Disclaimer
An imagined future should not take the place of your present reality and timeless being, easily accessed by witnessing what is happening in your body, your breath, and in this moment. It is best to read this article when you are feeling centered.
An imagined future should not take the place of your present reality and timeless being, easily accessed by witnessing what is happening in your body, your breath, and in this moment. It is best to read this article when you are feeling centered.
War, a global pandemic, food and energy shortages, economic challenges - it’s all happening in the 2020’s. How about throwing in some major revolutions by mid-decade? Of course, revolutions happen because of these challenges. The French Revolution was because of food shortages and an extreme wealth divide. Any extremes throws off the balance. A more extreme counterbalance is needed.
There’s nothing new here, only repeating patterns. Faces and places may change, but the themes remain the same. Anything that ever was, is once more. Anything that could be, already exists as a potential. The widening gap between the mega rich and the destitute, and the ways power is distributed, must one day lead to another revolution. It’s inevitable.
As the split increases, the centre can no longer hold.
This is the story of Rahu and Ketu, the lunar nodes. They churn things up, so we can evolve. But in doing so, they challenge the status quo, especially when it is out of kilter.
It’s a simple equation: Rahu + Ketu = Greed + Loss. Or, to put it another way, ‘The rich get richer and the poor get poorer’.
Rahu points us eagerly forward, blindly turning away from a past we think we are done with (Ketu). The more we turn away from the past, the more likely we are to repeat the same old mistakes.
Whatever the planets are doing, they are actors in the lunar nodes' play. Indian astrologers pays more attention to the nodes, giving them more importance than even the planets.
Actually, Vedic astrologers use them so much so that they often forgo using the 'outer planets', Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. They substitute attributes of the lunar nodes for them. Yet without observing the transit of the slower-moving Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, they miss bigger themes over longer time-periods.
I have focused more so on Uranus, Neptune and Pluto in this article, to show the potential for major revolutions in the 2020s. The visible planets may be seen as the small hand on the clock that time more immediate events, but it is these ‘outer’ planets that reflect the background hum.
Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are not visible, of course. They mostly operate outside of our conscious awareness, which is perhaps one reason Vedic astrologers ignore them.
There are a few planetary configurations I think will set the timer for major revolutions - apart from those already begun - in the next few years. There are three countries in particular I am paying more attention to: America, China and Russia. Of course, there have been plenty of revolutions in several countries in recent years but the scale of the upcoming revolutions are likely to be off the chart.
The Saturn-Uranus square aspect in 2021 and 2022 is one signature of upheaval. But there are more to come in relation to the outer planets by mid-decade.
Revolutions in America, Russia and China would shake up the current world order. It's hard to imagine how it will happen. But then, I'm sure the Soviet Union didn't expect its expiry when it did, the last time Saturn conjoined with Neptune.
I've given more attention to Russia below, and the Saturn-Neptune conjunction, which plays a big part in its history.
America's Pluto and Uranus returns are other important milestones in its trajectory. Together with a cycle of Rahu, America is likely to go through major changes that may lead to further splits in the country.
Saturn-Neptune Conjunction
Saturn joins Neptune in sidereal Pisces by 2025-2027. The Saturn-Neptune configuration is likely to play a big role in the current Russian and Chinese leaders' lives, just because they were both born with this conjunction in the opposite sign, Virgo. We’re likely to see these countries, and their current structures, begin to break apart at this point. The centre cannot hold.
Jupiter enters Cancer in 2025. This is yet another timer for a revolution. The French Revolution began when Jupiter moved into sidereal Cancer, where it is exalted. Why would an exalted Jupiter show a revolution? Because no one is going to rise up unless they feel hopeful it will create more positive change.
The French Revolution occurred after a period of economic challenge, when Jupiter first met with Pluto in sidereal Capricorn, just as it did in 2020-21. Once Jupiter made it to Cancer in 1789, the revolution began.
