When the first airliner flew into the first tower, things looked bad in Manhattan. Finally, it seemed, the many flights in the vicinity of New York had led to a terrible accident. When the second airliner flew in to the second tower, 15 minutes later - plenty of time for the TV cameras to be in position as was undoubtedly intended - then it dawned simultaneously for many millions that unnatural and evil forces were at play. Red flames, black smoke, spewed out from the stricken building, and the full horror of the situation was apparent. Some kind of war had been declared. That these buildings - these proud symbols of the Masters of the Universe in concrete, glass and steel - subsequently crumbled into dust, seemed an impossibility. Such an event could not happen. But it did. The founding stone had been laid with an exact Uranus/Pluto conjunction on August 5th 1966, and when the progressed Sun reached this point 35 years later - at the repeat of the Saturn/Pluto opposition - the building was engulfed in flames and turned to dust.

The Innocent

The hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people taking the long journey down in the stairwells did not panic. In a country which loves a winner, the crowds parted in the packed stairs to let the badly burned be carried past, and closed again. As people moved down, urging each other not to panic, firemen and policemen moved up. They already knew their fate. One eyewitness leaving the building recalls how a fireman on the way up pointed to his badge and said "Remember that name, and tell my wife what I did". So about 5000 people in the World Trade Centre met their end on September 11, 2001, some in the initial impact, others on the top floors in the ensuing conflagration, some holding hands and flying through the air, and most in the sudden crash of concrete and steel. May they have a special place in heaven.

That is how the holy war began.

The Oppressed

You have to ask "Why"As the film cameras cut to Palestine - or the remains of what was Palestine - children, women and men were waving their hands in happiness and shouting with joy. And you have to ask the question, how could that be? How could the perception be so different? Perhaps W.H. Auden got it right when he penned the following verse whilst sitting in a New York dive on September 1st 1939:

Into this neutral air
Where blind skyscrapers use
Their full height to proclaim
The strength of Collective Man,
Each language pours its vain
Competitive excuse:
But who can live for long In an euphoric dream;
Out of the mirror they stare,
Imperialism's face
And the international wrong.

Image of America

For reasons which can be quite difficult to understand Americans and the USA are both loved and hated, often by the same people. It's the wealth that does it. Even in the 2nd world war the British rather resented the Americans. They were "Over-fed, over-sex, and over-here". Visitors to the US are astonished by the gas-guzzling cars, the enormous refrigerators, the huge portions of food in restaurants in what appears to be an extraordinary over-consumption. They are also struck by the smiling openness, politeness and friendliness of the general population. These sides of the American character are probably best reflected by the Venus/Jupiter conjunction in Cancer in the chart, which shows generosity of spirit on the one hand, and a penchant for comfort and luxury on the other. America conquers the world with this energy, in the embodiment of the US dollar. Not through overt military force or dictatorial behaviour. America does push other countries around, but it rarely goes to war, often being dragged unwillingly into conflict. Of course, there is a shadow side, and the Mercury/Pluto opposition from the 8th to the 2nd clearly shows the manipulative powers of US corporations, amongst other things.

USA (Sibley) 04.07.1776 17.10.40 EST
Philadelphia 39N57 75W10

The People Unite

But Americans themselves are reflected by the multinational and multicultural Aquarian Moon in the 3rd house - a melting pot of people, cultures and nationalities. Historically, these people arrived in the New World with very little, fought to create a life, and grew to passionately love the freedom embodied in the US constitution. And as the United States progressed Sun moves to conjoin the US Moon for the first time since Independence - an aspect that will be exact during the 2nd week of January 2002 - these people are galvanised. They have found their collective soul again, and they are rallying to proclaim their identification with their country. The September 11th attack has not overpowered but empowered the American people, and in hindsight this may be one of its most important results... the American government and its people are now One.

