All Times Pacific - The Good News About 2022 Astrological Overview part 1
January to April
Friends, some of you have asked me to do an overview of 2022. To do that in a single report would be both an extensive task and a ponderous read. By dividing the 2022 report into three parts we can all have a better time of it.
This year is quite different from the last two. 2020 was characterized by the justifiably frightening conjunction of Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn. 2021 was the year of the frustrating Saturn Uranus square, which is still with us, currently, and especially in late summer 2022 and well into fall. Will the struggle this square indicates be economic, pandemic, political, or all three? We also have Venus retrograde conjunct Pluto. Capricorns, you will benefit by paying attention to Venus all through January.
The good news about 2022 includes a Jupiter Neptune conjunction, also Jupiter sextile Uranus and Neptune. We have not seen positive aspects like these in awhile. We see Jupiter conjunct Neptune only once in twelve years. Cosmic consciousness seems a little easier to achieve with this aspect. Psychic experiences can have dramatic impact on improving our lives, or confusing us. The mystical reverie of spiritual compassion can lift us. Forgiveness and charity can transform us.
Jan 11 Mars square Neptune is exact. Actions can lead to bewilderment and misunderstandings. We may be inspired by the best of intentions but we somehow find ourselves making mistakes. Simple solutions are ignored and what should have required mere minutes can drag out into a downward spiral of confusion. Even acts of kindness may misfire in unexpected ways. This effect is exasperated by Mercury nearing stationary retrograde. Not a good time to pursue plans forcefully. Wherever you are moving forward do so with mindfulness. This aspect may indicate the peak of the fifth surge of the pandemic so take precautions.
We have four Mercury retrogrades this year, more than usual, along with the weakening but strengthening Saturn square Uranus, this may indicate more problems with distribution, and sustainability of businesses. The first begins Jan 14 and lasts until Feb 3. We are told this is when the current surge will peak, so it’s not surprising that scarcity and price gouging may return, though not at the levels of 2020. It is very common in our culture, and especially during times of crisis, to get caught like, as the philosopher Wittgenstein said, a fly stuck in a bottle. Our minds lead us into the effort to understand ever deeper intellectual layers of existence. This kind of intellectually driven search for the truth can lead to loss of emotional coherence. This alienation from life itself in a fog of intricate mental constructs leads to the Japanese Zen quote: “It’s better to not know the truth.”
Jan 18 Uranus is stationary direct adding further disruption to the supply chain. Unexpected events may contribute to the problem, such as breakdowns in technology. However since Uranus is stationary direct this could indicate the beginning of the end of surge #5. In our own lives we can look for areas where we can liberate ourselves from old technology and worn out ideas about how the future in general or our personal futures may look. A good time to realign with what’s really going on.
Jan 24 Mars enters Capricorn, a good placement for hard work and practical approaches that bring progress. Capricorns might find themselves feeling more energetic. This may help get the supply chain back on track whereas the opportunism and optimism of Mars in Sagittarius may have contributed to problems with practical matters.
Jan 29 Venus turns direct in Capricorn to return for another rendezvous with Pluto in late Feb. What sorts of issues from Dec 2021 might return to demand our attention? Capricorns, pay special attention to matters of Venus in January and the first two weeks of February.
Feb 8 Mars trine Uranus stationary direct (and therefore emphasized) is exact. This liberating aspect may be another indication of the end of surge #5. Eagerness to get out there and get going will grow stronger as Jupiter sextile Uranus stationary direct is gaining strength every day until exact nine days later. Put that new tech to good use. Liberate yourself from the past. Pay attention to how the world is changing and prepare to take advantage of the change of current. The temptation to throw caution to the wind is perhaps going too far with this aspect. We can become hasty and reckless. We’re not entirely out of the woods. We don’t know what variant may still rear its ugly head. Wise actions will help us avoid risk to ourselves and others while still attaining the benefits we seek. Remember what Eliphas Levi said in a quote that is the essence of magic: “Everything is possible to him who wills only what is true! Rest in Nature, study, know, then dare; dare to will, dare to act and be silent!”
Feb 17 Jupiter sextile Uranus stationary retrograde may represent a surge of optimism, the feeling that the worst is over, and it may be, but we aren’t certain yet. This aspect can create problems when the desire for success and freedom override common sense. It may be that many will delude themselves into believing everything is back to normal. To get best results be optimistic but proceed with caution and attention to details.
Feb 20 is the first of 3 exact U.S. Pluto returns this year. For more detailed information about this significant astrological event please read: The U.S. Pluto Return 2017–2024. Here are some comments about it.
