Alex's Asteroid Astrology

On Sunday, 3 September 2023, Republican presidential nomination contender Vivek Ramaswamy was muffled by the collapse of a huge banner reading “TRUTH” as he stumped in Lancaster, New Hampshire.  Footage of the event shows the massive backdrop slowly folding forward onto the unexpecting Ramaswamy, in a moment of cosmic irony worthy of a Wes Anderson film.  Unhurt, except perhaps in his pride, the incident has led to a plethora of Tweets and internet memes calling attention to the aptness of the visuals, for a candidate who can’t seem to keep his stories straight about his opinion of the prior president.

Let’s be clear here:  although scoring well among the gaggle of also-rans who are all lagging 40+ points behind Donald Trump in primary polling, Ramaswamy has zero chance of attaining the GOP nomination, barring an unanticipated Trump exit from the race.  But what he can do is suck up to The Donald just enough to be seriously considered as his running mate, giving him his own shot at the White House in time, and that seems to be his goal.  Ramaswamy trashed both Trump’s actions and motivations in regards to the January 6^th, 2021 insurrection in a book he wrote and interviews he gave last year, but is singing a very different tune today, being among the former president’s most vocal supporters, despite competing for the nomination.

I’ve been considering a profile of this quack-in-the-box for some time, but judged it wasted effort, until the Truth hit me (albeit less physically than it hit Vivek):  given the right circumstances, he could be President.  It was this incident (watch the video here) that put Ramaswamy on my radar again, and when I saw that asteroid Ramaswami 23850 at 27 Taurus opposed asteroid Truth 249521 at 25 Scorpio that day, with an asteroid Veritas 490 (Latin for “truth”) cosmic kicker at 27 Leo on the fulcrum of a T-Square, I decided the time had come.  The base polarity of Ramaswami opposed Truth is a no-interpretation-needed simple astro-English rendering of the tableau presented here on planet earth, banners and all.  Add in asteroid Troemper 28130 at 25 Aquarius, our celestial referent for 45, to complete the Grand Cross, and we have a pretty good picture of where we stand.

There is no asteroid Vivek, but a CNA (Compound-Name Asteroid, comprised by both first and last names strung together as one word, which can be separated and used for either) called Vivekbuch 19420 approximates it.  At 8 Virgo, Vivekbuch conjoined the 10 Virgo Sun of the battered-by-Truth incident, boosting his visibility, opposed Saturn, ruling the presidency itself, at 3 Pisces.  The Vivekbuch conjunction has been in orb for weeks, further highlighting (Sun) Ramaswamy (Vivekbuch) on the trail, providing more illumination, perhaps more than he can take in some ways. 

The conjunction was in orb, from 0 and 3 Virgo, when the first GOP debate was held on August 23^rd, the date of the Mercury retrograde station.  Ramaswamy garnered lots of attention (Sun) from the debate (Mercury), a generally positive press (Mercury), and a boost in polling and fundraising, as the Sun spotlighted him, and continues to do so for weeks.  Also, concurrently asteroid Ramaswami has been passing over Uranus, providing excitement for Ramaswamy’s campaign, but also sparking controversy.

But to return to the Truth-bashing, Mercury at 16 Virgo in retrograde joins the Sun/Vivekbuch pairing, exemplifying the rather atypical (retrograde) Media (Mercury) event, while a square to asteroid Whitehouse 4036 at 16 Gemini again affirms the agenda for the campaign stop.  Asteroid New Hampshire 503033 at 2 Cancer conjunct asteroid Lie 26955 at 5 is such an endearingly forthright celestial encapsulation of the venue and the theme it bears nomination to the Cosmic Politics Hall of Fame.  Mars at 4 Libra in square feeds this, pumping energy into any untruths, while TNO Ixion 28978 at 2 Capricorn creates a T-Square. 

I most often encounter Ixion in my work via his status as the first murderer in Greek myth, always active in the charts of mass shootings, but the point has much more to say, based on a complex mythic backstory.  One of its key resonances is to the concept of entitlement, which features prominently in one of Ramaswamy’s better-known aphorisms, “Success breeds entitlement, entitlement breeds laziness, and victimhood fits laziness like a glove.” 

Let’s check out the natal chart and see just how like a glove it fits Vivek Ramaswamy’s tortured relationship with the Truth.  Born at 6:51 AM EDT on 9 August 1985 in Cincinnati, Ohio (Rodden Rating AA), Ramaswamy sports a triple conjunction of the Sun at 17 Leo with Mars at 10 Leo and a retrograde Mercury at 18 Leo.  Sun/Mars denotes a leader, someone with a lot of energy, but perhaps also anger management issues and a strong sexual urge which can be problematic in certain contexts. 

