The Astrological Aspects 2017-2025 - Part One Uranus enters Taurus

This is the first in a series of blogs on the astrological aspects in play between now (October 2017) and the mid 2020’s. I think this is a ‘hang on to your seats’ period following hot on the heels of the seven Uranus/Pluto squares. Uranus has been in volatile Aries since 2011 and moves into Taurus in May 2018. Saturn moves into Capricorn in December 2017 and joins forces in a conjunction with Jupiter and Pluto, all in Capricorn, in the latter half of 2020 before we finally have Jupiter and Saturn conjoining at 0 Aquarius to begin a new air cycle in December 2020 – now this could really be a crazy period. Pluto moves into Aquarius in March 2023 and then Neptune hits 0 Aries, the world point, in March 2025.

Jupiter and Saturn conjunctions are regarded as markers of time and great changes in history. Since 1842 the conjunctions have played out in earth elements and, apart from 1980, when we saw them meet in the air sign of Libra, we now enter an unbroken air cycle which will take us through our lifetimes, unless cryogenics really step in! More about this though in a future article, but to indicate the importance of this conjunction, Jupiter and Saturn dance through roughly a 960-year cycle through the elements, spending up to 240 years in one element before moving on to another – so you can see how a change in element can be a significant marker point.

In this particular blog I am mainly looking at Uranus, its entry into the sign of Taurus in May 2018 and what that might herald. We have now left behind the series of seven Uranus/Pluto squares, but in their wake is left a stage which forms the backdrop for the future – a backdrop of disruption, social turmoil and revolutionary/transformative energy against which the planetary alignments will play out (to put this in context these are the first squares since we had a Uranus/Pluto conjunction in the 1960’s – the time of the counter culture revolution when culture and technology began to change dramatically).

Uranus is the planet of shocks and surprises. He enters nowhere slowly, instead coming in like a whirlwind, often destabilising, sometimes shocking, but generally always turning things on their heads. By doing so, sometimes, Uranus can liberate us and free us up from ways of behaviour to which we have become accustomed and perhaps do just because that’s what we are expected to do. When Uranus comes into the frame ideals that we have perhaps held down for a long time can be shown to no longer have worth or value. Or different ideals enter the frame that we haven’t considered before – in this respect Uranus represents innovation, new discoveries, inventions, technology and science, liberation and freedom.

Taurus is a fixed earth sign and as such represents what is tangible, what we can touch. Therefore, Taurus very much represents the land, money and wealth, material things. Material things give us a sense of security and stability, something we can fall back on, something that gives us a certain status and value in life- and that’s what Taurus holds dear. Taurus also leans towards conservatism – whilst Uranus favours the new and the extreme. Above all Taurus desires security and stability whereas Uranus favours a revolution, the new, thriving on extreme change. Taurus is slow and steady, a safe pair of hands – Uranus is unpredictable, excitable and lightening quick. So perhaps we can already gain a sense that Uranus and Taurus are not going to be a marriage made in heaven.

So what can we expect?      We say that history repeats itself and it does, but never in quite the same way. The last time we saw Uranus in Taurus was between 1934 and 1941 and before that 1850 – 1859. Indeed at the end of 1851 there was a line up of Uranus, Saturn and Pluto all in Taurus – such a line up of outer planets often indicates periods of huge change and new inventions (bear in mind that we have just got through the series of Uranus/Pluto squares). The period 1850 -59 was the time of the structuring of the Industrial Revolution which encompassed technological and innovative changes, new basic materials such as iron and steel, new energy sources such as coal, the steam engine, electricity, the first modern oil well and the development of the internal combustion engine, the invention of new machines, new organisation of work, new developments in transportation and communication, the application of science to industry, mass production and therefore socio economic developments and changes in urban areas etc. This was change on a massive scale – cultural, demographic, technological and industrial change. Before this period daily life had not really changed massively but this was like a technological explosion which catapulted people into completely different lifestyles – where they lived, how they lived and how they worked. (Very Uranus in Taurus).

The 1930’s, however, was a different period of change – a period when security (Taurus) was very much on people’s minds because globally people’s lives were impacted by the onset of WW2. The attitude to the land changed as people were asked to become more self-sufficient and women were encouraged to help in the war effort by cultivating and growing food as the men fought, So, in turn, women’s lives were beginning to change dramatically. Women over the age of 21 had by now been given the right to vote and were now being encouraged to take on the men’s roles in factories and on the land.

We also need to look at the preceding periods when Uranus was in Aries because this is the likely period of a drive for new technologies, new inventions, innovations, but it is the Taurus stage that we look to see if they have any chance of sustainability.

