Midweek Music ~ Vale Scott Walker !

I felt sad when I read about the recent death of Scott Walker. I pulled out my post, from 2010, about him, and his astrology:

https://twilightstarsong.blogspot.com/2010/11/music-monday-scott-walker-jacques-brel.html

Interesting to note, from his natal chart in that post, that transiting Pluto had been conjunct his natal Capricorn Sun in recent months, and is still only a few degrees away from it. Pluto transits pack a punch! Perhaps more on that topic tomorrow.

Pluto in Capricorn In Earlier Eras - What Happened Then?

A decade ago, or more, astrologer Neil Giles wrote a two-part article on Pluto and its then imminent entry into Capricorn.
https://www.astrologycom.com/plutocapricorn1.html

https://www.astrologycom.com/plutocapricorn2.html

On Jan 26th 2008, a new measure begins here with life on earth as Pluto, lord of the underworld returns to the sign of Capricorn for the first time since 1778. Looming at the outer reaches of our solar system lies Pluto, dark and mysterious.....

Some excerpts from the article follow, relating to a few of Pluto's earlier transits through Capricorn. These are worth a look, now that we are have experienced a good deal of the current transit - we are in a position to compare - or contrast. It has to be borne in mind, though, that the position of other outer planets, in each era, will have varied greatly, and will have "coloured" things slightly - or even vastly - differently with each transit.

The whole of Mr Giles' 2-part piece is an excellent read - do go take a look!

Excerpts

The coming cycle of Pluto in Capricorn is the ninth since the beginning of the modern era and the years AD. The first of those came in 42 AD as the unlikely figure of Claudius came out of the shadows of a speech defect and a seeming intellectual handicap to transform from the least capable contender in the dynasty of the Caesars into the Emperor of Rome.

Claudius proved an able administrator and ruler as he reformed the Senate, restored Roman social order, expanded the boundaries of the Empire, especially with the conquest of Britain, and embarked on a major program of public works. The hidden power in Claudius was revealed through this test of elevation to authority and so the Empire flourished under his guiding hand. In the years ahead of us now, those who've had to wait their turn may come to power late in life and find accomplishment, as the dark lord hovers in the sign of age, delays and time's measure.

An even clearer illustration comes with Pluto's next entry into Capricorn in 287 AD when Diocletian ruled in Rome. This vigorous, practical soldier rose through the ranks to become a general and was, on the assassination of his predecessor, elected by troops on the battlefield to take the office of Imperator. He fought his way across the empire, subduing rebellious tribes and reuniting a divided realm till there was a stability not known for fifty years. He re-established the tradition of divinity for the head of state and named himself Dominus et Deus.

He solved the dilemma of succession and, recognizing that the Empire was now too large to be governed by one man, divided it on the line of East and West, also dividing the rulership among the four members of a Tetrarchy, two senior emperors (of which he was one) and two junior emperors. This began what is now called the second phase of the Roman Empire and, by 395, on the foundation of these reforms, the Empire was permanently partitioned, writing a new chapter its history.

It was in 532 AD that Pluto entered Capricorn again. His journey was grim and marked with the suffering, restriction and blight to which the sign of the Goat will sometimes condemn us. 536 AD saw the Mediterranean freezing under a cloud of dust, born in a volcanic eruption in the Southern Hemisphere that brought a nuclear winter to the North. Wars and political instability set their mark on Europe and the East as they foundered in the changing tides of aggression and ill-fated campaigns. Buddhism found the Japanese, Christianity found the Welsh, the Toltecs found the Yucatan Peninsula and plague ravaged Europe, shutting down agricultural activity, causing widespread food shortages and reaching all the way to England. Ironically, in 549 AD, Rome was in the hands of the Ostrogoths and the last ever games were held, these cruel and savage spectacles ended by a people the Romans called barbaric.

It is wise to realize that Capricorn is the sign of midwinter [northern hemisphere, of course – ed.]. If we have had a fruitful summer then our winter stores will see us through in comfort. However, if we have wasted our resources or been tested by harsh conditions, we may find ourselves living a life ruled by necessity. Under Pluto in Capricorn, we may pass through the midwinter test and there will be rules and regulations to order our lives in accordance with requirement or restriction. Prevailing conditions may test us where food supplies and simple domestic resources are concerned. Whatever name we like to give to the current instability in our climate, Pluto in the sign of the Goat will create conditions we will have to live with. With Pluto entering Capricorn as Saturn is retrograde in Virgo, the sign of health and work, ill-health or difficulties with employment that affect us at a mass level may alter the structure and order of our social operations.

1762 brought Pluto to Capricorn for the dark lord's last journey there. It was then that a disparate band of colonists in the New World broke with the Mother Country, England, over issues of taxation, over-regulation and colonial control. The American Congress sat, fought a war against imperialism, issued a declaration of rights and laid the foundations for the birth of the American Republic. Now, more than ever as Pluto returns to its natal place in the chart of the USA, it will be timely to examine the path by which a revolutionary democracy became a global superpower that has left footprints and spent shells in so many foreign lands.

