To say May will be a complex month would be stating the obvious, considering what is going on the world.  India, in particular is going through unprecedented havoc with the Corona Virus. And it is with a very heavy heart that I am writing this article, while witnessing the loss of lives. I will not be touching the May transits as I have something else to say.

I have been pondering about my monthly articles on Astrology and wondered if the astrologers failed us or did they miss something? Or did we fail to heed to their warnings and go about, as if things were normal, even before the population was vaccinated. The cases were falling, but by no means were we down to zero.

Back in March, there was a warning that Mars and Rahu in conjunction in Taurus would cause intense problems, with Taurus being independent India’s lagna or ascendant sign. And lo and behold it has turned out as imagined.

You can go back to my earlier articles, where I mention that Mars indicates fire and Rahu amplifies everything. In the past too this conjunction has not augured well with air-crashes, heatwaves and other fire-related incidents. For instance, in early June 2019, an intense heatwave scorched northern India. Some regions experienced temperatures surpassing 45°C (113°F) for the better part of three weeks. On June 10, 2019 Delhi reached its hottest day on record for the month, reaching 48°C (118°F).

But nobody in the wildest dreams thought that we would see mass cremations that this conjunction represented. Mars represents fire and Rahu represents smoke. But it was a short surge of energy that would have gone away in two months- had we taken some precautions such as social distancing, masking and more than anything not allowed super-spreader events such as election rallies and religious congregations. People saw the leaders without masks in rallies and also let their defenses down.

The Kumbh Mela which is held every 12 years also proved to be another super-spreader. People from rural and urban India all descended to Haridwar to participate in the event. No amount of administrative capabilities could have enforced Covid-19 appropriate behaviour and the ghats were choc-o-bloc with people. These people were sure to carry the virus back to wherever they came from and a spike was totally expected after this.

The last Haridwar Kumbh Mela was held in 2010 and the actual due date for the ‘current’ Kumbh at Haridwar was 2022 and not 2021. So how was it advanced by a whole year when things were still dodgy and risky as far as the pandemic was concerned? Infact, a whole year would have been ideal to get back to normalcy. Kumbha Mela usually happens when Jupiter transits into Aquarius (Guru goes into Kumbha Rashi). This current transit in Aquarius will go on until September 14^th, when it retrogrades into Capricorn. It goes direct again, on November 21^st, 2021 and would be there till April 13^th, 2022 when it would transit into Pisces or Meena Rashi. The Kumbha Mela could have been easily held in 2022, when it was actually due.

In previous years too, the Kumbha Mela has posed challenges. According to a scientific paper in the journal, Clinical Microbiology and Infection, Volume 21, February 2013, S. Sridhar et.al say the following in their review paper, “The Kumbh Mela in India is the largest mass gathering in the world which witnessed close to 100 million visitors in 2013. An event of this magnitude presents challenges. Increased population density, reduced hygienic conditions and exposure to environmental pollutants pave the way for easy transmission of pathogens.”

Given the evidence in the past, why were the warnings ignored against these mass congregations? Especially since India had seen cases receding and with the vaccine roll-out, in a densely populated country such as ours, CAUTION should have been the key-word. We could have indeed controlled the spread and the pandemic.

Apparently, it was done at the behest of astrologers who felt that Jupiter in Aquarius and Sun that went into Aries (like it always does during that particular time of the year) was an auspicious combination that warranted that the mela should be advanced by a whole year! A decision that we are ruing now and that which pales the year 2020 in comparison. Were the same astrologers not aware of the Angarak Yoga that I mentioned earlier – and that too in India’s lagna? Astrology is and should be empowering and not a set of blind rituals. This half-baked knowledge is the reason that astrology has the ignominy of being called a pseudo-science, when it can actually empower and help mankind prepare for calamities

There is another occurrence in the universe too that astrologers missed or chose to ignore -which gives all the more reason that we should have been on the highest alert. Astrologer Satish Menon has researched extensively and he explains these planetary positions and conjunctions extremely well. Astrology is all about corroborating planet transits with history and is hence there is continuous research and study that is happening. Menon takes the example of the Spanish Flu (Influenza Pandemic) of 1918 as the point of reference. He focuses on Jupiter – the karaka of prana or our life-breath and Pluto (an outer planet) which is responsible for destruction and regeneration.

According to history books, the Spanish Flu made its appearance on March 4^th 1918. On that day, Pluto was in Gemini at 10 degrees and Jupiter was in the previous sign of Taurus also at 10 degrees and the first wave started then. There was exactly a difference of 30 degrees between them. The first outbreak of flu-like illnesses was detected in the U.S. in March, with more than 100 cases reported at Camp Funston in Fort Riley, Kansas. This was a relatively mild wave. For the basics of these degrees and signs, you could go back to my very first article in the Astrology section.

