Following on from Part I of these posts, one of the reasons I was prompted to write on the topic was more personal than historical. In recent days we have been receiving news of deaths and impending deaths of associates, in-laws and extended members of family – all within timing and not unexpected. But that news has also given pause to have a closer look at death as shown in horoscopes. In this section of the post on presidents we move on to the assassinations and then a more in-depth look at Joe Biden and what the future may hold for him and the presidency.
We start with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the first US president to be assassinated, having taken place on 14 Apr 1865 (chart). Assassinations are a special case when it comes to death. When a leader is assassinated the act generally denotes a coup or revenge. Assassinations are also sudden acts. As such, with death by assassination we would expect to find combinations including Mars (violence, shootings), Uranus (sudden events) and Pluto (subterfuge, assassinations). What do we find in Lincoln’s chart at the time of his murder?
There is a particular midpoint associated with ‘putting the gun to the head’, mentioned earlier, in the Uranus/Pluto midpoint. At the time of Lincoln’s murder, the directed death axis had just come within orb of Lincoln’s natal Ura/Plu midpoint. That combination was being approached by Mars by transit, the latter at the time of his murder making a sesquisquare to Lincoln’s Ascendant/Sun conjunction. Transiting Neptune was semisquare the Ascendant and Sun, and Lincoln’s directed Sun/Moon midpoint was also semisquare the Ascendant. The midpoint was conjunct Uranus. Just from these factors we see something sudden and probably violent was about to take place for him.
Lincoln was a revolutionary and humanistic thinker, shown by the Ura=Sun/Moon midpoint and his Aquarius Sun and Ascendant. The midpoint is also what we might call a ‘life midpoint’, often associated with major life events, and with Uranus it is described as follows: “The urge for freedom, the urge to act independently, lack of adaptability, inner rebellion. – Sudden events in friendship, marriage, parental home, shared upsets, sudden conflicts, separation of the partners.” Lincoln was killed by a shot to the head and at the time his directed Ascendant was in Aries, sesquisquare Saturn. It was a fateful day, indeed.
Mercury and Jupiter were transiting in aspect to Lincoln’s natal death axis, which was also in aspect natally to his 8th house cusp. We note also Lincoln’s directed 8th house cusp was directed to the natal Uranus/Pluto midpoint, since the natal midpoint structure 8th house=Mars/Saturn tracks with the directions. One thing worth mentioning here is that the equal house system is not useful in describing death using the criteria put forward in Part I. One of the other unequal house systems has to be used. In all the cases put forward here, Placidus houses are the norm. We also find the directed Uranus/Pluto midpoint directed to Lincoln’s meridian axis, thus activating the 4th house.
A question may arise for some readers, but which also brings up a topic for investigation if one has not done so already: Is the use of house cusps in directions and transits a valid approach? The other question would be, if not, then why not? We know when the directed and progressed Sun enter different signs, then the energies and focus of one’s life changes. That is just generally understood. A progressed Sun in Sagittarius gives quite a different presentation than a progressed Sun in Capricorn, for instance. The latter can indicated and foreshadow an interest in material pursuits and personal achievements, whereas the former often presents as wanderlust and travel as well as philosophical studies.
When the different house cusps are crossed by the Sun, for instance, they give a different flavour and focus to one’s field of experience. The same is true of the directed/progressed house cusps. That is why there is a focus on the 8th house cusp here. But such a study also brings in another dimension: Do all people respond to the same house systems? Now, there is a question worth pondering. But in summary of Lincoln, his death was indicated clearly enough and all the factors listed above regarding assassination were in play at the time of his murder.
Moving on to Garfield (not the cartoon character), his death was on 19 Sep 1881. Garfield was another president who probably would have survived had he received modern medical treatment. Sanitation by doctors at the time was not the best, as Lister’s work with sanitation was known, but not practiced by Garfield’s attending physicians. Who probed his wounds with unwashed fingers and instruments. Garfield was shot on 2 July and languished until 19 Sep (chart), dying of infection and heart failure, the bullet still lodged in his abdomen. Of interest, Todd Lincoln was present when Garfield was shot.
At the time of Garfield’s shooting, transiting Mars and Saturn were opposite the natal Mars, with transiting Mars within 2 seconds of arc opposite. Mars ruled Garfield’s 8th house. The natal Mars was also at the directed Sun/Pluto midpoint by 45° modulus. That midpoint is indicated in cases of martyrdom. The man who shot Garfield, describing himself as a ‘Stalwart of Stalwarts’ was diagnosed after the fact as a clinical psychopath, who had killed Garfield so Chester A Arthur would become president.
