Local lessons in mundane astrology
London has been a slightly surreal, if not downright scary, place to live these last few days. I live in north London, a couple of miles from where it all kicked off in Tottenham. The first copycat looting took place in my local shopping centre in Wood Green. In an attempt to get my head around it all, I've been having a look at the astrology of it. The astrology of current affairs and world events is known as mundane astrology, and its something I'm only just starting to learn.
In this case though, the astrology is quite clear. Mars moved into Cancer on 2nd August, and by 6th August it was opposing Pluto in Capricorn and squaring Uranus in Aries. These two outer planets are ebbing and flowing between this clashing square for the next few years, and the events of the last few days give a taste of how these powerful energies can play out. The so-called hard aspects, like the squares and opposition which form this t square, often have visible and physical effects, quite literally a confrontation between different energies. The t square is in the cardinal signs, associated with action and initiative. Uranus, the planet of rebellion and personal freedom, is in individualistic Aries, and Pluto, symbolising power struggles and the collective shadow, is in conservative Capricorn. Add in Mars, the warrior planet, uncomfortable in watery emotional Cancer, and you can see a recipe for disaster even at this basic level.
One of the things I'm finding interesting about mundane astrology is that it tends towards the lowest common denominator, the raw energy of the planet without the awareness of a conscious individual. My textbooks tell me to assume that "the masses" will tend towards the negative manifestations of whatever energy is around them. In natal astrology, we might see this configuration as helping someone to awaken and transform. It can be difficult, yes, but actual violence is not necessarily involved. Tune this energy into a crowd of disenfranchised and frustrated people, however, and, well, riots can ensue.
Aries is the first sign of the zodiac, and so has a young energy. Many of the rioters have been young people, brought up on a diet of celebrity culture and material aspirations, coming into an adulthood where there are few jobs, and the cost of living is endlessly rising. Uranus in Aries symbolises shocking action, and individual freedom placed above all other concerns. Pluto in Capricorn represents power structures, an establishment which will hold on to its own power at all costs. I've been wondering if the rebellion of these young people can be linked to the rise in health and safety culture during the years of their childhood. These are the children who were not allowed, we are told, to play too far from home for fear of abduction, who could not run free for fear of what might be out there. An upbringing like that might make you want to break free. Add in cuts to services for young people and a lack of jobs, and the frustration rises. Pluto is the collective shadow - we could see these young people as acting out the repressed anger of the nation as a whole, our collective frustration at the consumer culture we are taught to idolise, even as money seems to decrease in value.
As well as the outer planets, Mars is a key player in this configuration. I've been fascinated, watching events play out on the news, by the choice of victims - many of the rioters have attacked their local areas, burning down their own high street, the post office where they collect their benefits as one commentator said. Cancer is the sign of home and family, of where we feel a sense of rootedness, that we belong. Maybe the rioters do not feel that they belong anywhere, even the streets where they live and have grown up. In Croydon, a furniture shop was burnt down which had been established over a hundred years ago. I wondered why anyone would attack such a place, and I still do, but it fits the symbolism beautifully. Cancer is the sign of the home, of home comforts such as furniture, and also of a reverence for the past.
The other interesting configuration in this chart is that of Mercury, retrograde on the cusp of logical Virgo and heading back into attention-seeking Leo. Mercury rules thieves, which many of the rioters were, and also communications. Along Wood Green high road, where I live, over half of the shops attacked were mobile phone shops. Mercury opposes Neptune in Aquarius - Aquarius rules technology, seemingly a focus for many of the looters. Neptune is the planet of confusion and illusion, and Mercury also opposes Chiron in Pisces, symbolising a spiritual wound which cannot be healed. There is much about recent events which does not seem logical (Mercury retrograde), on the surface, but if we look deeper we can see that society is wounded. The next few years, as Uranus and Pluto play out this intense square aspect, will show us whether healing is possible.
In this case though, the astrology is quite clear. Mars moved into Cancer on 2nd August, and by 6th August it was opposing Pluto in Capricorn and squaring Uranus in Aries. These two outer planets are ebbing and flowing between this clashing square for the next few years, and the events of the last few days give a taste of how these powerful energies can play out. The so-called hard aspects, like the squares and opposition which form this t square, often have visible and physical effects, quite literally a confrontation between different energies. The t square is in the cardinal signs, associated with action and initiative. Uranus, the planet of rebellion and personal freedom, is in individualistic Aries, and Pluto, symbolising power struggles and the collective shadow, is in conservative Capricorn. Add in Mars, the warrior planet, uncomfortable in watery emotional Cancer, and you can see a recipe for disaster even at this basic level.
One of the things I'm finding interesting about mundane astrology is that it tends towards the lowest common denominator, the raw energy of the planet without the awareness of a conscious individual. My textbooks tell me to assume that "the masses" will tend towards the negative manifestations of whatever energy is around them. In natal astrology, we might see this configuration as helping someone to awaken and transform. It can be difficult, yes, but actual violence is not necessarily involved. Tune this energy into a crowd of disenfranchised and frustrated people, however, and, well, riots can ensue.
Aries is the first sign of the zodiac, and so has a young energy. Many of the rioters have been young people, brought up on a diet of celebrity culture and material aspirations, coming into an adulthood where there are few jobs, and the cost of living is endlessly rising. Uranus in Aries symbolises shocking action, and individual freedom placed above all other concerns. Pluto in Capricorn represents power structures, an establishment which will hold on to its own power at all costs. I've been wondering if the rebellion of these young people can be linked to the rise in health and safety culture during the years of their childhood. These are the children who were not allowed, we are told, to play too far from home for fear of abduction, who could not run free for fear of what might be out there. An upbringing like that might make you want to break free. Add in cuts to services for young people and a lack of jobs, and the frustration rises. Pluto is the collective shadow - we could see these young people as acting out the repressed anger of the nation as a whole, our collective frustration at the consumer culture we are taught to idolise, even as money seems to decrease in value.
As well as the outer planets, Mars is a key player in this configuration. I've been fascinated, watching events play out on the news, by the choice of victims - many of the rioters have attacked their local areas, burning down their own high street, the post office where they collect their benefits as one commentator said. Cancer is the sign of home and family, of where we feel a sense of rootedness, that we belong. Maybe the rioters do not feel that they belong anywhere, even the streets where they live and have grown up. In Croydon, a furniture shop was burnt down which had been established over a hundred years ago. I wondered why anyone would attack such a place, and I still do, but it fits the symbolism beautifully. Cancer is the sign of the home, of home comforts such as furniture, and also of a reverence for the past.
The other interesting configuration in this chart is that of Mercury, retrograde on the cusp of logical Virgo and heading back into attention-seeking Leo. Mercury rules thieves, which many of the rioters were, and also communications. Along Wood Green high road, where I live, over half of the shops attacked were mobile phone shops. Mercury opposes Neptune in Aquarius - Aquarius rules technology, seemingly a focus for many of the looters. Neptune is the planet of confusion and illusion, and Mercury also opposes Chiron in Pisces, symbolising a spiritual wound which cannot be healed. There is much about recent events which does not seem logical (Mercury retrograde), on the surface, but if we look deeper we can see that society is wounded. The next few years, as Uranus and Pluto play out this intense square aspect, will show us whether healing is possible.