Given Joe Biden is now the de facto victor in the Presidential race in the US, we want to have a closer look at his astrology. In this post that is all we will be doing, instead of looking at charges of corruption, his character or whether or not he will ‘restore the soul of America’. Opinions are just as hardened about Biden as they are about Trump. But such is the state of play in the US. It has been so for several decades now and will be into the future. There was a discussion of the latter in the Sagittarius letter for this year. But on subject, the birth time for Biden is given from memory from a piece in 1987 and looks to be rounded off. With that in mind, it would be a good idea to have a closer look and probably rectify his chart a little, especially if/when he becomes President.
Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr. was born on 20 Nov 1942 in Scranton, PA. By his memory, the birth time was 8:30 in the morning. The source data is given in astro.com. That time gives him 3Sag18 rising. Astro.com gives 3Sag11, but since we are looking at a rectification we won’t quibble over a few seconds of difference. The MC is more important anyway when it comes to public office, and that degree is 19Vir54. His chart is below (bigger):
When rectifying charts there are many event dates one needs, hopefully with event data to the minute. The more important dates are things like the deaths of loved ones, birth of children, major surgeries or illnesses, and the like – major, life-changing events, as those sorts of events are reflected in the angles of the chart in general. For Joe Biden, some of those events are as follows:
- 1st marriage: 27 Aug 1966 (chart)
- Son Beau born: 3 Feb 1969 (chart)
- Son Hunter born: 4 Feb 1970 (chart)
- Daughter Naomi born: 8 Nov 1971 (chart)
- Elected to Senate: 7 Nov 1972 (chart)
- Wife and Naomi killed in car accident: 18 Dec 1972 (chart)
- Marriage to present wife: 17 Jun 1977 (chart)
- Daughter Ashley born: 8 Jun 1981 (chart)
- Brain surgery for aneurism: 12 Feb 1988 (chart)
- Death of father: 2 Sep 2002 (chart)
- Death of mother: 8 Jan 2010 (chart)
- Death of son Beau: 30 May 2015 (chart)
- Presidential election: 3 Nov 2020 (chart)
The charts for these events aren’t posted here due to considerations of space, but are linked after the dates of the events. They all use the 8:30 birth time in order to illustrate what is to follow. Refer to the linked charts for discussion. We will not go through an analysis of all the charts except to make a few comments on the categories – births, deaths, marriages and attainments. But the main thing that will stand out with all of them is the fact that the angles are almost always a degree too far from being exact with the defining directions for each of the chart categories. That tells us the birth time is off by a few minutes – around four minutes to be more precise – than the stated birth time, and prior to 8:30. A birth time that is off by four minutes makes forecasts by directions to and from angles a full year off, hence the importance of having an accurate chart. In other words, Biden’s birth time is probably closer to 08:26 than 08:30.
We will not try for an exact birth time here 1) because it would be too exhaustive, 2) because it is not really necessary, given Biden’s age and the experiences he has already undergone and 3) because I personally am not looking for exact dates for forecasting, but rather the general trend of events over the next four years. There is a particular event about which people are speculating, which we will get to after looking at the charts. What we have with the events above is more than enough to give us a workable chart anyway. But the categories of the chart are interesting, especially regarding certain midpoints. The standard directions to and from planets and angles are already well enough known. We start our investigations, then, with marriages and births, the former generally leading to the latter.
Biden’s first marriage, to Neilia Hunter, shows the directed Sun/Moon midpoint on Biden’s Saturn, approaching and within orb, and likewise to his Jupiter, with transiting Jupiter activating by semisquare. The marriage also took place on his Jupiter return. The Sun/Moon midpoint axis is the prime ‘marriage midpoint’. Others are Moon=Sun/Mars, Moon/Venus in general, Node=Moon/Jupiter, Venus/Mars in general, Mars/Jupiter in general, MC=Mars/Node, Jupiter=Mars/Asc, Jupiter=Mars/MC, and a few others relating to difficulties in marriage.
Ordinarily in marriages, one would look to the horizon axis and the ruler of the 7th house, which is Mercury in this case. But there are no directions or transits to either the horizon axis or to Mercury on the day. The Sun/Moon axis tells the story. But in addition, and starting with the reason why the angles are off a bit, we note transiting Uranus just behind the MC, about a degree away, reflecting a change in his home situation, and transiting Neptune in approaching sextile to the MC. Neilia figured large in the start of Biden’s political life, also represented by the MC. She was described as the brains of his campaign to win his first Senate seat. There were other factors present around the marriage, but this is sufficient for our purposes.
