Leo 2014: Jupiter in Leo. Leadership. Mars in Scorpio. Israel-Gaza.

Leo Keynote
“I am that and that am I”.
Leo Full Moon Festival: August 10, 2014. 7.09 pm, Greenwich, UK.

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(The Word of the Leo subject who is rapidly gaining higher
consciousness and preparing for fresh and universal expression in Aquarius.)

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Jupiter in Leo: A Royal Planet in a Royal Sign
Leo, Leadership and Group Work
Spiritual Leaders and the Right Use of Power
Mars in Scorpio: Applying the Blowtorch
Leonine Anatomy of the Israel-Gaza Crisis 2014
Zionism
Hamas and Israel’s “Terrorism” Excuse
Hamas and Khalad Meshal
Transiting Saturn in Scorpio’s Influence Upon Israel

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Jupiter in Leo: A Royal Planet in a Royal Sign
Jupiter entered Leo on July 16, 2014 for the first time in twelve years. Hence, Jupiter spends approximately one year in each zodiacal sign. As a Sun-ruled sign, Leo is a symbol of creativity, generosity, leadership and royalty.

Along with the Sun, Jupiter is also the co-ruler of the second ray of Love-Wisdom – deeply connected to students of esoteric philosophy and healing. Yet, Jupiter has another characteristic that is along the seventh ray, ceremonial line – fond of pomp, lavish ceremony and drama. Hence, the association of the colour purple with the Seventh Ray of Ceremonial Magic, with royalty and the mystery of the so-called aristocratic, “blue blood”.

Likewise, Leo has a peacock-like penchant for display and grandeur (proud as a peacock), so when Jupiter enters Leo, all these elements are sure to make a magnificent, if not excessive combination. Indeed, Jupiter in Leo can be the ultimate “drama queen”.

Jupiter in Leo is expansive and optimistic and self-confident; it carries a great generosity and benevolence. Yet, it can also be very egotistical, over-confident, dominating, bullying and arrogant – recall the invasion of Iraq in 2003 whilst Jupiter was in Leo conjunct USA’s north node in Leo.

Jupiter rules the heart chakra, the fount of expression for love-wisdom. The Sun is the ruler of Leo and the co-ruler of the heart centre. Leo is the zodiac sign that rules the heart, hence Jupiter in Leo brings a broad scope for the expression of unconditional love. Both Jupiter and Leo stand for heartiness in their own respective expressions, so combined, are plenty hearty!

Jupiter in Leo is fond of magnificent and dramatic music. Englishman Gustav Holst composed The Planets Suite in 1915; his Jupiter rendition is renowned for its central melody, “a fantastic relaxation in which many retain a far from sneaking delight”.2

Also most notable, this composition was eventually used as the well-known patriotic British hymn, I vow to thee, my Country. Britain is a second ray soul and London is a Leo soul – no wonder it struck a chord with the British people.

In addition, Holst was Leo rising, his soul purpose, so he was the right man for the job! He had Neptune, the esoteric ruler of Leo, placed in Taurus; the planet of art and music – in a sign strongly associated with music – square to his Leo ascendant.

Holst was said to have “come under Wagner’s spell”, another composer (in)famous for his dramatic, yet sublime music – who had Jupiter in Leo opposite Mars in Aquarius, falling near Holst’s Leo ascendant. (Wagner was born in the Brühl, The House of the Red and White Lions.). In addition, Holst worked very closely with another English composer, Vaughan Williams, of “Lark Ascending” fame – who also had Jupiter in Leo.

Wagner’s Parsifal: Parsifal is a deeply spiritual story about a knight and his quest for the Holy Grail.

Leo and Leadership
Leo is a sign of regality, of sovereignty over oneself – one’s “kingdom”, giving the “right to rule” on behalf of the many. In ancient times, and in relatively recent history, the ignorant masses needed the firm guidance of a more advanced soul. The king or queen as ruler, anchored the energy of Divine Will on behalf of the people.

Some monarchs ruled benevolently, displaying the love, compassion and kindness of a Leonine heart, whilst others ruled tyrannically, subjugating their minions to slavery and misery. Both tyrant and benevolent king share advanced mental development, but the tyrant lags in the evolution of the heart – the prime quality of Leo.

In today’s age of hastened mental evolution, the monarchies, whilst still fulfilling certain roles for some nations, have given way to democracies – in all their imperfect expressions. This is the Fifth Rootrace and Leo is “fifth gate”, corresponding to the fifth plane of mental expression.

The Leo sovereign rules because of his/her mental power, symbolised by the king’s crown (chakra) and illustrated by the Lion’s mane, symbol of the mental body field of the human aura. Leo is fire, and the mind is a fiery quality.

