Being Human
On February 1st we celebrated Imbolc, the beginning of Spring – new seeds, new shoots and new beginnings. And on February 9th we will celebrate another symbol of new beginnings and new intentions – a New Moon in Aquarius. The New Moon squares (challenging aspect) Uranus (the ruler of the New Moon) and trines (harmonious aspect) the South Node, the point on the destiny axis that represents the gifts and talents that we have brought with us into this life. Uranus is now in forward motion, but he is barely moving so his power and influence for sudden volatility and revolutionary change is really strong. Then on February 10th we begin the new Chinese year, this time celebrating the year of the Dragon. Alongside the animal zodiac, the Chinese New Year also associates each year with one of the five elements – this year it is wood - and also with a colour – this year green. So this is a powerful, transformative year representing the energy and strength of the Green Wood Dragon.
The New Moon is asking us to appreciate and explore the innate talents we have within us (South Node) to enable us to move forward to achieve our potential; whilst the square to Uranus asks us to go forward embracing the challenges of what is ‘new’ that might be dropped upon us like a lightning bolt from the sky in an unexpected fashion. Life often deals us curveballs and we either make something of them or they break us. Our choice. But we must not be afraid to embrace doing things differently to how we have done before - in a new way and with a new attitude. Since the last Full Moon we have seen the first chip actually implanted in a brain by Musk’s Neuralink, as well as finally the liquidation of Evergrande the second largest Chinese real estate company. It remains to be seen what ripples will occur from this across financial markets. We have seen ever increasing drums of war that are seemingly very politically desired. King Charles has announced he has an undisclosed cancer, whilst the Princess of Wales has undergone a pretty serious operation. The charts of the Royals are being highlighted, bearing in mind that therewas hardly an astrologer who considered that the coronation augured a long reign.
Aquarius is a Fixed Air sign. We are being encouraged to think (Air) and think deep! Whilst the fixity and the lack of fire in this chart may make it difficult for us to change our opinions, it will at least give us the ability of perseverance and ‘stickability’ when required. Even though Aquarius is all about being humanitarian and community minded, the average Aquarian is independent, needs freedom and can set himself apart from the community. But the Aquarian will play his own individual role within a community in the knowledge that he is a free, strong and sure individual who will not follow any herd. And this New Moon’s square to Uranus, alongside Pluto’s entry into the sign that Uranus rules, heralds a changing society – a revolutionary change that is disruptive, that shocks and that is very fast-moving. We face a challenging ride.
Uranus delivers surprises and the unexpected. In myth Prometheus delivered to man the gift of fire. When he first received this gift, he would not have known its future implications. He would not have realised how much it would have benefited him in terms of how much civilisation would grow and change through its legacy. The current gift appears to be AI – do we have any idea how much this could change our world and in what ways? We are now in the process of a building aspect between Jupiter and Uranus ready for the beginning of their next new cycle in April. Jupiter always expands any planet he touches – so whatever event we are going to experience it will likely be very disruptive, very revolutionary and contain huge energy for both breakdowns and breakthroughs. Right now in Europe the revolution lies with the Farmer dragons who are protesting very very strongly, even now spreading to the UK – huge Aquarian energy as they protect their livelihoods and ‘announce’ their discord. The people have had four years now of seeing their society becoming ‘broken’ and they have had enough. They see their lives being ruined, whilst at the same time the leaders thump the war drums louder. But the people don’t want war – they just want to be able to live their lives. Will the people begin to react much more strongly against their political leaders?
So what kind of energy does the new Chinese year augur for us and how does this fit in with our Western astrology? The Dragon is the only mythical animal of the Chinese zodiac which sets it aside in terms of its symbolic use. The Dragon is regarded as a symbol of power and authority - a curious beast, he positively bursts with his own sense of power, wanting to know everything; he is creative and magnanimous, with supposedly new and revolutionary ideas but also high standards. He is said to work well with others but can display traits of arrogance – sounds very Aquarian so far. The influence of wood is said to calm his tendency to be changeable and impulsive. But at heart he remains a Dragon who is proud and will only agree to change if it is beneficial. A Dragon is always noticed; who could not notice a Dragon? Naturally intelligent, Wood Dragons also have a natural bent for logical understanding, science and research. Sounds the perfect accompaniment to a year that augurs the embracing of new discoveries in science and technology as well as potential disruptive and revolutionary events.
