What's in the stars for 2011?

Laurence Harrould - Sunday, January 23, 2011

As each new year begins the astrological configuration at New Year defines the potential for what can occur in that year. For 2011 there was a very unusual situation. All the planets were direct, which means they were all traveling in the same direction. The last time it occurred was in 1997. Also, with the exception of Saturn all the planets are very tightly gathered - within 123 degrees.

Essentially this means that it will be very hard to be secretive. Things some people would rather not become public will do so. Conversations will be more direct and sometimes more forceful than would normally occur. Interestingly Julian Assange and Wikileaks was one of the main news items around New Year.

We've seen devastating floods and fires around the world - a message that we mess will the environment at our peril. I recently had a conversation with someone who asked the question "which idiot decided to put Brisbane where it is?" His point was that the flood plains on which Brisbane is built is some of the best farming land in Australia. Instead of using it to feed the population we've paved it over, built skyscrapers and as Jodie Mitchell said many years ago, "paved paradise and put up a parking lot".

But what does this configuration mean on a personal level? This is a time to get focussed and really move forwards. Many of the obstacles and blockages we've been experiencing will be lifted.

While it doesn't stay like this for the whole year (Saturn is stationary on Jan 26th and goes retrograde on the 27th) this energy does influence the whole year. So 2011 is the year to really work on achieving all those dreams and goals you've been putting off for a long time. It may not be all smooth sailing but you will know what you need to overcome.

(If you want some help with getting your goals clear check out our workbooks for Business & Personal goals at aviel.com.au -> resources -> goalsetting)

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It's Not All Bad

Laurence Harrould - Friday, May 14, 2010

If you listen to the news on the radio, watch it on TV, read the newspapers and news magazines you could be forgiven for thinking the world is "going to hell in a handbasket" (whatever that means). While there's a great deal which needs addressing it's not all bad. Here are a couple of examples.

Gen Y is often criticised for being selfish, disloyal, have unreasonable expectations and more. However, if we shift our paradigm we can see the same group as being self-motivated, take responsibility for their own career development, have great personal networking skills, are globally connected etc. In previous blogs I've talked about the shift from the Age of Pisces into the Age of Aquarius. The underlying paradigm of Pisces is that the value of an individual is determined by what they can contribute to society. The paradigm for Aquarius is that the purpose of society is to support the individual in achieving the best they can be. This means that society provides the support, infrastructure, technology etc to enable people to achieve things they couldn't do on their own. Jessica Watson's solo world sailing trip is a good example.

In the 1970's a some friends & I set up an evening college in Katoomba. One of the courses we ran was called "Domestic Survival". It was aimed at building skills and knowledge in self-sufficiency. One of the classes was on use of solar energy. We had a researcher from NSW University who helped build a solar water heater. This consisted of copper pipes attached to a sheet of copper, painted black and encased in a box with a glass cover. At the time this was "bleeding edge" technology. 30 years on we have an incredible range of sustainable and renewable forms of energy generation available. Our challenge now is to implement this technology on a scale that will have a real impact. Israel is an interesting example. It is the first country to be introducing fully electric cars in the near future. Approximately, 90% of all homes use solar water heating and Israel is the only country in the world where there were more trees at the end of the 20th century than there were at the beginning. This is happening while existing in a constant state of war and under existential threat.

So, while there are a huge number of challenges (finding competent, capable and visionary political leaders being one of the greatest - but that's another story) there are also many wonderful things happening. We need to shift our thinking so we're focusing on the positives while being mindful of and working to address the challenges.

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Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen - World Climate Summit

Laurence Harrould - Thursday, December 03, 2009

The world is watching as its leaders gather to make decisions about how to address climate change and its impact.  As this is an issue which really impacts the entire planet you'd hope that the participants would overcome their parochial and partisan perspectives.  What are the astrological indicators for this event?

I've prepared the chart for 10am on December 7th in Copenhagen.  This is the time of the official opening.  This blog entry selects a number of points from the chart.  If you want a more complete listing of all the planets, their aspects to each other and the interpretations click here to view/download a complete report. 

Copenhagen Climate Summit - astrological report (208 KB)

(NB This is a computer generated report so the language is as thought it were a person born at the designated time and place - be mindful of that when reading the interpretations.)



One of the first things we notice about this chart is the size of the houses. The 12 houses represent the areas of our life and the size and number of planets in a house tells us what the main focus in our lives is.  The largest houses (and hence the greatest focus) are 3 and 9.  House 3 is associated with communication while 9 is long distance travel and philosophy.  The implication of this is that there will be a lot of talk and philosophising.  Given the nature of the event that's a bit of a "well derrrr" kind of expectation.  However, it does show that the astrological configuration is in alignment with what will be happening.