As the 2,000 year precession cycle of Aquarius approaches, its Leo polarity is gaining prominence – many are emerging from the masses (ruled by the previous sign, Cancer) – developing independent thought. More and more individuals are no longer influenced by mass consciousness. Leo is the sign of the “individual”:

“Mass consciousness in Cancer gives place to individual consciousness in Leo. Out of the mass or the herd emerges the self-sufficient unit which becomes increasingly aware of its oneness, its aloneness and its isolated attitude as the “one in the centre” of its small cosmos.

This attitude continues to develop and to become emphatic and dynamic … leading to the pronounced ego-centric consciousness of the selfish, intelligent man and to the ambitious display of selfish power of the man who desires place and position.”3

During this cuspal period of Pisces-Aquarius, there are many conflicting ideologies and selfish actions based upon the developing ideas of recently endowed, thinking people, clashing with the ideas that constitute the old and new paradigms. Yet,

“… eventually the time comes when the nature of the Fixed Cross begins to dawn upon the consciousness … and the influence of Aquarius … begins to balance that of Leo … there comes the gradual shift of the focus of attention away from the “one who stands alone” to the environing group, and an equally important shift away from selfish interests to group requirements.”4

Hence, the Leo-Aquarius axis can be viewed thus:

Leo	Aquarius
King	Country
Individual	Group
Selfish	Selfless
All for One	One for All
Prime Minister	Parliament
Actor	Audience

Spiritual Leaders and the Right Use of Power
(This theme was touched upon in a newsletter eight years ago and can be found here.)

As the world shifts from Pisces into Aquarius on the great precessional wheel, many aspiring Aquarian groups are tested upon the threshing floor of right relations and group co-operation.

Though these groups aspire to the new emerging Aquarian values, most of them are Piscean in nature, still steeped in the values, methods and associated glamours of the old age. Piscean group leaders tend to be exclusive and separative; they have Aquarian values and might be deeply versed in esoteric knowledge; but many do not walk the talk because they have not done the work on their personality vehicles – leading to various abuses such as criticism, the misuse of power and exclusivity:

“… they respond to the ideal and regard themselves as of the new age, they are not truly so. They see a bit of the vision and have grasped the theory but cannot express it in action.”5

One trait of spiritual Piscean groups is the “glamour of authority” imposed by some leaders upon those less discriminating, where a particular spiritual status is claimed or that s/he has the “ear of the Master”. (See the Gemini 2014 newsletter, Busiris: The False Teacher“.) Many intelligent and well-meaning people become trapped in this paradigm and progress upon the Path is slowed for all concerned.

Leo the king or queen, is most demonstrative of leadership and authority, yet it can often be the authoritarian. Aquarius is related to the society or group that Leos lead. In many ways, leaders are “damned if they do and damned if they don’t”. On the one hand, they are required to anchor the Will of group purpose and facilitate and implement its expression – through and by the people. On the other hand, if they are not wise in their delegation of power, or have not worked sufficiently at personality integration, they may become tyrants.

Leonine rulers have to tread a fine line (Libra, the Law) – between holding the governing point of tension, whilst allowing the people to express themselves within the structure that the law provides. Hence, the importance of Regulus in Leo, the “ruling star”, inferring “regulation”. (“Reg” = king)

The Leo leader has to submit themself with (dignified) humility before the group, to sit at the round table of consensus, yet take ultimate responsibility; this is the role of the modern leader or facilitator. The old Piscean method often sees the cultivation of a personality cult based upon the leader’s various idiosyncrasies.

Hence, these factors apply in all areas of human endeavour, no less so in the “new age” and esoteric communities. For those born in the 1940-1950’s, Pluto in Leo is the main generational planet, currently being squared by transiting Saturn in another sign of power, Scorpio.

All leaders from this generation are currently subject to some intensely testing fires around the right use of power. The entity we call Israel (1948) is undergoing a similar transit from transiting Saturn to natal Saturn in Leo, reflected in an appalling and massive use of force in Gaza. (See later in the newsletter.)

Pluto in Leo is the ruler of the first ray of will-power, in a zodiac sign that has the first ray passing through it. Pluto rules over the “lesser burning ground” of the solar plexus centre, where illusory, worldly personal power resides.

As Pluto’s new symbol indicates, this planet assists in the raising of those forces to the higher centres. Pluto burns off the dross for all engaged in the divine alchemical process; he is Lord of the Underworld and reveals to us what is hidden and unredeemed within the various parts of our psyche.

Saturn, on the other hand, is the Lord of Karma, the “planetary dweller on the threshold”, related to control and power. Hence, Saturn in Scorpio’s transit to Pluto in Leo can have several effects – one being the judicial use of power (Leo, Pluto) for the greater good. Yet, the point of least resistance for most with this Pluto-Saturn combination, is selfish manipulation and abuse of power through old, unconscious patterns. The other effect of Saturn is its jurisdiction over the precipitation of karma.

