Venus in earth signs (Taurus, Capricorn, Virgo)

Earth is an element Venus is quite comfortable with. Earth has a lot to do with the body, which is undoubtedly one of Venus' favourite occupations. Earth loves incarnation and Venus is a deity that doesn't look down on material reality, unlike some other Gods who prefer the world of the Spirit.

Venus in Taurus =  Venus rules Taurus and according to various authors, this is her preferred sign. I am not sure I share the same view, but it cannot be denied that Taurus is a very hospitable place for Venus to be. The best thing (or, for some, the worst) thing about Taurus is that it loves the world of matter. Taurus doesn't view the body as a prison cell and doesn't waste any time trying to escape from it, but instead tries to get the most out of it. So, relationships for Taurus are like food. Yes, food is a necessity, but how wonderful that is! You can cook something delicious and get both nourishment and pleasure at the same time. In this way, Taurus kills two birds with one stone.

Venus in Taurus is not interested in relationships in the same way as Venus in Libra is. Venus in Taurus doesn't want to "relate", doesn't really want to find out what the other person is all about and she is not concetrated on creating a new separate entity called "the relationship". No, no, that's too much effort. It's what the body needs that counts. Does it want shelter and heat? Does it want food and sex? Then it must be done immediately. Who am I to question what my body dictates?

This can cause problems for an Aries Sun or even a Sun in Gemini, but for this Venus the body comes first. The body is like an infant that needs to be fed every time it cries, preferably even before it cries. No wonder the Moon is exalted in Taurus. 

Venus in Capricorn = OK, this Venus goes something like this: "Fine, I have a body and this body has needs. I can accept that. So, I have to find a partner because this is THE RULE. It's the done thing. It's not that I hate relationships, but a relationship has aspects that I do not particularly enjoy. Sometimes people invade too much on your privacy and want to break down your barriers, but I don't like that. I'd much rather we kept a safe distance. Still, not being in a relationship is even worse, because people may start to think that there's something seriously wrong with me. So, I MUST be in  a relationship so as to appear normal, preferably one that lasts for a long time, because I can't live with the constant stress and anxiety of finding a partner. It will also shut people up and I won't have them breathing down my neck, but will leave me well alone".

This Venus is often called a "marriage Venus", but this is not because she likes marriage per se, but because marriage saves you from being an outcast. The best thing about this Venus, however, is that it can help partners with emotional problems, as she can straigthen them out. When she feels in control, she can be very beneficial to others. After all, Venus is not an enemy of Saturn.

Venus in Virgo = Here we have problems. Venus is in fall in Virgo despite ruling the earth triplicity by day. Why is that? Virgo is a Mercury-ruled sign and it's all about logic, common sense and discretion. Which means that Virgo is in search of the factual truth and this search cannot be compromised, not even for love. Love, however, more often than not means allowing someone into our lives DESPITE their faults and weaknesses. Suddenly, something else, even for a short period of time, becomes more important than the truth. Venus in Virgo can't do that, however. When the truth stares her in the face, she can't turn her gaze away. She falls in love, but pretty soon reality creeps in and all the magic is gone. Therefore, she soon realizes that expecting anything more from love than passing pleasure is quite unreal. 

Even if she manages to live with that, there is still another problem. Love can bring chaos in someone's life. Suddenly everything gets disorganized and another person becomes your top priority. Love is a big disruption to our daily routine and Virgo just won't have that. This Venus placement often gives very chaste or very promiscuous people, but with a common denominator: avoidance of commitment. This stems however, not from a desire for freedom, but from a fear of disorder and from a natural dislike for fairytales.

Sylvester Stallone's son dies

This is Sylvester Stallone's natal chart.

Sylvester Stallone has had five kids, three girls from his current wife and two boys from his first wife. One son is autistic and the other one, Sage, died two days ago. Is there something in the natal chart that may indicate problems, difficulties or some unpleasantness regarding children? Yes, Venus, the ruler of the 5th house of children, is peregrine in Leo in the 8th house of death.

Now let's look at the progressions first. This is the secondary progressed chart.

We have progressed Mars in detriment conjunct the MC (an indication of general misfortune) and progressed Venus ( the children) in detriment in Scorpio conjunct the progressed 8th house cusp. These conjunctions are not exact and I'm tempted to rectify his chart and set an earlier birth time by just five minutes, which would make them exact. Still, his mother is an astrologer and this is the time she gave, so let's leave it at that.

Let's have a look at the solar arc progressed chart.

