Here are the main players for Summer, 2008:

January, 2008 to March, 2023: Pluto in Capricorn:

Pluto's entry into Capricorn is one of the most momentous events of the years leading to 2012, as Pluto in this sign – ruled by Saturn, the black-robed reaper who comes with his scythe to cut away what is no longer useful to humanity’s purpose – signifies a time of extreme possibilities. Pluto in Capricorn is the placement of the dictator, and of all ambitious gamblers who accept perilous positions. It is also a time when the deconstruction of obstacles to freedom can begin to occur. A brief glance at two earlier Pluto-in-Capricorn eras will deliver the point. In 1512 – 1526, Magellan sailed round the world and Cortez toppled the Aztec empire, Luther launched the Protestant revolt and the French, no longer as terrified of Rome as they once were, invaded Italy and took the holy city. In 1760 – 1774, the Seven Years’ War and the Enlightenment cracked the remaining control of Europe by church and crown, and loosed a current of rebellion that would begin to sweep the whole royal structure away a few years later, when Pluto was “in fall” in Aquarius. In the British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, the movement toward independence began in protest and resistance that grew far more physical from the Boston Massacre of 1770.

We can expect similar conditions now. Whether they need be turbulent will depend largely on whether those who want to bring change can use the spiritual means of Aquarian transformation to catalyze it.

Nov. 19, 2007 - Nov. 13, 2008: Tenth Tun and Fifth Night in the Galactic Creation Cycle: This is the fifth of the 360-day “Night” tuns in the 13-tun cycle, and will therefore be, if the concepts of Carl Johan Calleman are correct, a period when human beings will be less in alignment with spiritual consciousness, and more likely to be ruled by fear and passion. In the entries to come for late 2007, we shall see more about how the Fifth Night is likely to proceed, and what resources will help us navigate it, even use it for constructive purposes. It is worth noting here that this tun, like the third Night of 2003 – 2004 that culminated in the re-election of the Bush regime and precipitated many of the woes we have endured since, will include the next American presidential election, if there is one, and also another event of momentous importance, the Beijing Olympics of 2008, and with them a major step toward the emergence of the next great power.

Calleman's estimates for the Fifth Day that ends on Nov.18 (see above) have proved prescient, given the dislocation brought about in the week of this writing -- Aug. 9, 2007 -- as world stock markets reel from the crisis in the American housing market, caused by "subprime," if not subcrime, loan programs that are turning out to be ill-judged at best, larcenous at worst, proving once again that dark and ominous events may occur in a "Day" tun, just as encouraging ones may come in a "Night."

Nov. 26, 2007 to Jan. 5, 2009: Jupiter in Capricorn:

In Capricorn, Jupiter is said to be “in fall,” so that his most “negative” and “difficult” energies will likely apply for the year and more from November 2007 to early January 2009. We can expect uncommonly arrogant and imperious behavior from governmental leaders, even by the standards of 2004 - 2007. With Jupiter in Capricorn, the reaction of control-obsessed authorities against the Aquarian momentum of awakening and freedom will be more pronounced than at any time during the Glamour Phase of 2007 – 2009, the third and trickiest of the four episodes in the drama of planetary transformation that may occur -- if human beings actually want and dare to do it -- from 1999 through 2012.

There’s an instructive parallel with a recent, similar event: Jupiter opposite Pluto from August, 2000 to May, 2001. As Pluto rules computers and all espionage and encryptation, this aspect lived up to its billing as a time of unprecedented conflict between the world cyberculture and computer industry against government authorities who fear the freedom and borderless communication of the internet. The US government’s legal victory-turned-defeat against Microsoft was only the best-known proof that the desire of people all over the world to conduct business, love and art online must inevitably prevail over the desire of governments to control communications, and along with them the collective human mind.

There are, however, strong motivators for easy, happy cooperation, even creative acts of empowerment and actual beauty at the moment of exact conjunction on Dec. 11 -- and under the unlikeliest conditions. Mars in Cancer trines Venus in Scorpio, both of them sextile to Saturn in Virgo. Mars and Venus are both in signs where they are said to be "in detriment," while their ponderous uncle offers sympathetic help that could be useful if it can only be seen. So the lovers are inclined to play Cosi Fan Tutte in reverse, with the passionately, recklessly empowered goddess and the bewildered god -- wondering if he'll ever find a way to get her to be less mad at him -- asking the advice of the mentor who now suddenly seems no longer world-weary and cynical, but ready to suggest a cure that is simpler -- not necessarily easier -- than either lover imagines.