After some general predictions for the current Pluto in Capricorn era :

In such a pressure-cooker as this coming cycle, it may eventually occur to us as a species that we cannot continue trying to solve our problems with a bullying thrust of violent intervention. Just as we will have to look to alternative energy sources, we must also realize that we cannot keep building roads to the future by blowing up everything that gets in the way of our intended path. Obstacles to our desires are there to teach us, not frustrate us. It is time we learned that salutary lesson from Pluto. The sign of Capricorn teaches the proper sense of organization and responsibility required for effective social contribution. With Pluto in Capricorn in the coming era, the imperative is to learn how to make one, how to put aside the power-mongering and the drama and do something that works. The destiny that is written in the stars is also in our hands.

Pluto 's trip through Capricorn - how's it going?

Pluto slowly nears mid-sign Capricorn (it'll be around a year before Pluto reaches 15 degrees). I decided to re-read a 2-part piece by astrologer and historian Neil Giles, written some eight years ago, with Pluto about to enter Capricorn from Sagittarius.



Pluto in Capricorn - another kind of power

SNIP

Powerful, hidden forces are the gift of this unseen and distant planet, elected by some in modern astrology to be the true ruler of Scorpio though tradition still accords that role to Warrior Mars. Pluto rules obsessions, driven behaviour, the subconscious and our deepest urges and desires. He is a god of hidden forces, of the depths where they gather and of their ruthless, irresistible or uncontrollable eruptions. He works secretly or for reasons concealed or unknown, sometimes even to himself. It's important to remember our discovery of Pluto marked the rise of Fascism and the Third Reich, and oversaw the experiments that created The Bomb. As Pluto's looming presence was detected, we split the atom, releasing its hidden forces, but we also discovered something about the makers of the bomb – ourselves. We discovered a shadow force in our nature that aspired to wield an ungovernable power, thus risking extinction by our own hand. From Hiroshima to the Cold War to the threat of nuclear holocaust, Pluto forced us to face a bomb inside us, one waiting to explode and unleash our hidden feelings or desires as we stood at the brink of global catastrophe, wondering if we could survive the war that no one might win.

Pluto is remorseless in his search to know where the limits lie and what the inner forces will do. He will persist in this until he knows what can be overcome and what cannot...... With this ruthless investigator at work, there will always be a death of the old, a transformation and a rebirth for Pluto is the god of elimination and regeneration, teaching us that all things that live must die and all things that die will live again.

Pluto, marker of generations, had spent the past thirteen years in Fire sign Sagittarius. Pluto's ingress into Capricorn marked its transition from Fire to Earth. The author's assessment of Pluto's journeys through Capricorn, in history, remain interesting, but I wondered how his predictions for 2008 onward have turned out, so far.
SNIP

There will be powerful or dramatic events affecting travel, communication, transport and electric supply. Incidents with firearms and explosives will become increasingly prevalent. The volcano, the eruption, the fated event and the clash of arms and opposing ideas will walk with us until we can learn to communicate and function in such a way as to solve the problems of the abuse of power and refrain from the constant usage of abusive powers. With our 'dig it up', 'knock it down' and 'shoot it' mentality, we have treated every species, including ourselves and the Earth as an enemy to be beaten, an opponent to be overcome.

In such a pressure-cooker as this coming cycle, it may eventually occur to us as a species that we cannot continue trying to solve our problems with a bullying thrust of violent intervention. Just as we will have to look to alternative energy sources, we must also realize that we cannot keep building roads to the future by blowing up everything that gets in the way of our intended path. Obstacles to our desires are there to teach us, not frustrate us. It is time we learned that salutary lesson from Pluto. The sign of Capricorn teaches the proper sense of organization and responsibility required for effective social contribution. With Pluto in Capricorn in the coming era, the imperative is to learn how to make one, how to put aside the power-mongering and the drama and do something that works. The destiny that is written in the stars is also in our hands.

Let's see... "powerful or dramatic events affecting travel, communication, transport and electric supply. Incidents with firearms and explosives will become increasingly prevalent"?

Travel: a still lost huge plane (MH370) carrying hundreds of passengers, and another plane from the same airline shot down with all passengers lost not long afterwards. Those were, and still are dramatic events concerning travel. There have been others too, but I guess there have always been some such happenings, during any given time span, so not too convincing as being in any way representative of Pluto in Capricorn.

Drama in communication: the rise and rise of social networking and constantly updated smartphones! Dramatic, and potentially powerful! Yes, tick that box. One factor I see also as especially Plutonian is the implementation of Big Brother-like surveillance of our extended communication abilities.

Transport - see travel, I guess.

Electric supply: perhaps the ongoing spread of wind turbines and solar energy in the last few years fits this heading.

Incidents with firearms and explosives increasingly prevalent. Yes indeed! The bombing at the Boston Marathon, numerous mass shootings in schools, colleges, theatres...need I go on?

