Libra micro-age decan and overflow (August 1582 – July 1592)

This Libra MAD&OF sits within the Aquarius micro-age (Aug 1582 – Jul 1597) and therefore mimics the Libra MAD&OF (December 1910 – October 1920) associated with the First World War (1914/17 – 18) and Spanish flu.  The next major level up to greatly influence this period was the Taurus-Capricorn sub-age decan (1552 – 1612).  Taurus is beneficial to England (see The UK Astrological Signature) which was certainly on display in this Libra period.

Again, major conflicts occur under Libra’s watch commencing with the Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604) which included the famous Spanish Armada (1588) with 130 ships and 30,000 men when Catholic Spain planned to invade Protestant England and dispose Queen Elizabeth 1 but failed miserably at the hands of what constituted the British navy and adverse weather.  The English countered with two armadas against Spain which both failed, and Spain sent a second armada against England which also failed due to bad weather.  This is where Sir Francis Drake became famous.  At this time Spain was the world’s superpower.  The victory was acclaimed by the English as their greatest since Agincourt, and the memory of the victory over the Armada was evoked during the Napoleonic Wars in a later Libra period when again England found itself threatened by another invasion. From the standpoint of Libra, Queen Elizabeth’s legend persisted and grew long after her death due to the successful repulsion of the Spanish Armadas.[1] Queen Elizabeth is one of the most notable females that stood near the beginning of the Libra age-decan (1433 – 2149).

George Gower’s Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I (1588?) at Woburn Abbey. The portrait was made to commemorate the defeat of the Spanish Armada (depicted in the background).

This Libra period sits within the Elizabethan era (1558 – 1603) and is taken as England’s golden age attributed a renaissance that inspired national pride through classical ideals, international expansion, and naval triumph over Spain[2] with the naval triumph over Spain exclusively associated with this Libra period.  This golden age commenced in the Taurus sub-age decan (1537 – 1612) and Taurus figures strongly in the English astrological signature.[3] 

Again, war was highly prevalent as is the case for the last 5,000 years and only some major ones will be mentioned.  The War of the Three Henrys (1587-89) was one of a series of French civil wars under the umbrella of the French Wars of Religion (1562 – 98) The war was instigated by Spain to keep France from interfering with the Spanish army in the Netherlands and the Spanish invasion of England – there were so many wars that they had wars within wars!

The Eighty Years’ War commencing in 1568 (before this Libra period) was basically a Protestant revolt of what are today the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg against the superpower of Catholic Spain but by 1587 the newly formed Dutch Republic entered a period of more than two centuries of relative political stability and strongly increased its trade and wealth from this time onward, with Amsterdam replacing Antwerp as the main port of north-west Europe.  The republic was more tolerant of different religions and ideas than its contemporary states were, allowing freedom of thought to its residents. Artists flourished under this regime, including painters such as Rembrandt and Johannes Vermeer leading to the Dutch Golden Age lasting until 1672.[4]  Libra may have placed its stamp on the Dutch Golden Age but the influence of both the Capricorn sub-age (1433 – 1612) and Taurus sub-age decan overflow (1552 – 1612) suggests that these signs appear in the Dutch astrological signature?

In the Far East the first Japanese invasion of Korea in 1592 was really the beginning of a proxy war between Japan and China with Korea the stepping stone from Japan to China. The conflict ended in 1598 after Japan’s second unsuccessful invasion followed by the withdrawal of the Japanese forces from the Korean Peninsula after a military stalemate (appropriate for Libra).  This war resulted in an imbalance of power within Japan with the Toyotomi clan’s power significantly weakened due to the exhaustion of its  armed forces for the failed Korean conflict and the opposing Tokugawa clan, who had abstained from the war, and with their armed forces in tack, were able to eventually triumphed (post this Libra period) against the Toyotomi clan. Libra seems to prefer two major opposing forces. Libra is considered a key sign for the whole of the Far East including China. 

Highly notable females again mark this Libra period and a good example is the classic feud between Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots ending with the beheading of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1587 at the hands of her cousin Queen Elizabeth after Mary was implicated in a plot to murder Elizabeth.

With the growing strength of Capricorn the accusations of witchcraft against women grew to a crescendo in this period. From 1581 to 1593 the Witch Trials of Trier in Germany were perhaps the biggest witch trials in European history. They formed one of the four largest witch trials in Germany. The persecutions started around Trier in 1581 and reached the city itself in 1587, where it was to lead to the death of about 368 people, and it may have been the biggest mass execution in Europe in peace time.[5]

Not to be outdone by the Germans, in 1590, Agnes Sampson was questioned by King James VI of Scotland, and confessed to practicing witchcraft.  This was apparently part of the North Berwick witch trials of a number of people from East Lothian, Scotland which ran for two years and implicated over seventy people. The “witches” allegedly held their covens on the Auld Kirk Green, part of the modern-day North Berwick Harbour area. The confessions were extracted by torture.[6] 

Prosecutions for the crime of witchcraft reached a highpoint commencing 1580 (in this Libra period) to 1630 during the Counter-Reformation and the European wars of religion when an estimated 50,000 people were burned at the stake, of which roughly 80% were women, and most often over the age of 40.  This 50 year period correlates to the peak strength of Capricorn associated with the end of the Capricorn sub-age in (1433 -1612) when Capricorn was peaking.  Stern autocratic male Capricorn historically orientated towards the subjugation of women – especially older intelligent women with knowledge and wisdom.

However, the Aquarian tide of rationalism started to gain traction with the publication in 1584 of The Discoverie of Witchcraft by Reginald Scot, which undermined the common belief that witches existed.  Scot expressed the view that “it is neither a witch, nor devil, but glorious God that maketh the thunder…God maketh the blustering tempests and whirlwinds…”.[7]

North America continued to be a focus under Libra and in 1583, Newfoundland was formally claimed as a colony of England but not successfully settled at this time.  Also very interesting in relation to the future USA, in 1584 Walter Raleigh sent an expedition to explore the Outer Banks of Virginia (now North Carolina), with a view to establishing an English colony, and they located Roanoke Island.[8]  In the following year, the first group of colonists was sent by Sir Walter Raleigh but only lasted until June 1586, but was followed by a second attempt in 1587.[9] The second attempt was futile, and by the time the British returned in 1590, the colonialists had disappeared and it became known as the Lost Colony.

Interestingly, Sir Walter Raleigh (1552/4 – 1618) was born in a Taurus-Taurus generation, and this may explain why Raleigh strongest focus in his life was in searching for El Dorado (City of Gold) and he made two expeditions to the Americas in search of this gold – and ultimately was executed for his over zealousness by attacking a Spanish outpost in his quest.[10]

Notable theatrical developments took place in this Libra period commencing in 1583 when the Queen Elizabeth’s Men troupe of actors was founded in England and became the dominant acting company for the rest of the 1580s. Queen Elizabeth’s Men was the first large company of actors in English Renaissance theatre, twice the size of its predecessors. The size of the new company enabled it to act a new kind of historical play, built on a larger scale than ever before including Shakespeare’s histories. These new plays were equivalent to “Hollywood spectaculars” of their era.[11]  In 1587 the Rose (theatre) was founded in London beginning a trend for theatres to be situated at arm’s length from the authorities in an area outside the jurisdiction of the City of London where bear/bull-baitings, gaming dens and brothels were surreptitiously operating.  It was the first purpose-built playhouse to ever stage a production of any of Shakespeare’s plays.  Christopher Marlowe became the theatre’s main playwright.  While the theatre thrived, at the very end of this Libra period, an outbreak of the Plague thwarted all theatres[12] (with no Libra available to support them).

Shakespeare, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s greatest dramatist.  Somewhere in this Libra period (probably the mid-1580s) Shakespeare was able to have his plays performed and by 1592, he was sufficiently known in London to be attacked by other playwrights such as Robert Greene in his Groats-Worth of Wit:

“… there is an upstart Crow, beautified with our feathers, that with his Tiger’s heart wrapped in a Player’s hide, supposes he is as well able to bombast out a blank verse as the best of you: and being an absolute Johannes factotum, is in his own conceit the only Shake-scene in a country.”

Shakespeare was accused of reaching above his ‘lowly’ rank in trying to match such university-educated writers as Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Nashe, and Greene himself (the so-called “University Wits”).[13]  The main sign that drove Shakespeare was from Pisces, and the rise of Shakespeare in this Libra period coincided with the Pisces sting-in-the-tail of the Pisces sub-age and overflow (1254 – 1433 – 1612) with the Pisces sting-in-the-tail the Pisces micro-age and overflow (1567 – 1582 – 1597) with this period arguably representing the peak of Pisces in the 26,000 years cycle of the astrological ages. Shakespeare was born in an Aries-Aries generation (second half of the Aries micro-age (1552 – 1567) indicating that he came from a generation with drive!

Christopher Marlowe was of the same Aries-Aries generation and was the leading Elizabethan playwright and strongly influenced Shakespeare who succeeded him following Marlowe’s untimely death at the age of 29 in 1593.

On the artistic front, El Greco (1541 – 1614) was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance and he is regarded as a precursor of both Expressionism and Cubism and his works were considered as “strange”, “queer”, “original”, “eccentric” and “odd. However, much of his works were undertaken within the eccentric Aquarius micro-age and overflow (1582 – 1597 – 1612).  In 1586 he obtained the commission for The Burial of the Count of Orgaz, now his best-known work. Painters from the beginning of the 20th century rediscovered El Greco – his expressiveness and colors influenced Eugène Delacroix, Édouard Manet and Paul Cézanne[14] and one commentator stated that “Cézanne and El Greco are spiritual brothers despite the centuries which separate them”.[15]  It should be noted that Cubism appeared as an avant-garde artistic movement during the 1910s[16] associated with the Libra micro-age decan and overflow (Dec 1910 – Nov 1915 – Oct 1920).

The famous Italian painter Caravaggio (1571 – 1610) had a formative influence on Baroque painting and influenced the later works of Peter Paul Rubens, Jusepe de Ribera, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and Rembrandt.  His style fell out of favor until the 20th century but he was labeled “What begins in the work of Caravaggio is, quite simply, modern painting.”[17]  Caravaggio’s apprenticeship occurred in this Libra period and in the last year he left Milan and went to Rome as a destitute hack-work artist.  One of his earliest works in 1589 was Caravaggio’s Young Sick Bacchus, supposedly a self-portrait done during convalescence from a serious illness (with Capricorn overtones).  Caravaggio’s innovation was a radical naturalism that contrasted light and dark with little intermediate value.[18]  This “darkness” can be attributed to the strength of Capricorn with the Capricorn sub-age approaching its peak strength in 1612.

Finally, on the sweet side of Libra, the first known commercial importation of chocolate to Europe in 1585, from Mexico to Spain, but the Spanish adopted the addition of (Libra) sugar to sweeten chocolate, whereas the indigenous American had only mixed chocolate with spices – but it required an acquired taste.  The new Spanish sugar variety took off with a vengeance, and for some time, chocolate drinks were far more popular in Spain than coffee.[19] It was quickly followed by the publication of Chocolate: or, An Indian Drinke in 1631.

Again, we see with Libra some major conflicts – the Spanish Armada where England was nearly invaded and pirates like Sir Francis Drake became a national hero.  The conflict between the Dutch and Spain was resolved with creation of the Dutch Republic leading to more than two centuries of relative political stability called the Dutch Golden Age.  China was under threat from Japan with Japan invading Korea for the very first time, but failed to move on to the conquest of China. In North America, Newfoundland was formally claimed as a colony of England and some unsuccessful attempts were made to colonize Roanoke Island (North Carolina).  At a minimum, this is the beginning of the Libra connection to the USA. 

The power play between two highly notable women – Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots led to the execution of Mary while the other major female focus of the times was arguably the biggest mass execution of witches in Europe. By 1630 an estimated about 40,000 women had been burnt at the stake.  But the rationality of Aquarius did show signs of life with the argument against the existence of witchcraft by the publication of The Discoverie of Witchcraft.

