Prophets of Doom

Zip Dobyns

Our readers have seen a number of references in previous issues of The Mutable Dilemma to the predictions of psychics who have doing Cayce imitations, forecasting the subsidence of major land areas, including the coasts of America and western Europe and the Japanese islands. In one previous issue of The Mutable Dilemma, I discussed one of these psychics but did not give his name since his birth data had come from a friend so it was not public property. I have wanted for a long time to get the birth data of Gordon Scallion, since he is probably the best known of the individuals putting out these forecasts. I was delighted that Scallion himself released his birth data, publishing it in his monthly newsletter in response to a request from a student of astrology.

As I wrote in the article about the other psychic, all of the ones I am familiar with in this small group are predicting similar geological events, but they all differ on the precise details, including the precise timing. Each of them sees his or her own region as safe, but predicts that other regions will experience the catastrophes. Even though Edgar Cayce said these geological upheavals would start in the 1960s and be mostly over by the end of this century and none of the coastal sinkings have happened yet, the imitation Cayces are still telling their fearful followers that it is all coming. It is just inexplicably delayed. Some credit positive thinking by residents of California to account for the fact that the state is still intact. Others say that the delay in the time table only means that when the catastrophes come, they will be worse, perhaps because they will happen faster to be finished in the few years remaining in this century.

In addition to these “new age” forecasters, we have the traditional Bible prophecies of Armageddon, which are certainly contributing to the pervasive uneasiness. Most “new age” devotees were brought up in Christian families, and I suspect that the book of Revelations is playing a role at the subconscious level. In the last issue of The Mutable Dilemma, I mentioned a recent book which traced to the Zoroastrians the beliefs in a final battle between good and evil with God triumphing at the end and inaugurating a 1,000 year golden age of harmony. Another similar book has been published more recently, but I have not had time to finish it. The title is When Time Shall Be No More by Paul Boyer. It discusses the role of such prophecies in the turbulent history of the Jews; how they encouraged people when they were conquered and denied a free expression of their faith by the conquerors. The prophets were basically promising the faithful that some day soon God would reward them and avenge their persecutors.

David Koresh taught his version of Armageddon and is now seen as a martyr by many. I discussed his chart in a previous Mutable Dilemma. A more recent cult leader who also accompanied his followers in a fiery death was Luc Jouret of the Solar Temple Order. I presented a speculative chart on him in a previous Mutable Dilemma but we now have his birth time thanks to Lois Rodden and I will discuss it later in this article.

As I have written previously, I think that the psychics have created their scenarios on the astral plane and they can’t tell the difference between an astral (psychic) creation and a coming event on the physical level. I think that the “believers” in Atlantis have built a wonderful astral Atlantis which everyone with a little psychic ability can tune in to and add to with their own creative imagination. I do not subscribe to Scallion’s newsletter, so I only occasionally get information from a friend about what he writes. But my friend, Bodo, recently sent me a tape of an interview which Scallion did earlier this year, 1995. I was somewhat surprised to hear that he is still convinced that his predictions of huge geological changes are accurate. He assured his Texas audience that they will all have occurred by 1998, so we don’t have long to wait. By the end of 1998, much of earth’s present land mass is supposed to be under water with new land coming up out of the oceans. (It sounds to me like one or more giant see-saws.) Scallion’s theory, which I assume he got psychically, is that earth’s magnetic core is expanding and turning to produce this movement. I have never read anything in geology to support such ideas.

Another psychic that I know personally thinks that earth catastrophes, specifically massive earthquakes in California, will bankrupt the big insurance companies and lead to an economic collapse in the world by the end of this year, 1995. Most of the psychics are obsessed with California while major quakes keep happening in other places. Sakhalin Island was hit by a 7.5 magnitude quake as this Mutable Dilemma was being written, with an estimated 2,000 plus deaths from collapsed buildings and inadequate equipment to move the heavy concrete blocks. I will not repeat the details of the theory of the reversal of direction of the Barycenter and the Sun’s center which has been discussed in past issues of The Mutable Dilemma. Readers will remember that some scientists consider that this is the reason for the increased number of big earthquakes, and they expect increased quakes and volcanic eruptions into the early years of the next decade. However, this cyclic phenomenon is a far cry from the unprecedented world-wide earth changes being forecast by the doomsday psychics.