Dec. 18, 2007 to Aug. 21, 2009: Moon’s North Node (Dragon’s Head) in Aquarius, and South Node (Dragon's Tail) in Leo: This day is doubly powerful because on the same day Jupiter enters Capricorn (see last), the Dragon’s Head moves back from Pisces into Aquarius, and the Dragon’s Tail moves back from Virgo into Leo. The nodes will remain in these signs until August, 2009.

These Moon’s Nodes positions are most meaningful for the countup to 2012, as the uniting force of the North Node is in the sign of friendship and community, while the splitting force of the South Node moves through the sign of creativity, play, children and sexuality. The North Node in Aquarius offers new possibilities for growth and self-realization through friendship and the building of community. “I get high with a little help from my friends” will take on whole new meanings now. And on the other side of the wheel, the South Node brings up unresolved issues of power, more likely power used in careless and even hurtful ways than power not yet claimed and used at all. The slow-moving planets Chiron and Neptune, and the Dragon’s Head, are all in Aquarius through the late summer of 2009. They guarantee that for the winters of 2007-2008 and 2008-2009, stellia (alignments of five or more planets in the same sign) at the New Moon in Aquarius will highlight far more than the Chinese New Year. They will likely herald the coming time of freedom.

March 11 – June 13: Saturn trine Pluto: Saturn, moving retrograde in Virgo, moves into a trine with Pluto, who is retrograde in Capricorn from early April. The trine never becomes exact, as Saturn is just under a degree away from a perfect trine when he “goes direct” in early May.

This is a Godsend aspect, one of those that help human beings to persevere under challenging conditions, as a favorable relationship between Saturn and Pluto means tenacity and endurance, and the ability to work tirelessly and bear hardship for the sake of attaining goals of great value. On the outer plane, this will manifest as what could be the finish-line effort of American democracy, in an election campaign even more furiously driven than the one in 2004. On the inner plane, this is a time when the patience and stamina of metaphysical workers will gain much needed strength from this Saturn-Pluto trine, and two of the next three aspects that coincide and overlap with it.

May 6 - Nov. 14: Chiron conjunct Dragon's Head: Fortunately, the medicine of Chiron, a double dose of it, is now at hand. The hidden remedy that holds many things together is this long-lasting juncture of Chiron and the Moon’s North Node in Aquarius. This Chiron and Dragon’s Head conjunction forms in early May and runs a total of five months, through the American election on Nov. 4. The conjunction is exact on June 3, then remains in effect another five months as Chiron and the Dragon’s Head move retrograde in tandem, then apart again as Chiron “goes direct.”

This conjunction counteracts the divisive, undermining force of the previous aspect. The positive prospect is that communal healing organization and activities expand the range and effectiveness of spiritual resonance among large groups of people. These five-months are superb for metaphysical networking, and will be most fruitful after the spring, especially for those who remain most aware that lower Neptunian forces – spiritual scams, victims, conpersons and the vengeful wounded – are widely in play.

Chiron has now moved close enough to Neptune in Aquarius to begin the long, intermittent conjunction that will unite these two planets of the mystical' teacher and the holistic healer until January 2012, when Chiron, now in Pisces, finally begins to move out of orb with Neptune, and this nearly four-year-long aspect dissolves after having done its main work: of healing wounds, spreading compassionate awareness and pulling communities together from mid-2008 to early 2012, especially during the heat test of the crucible season in the summer of 2010. More on this anon.

June 5 - July 27: Chiron Conjunct Neptune: Chiron within 3° orb of conjunction with Neptune in Aquarius.

This is not yet the great Chiron-Neptune Conjunction that will dominate the three years from February 2009 through February 2012, and will be arguably the most important of all the planetary configurations that form between now and the end of 2012. Chiron and Neptune come near each other now for a kind of brief Hollywood air kiss before both planets go retrograde, and move more than 3° away from each other again. But this two-month overture, which precedes the long embrace between Chiron and Neptune that begins next February, will be closely watched to help us determine whether the Chiron-Neptune aspect may mollify the deep self-loathing that the Neptune-Dragon’s Head conjunction may bring up in many people, and may make June and July 2008 a time when soul poisons that have been carried in the shadows for a very long time can be recognized and released. The focus here is on clearing the heaviest of matters that hold the soul in the lowest frequencies of shame. The positive possibility rests on seeing that those who behave most hideously are often those who detest themselves most unforgivingly, and may respond with surprising beauty to the unaccustomed touch of love.

June 18: Full Moon in Sagittarius opposite Sun in Gemini: This Full Moon is complex and highly charged, with the Sun and Moon aspected by a total of six other planets.