Mercury’s retrograde status indicates someone who processes data differently than others; this can be a hindrance, in learning challenges such as dyslexia, or an asset, an ability to view problems from a fresh perspective.  Given the success of his business ventures (Ramaswamy’s net worth is reported to be close to a billion dollars), we can assume his Mercury has taken the latter path.  Mercury retrograde is also the signature of someone who communicates in atypical ways.  It doesn’t scream “liar!” per se, but it does suggest that possibility, and a square from asteroid Truth at 21 Scorpio indicates a stressful relationship to, or conflict with, veracity and fact.

In that regard, there are some troubling placements which suggest that much of his lack of truth-telling might be focused on the American people.  Asteroid Lie at 18 Cancer conjoins the Descendant at 15 Cancer, giving it angular force and impact.  Worse, a conjunction with asteroid America 916 at 20 Cancer offers a ready outlet for much of that energy in the form of the US populace.  Opposed asteroid Nemesis 128 at 15 Capricorn exactly on the Ascendant, there is the implication that the lies told by Ramaswamy in a political context could be the cause of destruction or ruin for the country.  Donald Trump is fond of saying, in this latest round of campaigning, that he is disgruntled Americans’ “retribution;” who better for a running mate than someone who embodies this energy visibly, as Nemesis conjunct his Ascendant, governing how others see him? There’s also an intriguing sesquiquadrate aspect from an exact conjunction of asteroid Kassandra 114 and Damocles 5335 at 5 Pisces to Lie/America, calling into question Ramaswami’s credibility (Kassandra) and the threat (Damocles) his false narratives (Lie) pose to the country (America).

Pluto at 2 Scorpio conjoins the 9 Scorpio MC, which is the cusp of the Tenth House ruling career.  Ramaswamy’s chief career goals (MC) are power and lots of cash, both Pluto-ruled.  He may also use his position of power to transform – or, if you prefer, destroy – existing conditions, breaking them down to create new ones.  This is sometimes a good and necessary thing, when the status quo has outlived its usefulness or is downright antithetical to progress, but among the sweeping changes Ramaswamy would avowedly seek to enact as head of the US government are abolishing the Department of Education, the FBI and the IRS.  He wants to cut the federal workforce by 75%, eliminating civil service protections; change the voting age to 25; and end birthright citizenship.  He has characterized climate change and LGBTQ+ rights advocates as members of “cults,” opposes affirmative action, supports a six-week abortion ban, and favors “major concessions to Russia” in the Ukraine war.

Making these ideas and goals highly personal, and increasing his desire for personal power, is asteroid Ramaswamy, conjunct Pluto and the MC from 4 Scorpio.  A natural outlet for this energy can be found in an out-of-Sign opposition to asteroid Whitehouse at 29 Aries.  Whitehouse is also at station, making it an embedded factor in Ramaswamy’s life, a lodestar, a point of focus about which energies eddy and coalesce.  Ramaswamy’s decision to make a run for the presidency didn’t just appear out of nowhere in 2023; this is a goal he’s been actively seeking his entire life.

The Midheaven cluster squares Jupiter at 11 Aquarius, which in turn opposes the Leo stellium, forming a loose T-Square (with some of the Leo points out of orb with those in Scorpio).  Jupiter exacerbates the worst traits of this combination, always wanting more – more wealth, more power, more control (all Pluto keywords); more lies and hidden agenda plans (retrograde Mercury); more aggressive action (Mars). 

There may be lurking health issues for Ramaswamy.  The 0 Gemini Moon, ruling health matters, falls in a T-Square, opposing asteroid Karma 3811 at 8 Sagittarius with Damocles at 5 Pisces on the fulcrum at 5 Pisces.  This suggests a fated (Karma) impending threat or doom (Damocles) related to health (Moon).  Secondary support for this outcome can be found in another T-Square, from asteroid Vivekbuch at 11 Libra opposing asteroid Achilles 588 at 12 Aries, with that bothersome Nemesis on the fulcrum.  This could indicate an inherent weakness or vulnerability (Achilles, as in “Achilles heel”) which threatens to destroy (Nemesis) the native (Vivekbuch).  Of course, whatever may be lurking could take years to surface, even decades; we shouldn’t anticipate a timely health crisis that removes Ramaswamy from the campaign trail anytime soon, though that’s always a possibility.

Ramaswamy’s vocal support of Donald Trump is somewhat difficult to fathom, short of the goal of attracting the former president’s attention as a potential running mate.  Natal asteroid Troemper at 18 Virgo isn’t especially strongly placed, though it does square Uranus at 14 Sagittarius, perhaps indicating a desire to “supercharge” his campaign with some of that trademark Trumpian disruption, controversy and volatility.

Interestingly, Vivek Ramaswamy’s natal asteroid New Hampshire appears at 10 Virgo, the precise degree of the highlighting transit Sun when that banner of Truth came raining down on his head in the Granite State.  Who says the cosmos doesn’t have a sense of humor?