The Sun enters Gemini III The Executioner’s Sword (as Austin Coppock named it) on 10 June 2024 at 5:33 am EDT. T. Susan Chang named it Famous Last Words in her book 36 Secrets about the decan-associations with Tarot cards… and these next ten days belong to the 10 of Swords, not exactly a happy set of coordinations. Associated with the Greek goddess Praxidike (which may be merely another epithet of Persephone, in her guise as arbiter of capital crimes requiring the death penalty) and administered by the Sun under Mercury’s rulership, it’s a time of preparation for the Sun’s triumph at the Summer Solstice… and his inevitable execution.

I’ve written about this decan previously in 2023, 2022, 2021, and 2020.

Why does the Sun face execution at the Summer Solstice, and not unending triumph? The answer to that should be plain, of course, since the Sun rises to its greatest northerly path across the Northern Hemisphere at the first ingress of Cancer, about ten days from now. But it’s also the case that a famous constellation lurks under the Sun in Gemini III, and the Sun is now forming the head of that constellation, that of Orion. Even as the Sun rises on the morning of June 10th — Orion is lurking just under the horizon there, invisible and waiting. And very soon now, this very golden-blond head will roll from his shoulders into the second half of the year.

There’s a number of characters in Northern myth about eternal kings who lose their head and yet remain immortal advisors and guides to their people, or who trade blows with mortals and yet remain among the living. The Green Knight, from the Arthurian legendary tale Gawain and the Green Knight, springs to mind. So does Bran the Blessed from Irish myth, buried under a hill near London. I’ve written about some of these mythic encounters of the Sun with Orion before, and it’s a combination that I think probably had secret significance to astrologers of old: invisible to ordinary people, it’s one of the discoveries that can only be made through deliberate sky-watching and some careful mathematical calculation.

The proximity of this story to the Solstice — sunny-headed Orion losing his head and beginning the long journey into the darkness — may have meant something to our ancestors. But it’s worth noting that Precession of the Equinoxes, carrying the background stars toward 0° Aries at the rate of 1° about every 72 years, will position Orion at the spring equinox just about 5,904 years from now… and would have positioned it at the winter solstice just about 13,000 years ago, in the throes and floes of the last Ice Age our planet experienced. Mastodon hunters along the southern shores of the Black Sea may have marked the arrival of the summer solstice with a full Moon on Orion’s shoulders. That may be why Gobekli Tepe’s strange T-shaped pillars have markings reminiscent of Orion’s famous belt — the full Moon on his shoulders was a reminder that winter is coming — a warning that seems less dread today than it would have when ice a mile thick covered most of the Northern Hemisphere.

The Greeks of ancient Alexandria, a mere two thousand years ago in sunnier climes and times, looked to a goddess named PRaxidike at this time of year — the goddess who presided over capital punishment and treason against the state. It’s hard to know if they meant this as an independent deity, though, because this same name is one of the epithets of Persephone, the wife of Hades and queen of the underworld… who oversaw her share of cruel and unusual torments for those who preyed upon the weak and meek, or who demonstrated contempt for the city and state.

And I think that this decan has some of that flavor to it, and that warning — Justice is coming, in a form that’s going to be genuinely terrifying to all, and we should humble ourselves before the Lady Below. Even Orion must die, his tousled blond head struck from his shoulders, so that others may live. The Sun shall have his ten days of glory as the summer’s delights begin — but every glorious triumph is also the beginning of the turn towards a fall.

The dodeks of Gemini III cover Aquarius, Pisces, Aries and Taurus — resembling the way that a political prisoner first speaks their mind in jail, but then equivocates and flip-flops as the conditions inside the prison make it difficult to speak out and difficult to fight back against oppression. As the difficulties of long incarceration begin to bite, a new fire is lit under them, and they stir up action on their own behalf, before being able to rest in old age and freedom, released in consideration of their advanced years and a political climate that they helped change from within through long struggle — or lie in a grave tended by dedicated followers, intent on carrying on the cause.

Planetary Placements

The chart of 5:33 am EDT on June 10, 2024 is a day chart with the Sun a mere three and a half degrees above the horizon — barely enough to clear treetops on a flat plane. Of the night sect planets, only the Moon is below the horizon in Leo, although in her joy in the third house, bringing renewed energy to private spiritual practices like meditation, journaling, yoga and other exercise programs done at home, or even private prayer.

In fact, all of the planets are above the horizon at the start of this new decan, giving renewed power and energy to public affairs and outward-facing social considerations. The greatest amount of power remains with the stellium in Gemini, though, where Mercury occupies the middle degrees — casting their power backward to powerfully influence Jupiter, and casting their power forward to influence the Sun and domineer Venus. Why is Mercury so influential here? First, they’re domiciled in the day-sign they rule, in a day chart, while acting as a daylight planet. Second, they’re in the angle of the first house, which is their joy. And third, they’re in an applying square to Saturn, which will become more fierce as the week wears on — putting Mercury in a position to demonstrate real intellectual chops that put in practical work both for our personal lives and our professional growth, and to draw upon our capacity to think big and put our whole soul into our efforts to create good solutions.