Biden’s marriage to his present wife, Jill, is very clearly shown, yet also shows the angles about a degree off. There, we have the directed Sun/Moon axis on Biden’s MC, about a half-degree behind the MC. His directed Ascendant is advanced about two degrees past a semisquare to Mercury, the latter ruling the 7th house. Moving it back a degree would put it within a degree of orb, but separating. But of major interest here is the directed Vertex, a degree past the square to Mercury. The Vertex is strongly implicated in destined relationships. Moving the angles back a degree would make that square within minutes of exactitude.
Moving on to births, the same Sun/Moon midpoint applies to births as well as marriages. Other ‘birth midpoints’ are Moon/MC (for women), Mars=Venus/Jupiter, Venus/Uranus in general, Mars/Jupiter in general, Mars/Uranus in surgical births, Sun=Jupiter/Uranus and Venus=Uranus/MC.
When looking at the births of children in a horoscope, we now come to a test of an interesting theory: How to denote the order of children in a chart. The thinking goes like this: The 1st child is shown by the 5th house and its ruler. The 2nd child is shown by the 7th house and its ruler, the 3rd child by the 9th house and its ruler, and so on. There is some question as to whether that is solely for men or for both men and women. But since this is a male chart, there is no dispute with the ordering here. Now, with Biden’s chart we get to test this theory, because he had four children – three by the first marriage and one by the second.
Beau Biden was the first child. At his birth we find the directed Ascendant just past the 45° modulus to Biden’s natal Sun/Moon midpoint. With the 1st child/5th house rule, we see directed Mars (ruling Biden’s 5th house) opposite his Saturn and with the directed Sun/Moon axis on Saturn as well. Moving the directed Ascendant back a degree would fulfill a requirement for an applying direction to the Sun/Moon axis. Directed Ceres, showing a turning point in Biden’s life, is a degree away from a square to his natal Vertex.
Hunter Biden was the second child. Thus, we are looking at Mercury as the main indicator, according to the theory. He was born a year after Beau. We see directed Mercury, ruling the 7th house (2nd child) almost a degree behind a square to the meridian axis. The directed Ascendant, if moved back a degree, would still be within orb of Biden’s natal Sun/Moon axis. We see the directed Moon opposite Biden’s natal Sun/Venus conjunction, a ‘birth direction’.
Naomi Biden, the third child, was killed in a car crash a year after she was born. But, being the third child, the theory goes her birth would be indicated by the ruler of the 9th house, ruled by the Sun in this case. In this instance, it is the Vertex that is indicating a birth, being directed, but 2 ½ degrees past, to Biden’s Sun/Moon axis. We see the directed Asc/MC axis within a degree of Biden’s Sun, but if the angles are moved back a degree, that direction would no longer hold. There are no other directions or major transits to the Sun, so the theory of child ordering in families would seem to fall flat with this birth. That said, a birth is clearly indicated, by the direction from the Moon shown in green on the chart. And then, there is transiting Neptune on Biden’s Ascendant, but a degree behind, at Naomi’s birth.
And finally, as far as births go, there is Ashley Biden, the fourth child. By the theory, she would be shown by the 11th house ruler, which is Venus in this case. We see the directed Sun/Moon axis by 45° modulus almost out of orb with Biden’s Pluto. Of interest is the direction of Venus by 45° modulus to the Mars/Asc midpoint: “the attainment of one’s objective of love”. That is not normally counted as a ‘birth midpoint’ but the interpretation is interesting. Instead, we see directed Saturn approaching a square of the 5th/11th house cusps, a valid measure and showing activity in the associated houses. Transiting Uranus was conjunct the Sun/Venus conjunction in its retrograde phase. And lastly, transiting Jupiter was conjunct natal Neptune, showing a kind of ‘dream come true’. From here we move on to the more painful side of rectification – deaths of loved ones.
Biden has had personal tragedies, as in deaths, throughout his adult life. Considering that, the Mars/Saturn axis should play prominently. It is found natally at 56°16’/11°16’, depending on the modulus (90° and 45°, resp.), and thus has the Sun conjunct that axis; “The illness or the death of members of the male population”. The death of a parent is one of the prime considerations when rectifying a chart.
