I’m a little bored with Steve Bannon, so this posting won’t be about Donald Trump’s lately beleaguered philosopher. I’m going to do a little astrology by analyzing the birth chart of another well-known politician, Adolf Hitler. Do the planetary positions at the moment of Hitler’s birth truly foreshadow his subsequent actions?
You be the judge.
You can access Hitler’s chart by clicking on the link below. To astrologers, this is a treasure trove of information, though most readers will only see an incomprehensible arrangement of unknown symbols. The numbered wedge-shaped sections of the circle are the Houses referred to below; I hope that helps.
Astrology played a role in Hitler’s rise to power. An eminent astrologer, Elsbeth Ebertin, evaluated Hitler’s chart before he was famous – supposedly without knowing his identity – and foretold that he’d “play a Führer-role in future battles” and “sacrifice himself for the German nation.” She also predicted that he’d provoke a “crisis” through “uncautious action.” On what did she base this judgement?
The first thing to look for in a horoscope is the rising sign – the sign of the Zodiac that’s coming up on the Western horizon. Here, it’s Libra, the Scales. Each sign is ruled by a particular planet, and the ruler of the rising sign – in this case, Venus – is ordinarily the most influential planet in the chart.
Considering Venus’ situation, we can ascertain a few additional important things about her. With a little figuring, we’ll find that she’s the final dispositor of the chart. It would take me too long to explain what that is, so trust me, it’s a big deal. Most charts don’t have a final dispositor, and when there is one, it’s often even more powerful than the rising sign ruler. Venus is both. That’s a lot of clout.
We can also see that Venus is retrograde. This isn’t necessarily bad, but it’s at least perverse. A retrograde planet is moving opposite to its usual direction against the starry background – east to west instead of west to east – and that seriously distorts its normal action. This could make the planet weak and ineffective, but Venus is otherwise so strongly posted that that isn’t likely here. Other possibilities are that the planet could take on a character precisely the reverse of its ordinary nature; or, even if it continues to operate more or less normally, some fringe facet or sidelight of its typical effect will be emphasized. This, I think, is the key to Hitler’s chart.
Venus is usually the planet of indolent sensuality, peace, and harmony – usually, but not always. If her placid stasis is forcefully disturbed, or her sense of fairness and justice too grossly violated, she’s capable of great fury – sometimes disproportionate to the occasion. She’s also stubborn. Venus rules Taurus, the Bull, in addition to Libra. To the Babylonians, our Venus was Ishtar, Goddess of love and war – in recognition of the fact that love is violent if taken to an extreme. Astrologically, this will especially be the case when, as here, Venus is found in conjunction with Mars, the planet of hyper-masculine aggressiveness, dynamism, and conflict. Since these planets are near each other in the sky, their effects are blended.
This retrograde Venus is dangerous, indeed.
Most of this information would have been available to Elsbeth Ebertin, even if she didn’t know the time of Hitler’s birth, and would have amply justified her finding that he could be prone to “excessively uncautious action and could very likely trigger an uncontrollable crisis.” Could it be predicted from this chart that Hitler would be a mass murderer? Possibly not, but I think any competent astrologer would reckon that he’d have anger issues and be a difficult person to get along with – forceful, intolerant, quarrelsome, and prone to violent rages.
This bellicose duo of retrograde Venus with Mars will be working its problematic magic in the 7th House, a sector of the sky, just above the Eastern horizon, which deals with partnerships and rivalries. In a politically oriented chart, the 7th House stands for international relations, diplomacy, and war. I wouldn’t want the subject of this chart to be my country’s leader, even if I didn’t already know who it was.
There’s a lot more data in this chart. Saturn in Leo in the 10th House signifies an authoritative and prominent government official. The Moon conjunct Jupiter in the 3rd House indicates an intuitive ability to communicate, maybe on a more grandiose level than the 3rd House would usually imply. The Sun conjunct Mercury likewise exalts the importance of communication. Neptune conjunct Pluto in the 8th House of Death is an ominous placement, as is retrograde Uranus in the 12th House of Delusion and Defeat. Even all this is only scratching the surface.
What does this chart tell us about the validity of astrology as a method? I’d say there’s plenty to send up cautionary red flags about the person portrayed – and much that seems to be confirmed by his later career. A skeptic will suggest that my previous knowledge of the individual has in fact shaped my interpretation, and that my reading would’ve been much vaguer without this information. As usual, critics will tend to find what they expected to see in the first place.
I’ll have something more to say about astrology next time.
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