Short-subject Commentaries are posted on a single web page for each calendar month. Each new Commentary is placed at the top. This results in Commentaries appearing in reverse order.
March 31, 2008 Spring Fever The March 28 Celestial Wheel (below) opened with recognizing spring has arrived, although a caution caveat was added that this upcoming month of April will continue Mars/Jupiter and Saturn/Ketu challenges. As nature begins her annual revival, spring fever stimulates us to go outside and have fun, fix things and launch projects -- at least clean up the leaves and branches and plant some flowers. After all, this long and cold winter has kept everyone cooped up for too long!
Venus with Mercury is great for creativity, fun and imaginative pursuits. However, this combination of an exalted Venus and fallen Mercury can lead to hasty, half-baked and wasteful choices. Most critically, these are self-indulgent choices for short term gratification but long term loss. (Keep in mind that Mars' continuing influence on Jupiter's wealth wastes money, and Ketu's influence upon Saturn brings big plans that "break apart.") Here are two examples of this planetary energy. A client contacted me about buying a new home because she wanted a garage for a car she just purchased! Today, with Mercury already in Pisces, I began contemplating riding my scooter my next visit with the Mexican dentist. Having taken bicycle touring trips many years ago, I figured I could certainly ride 600 miles with an engine. (Fortunately, a friend with a real motorcycle already told me this was a mentally incompetent idea.) Exalted Venus and fallen Mercury will remain together in Pisces until April 14. So, this spring fever will only last two weeks. Use caution to avoid overly optimistic, expansive and creative decisions, for you'll regret them later. The next section offers a subdued but more realistic and long term view.
The Long And Winding Road As the first warm sunny weather came to Sedona, I heard on the radio this old plaintive Beatles ballad. It felt like a dark cloud had suddenly covered the Sun, denying nature's springtime revival -- sending us all back to winter hibernation. The Long And Winding Road was written by Paul McCartney in 1970. Listen and watch it here on YouTube, The Long & Winding Road. The U.S. chart's Dasa (planetary cycle) then was tail-of-the-dragon eclipse point Ketu. Malefic Ketu being placed in the 2nd house of domestic harmony denies happiness, whether at home or in the outer world. Mystical Ketu brings insight, but in being otherworldly, is weirdness -- like antimatter. Ketu is dissolving, withdrawn, reclusive, introverted, ascetic, invisible and changeable. Yet, he's also as a symbol of spiritual growth. Ketu liberates. The 2004 In-depth Celestial Wheel, The United States Through Its Planetary Cycles -- Part II 1896 to Present, summarized this 1965--1972 Ketu Dasa impact, A button-down culture broke away with long hair, jeans, drugs, sex, and of course, rock & roll -- or, in a word, Counterculture. This is the final and most difficult year of the Second Gilded Age, with its own (dual) Vietnams, social inequality, greed, corruption and an indifferent government. Listening again to The Long And Winding Road brought back memories of that turbulent era. Then, however, Ketu's unhappiness stimulated rebellion, which by definition is change and actions for a better future. Now, unhappiness seems only to signify sadness, for there's a potent feeling of hopelessness as conditions continue to deteriorate. No wonder, then, that so many Americans have embraced Barack Obama's The Audacity Of Hope, first articulated in his keynote speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention. It is Obama's great Venus's grace that brought him to the right place at the right time. The Long And Winding Road does, however, symbolize something more. The Celestial Wheel has often described Vedic Astrology's Dasas as the river of life. In each incarnation, this river has stretches of smooth sailing, as well as challenging and unpleasant rapids. We benefit from the former but truly only learn from the latter. While Hindu philosophy promotes self realization (the Buddhist's enlightenment), it is not this destination but rather the journey -- how we deal with the experiences in life -- that matters. After all, how many people become Hindu Yogis or Buddhist Zen Masters? Even the revered Dali Lama hasn't yet overcome all his desires to gain complete enlightenment (unity with God). Otherwise, he could use this unexcelled wisdom and greatest of powers to lead Tibet out of Chinese domination. The message here is that in this spiritual context, we can (and really should) view current challenges as opportunities to grow beyond self-indulgent materialism, which is actually illusion, Maya. (Here's an compelling study on this topic, Money buys happiness -- if you spend on someone else.) Staying focused upon this goal, regardless of what occurs, we can maintain tranquility (absolute happiness) and avoid being disturbed -- just as Yogis too get colds and the flu, but those discomforts don't disturb the consciousness. (Well, complete success here can't occur until enlightenment is achieved, but practice is the journey.)