Obviously, these men (and women) psychics are not familiar with astrology. As I have written before, if widespread catastrophes were coming, we would have to see the crisis in every chart we did for people in the affected areas. I continue to see a “normal” mixture of some people who are doing well and pretty secure and some with economic or relationship or health problems. Naturally, most people only go to astrologers when they are having problems, but in most cases, they are garden-variety growing pains. The homeless and militant and truly desperate people do not come to me to get their charts done, but I do study such charts when I can get the data, for my own edification. And, I continue to explore the potentials of mundane astrology, which should provide a useful overview of the world scene.

Astrologically, several new cycles began in the last few years, starting with the conjunctions of Saturn with Uranus and then Neptune in the late 1980s. Saturn symbolizes the power of the Law, including all bureaucratic structures and the authority figures who run them. The world saw huge political changes in the late ‘80s with the fall of communism, and we are now having to deal with the fragmentation of former nations and an increasing number of civil wars. The Uranus-Neptune triple conjunction occurred in 1993. In the past, they have been associated with revolutions and civil wars as people sought more freedom. Uranus and Neptune symbolize the potential for “going beyond the limits” once we have properly internalized in common sense and the conscience the “necessary” Saturnian limits which are needed both for survival in the material world and for a civilized society. When personal freedom is demanded at the expense of the rights of others, we get the consequences we are seeing in the world today. It seems obvious to me that our current and coming challenges are primarily sociological/economic and political/military rather than geological.

But under the preceding lies the primary issue: our beliefs and the ethics which are determined by our beliefs. Behind and driving the economic and political systems, the cardinal and fixed qualities, are the mutables which picture what we believe in and trust, what we think is possible and morally right. This is a Piscean Age crisis. Our challenges are being created by humans, must be solved by humans, and could be if we stopped worshipping competition and became more cooperative and empathic. We need to be inclusive rather than exclusive. The fortress, Armageddon mentality that lets people envision wiping off the earth everyone who disagrees with them is a throwback to a tribal god who would someday kill one’s opponents and reward the faithful few with an effortless paradise. The effortless garden of Eden is a Piscean dream, but to be truly Pisces, it has to include EVERYONE. No fortress because there are no walls. No threat because there are no enemies. We are all part of the Whole. Remember Pogo? “We have met the enemy and it is us.”

I was present in a conference in late April (following UAC) at which these ideas were being discussed. Some “new age” followers were convinced that the golden age was imminent but instead of Jesus coming in the clouds to bring it after a military defeat of those who did not accept Him as their Lord, the “Tibetan Masters” were going to bring it by speeding up karma so the “nasties” in this world would self-destruct and leave the earth for the nice, loving people. In my talk, I said I didn’t think anyone else was going to save us from ourselves; not Jesus or the Tibetan Masters or Aliens from the Pleiades. I said I didn’t see geological catastrophes, but I saw an increasing danger of human inhumanity to their fellow humans, of “religious” fanaticism from both extremes continuing or escalating the civil wars already happening all over the earth. In this context, I use the word “religious” to refer to any belief system which is held with such conviction that it prevents consideration of contrary evidence. The next morning, we heard the news of the Oklahoma bombing.

As our readers know, I think that water symbolizes the subconscious, so it is the primary psychic element. Naturally, that includes water planets, houses, and signs, with the planets always the most important and the chart angles, the intersections of great circles, similar in importance to the planets. In the charts of psychics, I usually find such a water emphasis. When earth is also strong, individuals may be more cautious about trusting the inner information, or they may just turn their talent into a profitable vocation, as their way to survive in the material world. Air points to a logical, conscious mind, but logic is always based on premises and ultimate premises such as the nature of truth and reality are accepted on faith. They can’t be proved. So what is quite logical with one set of premises will seem inexplicable and illogical to someone with a different set of premises. Fire adds to the tendency to trust the inner information that comes out of the subconscious since fire symbolizes feeling that we know what is right for us and have the right and the power to go for it. Since what comes out of the subconscious is not always gospel truth, there is often a lot of nonsense being offered to anyone willing to “buy” it. Payment is not always cash. Sometimes it is unnecessary fear. Sometimes it is the consequences of accepting impractical advice.