Mars in Scorpio: Applying the Blowtorch

Mars entered Scorpio on its two year cycle on July 26 and will be staying there until mid September. The next several weeks could be very intense, tough and unpredictable, as Mars applies the blowtorch to the personality life. There may be some major tests about how reactive or defensive you are, how volatile or emotionally explosive, how sexual energy is used, how vindictive or vengeful one can be – or how responsibly one handles power. In short, this “non-sacred” planet Mars sharply reveals what is not integrated, especially within the emotional body.

Mars is the ruler of Scorpio exoterically and esoterically, hence it brings all battles, inner and outer, right to the door of initiation. As ruler of the solar plexus centre, the seat of the astral body, Mars tests the desire nature in all its expressions, particularly in the right use of sex, as symbolised by Mars’ glyph, resembling the upright phallus.

Scorpio is a sign of testing and initiation for humanity; it is a sign of suffering and pain because the fourth ray of Harmony through Conflict passes through it; this ray is co-ruled by the Moon which “falls” in Scorpio. The Moon represents the Dweller and the unredeemed lower self, when at war with the increasing power of the higher self, there is friction, fire and pain. Desire and temporal worldly power must be relinquished in this sign of death and transformation.

Pluto as co-ruler of Scorpio, creates the “burning ground” for the disciple upon the path of initiation; this path of “fire by friction”, is created by the clash of the pairs of opposites – physical, emotional and mental. The conflict that arises between that which is sensed and new, versus that which is old and fixed, creates a smoky obscuration of maya and glamour. Scorpio is the sign of maya on the ordinary wheel of evolution, before an individual awakens. Scorpio’s keynote for this stage is, “Let maya flourish and deception rule”. (See here for more on Scorpio.)

The path of least resistance for Mars in Scorpio on the ordinary wheel, is increased violence, ego inflation, war, murder, rape, sex in general, satisfying all the material desires of the personality; it stimulates rage, jealousy, possessiveness, aggression and selfishness. Yet, Mars also supplies enormous drive, courage and persistence – all is dependent upon where the individual is on the Path and how they respond to the inflowing forces.

For the more conscious upon the Path, all of the above still applies, lol! Yet, there is a far greater opportunity to consciously direct the Mars forces from the solar plexus up into the heart. There is currently a great opportunity to effect this transfer of energy through the transit of Jupiter through Leo.

As mentioned earlier, Jupiter and Leo are both intimately connected to the heart centre. Therefore, as Jupiter transits through Leo at the same time as Mars transits through Scorpio, there will be an opportunity to raise the untamed and unruly forces from the solar plexus into the fiery crucible of the heart.

Of course, it can be the very opposite for the status quo, and this could externalise in some major world crises, or the deepening of current crises. Bear in mind, any planets in the personal horoscope that are upon the fixed cross, will bear the brunt of this Mars passage, especially for the Pluto in Leo generation, as noted earlier with the transit of Saturn through Scorpio. This period will be quite potent, especially around the full moon of August 10, when transiting Jupiter and Mars negotiate a tense square aspect to one another. (For more on Saturn in Scorpio, see here.)

Leonine Anatomy of the Israel-Gaza Crisis 2014
NOTE: The following section may be controversial for some readers and the author may well be accused of bias, or even anti-Semiticism – a misnomer, as it is both the Arabs and Jews who belong to the Semitic race. For the record, I am neither for or against Israel or the Palestinians, but pro Humanity, right relations, peace and dignity for all.

However, I do have some obvious sympathies for the Palestinians who I regard as the underdog and unjustly treated. I have studied this conflict for a long time and am actively involved in esoteric groups that seek to resolve some of these painful issues for Humanity.

I have also made copious commentaries on Israel’s horoscope almost every year since 2002. (Here.) Currently the world is witnessing one of the worst crises in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

In the newsletter for Taurus 2014, there is a commentary, Israel’s Dance with Destiny – that detailed the major problem of Israel’s Taurus Sun square to Mars in Leo. To keep track of the imminent transits of Saturn and Jupiter in Israel’s unfolding destiny, the following table provides a handy guide.