So what burst on to the world stage in the 1920’s when Uranus was in Aries that actually had sustainability? First of all there was penicillin. Antibiotics have been a key player in our enjoyment of increasing health and greater longevity of life, but now an overuse of antibiotics means that we are possibly on the verge of not being able to fight off certain illnesses and infections.
As TV became available and animation hit the media, bringing Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse on to the world stage, together with the huge industry created around it, this was the beginning of the media baron. Mass circulation of newspapers had already begun but now the media expanded to encompass radio and TV.

Travel also changed with the development of the jet engine together with a rapid development of automotive technology. Indeed by 1929 90% of Americans owned a car. As Uranus goes into Taurus in 2018 we are on the brink of a new type of powered travel – the electric car. There is still plenty of oil in the ground but it is becoming harder and, therefore, more costly to extract.

The 1920’s was a time of financial crisis, panic and hyperinflation. Personal bank loans were pioneered by the New York National City Bank in the 1920’s and now where would we be without credit? However, are the chickens ready to come home to roost when Uranus enters Taurus this time around – is the credit explosion sustainable? Now credit is fuelling consumption and driving growth that is controlled by government and central banks. Debt consumes us. Rather than creating wealth we are consuming it. This is only sustainable if you keep printing more money and at some point the system will break and freeze and there will be a revaluation. But the next crisis is likely to be much more global than we saw in 2008 particularly because of our huge debt crisis – US debt stands currently at around $20 trillion whilst UK debt is on the way to £2 trillion.

Interestingly also in 1928 the Muslim Brotherhood was formed. It was expanded during the 1930’s and by the end of the 1930’s had more than half a million active members spread across more than 2,000 branches across the Arab world as Uranus revolutionised Taurus conservatism. The Muslim Brotherhood went on to find a soulmate in Nazi Germany and both movements shared ideals of world domination and a perfect race. With hindsight we can see the Muslim Brotherhood was a precursor of IS and we also now see a rise in both Far Right and Far Left (Uranus is always about extremes) ideologies. Indeed in Germany during 2017 a nationalistic far right party has just won dozens of seats for the first time since the time of Hitler.

As Uranus entered Taurus in the 30’s Hitler had begun 12 years as dictator of the German Reich encouraging production of more Aryans by offering cash incentives to Germans who would marry and cash awards for each new infant born – intermarriage with Jews was forbidden and intercourse between Aryans and Jews became punishable by death. This was the time of the genocide of more than 9 million European Jews.

The idea of mass surveillance was also seen as the Gestapo compiled dossiers on all Germans to suppress political opposition. Now we are becoming accustomed to mass surveillance in terms of cameras etc., but we are now conditioned to think of this in terms of our protection and safety.

The 1930’s was also a time of inventions including:
Nuclear fission producing the possibility of vast new energy sources.  Now we are on the verge of nuclear fusion giving us the potential of greater energy sources
Production of transuranium elements.
First practical radar tests.
Fibreglass.
First hd colour tv
The ball point pen
Superman and Batman
Fluorescent lighting
The first commercial transatlantic passenger air service and the first commercial flight using pressurised cabins.
The testing of the first turbojet aircraft
The first American made helicopter.
Nylon was introduced commercially.
Colour TV was pioneered.
FM radio receivers.
Towards the end of Uranus’ stay in Taurus in 1940 the fall of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark ,Norway and Romania to the Germans led to Britain and Russia becoming dependent on US aid. This was the beginning of the rise of the USA as a superpower.
We also saw some of the first high rise buildings – I would associate Uranus in Taurus very much with sky gods appearing on the earth. However, it was the invention of the elevator by Otis in 1857 when Uranus was in Taurus that made these buildings possible. Now, as Uranus comes to the end of its time in Aries, we have a situation following the fire at Grenfell Tower in London and similar fires in Dubai where there are now question marks over the safety of these high rise towers.

And what have we seen during the current Uranus passage through Aries? –
The Arab Spring as 17 nations went into revolution.
Fukushima – although there is little news in mainstream media on this, social media speaks of ongoing radiation leaks. We can only wonder how the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo will play out
Brexit – the youth response to Brexit appears very different to that of many of the older generation. The younger generation seem to identify themselves as both European and British and their attitude seems to have contributed the rise in the popularity of the Labour party at the recent snap election.
Uranus symbolises exponential growth – 20% of market share appears to represent the tipping point for something new to become a real trend. In 2011 the iPhone hit this critical threshold.
Rise of Robotics
Rise of precision agriculture/satellite farming
Drones
3D printing,
Experimental claytronics – an abstract future concept that combines nanoscale robotics and computer science to create individual nanometer-scale computers which interact with each other to form tangible 3D objects that a user can interact with.
Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies
3D displays which don’t need special glasses to view with.
The electric car and now the ongoing development by Dyson of an electric car which uses a solid state battery rather than lithium.
Wireless energy transfer technology.
Nano wired battery.
Molecular electronics digital technology part and parcel of technology.
The film The Singularity is Near – demonstrated how artificial intelligence and humans would merge.
Programmable matter.
Military experimenting with force fields.
Stealth technology – moving towards invisibility.
Uranus is very much associated with space and we see the ongoing development of the Space plane as an affordable means of travel and the working towards colonisation of Mars, all by private investors.
Uranus in Aries is also very much about ‘me’ – and we saw the onslaught of the selfie together with self-promotion and a growing sense of entitlement.
The rise in waste and plastic has been seen as an issue for the planet. Birds have been found feeding their young on plastic and polystyrene has been found as far away as the Arctic.
We have also seen the advent of the so-called ‘unicorn’ companies – companies like Uber and Snapchat which actually make no money but investors still want to invest in. Will this be sustainable when Uranus goes into Taurus?