Gordon Scallion writes that he was born on September 26, 1942 at 21:01 EWT in Hartford, CT. He is currently living in Chesterfield, New Hampshire. His local MC only differs from his birthplace MC by a few minutes of longitude, but his local Ascendant moves from late Taurus to 0 Gemini. Chesterfield thus supports his prolific communication of his ideas through lectures, workshops, and newsletters.

Scallion’s chart shows a very good conscious intellect and verbal facility with Uranus and Saturn rising in early Gemini, Jupiter in the third house, Mercury in Libra in the sixth house sextile Chiron, Venus and a node in Virgo, Vesta in the ninth house, and Pallas in Aquarius on the MC. The air and mutable emphasis shows a person able to learn and communicate well. The Sun and Mars are also in Libra as an additional indication of someone who likes people and needs relationships. Pallas on the MC backs up the Libra ability to be a counselor or consultant.

There is also a preference for being his own boss with the south lunar node just inside the tenth house, Aquarius in the tenth, and Saturn in the first house. Air is comfortable working with people as an equal but the rising Uranus and Saturn, the tenth house desire for power, plus the Sun-Mars conjunction in the Sun’s house, tend to resist living under anyone’s control. So Scallion has found a niche which fits his need to share information in his own unique way and as his own boss.

Scallion’s chart also indicates psychic ability. Pluto was just over one degree from the IC when he was born—a water planet on the water angle; the Ascendant is like Aries and therefore fire, the MC is like Saturn and therefore earth, etc. Scallion also has his Moon in a water house with close sextile-trine aspects to the lunar nodes and one of them in Pisces. Jupiter in Cancer trines Juno (which is like Pluto) in Scorpio and Ceres in Pisces; a grand trine in water signs and mostly air houses. The air-water combinations show the potential for connecting the conscious and subconscious sides of the mind, for bringing subconscious information into consciousness. Such combinations show potential skill as a psychotherapist and/or as a psychic.

Fire-water combinations are also present in Scallion’s chart with the Sun-Mars conjunction in the Leo house strengthening the fire and Neptune conjunct the Sun bringing in the water. Neptune is also part of a close grand trine in earth signs which includes the Taurus Ascendant and Vesta in Capricorn. The Taurus Moon trine its own north node in early Virgo provides another earth trine. Harmony aspects in earth show a good ability to cope with the physical world; to earn a living and (if Taurus is involved) to enjoy it.

There are also several sextiles including Juno in an earth house sextile Vesta, our Virgo asteroid, to repeat the capacity to deal effectively with the material world. Pluto sextile Uranus and Saturn on one side and Sun and Mars on the other side indicates a strong will. The Sun and Mars are also closely trine Uranus to strengthen both the will and the intellect. Scallion’s chart is far more harmonious than most.

Does all this harmony guarantee accurate predictions? Fortunately, no. Harmony means that we are in harmony with ourselves; we are clear about what we think, what we want, and how to get it. The water lets us contact our subconscious mind but the subconscious is quite capable of offering us wishful thinking or of accepting uncritically the ideas of others. The air lets us communicate effectively, convincingly, with other people. It helps us to be logical based on our beliefs but our beliefs may not be accurate. The fire enhances our confidence and charisma. The earth might keep us grounded, but as I said above, it might just be used to conduct a successful business enterprise. When a psychic predicts that the Pacific ocean will come to Boulder, Colorado within the next five years, which would require the Rocky mountains to sink or the oceans of the world to rise over 5,000 feet, he is not using his earth potential to look at geology and history.

