.  The license is a 10th house career matter.  With Virgo on the MC, Mercury rules the quesited (whether the license can be renewed).

Mercury and Mars are in partile trine, suggesting a positive answer.  The Moon is about to oppose Mars and then immediately sextile Mercury, again establishing a connection between the significators.  Mercury receives Mars in his domicile, another positive factor.

If we consider midpoints (modulus 90), we find that ASC = MC/Part of Fortune = MC/Mars (since Mars conjoins MC).  This is another favorable indicator for a positive career event.