Category: Astrology in History

I love History! I think it is all part of having Capricorn on the 4th house, the one which deals with roots, home, who we are and where we come from. Capricorn is the historian of the Zodiac, the keeper of the family flames. So in honor of my Capricornian 4th house, I give you my take on famous people and events. If there is some person or some event you would like to know more about that I haven’t written about yet please let me know and I will look into it!

Jupiter Goes Home to Sagittarius.

On November 8 Jupiter returned home to the constellation it feels most at home, Sagittarius. It takes Jupiter twelve years to go around the zodiac so it remains in a constellation just about a year.

For those with strong Jupiter/Sagittarius influence in their charts – Sun, Moon, ascendant – it is a time for growth, learning and reaching higher levels. Jupiter is constantly pushing us to go beyond boundaries – to see what is on the other side of fence. Set your goals for what you wish to overcome!

However, Jupiter is sometimes too big, too ambitious – and can lead to reckless behavior, drinking, gambling and other forms of risk taking. Jupiter-people sometimes think of themselves as too grand, too smart, too invincible. Keep your head on your shoulders!

For those with Sagittarius North or South Nodes this period is especially profound. If your North Node is involved this is a perfect time to work at living into it’s positive energies. For South Node Sagittarius people, look at the downside – what can you leave behind? How can you make the leap into Gemini North Node while leaving behind the largess, aggrandizement and prevarications that come from a being too deep into your Sagittarius South.

Note: Donald Trump is a Sagittarius South Node. How he will react to this transit? Do you think he will take the route of leaving behind his negatives? Do you, really? Let’s watch and see.

Are we Listening to Pluto?

It is Election Day – with Venus and Uranus in retrograde and our country in Pluto return. Will we allow the forces that are loose in public – forces of homophobia, misogyny and white nationalism to reign free or will we stand up and say NO! Will women reach deep and say ENOUGH? Pluto puts them front and center – it is up to us to clear it out — or live with the consequences.

Mars Go Into Peaceful Pisces Until Nov. 15

I am sure we are all tired of Mars doing the tango with unpredictable Aquarius. There has been a bit too much upheaval in the world lately. With the Saturn/Pluto retrogrades in full gear don’t expect too much of a slow down of intensity – but Pisces is a place for Mars to rest, regroup and do something he hates – reflect and forgive.

Mars is aggression, action and movement but Pisces tones down that energy and asks you to think first and then act.

He can also ask us to become a “spiritual warrior” when in this position. He can help us turn our energy into a forward spiritual task – to undertake some sort of class, lesson, task that enhances your inner journey. Of course, those who feel they are righteous and correct in their beliefs to a fault will be willing to fight for their right to impose their will on others.

This is an interesting event to have during the Midterm elections. You will have people who are voting to make America gentle again and those who are voting to make it a religious caliphate. Who will win? It all comes down to turn out

Blue Wave, Red Wave…No, PINK Wave

Election Day will occur when Venus is retrograded back into one of its two ruling constellations, Libra. (The other Venus rules is Taurus.) Retrograded Venus will be conjunct the motherly Ceres and a Sun/Moon conjunction or New Moon in deep penetrating Scorpio. This is serious girl power. Many woman voting will be doing so not for themselves but for their daughters (Ceres) as they manifest (a New Moon activity) a new world order.

Saturn will be on the progressed Moon of our national chart, signifying the battle of the paternal (Saturn) and the emotional, feminine energy (Moon.)

This powerful placement will be in the 11th house of the US, that which signifies groups coming together to make changes – big changes – to the status quo.

Expect miscommunications and even interference again into our system as retrograded Neptune crosses the third house.

Neither side is going to get exactly what they want – the patriarchy will get something to be thankful for but this will be a surge of pink energy the likes of which we have never seen before. Go Pink.

Neptune Gone Backward

Astrologers seem to be rightfully focused on the Pluto retrograde we are experiencing. However, there is a strong retrograde of Neptune that has been in effect since June and will remain until Thanksgiving.

Neptune is the herald of our spiritual life and where, when we are stuck on the Earthly plane, we would like to escape. It represents illusions, dreams and the obfuscations we allow ourselves to accept.

For the United States, this retrograde is happening in the third house, that of community, close friends and siblings. You can see us searching for a sense of community – who is in our community – how do we react when communities are attacked or separated? We think we are a country that protects communities, allows people to grow and find opportunity but now that is under attack. We see the illusion of our belief.

Do we fight to make the illusion a reality or allow the dream to die?

That is one of many questions we face this year.

The Astrology of the First Thanksgiving

The first Thanksgiving was held over a period of several days starting on October 16, 1621. The conjunction of Neptune, the Sun and Mercury in the socialized sign of Libra and in the diplomatic ninth house were good signs that a compassionate meeting of the minds was possible. In addition, the Moon Venus conjunction in Scorpio in the ten house of government brought deep emotional connections among the participants. A cold winter was coming and this was a time of true gratitude for the abundance that would hopefully see them through.

The one rather ominous setting would be the retrograded Pluto and Juno down in the fourth house of home and roots. Sadly, this feeling of brotherhood and sharing would be violently shattered in the New World. Still, we celebrte the essence and hope of this first Thanksgiving every year. Hopefully, we can live up to what it represents.

In the mean time, Happy Thanksgiving.

Joan

Somewhere Pluto is Smiling

I sent that text to some close friends last Wednesday, the day after the elections here in Virginia. Why is Pluto feeling so good? The answer is simple. We are finally doing what he wants.