Libra obviously promoted the theatre with the creation of Queen Elizabeth’s Men troupe of actors and the construction of the Rose theatre in a destitute part of London and by the end of this Libra period, Shakespeare was in full swing.  The other famous playwright of the times died only one year past the end of this Libra period making the Libra period the full extent of Marlowe’s theatrical output.  The father of modern painting also appeared with El Greco and Caravaggio was mainly in his apprentice period but commence producing artwork before this Libra period ended.  Sugar and chocolate naturally are attracted to Libra with its first commercial importation to Europe.

Libra-associated events will occur at any time in history, and for example, in every 15 years micro-age, there is a 29 to 30 month Libra nano-age and overflow.  However, again with this Libra MAD&OF (1582 – 1592), highly notable and remarkable historical events that can be associated with a Libra archetype indicate a stronger presence of Libra than is normal.  The brightness of Libra was not quenched by the dark side of the Capricorn sub-age and overflow (1433 – 1612 – 1791). 

References

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[1]Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604), Wikipedia, Retrieved 04:25, January 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anglo-Spanish_War_(1585%E2%80%931604)&oldid=1000121904

[2] Elizabethan era, Wikipedia, Retrieved 00:50, February 23, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Elizabethan_era&oldid=1005608209

[3] The UK Astrological Signature, https://macroastro.wordpress.com/2019/01/18/the-uk-astrological-signature/

[4] Dutch Republic, Wikipedia, Retrieved 05:01, January 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dutch_Republic&oldid=999742782

[5] Trier witch trials, Wikipedia, Retrieved 05:36, January 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Trier_witch_trials&oldid=993312124

[6] North Berwick witch trials, Wikipedia, Retrieved 05:47, January 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=North_Berwick_witch_trials&oldid=994221672

[7] Scot, Reginald (1584). Discoverie of Witchcraft p. 2.

[8] Grun, Bernard (1991). The Timetables of History, (3rd ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 259. ISBN 0-671-74919-6.

[9] Palmer, Alan; Veronica (1992), The Chronology of British History, London: Century Ltd. pp. 160–162. ISBN 0-7126-5616-2.

[10] Walter Raleigh, Wikipedia, Retrieved 00:27, February 23, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Walter_Raleigh&oldid=1007402650

[11] McMillin; MacLean (1998), pp. 5, 11–12.

[12] The Rose (theatre), Wikipedia,Retrieved 07:03, January 25, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Rose_(theatre)&oldid=999109684

[13] William Shakespeare, Wikipedia, Retrieved 23:23, February 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Shakespeare&oldid=1007731515

[14] El Greco, Wikipedia, Retrieved 02:39, February 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=El_Greco&oldid=1007494780

[15] J. Brown, El Greco of Toledo, p28

[16] Cubism, Wikipedia, Retrieved 02:42, February 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cubism&oldid=1007041592

[17] Quoted in Gilles Lambert, “Caravaggio”, p.8.

[18] Caravaggio, Wikipedia, Retrieved 02:56, February 22, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Caravaggio&oldid=1007107802

[19] History of chocolate in Spain, Wikipedia, Retrieved 07:15, January 25, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_chocolate_in_Spain&oldid=998684132

Macro-Astrology Ephemeris Version 7

 

Macro-Astrology Ephemeris version 7.1 20 August 2020

 

Quasi-Ages and Quasi-Age Decans

 

Micro-Ages since the beginning of the Age of Aquarius

The above is the first major update of my macro-astrology ephemeris in seven years, which does not much affect plus or minus one thousand years or so from the present, but makes a significant effect outside those dates.  For my previous version 6 ephemeris, I exclusively used a formula called Rigorous Precession that takes into account fluctuation in precession due to the Moon’s gravitational effect upon Earth, and while this provides a better estimate for precession of the equinoxes in real-time, it has a built-in ‘error’.  For example, in version 6, I had the age of Pisces commence in 732 BC, but version 7, the age of Pisces begins in 715 BC – a difference of 17 years.  The situation exponentially deteriorates the further away from the present is examined.  In version 6, the Virgo age commenced in 14,153 BC, while version 7 has the Virgo age commence in 13,601 BC – a difference of 552 years. There will continue to be errors in version 7, as it is linear, whereas precession of the equinoxes is an erratic movement at the smallest possible level of observation.  Version 7 standardizes each age to between 2147 and 2148 years, whereas in reality, each age is slightly shorter compared to the previous age.  The main reason for this shortening is that the Moon is slowly but steadily getting further away from Earth, and this creates a dynamic change in precession.  However, I believe that version 7 is far less inaccurate compared to the previous version 6.

I first created version 7 on 25th July 2020, but I had to further tweak it by 7th August 2020 and create version 7.1.  At some stage, hopefully, an astronomer will provide improved calculations. There remains one minor discrepancy inasmuch, independent of this largescale ephemeris, I also use a nano-age ephemeris with nano-ages only being some 15 months each, and pica ages of 5 weeks.  Version 7 indicates that the coming Taurus micro-age arrives in 2029, but my nano-age ephemeris has this same micro-age commencing in January 2030.  However, the error involved is only around one month.

The above does not include the very important overflow periods, and if the overflow periods are not taken into account, a distorted perspective is achieved. The overflow periods never apply to quasi periods, but does apply to all other periods such as the ages, age-decans, sub-ages, sub-age decans and micro-ages displayed above, each period has an overflow into the following period of the exact same length.  For example, the Age of Pisces (715 BC – 1433 AD) overflows onto the Age of Aquarius (1433 AD – 3581 AD) and the manifestation of Pisces archetypes in world affairs will be stronger in the Age of Aquarius than its own age – especially in the first half of the Age of Aquarius associated with the overlapping Pisces quasi-age (359 AD – 2503 AD).  Currently, the world is in the Age of Aquarius (1433 – 3581 AD), Pisces age overflow (1433 – 3581 AD) and Pisces quasi-age (359 AD – 2503 AD).  Even this brief analysis suggests that while Aquarius has been manifesting in the world since 1433, its manifestation remains in second place to the ongoing influence of Pisces – the sign of corporations, religions and medievalism.

For further details on the mechanics of the astrological ages, see Age of Aquarius for Dummies

Aries Sub-Ages

I am pleased to announce the first publication of my new research on the astrological ages is available for download from:

Aries Sub-Ages by Terry MacKinnell 2017

My major research on the astrological ages was published in 2011[1] with the focus upon astrological ages of the Holocene Epoch commencing with the Cancer Age (9600 – 7350 BC).  The original research also included age-decans, quasi-ages and quasi-age decans (see “Age of Aquarius for Dummies” at http://ow.ly/ZXBwr ).  My original plan in 2011 was to also include sub-ages, but at 396 pages, I dropped sub-ages as apart from probably doubling the size of the book, it also may have delayed publication by at least two years.  I have been researching and writing about sub-ages and sub-age decans for around the last two years in fits and starts and have come to realize that while the conclusion to the research and publication of the book of sub-ages is highly desirable, it is another marathon multi-year project.  Therefore, I have decided to break the sub-age project into bite-size pieces and progressively make this research available as each part reaches draft status.

Instead of writing a book on sub-ages, I will write four books, one each on the sub-ages of the same element.  My first book will be fire sub-ages (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) and the plan is to then follow through with earth sub-ages, air sub-ages and conclude with water sub-ages.  This arrangement only came into focus after writing about the Aries sub-ages, and then discovering that I had to cover the same ground when researching Leo sub-ages and Sagittarius sub-ages.  This is because each Aries sub-age also includes a Leo and Sagittarius sub-age decan, each Leo sub-age includes Aries and Sagittarius sub-age decans while each Sagittarius sub-age includes Aries and Leo decans.  In reality, all signs of the same element work together in sub-ages and their decans and to isolate sub-ages to their primary sign only does not accurately portray how their energies synthesize to produce the most accurate correlation to the historical events and unfolding current events.

The major difference between what I am making freely available now and what ultimately will be published is that I am only focusing upon sub-ages, and apart from a passing reference to sub-age decans, these will be ignored at this point of time. This will also simplify the process for the average astrologer who, by and large, is floundering at the concept of the Age of Aquarius arriving in the 15^th century, let alone dealing with sub-ages.  Sub-age decans just may be one step too far and too fast.

Another reason I plan to publish my research on sub-ages and sub-age decans in a piecemeal fashion is due to the current sub-age decan.  The Gemini sub-age decan (1970 – 2029) is great for fake news, social media, handheld phones and devices, the growth of cities but on the other side of the coin sits short term attention spans and a lack of focus upon serious reading.  The following is a summary only of the material available in the attached Adobe Acrobat pdf file.

 My sub-age research commences with the arrival of the Aries age in 2918 BC as historical accuracy before this time is far too vague.  However, I do seek out some vestiges of sub-ages before the arrival of the Aries age in 2918 BC.  Since 2918 BC, there have only been two Aries sub-ages, and despite the fact that about 2,000 years separate these two Aries sub-ages, a common theme is experienced from both.  The following is a summary only of the attached file which provides a detailed analysis of these two Aries sub-ages.

A number of diverse archetypes are associated with Aries but with a common underlying theme – raw energy.  This raw energy is readily seen in the combination of military leaders and massive warfare on the one side, and cultural florescence on the other.  Into this mix can be added new breakthroughs or the beginning of something plus major and significant engineering feats.  Basically Aries wants to do something – if this involves building the biggest tower, creating a city (with all the trappings such as a library, gardens etc.) or conquering as much land as possible – so be it!  Behind nearly everything associated with Aries is this desire to collectively roll up the sleeves of the society, conquer as much territory as possible, build one or more grand cities, plumb new depths in engineering and plunge forth intellectually with vigor whenever conditions are suitable.

Those individuals that are at the forefront of Aries become ‘great’ one way or another.  Usually this is through being a great military leader, but as the fortunes of the Aries age and overflow waned, people became respected for other reasons, especially for religious reasons as the Pisces age and overflow picked up speed from around 351 AD onward with the arrival of the Pisces quasi age.

The first Aries sub-age examined arrived at the peak of the almost 4,500 years Aries age and overflow ‘bell curve’ (2916 BC – 732 BC – 1433 AD), also known as the Aries era – the Aries sub-age and overflow (914 – 732 – 551 BC) situated dead center.  The Aries crown in this period is given to Assyria – the military marvel and empire of this sub-age, and probably the purest manifestation of Aries’ ferocity.  No mercy was given to the inhabitants of any captured city that resisted Assyria’s army and the Assyrian’s used pure terror as a strategy to expand their empire.  Aries on one extreme is a pure bully.  Assyrian rulers delighted in hunting and this probably accounted for the extinction of the Mesopotamian lion which they slaughtered in large numbers. Assyria’s main city was Nineveh, and to supply it with water, two million limestone blocks were used in one bridge alone of the aqueduct constructed by thousands of prisoners of war.

Despite Assyria’s ruthlessness, the sciences and visual arts flourished.  The Assyrians were especially interested in astronomy and astrology.  One Assyrian king established the famous library at Nineveh with 30,000 clay tablets organized by shape but were separated by content into different rooms. As another Aries’ first – this library had one of the first library catalogs.[2]  The Assyrians were also the first nation to move en-masse conquered people to different locations in the Assyrian empire.[3]  Aries is always associated with people on the move for a new home.  The apex of Assyria was the reign of Tiglath-Pileser III. However, by the end of this Aries period, Assyria had disappeared from sight.  The power vacuum caused by the fall of Assyria allowed a Babylonian renaissance culminating in the legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the capturing Jerusalem in 597 BC.

This Aries period also saw the rise of Ancient Greece (800 to 480 BC) and the settling of the village of Rome in Italy.  The Etruscans in the Italian peninsula also did well under Aries, and so the sign Aries was focused upon Rome from the very beginning, not only by its formation in this Aries period, but also by the influence from the Aries-orientated Etruscans and Greek.  The founding of Carthage also made it an Aries city-state, but with Aries a competitive sign, ultimately it was either Rome or Carthage – the stakes are high under Aries!

Classical Antiquity, also known as the Classical Era, Classical period or Classical Age,[4] aligns itself exactly to the first half of the Pisces age.  The second half of the Pisces age is aligned to the Medieval period.[5] With the arrival of the Aquarius age in the 15^th century, the Modern period or age commenced.[6]  These long term fundamental periods suggest that our current modern “age” or period will last until the midway point of the Aquarius age around 2500 which is the same as the arrival of the Aquarius quasi-age.  Will 2500 bring the world to the post-apocalyptic age so well portrayed in many Hollywood movies?

