Wall of Shame

Walls are a human construct that separate people. 

Israel built a wall to prevent Palestinians from continuing numerous bloody terror attacks on its citizens. In turn, the Palestinian's consider Israelis as trespassers, oppressors and usurpers of their native land. 

Donald Trump built a wall to keep Mexicans and others from illegally entering the United States of America. His logic was that unregulated entry brings with it crime, drugs and economic chaos for American citizens living in border communities. Joe Biden opened the borders, in sympathy with the views of many American's that the wall on the Mexican-US border is anathema to their dream of a border-free world. 

Before these walls, there was the Berlin Wall. Below, is an examination of its history and astrology.

History of the Berlin Wall

After the end of World War II in Europe, what remained of pre-war Germany west of the Oder-Neisse line was divided into four occupation zones (as per the Potsdam Agreement), each one controlled by one of the four occupying Allied powers: the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the Soviet Union. The capital of Berlin, as the seat of the Allied Control Council, was similarly subdivided into four sectors despite the city's location, which was fully within the Soviet zone.

Within two years, political divisions increased between the Soviets and the other occupying powers. These included the Soviets' refusal to agree to reconstruction plans making post-war Germany self-sufficient, and to a detailed accounting of industrial plants, goods and infrastructure—some of which had already been removed by the Soviets. France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Benelux countries later met to combine the non-Soviet zones.

In 1948, during the multinational occupation of post–World War II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under Western control. The Soviets offered to drop the blockade if the Western Allies withdrew the newly introduced Deutsche Mark from West Berlin. This has become known as the Berlin Blockade from 24 June 1948 to 12 May 1949. It was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. 

In response, the Western Allies organised the Berlin Airlift from 26 June 1948 to 30 September 1949 to carry supplies to the people of West Berlin, a difficult feat given the size of the city and the population.

This accelerated efforts of the USA and its allies to found a West German state, which culminated in the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) at 5:03 pm on May 23, 1949 in Bonn.

The schism between the East and West only grew and on August 13, 1961 the Soviet rulers of East Germany began the construction of the Berlin Wall.

The Berlin Wall was a guarded 155 km long concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government of the GDR. It included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, accompanied by a wide area (later known as the "death strip") that contained anti-vehicle trenches, beds of nails and other defenses. The opening of the wall on November 9, 1989, became a symbol for the collapse of oppressive Soviet Communism in the Soviet Union and its satellite states in Eastern and Central Europe. The builders of the Wall sought to stem the growing exodus of people from the East to the West.

American friends

During the Wall's existence, there were two remarkable and positive events involving visits by US Presidents John F. Kennedy in 1963 and Ronald Reagan in 1987 to witness the wall and comment about it.

Below we consider the astrology of these four related events in terms of the 23° 44' Virgo rising horoscope for Germany.

The Soviets separate

An Iron Curtain separated the Western Bloc and neutral countries from the Eastern Bloc during the Cold War. The Berlin Wall became a symbol of it.

The Eastern Bloc portrayed the Wall as protecting its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the "will of the people" from building a socialist state in the GDR. 

 The West Berlin city government sometimes referred to it as the "Wall of Shame", a term coined by mayor Willy Brandt in reference to the Wall's restriction on freedom of movement. It was part of the separate and much longer Inner German border between East and West Germany, it came to symbolize physically the 

On 13 August 1961, the Ketu major and Ketu sub periods had just started. Astrologically, it is very fitting that the dual period of Ketu, the planet of separation, had begun to operate a few months earlier. The sign Leo falls in the 12th house, and its Moolatrikona lord, the Sun, also carries this influence. 

All the slow moving functional malefic (FM) planets were being afflicted or afflicting. Transit 12th lord Sun was also conjunct transit 1st lord Mercury in the 11th house of alliances and goals, signifying the loss for the national identity of Germany resulting from this giant symbol of separation. 

This is particularly strong evidence in favour of this horoscope for Germany, which the author rectified and presented on the SAMVA list on December 14, 2014. 

A friend consoles

Following the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, US President John F. Kennedy visited Berlin to protest the wall, which deprived East Germans of their freedom to visit or live with their family, friends and countrymen in the western part of the city. Kennedy's speech which became known as "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I, too, am a citizen of Berlin), was given at the Rathaus Schöneberg on 26 June 1963.

