Editor’s Note: The following article by Eric Francis was originally published at the end of 2004, during the presidential election between John Kerry and George Bush. It’s now part of the Planet Waves archives, available to subscribers of Planet Waves Astrology News.
I was struck by the parallels in this article between today and four years ago: Eric mentions a moment between two paradigms; then he was talking about Capricorn and Aquarius, but it could easily be the Saturn-Uranus conjunction of late. He mentions the religious rights war against the gay and lesbian community, which we’re also currently experiencing. I’m sure there is more — what parallels do you see? –RA
Dear Friend and Reader,
I WOKE UP THURSDAY dreaming that I had met John Kerry. He came into the bookstore that I hang out at, Shakespeare & Co., across the street from Notre Dame. Everyone started singing “Happy Birthday” when he walked in.
Upstairs, he had a bedroom, like a hotel room, and I had a few minutes with him, just one on one, as he cleared the space out after the campaign, gathering the last of his belongings.
I didn’t hesitate to walk up to him and say hello. He was warm, friendly, and quite relaxed. And tall.
I thanked him for putting on such a strong campaign, and then said, “You know, this is not an easy time to be running for president. We’re exactly between two paradigms.” A paradigm is a reality-framework: a way of looking at life or the conceiving of a experience, and a set of concepts that help us define existence.
“The old paradigm hasn’t quite given up and the new one isn’t in place strongly enough to work with easily,” I added.
Part of the old paradigm left the planet early Thursday morning with the death of Yasser Arafat, the leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). Anyone who can say, “We are fighting because we want to live in peace,” is part of the old reality where opposites clash, or worse, where they trade places. In the long struggle between Israel and the PLO, lasting most or all of our lifetimes we have seen nonstop terrorist violence met with endless military aggression in a phase of the “holy war” that goes back to 1964 — the year of the PLO’s first raid on Israel.
One thing is certain, no matter what his personal legacy: thanks to him, the plight of the Palestinian people will never be forgotten. As I write, I am watching the arrival of Arafat’s casket at his Ramallah headquarters amidst a vast surge of Palestinian humanity. This happens under the influence of the exact Scorpio New Moon, conjunct the centaur planet Hylonome. Scorpio is usually considered to be the sign of death and rebirth; Hylonome is a planet that is associated with grieving and the healing of grief. That this New Moon is taking place at the moment of Arafat’s return to Ramallah is a positively stunning expression of astrological symbolism.
While it is taking place at the very end of the lunar cycle, this is also the seed moment in the history of the Palestinian tribe.