Horoscope: Martin Luther King Jr Assassination

That Balcony in Memphis as Mountain Tops Fall

by Jude Cowell

April 4, 2013: with today the 45th anniversary of the assassination of Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, here's a horoscope of the gunfire at 6:08 pm CST Memphis, TN, on April 4, 1968. Please click to enlarge the chart image and read a few basic astro-notes I've scribbled messily about.

Note: current online sources give a time of '6:01 pm' but the horoscope you see here is from my files of several years ago. 7 minutes difference would change the midpoints at ASC and MC, of course, but I'll simply provide this timeline link and you may do what you wish with the discrepancy. Cusps change by one or two degrees but planets remain in the houses as you see here.

Moon out-of-bounds (OOBs) denotes faulty emotional connections; Hour of Mercury = killed for the rhetorical skills of his inspiring speeches, and for his mercurial plans to unite the Civil Rights and Workers' Rights movements with the Anti-War movement against the Vietnam War. Ascendant 12Lib46 brings up US natal Saturn 14Lib48 (the US government's responsibility?), plus, Dr. king's natal 6th house of Service, Work, and Military. Opposite is his natal 12th cusp of Karma, Self-Undoing, Hospitals, Secret Deals, and Politics which has Aries Point of Recognition on it @00Ari25--where wounding Chiron sat on April 4, 1968 at 6:08 pm CST, Memphis.

More Chiron activity is noted since Mars, the shooter, @5Tau53 in the 7th house of Open enemies, conjoins Dr. King's natal 12th house Chiron @5Tau25, which was stationary (highlighted) at his birth. Natal Chiron can, of course, in its mentor-guru role, relate closely to preaching and teaching, and in Taurus, indicates a crisis over the preservation of values, and to physical body concerns (such as murder, in this case.)

You see the karmic Sun-Saturn conjunction setting in the chart (at Descendant) and considering other chart factors along with his natal horoscope, Dr. King's growing authority and his popularity made him a major threat to the powers behind the throne which guide America's Oval Office. Same goes for Robert F. Kennedy who was assassinated under many of the same planetary signatures but in this chart, Dr. King's Part of Fatality is conjoined by the Sun (leadership) and karmic Saturn, planet of loss and stoppages.

And there's the explosive Uranus-Pluto near-conjunction (exact in 1965--1966 in the range of 16--18 Virgo which includes the critical-crisis degree of 17 Virgo) in the secretive 12th house, but the reason I mention it today is its hit to US natal Neptune @22Vir25 which formed a midpoint picture:

Assassination Uranus-Pluto = US n Neptune: uncertainty; insecurity; peculiar nervousness when excited (Tyl.)

Penned on the chart is a transiting midpoint picture which seems apt for any assassination--Neptune-MC = Pluto (wealthy Mr. Underworld, the assassination orderer): criminal offenses.

Dr. King's first natal planet to rise in the chart is his 8th house Saturn @25Sag21; his opposing 2nd house Mars @21Gem53 Rx conjoins America's natal Mars (July 4, 1776 5:10 pm LMT Philadelphia) which supports the idea that dealing with his natural authority (Saturn) and his Civil Rights activism was top of the assassins' menu. And I suspect that FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover didn't approve of Dr. King or of his motivation for his progressive activities (Mars and Mars.)

Chart-ruler Venus rules Dr. King's natal Ascendant, too (13Tau48 with NN 28Tau38 in 1st house) and vengeful Venus makes three applying Ptolemaic (major) aspects in the assassination horoscope:

1. Venus trine Neptune (0A57) indicating potentials for the expression of charades by masters of disguise, spiritual activities, charitable events, glamorous images, and/or illusions of all kinds.

2. Venus inconjunct Jupiter (1A04) signifies those who have over-expectations of others (like, trusting the wrong person or being 'sold out'?) and victimization in relationships. And since both Venus and Jupiter are money planets, financial problems or inconsistencies are possibly being described here.

3. Venus opposite Uranus (1A12) shows separation issues in relationships, possible extravagance and/or erratic behavior with finances, prejudice in the environment (Ya think?), and values clashing against those of a different background and/or generation.

The one-degree of application relates to one hour--he was pronounced dead about an hour later at 7:05 pm.

Also rising is the Jupiter-Neptune midpoint = ASC: speculation; sharing great hopes with others (Ebertin); an emotionally rationalized agenda (for Dr. King, or for the enemies who had him killed.)

Additionally, two midpoint pictures affect the Moon (the public; King's physical body) so let's add their potentials: Saturn-Pluto = Moon: renunciation; feelings trampled in relationship; giving up giving; frigid emotions; the tragic destiny of a woman. Plus, Sun-Pluto = Moon: attempts to project power and persuasion; brutal suppression of feelings (Tyl; Ebertin.)