After a prolonged transit of Jupiter in Capricorn in 2020 and 2021, conjunct Pluto AND Saturn, Jupiter makes it to Cancer by 2025, just as Saturn meets with Neptune. This is when revolutions are likely to take a firmer hold and change things in a big way, as structures that we counted on previously (Saturn) begin to dissolve completely (Neptune). I'll wager it if I was a gambling man. But I wouldn't bet on how this is all going to play out, what replaces the old structures.
There are many differing opinions as to the geopolitical landscape is likely reformed. While many speak of China and Russia as upcoming powers, pitted against the US and NATO powers, there are other commentators who point out the inherent problems Russia’s and China's populations face in the coming years. This is largely due to an aging population. Saturn’s involvement with all three outer planets in these years is another piece of the story, dismantling the current structures an older generation worked hard to install.
Although the French Revolution was because of systemic issues, extreme imbalances in wealth distribution we are seeing again, it was predated by an Icelandic volcano of all things, an ash cloud that wiped out entire European crops. It sometimes takes something catastrophic to create the necessary change.
When the chasm between the rich and poor is so wide, it becomes like an open wound that can no longer be ignored in our societies. When there is devastation, many feel they have nothing to lose.
All it needs to set things off is an event of catastrophic proportions, something that leads to further losses. Hmm, now what could that be? A pandemic and war in Ukraine perhaps?!
With Russia seemingly holding many of the cards, its invasion of Ukraine, a country that supplies a large percentage of crops to the whole world, is a big part of the uprisings that are likely to emerge in this country, and around the world, leading to a further escalation in the war by the 2030s.
Read an article here about the potential for world war.
Jinping and China
China's government's continues to attempt a crackdown on its people. Yet this reflects the failing system. This is part of the story of dissolution, of Pluto, and its transit through the rising sign of the People's Republic of China chart.
First, there is the story of Pluto's conjunction with Saturn, from 2017 until 2023. Then, Saturn-Neptune dissolves systems that were put in place to attempt control, from 2025. Finally, new systems are put in place once Saturn meets with Uranus, from 2031 to 2034.
Pluto's and Saturn’s transit through the rising sign of the People's Republic of China chart (South (left) and North Indian-Style charts below) is one reason we are seeing such crackdowns in the country. These are part of the dissolution story, too.
There’s nothing new here, only repeating patterns. Faces and places may change, but the themes remain the same. Anything that ever was, is once more. Anything that could be, already exists as a potential. The widening gap between the mega rich and the destitute, and the ways power is distributed, must one day lead to another revolution. It’s inevitable.
As the split increases, the centre can no longer hold.
This is the story of Rahu and Ketu, the lunar nodes. They churn things up, so we can evolve. But in doing so, they challenge the status quo, especially when it is out of kilter.
It’s a simple equation: Rahu + Ketu = Greed + Loss. Or, to put it another way, ‘The rich get richer and the poor get poorer’.
Rahu points us eagerly forward, blindly turning away from a past we think we are done with (Ketu). The more we turn away from the past, the more likely we are to repeat the same old mistakes.
Whatever the planets are doing, they are actors in the lunar nodes' play. Indian astrologers pays more attention to the nodes, giving them more importance than even the planets.
Actually, Vedic astrologers use them so much so that they often forgo using the 'outer planets', Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. They substitute attributes of the lunar nodes for them. Yet without observing the transit of the slower-moving Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, they miss bigger themes over longer time-periods.
I have focused more so on Uranus, Neptune and Pluto in this article, to show the potential for major revolutions in the 2020s. The visible planets may be seen as the small hand on the clock that time more immediate events, but it is these ‘outer’ planets that reflect the background hum.
Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are not visible, of course. They mostly operate outside of our conscious awareness, which is perhaps one reason Vedic astrologers ignore them.
There are a few planetary configurations I think will set the timer for major revolutions - apart from those already begun - in the next few years. There are three countries in particular I am paying more attention to: America, China and Russia. Of course, there have been plenty of revolutions in several countries in recent years but the scale of the upcoming revolutions are likely to be off the chart.
The Saturn-Uranus square aspect in 2021 and 2022 is one signature of upheaval. But there are more to come in relation to the outer planets by mid-decade.
