The Astrology of Prince’s Passionate Purple Exit Stage-^

Yesterday, April 21, 2016 Prince Roger Nelson suddenly passed away, shocking and saddening the world. Minnesotans now mourn the loss of a bright creative light, who inspired and enriched us locally with his musical and artistic genius that uplifted, united and delighted us in ever-refreshing ways during the last four decades.  The magic of his musical passion bridged and unified us across human schisms and divisions with the transcendence of pure heart and play.  His departure from the world of form has precipitated a swell of love, emotion and gratitude that may be unprecedented — locally, nationally, and internationally — as the song ‘Purple Rain’ plays continually, purple lighting in our City of Minneapolis, and spontaneous memorial parties honor his life with us.

What has been published in media is that he was battling the flu for several weeks, appeared to be feeling very well during his public appearance in our area last Saturday (April 16), and that there are no signs of trauma to his body, as reported by the local police department who responded to the 911 call from his Paisley Park Studios in Chanhassen yesterday morning and pronounced him dead.

I personally didn’t follow Prince via media, but I spent a great deal of time near his residence and studio throughout my life and have felt a spiritual grounding kinship.  Now, as the full spectrum of his creative gifts to us rises for objective appreciation, his greatness, love, spirit, creations, and healing light he so generously shared with us, remain as his legacy.

This article presents a brief examination of his natal astrology chart for information about the mystery of his passing.  It is offered for other astrologers and students of astrology and does not include much explanation or detail for laypersons.

Prince’s natal chart above shows that he was Gemini with Scorpio rising, and Moon in Pisces.  Only Venus in Taurus is in an earth sign, and in T square to Uranus-Neptune.  Saturn opposes the Sun (6°), but is creatively aspected with Jupiter and Chiron.  We note the airy Grand Trine with Sun-Jupiter-Chiron.  He is an exceptional channel via communications.  He has Pluto in Leo conjunct the Midheaven, in opposition to Chiron in Aquarius, and also opposing Moon in early Pisces, and T-square to Mercury.  Note the quincunxes from Mars to Pluto and Neptune.  This is a highly charged nervous system, sometimes emotionally hypersensitive and uncompromising.  There would be issues with loss of perspective and over-sensitivity about appearance and self-worth.  Clearly, he needed to retreat regularly from the sometimes overwhelming pressures of his four oppositions in relating with the ‘outside’ world.  Neptune on his North Node would lead him forward inspirationally and intuitively via music and the element of water, which would rejuvenate his soul, and he would enjoy being in proximity to water at his home base.

I knew nothing of Prince’s doings in recent years, so my deductions here are from studying his charts.

Clearly, he began to experience the challenge of re-grounding and re-defining his being and purpose when Saturn crossed his Ascendant in July 2014.  When Saturn is in the first house of a birth chart, it is time to start fresh, and build a new body, a fresh perspective and outlook, and to lay the foundation for the next 28 years.  This is not an easy passage.  People typically run into painful problems if they haven’t sufficiently let-go of the previous chapter of life, which would have been dissolved during 2011-2014 for Prince.  The problems relate to the requirement to release everything one may have previously identified with that no longer suits who one actually and honestly IS now.  Relationships are especially difficult when Saturn moves through the first house because one is repeatedly presented with barriers and failures when one’s relationships are not accurately engaged by the truth of one’s being.  Prince needed to put himself first at this time, and release what was not a true match for him in the outer world of relationships and career objectives.

2015 would have been an especially difficult year for Prince, as Saturn formed a T-square with his Pluto (on his Midheaven), and Chiron, and the Moon.  Saturn also opposed his natal Mercury.  He would have had some intense releasing and heart-clearing, mental and nervous stress, perhaps concerns with siblings and friends, and finally emotional clearing and releasing in his home base that would have been a depression passage.  2015 may have been one of the most difficult years of his life as Saturn provided reality corrections via his body and mind, and he came to terms with physical limitations.  I have read that he had trouble with his hips from dancing in high heeled shoes onstage, and epilepsy.  I also read that he could not play guitar anymore, but I don’t know why.  At any rate, the Saturn passage of 2015 would have required him to slow down and be more present with his true needs, even limiting his movements.   Saturn formed a trine with Mars in Aries in the Fifth House which would have been very good for grounding his creativity in new ways.  Jupiter would have offset some of the difficulties and provided encouragement  as it was high in Prince’s birth sky, reaching his midheaven in August 2015.  He released ‘HitNRun’ in September.