We don’t have many examples of Pluto returns to go by but one instructive instance is the Roman Empire, and it is most interesting to note the similarities. The first Pluto return of the Roman Empire occurred around the Severan Dynasty. Things moved slower back then. Plagues, like news, and armies, took a long time to reach their destinations. The empire had peaked during the era of the Four Good Emperors culminating with Marcus Aurelius. But then a terrible plague, possibly smallpox brought back by legions returning from the Near East, devastated Rome, killing one out of four. To make matters worse, Commodus, the son of Marcus, was crazier than Caligula. Civil War broke out. Four competing powers further depleted the wealth and the armies of Rome.
The winner of the Civil War was Severus, a general who was half Carthaginian and half Roman. He was installed by the military, whose respect he had earned. Imagine how upset the Romans were that someone who reminded them of the most dangerous enemy the cherished Roman Republic had ever faced, Hannibal, now sat on the Imperial throne. His middle name might as well have been Hussein.
The dynasty Severus began didn’t last long. His reign was a success. But he was hated for giving all the empire’s resources to the legions and ignoring the people and the Senate of Rome. His successors were assassinated, including Elegabulus, who may be history’s first recorded transgender person. As emperor he offered a fortune to any doctor who could change his gender, and demanded that the court use the pronoun she. She wore opulent dresses and had a husband, a beefy fellow of lower rank, rough trade.
Meanwhile the ladies at court were reviving ancient religions, especially the worship of Dionysus and the cult of Orpheus. The Orphic Hymns are believed to have been assembled during this time. Pagan rites became all the rage, especially among the younger generation of Rome, including symposiums at which mostly women but some men drank late into the night whipping up erotic and spiritual excitement while reciting the Orphic Hymns and contemplating the pleasures of Dionysus.
We have the following themes so far: pandemic, authoritarianism, transgender liberation, pagan revival especially among young women, does that sound familiar? But wait there’s more.
As the Severan Dynasty suffered assassination after assassination, supply chain issues became a problem. The well organized Imperial Roman state was falling into neglect. The infrastructure was crumbling. Government institutions became mere vehicles for personal enrichment, gaining power over the people, or promoting ideologies. Epidemic diseases became a recurrent problem. Exasperating the situation a change of climate caused crops to fail all around the Mediterranean. The seasons that had been counted on for countless generations changed, and storms wreaked havoc in the empire.
When the Severan Dynasty collapsed the Year of the Five Emperors made a mockery of Roman politics, now completely controlled by the Praetorian Guards. But what happened next was worse. Fifty years of civil war all but destroyed Rome. Some emperors ruled for only weeks. The Emperor Diocletion somehow put a semblance of Rome back together and it limped along until its next Pluto return when an Emperor named after the founder of Rome was deposed by the barbarians who had been ruling the empire secretly. They had tired of using puppets. The new ruler was not a Roman Emperor, he called himself the King of Italy.
We can see some similar challenges during the U.S. Pluto return. We have a pandemic, autocratic leadership, civil war, authoritarianism, transgender liberation, pagan revival especially among young women, supply chain disruptions, distrust of government, dysfunctional politics, climate change, interference by foreign powers, and the Hymns of Orpheus are popular again. There are more new editions than ever before, including the one Tamra Lucid and I are working on, to be published by Inner Traditions in 2023.
With Pluto you can see the problems approaching. We can even become lulled into a sense of misplaced confidence that there’s plenty of time. Then something breaks and it seems sudden despite the obvious warnings and progression of the problem. The good news is we’ve come a long way since ancient Rome. We have hopefully, although not certainly, avoided the kind of massive casualties that Rome’s pandemic caused. We have amazing technology for addressing supply chain issues so that corrections can be made fairly quickly. We do not have the military choosing and discarding our leaders. We can address gender issues collectively, learning about diversity.
But we still have major issues to face and this year will in some way be the epicenter of our struggle, though America’s Pluto Return will continue for two more years. Transgender rights, pagan revival, and other aspects of greater awareness of the beauty and necessity of human diversity are good. The fight for equality, voting rights, and for safety from violence is good, for women, for people of color, for every gender. Pluto can be deeply healing, tranquil, a rebirth of a new and better way.
But crumbling infrastructure and massive debt are not good. Authoritarian impulses in politics, law enforcement, and the worlds of medicine and pharmaceuticals are not good. Corrupt politicians and ideological judges are not good. The inability to compromise for the greater good guarantees crisis. The weather has become a chaotic force to be reckoned with. The pandemic has forced us to face our madness. Impending climate catastrophe haunts our children.
