Stellium

A Stellium is technically a group of three or more planets forming conjunctions to one another within an orb of 10° or less. Most astrologers are adamant that the Stellium must occur within the same sign. Actually, I've found that the house placement is most important with Stelliums and the conjunctions should not be divided up between two different houses.

The tighter the orb is for the conjunctions, the stronger the effect of the Stellium. Stelliums involving several personal planets will be more significant than, say, a personal planet conjunction with two outer planets. An example would be the Uranus and Neptune conjunction between 1989 and 1996. Anyone born in the sign of Capricorn during these years has a higher chance of having a Stellium involving Uranus and Neptune. The outer planets represent collective energies while the personal planet's conjunction to the outer planets, although still profound, is less likely to impact them at the same level as the individual with three personal planets forming the Stellium. That's not to say that the outer planet to personal planet Stellium is not valid. The personal planet connection to the outer planet will provide a level of insight to the individual that taps into the collective conscience of that generation. These individuals are more like the "go to guys" in helping that generation to understand themselves better.

While assessing Stelliums, the individual planets within the Stellium will accentuate the life experiences for the individual as a representative of the particular sign containing the Stellium. The tighter the orb of the conjunctions, the more intense the experiences and energy of the Stellium in that particular sign. In essence, the energies of the planets weave together with each other, making it more difficult to separate out the distinct needs of each planet. In very tight Stelliums, the planets are almost like conjoined triplets sharing essential organs and life experiences as a combo package. One could almost consider these tight Stelliums as a self-contained "mega-planet" that takes over the individual's chart.

The key factor with Stelliums is to not become consumed with this one area in life. Individuals with a Stellium might discover that they are devoting mega-energy and time into a certain activity that is often revealed by the sign and house of the Stellium. Assessment of the way that the individual consciously and unconsciously focuses on life can free up a lot of lost energy. It would become important for these individuals to explore the manner in which they spend their time throughout the day and decide whether the time is productive or wasted. The best way to determine whether the individual is making effective use of their energies is to look at the opposing sign to assess whether that area of their life is also receiving equal attention. If the needs of that portion of their chart is also being met, then the individual can rest assured that he/she is doing a good job of finding the correct balance in life.



Grand Quintile

The Grand Quintile is formed when five planets are Quintile (72°) each other. The Grand Quintile aspect pattern contains the connection of five Quintiles, and five Biquintiles (144° aspects). This is perhaps the most rare of the aspect patterns. The Sun, Mercury and Venus are basically limited to occupying only one position of five because Mercury can at most be 28° from the Sun, and Venus can at most be 46° from the Sun. Mercury and Venus can, theoretically be as far as 74° apart and could form a Quintile aspect, but this is an exceedingly rare occurrence. At least one Quintile between outer planets would almost certainly be required for a Grand Quintile, and the windows of opportunity for these cycles is both relatively brief, and very infrequent.

The Grand Quintile is a configuration that does not flow easily since it is not defined by any of the themes by element, mode or receptivity. The Grand Quintile is made even more difficult based on the fact that the Quintile and Biquintile aspect orb must be less than 2°. Since most astrologers do not typically look for Quintiles and Biquintiles, the aspect pattern may be easily overlooked within an individual chart.  The chart to the right was the October 1, 2004

Since this aspect pattern is so rare, very little research has been done on the aspect pattern. It is believed that freedom and creativity are important factors in the individual's life. Quintiles have been related to vast artistic talent as well as to vast destructive force. I have not been able to find any individudals with the Grand Quintile in their chart. Mozart and Hitler are have strong Quintile activity in their charts and may represent a small portion of the force generated from the Quintile aspect outside of the configuration.

The Grand Quintile is a very complex pattern and may not be a configuration that we will understand in this lifetime. There appears to be a significant connection between intellect and creativity, although it may not be tied directly into actual activities with one's life. It may be that the most productive potential for this pattern would be to connect to the energy in a way that the individual can create without destroying or discover without meddling in the flow of life.

-- © 2005 J McCaul Lunar Living Astrology  --