So as Uranus enters Taurus what might we see?
Because Uranus in Taurus is associated with money and wealth and valuables, enquiries into corruption at the top of politics and business which may expose the darkness of the financial system are highly possible. This is particularly likely as we reach the combination of Uranus in Taurus and the line up of Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn which has the potential to bring the old 20th century system crashing down, even those which in 2017 seemed impossible to topple. There is a link between Capricorn and skyscrapers – the goat (representing the sign of Capricorn) that goes to the top of the mountain and gold as represented by Taurus. This is compounded by the fact that the Jupiter Saturn cycle begins in Uranus’ own sign of Aquarius. With the levels of debt within USA and UK, together with the insatiable greed that has been seen within corporates and the 1% at the top of the tree, the financial systems may be mortally wounded. As Saturn enters his own sign of Capricorn at the end of 2017 we are likely to see more controls on money, a tightening of money and a rise in interest rates, but Uranus could be the tool to reset our values.
After the devastating hurricanes recently through the Caribbean this year Puerto Rico could default on its debts and insurance companies will be inundated with claims for rebuilding. How will this affect our financial systems? Banks will prop up markets but there is really little wiggle room or margin for error right now, so this will surely be a significant issue as Uranus enters Taurus.
Uranus is associated with storms and lightings. We have heard much talk on climate change but Uranus is the shock surprise element. Of late we have seen extremes of weather in terms of hurricanes, floods and fires. What if global warming is a red herring and where we are actually heading, following a period of extremes as our weather changes, is actually into a period of global cooling?

And what else might be around the corner? –
Facial recognition may become the norm
Artificial intelligence for sure. ‘Alexa’ is set to become intelligent, but as can be seen with the film ‘The Singularity is Near’ how far will this go. How will the boundaries between man and robot become blurred? Mankind could be at a tipping point as automation and artificial intelligence begin to replace us. Is this the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century? The Industrial Revolution of the 19th century was a tipping point but it created jobs. Now we are replacing people and we can only imagine where this may lead.
Uranus is associated with revolution so are we going to see a revolution in banking, money, currency, particularly in terms of cryptocurrency.
Uranus as ruler of Aquarius also speaks of fairness and equality. This is very much seen as an issue for women seeking equality. However, there are obvious biological differences. As women start their families later in life than ever before we are seeing the rise in the need for IVF. Is it a step too far that we may reach a point where babies are grown outside the womb as women seek to not interrupt their careers and be more like men? We are already seeing a kind of genetic modification in a bid to eliminate disease – but how will this go? We can see echoes of the desire for the creation of a desirable race of the 1930’s but in a humanitarian guise.

On the subject of fairness there has been an overflowing sense of feelings of unfairness since the Pluto/Uranus squares. However, coupled with this we have a growing sense of political correctness. People feel constricted in what they can say but deep inside their views have not changed. This is why we see governments out of step with the people, as well as polls that are always wrong. This is why we have a President Trump. Uranus in Taurus is about freedom from restrictions, together with a sense of social fairness.

Fracking

Robotic farming

Nuclear Fusion

The mass surveillance which we saw in Hitler’s era is likely to increase. We have already seen companies where employees are prepared to have a chip put into their arm as a means of identification. This is perhaps more likely to appeal to the young who desire and are used to speed and convenience. However, where might this lead?
The colonisation of space is clearly on the cards but might there be also some kind of ET disclosure?

Taurus symbolises the Earth and Uranus shocks and surprises.   So might we be on the verge of some kind of ecological issue? I have already spoken about climate but as we know all is not well with our planet Earth.   The coral reefs in some areas are dying and a report just produced warns of the risk of ‘ecological Armageddon as the number of flying insects has dropped by up to 75% in less than 30 years. We know that bees are vital to life and their numbers have also dropped significantly. So where is our planet heading?

I know that some of this may sound a bit farfetched or controversial, but if we think how much has changed in the last ten years maybe it really is not. Hopefully this gives some food for thought.