The Age Of Aquarius - Part 2

When The Beatles shot to fame in 1962, they weren't just propelled into the spotlight by the Age of Aquarius influence but also because of an astrological phenomenon called The Six Year Cycle. This is a planetary configuration which occurs every six years and involves aspects between Jupiter and Uranus. It triggers sudden and stratospheric fame for certain people in the worlds of show business, sport and science. 

In the Age of Aquarius chart for February 1962 Jupiter and Uranus were not in aspect to each other but by October of that year, they had formed an opposition. The Beatles were not the only ones to benefit from this, it also heralded the arrival of many other iconic musical performers such as the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, not to mention the very first James Bond film 'Dr No', starring the late Sean Connery who himself - along with the Bond movie franchise - attained iconic status.

By 1967 the Age of Aquarius was well up and running and ready to party! This year was destined to go down in history as 'The Summer Of Love' - mainly due to the social influences going on in the USA at that time - and launched the Hippie Movement, Flower Power, etc. However, it was because of the emergence of ‘British Invasion’ groups like The Beatles, that music truly began its revolutionary changes and one Beatles album in particular became the turning point in music that inspired other musicians to experiment with new sounds.

During the first few years of their unparalleled success, The Beatles were releasing on average two albums per year and a new single every three months. However, by late Spring 1967, there had been no new Beatles albums for almost 10 months. Then, on 1st June of that year, they released Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - an album which would revolutionise music, culture and art. The album cover was an art form in itself, and it became the first rock album to win the Album Of The Year Grammy Award. The Summer Of Love was inspired by Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and reinvented pop LPs. It’s no coincidence that 1967 was the first year in which albums outsold singles. So, why 1967, and what were the astrological triggers? 

At this time the Natal Composite chart of John Lennon and Paul McCartney was also being activated in a very dynamic way. Transiting Jupiter was in a trine aspect to their Natal Composite Midheaven bringing the achievement of major goals. Transiting Saturn was squaring their Natal Composite Venus resulting in serious recognition for their talent and followed by awards. However, it's the transits of 1st June 1967 to the Progressed Composite chart of Lennon and McCartney that really show the boost they experienced that Summer. With the transiting Sun conjunct their Progressed Composite Jupiter there was increased vitality and lucky opportunities. 

Transiting Venus in a square to their Progressed Composite Midheaven brought the perfect opportunity to expose their work to the wider public. With increased confidence and charisma they were able to make a huge impression which in turn propelled them towards initiating new developments, growth and expansion in their professional lives.

Transiting Uranus conjunct Progressed Composite Mars and North Node brought important changes in their situation that allowed more opportunities for creative expression and individuality in their work. They became capable of unusual achievements that set them apart from the rest of their peers and competitors by being willing to experiment in ways that others had not considered. In a word, The Beatles were: Revolutionary.

In the second half of 1967, as transiting Jupiter passed through the sign of Leo, it formed an opposition to its original position in the Age Of Aquarius chart of 1962. This is called the half return, meaning that a planet is halfway through its cycle. Interestingly, every time transiting Jupiter makes a full return to its position in the Age Of Aquarius chart there are major musical events or large gatherings connected to love, philanthropy, humanitarianism. 

In 1973 when Jupiter had returned to Aquarius, a little known musical event took place called The Summer Jam on 28 July at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Raceway, New York. The festival attracted approximately 600,000 visitors and entered the pages of the Guinness Book of World Records as the festival with the biggest audience at the time. Often referred to as the “Forgotten Woodstock", this event had only three bands perform: The Grateful Dead, The Band, and the Allman Brothers Band. Although the event was planned to last for just one day, thousands of concertgoers arrived at the venue and the target of the organizers was achieved with a bigger audience than the one at Woodstock, turning the festival into a major success story. 

On the next Age Of Aquarius Jupiter Return in 1985 the world saw a phenomenon called Live Aid. This took place in several locations around the world but primarily in London on Saturday 13th July. Live Aid was a benefit concert held to raise funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was one of the largest satellite link-ups and television broadcasts of all time; reaching an estimated audience of 1.9 billion, in 150 nations, watched by nearly 40 percent of the world population. 

Jupiter also made a return to its Age Of Aquarius position in 1997, thirty years after the Summer Of Love, and again, crowds gathered to show love, but this time was different. The event was the funeral of Diana, Princess Of Wales which resonated deeply with the Age Of Aquarius chart. Diana was born seven months before February 1962 but her birth chart formed strong connections with the Aquarius chart. Diana's natal Jupiter was conjunct the Age Of Aquarius Saturn and her natal North Node was conjunct the Age Of Aquarius Uranus.