Yet my choice of language is deliberate here — Mercury only influences Jupiter and the Sun, but dominates Venus, because the first two planets are in their own decans, while Venus is riding peregrine in the last decan and under the Sun’s beams — our creative potential is subservient to our thinking and speaking selves; if you’re an artist, try starting from the words that matter to your art this week, rather than the images you’re trying to create. It’s also worth remembering that the most important phrases you utter this week might start “I am queer because…”

Some of you may object to this phrasing — I know not all of my readers are gay or lesbian, bisexual, or otherwise part of a racial or sexual minority. But Gemini is one of the signs that should require us to consciously evaluate our thought processes around both change and changelessness. It’s where we consider both the questions of our mortality, as fundamentally limited beings who are born into the world and will some day die; and the questions of our immortality, as enfleshed spirits who will one day temporarily rise out of the matrix of muscle and bone and sinew to fly as a fiery soul to whatever comes next. Many ancient authors seem to have believed in the transmigration of souls, which is a fancy way of saying reincarnation or rebirth in a different life — and science says that every atom and molecule in your dead body will eventually be recycled into new life forms and new shapes and sizes, joining with biology, geology, physics or chemistry in millions of new interactions…

It’s a good time to celebrate all of the ways we are joined to one another at the hip — or perhaps it’s more metaphorically meaningful to say at Adam’s rib. While the Sun is reminded of its own triumph, sacrifice, and death on the shoulders of Orion, we also might consider the ways that we share one another’s common fate, and find ways to extend that kindness and grace to ourselves. We’re all a little bit weird on the inside, and deserving of mercy even at the executioner’s scaffold.

Mars and Uranus hold down opposite ends of Taurus in the twelfth house. The Indigo Girls sang of “Strange Fire” in 1987, and there’s indeed a growing system of strange fires burning across the landscape, in cities and rural areas, around the world. Coincidental or planned sabotage, or the action of Mars in the decan called The Plough — kindling troubles that may not be fully revealed for six months. Uranus forsages explosions, and we may consider ourselves on notice of the potential for detonation when Mars and Uranus conjunct on July 15.

The North Node has passed the mid-point of Aries. This gives us a little less than eight months until the Nodes switch signs, entering Pisces and Virgo on January 11, 2025. For the current ten days, though, you may find yourself increasingly compelled by local governmental affairs, or the doings of your state or provincial legislature — attending to their antics even at the expense of other pleasures like nice meals and sleep. Redirect some of this endeavor toward networking with friends on political or policy agenda questions, though… people will be interested in what you have to say, especially if you’re also willing to listen.

Neptune and Saturn look close to each other in this chart, but they still won’t conjunct perfectly until late February of 2026. All the same, they’re in Pisces, which rules the tenth hour of professional matters, career and reputation — and nobody likes a flip-flopping boss, or a boss that expects you to be in an office uniform all summer while he wears flip-flops. Don’t be that dude, dude! At the same time, though, Saturn activates the middle decan of Pisces The Net, and governments (particularly in authoritarian places) may put additional restrictions or limitations on internet usage this month, or your supervisor may start monitoring your social media time while at work. Is that a good thing or bad? Depends on how you use social media time, and what you do with it, and how they feel about it. Neptune stands in the last (or anaretic) degree of Pisces in the decan called The Cup of Blood — proffering waves of enthusiasm washing with equal force in opposite directions… The apparent calm is nothing more than the approaching storm.

Pluto in the ninth house suggests ongoing travel difficulties, particularly in long-haul flights and overseas travel — there may also be news of another closing college or university whose money issues and board competence have run ahead of their hopes for student success. We’re approaching the time when unions will struggle to compete against the interests of shareholders for about six months; expect to see negotiations in the tourism sectors heat up; college services like food and maintenance may also be affected.

The Moon is in the third house, which brings her considerable favor and grace; and below the horizon. She’s in the last degree of the tenth Mansion, The Brow of the Lion. If it were a restaurant, it would be a place of tremendous reputation — Michelin-starred at least; as a hotel or inn, it’s renowned for historic interest and impeccable service. Yet it’s fair to say that the Moon is checking out in just about two and a quarter hours, and she’s got a flight to catch to a hostage negotiation, an important trade summit, or a battle-front where she plans to raze a town to its foundations — seeing the bill for this deliciously flawless service and exquisite victuals is not going to improve her mood. Give your closest associates what they need — but maybe quibble about the invoice later?

Horoscopes by Rising Sign

Decan I of any sign (usually covering the 21st of the month to the first of the following month) is free to all visitors; Decan II is only available to Patreon and Ko-Fi.com subscribers; and Decan III is available to Patreon, Ko-Fi, and MailChimp subscribers.

I recommend reading your Sun sign, Moon sign, and Rising sign for best results. I write them with rising sign in mind, but several people have told me they find that they do better with all three.

Gemini:

Cancer:

Leo:

Virgo:

Libra:

Scorpio:

Sagittarius:

Capricorn:

Aquarius:

Pisces:

Aries:

Taurus:

Colophon

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If you want to read some of my astrologically-oriented poetry, the largest collection is called A Full Volume of Splendor and Starlight, available through my Etsy shop, and containing poems and hymns to the planets, constellations, decan deities, and Moon Mansion angels. While not astrological, Festae contains hymns to some of the older Roman gods and spirits from the calendar created by Numa Pompilius, the second ancient King of Rome.

I use iPhemeris for my charting software, and screenshot it to make charts. I want to thank the team that develops iPhemeris for the addition of Terms and Decans to their charts. I also use Hugh Tran‘s Physis typeface to craft logos for this blog, as well.

I use Christopher Warnock‘s The Mansions of the Moon as the basis of my Moon placement delineations, and Austin Coppock‘s 36 Faces for much of my planetary delineations. Neither gentleman endorses me.