Bonus update: “NASA | SDO’s Ultra-high Definition View of 2012 Venus Transit.”

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Research into Venus Transits of the Past

Astrology is a great tool that allows is to learn from the past. The themes of the Venus transit play out over and over again between the two actual transits. So at this time we are completing a huge cycle of growth relative to issues that have to do with Venus and the Sun—art, beauty, values and government, power and its use or abuse.

A few important events from transits of the past:

May 1518-1526

Two major revolutions occurred during this time, whose implications have been  far reaching.

1. European Invasion of the West Begins: Cortez invades Mexico and conquers the Aztec people in 1521. This was a major victory for European invaders over indigenous people on the North American continent. Of course this later spreads as France and Britain (mainly) also begin campaigns of colonization of North America and the systematic annihilation of its native cultures.

2. The Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther challenged the Catholic church and its sale of indulgences (fees to remove sin). in 1517. By the middle of 1518 his work “The ninety-five theses” had been widely distributed in Europe, aided in large part by Guttenberg’s movable type printing press. This watershed event led to the reformation of the Catholic Church, and paved the way for secular communication to overturn the power structures of Europe (Later the French Revolution and other such events would keep Monarchies and Power structure in check by the will of the people). Luther was excommunicated on June 15, 1520 when he refused to recant 41 assertions from the 95.

December 1631-1639

Taj Mahal Built: This has become a universal symbol of enduring beauty. A monument of beauty (Venus) and Power (the Sun).

Galileo Challenges Church: Galileo was tried after publishing “Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems,” supporting Copernican theories of Geocentrism. On June 21, 1633 Galileo Galilei was tortured and threatened by Inquisition to “abjure, curse and detest” his Copernican heliocentric views. On Jun 22, 1633 Galileo was again forced by the Pope to recant that the Earth orbits the Sun. On Oct 31, 1992, the Vatican admitted it was wrong.

First College in America: Harvard College, the first college in America, was founded as Cambridge College on September 8, 1636. The institution changed its name two years later in honor of the Reverend John Harvard, who gave the institution three hundred books and a large sum of money for the day.

Dom Perignon Champagne:  A French monk, he introduced blending, vineyard and cellaring practices that made champagne a better wine from 1638-1715 .

The First Printing Press and Post Office in America: They began operating September 25, 1639 and November 15, 1639

Descartes Publishes Discourse on Method:  It is here that his famous statement “I doubt; therefore I am,” was expounded. He invented analytic geometry in order to reduce the description of phenomena to a set of numbers. His Discourse was placed by Catholic theologians on the Index of forbidden books.

June 1761-1769

King George III of England was crowned 1761 Sep 21. George was German and had been Elector of Hanover.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played for the Royal Family 1764 January 1 at Versailles in France at 8 years old .

Taxation Without Representation Decried by US Settlers 1764 May 24. Bostonian lawyer James Otis denounced it and called for the colonies to unite in demonstrating their opposition to Britain’s new tax measures.

The Stamp Act Imposed on US Colonists 1765 March 22. Britain enacted the Stamp Act to raise money from the American Colonies. This was the first direct British tax on the colonists.

California Settled 1769 March. King Carlos III of Spain chose Don Jose Galvez to protect interests in Mexico. Galvez sent Gaspar de Portola and Father Junipero Serra with 62 Spanish soldiers out to establish a settlement at San Diego. In 1769 March, Captain Portola set out with a group of soldiers, priests, Christian Native Americans and muleteers North. They were the first European land expedition to sight the San Francisco Bay from land.

December 1874-1882

French Impressionism 1874:  First major exhibition of french impressionism painting and the main group of artists (Degas, Monet, Manet, Sisley, etc) exhibiting together—albeit with shifting membership—eight times between 1874 and 1886.

First Commercial Typewriter: 1874. The first practical commercial typewriter was manufactured and placed on the market by Philo Remington. The early model had only capital letters.

The American Theosophical Society Founded :1875  November 17,  by Mme. Blavatsky and Col. Olcott.  It was set up to study occult phenomena and literature. Early members included Thomas Edison and Gen. Abner Doubleday. Its three main principles were: “To form a nucleus of the universal brotherhood of humanity without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or color; to encourage the comparative study of religion, science and philosophy; and to investigate the unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in humanity.