The next Jupiter Return took place in 2009 but I have no idea what happened that year in connection to large social gatherings. Perhaps you can help me on this one? There was a Jupiter return to the Age of Aquarius chart in 2021 but because of Covid restrictions, nothing connected to large social gatherings happened. The next Jupiter trigger - a half-return - will occur in September 2026, and continue through a large chunk of 2027. What this will bring is going to very interesting indeed.

2021 - The Beginning Of A New Era

On Monday 21st December 2020 a conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn will take place at zero degrees (0°) Aquarius. This marks the beginning of a major new era which will bring hope and enlightenment. After all the heavy, oppressive Capricorn energy we've been under this year, 2021 promises to lift the load. There will be no overnight miracles, but there will be a gradual easing of restriction, worry and pessimism. We are about to enter a positive new era. Aquarius is about tolerance, philanthropy and humanitarianism It brings people together, celebrates diversity and recognises individuality. The renewal of society is iminent - and we will all be involved in the changes that are due throughout the next few years. 

Jupiter and Saturn meet every 20 years in an aspect known as the Great Conjunction. This time, not only a new 20-year cycle begins, but also one that will shape the world for the next two centuries. The conjunctions of Saturn and Jupiter occur in the same element for approximately 200 years. Now the current cycle in the Earth element is coming to an end, and with the Great Conjunction in Aquarius, we are at the very beginning of a new cycle in the element of Air when knowledge, communication and technology will dominate the next two hundred years.

Jupiter and Saturn have not been in conjunction in the sign of Aquarius since the 15th century. The last time they were together in that sign was in 1962 when they formed part of the 'Age of Aquarius' line-up which comprised a total of seven planets plus the South Node - all in Aquarius. The result was the beginning of a new, radical, forward-looking decade powered by a generation of young people born during, or just after, World War II, who decided to overturn the status quo. Although it would be 1967 before they really came to prominence, leading to the Hippie Movement and the beginning of a phenomenon called The Summer Of Love. The year 1962 and the Aquarius planets that defined it, brought a cultural revolution which would reverberate.throughout the entire decade and beyond.  

There have been other years since 1962 when a line-up of planets has occurred in Aquarius: 1986, 1998, and 2009. However, the year 1962 still remains the most dynamic of all  - so far -because it not only contained the highest number of heavenly bodies but also a Solar Eclipse. On Thursday 11th February 2021 there will be the biggest Aquarian planetary line-up in 59 years! Interestingly, when Jupiter transits Aquarius, mass social gatherings tend to be a theme, often connected to love, compassion, and a spirit of philanthropy and humanitarianism. Live Aid in 1985 is a prime example, and it will be interesting to see if something similar happens in 2021. Will this bring an explosion of creative talents? Another cultural revolution? Watch this space....

In early January 2021 transiting Mars will finally leave Aries after a six-month long stint and this will be when we start to rebuild our society.. During the rest of the year, Mars will be the driving force of positive progress as it freely transits throughout 2021 without any retrograde motion. 

A recurring theme throughout 2021 will be a square aspect between Saturn and Uranus which happens approximately every 21 years. These two planets represent opposing outlooks: Old versus new; the past versus the future; traditional versus unconventional. Under this planetary influence there will be tension as our need for freedom and spontaneity will clash with a need for structure and stability. Rules and limitations will be challenging, but without them there will be chaos. Under this planetary influence, there may be sudden and unexpected twists that will force us to do things differently or free ourselves from our past ways of thinking. Striking a balance between convention and innovation will be the main challenge of 2021. However, there will be a feeling of frustration related to differences in opinion - probably political.

On a more personal note, those of you born with planets or points in Aquarius will feel a surge of power, a new position of responsibility could arise and you'll experience a growing sense of optimism. The other Air signs will also benefit as Jupiter will form a trine aspect to Gemini and Libra Suns, as will Sagittarius and Aries when Jupiter sextiles their natal Suns. There are certain Aquarians who will be particularly affected/influenced. Those born on 11th February. will not only have a six-planet line-up in your sign conjunct your natal Sun on your birthday, but transiting Jupiter will hover over your Sun later in the year as it goes into a phase of retrograde, stationary and direct motion. In fact, everyone born between 11th to 21st February will be intensely influenced by Jupiter from 26th March until the end of the year. 

