{"id":8729,"date":"2026-02-22T14:16:19","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T14:16:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.lanawooster.co.uk\/?p=8729"},"modified":"2026-02-22T14:28:50","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T14:28:50","slug":"aspects-for-the-week-beginning-22-february-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lanawooster.co.uk\/?p=8729","title":{"rendered":"Aspects for the week beginning 22 February 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jesse Jackson (1941 \u2013 2026)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/em><\/strong>Jackson\u2019s presence presents the American Republic with questions and choices it has spent all hits history until this hour trying to avoid\u2026And nothing will ever again be what it was before.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

~ James Baldwin, 1984<\/p>\n

Civil rights activist Jesse Jackson died this week, at the age of 84.\u00a0 He was a passionate, charismatic and assiduous promoter of his cause.\u00a0 He was the natural successor to Martin Luther King, and he helped pave the way for Barack Obama to become the first black American President.\u00a0 He was regarded as one of the most influential activists of his time.<\/p>\n

Birth Chart<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Jesse had the Sun in Libra: he was certainly passionate about Justice, and he strove for peace in various ways throughout his life.<\/p>\n

Straight away on looking at his birth chart (with a birthtime and Ascendant) three Archetypes pop up.\u00a0 The first is The Firebrand, mentioned in my Archetype series under Scorpio.\u00a0 He had his Midheaven (Careerpoint) in Scorpio.\u00a0 He had his Sun opposite Mars, indicating the Warrior Archetype.\u00a0 The Firebrand is a spin-off variety of the Warrior.\u00a0 His speeches had the conviction of fire and brimstone.<\/p>\n

He had the courage of the Warrior, and with Mars trine Chiron he was able to channel healing energy:<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was very brave and I have always tried to show a little of that courage.\u00a0 He taught me the importance of having principles and sticking to them.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

~ Diane Abbott<\/p>\n

The second Archetype is, as an ordained Baptist minister, the Religious figure: he had the Sun trine Jupiter (religion), Jupiter exactly square his Nodal Axis (religion was part of his karmic mission and challenge), and the Sun in the 9th<\/sup> House of Religion.\u00a0 With Neptune trine the Ascendant, on the 9th<\/sup> House side of the cusp, he was able to combine Religion with Spirituality.<\/p>\n

The third Archetype is the Orator, as depicted by his Mercury at the Midheaven in his 10th<\/sup> House of Work in the World.\u00a0 Even as a young man, he was part of a competitive public-speaking team, which was important enough for him to give up a sporting opportunity.\u00a0 Ewen MacAskill observes in the Guardian obituary that: \u201cOne of his strengths lay in his ability to deliver rousing speeches in the rhetorical style of southern preachers\u201d<\/p>\n

He had a sensitive and spiritual Moon trine Neptune\/North Node: a sensitivity and spiritual leadership as part of his karmic mission, delivering power to the people.\u00a0 The Moon was also loosely conjunct his I.C. in 4th<\/sup> House \u2013 the fundamental power of his emotion evoked in his speeches.\u00a0 Mercury square Pluto\/Chiron ensured that the speeches had the depth and passion of fire and brimstone.<\/p>\n

Venus exactly sextile Neptune showed that he was idealistic in relationships, though he may have regretted an affair later in life, whereby he fathered a sixth child out of wedlock, despite an enduring marriage (he married early in life, aged 21).\u00a0 Saturn conjunct Uranus in his chart was iconoclastic, bringing personal earthquakes in his life (none more so than the assassination of Martine Luther King).<\/p>\n

He had Saturn exactly trine Neptune \u2013 and so he was able to reconcile these two planets,\u00a0 which had in the same week as his death, come into a momentous conjunction: his work is done.\u00a0 He also had the ability to decode complexity, through Uranus closely trine Neptune.\u00a0 Pluto conjunct Chiron enabled him to confront harsh realities, especially those of his impoverished background and early segregated society.<\/p>\n