Sun in Mars-Ruled Aries, Moon Exalted in Cancer

Since my blogging time is brief these days, let's close with some info on the King assassination's steamy Fire-Water blend of Sun Aries-Moon Cancer which were of influence on that day:

Volatile, clannish, devoted, with a mix of independent-dependent, this combo of energies denotes a daring adventurer who can say the right thing at the right time ('apples of gold in pictures of silver'?) Creative and inspirational, Aries-Cancer indicates a charismatic leader who easily catches the imagination of audiences with a dramatic flair.

There is, however, a moodiness that can undermine projects and an oversensitivity that leads to emotional defensiveness; motivating people is a talent and makes space for expressions of convictions about 'what is good for humanity'.

"Images for Integration: The Salvation Army...A lightening storm at sea gives way to a peaceful, radiant dawn...A child in a fit of petulant fury runs away from home." (Sun Sign-Moon Sign, Charles & Suzi Harvey.)

~:~

Chart Note: Around the horoscope you may spy Dr. King's natal planets penned in--that's his natal Pluto (power, manipulation, wealth, transformation, death) near the top (Goal Point = MC) of the chart along with America's natal Sun (the president), Jupiter, and Venus in self-protective Cancer; transiting Moon conjoins US n Venus; Dr. King's natal Sun @25Cap08, is in the 4th house of Endings, and conjoins US natal Pluto @27Cap33 Rx, planet of assassination; two Stars of Egypt, Sirius (the mundane becoming sacred) and Canopus (the great navigator and pathfinder) are also on display at MC.

Now I've never believed the FBI surveillance reports about Dr. King's extracurricular romances though it may be true, for here we find glamorous Lilith at IC and preaching Jupiter Rx in Leo, the sign of romance. Be that as it may, it's obvious that the leadership plans of Dr. King, RFK, and others of their era were not on America's future path intended by the powers behind the throne, and if they'd been allowed to live and lead, things would probably be very different in our nation now.

Natal chart data used for Martin Luther King, Jr: January 15, 1929 12:00 pm CST Atlanta, GA.

Horoscope: The Confederacy--and a "dark vein of intolerance"

Natal Horoscope of The Confederacy (1861) with Pluto in Taurus

by Jude Cowell

You've probably heard by now that Colin Powell recently described the Republican Party as having a "dark vein of intolerance" which seems a spot-on analysis to this particular southerner. Particularly since the natal horoscope of the Republican Party (July 6, 1854 5:00 pm LMT Jackson, Michigan) shows the dark planet of veins, tunnels, and other deep locations, Pluto, posited in Venus-ruled Taurus, sign of gardening, building, preserving, gold-loving, and luxury with its shadow side of greed, stubbornness, prejudice, and intolerance.

Thus, a "dark vein of intolerance" runs deep within the *era of the party's inception in 1854, a few years prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. Slavery of those who were seen to be 'lesser than' is the 'dark elephant in the room', of course, but such a massive topic is beyond the scope of this post even as racism winds its insinuating snakiness around this nation's heart--still, as we hear from the rhetoric and 'code words' of Republican Party members and other Americans who hold such vile persuasions based on their alleged superiority.

Another implied condition of influence is the hard-fought progress of the Civil Rights Movement/s championed by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr which roiled America during the 1960s when the restless and rioting combination of Uranus and Pluto met in Great Conjunction in mid-Virgo at the critical-crisis degree of 17 Virgo.

So this weekend, we have President Obama's second Inauguration, privately on Sunday January 20th and publicly on Monday January 21st--Martin Luther King Jr Day--and social conditions may be on the boil in America particularly when future anti-gun-violence measures are tossed in (see video below.) As you know, generational Uranus and Pluto are in and out of a square aspect (obstacles, blockages, frustration) in the globally-affected Cardinal signs of Aries and Capricorn, exact since 2010. Thus civil rights troubles regurgitate.

And of course you know of Richard Nixon's campaign ploy in 1968 to use the Southern strategy and the Republican Party has been skewed (and in my opinion, damaged to the core) by holier-than-thous ever since. Makes sense that the GOP's much-touted "soul searching" that would supposedly take place after their loss of the White House on November 6, 2012 never actually occurred for look at the misshapened beast of intolerance they'd have to face if they looked deeply enough. My suspicion is that party leaders took a brief peek as they kneeled down, then renewed their vow of subservience.