Natally, Stallone has a Uranus/North Node conjunction. This conjunction in the solar arc progressed chart is right on natal Venus, implying something sudden and unexpected (Uranus) and fated (North Node) regarding children (Venus) is on the cards.

The not relocated solar return chart.

This is very graphic. Venus (children) is angular conjunct Jupiter in detriment (ruler of the natal turned 8th house - 8th from the 5th - of the death of children) and also conjunct the South Node. The SR Ascendant is conjunct the natal 12th house cusp (the turned 8th) and the Sun is in the 8th house of death. Mars, the SR 12th house ruler, is in detriment and angular.

The lunar return chart.

The Moon is in the 5th house of children EXACTLY conjunct Saturn. The emphasis is on children for this month. Saturn is the lunar return's 8th house ruler. The Venus/Jupiter conjunction of the SR chart is in the 12th house, the turned 8th house (death of children). Mars is exactly on the 5th house cusp.The sign of Taurus, the natal 5th house sign, is on the cusp of the 12th house (death of children). Venus is co-ruler of the 5th house (the sign of Libra intercepted in the 5th) and it is located in the 12th house. In fact, Venus is both ruler of the 12th house and co-ruler of the 5th. 


Of all the above charts, it is the solar return chart that actually spells out the event, but if we didn't have any concurring testimonies from the other charts, perhaps nothing of the sort would have happened.

Federer and Regulus

When I first had a look at Federer’s solar return for this year, what impressed me was that his natal ascendant ruler (Mercury) was conjunct the SR Midheaven in Leo and they were both conjunct Regulus. In fact, Mercury was extremely close at 29o57΄ Leo. So, I thought, that's nice, this could be a year that he returns to the top after falling short to Nadal and Djokovic for the last two years.

However, it didn’t turn out to be so. The first grand slam after his birthday was the US Open, where he lost to Djokovic, after a dramatic semi-final. Then he had a great end of the season, but Federer always plays great indoors, so that was nothing extraordinary. The next grand slam was the Australian Open where he lost to Nadal in the semi-final. He continued to play great though, he won three ATP world tour titles, but still no grand slam, which I would expect from Regulus. Then came the French Open, which is a Nadal thing, so, again, no win there.

I thought that perhaps Regulus has moved into Virgo and the conjunction doesn’t count. Still, Mercury is very, very close. Perhaps all could be explained by Mercury being retrograde. Or perhaps by the SR Ascendant ruler (Mars) in the 8^th house and in fall. But Mars in Cancer is also his natal placement. Anyway, I gave up.

And then came Wimbledon. Before the start of the games, I read an article that said that Federer could regain his No 1 status on three conditions: Federer MUST win the title, Nadal has to lose before the quarter finals AND Djokovic shouldn’t reach the final. I thought, no way, that’s impossible.

Then Nadal lost in the second round by the No 100 in the world. I started to hope, because when Nadal is out, Federer always plays better, but there was still the Djokovic problem. Federer himself would have to beat Djokovic if they both reached the semi-finals. Surprisingly, he did! Federer played a great game and he was much better than Djokovic.

The only obstacle remaining was Murray at the final. Murray started better, won the first set and played better in the second, but, quite unexpectedly, Federer broke him in the last game of the second set and from then on he had the upper hand. Federer won and became World No 1 once again, just before this year’s solar return expires. How fitting. 

Cruise/Holmes divorce



We don't have a birth time for Cruise, so let's focus on Katie Holmes' chart. I've noticed something interesting. This is the chart.

Holmes' 7th house ruler (marriage, relationships) is Saturn on the cusp of the 2nd house. Her solar return chart for the current year (not relocated) has Neptune (dissolution) conjunct the 7th house cusp. What's even more interestong is that SR Mars is exactly on the natal Saturn placement!!! Mars is the traditional ruler of divorce and so we have the ruler of divorce on the ruler of marriage. Note that this is a mundane aspect that I'm talking about and not a regular one (although in this case, it is both).

Even more interesting is that this month's lunar return has the Moon again exactly on the 2nd house cusp, making a mundane conjunction with natal Saturn!!! So, we have a year that divorce is a possibility and a month that this possibility is most likely to materialize. And so it proved.



Robin and Maurice Gibb

Charts of twins (or of time twins) have always been a problem for astrology. Especially in our day and age that, due to the fact that caesarian sections have become very common, twins are very often born perhaps less than 4 minutes apart, the time required for a change of one zodiacal degree. It is one of the arguments people very often use to discredit astrology.