Revolutions in America, Russia and China would shake up the current world order. It's hard to imagine how it will happen. But then, I'm sure the Soviet Union didn't expect its expiry when it did, the last time Saturn conjoined with Neptune.
I've given more attention to Russia below, and the Saturn-Neptune conjunction, which plays a big part in its history.
America's Pluto and Uranus returns are other important milestones in its trajectory. Together with a cycle of Rahu, America is likely to go through major changes that may lead to further splits in the country.
Saturn-Neptune Conjunction
Saturn joins Neptune in sidereal Pisces by 2025-2027. The Saturn-Neptune configuration is likely to play a big role in the current Russian and Chinese leaders' lives, just because they were both born with this conjunction in the opposite sign, Virgo. We’re likely to see these countries, and their current structures, begin to break apart at this point. The centre cannot hold.
Jupiter enters Cancer in 2025. This is yet another timer for a revolution. The French Revolution began when Jupiter moved into sidereal Cancer, where it is exalted. Why would an exalted Jupiter show a revolution? Because no one is going to rise up unless they feel hopeful it will create more positive change.
The French Revolution occurred after a period of economic challenge, when Jupiter first met with Pluto in sidereal Capricorn, just as it did in 2020-21. Once Jupiter made it to Cancer in 1789, the revolution began.
After a prolonged transit of Jupiter in Capricorn in 2020 and 2021, conjunct Pluto AND Saturn, Jupiter makes it to Cancer by 2025, just as Saturn meets with Neptune. This is when revolutions are likely to take a firmer hold and change things in a big way, as structures that we counted on previously (Saturn) begin to dissolve completely (Neptune). I'll wager it if I was a gambling man. But I wouldn't bet on how this is all going to play out, what replaces the old structures.
There are many differing opinions as to the geopolitical landscape is likely reformed. While many speak of China and Russia as upcoming powers, pitted against the US and NATO powers, there are other commentators who point out the inherent problems Russia’s and China's populations face in the coming years. This is largely due to an aging population. Saturn’s involvement with all three outer planets in these years is another piece of the story, dismantling the current structures an older generation worked hard to install.
Although the French Revolution was because of systemic issues, extreme imbalances in wealth distribution we are seeing again, it was predated by an Icelandic volcano of all things, an ash cloud that wiped out entire European crops. It sometimes takes something catastrophic to create the necessary change.
When the chasm between the rich and poor is so wide, it becomes like an open wound that can no longer be ignored in our societies. When there is devastation, many feel they have nothing to lose.
All it needs to set things off is an event of catastrophic proportions, something that leads to further losses. Hmm, now what could that be? A pandemic and war in Ukraine perhaps?!
With Russia seemingly holding many of the cards, its invasion of Ukraine, a country that supplies a large percentage of crops to the whole world, is a big part of the uprisings that are likely to emerge in this country, and around the world, leading to a further escalation in the war by the 2030s.
Read an article here about the potential for world war.
Jinping and China
China's government's continues to attempt a crackdown on its people. Yet this reflects the failing system. This is part of the story of dissolution, of Pluto, and its transit through the rising sign of the People's Republic of China chart.
First, there is the story of Pluto's conjunction with Saturn, from 2017 until 2023. Then, Saturn-Neptune dissolves systems that were put in place to attempt control, from 2025. Finally, new systems are put in place once Saturn meets with Uranus, from 2031 to 2034.
Pluto's and Saturn’s transit through the rising sign of the People's Republic of China chart (South (left) and North Indian-Style charts below) is one reason we are seeing such crackdowns in the country. These are part of the dissolution story, too.
Why would any government attempt to control its people to such a degree if they felt all was well in hand? Nothing is in control, least of all in China's government. Pluto's transit here is dissolving China's identity from the inside out. The collapse may seem as if it happens all of a sudden, but like a tooth rotting from the inside-it has been festering for some time.
Below is Xi Jinping's birth chart based on his date of birth only. His time of birth is not known. Whatever time he was born, he was born when Saturn and Neptune were exactly conjunct in sidereal Virgo. Saturn and Neptune's conjunction in the opposite sign by mid-decade highlights the changes for China's leader and people.
