Chinese New Year Predictions for 2008 Part 2
February 8, 2008

by Malvin Artley		print version
		print version (graphics)

"There is a coherent plan in the universe, though I don't know what it's a plan for."
Sir Fred Hoyle, astronomer

Greetings, my Friends!

What in the world are we all doing—and what are we all doing in the world? It is a question I have asked myself many times, especially over the years of this decade. Given the fact we are beginning a new cycle—this is both a Rat Year and a “1” year in numerology—it seems entirely appropriate to ask the preceding question of myself and for all of us yet again, for so many of you have related to me that you feel a need for a fresh look at things or for life to be different somehow.

I recently attended a teaching session given by the local Rinpoche* here in Adelaide (I say that with all veneration, love and gratitude—the man is held in very high regard in the world of Buddhism) and he was speaking on the realization that we have but a short time in this blessed life we have been given, and that we should tend to our practice today as if we had little time left to live. Basically, he was giving teaching about the impermanence of life and the fact that we all-too-often blithely go about our business never giving any thought to the fact that our lives can be changed irrevocably or ended in an instant, rendering all of our fond plans as so many leaves in the wind.

If that were to be the case and we knew that we could have done so much better at life spiritually, what shape, then, would our succeeding life/lives take if we had this brilliant opportunity and squandered it in pointless activity?Rinpoche’s main point was that we should live now as if we were planning a trip, taking every care that when we reach our destination we would have a brilliant vacation (much better life the next time around).

Of course, I am ‘westernizing’ what Rinpoche said and he certainly put it more eloquently, but that was the gist of his message on that day. Kind of makes you sit up and think, you know? People talk a lot about ‘living in the moment’, but give little care to think that every isolated moment leads to a conclusion of some sort down the track, as it were. What merit is there in what I/we do in a day-to-day, moment-to-moment basis? That is the basic question, especially if we look at the whole idea of New Year’s resolutions and taking a fresh look at life at the beginning of each year.

Questioning our daily activities in that manner really brings one’s thoughts to a fine point of focus and essentializes one’s life very quickly. We want the best possible outcome at the end of our days here (and in every day, for that matter) for ourselves and for those whom we love, do we not? All this is not to say that our lives should be strictly about work. Even Geshes need a break occasionally. (Ed note: Geshe is an academic degree for Buddhist scholars.)

It seems appropriate and auspicious that I should re-institute my regular letters to you at the start of the lunar New Year, and in a Rat Year on top of that since the Rat begins the cycles in 4 Pillars Chinese astrology. It has been a while since my last regular letter and a lot has happened with me in the intervening period. I have made some good progress on the reason I took my sabbatical (the book), but in the larger scheme of things I think we can all see that the past months have seen a lot of changes on the world stage, too—a new government in Australia, the bursting of the housing bubble in the US with the whole sub-prime mortgage lending debacle, general financial instability on the world markets (begun by the ‘China Correction’ stock crash at the beginning of the Year of the Pig), the re-emergence of Russia as a super power after a period of relative quiescence, the resignation of Tony Blair, the fires in Greece, the crisis in Burma, Bhutto’s return and subsequent assassination in Pakistan, the writer’s guild strike in the US and the reunion of Led Zeplin (on a lighter note). The world and many people’s personal lives (thank you for those of you who have shared your stories with me) are still quite unsettled and the world stage will be that way for a while yet, especially over the next few years.

All in all, life ticks along, though, and experience is opening us to greater possibilities and the ‘coherent plan in the universe’ gradually unfolds in its own time and in its own way (Thank you, Sir Hoyle). Because of all that is going on—and there is quite a bit which will be revealed as the body of this letter unfolds—we will not be able to go into detailed explanations of various factors right now. I will give more detail in later letters as the need arises. Hopefully, however, what is set forth here will be clear enough to give you an overview of what is happening for those of you who are not astrologers. Aside from that, it is good to be back with you.

From the story in Part One about the Yellow Rat, we see that one of the main themes to be taken to heart this year is that there can very well be some sudden and complete changes in life (for the next two years, really) Note that the bold maroon-colored text in the story and the associated chart information outlines the key points for the year. There are good reasons to expect many changes this year, aside from the Chinese astrology and the instability in the world at large. In that vein, there are several key points in addition to the Chinese astrology that need to be addressed and enlarged upon in this letter because those point to factors that will condition the whole of the year, astrologically considered.

