“A Titanic waiting for an iceberg to happen” pt.2, Transits at Death

This is an article I wrote back in mid-October, and I’ve finally added the promised analysis of the transits for Nancy Spungen’s death; since we don’t have a time of death, some of the aspects are speculative, but the big question is still: was Sid Vicious her killer?

 I don’t normally subscribe to the idea that there are victims and perpetrators; Self responsibility, choice, and a much larger, karmic picture to which we can never know all the elements, as well as a subtle interplay between the two roles (vic and perp) within each individual, are the lens through which I’m usually looking, but after studying the natal chart of Punk groupie Nancy Laura Spungen (27 February 1958, 6:52 AM, Philadelphia PA USA) for the first time ever I want to classify someone as, first andforemost, a victim. This is in part because the pattern is so ingrained, is indeed what appears to have been stamped on her at birth andacted out in multiple forms throughout the life. Don’t get me wrong; there are of course horrible things that happen outside the control of an individual; in that sense, anyone may be a victim. And Ms. Spungen was certainly the engine of her own disaster; I don’t in any way excuse her own participation or choices–but it’s very hard to see how there could have been any result other than victimhood with this particular natal dynamic in place.

Born a month premature (so that she would have this, particular chart? If that isn’t a big ol’ ad for the accuracy and timing of the Universe, and thus for the validity of astrology, I don’t know what is!) and cyanotic (deprived of oxygen), she was a hyperactive child who got into drugs very early, and had her first psychotherapy at age 10. Her parents were both business people, and she had two younger siblings; she was known to have been violent at least with her sister, who was three years younger. Even though we can set up the bones of her early life, we can’t flesh it out–there’s little concrete evidence, and few impartial witnesses who’ve shared their observations; it sounds much like many other dysfunctional families, where the daily warp and weave of life is not just kept secret, but treated as if it never was, with the exception of some finger pointing toward the ‘designated patient’ (problem family member), which Nancy surely was–but even this description of the family dynamic is a supposition.

She spent time in what might be termed reform school, andat 17 left for New York, with one objective: to follow her favorite bands (Aerosmith, The Ramones), and attempt to ingratiate herself. She worked as a stripper and sometime prostitute, but when she set her sights on a member of The New York Dolls, she followed them to London, where she met Johnny Rotten, lead of the now-emblematic Punk group The Sex Pistols, and he introduced her to bassist Sid Vicious. Their affair began immediately, andculminated 21 months later with The Sex Pistols disbanded and Sid andNancy holed up in the Chelsea Hotel, New York, where she was founddead in their room ( thirty years ago, 12 October 1978) from a single stab wound, made with a distinctive knife owned by Sid.

“A Titanic waiting for an iceberg to happen,” is the way Nancy was described by Johnny Rotten, an apt expression of a Pisces Ascendant withthe ruler, already innately hard to define or understand, under duress in square to 11th House Venus in Aquarius (how she sees the ‘ideal Nancy,’ likely as an intellectual concept; Venus makes a sesquiquadrate to the Moon, suggesting disconnection between the Self-concept as a woman and the emotions) Neptune is also square Uranus and opposed Vesta, South Node, and Pallas, and Neptune is conjunct North Node and Jupiter, all in the 8th. The chief difficulty of a Grand Cross is that when one arm is stimulated, all the arms ‘light up.’ It can mean a huge amount of confusion andperpetually conflicting energies; an individual witha Grand Cross can have their plans and activities brought up short on a consistent basis, andtypically findit very difficult to access any one of the involved energies; when they try, they are presented instantaneously with conflicts or obstacles represented by the other arms of the Cross.

Part of the Grand Cross, Uranus, is ruler of the 12th, which holds Sun, Mercury, and Chiron; this suggests that the identity, communication abilities, and primal wound and gift are all at the mercy of the Grand Cross dynamic. Further, the 12th House placement of these vital energies, crucial to identity recognition and development, means that Nancy likely had no strong sense of who she was, and when she tried to access or define herself, chaos ensued. Her 2nd of Self-image and worth is ruled by Mars in Capricorn in the 11th (what she has to give the world, friends, and group membership–is this perhaps the engine behind her pursuit of music groups, a longing to belong that fixed itself on the most prominent example of the group dynamic presented in her teenage world?), and the 2nd contains Vesta at 00 Taurus. In this spot Vesta could cause one to worship the group dynamic via the ruler’s placement in the 11th; it could feel like ‘home,’ with sex as the way to achieve this, that this interaction would provide ‘worth,’ and yet at 00 we have that ‘new’ feeling to the energy, a sense that it probably does not know clearly how to express.

