Alcoholism and Mel Gibson

Most astrology books attribute Alcholism (and all drug addiction) to Neptune and the 12th house in a general sense. So, one would think that being an actor, as well, (also Neptune—illusion, escapism, etc.) that Mel Gibson would have a very strong Neptune. Well, in a way he does, but there are other things much stronger.

My teacher, Gina Ceaglio, once gave us a lecture in class about addiction in charts, and one of the most important points she made was that addictive personalities were not “weak,” as you would think a strong Neptune would be, but rather, the extreme opposite: willful, controlling and self-centered, the antithesis of Neptunian characteristics.

“After all,” she said (to paraphrase), “what can be more controlling than to leave the people around you, who depend on you, not knowing what you’ll do next and living their lives all around your addiction? The addict is the center of attention and essentially controlling the whole group.” This is definitely borne out in Gibson’s chart.

Born on January 3, 1956 at 4:45 pm in Peekskill, NY, he has family-oriented Cancer rising. Moon is in Libra in the first minute of the sign (zero degree of a cardinal sign is very powerful) and, of course, Sun in Capricorn in the sixth house just under the descendant. The most powerful configuration in the chart involves four planets: Pluto at 28:20 Leo conjunct Jupiter out-of-sign at 1:03 Virgo in the second house both square Mars at 23.20 Scorpio which conjuncts Saturn at 29:10 of the same sign in the fifth. These are primarily fixed signs (except Jupiter) in fixed houses. That is a tough configuration. People who have preceded me in this profession have written that a fixed square like this indicates that the soul has entrenched himself (or herself) in a very hard-to-budge habit pattern of behavior for many lifetimes regarding what the planets represent. Mars-Pluto: intense anger, and in Leo-Scorpio (the most dramatic), can be rage. Jupiter-Pluto combinations can be outrage regarding justice, and with Saturn in the midst, frustration at being blocked or stymied in getting the rage out or getting justice. Saturn rules the seventh house, so marriages can be the source of much frustration. Another source is having the Moon in Libra, a position denoting that he is not naturally a confrontational person. The Moon rules his chart and is in the fourth house, as well, so family, tradition and security of the home are of paramount importance. He would try to keep the peace for that reason, but if frustrations built too much, which is easy for him if he’s losing control, he’d need an outlet. Enter Neptune.

Neptune is at the apex of a T-square with Mercury and Uranus. Taken by itself this is an active imagination, maybe too much so, coupled with a very independent mind that is somewhat brilliant. Neptune rules the Pisces MC, great for an actor, and is in the fourth house in the Koch system. It is said that Mercury square Neptune is a “slippery” mind that can be very creative in rationalizing most anything. It’s the signature of a person who can bend the truth easily or be in denial about things that are obvious to other people. And, it can be one of the signatures of alcoholism. Not everyone who has this is an alcoholic; it takes a combination of factors, but Mr. Gibson has this.

I could write a long, long article about these two configurations above, but this gives you an idea of what he is dealing with in his own nature. Just remember, though, that we make ourselves who we are by choices we make over many lifetimes, and events in our lives are supposed to be our teachers. For that reason, if anyone has events that reveal his or her darker side, we would expect that the indications in the chart of that darker side would be triggered at that time. That is exactly what is happening to Mr. Gibson.

It’s obvious that his Moon is being triggered by the current Saturn, Uranus, Jupiter and Uranus T-square. The Moon in a very early degree of any sign has meaning of its own. Lynn Koiner has written about this, and she says that an early degree Moon is someone learning to harness emotional energy and instincts. Emotion could too easily take over the personality. There is certainly a lesson about this going on!

Also, and more importantly, the fixed four-planet square, mentioned a few paragraphs above, is being triggered by the progressed ascendant. The ascendant/descendant axis is the relationship-marriage axis, and when it contacts anything in the chart, the owner of the chart has his or her attention drawn to that issue. If you look at the chart above, the secondary progressions are in the second ring. Note in the second house that the progressed ascendant is currently between progressed Jupiter and Pluto. It had been conjunct Jupiter about sixteen months ago when he was happy with a new girlfriend. About four months ago, it hit the midpoint between them, and that was probably when the relationship began to unravel. Incidentally, it was square the fifth house natal Mars about three years ago after the separation from his wife and the racist rant of his arrest. Lots of anger at that time! The progressed ascendant still has to go over both the progressed and natal Plutos plus square the natal Saturn, which is probably when his divorce will be final. In about five years, it will conjoin Jupiter. I believe that will be a health issue since Jupiter rules his sixth house and the ascendant is also the physical body.