The sign of Aquarius is associated with progressive thinking and freedom. There used to be a saying "There is only one race, the human race." That is the bottom line - there is no 'them and us', there's just US. The international global community will become more important than ever in the years and decades ahead, and it is starting now! The generation born under this phenomenal planetary influence will come of age at the next Jupiter Saturn conjunction on 31st October 2040. Speaking of babies being born under this influence.... Aquarius is one of the signs of fertility, and with Jupiter, the planet of abundance situated there, will there be a post-pandemic Baby Boom? What will be their role in our destiny? Watch and wait....

The Age Of Aquarius - Part 1

The Age of Aquarius is something that astrologers have debated, discussed and argued about for decades because they could never agree as to when it would begin. An astrological age is based on the motion of the Earth, known as the Precession of the Equinoxes because the position of the zodiac that the Sun occupies on the Spring Equinox moves backwards by one degree every 72 years. This means that approximately every 2,160 years, the Sun’s position has moved into a new constellation on the zodiac circle. As this process happens gradually, it's hard to pinpoint the exact moment of changeover. However, many astrologers consider the 20th century to be the pivotal era in this transition - in particular the 1960s, and specifically the year 1962. There have been other Aquarius line-ups in the past and there will be again in the future, but this one has, so far, been the most dynamic.

On Monday 5th February 1962, there were seven planets - Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn - situated in the sign of Aquarius. Mars and Saturn were conjunct each other at the beginning of the sign and the other five had formed a very rare configuration called a Grand Conjunction in the middle degrees. Not only that, but the Sun and Moon had formed an Eclipse. This was the first line up of it's kind since 1821 - except back then there were only four planets and they weren't in Aquarius. The cumulative effect of this 7-planet line up was to exert an influence so strong that it reverberated through the rest of the decade, into the 1970s and beyond. As a result, the changes that took place were phenomenal.

The chart is for the exact moment that the Solar Eclipse happened on Monday 5th February 1962. The time was 00:10 - just 10 minutes after midnight. The place I've used is London, England, the nearest to Greenwich, the place where all time zones are measured from (Greenwich Mean Time) and also because this was to become the location for something very significant when this chart was reactivated five years later. The Solar Eclipse in Aquarius is opposite the Midheaven and this is indicative of important upcoming events well into the future.

Click to enlarge image

As you can see from the chart, there are several opposition aspects from the Aquarian planets to the Midheaven and North Node in Leo. These oppositions are further extended into a T-square with the asteroid Ceres, and are also squared by Neptune in Scorpio. Thus forming another configuration called a Grand Cross. Ceres symbolises fertility, the natural world, agriculture, nurturing  and the four seasons. Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter symbolise love, happiness and friendship while the Sun, Moon, and Mercury represent youth and this configuration was alive with the promise and potential for optimism, prosperity and peace.. 

In October 1962, two very pivotal events took place which would change the course of history. Firstly, the Cuban Missile Crisis. Although the potential threat of a nuclear war only lasted for 13 days before strategic political discussions alleviated the tension, there were lessons to be learned which are still relevant today. Typically, Aquarius brings shocks, surprises and out-of-the-blue events. Therefore, the sudden threat of World War III certainly resonated with this as the Aquarian planet line-up included a separate conjunction between Mars and Saturn which symbolises military affairs. This conjunction was activated in October 1962 by an opposition from transiting Mars. 

Secondly, the arrival of an up and coming young band called The Beatles who had their first hit with the song 'Love Me Do'. Driven by the combined creative talents of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, they were destined to become one of the greatest bands the world had ever known. The Aquarian line-up of February 1962 resonated strongly with the charts of Lennon and McCartney. All seven planets were situated in sector five of Paul McCartney's natal chart - the area which symbolises creative energy, performing and being in the spotlight. The North Node was conjunct his natal Moon, indicating popularity and tuning into the public mood, being in the zeitgeist. Also, the Mars Saturn conjunction was opposite his natal Mars Pluto conjunction bringing an intense passion to achieve his strongest desires and striving to reach his full creative potential. 

Five of the Aquarian planets were in a positive trine aspect to John Lennon's natal Sun - again a very creative influence. Also, the Mars Saturn conjunction of February 1962 was aligned with his natal Moon Pluto opposition. This brought a very profound emotional connection to the Age of Aquarius - albeit on a subconscious level.  All of this planetary energy resonated deeply with both Paul and John and led to an extraordinary phenomenon five years later in which they would play a very major part.

Part 2 coming as soon as I have the time to finish it.