Druid Journal

On November 4th, 2008, Barack Obama was elected president of the United States, and the stars noticed.

On that very day, the Earth was placed directly between Saturn and Uranus, creating an apparent opposition between the two planets. Astrologically, this planetary opposition indicated a conflict between an established authority and the forces of necessary change and upheaval. That was definitely a theme of the election. But this drama isn’t over yet: Earth will slide back between these planets four more times — on February 5th and September 15th of 2009, and then again on April 26 and July 26 of 2010. (Then it won’t happen again for 40 years.) Mark your calendars!

Actually, as an aside, this is part of a 20 year cycle of disruption. Twenty years ago, when Saturn and Uranus were conjoined, communism collapsed. Twenty years before that, when Saturn and Uranus were in opposition, it was 1968, an infamous year of assassinations, escalating war worldwide, etc. Twenty years before that, when Saturn and Uranus were conjoined, fascism came to an end; and twenty years before that was the beginning of the great worldwide depression…

So Obama will be president in very interesting times, and since time and custom and ambitious men have endowed the office of the presidency with powers far beyond what any one person can wield easily, it’s worthwhile looking at Obama’s name and astrological chart. What manner of man is he, and will he be up to the task?

Obama’s Name

Back in the spring I did a complete analysis of all three of Barack’s names. After looking at the Swahili origin of Barack, the Arabic origin of Hussein, and the African origin of Obama, I realized it’s remarkable how much earth/source energy abounds in Obama’s names, while the repeating b’s indicate sudden growth. This name is an unexpected upswelling of grounded power, manifesting blessings. Hussein breaks the pattern: it modulates the growing source energy with direction, decision, and firm targets. Barack Hussein Obama is the name of a man who rises suddenly from the earth, and moves with decision and determination toward his goals.

Watching his progress in the primaries, and the speed and efficiency of his transition, has lent a lot of weight to this analysis. Obama’s career has been a series of unlikely twists of fortune, but he has always moved swiftly and firmly to put a foundation under his luck, and build on it.

In the next section, I’ll draw extensively on Obama’s astrological chart, viewed through the prism of Steve Pavlina’s seven principles (see an explanation here). I will try to avoid astrological terminology. I cast his chart based on a birth at 7:24 pm, August 4th, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Obama’s Truth

Obama is a natural leader, with an ego to match. He likes to deflect praise by insisting that his wife could expound on his faults indefinitely, but in fact he has a very high opinion of his own intelligence and his place in history — deservedly so. This is not uncommon among Leos. (Bill Clinton is another one.)

Society is his natural home; he is at ease with the puts and takes of human pecking orders. He probably relies on that social support system to help him define himself, and find his place in the world. In fact, he tends to view himself through the prism of the company he keeps, and the societies he associates with. He also feels strongly called to provide service to his associates, to bring them health and strength. Still, he is practical at heart; his rhetoric and ideals may be lofty, but he grounds his actions in research and solid facts whenever he can.

Obama’s Power and Authority

I place these together because for Obama, these arise together from a single source. Some people have good luck, but not the discipline to make use of it; some people work hard, but never catch a break. Obama is the sort of person whose good fortune and discipline work together seamlessly.

Obama has a lot of self-discipline, and he uses it to cultivate his courage and also his emotional center. He knows what is good for him, what makes him feel well and whole, and he works to make sure he gets it. Similarly, he disciplines himself to take action despite fear or doubt.

Obama’s natural power and authority are obvious now that he is president, but his chart indicates that they are not always on display, and he may be uncomfortable with making them too obvious. They may in part be hidden even from him. But their source is ultimately in the spiritual realm.

Obama’s Emotion

Barack’s home and family are absolutely essential to him. You can see this very clearly from the fact that he left the campaign trail for a few days during the last crucial weeks in order to return to Hawaii and visit his dying grandmother. This was no cold-hearted PR stunt; for Barack, the home and family are where the heart always is, and being away from it too long leaves him emotionally empty.

Barack is also moved strongly by ideas, particularly philosophy of service and health. He is not only fascinated by these topics, he finds them emotionally compelling.

Obama’s Courage

Obama is not afraid of change — not for himself or for others. He is at his most courageous when he faces transformations, and this may be why he chose “Change” as his campaign’s slogan, even though some counseled him that it would scare a lot of people. He is not one to shy away from necessary change, as he has shown repeatedly in his life — in multiple changes of location and vocation, and frequent absences from home, he has always reached up for the next step.

His courage is of a grounded, earthy sort, determined, with its heels dug in. He is not afraid to leap, but he prepares the launching and landing carefully.

Obama’s Relationships

For Obama, a relationship is a creative endeavor; he sees his relationships as opportunities for growth and constructive action. This is particularly true of his children. He is talented at bringing people together for projects and creative work — “community organizing”, they call it… He is an agent of Mother energy in this area, in fact.

Obama’s Intelligence

Coming full circle: Obama’s intelligence lends itself to leadership, service, and social cohesion. His intelligence is not always perfectly aligned with his authority and power, and this can lead to doubt and paralysis on occasion. He has said that this doubt is what makes him a good writer. But when they are brought into alignment, Obama’s mind is formidable and packs an irresistible punch.

Obama’s Appearance & Demeanor

Obama appears light and lithe, barely seeming to touch the ground. This gives his demeanor an airy quality, and combined with his ego, it gives a lift to his chin and nose, and makes it frequently seem as though he’s posing to be on a coin. (It is inevitable, of course. Actually, they should boot that crook Hamilton off the ten-dollar bill, and give it to Obama.) He also projects intellectualism, but intellectualism of the firm, stand-your-ground sort.

Chance, Dreams, Destiny

Some random miscellany: his friendships may be unconventional or unexpected, and he takes pride in that; he wields power in partnerships and social circles; and he idealizes science and academic work, perhaps to the detriment of his own power and authority.

The Leader of the Free World

Is this a man fit to be President? I think no man is fit to be president — but we could certainly have done a lot worse. There is nothing here to indicate megalomania, paranoia, sadism, or the other usual qualifications for president. (Well, a LITTLE bit of megalomania.)

What I find most encouraging is that in a very real sense, Obama’s heart — his emotional core — is not in the Oval Office, but back home in Hawaii and Chicago; and he knows it. He is not here to prove anything to anybody, or make a little money for his buddies, or because he’s on a Mission from God, or for the pure thrill of absolute power. (Well, maybe a LITTLE bit of the Mission from God thing.) He is, as far as I can tell, in Washington to do a job, to perform a service he feels called to do. And when he is done, he looks forward to nothing more than being home again.

Will he make it? In a future article, I’ll take a look at the major influences and transits that are coming up in Obama’s astrological forecast.