Opposing ideas: these have been with us always, so I don't see them as particularly in the realm of Pluto in Capricorn, though it's true enough that, in the USA especially, the divide of 1% vs the Rest of Us has become more sharply defined than before, first due to OWS activities a few years ago, then the current surge of support for Bernie Sanders' in the 2016 presidential campaign. Ever more right-wing stances by the opposing party, as time has gone on, add to the sharpness of this divide.

We can only hope that the second half of Pluto's journey through Capricorn will teach us the important lessons this author hoped for. We have been rather poor students thus far.

While on this topic I may as well add brief clips of other predictions from noted astrologers, culled from my archived posts from 2007:

Eric Francis :

"Pluto in Capricorn is, among other things, about massive changes to the structure of society. It is about the consolidation of corporate and government power to a degree that far exceeds anything we have seen so far."

Tick that box!

A period of some 12 to 14 years is involved in this transit of Pluto and Eric Meyers' interpretation could well form a stage two, to commence when other outer planets have moved on into new positions:

"When Pluto moves to the earth sign of Capricorn, our structures and institutions are bound to face upheaval and drastic change that will reflect the shifting spiritual and moral processes that are currently occurring while Pluto is in Sagittarius.

Leagues of people will be challenged to release attachments to paradigms and structures they thought were stable and enduring. Changes in government, education systems, infrastructure, organized religions and the general sociological organization of society could endure needed face lifts in order for our collective evolution to take its next step."

All kinds of scenarios could finally bring about a swing from corporate and government clamp downs of stage one, to the kind of collective evolution described by Eric Meyers. I may not be here to see Pluto move from Capricorn into Aquarius, but do hope to see some indication of how things are turning out before my final exit!

I liked Maya del Mar's attitude - she wrote:

"We are, in fact, fortunate to live in such an intense period of tremendous challenges, and tremendous opportunities. This is our chance to create a new and better world."

More Pluto in Capricorn & Dr Lee Lehman's Wise Words

Back in 2010 I ran a short series under the heading Astrologers' Words of Wisdom. The second of these featured a quote from astrologer Lee Lehman, that post is HERE. I came upon it by chance while searching for something else, decided to take a look at Dr. Lehman's website. I tootled through her archive. A very busy lady she is, as set out in her profile. Her posting to the blog has been fairly infrequent, but of high quality.

Dr. Lehman would not approve of my version of astrology, it'd be something akin to a high class concert pianist looking at someone bashing out a popular tune, by ear, on a creaky upright piano with a few keys missing and in need of a good tuning! That doesn't prevent a creaky piano-playing amateur from appreciating true quality when they encounter it though.

I sampled three or four of Dr. Lehman's archived posts, noticed one on the topic of Pluto in Capricorn. We had a brief discussion here on that topic on Tuesday, with added observations about another astrologer and his predictions: Michael Lutin, including his natal chart (or lack of its availability). Dr Lehman's natal chart is up for all to ponder upon at Astro.com. It bears at least one similarity, apart from year of birth, to that suspected to be Michael Lutin's - Virgo Sun, but also with Moon and Mercury in Virgo in her case, and Leo rising.

Dr. Lehman's post titled Hope in the Time of Pluto in Capricorn, is a transcript of a talk she gave at NORWAC (Northwest Astrological Conference ) in 2009. It's a lengthy piece, all interesting. It ends with emphasis on two factors, factors which no other astrologer I've read lately has mentioned:
(a) the fact that what will come after Pluto's Capricorn transit, Pluto in Aquarius, might not be as benign as some modern interpretations of Aquarius would lead us to believe. Aquarius is one of the Fixed signs; being fixed it isn't as open to fundamental change as are Cardinal and Mutable signs. "In the fixed signs, the Old Order strikes back – or at least tries to." said Dr. Lehman after a quick look at some historical evidence. Therefore it would be better for solutions to be found and implimented during Pluto's transit through Capricorn, a Cardinal sign.

And (b) over-population of the planet.
Snips:

What this means is: there is no solution to poverty except population reduction. There is no solution to development except population reduction. And sustainability is a complete joke unless it is coupled to population reduction. Reduction. Limitation. Sound like Pluto in Capricorn?...............
Have you heard President Obama talk about overpopulation when he mentions sustainability? He's danced around this topic one or twice. Have you heard any talk about changing our tax system to stop rewarding large families?.........
Can we develop the will to face the limitations that Pluto in Capricorn will demonstrate for us? I don’t know – but I can guarantee that it won’t happen until we provoke the societal discussion beyond the baby steps of sustainability we have managed to achieve by now. We must bring population to the heart of the discussion – or everything else, as we say, is academic.
.....But if the problems are dire, that doesn't mean there's no hope. It's just that we must create a vision of a different future than I'm describing.

"Which is the greater danger - nuclear warfare or the population explosion? The latter absolutely! To bring about nuclear war, someone has to DO something; someone has to press a button. To bring about destruction by overcrowding, mass starvation, anarchy, the destruction of our most cherished values-there is no need to do anything. We need only do nothing except what comes naturally - and breed. And how easy it is to do nothing."
~ Isaac Asimov

PLUTO

In a survey of historical events on this day, 18 February, through the years is listed:

"1930 - US astronomer Clyde Tombaugh discovers Pluto."

