The Turning of History
Tragedies shape history. From the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, when a nation faces a near-death experience it often regenerates itself from the ashes of that destruction.
The very word tragedy comes from the Greek tragōidía, meaning “goat song.” In ancient Athens, a tragedy was a type of play performed at public festivals honoring Dionysus, the god of wine-making, madness, and fertility. These performances grew out of ritual: a goat might be sacrificed or given as a prize, and a chorus would sing of human suffering as a sacred act.
For the Greeks, tragedy was a civil ritual. It was how a society confronted loss, gave form to chaos, and sought renewal through shared storytelling. That is why tragedies are etched so deeply into civilization’s memory. They carry us to the brink of annihilation, but in doing so, awaken the possibility of rebirth.
The tragedy of political violence has woven itself through the tides of history since the beginning of our species. One could even say it reaches back to the birth of the universe, for the cosmos itself was shaped by violent collisions, each clash of destruction scattering the sparks of creation.
And so it seems the assassination of 31-year-old political activist Charlie Kirk last week has torn a cosmic rupture in the fabric of American society. Responses from leaders on both the left and the right suggest a shared atmosphere of fear and uncertainty about the nation’s trajectory.
Some have correlated Kirk's assassination with that of President John F. Kennedy (WSJ) and Martin Luther King Jr. (NYT). From an astrological standpoint, JFK’s death in 1963 took place under a Saturn–Neptune alignment, which often brings themes of disillusionment and the collapse of a collective vision. His assassination was followed by a stunned, almost surreal national mourning.
MLK Jr.’s death in 1968, on the other hand, occurred under a Saturn–Pluto alignment, which carries the weight of repression and power struggles. His death ignited riots in more than a hundred American cities, unleashing anger that had been building under decades of injustice.
Today, we are living through both at once: a major Saturn–Neptune alignment (2024-2027) and a minor Saturn–Pluto alignment (2025-2027). Together they suggest dissolution colliding with oppression, a grief expressed through both silence and upheaval.
Even as they bring sorrow, these alignments can also guide us toward a different kind of strength. Saturn–Neptune holds the potential to soften divisions, dissolving the illusions that keep us apart. Saturn–Pluto, meanwhile, can lay the deep foundations for renewal by forcing us to confront what is broken and rebuild on sturdier ground.
And yet something deeper unfolds beneath these current planetary alignments. America is undergoing a rites of passage, one that every nation encounters at its 250-year mark. I have written on this at length in:
So as the wheels of history turn, each of us must choose the part we will play in this Great Turning. If Kirk’s life and death leave us with anything, it is the reminder that your voice has the capacity to shape the chorus of our time.
In Mystery,
Somya Desai
From Mega Skeptic to Professional Astrologer
Somya shares her journey from being a skeptic of astrology to making it her career and life’s mission to share this gift of perception with humanity.
Discover how Richard Tarnas’s Cosmos and Psyche transformed her life.
Planetary Realms Opening Night Party
🪐 Step into Planetary Realms 🪐
Be part of history at the world’s first exhibition devoted to the four outer planets of astrology.
Inspired by Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, Planetary Realms invites you to explore the forces of time, rebellion, dreams, and transformation through art. Each work becomes a portal into mythic, emotional, and futuristic dimensions, turning the gallery into a symbolic cosmos.
This groundbreaking collaboration between Numinous Realm, Brooklyn Art Cave, and Nanae Itoi fuses grounded creativity, archetypal astrology, and lush digital dreamscapes.
🎤 Live music and performances by:
Kanami Kusajima
Elf of NYC
danny lynch
Vero Collins
Realm Collective
🍸 Enjoy complimentary drinks courtesy of Zakuska Vodka 🍸
✨ Join us and let's turn this gallery into a galaxy ✨
Use the code Planets20 for a special 20% discount!
Richard Tarnas's Two Suitors: A Parable
"Imagine, for a moment, that you are the universe. But for the purposes of this thought experiment, let us imagine that you are not the disenchanted mechanistic universe of conventional modern cosmology, but rather a deep-souled, subtly mysterious cosmos of great spiritual beauty and creative intelligence. And imagine that you are being approached by two different epistemologies—two suitors, as it were, who seek to know you. To whom would you open your deepest secrets? To which approach would you be most likely to reveal your authentic nature?"
– Richard Tarnas, Cosmos and Psyche: Intimations of a New World View
Solar Eclipse
We are in between two eclipses (the Lunar Eclipse on September 7th, and the Solar Eclipse on September 21st)—deep in the portal. Are you feeling it?
In just the past week we’ve witnessed sudden shocks and upheavals: the protests in Nepal, the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, the brutal beheading of motel manager Chandra Mouli Nagamallaiah, another tragic school shooting, and the general vibe of political division in America. These events echo the archetypal quality of the eclipse portal: lives and histories turning in an instant, and what was hidden is now exposed.
As a reminder: eclipses are never one-off events. They belong to a larger cycle that lasts about 18 months to 2 years. Each eclipse season is another chapter in the same story, building on what came before. The current cycle began in September 2024 and will continue until 2027.
Key Dates:
September 17, 2024 — Lunar Eclipse
October 2, 2024 – Solar Eclipse
March 13, 2025 — Lunar Eclipse
March 29, 2025 – Solar Eclipse
September 7, 2025 — Lunar Eclipse
September 21, 2025 – Solar Eclipse
Notice:
Sudden entrances and exits
Heightened emotional tides
Old patterns resurfacing
Participate:
Create space for yourself
Track what echoes from last September
Name and release what has run its course
Hold yourself gently. Endings and beginnings are moving through you, as they are through the world.