The Full Moon in early Aquarius is in conjunction with Chariklo. The Sun entered the opposing sign Leo on July 22. The Sun is in conjunction with Cyllarus. Both Chariklo and Cyllarus are centaurs, minor planets orbiting the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune and crossing the orbits of one or more of the giant planets.

Astrologically Chariklo can be linked to death and mourning, but specifically to holding space for the process of grief. According to Melanie Reinhart, “her qualities and themes include a particular capacity for silent witness and reflection which can be an essential part of healing.” Caring and compassion are important keywords for Chariklo.

July 22, 2021, was the 10th anniversary of the Utøya massacre. Ten years ago the right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik killed eight people in central Oslo and 69 people, mostly teenagers, on the island of Utøya at an annual summer camp of the Labour Party’s youth division. In 2011 when the shooting on Utøya started, Chariklo was rising near the ascendant.

When the memorial service in Oslo started on the morning of July 22, the Sun was still in the last degree of Cancer (just like it was ten years ago). Mercury in Cancer was in conjunction with asteroid 2254 Requiem. Mercury represents youth, among other things. Asteroid Requiem was semisquare (45º) to Venus in the first degree of Virgo and sesquiquadrate (135º) to Jupiter in the first degree of Pisces. The Mercury-Requiem conjunction was exactly opposite centaur Hylonome in Capricorn.

2254 Requiem is a main belt asteroid discovered in 1977 and dedicated to the memory of the discoverer’s mother, who died on the same day that this asteroid was discovered. The Requiem is a mass held in honor of the dead. Astrologically, Requiem indicates acknowledgement of grief or acceptance of loss. Centaur Hylonome is another indicator of grief. It has showed up in the event charts of mass grief. Hylonome was a female centaur who lost his beloved husband Cyllarus in the battle against the Lapiths. The Sun is currently conjunct the centaur planet Cyllarus.

At the highest point of the memorial chart, at the Midheaven in Taurus, is asteroid Ceres. In mythology Ceres is the Mother Goddess who grieves the loss of her child. Ceres’s position in the chart in a way reminds us specifically of one of the first victims on Utøya, Monica Bøsei, the island hostess, known as ”Mother Utøya”, who had been organizing the summer camp for over 20 years.

At the descendant of the chart in Pisces is 57 Mnemosyne, a large main belt asteroid. Mnemosyne is the goddess of memory in Greek mythology. The name means “remembrance” or “memory”. The descendant is the angle of relationships; it is the point where the self meets the other. We can encounter the victims of Utøya only by remembering.

Many of the survivors are still suffering from serious health issues. Some of them have been threatened. In ten years hate speech has only increased everywhere and the right-wing extremism is still alive. The 2011 attack was political terrorism aimed at democracy, it was not just an isolated act carried out by some lunatic. “We must not let hate stand unopposed,” said Prime Minister Erna Solberg at the ceremony. We all must work for empathy and tolerance.

Never again July 22!

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