The anniversary of the day Pluto first entered our consciousness is a good day for a few Pluto-related thoughts.

Pluto, small and far away as it is, is thought to have a transformative influence on "the collective", as it transits the signs. Effects are seen most clearly and accurately in hindsight. Pluto's transit is slow, 248 years to complete a circuit of the zodiac.

Back in 2008 Pluto entered Capricorn, to transit that sign until 2024 - 16 years. We're not quite halfway through that transit yet, still fairly deep into the first half. What were astrologers predicting for this Pluto in Capricorn period as the transit began? I dug out an archived post from December 2007 and found I'd quoted a couple of astrologers, this is what they had to say.

Snips from predictions by astrologers Eric Francis and Eric Meyers in late 2007:

Eric Francis: :
"Pluto in Capricorn is, among other things, about massive changes to the structure of society. It is about the consolidation of corporate and government power to a degree that far exceeds anything we have seen so far."

(Me):Yes, we can see that coming, in the USA, even now, just before Pluto has reached its new abode in Capricorn. This scenario could continue, and intensify, for a variety of reasons, and would form stage one.
Eric Meyers' interpretation could well form stage two. Other outer planets will have moved on into new positions. (The link I had to the article from which the following quote was taken is now defunct.) Eric Meyers' website is HERE though.

"When Pluto moves to the earth sign of Capricorn, our structures and institutions are bound to face upheaval and drastic change that will reflect the shifting spiritual and moral processes that are currently occurring while Pluto is in Sagittarius.

Leagues of people will be challenged to release attachments to paradigms and structures they thought were stable and enduring. Changes in government, education systems, infrastructure, organized religions and the general sociological organization of society could endure needed face lifts in order for our collective evolution to take its next step."

(Me): Several scenarios could bring about a swing from the corporate and government clamp down of stage one, to the kind of collective evolution described by Eric Meyers. What is certain, is that by the end of Pluto's journey through Capricorn the world will have changed, just as it had changed after Pluto moved from Scorpio to Sagittarius in 1996.

Eric Francis couldn't have been more accurate could he? The next couple of years will likely see still more of the same. Phase two, from around 2016, ought to bring in something different, but only gradually. Let us hope so, and hope it will be different in some way beneficial to the planet and all of its peoples!

Inspecting a large oil painting up close, one sees nothing but wild brush strokes, a jumble of colours. Stand well back, very well back, a clear picture emerges. Astrology in life is like that too. Not many of us want to believe it though. We keep hoping to see prompt results for planetary transits. Pluto's brush strokes haven't formed a fully discernible picture yet.

Eclipse and Saturn in Scorpio, Pluto in Capricorn, MIC - Hmmmm!

I'm not convinced eclipses are always as significant as astrologers seem to believe, especially in personal astrology. As I've written before (click on eclipse and/or eclipses in the Label Cloud in the sidebar for evidence), I could be wrong, and stand open to correction. Mundane astrology, the application of astrology to world affairs and world events, is a different matter. I'm not an astrologer proper, I dabble, and have my own views about the whole caboodle, which don't always align with text book and establishment astrology.

Yesterday's solar eclipse took place in the sign of Scorpio where planet Saturn is currently transiting, so at the very least extra emphasis on all things Scorpio related could be expected to feature clearly in mundane matters around this time. We don't have far to seek to find some! Scorpio is said to connect to passion and secrets, among other things.

Pluto, powerful slow-moving planet of power and transformation, known to clear out and cleanse all that's rotting or past its usefulness, is currently transiting Capricorn the sign with connection to the establishment and to institutions of all kinds.

A string of incidents over the past month or so, all connected to one of the USA's most powerful institutions, the Military Industrial Complex, could clearly be reflections of Pluto in Capricorn aided and abetted by Saturn and an eclipse in Scorpio.

Several high-ranking characters from the MIC have "bitten the dust" during the past few weeks - or may be about to fall:

General David Petraeus, CIA head, former 4 star - extra-marital affair.
Rear Admiral Gaouette, commander of an aircraft carrier task force in Persian Gulf - drunk in public.
General Carter Ham, commander of Africom - relieved of duty after not following order to "stand down" regarding Benghazi.
General John Allen, commander of all US and NATO forces in Afghanistan-caught up in Petraeus' scandal, not yet gone but could be about to fall.
Christopher Kubasik, CEO of Lockheed - sex scandal.

Whether the above list has connection to anything other than matters astrological is something left for further perusal!

(Illustration: "Astronomers Studying an Eclipse" painting by Antoine Caron (1571).

Neptune's Come Home ~ Will We Now Go Back To Sleep?

Our annual few weeks of Sun in Pisces have come around once again; more interestingly though, so has Neptune's infrequent and much longer sojourn in that sign, its sign of rulership. Neptune will remain in Pisces until around 2025.