Transit	Aspect	Israel’s Natal Planet	Duration	Challenges/Effects (Saturn is the Lord of Karma and reveals the Dweller.)
Saturn in Scorpio	Square	Saturn in Leo	Nov. 2013 – Aug. 2014 (10 mths)	The right or wrong use of power, control and force. Brutalisation, dehumanising.
Saturn in Scorpio	Opposition	Taurus Sun	Mar. 2014 – Nov. 2014 (10 mths)	Expressing worst personality facets. Stubborn. Taking responsibility.
Saturn in Scorpio	Square	Mars in Leo	Dec. 2014, Jun. – Sept. 2015 (5 mths)	The directed and right use of force. Violence, might is right.
Saturn in Scorpio	Conjunct	MC in Scorpio	Dec. 2014, Jun-Sept. 2015 (5mths)	Dealing with consequences of actions in community of nations.
Jupiter in Leo	Conjunct	Moon in Leo	Aug. 2014. Last week.	Will Jupiter be generous or expand the pride of a Leo Moon? Over-protective?
Jupiter in Leo	Conjunct	Pluto in Leo	Sept. 2014 – First 2 weeks. Mar.15 – Apr 30, 2015. Stationary on Pluto. (8 weeks total)	Two hits, but 2nd one very potent as it is a long six week station. Potentially very dangerous. Could “unleash hell”.
Jupiter in Leo	Opposite	Aquarius Rising	Sept. 2014. Last 2 weeks. Feb.-Mar. 2015. First 2 weeks May 2015. (6 weeks total)	Three hits. Rules Aquarius esoterically – great opportunity to express the compassion of the Aquarian Water-Bearer. Community-minded.
Jupiter in Leo	Conjunct	Saturn in Leo	Sept.- Oct. 2014 – Late till early. Feb. 2015 -First 2 weeks. May 2015 – Last two weeks. (6 weeks total)	Three hits on hardline Saturn! Will Jupiter soften or harden Saturn’s resolve? There will be tension here as Jupiter and Saturn are opposites.
Jupiter in Leo	Conjunct	Mars in Leo	First week August 2015.	Setting off square to Scorpio midheaven.

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1. Transiting Saturn in Scorpio square Saturn in Leo is the main transit associated with the current conflict, dubbed by Israel’s military as, “Protective Edge” – launched on July 8, when the Moon was in Scorpio, triggering the longer term Saturn in Scorpio transit. The fallout from the Israeli campaign will have long term ramifications because of widespread reaction and anger around the world; this will reach a culmination with Saturn’s forthcoming transit over Israel’s midheaven, discussed later.

Israel’s Saturn in Leo sits on the cusp of the seventh house of relationships, conjunct Moon and Pluto in Leo, sharing the seventh house with problematic Mars. Saturn in Leo has a need for importance and recognition, driving for control of its environment. There can be strong dictatorial and dogmatic attitudes, a stubbornness and rigidity, exacerbated by Saturn’s square to the Taurus Sun.

Saturn is a planet intimately associated with the ancient Jehovah, Capricorn and the Jewish people. It is a planet of power, conjunct Pluto, the planet of power, ruling the first ray of Will-Power; placed in Leo, a sign that the first ray passes through. Allied with the Moon in Leo, this triple conjunction is a formidable force, yet also the Achilles Heel of Israel. Here is the pride and prejudice of this nation, the Lion of Judea that may be learning some humility in the not too distant future.

Transiting Saturn in Scorpio brings up the theme of power in this Pluto-ruled sign; also the lower Scorpio themes of revenge, domination, under-handed manipulation, betrayal etc. Hence, transiting Saturn in Scorpio (at the peak of this Gaza crisis), exactly squaring natal Saturn in Leo, brings maximum concentration of the themes of power and directed force.

It’s never an easy transit for any entity to go through, individual or national, because one is confronted by all the crystallisations that constitute the Dweller. Saturn creates the structures to live by, the crystallisations that eventuate when those structures become outworn, and ultimately the force that will smash those old patterns.

This Saturn in Scorpio transit has been active since November 2013 and finishes in August 2014. Its last “hit” was further accentuated around July 8, because Saturn was “stationary retrograde”; it had slowed down to an almost complete “stop”, in preparation for its stationary phase that preceded Saturn going “direct”.

Hence, for the three weeks of relentless exchanges between Israel and Hamas, Saturn was stationary, closely squaring its natal position by only a few minutes of arc; it illustrates the frustration for Israel, trying to contain and control the forces that seek to undermine it. (Transiting Saturn was also squaring Hamas’s solar arc Moon-Jupiter in Leo-Taurus.)

Even by the Leo full moon period on August 10, Saturn will not have picked up full speed, to its direct “daily motion”, remaining in the same 17^th degree of Leo – as it has for the past three weeks. The Sabian Symbol for this degree is, “A woman, the father of her own child”, which could be interpreted as Israel the “parent” of the Palestinians, because of its Saturnine authority, its enormous financial, technological and military power, its Goliath to Palestine’s David.

Indeed, this conflict is a family squabble between the branchraces of the Semitic subrace of the Fifth Rootrace – Arab and Israeli alike; it has ancient, complex and twisted roots, like a troublesome wisdom tooth resisting extraction. From one perspective, Israel’s denial of Palestinian freedoms, its lack of generosity and compassion in arriving at an agreement about who lives where, is a failure of the “parent”.

