Clive Sinclair (1940 – 2021)

“Once you start to make machines that are rivalling and surpassing humans with intelligence, it’s going to be very difficult for us to survive. It’s just an inevitability.”

~ Sir Clive Sinclair

Inventor Sir Clive Sinclair died just over a week ago, and what a character he was!  His life and career were full of ups and downs, but he was inventing up until he died, at the age of 81.

Birth Chart

We have no birth time for Clive, but the picture we have from a Noon chart is quite vivid and apt.  He had 6 (over half) his planets in the Fixed signs, and was known to be stubborn – how else could he have brought his whacky inventions into birth?  His Sun was in Leo, the sign of Creativity, and squared Jupiter so he had a sense of adventure (and risk: he was a poker player).  But Jupiter in his chart was conjunct Saturn, so he had his failures as well as successes, and was hamstrung at times.  The Sun in his chart was also conjunct Pluto, so his character was also deep, and perceptive in terms of what he felt was needed in society.  What gave him specifically an Inventor’s Mind was Mercury (mind) exactly sextile Uranus (invention).  Mercury was also closely conjunct Chiron, a problem-solving conjunction: he may often have started with a problem to solve.  Added to that the inspiration of Mercury sextile Neptune, and the depth of thought of Mercury conjunct Pluto, and you have a unique mindset.  His Mercury was placed in Gemini, which is already a busy condition for the mind, and he earned his stripes and an honorary presidency at Mensa with an I.Q. of 159.  He has a generally well-aspected Neptune, a trine and two sextiles, making him a visionary, but with Venus square Neptune, he had two marriages, which did not last, but his first marriage produced three children.  Without a birth time, we cannot look at his 7th House of Marriage.  Mars squaring Jupiter gave him an over-the-top enthusiasm, which an inventor would need.  At the same time,  Mars squared Saturn from the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction – also bringing in some caution.  The enthusiasm in this combination probably won out, as with his stand-out failure, the electric car, he implied he had been too hasty in his timing as January was not a good month to launch something which required the use of the battery (it might have stood a better chance later in the year, as the battery was not suited to cold weather).  But Uranus trine Neptune gave him the ability to work with complexity.

Life and Career

Unsurprisingly, Clive came from a family of engineers, and both his father and grandfather had worked at the shipbuilders Vickers.  During the war, the family home  near Richmond was  destroyed by bombing.  Clive was not overly interested in academia, but excelled in mathematics and physics, and began inventing from an early age (at 21 he founded Sinclair Radionics Ltd.).  In 1972 he produced the first electronic pocket calculator.  In 1980 most notably he produced the hugely successful ZX80, the first home computer.  A member of my family was training in computers at the time, and bought a model!  So we had one in the family, but of course it didn’t do much!  It was very basic, requiring a television and a cassette.   He was knighted in 1983, for his pioneering work.  In that year, his Progressed Sun was trine Jupiter (awards and honours).

The failure which dented his record most adversely, was the Sinclair Vehicles C5 battery electric vehicle, in 1985.  He was subsequently forced to sell his computer company to Alan Sugar.  Ironically, he himself disliked using the Internet or email, and used a slide rule rather than a calculator.  He viewed having technical and mechanical things around him as a distraction from the invention process.

An interesting and lively Soul, and a rare talent.

“I never feel, my God, that’s the end of the world, I just get on with the next stage.  I am not a businessman by nature…I certainly have no desire to be hugely rich:…”

~ Sir Clive Sinclair

Aspects

Today, the Sun is trine the North Node, which augurs well if you are trying to straighten out your karma! It can help you to stay on the right track.  Clarity emerging can throw up creative avenues and karmic insights.  It is good preparation for the impending onset of Mercury Retrograde.

As just promised, tomorrow (Monday 27th) brings Mercury to a stationing position, prior to turning retrograde, and we have to take in our stride the rigorous routine which Mercury Retrograde entails.  As usual this would be for a three week period, in this case until 18th October.  This of course, may herald difficulties in communication.  We may need to upgrade our technology during the next three weeks, and we will need to practice mindfulness and stay alert for misunderstandings.  Mercury Retrograde in Libra benefits the highlighting and resolving of old relationship problems, and bringing equality, fairness and justice to problems of that nature.

Venus trines Neptune on Wednesday (29th) which is always a serene planetary dance.  Dance is one of the art forms enhanced by this trine, and we are now well and truly in the pleasure season of Strictly Come Dancing.  Whatever your art form, it can be enhanced, and if you are an observer there is the great enjoyment in being an audience.  In relationship, there is a potential for spiritual bonding.

In the evening, the Sun trines Saturn, which is a more down to earth aspect, but you may still be able to incorporate some of the sensitivity, inspiration and spirituality of the earlier trine, and two trines in one day is a blessing.  Sun trine Saturn is a solid and productive aspect.  If you are engaged in creativity, it can help ensure that it works on a practical level.  Simplifying your plans, or making economies, may make them more workable. This is especially useful to bear in mind if you own a business, and are considering staffing and resources.  One solid step at a time, and one day at a time.  By the end of the day, you may feel that you have honoured more than one area of your life.

There’s a square on Thursday (30th), but probably the most benign square of the year: Venus square Jupiter, composed of the “greater and lesser benefic”.  It occurs in the last hour of the evening, so some of the afterglow of Wednesday’s trines may still be operational.  Venus square Jupiter is a very social and sociable aspect, but can be gauche, awkward, or inappropriate.  Social non-conformists won’t care, but conformists may lament the lack of sticking to the rules.

Friday (1st October) brings an opposition between Mars and Chiron, which may be tricky.  This can highlight wounds, mainly of the psychological kind.  Something may be flagged up for you to heal.  Perhaps a longstanding misunderstanding in the family, especially concerning the male of the species.  We may be surprised to hear how deeply someone feels about an issue, which might hitherto have been hidden.  We can only start to address something which has emerged in consciousness and awareness, so can thank Chiron for that process.

By lunchtime, our attention may be drawn to another issue (or a different facet of the same issue), with a square between Mercury and Pluto, highlighting analytical and psychological nuances.  You may be asked to take stock.   You may encounter awkward communications or travel.  Some ‘me space’ could enable the depth of thought you need to see things clearly, and put your priorities in order.  There could be some slight mental strain, e.g. some issues you have been able to put to the back of your mind during the day, but start to impinge.  A spot of meditation could help get things into perspective. 

Some balm arrives on Saturday (2nd), and not just the surface brush of a dock leaf, for Venus sextile Pluto has the capacity to get to the root of the problem, be it Love and/or Money, both of which are represented by aspects of Venus and Pluto.  It could be a time of difficult but rewarding soul searching with loved ones.  In finance, there could be hard won but satisfying bargaining and balancing.  If you are an artist or musician, you could take a step further in your art, and deepen the value and content of the material you are working with.

The week in bullet points:

  • Today – straightening out karma
  • Tomorrow – communications disrupted
  • Wednesday – a serene dance; and a practical proposition
  • Thursday – awkward, but hopefully no harm done
  • Friday – highlighting wounds for healing; challenging mental processes
  • Saturday – getting deeper satisfaction
Date: Sep 26th, 2021 · Comments RSS · Tags: Obituary