So what do we do wih these charts? Even fixed stars seem unable to solve the issue in many cases, if we allow a small orb. We don't get much help either from twins themselves, who insist (sometimes too much) that they are completely different. There have been some approaches suggested by various astrologers (for example, in a chart with a Moon/Saturn opposition one twin tends to play the part of the Moon and the other the part of Saturn), but the validity of these theories remains to be seen.

In the case of the Gibb brothers we have no such problems as they were born 35 minutes apart. (22 December 1949, Douglas, Isle of Man, 03:15 -Robin and 03:50 -Maurice). Maurice died on January 1st, 2003 and Robin died yesterday. Both brothers died of problems with the intestines. Virgo and the 6th house rule intestines in astrology and in their charts, the 6th house is in Aries and its ruler, Mars, is in Virgo. Mars in Virgo, in general, is also associated with the belly (and legs). The fact that this Mars is at the end of Virgo makes it even more dangerous (see Richard Saunders).

What's even more impressive, is that both brothers - although nine years apart - died at the exact astrological time, when secondary progressed Ascendant was at 12o Sagittarius and progressed MC was conjunct Neptune! We can make an argument out of the Neptune/MC conjunction (Neptune is against material reality), but still it's not very convincing as a stand-alone factor. Even in modern astrology, we would have preferred Pluto, for example, who, by the way is conjunct the natal MC of the two charts.

What about the progressed Ascendant degree? What's so special about it? It's still quite far from squaring Saturn and it sextiles natal Venus, Robin's 8th house ruler, but not Maurice's, whose 8th hosue ruler is Mercury. Even if that were the case, a simple sextile isn't much of a testimony.

The interesting thing about that degree is that it's the degree of the Nodes. The natal Nodes are on the Aries/Libra axis and there's a theory that says that the degree of the Nodes is generally critical/important in all of the signs.  I haven't tested this theory and I cannot vouch for its validity. The twins' progressed Ascendant trines/sextiles the natal nodal axis.Wouldn't a conjunction be preferable? Probably.

Still, it's pretty impressive isn't it? The "coincidence" of it!

Venus in Gemini, Libra, Aquarius - the air signs

Venus is not averse to air. The element of air contains moisture - hence a desire and an ability to connect - and the goddess of love is all about connection, bringing people or things together. Venus is not in detriment or fall in any of the air signs, but, in fact, rules one of them, the sign of Libra. So, is this not a bad Venus to have? It depends on what your views are about love.

Venus in Libra: This is what relationships are, at least that's what astrology tells us they are. I know many of you don't like it, but this it. Suck it up. A relationship has nothing to do with passionate love either of the firey excitement kind or the watery emotional kind. A relationship is about two people who are attracted to each other and decide to sit down and talk about their separate needs and wants, trying to meet halfway. Excitement quickly passes and so does grand passion, which leaves you no option but to walk out on the other person when all this is spent. No, Venus in Libra doesn't want that. "Can I make a relationship last?" That's what she asks herself. "Why should I go from person to person having the same result every time?" Excitement doesn't work, neither does passion. What does work? Rules. Libra is the sign where Saturn is exalted and loves the laying-down of rules, which, if respected, can make sure a relationship lasts. And the two most fundamental rules of all are communication and compromise, because this means that you love the other person enough to want to know how they feel and to be willing to make some sacrifices for their sake. Passionate love is very self-centred and equals ignorance, because you are not really in love with the other person, but instead you are in love with how they make you feel. According to Venus in Libra, that's not love.

Venus is Aquarius: Here communication and compromise take precedence while attraction is not that important. In Aquarius, Venus becomes much more impersonal. Both Libra and Aquarius have a problem with the Sun. The Sun is in fall in Libra and in detriment in Aquarius. So there are no "special people" for these two signs. However, Libra is ruled by Venus and at least Venus there says "You may not be someone special, but I"m attracted to you specifically", Venus in Aquarius can't say even that. The problem with this Venus is that for quite a lot of people love requires a consious choice of another human being and this is very rarely the case with Venus in Aquarius. It may be objective in a sense (What's so special about any of us, after all?), but when you get involved with this Venus, after a while you start resenting the fact that you are just "any other person" and that you don't seem to be high on your loved one's list of preferences. If he/she has one, that is. The problem quite often is that other people feel duped. Venus in Aquarius wants to connect (Aquarius is a moist sign) and it's a fixed sign, which means that she's not against lasting relationships. So, there is indeed a willigness to form relationships. Still, this very annoying air of detachment that this Venus carries, make other people wonder: "What the hell do you want a relationship for?"  