Astrological Portents

Anyone familiar with the US (Sibley) horoscope has been expecting trouble. The most significant astrological event of 2001/2002 is the Saturn/Pluto opposition, which takes place every 35 years, and was present when the WTC was founded. Three oppositions now take place, the first one being in August, one month before the attack, with Pluto reaching its retrograde station at 12.32 Sagittarius, 11 minutes of arc from the US Ascendant. Simultaneously then, Saturn conjoins the US Descendant in one of the most powerful astrological configurations possible, and one never to happen again for America. Except for the two remaining oppositions which take place:
1. November 2nd 2001 at 13.49 Gemini/Sagittarius
2. May 26 2002 at 16.35 Gemini/Sagittarius
There can be no clearer symbol than the Twin Towers of Saturn in Gemini, utterly destroyed by Pluto, and in hindsight it seems almost obvious how grave the danger was to the World Trade Centre from Pluto terror.

The Eclipse of June 2002

The first conclusion to draw from this is that the consequences of the terrorist action will last well beyond May 2002. But the situation is even more complex, because the eclipse cycle also passes this point in 2002, in what seems like a cosmic exclamation mark. The eclipse of the 10th June 2002 falls at 19.54 Gemini, exactly on Saturn, and close to the US Mars at 21.23 Gemini. Be prepared for a surprise: this eclipse, calculated for New York, has absolutely exactly the same position as the US Ascendant, within 3 minutes of arc. In other words, as the Moon moves over the sphere of the Sun during the eclipse, the structure of the US independence chart is exactly replicated. Furthermore, the position of Uranus at the June 2002 eclipse is 28.49 Aquarius - it has just conjoined the US Moon (and progressed Sun) on March 28th, and will do so again on August 12th and January 19th 2003 - implying drastic changes in the way of life of the American people. Transportation - by air, train and sea - will be completely disrupted. All these indications indicate that America is at war, and will remain at war for at least a year. America eyes will be directed into the air, from which danger can be expected again. Almost certainly American air power will be completely mobilised throughout this period. The media will radically change and become a very ever-present and dominating influence, as the immediacy of Uranus impacts the Moon.

Eclipse: 10th June 2002 23.45 New York

Looking at the path of the eclipse, it starts in Indonesia, and curves up over Hawaii and down into the Gulf of California. Therefore it is crucial to harvest intelligence in the hotchpotch of islands comprising The Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia, and take action to protect Hawaii and the West Coast of the US.

Bush = USA

Another clear indication of conflict is the progression of Mars in Bush's horoscope in square to his Sun, which will be exact in March 2002. This is obviously a time when he will be tested as a leader, and with this Mars influence he will have no trouble finding the necessary war fever. As his Sun at 13 Cancer is at exactly the same place as the US Sun, he will become a potent symbol for America, and will simply channel the wishes and feelings of its government and people. Furthermore, the threat to the USA is a threat to Bush himself. One should not forget Tecumseh's Curse, spoken by an Indian Chief predicting the death in office of every President elected every 20th year, (when there is a Saturn/Jupiter conjunction). Bush has Uranus at 19 Gemini conjoining his nodal axis at 20 Gemini, so the Saturn/Pluto eclipse combination activates a latent destiny in his life to lead a coalition of nations - the trine to Moon/Jupiter in Libra - into a 21st century highly technological fight for justice. With transit Neptune hovering over his Descendant, he will find his open enemies almost impossible to catch hold of, whilst partners will let him down at crucial moments. His main partner is the vice-president, whose health is hardly robust enough to handle the coming struggles.

George W Bush 06.07.1946 7.26
New Haven CT 41N18 72W55

The Course of the War

This new war against an invisible enemy will escalate, and reach great intensity in the summer of 2002, when the American people will be in action and in danger. The May 2002 eclipse indicates just the start of a period of intense struggle, which cannot culminate before transiting Saturn has made its station at 22.08 Gemini on February 22, 2003, very close to US Mars and square Neptune. The activation of the Mars/Neptune squared by Saturn at this time indicates that the US must be vigilant in protecting themselves against actions at sea, and more ominously anything to do with biological and chemical warfare. Airborne diseases are a very strong possibility. There is a definite danger in this area. Saturn/Pluto aspects have no respect for human principles. An end to this war against terrorism can be predicted some time up to the final opposition from Pluto to US Mars in September 2005. At this time a vast demobilisation process will be underway, with radical cuts in military forces, and a complete reassessment of defence, with many projects getting axed.

