UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's Learning Triangle

A while ago, someone requested I look at Ban Ki-Moon’s chart. He is relatively new to the post of Secretary General to the United Nations, and to date has not had a very high media profile, unlike his predecessor Kofi Annan. But give him time - and remember he’s not doing the job for media attention or glory. The aftermath of the recent devastating cyclone in Burma, and the urgent need for humanitarian aid have meant Mr. Ban has been seen and heard more frequently as the UN and other agencies seek ways of getting help to a people whose rulers appear to have sidelined them. I was recently in New York and visited the UN building where I saw Mr. Ban’s portrait displayed alongside those of past Secretary’s General.

Mr. Ban was born on 13.6.1944 in Umsong, South Korea. His time of birth is not available, so the chart is set for noon. And what a chart for someone whose life has been dedicated to government and diplomacy! He has 5 planets in the ably communicative Sign of Gemini, including his Sun, which surely must be an asset, and he speaks English and French in addition to his own native tongue.

His chart image suggests movement, and the ability to take that in different directions; there is a touch of the tangential about the aspects in his chart, which form both a fluid and go-ahead shaping and indicate that this is how he is motivated. His colour balance is 3 red: 2 green: 3 blue aspects, suggesting little pause for rest, and with the one complete aspect pattern being a Large Learning triangle, an on-going urge to absorb, learn about and perfect the tasks he undertakes.

Let’s take a closer look at this aspect pattern. The natural sequence of aspect colours is to have the red-green-blue aspects which form this figure moving in that sequence in an anti-clockwise direction, starting at the red/blue corner. But Mr. Ban’s triangle, starting at the red/blue corner which is pinned by Uranus, has a blue/green/red sequence. What does this mean? Simply, that learning can take place, but that as the sequence is reversed the whole process may take longer, and the individual will probably need more than one “go” at whatever the task is in order for the lesson to be learned and the task completed. The green quincunx is the longest aspect, indicating that the learning itself will be the most important and satisfying part of the whole process; the red “doing” and activity stage involving the red aspect, and the blue “enjoyment” stage of the lesson learned and the task completed are of less importance.

Let’s speculate briefly about how Mr. Ban’s reversed (retrograde) Learning triangle might operate. The start planet is Uranus. The learning process is kicked off here with interaction between Uranus and Mars. Could be some sparky, innovative idea or the need to make changes, take action, maybe profound action with Mars conjunct Pluto, but the energy to carry this out is blue, not red, so the impulse to action may be slower - maybe diplomatic - as the blue sextile has a Venus quality. The drive to action and possible profound change then goes into deep and lengthy communication with Moon. The feelings are engaged (note that Moon is in Pisces - this stage of the process could engage a lot of feelings and touch into the emotions, maybe even higher ideals). When this stage is complete, the impulse to instigate changes and seek better, more effective and efficient ways of doing things can free flow back to Uranus, where the process started.

More information about this and other aspect patterns can be found in The Cosmic Egg Timer, co-authored by myself and Richard Llewellyn, Aspect Patterns in Colour by myself and Aspect Pattern Astrology by Bruno and Louise Huber. Both are available from the APA on-line Book Shop. And of course, if you really want to learn in depth about aspect patterns and how to use them, the APA Diploma Course offers the best opportunities for understanding this and all the other Huber Method techniques.

Finally, a couple of shots of the UN in New York:

Flags of many nations, and a graphic sculpture of a gun with a knotted barrel.