Harrison in 1972

This is a sketch of George Harrison's health horoscope with additional notes on his musical interests and considerable sensitivity. This review of health signatures delves into the medical meaning of "accumulated deficit". Those looking beyond his manufactured Beatle image are invited to look a bit more closely into the material presented. That is not to say he is not a hero to Fab Four fans everywhere or undeserving of his fame. Rather he was a "quiet" man of great emotional depth and of great spirituality whose many contributions to music and to faith had perhaps not been readily apparent to us or fully appreciated before his passage from this life at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 29, 2001 in Los Angeles, CA. His death from brain cancer touched many and caused shock waves of grief around the world. To most of us George Harrison will forever be one of the Fab Four, our much beloved youngest Beatle.

The mature man from Liverpool at age 58 bore only slight resemblance to his youth in terms of depth- of character, of maturity and of life direction. This said let's take a close look at his natal chart. Please note the article is intended for astrologers desiring added facility in the examination of medical horoscopes and discusses only those events and influences applicable to the medical history.

He was born in Liverpool, England 53N25 - 02W55  in the midst of WWII on Feb. 24, 1943 at 11:42: p.m.  BST -1:00. Source rated [A] from Billboard magazine interview. This author has always used the Placidus house system.
 
 

Primary Horoscope Features

Ascendant:
28 deg. 27' Libra - Clifford Data Compendium in Solar Fire has notes specifying 00 Scorpio rising but this is somewhat suspect given the midpoints and transits of 1997-98.  In any event Harrison's personality seems to more closely correspond with Libra rising and medical treatment dates. You are free to reach your own conclusions.

Occupation: Musician
Harrison's horoscope has most of the classic astrological planets and signs expected of a prominent musician. Neptune in Libra individuals express the music of a generation.
Venus in Pisces signifies one beloved by many.

Environment
Birthplace: Liverpool, UK an industrial seaport city and centre of commerce which may have had a contributory influence on the population's health via environmental pollutants [uncounted in 1943].

Health Signatures:
Planetary patterns known to symbolize vulnerablilty to endemic disease; squares, oppositions, quindeciles [165 degrees or 15 deg. short of opposition].
The following aspects indicate the highest areas of tension and deficit.

Sun Square Uranus
A primary aspect highlighting sudden demise, rapid separation from this life. Also known as a signature for victims of violence and eccentric behavior (to and fro). Examples: Gen. Custer of Little Bighorn fame and Steve Rubell owner of Studio 54. In this regard Harrison was a victim of a knife attack in his home Jan. 2000.

Sun Square Saturn
Diffuculty with authority in the everyday sense, and a signature of disease when we examine the regions covered. Sun is the male self vs Saturn in Gemini the sign ruling the lungs. Note that Saturn, ruling the 3rd house is intercepted, and is disposited by Mercury in Aquarius. These two crucial planets are in mutual reception. The latter rules the 9th house- the nervous system overall. Uranus in the chart rules the "end-of-he-matter" 4th house of the core self. i.e. one's health.
We are beginning to seeing a pattern of emotional stress and debility emerge. It is a pattern that rules the body regions governed by the mentioned planets and signs. Harrison's lungs, throat and head are targets for the cancer he fought so bravely.

Mercury Quindecile* North Node
Although it may seem esoteric this very significant quindecile* aspect has been observed in cases of fatal disease particularly with medical conditions which deny quick or early diagnosis. Astrologer, author and teacher Noel Tyl has identified this aspect as being particularly active in such horoscopes.
"... research in over 400 cases has repeatedly shown the dramatic importance of the QD as disruption, separation, upheaval, obsession."
The quindecile involves a focus on Mercury; the need to communicate ideas. Since N. Node refers to the head and is negatively aspected by Mercury in Aquarius, planetary lord of Harrison's 9th house domain one sees, within this framework, Mercury as the transmitter of nerve impulses and secretions of the endocrine system which has a delicate symbiotic connexion to the brain.
The pattern is unusual and disrupted.
I suspect the immune system was in a state of imbalance for years being aided and abetted by Harrison's chronic cigarette smoking and long-term exposure to a toxic industrial environment. Additionally his chart paints a picture of genetically induced extreme sensitivity to any emotional upset or denial. We note that  George's deeply felt artistic aspirations were frustrated for a decade plus before the group's breakup of 1970. Later came the soul-searing breakup of his marriage. Given these factors- how long could his body and its endocrine system withstand such an onslaught before it succumbed to disease?