First, keywords for Neptune - a long list of 'em, can be found HERE. All have a rather loose feel, indistinct, foggy, dreams, no barriers, not unkind, not hard-headed or mean, fuzzy......think alcohol or drug induced fog and delusion; also Neptune links, unsurprisingly, to the sea and, more surprisingly, to oil, film and photography. Keywords for Pisces, the zodiac sign, are along similar lines, because Neptune rules it.

Overall, I suspect that Neptune in Pisces will have less to do with actual events during the transit than will the other outer planets, Uranus and Pluto. Neptune in Pisces may simply tell us about how the population at large is likely to feel as events and situations unfold. Neptune in Pisces will blur and soften some harsh events and soothe our jagged edges.

Type "Neptune in Pisces through history" into Google's search box and see some articles by astrologers comparing events during periods when Neptune transited its sign of rulership in the past. I read through a few of these pieces, but a ho-hum kind of feeling crept in. To take a planet in a sign and extrapolate a likely series of outcomes, isn't especially helpful, anymore than it is to take only a Sun sign and interpret a personality from that alone. I wonder whether the population at large had their jagged edges soothed during past Neptune/Pisces transits. We can't know this with any certainty.

When considering past Neptune in Pisces periods, we should take into account the positions of the two other slowest moving planets, Uranus and Pluto. These, too, add "flavour" to the astrological and historical "soup du jour", producing distinct differences within each cycle. Currently and for some years to come, during the time Neptune will transit Pisces, Uranus will travel through Aries and later on, Taurus; Pluto will travel through Capricorn.

Because there's a similarity to current transits in the last Neptune in Pisces period (it ran approximately 1847 to 1862) a vague hint of the kind of events we can expect between now and 2025 might, be detectable. Aggressive Martian input from Uranus in Aries, is common to both the 19th century Neptune/Pisces transit and the current one. In both cases Martian flavour is replaced by Venusian when Uranus moves into Taurus around the half-way mark of Neptune/Pisces.

Along with the similarity mentioned above, there's a significant astrological difference in 19th and 21st century Neptune/Pisces periods. It's the Saturnian flavour from Pluto in Capricorn we now encounter, this will linger throughout almost all of the current Neptune/Pisces transit.

In the first half of the 19th century Neptune/Pisces transit Pluto was in Mars-ruled
Aries Those poor people experienced a double dose of aggressive Martian flavour, manifesting as political upheavals in Europe and civil war in the US, among other disruptions.

Pluto moved gradually away from the Martian atmosphere during the second half of Neptune/Pisces, on into Taurus, adding gentle Venus to their astro soup of the day, marked by a gradual blossoming of talent in the arts.

Tiny Pluto does seem to pack an extraordinarily powerful punch astrologically. Its presence can mean a breaking down of something followed by healing and transformation. In Capricorn the focus is on established standards, institutions, businesses, so one or more of such bodies could, in coming years, be due for an even more serious shake-up than we've seen already.

There isn't a comparable period in history with Pluto in Capricorn when the position of the other two outer planets matched our current pattern. There is an old example of Pluto in Capricorn though. It was during a 16th century Neptune/Pisces transit. Pluto (then undiscovered, but there all the same) transited Capricorn during, roughly, 1521-1534. One clear manifestation was in England - separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church during the reign of Henry VIII; Dissolution of the Monasteries, establishment of the king as supreme head of the Church of England. The monasteries had owned large areas of land worked by tenants. Henry VIII dissolved them (1536–1541) and transferred a fifth of England's landed wealth to new hands, creating a "landed gentry" beholden to the crown. However, in the 16th century, though Neptune was transiting Pisces when Pluto transited Capricorn, there was none of the Martian flavour we now experience, from Uranus in Aries.

Every transit is unique just as every human is unique, but it's tempting to play a guessing game, with the hints of evidence we have from the past. It's safe to predict that during the Neptune/Pisces transit 2012 to 2025, aggressive Martian, restrictive Saturnian, and later, artistic Venusian flavours will colour our world, in addition to Neptune's signature illusions, delusions and general fuzziness. We'll be seeing a noticeable flourishing of some novel talent in the art world when Uranus moves into Taurus around 2018, and by 2025 we can, fairly confidently, expect to be able to identify some clear area of transformation following a Pluto-type breaking down of one or more established institutions, mode of business, or suchlike.

We (as in We the People)will wake fully from our soothing Neptunian stupor, when the planet moves on into Aries, and when Pluto enters Aquarius, around 2025. Uranus will then be in Gemini, revolutionary methods of communication may be a new part of the mix.

We often consider these to be interesting times, but for really interesting these will have nothing on 2025 onwards!

(Disclaimer. I do not mean to imply from any of the above that I believe the planets themselves cause what I refer to as "flavours". My theory is that the planets simply act as markers for us - markers of various waves or cycles of time. These waves, of as yet unknown significance or composition, will cross at certain points or, run parallel, collide, form patterns - with consequent manifestation here on Earth. So, although Pluto is tiny, compared to Neptune, it still acts as an important marker on a particular wave or cycle of time.)