But to start, we begin with the death of Biden’s first wife and his daughter Naomi (3rd child), which makes for an interesting study in midpoints, though it points to a tragic event. Looking at the chart, the immediate thing that stands out is the direction of the Moon to his natal Uranus, thus forming a midpoint, Uranus=Moon/Descendant: “Sudden events in connection with the female sex.”
Since the Moon rules Biden’s 8th house, we are also looking at a death here, or a sudden change in events involving females that has a big impact on one’s life, since the Horizon axis is involved. We also note transiting Saturn is semisquare the natal Moon, ruling the 8th house, and indicating a possible death. If the degree of the Horizon axis is moved backwards even one degree, then the combination of factors would be even more powerful.
This event, along with the deaths of his parents, points more definitively to the chart being rounded off to the nearest half-hour, and that the likely ascending degree is probably at most two degrees Sagittarius or even one rather than three, two degrees being more likely. That would also move the Vertex axis back one degree, which would place the directed Moon within a degree of a semisquare to that axis in the accident chart. There are other factors in that event chart.
An accident is clearly shown, and not a little one, either. What we are looking for here are activations of the 1st, 7th, 8th and 9th houses in Biden’s chart and/or their rulers. Transiting Mars was conjunct natal Mercury on the day, an accident in transit. The directed ‘death axis (Mars/Saturn) is directed to his natal Sun, the latter ruling the 9th house (3rd child). There were three children in the car, but Beau and Hunter survived, though with serious injuries. Transiting Mars was also squaring the ‘accident axis’ (Mars/Uranus) on the day. Directed Saturn was semisquare the natal death axis, showing a heavy and fated event.
The directed Moon, ruling the 8th house, was conjunct the Descendant, if the angles were to be moved back a degree, thus fulfilling the conditions for activation of the 1st and 7th houses by the ruler of the 8th. Plus, it is almost within a degree of orb to Biden’s natal Uranus, showing the suddenness of the incident. And finally, the Moon, ruler of the 8th, received a transit by semisquare of Saturn, thus activating the 8th house. Capping this off, the directed Uranus/Neptune axis would be on the Ascendant in the rectified chart, showing the sadness of the event, as well as its cause – a temporary lapse of consciousness (Neilia was said to have been distracted, causing the accident). But the latter would apply to the event chart itself, though it is suggestive here.
Then, to more morbid events, there is the death of Joe’s father. The chart is very straightforward, with the 8th house activated by directed Venus and the first house by a transit of Neptune exactly a degree behind the Ascendant, yet further confirmation of the need to adjust the chart.
Biden’s mother’s death is also straightforward, giving further confirmation that the angles of the chart need to be moved back one degree. We find the directed MC to Biden’s Sun, which is also the midpoint of the death axis, plus a degree and a bit. If the angles are moved back, then this brings the directed MC within range of Biden’s natal death axis. Directed Mercury squares the Moon, activating the 8th house, with Mercury ruling the 10th house, a parental house. And finally, the directed death axis aspects the meridian axis by 45° modulus, but at a degree behind.
At this point, there appears to be a little disagreement about which house – 4th or 10th – rules which parent. I have heard some astrologers say that the 10th house rules the mother, categorically. I have not found that to be the case. And in general, we can probably say that if one point of an axis is energized, then the other is as well by reflex. Directed Neptune, ruling the 4th house, is opposite Saturn at Biden’s mother’s death, thus giving the involvement of both ends of the parental axis along with Mercury directed to the Moon. Given that his father had passed some years before, we know that this chart would represent the death of the other parent. Now, if both parents had passed on, then there would have been some incident around the home or work. And often those types of events accompany the death of parents.
Beau’s death is clear, too, from the chart. Directed Neptune was sesquisquare Biden’s Moon (8th house). Transiting Saturn was on the Ascendant, retrograde and opposite Uranus. Transiting Uranus was on the 5th house cusp, a little less than a degree behind. And, the ruler of Biden’s 8th house is in the 5th house (1st child). The directed MC was past the opposition to Biden’s Uranus by a degree. Pluto was on the Antivertex, a degree behind if one moves the axes. And lastly, the directed Ascendant is sesquisquare Biden’s Neptune, overshooting by one degree.
