Chapter 8: Idealism and Excess

We have examined the USA Sun and Moon. The triumvirate of identity traits includes the Ascendant. What is that?

A horoscope is a two-dimensional circle representing the ecliptic, the Earth’s path around the Sun. Placed around the circle’s circumference are the signs of the Zodiac. This circle is bisected by a horizontal line indicating the horizon. The point at which the horizon meets the zodiac at the far left is called the Ascendant – it is where planets and luminaries (Sun and Moon) rise into view in the East. As Earth rotates, planets move clockwise across the dome of our sky. Everything above the horizon is visible; everything below is what can only be seen on the other side of the planet; symbolically, what is unconscious.

The sign of the Zodiac that is “rising” in the East at the moment of birth indicates the persona, the potential personality of the newborn. It is the lens through which the subject of the chart views life and is viewed by others. For the USA it is Sagittarius.

The Sun represents the essence of one’s identity. The Moon reveals the quality of the inner life. The Ascendant indicates the ways in which one adapts to life – the face we put on for others. In other words, the Sun is our Spirit – where we came from, who we are and will always be – a spark of the Divine. The Moon is our Soul – the experience we gather through our emotional body. The Ascendant, therefore, is how we embody Soul and Spirit.

Sagittarius is a rich and complex sign. We can learn much from its glyph – the Archer. Sag is represented by a centaur drawing back a bow and aiming an arrow toward a distant star. This sign aims high. It seeks ideals. It wants to know truth. It is focused on the destination, the future, what could be.

Sagittarius is the philosopher, seeking higher knowledge. It has become associated with laws, codes, principles – it wants to organize experience into meaning and wisdom. It is the impulse behind constitutions, doctrines, religions, paradigms.

The Centaur reveals another layer of meaning. Half horse and half man, Sagittarius is saying that your arrow will only hit its mark, your aim will only be true when you plant all four feet solidly on the ground. The challenge for Sag is to balance and integrate its three natures – body, mind, spirit – and honor them. It is easy for Sagittarians to get lost in the stars of their own fantasies and dreams. We need dreams, ideals and faith, but to realize them, we need to be grounded.

Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter, the biggest planet in our Solar System.  This big boomer – it actually puts out more energy than it takes in from the Sun – is a mini-solar system of its own, a gas giant encircled by 16 moons. It is famous for its enormous red spot, a “storm” of seemingly endless duration. In keeping with its nature, Jupiter wants to make things bigger. It is associated with good fortune, abundance, optimism and faith.

Jupiter takes twelve years to complete a full cycle around the Zodiac, spending one year in each sign. Caroline W. Casey says Jupiter is the guiding intelligence that leads us to learn various skills and develop talents that some day will come together in a project only we can do. Jupiter equips us to meet our destiny.

Jupiter views life as a journey. Caroline calls it “a caravan of infinite unfolding options.” A pilgrim needs faith and vision to reach his/her destination. Right now Jupiter is in its home sign of Sagittarius, helping us build the positive attitudes, the optimism and faith we will need to negotiate its transit through Capricorn beginning in December. Jupiter will add his energy into the Pluto/Saturn/Nodes mix. He will make everything bigger. We need to make sure he’s armed with our faith and ideals.

With Jupiter in Sag it’s time to dream. This is why I keep harping on dreams. This is our year to build a vision, an ideal, of where we want to land, because when Jupiter enters Capricorn he carries our dreams with him. When he plants his Centaur feet and releases that bow, he will know clearly where to aim.

Let’s put this together with what we know of our national character. First of all our nation was founded on high ideals – independence, Democracy, a new form of self-governance. We wanted to be free to create our own nation, to practice our own religious faith, to make our own fortunes without a “Mother” country skimming off the top. We had a vision of what came to be called Manifest Destiny, the belief that God’s plan was to expand our dominion and spread democracy and capitalism across the North American Continent. Although not mentioned, Christianity was part of the plan.

There’s Jupiter at work, growing, spreading its domain. The problem is that Jupiter doesn’t know when to stop. If big is good, bigger must be better. This is the American Ethic. A hamburger is good, but a Whopper is better. A million dollars is good, but a hundred billion is better. A gun is good, but the world’s largest arsenal of deadly weapons is best.

America is renowned for its excess. We are exuberant. We are faithful fans. We love to win. We choose a side and stick with it. We root for it, right or wrong. We get so excited about winning we smash car windows and storefront glass and set a neighborhood on fire in our joy. We love food and have the highest rate of obesity. We believe we can’t eat just one potato chip. We love stuff – especially glittery stuff – and we are dedicated to buying our way to happiness. Caroline Casey calls it “the gorge theory of pleasure.” I’ll let you draw your own conclusions about how this operates in our politics.

Jupiter needs the steadying influence of Saturn and in 543 days these two planets will come together. On December 21^st, 2020 Jupiter joins Saturn at 0 degrees of Aquarius. A year of Capricorn intensity will be winding down. Saturn will have left Pluto behind. We will have met the challenges of this decade. A new 20-year Jupiter/Saturn cycle will begin. In my dream, we begin rebuilding our nation according to the values we cherish and the ideals we hold, not just for ourselves but for all humanity.  

Jupiter’s current transit through Sag has exposed the issue of fake news, abundant lies and confusion about whom to believe. Jupiter makes everything bigger, remember? And that includes the problems that have escaped notice.

Jupiter’s 12-year cycle is a good way to measure growth and change. Think back to where we were in 2007, just 12 years ago when Jupiter was last in Sag. We were at war with Iraq and Afghanistan. We were still suffering psychic aftershocks from 9/11. Our faith in our invulnerability had been shattered. We learned a new depth of fear and became suspicious of others. It was a signal for more control and that’s what we got when Jupiter moved into Capricorn. We instituted new security measures and created Homeland Security with the power to spy on all of us – lengthy lines for security checks at airports; security cameras on every street corner. Big Brother finally had permission to watch us all.

We have had twelve years of immigration issues; increased violence not just from terrorists, but our own homegrown variety; increasing loss of privacy, and endless internal conflict. All the while a global crisis was rising to awareness. Our very environment was deteriorating so rapidly that over a million species are now on the verge of extinction. Violent storms raged, floods drove millions from their homes, fires ravaged landscapes and communities. We are facing a climate crisis, yet right now in my home state of Oregon, half the members of our state congress fled into hiding to avoid voting on Green New Deal legislation.

We need to get our priorities straight. What good are ideals if we ignore them? How do our principles serve us if we can turn a blind eye to them? What is our Constitution worth if we flaunt it with impunity? How does our self-image as the Land of Plenty, home of the American Dream, suffer when we incarcerate babies and force them to live like animals, unwashed, unnourished, unloved? And how does the rest of the world see us now? Are we still the Land of the Free, the Home of the Brave, the world’s best and brightest?

Next week we will examine the USA Pluto placement in the house of values.