Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Death of a Star: Elizabeth Taylor

I woke up this morning to the sad news that Elizabeth Taylor, one of the last of the great old-time Hollywood stars had died. It truly is the end of an era befitting of Uranus entering Aries the sign of new beginnings after having been in Pisces (Taylor’s Sun sign) the sign of endings.

We all know planets don’t kill people yet it is fascinating to track the energy surrounding death as represented by transits and progressions. Famous people encapsulate entire generations and we project so much on to them. Let’s see what was going on with Elizabeth Taylor.

While the most common chart used for her is Sag rising, I prefer the Libra rising chart as taught to me by John Marchesella. I think it works better and John is usually right. Someone else can use the Sag rising chart for further exploration.

Birth Information: February 27, 1932, 7:56 pm, London, England.
Ascendant: 3° 43’ Libra.
MidHeaven: 4° 50’ Cancer

Transits
She died on the Saturn-Jupiter opposition in Aries/Libra. Saturn in the first house indicates endings to her physical body and Jupiter in the 7th representing a long journey. Saturn is in an approaching semi-square to her natal moon in Scorpio while Jupiter is in a separating sesquisquare. Jupiter today is triggering the SE from 1/4/11 of 13.39 Capricorn which took place in Taylor’s natal 4th house conjunct her part of fortune and semi-square the moon. Was there something fortunate about this death? Perhaps an easy passing from the womb to the tomb which is a term applied to the 4th house. Both transiting planets are in aspect to natal Venus, her chart ruler, (Saturn opposes and Jupiter conjuncts) again indicating an ending and a long journey pertaining to her physical body.

As mentioned earlier, Uranus is on the world axis at 0° Aries, the birth sign of her natal Uranus and sesquisquare Jupiter.

Neptune and Chiron are conjunct Mars (ruler of the 8th house of death), just zapping all energy, vitality and life out of her.

Pluto is at the IC closely opposing progressed Venus.

The natal nodal axis in health houses and signs at 27° Virgo/Pisces (she had chronic bad health all her life) were in 2° orb to the Lunar Eclipse of 12/21/10 at 29.20 Gemini. That eclipse degree having just been triggered by transiting Sun.

And while I don’t put much stock in the transiting moon it is interesting to note that on the day of death she transits in the deadly sign of Scorpio, Taylor’s natal moon position.

Progressions:
Moon has recently come over the Ascendant, a time of endings and beginnings.

Progressed Sun opposes Moon. This could be a letting go of old habits and ways of living in order to accept new opportunities

The progressed ascendant is 28.28 Scorpio; two degrees past the natal moon. This may be a good indication to rectify the birth to a slightly earlier time.

Venus trines the Sun – a rather pleasant, and loving progression to be found in a death. She was after all surrounded by all her children

Mercury (co-ruler of the 9th house of long journeys) in the 8th squaring Saturn.

And most telling of all, Progressed Neptune, ruler of her Pisces planets, the north node and the 6th house of health turned direct on November 6, 2010. A change in direction for the ultimate connection to the eternal and mystical One from which we all come from.

On a personal note today is Joan Crawford’s birthday. Two of the greatest stars to ever come out of the Hollywood firmament are now forever linked in birth and death to March 23rd. MGM once boasted that it had “More Stars than there are in Heaven”. Well, that is certainly true now.

Joseph Addeo
http://www.josephaddeo.com/

Friday, March 4, 2011

THE SHINE ON SHEEN

Charlie’s Solar Arcs

by John Marchesella

In the last few drops of Uranus in Pisces, Charlie Sheen is having his own personal mid-East revolution. And truth be told, who’s not?

A quick glance at his chart shows the media blitz on his crisis as Bad Boy as well as the wannabee Good Father as represented by the most recent Lunar Eclipse on his Jupiter in Gemini and the transiting square from Uranus. That makes for an awful lot of press coverage!

Progressed Mercury, all-important as the ruler of his natal chart as well as the media god, is leaving the conjunction with warring Mars! Progressed Mars and Venus are leaving the square to the natal Sun too. All of these significators in addition to his natal Gemini Ascendant explain the duality of the crisis at work and in love.

Although these indications are certainly potent enough to symbolize his predicament, they don’t seem so potent as to indicate such a relentless stir of drama. So, where might the culprit be? The oft-overlooked 45 degree Solar Arc, which turns every natal position into a hard aspect, making for a tremendous release of energy and creating THE turning point in each individual life. Or, as Bill Clinton said, “The moment when I realized I had more yesterday’s than tomorrow’s.”

It’s a sure-shot tool for accurate forecasting and it’s one that happens for each of us in our mid-40’s, making for the peak experience in the mid-life crisis, amidst the swirl of so many other generational transits and progressions.

The first rule of predictive astrology, however, is to understand the natal potential. And as for Sheen’s natal potential for addiction problems and this life crisis, well, pick something: Saturn in Pisces as the handle of a bucket chart, (plus it is the only retrograde planet which gives it more singled-out attention), the Sun’s configuration with Saturn, Uranus and Pluto has it serve as a sort of channel for such powerful forces, Mars in Scorpio widely conjoined with Neptune, the Moon on the 8th house cusp and its placement in the indulgent Sagittarius and opposite the excessive Jupiter.

The 45-degree Solar Arc is also cyclical, related to the Solar Arc of 22.5. So, if we did some research on Sheen, we might see in his early 20’s the seed planted for his current situation, which, in turn, is the preview for events of his mid-60’s. But that’s a research project for another day.

Birth data: Charlie Sheen, September 3, 1965, 10:48 PM EDT, New York, NY

John Marchesella can be reached via his website, www.astrojohn.com