The Astrology of the Occupation of Palestine: An Introduction to the Planetary Conjunctions
“The stars had only one task: they taught me how to read. They taught me I had a language in heaven and another language on earth.”
Jupiter Meets Saturn, 21 December 2020, Image Credit: Damian Peach
The planetary cycles of the superior planets Mars, Jupiter and Saturn align in a celestial rhythm which was traditonally seen to mark greater cycles of time that span the epochs of empires and civilizations from their rise to decline.
The conjunction between Saturn and Jupiter was known as the Great Conjunction because it occurs every 20 years and chronicles the greater periods of centuries by their triplicity. The 16th-17th century Persian astrologer, al-Junawadi writes that the Great Conjunction marks chapters in the larger annals of "the history of religions, dynasties, kings, and world events”.
The most recent Great Conjunction occurred on the Solstice of December 2020 in tropical Aquarius, officially ushering in the Air-triplicity era of the next two centuries. The Great Conjunction of 2020 was an incredibly rare event not just because of the triplicity shift but also because Jupiter and Saturn were the closest in alignment since 1623 CE and they appeared closest to each other as visible from Earth since 1226 CE.
Prior to this event we experienced the final Earth Great Conjunction at the turn of the century. The Great Conjunction in Taurus on 28 May 2000 was preceded by the “Doorway” Great Conjunction in Libra back on 31 December 1980, which signaled the threshold transition between Earth and Air triplicities. This conjunction in Libra was the first time in over 600 years that Jupiter aligned with Saturn in an Air sign — the last time there was a Great Conjunction in the Air triplicity was in 1385 in the sign of Gemini. With the Great Conjunction in Aquarius of 2020 we are officially now at the start of a new Greater Air Period. For the next 240 years Jupiter will conjoin Saturn in Air signs.
al-Mushtari (Jupiter) and al-Zukhal (Saturn) from the Turkish version of the Wonders of Creation attributed to Zakariya ibn Muhammad Qazwini (ca. 1203-1283) (Author); Muhammad ibn Muhammad Shakir Ruzmah-'i Nathani (Scribe) 1121 AH/AD 1717 (Ottoman)
Saturn takes thirty years to go through the entire zodiac and in that period Mars completes two periods of approximately 15 years each. Within that timeframe, every two years Mars meets Saturn in an event referred to as the Middle Conjunction. The 8th century Persian Jewish astrologer Mashallah described the Middle Conjunctions of Mars and Saturn to signify "the accidents of wars and the contrarieties of battles". The severity of the "accidents" or conflicts would be determined by noting the condition of the ruler of the Ascendant for the chart of the Middle Conjunction and the chart of its Aries ingress. The ruler of the sign that the Middle Conjunction takes place is also taken into account.
“If you wished to know the accidents, know the one ruling in the figure of their conjunction; which if it were made fortunate, it will signify good and its fitness; and if it were malefic, it will signify evil and its impediment.”
al-Mirrkh (Mars) ) from the Turkish version of the Wonders of Creation attributed to Zakariya ibn Muhammad Qazwini (ca. 1203-1283) (Author); Muhammad ibn Muhammad Shakir Ruzmah-'i Nathani (Scribe) 1121 AH/AD 1717 (Ottoman)
The Lesser Conjunction is the alignment between Mars and Jupiter, which also occurs every two years. Abu Ma'shar, the 9th century Persian Muslim astrologer, described the Lesser Conjunction to represent "the predominant engagement of the people... in invasion and wars," insurrections, lawsuits, plagues, the death of riding animals, and the demise or death of heads of state, especially if indicated in the Aries ingress for that year.
Abu Ma'shar would further expand on Mashallah's work on the Great Conjunctions of Saturn and Jupiter, the Middle Conjunctions of Mars and Saturn, and the Lesser Conjunctions of Mars and Jupiter in his seminal Kitāb al‐milal wa‐ʾl‐duwal (The Book of Religions & Dynasties):
“Related to the superior planet furthest from the world of generation and corruption, i.e. to Saturn, is the indication for matters of Beginnings like religions, dynasties, and whatever lasts for a long time, since it is like the beginning for the other celestial bodies in terms of height.
Related to the planet following it in order, i.e. to Jupiter, is the indication for laws and the like, which are the culminations in perfection for the other things which are preliminary and initiatory.
Related to the third of these planets in order, i.e. to Mars, is the indication for wars, strife, and the like, being as it were, the decline to the final ends of things, because the ends of things indicate destruction of their orderly arrangements after their perfection, and corruption of their regularity.
When these things happen, there will be destruction of the borders, strifes and rebellions calling for wars, and the compulsions necessitating this arrangement of these three states and their interconnection. That is, when one of them is deficient, this entails the decrease in perfection of the other two states, according to what natural things necessitate among the three states: beginning, perfection, decline. For wars in most cases do not happen except because of laws, and laws do not come into being except because of religions and dynasties. If these states are arranged inversely, the case once more requires them to be connected and ordered, because religions and dynasties do not function except by laws, and laws in most cases do not function except by wars. For religions, dynasties, and laws occassion changes because of which plenty of differences occur; if differences multiply, separation occurs; if separation occurs, wars take place. Because of this, these three states are related to the superior planets, and they are like the beginnings of whatever secondary indications may follow them.”