The second Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) examined again witnessed  mighty Aries deeds.  The two greatest war mongers of this time were Genghis Khan and Pope Urban II.   Genghis Khan is reputed to be the world’s greatest warrior though Pope Urban II started the Crusades when he called upon Europeans to venture forth to the Middle East to attack the infidels occupying the Holy Land.  This Aries period coincided with the beginning of the Pisces quasi age-decan (1072-1791). Pisces archetypes therefore experienced a promotion and this is what we see also at this time in history – a Pisces religious leader becoming a war monger.  Only the Pisces religious pope had the ability to call Europe to arms as European secular powers were divided and at loggerheads with each other.  The default unification of Europe in fighting a common enemy confirms not only the major Pisces rulership of Europe, but also the secondary rulership by Aries.

The Crusades commenced within 30 years of the arrival of the Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) but concluded in 1291, about 40 years past the end of the Aries sub-age proper.  Aries is like a sky rocket, it goes up with a lot of fanfare but quickly comes back to earth with a thud.  Though wars appear to disfavor the aggressors, and this certainly happened to the Europeans in the failed Crusades, it did begin something else that had far reaching consequences.  All of a sudden backward Europeans gained first-hand knowledge of the majesty of the Byzantine Empire and Islamic Middle East.  The introduction of their greater knowledge and culture ultimately turned Europe from a backward atavistic society to conquer nearly all other societies in the world. Aires always wants to fight!

Genghis Khan delayed his birth to the very beginning of the more potent Aries quasi sub-age (1162-1332).  The Mongols tribes were like Europeans, always fighting among themselves, but Genghis Khan was able to meld the warring tribes into one large fighting force the likes the world had never experienced previously or since.  Like the European Crusades, the Mongol Empire lasted only while Aries was strong –  aligned to the Aries quasi sub-age.  This alignment to the Aries quasi sub-age is mimicked by Saladin – the warrior of note and military foe of Richard the Lionheart.  Saladin’s dynasty was also aligned to the Aries quasi sub-age (1162-1332).  After the death of Genghis Khan the Mongol Horde continued the momentum and conquered China, central Eurasia, much of Russia and almost Venice in 1214.  The Mongol dynasty in China fell only three decades past the end of the Aries quasi sub-age in 1332. The Mongols conquered more of Eurasia and killed a greater percentage of people than any time before or after making the Mongol Horde an Aries exemplar.  The Mongols also spread the widespread use of gunpowder and very quickly the Europeans, Muslims and Indians were employing canons and firearms – items always fondly caressed by Aries.

This Aries period saw the beginning of the end of the Eastern Roman Empire.  The sack of Constantinople by the Crusaders (under the bidding of Constantinople’s business rival, Venice) put an end to the Eastern Roman Empire’s last period of greatness.  Like the sunset period of the Western Roman Empire, the power in the Eastern Roman Empire commenced to be vested in provincial military families.  The final dynasty of the Eastern Roman Empire turned more to their Greek rather than Roman origins. This dynasty fell with the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, only 20 years past the end of the Aries sub-age overflow and Pisces age.

The two Aries sub-ages examined have been located in the Aries age and overflow (2916 BC – 732 BC – 1433 AD) and all these sub-ages and sub-age decans since the Aries sub-age and overflow (914 – 732 – 551 BC) have been the critical periods in the rise and fall of Ancient Rome.  The Aries sub-age and overflow (914 – 732 – 551 BC) saw the settling of the village of Rome on the Tiber River.  Just past the end of the Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) the last vestige of Ancient Rome collapsed with the fall of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, to the Muslim invaders.  Ancient Rome was book-ended by two Aries sub-ages.

The Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) saw, in allegorical terms, the handing of the baton from Ancient Rome to modern Europe.  The European resurgence was firstly most noticeable in Italy with the rise of powerful and rich trading states such as Venice.  This baton-passing act only temporarily involved Italy, and very quickly it left the Italian peninsula and moved into Europe where the Spaniards, Portuguese, French, Germans, Dutch and Great Britain were ready to launch forth on an unsuspecting world.  Context is everything, as each Aries sub-age or sub-age decan arrives, it must interact with whatever age, age-decan and associated quasi-periods.

The Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) is what I colloquially call the ‘sting in the tail’ of the Aries age and overflow. Any period in macro-astrology that is not a decan ends with such a sting-in-the tail and deserves an appropriate name.  Every age has as its second last sub-age in its age overflow period a sub-age with the same sign as itself.  Taking into account the sub-age overflow, this means that every age-wave finishes with a bang.  It is the conclusion to the story.

Other notable events associated with this pivotal Aries period include the Hussite Wars (1419-34) which saw the use of the hand-held cannon in Europe, Britain’s conquest of Wales (but failed conquest of Scotland) and the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453) between France and England which commenced with bows and arrows but ended with firearms and was an emphatic loss to Britain though they retain Calais for some time.

There is strong evidence of Aries in Britain’s astrological signature.  The Celts are believed to have migrated into Britain in the Aries sub-age and overflow (914 – 732 – 551 BC).  Britain entered another major phase of self-government with the withdrawal of Roman troops in the Aries sub-age decan and overflow (352 – 412 – 472 AD).  In the Aries sub-age and overflow (1072 – 1252 – 1433 AD) Britain’s nationalistic sentiment was created due mainly to the One Hundred Years war with France.  Finally in the Aries sub-age decan and overflow (1672-1731-1791) the British Empire became temporarily the foremost military power in the world due to its successes in the Second Hundred Years War.  Appropriately, Great Britain was eclipsed in the Scorpio sub-age (1791 – 1970) with Scorpio sitting in the 8^th house of death and vulnerability to Aries.  Aries is a significant sign for Great Britain.

Other developments of note in these Aries’ periods include the mass movement of people either forcibly or willingly.  Engineering and construction included most of the Seven Wonders of the World  including the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.  Other established Aries’ associations are developments in some sports and athletics including the Olympic Games.

The full version is available at:

Aries Sub-Ages by Terry MacKinnell 2017

References & Citations

[1] Terry MacKinnell, “The Dawning”, Xlibris, USA, 2011

[2] Library catalog. (2015, May 30). Wikipedia, Retrieved 02:24, June 4, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Library_catalog&oldid=664740075

[3] “A Very Short History of the World”, pp 68-72

[4] Classical antiquity. (2015, May 20). Wikipedia, Retrieved 07:35, June 4, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Classical_antiquity&oldid=663333424

[5] Middle Ages. (2015, June 4). Wikipedia, Retrieved 07:39, June 4, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Middle_Ages&oldid=665409935

[6] Modern history. (2015, May 20). Wikipedia, Retrieved 07:42, June 4, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Modern_history&oldid=663185619

A Funny Thing Happened in the 21st Century – Part 2

The current 21st century from an astrological perspective is a ‘mild’ century.  In Part 1, an initial examination of the 21^st century was made which proposed that the 21^st century is not as dangerous compared to the 20^th and 22^nd centuries due primarily to the fact that both these centuries have a major sub-age cusp whereas the 21^st century does not.  The primary influence in the 21^st century is from the Scorpio sub-age overflow (1970-2148) and a basic examination of Scorpio archetypes was undertaken.  Sub-age cusps are not the only harbingers of disasters and difficulties, and in this post, a deeper examination of the differences between the current 21^st century compared to the two adjoining centuries is made.

For those readers not familiar with periods used in macro-astrology, you may find your understanding significantly increases if you first read Age of Aquarius for Dummies

The 20^th century saw both the peak of the Scorpio sub-age wave in 1970 and the peak of the Pisces sub-age decan (the middle decan of the Scorpio sub-age) wave in 1910.  Normally a wave associated with a sub-age decan should have only one-third the strength of a sub-age wave – but like the inevitability of Murphy’s Law, there is always an exception.  The peak of the Pisces sub-age decan wave in 1910 was the exception to the rule.  The greatest wave of all is caused by an age, and that last rolled in on an unsuspecting world in the 15^th century.  The age cusp in the 15^th century marked the boundary of the Pisces and Aquarian ages, but in the 15^th century Pisces is the sign of strength while Aquarius is just the new spindly kid on the block.

In the 15^th century, the Pisces age broke like a tsunami and is currently washing over the world for thousands of years bringing all manner of Pisces archetypes along for the ride.  Pisces is traditionally associated with Europe, is the primary sign on the USA’s totem pole, is the sign for corporations (fake bodies) and thus strongly linked to capitalism, and is the apocalyptic sign which is why key Pisces religions such as Christianity and Islam look to the end of the world for salvation.  Even many science fiction and futuristic movies often portray a post-apocalyptic future.  Pisces is the sign of endings, and many people are convinced about the imminent and messy end of human society or society as we know it.

Coincidentally Pisces archetypes include self-deception, delusion and a lack of clarity. Under Pisces’ spell, when Pisces was at its peak the Roman Catholic Church (and the new Protestantism) behaved like the Taliban or ISIS and burnt at the stake many people, exiled or persecuted them by other means due only to their beliefs.  There were massive religious wars between the Protestant and Catholic nations (similar to the Sunni and Shiite antagonism currently playing out in the Middle East).  The Black Death ravaged Europe.  The majority of the American Indians were killed by disease upon contact with their European superiors, if they had not already been murdered or enslaved.  Millions of innocent Africans were transported to become slaves with many millions dying a horrible death on route.  It was not a pretty picture.  There were many developments on the positive side of Pisces at this critical juncture but at this point, I am looking for worse case scenarios.

When the tsunami of the Pisces age wave passes over the centuries, if it comes across a significant Pisces sub-period it resonates with the smaller Pisces period creating, for a short time, a far greater impact than can normally be expected from a smaller wave.  When the Pisces age wave hit the early 20^th century, it resonated with the smaller Pisces sub-age decan wave and reminded the world of what it was like to live under medieval Pisces in earlier centuries.  This is why in the first half of the 20^th century the world saw two World Wars, the Great Depression and the millions of deaths associated with the Spanish flu in 1918 which killed more people than the First World War.  How many hundreds of millions of people were cut down before their time in the first half of the 20^th century? Again, I am focusing on the dark side of Pisces only. The first half of the 20^th century was the great disaster of modern times, and there is nothing remotely like it indicated in the current 21^st century.

On the other side of the 21st century, the 22nd century has something that only appears once every age.  Each age has three age-decans.  The cusp of one age decan coincides with the cusp of the ages so can be discounted, leaving the two remaining cusps.  The first of these two age-decan cusps takes on additional role.  The first age-decan cusp of any age is of the opposite sign of the second last age overflow and stops it in its tracks!  The whole of the Pisces age (732 BC – 1433 AD) was dominated by the Aries age overflow in the same way that the current Aquarius age (1433 – 3574) is dominated by the Pisces age overflow. However when the 15^th century arrived unleashing the Pisces age-overflow, the remnants of the Aries age overflow continued to be carried along in the slipstream.  Aries brought the Age of Warfare and the continuation of the military madness associated with Aries has carried forward into the modern world – but it has a time fuse attached to it.

War is not the only archetype attached to Aries, it is the sign of male-dominated society and sits high on the European totem pole along with Pisces in contrast with the Far East which has a focus upon Libra.  Aries has driven the constructive urge in the world where nearly everywhere in the world has numerous examples of spectacular engineering feats.  Somehow, all this comes to a screeching halt from the middle of the 22^nd century onwards because of the peak of the Libra age decan in 2148 – with Libra countering Aries’ archetypes.  Furthermore, age-decan cusps produce serious schisms, and the strength of an age decan cusp is such that even the constitutional integrity of the US government will most likely be compromised (for a short time) before political continuity returns.  Major empires and regions have a history of collapsing upon the arrival of an age-decan cusp.  Age-decan cusps are serious business.  Nothing like this is seen in the current 21^st century.