Zionism
The ancient, nationalistic pride of Israel’s Leo stellium keeps it trapped in the past, because of the Zionist pledge to reclaim Palestine, after 2,000 years of absence. How would this work out in other parts of the world if nations tried these retrospective stunts?; it would simply be not tolerated.

This is one of the greatest sources of Israel’s problem, since the Zionist revival of the late 1800’s that systematically planned the gradual take-over Palestine from the early 1900’s, culminating in 1948 as the state of Israel. Palestine was taken by claiming it was “by divine command”, not unlike the aforesaid Piscean leader who claims the authority of the Master. Yet this was one of many fictions created by the right wing Zionists.

This is an important distinction, and reminder – there are many shades of Zionism because of propaganda, confusion and lack of discrimination by Jew and Gentile. The hard core of Zionism has never had the welfare of the Jewish People at heart, nor of Humanity as a whole.

It is a well known fact, of the stranglehold Zionist groups and Israel have upon the US Congress, who only recently, during the horrific bombardment of Palestinian civilians, approved another few hundred million dollars toward Israel’s Iron Dome defense system. Why, is Israel broke? Not likely, they receive $3 billion per year from the USA and are already prosperous in their own right, ranking 17^th among the world’s most economically developed nations.

On the other side of the fence, there are numerous Jewish groups in Israel, USA and around the world who oppose Zionism because of the recognition of what it is – a political ideology that is obsessed with power, money and materialism – plus a scapegoat mentality and emotional bribery that always plays the persecution and Holocaust card. The Zionist groups in the USA, such as the ADL and AIPAC, have extraordinary political influence. Zionism constitutes a major world problem for Humanity.

The following quotation was written at the time Israel was created in 1948, yet it is still most relevant today because of the refined tactical sophistication that Zionist propaganda has effected – especially through its world media domination. In addition, because Israel is currently controlled by the most militant hardline Zionists – who have the backing of their greater organisations and affiliates in0 the USA, Europe and many other parts of the world like Canada and Australia. Here is the quote:

“The leaders of the Zionist movement of aggression constitute a real danger to world peace and human development and their activities have been endorsed by the expediency policy of the U.S.A. and, in a secondary degree, by Great Britain, under the influence of the U.S.A.

It is the Zionists who have defied the United Nations, lowered its prestige and made its position both negative and negligible to the world. It is the Zionists who have perpetrated the major act of aggression since the formation of the United Nations, and who were clever enough to gain the endorsement of the United Nations, turning the original “recommendation” of the United Nations into an order.

The rule of force, of aggression and of territorial conquest by force of arms is demonstrated today by the Zionists in Palestine, as well as the demonstration of the power of money to purchase governments. These activities run counter to all the plans of the spiritual Hierarchy and mark a point of triumph of the forces of evil.

I am emphasising the activities of these two countries because through the leaders of these groups of aggressive men the forces of evil – dammed back temporarily by the defeat of the evil group which Hitler gathered around him – have again organised their attack on the spiritual development of humanity.

These Forces of Evil work through a triangle of evil, one point of which is to be found in the Zionist Movement in the United States, another in central Europe, and the third in Palestine. Palestine is no longer a Holy Land and should not be so regarded.”((The Rays and the Initiations, Alice A. Bailey. p.681.))

Hence, Palestine has become a battleground between the forces of light and darkness, between reason and madness, brutality and compassion, war and peace. With the emphasis upon these distinct pairs of opposites, it is easy to see the role of the Fourth Ray of Harmony through Conflict here, the ray that rules over Humanity.

Much of the karma lays with Western nations such as USA and Britain, in not acting when they had the opportunity after WWII. Writing post-Holocaust in 1947, just before Israel was created in 1948, The Tibetan comments:

“The test, as far as the nations are concerned, lies in their willingness to give refuge to the Jews, and such a refuge would have been offered if the partitioning of Palestine had been refused. The unwillingness of the nations to admit the Jews (though many have willingly offered), and particularly the refusal of the United States to admit them, is separative, wrong and based upon political expediency.

