Horoscopes with Minimal Developmental Tension

There are fancy psychiatric names for conditions involving problems that individuals can not easily describe (polymorphous perverse, for example); problems that have no ‘handle’: generalized, often debilitating upset, malaise, depression. -It is much easier to therapeutically address a concern that has an edge to it, that can be easily and especially clearly articulated by the client, or by the client and astrologer working together in illumination.

In my opinion, the personality needs tension for development, just as flowers need rocks in their soil against which to push in order to reach the sun.

If we avoid tension at all costs, we pay a lot: we become flaccid of body and spirit; we drown if we do not work to stay afloat. Is there not a massive amount of tension in between heartbeats? … Will the next beat come? Will it? … It must!

I believe that the organism reaches out for tension to keep life going. When someone learns he/she has developed cancer, the reactions soon are to bring all resources into the fight to win, to stay alive, to ‘beat’ the disease.

We learn through tension. Tension is the base of value judgements, beginning with the mother’s first no-no’s. [You can see the anticipation of value judgement in the eyes of any three or four-year old.]

In his horoscope, my client this morning had no opposition, and only one inter-planetary square: Mars3 square Mercury5, 8 , which, through rulerships, suggested an anxious mind-set about (bi)sexuality. Additionally, the Moon6,7 was conjunct Neptune2 : as a writer and actor, public performance was the grounding for his self-worth profile. -And that was basically it!

Now the question comes up: why is the self-worth development (and the sense of being loveable, since the Moon-Neptune conjunction resides in the 11th), why is it so strongly dependent on public acceptance, approval, etc.? Where are aspect networks that can help to explain this? –And this was corroborated beautifully by the Western orientation of the rest of the horoscope (see Archives, “Analytical Techniques”).

Voila! Saturn happened to square the Midheaven! There is some tension, some probably paternal tension linked to this emerging picture: Saturn rules the Ascendant and is in the 7th! –See how all this starts to build a meaningful portrait, a cogent scenario of development?

But that’s not enough. There must be more ways to see the developmental profile.

I know from much experience that, in this kind of astrological portrait, the organism reaches out any way it can for tension, to bring tension to bear on development. The semisquare aspect will become gangbusters important! And there is one in this horoscope between the Sun and Pluto!!!!!!!!!! I say, “there’s a blanket over your hand grenade!”; I get immediate corroboration, and then I say, it’s your father, isn’t it? **Yes it is! [Pluto is ruler of the 10th, receiving the square from Saturn!!]

And would you believe?: Neptune (conjunct the Moon, remember) is semisquare the Ascendant, ruled by Saturn, square the Midheaven, etc.!!! –And then the retrogradation of Mercury in Virgo (final dispositor) becomes a blockbuster observation: what is the underlying second agenda within development?

See how the tension did appear from symbols and places we do not ordinarily see it presented! Not being accosted by squares and oppositions galore, we don’t feel we have much to work with; we’re about ready to throw up our hands! But when we know the organism must have tension somewhere, somehow in order to grow, we look to the minor aspects, the inter-relationship between planets and angles, retrogradation patterns, hemisphere emphasis, etc. In short, we force the ‘smaller stuff’ into the big picture of development that our minds immediately and constantly seek to create.