Meanwhile, in addition to the progressed ascendant triggering his dark side, transiting Neptune is also involved. It is opposing natal Pluto right now, has been square his natal Mars and is about the square natal Saturn. Even solar arc Neptune in involved since it has been square the MC, exact a little over a year ago, and with it Mercury was recently conjoining the MC—just over two months ago at the same time the progressed Moon was opposing it. Therefore, since Uranus is part of this T-square, it has been opposing the MC, but that was two years ago. He has really been in a state of confusion and instability!!

But that is not all. Secondary progressed Mars is at the midpoint between natal Saturn and Mercury, all 29 degrees. Mars will be exactly there in less than two months, but it is so close, he can feel it now. The Combination of Stellar Influences says of this, “Incompatibility, unrest, the desire to quarrel. The tendency to treat others badly, separations caused by disputes and arguments, the tendency to bring about a separation by force, a change through force of circumstances.”

A lot more could be said about his early life, even past lives, but blogs cannot be books. I’ll have to save this excellent example for a book about forecasting. In short, this is a pivotal point in Mr. Gibson’s life. It would be so helpful if an astrologer could explain to him what the lesson plan is. After all, healing can’t begin until we have some idea about the source of our pain and how we bring it on ourselves.

BP's Chart and Astro-Map

Before I get into BP’s chart and its forecast for April 20, 2010, I’d like to point out a couple things about the above Astro-Map. (Click on the map to enlarge it.) In interpreting these maps, one of the primary indicators is the latitude where the lines cross each other. If two planets’ lines cross, it lights up that whole latitude all around the earth and indicates conditions for the owner of the chart on those latitudes. Some may be quite lovely; others can be disastrous. It is one of the factors we consider when doing re-locality analyses for clients.

I have drawn two lines across the map and circled the crossing place of the planets in question. You will notice that in the Gulf of Mexico, itself, there is a crossing of Saturn (at the MC: vertical red line) and Mars (on the Ascendant: curved yellow line). This means that if BP had been born at that spot, in the Gulf just off the coast of Texas, then Saturn would have been on the MC and Mars on the Ascendant. It also means that the energy of those two planets will “play out” at that location. You can see that a line drawn on the latitude of that crossing goes right through the spill area. Mars on the ascendant is often impulsive and aggressive, and certainly accident prone—especially when in the natal chart it is square Uranus. Saturn on the MC is responsibility in professional dealings among several other things.

Below that line is another one going through the Yucatan Peninsula and the Caribbean. There are two crossings for this latitude. One is in the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii (circled for you), and these two are Mercury and Jupiter. In the BP natal chart there is a square between these two, which is over-confidence. Often when people have this in their natal chart, they are hasty in making judgments, are prone to exaggeration toward the positive, and when connected to the second house, as this one is, then greed can be a factor. And in the natal chart Jupiter also opposes Pluto which rules deep recesses of the earth.

The other crossing is way over in Asia in Laos (also circled for you). Regardless of how far away it is, a crossing affects the entire global latitude it occupies. This crossing is for Mars on the ascendant again, but with Uranus on the MC. This is the “accident” pair. It is noted for impatience, short cuts and defensive arrogance. It is in BP’s natal chart.

BP’s Natal Chart

First, a natal analysis of some of the company’s issues—this is an incorporation chart for July 2, 1962 at 9:30 a.m. in London, England.

The arrogance and aggressiveness of this company is all over the chart. Leo is rising with Uranus just over the Ascendant, and both are square Mars at the MC. The Sun, ruler of the chart is midway between these two, semi-squaring each. Uranus on the Ascendant is individuality personified. Depending on how it is aspected, it can be a pioneer unafraid to blaze new trails, or a lawless renegade who thinks rules are “made to be broken.” And Leo rising is inherently proud, feeling superior to others (the small people), unless there are other indications to soften it, which in this case, there are not.

Mars at the MC is indicative of aggressive management, and when square Uranus, impatience, as well. The MC is in Taurus, as is Mars, so the main objective of management is money making—not necessarily providing a service or product. There is also a tendency for management to be secretive—ruler of the MC is Venus, which is in the 12th.

BP was born just after a new Moon which means it is in the first lunar phase. This is noted for being very Aries-like, or impulsive, out-going and aggressive—almost adolescent in behavior. Add to this the extreme optimism of Mercury square Jupiter, which also forges ahead with little preparation, and one can see that the company probably did very little long-term planning. All this together is “quick, quick, quick—get it done.” Mercury rules the second house and also the intercepted tenth, so being square Jupiter, spending can be excessive with little forethought—especially for management. So, where does the cost cutting come in?