Then, there are major surgeries as a category of events for rectification. Biden had surgery for a brain aneurism, meaning there should be activations of the 1st house (head) or perhaps Mars (ruling Aries, the natural 1st house) or Mercury, ruling the nervous system. However, an aneurism is usually an expanded artery or blood vessels. Arteries are ruled by Jupiter, Sagittarius and the Sun. Cephalic veins and arteries are ruled by Mars.
What we see in Biden’s chart for the day of his first surgery is a heavily affected natal Mars. Transiting Pluto is conjunct Biden’s natal Mars. The ‘surgery axis’ (Mars/Pluto) had just moved within orb by direction to his Mars. If the angles were moved back a degree, transiting Pluto would be on the 12th house cusp (hospitalization), and finally, transiting Mars and directed Pluto form a midpoint with his natal Mars on the day. Directed Saturn was conjunct his natal Jupiter, the latter ruling the 1st house (the head) along with Sagittarius, and with both ruling arteries, cephalic arteries being ruled by Mars.
This is the one chart that tallies with Biden’s stated 8:30 birth time, except for the 12th house cusp. All the other charts this far show the angles being out by a degree. And this brings us to the last category – attainments in professions status and high office. Naturally, we look to the 1st and 10th houses for those measures.
In his win for the Senate race way back when, there is a particular midpoint that was directed to his MC, though behind by a degree for influence, but which is most descriptive of what he was experiencing then – because his Senate win closely coincided with the fatal car crash that took his wife and daughter, That midpoint is MC=Sun/Pluto: “The striving for power, consciousness of purpose or objective, the qualities of leadership. – Vocational crises, the experience of physical interference or violence with psychical or emotional consequences.” His family tragedy was taking place as he was being sworn into the Senate.
In addition to that direction, transiting Saturn was also a little less than a degree from the square of the meridian axis, the combination of that with the aforementioned direction pointing yet again for the need to move the angles back a degree. Transiting Mars was also square his Jupiter (1st house), energizing his popularity, with transiting Neptune just past his Ascendant in the 1st house and with transiting Pluto sextile the Ascendant. And lastly, transiting Jupiter was semisquare his Mercury, the latter ruling his 10th house.
All of this brings us to the present day. So, we ask the question: Did Biden’s astrology show he had the goods to get him across the line and into the White House? Once again, we see transiting Jupiter sextile his Mercury, as we saw with the Senate race. The directed Ascendant was square his Mercury, pointing to high office. Transiting Neptune was on the IC, though a degree behind, showing the charm on the public so necessary for political victories. Transiting Saturn was sextile his Sun. And lastly, we see the directed Sun/Moon midpoint at the 45° modulus a degree behind orb of his MC, ‘the consummation of a marriage’. Yes, Biden had the astrology for a victory. Trump, on the other hand, did not this time around.
Why go to all this trouble then, if Biden has won the White House and at his age? Well, the latter is the point: There were many comments in various media speculating that he could die in office. This is one of those election years that is divisible by 20, hence the ‘Tecumseh curse’, or the ‘Curse of Tippecanoe’. The curse has not taken the last two such presidents, however – Bush or Reagan – though there were attempts on their lives. This ‘curse’ also coincides with years where there were Great Conjunctions (Jupiter/Saturn). And while there have been deaths in office in the 20-year cycle, those deaths have all taken place when there were Great Conjunctions in earth signs. This inauguration will begin a cycle in air signs, so it will be interesting to see. But does Biden’s chart show a death, now that we have more accurate angles?
In general, it takes directions in a chart to key areas to show a death. That said, I am not going to predict anything of that nature – not now, and probably not at all unless something really serious happens that would require it. I will say that a death is not shown in the next couple of years. What we can say definitively at this point is that the next year especially will be very draining on Joe. The Mars/Saturn axis is within a degree of orb with his Neptune, which with other factors can signal a strange or mysterious death. But those other factors are not present. Instead, it shows: “an insufficient power to tackle resistance or any obstacles in one’s path-way of life [think Mitch McConnell]. – Waning powers and weakening efforts, self-torment, the undermining of the vitality (through poison, gas or an epidemic).” And that brings in an interesting consideration.
