This lecture series addresses the world-altering years between 2008 and 2023, a period that has been associated with the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, the achievement of Peak Oil, and the end of the Mayan calendar, among other epochal markers. Though this period has no counterpart in recent memory, as a point of comparison the 1960s were a harbinger. Back then, Uranus and Pluto were conjunct in the sky. Now, they’re ninety-degrees apart: it’s like the other shoe dropping. If the sixties were the New Moon, now we’re in the First Quarter.
But the stakes are higher now. Since the last big Uranus-Pluto aspect, the people of the world have grown into big boys and girls. We have been irrevocably changed by the tech revolution and the plight of the environment. We are less naïve about the financial cartels that control the world economy. We are ready to embrace our responsibilities to a planet in peril, and wake up to a new kind of freedom, against the backdrop of a New World Age. What a time to be alive.
The lectures offered below provide the listener with an outline of the most telling planetary pictures in the period. My hope is that they can deepen understanding about the global and cultural ramifications of the era (Overview Lectures) and inspire recognition of what our personal roles might be, as we respond to its tumultuous changes (Significant Transit Lectures). The first chapter of this volatile period was kicked off by Pluto’s entry into Capricorn in 2008. The second chapter features the Grand Crosses of 2010, a tinderbox of transits that serve as a paradigm for the rest of the era. The third chapter encompasses the seven squares between Uranus and Pluto (2010-2016), the most enduring chapter of the Cosmic Crossroads years.
These lectures provide a primarily transpersonal point of view, addressing the broad, universal themes of the Crossroads Years. They were created to help listeners understand the cultural and global backdrop of the years ahead, so as to be able to respond – fully, creatively and courageously – rather than merely react to the intensity we are all feeling.
The Surrounding Sea: Neptune Enters Pisces: In this lecture Jessica discusses the entry of the planet Neptune into Pisces, a subtle but powerful influence that holds sway between 2012 and 2025. Neptune, the god of the sea in classical myth, is maximally strong in the sign of the fishes. Its entry into the transit picture right now is challenging us to understand both the reality of water – now poised to become the New Oil – and the more abstract level of its symbolism: that of the unconscious mind. Jessica’s emphasis in this talk is how we might approach the figurative flooding augured by the years ahead, channeling Neptune’s power creatively without becoming overwhelmed.
The Saturn Return: America’s Growing Pains:In this lecture Jessica discusses the USA’s Saturn Return, one of the aspects of the Cardinal Cross being experienced countrywide. She describes the nature of this transit as an identity crisis that affects all individuals and group entities older than the age of thirty, and outlines the specific difficulties the USA is having. Saturn governs aging and maturation, and has to do with learning the lessons of Time. These include deferred gratification, enduring scarcity, and allowing for future contingencies. Individuals who have the planet strongly placed in their natal charts, and all who are old enough to have experienced their own Saturn Returns, will find this in-depth discussion especially helpful.
The Longest Arm of the Cross: the Uranus-Pluto Square: This lecture describes in detail the single most important astrological aspect coloring the years ahead. The square between Uranus (revolution) and Pluto (breakdown and renewal) is the longest arm of the Cardinal Cross: the key theme presented in this era of transformative change. Between 2012 and 2016, these two celest
ial heavyweights will be exactly 90 degrees apart seven times, offering the people of the world (Uranus) a chance to realize how much power (Pluto) we have.
America’s Money Karma:Jessica’s lecture at the 2010 International Astrology Day Conference discusses the chart of the USA, which features Pluto, the planet of obsession, in the house of money. This placement suggests a do-or-die materialism, creative and destructive at once, that is in for a moment of truth as transiting Pluto approaches in Capricorn. America’s first-ever Pluto Return peaks in 2022, rounding out the 2012 years.
SIGNIFICANT TRANSITS
These lectures describe the most compelling planetary pictures of this period, each of which reveals cosmic lessons that will be echoed and amplified over the next several years. They provide context for the listener seeking to understand his or her role amidst the chaos.
The Emperor Has No Clothes:The transits of September 2011 highlight several ongoing themes, including the failure of leadership. In this lecture Jessica discusses how to deal with the corruptions of a society that is devolving.
Something’s Happening Here: As Uranus and Pluto get ready to echo the astrological relationship they had during the turbulent 1960s, we see clear echoes down here in the the world situation. In the autocracies of the world, dictators are being hammered by riots; in the powerful democracies, complacent consumers are being replaced by angry activists. The old Buffalo Springfield song seems newly relevant: “Something’s happenin’ here…”
Uranus Squared: Revolution goes Hi-Tech (originally posted at the Vernal Equinox 2011): With popular revolts, 
erupting in the Middle East and North Africa, the Longest Arm of the Cross is making itself known. The uprising in Egypt can be seen as a template for a new kind of people power: the melding of political revolution and revolutionary technology.
Trickling Down into the Mainstream: The Cardinal Cross Establishes Itself (originally posted at the Autumnal Equinox 2010): Lies are exposed and well-kept secrets are revealed. During the years surrounding 2012, whenever Pluto stations, the tension of its square with Uranus is exacerbated. If the station occurs when the Sun is at one of the Cardinal points, as in mid-September 2010, the energy is that much stronger.
Gun-Toting Yahoo or Martial Artist: Mars and the Cardinal Cross (originally posted at the August New Moon, 2010): When we see Mars involved in the ongoing Cardinal patterns, we need to be especially mindful. Our challenge is to turn aggression into courage..
Redefining Normalcy: Years of Creative Disruption (originally posted at the Full Moon in July 2010): The transits at the Full Moon in the summer of 2010 were overflowing with heads-ups about what to do, and what not to do, during these years of transformative change.
Peak Oil, Systems Collapse and Mother Love: Lessons of the Cardinal Cross (originally posted at the summer solstice Eclipse in June, 2010):The summer solstice of 2010 introduced the riff of critical years between 2010 and 2020. Its patterns can be seen as a holographic prototype: a map that shows us the way forward.
OTHER LECTURES
Click here for 2012 lectures by Jessica Murray
The Secret of the Winter Solstice: In this discussion of the ancient symbolism of the winter solstice, Jessica looks at its seasonal significance as a festival celebrating the great miracle of Light emerging from Darkness. She explains how spiritual seekers might go inside themselves and get in touch with the imagery of this archetypal drama that resides in their collective unconscious. She proposes that wresting control — individually and spiritually –of this and other sacred portals is one of the most creative acts a human being can accomplish.
Halloween and the Dark Mysteries: In this discussion of the esoteric and spiritual meaning behind Halloween, Jessica examines the holiday’s changes over the centuries. She discusses how Halloween’s meaning has been subverted into a showcase for our collective neuroses 
about death, sexuality and the occult mysteries. She makes the case for the reclamation of
Halloween as a mystical sabbat: a ritual of extraordinary power.
Money and Power: This lecture, delivered to the San Francisco Astrological Society in March 2005, discusses abundance and scarcity in metaphysical terms. Jessica discusses this ambivalent and highly charged topic in terms of the fear, anxiety and magical thinking that surrounds it, and proposes that its cultural connotations have seduced us into giving away our power. By understanding its symbolism astrologically, we can get that power back.