As for the civil wars in the U.S. there are many. There is still a war against women. There is a war against children. There is a war against clean water. There is still a war against people of color. There is a war against so-called liberals. There is a war against the poor. There is a war against the old. From politics to pandemic advice, from targeted commerce to pornography, propaganda and manipulation are everywhere. The threat of civil violence is held up by extremists on both sides. Murderers are hailed as heroes. Disaffected and poorly educated youth train to murder fellow citizens, and shout the word revolution while cradling automatic weapons.
We’ve got a lot of work to do, friends. The next two elections are crucial, and everyone involved, domestic and foreign, will be pulling out every trick in the book, because their idea about saving the world justifies, in their minds, even the most criminal activities.
We must all make our choices carefully this year, which is a tradition for the Chinese Year of the Tiger. Devote energy and risk taking to things that really can make a difference, because the other side will.
The America that is being defended by self-proclaimed warriors is real, it is the real America. The shadow America, of generations of raped girls, of slaughtered indigenous tribes, of species extinction, of politics of bribery, of might is right, of nepotism, homophobia, misogyny, and white supremacy. For example, the ultimate hypocrisy of what we pretended to be when we claimed to liberate nations while installing dictators to oversee the pillaging of resources.
Meanwhile, billionaires dream of escape to space, of nanobot medical platforms in human bodies, of a metaverse where Debord’s prediction of the ultimate alienation caused by representation removing itself from reality can be achieved, of a world of total surveillance, where everything and everyone receives a rating according to conformity with a plan.
It seems impossible, but some of us can find areas of common interest and compromise with those we oppose. We can learn to focus on what we love in common. We can refuse to dismiss viewpoints we disagree with because we want to be heard. We will never be heard if we cannot learn to listen.
We must reinvigorate the arts so that people are moved to express themselves through creativity instead of violence. We must address the economic and cultural impoverishment caused by billionaires like the ones who pay fractions of pennies to the musicians who make the music their businesses stream and grow obscenely rich on. Believe me, as a middle schooler I was a prime candidate for school shooter, but I found a guitar instead of a gun. I was able to reinvent myself, and in turn I was able to evolve.
Demonizing each other is sure to lead us further down the downward spiral. Media that sells the narrative that only the other side is corrupt, willfully stupid, and detached from reality, won’t convince anyone. It’s preaching to the choir. Let’s look for new ways to make a difference. Ponder Lincoln’s eloquence: “The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battle-field, and patriot grave, to every living heart and hearth-stone, all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” And now back to the 2022 preview.
March 3 Mars, Venus and Pluto conjunct in Capricorn with Mercury conjunct Saturn in Aquarius. This may be a highly significant time. Venus contributes a little harmony but with Mars, Pluto, and Saturn together the death of an important person by natural causes or otherwise is possible. Grave news of some kind? Possibly involving more than one person, if so likely a male and female? On the other hand this aspect could indicate a moment when the news about the pandemic allows the lifting of some restrictions. For creative people it’s a good time make art, to transform your creativity with new ideas and tools, to learn, practice, and edit.
March 5 sun conjunct Jupiter, Mars and Venus enter Aquarius together then become exactly conjunct, this suggests a joyful time, a time of romance, mammals emerging from the dark to couple, a sense of the potential for prosperity. Be open minded. Try out new tech. Do something different. Synchronicities abounding, especially in the area of romance?
March 22 Mars square Uranus is exact, this could suggest that the happy beginning of March leads to some bad news especially with Mars about to conjunct Saturn in Aquarius on April 10. Can we expect the unexpected? Politics will get nastier. Shocking things will be said, most likely by men. The consequences could show up about ten days later. There’s a political fight going on. Who will represent Saturn? And who Uranus? What will win the election? The old, traditional, factual, the very structure of things, and the authority of the elder and the responsible? Or a radical new start? A big disruption that liberates some while destroying others? The politics of the future with a language of symbols? The best way to handle Saturn and Uranus in adverse aspect is carefully, with compromise, and mutual respect. Not likely. We will see what happens as the U.S. Pluto return works itself out, not just this election but the next.
Jupiter conjunct Neptune is approaching on April 12. At worst this represents a water related crisis, the propaganda flying hotter and heavier than ever before, continuing problems such as the opiate crisis, but also the possibility of either good news for us or for the virus. Last time I wrote that the good news was for the virus and Omicron typifies in a negative way the powers of vast permeation of Jupiter conjunct Neptune. This aspect can represent religious and spiritual zeal and creative genius, at best a politics of compassion. But it can also indicate epic and massive parties on the scale of old Egypt and the female pharaoh Hatsheput’s porch of drunkenness. Creative people, make the most of this time of panoramic vision. Here is an appropriate quote for this aspect: “Each one of us is a part of the soul of the universe,” as Plotinus said. He also said, “Become vision itself.”