Pluto's Transit of Capricorn ~ Getting Into the Groove?

Are we standing far enough back yet to discover how Pluto's transit of Capricorn is manifesting ? Inspecting a large oil painting up close, one sees nothing but wild brush strokes, a jumble of colours, stand well back and a clear picture emerges. Astrology in life is like that. Not many of us want to believe it though. We want to see prompt results for planetary transits and major moves.

Pluto moved from Sagittarius into Capricorn in 2008. We have more than three years of evidence now. But three years years isn't a lot, isn't enough. Pluto's Capricorn transit will continue until 2024 - more than 12 years still to go! We've hardly scratched the surface yet. Are there any broad clues available though. Are we "in the groove"?

Before the transit began many astrologers offered predictions of what the new astro-era would mean for the world. Pluto is known as the transformational planet (or dwarf planet, or whatever). Capricorn is the cardinal Earth sign linked to business, structure, tradition. Not surprisingly most early predictions indicated changes to the structure of society, consolidation of corporate power, upheaval of the status quo and traditional institutions, political or religious.

What we've seen during the past three years is starting to match those early predictions. Banks (institutions) in trouble; "Arab Spring" a challenge to tradition in the middle-east; the strengthening of corporate power on government in the USA and in other parts of the developed world; a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico might, in time, have outcomes and restrictions as yet not envisaged by the general public; earthquakes and tsunami in Japan - likewise. We are at the start of a path now, these factors are only stepping stones, or clues as to the direction in which the path will eventually take us.

In January 2008 Australian-based astrologer Douglas Parker made a good clear assessment of what Pluto in Capricorn has meant historically, and what he considers it will mean for us in the future, at his website. See the section headed Pluto in Capricorn


I've picked a handful from his list of predictions, and added comments of my own:

Massive popular revolts are likely to occur in countries, that will shake the very foundations of government and power of those countries.(This one is working out well, so far!)

There will be a Peoples Revolution against Big Business and the way in which governments function. Laws will be written to control the power of BIG business. (This is the one I'm waiting for. Bring it on!!)

Massive volcanic eruption, possibly in January 2020, causing global climate change for several years is possible. If not, massive, devastating earthquake activity is possible, as are tsunamis. Global climate change shocks will become apparent between 2008 and 2023. (We can already see some evidence of this one coming to pass)

Some of the greatest Empires in history were born or destroyed with Pluto in Capricorn. A great country will be formed or will begin to crumble into dust during this time. Also some of the great conquerors, like William the Conqueror and Napoleon, were born in this time. So a warrior leader with gigantic power will be born in this time. (Interesting. We shall see!)

The greatest explorers in history set out with Pluto in Capricorn. Last time it was James Cook, The time before that it was Magellan. This time another great explorer will write his name into history before 2023. (Will he/she be a space explorer, I wonder, or an explorer beneath the oceans, or into another dimension? Exciting!)

Another great Golden Age in the history of Music and Art is beginning. (I'm not feeling it yet!)

Thank you Mr. Parker. Good job! We do appear to be "in the groove".

What's absolutely certain, is that by the end of Pluto's journey through the sign of Capricorn the world will have changed, just as it has changed since Pluto moved from Scorpio to Sagittarius in 1996. During the period 1996 to 2008 my own, personal, world underwent transformation in every respect. Nothing, not a single thing, is the same for me now as it was then. I may not be around to see Pluto move from Capricorn into Aquarius in 2024, but do hope to see some indication of how things will turn out, before my final exit. I hope it'll turn out to be, as they used to say back in the '60s, "Groovy man!"

TROUBLES

Swine 'flu pandemic? Oh joy! Yet another verse to add to our current song of woe.

I suppose it's not too surprising that something like this should emerge just now. The astrological "atmosphere" is ripe for anything doomy and gloomy. Pluto in Capricorn, Saturn more or less opposite Uranus, both send less than optimistic messages to our astrologers. But both may have potential to turn things around... later, and to our advantage, once the initial stages have passed. Pluto draws out what's harmful, causes discomfort, but then allows healing to take place. Saturn and Uranus struggle to find balance between rigidity and flux. There really isn't a true point of balance, but out of the struggle will emerge something new, different, and possibly better.

We're in a cycle of astro weather, and it will pass just as the tornado season here in middle America will pass. Most nights this week excitable TV announcers and weathermen have been threatening us with "hail the size of golf balls", potential rotations which could turn tornado-ish at the drop of a hat.... "go to the safest part of your house......." they tell us. The husband advises me that the safest part of our house is the liquor cabinet, so.....! We've missed most of the worst of it, thus far, but we'd best not start getting complacent. I feel nostalgic, at times like these, for the measured, reassuring tones of BBC news readers. I am thankful, though, for the technology which allows the weather people here to track storms and troublemaking weather so closely, giving us plenty of warning of imminent disaster.

