or why astrology doesn’t make sense and why it works well for us that way….

The greater the tension between the pairs of opposites, the greater will be the energy that comes from them. C.G. Jung, “On Psychic Energy,” CW 8, par. 49.

Transcendent function: A psychic function that arises from the tension between consciousness and the unconscious and supports their union.

Tertium non datur: The reconciling “third,” not logically foreseeable, characteristic of a resolution in a conflict situation when the tension between opposites has been held in consciousness. (See also transcendent function.) from The Jung Lexicon by Daryl Sharp, http://www.psychceu.com/Jung/sharplexicon.html

“As a rule it occurs when the analysis has constellated the opposites so powerfully that a union or synthesis of the personality becomes an imperative necessity. . . . [This situation] requires a real solution and necessitates a third thing in which the opposites can unite. Here the logic of the intellect usually fails, for in a logical antithesis there is no third. The “solvent” can only be of an irrational nature. In nature the resolution of opposites is always an energic process: she acts symbolically in the truest sense of the word, doing something that expresses both sides, just as a waterfall visibly mediates between above and below.” [C.G. Jung, The Conjunction, CW 14, par. 705.]

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Psychology, Symbolism, and Resolving Tension

In modern times it was Jung who first described the psychological nature of inner conflict and how this is mirrored by outer conflict. He thought the way through for humankind, the way to avoid mass annihilation, was for individuals to be able to creatively stand the tension of their own inner conflict and paradoxical nature. This would then relieve the collective tension that periodically breaks out in war.

Where does this collective tension come from? Is it a function of civilization? It seems that the more laws we create and the more rigid our social structures become, the more we provoke discord. Human beings can only bear so much control from the outside before rebelling, consciously or unconsciously. At a certain point, controlling people from the outside does not result in more harmony, but in fact, in less.

This is because we each already suffer from inner discord. This may be a natural part of being human. We relieve this inner tension in various ways, some of which are healthier than others. Using tools of psychological and spiritual development (such as observing one’s inner conflict with compassion), can enable us to come to terms with the paradoxes within our own natures, and this often allows the sense of inner tension to calm down and to manifest in creativity and other forms of positive outcome.

But without psychological knowledge and a conscious quest for wholeness, too much rigidity from the outside makes living unsupportable. And this is what we are currently creating: an impossible world. The suicide rate among young people is rising rapidly, as is anti-social behavior among the same group. Usage of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medication to ameliorate and suppress inner tension is widespread. The general level of tension is going up, not down, despite the advances of modern technology that supposedly free us from boring chores and repetitive tasks, and the absence of war in the immediate lives of people in the West (although the guilt from the wars being waged on our reluctant behalf probably generates a deep level of subconscious tension).

Each of us have core dilemmas that are hard to work out when confronted head on. We want to love well and live in harmony, yet find ourselves fighting, competing with, and judging other people. We want to live balanced lives but find ourselves over-extended and exhausted. We don’t want to be in debt but the cost of living and particularly of putting a roof over our heads means that pretty much everyone is indebted one way or another. We want to be kind to our parents, partners, and young children, but find ourselves impatient and irritable with those we love best. We say we want to be healthy, but can’t resist our desires. Over time we often grow out of these tensions, but then replace them with others, usually anxieties about loved ones and the physical body.

Perhaps all these tensions are at root existential, arising in the beginning out of the consciousness of death: unlike animals (as far as we can tell) we live with the awareness that one day our lives will cease, and we don’t know what will happen next. Kierkegaard and Nietzsche described this core issue that later Sartre named existentialism, and saw it as the intrinsic dilemma of conscious existence. The existential psychologists see existential angst as the root of malaise. Developing spiritually is a common sense tactic to cope with the impossibility of living with the tension of being alive in our current form for a finite period of time.

In dreams we attempt to resolve inner conflict, to bridge opposing ideas and concepts that produce tension in the conscious mind. In the dream state we experience the parts of ourselves that we suppress in waking life, and our dreams are often preoccupied with contact with those rejected elements through fighting, sex, or conversation.