The last year of a Wood Dragon was, in fact, 1964 – a period of counter-culture and huge societal change, mainly at that time through the realm of music. The 2024 counter-culture revolution may well appear via a more scientific/technological realm this time around. The Dragon is a leader rather than a follower and hopefully the true warriors will show themselves, led by a natural leader in the form of a Dragon. However, we must beware being taken in by a ‘false prophet’. We are in desperate need of those who will take up a leadership role whilst shunning the idea of toxic power and corruption. The Dragon is bold, fearless and mystical and points to a sign in the skies that shows where the truth lies – perhaps more as a cosmic flame that activates frequency, energy, matrices, quantum systems and structures. The Dragon in this sense becomes a projection of the human memory field that shows consciousness, here to awaken humanity to their potentials.
For modern astrologers April’s total solar eclipse in the most cardinal and the most action-oriented sign of Aries and, less than two weeks later, the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction, are probably the biggies of the year. April is going to be a month. The eclipse will be visible across America, still the number one world superpower and the nation carrying so much influence in hot spots of the world; the effects of an eclipse are always felt most strongly where the path of the eclipse can be seen. So this eclipse, alongside the energy of a new Dragon year and an outer planetary sign change as Pluto enters Aquarius, as well as America’s Pluto return – and the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction - bodes well for an invigorating potential for leadership that could upset and change the constant narrative drone we have endured for so long. As the eclipse path is visible in America and this is election year, maybe this will also herald something to do with their election. Will we see Joe Biden, who is going through his own planetary challenges, step back from the top job? Or perhaps we will see a renewal of the China/Taiwan disagreement; we are certainly seeing an escalation of issues with Iran which threaten the involvement of China and Russia in support of their fellow BRICS nations. Why does the prospect of WW3 appear so attractive to our leaders?
As well as the Sun and the Moon, who are always together at a New Moon, we will also have Pluto and Mercury in Aquarius. Mercury has now moved to square Jupiter – a time of unorthodox or non-traditional opinions - but pulled by Jupiter to embrace the Uranian characteristic of thoughts and opinions that are more extreme and more radical. It’s a time of awakening. Interestingly, we see all planets contained within just five of the 12 signs, with Earth signs in the form of Capricorn and Taurus acting as gatekeepers. An ‘exalted’ Mars at one end next to Pluto (albeit in the next sign) may well ignite the touchpaper that Jupiter and Uranus at the other end in Taurus are just waiting to explode.
Mars (warfare) and Mercury (the mind), both towards the end of Capricorn, sitting close to Pluto (control and manipulation) in Aquarius (an Air sign), in addition to ever increasing war drums, also really ‘speaks’ to me of a book that I am just reading called ‘The Indoctrinated Brain’ by Michael Nehls.[1] How our minds are influenced is something that really interests me, as you are probably aware from the number of times that I mention it within my blogs. If the mind has been taken over and convinced, then any war is won; hence, if we are to remain sovereign and free, we need to strengthen and ‘use’ our mental faculties. With the development and rise of practices such as neuro linguistic programming and behavioural marketing techniques, we are constantly surrounded by mind and behavioural influences that we are not necessarily aware of. These might be as we shop, as we watch television, as we browse social media – literally everything is designed to influence and prime us to behave in certain ‘desirable’ ways. Indeed this is how governments keep a populace under control whilst thinking they live in a democracy. And now we are being prepared for war!
And of course Pluto’s travels through Aquarius really signal the growth and development of AI. We can see it already, even though at the moment we only see baby steps; how will it be by 2043 when Pluto begins his journey through Pisces I wonder. Pluto’s entry into Aquarius also shifts us from the earthly more material plane to the mental. We talk a lot about the need for a healthy body in the form of diet and exercise. However, perhaps more important, or certainly just as important, is the need for a healthy mind. How do we get a healthy mind? IMHO the mind, in terms of the brain, needs exercise or else it just defaults to behaving like a computer. We need discernment in our thoughts and, in order to learn discernment, we have to read a variety of subjects and opinions – both within the mainstream and within the alternative media - so that we can gain our own opinions. The mind is meant to be curious. It is meant to continue learning, even in our older age. The hippocampus in the brain, the seat of memory, is the one area that continues to produce new neurons, so it needs exercise, both physical and mental, to encourage this new growth. The head brain is where we process our thoughts and perhaps that is the area that is most like a computer because it is capable of being reprogrammed both by ourselves and by others. The brain cannot tell the difference between a thought that is real and a thought that is not real. It reacts to both. This is why it is possible to reprogramme our belief systems and why manifestation can be so powerful. For instance, if we only ever think negatively and from a negative stance then that is the type of life we will experience. If we do the opposite, then life can be much more rewarding.