The next point is the aspects (ie the angles between the planets or points).  The main aspects are a grand trine (the blue triangle) between Uranus, the South Node of the Moon and the MidHeaven.  A trine is a flowing aspect and so, as water finds the easiest channel through which to flow, the energy of this event will easily flow along this path.  Uranus is the planet of revolution and change.  This is what needs to come out of this meeting.  However, the South Node is associated with the past and so the natural inclination will be to fall back into old ways of thinking and old paradigms - not the best outcome.  The MidHeaven is the focus and purpose in a chart and in this one it's the apex of the Grand Trine as well as a T-square.  The T-square is an aspect of tension.  By dealing with the lessons that these aspects bring into our lives we grow and develop.  In this case the T-square consists of the MidHeaven at the apex with Jupiter and Chiron in the second house and Mars in the eighth.  The second house is the area of manifestation, money & material security while the eighth house represents transformation and other people's money.  So the outcome of these combinations is that it will be easy to fall back into old ways, giving lip service to the problems but the real work of actually getting something done and agreeing on action and how and where money to address the problem will come form is going to be very challenging.

Jupiter is the planet of growth and expansion - it's a magnifying glass for whatever it's associated with.  In this case it's on exactly the same degree as Chiron - the wounded healer.  Chiron heals through empathy and understanding.  While having been damaged through traumatic experiences the person (or in this case an event) with strong Chiron in their chart grows through their challenges and is able to support and help others who may be going through similar experiences.  Chiron is our ability to understand that everything is interconnected and that you can't tear down a forest in one part of the world without the rest of the planet being affected.  Being so closely conjunct Jupiter this energy is very powerfully magnified.  The other planet in this configuration is Mars - the planet of physical energy.  This can provide great drive and determination to "get things done" or it could result in anger and violence (as Mars is the god of war).

I always find the Sabian symbols for the degrees on which significant points are found to be very telling.  (The symbols and Keynotes are from Dane Rudhyar's book "An Astrological Mandala".)
Grand Trine
MidHeaven: 17th degree of Scorpio
Sabian Symbol: A woman, fecundated by her own spirit, is "great with child".
Keynote: A total reliance upon the dictates of the God-within.

Uranus: 23rd degree of Pisces
Sabian Symbol: A "materializing medium" giving a seance.
Keynote: The ability to give of one's own vital energy to substantiate one's conscious ideals or unconscious desires.

South Node: 22nd degree of Cancer
Sabian Symbol: A young woman awaiting a sailboat.
Keynote: The longing for transcendent happiness in the soul opened to great dreams.

T-Square
MidHeaven - see above

Jupiter/Chiron: 22nd degree of Aquarius
Sabian Symbol: A rug is placed on the floor of a nursery to allow children to play in comfort and warmth.
Keynote: The warmth of understanding which comes to those who, early in life, are open to new possibilities.

Mars: 19th degree of Leo
Sabian Symbol: A houseboat party.
Keynote: The enjoyment of temporary freedom from rigidly structured social behaviour.

As I understand these symbols the MidHeaven could be seen as someone who is so "up herself" (if you'll excuse a rather coarse turn of phrase) that she's producing a child in her own image.  Alternatively, this symbol may be a very powerful reference to the feminine element merging with the spirit and through this a new being, thought, idea or paradigm can come into existence.  This is what Rudyhar is suggesting with his keynote.  The other symbols of the Grand Trine suggest a spiritual desire but no real substance - the medium is able to materialise spiritual thoughts or energies but only in a vague insubstantial form and the girl waiting for the boat to arrive is dreaming of what may be rather than addressing what is.  The potential here is for great idealism, a connection with the soul of the planet to really make a difference OR to get so lost in vague "motherhood statements" that sound nice but make no real difference.

In the T-square we see a breaking away from conventions and the inhibitions of "polite society" together with doing something practical to support future generations.

As I said I've only picked out a couple of points of interest to discuss here.  Download the report to see what else is going on.

Copenhagen Climate Summit - astrological report (208 KB)

So let's all look forward to seeing great courage being demonstrated over the next few days and that htis conference will live up to the potential it has to make a great difference.