Astrology can also be of help. Even though to the rational mind astrology appears ridiculous, in fact, there is a strong rational argument for its use as a symbolic system. In addition, experience tells us that considered use of its information helps us both to understand ourselves and also to navigate the times in which we live.

Read on for more on how astrology helps us…..

There’s a global consensus: Barack Obama is an inspiring leader for difficult times. I’m happy for the world and for all my American readers, friends, and clients. 

Astrologically, Obama is currently under transits that support his rapid rise to the most powerful position in the world. Born to shine with a generous Leo Sun and the smooth speech of a Gemini Moon, he has Neptune transiting his ascendant now, adding to his charisma. He is heading into his fourth Jupiter return (exact just before the inauguration), giving his whole being extra confidence and buoyancy.

The Saturn cycle shows us how easily we will be able to act and be seen as an authority, and with Saturn rising up through his third quadrant towards his midheaven in 2012, Obama is well-positioned to rise and rise in his authority over the next four years and the chance of his reelection is high. Saturn, currently in fix-it Virgo, is about to conjunct his Mars which in the natal chart trines Saturn, giving him the capacity to live up to his promise by making clear-minded decisions that will resolve deep problems. The transit of Saturn to this point is going to help him start governing and policy-creating in an organized, stable and very efficient way, which he’s going to need to do.

Saturn is very important in Obama’s chart — as well as being closely trine Mars, Saturn is dignified in Capricorn, it is one of the chart rulers, and it is conjunct Jupiter. Taken together these signify a very able leader. The inconjunction to Uranus that I’ve mentioned before is his Achilles heel: it takes place across the two houses of enemies, both open and hidden. As we know, the man has to watch his back. 

A leader with a strong Saturn is fitting as we enter the era of Pluto in Capricorn, Saturn’s sign. With his Aquarian ascendant, Obama is an individual, but with the Sun conjunct the descendant (while still in the hardworking 6th house) and the North Node in the 7th, he is also very much a partner person, well able to forge alliances and resolve conflicts. Uranus and Pluto also live in the 7th, signifying powerful allies (and also powerful enemies) and the urge to build strong alliances in a new way. This man can think outside the box, as shown by the style of his extraordinary campaign, and he will take this innovative ability into international and domestic problem-solving. 

The election of Barack Obama to the US Presidency gives hope for a more measured foreign policy and a more generous, intelligent, skillful, and heartfelt relationship with the rest of the world. Let us pray and hope that this promise is fulfilled in the best possible ways for all of us.

We’ve never experienced Pluto in Capricorn while having instant worldwide communication. Astrologers have largely been focused on the financial aspects of Pluto in Capricorn but we mustn’t forget that Capricorn is the sign of the organizational aspect of government. While Pluto is in Capricorn, 2008 to 2024, there is a high probability we will see some kind of organized world government, a World President, and a global currency. All these would most likely overarch local governments and currencies rather than superseding them, but they will change the way our world is organized, and in the best case scenario, give us a much greater chance at creating for world peace. A combination of financial concerns and environmental issues are already propelling the need for world consensus. 

The signs are already here. Yesterday, Barack Obama said, ”If you give me your vote on Tuesday, we won’t just win this election — together, we will change this country and change the world”. Obama for World President, anyone? According to this morning’s Guardian, if the whole world had a vote, he would win. Interesting that they posed that question and did the math.

The energies swirling around this Samhain (Hallowe’en) are intense, confusing and confrontational. The Saturn Uranus opposition exacerbates authority issues and divisions between individualism and socially acceptable behavior. This creates both external and internal tension. In addition, Neptune is stationing (22 Aqu), which tends to muddy energy and and add to confusion, while Mars comes along to square this point, putting the urge for action into a stress aspect with the desire to meditate or veg out watching old movies. Energetically this is not easy on our bodies. Try to get plenty of sleep and watch intake of alcohol etc. Emotionally, this is a time to avoid confrontation. If you can, wait until after the 4th for that in-depth talk with your mate. On a practical level, take extra care and don’t try to do too much. 

We are collectively experiencing great volatility at the moment. Financial pressures lead people to act irrationally, and this adds to a sense of panic. Remember that this too shall pass, and that life has to get shaken up every now and then to rearrange things into the next pattern. It’s like a kaleidoscope, and right now we’re in the messy bit when the previous pattern is being destroyed and we haven’t made the next one yet. 