This Full Moon is worth some comment here, coming as it does at the climax of the marriage season in Gemini month. The wedding rite and party are attended by a distinguished cast who bring a cluster of agendas. Venus conjoins the Sun, so the ceremony is likely to be elegant. Pluto conjoins the Moon, so there is no telling what impulses may be loosened by champagne on a balmy night. Mars in Leo trines the Moon (at 120°) and is sextile (at 60°) the Sun, so frank, honest feeling is likely to flow. Neptune and Chiron in Aquarius (see previous) are trine the Sun and sextile the Moon, so the likelihood of a deeply unifying and spiritual experience is high. There is so much concord and cohesion among all these guests that they may succeed in counterbalancing the discordant factor of Uranus in Pisces, forming a T-cross to the Sun and Moon. Depending on how the overall scenario is played, this one irritant could be minor. Or it could be more. Imagine the mother of the bride, often a stiff-cheeked controller even under the best of conditions, but this time so obsessive that she insists on operating the video camera herself. The simple solution is to peg the perfectionist at the party, and team him or her at once with a wine waiter and a designated driver. More eloquent remedies will appear also as love and reassurance find their way to ride confidently on the voices of Venus and Mars.

Aug. 21 - Dec. 5: Jupiter trine Saturn: As Jupiter moves retrograde in Capricorn and then goes direct on Sept. 8, he forms a long running trine with Saturn. The trine comes to exactitude at precisely the time of Jupiter's switch back to forward motion, so this aspect is strongest in the first half of September.

This aspect will constitute, among other things, a welcome dose of Vitamin P (for Patience) as the U. S. presidential election threatens to deliver on its full potential as the nastiest, most mendacious political fight in the country's history. The classic advantage of a "positive" Jupiter-Saturn link -- persistence, stamina and determination in the successful pursuit of far-reaching plans -- could prove more of a boon to the fed up, exhausted voters, and to the planet as a whole, than to the sound-bitten, sleep-deprived candidates. This election may be the one that finally exposes the fatal madness of the whole election process, which does not empower new leaders so much as it subjects them to years of relentless lies and lacerations until the one who is left standing is supposedly tough enough to handle everything -- when in reality he or she is only craven and impervious enough to stomach anything in the pursuit of power. It is no wonder that more and more, the system produces leaders who are merely stolid rather than intrepid and visionary.

Sept. 18 – 24   Air Trines at the Autumn Equinox: Mercury, Venus and Mars link in a three-planet conjunction in late Libra, trine another conjunction of Chiron, Neptune and Dragon’s Head in Aquarius. Jupiter in Capricorn trines Saturn in Virgo, and Chiron is conjunct the Dragon’s Head in Aquarius.

Unlike recent solstices that have been more smite than smile, this Earth festival is joyous. The “inner” planets conjoined in Libra, relating happily to the “outer” ones linked in Aquarius, make this one of those rare times when we see how well we can get along, and how easy it can be, when we see the grand spiritual design, to balance our personal lives and public personas, our heart aims and official duties – and all this, amazingly, only a few weeks before the American election. It soon gets tense and ugly again (next) – but this fall equinox week shows, if only briefly, that we have the power to do better.

Oct. 12 - March 2, 2009, then Aug. 24 – Oct. 3, 2009: Saturn in Virgo now enters into opposition with Uranus in Pisces. This long-lasting opposition is exact on Nov. 4, 2008  and Feb. 5, 2009, then fades, but re-enters for a dramatic last act with Jupiter and Pluto from July 14, 2010.

Mercifully, there are no additional stressors to this very tense opposition by other slow-moving “outer” planets, though Mars moving through Sagittarius forms the middle leg of a T-square Dec. 8 – 19. Jupiter in Capricorn provides generous relief, moving trine to Saturn, then sextile Uranus, and finally out of relationship with the other planets by Dec. 12.

There is no sugar pill for this one. The irresistible force (Uranus) and the immovable object (Saturn) are so antipathetic here that one can well believe their famously horrific mythic bond. This aspect involves a furious struggle for reform, freedom and change against limiting, frustrating forces. It is predictable enough that many hot-tempered persons will feel this tension keenly. What is less predictable, and may prove depressing, is that many who’d thought themselves more serene may be knocked off balance now. It is no accident that this aspect rules the climax of the U. S. election campaign, and the period through inauguration day in January. Those who have just had a third straight election stolen from them will not go nearly so quietly.

This opposition recurs in Aug. – Oct. 2009. This one is easier to bear, as it’s shorter in duration, but this is still not an easy week for revolutionaries, or innovators of any kind, as no one seems receptive to anything new. The third act of this aspect in the summer of 2011 will be, if anything, as challenging and transformative as the first.