Saturn is where we look for “limiting,” and it is in the sixth. The sixth house is day-to-day operations and also employees. It is conjoining the south node of the Moon in Aquarius. There is a natural tendency for the company to be cold and inhumane to employees (sixth, Aquarius south node and Saturn opposing Venus). Venus is ruler of the MC, and when in opposition to Saturn in the sixth, there would be cost cutting secretly (12th house) in the areas of day-to-day operations and toward employees in some way.

In addition, there is a tight square between Saturn and Neptune. Since Saturn is in the sixth (employees) and Neptune is in the third (communications) it appears that employees were deceived (Neptune when stressed) chronically.
But here is the kicker: Pluto is 8 degrees from conjoining the Ascendant—a very powerful, forceful entity. Pluto rules the fourth house and is opposing Jupiter, which also rules the intercepted fourth. The fourth house is the foundation upon which something is built—its source of security. Reinhold Ebertin says of the negative expression of these in his Combination of Stellar Influences, “The pursuit of fanatical aims, the desire to exploit the masses (Plutocrats), wastefulness.” He also says on the same page (176) that when this is manifesting (by progression or other technique), the result is: “Loss of social standing and of one’s wealth, conflicts with the authorities and the executors of governmental power (arrest). The misfortune to lose everything.”

The Chart’s indications on April 20, 2010

Mars is at 25:10 Taurus, and the progressed Sun, which rules the chart, had just reached 25:41 Leo on April 20th, squaring the natal Mars Position. Six months earlier, or even before, the recklessness escalated. Impatience ruled. But the Sun still has yet to conjunct Uranus at 27:52 Leo, so we will see what happens to this company in about two years from now.

The Sun and Moon are both in Cancer in new phase. New phase charts have an Aries quality about them—rushing ahead with little preparation. Mars by solar arc had just conjoined the Sun the year before, and on the day of the explosion, transiting South node was within a degree of the Moon. Solar arc Uranus is about to square the Moon. In other words, the natal Mars-Uranus square is activating the natal Moon of the company chart. The Moon is the ruler of the eleventh and resides there, so there were goals to be met, and this was addressed with extreme aggressiveness and impatience.

I mentioned quotes by Ebertin above. The Jupiter-Pluto opposition was exact within two minutes (progressed to progressed), which would have triggered its manifestation, and transiting Pluto opposed the progressed MC also within two minutes! This can be the beginning of the demise of the company and, at the very least, extreme pressure on the authority figures therein. Transiting Mars was within half a degree of the natal nodal axis and even closer to the progressed nodes—emergency suddenly erupting. But, again, including aggressive behavior, which we have witnessed.

When a progressed or solar arc planet (or angle) changes signs, circumstances change. The solar arc moon had just gone into Virgo a week or ten days before, having conjoined the Ascendant only a month before. It was a critical time, and BP was fully aware of it; hence the “elite” in the company selling off their shares of stock. The transiting Sun on April 20th triggered this by trine aspect, and also trined progressed Uranus which was located at 0:34 Virgo. A new beginning for BP!

But I believe the major indicators are progressed Mars and transiting Neptune. Uranus in this chart is at 27:52 Leo. Progressed Mars, which is natally square Uranus, was at 27:51 Gemini. Even though it’s a sextile, it triggers the natal “promise,” which is the square. Neptune in transit has been contacting the Mars-Uranus square for quite sometime. On this day, transiting Neptune and transiting Uranus were both activating the mid point (in orb) of the Uranus-Ascendant conjunction. Uranus in quincunx—a loss of public trust since it rules the seventh house (the public), and Neptune opposing—public awareness of all their deceptions. Even Venus was in the act, going over Mars and squaring the progressed Sun at the time of the resulting fire and sinking of the rig.

Employees Sue BP

Two days ago (June 29, 2010) a story broke at 9:10 a.m. (NYC) that BP’s employees are suing BP for their own losses. At that time, transiting Mars, at 12:07 Virgo was opposing BP’s Jupiter at 12:41 Pisces. Mars rules the ninth (law suits) and Jupiter generically is justice. Transiting Venus was within ten minutes of natal Venus. Transiting Moon in the sixth (employees) was just past BP’s Saturn. Transiting Saturn was quincunx transiting Neptune, which is closing in on an opposition to BP’s Ascendant. But above all, Uranus, ruler of the sixth, was exactly to the minute quincunx progressed Uranus, a public rupture from the company. This chart is so clear about BP’s character and the event we are enduring, I have no doubt it is the correct one.