Life and Career<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Jesse was born in Greenville, South Carolina. His mother was 18, and his father was a married neighbour.\u00a0 He had both Cherokee and African American Slave ancestry.\u00a0 His mother married Charles Jackson a year after his birth, but he kept in touch with his birth father.<\/p>\n

He studied at A & T, a black university in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he took part in local civil-rights protests.\u00a0 After graduating with a B.S. degree in Sociology in 1964 at the age of 23, he began a course at the Chicago Theological Seminary, but left just before completing the course two years later, to concentrate on his participation in the civil rights movement.\u00a0 However, by 1968 he was ordained a minister.<\/p>\n

By this time, he was already working with Martin Luther King (and learning the power of oratory!).\u00a0 The tie between them is tight astrologically: Jesse Jackson\u2019s Ascendant at 25 degrees Capricorn was exactly conjunct Martin Luther Kng\u2019s Sun.\u00a0 That is a perfect depiction of Jesse\u2019s implementation and manifestation (Ascendant) of the spirit of King\u2019s work (Sun). He took part early on in their partnership in marches with him, and King entrusted him with an economic project Operation Breadbasket.\u00a0 In this capacity, Jackson encouraged boycotts by black consumers to pressure white businesses to hire blacks.<\/p>\n

Martin Luther King was assassinated on 4th<\/sup> April 1968.\u00a0 The transits for Jesse were:-<\/p>\n

Pluto on his natal North Node, a significant and karmic death in his life<\/p>\n

Saturn opposite his natal Sun, the loss of a significant male figure in his life<\/p>\n

Mars square to his natal Pluto in Leo in his 7th<\/sup> House, violence to a partner figure and leader<\/p>\n

The transits for Martin:_<\/p>\n

Pluto square to his natal Mars, the ultimate violence<\/p>\n

Jupiter trine his natal Saturn in 8th<\/sup> House, a release leading to martyrdom<\/p>\n

Mars transiting his natal Chiron in 12th<\/sup> House of Hidden Enemies<\/p>\n

Understandably, Jesse went off the rails slightly, in the aftermath of this tragedy.\u00a0 He made claims of his own heroism such as in cradling Martin Luther King at the scene, claims which were disputed, and tarnished his reputation temporarily.\u00a0 But he was nevertheless the natural successor to his mentor.<\/p>\n

In 1969 he was preaching racial reconciliation.\u00a0 He took the view that in entering a coalition with whites, they could mutually tackle economic and class problems:<\/p>\n

“When we change the race problem into a class fight between the haves and the have-nots, then we are going to have a new ball game”<\/em><\/p>\n

In 1983 he decided to enter politics, and run for the 1984 presidential election, almost an unprecedented initiative in the black community.\u00a0 He did not get far in the contests and process, but did better in his bid in 1988, becoming runner-up to Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis.\u00a0 As mentioned, he paved the way for Barack Obama twenty years later \u2013 he famously wept in the crowd when the latter was elected.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough the Rainbow\/Push Coalition, he brought together black voters, organized labour, small farmers, peace activists and others into something that looked like a genuine social democratic bloc.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

~ <\/em>Bhaskar Sunkara, President of The Nation, a progressive monthly American magazine<\/p>\n

The Rainbow\/Push Coalition grew out of Jesse Jackson\u2019s 1984 presidential campaign.<\/p>\n

During the first Gulf War (1990\/1) he negotiated with Saddam Hussein in Baghdad for the release of captives from various nations, and in this was highly effective.\u00a0 He was fulfilling the potential of his Sun in Libra diplomacy.<\/p>\n

He supported LGBT rights, declaring: “No more homophobia. Let\u2019s respect people, protect people. Everyone is somebody”.<\/p>\n

During the 1990s he worked with the Clinton administration, and acted as spiritual adviser to Bill Clinton during the scandal of the Monica Lewinsky affair.\u00a0 Jesse Jackson meant a lot to both the Clintons, and they posted an affectionate tribute this week.<\/p>\n

In November 2017 he was diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s disease.\u00a0 At the time he had Uranus square his Ascendant from 3rd\/4th House cusp in Aries, and Pluto square his natal Mars, both indicators of severe physical stress.<\/p>\n