The Ketu/Moon period was operating. Natally, 11th lord Moon is in the most effective point (MEP) of the 7th house of others and foreign agreements. The Moon also aspects the 1st house of national identity. This suggests Germany enjoys significant influence globally, and it brings them satisfaction. The placement also suggests friends play a big role in the country's affairs, but also that its goals and aspirations motivate their foreign agreements and alliances.

Kennedy's visit inspired the people of Berlin, Germany and the West, seen in aspects indicating a burst of optimism, notably transit 4th lord Jupiter being conjunct natal 11th lord Moon and the MEP of the 7th house and transit 1st lord Mercury and transit 2nd lord Venus being conjunct 1st lord Mercury in the MEP of the 9th house.

However, there were also difficult transits such as the placement of transit 6th lord Saturn at 29° Capricorn and 5th house where it received an aspect from natal Ketu at 2° Libra and 2nd house. Transit Ketu in the 4th house MEP was also in aspect to 8th lord Mars in the MEP of the 8the house MEP. These aspects were fitting for the difficulty of the cold war, during Kennedy's visit.

A friend exhorts 

Ronald Reagan´s speech came on the heels of his summit meeting with Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland in the prior year. In it he offered a challenge to Mr. Gorbachev to "Tear down this wall". The speech was given at the Brandenburg Gate on12 June 1987. Helping matters was that in 1985, Mr. Gorbachev had come to power in the USSR. He immediately set about to initiate reforms, called Perestroika (restructuring) and Glasnost (transparency), reflecting his commitment to change the Soviet Union and make it a less repressive and more humane system. In the event, he lost control of the changes he unleashed, resulting in breakdown of the Soviet Union from 1989 to 1991, terminated in the creation of the Russian Federation in December of 1991.  

The Venus-Ketu period was operating, signifying the ongoing separation. Transit  6th lord Saturn was in the MEP of the 3rd house opposite to transit 12th lord Sun in the MEP of the 9th house. As such, these malefics were also afflicting 1st lord Mercury in the 9th house, signifying the tension involving outside influences involving the fortunes of the city. Transit 8th lord Mars was in the MEP of the 10th house, aspecting also the 1st, 4th and 5th houses. Obstacles and endings were being highlighted in the public mind. Transit Ketu was in the 1st house in aspect to 2nd lord Venus in the 9th house, there was tension involving relations with neighbouring countries.

Fall of the Wall and German Reunification

The fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, was a pivotal event in world history which marked the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain and one of the series of events that started the fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe, preceded by the Solidarity Movement in Poland. The fall of the inner German border took place shortly afterwards. An end to the Cold War was declared at the Malta Summit three weeks later and the German reunification took place in October the following year. The breeching of the Berlin Wall was followed immediately by efforts to demolish it.

The Sun-Jupiter period was operating. Natally, 4th lord Jupiter is in the 5th house, suggesting an inherent interest in managing situations, linked to the homeland. On this day, transit 4th lord Jupiter was in the 10th house, signifying the prominence of the homeland. It was in opposition to transit 6th lord Saturn in the 4th house, involving a victory in a long standing land dispute. Transit 2nd lord Venus was conjunct 12th lord Sun in the 9th house and transit 12th lord Sun was conjunct 1st lord Mercury in the 9th house. These aspects were separating, suggesting the tension was fading.

Conclusion

The horoscope for the Federal Republic of Germany does a magnificent job of explaining these events in the country's history, raising confidence in it. Systems' Approach Mundane Astrologers may therefore continue to use it with an eye to the periods and transits of slow moving planets in coming years. 

Study References

Here are some articles dealing with the astrology of the Cold War in terms of the SAMVA USA chart:

• Jupiter and World War II - https://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2010/01/jupiter-and-world-war-ii.html
• Saturn and the fear of death in 1953 - https://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2016/12/saturn-and-fear-of-death-in-1953.html
• SAMVA USA chart: Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 - https://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2008/01/samva-usa-chart-cuban-missile-crisis-in.html
• Cold Warriors on the Moon - https://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2009/09/cold-warriors-on-moon.html
• 1972 - https://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2010/06/1972.html