Chiron and the Nodes Involvement:
Taking a cue from traditional Vedic astrology with it's health emphasis on the Nodes symbolizing injury we also note with some alarm Chiron 25 deg. Leo conjuncts N. Node 24Leo significating a future crisis within the head.
The Nodal axis involves the fixed signs being T-squared denoting a permanent & fatal head injury.
Nov. 29th's transiting Moon conjunct * Kaput Algol @ 25 Taurus squared this sensitive natal degree.

Mars Quindecile* Pluto in Ninth House
This second negative aspect between Mars and Pluto is even more significant because it corroborates the weakening health effects of the first discussed above. Here cardinal Mars quindecile Pluto is the agent of the crucial Aries 6th to 12th house axis ruling one's vital, [yet hidden in the 12th], health condition. Mars, ruling infections, is the natural lord over the head running energy to Pluto in a fixed sign- within the capital 9th house. Harrison was known for taking quick and decisive action once his mind was made up on an issue; Mars in Capricorn. In similar dramatic mode, the cancer took hold in fixed, determined and rapid manner. One notes Pluto; that over which we have no control, is also second lord for the Scorpio moon [meaning modern rulership]. Cancer is a disease intimately connected to Pluto, lord of cellular regeneration; lord of life and of death. Indeed some cancer treatments are comprised of deadly poisons which can kill as well as cure.
* quindeciles are marked in the chart by black dotted lines and the A.

Infections: A Fixed Star & Body Regions
Venus opposes Neptune and rules the 12th house of hospitals; hidden health conditions.
Venus rules the throat and Neptune rules attack on throat tissue through toxic infection.
Venus at 29 deg. Pisces is in a critical degree for illness & conjuncts the fixed star Scheat known for violence. The ancients also associated this fixed star with misfortune and drownings.
Venus and Neptune in mutual reception- an increase in both the sweetness of the voice and the debilitation of the throat. Neptune is the natural ruler of the 12th governing the mind in the physical setting e.g. brain. Therefore our attention is directed at Neptune the silent nemesis in the chart.

Blood Flow:
Moon in early Scorpio, in its most fallen sign, squares Pluto; a fatal infection made easier via the blood.
Moon square Pluto indicates problems in healing properly.

Interceptions

• 2 Intercepted.cardinal signs; Cancer and Capricorn.
• 2 Intercepted planets which act as "wild cards"; Mars & Jupiter
• Intercepted planets often indicate something unexpected, surprise growths.
• Rulers of the intercepted signs are both debilitated.
• His mother passed away from same final diagnosis.

Head: Unaspected Jupiter
Unaspected Jupiter Rx, in the 9th house, is the planet of growth & enlargement , and rules the 3rd house of pulmonary functioning. As such Jupiter Rx is now a "free agent" in the chart able to act in an unpredictable manner.  Medically there is great potential for growths occuring in the body region signified by the culminating oppositon- 3rd to the 9th. With cancer of the brain there is a reciprocal path for malignant cells to move freely from the lungs to the head via the lymph system which transits the neck upwards.
My father died in 1999 of the same cancer complications which originated in his lungs.

The Yod
Myself and others have made much of the "Finger of God" yod aspect seen in Harrison's ascendant and others health charts as a destructive onfluence. The mid path is to carefully examine the combined effects of these inconjuncts. The focus upon the Moon / ASC health center from their respective easing sextile between disruptive Uranus and melifluous Venus appears to be at once destructive and creative. Suffice to say the yod aspect is often seen in the charts of victims. Yods also signify one expressing and carrying out the family's wishes. [Tierny, Hamaker-Zondag]  From the beginning Harrison's family supported their son's musical efforts. George responded in creative ways beyond their imagining.

Sun Degrees in Sign  5 Pisces
Marc Edmund Jones says;"A Church bazar; a symbol of the instinctive loyalties of life" How fitting the symbol message of his sun is. This degree speaks volumes about Harrison's warm approach to the human community, witness the humanitarian focus of his Concert for Bangladesh, where every person, every life has value. Keyword: BENEFIT "A special gemius for philanthrophy." 

Moon Degrees in Sign  00 -1 Scorpio
Again- Marc Edmund Jones  "A sight seeing bus; ... encouraged to reach out widely and profitably in sharing his realizations with his fellows ... a basic impersonality which capitalizes on the opportunity of the moment. Keyword is FRIENDLINESS" This symbol speaks to his quiet and enduring religious faith via his guru, Maharishi Mahesh. Harrison almost singlehandedly exposed the west to the music, the philosophy and teachings of eastern religion on a mass scale before the New Age movement became popular.

Inheritance Factor
Parental health influences in the chart. Sun rules the 10th cusp; the Leo MC / parent axis, and squares Saturn / Uranus, ruler of self, home and family. More importantly note Uranus is in the 8th house of mortality and is squared by the indicator for the parent; the sun in sacrifical Pisces. In other words- I believe Harrison inherited the deadly genetically-based brain disease potential from his parents.