The test, as far as the United Nations is concerned, was whether they would endorse partition, and thus perpetuate the spirit of aggression and territorial greed, against which the Forces of Light were arrayed in the last war.”8

The forces of Zionism were very prominent and successful during this period of the late 1940’s when Israel was created – through an immediate war with all its Arab neighbours, hardly a good start for any nation, setting a permanent pattern of trouble:

“… the fight over Palestine – fomented by the Zionists, and not by the Jews as a whole – a fight in which the Zionists prevented the displaced Jewish persons (only 20% of the whole) from discovering how welcome they are in many countries throughout the world; a fight which has greed and not any love of Palestine behind it, and which is governed by financial interests and not by the humanitarian spirit which the Zionists claim and which would force them to accept the offers made by Great Britain, Canada, Chile, Belgium and many other lands.”9

With the hindsight of history, Israel was an artificial construct of Zionist ideology that abused many rules of right human relations, forcing themselves into the Middle East – and it has been paying the price ever since. It was not a nation that arose naturally and organically like rich cultures elsewhere.

Hamas and Israel’s “Terrorism” Excuse
Much of Israel’s creation was brought about through the (widely documented) terrorist activities of groups like the Irgun, facts that are conveniently ignored in the current crisis. Both Israel and Western nations like the USA, label Hamas a “terrorist organisation”, which it may well be.

However, the hypocrisy of this repeated mantra by world leaders, creates an historical amnesia. Modern media, with its need for instant gratification, fosters an attitude by the general public that will rarely go beyond, “Hamas is firing rockets at us”. No context is offered. Israel’s Mossad and USA’s CIA are well documented as sponsors of (c)overt terrorism, whose aim has been to destabilise the politics of various nations for many decades.

Hence, Hamas is a bastard child whose “mother is its father” – it was originally cultivated and encouraged by Israel. The suppression of Palestinian freedom and parsimonious squabbling over land is only part of the picture, an unfortunate side-effect or, to use a banal phrase, “collateral damage”, veiling other contributing factors to this conflict:

“According to several current and former U.S. intelligence officials, beginning in the late 1970’s [funding the Muslim Brotherhood from whence Hamas emerged], Tel Aviv gave direct and indirect financial aid to Hamas over a period of years. Israel “aided Hamas directly – the Israelis wanted to use it as a counter-balance to the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization),” said Tony Cordesman, Middle East analyst for the Center for Strategic Studies. Israel’s support for Hamas “was a direct attempt to divide and dilute support for a strong, secular PLO by using a competing religious alternative,” said a former senior CIA official.”10

Elsewhere, the Wall Street Journal printed a statement in 2009, from an Israeli official,

“Hamas, to my great regret, is Israel’s creation,” says a Tunisian-born Jew [Avner Cohen],who worked in Gaza for more than two decades. Responsible for religious affairs in the region until 1994, Mr. Cohen watched the Islamist movement take shape, muscle aside secular Palestinian rivals – and then morph into what is today Hamas, a militant group that is sworn to Israel’s destruction.”

Ironic. The conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians is also complicated by the fact that the two main Palestinian factions – Hamas and Fatah – are at odds with one another. Yet, in April 2014 Fatah and Hamas, “…announced a new reconciliation agreement which would see a unity government formed within five weeks, ahead of a presidential and parliamentary election within six months. … Benjamin Netanyahu said that world leaders should not rush to recognise the new government, calling Hamas a terrorist organisation that is committed to the destruction of Israel. The Palestinian PM’s office issued a statement denouncing Netanyahu’s words as intended to continue Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.”11

As a rejoinder to Netanyahu’s remarks, observers have stated, “Israel is a terrorist organisation that is committed to the destruction of the Palestinians.” Several respected commentators concur with the Palestinian PM’s view; they believe it is a deliberate ploy by Israel because Fatah have now accepted Hamas, working toward a united front that will have much more leverage with Israel and other Western nations.

It is thought however, that because Israel is pushing for more and more territory, it will not negotiate with “Hamas terrorists”, hence will not negotiate with the united Palestinian factions as a whole, perpetuating an endless cycle of violence, with no peace in sight.

Is it really that simple, the Israelis do not want peace because of their hunger for land? Noted Israeli journalist for Haaretz newspaper, Gideon Levy, says in his article, Israel Does Not Want Peace:

“The single most overwhelming item of evidence of Israel’s rejection of peace is, of course, the settlements project. From the dawn of its existence, there has never been a more reliable or more precise litmus test for Israel’s true intentions than this particular enterprise.

In plain words: The builders of settlements want to consolidate the occupation, and those who want to consolidate the occupation do not want peace. That’s the whole story in a nutshell … it is impossible to accept construction in the territories and the aspiration to peace as mutually coexisting.

Every act of building in the settlements, every mobile home and every balcony, conveys rejection … Rejectionism is embedded in Israel’s most primal beliefs. There, at the deepest level, lies the concept that this land is destined for the Jews alone.”12

This is a good example of Israel’s Taurus personality, in its lower expression: acquisitive for land and material goods – reinforcing the existing ancient Jewish stereotype, that has been a source of racial persecution and malignment for thousands of years.