Telephone Revolutionizes Communication: 1876 March 10, Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call. His assistant, in an adjoining room in Boston, heard Bell say over the experimental device:” Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.”

Modern Ballet Begins: 1876 April 22, Tchaikovsky completed his “Swan Lake” ballet.

Custer’s Last Stand at Little Big Horn: 1876  Jun 25. In the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana, Gen. George A. Custer and some 250 men in his 7th Cavalry were massacred by the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians.

Wagner’s Epic “The Ring” Revolutionizes Opera: 1876 August 13, Richard Wagner’s monumental epic, “Ring of the Nibelung” premiered with 4 operas on 4 consecutive nights) at the Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, Bavaria, Germany.

First Baseball Game: 1877 April 22, The first National League baseball game was played.

Battle of the American Northwest: 1877 June 16, The Nez Perce War began in the northwestern US. The First Squadron of the First Regiment, the oldest cavalry unit in the US, fought the Apaches and the Nez Perces.

Edison Phonograph Announced: 1877 November 21, Inventor Thomas A. Edison announced the invention of his phonograph.

Edison Light Company: 1878 October 15, Thomas A. Edison incorporated Edison Electric Light Co. On October 18, Edison made electricity available for household usage.

Telphone Company Consolidation: 1879  March 13, New England Telephone and Bell Telephone merged to become the National Bell Telephone Co.

Woolworth Opened First Store: 1879  Jun 21, F.W. Woolworth opened his 1st store. It failed almost immediately. Frank Woolworth added 10-cent items to the Great 5-Cent Store in Lancaster, Pa., and created Woolworth’s five-and-ten. Woolworth revolutionized the retail business with his emphasis on affordable, discounted items and chain stores.

The Era of Organized Labor Begins: 1881  November 17, Under Samuel Gompers, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Union of the United States was formed, a precursor to the American Federation of Labor.

June 2004-2012

In this modern era between Venus cycles we see these issues pushed to the brink of what our world can handle:

• >>Powerful financial cartels and groups that control resources
• >>Natural and man made disasters that conspire to unite us.
• >>Global Economic Collapses and interdependence.
• >>Mobile devices (iPhone). A new paradigm in personal communication, aesthetics and commerce.
• >>Facebook / Social Media Renaissance. Uniting the World in Real Time on mobile devices.
• >>Lack of Privacy with the New Technology
• >>Arab Spring Inspiring The Masses and Driven by Social Media. Nowhere for oppression to hide
• >>Occupy Movement Worldwide in Response to the Multinational Oligarchy

Your Personal Venus Transit:

I did a major research project, article and video into the eight year cycles between the Venus transits and how they affect culture and our world.

You can watch a full 30 minute video on the Venus Transit here

We only need extend the cultural metaphors into our personal life to see how these things will act on us as individuals. The main themes of the eight year periods between the Venus transits have to do with major advances in communications and how people connect, and power advances and challenges to governments and the Church, when the people either are oppressed or rise up.

Shaking up the power structures that may become tyrannies in our own mind and life is a good metaphor to start with—placing a greater emphasis on beauty and valuing all, not just valuing our personal needs.

Purifying personal desires toward a more enduring purpose is important. But also extending our reach beyond the safe and familiar forms of comfort must happen. As individuals this means facing our shadows and demons internally, through actions, like meditation and sadhana.

I think a greater “Manifest Destiny” is also referred to here. Not just one that sees European invaders massacring native people, but one that shows how our personal destiny is to manifest and inhabit the self internally—not invade another externally in order to give the feeling of growth.

A renaissance in communications has taken place between each eight year cycle. Since we have pushed external communication to the level of exhaustion, now we must internalize more. Think if we just spent half the time in meditation as we do on the iPhone, computer or email.

We live in an a amazing time of luxury and wealth and anyone able to read this is privileged beyond measure compared to the people’s of the past. But are we taking advantage of that luxury and using the added time and resources to ignite the fire of truth and actually advance spiritually on this human journey, or do these luxuries make us lazy and apathetic?

If you are like me, the answer lies somewhere in between. if we introspect now, I think we will conclude that we can do better and we should not waste as much time as we do – at least that will be my resolve.

Maybe you can join me in this.

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Editor: Kate Bartolotta