January 2015 would have been refreshing for Prince (Uranus sextile natal Sun, Neptune sextile natal Venus) and he was probably feeling a resurgence of passion to come forward in new ways, having moved through much of the restrictions and limits of Saturn’s reality checks.  But the strongest reality check was yet to come as Saturn approached opposition with his Sun, which is one of the greatest challenges to vitality, strength and persistence, which I would guess he normally had plenty of.

We all have been working through a re-balancing of expansion and contraction with the closing Jupiter-Saturn Square which began in third quarter 2015.  This is a reworking of faith and realism, of confidence and appropriate presence.  A grappling with physical and material limitations that have to be better integrated for progress, ethics, and social responsibility.  This crisis passage for everyone on earth, was personally very engaging for Prince, as Jupiter passed over the highest point of his birth chart into his Tenth House of career and highest achievement for a once in 12-years, two-year brightening and lift.   He was also coming up for his second Saturn Return, so transiting Jupiter was squaring his natal Saturn.   Prince’s greatest challenge now, was to rebalance his success, career opportunities, and the brightening of his star, with the physical and philosophical reality of who he has truly become.  And this is a clash that became too unbalanced to sustain — he overextended himself physically, with his opportunities to rise up and shine.

Since Prince’s birth Saturn position is on the cusp of the Second House, and he also has Capricorn on that house, he was redefining his VALUES, and needed affirmation from the public about his own self-worth as he ages.  Thus his current tour became such a lift and affirmation for him because he was very well received, touched, and applauded by those attending.  And he loved this more than anything … being, communicating, expressing himself creatively and passionately, and being adored and loved by his audiences in return.  This was heaven on earth for him, and when he felt most alive and joyful.

Transiting Jupiter squared his natal Sun on March 20, 2016, adding to the over-extension of vital energies.  Transiting Chiron squared his natal Saturn on April 10 from his Fourth-Fifth Houses cusp.  This marked a critical grounding problem to the point of travel being dangerous because Prince had lost his base anchoring and stability, though he didn’t consciously know it.  In fact, he probably felt fabulous as Venus and Mars formed a grand trine with his natal Uranus on April 12, which would have been exhilarating, uplifting, and joyful in his experience.  Indeed, on April 15 he tweeted:  “I am still floating on a cloud of purple intoxication after last night’s ‘Piano And A Microphone’ show in Atlanta.”

On April 17, both Mars and Pluto turned retrograde and began a great downshift of physical energy, desire, and drive for us all, though this was masked by the rising energy of the waxing Moon, and we are just now feeling the energy deflation which will be with us thru June.  Mars was moving through Prince’s First House with Saturn, so his physical energy was due to internalize and shift down, withdraw, pull back and retreat.  He was having a great time on the 17th, and tweeted:  “What did u do 2 us in Atlanta?  I’ve barely slept since that nite.”  #FeelingRejuvenated #FeelingInspired #Feeling Loved.  Yet this was absolutely the worst time to be planning to continue an international tour, and if he had had a good astro counselor he would have been strongly advised not to do so if he wanted to remain in his body.  

Prince Passes – The chart below is calculated for the approximate time of Prince’s death.  Here is a list of major aspects and they are quite profound:

• Saturn was opposing his natal Sun by less than a degree (1st-7th houses) on the day he died.  
• Transiting Jupiter is in square to Saturn/natal Sun.
• Transiting Nodes are square his natal Saturn.
• Transiting Mercury and Chiron were both in quincunx to his natal Jupiter in the 12th House in Libra.
• Transiting Pluto (stationary retrograde) is in close quincunx to his natal Sun.
• Mars, having just turned retrograde in his First House is in trine to his Uranus (internalizing energy, lift, elevation, elevator) (pulling inward and rising up).
• Secondary progressed Sun conjunct sp Uranus within three minutes of arc
• Transiting Venus and Uranus are closely opposing his natal Jupiter (6th and 12th Houses, health and release).

A most noteworthy fact is that the Full Moon of Scorpio on April 21 was right on his natal North-South Nodal Axis and natal Neptune!  This brings him back to his true path toward the Divine, in an orgasm of release, merging, and return to the Source.  It was NOT an untimely death, it was a FULFILLMENT.  Prince is done here.

 

I checked the chart for the grounding of his flight in Illinois for an ER visit after his show on April 15.  It looks good, the Moon was on his Uranus in the 9th, so a woman would have been nurturing and affirming in caring for him.  There is no indication of foul play or mis-treatment at that time that I can see though Moon conjunct Uranus is speedy and high energy (a monthly occurence, but stronger for Prince when traveling).

