“Information is not truth…it is connection.” Yuval Noah Harari, Nexus
The last post here ended on a somewhat open note, just before the presidential debate between V.P. Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump. The debate was their first face-to-face encounter and one that has turned out to be a notable turning point in both election campaigns.
Harris has surged forward, even in some reliably “red” states, which probably explains why Trump’s campaign has intensified its strategy of blasting violent and divisive rhetoric into our lives via the many complicit media outlets who seem bent on normalizing his venom—some would say “sanewashing” him—and pretending that there’s any kind of equivalency between the tone of his campaign and the tone of the Harris campaign.
What’s been happening has been totally predictable, of course: the more ground Harris gains, the more vicious, insane and ludicrous Trump’s claims become and the more “dirty tricks” materialize here and there.
And the more he plays to audiences like the Neo-Nazi group that worked to demonize Haitian immigrants in Springfield, OH even before Trump and Vance borrowed the idea. Reports are that they are now intensely pleased with their success.
And the more he attempts to bait and troll Harris supporters with outrageous claims, like they’re responsible for him attracting threats from unstable people.
I’m sure the children and families who are under siege in Springfield, OH with bomb threats that force the city to close down schools and hospitals and other public places are really worried about Harris and Biden generating more threats. Whose rhetoric needs to be toned down?
As Harari suggests in the quote above, the information Trump and company have been doubling down on—even as J.D. Vance has admitted that the story was made up to bring attention to a situation—has no need to be factual, it just needs to connect with those who are willing to do Trump’s dirty work. And those who are willing to slander, defame and potentially endanger innocent people for the sake of political points.
Unfortunately, many politicos expect this campaign to get even uglier before it’s over. We’re in the final 7 weeks before November 5th, so it may be time to buckle up and take nothing for granted. If the Springfield, Ohio nonsense isn’t enough of a warning, January 6th, 2021 should still be ringing in our ears—Trump and company will use violence (or the threat of violence) to get what he wants. And that impulse, not to mention his “dangerously disordered personality” [1] and revenge-happy mindset—which a host of mental health professionals have deemed to be pathological and a danger to our public health—is what would make a potential second Trump term so incredibly toxic.
You might recall that the last post here ended with a quick note about how deeply connected Donald Trump’s nativity is with these unsettled astrological times. In fact, both candidates’ charts are deeply connected because how could they not be?
Dr. Bandy X. Lee (l) has written extensively about Donald Trump (r).
Even so, the mental pathology that expert Dr. Bandy X. Lee reminds us underlies fascism has been let loose once again in this world, which goes even more to the heart of our dilemma this election year. In her latest study published by the World Mental Health Coalition, The Psychology of Trump Contagion: an Existential Threat to American Democracy and all Humankind, Dr. Lee says,
“Therefore, a psychiatric symptom is distinguishable by adamant denial, ‘doubling down’ when confronted, and—when truly severe—turning violent in order to defend one’s fixed false beliefs. This is why mental pathology should be kept away from power, even if it avidly seeks it, for no amount of power in reality will satisfy the inner feelings of deficit, and will eventually lead to large-scale violence and devastation.” [2]
The September 10th debate did many things, but one key takeaway was that Donald Trump can be easily baited when he is strongly criticized or confronted with his own shortcomings, and this should tell us that focusing on him through the lens of mental wellness (or not) is not only fair, but necessary. With this in mind, let’s take a quick look at that September 17th eclipse chart again, this time setting it against Donald Trump’s nativity.
Biwheel 1. (inner wheel) Donald J. Trump, June 14, 1946, 10:54 a.m. DST, Jamaica, NY. Source: Rodden rated AA, BC/BR; (outer wheel) Lunar Eclipse, September 17, 2024, 10:34:13 p.m. DST, Washington, D.C.. All
charts are cast by the author on Kepler 8.0 with Tropical Equal Houses and True
Node and courtesy of Cosmic Patterns Software.
Anyone who has watched Trump over any length of time knows that being the one in charge—having complete Power, in other words—is a mental and emotional obsession with him and, with his late Leo Moon conjunct ASC, it’s a deep ego need and the energy behind his “You’re Fired” machismo and incessant self-focus. So called “strong man” politics comes naturally to him, in other words, and he’s demonstrated repeatedly since 2015 that he’s bought into the grandiose delusions that often go along with that.
Unfortunately, this lunation may be feeding those delusions even as it challenges them. Make no mistake: the more “reality” attempts to puncture his narcissistic bubble, the higher he builds the protective fortress (both inner and outer) he’s built around himself (Saturn conjunct Venus in Cancer) and the more he lashes out against any and all perceived threats.
As you can see from the outer wheel of Biwheel 1 above, the September 17th full Moon, partial eclipse lunation, stretching across late Pisces-Virgo (Moon-Sun), tightly trines (on the Moon end) and sextiles (on the Sun end) Trump’s (inner wheel) all-important natal security center (Saturn-Venus in Cancer), which is disposed by and interestingly, quincunxes his natal Moon (Sagittarius) and semi-sextiles his natal Sun (Gemini).