Before examining the 21^st century in detail, it is important to reiterate what has been investigated so far.  The current 21^st century, for all its problems, will in no way be comparable to the extreme destruction witnessed in the first half of the 20^th century nor what is projected to occur in the 22^nd century.  The mood however for the 21^st century will be desultory and people will feel vulnerable – some will feel very vengeful. A new ethos will grow and develop over the century which can be sourced back to the 1960s and 70s.  This has precedence and previous incarnations of this same phenomena occurred with the rise of the workers commencing the early 19^th century, and the earlier rise of the bourgeoisie (self-employed businessmen). Prior to that there was the sudden appearance of the Puritans and Protestant Christians.  In each case, these movements were associated with sub-ages – the Puritans with the Capricorn sub-age, the bourgeoisie with the Sagittarius sub-age and the workers with the Scorpio sub-age.  In all cases there were long germinations times.

Each of these sub-ages of the Aquarian age have produced a major new socio-political movement

What is the new movement or ethos emanating out of the current Libra sub-age (1970 – 2148)?  It is the New Age movement, and the growth of this new environmentally-friendly social ethos is sure to follow the same pattern.  We will not experience its culmination in this century.

The two key aspects that need to be examined for a top-down view of the 21^st century are the influences from the Scorpio sub-age overflow and the newly arrived Libra sub-age (both 1970-2148 and this period can be labelled the Scorpio-Libra sub-age) plus the role of the two sub-age decans cusps that occur in the 21^st century.  Because of the wave-like nature of all periods in macro-astrology, no period is solely influenced by only one sign.  The Scorpio sub-age overflow and Libra sub-age are occurring simultaneously as the Scorpio wave has attained its peak ascendancy in 1970 and ‘breaks’ over the following period while in 1970 the Libra sub-age comes online ready for its 179 years climb to its peak.  Abbreviating the period to the Scorpio-Libra sub-age indicates the role of the two signs in this period and the dominance of Scorpio of Libra in the timeframe.

The Scorpio-Libra sub-age (1970-2148) has a demarcation line around the year 2059.  Before 2059 Scorpio is the absolute dominant sign in the partnership, but from around 2059 Libra becomes noticeably more powerful.  The input from Scorpio has already been covered in brief, but there is more to Scorpio than regeneration.  The other key archetype associated with Scorpio is reduction including minimalism.  Scorpio likes to prune the tree.  All the predictions for the world population indicate a continuation of the exponential growth in the number of people in the world.  The population explosion was a direct result of the Sagittarius sub-age overflow (1791-1970) and few people will disagree with the association of a booming population with the sign Sagittarius.  However it is now Scorpio’s turn, and Scorpio is not expansionary like Sagittarius – in many ways it has an opposite quality.  Scorpio wants the population of the world to reduce!

How will the world’s population reduce when all the pundits predict the opposite?  Most people latch onto apocalyptic scenarios, but this melodramatic view of the future is associated with Pisces, and though Pisces is the primary sign in the world for many more centuries to come, there is no Pisces period of strength in the 21^st century to resonate with.  The most it can do is prop up the Pisces micro-age and overflow (2059-2074-2089) where it is likely to create another economic bubble which will again crash spectacularly around 2092 to 2097.

The fall in population is already occurring but most people cannot see it.  Most western nations have had negative population growth for decades which means the number of children being born is less than the number of people dying.  The only reason western countries are not shrinking is due to immigration.  This population contraction is now not limited to only western nations, many second tier nations are witnessing the same.  Furthermore, as the spread of the middle class extends from developed nations to developing nations, population growth falls because middle class families do not need to depend upon their children for their social security and labor as they grow old.  Recently, for the first time in history, more people live in urban centers than in rural areas.  This is merely confirmation of the worldwide trend towards an urbanized middle class with greater wealth than their average rural counterpart, resulting in families with significantly less children.  In addition, China, with 1.3 billion people is the most populace nation on earth and had for many decades an enforced One-Child policy which has drastically affected population growth for a significant proportion of the world’s population.

It may be too unrealistic to suggest that all the population contraction will be based solely on economic issues – other mildly catastrophic events may reduce population growth, but if disease, epidemics, pollution, violence and so on become factors that prune the world’s population, it cannot be at the same echelon of disasters that befell the world in the first half of the 20^th century.  One possible reason for population decline is due appropriately to growing rates of infertility – infertility is in the stable of Scorpio archetypes.  Infertility or difficulties for women to become pregnant has substantially increased in western nations since the 1960s.[i]  Infertility clinics are becoming as common as McDonalds.

The effects of the astrological ages and sub-periods are not uniform around the world but always radiate out from the age-empire or civilization focal point of the time.  Since the 15^th century this has been the prerogative, for better and worse, of western culture – firstly in Europe, but during the powerful Pisces resonant point in the early 20^th century, this was passed on to the USA.  The emergent developments will tend to occur first in western nations then radiate out to the rest of the world over the following decades or centuries.  The negative population growth of western nations has commenced radiating out past western nations, and though it may not hit Africa for over another century or more, it will ultimately get there.

The other big picture association to Scorpio is pollution.  Pollution will be a significant factor in world affairs at least until the early 23rd century.  When the world arrives at the peak of the Taurus sub-age decan[ii] around 2207, a counterbalancing period lasting many decades will reign in pollution or its effects one way or another.  There is no need to review the plethora of dire consequences that environmental scientists predict for the world except for one major aspect that I did briefly refer to in my book published in 2011.  Global Warming is real, and currently the heat is not going into atmospheric temperature but into rising oceanic temperature.  Apart from melting the ice at the poles, hot water expands.

“Can any insight be gained from the astrological ages about the prediction by many scientists of a serious rise in ocean levels due to climate change? Pisces takes control of the oceans, and scientists are stating that the conclusions of the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) are too optimistic and conservative. The average ocean levels rose about 17 cm in the twentieth century. Most people are aware that the melting of glaciers and ice sheets is contributing significantly to sea level rise. However, global warming is also causing the existing seawater to expand, thus further increasing sea level rise. Based on the combination of meltwater from melting ice and expanding oceans, some experts believe ocean levels could rise by 1 meter by 2100 CE.” [iii]

The scientific evidence suggests that the sea level will rise around one meter (over 3 feet) per century for the next five centuries.  Since the 15^th century the strongest sign in the world is Pisces and will remain Pisces at least until 2500 – therefore the astrology supports the scientists.  This will be an ongoing major catastrophe in slow motion and satisfies the requirement of our current century that detrimental change is here, but not to the destructive level of the early 20^th century.  Recently I was discussing the issue with a university lecturer in marine biology and he stated that the effects of an average sea level rise of just one inch can push back the shoreline by 20 yards or more.  Most of the world’s coastal cities are doomed, but not immediately – how long can Venice survive?

In conclusion, both the 20^th and 22^nd centuries have major astrological precipitators creating extreme situations due to the Pisces sub-age decan resonating with the Pisces age overflow in the early 20^th century, and the Libra age-decan cusp in the 22^nd century opposing the violent influence carrying over from the Aries age. The funny thing is that nothing on this level occurs in the current 21^st century.

Each sub-age produces a sub-culture with a new ethos, and I have proposed that the new and emergent sub-culture that will be in a position to deal with the world’s problems will evolve from the New Age movement and Green sympathizers.   The population explosion is not only likely to continue to considerably slow down, it may even start reducing the world population as the 21^st century unwinds, unless this is totally reserved for the 22^nd century.  Ages and all sub-periods ‘radiate’ and at this stage of the Age of Aquarius, it is western culture that is the source of the radiation, and its radiating influence will slowly but steadily affect the rest of the world for better or worse (torturing prisoners or highly questionable interrogation tactics such as waterboarding will also radiate out to the rest of the world).  On the other extreme is the Peace or New Age movement which was developed within western culture.

Finally pollution will increasingly become the issue that must be resolved and the second half of the 21st century looks promising in this regard.  The astrology suggests that the current ethos of western culture is incapable of adequately addressing the major issue of pollution due to the overriding focus upon financial profit, and that it will only be due to the growing influence of the New Age/Green movement, or whatever emerges from this movement, that will sufficiently address the problem – possibly as early as 2059 or shortly thereafter.  The drive towards addressing pollution and Climate Change will build and develop in the period leading to 2059.

References

[i] http://www.fertility.com/en/stage1/articles/article8/article8.html

[ii] This Taurus sub-age decan belongs to the Virgo sub-age (c.2148-2327)

[iii] Terry MacKinnell “The Dawning”,Xlibris, 2011, p 237-8

Associated Posts

A Funny Thing Happened in the 21st Century – Part 1

Will New Agers Rule the World

Scorpio – the Sign of the Times

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Further resources from Terry MacKinnell

www.macro-astrology.com – details of purchasing the book available

The Age of Aquarius for Dummies – explains the structure and sub-periods associated with the astrological ages

Aquarian Age Economics – Examines the relationship between macro-astrology and financial cycles

At the Cutting Edge of the Aquarian Age – Cutting edge research into the astrological ages for astrologers

FaceBook – keep up to date with what is happening

“The Dawning” is available from Xlibris, Amazon etc

Detailed examination of the astrological ages from the Age of Leo to the Age of Aquarius including age-decans

 

A Funny Thing Happened in the 21st Century – Part 1

The astrological ages behave like mighty ocean waves. Each age-wave mimics each other age-wave, in shape, size and velocity, but the variation is in the archetypes associated with each wave.  Each wave brings a different set of archetypes with it.  The problem with astrological ages is that they are spaced around 2,150 years apart and very few people can contextualize a series of historical currents separated from each other by 2,150 years.

Dividing an age into three equal parts creates age-decans with each age-decan in the order of around 700 years may be slightly more palatable, but the time spans involved are still taxing for most people.  Sub-ages of around 179 years each may be a little more familiar to many people as most people have some kind of familiarity with the Renaissance followed by the Age of Maritime Exploration with the Scientific Age closely on its heel.  Next came the Industrial Revolution leading to the worldwide population explosion, followed by the Atomic Age and now we have the desultory period of post-modernism.  Sub-ages enter the realm of relative familiarity.

In the same way that ages can be divided into three decans, so can sub-ages.  It is my observation that the smaller sub-age decans of approximately 60 years is the most palatable way for most people to relate to history because 60 years approaches the average span of life.  The normal person will have personal experience of at least two sub-age decans over the course of their life, and the cultural remembrance of the sub-age decan experienced by their parents or grandparents is so strong, that a third sub-age becomes almost as real as the two that are directly experienced.  For Baby Boomers at least, they have direct experience of the Scorpio sub-age decan, the current Gemini sub-age decan, with handed down tales of the Pisces sub-age decan of their grandparents, supplemented with the movies of the 1930s we saw as kids on TV.  Younger generations may be too removed from the Pisces sub-age decan, but they should assimilate the arrival of the coming Aquarian sub-age decan in 2029!

These 60 years sub-ages are not only understandable by most people due to their direct experience, they also seem to dictate the geopolitical reality of the world that sits upon the collective expectations and reality of the world’s population.  The sub-ages provide a structure to analyze what can be expected to occur in the current 21st century.  The 21^st century is mainly focused upon the Gemini sub-age decan (1970-2029) followed by the Aquarius sub-age decan (2029 – 2089).  These two sub-ages are the first two of three sub-ages of the Libra sub-age (1970-2148).  The funny thing is that the current 21st century will be ‘milder’ than last century and next century.

Before delving into the sub-age decans of the current 21st century (2001 to 2100) it is important to place the 21^st century into context.  The 21^st century sits between the 20^th and 22^nd centuries.  The 21^st century is not only bookended by each of these two centuries but also dwarfed by each of them.  The 20^th and 22^nd centuries are far more powerful than the current 21^st century.  This can be readily explained.

The 20^th and 22^nd centuries each have a sub-age cusp located within them whereas the 21^st century lacks such an event.  The Scorpio sub-age came to an end in 1970, and the current Libra sub-age will truncate in 2148.  Each of these cusps can be viewed as the crest of their respective waves.  The wave associated with a sub-age is the third strongest of all the waves, and is only exceeded by the age-decans’ and age cusps’ waves. In a superficial analysis, the fact that the current 21^st century has no wave of the size of a sub-age cusp may indicate that it is a ‘lessor’ century.  This may or may not be the case because approximately every second century lacks a sub-age cusp.  Since 1000 AD, the 12^th, 14^th, 16^th and 19^th centuries all lacked a sub-age cusp.  It is very possible that each of these centuries were subordinate to the centuries that did contain a sub-age cusp.  A superficial examination of all the centuries since 1000 AD in Wikipedia does qualitatively support this notion but even if true, it is probably a moot point.