The first of these is that the year begins on an eclipse—a total, North Node solar eclipse on the 18^th degree of Aquarius, the symbol for which reads: “A man’s secret motives are being publicly unmasked.” We will get to the meaning of all that in due course. The other matter to be addressed is the fact that Pluto is now hovering around an Aries Point (the first degree of Cardinal signs—Capricorn in this instance) and will be activating that point for the whole of this year. Every time we have the activation of an Aries point by any of the outer planets (Saturn/Uranus/Neptune/Pluto), the field is ripe for big changes to occur on the world stage, especially if an eclipse has taken place on an Aries point in the few years preceding the contact.

Well, guess what? We had such an eclipse at 0 Libra (an Aries point) in September 2006. Now, normally planetary activations of eclipse points need to occur with either a conjunction or opposition of the transiting planet to the point in order to bring forth the full energy of the eclipse. We do not have a full-blown activation of the 2006 eclipse with Pluto, but since Pluto hovers around the square to that point the Mars trigger on 18 Aug 2008 could potentially bring some fireworks with it. Let us address the Feb 7 eclipse and Pluto, then, and we will see that the Western astrology does very much affirm what is given in the Chinese astrology for this lunar year.

Beginning with the eclipse, there are actually two to be considered here—the one that inaugurates this year and the Sept 2006 eclipse mentioned previously. The dynamics of the Feb 7 eclipse figure are of no great note except for a stellium including the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Neptune and Chiron. This eclipse will bring a lot of healing and insight along with it, as well as a fair amount of initial confusion and possible upheaval. However, as was stated, it is a North Node total eclipse, hence it is a particularly strong one (5 out of 5 on the rating scale). This one might rock your world if you have a planet or angle on or opposite 18 Aquarius. Other than that, the only activating planets are largely Mars and Jupiter, so this eclipse has more of a one-off emphasis.

There will be an activation of it by Mars on the 10^th of June this year, so we will see what that brings aside form the eclipse event itself. Really, to get the most from an eclipse, in a manner of speaking, you cannot go past a good outer planet activation. Without that sort of activation the eclipse energy is big at the time, especially if it is the significator of an event—as it is with the New Year—but past that its effects wane rather quickly and it never really gets “completed” by the outer planet. Since this one is a powerful eclipse, as we have seen, it will condition the whole of this year as a result. Mercury is the lord of the eclipse and it has particular significance for the US (Moon), UK (Venus), China (Pluto), Israel (Saturn), Iran (ASC), Iraq (ASC) and North Korea (Pluto). It is classed as a 10 North Saros series eclipse, which means that communications are a major emphasis for the year and that disquieting events can come into a person’s life via media or a young person. There is the likelihood that people can feel drained throughout the year off and on due to psychic causes as well.

For the US, the eclipse will affect the populace, mainland security, security issues in general and highlight governmental problems, especially with Pluto on the Aries point in the eclipse figure and since the eclipse falls on the US Moon. I see a lot of insecurity in the US this year. People are going to really have to take a close look at their basic needs and exactly what it is that helps them to feel secure and looked after. I do not see a huge financial collapse this year. The bigger ones will come in a couple of years or so. The economy will certainly be slower, however, and the general sense around the place will be one of uneasiness.

The elections will be particularly interesting, and I think you will find that by the time of the elections people will be after stability—not change. I would look for a Republican to be elected if that is the case. It would not surprise me in the least to see a moderate Republican in the oval office next year, so—looking at the trends and the undercurrent of the public emotion—that is my current thinking on the outcome of the election in the US. For those readers who would dearly love to see one of the Democratic candidates get the nod, sorry, but I have to call things like I see them. Unless something happens that completely puts the public off the Republican party, which is possible and which would be similar to what we had in Australia in our elections last year, and unless the candidate can stand for stability and security—of which the Republicans had a better track record pre-Bush—do not look for idealism to win the day in the US elections. 2008 will be a year in which some of the stark realities of people’s lives will hit home, not just in the US, but world-wide.