Despite all his macho bluster, in other words, in his core (4-10 natal Sun-Moon opposition) Trump never feels secure enough and requires constant reassurance that the world loves him and will protect him against any accountability. The lunation, needless to say—and the debate that closely preceded it, of course—has triggered that all-pervasive insecurity, so it shouldn’t surprise us that we’ve been seeing a lot of lashing out at perceived “enemies” ever since. For more on these dynamics, I would highly recommend Dr. Lee’s book noted above (and in Note #1 below), or at least this description of narcissistic personality disorder at https://www.mentalhealth.com/library/signs-of-narcissistic-sociopath.
Physically, Trump lives within grandiose walled-in properties and because of his former stature, he’s able to surround himself with a protective, armed Secret Service bubble—all quite likely mirroring the walls he builds around his inner, psychic life as well. To be vulnerable or to be seen as “less than” others might even feel like an existential threat to those with his personality type. The world is simply full of enemies who are out to get him. The irony, of course, is that people tend to attract to themselves what they fear.
In the case of a potential U.S. president, this is not the mark of a mentally strong, healthy individual.
Other challenges to his grandiosity and inner security exist in this September 17th eclipse as well: eclipse Uranus (Rx, Taurus) conjoins his MC, sextiles his Saturn-Venus conjunction and squares his all-important Leo Mars-ASC. In a nutshell, he could be subject to more surprises that impact his career and the image he likes to project out to the world for awhile…especially as this Uranus will continue retrograding into a semi-sextile/inconjunct with his Sun-Moon opposition (Gemini-Sagittarius) for a few months in early 2025. It’s possible that this period will coincide with his many federal indictments coming due for sentencing, etc., which suggests that many of his current attacks on others are a way of trying to taking control of a situation that ultimately, he may not control.
January 6, 2021: classic weaponized chaos at the U.S. Capitol
Ironically, Trump’s attempts at taking control often involve stoking chaos—in this we see his disruptive Gemini Uranus-No. Node-Sun conjunction hard at work and tied into so much going on in this biwheel; it’s
· Involved in a super sensitive mutable
grand square, comprised as follows: Eclipse Jupiter (Gemini) conjoins
Trump’s Gemini points (noted above) and opposes his natal So. Node-Moon
(Sagittarius; this axis is then squared by the opposition formed between eclipse
Saturn Rx (Pisces)-Saturn Rx/Moon (midpoint, Pisces)-Saturn Rx/Neptune Rx
midpoint (also Pisces) and eclipse Mercury-Mercury/Sun midpoint (Virgo). Mutable
energies of this scale and intensity can feel like a barely contained hurricane
of instability, and the weakened Saturn Rx does little to stabilize things. Considering
much of it concerns Trump’s personal core and sense of destiny (Sun-Moon-Nodes)
this can produce immense stress—if not for him, then certainly for those
he decides to scapegoat, projecting his anger and frustration onto them (7th
house eclipse Saturn-Moon-Neptune).
This Neptunized Pisces Saturn thus challenges both personal (Sun-Moon, emotional/health-and
identity-related) and collective (public institutions, relationships, mass
wellbeing) structures, and in so far as eclipse Jupiter in Gemini square
eclipse Mercury in Virgo points to challenges to mental wellbeing, we can see
how all this may be amplifying the structural challenges as well as the psychic
stress on Trump (and by extension, the nation). Those who have the misfortune
of being caught up in the Trump “cult” are clearly also in the crosshairs with the
eclipse Moon-Neptune conjunction.
· Trump’s Gemini complex (incorporating eclipse Jupiter) is, however, also trine his Libra Jupiter Rx and eclipse Venus, so he’s been enjoying a protective shield of sorts that was likely amplified when the Secret Service prevented the latest assassination attempt at Trump International Gold Club. Enhanced perception (Jupiter in Gemini) did seem to be at work that day, as the Secret Service officer noticed the weapon before the would-be shooter could even site his target. Alternatively, all this free-flowing Jupiter energy could account for the rhetorical excesses he has been engaging in as well.
Not surprisingly for a politician and would-be strong man president, there’s also an intense cardinal grand square formed between these two charts, comprised as follows:
· Eclipse Venus (Libra) widely conjoins Trump
Jupiter Rx (Libra) and these oppose eclipse Chiron Rx (Aries); this axis squares
the opposition formed by eclipse Pluto Rx (Capricorn) and Trump’s natal
Saturn-Venus (Cancer). Even with this dignified Venus’s protective and/or
harmonizing influence, we probably shouldn’t underestimate the wounding potential
of this fiery eclipse Chiron. Falling over Trump’s 8th house, it could reflect
that Other
People’s Money (campaign funds?) may dry
up or may be used against his interests rather than for them.
This possibility exists in a state of tension with another: that the billionaire class (eclipse Pluto Rx)—the so-called “broligarchs” he's been courting lately—could step up to secure his needs (his Saturn-Venus in Cancer) but we can probably assume that they won’t cover him without extracting what they want from his dilemma (the oppositions to eclipse Chiron Rx).