So while our 21^st century is bereft of a sub-age cusp, it sits directly under the path of the Scorpio sub-age overflow (1970-2148) which in essence is like a tsunami passing over a hapless world. Scorpio does not bring peace or security but disaster and regeneration.  Scorpio is not the sign of war, but it is the sign of terrorism and terrorists. It is the sign of underground criminal networks and disenchanted individuals willing to die for whatever cause.  It is the sign of vulnerability where despite statistical indications to the contrary, people feel that crime, death from war and violence and premature death is occurring more frequently. Scorpio is also the sign of debt, so instead of countries being rated on their gold reserves, they are rated on their debt level.  People use credit cards instead of cash.  The recent GFC was extremely painful for many who had borrowed heavily to fund their stock portfolios.

However, the great scourge associated with the Scorpio wave that peaked in 1970 and is now washing over the world is pollution. Some astrologers have a problem with pollution being associated with Scorpio, but in reality, pollution is the excrement of our modern enlightened society and associated economy.  Many people fear the advent of the Third World War, but the scourge of this century is not a world war but something that has the potential to be just as deadly.  Of course atomic bombs and nuclear power stations are ruled by Scorpio, and their proliferation since the arrival of the Scorpio sub-age decan overflow in 1970 plus some of the nuclear accidents that have occurred to date, strongly suggest that nuclear radiation contamination is also in the hand of cards now being played.  Fukishima again demonstrated our increasing vulnerability to nuclear accidents.

Not everything is dark and gloomy with Scorpio, after all, sex is a strong Scorpio archetype. The Sexual Revolution unleashed in the 1960s and 70s aligned to the peak of the Scorpio wave has fundamentally changed western society and continues to ripple out to the rest of the world. The arrival of legalized gay marriage in some regions of the western world demonstrates that the Scorpio wave of sexual liberation is showing no signs of faltering.  Even Muslim countries like Malaysia have recently allowed their gays to come out of the closet while more backward nations have strengthened their anti-homosexuality laws – but the focus remains on Scorpio.

Is Scorpio a doom-laden gloomy sign compared to most other signs? This is a matter of perspective.  Certainly a key attribute of Scorpio is its death-rebirth nature.  On the one hand this breeds born-again Christians (and seemingly born-again Muslims) but on a more significant perspective, it indicates a time of renewal following a breakdown.  Is the world breaking down?  Is it renewing?

I recently had the fortunate experience of attending the 2014 Ubud Writers & Readers Festival in Bali.  This was not the first time I had attended one of these festivals in Bali, but it was the first for a few years.  It is a great place to feel which direction the wind is blowing.  The almost unanimous consensus by the writers, intellectual s and attendees was that the direction the world is heading is wrong.  Specifically the economic paradigm introduced or forced upon the rest of the world by powerful western nations (since the arrival of the Pisces age overflow in the 15^th century) benefits the minority rich at the expense of the vast majority of the world population.  The accumulation of wealth by a few is disproportionate to the number of extremely poor people in the world.  Furthermore, the environmental degradation of the world is a direct consequence of this unquenchable quest for wealth by those who basically are already wealthy in relative terms.

In contrast to chasing wealth, many people at the festival expressed the need to find value from non-materialistic aspects in life.  This was probably best expressed by Keibo Oiwa from Japan who is a cultural anthropologist, film-maker, environmental activist, public speaker and the author of over 50 books.  His slogan for the future was the need to be ‘slower, smaller and simpler’. He received much applause.  Thus we are seeing the dawn of a new perspective on the modern world, one not focused upon wealth and power but upon quality and happiness.  No one was calling for the destruction of capitalism but the sentiment was that capitalism will have to be house-trained.

Keibo Oiwa is not alone, and ever since the 1960s and 70s there has been a small but growing number of people attempting to live an alternative lifestyle or opting out of the money-centric world of extreme capitalism that we now find ourselves in.  Is the shopping mall a sign of progress?  One Balinese teacher complained how her youthful students were totally focused upon what we would call junk-food, because in their eyes, cool people overseas ate rubbish at McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken and the like – anyone with a white skin was considered cool.  It seems that humans are like chimpanzees that want to mimic each other.

This alternative urge towards house-trained capitalism and quality of life over wealth will be a growing phenomenon of the current 21^st century but for a while, this new movement will be dwarfed by terrorism, epidemics, failed states, criminal gangs, tyrannical leaders and megalomaniac states but this does not mean a rebirth is not in progress.  According to Malcolm Gladwell, author of “The Tipping Point”, it only takes about 20% of the population to move towards a new idea, trend, or social behavior which then crosses a threshold and spreads like wildfire.  Already in Australia, about 10% on average of the voting population vote Green in every election.  How many decades until this figure is 20%?

The work is certainly cut out for the world in the 21^st century, but any examination of the two centuries that sandwich the 21^st century suggests that while change is imminent, due to the Scorpio wave passing over the whole of this century, the level of destruction or chaos that will be experienced in the 21^st century is limited. The destructive influence on both the 20^th and 21^st centuries are much greater compared to the 21^st century.  We have already passed through the 20^th century, and survived, and the inherent problems in the 21st century should not be as great, despite contemporary society’s pessimism.  A funny thing about the present 21st century is that it should be ‘milder’ on humanity compared to the previous 20th century.

Relevant time periods:

Scorpio sub-age and overflow (1791-1970-2148)

Libra sub-age and overflow (1970-2148-2327)

• Gemini sub-age decan (1970-2029)
• Aquarius sub-age decan (2028-2089)

The sub-age decans of the Libra sub-age

Notes

All ages and sub-periods behave like a wave in the shape of a bell curve.  When any period commences, it is at its weakest point, and steadily build in strength to its apogee at the end of its period.  It then breaks like a wave and washes over the following period like a wave in what is called its ‘overflow’.  Research indicates that the sign associated with any period appears stronger in the overflow period.  For example the Scorpio sub-age was 1791 to  1970 but Scorpio will appear to diversify much further in its overflow period compared to its period proper. A funny thing about the present 21st century is that it should be ‘milder’ on humanity compared to the previous 20th century.

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December 21st End of the World Increases Interest in the Astrological Ages

The December 21st 2012 end of the world scenario obviously garnered interest around the world. As the graph for this blog indicates, interest over the two days (due to shifting time zones) reflect December 21st at different parts of the world.

WordPress Statistics Dec 23 2012

Why were so many people affected by such spurious claims about the end of the world? It’s all due to the fact that the most important zodiacal sign in our part of the Aquarian age is actually Pisces, the sign of the previous age. When the Pisces age came to an end in c.1433 AD, it was at its greatest strength, and like a wave washes over the new Aquarian age which is like a newborn infant (see Is the Aquarian Age Like a Block of Granite? ). It will take until around 2500 AD before Aquarius can significantly begin to push Pisces aside. In the whole approximate 26,000 years cycle of the Great Year, the period 1433 to 2148 AD will be the time of greatest strength for Pisces (see Aquarius in Pisces Sheep Clothing). Pisces is strongly associated with end-of-the-world scenarios, delusion, deception, deceit, fantasy and general lack of clarity plus self-made destruction. Pisces rules belief-system, and does not care if these belief-systems are based on religion, politics or whatever. People prefer to believe in their beliefs than in reality when Pisces is strong. This is why many people who believe in the love of God one way, will kill other people who believe the love of God manifests differently. The world depends upon superficiality, fashion and smoke-and-mirrors under Pisces.

In a Pisces environment, it is not surprising that some delusional self-seeking publicist will claim the Mayans predicted the end-of-the-world on 21 December 2012. The reason why so many people were affected by this delusion, is that at this time of the cycle of the Great Year, people in general prefer delusion. Delusion is so comforting because you can mould it whatever way you want. Under Pisces you can develop whatever belief system you like, then pretend this belief system came from God, the cosmic force… whatever. This is why the US Civil War of the 19th century was actually a religious war as one side claimed God did not like slavery while the other side believed God supported slavery. Many US politicians treat capitalism as if it was God-given perfect way to run the world’s economy.

Many people sensibly treated the Mayan end-of-the-world with a party. Fortunately we are coming near the end of the Pisces at full throttle as it shifts down a gear over the next 150 years. For anyone born after 1940, including the Baby Boomers, Generation X, Gen Y and whatever comes next have never experienced a serious hit of Aquarius, even though we have been in the Aquarian age since 1433 AD. This anomaly will be rectified soon. Between 2015 and 2025 (and especially the peak of the bell curve 2017 – 2022) Aquarius will be in serious self-promotion mode as the Aquarian age passes over an Aquarian sub-period within the Aquarian age – creating a small Aquarius hot-spot. We are heading towards very interesting times from the astrological perspective and the world is actually on the cusp of the most dynamic and progressive developments not seen in the world for over 7,000 years and linked to the coming Aquarius hotspot commencing in 2015 (see A Celebration 7,000 Years in the Making )

Every one of us will experience the end-of-the-world when it is the end of our life. This life is a gift, this world is a gift and the universe is a gift. Reality dictates that we should experience primarly the fact we are surrounded by gifts not of our making. The only real response to the gifts that have been bestowed upon us is one of gratitude. If the world was orientated towards gratitude rather than delusional belief systems that ultimately are based on projecting our greatness (‘I live in the best country in the world’ is one of them) – the world may be a very different place. Just because the dominant paradigm in the world is currently Pisces-delusion, that does not mean as individuals we have to be locked into this fashionable stupidity.

For a comprehensive understanding of the astrological ages, see: http://www.macro-astrology.com

Now available online and at major book stores.

 

Pisces America

I recently had the pleasure of attending the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival in Bali (5 – 9 October 2011).  With an eclectic mix of presenters from Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas, this writers festival provided a first account insight into the world today – warts and all.  One recurrent theme introduced by a variety of writers focused upon the destructive political and social input from the USA upon many countries outside of the developed western world.

Before providing the relevant details of the political skulduggery undertaken by the USA since the Second World War (to keep the world free) let me be clear that I am not anti-American, and though I will be dealing with some of these negative issues associated with the USA, I will also be discussing many positive qualities associated with the USA as presented by various writers at the festival. This is actually the essence of this blog post.  There are two distinct sides to the USA, and while many people acknowledge one side or the other, depending upon their personal political views and allegiances, it is necessary to recognise both sides to fully comprehend the Pisces psyche of the USA.

In my recently published book, The Dawning – Shedding New Light on the Astrological Ages, I basically introduce the USA onto the world stage as the modern empire of the Pisces-Aquarius age. In a similar fashion, Ancient Rome was the empire of the Aries-Pisces age, Ancient Egypt the empire of the Taurus-Aries age and Sumer (Mesopotamia) the empire of the Gemini-Taurus age.  Each of these empires introduced specific peaks of achievement associated with the age-pair of the times, with a distinct focus upon the first sign in the age pair.

Mesopotamia of the Gemini-Taurus age introduced (Gemini) writing.  Ancient Egypt of the Taurus-Aries age is known for its massive pyramids, stone temples and monuments carved out of mountains – appropriate for Taurus – the fixed earth sign of solidity.  Ancient Rome of the Aries-Pisces is renowned for its mighty armies that not only created the largest ancient empire based on its military might – it actually pioneered modern military techniques (basically shock and awe).  Aries is the sign ruled by Mars – the god of war.  In the same vein, the USA in the current Pisces-Aquarius age (1433 – 3574) is the champion of Pisces in the modern world – and even on a simplistic level, this can be seen by its cultural capital, Hollywood, which has conquered the world through movies (movies are ruled by Pisces, the sign always associated with fantasy in all its shapes and guises).  Furthermore the USA is the champion of the ethereal corporation – which are fake bodies given the status of real bodies in the legal system, and thus has provided the backbone of the modern capitalistic world.  Most things that are fake are associated with Pisces. All these associations are explored in far greater detail in The Dawning (see:
http://www.macro-astrology.com).