By August 9^th, 1918, these two planets came together in Gemini at 13 degrees. This triggered the second wave of the pandemic. The pandemic peaked in the U.S. during the second wave, in the fall of 1918. This highly fatal second wave was responsible for most of the U.S. deaths attributed to the pandemic. India was also affected badly with the city of Bombay (Mumbai) alone registering about ~15,000 deaths in a population of 1.1 million. The outbreak most severely affected younger people in the age group of 20–40, with women suffering disproportionately.

 In January 1919, the transits of the planets- Jupiter and Pluto- through retrogression and direct motion got them to conjunct again at 13 degrees in Gemini and there was a third wave – and this time in Australia and then spread quickly through Europe and the United States, where it lingered through the Spring and until June 1919. An estimated 1/3 of the world’s population was infected with the 1918 flu virus – resulting in at least 50 million deaths worldwide.

Then in April 1920, Jupiter crossed over from Gemini to Cancer while Pluto was still in Gemini. It looked to cross over the 30-degree difference mark or radar of Pluto. Jupiter was at 14-degree mark in Cancer and Pluto was at the 14-degree mark in Gemini, and it was the fourth wave, that occurred in isolated areas including New York city. Once Jupiter crossed the 30-degree orb or radar from Pluto, there were no more waves. So, Jupiter and Pluto are at the same degree or come closer than 30-degrees, then it indicates a critical time for humanity.

Menon goes onto say that he tested this hypothesis on other pandemics such as the Hong Kong flu of 1968-69 that killed 4 million people and the plague in Naples, Italy that nearly eradicated the 12.5 lac population of Naples.

So, having this information at hand, Menon goes to check the planetary transits and positions of Jupiter and Pluto for the present pandemic. His research shows that in October 2019, Pluto was in Sagittarius at 26 degree and Jupiter was in the previous sign of Scorpio also at 26 degrees, which means they were 30 degrees away from each other.

This was perhaps when the virus, SARS COV-2 made its entry and within a couple of months it was evident that it was there. By March 2020, Jupiter and Pluto conjoined exactly at 0 degrees in Capricorn. By then the whole world were in lockdown with China and Europe being predominantly affected.

Both planets retrograde together and are conjunct at 28 degrees Sagittarius in November 2020, and the virus started peaking in the United States till the end of January 2021. But their curve is turning down, perhaps due to vaccination drives for as many people possible.

In March/April 2021, Jupiter moves out from Capricorn into Aquarius and is at the point of the 30-degrees separation mark while Pluto is in Sagittarius at 29 degrees. This led to another wave and this time it created havoc in India.

Jupiter moves out of the 30-degree orb now – BUT Jupiter will retrograde again to come back to Capricorn and it will conjoin again with Pluto in August end and early September 2021.

This is a warning bell that there will be the next wave yet again somewhere in the world and we need to be extremely careful not to let our collective guard down. However, the effects will be softened if we don’t congregate, mask on and take our vaccines. This is so important so that life and livelihood can go on normally.

So when will we hope to see the ‘beginning of the end’ of the virus? In November 2021, Jupiter goes direct and only in January 2022, when it goes beyond the 30-degree orb and enters Pisces (which incidentally is its own sign too) will we see the cases dwindling. The reasons could be due to vaccines, other medical interventions etc. There are other planets too that will give challenges such as Saturn and Rahu. But this article focuses on these two major planets which have been sounding alarm bells that we need to take care. After all another year is another blip in our lives. If we take care, we lessen the burden on our medical care, and also protect our loved ones. We also let life be as normal as possible.

There are so many small-scale entrepreneurs who have suffered a lot during the last year. If we had chosen not to congregate in the election rallies, so many lives would have been saved. Instead politicians could have canvassed on Television or through the internet- after all we all have been working from home. If only the Mela was scheduled as it should have been next year, what a difference it would have made to the country. If only…. If only…

Let us also keep in mind that we have individual responsibilities too, because at the end of the day we have to fend for ourselves. Jupiter in Aquarius also means that people would lend a shoulder to one another and that is what we have seen in the last month or so. No leader, no politician or religious leader was effective. Instead the common man/ woman rallied to set up centres for SOS calls, hot meals were sent to patients by ordinary people, young people were on the road to procure oxygen for people they did not know and the medical fraternity has been the most stretched and giving community. And perhaps this is what the planets want to tell us. The crisis is there- Be cautious; do not be swayed by rituals that can wait, sift the wheat from the chaff- nobody needs to be put on a pedestal, except for the Supreme Being. What you can do is to empower yourself.

An aside : Jupiter was exactly conjunct Pluto on November 12th, 2020 in Capricorn which is an Earth sign. The transit of Pluto in Capricorn started in 2008 and will end in 2023. Pluto demands transformation and is the karaka for evolution and that alone shows that we are living through an important time on Earth.

Jupiter and Pluto meet only every 12-13 years, and this is the last time they will meet in an Earth sign for a long time. The next time they meet will be in 2097 in Taurus. For this reason, this particular Jupiter-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn is highly relevant for all of us: its effects will be long-lasting and may dramatically change reality as we know it.

Wishing all my readers good health. Stay safe, eat nutritive food, exercise, meditate, and keep your spirits up. This too shall pass.