Restrictive, Status Quo Saturn Rx in Virgo

Virgo can play The Critic and may act at times as intolerantly as Taurean energy if it is ill-directed and feeling inferior (as it often does, especially with natal Saturn therein.) And because Virgo is ruled by mental planet Mercury, I find that Virgo intolerance is usually based more on conceit of opinion and on intellectual snobbery, while Taurean intolerance is more the jealousy-envy-winner-take-all kind of character flaw...greedy and selfish. Manipulating and controlling (Pluto) the bodies (Taurus) of others may be described by Pluto in Taurus as well (exs: slavery, and the abortion and contraception bossiness of old white men...these days fans of Viagra.)

Below you see the natal horoscope of The Confederacy which, like the Republican Party horoscope, contains Pluto in Taurus. Plus, Pluto is in the 12th house of The Unconscious, Karma, and Self-Undoing. Many things are hidden in the 12th houses of all horoscopes and here we see that the planet of war and conflict, Mars (strong in its own sign of Aries, the warrior and pioneer), hides near the cusp, ready to break out at any moment into the more visible 11th house of Groups, Associations, Hopes and Wishes.

And with foreign bankers to motivate and support them and with independent trade a major concern, southern planters, businessmen, and their sons were ready as firecrackers when the first shot began the Civil War near Charleston, S.C.

Image: The Confederacy February 4, 1861 '12:00 pm' Montgomery, Alabama

Hour of Venus; Moon out-of-bounds (emotional insecurity) in adventurous Sagittarius; a Kite pattern of success but its 'tail'--Jupiter @22Leo (a degree of 'mastery') is Rx and I believe, along with Saturn Rx represents the foundation (4th house) of the southern cause's support system--the House of Rothschilds which controlled the British government (Saturn) and monarchy (Jupiter in royal Leo); Sun 15AQ59 with Mercury 19AQ13 (the 'nose' of the Kite) and wounding-wounded Chiron in 10th house of Worldly Status.

The Confederacy's Jupiter @22Leo50 returns to natal position on July 7, 2015

Testy Mars is also involved in the Kite configuration along with the Sag Moon ruled by Rx Jupiter; Venus conjoins NN at Nodal degree--more 22s of 'mastery' (which in this case reminds me of slavery.) The Confederacy's natal Venus-NN conjunction was stimulated by the New Moon of January 11, 2013 at that degree. With a swoon of synchronicity, a New Moon at the same degree occurred on January 11, 1994 (a time link!) which plays into the Republican take-over of the House by Newt Gingrich and his minions--and the subsequent government shut-down the GOP so enjoyed and with which they again threaten our nation's economic standing if they don't get their way: Act Two, one supposes.

Astro-note: the above chart data is taken from Campion's The World Book of Horoscopes which shows an Ascendant of 00Gem34, the degree of the May 20, 2012 Solar Eclipse with Mercury-Pluto content ("an obsessive idea finally accepted; success after much hard work"--paraphrasing Brady's Predictive Astrology.

As you well know, an African American president will continue to inhabit the Oval Office for four more years, a fact that Republicans refuse to accept in their deep stubbornness and intolerance of 'the other'. And this selfishness is displayed no matter how their theatrical political stunts hurt the American people or how easily their sorry strategies may collapse global markets. Yes, the entire world will have the Republican Party to 'thank' if financial matters 'go south'!

Plus, curiously, the IC Point of The Confederacy chart @12Leo25 (its Foundation or Basis) conjoins the natal Sun degree of President Obama!

Edit 3.2.16: video removed so the code is removed but I hope you've listened to Colin Powell, above, for the result is the 2016 candidacy of Donald Trump who pretended confusion over the identity of Klansman David Duke! Talk about racist dog whistles, Trump has them in his back pocket during each of his speeches (aka, ramblings).

It seems to me that those of a Confederacy mindset ought to be ashamed of their backwardness and regressive primal tendencies but apparently such self-awareness is completely missing in many of them. Which is somewhat odd considering that The Awakener, Uranus (but also The Rebel and Anarchist) is rising (edit 3.2.16: and 2016 candidate Bernie Sanders is calling for a political revolution in an attempt to save our country for the sake of We the People). Well, perhaps not so odd for revolutionary Uranus for, as they've brashly threatened on many occasions, The South Shall Rise Again! Q: do racism, intolerance, and primal violence have to rise with it?

~:~

*In the Tropical Zodiac, Pluto lumbered through the 30 degrees of Taurus from 1852 to 1884, leading up to and encompassing the American Civil War with its massive death count made higher by disease, infection, and gruesome surgeries (Pluto), and in part, was in effect during the era of the Industrial Revolution/s when many social transformations took place.

