When we reach age 40 or so (though often starting a one or two years before), there is a special astrological event that happens to everyone, called the Uranian opposition. What this means is that the planet Uranus, which takes about 84 years to orbit the Sun, reaches the place in the zodiac where it’s opposite your natal position of Uranus. The way to say it properly is, “Uranus opposite natal Uranus.”

Uranus is the eccentric planets of revolutions -- and it's extremely active in 2012. In fact it's shaking the world and it may be shaking your life.

It’s a high energy event — and it sends many people spinning into crisis when all that energy is released. This is because the life patterns and structured relationships that formed around the Saturn return (age 28 to 30) suddenly start to change. Everything that we worked for that seemed so dependable are now subjected to new demands; a new level of maturity; there is often the need to reinvent yourself — or some compelling series of events that gets you to do so.

You’re having your Uranian opposition this year if you were born between late 1968 and 1971, when Uranus was in early Libra. You will notice this transit because suddenly you want to break free and try all the things you’ve never tried. You’ll start to remember your deeper goals and may have the desire to push out of the way everything that’s stopping you. For those born in this time period, Pluto is also involved; the aspect Uranus square Pluto is really what’s happening to you. Learn more about that from reading your sign in the 2012 annual edition. For a preview, listen to the Top Five Events of 2012 audio.

In its great wisdom, Western culture calls this the ‘midlife crisis’, but it’s really a lot more than that — a personal revolution and evolutionary moment that can take you far beyond anywhere you’ve ever been. The challenge is making sure that you resolve or at least address what’s been holding you back.

For some reason lately I’ve been getting a stream of emails with people asking me about the houses, the solar houses and what to do with interceptions. This article and audio below, from the 2012 Resources Area (see link on right) covers all but the last topic. Soon I will do a piece on interceptions that will answer most of your questions. For now, if you’re curious about that topic, here is an old answer from my series on Jonathan’s website — go to the bottom of the page.

In this special edition of Planet Waves FM, I explore one of the most commonly asked questions about “general” readings — how does the astrologer make them specific? How can we get any detail at all, just knowing someone’s Sun sign? (By the way I just heard a ridiculous verbal typo – toward the beginning, I say the word ‘simultaneously’ when I mean ‘synonymously’. It’s an interesting blend of concepts anyway, as one implies time and the other implies meaning.)

The Thema Mundi, the key to the logic of astrology, including rulership, aspects, house meanings and the basic order of the solar system. It is probably modern astrology's oldest artifact besides mythology itself, dating back to ancient Greece.

This discussion will be interesting for both astrology fans and astrology students. I describe the solar house system, which counts the houses off of the Sun, and the whole sign house system, which uses the whole sign as a house. I also describe how astrology is a holographic art — and because I am using a whole chart for each of the readings, I can interpret a complete story that you can relate to.

Technical note: “ascendant,” “1st house” and “rising sign” are all the same thing, for our purposes here.

There are a few resources that might help ease your way, if you want to go deeper into understanding the astrological houses. One is a basic description of house meanings. Here is another one, that focuses on sexual themes through the houses. In this article from way back when the Internet was young, I describe how horoscope writers use the solar houses and whole sign houses. Finally, in this article from Cosmic Confidential, I describe my holographic method of reading for the signs, which allows the use of a full chart — granted, a simpler chart — and why it helps that an astrologer sees the whole chart and creates a cohesive narrative. That, I think, is the key. Okay so — just thought of one other, one that skips back into the earliest history of astrology as we know it in old Greece – the Thema Mundi. The Thema Mundi may be modern astrology’s oldest artifact. It’s a single chart, a teaching chart, that describes the logic system behind astrology.

Abandoned radar station at Camp Hero (state park) at Montauk Point, New York, Photo by Eric.

I hung around Montauk for two whole weeks before I figured out I was on an old military installation. It makes sense — the whole thing was designed to guard New York City and the harbor that surrounds it.

The radar station you’re looking at was installed in 1942 — just before the United States got involved in WW II. This was in response to the Nazi threat (spies in U-Boats and fishing boats, for example). The place was complete with 16-inch gun batteries, a firing range and eventually a huge radar station that would rotate once per minute, interfering with record players and radios.

The whole thing was decommissioned in 1980 or 1981 (accounts vary) and re-opened as a state park in 1992. I love old industrial sites, but abandoned military installations always feel creepy. The potency and the intent to make war that went into them for so long — then they’re just dropped and left to disintegrate, as if nothing happened.

Pondering the astrology, this thing you see above feels like Neptune in Aquarius — the mix of technology, secrecy, the aquatic environment and the sense of isolation. It was built (and closed down) a long time before Neptune in Aquarius, but still, it has that feeling.

That doesn’t surprise me with this place, particularly given the Montauk Project conspiracy theories that have been going around for decades. I’m curious about that and looking into it — I’ll tell you what I learn.

Commercial fishing boats at Montauk Harbor. Photo by Eric Francis

Note to readers: On Tuesday, I sent a letter to Planet Waves subscribers, sharing my thoughts about Neptune in Aquarius (which ends Friday after 14 years). You may read it here. I received many replies, including one from one of my astrology guitar heros, Dale O’Brien. Dale has been one of the pioneering — and most innovative — writers about Chiron, going almost back to the beginning. Here is his letter. –efc

Dear Eric:

Hopefully Planet Waves Readers appreciate your thoughtful perspectives on astrology. For example, while most astrologers are constantly speculating on upcoming astrological placements, how can we ever learn about the accuracy and/or relevance of such theoretical astrology if we don’t look back to what happened during a planet’s transit, especially a very recent transit? Thank you for being a most welcome exception! It seems that almost no one fact-checks astrological prediction, perhaps because it would be simply too embarrassing.

Looking back on the cliché-laden prognostications made in the late 1990s about what Neptune in Aquarius was supposed to be, it turns out that things didn’t come about as expected. I like what you said, Eric, about understanding Neptune transits better after they have already happened. Your recent looking-back perspectives on Neptune in Aquarius were insightful. I would now like to respond to your open request for comments on this recent transit.

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Photo by Eric Francis.

I watch too much television. I’m happy about that because TV used to suck. Now some of my favorite creative talents are on TV, in particular on Comedy Central (Danny Tosh among them), Current TV (I still love Keith) and MSNBC (Rachel Maddow remains on probation for promoting Gardasil when she absolutely should know better — I’ll come back to that). But this also means I get to watch a lot of television ads. I have the kind of mind that studies and observes everything I see, and I’ve become a reluctant student of advertising over the past few years.

One thing I’ve noticed is how few products are on TV. Besides the consumer schlock ads (valued at $100, you get four for $19.99!) we have a lot of high-end cars, a few low-end cars, high-end junk food (Red Lobster, Outback Steakhouse) and low-end junk food (dollar menu) and…drugs. Lots and lots and lots and lots and LOTS of drugs.

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