Venus activations (UK) by eclipses tend toward events that center around the financial sector, banking, entertainment and the fashion/cosmetics industry. I would look for a financial ‘event’ in the UK this year, although there could be some brilliant developments in film and media. Eclipses always portend change, and with a North Node eclipse the change is usually about a new impulse of some sort rather than an ending. Such eclipses tend to bring people together somehow, although the event surrounding the coming together can seem rather tumultuous at the time. Pluto activations (China/North Korea) tend toward events involving the underworld, atomic energy, reforms, riots, crimes, mining, renewal, shows of strength and force and purges.

These two countries—China and North Korea—are the wild cards in this eclipse picture. The whole scenario with North Korea has been very tense in recent years. Perhaps China will indicate the way for North Korea to reform itself and become a more meaningful member of the world community. Perhaps we will see major reforms of the mining industry in both countries. China has certainly had its share of mining disasters in recent times. Then there are the Olympics in Beijing.

So much can happen, and a lot of what does happen will depend upon financial pressures this year and in the years to come. The world is so volatile at the moment that we really cannot second-guess an outcome about anything. I will leave that more to the psychics. Israel’s basic structures and ways of doing things will be changed somehow this year. That is another country where I see deep insecurities arising this year. It need not be so, but change has been needed in that area of the world for a long time. This year completes a 60-year cycle for Israel. If the Palestinian question can be resolved in a manner beneficial to all, security throughout the world would be greatly helped and a possible disaster averted. Iraq and Iran are due for major change this year, too, with the eclipse on their respective horizons. What looms for them? Again, remember that there can be sudden reversals or changes and that existing orders can be overthrown. The UK can be a major force for good in all this. The US could as well, but she is going to have a lot of concerns at home for now.

At this point in time and since we have so little space here I cannot go into what might help various situations, such as what I see for the US, for instance. I do intend to address some of these things later, however, especially with an astrological overview of some of the major countries. I feel that it is time for that now, given the state of the world. We need to know the trend of what is to come so we can be prepared, at least as much as we can be. All I can do right now is to give the major indicators about the year to come, as I see them.

Continuing with the eclipses that condition this year, we have just had a look at the Feb 7^th event. Now we need to take a closer look at the 22 Sep 2006 eclipse. It was activated for the first time by Mars on 14 May 2007, at which time there was a breakdown in the coalition government of Fatah and Hamas in the Palestinian National Authority (15 May), after which massive fighting broke out in the Gaza strip. The Sun activations of the eclipse point brought the crackdown in Burma (22 Sep 2007 activation) and a huge bridge collapse in North Vietnam, which killed scores of workers. The 3 Mar 2007 Sun activation saw the chlorine bomb explosions in Baghdad, which injured hundreds, the seizure of British forces by Iran in disputed Iran/Iraq waters and the discovery of 8 human skeletons in Florida, later linked to a serial killer. The 21 Dec 2006 Sun activation brought an oil pipeline explosion in Nigeria, which killed 200, Libya’s sentencing of 5 Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor to death for knowingly infecting hundreds of Libyan children with AIDS, Shane Warne’s retirement from cricket, the sudden death of Turkmenistan’s dictator which gave grave fears of a power vacuum in the region, the execution of Saddam Hussein and eleven bombings in Bangkok just prior to the New Year. There is violence in this eclipse.

We should note that it was a total South Node, solar eclipse, too, which speaks of endings and disruptions. The Sun activations for this year are, again, on Set. 22 and Dec 21, with a Mars activation on Aug 18. And on the day of that actual eclipse itself?There was the crash of the Maglev train on a test track in Germany, killing 23 and injuring 10 and a coup d’etat in Thailand a few days before, presaging the event and setting the stage for the bombings in Bangkok in December of the next year with the Sun activation. So, watch for events on the dates listed for this year. Those events will bring endings and disruptions. The 22 Sep 06 eclipse will be ‘finished’ in spectacular fashion by Saturn and Uranus in 2010, most likely around Apr/May that year, with a precursor event in late October the year before. It has already proved itself as an eclipse to be watched in terms of the events it produces.