Tornado watches, 'flu watches, the economy, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Rush Limbaugh....We should remain calm but vigilant, careful but serene, wash our hands a lot and.... yes...avoid spreading panic and paranoia.

Let's go along with Dr. Seuss:

“I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!”

Oh - nearly forgot - it's our 5th wedding anniversary today! At least there are no troubles there!

Pluto & The Capricorn Grunge

There hasn't been an outer planet (Uranus, Neptune or Pluto) in an Earth sign since Neptune left Capricorn at the end of 1998. During most of the 90s both Uranus and Neptune transited Cardinal Earthy Capricorn.

Enter Pluto, stage left.

I've seen several fashion articles over past months trumpeting the return of 90s fashions for the young, and young at heart: the "Grunge", the flannel shirts, the dark nail varnish, clunky heels and Doc Marten boots.




Apart from the nail varnish those are all quite Earthy and practical items - comfortable too, I guess. Mind you, here in Oklahoma, I don't know how we'll tell the difference because flannel shirts and big boots are pretty much standard attire wherever the planets happen to be at any given time.

The trend could fit in nicely with the fianancially dire straits we now face. Goodwill will be the new Bloomingdales. Re-cycling will flourish. Capricorn rules!

Here's the most recent article on the topic, this by Lindsay Mannering with a slideshow of examples.
"So Out It's In"

Three Hollywood starlets in the grunge groove, below - Mary Kate Olsen, Ashley Tisdale and Rachel Bilson

More Pluto in Capricorn

A major planetary move will occur at the end of this year when Pluto moves into the zodiac sign of Capricorn. Related changes should eventually become easily identifiable by future astrologers and historians studying the goings on here below. I found yet another article on the topic at Astrology on the Web, this one written by Neil Giles. It's in two parts, and takes us through history, tracing Pluto's last eight transits of Capricorn, then surmising what may be in store for us during the coming dozen or so years. It's an absorbing article, well worth reading and saving.

Part 1
Part2

With this topic in mind, the very brief clip below, from one of Barack Obama's recent speeches sent discordant alarms sounding in my head, "Pluto in Capricorn....Pluto in Capricorn!"



The video was featured at Savage Politics recently HERE .

The speech featured in that video was reported at World Net Daily on 16 July:
(Obama's)"stunning assertion in a recent speech that the U.S. needs a "civilian national security force" that would be as powerful, strong and well-funded as the half-trillion dollar Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force" is not included in published transcripts of his prepared remarks.

In the July 2 speech in Colorado Springs, Obama insisted the U.S. "cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we've set."

More coverage at No Quarter yesterday, with transcript of the speech from which the above clip was omitted.

"Civilian national security force?" I'm (just) old enough to know for what a civilian force known as The Brownshirts were responsible in the 20th century.

Although implications of the above are somewhat worrying, we should avoid waxing too dramatic about it. Pluto in Capricorn will not be a speedy transit, effects are unlikely to be easily identifiable within the first year or two. It could well take the whole 12/14 year transit, or longer, before it becomes clear how the world (not just the USA) reacted and responded to the planetary move. Even if Barack Obama does become the USA's next president, his input will be a mere first act from a play of multiple acts, and not necessarily of any great importance in the great scheme of things. But, on the other hand.........

Extract from Part 2 of Neil Giles' article linked above:
"So, what can we expect of this new era as it unfolds? When one of the outer planets changes sign, there is a marked generational influence and a shift in the nature of our social experience. In time, we will all be touched by a destiny we cannot escape. As the destiny of Pluto in Capricorn takes hold, we will run the gamut of our control systems, from the humble administrator through to the megalomaniac as governments, organizations and key individuals encounter the testing pressures of Pluto and make their response. Will it be death, figurative or literal? Or will it be transformation? "

"The Golden Compass" reflects Pluto in Capricorn

We saw the movie "The Golden Compass" on Friday evening. After publicity indicating that the film is "anti-religion", we doubted that our local movie theater would be showing it - so were pleasantly surprised. I guessed the film wouldn't be as controversial as was publicised, and I was right. But there is a message in the film which fits with Pluto's imminent move into Capricorn, touched on here yesterday.

"The Golden Compass" movie is an adaptation of the first book of a trilogy, "His Dark Materials", by British author, Philip Pullman. In Britain the first book of the trilogy had the title "Northern Lights", but for some reason in the US it's called "The Golden Compass".

From information gleaned via Google, it appears that the books do have a more overtly anti-religious message than this movie, and one which grows more insistent as the trilogy moves along. In the movie, the plot seems to have been considerably diluted, and unless one has read the books, it would be hard to detect any message that is specifically anti-religion.

I went with an open mind, and came away with an anti-establishment, anti-brain-washing, pro-freedom message rather than one of anti-religion. I got a feel more akin to that of "V for Vendetta", albeit with a more fantastical backdrop and spectacular special effects.

"The Golden Compass" will probably offer different messages to different viewers, but all with a theme of individual efforts to break down tyranny, dominance of institutions, and restriction of human freedoms. These are all aspects of Pluto in Capricorn - plain as day!