Even a chart as harmonious as Scallion’s still has some conflicts and the most important ones would be those involving earth factors which would suggest a need to become more realistic about what is possible in the physical world. Scallion’s Mercury is in the Virgo house square Vesta, the Virgo asteroid, which is in Capricorn, while Saturn, the ruler of Capricorn, is trioctile both Mercury and Vesta. This combination is a clear warning flag suggesting a need for extra caution in the area of physical reality. P Saturn has held the exact trioctile to Mercury for years. P Vesta moved from the sign of Capricorn to the house of Capricorn connecting the Capricorn which, like Saturn, is a key to lessons, first to Scallion’s beliefs (ninth house) and then to his career (tenth house). (Obviously, he has turned his beliefs into a career.) P Jupiter, always a key to faith, has held a square to Mercury and an octile to P Saturn for years. Again, the message warns of some type of conflict involving faith and the physical reality which is symbolized by earth factors including Saturn and the sixth house. Off and on for years, P MC, P Sun, and P Venus have trined natal and then P Jupiter; aspects which would reassure Scallion that he could trust his subconscious impressions. And some of his predictions of earthquakes and storms have been accurate. But periodic “hits” do not guarantee the accuracy of an improbable major scenario.

Of course, there are interesting asteroids in Scallion’s chart. Phaethon, the overreach kid, turned up just under 10 Gemini, so, for many years, P Saturn has been conjunct it and P Jupiter octile it. It adds another cautionary note about faith and realism. P Phaethon is currently opposite natal Icarus, the other overreach kid, which is in the work house. The earth-water mixtures of Taurus-Scorpio in the Pisces-Virgo houses repeat the message: “Check your subconscious intuitions against what is possible in the physical world.”

I was also intrigued to find P Aletheia, the goddess of truth, on Scallion’s MC. The aspect just reached the one-degree orb within the last year and it will last for several years into the next century. By then we will know whether Scallion’s career in these years is providing truth or whether realistic truth is a major lesson for him. Natal Aletheia in 23 Capricorn 11 in the ninth house could be an indication of the latter, especially since it squares the midpoint of Saturn/south lunar node. This midpoint is often a key to one of if not THE major lesson of the individual. Squares between the ninth and twelfth houses show a problem involving beliefs. With Saturn and Capricorn involved, an educated guess says that realism about the physical world is part of the lesson.

Scallion’s P Saturn/south lunar node has retrograded from 22 Aries to 19 Aries to hold a long square to his Part of Death in 19 Capricorn. In one sense, his career has become the prediction of death, theoretically to help people escape it. (Jupiter and its sign and house are future-oriented and inclined toward the prophet’s role while Capricorn signifies a potential career once we learn the “rules of the game,” meaning realism about survival in this material world.) But if Scallion’s predictions are as erroneous as the rest of the earlier prophets whose followers abandoned jobs and homes to gather on mountains waiting for God or a UFO, Scallion may be making some karma for himself. One of the rumors among the “new age” residents in California is that some of the ones who moved to Colorado to escape the predicted catastrophes have already found it less than hospitable and have returned to the west coast.

Note that natal Jupiter was square the Saturn/node midpoint, repeating the need to integrate beliefs and the Law, including the natural laws of this physical world. Another interesting asteroid completed a grand cross in cardinal signs and mutable houses. Swedenborg was a brilliant and famous scientist who developed psychic ability and apparently learned to function successfully in both the psychic and physical worlds. The asteroid named for him was in 23 Libra in Scallion’s chart. The mutables deal with knowledge and beliefs which determine our ethics. The cardinals deal with action to, hopefully, meet our needs in the world. Based on our beliefs, we act, get the consequences, and then decide whether we should continue what we are doing or we need to change our beliefs, attitudes and actions.

As I said above, I am not an expert on geology, but from my limited knowledge, the only way the earth could experience such extreme changes as are being suggested by the psychics would be for us to be hit by an asteroid or a comet. This has happened in the past, but even then, the geological results were local while the effects on various life forms were sometimes world-wide. I don’t know of any psychics who are suggesting an immanent hit by a space object as a possibility, but astronomers take the idea seriously. They are currently trying to catalog the asteroids which cross the orbit of earth, looking for any which might be crossing our path when earth will be at the same spot. A couple of historical periods when huge numbers of life forms died have been credited to a collision with an object from space. In one recent set of new asteroid names, three of the new names were related to such theories. Gubbio is the town in Italy where an unusual layer of iridium was first noticed. The layer was later found in other areas, dated at about the same time, and credited to an asteroid impact. Biela was a comet which split in two and one part disappeared. I wrote some years ago that the great fire in Chicago (and simultaneous fires across much of Michigan and Wisconsin) may have been caused by fragments of Biela hitting earth. Tunguska is an area in Siberia which was burned by some kind of explosion. The most tenable theory seems to be that a tiny comet or asteroid exploded in the atmosphere above Tunguska and flattened and burned the forests and tundra in the area.

