Touching the Moon

Just back from a memorable trip in the US, hence no postings for a while, but there have been plenty of interesting experiences while I've been on my Jupiterian travels. I always have my astrological eyes open, and was thrilled to see my own chart image "for real" .

When I first started learning the Huber Method and was looking for images in my own chart, I saw a space command capsule which had been launched from a launch pad and was on a journey to the Moon. In America I visited the NASA Space Centre at Houston and saw the huge Saturn V rocket, which was displayed in sections showing each stage of the rocket, finishing with the command capsule shown above.

It was exciting stuff to see that final stage of the rocket - the command capsule - and really connect with my chart image.


I got to touch the Moon, too! Here I am fingering a piece of heavily guarded Moon rock. . . .


. . . and holding the whole thing in the palm of my hand.

The Dalai Lama, the Olympic Torch, and Tibet

The Olympic Torch - symbol of the 2008 Games to be held in Beijing later this year- has been the target of much protest over the past few days as it’s been carried through London and Paris. Demonstrations are also expected when it arrives in San Francisco. The torch is but a symbol; it’s the Chinese regime which is being protested about, and their long-standing occupation and repression of Tibet, the Tibetan people and their culture.

His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the Tibetan head of state and spiritual leader, has offered to speak to the Chinese authorities, and to return to his homeland of Tibet for the first time since he fled in exile in 1959. The Dalai Lama is meeting with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown in May, and he is carrying his own torch of liberation for Tibet high as he seeks the support of world leaders.

Born Tenzin Gyatso on 6.7.1935 in Taktser, NE Tibet at 04.38 am (data and source “from memory” as recorded in his autobiography), is chart is striking. The Kite aspect pattern dominates, and appears like an entangled kite, caught in bushes and grounded, nose down. The shaping/motivation shown in the chart is to be strongly Fixed (perhaps reflecting his lifelong and steadfast determination to work for good and on behalf of his country in a peaceful and non-violent way). However His Holiness (HH) is a shrewd and wise man; he can be flexible and restless too and his chart shows the potential to draw on other driving motivations and forces as and when these are needed.

The colour ratio is 4 red: 2 green: 7 blue. This is almost the “perfect” balance between red “doing” energy, green “thinking” energy and blue “being” energy. The Kite pattern stands out and is focal. At its nose are Moon/Neptune in close conjunction; both planets are “soft” and love-oriented and because they are at the nose of the kite, they lead the way. The Kite itself is a creative figure and Moon/Neptune are focussed into the 3rd house where communication is all-important. HH has written several books, he teaches and speaks around the world, and shares his thoughts on his website.

His Sun/sense of self, part of the Kite figure, is in the 1st house, suggesting his is a strong sense of self, this backed up and supported by Saturn in 9th at the tail of the Kite. However, that sense of self, as we know it, is likely to be far less driven by ego needs. Saturn is the highest planet in the chart, and as the tail planet in the Kite it could hold back or curtail the creativity of this aspect figure. Saturn is opposite Moon/Neptune; energy is held in tension between being head of state (the Saturn end where authority, rules and organisation would come in) and being spiritual leader (more akin perhaps to Moon/Neptune). However, both ends of this opposition which runs right through the centre of the Kite are important, as they are interdependent and to work effectively, they have to integrated.

Another interesting feature of the chart is the Moon’s North Node in 7th house opposite Pluto in 1st. Pluto in this position could indicate someone who is very powerful (he is! I went to hear him speak in London and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up when he walked on to the stage. There was no way I could not rise to my feet, along with everyone else, when he entered). Yet HH, aware as he must be of his own personal power, has the task of sharing and empowering - giving away even - his power with others along this 1/7 Encounter axis, particularly in the struggle for Tibetan freedom from oppression.