With the preceding paragraph, this is not to say that such eclipses are all gloom and doom. There were good things that happened around those dates, too. For instance, around the 15 May 2007 Mars activation the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad and the Moscow Patriarchate reunited, ending an 80 year schism, Nicolas Sarkozy became the president of the French Republic, ending the long-serving terms of the Chirac years, 2008 was declared the International Year of Languages by the UN General Assembly, and the ruler of Dubai donated 7.41 billion Euros to an educational foundation in the Middle East, making it the largest single charitable donation in modern history—an ending of ignorance for many, could we say? These were all endings and disruptions in a way, violent and non-violent, and each of them happened in a big way, we should note. These events in and of themselves give us some insight into what can happen when Aries points are activated by eclipse, progression or transit. Nothing is ever of small moment with an Aries point. With that in mind, it is time to have a look at Pluto and Capricorn and its stimulation of both the 0 Capricorn degree and the Sep 2006 eclipse.

A lot has been written in recent months in various forums, letters and articles about the ingress of Pluto into Capricorn, which took place for the first time in over 240 years on the 26^th of January this year. The last time it went into Capricorn was on 8 Jan 1762, finally leaving on 2 Dec 1778. Pluto will remain in Capricorn until 20 Nov 2024—just prior to the projected next dispensation of the Trans-Himalayan Wisdom Teachings (which is essentially Esoteric Buddhism) in 2025. Pluto’s ingress into Capricorn this time around thus marks a transitional period wherein the way is cleared for—well, who knows? In a way, we are entering what for many might be considered a ‘brave new world’ of sorts.

There is the much-vaunted date of 2012 on the horizon (Don’t leave town just yet, folks.), the looming recession that many people say cannot be avoided, the possibility (still) of a religious war that would be probably the biggest world disaster in modern history, the incredible advances in technology that have taken place since the computer age (instituted in a big way with Pluto in Sagittarius, by the way), the whole ‘green revolution’ and the crying need for the world to rely on some other source of energy other than oil. In all these things we see the seeds for what is bound to happen as Pluto passes through Capricorn—the destruction of old world orders and the birth of new ones. However, aside from the obvious outer considerations we have just seen, there is another more vital concern with Pluto in Capricorn—the educing of the Soul or higher Self in humanity at large for, more than any other sign, Capricorn governs the emergence of the Soul in humanity and Pluto’s work is always about clearing away obstructions to that emergence.

So, what happened the last time Pluto was in Capricorn? The slave trade was at its peak, we saw the dawning of the Industrial Revolution in England, the dawning of the American Revolution in the US, the seeds of the French Revolution being sown in France, the first use of a biological weapon (blankets infected with smallpox given to aboriginals in North America as a form of genocide. Don’t we ever learn?), the Cook voyages to New Zealand and Australia, the first submarine, and Mozart (who was a revolutionary in his own right). We also saw the invention of the first toothbrush during that time along with the invention of shoelaces (what did we ever do without those!?), just for a bit of trivia.

Basically, that period was a time of liberation from tyranny (Saturn, which rules Capricorn) of various sorts—the tyranny of the divine right of kings, colonial rule, the tyranny of hard labor for simple survival, the tyranny of distance (the first steam engines started to appear during that period) and the tyranny of many types of forms and methods that had persisted for too long. Mozart was a case in point, and he was a major force for change in the world of music, with much of his music being seen as a rebellion against the highly structured Baroque music of the preceding era (ending with Bach’s death in 1750). The great classical symphonies of the world began to emerge with composers like Mozart, although they did not begin to appear in a significant way until the last part of the 18^th century.
 
There were great pioneering efforts made by people during the Pluto in Capricorn period in the 1700s, though, and those efforts paved the way for what were to be sweeping changes in the entire world order in the decades to follow. The American Revolution, for instance, spelled the beginning of the end for European colonialism, even though the Revolution only took place at the end of the Pluto-in-Capricorn period. (I am particularly proud of the fact that North Carolina was the first colony to declare its independence from England. Go ‘Heels!)

One cannot examine astrological factors in isolation, however. There was an entire sub-text to the period when Pluto was in Capricorn in the 1700s as there will be in this period as well. In order to see the whole picture of that period we need to see what was happening with the other outer planets at the same time. Neptune is of special interest in that respect. There is an interesting dance that takes place between Neptune and Pluto with regard to the times when Pluto is in Capricorn. In reality, one cannot be considered without the other with regard to the two planets. Pluto is trapped by the gravitational pull of Neptune and is in synchronous orbit with it, as I have described in previous letters.