Planetary Midpoints Related to Health

Scorpio Moon = MARS / MC      Blood, emotions; high anger - need - career - reputation - parent
Moon = VENUS / URANUS        Blood, mother vs Throat, sudden upsets and love excitement
Moon = MER. / MARS                 Blood, emotions, needs to be heard; Brain, lungs, head, fast, cutting
Moon = URANUS / NEPTUNE   Blood, brain vs Sudden Attack, rapid degeneration, cellular breakdown

JUP. = MOON / NEPTUNE         Artistic Luck, Law, Expansion VS Emotions, Attack, Infection
SAT / SUN = MER. / NEPT.        Successful ideas, yet gloom. Health: Toxic environmental exposure
ASC = MARS / PLUTO               Aggression, Violence, Toxic waste invading brain tissue,
                                                       attacks on the self.
ASC = MER. / JUPITER              Health Center, In lungs- Increase, Growths, expressiveness

MAR = SUN / SATURN               Head vs Self, real restrictions, hot and cold reactions in head (brain)

NEP. = SUN / ASC                      Highly sensitive to all influences, poisons. Mystical self-awareness.
 

SOLAR ARC TIMING
Within the framework of Tyl's use of the Solarscope we see looming potential for a critical final illness.
"When the Sun is not involved astrologically with a specific crisis complex, by transit or arc, the Solarscope falls off in reliability." pg. 115 Astrological Timing of Critical Illness.
Unfortunately such was not the case in Harrison's chart and the SA solarscope. The Sun is deeply involved.

DIRECTED SOLAR ARC of Nov. 1997
Solar Arcs have proven to be highly significant in timing health events. SA Pluto was opposing natal VENUS exact orb. This aspect points to damage, growths, infection. Venus rules the throat. Both planets were in the anaretic 29th degree.
Natal Venus - Neptune are in mutual reception and opposing, bringing hidden health conditions to the forefront.
1997 was the period when Harrison again began smoking cigarettes. He gave up the habit that year but apparently it was too late. The damage to his throat was irreparable. By his own admission his voice had never been particularly strong as evidenced by recurrent pain and hoarseness while on tour in the 1970s.
SA Saturn squares natal Scorpio Moon [intercepted natal Jupiter's dispositor] This combination reflects a deep inner sadness simmering beneath the personality surface. In the lunar square to Saturn there's a fundamental shift in how ones sees life; with depression often present.  With moon ruling the 9th house's interception changes to the brain's cell structure caused by toxemia  were becoming manifest but remained hidden from casual view [Neptune opposite Venus]. Moon rules the glands and their passages throughout the body. A square from SA Saturn would point to important changes, e.g. a failure  in their functional ability to cleanse and detoxify the body via the lymph system.

PROGRESSED CHART of Dec. 30, 1999 - 3:30 a.m.
The Attack at Friar Park  [ London, UK ]
P2 Sagittarius moon "the home" opposes Uranus, a deranged rebel, while progressed Venus conjuncts Saturn in Gemini in the 7th house of open enemies. Progressed Mars is in Pisces in the 4th house of home and family and inconjunct Pluto in the 8th house. These planets and their placements are highly symbolic of the health battle which had generated inside the self and took place literally in the home at Henley. Mars in Pisces symbolizes the ineffective; non-fatal attack by an intruder. Such an astrological event picture is what I term "emblematic" in that it becomes a signal flag or a portent of things to come in much the same way a boom time or a disaster is signified in a nation's chart and transits.

DIRECTED SOLAR ARC of July 2001
Using overlaid bi-wheel charts we see SA Uranus squares Harrison's health center ASC / Moon exactly on July 15, 2001. It was at this point that strenuous efforts at saving Harrison's life were being considered and co-ordinated. A benign nodule was removed from the neck earlier; Aug. 1997, when he was treated for throat cancer. Source: Harrison himself in a media interview after the surgery. One suspects the health situation was more serious than he could present to his loving fans.
In 1998 he was given the all clear. By May 2001 just before the exact square of SA Uranus - Asc / moon Harrison was treated in Switzerland for a brain tumor.
July's SA Sun opposed Asc / Moon health center indicating a health crisis.
Sun represents one's vitality while an event opposing the lunar ascendant points to a fundamental change in one's relationship to family from within the self. Nov. 6th he was being treated for brain cancer in New York after being seen by the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. By mid November '01  it was determined his advanced condition, after undergoing cobalt therapy, did not warrant further medical treatment.
 
