Uranus

Key Concepts:

Each of us has a direct line of communication and intimacy between our self and our Divinity. In the western Esoteric tradition, this link is developed and accomplished via the Soul, the center of Love. Yet even though we are co-creators and one with God, God is not a human being, except when an atom of God incarnates in human form. This mystery is beautifully expressed in the ancient Hindu text known as the Bhagavad Gita. The words are spoken by Lord Brahma the Creator to His disciple, Arjuna. Brahma says: “After having pervaded the universe with a fragment of myself, I remain.” Thus Divinity may express Itself in countless myriads but is never less than Whole.

The category of planets beyond the orbit of Saturn, are the so-called “Higher Octaves,” or “transpersonal planets.” They are trans-personal because they each cross the purely personal concerns and enter the realm of the collective in their orientation and effect. (Note: “trans” is a Latin prefix meaning “across” or “beyond.”) For example, the transits (Latin, meaning, “to go across”) of the three Higher Octave bodies, (Uranus, Oceana, (Neptune), and Pluto), speak about the dynamics of undergoing “processes of development,” rather than the indications of the faster moving transits that indicate “events.”

These transpersonal processes help us to climb out of the personality-centered world centered on the Moon, and into a larger sphere of understanding in which our relationship to the larger Universe is supported and directed. This interplay between the personal and the transpersonal is a function of the evolution of consciousness.

Uranus, as the first of the transpersonal planets, is a very eccentric and powerful set of energies. Astrologers know that Uranus is revolutionary and rebellious in nature; a non-conformist when mild, an anarchist when extreme. Uranus is the only planet which revolves on its equator while all other planets revolve around their equator. This means that Uranus’ North Pole is always facing the Sun with his faint rings rising up vertically around and over the equator. Compare this image to that of Saturn, whose rings revolve around its equator, its poles oriented north/south, and it is oriented on a much more horizontal plane.

Uranus is known to astrologers as the “Father of Archetypes.” Castrated by Saturn, Uranus’ creativity was not stunted by this act of violence. When his generative fluids touched Oceana’s, (Neptune’s), waters, Venus emerged … as well as an entire new generation of gods and goddesses. They eventually took over Saturn’s kingdom on Mount Olympus and Saturn, (Father Time), was replaced by the timelessness of true immortality. (Uranus is the Sky God and thus his divine family of offspring become gods and goddesses in their own right.) In this respect, we must remember that Uranus is exalted in Scorpio, the sign of never ending regeneration and renewal, which is the true nature of sexuality.

Uranus has several major functions in the natal chart and will represent certain distinct types of people in our lives. Most importantly, Uranus is our connection with our need to be individuals. It creates unusual and different tastes and orientations than those of the accepted norm. The house position of Uranus in the chart will indicate where we may find our own most eccentric behavior. (Click here for examples.)

A well-developed individual can use Uranus’ energy in a personal way, being inventive, intuitive, and have a sense of future unfoldment. True Uranians work for the betterment of Humanity, never content with past traditions or current reality. They are revolutionary.

Uranus is called the “Great Awakener.” Through the energies of Uranus, our minds have the Power to reach into the Realm of Universal Ideas and to apply those ideas to the physical world. This power belongs to the intuitive mind that is capable of grasping whole concepts in a single flash of insight. Uranus rules speeded-up thought; Uranus represents the principle of deviation and unorthodox behavior. Uranus demonstrates as the ability to make quantum leaps in thinking; to comprehend abstract thought principles; and thereby have the ability to liberate ourselves from our past limitations.

Uranus works in conjunction with Saturn … even though Uranus “rebels” against Saturn’s limits, Saturn’s realism and discipline focuses Uranus … when Uranus works with Saturn, change occurs in meaningful ways. Uranus may demand that we let go of all our attachments to material success and security, because it is our attachments that take our freedom, and hinder us on our Path.

Symbology:

The Glyph for Uranus is seen by some astrologers as the cross of matter above the circle of Spirit, flanked by two crescents of Soul, symbolizing this planet’s search for a higher truth through exploring the nature of existence.