Venus in Gemini: Of the three airy Venuses, this is perhaps the most problematic. Venus can become friends with Saturn, but not so with Mercury, Gemini's ruler. It's a "better" Venus than the one in Virgo, where Mercury is particularly strong, but still, she doesn't feel at ease in Gemini. Gemini is about communication, but without the rules. Mercury is famous for his lack of morality, which is a valuable asset when it comes to knowledge (there is no right or wrong in knowledge and everything should be accessible to everyone), but in relationships this can be a problem, because there is no sense of commitment. Venus in Gemini is curious about love. Not in the same way as Venus in Sagittarius wants to experience love (as part of a greater scheme of things), but knowledge for knowledge's sake. Gemini is famous for wanting to learn as many things as possible, but doesn't want to do anything with them afterwards. Unlike Virgo, Gemini doesn't want quality, but quantity. So, Venus in Gemini often finds it difficult to stay faithful, because there are so many other people out there! Which also means that she 's not interested in learning everything there is to know about the other person. Knowing something in depth requires so much time and effort that Geminis prefer to spend it somewhere new.

Whitney Houston dies at 48

What an amazing talent. What a powerful voice. Many singers tried to emulate her, but to no avail. The original was infinitely better. The Moon/Jupiter conjunction in Aries close to the 2nd house cusp and trine the Sun in Leo were responsible for those immensely powerful vocals that gave you chills. Saturn, however, was waiting round the corner.

Whitney had a very powerful opposition between the Sun in Leo and Saturn in Aquarius, a battle between two giants, as Robert Hand describes it. The opposition was mutually applying as Saturn was retrograde. At the moment of death, the opposition had become partile and very close to exact, meaning that there was heavy pressure on her Sun and had she escaped death, the pressure would still have been there for some time to come. The Sun's conjunction with Venus, the 8th house ruler, was also something to worry about.

Saturn was of course transiting her 8th house in Libra, but this doesn't say much by itself. Her Solar Return chart however, had Libra on the Ascendant, her 8th house sign, and Saturn naturally, was conjunct the Libra Ascendant. The Sun was also closely conjunct Venus, repeating the natal pattern and with Taurus on the 8th house cusp, Venus was both ruler of the Ascendant and the 8th house, linking the body with death. Not to mention the natal Ascendant ruler, Jupiter, conjunct the SR 8th house cusp.

The Lunar Return of this month repeated the Solar Return pattern. Libra on the Ascendant and Saturn, of course, conjunct the Ascendant. This was too much Saturn and combined with the progressed Sun/Saturn opposition, it proved too much for her to handle.

Saturn may have succeeded in eclipsing Whitney's light, but he was unable to prevent it from shining while she was alive. As long as videos like the one below are available, Whitney will always emerge as the winner.

Out of sign aspects

Do they count? Some say they do, others say they don't. Those who say they don't (myself included) view the beginning and end of the sign as boundaries, which means that you cannot have a conjunction between planets located in adjacent signs, no matter how close they are. Or a trine between planets that are in signs which belong in a different triplicity. That is because, if we accept the opposite, then it totally cancels out the essential meaning of a conjunction, a trine etc. How can there be a conjunction between the Moon in Sagittarius and Jupiter in Capricorn for example, when these two planets want two completely different things?

The ones who say they do count, claim that if the aspect is within orb, then it is an aspect, only less effective. The problem, however, of the two planets wanting two different things, remains. If you want to stick to this theory, then you must also be of the opinion that signs don't act as boundaries and that the end and the beginning of each sign is a fuzzy area that comprises characteristics of two signs. The Moon, therefore, is NOT in Sagittarius and Jupiter is NOT in Capricorn, but instead they are located in this fuzzy area that is both Sagittarius AND Capricorn to a certain extent. Only then would a conjunction be possible. You can't keep the boundaries theory and at the same time speak of a conjunction. That is impossible.

2012 and beyond

A lot is being said about the 21^st of December 2012 and astrologers around the world are busy delineating the chart of that particular date. Others are saying that nothing extremely out of the ordinary is going on, while others are paying special attention to the yod aspect formed by Saturn in Scorpio, Pluto in Capricorn and Jupiter in Gemini. The truth is that no one can say that indeed something extremely rare is about to happen, because difficult planetary configurations happen all the time and the world is still here.