So, the scene was set for Garfield’s demise – unsanitary conditions at the time of his shooting, incompetent doctors and lack of proper diagnostics. At the time of his death we see directed Mars at his IC, activating both the Horizon and Meridian axes, fulfilling conditions for activations of the 1st and 4th house or their rulers. That direction was activated at his death by transiting Mars and Saturn. Further, there was a double Pluto activation of the 1st house ruler (Mercury) by direction and transit.
The directed 8th house cusp was just passed the natal Saturn by square, with directed Neptune approaching the exact opposition to natal Saturn, with natal Neptune square the 8th house cusp (death by sepsis?). Saturn rules Capricorn, intercepted in Garfield’s 4th house. The directed Ascendant was in Scorpio (abdomen) opposite Garfield’s natal Moon.
Moving on to McKinley, his assassination was quite clear (chart). His natal death axis received a double activation of Pluto, by transit and direction, with transits of Mars to both Pluto activations and the axis itself. McKinley had double rulership of the 1st and 8th houses from Venus, with the directed MC having passed over Venus exactly the year before. The directed Sun was still within orb by semisquare to the 8th house cusp and was still within orb of the natal Uranus/Pluto axis. Transiting Pluto formed a yod (a midpoint) with the natal Mars/Saturn sextile – another ‘death axis’ indicator. Saturn is the ruler of the 4th house. McKinley was shot in the abdomen on the 6th of Sep 1901. He died of his wounds from gangrene on the 14th, when the ruler of his 8th house (Venus) passed over his Ascendant. Gut wounds often resulted in death in those days, a result of gangrene.
Finally, we have Kennedy’s assassination (chart). His murder was actually a coup, as he was seeking to dismantle the security state and rein in the military-industrial complex. He was shot in the head. He was 45, so there were a string of 45à aspects (semisquares) in the directions to his chart. We will look solely at the astrology of his murder here. He died hours after being shot.
Transiting Saturn squared Kennedy’s 8th house cusp on the day. Directed Pluto squared the natal Mercury/Mars conjunction (he was ambushed in transit), with the directed Mercury/Mars conjunction forming the midpoint to his natal Pluto, Mer/Mars=Plu: “The misfortune of having to suffer heavy attacks or assaults from others.”
Saturn was square Kennedy’s Uranus/Pluto axis natally, activated by the same directed axis at his death: “separation caused through force majeure”. Venus was the double ruler of his 1st and 8th houses, like we saw with McKinley. On the day of JFK’s death transiting Venus and Mars were within a couple of degrees of his natal death axis by 45° modulus. And transiting Uranus was still within orb by octal aspect to Kennedy’s Meridian axis. All the elements were there in Kennedy’s chart for his murder on that day. America and much of the world has mourned him since. All of the preceding cases bring us to the title of this post and what may happen to Joe Biden, given he was elected in a year that ends in zero.
Biden: To begin, Biden had the 19 Nov eclipse on his Sun, which can indicate difficulties or achievements, depending on other influences. It will receive its first activation by Mars in about a week, but that activation is already in effect now. He will not have any significant directions to or opposite his Sun at the 1st activation. Jupiter will square his Sun on the day, bolstering his confidence, if anything.
The 2nd activation of that eclipse comes in mid-August, again by Mars. And again, there are no significant directions or transits to his Sun at that time. In fact, Biden receives only positive transits to his Sun for his entire term in office, mostly from Neptune and Pluto – except for a transit of Uranus opposite his Sun in August/September of 2024. We’ll come back to that, because it is significant.
In summary of the eclipse of 19 November this year, Biden remains largely unaffected by it except for passing Sun and Mars transits and a single pass of Saturn at the lower square of his Sun in February of 2023 – after the midterms. The chart is below (bigger):
Biden’s chart begins to get rather interesting after that, described more shortly. That particular square of Saturn indicates a sober reassessment of objectives and possible new starts based on those assessments, which more likely than not will be needed for his administration after the midterms. We note, too, the direction of Saturn beginning to square his Horizon axis.
Passing on to the general transits and directions throughout his term, Joe Biden came under particular stress this year when directed Mars aspected his MC, starting in July. His polling began to plummet at that point. He also has directed Saturn on his north node, limiting his appeal and indicating opposition to or distancing from him by people within his own circle.