The Saturn-Neptune conjunction in Pisces will likely dissolve many systems and structures that have been built up through fear, systems that do not consider everyone, or ask too much of everyone.
We must be aware of the potential for being deluded or attempt to escape due to compassion burnout.
Putin and Russia
Many other world leaders have a Saturn-Neptune conjunction in their birth chart, including Putin. Why is this? I believe it's because when Neptune blurs the boundaries of Saturn, leading to a fear of losing control, these leaders wish to create some order out of the apparent chaos. It is their wish to impose their order on everyone else, precisely because of the lack in themselves. It's an overcompensation.
Below is Putin's birth chart, based on his date of birth, as his time of birth is disputed. Saturn and Neptune move slowly, so it won’t make any difference in this case. Putin's Saturn-Neptune conjunction has a wider orb than Jinping, 3 degrees, but is no less relevant.
We must be aware of the potential for being deluded or attempt to escape due to compassion burnout.
Putin and Russia
Many other world leaders have a Saturn-Neptune conjunction in their birth chart, including Putin. Why is this? I believe it's because when Neptune blurs the boundaries of Saturn, leading to a fear of losing control, these leaders wish to create some order out of the apparent chaos. It is their wish to impose their order on everyone else, precisely because of the lack in themselves. It's an overcompensation.
Below is Putin's birth chart, based on his date of birth, as his time of birth is disputed. Saturn and Neptune move slowly, so it won’t make any difference in this case. Putin's Saturn-Neptune conjunction has a wider orb than Jinping, 3 degrees, but is no less relevant.
Historic Saturn-Neptune Conjunctions
The Saturn-Neptune conjunction has an even bigger role to play in Russia, beyond its current leader. While Putin reflects this theme of attempting to maintain control, so do historic conjunctions. Control cannot be kept when they come together again.
The last time Saturn and Neptune came together was from 1988 to 1990. If you know your recent history, you'll know this was an important juncture for Russia. This was the collapse of the Soviet Union. So, as you can see, language like collapse or disillusion, are well-placed in the context of a Saturn-Neptune conjunction.
But how about putting them into sidereal Pisces in 2025 and 2026? We may see a complete dissolving of current systems, whether in Russia, China, or anywhere else in the world that has become imbalanced in any way.
Going further back in history, Saturn and Neptune conjoined from 1880 to 1882 in sidereal Aries (Saturn's debilitation); from 1916 to 1918 in sidereal Cancer; and from 1950 to 1952 in sidereal Virgo.
1881 saw the assignation of Alexander II, who had attempted many reforms he could not complete (Saturn in Aries is many times ineffectual). This led to the rule of Nicholas I who reflected the other side of this coin, more repression of dissent than his predecessor. This highlights that any changes made are just that: changes. If there is a leader in power that is more autocratic, he or she may be replaced by someone and something more democratic, and vice versa.
How will that likely play out in Russia in our current era? Time will tell.
When Saturn and Neptune conjoined in 1917, there was a revolution in Russia. It was named the October Revolution, also known as the Socialist Revolution and Bolshevik Revolution. This was led by Vladimir Lenin and was a crucial moment in the larger Russian Revolution between 1917 and 1923.
Then, in 1952, Stalin died and marked the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union, in a way. This was around the time Vladimir Putin was born.
Okay, so you get it: Saturn and Neptune have a big role to play in Russia's history, it's reformations and revolutions. Why would this one be any different? It's not going to be. The only thing that is different are the people involved. The story continues.
Yet how that plays out, and what will replace the current regime, is anyone's guess. Saturn and Neptune conjoin in Pisces this time after all. It could go either way. Actually, it's probably going to go both ways. There are likely going to be more freedoms when the current regime is toppled, but there may be those who take advantage of this and attempt more controls; ones that seem to have the people's interests at heart at first, but actually don’t. Neptune blurs the lines of what is true and what is false. It does this more so in Pisces.
Saturn and Neptune come together again in 2025 and 2027 in sidereal Pisces, where Neptune seems more at home than Saturn, increasing the likelihood of systems we thought would never end begin to dissolve over that period.