Samhain itself is a time for honoring those who have passed from the physical plane before us and for allowing out the trickster in all of us through dressing-up and playing games. This internationally celebrated moment in the calendar occurs when we reach the halfway point (known as the cross-quarter day) between the Autumn Equinox and the Winter Solstice around the beginning of November, although the exact date is a few days later, when the Sun reaches 15 Scorpio. This year the cross-quarter day falls on November 7. Most of us will be made aware of this time through Hallowe’en on Oct 31, and the Day of the Dead on Nov 2, so the energy portal extends throughout the whole of the first week of November.

The fall cross-quarter day and the days surrounding it have been recognized for millenia as a time to honor the ancestors, the souls who have passed over to the mysterious “other side”. It’s a period in which the veil thins and we come closest to the death realms and those who have passed before us. The Celts called it Samhain, meaning Summer’s End, and saw it as a festival of major importance that marked the end of the light half of the year (samos), associated with life, and the beginning of the dark half (gamos), associated with death. In the dark half of the year, the energies of life naturally return to the womb of creation, to rest, repair and prepare to be reborn. The vital force connects to the cauldron of the land, the soil beneath our feet, the cave of renewal.

In Mexico, this time is celebrated as the Day of the Dead, a colorful fiesta that merges the old Aztec festival of honoring the dead with the Catholic All Saint’s Day, and the following day, named All Soul’s. The festivities are meant to attract the dead in order to be close to them again. In old Britain, the season of All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day was called Allhallowstide, hallow being an ancient version of the word holy. In the U.S. (and increasingly in the U.K. and Europe) this portal is celebrated on October 31, as the secular festival of Hallowe’en, (All Hallow’s Eve) which even though thoroughly commercialized, still retains much of the old symbolism.

Clearly, this window is a strong time for contacting the spirits of the dead and an appropriate time for honoring their memory. It’s a time for honoring family, for thanking our ancestors–genetic, cultural, and spiritual–for the gifts of life and of knowledge that they have passed down to us. It is a powerful opening for spiritual practice, for contacting the wisdom and guidance available to us from the unseen realms. The past is vividly available right now, and gives us the chance to understand how it influences the present and therefore shapes the future. Divination is a way of getting in touch with the divine impulse, and this is an excellent time to use divination tools thoughtfully and to get useful answers to vexing questions.

It’s the time to prepare for winter, both practically and psychologically, gathering in crops and resources. In rural Britain, apples were the last major crop to be harvested, and in the Celtic tradition the fortunate dead go to The Land of Apple Trees. This association comes down to us in the Hallowe’en game of bobbing for apples.

The cross quarter days are times in which the veil between the world thins and normal rules of conduct are suspended. Conventional patterns of life temporarily cease, allowing all the energy trapped by the rules of daily life to come to the surface and be released. At Beltane this license manifests sexually, at Samhain as magic and the shadow. The wicked part in all of us is given a moment to play, in the form of pranks such as trick-or-treating and dressing up as shadow figures: witches, wizards, skeletons, and ghosts. Gender distinctions fade and cross-dressing is allowed through the anonymous ritual of costumes and masks. Even the everyday sense of being human disappears as people (today, most often children) dress up as fairies, animals, and monsters.

The liminal nature of this time–in between light and dark, life and death–gives access to the magical reality that lies just beyond the mundanity of the everyday. This is why children get so excited at Hallowe’en and why it is important for their psychological well-being. 

This year I want to sound a note of boring caution. The aspects are not supportive of a wild time at Hallowe’en that works out well, and I’d suggest proactive avoidance of confrontations with authority figures, and care when driving. When Neptune stations and squares Mars physical judgment can be affected. So watch intake of alcohol and any other substances that affect judgment, and in particular, don’t drive when under the influence of anything, however minor. 

That was Saturn speaking! And now Uranus says: this is a time to have fun, play tricks, and laugh at the things that often scare us. Be bold and shrug off your usual fears. Try to follow both spirits!