But who is America, and their allies, Europe, at war with?

The Initial Act of War

The nature of a war can often be seen by the horoscope for its start, and this time and date is imprinted in the memory of us all, and will be so in future history. At first glance this horoscope seems innocent enough. Mercury has just reached the trine to Saturn, and was rising at impact, obviously a testimony to the astonishing precision of the planning that went in to the action. Mercury in Libra shows humans trading together, as well as the nature of the projectile, which was a bomb filled with human beings. More about this Mercury later. The Ascendant and emphasis in air shows the meeting of the airliner and skyscraper - and the connection to the Saturn/Pluto opposition exactly on the 3rd/9th axis shows the cynical use of this impact for communication purposes, as well as the inhuman use of commercial transport with a deadly message. This was a strike at the structure of America itself, particularly its business structure. The Ascendant degree of the attack is on the US 10th house Saturn, with no orb. It is exact. And Saturn itself is trine the US Saturn within 3 minutes of arc. The North Node - Rahu - is at 3.06 Cancer, on the US Venus with no orb. It is exact. This activation of US Venus by the nodal axis reinforces the theme of the US economy, and particularly its surfeit. The symbolism of Rahu on the US Venus is the judgement of Islamic extremists on American values. Rahu will hit US Mars around 24th March 2002, and at this time it is the US military establishment which is under threat.

Declaration of War: WTC impact 11.09.2001
8.48 EDT New York

World Trade Beheaded

The World Trade Centre is a place where fortunes have been made and lost via speculation. Militants and fanatics the world over see the two towers as the ultimate symbol of US greed and economic dominance. In myth Rahu was a demon who was beheaded by Vishnu's discus for drinking the nectar of the gods and becoming immortal. Rahu is precisely semi-square Venus, and furthermore Venus at 18.24 Leo is exactly on the August 1999 eclipse point, within 4 minutes of arc, tying in the whole event to the cataclysmic "Nostradamus" eclipse with its dire warning:

L'an mil neuf nonante neuf sept mois
The year one thousand nine hundred ninety nine seven months
Du ciel viendra
From the heavens will come
un grand Roy deffraieur
a great King of fear
Resusciter le grand Royd'Angolmois
to revive the great King of Angolmois*
Avant apres Mars regner par bon heur
Before (&) after Mars to reign fortunately

(Angolmois has traditionally been interpreted as a reference to Mongolia. Note 1.)

On the other side of the nodal axis, Mars has just entered Capricorn, and activates the South Node, Ketu, which is traditionally associated with Islam in Vedic astrology. Mars shows the military precision of the pilots of the planes, and the conjunction with Ketu shows their willingness to give their lives for the cause of the Jihad.
There are many extraordinary contacts to the US chart. Uranus is about to station exactly trine the US Mars - we'll certainly be seeing some demonstrations of US air power. More extraordinarily, Jupiter conjoins the US (and Bush's) Sun, making its station at 15 Cancer, and therefore giving an incredible boost to US influence well into May 2002, although it also shows the ideological nature of the conflict with two strong and implacable forces, Mars and Jupiter, opposing each other. It's certainly not all bad for America, and the nation will undoubtedly emerge strengthened from this crisis.

Identifying the Enemy

It should be possible to identify the enemy from the astrological signatures of this event. First of all there is no doubt that the Saturn/Pluto opposition shows political and religious extremists, evoking the full destructive potential of the long Pluto transit through Sagittarius. Foreign religious fanatics are the enemy, and with this opposition placed on the 3rd/9th house axis of the impact chart, this enemy is placed both locally (3rd) and internationally (9th). The Moon's position in Gemini emphasises the Twin Tower theme, especially as it conjoined Saturn/Pluto the day before. As the Moon moves towards the Node/Mars combination, so are these towers destroyed, by the aforementioned militants who sacrifice themselves for the spiritual cause.