I have always been fascinated by Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson, and the civil rights movement, including the more recent Black Lives Matter movement (2013).\u00a0 I celebrated the achievement of Barack Obama gaining two terms of office as U.S. President (2009 \u2013 2017).\u00a0 But, sigh, there still seems a long way to go\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cJesse told me that sometimes when you lose, or think you have lost, you have in fact won \u2013 because you have paved the way for others to follow.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

~ Simon Woodley, Principal of Homerton College, Cambridge<\/p>\n

Aspects<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Last week did seem to be a Watershed week, glimpses of a turning point for some, and especially for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, with the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten.\u00a0 Much has been made of his karma coming back to him with the Eclipse close to his Sun at 0 degrees Pisces (in old textbooks, the sign is known as the \u201csign of self-undoing\u201d).\u00a0 The Eclipse actually fell on his natal Chiron in his 7th<\/sup> House.\u00a0 Chiron was also on his Midheaven at the time (righting a wrong in connection with his reputation).\u00a0 I feel that Chiron (the planet of Solutions) had as much to do with it.<\/p>\n

On to this week, and today!\u00a0 Mars is sextile Chiron.\u00a0 Benefits can accrue through the unclogging of stuck energy.\u00a0 This aspect may see you on a healing mission of some sort.\u00a0 Compassionate action may be the tone of the day, a day where physicality combines dynamically with healing.\u00a0 A hug or demonstration of affection may be just what’s needed.\u00a0 Note that with Jesse Jackson\u2019s trine<\/em> between Mars and Chiron he was able to channel healing energy.\u00a0 A sextile energy is slightly weaker than a trine, but there is no doubt that some of Jesse\u2019s passion came from this positive connection.<\/p>\n

This evening Venus trines Jupiter, which is one of the brightest trines of the year (if not, the brightest).\u00a0 Something may provide you with a richness of heart.\u00a0 Venus with Jupiter is so very social, and can be romantic too.\u00a0 It’s an aspect to savour and enjoy.\u00a0 Proposals and engagements often occur under this combination.<\/p>\n

On Thursday (26th<\/sup>) Mercury in Pisces is Stationary prior to turning Retrograde.\u00a0 Most people will see this as an alert to take good care of their communications for the three-week period.\u00a0 Pisces is notoriously fuzzy when it comes to the crispness of communications, so misunderstandings could abound.\u00a0 The upside of Mercury in Pisces is that psychic awareness is heightened, but there is the possibility of being caught up in the astral realms!<\/p>\n

So for a constructive and positive perspective, I always turn to \u201cThe Mercury Retrograde Book\u201d by Yasmin Boland and Kim Farnell.\u00a0 They say that Retrograde Mercury in Pisces \u201cWe have a longer time to focus on the mystical\u2026.Spending your time on hobbies that don\u2019t involve your rational mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mercury goes Direct again on March 20th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Friday (27th<\/sup>) brings an awkward square between Mars and Uranus.\u00a0 It can be hair raising, explosive or brittle.\u00a0 So it is advisable to chill out, and urge others to do so, and hope the message radiates.\u00a0 This square can also be accident-prone, so if you are out riding your bike, make sure your helmet is firmly held on.\u00a0 There may be some escalation of aggression in the current wars.\u00a0 <\/strong>Don\u2019t waste your time or energy on pursuits which are tricky.<\/p>\n

But the week ends on a mellow note of Mercury conjunct Venus at 22 degrees Pisces, on Saturday (28th<\/sup>).\u00a0 After a possibly jagged Friday, this congenial conjunction may be a welcome balm.\u00a0 It could bring some happy socializing, with great conversations.\u00a0It is perfect for cafe culture, ideal for artistic or literary endeavours, or negotiations (which may have fallen by the wayside the previous day).\u00a0 Your communications will have an artistic flair, so it’s a good time to get creative.<\/p>\n

The week in bullet points:<\/p>\n