Pluto & Uranus Returns for the U.S.
The U.S. is going through a major process of transformation, and not just because the U.S. Independence chart has seen Rahu (north lunar node) being activated since 2016. I don't need to remind you what happened in that 'year of rebellion'.
American Independence took place on Jul 4, 1776, when Pluto was at 6 degrees of sidereal Capricorn and Uranus was at 18 degrees of sidereal Taurus.
Pluto will transit this exact degree and minute on three occasions in 2024, on Feb 22, Jul 17 and Dec 30, because of its retrograde motion, but it will make it to this degree in April/May 2023.
Uranus will transit its degree on three occasions: twice in 2028, and once in 2029. It will meet then with Saturn in Taurus and Gemini from 2031 to 2034. This is going to shake things up in a big way - for America, and for the world at large.
A Pluto return is never experienced in an individual's chart, as it takes about 250 years to transit the zodiac. But a country can experience it many times. Yet this is the first time since the American Independence that Pluto returns to its original position, one that reflected a violent, divisive time - a revolution. It's due once again, it seems.
The changes the 'lord of the underworld' brings about are not at all obvious from the start. It takes time for it to make the transformation of power complete. This will likely include a transfer of economic power when the BRICS nations' economic goals are considered. The erosion of the old ways, whether economic or militarily, or both, eventually lead to bigger changes in the years to come.
What does it mean to have the 'planet of transformation' return to its original position? Well, lots more change, of course. But what is it changing? This is debatable, largely because of a disagreement amongst astrologers about the time the declaration was said to have been signed (see below).
And because it hasn't happened before, we have nothing to compare it to - except the beginnings of the country, its independence. American Independence was fought for, of course. The changes that this return is likely to bring about in the next few years is likely to be violent.
Whatever time you use, it either shows war once again (3rd house) or a collapse and rebuilding of the economy (2nd house). I guess one triggers the other.
The fact that the chart was also founded at a time when the Moon was transiting sidereal Aquarius and Dhanistha lunar mansion shows its violent beginnings, as Mars began the cycles in 1776. And because the Moon has reached the very end of this lunar mansion on Jul 4 of that year, it meant the country almost immediately entered a period of Rahu. So, American independence was violent and divisive.
The American Revolutionary War began before this, from Apr 19, 1775, to Sep 3, 1783. This was the first three sub-cycles within a major cycle of Rahu, i.e., Rahu-Rahu, Rahu-Jupiter, and Rahu-Saturn, the cycles the country has almost complete in recent years.
It should come as no surprise that the American chart is currently in a third Rahu cycle of 18 years, which began in 2016. Based on this alone, the 2016 U.S. election could easily have been predicted. Hindsight is wonderful, isn't it?
So, what is likely to happen in 2024, when Pluto returns by exact degree and the country enters the next phase of the Rahu cycle, i.e., Rahu-Mercury?
Well, more change and upheaval, most likely, more divisiveness. Whatever time you use for the chart - the Kelleher chart or an earlier time proposed (below) - you end up with Rahu in hugely transformational places, the 8th or 9th houses.
Either way, the next few years are likely to bring massive changes for the U.S.
Change is inevitable. As is our reluctance to it. Yet something must end, for something new to be born. Every moment is dying to create the next.
Viva la Revolución
The original meaning of the word 'revolution' was actually astronomical. It simply referred to one revolution of a planet, as it returned to its original position. The U.S. is due another revolution, simply because of Pluto's and Uranus’ complete revolutions.
Pluto's return to sidereal Capricorn since the beginning of 2020 has already begun the process. And while Pluto's exact return in 2024 may bring more intense change, it's transit through sidereal Capricorn until 2040 is showing the slow breakdown of the current system over a longer period.
Taking Capricorn as the 2nd house of wealth and values, the dollar may be under threat as the reserve currency, with the BRICS nations coming together to trade with a new currency. If we take Capricorn as the 3rd house for the chart (see Sam Geppi's and Casey Scott's proposed 'new' chart for the U.S. below), it's all about war.
Wars are begun because of finances and resources, of course, so I guess it matters not which is the correct chart in that respect.