The present situation for the Democrats in Washington is very tense, and has to do with the American economy. Panic among Democrats is not too strong a word here. There is pressure from Europe and the Arab states to rejoin the JCPOA, and quickly, reversing Trump’s pullout from the agreement and lifting the sanctions on Iran. Interest rates are rising and the Dems want to avoid a rout by the Republicans in ’22. If the Republicans win the House and Senate then the possibility of impeachment arises because of the Hunter Biden story — tit-for-tat politics, with no other purpose than plays for power, the public be damned. But the Dems are so panicked now they are even considering letting that happen.
The push now is to flood the market with oil, getting energy prices down and thus stalling inflation, at least through the midterms. To do that requires getting Iran back on board, and that can only mean caving in to Iranian demands and reversing Trump’s moves toward Iran, something the Congress will oppose, especially Republicans. There are even hopes a deal can be struck with China to devalue its currency. Trump’s policies are coming back to bite. Thus, we see the workings of the Mars and Saturn directions just described. We are about to see sweeping changes in the power base throughout the Middle East, with Iran being dominant, but with the people throughout the region greatly benefitting, regardless.
So, now to the big question about which some people have been speculating: Will Biden meet with Tecumseh’s curse and die in office, especially considering his age and the stress he is under? The short answer, based on the criteria we have been examining, is no, at least not in the immediate future. However…
A rather interesting set of factors begins to come into play after the midterms in 2022 and shortly thereafter. Those factors involve the combination of Jupiter and Saturn in varying contacts and contexts. That combination is most often associated with changes in career and/or residence, the latter two often related. They can also indicate chronic illness when acting in unison on particular points in a chart.
These Jupiter/Saturn contacts begin in earnest at the end of next year, and are foreshadowed at the start of next year in February, when his directed MC comes with a degree of orb with the Jupiter/Saturn combination, noting this is not the Jupiter/Saturn midpoint, but a combination of aspects. At that time, the directed MC will oppose Biden’s Saturn and make a sesquisquare to his Jupiter. We are using the rectified chart for this analysis, as outlined in a previous post on this site.
Whether directions form combinations or are to or by midpoints, the effect is the same. For the combination MC=Jup/Sat, it is described as follows by Ebertin: “The desire for solitude, the demonstration of inhibitions, a love of seclusion and loneliness. – Fluctuating success, changes, losses. – The philosopher” Coupled with the direction of Mars to Biden’s MC, we see a mixed result in his presidency so far. On the one hand, regarding his COVID and foreign policy, we have, “Failures caused through wrong arrangements or instructions” and on the other hand with his BBB bill, we see the attainment of aims. But even with the latter, we see a watered-down bill that will pass little benefit to the general public or see long-term investment in infrastructure. From here we move into a period where the real ‘meat’ of the combined Jupiter/Saturn directions take hold. They cover the following periods:
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- Directed to the nodal axis, beginning just before the election last year. This is a minor influence, but aided him at the time: “Satisfaction with others, harmonious living together”. That influence is now passing out and is currently waxing to his Vertex. The latter will bring increasing insecurity and doubts for him.
- 28 Dec 2021, by transit, to the Ascendant (these will pass quickly)
- Feb 2022, directed MC to aspects with his natal Jupiter and Saturn (just described), exact a year later.
- December 2022: Jup/Sat=Asc by direction. “An inconstant or an insecure attitude with regard to other persons. – A change of residence, a change of occupation, a separation.” If there is a Republican sweep of Congressional elections at the midterms this will indeed indicate changes in his direction in office.
- Mid-year 2023, directions of the pair aspecting his Uranus: “Strong emotional tensions, a frequent change of-mood, irritability. – A sudden loss of consciousness (through illness, shock or death), sudden change in circumstance, making great efforts, a change of residence, a change of occupation.”
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We pause here for a moment. What was just stated were the beginnings of the directions by the pair to Biden’s Uranus. Those directions will become most potent in the last quarter of 2023 when the directions by the pair to his Ascendant will be at their peak. At that time the directed death axis will begin its approach by direction to a 45° contact with Biden’s 8th house cusp. Then, in April of 2024, Pluto begins its approach to a direction opposite his Moon, the latter ruling the 8th house. Then, in July of that year, the directed Sun begins its approach to his natal Mercury (ruling the 4th house) by direction. The directed Moon begins its approach to natal Saturn at the end of that month. And finally, the directed moon begins its approach to the natal Jupiter (the latter ruling the Ascendant) at the end of September that year. The directed death axis will then be well within orb of the 8th house cusp by 45° modulus. Completing the Jupiter/Saturn combinations, then, we have the final:
- Directed Moon=Jup/Sat from September 2024. For the complete picture of the transits and directions
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Biden’s natal death axis is at 56°16’, or 11°16’ by 45° modulus. The Sun forms the midpoint with that axis. Sun=Mars/Sat is described as follows, “Weak vitality, the inability to meet all demands or to master all situations, the necessity to overcome illness. – The illness or the death of members of the male population.” In and of itself, that midpoint indicates illness rather than death in Biden’s case and difficulty in meeting the demands of office. There are no directions to the cardinal signs at 11°16’ while he is in office. However, there is a direction by the 90° modulus.