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Did the Earth move for you? Reflections on 11/11/2009 @11:11am

Laurence Harrould - Saturday, November 14, 2009

On 11 November 2009 (2+0+0+9 = 11) @ 11:11am there was a significant shift in the Earth's energy field.  Leading up to this time groups of people around the world united in events to facilitate a unification process.  Go to www.serenitytravels.com for guided meditations and other ways to participate in this process.
As I've only heard of this very recently I've had a quick look at the astrology charts for the events at Uluru in Australia and the Great Pyramid in Egypt. This is where the Serenity Vibration groups were holding "gatherings".
Because the events are quite separated in actual time (Uluru is 10.5 hours ahead of GMT and Cairo is 2 hours ahead of GMT) the astrology charts are quite different.  As the Sun and Moon are the major symbols of a chart I've limited myself to a quick look at the Sabian symbols for them at the specified time.  In a chart Sun is the main representative of masculine energy while the Moon is the feminine.  

Uluru:
Sun: A parrot repeats the conversation he has overheard.
Moon: A harem.

Great Pyramid:
Sun: A woman draws away two dark curtains closing the entrance to a sacred pathway.
Moon: After the wedding, the groom snatches the veil away from his bride.

The parrot repeating a conversation symbolises channeling of higher spiritual knowledge in a form that is understandable by less evolved beings.  There is an opening to information and knowledge that is available to us if we attune ourselves to sources of higher wisdom.
The harem is a call to waiting.  It is however a very powerful feminine symbol.  A harem is generally seen as a place where the sultan's wives awaited his pleasure.  When looked at more deeply we find that it's a place of political intrigue as the women living there vied for power and position.  This however, happened in a subtle and feminine way.
As the time event occurred in Australia before Egypt I see the symbols here as a prelude to those at the Great Pyramid.
These are both quite passive symbols with a strong feminine feel to them.  The message here is that we need to be receptive and open to the information and energies that are coming through.

Looking at the symbols for the later event we see a couple of things.  Firstly, they are both about the removing of veils or curtains which are obscuring our view.  Secondly, these are active symbols while the ones for Australia were passive.

My interpretation of this is:  at first there is the need to be open and receptive.  This enables us to attune ourselves to higher or more spiritual forces than we have previously had access to.  By opening these channels, the illusions and false paradigms which are currently controlling world events are being broken down and removed so that we are being shown and experiencing things which previously have been hidden from us.

As part of this transition I find the timing of the following event to be quite interesting.  The global TED community have just launched a Charter for Compassion.  Click on the link or go to  http://charterforcompassion.org/ to read it (it's only one page) and add your contribution - your name and acts of compassion.

Have you felt any changes or come across information which you feel is related to this shift?

What do you think of all this?????

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Mumbai under siege

Laurence Harrould - Friday, November 28, 2008

On the 27th November 2008, Mumbai was attacked by Islamic terrorists.  With random shootings at crowds and westerners being specifically targeted what understanding can we get about what is happening?

On that same day Pluto moved into Capricorn.  In order to understand the current situation let's look at some recent history.

27th May 1914 Pluto moved into Cancer.  The First World War started following events after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914  The focus of this war was fighting for the Mother/Father/Home/land.  Cancer represents the home and the mother.

14th June 1939 Pluto moved into Leo - the sign of the leader and ego.  The Second World war was about personalities - Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin vs Churchill, Macarthur etc.  It began on September 1 1939 with the German invasion of Poland.

11th June 1958 Pluto moved into Virgo the sign of attention to detail.  The Vietnam War was from 1959 to 1975.

The point here is that when Pluto moves into a new sign we see a significant world conflict within a very short time.

So what is the significance of Mumbai?  Capricorn is the sign representing great highs as well as deep lows.  Its symbol is the Sea Goat - a mythical beast that can plumb the depths of the sea and scale the highest mountains.

India is a country of extremes: huge personal wealth and abject poverty.  Enormous materialism and great spirituality.

The conflict happening now is a spiritual battle between Eastern & Western philosophy being played out in various countries.  While Pluto is considered the planet of death, it's also associated with regeneration and rebirth.  Pluto stays in Capricorn until 20th November 2024.

On one hand I think this period will see an escalation of conflict.  On the other it will also be a time of great enlightenment.  It's a matter of understanding the process that is occurring and deciding which side of the game you're on - are you going to be driven by fear and anxiety or love and compassion?  Humanity will have opportunities for both on an unprecedented scale.

The Sabian symbol for the first degree of Capricorn is : An Indian chief claims power from the assembled tribe.  This is a time where there is a significant power struggle with individuals attempting to establish themselves as the Chiefs of their respective "tribes".  Following on from my previous point this can come about through force or inner strength.

What do you think?

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