Grand Cardinal Cross, Exact on 4/23/2014

It's pretty much impossible to be a professional astrologer and not throw my hat in the ring that is this upcoming major transit configuration, a Grand Cardinal Cross, involving Uranus in Aries, Jupiter in Cancer, Mars in Libra, and Pluto in Capricorn.  They will all be at 13 degrees on 4/23, forming a perfect partile (less than one degree orb) grand cross.  Others have written or spoken extensively on this upcoming event and I'm not going to try to add to the discussion in the usual way (links to various thought about this configuration are at the end of my entry).

What I thought might be interesting is to consider this grand cross using the Sabian and Fairchild symbols.  At this time, Uranus in Aries is square Pluto in Capricorn, which is opposed by Jupiter in Cancer, which squares back to Uranus in Aries, forming a powerful T-Square that will become the grand cross when retrograde Mars backs up to 13 degrees of Libra.  Mars is the "trigger man" of this configuration, which means some kind of aggressive or explosive action will likely set off the work of these energies.  While I am not ruling out a global event, I suspect there will be multiple events that may have lasting impact without necessarily turning things upside down on the day of or the days around the event.

The Uranus/Pluto square this month will be the 5th of 7 exact squares, with one more occurring on 12/15/2014 and the last one on 3/17/2015.  Like all previous Uranus/Pluto events, the square back in 1932 to 1934 and the conjunction in 1965 to 1966, monumental changes took place, setting up the next major cycle in human history.  We are living through the next phase of monumental change, being expressed through financial crisis, energy management, overpopulation, rapid technological advances,  and medical breakthroughs.  By 2018 the work of the last eight years will be fully activated and by 2024 (when Pluto exits Capricorn), the New World Order will be in place.

With each energy point between the 13th and 14th degree on 4/23, here are the Sabian interpretations nuanced for each point in sign.

• Uranus in Aries (13/14) - A serpent coiling near a man and woman; the key word is "revelation." When positive, we act with self-discipline; when negative, we act selfishly.  Uranus encourages us to act authentically and inventively.  As old institutions falter, creative and maverick thinking will be required to create the new paradigms humanity will need in the near and distant future.
•  Mars (retrograde) in Libra (13/14) - A moon siesta; the key word is "recuperation."  When positive, we act deliberately; when negative, we are apathetic.  Mars in Libra suggests a legal battle or battle of words, speaking more to the boiling currency war than the conflict like the one involving Russia's military.
• Jupiter in Cancer (13/14) - A very old man facing a vast dark space to the northeast; the key word is "sanction."  When positive, the proper enlistment of hidden or deep emotional elements need for success; when negative, chaos.  Jupiter in Cancer suggests expansion through caring, a vision of the earth as our home and in need of proper care taking.
• Pluto in Capricorn (13/14) - An ancient bas-relief carved in granite; the key word is "foundation."  When positive, old foundations give way graciously to new ones; when negative, meaningless limitations.  Pluto in Capricorn is the big player, suggesting an earthquake to all established institutions to create the necessary transformation to new, better goals for humanity.

These four energies challenge one another (revelation challenges sanction challenges recuperation challenges foundation; and revelation opposes recuperation and sanction opposes foundation).  Never more true is it than now to say, "the old ways need to be obliterated to create new space for new approaches.  Never has the discussion of the monetary system(s) been so active in the last 60 years.

With each energy point between the 13th and 14th degree on 4/23, here are the Fairchild interpretations nuanced for each point in sign.

• Uranus in Aries (13/14) - A walking stick; the key words are "balance, prestige, support, and power."  We must learn to walk authentically and "on our own" to a certain extent.  There will be a growing need for entrepreneurs of every ilk going forward as corporate capitalism falls more and more the weight of its own excess.
• Mars (retrograde) in Libra (13/14) - Crop circles; the key words are "embrace the Earth." We desperately need more laws protecting the environment, but instead we see more access to protected lands for resources and freewheeling where fracking is concerned.  These choices to plunder are likely to be the true trigger events in the coming months and years ahead.
• Jupiter in Cancer (13/14) - A small green frog on a tree branch; the key words are "the ordinary life can be a place of immense happiness."  Expansion of nurturing, caring energy; as well as a refocus on the family is needed to move our entire civilization forward. 
• Pluto in Capricorn (13/14) - A hawk with a snake in its beak; the key words are "we must grow and change to be lifted up spiritually."  Rapid changes, like the acceptance of gay marriage and now recreational marijuana herald a new era of openness that is firing up old institutions to attempt to keep the status quo in place.   

Links:

• http://astrostyle.com/april-grand-cross/
• http://darkstarastrology.com/grand-cross-2014/
• http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/horoscopes/grand-cardinal-cross-2014-transformation-challenge-article-1.1702883
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx3YavtH0nY