The Horoscope of Sai Baba
Zip Dobyns
According to the family tradition, Sai Baba was born four minutes before dawn on November 23, 1926 in Puttaparthi, India. Though the town has grown immensely since the foundation of Sai Baba’s ashram, it is still unlisted in even our most complete references. We had to go to a road map of India to estimate its latitude and longitude, and they can only be considered approximations. One has to wonder also about the accuracy of the time, though Indians take astrology seriously and do try to record birth times. But, subject to further information, the chart does seem appropriate.
If the longitude and time are accurate, Sai Baba has Saturn in Scorpio exactly conjunct the Ascendant, with the Sun just beyond it in the next to last minute of Scorpio. Since the apparent diameters of the Sun and Moon are around 30 minutes, it is possible for them to actually overlap two signs. So we can consider Sai Baba’s Sun to be a blend of Scorpio and Sagittarius. Venus is closely conjunct at zero Sagittarius with East Point and Mercury following in the same sign.
The Scorpio-Sagittarius combination suggests emotional intensity with a desire for self-knowledge and self-mastery through inner searching added to a commitment to find and to share the TRUTH; the meaning of life, the nature of reality, etc. There is an immense potential for personal and charismatic power. Leo-Libra-Scorpio-Sagittarius mixtures are among the most magnetic in the zodiac. The rising Sun can indicate leadership and creativity while Venus shows charm and Mercury marks verbal fluency.
Neptune just inside the ninth house but conjunct the MC is another possible clue to a spiritual life, further supported by Juno and Uranus in Pisces in the fourth house as a key to a spiritual home and parent. Jupiter conjunct the Antivertex (an auxiliary Ascendant) is a further support for the identification with the spiritual quest. Chiron in Aries says it again.
Sai Baba’s potential for psychic ability shows in the grand water trine (both signs and houses) involving north node of the Moon and Moon, Ceres, and Juno. The water emphasis is especially strong because the eighth house placements are “pure” water; node, Moon, and Pluto as water factors in a water sign in a water house. The triple conjunction is further strengthened because the Moon is at the midpoint of the node and Pluto, giving the effect of an exact triple conjunction. The midpoint of Moon and Pluto is also exactly trioctile Saturn and Ascendant. Pluto is exactly trioctile Sun and Venus while progressed Pluto remains trioctile Saturn, Ascendant and Sun for a period of years. When aspect patterns are maintained within a one degree orb in progressions, they are highly important, basic keys to the nature of the individual.
The combination of Pluto in its own house in a long-term aspect to Saturn and Ascendant in Pluto’s sign, Scorpio, emphasizes the central role of mastery in the person’s life. According to the reports of Sai Baba’s early life, he demonstrated psychokinetic powers as a child, materializing candy for his playmates. The astrological patterns I have found most often associated with psychokinetic powers include an emphasis on the obsessive “letters” of our alphabet; six, eight, and ten, especially through strong aspects between the planetary rulers Vesta, Pluto, and Saturn with each other and with the angles of the chart. Vesta is tied into the combination with a square to the Moon plus an octile to Neptune which has remained exact within the one degree orb all of Baba’s life. Neptune’s octile to the conjunction in the eighth house connects all the water factors to each other.
Water can be either dependent or nurturant. In Baba’s case, it is clearly the latter. There are innumerable stories of people he has helped. His life is clearly devoted to his people and he offers his guidance to anyone in need.
If we simply counted occupied signs, a highly inadequate technique which is still taught by some astrologers, earth would only be represented by Mars in Taurus. But the Saturn precisely on the Ascendant, the south node of the Moon in Capricorn in the Taurus house, and Mars being in an earth house (natural house of Virgo) as well as an earth sign, all add to the earth potential in the chart. Still, I would consider earth the weakest element and partly a lesson with the south node connected to earth. Mars indicates the capacity to deal with the practical, physical world, but the chart is far more idealistic, empathic, and intellectual than it is practical. It is fascinating that Sai Baba demonstrates phenomenal power over the material world but the power does not involve normal physical means to produce physical results. What earth we have in the chart is mixed with fire. Mars is a fire planet in the earth sign and house, while Saturn (an earth planet) is in a fire house conjunct Sun (fire) and Venus, the other earth planet, in a fire sign and house. The fire-earth mixtures show personal confidence and initiative and power combined with capacity to produce tangible results.
When I took a look at the new asteroids, some of the newest turned up in close conjunctions in Sai Baba’s chart. I can’t really say anything about them from experience, but in case any readers want to let their imaginations go, I’ll list a few. When we remember that for a good many years Sai Baba used to materialize jewelry for devotees, often made of gold and jewels, we are not surprised to find Rockefellia on his first house Mercury within 14 minutes of arc. Midas is opposite Mercury within one minute of arc. With that kind of psychokinetic power, Sai Baba could have been wealthy if he had chosen to use the mind-power for his own gain instead of giving the materialized objects away.
Hidalgo, which I read as another Saturn with possible Jupiter overtones, is conjunct Sai Baba’s natal Venus within 20 minutes of arc. Again, the theme suggests personal power over the physical world but the potential of using it for spiritual goals in Sagittarius and possibly from Hidalgo’s own nature.
Demeter, the Greek name for Ceres, key to a mothering potential, and Skuld, one of the “fate” asteroids, are both on Midas and opposite Mercury. Another cluster falls on Pluto; Prometheus, Pittsburghia, and Isis. Prometheus brought knowledge to humans at a terrible cost to himself since the Gods punished his effrontery. Pittsburghia seems to symbolize another Pluto, hence repeating the theme already described. Isis is the Egyptian Moon or mother goddess, again reinforcing the water quality of this combination, the capacity to mother others and to be psychically open to the world.
Parsifal and The NORC, two of the newest asteroids, are within one degree of Mars, but I can only speculate on their possible meaning. The NORC was the Naval Ordinance Research Calculator. It might repeat the ability to control the material world. Parsifal was the knight in the tales of King Arthur who was most naive but also most favored of God who always protected him and forgave him. Westerners who have been close to Sai Baba have remarked on his childlike manner.
Gaea, the earth, is just 8 minutes from Baba’s Uranus with the latter still in a progressed conjunction. Neptune also holds a lifetime quincunx to Gaea. The combination, involving ninth house, Neptune, and Pisces along with Uranus as a key to new knowledge for humanity, certainly fits Baba’s attempt to offer a faith to all the people of earth, to try to promote knowledge (through building schools), faith, and peace on earth.
Finally, I was curious about Siva since Baba is especially devoted to that form of the Hindu trinity. Natally, Siva is in 29 Capricorn semisextile Ascendant, Sun, Venus, with Saturn in progressed aspect to it for Baba’s early years. The progressed Sun just reached natal Siva about the beginning of October 1984, so the next two years should be really important in his growth or in the growth of his faith in the world. Since we are currently short of time (I’m about to take off for Mexico) and of space in the Mutable Dilemma (I will have to do the Thailand article in two parts with one continued to the Pisces issue), I will just refer readers to additional material on Sai Baba’s coming eclipse and Saturn station which was included in the article on Indira and India. The news from India is not encouraging, as our journal goes to the printer.