John Steinbeck's final novel in 1961 addresses the issue of immortality in American culture -- societal pressures and material temptations stimulating greed, dishonesty. immorality, crime and a fundamental failure to respect and support our fellow man.

It's thereby a fitting book to reference in describing and predicting the future of our current society.  The novel ends on a positive note -- the protagonist reaffirms his commitment to the historic American values of integrity and honor -- which we all hope will also be the culminating of Trumpism and the new beginning of the Second Progressive Age.

No, the title of this forecast -- The Winters Of Our Discontent -- is not misspelled. Winter morphs to Winters as we look ahead to understand we're yet in the early stages of this transformation.  There's a lot of muddy water to flush downstream before it again turns clear to support life and healthy growth.

Recall the recent Celestial Wheel focus upon explaining how Dasas (planetary cycles) and transits (where the planets are in today's skies) operate and work together to describe planetary karmas.  The key that opens the door to effective predictions is when Dasas and transits match up, accurate predictions for actions can be made.

Let's start by considering again the U.S. chart.  Remember Rahu Dasa is 18 years, beginning in 2015 and ending in 2033.  So we're actually still in Rahu's introductory years, and it won't be until 2033 that this Dasa fully expresses itself in restoring shared democratic values.  (Similarly, when the U.S. ran Rahu Dasa the first time from late 1775 to 1793, the Constitution wasn't signed until 1787, and George Washington wasn't elected as the first president of this new revolutionary country until 1789.)  Besides, even if the Second Progressive Age seems to come early in the next year or few, the head-of-the-dragon isn't going to retire in Florida until the end of its Dasa.  Rahu is the destroyer of today and thereby the creator of tomorrow.  The dragon destroys the old to make room for the new.  The muddy waters won't clear until the third decade of this century.

The current  U.S. Dasas are Rahu major and Saturn minor.  This long, rough and destructive combination began January 5, 2021 and will end November 12, 2023 -- nearly three years and two winters of discontent and suffering.

Here's the U.S. chart.  We grasp how Rahu and Saturn act by understanding how they influence the chart.  Rahu is in the deep and dark eighth house of calamity, where the dragon dives down to pull up dangerous hidden karmas.  Among these is fear of dark skinned people, for Rahu signifies those who aren't white.  Mysticism rears its head, complete with its most bizarre expressions. (QAnon is based on the belief that a shadowy group of carnivorous pedophiles feast on children's brains to gain immortality.)  These two influences result in what the Celestial Wheel has long termed mystical paranoia.

United States
July 4, 1776 at 6:17 PM Philadelphia, PA

That mental Mercury is conjunct Rahu in the eighth results in this mutable planet symbolizing, among other things, the social nature, the public and government officials.  Rahu spoils all of these, and by dredging up eighth house horrors, makes the person (the nation here) feel under attack, anxious and distrustful.

Saturn is in the tenth house (which Mercury rules), making it another significator of the public, authority figures and career -- our society.  This planet of suffering is tough in this chart, often lifting up the person (nation), just to drop it down.  Saturn is also greedy and manipulative without regard to the harms it causes -- just like The Winter Of Our Discontent.

We can further understand the Dasa combination of Rahu major and Saturn Rahu by just considering how these malefics combine. This makes sense because they are the two active planets in the two upper Dasa levels -- major and minor.  (There are actually a total of five Dasa levels, each shorter than the last, but this analysis considers just the major and minor, for they are most determinative and last the longest.)  Rahu/Saturn pushes ahead relentlessly, is remorseless, victimizes others, ins unhappiness and brings violence.  (Does this sound familiar with the combination beginning January 5, 2021, and the insurrection was the next day?)

Here's a current transit chart, and next to it, the U.S. chart.  Overlay the transit chart on the U.S. birth chart.