With all the talk of Pluto and revolution, then, there is a clearer sub-theme that emerges with all of Pluto’s work. Pluto, in my opinion, is the servant of Neptune. It clears the way for the revelation of Neptune and higher spiritual work. There is no progress in spirituality without a process of clearing away obstacles first. The two go hand-in-hand. Pluto could be seen as a sort of contractor who goes in ahead of Neptune and does the ground work in preparation. He readies the auditorium for the dispensation of Neptune, in a manner of speaking. There is so much I could say about this, but we have to move on.

In the years between 2008 and 2024 Neptune will be Aquarius and Pisces—world service and world salvation, resp. In the 1700s, Neptune was in Leo and Virgo—both of which are signs in which the unique divinity of the individual is realized, which is why we saw rebellion against the ‘Divine right of Kings’ in that period, for instance. We can get an idea for what will be revealed to us in the next 25 years or so by looking at what transpired in the period between 1516 to 1533. As it turns out, Neptune goes back and forth between the Aquarius/Leo axis every time Pluto goes into Capricorn.

Therefore, since Neptune is in Aquarius this time around, it was in the same place 482 years ago—two cycles of Pluto. There are two main ‘events’ that stand out in that period almost 500 years ago, namely the Reformation and the first circumnavigation of the globe by Magellan. The former was a radical reorganization of and rebellion against religious authority of the time (namely, the Catholic Church) and the latter was a radical new view of the world at the time. Basically, a whole new world was opened up to Europe. This was the period of the Spanish incursions into North and South America and the South Seas. Spain was in her heyday then. Neither the world nor organized religion has ever been the same since.

There are two distinct themes to be discerned from Pluto-in-Capricorn periods, then. When Neptune is in Leo/Virgo the rebellion/revolution brings about changes that benefit individual rights and development and material advancement, which was needed very much in the 1700s. When Neptune is in Aquarius/Pisces for the Capricorn sojourn of Pluto the rebellion/revolution takes place in the realm of universals and there is a distinct shift that takes place in humanity’s relationship with God and with the planet itself.

All the world religions will be strongly affected by the current sojourn of Pluto in Capricorn. There is also already a decided interest world-wide in the welfare of the planet itself, and not so much in the individual. Do we begin to get the picture? In the 1500s we discovered the wider world. What is left to explore or to transcend on the planet now? Still plenty, as it turns out, but the mind of humanity already ranges far beyond the atmosphere of this Earth. We have yet to fully explore the deepest reaches of our planet. We have just begun to go out into space. Who knows what willdevelop in the next 20 years? It has been said that the world’s religions will undergo transformation in the next decades and that a new religion will come. A universal religion—who knows? I can only give suggestions. I do know the human spirit, however, and any religious system that binds people to a narrow scope of belief, over-structures their lives or demands obeiscence solely to that path will almost certainly be challenged and probably changed in a profound way in the intervening years.

In all, people’s consciousness will be turned much more toward universal thought and action, even though we will still certainly have more than our fair share of self-serving people in the world. Whatever happens, the world as we know it will change probably very profoundly in the coming decades. I am not going to buy into the whole end-of-the-world-in-2012 scenario, space ships coming to Earth or human consciousness ascending into the realms of the spiritual masters overnight routine, but I think the world will be changed very significantly, nonetheless, and in some quite surprising ways. Capricorn does, after all, govern the emergence of the human soul. One can never second-guess the strange and wonderful actions of the human spirit.

This year thus marks a point of turning and change. We have been asking for it. We have felt it coming. Now that it is here, what will we make of it? So many people I have talked with speak of how they would like to change the way they work or have to do things. Saturn has been in Virgo over the last few months and will be there for the whole of this year. Virgo is precisely about how we do our work, and many of us need to make some serious choices about that. As I stated before, one cannot discuss astrological factors in isolation. The current ingress of Pluto into Capricorn saw Saturn fully into the sign Virgo and making a retrograde movement toward its direct station on the 3^rd of May at the second degree of the sign.

