Revolution is definitely in the air these days in the Middle East. Libya is the latest country to be hit by waves of civil unrest and violence as protesters have taken to the streets and demanded the ouster of long-time ruler Muammar Gaddafi. After the protests turned violent, much of the army and police forces were chased away in the eastern part of the country as opposition groups began to take over cities of Benghazi and Tobruk. While the capital Tripoli remains in Gaddafi's hands for the moment, most commentators expect him to lose this stand-off fairly soon.
Why is the entire Middle East seemingly caught up in this revolutionary fervour at this time? Ultimately, the answer to this question lies in the individual horoscopes of the countries in question. After all, why Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, and not, say, Morocco, Syria and Saudi Arabia which have thus far remained quite peaceful and orderly? Logically, there must be something specific to the national horoscopes in the first group that is missing in the second group. My post on the Egyptian uprising showed how specific planetary afflictions to that national chart reflected the overthrow of Mubarak. The same sort of problems can be found in the Libya horoscope, as we will see below. At the same time, we can also suggest some relevant background influences that may have fanned the flames of protest and revolt across the region.
First, I noted back on New Year's Day how the horoscope for 2011 looked quite tense and difficult, and made special mention of matters concerning government and leaders While this horoscope applies to the world as a whole, one can see how the placement of malefic Ketu in the 10th house would result in "increased pressure on government and leaders". Also the ruler of the 10th house (Gemini) of government is Mercury, and it is afflicted by Saturn in this chart by its full strength 3rd house aspect. This is a sort of double whammy against government and might create "significant changes" in governments and their policies around the world. The destructive square aspect between Mars and Saturn probably increased the likelihood of violence and confrontation generally, although this also applied to the suffering produced by natural disasters such as earthquakes. Of course, there was nothing in this forecast that applied to the Middle East and merely highlighted possible general trends around the world.
More specifically, the solar eclipse of January 4, 2011 occurred over Europe and the Middle East. For thousands of years, eclipses have traditionally represented times of change and portent as the light from the Sun disappeared behind the shadow of the Moon. This interruption in the normal order of things was usually received with fear and anxiety as eclipses were regarded as the harbingers of destruction and disease. In this case, the eclipse was visible from all the countries in question, so that may have increased the chances that the region would be witness to some significant changes.
The horoscope of the eclipse was actually quite afflicted, and this was another sign that the ensuing period might usher in some substantial change or at least interrupt the status quo in some way. The eclipse point (Sun conjunct Moon) at 19 degrees of sidereal Sagittarius suffered a double affliction: it was conjunct Mars, symbolizing conflict and possible violence and it was square Saturn, representing suffering and oppression from authority. But what's interesting is that this chart isn't all bad. The very tight trine aspect between Jupiter-Uranus (expansion-optimism, independence-rebellion) and Venus (happiness, sociality, wealth) is a very favourable combination of energies that may well reflect the immense hope and promise of these popular uprisings. It seems clear that the winds of change are blowing through the entire region so that the old ways of doing things are no longer acceptable as people are demanding their fair share. The populations are no longer willing to suffer in silence under the iron grip of a repressive leaders that enrich themselves at the expense of their people. The Venus factor may also reflect the role of economic suffering in this revolts. In a significant departure from the stereotype of the region, the uprisings were not at all religious but grew out of frustration over inflation and a declining standard of living. The Venus-Jupiter-Uranus influence also reflects the broadly-based social character of these popular uprisings. We can also hope that these benefic planets may indicate the eventual success of these revolutions.
Taking the Libyan case, we can see how problems in the national chart quite clearly reflect the current crisis. Libya gained its independence from Italy on December 24, 1951 at midnight in Tripoli. The resulting chart provides the basic contours of the Libyan state as we know it. The ruler of the 4th house (Scorpio) of resources and mining is Mars and it is placed in the 2nd house of assets and wealth reflecting the importance of Libya's oil wealth to its economy. Moreover, Mars is placed in the sign of Virgo which is ruled by Mercury, hence the ruler of the 2nd and 4th houses are in mutual reception, which strengthens the effect of this contact. Mars is conjunct Neptune (liquids, oil) and Saturn (earth, underground resources). Leaders are seen through the placement of the Sun. The Sun is in Sagittarius but it is closely aspected by malefic Ketu. Since Ketu is often a negative influence that is associated with unusual or unpredictable qualities, it is not too hard to see how this might represent an eccentric and dangerous ruler such as Gaddafi who has ruled the country since 1969.
The current transits tell most of the story. Like Egypt's chart, the Sun comes under double affliction from both transiting Rahu and the square aspect from Uranus. The Sun represents government and leaders, so this disruptive Rahu-Uranus square is one reason why there is so much opposition to authority. The Uranus square to the Sun demands change at the top, and the more radical the better. Rahu dislikes order and routine so it may also be behind the urge to change government structures. In addition, this affliction of the Sun may reflect Gaddafi's irrational response to the protests.
The natal Rahu in the Libya horoscope is also clearly activated as we can see that array of Sun, Neptune, Mercury and Mars also conjoining Rahu in Aquarius. This is another source of the chaos and the urge to purge the old ways and bring in a new order.
Unlike Egypt, the violence in Libya appears to be a significant feature of the uprising. We can see that transiting Saturn recently stationed and turned retrograde at 23 degrees of Virgo. This was exactly conjunct the natal Mars (23 Virgo). Saturn-Mars combinations are often found in situations of extreme stress and are frequent markers of destruction and suffering. The fact that natal Mars is conjunct Saturn in the Libya horoscope makes this transit worse than it already is. Of course, Saturn has been sitting on that Mars for weeks now due to its very slow retrograde motion, so that is another reason why the violence has been quite bad.
The transit of Mars to the natal Rahu on Sunday February 27 may reflect an upsurge in violence. Even if Gaddafi survives after that, he is unlikely to last many more weeks. Transiting Uranus will exactly square natal Sun in April and the Mars-Uranus conjunction on April 3 looks quite nasty indeed and may correspond with a major eruption of violence, possibly involving Gaddafi himself. Ahead of that date, mid-March could also be quite difficult as transiting Mars aspects natal Mars. The ongoing affliction to Libya's chart strongly indicates major changes in the near future. Most commentators contend that Gaddafi will eventually lose in the end, but it is interesting to see how well the chart reflects this probability.