Transit Rahu isn't interacting with any other planets.  Saturn, on the other hand, is on birth chart Ketu -- the tail of the dragon -- which hot but dissolving spiritual influence causes Saturn to launch great plans that break up.  Notice that Saturn is at 13:16 degrees, fast approaching Ketu at 16:51 degrees.  The exact conjunction won't be until Christmas -- December 23.  Because Rahu and Ketu are always opposite each other, Saturn is also influencing birth chart Rahu by aspect (glance).  Transit Saturn drives Rahu hard, making him spit even more fire, causing new destructions.

Saturn's location in the second house is difficult, especially with Ketu, since it's the house of domestic harmony.  Basically, that's ruined, which is why nobody is happy, on either the right or left.  There's also problems with second house income and food quality -- a lot of drugs.  The opiate crisis has worsened again.  Cigarette sales are up, as are liquor sales.  We tend to attribute these problems to the virus, but it is also seen in the unhappiness Saturn and Ketu are causing in the second house.  Certainly this past Tuesday's elections reflect that angst.  The Republicans are furious they lost power, and the Democrats are disgusted Biden hasn't done more.

While transits are secondary to primary-karma Dasas, they are good timing indicators.  So, we can expect the discordances to increase up until the holidays.  Because Saturn moves so slowly, it will be still close to birth chart Ketu until at least mid January.  The Grinch That Stole Christmas comes to mind.

Saturn will continue to be afflicted by Ketu (and actually Saturn afflicts Ketu too), and it will afflict Rahu (see red arrow) until Saturn leaves the U.S. second house late 2023.  We could breath a sigh of relief except that then Saturn will  then be in Aquarius with the all-important Moon.  This is the heart of Sadi Sati, when Saturn destroys that which is no longer necessary to make room for the new. This is much like Rahu, described above, Rahu is the destroyer of today and thereby the creator of tomorrow.  This is why the Indians say Rahu is like Saturn.

Because the U.S. chart's Moon rules the eighth house of catastrophe, she's a very sensitive planet.  Transit Saturn's affliction turns the Moon's benefits in life upside down.

Saturn will stay in Aquarius with the U.S. Moon until the spring of 2025 -- during which time retrograde motion will make Saturn cross the Moon three times.  This will be very rough.

We've explained that the U.S. Dasas are Rahu/Saturn until the November 2023.  So, Saturn's transit harms match up then.  After that, Rahu/Saturn will yield to Rahu/Mercury.  And remember Mercury is in the eighth house with Rahu.  So that will be another tumultuous time.  Rahu/Mercury Dasa planets continue until June 2026.

Thereby, the next several years of rough Dasa planets, together with transit Saturn crossing the Moon will witness a further tearing down of past societal structures to enable space for the Second Progressive Age.

Be patient.  You can't do anything about this trajectory anyway.  Just keep moving ahead as you can, be conservative in your actions and hold the belief that the nation will recover.  Oh, and don't forget to breathe!

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2021©
Doug Riemer

The November 5 The Winters Of Our Discontent explained why the U.S. has been so turbulent and that the instability continues until mid 2026 -- 5 1/2 years.  This is a long range forecast, necessarily done using the broad brush strokes of lengthy Dasas (planetary cycles).  That's the only way to pierce so many veils of time and thereby must omit shorter term swings, trends, even major events. Those details can only be seen by considering all the Dasa planets (to five levels) in concert with transits. Plus, succeeding planetary karmas must be built upon preceding ones. The resulting analysis is so incredibly complex, the Dasas/transits technique is only practical for short term look-aheads -- days, weeks and at a maximum, a month or two.

Here's an example of a short term global prediction using Dasas/transits, changing the trajectory of global society.  The Celestial Wheel made an early Covid19 prediction February 6, 2020, Mars And The Corona Virus,

Admittedly, the infections had already begun, and further statements in that forecast did qualify the prediction.  Also, the U.S. Dasas were not mentioned, but remember, this is the U.S. 18 year Rahu Dasa, and the head-of-the-dragon eclipse point is so alien in its cold blooded reptilian nature it brings overwhelming events that cannot be anticipated, nor controlled.  (The Celestial Wheel has stated this before, but it's worthwhile repeating that accurate predictions during Rahu Dasa are very difficult to make.)  Thereby, the Dasa system actually was applied in this otherwise singularly transit analysis.