However we don’t just think with our head brains. We have two further brains – in the heart and in our gut. The heart works from love and, therefore, this heart centre can be affected by our emotions and our emotional need to protect ourselves. The gut brain provides us with our innate sense of ‘knowing’ – our instinctive behaviour. I also believe that how we think and feel also emanates from within - from a cellular level, because that for me is how astrology ‘works’; the astrological chart that we are born with is a cellular imprint written right through us like a stick of rock. The human condition derives from the fact that we are instinctive individuals who reason and problem solve. Humans possess consciousness and sentience, whereas AI’s main skill lies within its ability to generate and analyse massive amounts of data – greater than the human brain. AI is logical whereas humans are very often illogical and arrive at decisions that enhance their lives through often illogical processes. And yet our brains are predictable, and in many ways similar to a computer, capable of being reframed by ‘updated software’.
‘The Indoctrinated Brain’ concentrates on the hippocampus, regarded as the seat of memory, and how this tiny area of the brain can be affected by stress, fear, vaccines, viruses etc., and how their influence can delete memory or override memory. If the seat of memory is overridden and reframed with new ‘programmes’ that contain only new memories or ‘suggestions’ the brain then has no innate older memory to balance and rationalise the new against the old; this is very dangerous particularly if our leaders are coercive and hungry for their own power, using the military techniques of mind-influencing that are freely available.
The mind needs both physical and mental exercise just as much as the physical body. Without it the hippocampus will become stagnant; it influences the onset of degenerative brain conditions such as Alzheimers. PTSD also activates this area of the brain. The prefrontal cortex of the brain oversees logical reasoning but when we are in a state of fear the amygdala kicks in to release the ‘fight or flight’ hormones. If the fear is constant, as in today’s onset of background anxiety and continual ‘fear porn’, the amygdala can almost remain switched on, which prevents the prefrontal cortex from doing its job of logical reasoning and problem solving. If we are in fear of a future disease (enter stage right Disease X followed by its ‘cure’) or war and the conscription of our husbands or children, then we will not act in a logical, problem-solving fashion. But also if we do experience a harsh virus then a resulting cytokine storm – an excessive release of pro-inflammatory cytokines as part of the innate immune system – negatively affects the hippocampus. Within a dominated society both bodily and mental immune systems will be shut down.
Humans have empathy, giving them the ability to appreciate other people’s suffering. They are capable of self-reflection. We possess an ‘intangible’ spirit and soul as well as a strong will to live and to survive. We react emotionally to sound, smell and the vibration of life of other people; we have a need to belong, but we must not make that particular need so strong that we are in fear of being different to other members of the tribe. We need those differences to reach balanced conclusions. So it is important that we are aware of what is happening but also that we ‘control’ our minds through such things as meditation, spiritual practices or just with things that we can almost ‘lose’ ourselves in doing so, in order that we can discern and reason without sending ourselves into a spin. AI does not experience fear, but the thought of its reach may well induce fear within humanity.
As with the last New Moon all the planets lead back to Neptune, the King of the Oceans and our connection with God and the spiritual. Interestingly the name Hippocampus literally translates from the Greek as ‘sea monster horse’ and the hippocampus organ has the actual shape of a sea horse. So the energy within this New Moon is very much one of the fearless, mystical Dragon on land as well as the fierce ‘monster dragon of the sea’. Both highlight the need to be strong in both body and mind in readiness for our new type of society. If we are to get the best out of the combination of humanity and AI, we will need to embrace and recognise their differences. What makes us totally different to AI also is that we have a soul and a spirit, plus a sense of humour - we have the ability to laugh in the face of utter darkness – something that will never be in the reach of AI. Above all Michael Nehls urges us to stay curious and to think critically as well as to be able to retain our desire for fun and joy. If we are in a state of fear, we remain with our ‘fight or flight’ reactions triggered and we are paralysed and separated from our senses that allow us to reason with the dark side.
[1] The Indoctrinated Brain, Michael Nehls, 2023