They were clearly manifesting on 22 July in Oslo and on the island of Utoya.
On the day itself you would be hard pressed to point a finger at an astrological culprit. The second half of July was notable for its celestial harmony with the worst of Saturn and Pluto over during the week of the 11th. The only major challenge to come was a Mercury-Neptune opposition on the 29th July. So, only a sixth sense would enable you to pick this moment as Norway’s darkest hour since World War II.
However…
Norway’s chart does show signs of upheaval, although one’s first thought would be that the country is ripe for political and constitutional change. In the June, 1905 horoscope (marking Norway’s separation from Sweden) there is a Uranus-Neptune opposition which is currently being activated by Uranus and Pluto. While Norway is a rich country, one which has largely escaped the worst effects of the global recession, like all of Scandinavia, there is a strong undertow of right wing thought. Many of the crime novels of Jo Nesbo and Stieg Larsson focus on these underground movements. And, like it or not, the actions of Anders Behring Breivik have thrust the right wing issue right up our noses.
I might also add that Sweden, like Norway, has a natal Uranus-Neptune aspect in the early degrees of Cancer and Aries respectively, and is therefore undergoing a similar period of upheaval with dark political undertones – it is only seven months since a lone terrorist attempted to bomb central Stockholm. So, I believe we’re at the beginning of a series of terrorist episodes in Northern Europe, whether at the hands of home grown fascists or Jihadists.
Moving on to the perpetrator of these atrocities, Anders Behring Breivik, it is clear he is no madman but a highly intelligent, articulate and extremely focused individual. A psychopath. Obviously. Yet I am also reminded of the psychological type to which I referred in my June Newsletter – the Right Man
I came across this psychological type identified by, Alfred Van Voigt and developed by Colin Wilson, when I was researching one of my books. As the category suggests, the Right Man is always right. He can be a domestic tyrant, someone who insists on fidelity and obedience from others but places no such restrictions on himself. “The Right Man has a strong desire for truth but the story of his life is an unconsciously distorted version which shows him to have been a hundred percent right and everyone else to have been wrong. And paradoxically enough this may make the Right Man a good scientist or philosopher [or political activist]. It is only where he is concerned that his perception of the truth is distorted…” (Mysteries by Colin Wilson)
Norway
7 June 1905, 11hrs 00, Oslo, Norway
click to enlarge
As I combed through examples of Right Men, it was apparent that they shared a common feature – planets and points in fixed signs, with a particular peak in Aquarius. Now, I don’t wish to alienate all my Aquarian readers because this sign also produces more than its share of lovely, gifted people, but Aquarius is a curious commodity because it combines the element of air (thought and movement) with fixity – a rigid and control-seeking quality. Have you ever tried to budge an Aquarian once he’s made up his mind or argue with one?
It therefore came as no surprise to find that Breivik has a sun-Mars-Mercury stellium in Aquarius, which is squared by Uranus. He is, effectively, the poster boy for the Right Man.
One of his first actions after murdering over 76 people, most at point-blank range without a scintilla of mercy, was to declare his deeds atrocious but not unlawful. In the 1500 pages of his manifesto, published on the internet hours before the killings, he lays out his case. Clearly motivated by extreme right wing ideology, he nurtures a hatred for Islamism and vehemently opposes multiculturalism. His axe to grind was with the liberal labour government of Norway, not only striking the building housing the office of the Prime Minister but mowing down the children of the ruling elite, the future of Norwegian democracy.
I do not have a time of birth for Breivik but I can tell you that he has a moon in Virgo, which would have been conjunct Saturn throughout the entire 24 hours. Any time of birth after 6 pm on 13 February 1979 would have also brought the moon into square aspect with Neptune. Thus, we have a picture of someone who believes his mission in life is not only to rescue the fair Christian race from the Islamist blackguards but to teach us a lesson.
Breivik made his plans for the massacre years in advance, which shows the extent of his commitment to his mission. What finally brought him to the moment, astrologically-speaking, was the approach of transiting Pluto to Venus. On the day of the massacre the sun at 29 degrees of Cancer was within a hair of his natal Jupiter. His moment in the sun had come.
For the Norwegians 22-7 will be their 9-11. And in the same way that the events of 9-11 brought a surge of empathy and solidarity from the entire globe, 22-7 has inspired a great spirit of unity, not just among the Norwegians but throughout the world, crossing all political and racial boundaries.
If you take a look at the chart of Norway, you’ll see that Jupiter – a force for joy, growth and magnanimity – is close to Venus in Taurus and will return to its original position later next year. Thus, the country will gain stature through this crisis. It has become a focus for the threat the radical right wing poses, which will galvanize other European democracies to be more vigilant. We are all safer and certainly wiser thanks to Norway’s night sea crossing.
What happened in Norway affected me personally since I work for Hjemmet, a Norwegian magazine, and have many friends, colleagues and clients there. In fact I was not too far away from Oslo at the time. Over the years, I have come to appreciate the extraordinary kindness and courtesy of these Scandinavian people and there is no question in my mind that their dignity and resolve in this their darkest hour will make their country stronger, and their insistence on their freedoms and their democracy ever more fixed.