Biden’s Neptune sits on the US Midheaven. That can be read in several ways, but more than anything it reflects political realities. The Neptune of national leaders often figures strongly with national charts for good or ill, reflecting the ideals of a nation in one respect, or a liar-in-chief in another respect. It is a rather interesting study in relationship astrology to look at the synastry between nations and their leaders. Take Trump, for instance.
Trump’s Saturn (chart) sits on the US Mercury, meaning he has taken control of the discourse in the nation over the past four years, either through rallying his supporters or through the media attention given to him and opposition to him. Either way, the nation was riveted by him, for and against. There seemed to be no middle ground. His Neptune squares the US Venus/Jupiter conjunction, in Ebertin’s words[1] marking, “Negligence, a lack of correct behaviour, falsehood. – Hopelessness, a disharmonious or destructive relationship.” And then, his Sun sits on the US Mars and squares the US Neptune, the Mars/Neptune square being found in the charts of religious and military leaders, among other interpretations and again from Ebertin, “The danger of infection, the undermining of the health, the dissolution of a body.” It also played into the more militaristic side of American idealism as well as energizing the ‘religious right’ in the nation. On the other side, Trump has also laid bare many of the falsehoods in the nation, too, such as the fake media – a.k.a. our media propaganda machine, though he has contributed to it, too – the need to end our endless wars and the fact we have no business in the Middle East (meaning militarily), except for making business deals with the nations there. There is much more we could say, of course, but it would be off topic here and this is meant only as a thumbnail sketch anyway.
Biden’s synastry (chart) reveals, aside from the Neptune/MC conjunction, his MC conjunct the US Neptune, thus giving a syzygy of Neptune/MC contacts. That can indicate either far-reaching plans or plans with no hope of fulfillment, visionary policy or falsehoods, the devotion to peculiar objectives or the inclination to feign or put on an act. We see beliefs on both sides of those points in comments about Biden. In fact, Biden’s synastry with the US would appear to be a contradiction in terms. On the one hand his Saturn sits on the US Uranus, stifling progressive policy, yet his Uranus is trine the US Midheaven, suggesting a more progressive outlook. Then, in distinction to Trump, Biden’s Jupiter sits on the US Mercury and Vertex, giving a more hopeful and expansive discourse in the nation and abroad, but also putting a positive spin on events that can also be misleading. We note also, in looking ahead, that Biden’s Neptune on the US Midheaven also squares the US Venus, pointing to a kind of ‘suffering of the soul’ and disappointments in love, which brings us back to the Mars/Saturn direction to his Neptune.
When Biden enters office on Jan 20th, as appears now to be a fait accompli, he faces a nation that has not been this divided since perhaps the Civil War. He is facing a recalcitrant Senate if the Democrats lose in the Georgia Senate runoffs, a raging pandemic now, a spate of measures taken by the outgoing administration meant to spoil many of his plans (as with Iran, for instance), growing voices within his own party to institute more progressive policy, and a shaky economy that shows little sign of getting better, despite the soaring stock market and more to the point, indicated by it. And this is only mentioning a few factors facing him. All these things will require careful handling and will heavily tax his nerves, thus possibly affecting his health, but which will also be reflected through the nation, too, since that direction is focused through the US Midheaven, the sitting government. And during that period, the directed Pluto for the US will make its exact conjunction with the US Midheaven, which shows either subversion of the government or a powerful leader stepping forward and sometimes both. 2021 is going to be a very interesting year, needless to say.
In closing, we’ll have a closer look at Biden as the next few years unfold. I would place his birth time, given the analysis, at 08:25 instead of 08:30. That gives Sabian symbols on his angles that fit more closely with what we know about him:
- Asc: Two men playing chess (2 – 3 Sag)
- Desc: The Garden of the Tuileries in Paris (2 – 3 Gem)
- MC: A swimming race (18 – 19 Vir)
- IC: A Master instructing his disciple (18 – 19 Pis)
- Vx: The unfoldment of multilevel potentialities issuing from an original germ (16 – 17 Can)
Whether we believe the election was stolen or not, Joe Biden’s chart bears a close look, which we have started here. In the coming months it will be clear if he is meant to lead the nation on a steadier path or down a more destructive one, and then we’ll see just how the mutual Neptune/MC contacts will play out. He faces a big task ahead, regardless.
Featured pic from The Hill
[1] Ebertin, Reinhold, The Combination of Stellar Influences, description of Neptune=Venus/Jupiter