The Dasa analysis in the November 5 The Winters Of Our Discontent  is the major 18 year Rahu Dasa and the minor cycles of first Saturn and then Mercury.  Below are these cycles for the entire Rahu Dasa.  You can easily see the Saturn minor cycle began January 5, 2021 and is followed by Mercury minor cycle November 12, 2023. (One thing that's really interesting here is how accurate these Dasas can be for timing.  The January 6 insurrection occurred just one day after the Saturn minor cycle began.)

Sometimes, however, a single planet can drive the entire chart.  Of course, that planet must be active in the primary karma Dasas and with secondary karma transits.

Saturn is that planet for current times.  Because Saturn is the great malefic, it causes all kinds of losses and suffering, including death. As shown above, Saturn is active in the U.S. Dasas for this calendar year and until the end of 2023.  That nearly three years.

Transit Saturn stays in a sign for about two and a half years or so, the longest of any planet by far.  Thus, its impacts upon a sign are maximized and substantial.  Transit Saturn has been in Capricorn, the U.S. second house, since early 2020 and leaves that sign in January 2023.  That's three years.  (Note that transit Saturn's entrance into Capricorn began with the pandemic beginning. Well, Saturn is the planet of death.)

So, Saturn in the Dasas and transits overlap, or coincide, all of this year -- 2021 -- through 2022.  That's two years, a very long time.  (November 5 The Winters Of Our Discontent incorrectly calculated this as two years.  Another calculations error was stating Saturn would leave Capricorn April 2022.)

Interpretations about transit Saturn in Capricorn, have focused upon this second house in the U.S. chart -- domestic harmony, income and food quality (opiates).  Other second house significations are also harmed.  These include: wealth, truth (falsehoods), learning and knowledge, speech, foul language, education, teachers, imagination, confidence, dress and jewelry.  All have been harmed by Saturn since January 2021.

We can certainly see many of these second house significations are front and center in the U.S.   The Saturn transit indicate these areas of life will continue to be hammered until Saturn leaves Capricorn late 2023.

I apologize for the calculation errors in the November 5 The Winters Of Our Discontent and hope the corrections here, as well as further discussion about Saturn, clarify the karma.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2021©
Doug Riemer

Eclipse means to block, which is what occurs when the Sun, Moon and earth align.  This blockage is negative for worldly affairs, but since the sky darkens, stars become more visible. Thus, eclipses also reveal.

This blockage can be pretty potent, as shown in the calculation errors I made in the last two Celestial Wheel entries. That also demonstrates eclipse effects begin about two weeks before the astronomical event. They also continue for a week or so later.

Beyond this lunar eclipse already exerting its blocking and revealing qualities on this astrologer, it also brings these influences to the world stage.  There's already been a lot of blockage and revealing reported in the press, and more is sure to come!

This is a major partial eclipse with 97.4% coverage -- practically total.  It will also be the longest lunar eclipse in several centuries. Finally, the eclipse will be broadly seen across the globe.

The eclipse will begin shortly after midnight November 19, which means you'll have to either stay up late or get up very early in morning.  But, given its coverage, duration and visibility, it will be a truly great eclipse to watch.

Here's a map showing the coverage from Time And Date,

The above map is also available from Time And Date in animation, which will guide you as to the best viewing times in your area.

Astronomically and astrologically the eclipse will begin for EST at 1 AM and end at 7 AM.  It will be maximum at 4 AM -- a real dead of night event!  The long duration and nearly total lunar coverage in shadow will give you excellent viewing opportunities -- whether you're a night owl or early bird.