Currently his Age Point is in the 1st house. He is approaching 73 and the Age Point, which takes 72 years to complete one circuit of the chart, is now just into its second round. Most interesting is that right now it is conjunct his Sun, making this an appropriate time for him to take the opportunity that the Beijing Olympics offer to highlight the need for justice and freedom for Tibet. In his latest posting on his web site, he says:

I want to urge my fellow Tibetans who live in freedom outside Tibet to be extra vigilant as they voice their feelings on the developments in Tibet. We should not engage in any action that could be even remotely interpreted as violent. Even under the most provocative of situations we must not allow our most precious and deeply held values to be compromised. I firmly believe that we will achieve success through our non-violent path. We must be wise to understand where the unprecedented affection and support for our cause stems from.

As Tibet is currently virtually closed and no international media is allowed there, I doubt my message will reach the Tibetans in Tibet. But I hope through media and by word of mouth, it will be passed on to the majority of you.

Finally, I want to reiterate and appeal once again to Tibetans to practice non-violence and not waver from this path, however serious the situation might be.

The Dalai Lama

Both the Free Tibet and Avaaz organisations have secure and reputable on-line petitions which you can sign in support of freeing Tibet from its occupation by China, and to encourage China to become a less repressive regime.

Astrology, Astronomy and the Jodrell Bank Telescope

Until the 17th century, astrology and astronomy were twin subjects, and were taught alongside at the great - now oldest established - universities of Europe. Astronomy was more scientific, and was concerned with understanding how the heavens worked; astrology was more philosophical and was concerned with relating the movements of the heavenly bodies to our experience here on earth. The basic tenet was "As above, so below".

Then astrology fell from prominence as science took over, scientific knowledge grew and expanded, and astrology became something of the poor relation, open to ridicule and scorn as it could not be scientifically proved. On the plus side, this is changing, as scientists worth their salt are admitting that some things simply cannot be explained scientifically (Richard Dawkins doesn't fall into this category!).

Any astrologer who is serious about their study will have a good working understanding of our Solar System. Students on the APA Foundation Courses have to do some basic astronomy as part of their training; the twin subjects can't be separated out.

Although I'm not deeply conversant with astronomy, I'm certainly interested in it and have a good understanding of how the birth chart and the Solar System relate to each other. Last week I took a trip to the world famous Jodrell Bank Observatory, home to the Lovell Telescope, the first ever radio telescope. I've visited it many times to see the orrery spheres of the solar system on display, and to enjoy the visual trips to various planets in the planetarium. I was there last week because we had a visitor staying who has started to study astronomy, but I'm always up for a trip there as I find the telescope itself an inspiring and awesome structure. It's visible from many areas of the county where I live and acts as a homing landmark. It's even been featured in a dramatic episode of the TV series "Dr. Who".



In 2007, Jodrell Bank celebrated its 50th anniversary. It was threatened with closure but this threat was averted and more recently it's visitor centre and adjacent arboretum has had a makeover.


Whilst I was at Jodrell Bank I saw a 3-D film about the Sun through the special 3-D viewing specs the audience were provided with. Before the film started, we were told that the commentary was now "wrong" as there are now 8, not 9 planets in the Solar System. Pluto was demoted a couple of years ago and is now classed as a dwarf planet. My hackles only rose slightly at this, because I've yet to meet an astrologer who has stopped using Pluto when they set up a chart! The film was interesting, and the info sheet handed out at the visitor centre gives a good website - The Nine (Eight!) Planets - for those who want to learn more about the planets in our Solar System.

You can see the chart for Jodrell Bank in the post I wrote in August 2007 when it celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Aries and the Vernal Equinox

The Sun enters the Sign of Aries tomorrow, on 20th March. This is the Vernal, or Spring, Equinox when day and night are of equal length (equi - equal, nox - night) and it marks the point in the year when the Sun crosses the equator and moves from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The start of Spring in the northern hemisphere marks the start of Autumn in the southern hemisphere.

I've set up the chart for the Sun's change of Sign from Pisces to Aries (also known as the zero point of the zodiac). The chart is set for 06.00 GMT in London, with the Sun just 33 seconds into Aries; at this time it will have been hovering over the zero point and entering Aries for approximately 10 minutes. If you're up and awake then you can welcome the Sun and the start of Spring!