A few other points (I’m skipping a lot here): the North Node cupped by Jupiter and Neptune, all in Scorpio (and of course, part of the GC)= heavy social influence to the choices of life direction, and no clear compass by which to navigate; Sag Saturn in 10th conj. MC opposed Juno/ Moon conj. in 3rd at the IC= this suggests that accomplishment has an impetus to manifest publically, but with no accomplishments, this ‘translates’ the energy to what she values, i.e. group involvement, and empowerment is sought through the emotions expressed in the immediate surroundings–and yet they may suffer Self-suppression, connected to Saturn and not receiving significant support elsewhere–the Moon also rules the 5th–Nancy may have felt no chance of creative expression for herself, andyet she possessed creative sensibilities–a situation bound to create huge internal conflict.

Notable too is the Virgo Earth (Material Purpose) situation: it opposes the Sun/ Mercury conj. from its spot in the 6th of everyday events, work, andduty–so we are clued that Nancy likely had internal expectations that she would be involved withmaterial accomplishment, would have duties, of some kind. Earth is also trine Pallas and the South Node (the past influences, as does received guidance and inner wisdom), and Earth is also opp the ASC andconjunct Pluto–could we find more pressure, in terms of expectations to achieve, to have impact, to make something of the Self everyday, andhave them more thoroughly thwarted? With the Earth Pluto conj. in Virgo, and a nearly totally inaccessible identity, the urge to destruction must have been overwhelming.

The centerpiece of the chart, though, when all is said anddone, may be Uranus in Leo. It’s involved in the tumultuous Grand Cross, is opposed to Venus, which pits her concept of herself as an ‘ideal woman’ directly against the individuality urge–uniqueness and creativity suffered when she tried to act out her womanly role, and vice versa–Uranus rules the 12th, as noted, and is quincunx the Sun, suggesting there’s no peace available for this individual, and with so many urges buried, disguised, or heavily influenced externally, it’s a wonder she lasted the twenty years she did.

Pt.2: Nancy Spungen: Transits at Death

Without a precise time of death, some of the transits are speculative as to their accuracy (specifically, the Moon, and we can’t even guess at the transiting angles). In spite of this, I think the picture is fairly clear, with some evidence that, sadly, Nancy’s death may have been her one big achievement.

Most notable aspects: T Ceres conjunct N Mars, which opts it in to the T-square formed by T Pluto square N Mars/ Ceres opposition; if we look at Ceres as the nurturing authority who determines the maiden’s fate, who negotiates with the god of the Underworld, who acts (with a knife! Mars ruled), though perhaps Nancy was the initial aggressor (natal Mars stimulated), we see a description of the act itself; T Chiron sextile Sun/ trine Earth, square Uranus (ruler of the 12th), all exact= an easy meeting of the primal wound with the Soul intent/ material purpose, instigated by the individuality urge and/ or rebellious urge, channeling subconscious material/ intents; T Jupiter conjunct Uranus= expanding on that individuality urge via the subconscious, ruler of 10th broadcasting the public persona far and wide, bringing that sudden moment of fame conveyed by the social position; T Jupiter is also quincunx the Sun/ Mercury midpoint= links the 7th of mate/ audience, 12th House Sun ruling 6th, suggesting perhaps an element of duty or sacrifice, 4th of deepest Self, and 10th of reputation; T Neptune and Pallas opposed N Juno/ Moon conjunction= with T Nep conj T Pallas, there may have been no wisdom in sight, and in opp to N Juno (empowerment) Moon (emotions) combo, it’s not hard to see that internal turmoil may have been at a peak; T Vesta moves on this day from Sag to Cap and trines her N Vesta, which is at 00 Taurus, and it also trines the South Node= again the idea of sacrifice, this time to something she finds sacred, the sexual element, the feeling of ‘home,’ and all of it springing from ingrained past patterns. And T Saturn was conjunct Earth, while T Nodal axis squared Saturn in Sag= fate takes concrete form.

The transiting Moon was in the vicinity of Piscean Mercury, opposed N Pluto, and trine Neptune, the North Node, and Jupiter= we have a cocktail of drugged up communication and emotion as it faces the depths, and delusion is almost a given, with thoughts and actions reflective of the destined life direction and the will to expansion (right into the next life).

Did Sid do it? Just from looking at Nancy’s chart, I might guess he did, but we’ll never know for sure who the perpetrator was; we do know, though, that Nancy Spungen was, indeed, a Titanic waiting for an iceberg to happen.