The Mastermind

It seems to me that the evil mastermind in a foreign location is shown by (Pluto-opposed) Saturn in Gemini in the 9th. Saturn "disposes" of the suicide-pilots Mars, frighteningly strong (exalted) in Capricorn. They are sure they will go to heaven. Mercury disposes of Saturn, but is in mutual reception with it by the exaltation of Saturn in Libra. One technique when working with receptions is for the planets to swap places, which would place Saturn exactly on the Ascendant. From the mastermind's point of view, justice has been done, and the scales of balance evened out. For 50 years of American support for Israel, for atom bombs over Japan, for bombing in Libya, Sudan, and Afghanistan, and for the systematic destruction of Iraq's infrastructure since the Gulf War. This is why the people in Palestine celebrated. Decades of humiliation for Islamic aspirations have been avenged. And indeed, Usama Bin Ladin enumerated exactly these points when he called for a Jihad again all Americans and Jews from his base in Afghanistan in 1998. In the same declaration he talked of the inevitability of terrorist actions taking place on American soil. However it seems to me that the horoscope shows a disparate network of self-contained groups working for a common goal, although their identification is with bin Ladin. A further point of interest which points the finger at Islamic extremism and Afghanistan is the shadow of the 1999 eclipse which passes from the Boston/New York area through Europe, the Middle East, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.

The Mercury Loop

The role of Mercury in this event is quite extraordinary. Its position at 14.17 Libra is exactly at the point to which it returns to go direct in the current retrograde cycle. And for some extraordinary reason it makes its retrograde station at 29.41 Libra on October 2nd, which is exactly where it went stationary direct (29.56 Libra) on the day of the US election last November. We can all remember how this put the election in the balance, and somehow this retrograde cycle keys in with this. So Mercury will return to station at 14.12 Libra on October 23rd , and this will be a significant date in the follow up to the September 11 atrocity. Mercury will only leave its "loop" when it passes 29.41 Libra for a second time on November 7th, another significant date. What seems likely is that there is a risk of a repeat terrorist action on October 23rd. Something repeats, and it may actually be possible to apprehend a key figure at this time. The other conclusion to be drawn from the Mercury loop is that everything contained within the loop will be in a time dimension all for itself. It's like an aberration - a self-contained epoch of history, which could symbolically last as many months as there are days in the loop from September 11 to October 23... 42 days/months, putting the end of the terrorist war at around March 2005. This may seem like odd reasoning, but the same loop last year enabled me to very accurately predict the outcome of the US election before it took place. (Note 2)

The Outcome

The direct Mercury station on the 23rd will also signal the end of a period of investigation and analysis. If action has not been taken by then, then it will immediately follow, possibly as Venus passes the same degree on the 27th (demanding justice and victory) with Mars entering Aquarius on the same day. The Moon's nodes and eclipses are going to play a significant role in the ensuing conflict. The South Node in Capricorn (in the attack) shows the traditional and rigid values of the Jihad terrorists, and the North Node the "soft" values of the USA. The battle will be between rational Saturn/Rahu and suicidal Pluto/Ketu. If anyone is concerned about the outcome, they need not be. It's a repeat of the Gulf war Saturn/Rahu conjunction of 1991, and everyone knows that that was a bad experience for Iraq. Saturn really destroys Rahu. This is going to be another humiliating experience for Islam. Therefore, let us urge our leaders to show restraint, as revenge exacted on innocent people will only create more terrorists. Perhaps I could leave readers with the words of the Dalai Lama:

Dear friends around the world,
There are two possible responses to what has occurred today. The first comes from love, the second from fear. If we come from fear we may panic and do things... that could only cause further damage... Unless we take this time to look at the cause of our experience, we will never remove ourselves from the experiences it creates. Instead, we will forever live in fear of retribution from those within the human family who feel aggrieved, and, likewise, seek retribution from them.

The title of this article is inspired by Tolkeins 2nd book in the Lord of the Rings series, in which Frodo the hobbit saves the world from evil Sauron. The first film of the first book will be released this December, and the second and third books will follow in the subsequent two years. We will all be following Frodo's seemingly hopeless yet ultimately successful battle against Evil Incarnate. Welcome to 21st century reality.

Note 1. "Nostradamus for the Slow-Witted" at http://members.netscapeonline.co.uk/antibetdesign/nostlinx.htm
Note 2. See article Mercury, the Euro and the US election