Aries is the first Sign of the zodiac and is associated with go ahead behaviour, leadership qualities, a tendency to rush at things and reflect on them later (that "opening your mouth and putting your foot in it" syndrome!), impulsiveness, an ability to get new things started, lots of energy and enthusiasm and a fearlessness which can allow those with Sun in Aries to forge ahead where others would falter.


The symbol for Aries is the Ram. With head and business-like horns down it can rush headlong at anything which gets in its way, or which it wants to get the better of.

The chart has some interesting features. There is a Double Ambivalence figure which fills a large area of the chart. Quadrangular in shape, it has a security-seeking motivation. One part of it works energetically with that Aries Sun at the "doing" apex of the red part of this figure. At the blue "escape" corner is Saturn. These these two planets are connected on the inside of the figure by a green quincunx endowing awareness and the capacity to learn; Sun and Saturn can work cooperatively if the enthusiasm of the Aries Sun can be tempered by the caution of the Virgo Saturn. The other planets involved - Mars and Pluto - share the same Cardinal qualities as the Sun. Saturn alone in this pattern can provide a Fixed and steadying influence and will help underpin the security which this particular figure seeks.

Photo of the Moffat Ram, Moffat, Dumfriesshire, Scotland

The House Chart

This blog celebrates its 2nd birthday on 4th March. A year ago I wrote a post entitled "Happy Birthday Dear Blog" in which I discussed the colour balance in the chart of the blog's "birth" - 6 red: 0 green: 5 blue aspects. The lack of green aspects in the blog's "birth" chart alerted me to the need to stay very aware to not allowing the energy of the blog (and as it's author, me!) to slip into an either/or, on/off affair which an all red/blue chart can indicate.

It's two years now since I started writing about the charts of people in the news using the Huber Method of astrological psychology, and I enjoy seeing how the blog has grown and has taken on an energy of its own as it has developed and evolved, gaining many readers along the way.

If you are one of these (and that ClustrMaps widget in the sidebar lets me see where you are!) my heartfelt thanks for dropping by, reading my thoughts and sometimes commenting on the charts and other astrologically related matters. I write to keep my own astro-wheels oiled and to hone my interpretative skills, but it's great to know you're out there too!

For this second birthday I'm taking a look at the House chart for the blog. The House chart is unique to the Huber Method. It's the chart which shows the environmental conditioning and expectations that were put upon us, and for an individual it can offer insights into what was encouraged and what was sidelined as the person grew up.



The House chart should always be used alongside the natal chart as it gives an environment's eye view of the person, which can sometimes be very different from the inherited traits and patterns shown in the natal chart. The blog's natal and house charts are a good example of this! On the left is the natal chart, with just red/blue aspects, with an all-red Efficiency/Performance figure and a red/blue Single Ambivalence figure as it's aspect patterns.

The House chart, on the right, shows a different picture altogether, with a ratio of 3 red: 3 green: 7 blue aspects. Green aspects are present - the environment wants and demands awareness, sensitivity and the ability to be aware and grow through this. When looking the House chart alongside the natal chart (and remember, this applies with greatest relevance to the charts of real people - I'm just using the blog as an example here), we can consider if the conditioning of the environment is enriching or diminishing. In this case, I'd say it's almost certainly enriching.

Not only is there green, a Kite aspect pattern has appeared! The Kite is composed of talent triangles, and is often associated with creativity (like writing...!). The pinning planets, especially those at the tail and the apex, are significant. They hold the strong inner strut of the Kite in place and can show what might hold it down, or ground it, as well as indicating where it might want to fly to. The Kite which appears in the blog's House chart has Jupiter (perception, wisdom, experience) at the base, with Moon (reaching out to make contact, touch and engage on a feeling level) at the apex, which is also on the MC and the highest point of the whole chart. Other planets involved in this aspect pattern are Mercury (what better for writing and sharing ideas?) and Saturn, whose presence provides an all-important discipline and framework.