This book examines the distinctive generational groups that are created by the slow moving planets from Jupiter to Pluto. One of the more obvious examples of this is the shift from the Baby Boomer generation to Generation X. The shift from one group to the next occurred as Neptune moved from Libra to Scorpio and Pluto from Leo to Virgo between 1957 and 1960.
Rose discusses fresh ways of regarding the three outermost “transcendent” planets. For each generation, Uranus is the group’s Ascendant, Neptune its Moon and Pluto its Sun. Some astrology basics are supplied, including descriptions of all twelve zodiac signs. Rose assigns “solar” and “lunar” ruling planets to each sign, a highly unusual approach that some may find jarring.
Subsequent chapters address each of the five subject planets and descriptions of how these manifest through the twelve signs. Names of notable individuals are included in these descriptions to show how people born under these planet-sign combinations express them. Following chapters discuss the effect of major planetary conjunctions, and how these distinguish special generational groups. For example, the author gives examples of people born under the Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Leo in 1948, and different ways individuals who share this birth year express this shared natal conjunction.
In Chapter 7, Rose tackles the subject of long-term generational groupings, a subject previously examined by William Strauss, Neil Howe, Arnold Toynbee and others. The general theory is that generational groups fall into 108-year clumps with four generations, each corresponding to one of the four elements. Rose suggests that the generational cycles of the United States occur in a swifter 84-year that coincides with the nation’s Uranus return (to Gemini), at which point Neptune occupies the cusp of Aries or Libra, and Pluto occupies the cusp of a fixed sign.
Chapter 8 supplies a lengthy list of individuals born with the slow planets in various signs, with some additional focus on sorting people into generational groups (pages 172-255). Birthdates are included.
About the author: Edwin Rose was born on Jan. 25, 1947 (2:23 am EST, New York City) He self published a 445 page book “Planetary Music: Understanding Astrological Rhythms” (1998). Edwin and his wife, Wendy, owned the metaphysical bookstore Guiding Star in Mill Valley (near San Francisco, CA). He worked as a software engineer and software manager for major corporations including Apple, Leapfrog, Cisco, and Autodesk -- most of his software career has been in animation, games, graphics, and TV. Edwin Rose passed away from a sudden heart attack on Nov. 2, 2010.
~review by Elizabeth Hazel
Author: Edwin Rose
O Books, 2010
pp. 256, $24.95