Mars-Saturn Conjunction on 4 April 2022
Image Credit & Copyright: Damian Peach
A Timeline of the Great, Middle and Lesser Conjunctions through the Occupation of Palestine
In initiating this research I was first looking at the inception charts for the Zionist State and the Nakba of 1948 as a starting point. I noticed that there had been a Mars-Saturn conjunction in Leo on 12 November 1947 which signaled the start of the civil war in Mandatory Palestine at the recommendation of the UN Partition Plan on 29 November 1947. Though my initial reference point was working with the 1948 Nakba chart along with the Lunar Metonic and Nodal cycles, through Dr. Ali A. Olomi’s guidance I came to focus my research on the planetary conjunctions in relation to the occupation and colonization of Palestine.
Significantly, the final Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in the Fire triplicity occurred in 1821 in the cardinal sign of Aries. According to Abu Ma’shar, Palestine belongs to Aries. The Ram is also assigned to Persia, Azerbaijan, Britannia, Faliqa(?), Kirman, Germania, and part of Nalqa(?).
In 1821 Palestine was under Ottoman rule and the Greeks initiated a revolution to become independent of the Ottoman Turks, heralding the beginning of the collapse for the Ottoman Empire which would culminate with WWI in the early 20th century bringing about the geo-political changes across the region. The Great Conjunction in Aries of 1821 foreshadows the shift in rule over Palestine therefore as the dominating dynasty of the Ottomans disintegrates in the new epoch.
Then the first Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in the Earth triplicity took place in 1842 in the cardinal sign of Capricorn. This was followed by the Great Conjunction in Virgo in 1861 and then the Great Conjunction in Taurus in 1881. What’s interesting about this particular time period is that beginning in 1839 the Tanzimat emerges. The Tanzimat was the period of Western-influenced reform in the Ottoman Empire which sought to consolidate political foundations to secure its territorial integrity with the aim to establish a centralized national government and restore its weakened military power. Under this period many of the European-educated Ottoman bureaucrats also instituted social reforms such as wearing more western styles of dress in an attempt to adopt European practices. While the primary purpose of the Tanzimat was to reform the millitary by modernizing it, it also sought to implement “Ottamanism” in order to “unite” all the different ethnicities living in the Ottoman territories as a way to strengthen the declining empire. So this occurs at the onset of the Great Conjunctions in the Earth triplicity between 1839 and 1876.
Another pattern to pay attention to is that the effects of the Mars-Saturn and Mars-Jupiter conjunctions become apparent in the months preceding or following their perfections, while the Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions foresee the events of the two decades that proceed it. History shows through many incidents that the Middle and Lesser Conjunctions act as turning points or catalysts for events that precede and follow. I’ve chronicled some of the most critical dates in examining the unfoldment of the invasion of Palestine by its Western occupying forces beginning from the late Ottoman epoch up through the present.
What follows is a timeline of the Great, Middle and Lesser Conjunctions that coincide with some of the most significant turning points and hostilities in the history of Palestine. This research is meant to bring awareness to the longer history of Palestine and its colonization by imperialist forces. In this context it is possible to analyze current and future events around the resistance movements towards the liberation of Palestine.
The list of events is extensive and will be presented in a series of parts which you will find linked below:
Part 1: 1821-1881 [TO BE PUBLISHED]
Part 2: 1881-1941 [TO BE PUBLISHED]
Part 3: 1941-2001 [TO BE PUBLISHED]
Part 4: 2001-Present [TO BE PUBLISHED]
A Postcard Gifted to Omar al-Qasim from His Comrades, Gaza, the 1980s
For further study, please check out my references below. I have also compiled this free (growing) pdf collection of essays, poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and other resources on Palestine: FREE PALESTINE
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The Palestinian Museum Digital Archive
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Digital Action Toolkit - Palestinian Feminist Collective
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References
Ma’shar, Abu. The Book of Religions & Dynasties (On the Great Conjunctions). Translated by Keiji Yamamoto and Charles Burnett from the Arabic original. Brill, 2000.
On the Roots of Revolutions by Māshā allāh found in The Works of Sahl and Māshā´allāh. Translated by Benjamin N. Dykes. Cazimi Press, 2008.
Olomi, Ali A. The Astrology of Palestine and other various threads of discussion. Patreon, 2023-2024.
Hammad, Isabella. Recognizing the Stranger: On Palestine and Narrative. Black Cat, 2024.
Khalidi, Rashid. The Hundred Years’ War On Palestine. Metropolitan Books, 2020.
Al-Salim, Arid. Palestine And The Decline Of The Ottoman Empire: Modernization and the Path to Palestinian Statehood. I.B.Tauris, Library of Ottoman Studies, 2015.