Taurus is the golden calf that the children of Israel fell down before and worshipped in ancient times. Therefore, Israel is doing itself no favours in the eyes of the world by compounding this ancient habit; it affirms a notorious reputation that plays right into the hands of anti-Jewish hate groups; it distorts the picture for a large proportion of the world’s Jewish population who are not driven by these ancient habits.

Land-grabbing is based upon fear, greed and the survival themes of sacral centre consciousness. The antidote is of course, the withdrawal of fear into the magnanimity of the fiery heart. If Israel could cultivate a little generosity, its problems would soon evaporate.

The Palestinians have been manipulated so calculatingly and cunningly, corralled like animals in refugee camps without basic infrastructures. The ironic comparison of the Jewish Warsaw ghetto in WWII has been made many times.

When these infrastructures are rebuilt, they have been systematically and periodically vandalised by Israel, bombarded and deliberately wrecked – as in the latest civilian massacres at two UN shelters in Gaza; who can blame the Palestinians from wanting to salvage some self-respect and pride by responding with rockets – crude and ineffective as they may be? Gideon Levy again comments:

“Israel has never, not for a minute, treated the Palestinians as human beings with equal rights. It has never viewed their distress as understandable human and national distress.”13

Hatred has bred a deeper hatred. Hamas allegedly teaches children to hate and to kill Jews. (See this shocking short video from Hamas TV.) Both sides must take responsibility for these deplorable developments that will condition future generations; and to stop playing the blame game, something that Israel is well-versed in. Noted Israel-Palestine commentator, Jonathon Cook, says:

“… neither Israelis nor Palestinians can claim to be above a culture of hate. As long as Israel’s belligerent occupation continues, their lives together in one small patch of the Middle East will continue to be predicated on bouts of violent confrontation.”14

Hamas and Khalad Meshal
Hamas developed from the Muslim Brotherhood, but was really “born” during the first Intifada in 1987: “… a Palestinian uprising [in the Jabalia refugee camp] against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories, which lasted from December 1987 until 1993 …”15

Note the stellium of planets in idealistic Sagittarius, known for its militancy and fundamentalism. However, probably more importantly is the conjunction of Mars and Pluto in Scorpio – the two rulers of this sign are closely conjunct – square to Black Moon in Leo. Here lies Hamas’ determination and perseverance – and its ruthlessness in sacrificing its own to achieve its goals. Their hatred and loathing of Israelis has developed from years of manipulation and abuse, domination and control.

Note also, that this Mars-Pluto conjunction in Scorpio, is in a very close square to Israel’s Moon-Pluto conjunction in Leo. If ever there was a clash of ideologies, a clanging of forces related to the past and the collective lower self, there it is!

The current leader of Hamas is Khalad Meshal, a son of Ramallah and smart Gemini physics graduate, who survived a poisoning attempt ordered by Netanyahu through Mossad in 1997.

Meshal has Mars in Aquarius opposite Jupiter-Pluto in Leo, T-square to Saturn in late Scorpio, falling upon Israel’s Mars in Leo, square its midheaven in Scorpio – amazing astrological synastry. Meshal must be a sharp thorn in Israel’s side – tactical, aggressive, militant, with an unbending and resolute will.

Transiting Saturn in Scorpio’s Influence Upon Israel
Let us now pick up from the first transit discussed earlier,
1. Transiting Saturn in Scorpio square Saturn in Leo.

(Also, see here for a broader discussion of Saturn in Scorpio.)

2. Transiting Saturn in Scorpio opposition Israel’s Taurus Sun
Saturn will soon make its final opposition to Israel’s Taurus Sun by October 2014, finishing an eight-month period that began in February 2014. The Sun represents Israel’s identity and apart from being the brilliant “mother of illumination”, Taurus is known for being fixed and stubborn.

Saturn is a potent agent in the life of the Jewish people. The combination of transiting Saturn opposite the Taurus Sun has evoked some of the worst elements of the Israeli personality, as mentioned earlier – avoiding peace because of the settlement expansions into Palestinian land.

3. Transiting Saturn conjunct Israel’s midheaven and square Mars in Leo
Transiting Saturn goes back and forth across Israel’s Mars-ruled, Scorpio midheaven for much of 2015, exactly squaring natal Mars in Leo, in early December 2014 – and then June, July, August, September of 2015, bringing this nation into even greater prominence in the global community.

If Israel has been working diligently at its dharma, then Saturn transiting over its Scorpio midheaven can bring due reward. If not, two things might occur: (1) A huge fall, similar to President Nixon’s Watergate, when transiting Pluto crossed his midheaven. (2) A desperate, radical and forceful action, such as resorting to a nuclear exchange of some kind – or trying to start a regional war with someone like Iran – that could lead to a greater war. Israel is believed to have hundreds of nuclear warheads and is the world’s fourth largest arms exporter.