Pluto is the 'lord of the underworld' and will likely drag many down to go through a process of transformation. Many of the things that were buried are likely to emerge. Pluto has a knack of 'making big things small and small things big'. Those in power are toppled. Those hidden grab the spotlight, however briefly, so that everything is change forever more.
Sibly Chart for U.S.
Ebenezer Sibly was a British astrologer who published an article on the chart of the American Independence in A Complete Illustration of the Celestial Science of Astrology.
Most Vedic astrologers have been using a later time than is quoted in Sibly's article published in the 1780's, rectified in recent years by Vedic astrologer James Kelleher.
Although most Western astrologers use Tropical calculations, putting the ascendant in Sagittarius, most Vedic astrologers use Sidereal calculations, putting the ascendant in Sagittarius with the proposed time by James Kelleher.
In a YouTube video by Sam Geppi and Casey Scott, they propose a Scorpio ascendant (pictured above) using the Sibly chart and the local Philadelphia time of 17.10.
You can watch their proposition here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHKy_bVdL0s
The position of the Moon at 6 degrees of sidereal Aquarius is noteworthy, both because of the transit of Saturn over this degree in 2023, leading to pressure to change, and because of the initiation of a violent Mars cycle from the beginning of the U.S. as a nation.
The U.S. entered a Mars cycle again in 1889, followed by an 18-year Rahu period between 1896 and 1914. The 1890s were marked by a severe economic depression, which brought an end to the so-called "Gilded Age". The U.S. presidential campaign of 1896 had the country’s money supply as a core issue, after the economic depression, with parties split between those who favoured the gold standard and those who favoured free silver, a type of currency inflation, to help alleviate the depression. Sound familiar?
2023-2024 Eclipses
The lunar nodes themselves will be 'visible' during two pivotal eclipses for the U.S. in 2023 and 2024. This will bring out many things from the shadows.
The solar eclipses of Oct 2023 and Apr 2024 are visible in the U.S., snaking their way through the Southeast and Southwest. The last time this occurred was the "Great American Eclipse" of 2017, the year when, Donald Trump, someone who was born during an eclipse, took office.
2023 and 2024 are likely to be two years that shake things up for the U.S. again, leading to a revolution, maybe even a civil war.
As these eclipses occur within a Rahu period for the U.S., they are more impactful, especially the 2024 eclipse with the Sun and Moon conjunct Rahu. As the country moves through the process of transformation of its Rahu cycle, it's like shedding layer after layer of skin, with the eclipses themselves speeding up this process.
Below is a visual for the Oct 2023 annular solar eclipse.
The lunar nodes themselves will be 'visible' during two pivotal eclipses for the U.S. in 2023 and 2024. This will bring out many things from the shadows.
The solar eclipses of Oct 2023 and Apr 2024 are visible in the U.S., snaking their way through the Southeast and Southwest. The last time this occurred was the "Great American Eclipse" of 2017, the year when, Donald Trump, someone who was born during an eclipse, took office.
2023 and 2024 are likely to be two years that shake things up for the U.S. again, leading to a revolution, maybe even a civil war.
As these eclipses occur within a Rahu period for the U.S., they are more impactful, especially the 2024 eclipse with the Sun and Moon conjunct Rahu. As the country moves through the process of transformation of its Rahu cycle, it's like shedding layer after layer of skin, with the eclipses themselves speeding up this process.
Below is a visual for the Oct 2023 annular solar eclipse.
And below is the total solar eclipse of Apr 2024.
These eclipses are important, because the U.S. Independence chart is currently experiencing its third major Rahu period, which began in 2016 and lasts until 2034. By the time Uranus returns by the end of the decade, Pluto will have transformed many things that may have seemed immutable until then. It's Uranus' job to then begin again, after the ending of the old systems is complete. As Uranus does so in the financial sign, Taurus, we are sure to see new monetary systems at that point.
The return of Uranus and Pluto, their revolutions, is likely to bring more and more change before things settle down in the following years, returning the world to a sense of stability once again.
"May you live in interesting times". Indeed.
Om Tat Sat