I have written at length (https://joanporte.com/tag/pluto-in-capricorn/) about the effects of Pluto, the change planet in the constellation of Capricorn, which controls government and authority structures. To make matters more interesting, America is coming into our Pluto return. Pluto is coming back or returning to where it was in 1776, at our birth. Pluto is in our second house of values. The question couldn’t be clearer – what do we want our values to be?

Pluto just doesn’t want change, he demands that we look deep inside of ourselves and ask, who we are and what we need to throw off so our better selves come through. If we fail to heed the demands of Pluto, he forces us to hold a mirror in front of our faces. He makes us face our worse selves.

Donald Trump is Pluto asking us to look inside ourselves and ask what kind of country we want. He has made his goals very clear to us. Last week, voters in Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Maine and Washington State responded with what they want. Virginia now has a transgender delegate along with two Latinas and one person of Vietnamese heritage. That is quite a change from the old white men they replaced! Hoboken, NJ elected a Sikh major and Maine voted to extend Medicare.

If we continue this “voter revolt,” stay engaged and remember who we are as decent people we will have answered Pluto’s call. Pluto isn’t an easy task master. There are detriments to his lessons but we can come out better people. Will we stay the leaders of the free world? I am not sure. Will we have values for which we can be proud? I hope so.

Can We Talk? Venus in Gemini

Venus moved into Gemini on July 4 and will remain there for the rest of the month. This is a great time for intellectual conversation and stimulation. Gemini loves the exchange or flow of information and hates to be bogged down or bored. It is the sign that lives to find the “meeting of the mind” with others. During these warm summer months, he encourages us to linger by the picnic table enjoying the interchange with others – swapping and even debating ideas

Venus, the goddess of love, when transiting Gemini brings out that desire to seek partners who share your intelligence, and reasoning skills. The way to the heart of a Venus Gemini person is through their brain! Both John and Jacqueline Kennedy shared Venus in Gemini so despite what others said about the marriage it was intellectually stimulating. His official White House portrait has him standing in a contemplative mode with his head down. She did that because she wanted people to remember what a great mind he had. Now that is Venus in Gemini!

So take advantage of this time to do something we seem to have forgotten, talk WITH someone – exchange ideas – see the Venusian beauty in learning from another.

This is Not Watergate

History repeats itself but never in same way. While it is easy to draw similarities with our last Constitutional crises, Watergate, the Trump related problems are vastly different, politically and astrologically. Watergate was an abuse of power by a paranoid man and his henchmen. This is the possible collusion with a foreign power by a presidential candidate and then president and his men.

Watergate happened during the last of a series of Pluto/Saturn/Jupiter squares that characterized the previous decade. While we have come off similar series of squares, the energy now is deeper and more karmic.

I have stated in earlier blogs that neither Trump nor Clinton were following their North Node, current soul’s destiny, by running for President. Trump had the chance to pivot once elected. His South Node, or karmic identity, is of an “all knowing” leader of his family and community, (Sagittarius fourth house.) This was evident every time he said “I alone can fix this” on the campaign trail. He could have pivoted and opened himself up to his Gemini North Node in the tenth house which asks him to open up to new sources of information as he takes on a role of authority. He preferred the company of his old ways which never leads to success. That his presidency would be a failure was a given. However, this is the tip of the iceberg.

There are many ominous astrological signs on the horizon this summer. Saturn, Pluto and Neptune all turn retrograde. In August, when Uranus goes into retrograde they will all be in that “backward motion.” In addition, in August, we have a powerful Leo solar eclipse occurring at the heart of Leo on the brilliant star Regulus. An eclipse sends cosmic ripples of change that lasts for years.

Let us not forget that America is in its Pluto return. Pluto takes 276 years to move around the Sun, the last time it was in Pluto and the second house was during the American Revolution. We are in a revolution. Pluto holds up a mirror and says take a good look and get rid of the detritus – get rid of what you have been hiding from yourself. Take a good look. Whether we leave the junk where it is or throw it out is all up to us. Pluto is the original kill you or cure you planet.

This is not Watergate. This is a deep karmic comeuppance – for Trump and, more importantly, for America.

Venus Retrograde and the Trump Tax Return

MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow presented with a bit too much hype our first glimpse at some of Donald Trump’s tax returns. It is no accident that this fleeting glimpse occurred during a rare Venus retrograde into the masculine sign of Aries. It is amusing that a woman (Maddow) revealed the tax returns of someone who fancies himself ultra-masculine and strong (Trump) during such a retrograde. It is very possible, in fact likely, that Trump leaked a tiny portion of his returns during a year that he actually paid some taxes as another distraction technique. Still it all happened during the retrograde of the planet ruling money.

Venus holds the purse strings of the Zodiac. Her domain is money, creativity and sexuality. During a retrograde period we should go inside ourselves and find where we need to correct areas that planet rules, with which we are unhappy or are causing you issues in your life.

If people are not shall we say enlightened, a retrograde can be a bad time, because secrets that we don’t want to face come to the surface. If Trump did release those returns he may have done it to distract from a larger issues but it did come back to bite him later.

During retrogrades, we need to take stock, review what is no longer working and plan new routes of action. On the other hand, secrets that we don’t want know can come out and make us face the music. It is up to us how we use and work the retrograded action. It can be a time or renewal or fear – as usual, it is all up to us.