When we look at the horoscope of Bernie Madoff there are three areas of interest. His abilities as a businessman, his abilities at persuasion, and his real abilities with money. Within this combination can we discover a disposition to commit fraud?
Business Abilities
Astrologically, business abilities are usually related to Venus, Taurus and the second house. In the horoscope of Bernie Madoff we find Venus is in the sign of Taurus and in fact he is a Taurean. Taureans have a reputation for gathering value to them and of establishing a solid and secure situation for themselves and their nearest and dearest.
Relationship Building Skills
In Madoff's second house we find evidence of ability at building relationships and that these relationships are either; from business, or lead to business. Relationships are indicated by the planet Chiron which we find in the second house and in the sign of Gemini. Communication and socializing reflect key attributes of Gemini. Combined we see strong capabilities for building relationships through various social activities that lead to business outcomes.
Communication and relationship-building skills are further enhanced by Mercury (the planet most strongly associated with communication) having a very positive angular connection with Chiron. The profile of Bernie Madoff shows him to be an excellent communicator and very persuasive. And with Mercury in Aries this gives added confidence and assurance to his manner of communicating and relating. There are even more factors in this horoscope that add to his ability to convince and present with substantial credibility. However these factors alone establish that his ability to make people believe him is possibly his greatest strength.
Money and the Potential for Loss
When examining any questions to do with money the first item to check is Venus. In his horoscope we find the money planet in its best sign for making money, Taurus. However, we see also that the singular most negative point (which is so in any horoscope) is right beside Venus; it is called the South Node and represents loss, lack, negation, negativity and stripping away. When it is beside Venus it can mean being at home in a nudist resort or someone for whom money will disappear into a black hole. There are positive ways to deal with this factor but fear and desire will usually take a person down the negative path.
Is Large Financial Loss Indicated?
A key planet related to success and large scale ventures is Jupiter. In Madoff's horoscope Jupiter forms a strong connection with Chiron to add another powerful dimension to his relationship building skills, however it comes at a price. Jupiter also has a close but negative connection with the money-loss combination of Venus and the South Node. Using the most basic of astrological meanings it translates into: large scale financial loss.
How Could it Happen?
In all likelihood Bernie Madoff probably had a bad run early in his career but found he could use his business knowledge and persuasive skills to cover up the loss. Possibly also he may have found that he was virtually invulnerable to doubt and distrust from others due to his remarkable ability to build trust.
Finally it should be remembered that a horoscope is something of a mirror and his ability to justify his fraudulent activities would have been a force in its own right. Thus, given his horoscope and his context, his actions do not surprise us astrologically.
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