The focus in this blog however is on the bi-polar nature of the USA due to its primary association to Pisces.  The USA is not the Pisces Empire of the modern world, but the Pisces-Aquarius Empire, but Aquarius plays second fiddle to Pisces in the Aquarian age due to the Overflow Effect (see: Is the Aquarian Age Like a Block of Granite?).  Basic zodiacal sign symbology for Pisces displays two fish swimming in opposite direction.  This is reflected in American politics,  foreign policy and society.  At the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival of 2011, the two fish of the USA were on display (without anyone realising the Pisces connection, other than myself).

The author and journalist Tariq Ali is an expatriate Pakistani living in exile in London due to his political views – having a political view in Pakistan is dangerous!  In the two sessions I attended that included Tariq, he repeatedly described how, since the Second World War, the USA has actively undermined the political integrity and the fledgling democracies in the Middle East, in the same way that it did in South America.  Tariq basically stated that the USA would undermine any country that it perceived to be against the foreign policy interests of the USA.  This is a well-documented and widely known fact. Towards the end of the session, Tariq wittingly stated that Australia was the USA’s fixed aircraft carrier in the region.

Andrew Fowler discussed his new book The Most Dangerous Man in the World (about the rise of Julian Assange to international prominence).  One of the reasons Julian is fighting his extradition to Sweden, is that not only is the Swedish government conservative, it was also a stopover point provided by the Swedish government to the Americans sending alleged terrorists to other countries for torture.  The Americans have demonized Assange as a spy with the complicity of the New York Times, and in a show of political corporate (Pisces) support, American companies such as MasterCard, Visa and PayPal pulled the plug on donations being provided to Assange.  Even though the New York Times published some of the information provided by Assange’s Wikileaks, they stated that Julian was a source, not a journalist.  Journalists are protected in the USA due to freedom of speech – but sources do not have this protection.  Even the New York Times was complicit in the demonizing of Assange.

In the session “My Egypt” with Gamal Al Ghitani and Khaled Al-Khamissi, about word on the street in Egypt, it came out that Assange’s Wikileaks provided some important information that helped garner support for the overthrow of the Tunisian regime through people-power.  Wikileaks revealed that American diplomatic sources secretly discussed how they would not support the Tunisian government due to its corruption and despotism.  This fact alone gave moral support to the democratic revolutionary elements in Tunisa – and the rest is history. Tunisia was the first despotic regime to fall, setting in momentum the unrest that spread to Egypt, Bahrain, Syria and other Middle East countries.  So while the USA demonizes Julian Assange, it appears that his altruistic desire to reveal the truth about what our politicians and diplomats are really doing behind the scenes and ultimately on our behalf, has already borne some fruit.  I wonder how the American Founding Fathers in their revolutionary zeal would view Julian Assange?

The final political session “Coups, Crusades and Revolutions” with Horst Geerken (Germany), Oya Baydar (Turkey) and Tariq described a litany of interference by the USA into the internal affairs of many countries resulting in the deaths and persecution of many people – many of whom were just members of a trade union or expressed left-wing political views.  Horst was resident in Indonesia in the early 1960s in the final years of the non-aligned President Sukarno, and witnessed the USA backed military coup against him led by General Suharto.  Once installed in power, the USA gave the names of communists, leftists and sympathisers to be neutralized, and consequently between one and three million Indonesians were murdered, with the numbers killed in Bali particularly high. This is all documented in Horst Geerken’s book A Gecko for Luck.

The reason why the USA orchestrated coups around the world and militarily intervened wherever necessary (Korea, Viet Nam, Iraq, Afghanistan etc.) has evolved since the post-World War Two period, but the initial purpose was to contain and stop the spread of communism. There is no doubt that the growth and development of communism in the first part of the 20^th century was an evil and duplicitous enterprise carried out by ruthless and unscrupulous supporters.  Its evil was such that communism was probably equivalent to one of the horses of the apocalypse.  The duping of much of the western intellectual and leftist political supporters morally supporting the evil of Stalinist-style communism was perceived by the USA as the enemy within – and in retrospect this view was basically correct, even though the enemy within were not aware of their own ignorance.  It should be remembered that the key sign in the current Pisces-Aquarius age is Pisces – the sign of gullibility and deception.  Furthermore the first part of the 20^th century was a Pisces hot spot – possibly the last Pisces hotspot of such magnitude for almost another 26,000 years.  Even many western intellectuals and academics were hypnotized (Pisces) by the communists.

The post-war American political agenda had communism firmly in its gun sights, and it did not waver in facing the enemy wherever it tried to break out from its support base in the USSR and China.  Unfortunately America utilised the Pisces technique of demonization and adopted any means, fair or foul, to defeat its enemy – basically the same technique of the communists.  From the militaristic American perspective, the appearance of communism or its supporters anywhere in the world was cause for great concern and it did everything it could to eradicate its enemy and supporters.  If a fledging democratic government had to be overthrown by a military coup – so be it! If millions of people had to be killed, even if they were only of a left-wing political persuasion – off with their heads. America took the view that the end justifies the means.  This may seem incongruous with a democratic nation, but the history of democracy shows that democracy to date has always been limited.  For example in Athens in Ancient Greece, only the male landholder could vote, and they also owned slaves.  In the modern example, while the USA is internally based on democratic institutions, its role, and foreign policy in the international arena has always been based on self-interest (no different than most other powers in the world). Pisces involvement is in the fact ‘the end justifies the means’ – any number of deceitful and sordid calamities could be bestowed on any country deemed an enemy or opponent.

Since the collapse of monolithic communism, the USA was bereft of an enemy.  9/11 solved that problem, and the USA has engaged in a new reign of hostilities against Al-Qaeda or its supporters and allies in the Middle East, or using its War Against Terror to invade or undermine any country it so pleases – in much  the same way it has widely done since the Second World War.  I am sure that none of the key players in the inner American political establishment feels anything other than justifiable righteousness in containing its perceived enemies – be they the former communists or the new breed of terrorist networks.

Most people in the world believe that their personal actions and beliefs are correct – this underlies the Pisces illusion of our modern age.  The unconscious reasoning goes something like this – if I am correct, then anyone who disagrees with me incorrect.  If these incorrect or deluded adversaries cause a problem, or I perceive they may cause a problem, I can further enhance their incorrectness by demonizing them in any way I like.’  This was done to the extreme in Nazi Germany, Stalinist USSR and Mao’s China.  It has been done to homosexuals, some minor religious groups, major religions against other major religions, people who use drugs – and in some countries, people who drink alcohol and most recently to illegal immigrants.  Any use of demonization is evidence of Pisces (i.e. delusion and deception).

The USA, as the Pisces-Aquarius Empire of the modern world, has mythologised its minor Aquarian revolutionary nature that prompted it to become an early democracy in a world basically ruled by monarchical elites.  There is no doubt that the sentiments expressed by America’s Founding Fathers will echo through the world for millennia to come.  Despite this strong Aquarian element in the American psyche, the Pisces element is the senior partner.  One way this Pisces element manifests is that, by and large, American’s believe their own propaganda.  They are proud of their leading role in the world and particularly their democratic traditions – but they let the mirage of their self-assessment over-rule reality.  The reality is that countries may be relatively democratic within their borders, but they behave outside of their own border just like countries have always done since countries were first invented – they act in their own self-interest and, if powerful, they do all they can to make other countries obey their will.

In total contrast to Americas’ international relations, one of the final sessions of the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival named “Traversing Cultural Divides” highlighted three different people who have fled to or immigrated to the USA, and now call it home, plus one Afro-American.  Basically Arthur Flowers (USA), Chris Abani (Nigeria), Edel Rodriguez (Cuba) and Shirley Lim (ethnic Chinese Malaysian) waxed lyrical about the benefits of living in the USA, and the many opportunities this gave them.  They believe that anyone who sets their mind to it can live the life they deserve in the USA and achieve fulfilment in their lives.  Such success is not born of race, social status or religion but their own effort in an egalitarian society.

For example Shirley Lim’s family has lived some generation in Malaysia, but Malaysia will not treat them as a full citizen due to their ethnic Chinese background. Edel Rodriguez grew up under Castro in Cuba until his family fled to Florida, USA. Rodriguez acknowledges his childhood memories and he would like to be buried in Cuba when he dies, but in the meantime he is a successful graphic artist in the USA. Chris Abani relates to one incident in the USA, his adopted home, where he had to stay in a strange city one night, in a hotel with no friends to call upon.  The helpful and friendly staff informed him that the tree he could see from his hotel window was famous for lynching Negroes in the not too distant past.  As a black African himself, this did little to make him feel at home. Nevertheless, all the panellists were firm in their conviction that no country in the world gave the same degree of freedom and opportunity as the USA.

The USA has pioneered more than democracy, it has been at the forefront of technological evolution for almost a century, and has recently extended itself into cyber world. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are two leading lights in the new technological world.  In a recent article in The Global Edition of the New York Times[1] it was revealed that sentiment was so high following the death of Steve Jobs, that following the release of the new iPhone 4S, many customers stated that the “4S” meant “for Steve”.  The USA has provided leadership in the cyber world as evidence by the inroads that various American companies have achieved – from IBM, Microsoft to Facebook, Google, Wikipedia and so on.  These innovative developments have been lapped up by a hungry and mainly appreciative world.

In should be noted that Steve Jobs was proud of his (Pisces) drug use – he was a product of the 1960s and 70s and he was an unabashed proponent of this aspect of his life.  The USA led the world, yet again, in those revolutionary and liberating times of the 60s and 70s with marijuana and LSD high on the list.  As one online commentator stated – if Steve had been caught, he would have been put in a (Pisces) cage.  This yet again displays the two fish Pisces paradox that is the USA. On the one hand, the USA led the new drug fuelled world, but simultaneously enacted one of the most draconian laws against drug use in the western world. Currently the American war on drugs is dissembling Mexico and causing untold hardship around the world in its stance against an evolutionary social development that American conservative elements do not like.

Where else in the First World does any other country other than the USA has such a large block of citizens who refute Darwin’s Theory of Evolution in favour of creationism?  This same fundamentalist Christian block maintains an arch-conservative political influence that beggars description and has no known parallel in any other First World country.  The American conservative bloc is another manifestation of the two fish associated with Pisces.

America presents itself as an Aquarian freedom loving democracy – but this is nothing more than ‘white man speaks with forked tongue’.  Americans are not consciously malicious, like everyone else they believe they are doing the right thing in the right way, but even their approach to Julian Assange and Wikileaks indicates a chink in their Pisces armour. They prefer that the delusion of their democratic mystique is maintained rather than be scrutinized and have reality appear.  Assange was merely putting on public display the reality of American foreign policy.  What the American government was telling its citizen’s as its justification for war was in stark contrast to the facts that their own intelligence service provided.  Reality has no association with Pisces other than Pisces is the sign of ‘lack of reality’.  Pisces is associated with public relations and spin – America does everything it can to maintain the mirage of its own spin. Pisces is an ill-defined archetype which is an inherent part of its nature.  It is more like a mirage or fog than a solid object.

Finally, there is no suggestion that the stance and approach that the USA adopts in its foreign policy is in any way inferior or worse than most other nations, past or present – it is just that America is the most influential nation in the world, and so its actions are noticed the most – and criticised the most. The UK was equally malicious in the age of the British Empire as were most European countries – and most countries in the world given the chance.

There is an urban myth developing that the USA is being overtaken by China.  One writer put this in perspective – I think it was Tariq Ali from Pakistan.  Basically he said that if you take the next 10 leading countries in size, after the USA, add all their respective defence budgets together and then double this figure – it still does not equate to the USA’s defence spending.  Though this may be an exaggeration, the military power of the USA is not about to be usurped.  One columnist recently referred to the rise and fall of empires, and stated that the USA had at least two decades left as the world’s superpower. This is where the astrological ages provide greater clarity.  The USA, as empire of the Pisces-Aquarius age, will be at its exalted position for many centuries, if not for another 1,500 years or so – but with some significant turmoil and changes coming in due course.  The first major unsettling development due for the USA will not occur before the middle of next century.