There were choices made by many of us in early September 2007 that are being re-examined now. Some things have worked, some have not. Saturn will be in that shadow period until mid-August, so the first half of this year is a period of reconsidering prior to moving forward. If you have made some choices that were perhaps not the best, then you have the chance over the next few months to bring circumstances back to a more proper state of affairs. Virgo also rules armies, too, and all modes of mandatory service. If there is to be major military action, aside from what is already going on throughout the world, I would look for it more toward mid-August and after. Saturn will be well and truly on the move then, and so will the world’s armies. Interestingly, Virgo rules conceit, as do the Sun and Mercury. Pluto and Saturn are both great ‘levelers’ when it comes to the human ego. We may well see some unmasked motives (re: the symbol for the Feb 7 eclipse) and some bruised and battered egos throughout the world. I have the strong sense that this year might have an underlying theme of lessons around humility running through it.

Finally, the last time Pluto was in Capricorn there was also a Granary Rat Year—1768. What happened then? James Cook set off on his voyage to the Pacific. That was the biggest single event of note. There were some famous people born in that year who would strongly influence human culture in decades to come—Francis II (the last Holy Roman Emperor), Jean Baptiste-Joseph Fourier (French mathematician famous in the world of physics. Good example of a Yellow Rat, he was.) and Dolly Madison, one of the more famous first ladies of the US. Not every cycle or period produces astounding results. The 1768 Rat Year was a case in point, although it did eventually give us modern Australia and New Zealand, once Cook had discovered them. Sometimes, however, planets and events conspire to give us events and people who make a big mark in the history books. When the year is done we will have a look back and see if what I have described in the previous pages of these letters proves out—that 2008 will be a major year in history, comparatively speaking. It is already off to a rather ominous start with the death of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (Remember him?) and several killer tornados in the south central US (22 dead so far as of this writing).

We live increasingly in a time of limitless human possibilities. We have communications in an instant now, and world-wide. Such a thing would have been undreamt of in the last Granary Rat Year, yet the very invention that made such communications possible was manifested during that year. As we spiral upwards (or is it out of control?) in the evolutionary process, each achievement is a stepping stone to the next. So it is with our own personal lives as well—or at least it can be if we are mindful enough.

In the years to come take a look at what you have done well, what you have learned well and see how that might define a process or a pathway toward something great in your life. Perhaps you will be or already are an example of greatness to others. I think you will find a clear path if you look. There is a mysterious ‘something’ that always draws us irresistibly down a given path. Hopefully we choose the right path. Whatever happens, though, that ‘something’ is always there. It is revealed to us in our highest passions, our most altruistic moments and in our deepest troubles. Yet, very often we fear its appearance or mistake something lesser for the real thing.

In this year, especially, take the time to sit by the path you have chosen, wait and watch. The truth you are after will appear. The trick is not to blink, be distracted or fall asleep when it appears. I hope you find it. I call it the human Soul, or higher Self. There are many names for it. If you do miss it this time, not to worry. Events will conspire, and it will always, eventually and inexorably find you. I hope you find your jewels. Happy hunting!

Blessings to you all this New Year!

Malvin

* http://www.tibetanbuddhistinstitute.org/index.htm for people in Adelaide, who are passing through or just interested. See also: http://www.buddhahouse.org
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Malvin Artley, Author & Esoteric Astrologer

Malvin Artley has been a practising astrologer for the past 10 years and is an accredited member of the American Federation of Astrologers. He is the author of "Bodies of Fire: An Exploration of the Lesser Chakra System". He has authored numerous articles and was a member of the faculty of the Universtiy of the Seven Rays, a non-profit organization dedicated to the teaching of the Trans-Himalaya tradition as expressed through the books of Alice Bailey, Helena Blavatsky and others. His primary focus over the past 25 years has been on the sciences as they express occultism and with bridging work between the two. His special interests are the human subtle energy system and all the chakras, or energy centres, physics and technology, astronomy and all aspects of Chinese occultism. He now lives in Adelaide, South Australia.

Check out Malvin's Archive at Satya Center for more articles. Email us at admin@satyacenter.com to reach Malvin with any requests or comments.

Photo of interstellar Eye of God from the Public Domain.
Photo of Drukchen Rinpoche in Alice Springs, Australia, 1991, by the Rinpoche from Wikimedia Commons.
Photo of pranayama instructor from the Public Domain.