A second symbolism for us in The Long And Winding Road is that life is indeed long, and we should always look forward to yet unseen opportunities around the next bend. Giving up is never a good idea.
Lyrics for The Long & Winding Road
Just A Month Left Of Mars' Fury Since last summer, The Celestial Wheel has expressed alarm about the Saturn/Ketu conjunction and the Jupiter/Mars opposition. This was most recently discussed in the March 8 Celestial Wheel (below) and summarized as, The enduring Saturn/Ketu conjunction (until May 3) and the Mars/Jupiter opposition (until April 28) is the dual engine of destruction that is signifying turmoil in the U.S. and globally through this winter and spring. Today, then, marks the beginning of the last month of Mars' wrecking havoc, and then just a few days later, the Saturn/Ketu conjunction will also end. This doesn't mean problems accumulated since last fall will disappear but rather that these debilitating karmas will stop bringing new challenges --giving some breathing room to recoup. (Note: Mars will next join Ketu in Cancer in June, and then in early July Mars will crash into Saturn, but these are relatively short term afflictions, though they could bring transformational events. These transits will be discussed in upcoming Celestial Wheels.)
Mars & The Trip To The Mexican Dentist I traveled this week to the border near Yuma for affordable Mexican dental treatment to deal with a Mars-inspired infection. Mars rules the second house of the face in my chart. (If you do astrology, here's the birth info: 11/19/48 at 4:47 AM in Seneca Falls, NY.) Transit Mars in Gemini is the ninth house of long journeys, which typically stimulates transportation breakdowns causing delays.
Again from the March 8 Celestial Wheel (below), in the U.S. chart, Mars crosses Venus, the Sun and Jupiter, planets of debt and wealth. ...Another impact of Mars crashing through the U.S.'s heavily laden relationship house is continuing transformation of the political and social landscape -- breaking apart established patterns so that new ones may emerge. How these karmas actualized is amazing. I met some fellow U.S. citizens visiting Mexican dentists in Los Algondones. One group was from South Dakota, retired, veterans, blue collar folks -- hardworking and decent heartland America types who only watch the news for the weather forecasts, crop prices and basketball scores. They all wore caps -- either in military khaki or green John Deere. With time on our hands in the evening, soon the presidential election came up. Oh, John McCain is gonna win for sure, they said, nodding, the bills on their caps bobbing like ducks feeding in a pond. Well, I gently mentioned, McCain sides with Bush on staying in Iraq and Afghanistan. That's not good, they replied, frowning. I then ventured, Gasoline will only go higher the longer those wars continue. Yup, they said. Ever since those damn wars started, gas has been going up, up up! And, I said, McCain supports comprehensive immigration reform, again like Bush. That's bad too, they grumbled, pulling their caps down hard for emphasis. We even have em invading the Dakotas. Who would have thought? The climate change drought in North Dakota has really hurt the wheat farmers, I pointed out. And, McCain doesn't seriously address global warming. Uh oh, they said, yanking their caps off and waving them in the air. You're right! McCain's wrong about that too! My final blow was, McCain isn't going to do anything about health care either, again, just like Bush. So you'll be driving here to Mexico for a long time on $4 plus gas,, rather than being able to afford your home town dentist. You know, that's another good point. Now we don't know who we'll vote for, but it sure won't be McCain! Throwing their caps on the ground and stomping them flat. We'll probably just stay home on voting day.
(Note: Even if the battle between Hillary and Barack does cause some splitting in the Democratic primary, the messages here are that the Republicans won't show up in enough numbers to win, and certainly few Democrats will vote for McCain, as he's so closely aligned with Bush.)
