This could be the beginning of a new series if there are other bloggers out there who’d like to participate. Tim Boucher of the great blog Pop Occulture suggested that I do his chart as a cross-blog project to see where in his chart we can find his interest in the hidden side of life and his particular and unique presentation on these subjects. If you have a blog and would like to do something similar just email me or leave a comment with your email.

Tim’s blog reveals much of himself and who he is, and he reveals more in a bio on his site and an accompanying interview in which he says about his own chart:

I was just looking at some Capricon descriptions online, and was surprised/not surprised at all to see them say: “Without the structure of rules, restrictions, and values to guide them up the mountain toward their goals, they lose their way.” Which seems really accurate in relation to what I was talking about earlier about how I’m realizing limitations can actually be good for you. Saturn, Capricorn’s ruling planet has something to do with that too, doesn’t it? It seems like a lot of my stereotypical Capricorn tendencies are mitigated by my Cancer ascendant and Leo moon though. One of the most interesting things I often read in Capricorn descriptions though is that they tend to come into their own later in life than other signs. I’m only 25, but I’m starting to see that happen I think.

Tim is correct that Capricorn is connected with goals and limitations, and it is said that Capricorns are old when they’re young and young when they’re old. At 25 Tim has not yet come into his own, this will happen more fully after Saturn returns to its place in his birthchart when Tim is 28-30. During the younger years Capricorn individuals, who are ruled by Saturn’s disicpline and limitations, often experience childhoods that are full of responsibility and burdens that are too heavy for such a young age. Tim’s Capricorn Sun, though, is part of a Grand Trine in earth planets that helps open doors of opportunity for him to relieve the pressure of his Capricorn responsibilities.

Trines are harmonious aspects that facilitate the work of the two planets that are in aspect to each other, and in a Grand Trine there are three, all working together in harmony. Tim’s Sun is trine Chiron which is in Taurus, showing that he is easily able to let go of his wounds and transmute them into spiritual evolution. This is a shamanic process, and Tim has expressed his interest in the authentic shamanic paths of the ancients. Tim’s Sun is widely conjunct Mercury, but Mercury is closer in aspect to the other planets in the Grand Trine which tightens the Sun/Mercury conjunction by association. A conjunction of the Sun to Mercury, the planet of communication and ideas, is very like having the Sun in Gemini. There is a love of learning and a very bright mind, a strong intelligence. However, there is a restlessness with Mercury associated with the Sun and a hunger for learning that is not satisfied with one idea or one philosophy and in the Grand Trine one can get stuck in one’s ideas. Tim writes:

Speaking of the Hero’s Journey and all that, it’s funny ’cause I used to think I was actually in the middle of it. But it turns out I probably hadn’t even started it yet, and was just sort of dreaming about it and living through it in my head. That’s, I think, the big danger of using these types of framing devices to understand your life according to. Is that it’s really easy to end up living inside the frame instead of the life.

Mars (drive, action) and Jupiter (luck, philosophy) are conjunct in Tim’s chart in Virgo, demonstrating his drive (Mars) for learning and for exploring different truths to find meaning in life (Jupiter). Virgo is the sign of discrimination: of taking things apart to see how they work. Mars and Jupiter when conjunct impel us to follow an inner adventure as well as an outer one in order to find a world view in which we can rest. Tim writes, “Strip away the taboos and the superstition, and what you’re left with is a spirit of exploration and a dedication to finding things out for yourself. While there may be pitfalls along the way, keep this at the heart of your quest and you’ll always find your way home.”

This conjunction of Mars and Jupiter is part of the Grand Trine in Tim’s chart. The Grand Trine can be a trap in some charts, because the energy is so harmonious between the planets that there is nothing to promote change and resolution. Squares are difficult and painful, but they bring about a crisis through which change can take place. With the trines, particularly the Grand Trine which completes a circle, the person can become stuck as the energy whirls around with nowhere to go. In Tim’s chart this is less likely to happen: with Sun in Capricorn he is goal-oriented and a planner, when he finds himself stuck he looks for the key. And the inclusion of Mars in the chart, supported by Jupiter, provides the fire energy needed to break out of the stuck boxes he may find himself in.

Tim’s Moon is in Leo, so he has an inner craving to be recognized for his unique talents. This does not square well with his Capricorn Sun, which is all about the work and the results and tends to want to keep the ego in the background. In Leo the ego is to be celebrated and not pushed into a closet, so Tim may have some inner conflict about his growing fame which feeds his Moon and his emotional balance but seems to his Capricorn Sun like frivolity that has no place on the spiritual path.

Uranus, the planet of individuality and innovation, is in a square to Tim’s Moon. This configuration often confers a sense of oddness, a feeling that we don’t belong anywhere. Some with this placement manage this through social rebellion, Tim has found a way to channel this urge constructively through building an online community of intellectual exploration. Because Uranus is associated with technology and therefore the internet, many Uranians are more comfortable on the internet than in more conventional social arenas. Pluto, god of the underworld, is in harmonious aspect (sextile) to Tim’s Moon which adds a depth and intensity to his emotional nature and a fearless embrace of the undercurrents of life.

Lately on Tim’s site he has expressed some frustration in knowing where to go next with his work and with his life. One post reported taking a three-day fast followed by a raw food diet, accompanied by quite a bit of snake imagery. Transiting Pluto has been making a trine to his Moon, bringing with it a desire to purge and eliminate (Pluto) from the emotional underworld and helping him to shed his old skin (hence the snake) and emerge transformed, a new type of being. In December Pluto begins a new long-term cycle, square to Tim’s Saturn. This is likely to bring significant change to Tim’s world, creating some endings and some new beginnings. Pluto represents the will of the higher self, and when it sweeps through our world it always acts for our highest good. However, it does require surrender and letting go, something not easy for a Capricorn.

He has also been going through a more difficult transit of Uranus (the Awakener) to the Mars/Jupiter conjunction in his chart. This conjunction straddles the Nadir, the point of the Inner Life that is one end of an axis to the Midheaven, the point of the Public Life or career point. The effect of this transit to Mars/

Jupiter does create a tremendous restlessness and frustration with the status quo. Transiting the Nadir one would expect a move of some kind, or at least a change in the way we construct our inner world. There may be a sense that life is no longer safe as the sands beneath us shift but it does open our awareness to higher levels of consciousness and wisdom. This cycle began for Tim earlier this year, and will continue into the spring. Uranus will be a tremendous boon for Tim because of the nature of his work, although it may be somewhat uncomfortable for him at times as his very roots are being rattled.

These cycles will continue to open up the spiral of Tim’s awareness and understanding which will be a great boon to those of us who read his work, and they will help to prepare Tim for great success during his Saturn return! Update: See what Tim has to say about this project.