The USA is an enigma within an enigma – it is Hollywood on the grand scale in every sense. It is a mixture of fact and fantasy, where fantasy is presented as fact, and facts are often presented as fantasy. It promotes the glamor of democracy and the deceit of an international bully.  For me this was encapsulated by President Bush immediately after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.  Bush stated to the effect that “.. he would make the world safe for Americans”. What about everyone else in the word – don’t they also deserve peace?  This is Athenian democracy – it is for the elite only.

In a session “Happiness in Human Nature” Rodaan al Galidi, a long term refugee in Jordan from Iraq, and currently resident of Holland since 1998 reflected upon a CNN news report of the war in Iraq.  “800 Iraqi’s were killed today and an American soldier was shot in the leg”.  CNN then went on and described the convalescence required, input from his family members and other details from the soldier’s wound.  The USA promotes an elitist democracy but hides this reality.  This is Pisces pure and simple. Nevertheless, the USA is the empire of the Pisces-Aquarian age, and the real Aquarian age empire will not appear for at least another 1,500 years. The USA will be perceived as a stepping stone along the way towards real democracy in the same way that ancient Athens is considered the starting point of the western democratic tradition.

As a major consolation for idealists and rationalists, if the Stalinist communist model had been successful and the world had succumbed to their brain-numbing political model of terror, subjugation and genocide, the USA would appear as a saint – but only in comparison.  Now we know that the USA is not a saint but we are left with the Pisces choice – is the glass half full or half empty? Being an optimistic Sagittarian, I take the USA glass to be half full. Furthermore there are exciting times ahead for the USA and the world (see: A Celebration 7,000 Years in the Making).

In relation to Ancient Rome, the USA position today is equivalent to the year 145 BC for Rome.  Rome did not attain its maximum territorial size until around 250 years after 145 BC. 145 BC was towards the end of the period known as Supremacy of the New Nobility (287–133 BC) where there was a kind of balance of power of the aristocratic senate and the plebeian assembly. However this was the most militarily active era of the Roman Republic and it left many Roman citizens bankrupt and dependent upon the state due to the deteriorating economic circumstances.[2] Following 133 BC, Ancient Rome teetered between normalcy and crisis, and various reforms were attempted. The world is not static, and this also applies to the USA.

So in conclusion, when many friends and acquaintances throw their hands up in collective horror at the shenanigans of the USA in world affairs since the Second World War, I remind them that for every evil deed done and every corrupt or deceitful action take, that on the other side of the coin, America attains some major development, goal or produces something uplifting for humanity. The IT revolution is being led by the USA, and the ubiquitous cell phone has been shown to play an important part in recent revolutions – as is the case with social network websites. The two fish will always be stuck to the USA, and unfortunately they swim in opposite directions.  This Pisces paradox lies at the core of the American psyche. To accept only one side is to be part of the delusion. Most people choose one fish or the other as if these individual fish adequately describes the USA.  Unless cognizance is given to both fish, that seem intrinsically opposed to each other, than no real understanding of the age empire of our time can be made.

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[1] Sat-Sun Oct 15-16 2011 Pg 15

[2] “Roman
Republic.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, 19 Oct.
2011. Web. 20 Oct. 2011.

Now available online and at major book stores.

For a complete background to the above blog, see THE DAWNING, published in 2011

The Aquarian age did not begin in the 1960′s or ’70s (Revised)

© Terry MacKinnell 2008, 2011 All Rights Reserved

The most commonly stated urban myth about the Aquarian age is that it commenced in the 1960s or ’70s. Blogs from one end of the world to the other repeatedly discuss the arrival of the Aquarian age in those rebellious and drug-fuelled times.  Just because the musical Hair commenced proclaiming in the 1960s that ‘this is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius…’ does not make it so. If all the people in the world jumped up and down in unison declaring this is the beginning of the Age of Aquarius, Aquarius could not care less, even if everyone sang it in key!

The behind-the-scenes understanding of the Aquarian age, and astrological ages in general, requires some knowledge of astronomy and astrology.  However, even in the astrological world, very few astrologers research the subject, while most of the other astrologers have little more knowledge on the astrological ages than the general public. The most common statement on the subject, from those few research astrologers that examine the ages, is that the previous age, the Age of Pisces, arrived with the birth of Jesus Christ. Pisces is the sign of two fish.  Since early times Christians preferred the fish symbol for Christianity, so astrologers behave like Homer Simpson and say d’oh – ‘Jesus must have started the Pisces age’.

However if Jesus commenced the Pisces age, the earliest the Aquarian age can arrive is around 2150. Why? Because the cycle of ages due to precession of the equinoxes takes approximately 26,000 years to make one revolution. In the approx. 26,000 years cycle each age appears for approximately 2150 years each. Therefore if the Pisces age commenced with Jesus then the Aquarian age cannot commence before approx. 2150. Secondly, many astrologers believe that due to the haphazard sizes of the zodiacal constellation, the Pisces age must be closer to 2600 years in length as the constellation of Pisces is a large constellation on the ecliptic, and takes up more than 30 degrees – the average or standard size assigned to each zodiacal constellation. Based on this approach, many
astrologers believe the Aquarian age will not arrive until around the year 2600 – almost six centuries into the future.

The problem with the Aquarian age arriving in the middle of the 22nd or much later at the beginning of the 27^th centuries is how to explain all the Aquarian
developments in the world today. Such Aquarian developments include electricity, computers, flight, space travel and democracy. All these have strong archetypal affinity to Aquarius and no relationship to Pisces.  What do these have to do with the Pisces age?

To get around this awkward question the solution is easy – just state that we are approaching the cusp of the Pisces and Aquarian ages, and at the cusp there is a blurring of the two influences. Unfortunately no experienced astrologer to my knowledge has ever experienced cusps. Cusps are an urban myth popular with those members of the general public with a little knowledge of astrology and with novice astrologers who do not know any better. In over three decades of studying astrology, I have never encountered a factual explanation of cusps that justify their existence nor heard from any experienced astrologer that cusps have any validity.

The common approach to the astrological ages is a good demonstration of irrationality at work. When no justification for the arrival of the Aquarian age before 2150 can be supplied, astrologers have invented a solution that no one has proved or can substantiate. In past times this is called ‘building your house on sand rather than rock’. The house is going to fall down if built upon the sand. Cusps are made of sand.

What else is sand here? Something very simple and totally overlooked. There is no doubt that Christianity has a relationship with Pisces. Pisces shares the fish symbol with Christianity and Pisces is also associated with mysticism and mystical religions, and religions based on salvation. But the BIG question is, why
should the Pisces age begin with the arrival of the avatar of Western culture?  Who said that ages must begin with a famous person? What about Buddha or
Zoroaster, why could not the Pisces age be already in place when Buddha appeared around six centuries earlier?

The whole mess of an Aquarian age not arriving before 2150 or much later is dependent on the unsubstantiated assumption that Jesus began the Pisces age. When I have confronted some astrologers about this anomaly their eyes turn blank and their aura recedes because astrologers are not accustomed to think about the ages in general and the Aquarian age in particular. Astrologers are deep thinkers, but not when it comes to the ages. The study of the astrological ages is one area in astrology where astrologers can dream up all manner of unsubstantiated nonsense and pretend it is true. If this is how astrologers behave, no wonder the urban myths on the Aquarian age are in lala land.

If the Aquarian age arrived, say at 1970, then the Pisces age should have arrived at around 181 BC (1970 AD – 2150 = 181 BC). What happened around 181 BC to indicate a major historical shift in gears? Nothing! There is no reason to believe that the Pisces age arrived around 181 BC. However this does not mean that 181 BC was not in the Pisces age.

One of the main reasons that astrologers, and many members of the general public, have a problem aligning astrological ages with history is that, by and large,
astrologers and the general public are not historians.  For the historical-challenged (i.e. most people), the revolutionary fervent around the 1960s and 70s was strongly evident.  Yes there were bohemians well before this time, and beatniks appeared in the 1950s but the intensity of youthful revolutionary passion in the 60s and 70s was awesome in comparison.  However the historical problem with a new age arriving in the 60s and 70s is that the revolutionary fervent occurred in a culture in progress that has been developing for many centuries.

Historians claim that the modern world is the result of many significant changes that have their seed around the 15^th century – often called the Early
Modern Period. Even Wikipedia states that:

modernity has been associated with cultural and intellectual movements of 1436—1789 and extending to the 1970s or later

Some commentators state that the world has recently entered the era of postmodernism, and some claim that we are now in the period of post-postmodernism.  The common denominator of Early Modern, modern, postmodernism and even post-postmodernism is that these are all aspects of modernity.  The modern world commenced unfolding in the 15^th century.  Along the way, many significant and major developments have occurred within the unfolding of the modern world, but they are all one continuum.  Most people are unaware of the significant historical events that occurred and began
in the 15^th century.

The upshot of all this is that from a simplistic and obvious point of view the Age of Aquarius has not only arrived – it arrived in the 15^th century!  Another reason why astrologers are unaware of this reality (apart from a lack of historical perspective) is that for over the last 2100 years, the calibration technique adopted by astrologers to determine the astrological ages has been incorrect.  Many of the techniques of the ancients have been found faulty, and from the 15^th
century onwards, scientists and academics have turned upside down ancient science and replaced ancient approximations or incorrect approaches with
approaches based on evidence and logic (empiricism). Until recently, the  calibration technique adopted by the ancients to measure the arrival of the
astrological ages such as the Age of Aquarius has not been closely examined.

Though the Aquarian age did not arrive in the 1960s and 70s, an important point within the Aquarian age did occur in 1970.  Each age contains 12 sub-ages of around 179 years.  In 1970, the Scorpio sub-age came to its end and simultaneously achieved its highest power. Both Aquarius and Scorpio are associated with revolution – so at a Scorpio high point around the 1970s, revolution will be very powerful.

For more details of the Scorpio sub-age, refer to SCORPIO – the Sign of the Times.

Revolution in the Middle East

The rather sudden and startling quest for greater freedom and democracy in a number of Middle Eastern countries in the last few months is part of a greater orchestration towards political and social evolution around the world that commenced with the French Revolution (in the late 18^th century) aligned with the arrival of the Scorpio subage (1791 – 1970), and continuing on in the Scorpio subage overflow (1970 – 2148) due to the overflow effect associated with all ages and their sub-periods. The Scorpio subage is the third subage of the Age of Aquarius (that commenced in 1443 AD – see figure 1), heralding in the modern world. 

Figure 1 – the first four subages of the Aquarian age

 

 

Most historians and historical reference books indicate that the Modern World commenced in the 15^th century – or, at a minimum, the 15^th century was an extremely exalted time in the history of human society.  Apart from a plethora of other supporting facts, the 15^th century was the first century that humans (i.e. Europeans at least) could comprehend the whole world for the first time due to the maritime exploits of its sailors circumnavigating the world. The arrival of ages is marked by highly significant events!

The arrival of the third subage within the Aquarian age, the Scorpio subage in 1791 basically demarks the end of the Early Modern Period (according to many historians at around 1800) and the beginning of the Modern Period.  Within the Scorpio subage (1791 – 1970), the most significant large scale political revolution that has ever been experienced in the world, took place.  At the beginning of the Scorpio subage most countries in the world were ruled by monarchs or local aristocracy (the USA was the black sheep of the time being already a rudimentary democracy).  By the end of the Scorpio subage in 1970 most of these monarchs had been overthrown and replaced with democratic governments, communism or military juntas.  Only in some less politically developed regions, particularly in the Middle East, did the old monarchial way of life continued – mainly propped up in the 20^th century by Western and European nations to ensure a ready supply of fossil fuels.

The arrival of a new astrological period such as an age or subage does not affect the world uniformly.  The arrival of a new period is like the bow of the boat – surging into previously uncharted waters and leaving its ever expanding wake as evidence of its passage.  This wake then slowly affects all other regions of the world.  The wake from any age or sub-period of an age is even larger after the end of its own period (as represented in figure 1).  The primary focus of the initial Scorpio surge mainly affected western nations (including all of the Americas), but by its close in 1970, over half the world was deeply affected by its wake including an independent and democratic India on the one hand, and a communistic China on the other – but bereft of its former ruling class or aristocracy.

