Friday, April 12, 2013

Astrology of Alfred Dreyfus' case

In some cases 'good' and 'fortunate' aspects or ' benefics' like Jupiter don't seem to help. Or do they?
I found the case of Alfred Dreyfus (October 9, 1859), whose worst and better days were reflected by a variety of aspects.  Those aspects don't seem to give a simple and clear answer to the question: what happened and was it nice? After studying the astrology case of Dreyfus, I think that :
a. transits and progressions of/with prominent natal planets are more important than other transits and progressions
b. trines and Jupiter are not always beneficial at first sight (but they are, given the circumstances)

Join me in the study!

DREYFUS CASE
It was in the 19th century in France when Alfred Dreyfus was accused of treason. In fact he had been framed. It was easier to blame him, because of Anti-Semitic sentiments (Dreyfus was Jewish).

Here is the chart with transits and progressions of the day of the arrest:

There is transit Neptune trine the Sun and Transit Jupiter opposition progressed Midheaven with transit Uranus inconjunct Progressed Ascendant on the day of his arrest. A trine, Jupiter and that inconjunct Uranus... It looks as if the latter was the most important. He lost his freedom and it took 7 years to be freed of all charges. How did the trines and Jupiter 'help'? He was supported by Emile Zola who started an international campaign. Zola's Jupiter was in hard aspect with Dreyfus' midpoint Sun/Moon. Dreyfus' Mercury was opposition the Sun of Zola, who set the spotlights on his case. They shared a Sun-Neptune aspect (Zola the sextile, Dreyfus the quatronovile).


NATAL CHART
His chart corresponds with what we know about him.
a. He was a soldier.  We see that possibility in the positions of Mars and Saturn.
Mars rises before the Sun for orientation on arms, activism, action and energy. Before Mars is Saturn and Saturn is 'calling' (duty, responsibility and hierarchy at any possible level). The combination of Mars and Saturn is the combination of discipline (and being disciplined).
b. He lost his freedom.
Both Saturn and Uranus don't make major aspects in sign or orb 5 degrees.  As these planets are what I name 'calling', the issue of 'breaking free' and 'restricted freedom' will be demonstrated at any possible level, somehow and anyhow.
c. Commotion and upheaval were definitely part of his career (Uranus-MC), but on the other hand he also apparently was an outsider (Uranus) among the officers.
d. In my opinion a distance of 127.5 degrees between objects in the chart, is an important distance. In this chart that is the distance between Sun and Uranus. The Sun-Uranus combination is nice for an individualist, but in a group it is often difficult not to become 'the outsider'.
e. Sun is quatronovile Neptune.
f. Mercury is quatronovile Neptune, too! There are many cases of Mercury-Neptune accusations on this blog. See the links.

A quatronovile is 4x a novile and 160 degrees. A trine is 3x40 degrees. Noviles are supposed to be 'harmonious' aspects. I think that harmonious aspects refer to smooth relationships between objects in the chart.

OCTOBER 15 1894: arrest
1. Sun-Neptune
As quatronoviles are 4x40 and trines are 3x40 they are suppused to be 'friendly', 'easy' or 'harmonic'. Use the labels to find examples of the contrary! Trine and noviles, sextiles and binoviles or quatronoviles make it easy to relate one planet to another, or in this case: the Sun and Neptune. It makes it easy to be seen (Sun) in a diffuse light (Neptune). This can be done as a hero or an angel. It can also be done the negative way.
That happened when transit Neptune was trine his natal Sun. It was easy to place him in a negative light. This transit resonated the 'sound' of Sun quatronovile Neptune. He was being framed with transit Neptune trine Sun.
2. Progressed Ascendant inconjunct transit Uranus 
Inconjunct (loss) Uranus (freedom).
3. Progressed Midheaven opposition Jupiter (is this fair? that is the question of opposition Jupiter)
Jupiter symbolizes support. He got support. Emile Zola even risked prison for him! Zola's Jupiter is semi square the midpoint Sun/Moon of Dreyfus and that helps!

Maybe, if there was not Jupiter-Midheaven things had been worse for Dreyfus and he would have been convicted without anyone asking questions. And maybe even the trine of Neptune helped:an idealist and artist voluntarily helped him. Neptune, at best, is the symbol of idealism, art, belief and all that we do without gain.
Remember that Uranus is 'calling' in the natal chart! That increases the importance of transits of Uranus.

SEPTEMBER 19, 1899
He was pardonned and released out of prison on September 19, 1899. It is nice for the case of astrology that that was the day that transit Uranus was exactly conjunct his Midheaven. He got his freedom back, conditions changed and of course he was in a nervous state. The transit of Uranus was so important for Dreyfus because in the natal chart Uranus is opposition Midheaven. It means that something that is already an issue in life, is being activated.


JULY 13, 1902: free of all charges
Watch the trine of transit Jupiter with natal Sun! That is a classical happy transit. This transit was leading! You see, there is also transit Pholus inconjunct Progressed MC, symbolizing a turning point in the development of the career, with a loss involved. He could return to the army, the place where he had been framed. (Pholus was in hard aspect with transit Node and transit Chiron). What he lost were more than 7 years of his life, spent in very nasty conditions. The pain is illustrated by transit Mars sesquisquare Midheaven. But Jupiter ruled!

SO

When he got back all that he lost, transit Jupiter was trine the Sun. Jupiter rules the 10th house.
When he was arrested there was P MC opposite Jupiter, so P IC conjunct Jupiter.


When he was arrested, there was Neptune trine Sun.
In the end - free at last, cleared of all charges - he had the confusing transit of Neptune opposition Sun/Moon midpoint. He got the rank of Major later, but his health had suffered because of the years in prison.


LINKS
Mercury-Neptune is a suspicious aspect: http://astropost.blogspot.nl/2011/08/suspicious-aspects-re-west-memphis.html
Transits of Neptune are confusing: http://astropost.blogspot.nl/2011/02/confusing-transits-of-neptune.html
Transit Jupiter and nothing happens (yes,that happens!:): http://astropost.blogspot.nl/2009/12/transit-jupiter-and-nothing-happened.html




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