Martin Luther King Day: Monday, Jan 21, 2008

If you'll scroll just below to Jan 17, you'll find my just-published post on the assassination of Dr. King, April 4, 1968, 6:01 pm CST, Memphis, TN.

Click to enlarge the chart and you'll see a factor I neglected to mention in the text although it is marked on the chart...King's natal Nemesis 11Lib17 is rising at the moment of the attack. Nemesis' keywords: the unbeatable foe; overwhelming force.

Rev. King WAS the unbeatable foe to a dishonest, warmongering administration (see my conclusions below) and was treated with a tremendous countering force which ended his ministry--or so they thought.

The chart contains other extreme midpoint pictures and factors mentioned as well, and although I certainly don't expect everyone to agree with my astrological conclusions or my sentiments, it is important for America to bring her shadow to light whenever and however we can, ugly as it may be, for it ferments in darkness.

Upon many sites and blogs you may find King's natal chart, but just below you will find the horoscope of the cruel mayhem that ended his sacrificial life. May he RIP as America continues to struggle with dark forces assailing her from all sides, but most of all--from within.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: April 4, 1968

Never can I fully express the sadness and horror felt as I watched the TV news shouting out the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968--another one gone leaving America once again an assassination nation oppressed by unnamed murderers and political fanatics...the chaos creators.

One of my Gather friends, Andrew, has captured the times and feelings better than I ever could in his A Poem on the Anniversary of Dr. King's Birth which inspires me to publish the chart of Rev. King's assassination with his natal planets added by hand on the chart of April 4, 1968, 6:01 pm CST, Memphis, TN.

With my usual chickenscratch, you see I've run out of space around the outside of the chart, so I've listed King's natal placements coded in green.

Pink marks the Eclipse Series (6North) in which this murder took place, with asteroid, Icarus (assassination; flying too high; risk-taking) nearby and tr Chiron (the Wounded Healer/Christ archetype) at Aries Point (AP) of fame and prominence. Rev. King had become too prominent, too loved, and too listened to for the men in charge.

6N Series: relationship to authority/father figures and the need to take control; another's illness/unreliability brings commitments and responsibilities (Brady's Predictive Astrology.) 6N last manifested April 19, 2004 and was the PE Series of the 2004 US presidential election. Um-hmm.

(Note: any reference made here to 'MLK' or 'King' is for the sake of blogging brevity and implies no disrespect for Reverend King for I have none.)

With America's natal Sun at MC, this mayhem was carried out on behalf of America's goals and objectives, pathetic and cruel as it was, and the US n Jupiter and Venus are piled up at the top of the chart as well. Cancer is a very self-protecting sign, as you know, and there was much at stake in 1968 - for war profiteering must go on, as we see ad nauseum.

The chart shows the Moon 2Can08 being oppressed by the cruel Saturn/Pluto midpoint. Saturn/Pluto together = reactionaries; violent people; criminals and with Cupido conj Moon we have a vivid picture of the violence against Rev. King, his wife (Moon), and the American people (Moon in a national or event chart.)

And btw: the Pentagon's natal Mars (sniper/sharpshooter?) is conj the Moon, Saturn/Pluto, and Cupido. In a national chart, Mars represents the military, police, activists, etc.

Saturn/Pluto = Moon: cold feelings; renunciation; a tragic destiny.

Asteroid, Cupido = The Family; crime syndicates; corporatism. Pluto/Chiron (plutocracy) 25gem34 in 9th house of philosophy along with the Mercury/Pluto midpoint = powerful persuasion...King's ability to sway the People. His speeches had become very inconvenient to the empire.

Sun 15Ari16, signifying Dr. King on the level of 'leader' is being inhibited by controlling Saturn (authority) which repressed his self-expression in the worst way possible--his death.

Sun may also represent the president of the nation repressing King's authority (Saturn)--it works in both directions as does everything in life and thus, in Astrology as it describes life.

Violent instigator, Mars (male, appr age 25--35) is conj tr Vertex (VX), a point of destined encounter. On this day in 1968, tr Mars/VX conjuncted Rev. King's natal Chiron 5Tau25 at the moment of his murder, with asteroid Arachne (network, including spying networks; web; entanglements) there as well.

Did US intell agencies hire criminals to perpetrate this unholy act against a preacher of the Word? (Anti-vertex in Scorpio.) Did the president or his Party have a satanic claw in it? The Sabian Symbol for the DESC degree, "11Ari" = "The president of the country"...I'm just sayin'...

Opposite the Saturn/Pluto midpoint is asteroid, Atlantis, one of the significators for America, keywords: abuse of power; feeling doomed.

