Cosmic Capsule - Woody Allen - Did Woody Diddle?

We hate it when our heroes are proven to have feet of clay.  We prefer to overlook it rather than face the harsh reality.  Elvis Presley, overweight and over medicated, to this day has legions of fans flocking to Graceland with nary a question as to where he hid his barbiturates. Michael Jackson’s fans didn’t raise a peep when he dangled a toddler off a balcony and rallied round during his trial for child molestation. Bill Cosby has been accused of sexual misconduct, Roman Polanski has famously been exiled from America for an incident with a young girl and Morgan Freeman raised a few eyebrows when he married his ex-wife’s granddaughter. When someone accuses our heroes of misconduct we prefer to have the accuser melt back into the background so we can continue in our fantasy.  Anita Hill, the lady who brought the issue of sexual harassment to the front page during the confirmation hearings of Clarence Thomas said, “I resent the idea that people would blame the messenger for the message, rather than looking at the content of the message itself.” 

 Our latest messenger is Dylan Farrow who has recently penned an open letter published in the New York Times about the alleged abuse she suffered at the hands of her adoptive father Woody Allen.  She was 7 years old at that time.  Previously, Dylan’s mother, Mia Farrow had discovered revealing Polaroid pictures of her other adoptive daughter, Soon-Yi at Woody’s apartment.  These pictures were quite graphic.  

Woody Allen is a Sagittarius with Virgo rising and Moon in Aquarius.  His Sagittarius Sun sits with Jupiter, his ruler, and Mercury all clustered together.  Jupiter brings a massive amount of energy to this Sagittarian cluster of planets.  This provides him with enormous vision, he dreams the impossible dream. The Ascendant or rising sign is an inherent part of the personality and allows Woody Allen to transport those visions to the earthly plane.  The Moon in Aquarius speaks to an unconventional home life. 

What catches the eye in this horoscope given the accusations floating around is his Mars/Pluto opposition, both squaring Venus.  Traditionally Mars is a malefic, meaning he’s a bad guy capable of war, aggression and various other forms of ugliness.  Pluto ain’t such a nice guy either.  Obsession, power, control and plumbing the depths are all attributes of Pluto.  Together with Mars he harshly aspects Venus.  This does not paint a pretty picture. This Pluto aspect goes a long way in explaining why Woody Allen is somewhat of a professional analysand as he perpetually undergoes psychoanalysis. It also reveals that there is potential there for abuse although that is not a given.  Other folks with a Mars/Pluto opposition include Angelina Jolie, Mohandas Gandhi and Richard Nixon.  Nixon was surely into power and control and there are stories that Gandhi slept naked with young girls to test and strengthen his control. Angelina Jolie as a youth was a bit of a sexual provocateur.  Woody Allen is a complex individual with all of his personal planets below the horizon.  He’s a very private person and keeps a lot hidden.  His Mars/Pluto opposition squaring Venus indicates a definite issue with women.  The up side is a lot of energy focused on the artistic.

Dylan’s reason for going public now was prompted by Woody Allen receiving the Cecil B. De Mille Lifetime Achievement award at the Golden Globes this year.  Astrologically there is another reason. I don’t have Dylan Farrow’s birth date but she was 7 then which makes her 29 now.  In astrology these are 2 very important years in the life cycle the individual.

Through the technique of Secondary Progression   that astrologers use to advance the chart throughout a person’s lifetime, moving the planets along the zodiacal path, at 7 years old the individual’s Secondary Progressed Moon has move 90 degrees to square the natal Moon.  At the same time the person’s Saturn has moved to square the natal Saturn.  This is a period in a child’s life when they transition from babyhood to a more mature posture.  Yes Virginia, there is no Santa Claus.

At about 27and ½ years old, the Secondary Progressed Moon moves back into to its natal position.   This is a period of emotional maturation. Some youngsters don’t make it for a variety of reasons.  Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Hendrix and Cobain come to mind.

This transit sets the stage for the Saturn Return, Saturn’s return to its natal position.  This first Saturn return occurs around 29 years of age. There is often a feeling at this return that time is running out and one must accomplish what one has set out to do before it is to late.  It is also a time to sort things out, to take a look at and revise inner values.  During this stage of one’s life that which is not necessary to the individual falls away.  It is a lot like cleaning out the attic dumping what is no longer useful.

Dylan is writing about this now because, from her point of view, all this shit is coming back to her, rising from her inner self.  As she has reached an emotional maturity during her 27^th year, now Saturn has come along forcing her to face reality.

The debate will continue, did he or didn’t he?  Dylan is standing firm.  Woody is rebutting declaring his innocence.  Children are taking sides.  It’s the modern equivalent of a Greek Tragedy but I doubt the deus ex machina will drift down from the rafters to resolve this plot.