What Happened March 14? The March 8 Celestial Wheel (below) predicted, this next week, from Monday the 10th through Sunday the 17th, will be stressful. While the Eliot Sptzer scandal dominated the news early that week, the peak dramas came at weak's end, ...Venus and Mercury will then come into direct opposition to Saturn beginning Friday, March 14, and that day will also bring the Moon into conjunction with Mars. While stuff occurs every day on the globe, three major events happened Friday, March 14, some eerily close to the Moon conjoining with Mars at 9:30 pm. 1. An unprecedented tornado hit Atlanta. See, Tornadoes' Cost Hits $250 Million. And, After Atlanta tornado, cleanup is underway, The 135-mph tornado hit Atlanta at 9:45 pm Friday. 2. The Bear Stearns bankruptcy rescue also occurred Friday evening, Wall Street burns the midnight oil to save stricken Bear Stearns, ...it was clear to all involved that a deal to save Bear had to be struck before the weekend was out in order to avoid damaging global consequences come Monday. And so, just after 7pm, the eerie black granite entrance to Bear's global headquarters began to fill up with bankers, advisers and lawyers. 3. Tibet protests became violent March 14, Dalai Lama to Resign if Violence Worsens. The recent protests in the Tibetan capital Lhasa, led by monks, began peacefully March 10 on the anniversary of a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule. But they grew increasingly violent, culminating Friday with widespread street violence.
Climate Change Vedic Astrology can sometimes predict weather events, especially severe ones, and a good example is the March 8 Celestial Wheel (below). However, comprehensive weather forecasting is beyond this astrologer's knowledge. Certainly too, climate change is such a tall mountain, it doesn't appear that any Vedic Astrologer could conquer it. Yet, here's an interesting view that's worthwhile sharing. This past year has seen cold temperatures return, confounding climate change predictions -- Skeptics on Human Climate Impact Seize on Cold Spell. Subscriber and climatologist M. M. in Arizona sheds some light on this issue, To use your analogy – climate is the river and ‘weather’ is the weather on the river. Most people don’t get that climate is very different from weather – so we can have climatic meltdown and still need to cut down the rest of the trees to keep fires burning.
Thanks For The Support The February 15 Celestial Wheel requested subscriber support of this free service to the public to help defray publishing costs. Thank you subscribers C. S. in Florida, M.L. in Maryland and D. W. in England. You really helped! Here's a map showing this version of the Bermuda Triangle.
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Slumbering Subscribers Awake! This astrologer's Vedic planetary cycles have made him almost invisible -- until June. Comments from subscribers have been as scarce as $2.00 gasoline. However, as predictions important to us all have continued to be proven out, hibernating subscribers are again voicing their approval. Here are several kudos. 2/22 S.W. in Arizona. Thank you, Doug. I just spent the last hour enjoying your website. So much to read and digest. Please keep me notified of new postings. 3/5 D.W. in England. Keep up the good work! 3/9 B.R. in Arizona. You do a great job and not everyone will notice it. 3/11 S.D. in Maryland. Just wanted to acknowledge you and your work. You have been on the mark so often over the years. It has been a delight to read your columns and revelations. 3/15 K.Z. in Texas. As long as you keep putting stuff out there, you're setting yourself up to garner attention as things play out. 3/15 N.S. in California, Good article on The Celestial Wheel. 3/28 K.M in California. I really enjoyed reading your recent columns.
Obama's birth certificate time of 7:24 Pm has been verified by the publication of his birth certificate, making this analysis in error. The interpretive text in the following three sections has thereby been removed. The June 2, 2008 posting begins correct analysis of Obama's chart. Obama's Venus Recovers From Mars' Attack
What Do Obama, Bill Clinton & Eliot Spitzer Share?
When Will Obama Be Attacked, And W ill He Survive It?
More Democracy Is Always Better Than Less Democracy There was an observation in the December 30 In-depth Celestial Wheel, Predictions For The New Year worth reprinting,
The thought here is that, the longer the Democratic Party's nomination process, the better, especially if it continues after May 31. Then, the U.S. chart's wise and dignified governmental Sun cycle will promote improved leadership. Too, whatever happens, or not, the mid June Mars/Ketu conjunction will be also included in the candidate selection process. This suggests that the eventual Democratic Party nominee will be the best choice possible. Too, the last sentence, in brackets, of the above quote is cogent -- the primaries are democracy in action, and the longer the process takes, the more participation by the electorate. Yet, the press keeps claiming that long a battle between Clinton and Obama will split the party. But, isn't that just corrupt Second Gilded Age strategizing, not the democracies process?
