Astrological Meanderings: March 2019

Monday 25 March 2019

The Start of the 2019 Astrological Year

I haven't posted to this blog in a while but the start of the 2109 astrological year has prompted me to post again. The location is set to Jakarta, partly because I'm living there and partly because the five yearly presidential election is to be held next month and the country is highly polarised in its support of the two duelling candidates. The equinox, autumnal for Jakarta because it is south of the equator, occurred at 4:58am on March 21st. The chart is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: chart for the equinox in Jakarta
at 4:58am on 21st March 2019

In Figure 2 I've marked in the positions of the planets to the nearest degree and emphasised the aspects between the planets.

Figure 2: equinox chart with planetary positions shown to the
nearest degree and aspects between planets emphasised.

A general observation about the equinox is that Pluto is conjunct the South Node of the Moon. This occurs about every 15 years but the conjunction in Capricorn last occurred in 1777. To quote from this site (translated from French), the following events occurred:
In France, Louis XVI had appointed Necker as General Director of Finances (June 29th, 1777). Together they carried on the tax reform of work in order to bring cash for the State, without overwhelming the people nor irritate the wealthy and the landlords. Necker implements two immediately lucrative systems: loans and the lottery (Wikipedia). Isn’t it interesting to observe the similarities between then and today, whereas the yellow vests are comparing Macron with Louis XVI. In the US, this conjunction corresponds with the second semester of 1777, a few months after the Declaration of Independence. Battles against the British are still going on. 1777 is also the year of the Flag Resolution, first flag with 13 stars.
 The same site's author (Patrick Giani) goes on to say that:
At worst, it could be a period of revolts and major clashes, at best a questioning of our institutions and systems. Pluto conjunct South Node reveals injustice, all manoeuvres from politicians, businesses and bankers to keep people dependant. This conjunction requires from those in power to change the laws that rule the country. It requires from every one, including the people, to be genuine and authentic. 
Figure 3: aspects to Pluto
 are highlighted in yellow
Moreover, Pluto is sharply aspected by a trine from Mars in Taurus as well as a semi-sextile from Venus in Aquarius. All three form a right angled triangle with the vertex of the right angle being the position of Venus. Jupiter is also in close semi-sextile aspect and there is also a square to Pluto from the Moon in Virgo, although there is 5° orb in this case. It would seem that the combined tension between Mars and Venus, building up in the fixed signs of Taurus and Aquarius and augmented by Jupiter and the Moon, will find a release through the cardinal (action) sign of Capricorn if the controlling influence of nearby Saturn cannot stifle it. Figure 3 highlights these aspects in yellow.

Figure 4: aspects to the Moon
are highlighted in blue
In many ways, the Moon is the most highly aspected planet in the chart. These aspects are shown in Figure 4 and include the opposition from the Sun and Chiron, a square from Jupiter, a trine from Pluto and Mars and a quincunx from Uranus. The involvement of the Moon emphasises of course the masses and the opposition of the Sun suggests conflict and confrontation with those in power. The closest aspects to the Moon are from the Sun and Uranus, the latter planet of course closely associated with revolutions.

So far I've only looked at the aspects between the planets and not the specifics of the Jakarta chart. In this chart, Pisces rises and one of the rulers, Neptune, is conjunct the Ascendant while the other, Jupiter, is in the tenth house. If there is a revolution, the driving forces behind it are likely to be as shadowy as those of 1965. The elections will be held on April 17th and on that day the Moon returns to the same position it occupied on the Equinox. Let's see how things play out. One things for sure, this is a very powerful chart both in Jakarta and for anywhere else in the world.