The eclipse location will be 3:04 degrees Taurus.  If you have any planets within two degrees (orb) of this point, that planet will be eclipsed, blocking your experiences for up to six months.  The point opposite the eclipse is also eclipsed, though naturally to a lesser degree.  This astrologer's birthday is November 19, and his Sun is at 3:50 degrees Scorpio -- within the two degree orb.   This gives more credence to the errors in The Celestial Wheel.  (Other recent endeavors have also been fruitless.)  Similarly, Joe Biden, with his November 20 birthday is hit by this eclipse.  His Sun is 4:27 Scorpio.  This goes a long way in explaining why Biden's poll numbers have sunk and his struggles with challenges.

Coming up is total solar eclipse December 4, which will only be seen in the lower parts of the southern hemisphere.  The location will be 18:12 Scorpio.  Again, if you have any planets within two degrees of this point -- or directly opposite at 18:22 Taurus -- the planet will be eclipsed.  Joe Biden is again affected by having his Saturn in Taurus at 16:53 degrees.

While this lunar eclipse is powerful being nearly total, and the Solar eclipse is also potent for being total, their impacts upon Biden's chart are not so alarming.  Both his eclipsed Sun and Saturn are opposite the eclipses, not on these planets, which, as mentioned above, is less harmful.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2021©
Doug Riemer

Recent Celestial Wheels have focused upon the long term predictions available using Dasas (planetary cycles) and transits together. These have considered a time horizon in years.

These long term planetary karmas are naturally and obviously pierced by shorter term planetary karmas.  Generally, These don't change the trajectory of long term future conditions.  But, they can interrupt those or briefly divert them.  An analogy is a long term drought interrupted by a major deluge.

Below is a transit chart for today. See that Mercury (Me), the planet of communications and the nervous system is closely conjunct dissolving eclipse point Ketu (Ke) and the hot Sun (Su) in dark and dangerous Scorpio.  This is very intense.  Communications of all kinds are fouled up.  Peoples' nervous systems are extremely sensitive from this battering.

As Mercury is also the respiratory system, COVID infections will tend to continue their rise.  If you haven't had your booster, please do that -- to protect yourself from the virus and protect others from getting infected by you.

Mercury will clear out of this nasty karmic mess in a few days.  By next Tuesday the roiling seas will calm.  In the meantime, take it easy on yourself and others.  And keeping a low profile is a good idea.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2021©
Doug Riemer

The (above) November 17 Visible Lunar Eclipse discussed at the end the upcoming total solar eclipse.

Solar eclipses are more powerful than those of the Moon because the Sun's light warms and illuminates the earth directly, while the Moon only reflects light from the Sun.

Also, the Sun indicates kingship, which means government leaders, who can be either elected or dictators.   He also symbolizes government officials in general and authority figures.  Thus, solar eclipses, especially a total one, can really rattle the cages politically.

The good news is that Jupiter, the planet of luck, fortune and all around expansion, finally moved out Capricorn November 20 (and into Aquarius), where he was weak for that being his fallen sign and also afflicted by Saturn -- the opposite energy in being contraction.  A retrograde this past summer took Jupiter into Aquarius for a while, but basically, he's been in Capricorn for a year. While Jupiter is certainly strong in Aquarius, that sign is shorter than the average 30 degrees.  So Jupiter will leave Aquarius April 20 to then enter Pisces.  Jupiter rules, Pisces, which means his significations flourish there.

While expansive Jupiter in transit does not completely balance out contractive Saturn, he generally can equalize that harmful energy. Too, the more foundational karmas signified by the Dasas, remain dominant.  And for the U.S chart, the challenging Rahu major and Saturn minor from January 2021 to November 2023 -- two years.  So we had a difficult 2021 with Rahu/Saturn bringing victimizing Jupiter so weak.  Jupiter now strong can counterbalance some of that -- like a good Colorado snow pack offsets the West's long term drought.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2021©
Doug Riemer