Most people are aware now--if they weren't at the time--that King's plans to unite protestors for civil rights with protestors against the Vietnam War was a huge worry for the US government esp since the Civil Rights Act had been passed and Rev. King was more free to voice his longtime convictions against the war.

For then--as NOW--a wrong-acting government has everything to fear from such large numbers of the People, whom they supposedly represent, and in whose name they supposedly act. Rev. King represented a father figure who could--and would--unite the People for the common good and for right-acting that should be inspired from a higher plane than the Oval Office.

Rising at 6:01 pm CST in Memphis was the spiritual midpoint of Jupiter (the preacher) and Neptune (spirituality), a midpoint combo which has both positive and negative connotations...a mixture of both depending on motivations:

Pos: the grand spirit; idealism; religion; ESP; benevolence; humanitarianism; visualization; dreamers ("I have a dream," and "the mountaintop" speech of April 3); ability to shape things; mysticism; art, music.

Neg: speculators; wastrels and spendthrifts; hypocrites; ideals vs reality; gain without effort; scandals; losses; political conflicts.

Jup/Neptune = ASC: a visionary; speculaton; sharing great hopes with others; living in an unreal world; living in a world lighted by personal imagination and an emotionally rationalized agenda.

This is an important part of the chart--the ASC is the WHAT? Point and so it equals the assassination itself--Dr. King's death. "An emotionally rationalized agenda" seems to me to be a must if you travel in the circles that assassinate well-loved leaders of the nation you're determined to control and persuade to accept your selfish ends.

As I type that statement, I'm reading the midpoint picture created by tr Uranus/Pluto (fresh from their mid-60s Conjunction which caused so many of my generation to take to the streets...the Uranus/Pluto duo = overturning the status quo; new perspectives; attainment of great goals through great effort; upsets and tension; revolution; collapse of the old order, building the new; the process of transformation)..and it's pointing to America's natal Neptune...

Uran/Pluto = Neptune: falsehoods, lies; fraud; the desire to harm others secretly; delving into supernatural realms; sympathy; unfulfilled wishes; fatigue.

This picture among generational (slower-moving) planets would have been a background influence of the day (not only on April 4, 1968) and would've affected many dimensions of life...and is one of the reasons I referred to America's 'wrong-acting' above.


Please click to enlarge the chart for a few more of my notes, for being fatigued myself, I shall close with the *Images for the Sun Aries/Moon Cancer blend for April 4, 1968, 6:01 pm CST:

The Salvation Army...A lightening storm at sea gives way to a peaceful, radiant dawn.

MLK told the truth like it was--and is

"The time has come for America to hear the truth about this tragic war. In international conflicts, the truth is hard to come by because most nations are deceived about themselves. Rationalizations and the incessant search for scapegoats are the psychological cataracts that blind us to our sins. But the day has passed for superficial patriotism. He who lives with untruth lives in spiritual slavery."


"The means by which we live have outdistanced the ends for which we live. Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men."


"He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it."

-Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968), US civil rights leader

Perhaps you've been hearing recently of the FBI's secret files on Coretta Scott King and how their surveillance and spying on MLK's widow actually intensified after his assassination was accomplished.

The moral of the story I'm getting here is that after Hoover's long-awaited death in 1972, the Bureau got better. Yet considering today's flap over their surveillance and harrassment of peace organisations who don't appreciate the Bush-Cheny war, I find that "moral" more than a little suspect. The White House was in the loop on the spying then and it would be daft to think it's out of the loop now.

For when it comes to tamping down criticism of yet another illegal, ill-advised war waged by the American government, who has the most to gain?

It is my belief that when it comes to America, the populist view IS the mainstream.

The fringes where reside the secret anarchists and assassins of the People's choice--and of anyone who speaks on behalf of the People and speaks up for the truth--there skulk the outsiders, the coup d'etat crowd who are the true subversives and radical reformers undermining our nation's infrastructures, social fabric, and freedoms.

Here is 9.01.07's operative Minor midpoint picture generated from the natal chart of Martin Luther King, Jr--the Minor progressions represent the mental/causal plane:

Mercury/Pluto = Mars: sharp criticism; an ability to grasp a situation quickly and to take confident and persuasive action.

See MLK's quotes cited above for evidence!

J. Edgar Hoover said MLK was "too powerful" and that the Civil Rights movement was "un-American." The closet-gay-FBI-Director called him "immoral"!

They were so afraid that the Civil Rights movement and the peace/anti-Vietnam War movement would join forces that they upped their surveillance on Mrs. King AFTER her husband's tragic death.

Have America's secret agencies really improved? Especially since the gutting of our privacies and the Bill of Rights these last several years?

If you think so, then America the Duped is alive and being followed as I type.