Digging Out From Winter Storms The below email notice was sent directly to subscribers on Wednesday, March 5.
Saturn/Ketu harms health, wealth and
governments in general. It also brings impatience (by bringing plans but then blocking achievement.). Mars/Jupiter stimulates advocacy and changes in leadership, but this combination also wastes wealth. If you would like to review how and when these conjunction influences result, take a look at the November 16, 2008 Celestial Wheel Commentary. The statement, Expect some further literal and figurative winter storms, and some spring flooding too, has already been born out in another major storm, Parts of Ohio, Tenn. Get a Foot of Snow.
However Venus and Mercury will then come into direct opposition to Saturn beginning Friday, March 14, and that day will also bring the Moon into conjunction with Mars. It won't be until Monday, March 17 that the planetary storms will have blown themselves out. Thereby, this next week, from Monday the 10th through Sunday the 17th, will be stressful. While it is difficult to judge what will occur during these assaults upon Mercury and Venus, their primary significations must certainly be maimed. For Mercury, these include its intellect, speech, communications equipment, the nervous system and lungs, Venus's relationship, happiness, harmony, wealth, vehicles, reproductive system and kidney significations highlight that planet. Note that the physical attributes of the planets are included here, for illnesses by infectious Mars and chronic Saturn continue to afflict globally Too, some individuals may act crazy in some way, including unrealistic creativity. Don't let you child loose in an electronics or clothing store with your credit card! For the U.S., because it's chart is running both Mercury and Venus in its Dasas (planetary cycles), expect further turmoil in the presidential race, more administration scandals and even worse economic reports. Real estate is the primary devil here, with foreclosures and tightening market liquidity pushing both private investment firms and huge banks close to the edge of ruin: Of course, gasoline will continue to rise to a new peak.
Perspective On Transiting Planets
As explained in that Commentary, Mars too becomes very destructive because of a long duration stay in Gemini,
The enduring Saturn/Ketu conjunction (until May 3) and the Mars/Jupiter opposition (until April 28) is the dual engine of destruction that is signifying turmoil in the U.S. and globally through this winter and spring. However, these last few months of this challenging season are worse for the additional reason that Mars' retrograde causes its path through Gemini to cross over this sign 3 times. (The above quote details these movements.) When a planet does this, it is like a three punch combination, and the last is the knockout. Events occur when this Mars crosses birth chart planets, as it is doing now in crossing Barack Obama's great Venus, causing both discord and a temporary drop in his Venusian popularity.
The problem, of course, is whether the economy will be so weakened this winter and spring that even the sunniest summer may not rescue it. After all, only a few boxers remain standing after a three punch combination. Another impact of Mars crashing through the U.S.'s heavily laden relationship house is continuing transformation of the political and social landscape -- breaking apart established patterns so that new ones may emerge. One area in which this has already occurred is mainstream Republican's rejection of the extreme right platform -- choosing instead moderate John McCain as their nominee. Others include the greening of America, a consensus to secure the border and a shift toward universal healthcare. Certainly too, the War On Terror is undergoing transformation, rejecting preemptive invasions. If you haven't followed the news, here are some truly worrisome recent articles: Gulf investors may not save Citigroup, Dubai executive says Thornburg Mortgage Says Its Survival Is in Doubt Mortgage Rates Change In the Blink of an Eye Trading in Carlyle Unit suspended
And finally, here's one we can all relate to, Banking Fees Are Rising And Often Undisclosed. As with previous Celestial Wheel cautions about banks upping credit card fees and interest rates, this article alerts to further public gouging to make up for their mortgage banking losses. The best part of the article states (bolds added)
Last August, when I bought a 150 cc motor scooter that gets over 100 mpg to use instead of my old Lincoln, people laughed.
Now, they ask where I bought it.
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