Renowned astrologer and author of 3 books LYNN BELL sent me this thoughtful essay this morning, and then graciously gave permission for me to post it here as a guest post.
Lynn Bell is American by birth but lives in Paris and teaches at the Centre for Psychological Astrology in London. She frequently lectures and teaches for groups in England, Germany, Norway, Austria, France and Mexico, including The Faculty Summer School at Oxford, The London School of Astrology, Agape in Paris and RAH in France.
Lynn is part of the core faculty for Wisdom University’s New Chartres School, and has taught courses for Caroline Myss and her CMED Institute in Chicago and at the Omega Institute in New York. Her articles have appeared in “The Mountain Astrologer,” “Apollon”, “Meridian”, and many other publications.
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The Archetype of War and After, April 2013
Lynn Bell
An iconic American city has been locked down, after explosive terror ripped through the lives of ordinary Americans. Both intentional violence and toxic mayhem erupted with the space of a week, with a massive accidental explosion in Texas, days after bombs ripped through a crowd of onlookers at the marathon. Massive earthquakes occurred on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and in Sichuan province, China.
We have all felt the potent eruption of Mars in the collective psyche. The Sun conjuncts Mars, the traditional god of war, every two years. Each conjunction happens in different signs, where it awakens both aggression and great courage. For the first time since spring of 1981, the conjunction happened in Aries, a sign where Mars has great power. Fiery, impulsive, courageous and active, the coming together of Sun and Mars in this sign brings great heat, sudden danger, and often calls up the presence of men in uniform, the police, soldiers, and emergency responders who embody Mars in our society. A veritable war machine was mobilized in response to the carnage created by bombs, shooting and robbery.
In 1981 it was marked by the attempted assassination of President Reagan, with a corresponding shock to the national psyche. Days later there were massive riots in Brixton, London, as well military coups and massacres/ in other parts of the world, particularly Guatemala and El Salvador. An explosion and fire in a coal mine added natural disaster to the political events.
The previous conjunction in 1934 saw John Dillinger gunned down in front of a Chicago movie theater, as Bonnie and Clyde approached the end their wild ride. More significantly, both Germany and Japan where in a phase of heightened militarization, Japan had invaded and annexed Manchuria just weeks before. A massive fire with great loss of life, and property, swept through Hakodate in Hokkaido, japan.
Each of these conjunctions occurs within a backdrop of larger cycles, each has the force to ignite repression or freedom. The adrenaline we felt watching events, can serve to reawaken shock and lockdown in our psyches, well beyond the scope of recent events. Over the next weeks Mars will oppose repressive Saturn, and it is essential to be aware of the temptation to overreact, to over-militarize. Mars also awakens inner courage, quiet triumph. It motivates the athletes and wounded who must overcome adversity, it reawakens the life force in those who have carried heavy burdens, It was expressed in the joy of the crowds who celebrated the end of a dangerous time in their city, applauding the outcome, coming together to affirm the return of their lives to some semblance of normality. The eclipse cycle in May, asks us to let go, to empty ourselves of dark fantasies, and long frozen terrors.
In some ways the violent energy of the past week can also be seen as a reaction to
the frustrating celestial configurations of recent months. Political deadlock in the US is a near constant. The economy has moved forward and slipped back, while in Europe a frozen spring contributed to a possible triple dip recession in Britain, and the Euro was once again under threat from a financial meltdown in Cyprus. These events are all part of a much larger context, the ongoing square between Pluto and Uranus, ( 2010-2017 although some astrologers will give an even greater time frame. )
Much is being decided at this time as the old social forms fail and a new model is yet to be born. The early part of 2013 has been marked by a series of interlocking aspects that are best described by their ability to hold things back. The resulting tension and discomfort created by these misfit aspects, the quincunxes, often enough ends with a dramatic and unpredictable resolution. As Mars moved into these strong configurations and out again it acted as a trigger for energies that have been pent up for months, bound in struggle between light and dark. The ancient Greeks didn’t care much for Ares, their name for the god, but the recognized the state that descended on the feel of battle as a divine possession. Mars is the ‘breaker of walls’ and any logjam can be burst apart by its arrival. not always with the expected results. The force of Mars can be difficult to control.
Mars, has been in powerful ascendance since the last new Moon on April 9th, when five planets came together in the fiery sign of Aries. Jupiter began to move out of these configurations at the same time. Over the next days, even though Mars has changed signs for quieter Taurus, it continues to form aspects with a high degree of tension. Perhaps most importantly for each of us, we are asked to move from fear to an affirmation of life. We need not to hold on to fantasies of hatred or revenge. In doing so we can benefit from a powerful opening that will come with a celestial Grand Trine in early summer.
Caroline Myss and Lynn Bell will be teaching an intensive in Chicago, October 3rd to 6th, 2013
Sacred Contracts and Astrology: How Changes in the Cosmos Influence The Significant Crossroads and Opportunities of Your Life