An ingress chart is drawn up at the time that the sun moves into a new sign, at the start of one of the 4 seasons. The Aries Ingress, in late March at the Spring Equinox, is considered in mundane astrology (mundane meaning, astrology having to do with world and political matters) to set the tone for the coming year.
This is the Aries Ingress, Spring Equinox chart, for Washington, DC.
(credits – this chart was drawn up using Astrolabe Solar Fire.)
If this sets the tone for the United States for the coming year… we have a challenging time ahead of us, folks.
We have Saturn rising in the first house, in ‘peacemaker’ Libra, where Saturn is exalted, and tends to have an exaggerated sense of his own importance. The US has a sense of responsibility to be peacemaker to the world.. whether the world wants it or not.
Saturn is conjunct the Moon, symbol of the common people in mundane astrology. So ordinary people are under the shadow of Saturn’s exaggerated authority here, and probably aren’t being listened to. Also, with the Moon under Saturn’s shadow, there is no emotional vulnerability, no softness shown. Expect more calls for ordinary people to make sacrifices in the name of our country’s responsibility to the world.
Right on the cusp of the 7th house, opposite the Ascendant, you have the Sun and eccentric rebel Uranus conjunct in the fiery and impatient sign of Aries. So the US is polarized over against individuals or groups who view themselves as fighters for individual freedom.
That combination could get violent. At the very least it will get impatient. This is not a good chart for sympathetic and reasoned discussion.
Mars, the symbol for the military, is in the 6th house which is also related to military service – but mars is in watery, disorganized, weak and unmotivated Pisces – hard at work, but spread out, not very effective, possibly demoralized.
The sixth house is also related to illness and health care, so the 3 planets (Mars, Sun, Uranus) plus Part of Fortune there could be related to the ongoing polarized debate on health care reform. I expect that to stay a hot issue for quite awhile, with little constructive debate, and a lot of desire to tear things down.
Over in the 7th house, of direct relationships with our friends and our open enemies, we have Jupiter and Mercury conjunct – also in impatient Aries – expansive efforts at communication and diplomacy, but in tense opposition to Saturn in the first. Attempts at diplomacy, but with a lot of pressure behind them.
And finally, down at the very bottom of the chart, we have Pluto, force for long term transformation, – probably related to deep and long-term forces of change at work in the heart of America, in Capricorn, related to economics, big business, the financial and industrial infrastructure of our country. Serious long-term change at work, having to do with bringing issues to the surface that have been at work for a long time.
This is a tense, restless, polarized chart. I don’t see a lot of self-awareness or patience here, but I do see a lot of stress for change, and things being stretched thin. Expect tempers to be short, and look for a lot of polarization, of us and them, of adversary politics and blaming, both in our domestic politics and in international affairs.