I am continuing to watch those three asteroids on the theory that if earth is going to take a serious hit, they should be featured in our charts. Natally, Scallion has Biela closely conjunct Saturn, Gubbio closely conjunct his Moon, and Tunguska in 13 Taurus square Atlantis in 13 Leo. The two Taurus asteroids were retrograde when he was born and Biela later turned retrograde. We could interpret these aspects as support for Scallion being “tuned in” to potential catastrophe. Or, since astrology really shows one’s state of mind which does not always result in precisely parallel physical events, the patterns might just show Scallion’s creative imagination, his inclination toward catastrophic ideas, and his Taurus ability to make money from them. P Gubbio is now at 22 Aries on the Saturn/node midpoint and square Jupiter. It just ended a square to Aletheia. P Tunguska is currently on the natal Moon. P Biela is trine Pallas and octile the midpoints of Saturn/south node and Saturn/north node. On the whole, I suspect the asteroids are just repeating the same message; stay grounded.

There are interesting aspects coming in Scallion’s chart during the next few years as he warns people that earth is rebelling and about to kill many of them. P Gaea (earth) and P Hel (death) are crossing his Descendant and will continue over his local Descendant. P Venus and P Sun are headed for the Descendants and will cross them during the latter part of this century and the early years of the next. P Venus arrives in August 1996; P Sun in July 1997. Around a year later, they reach the local Descendant, and still later they move into oppositions to P and N Uranus. P Mercury reaches the Descendant in 2001. Planets on the Descendant point to changes in relationships and personal action since they oppose the Ascendant at the same time.

The changes may be on the personal level but often involve larger numbers of people with shifts in one’s public activities. Scallion’s ideas are already widely disseminated among the “new age” public, and this period of several years coincides with his predictions of huge numbers of deaths from geological catastrophes all over the world, the break-up of the U.S. into 13 “colonies” and, by 2003, a golden age for the survivors. I suspect that Scallion’s aspects mean some major reevaluating of his ideas by many “followers” and if he lives up to his potential intelligence, by Scallion himself. Of course, the most common reaction of prophets when their prophecies fail is to postpone the time table. “It will happen later.” Alternately, the escape clause is to credit the world with a miraculous improvement in spirituality which has canceled the doom.

My own impression is that Scallion is sincere; that he believes what he is teaching. I have strong reservations about the sincerity of the other prophet being discussed here. Luc Jouret’s data comes from him through Patrice Petitallot and Lois Rodden. Jouret said that he was born on October 18, 1947 at 10:04 A.M. (9:04 UT) in Kikwit, Zaire. (You have to wonder what is going on in Kikwit which is the scene of the current outbreak of the deadly Ebola fever.) Jouret claimed to be a doctor though I have heard questions about his formal training. In about 1984 he joined with Joseph di Mambro, a 69 year old French-Canadian, to found the Solar Temple Order. Jouret was handsome and charismatic. di Mambro was known as “the Dictator” and thought to hold the major power in the cult. Lois writes in her Data News that they taught a mixture of Catholicism, conservation, and apocalypse to their estimated 300 members. They also accumulated large sums of money which was partly invested in property. If an apocalypse was coming, and then a golden age when all needs would be met without personal effort, why would anyone need to collect money and property? The amazing thing to me is the number of “true believers” who seem to be intelligent and educated yet who are persuaded to donate all of their resources to cults including those founded by Jim Jones, David Koresh, etc.