A movie review which I particularly liked for its fairness and insight is at Sprituality and Practice. It gives away much of the plot though, so anyone planning to see the film is warned!

The review ends: "We wish her (the heroine) well and hope that youth will take this movie to heart, especially its call to be wary of all institutions that stifle the soul and try to limit the spiritual search for truth."

I'll confess that my primary reason for wanting to see this movie was that Sam Elliott is in it. It turned out that Sam Elliott, as a come-on, introduced me to a fascinating tale. I'll be watching for the almost inevitable sequel, with relish.

Pluto in Capricorn

It's never a good idea to read too many forecasts, astrological or otherwise.

When learning the Tarot, I discovered that it's never wise to study too many books on the subject - it's best to find one with which one can resonate and stick with it, ignore the rest. The same applies to forecasts, but it is a real temptation, when feeling insecure, to investigate all available sources.

Take, for instance, the variety of views about what Pluto's imminent move into Capricorn might signify. Pluto is thought to have a transformative influence on "the collective". Its transit is slow, it takes Pluto 248 years to complete a circuit of the zodiac, its influence can be seen most clearly with hindsight. What astrologers predict for any given year or group of years is a range of possibilities. This is, in one way, comforting yet frustrating at the same time.

There appear to be at least two interpretations of how Pluto in Capricorn will work out for us, collectively. I think that in time both may prove correct. "In time" being the important words to keep in mind.

Inspecting a large oil painting up close, one sees nothing but wild brush strokes, a jumble of colours. Stand well back - very well back, and a clear picture emerges. Astrology in life is like that, I've discovered. Not many of us want to believe it though. We still want to see prompt results for planetary transits and major moves.

With regard to Pluto in Capricorn, I've come to the conclusion that both the theories/interpretations below, from astrologers Eric Francis and Eric Meyers will turn out to be correct....eventually.

Eric Francis :

"Pluto in Capricorn is, among other things, about massive changes to the structure of society. It is about the consolidation of corporate and government power to a degree that far exceeds anything we have seen so far."

Yes, we can see that coming, in the USA, even now, just before Pluto has reached its new abode in Capricorn. This scenario could continue, and intensify, for a variety of reasons, and would form stage one.

We're contemplating a period of some 12 to 14 years for this transit of Pluto and Eric Meyers' interpretation could well form a stage two, to commence when other outer planets have moved on into new positions:

"When Pluto moves to the earth sign of Capricorn, our structures and institutions are bound to face upheaval and drastic change that will reflect the shifting spiritual and moral processes that are currently occurring while Pluto is in Sagittarius.

Leagues of people will be challenged to release attachments to paradigms and structures they thought were stable and enduring. Changes in government, education systems, infrastructure, organized religions and the general sociological organization of society could endure needed face lifts in order for our collective evolution to take its next step."

All kinds of scenarios might bring about a swing from the corporate and government clamp down of stage one, to the kind of collective evolution described by Eric Meyers. It is not possible for anyone to foresee the details. What is certain, is that by the end of Pluto's journey through the sign of Capricorn the world will have changed, just as it has changed since Pluto moved from Scorpio to Sagittarius in 1996. My personal world is different, in every respect, from how it was in 1996. I may not be here to see Pluto move from Capricorn into Aquarius, but do hope to see some indication of how things are turning out before my final exit!

I like the late Maya del Mar's attitude - she said:

"We are, in fact, fortunate to live in such an intense period of tremendous challenges, and tremendous opportunities. This is our chance to create a new and better world."

So, in a way, I've proved my opening remark to be wrong, haven't I? Reading several forecasts has led to a theory which satisfies me. That's all one can ever ask of forecasts: to provide an acceptable theory.

The Pluto in Capricorn Avant-garde ?

Religion is coming well and truly under fire these days. Is this a foretaste of what Pluto in Capricorn might bring, I wonder? Transformation (Pluto) of the status quo (Capricorn), especially transformation of long established doctrines and organisations, church and religion for example.

Books with anti-religious themes have appeared, one after another in the past few years. Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), Christopher Hitchens(God is not Great), Daniel Dennett (Breaking the Spell), Victor Stenger(God: The Failed Hypothesis. How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist) , Sam Harris (End of Faith, and Letter to a Christian Nation)are few authors who have clambered aboard this money-spinning bandwagon. It's always money, isn't it? Why do I feel so cynical about this, when I am also cynical about organised religion myself? Somehow, news of these books makes me uncomfortable, but if this is a hint of what's to come I'd best get used to it!

I watched Bill Maher, one of my favourite Americans on Larry King Live on Tuesday evening. He announced that he has made a new documentary , as yet un-named, about religion. Bill Maher's views on the subject are well known by his fans, it's no surprise that this film will be in Michael Moore mode. I'll wait to see it next year before criticising and drawing conclusions. Bill said that his stance is not actually atheistic, it's "I don't know". Same here! Is that what we all should be saying really? Nobody knows - do they?