Biden’s death axis receives a direction of Uranus starting in July of 2023 by the allowed 1.5° orb: “Extraordinary and unusual powers of resistance, the ability to give as well as to take under provocation, the inclination to apply brute force. – A test of nervous strength, intervention by Higher Power or by Providence, a sudden illness, a sudden accident, separation or case of death.” The Uranian square to his Sun by direction starts in 2025, which is one of the indicators of heart problems or failure.
If there were to be some sort of incident or condition that would remove Biden from office we could probably expect it to begin development from July of 2023 onward, and probably starting with an illness. That would be shown in the directions, starting with the Jupiter/Saturn directions. Those point to, “An organic defect (e.g. a tubercular cavity in the lung), a chronic disease. – The functions of the gall and the liver.”
In discussing the death axis, though, there is one final consideration. On 14 Jul 2024 there is a double-Uranian activation of Biden’s natal death axis (chart). The transit of Uranus will make its exact conjunction on the 14th of that month, the direction of Uranus having been in effect for the months prior. Mars will be conjunct Uranus by transit then, too, both of them opposite Biden’s Sun. This would be just prior to the 2024 elections in the US. The conjunction of Uranus at the death axis will also be a retrograde station on 2 September of that year. Mars/Uranus conjunctions by themselves are explosive enough, but when opposite the Sun they can be devastating, especially when paired with other factors.
In looking at the chart for mid-July 2024 we note the directed Ascendant square the natal death axis, transiting Saturn conjunct the IC retrograde, and transiting Mercury square the death axis. With directed Pluto opposite Biden’s natal Moon, we have all the factors present from all of our considerations in this post for what for all intents and purposes is a death. But here is the question, though: If this does indeed indicate Biden’s death, will it occurs while he is in office? If not, then the curse is not valid, because from all other considerations leading up to this point, Biden may have to leave office due to illness.
Early next year and from then onward throughout that year, Biden receives a double dose of Pluto to his ‘illness axis’ (Saturn/Neptune). Directed Pluto is already within orb of that axis and there was a recent report of Biden going into hospital for a routine colonoscopy, during which a potentially precancerous lesion was removed. Pluto to the illness axis reads: “Heavy emotional depression, difficult growth or development of one’s faculties. – A serious illness.” The conditions for a death are not active at that point, though. However, transiting Mars joins Pluto at that axis in early March of 2022, so we would watch the news for a possible report of illness around that time. The transit of Mars with Pluto to that axis has the possibility to set off a chain of events.
In summary for Biden, we won’t make any predictions here, but the astrology for the 2nd half of 2024 is pretty compelling. Readers can draw their own conclusions. Given Biden’s natal astrology and his age (he is 79 now), as well as given the strains he is under, the 2nd half of his term (after the midterms) look toward the strong possibility Biden would have to leave office due to health issues. It is doubtful he will finish his term. Assassination is not in the cards for him. Biden is an establishment Democrat and is not rocking the boat like Kennedy did, nor does Biden’s astrology show such a turn of events.
The point of this post was not so much to predict Biden’s death or not, but to show the elements in a chart that point to death in general, as well as a few of the diverse factors associated with death in a horoscope. We note, too, we have deliberately stayed away from other factors that show up in charts at the time of a person’s passing. For example, Ceres is often involved at the time of passing because death can be seen as the final crossroad or turning point in a person’s life. By the same token, Ceres has been called “Pluto’s little sister” and as such cannot be ignored when important eras are reached in life. Ceres is part of the Pluto/Hades mythology, too.
We have left out other traditional factors astrologers sometimes use when forecasting the possibility of death, such as the Arabic ‘part of death’ (Biden’s is at 5 Aq 37), the hyleg from medieval astrology and so forth. In my own practice I have not found those other factors to be particularly useful. In using the factors presented in the first part of this post, impending death is usually readily apparent, the sole caveat being one must have an accurate birth chart with a known birth time. There is much more we could add here, but this will suffice for the purposes of this post.
In going back to the title of this post, Biden will probably not meet with Tecumseh, but we may well see our first woman president. We’ll address that possibility in a future post.
Featured pic from Reddit
