Astrological Fear of Success leads to Self-Undoing

Do you know someone who is afraid of accomplishment?  How about someone whose astrological patterns show "a fear of success" or "a rejection of Life Challenges": someone who subconsciously attracts or manifests conditions which sabotages his/her life (or that of someone in collaboration) so that plans go astray in spite of the best intentions or desires. Or they express desire for happiness, but the fear of "the unknown" and its potential for growing past and through life challenges makes them reject opportunities that would otherwise bring them wisdom.

It's as if they generate a force field of Mercury/Mars retrograde in their lives. These actions are externalized through others, especially key family members, in the form of illness, accident, and other forms of controlled chaos.  Each time a plan is set or about to be implemented, someone close to the subject has an event upon which the subject then postpones, cancels, or delays whatever he/she was going to activate, again, with a second party's involvement.  (Hence, the Mars/Mercury retrograde parallel.)  I've known Crabs who do this with controlled helplessness, but this is slightly different: the subject DOES want to move forward or activate a project or goal, but is too emotionally caught up in the lives of others.

I believe there are patterns which may be clues: the moon in a water sign (especially Cancer) with Mars in tight or inharmonious aspect (conjunction, square, opposition--or even quincunx); Capricorn ascendant (I've seen this twice--they were content to be "tethered goats), and a cardinal sign Sun (or the cusp of Cancer-Leo: the Lion for dramatic effort).  The Aries sun type WANTS to initiate or activate, but keeps being sidetracked; the Libra type is too caught up in relationship issues, including co-dependency. And the Capricorn ambition to achieve is legendary; in this case, the objective (or mountain top) that is never reached.

I've also seen this with personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars) in the 12th house--especially in water signs. (The individual gets so emotionally caught up in decision-making that they can't get going. Try telling a Mars in Pisces 12th house to take action! "On your mark, get set...{sink to the bottom!}"

A Jupiter/Saturn opposition or--believe it or not--the conjunction--can also indicate this: the person has great large-scale ideas (Jupiter), but is frustrated (or worried) about achieving them (Saturn). I call that aspect "driving with one foot on the gas and the other on the brake pedal." On the other hand, this could also indicate someone who DOES achieve in spite of obstacles or delays.

Again, psychological astrology looks at the individual and offers options: there is not a "you will do this" condition, but rather a set of choices.  Success or frustration is one example of how and why psychological astrology shows us the way we open or close the doors in our lives.

Aspects (part 1) - dynamics of Cooperation and Resistance

The aspects are a vital and detailed way for psychology and astrology to show how the psyche is engaged in lessons of cooperation or frustration in handling and managing Life Lessons.  (Note:  I am using five of the basic aspects, and will also discuss only ONE minor aspect, the quincunx.  I think these are the ones which most readily show the factors which I find most accessible in overall psychological analyses.  However, I concur and agree with those who use the remaining minor aspects.)

Aspects (and arcs):  measuring cooperation and resistance (with geometry!)

Arcs:  The Energy Interaction of Planets and Signs
6-10 degrees of REAL separation! +/-
Cooperation &  Adjustment or Frustration & Resistance
Resolution Management of Life Crises

Astrology has a built-in guideline for gauging the psyche and its dynamics:  the measurement of aspects, the markers of cooperation and tension-resistance (C&T) between coordinating planets and their energies.

The idea is simple enough:  match up two planets by a system that uses a set proximity of numerical degree value and see what pattern is formed that represents C&T as a goal--or not.  Not every planet has a matching interaction, and not every match has a result of C&T.  In fact,  the aspect patterns that form in a chart for psychological analyses may indicate that the soul's lessons are difficult (for soul growth):  exactly WHY it matters to know psychological astrology concepts in vocational, familial, educational, and other counseling endeavors.
 

The game of Six Degrees of Separation is a close reference, but it’s a plus-or-minus range from zero to 30 in astrology.  Twelve ways x 30 = 360 degrees, or a perfect circle:  the chart as a Mandala of Life.  Here we find cooperation and adjustment to Life Challenges as well as frustration and resistance to growth patterns and lessons that will not go away.  This is Resolution Management of Life Crises and Opportunities, and the aspects are symbolic indicators of the energy exchanges between different parts of the psyche.  Cooperation and teamwork (C&T) are the basic structure; adjustment and flexibility are the goal. The conjunction, square, trine, sextile, and opposition aspects have a +/- range of @6 degrees (depending on the astrologer's view). A quincunx, if used, has a range of @3 degrees. However, the Sun and Moon are given ranges up to 10 degrees maximum (again, depending on the astrologer's view).

What aspects bring is a display of planetary and sign energy in harmony--or not--and when conflict is indicated, what can be done about managing it.  As personal a blueprint of Life and Action as there ever could be!  Aspects do not need exact time frames for calculation; this is one reason why I endorse using an ephemeris WITHOUT an exact birth time.  If the aspects show the levels of "yes-or-no" among the players of our Life Experience Team, then it's obvious that we are the coach who needs to be responsible for their best effort.

  I have found the work and research of the Magi Society and their historical perspective of aspects to be one of the reasons why people have trouble understanding the variations within astrology.  The Magi Society was originated in China in 1625, and their technique of using aspects as guide markers instead of house systems and cusps made their work that much more significant.  In effect, they have been doing the calculations and chronicles of astrological research for almost 400 years—and the volume of knowledge they have to validate their work is quite substantial.  It could be said that they were doing the work of the Gauquelins from Switzerland, but hundreds of years earlier.

In the years of evaluations on the lives of the subjects whose charts were cast by the Magi Society, they became more convinced than ever that aspects are truly what characterizes the individual; that these dynamics of tension and cooperation are the keys to the psyche’s growth.  They see that the house systems can change depending on what type is used to delineate the chart, and so placements of planets can vary up or down within a cusp (doorway) if that planet is close enough by degrees to “move over.”  

With the aspect system ONLY, the psycho-dynamics are revealed in a more open way as “either resolved or learning to be resolved” nature:  the subject has either shown soul achievement and growth through a challenge, or they have not.  All the “avoidance and excuses” that we use as denial methods will not hold validity because the aspects define the life challenges and opportunities, for better or worse.  There’s not much room for rebuttal with an aspect.  They get results from us and they don't take "no" for an answer because we have a lifetime's worth of opportunity to master them.  (Astrology also says that they can come back in a NEW lifetime if we haven't done them properly if you consider the Nodes and Saturn and the Black Moon Lilith.)