· Notice also that eclipse Chiron Rx trines Trump’s Sagittarius Moon-So. Node and sextiles his Gemini Sun-No. Node, allowing him opportunities to angrily chase after perceived emotional and ego wounds. And that eclipse Pluto Rx (Capricorn) trines his MC (Taurus) but is inconjoined by his Leo Mars-ASC; any “deals” he thinks he is making with these guys could put him in a subservient position.
Finally, one last interchart cardinal grand square exists here, as follows:
· Eclipse Mars (Cancer) conjoins Trump Mercury
(Cancer) and all this opposes eclipse Ceres (Capricorn); this axis then squares
the eclipse Nodal Axis (Aries-Libra), with Trump’s Neptune also tightly
conjunct the South Node. Trump’s Mercury is a key player in his nativity,
of course, disposing his Gemini powerhouse at the top of his chart and squaring
his natal Neptune, which I would argue has gifted him with the sense of
entitlement and the skills to manipulate facts and appearances to his own
benefit, but has, more darkly, also rendered him a masterful gaslighter. One
way or another, imposing his dominance has been his constant focus, but this t-square
with the eclipse Nodal axis suggests a turning point for the path he’s been on.
The Courts are not likely to tolerate being litigiously gaslit too much longer.
Ceres’ role in this grand square is interesting: thought by experts
Demetra George and Douglas Bloch to represent the “Universal Mother” (they even
assign rulership of Cancer to her). About this, they say:
“As a symbol of the maternal function, Ceres in the horoscope describes
the quality of the mothering experience that we received as a child and express
as a parent…Whoever takes primary responsibility for the nurturance and early development
of the child acts out the archetype of Ceres.” [3]
We know from eye-witness accounts that Trump’s
relationship with his mother was detached at best, strained at worst—perhaps
because she fell quite ill when he was very young and they never had a chance
to bond very well—which might speak to his natal Aquarius Ceres and its rather
clinical looking trine to his chaotic Uranus-No. Node-Sun in Gemini.
Thinking more broadly, however, we might look to his strained relationship with motherhood in general for clues about why he has found himself so embroiled in the quest to overturn Roe v. Wade and to basically punish women for having reproductive needs and choices. His total lack of empathy for pregnant women “bleeding out in parking lots because they can’t get the care they need” (as Harris put it in their recent debate) seems very likely rooted in his own disordered relationships over time.
Final thoughts
So, it’s hard to say if exploring all this will give us any greater chance of saving our democracy come this November, but I’m a firm believer that we must face the “darkness within” before we can come out on the other side into the aspirational “new way forward” we’ve been hearing about.
Astrologically,
that catch phrase is powerful because there's no denying that, as a nation, we've been stuck in Pluto's "rebirth" canal for far too long, and those of you who have watched this site know what I mean by that! Our Pluto return process (still underway) has unearthed our darkness as only Pluto can and has challenged us to prove how willing we are to hang in there in hopes of a new day and a chance at renewed life. It's often been painful and frustratingly slow, but there's been no going back and this November we will reach a major milestone, come what may. In the end, I trust the American people to use their common sense, their love of freedom and hopes for the future, and to vote accordingly.
As for me, I’ve been thinking for a while that my work is done on this site. I’ve scrutinized and analyzed the threats and the transformation we are undergoing as a nation in every way I can for the past several years and I hope in the process that I’ve made some small contribution to the awesome art and science of mundane astrology. If I’ve learned anything in this labor of love, it’s that nations and societies live out their life cycles like any one of us does, and that navigating change is a constant challenge and an opportunity.
I truly hope the U.S. comes out of this election—this Plutonian rebirth—with its founding ideals intact and its higher angels poised for new adventures!
Meanwhile, thank you for your kind attention and comments, and…keep it Light!
Raye R.
P.S. this site will remain online as it is until the end of the year and any comments or feedback will be truly welcome!
Notes
[1] Lee, Bandy X.. The Psychology of Trump Contagion: An Existential Threat to American Democracy and All Humankind (p. 28). World Mental Health Coalition, Inc.. Kindle Edition.
[2] Ibid, pp. 27-28.
[3] Demetra George & Douglas Bloch, Asteroid Goddesses: The Mythology, Psychology and Astrology of the Re-emerging Feminine,” Ibis Press, Lake Worth, FL, 2003 updated edition, p. 47.
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Raye Robertson is a practicing astrologer, writer and retired educator. A graduate of the Faculty of Astrological Studies (U.K.), Raye focuses on mundane, collective-oriented astrology, with a particular interest in current affairs, U.S. history, culture and media, the astrology of generations, and public concerns such as education and health. Her articles on these topics have appeared in several key astrology journals over the years, and she has authored three books on key mundane astrology topics that are currently available on Amazon Kindle. For information about individual chart readings, contact: robertsonraye@gmail.com.
© Raye Robertson 2024. All rights reserved.