The transference from the Scorpio subage to Libra subage in 1970 actually marks an increase in tempo for Scorpio (due to its ever widening wake).  Libra has arrived, but it is the new kid on the block, and the wake from its bow wave has relatively little impact in the world in comparison to Scorpio.  Until near the end of the Libra subage in 2148, Scorpio is the dominant sign in the world (at the subage level).  The transition between the Scorpio subage and Scorpio subage overflow was marked by the revolutionary sentiment expressed in the late 1960s and early 70s resulting in the almost choreographed student and youth demonstration and riots throughout much of the western world. Other spectacular icons of this period are the hippy movement that sprang out of San Francisco, the music revolution first associated with the Beatles, the Woodstock festival in New York, the anti-war movement against the Viet Nam war, the French student uprising that nearly toppled the government and feminism at full bore and armed with the newly invented oral contraceptive (associated with sex – another Scorpio archetype).

It must be remembered (or recognized by the younger generations) that western society in the 1950s was extremely conservative, mono-cultural, with women knowing their place in society and much stronger fascist elements compared to western society of 2011. The arrival of the 60s and early 70s baby boomers with their long hair, drugs and free love temporarily created the normal fracas when any establishment or society meets a new evolutionary sociological phenomenon.  This is why students peacefully protesting the Viet Nam war were gunned down and killed in the USA, restrictive drug laws savagely enforced to persecute the new social movement and contentious objectors to compulsory military serviced were sent to jail. By and large the formerly stodgy and arch-conservative west has moved on to a certain degree since those heady days of the 60s and 70s. The formerly frowned upon music of the 60s and 70s now appears regularly in TV commercials, men can have hair whatever length they like but, except for some isolated pockets of enlightened thinking, the west maintains a witch hunt against recreational drug users, treats homosexuals as second class citizens and has not given full equality to women. The west is in the ongoing and long term process of assimilating the new cultural paradigm that appeared in the 60s and 70s and it will probably take another 150 or so years before some reasonable progress is made.

With the arrival of the Scorpio subage overflow in 1970, the bow wave of the Scorpio juggernaut continues to spread its influence.  However if you think that the revolutionary spirit has been a little subdued for the last few decades then you are quite right.  This is because subages have smaller periods within them called micro-ages.  Micro-ages are almost 15 years in duration (plus another 15 years overflow) and until very recently, the micro-ages encountered at the beginning of the Scorpio subage overflow have been conservative micro-ages (see figure 2).  

Figure 2 – the first four micro-ages of the Scorpio subage

The conservative (and stable) micro-ages belong to the Earth and Fire signs – Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn, Aries, Leo and Sagittarius. The conservative Virgo micro-age was in place from 1970 to 1985, followed by the conservative Leo micro-age (1985 – 2000) with both periods promoting stability over change but also enforcing the status quo as much as possible. It is only with the current Cancer micro-age (2000 – 2015) that we begin returning to the progressive but destabilizing signs.

Not only is the world returning to progressive micro-ages, this process is still accelerating.  The historical effects from any period associated with the astrological ages are always relatively sluggish to appear in a kind of delayed effect.  So while the current Cancer micro-age rules from 2000 to 2015, it is not until its overflow period (2015 – 2029) that it can fully express its Cancerian intentions. However a significant shift in gears appeared at its halfway point of Cancer micro-age in 2007 in its climb up Mount Cancer – and the current revolutionary fervor in the Middle East is part of this Cancer play (along with numerous floods around the world always associated with Cancer). 

Why the Middle East?  Each region and country is associated with an astrological signature.  One key component of any astrological signature associated anywhere where Islam is strong is the sign Cancer.  Islam shares the underlying commonality of Pisces with Christianity as both came into existence in the Pisces age (along with Buddhism).  However Christianity formed near the peak expression of the Scorpio age-decan of the Pisces age (8 BC) while Islam formed much closer to the peak of the Cancer age-decan in 713 AD (see figure 3).

Figure 3 – the age-decans of the Pisces age

 This is why in Islam their view of paradise is closely associated with rivers (ruled by Cancer), they follow a lunar calendar (the Moon is the ruler of Cancer), and many female adherents either voluntarily or are forced to hide themselves away under burkas and veils (Cancer rules shyness and places a focus upon women).  These are just a few of the major Cancerian associations to Islam.

With the revolutionary Scorpio subage overflow (1970 – 2148) passing over the Cancer micro-age (2000 – 2015) it is reasonable to conclude that Scorpio’s revolutionary archetype will marry with Islamic Cancer to produce revolutionary ferment in the Middle East.  But this is not the end of the story.  Within the Cancer micro-age (2000 – 2015) are three micro-age decans of Pisces, Scorpio and Cancer in chronological order with the Scorpio micro-age decan influential from 2005 to 2015, and particularly in 2010, 2011 and 2012 (see figure 4). 

Figure 4 – the micro-age decans of the Cancer micro-age

This little Scorpio micro-age decan resonates with the Scorpio subage overflow (1970 – 2148) to create a veritable Scorpio hotspot.  Hotspots, like their name suggests, are more potent than their surrounding periods in stimulating action outside of the norm. Certainly the unrest in the Middle East is extraordinary.

Nevertheless the kind of revolutions we can expect will not, as a rule of thumb, be focused upon violence but with a firm preference to peaceful methods.  This is because the world is in the early stages of the Libra subage (1970 – 2148) and Libra is a peaceful sign opposite violent and militaristic Aries. This does not mean that those expressing revolutionary sentiment will not use force, but their use of force will be in most cases be in response to the force unleashed against them by power-mad autocrats.  Lest you judge these Middle Eastern societies harshly for their despotic rulers, anti-democratic ways and highly visible levels of corruption, you do not need go very far back in history to find the same abominable behavior in western society.  For whatever reason, the Aquarian age has arrived relatively early for the west, but it still took about 500 years to ensconce itself in Europe – Europe was a bloody nightmare for the first 500 years of the Aquarian age.  So we should not be harsh in our judgments of other society’s shortcomings.  The only real difference is that when the west went through its democratic catharsis over the last 500 years, no one was sitting on the sidelines criticizing or forcing them to be democratic with a gun held at their head as the USA did in Iraq. At least with the current Middle Eastern unrest, it is the vision of the citizens that is demanding the change – not an outside entity.

Also see: SCORPIO – the Sign of the Times …. Revisited – Part 1 –Revolution and Tyrants 

This Time Last Age

Very few people realize that sitting here in the modern world in 2008 that we exist within the Age of Aquarius, the sub-age of Libra (there are twelve sub-ages in every age), and eight years within the Cancer micro-age (there are twelve micro-ages in every sub-age – think of wheels within wheels within wheels). If we go back to the last age, the Pisces age, and also search for its sub-age of Libra, and eight years within its Cancer micro-age – we arrive at the year 27 AD.  What was happening around 27 AD?

From the top down this was only three years before the execution of the Christian Messiah – Jesus Christ.  But this must be put into perspective.  The death of Jesus at the time had no impact upon the world outside of his family, very small band of followers and agitated opponents in Jerusalem – an unimportant distant outpost in the Roman Empire.  Think of some local in modern Croatia, Bulgaria or Outer Mongolia being killed by a small mob of angry townsfolk – it would not even appear as a blip on the radar screen of modern media.

Therefore if ages regurgitated events along a similar timescale as previous ages, anyone in the world today fulfilling the role of Jesus would be unknown, out of the public eye, and their death would go as unnoticed as did the death of Jesus in the year 30.  Nevertheless at the time of Jesus’ death, akin to our year 2011, a very specific astrological signature was present.  This signature is based on the signs Scorpio and Pisces.

Since the late 1960s, Scorpio has been the key sign within the Age of Aquarius, and will remain in this powerful position until midway through the next century when Libra takes over.  Whenever a smaller Scorpio period arrives within this major Scorpio period the results are magnified.  At the same period in the last age, the most powerful time for Scorpio was 29 – 34 AD while in this age a similar status exists from 2010 to 2015.

How is Scorpio related to Jesus?  Most astrologers relate the sign Pisces to Christianity and Jesus due to the symbol of fish used by early Christians and various analogies to fish in the stories, parables and life of Jesus.  However very little in astrology is the preserve of only one zodiacal sign despite the confidence trick played onto the general public by sun-sign astrological columns in newspapers and magazines.  Scorpio takes rulership of death, rebirth, regeneration and inner experiences.  All these Scorpio trademarks are closely associated with Jesus.  Jesus and Christianity at the early stage was an amalgam of Pisces and Scorpio.

The critical issue at the death of Jesus from a predictive astrological context is the conflict and discord that was created in this small Jewish settlement by the new Christian/Jewish cult.  One of the key signs associated with Jews is the sign Taurus.  Coincidentally the signs Taurus and Scorpio are opposite.  What this means for Jews is that a Scorpio period created dissension within and without.  Enemies are at their throats (i.e. the Roman Empire) and dissension exists within with new cults (i.e. Christianity among others).

Taking a leaf out of the Scorpio period 29 – 34 AD the same stress and pressures should be expected by Jews and Israel in the period 2010 to 2015 (even 2009).  Jewish interests around the world and Israel in particular can expect to have to deal with the enemy without, and possibly dissension within.  The last time Israel encountered a powerful Scorpio time was from 1962 to 1978 – the peak of Scorpio power from the end of the Scorpio sub-age.  During this time Israel had to deal with the 1967 Six-Day War, the 1972 Munich Olympic Games hostages and deaths, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War amongst a medley of attacks by the PLO and related groups.  Another potent Scorpio time is on the way for Israel.

Will Israel attack Iran, or will Iran attack Israel?  Will Hamas deal a mighty blow against Israel or will Israel drive Hamas out of Gaza?  The details are uncertain, but what is sure from the astrological age’s standpoint, the aggressor is not favored (see Will There be Peace in the Age of Aquarius?).  Alternatively or additionally it is possible that the hawks and doves within Israel may be at odds with each other and that internal dissension is the order of the day.

Another interesting development occurred in Rome in the former Scorpio period when in the year 33 the Roman Emperor Tiberius founded a credit bank offering interest-free loans to offset a severe financial crisis. Real estate values plummeted, and interest rates increased leading to a crisis of confidence severely affecting the upper classes and wealthy.  Many wealthy Roman families were ruined by this credit crunch.  Sounds familiar?

The year 33 is akin to our 2014.  Scorpio is rarely a good sign for banks, money, wealth and the wealthy as they are ruled by Taurus – Scorpio’s opposite sign.

The recent sub-prime and banking crisis originating in the USA may be the preview for a more serious banking and financial crises that may hit between 2010 and 2015.  The Roman experience supports this.

One final note on this time last age.  The current Cancer micro-age affects 2000 – 2019 while the former Cancer micro-age one age ago affected the years 19 to 49 AD.  This period covered the Roman Emperors Tiberius (reign 14-37) and Caligula (reign 37-41).  Tiberius was depressed, reserved and “the gloomiest of men”.   Caligula was considered an insane tyrant who was cruel, extravagant and sexually perverse.  The next insane Roman emperor was Nero but he came later.  The relationship between these mentally troubled Roman emperors and Cancer is that Cancer is one of the key signs that indicate insanity, lunacy and depression.

It is extremely possible and probable that in our modern Cancer period covering 2000 – 2019 that some significant world leader or leaders will also be insane or severely depressed.  Time magazine recently reported that huge numbers of US soldiers in Iraq are being given anti-depressants – the seeds of Cancer are being sown!  This reflects the massive number of people in Western societies taking anti-depressants.    Certainly there has been a spate of shootings by mentally troubled people in recent times.  However the world has not even arrived at the strong point for Cancer yet.

The likelihood of adverse mental health issues affecting the world today is far greater than in the last age because Aquarius is another sign that indicates mental problems.  Aquarius plus Cancer equals a double whammy.  The worst time in the period 2000 -29 for mental health issues to negatively affect the world is the period 2015 – 20 but the tempo is quickening every year from 2007 to 2015.  Hopefully one of these depressed or mentally deranged people will not have their finger on the big button.  The mad Roman Emperors could murder and create havoc but they did not have access to atomic weapons that can create so much misery.