Journeyman Musicianship
Libra rising sign. Venus trines Pluto in Leo. Venus opposes Neptune bringing about culmination
e.g. ample expression of musical values.

Deep Spirituality
Water sign Scorpio moon trines highly spiritual Sun in Pisces. Like the father he was George nurtured many. Sun in the 4th house.

Lasting Friendships
Harrison was reknowned within music circles for his ability to maintain working friendships. For example- in his concert for Bangladesh he almost singlehandedly mustered a legion of musician friends to perform at the event raising millions for relief. Mercury in Aquarius also governed his communication ability.
Before Roy Orbison's passing, along with Bob Dylan, a delightful and freshly inspired Harrison performed with the Traveling Wilburys.
 
Transits at final passage Nov. 29, 2001

Death Moon at 25 degrees Taurus conjunct fixed star Kaput Algol
The evil fixed star Kaput Algol present at the death conjunction of 1:30 pm on Nov. 29th is known for "losing one's head" through intense emotions. In ancient astrology the star referred to literal decapitation. Nowadays astrology takes a more relaxed and liberal view meaning excessive emotion becomes a challenge to overcome. Cancer is said to be a disease of profound grief. Did Harrison grieve for private losses? Anectdotal evidence and life events suggest he did. In this light it seems emotionally significant Harrison's mother died from the same disease.
In naturopathic treatment circles cancer victims are encouraged to visualize their disease, to pray and let go of any emnity and grief thus encouraging healing.
While this may sound like the victim being blamed for his disease this is not the case and certainly not the intent here. I am referring to the potential for genetic predisposition to a malady. There is much unknown about this dread disease; e.g. the complex cellular genesis- of how cancer begins. One can only speculate on the emotions of the person involved and the inner psychological condition suggested by the horoscope's symbols.

FAME:  The 2nd SATURN and JUPITER RETURNS
Nov. 27th was the 30th anniversary of the release of his hit song "My Sweet Lord".
Transiting Jupiter Rx returns to its natal position increasing his fame & tumor growth.
Transiting Uranus Quindeciles natal Pluto Nov. 29th symbolizing rapid demise.
Transiting Mars Quindeciles natal midheaven- rapid disruption, breakdown.
Saturn had just completed its 2nd return to natal position June 7th and went retrograde Sept. 27th
Sun Squared natal Sun indicating the climax of a severe health crisis.
Neptune opposed natal Pluto - a silent and fatal attack.
Mercury - Sun opposed natal Saturn
Chiron squared natal Neptune
Moon / ASC relatively uninvolved
 
 

 
 
In large measure Harrison was ahead of his time musically and philosophically. He accomplished all he'd set out to in this life. Judging from the Nov. 29th transits he faced the end during the final weeks with all the conviction, the courage and the aquired equanimity which had marked his life since studying TM with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in India. His ashes were ritually scattered upon the Ganges in Hindu tradition. Harrison had come home. George's rich legacy will endure for many years to come.

Toward Viable Astrological Diagnosis
Medical astrology, as a consultative tool, is a complex art requiring much dilligent study and considered synthesis of related aspect pictures. In true concert with medecine advanced astrology may yet prove to be a remarkable diagnostic tool to aid health professionals in making a non-invasive, quick and life-saving diagnosis. With such aspects as Harrison's an early preliminary diagnosis may have been reached by an astrologer familiar with Tyl's quindecile and solar arc methods. However such a diagnosis - prediction would have been tentative and unreliable without many similar horoscopes to compare to. Accurate prediction of cancer and it's attack will remain sketchy without advancement in the tools currently available to astrologers.
Would Harrison die of the toxemia produced by cancer cells which had spread to the head ? [Mars in the 3rd]. The best that may be hoped for given the current state of practice is to refer the sufferer as early as signs in the horoscope(s) will permit to a medical professional for treatment. As Cornell, Tyl and others have noted limited disease sampling and multiple planetary signatures listed form a less than ideal working environment for even the most knowledgable and practiced professional.
Going forward what is needed is a massive and carefully aquired health listing of medical cases and their respective horoscopes to form a data base for building a viable diagnostic computer program which incorporates the highest effort from both disciplines.
 

Sources: CNN, USATODAY, ABC NEWS, BBC, CLIFFORD DATA.

Harrison's Artistic Works:  http://web.mit.edu/scholvin/www/harrison/harrison.html
 
Any resemblance of this web article to any other work specifically on the subject is purely coincidental and unintentional. Errors will be corrected upon written notification.
Reference to quindecile and the use of solar arcs in disease used by permission courtesy of Noel Tyl and Llewelyn Publications in Astrological Timing of Critical Illness
ISBN 1-56718-738-2   Copyright © 1998 by Noel Tyl