However, I believe the root of his health problem began on April 4 with his lunar return that began on that day (a chart for a 28-day lunar cycle).  I’m reasonably assuming that Prince was at his home in Chanhassen on that day before heading out to tour dates.  (We now know that he was. 5-11-16)  I read a news account that stated he “returned back home to Chanhassen” after cancelling his two shows scheduled for April 7.  This chart is very telling.

Here we see great emphasis from April 4 to probably May 2 (his current lunar cycle) on his First House (body) with Moon-Neptune-Chiron and South Node in stressful square aspects to Mars and Saturn in his 10th and 11th Houses (top of the chart, I use Campanus Houses which work accurately for me).

Along with lift, high, expansion, and thrilling afirmations and fulfillment in career and group settings, this chart also portrays a strong theme of confusion, unrealistic expectations and perspective, ungroundedness, and again — over-extension.  From the information portrayed in this lunar return chart combined with the transits to his birth chart, I believe Prince died from poisoning, possibly via food, water, ingestion (medications), and/or associated with travel, and over-extension of engagements and activities that he could not physically sustain.  

May you rest in well-deserved peace in the Heart of Creation, dear Prince Roger Nelson.  May you deeply refresh in the Source, and renew your passionate spirit to eternally shine your great and precious love and light!

“One Song” post mortem release, beautiful!

Here is the general blackbox for 2016, the year of Prince’s passing.

Many people are noting the passing of famous musicians and I would remind us that this is a natural cycle of releasing in the closing Saturn-Neptune Square which I’ve written about elsewhere on this site.  It’s a closing of the ‘music chapter’ that began in 1989, previous Saturn-Neptune cycles also overlap, and such passings are ‘normal’ in the ‘return to Source and Truth’ crisis phase of this great cycle (2015-2016).

Some Major Aspects to Prince’s Natal Chart

• July 2014 Saturn conj Asc
• Saturn sq Chiron-Pluto December 2014, rx June 15, 2015  /  Sep 17, 2015
• Saturn sq Moon 1-2015, rx May
• Saturn opp Mercury Feb, rx April
• Saturn tri Mars June, 9-24-15
• Jupiter conj MC August 2015   /  Release of HitNRun in September
• Uranus sextile Sun 1-11-16  also Neptune sextile Venus same day
• Jupiter square natal Saturn December and January
• Jupiter square Sun 3-20-16
• Chiron square Saturn 4-10-16
• Venus and Mars grand trine with natal Uranus 4-12-16
• Mercury conj Desc 4-13-16
• Transiting Mars retro 4-17-16 9 Sag  /  Pluto retro 17 Cap
• Secondary progressed Sun conjunct sp Uranus within three minutes of arc
• Secondary progressed Moon applying to a trine with the above over next two months (3/7 Houses)
• Sun tri Pluto, opp Neptune 4-21-16   FULL MOON conjunct natal Nodes

The Passing of Prince’s Son, Boy Gregory

I also include here the chart and annual blackbox of Prince’s son’s passing in 1996.  Ahmirr (‘Prince’ in Arabic) Gregory only lived seven days because he was born with a rare birth defect of the head (Pfeiffer Syndrome).  This experience appeared to be a classic Chironic ‘broken open heart’ passage for Prince.  An associate of his said that Prince was very controlling and impersonal in his dealings with those who worked for him; they could not look him in the eye, and he did not want to know their names.  If he chose, he might assign them a nickname.  This would be a very typical avoidance of inhabiting his human heart with his Pluto opposition to Chiron and Moon from the midheaven of his chart.  He would also avoid truly inhabiting his home/feelings/emotional nature throughout his life as long as his soul-wound healing process was avoided, which also empowered his brilliant gifts via his airy Grand Trine.

After the death of his son, according to the associate, he changed in a manner that is typical of a broken-open heart, becoming more human and present.  As we study Prince’s Chiron complex (which is a major theme of his chart) we can see that the child physically bore Prince’s own sense of mental inadequacy (Chiron in the Third House) which put him in touch with his soul-wound reality in a manner that could not be evaded by ‘jumping up into the air’ of non-commitment (switching on and off), and controlling his relationships (or being controlled).  Prince’s North Node in Scorpio conjunct Neptune in the Twelfth House illustrates that his greatest steps forward in this life would be associated with releasing, letting-go, surrendering to death, loss, and to deep passion when he shared himself intimately, and gave of himself in service for the good of the Whole.  The loss of his briefly living son was a shock that really brought him ‘home’ to his true self and feelings, breaking open his heart, but from which he did not recover, according to his wife and Ahmirr’s mother, Mayte Garcia.