On October 4, 1994, nearly simultaneous fires swept buildings owned by the cult in Switzerland. 23 bodies were found in a farm building at Cheiry which is northeast of Geneva. 25 more bodies were found in three chalets at Granges-sur-Salvan in the Swiss Alps. 5 more were discovered in a villa in Morin Heights, which is about 50 miles northwest of Montreal, Canada. Though some may have been suicides, many were murdered. Three of the victims in Canada were stabbed, including a three-month-old baby. Many in Switzerland had been shot or suffocated by plastic bags over their heads or burned to death. The fires were set off by timers. Jouret and di Mambro’s bodies were found in the Granges site. As far as I know, if there were external killers, they have not been identified. As in the Waco tragedy, it is possible that some cult members killed others first and then themselves. There were also rumors that drugs had been involved. The cult leaders may have gained some of their fortune through transporting drugs under the cover of a religious organization, but the whole affair remains shrouded in mystery. Can astrology offer us insight?

Jouret’s chart fits his reported charisma with the bulk of his factors in Leo, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius, all associated with potential magnetism. But he also had the potential for paranoia and power struggles with Saturn, ruler of his Capricorn Ascendant, and Mars, the natural ruler of the first house, both in the eighth house—“the resources and power of other people.” Pluto was with Mars and Saturn in its own house and all three of the planets there were in Leo with squares to a stellium in Scorpio. The combination demands great insight to find constructive outlets for the power issues. Leo says “I am King.” Scorpio calls us to learn to share possessions, pleasures, and power. The Aquarius house, location of the Scorpio planets, opposes any type of coercion. It represents the right of everyone to be free providing they allow the same freedom to everyone else. Jouret was supposedly doing two of the things I suggest to clients as ways to handle this kind of conflict over the handling of power. As a doctor, he was helping people, which is one way to be reassured that our personal power (first house rulers) is not totally in the hands of other people. Theoretically, he was also working for “causes” he believed in—for conservation and his religious convictions. Jouret’s Moon and Juno in Sagittarius in the Pisces house and his dominant Neptune in the tenth house do fit a religious vocation.

But his life shows a tragic failure to handle his conflicts. The fixed dilemma calls for us to enjoy material possessions and pleasures in moderation while sharing them with others for mutual pleasure (the 2-8 polarity) and to have a creative outlet for personal power while allowing others the same freedom we want for ourselves (the 5-11 polarity). Failure to integrate the different desires can lead to destructive excesses in many areas. Common forms of excess include money and drugs. Toro is one of the asteroids I have had for some time but for which I still lack a clear understanding. The word means “bull” in Spanish, and it may be like Taurus, associated with physical pleasures and a strong will. Jouret had Toro on his natal Sun at birth and they were quincunx his north lunar node in Taurus, so Toro may just repeat the fixed dilemma message in the chart. P Saturn stayed square the nodes for years. In recent years P Winchester in Aquarius moved into squares to the nodes which were still in orb when Jouret died. Winchester (our asteroid for guns) had also moved through an opposition to N and P Saturn for several years, reinforcing the fixed dilemma by adding the sign of Aquarius in the Taurus house. Jouret and di Mambro must have been playing for big stakes, either a personal death-wish or against some ruthless opponents whose power outclassed theirs.

Many other factors in Jouret’s chart offer additional evidence of the power issue. Asteroids produce a grand cross in 20-21 degrees of the cardinal signs and houses. Tunguska, named for the explosion in Siberia, and Pompeja, named for the city destroyed in a volcanic explosion, were in 20 Aries. Fanatica was in 20 Cancer. Xanthus, another name for Apollo, a sun god, was in 21 Libra. Helio, another sun god, was in 20 Capricorn with P Icarus in 20 and P Gaea in 21 Capricorn. The mixture suggests that Jouret’s reach for fame and power resulted in explosive and deadly consequences. P Damocles, famous for a sword over the head, was octile-trioctile the cardinal cross from 5 Pisces. P Dionysus, whose excesses with alcohol and drugs led to his death, was in 7 Virgo opposite natal Damocles and Libitina, one of the goddesses of death. P Hel, the other goddess of death, was on the south lunar node opposite Hephaistos, who made weapons for the Olympic gods. Berna, named for the capital of Switzerland where Jouret’s followers were concentrated and where he died, was on his natal Part of Death and P Berna was on P Mars, which was on Nobel, the inventor of dynamite. Jouret’s P Moon had just left a conjunction with P Mars when he was killed, but it was still in orb of an opposition to P Pallas, which was in orb of the opposition to P Mars, so the group was connected by overlapping orbs.

