Happy birthday, Malta!

 

Whenever a child is born, parents who are interested in astrology might want to see a birthchart showing the position of the luminaries and planets at the time, place and date of birth. An experienced astrologer might then be asked to interpret the positions and relationships (what we call aspects) between the Sun, Moon and the planets for that child.

And so it is the same with countries. Known as Mundane Astrology, countries too, have birth charts. They may also have more than one, depending on context and history.

So what does Malta’s 1964 birthchart look like? A birthchart shows the positions of the Sun, Moon and planets at the time, date and place of birth, or beginning of a project/era. This is the Malta chart most commonly in use by astrologers, because it is considered to be the beginning of Malta as a nation in her own right, although one could make an argument for using the 13th December 1974 chart, when Malta became a republic. Nicholas Campion, a well-established astrologer, writer and lecturer at Bath University, compiled a list of national charts in his book on Mundane Astrology. In it, one will find Malta’s national birthchart as that of the 21st September 1964.

In order to understand the chart, you need to know what you are looking at. First of all, this is a picture of the zodiac with Malta at the centre, at midnight on the 21st September 1964. If this were a clock, then between nine o’ clock and three o’ clock is what you could see in the sky, and beneath that is what lay beneath the horizon at the birth time.

The glyphs are symbols for planets. So, for example, the glyph for the Sun is a circle with a dot in the middle. The Moon looks like a waxing/maning moon. Mercury looks like Venus except that Mercury the messenger (or Hermes) wore a helmet with wings. Have a look at the glyphs and compare them with the glyphs in the chart.

The zodiac signs, too, have glyphs; this saves astrologers some time when writing out reports for charts. Remember, in days of old, charts were calculated by hand, unlike today (though if you were to study astrology with an astrology school, you might be expected to do this).

 

Looking at Malta’s chart, then, you should be able to decipher that the Sun was in Virgo at the time, place and date of Independent Malta. If Malta were a person, then she would be typically Virgoan – you know, meticulous, orderly and seeking perfection. You might be laughing by now, because that does not sound like our laid back Mediterranean philosophy of living, does it? Have no fear, astrology is not playing tricks on us. Just consider this, which religious deity does this island hold dear to its heart? The Blessed Virgin Mother. Perhaps that’s it. 

The Moon in a national chart denotes the common people. In the Maltese national chart, the Moon lies at 18 degrees of Pisces, the sign of the fish.  Pisces, at best, represents forgoing the ego, aspiring to the spiritual. The other end of the spectrum is disillusion. However, the Moon is not the only thing happening in the chart. If you look at the positions of the other planets, you will find three planets occupying a very tight portion of the sky. Mercury, Uranus and Pluto are all within 4 degrees of each other at the bottom of the chart. The Sun is very close by, though it is not close enough to be considered ‘in conjunction’ with the other three planets (yes, Pluto is considered a planet by astrologers!). That’s a party in common terms. Imagine, you throw a party and Mercury the messenger, Uranus the eccentric, innovative thinker and Pluto the explosives expert are deep in conversation in a corner of your house. What on earth (or in heaven) could they be talking about? Notice that these three planets lie opposite the Moon. So on the one hand we are told that there is an emotional disposition to be compassionate and all encompassing (that’s the bright side of Pisces) whilst also having to contend with very acute critical thinking skills (that is the power of Mercury in Virgo assisted by those two heavies, Uranus and Pluto). Does it sound like Malta? People can be incredibly kind and compassionate on good days. On bad days.... erm.....well, we are Mediterranean.

There is much more to interpreting this chart than just this, but this is not the scope of this article.

It’s Malta’s birthday next week. She’s still in her prime at 57 and an independent young nation. What do the stars have in store for her? Interestingly enough, there is a Full Moon in Pisces on the 21st September which throws the highlight on Malta’s leaders and also the electorate. Emotions are usually high at a Full Moon, so it is not surprising that rumours of an election are abounding at the moment: the Sun and Neptune are opposite each other in the astrological chart (exact on 14th September). Neptune creates illusions and smoke screens.

Incidentally, anyone born around the middle of the month in March, June or December might feel a little bit ‘spaced out’ thanks to Neptune making an aspect to their natal Sun. This is a good time to get into the Arts, so bring out your music, drawing materials and be the artist.

Have a great day... and bring out those watercolours!

Blessings be yours 😊

 P.S. Incidentally, my piano was delivered to my house in time for that Sun-Neptune meeting in the skies, which is exact today. Music speaks where words fail....