Mars rules weaponry of all kinds, we can see its role so clearly as the God of War – as the ruler of the outgoing sixth ray of Devotion and Idealism, the astral body etc.

As Israel’s unintegrated Mars rules the ninth house of foreign affairs and is closely square Israel’s midheaven, notoriety will most likely prevail for this recalcitrant nation, regarded as becoming a “pariah state”.

Indeed, “terrorist state” has been the most recent epithet applied to Israel by several South American countries, recently cutting ties over the latest Gaza crisis. With huge demonstrations occurring in many cities around the world now, the groundswell of public opinion will probably build up to full pressure – when transiting Saturn is aspecting Israel’s midheaven, on the dates given above. Here will be an opportunity for the United Nations and other individual nations to build upon this surge, calling Israel to account.

The midheaven angle of the horoscope concerns public perception and Israel has not been endearing itself to the community of nations, having succumbed to significant recent boycotts from companies in Europe and elsewhere. Hence, the economic pressure will no doubt continue, as an humanitarian and moral reminder.

Israel will pass through a burning ground that will only be successfully negotiated if it can surrender to itself; it must drop the ancient siege mentality that has characterised its history for thousands of years; the myth of being the “chosen ones” that has created so much pride and separativeness; it must destroy this ancient thoughtform that imprisons it, whose virulent poison contaminates the entire region.

4. Transiting Mars conjunct Israel’s Scorpio midheaven
This is a short term cycle that will occur in mid September 2014, squaring natal Mars in Leo on September 11 (9/11 anniversary) and hitting the midheaven on September 13; perhaps this transit will provide a preview of the aforementioned longer term Saturn cycle in point #3 above.

Of course, these transits will closely affect Meshal’s horoscope and probably raise his public profile. Transiting Mars in Scorpio also signals Hamas’ Mars in Scorpio return – during the Leo full moon period, by August 12. Likewise, transiting Mars will transit through Scorpio for the next six weeks, triggering many positions of the fixed cross – for all entities concerned.

Hence, sorry to say, there is a very real possibility of an even greater conflict than the world is already witnessing. The instability created is threatening to spread into a wider regional conflict, with the potential to radicalise more Muslims, increase hatred and usher greater power to groups like ISIS and Al Qaeda.

The solution? Above all, for Israel to truly realise its soul purpose embodied in the Aquarius rising horoscope16, it must cultivate a magnanimity, a generosity, goodwill and spirit of sharing that could see it become a shining example of community and co-operation in the world.

The Aquarian soul ruler is Jupiter, placed in its own sign of Sagittarius in the eleventh house, a perfect placement for it to fulfill this possible destiny. Hence the importance of all the upcoming Jupiter transits.

5) Transiting Jupiter hitting all Israel’s Leo planets
The saving grace for the dire line-up of trying transits, will be Jupiter’s passage through Leo. Yet, as described previously, Jupiter has the capacity to magnify arrogance and pride. It all depends upon the vehicles of responsiveness and spiritual development of any entity.

Nevertheless, benevolence may prevail – may Mighty Jove bring all parties back to the heart! This transit has multiple hits on all of Israel’s Leo placements from August 2014 until August 2015. (See earlier table for dates.) The main danger period will be from early September 2014 to late May 2015.

In light of all the aforesaid, this seems like an almost impossible task, pie in the sky idealism. These transits are however, capable of bringing Israel to the point of making a wise choice. The weight of public opinion will keep the pressure up and circumstances might change.

Phillip Lindsay © 2014.
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This newsletter is dedicated to our friend, co-worker and astrologer, Lawson Bracewell (1943-2014), who recently passed on his Jupiter in Leo return – great timing Lawson, you are missed, brother!

 

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1. Songs to Varuna, Phillip Lindsay. [↩]
2. Dickinson (1995), pp. 123–124. [↩]
3. Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey. p.292. [↩]
4. Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey. p.292-3. [↩]
5. A Treatise on White Magic, Alice A. Bailey. p.633. [↩]
6. Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey. p. 299. [↩]
7. Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey. p. 300. [↩]
8. The Rays and the Initiations, Alice A. Bailey. p.636. [↩]
9. The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, Alice A. Bailey. p.615. [↩]
10. United Press International reported in 2002. [↩]
11. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatah%E2%80%93Hamas_conflict [↩]
12. http://iajv99.wordpress.com/2014/07/07/gideon-levy-israel-does-not-want-peace/ [↩]
13. http://iajv99.wordpress.com/2014/07/07/gideon-levy-israel-does-not-want-peace/ [↩]
14. http://www.jonathan-cook.net [↩]
15. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_intifada [↩]
16. Set for when its declaration of May 14 became legal at midnight, May 15. [↩]