As usual, a book could be written if I tried to include all of the relevant asteroids, but they certainly indicate that Jouret was playing with fire in his activities and associates. Among the more traditional factors, Jouret’s P Ascendant opposed Pluto, his P MC was on Mercury and P Chiron while P Mercury was on the south lunar node, and P Vesta was on the eighth house cusp. He also had a lengthy Jupiter trine to Mars, a supposedly “protective” aspect which, unfortunately, can contribute to overconfidence. These patterns could have been manifested in positive ways. Mercury can signify the use of intelligence in the processing of information. The MC, like Saturn, can be expressed positively through being realistic about the law and power figures. Chiron, like Jupiter, represents our beliefs and ideals, so the conjunctions of MC, Mercury, and Chiron call for applying practical intelligence to beliefs and values. Chiron and Jupiter, among many other possible details, are also associated with long trips and foreign countries, implying the willingness to travel long distances in order to find our ultimate values. A connection between Jouret’s fate and his birth continent was suggested by P Africa progressing over his MC when he died, but we do not know whether this was simply a repeated reminder that character creates destiny, that the habits Jouret acquired or strengthened in his early life in Africa finally delivered their consequences.

As a final note, births close to the equator can have the Antivertex axis in unusual places. Jouret’s Antivertex was natally in 12 Libra and it hardly moved in his lifetime, just shifting back slightly to 10 Libra by the time he died. Consequently, P AV was on N Neptune and P Neptune was on N AV! Religion or drugs or mystery, savior and ultimately victim—we are given the repeated message as Jouret lived and died with that auxiliary Ascendant on Neptune.

Stop the presses! A fellow Internetter just sent me the birth date of another prophet of doomsday. Shoko Asahara is the leader of the Japanese cult accused of releasing nerve gas in the Tokyo subways on March 20, killing several and injuring hundreds. He was captured about May 16 when the police located a hidden room in the cult center near Mount Fuji, Japan’s sacred mountain. Even without his place or time of birth, one can check possible birth times by calculating the chart for Tokyo (where the deaths occurred) and for Mount Fuji (where he lived and was captured). Regardless of his birth place, Asahara would have local house cusps in those areas. Asahara was reportedly born on March 2, 1955. In a very brief look at the planets on his birth date and possible progressions for March 20 and May 16, an evening birth looks possible. It would bring his P Moon into a trioctile to Uranus for the gas attack and an octile to Neptune for the arrest.

The May 29, 1995 issue of Newsweek provides some background on Asahara and his cult. In 1990, Asahara and 24 followers ran for Parliament and lost. Authorities think that the doomsday talk began after that. Asahara is said to have visited Russia eight times to buy weapons and recruit new members. Other group members may have received military training in Russia. In 1993 they set up dummy firms to buy chemicals and explosives and they targeted soldiers and former police officers for recruitment. They may have tested their sarin gas on sheep in the Australian outback. Japanese authorities are disturbed over the cult’s ability to attract highly intelligent and educated individuals to its ranks in light of its bizarre theories which included variations of the Armageddon scenario starting with a war in November 1995.

No one knows today how many self-styled prophets are putting out versions of the same essential story—the end of the familiar world and most of the people in it, but with guarantees that the followers of the prophet will have an honored place in the coming paradise. With such fantasies being produced by perhaps thousands of charismatic leaders and their ideas resonating with each other and snowballing as ideas do IF they are emotionally charged, it is obvious how an astral Armageddon could be created. Then, any individual with a little psychic ability can “tune in” to the drama and add their own hopes and fears. The Japanese version of the cult known as Aum Shinrikyo (Supreme Truth) included a nuclear war with the U.S. and the cult taking over the government of Japan. In spite of the constant negative news coverage of the cult since shortly after the gas attack, members are still trying to recruit new members on the streets of Tokyo. No contrary evidence can alter the mind of a committed true believer.

Copyright © 1995 Los Angeles Community Church of Religious Science, Inc.

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