First of all, is the yod really an aspect? For those of you who are not familiar with the non – ptolemaic aspects, the yod is formed by two planets who are in a sextile aspect (Pluto in Capricorn, Saturn in Scorpio) and both of them are in a quincunx aspect (150o degrees) to a third planet, in this case Jupiter in Gemini. A lot has been said about the yod, but as is often the case with modern astrology, nothing has been said that can’t be interpreted the way each astrologer sees fit. To my mind, the important thing about yods, quincunxes and semi-sextiles is precisely the fact that there is no aspect. The norm is for the planets to be in aspect by sign to one another. For the Sun of course, it is quite common to be in inconjunct signs with Mercury and Venus, but we could say that the common thing is for planets to exert an influence, however slight, to every other planet in the chart.

The quincunx aspect is not rare, but yods are less common. The planet that forms the quincunx aspects has no relation with TWO other planets in the chart, regardless of the orb and taking antiscia into account. Is that a good or a bad thing? On the whole, I would say that it is preferable for planets to be in aspect - at least by sign – with each other, because confrontation brings awareness, despite the difficulties. It is debatable however, whether a planet would benefit from a confrontation with another planet in a very poor state. In the 2012 chart, Jupiter is in the sign of its detriment and retrograde. That is a nasty Jupiter and probably not a lot of fun to be around with. So, it won’t probably be able to soften the Saturn/Pluto sextile and perhaps it’s for the better.

What is also interesting in this chart is that there’s a mutual reception, not between Pluto and Saturn as modern astrologers tell us, but between Mars and Saturn, since Mars is also in Capricorn. We have, therefore, the two traditional malefics liking each other enormously and Pluto is there, joining in the fun. What’s even more interesting, is that this is a very “martial”chart. Mars himself is exalted in Capricorn, Saturn is in a Mars-ruled sign, Pluto and the Sun (winter solstice) are in the sign of Mars’ exaltation and finally the Moon and Uranus are also in a Mars-ruled sign, Aries. This is too much Mars and we all know the things Mars is associated with.

Now, is Mars a benefic or a malefic? There is a slight difference of opinion in traditional astrologers about this, mainly because there is ambivalence in the ancient texts. There are those who say that any planet can be either benefic or malefic, depending on the sign it is in. If the planet is in the sign it rules or where it is exalted, it is a benefic. In the sign of its detriment or fall, a malefic. Others, although they basically agree with the previous statement, make a distinction between Mars and Saturn, the natural malefics and the other planets, saying that a well-dignified Mars or Saturn may indeed behave well, but the things Mars and Saturn rule, even though necessary, are naturally unpleasant. So, no matter what their condition is, Mars and Saturn can never be called Fortunes.

In the 2012 chart, we have an extremely  strong Mars energy and we have a well-behaved Mars, in the sign of its exaltation. We could interpret this as things that need to be done and are necessary (Mars in exaltation), but they may not be pleasant (Mars and Saturn, the natural malefics, in mutual reception). This is not valid only for that particular day, but for the whole season, since it is the day of the winter solstice.

The most interesting thing, however, that has been said about the time period around 2012 is, I think, not what this chart for that particular date tells us, but the fact that we are living at a time that Regulus, one of the four royal fixed stars that are associated with the solstices, has or is about to move into Virgo. This is the last of the four “solstice stars” to ingress into a mutable sign, with the other three stars (Fomalhaut, Aldebaran and Antares) already being in the other three mutable signs. This means that after a very long time, all four stars are going to be in signs of the same quality. This, indeed, does imply change. Is it going to be a change for better or for worse? Frawley, in particular, is quite pessimistic about this change, saying that gradually spirituality is going to hit an all-time-low, judging from what happened when Fomalhaut, for example, moved into Pisces, which was at the time of the Enlightenment. We are now living in the Age of Reason, which, for Frawley is not enlightenment at all, but exactly the opposite thing. So, with Regulus moving into Virgo, we are going to move even further away from spirituality, marking an “End of Days” kind of situation according to the Christian tradition. Even if somebody is not quite as pessimistic as Frawley about this, one cannot escape the fact, that the mutable signs are about closing circles and returning to the Source, so, when the four solstice stars move again into cardinal signs, in 2160 years or thereabouts, there is going to be a “get rid of the old and start afresh” kind of thing. We won’t be around to witness that, but for the time being we could stay alert for signs of spiritual degradation.