Medusa, Algol, and the RNC
Current events in light of the Mars/Uranus Conjunction
Mars and Uranus make a conjunction every two years, but today they are also making a conjunction with the star Algol. Located in the constellation Perseus, Algol is known as the head of Medusa. This star is associated with atrocities, betrayal, vengeance, and beheadings, but in the 21st century this can also manifest as variations of head trauma. In order to understand where these grisly connotations come from, we can look to its origins in Greek mythology.
There are many variations of the Medusa myth, but in one of the most prominent versions she does not start life as a gorgon. She is a young woman at first, serving in the temple of Athena. When the god Poseidon rapes Medusa (violating both her and the sanctity of the temple), Athena wants revenge. But rather than enacting it upon the perpetrator, she enacts it upon the victim. She transforms Medusa into a monster whose gaze can turn people to stone. Later, Athena adds insult to injury by helping the hero Perseus cut off Medusa’s head. He then uses the head to turn his enemies into stone.
To modern eyes, this story speaks to our issues around patriarchy and victim blaming. There is something so striking about the fact that this woman not only endures sexual violence, but is then punished by the one woman who should be comforting her, all while the men who perpetrate violence are venerated. It’s not hard to see why Medusa becomes a fearsome monster who ends up being one of the most-depicted characters in art history.
This week, the Republican Party will once again be nominating a candidate for the presidency who has numerous sexual assault allegations against him. He has so many varying allegations against him that I actually forgot about the SA ones, but my reflections on Algol reminded me. Donald Trump has Algol conjunct his midheaven, the part of the chart associated with reputation. This ties all of those violent connotations into his legacy.
Mars/Uranus conjunctions often coincide with a time when things feel volatile and shocking. Algol in the mix adds extra connotations of violence. This conjunction is happening on his midheaven, and many astrologers were concerned how it would show up. Usually, Mars passing over an angle denotes a briefly unpleasant time, but having a bullet graze one’s ear in an assassination attempt is one of the more extreme manifestations of that kind of astrology. Mars is bullets, Uranus is shock value, Algol is head trauma. I would never make that kind of prediction for a client, but sometimes prominent figures have the astrology show up in a prominent manner.
The conjunction goes exact today, but the volatile energy was already present over the weekend and will linger through the next few days. I’m sure the news cycle will continue to be dominated by this shocking event, and that Trump will use it to his advantage. I wish it hadn’t shown up this way. I don’t believe assassination is the answer, and I also think it will lead to further violence.
I wish we lived in a culture that didn’t glorify violence and extremism. I wish we lived in a culture that didn’t demonize victims. I wish we lived in a culture that didn’t turn people into monsters. People often fear Algol when it shows up in astrology, but we need to remember that it’s not the stars who commit atrocities—it’s human beings. Astrology is simply a language that describes what we do to each other.
As an addendum to all of this, I’ve been listening to a podcast from last year called The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling. Rowling has been on an anti-trans crusade for a few years now, and I wanted to understand the situation better. At first, some of her views seemed somewhat more reasonable and nuanced than how the Twitter discourse was depicting it. However, a quick scroll of her feed showed she’s gotten pretty extreme in her vitriol since the podcast’s release. I won’t repeat her words here, but the situation is reminiscent of cruel goddess terrorizing an extremely vulnerable woman. Athena wasn’t really known for being a girl’s girl.
I couldn’t find any relevant Algol placements in Rowling’s chart, but the Mars/Uranus/Algol stuff is happening in the part of my chart that coincides with grief and loss. I’m sad to see one of my childhood heroes being so nasty to the most vulnerable people in my community. I’m re-reading the Harry Potter series anyway, and thinking about how remarkably complex we are. All of us are capable of being wonderfully creative and also incredibly destructive. As I was writing this, I remembered that Rowling was also a victim of domestic abuse and SA. Sometimes we are Medusa, victimized beyond comprehension, but other times we are Athena (and not in a good way). Both things are true, and I think this is important to remember in a time when everyone is pointing fingers. Somewhere in there, there’s still a woman who taught millions of children that love is the most powerful magic there is. I hope she (and the rest of us) remember that.