In episode 489 astrologers Chris Brennan and Leisa Schaim discuss their views on astrology, fate, and destiny.
This is part of a new series exploring our personal view on the philosophy of astrology, and in particular exploring the relevance of some ancient Stoic concepts related to fate and determinism.
While most of the episodes of the podcast are usually more technically oriented, the purpose of this series is to begin to articulate some of the philosophical and spiritual views that we have developed based on our practice of astrology.
This episode is available in both audio and video versions below.
Leisa's website with info on her upcoming zodiacal releasing workshop:
https://www.leisaschaim.com
Chris' ancient astrology course:
https://courses.theastrologyschool.com
Timestamps
00:00:00 Exploring Astrology's Philosophical Foundations
00:03:53 Fate, Free Will, and the Stoic Perspective
00:09:26 Astrology vs. Scientific Materialism
00:11:16 The Role of Fate in Personal Growth
00:17:34 Understanding Predetermined Events in Life
00:21:10 The Interplay of Fate and Free Will
00:27:12 The Internal and External Aspects of Fate
00:32:40 Zodiacal Releasing and Life's Turning Points
00:35:40 Finding Meaning in Predetermined Choices
00:38:45 The Nature of Experience and Free Will
00:40:06 Astrology and Personal Growth
00:41:54 Understanding Control and External Circumstances
00:44:10 The Limitations of Control in Astrology
00:48:31 Electional Astrology: Navigating Choices
00:51:45 The Interplay of Timing and Fate
00:56:34 Fate, Free Will, and Life's Direction
01:01:23 The Role of Astrology in Accepting Fate
01:06:39 The Stoic Perspective on Fate and Acceptance
01:12:03 Predetermination vs. Free Will in Astrology
01:17:37 Electional Astrology and Conditional Fate
01:24:36 The Balance of Knowledge and Action in Astrology
01:31:27 The Unfolding of Fate and Personal Growth
01:39:16 Understanding Fate and Destiny in Astrology
01:45:08 The Complexity of Free Will and Fate
01:49:33 The Birth Chart: Present Life Focus
01:55:29 The Immutable Nature of the Natal Chart
01:58:38 Fate, Free Will, and Timing in Astrology
02:00:12 Finding Peace in Astrological Insights
02:03:10 Astrology as a Language of the Cosmos
02:06:34 Personal Perspectives on Astrology and Fate
02:09:21 The Importance of Technical Approaches in Astrology
02:12:25 Exploring Different Astrological Traditions
02:19:18 Leisa's zodiacal releasing workshop
Watch the Video Version of This Episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1wIprhk9AE
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Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode
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2:29:52
May Astrology Forecast 2025
In episode 488 astrologers Chris Brennan and Austin Coppock look at the astrological forecast for May of 2025!
May opens with the tense Mars-Pluto opposition separating but still in close alignment, and this gets reactivated when Pluto stations in Aquarius and the Moon swings in and acts as a trigger at various points.
Venus returns to Aries where it retraces its steps and begins the process of fully winding down its long retrograde period, and Mars is similarly finishing up its broader retrograde cycle as it makes its way through Leo.
The most important transits this month is that Saturn moves into the sign of Aries on May 24, and this marks the beginning of a three year transit through this sign, where it will meet up with Neptune this summer and early next year.
The month ends with an auspicious stellium of planets all meeting up in Gemini, which provides us with one of the best electional charts of the year.
We spend the first hour of the episode talking about the astrology of news and events that have occurred since our last forecast, and then in the second half we transition into talking about the astrology of May.
Timestamps
00:00:00 Introduction
00:00:49 Quick overview of May
00:03:08 Beginning of news segment
01:03:08 May forecast begins
02:03:28 Electional chart for May
02:07:49 Late May
02:14:30 Upcoming projects
02:20:48 Credits
Patreon for Early Access & Bonus Content
Patreon.com/AstrologyPodcast
Austin’s Website
Austincoppock.com
Watch the Video Version of This Episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_645ovm11u0
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2:23:52
Venus Retrograde in the News Part 2
In episode 487 astrologers Chris Brennan, Lindsey Turner, and Nick Dagan Best review a number of stories in the news recently that coincided with the Venus retrograde.
This is a followup to episodes 475 and 477 where we talked about what Venus retrograde in Aries has coincided with in history, and part of our purpose with this episode is to document repetitions where stories from the past became relevant again today under the current retrograde.
In the first half of the episode we focus on 8 year repetitions of Venus, connecting past and present events, while in the second half we focus on other stories in the news that match the general quality of Venus retrograde.
For more info about Lindsey and Nick check out their websites:
https://badpastor.me
https://www.nickdaganbestastrologer.com
Watch the Video Version on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IB6AlA16nbA
Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode
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3:31:00
Venus and Mars Retrograde Stories
In episode 486 astrologer Chris Brennan interviews some listeners of the podcast to talk about the recent retrogrades of Venus and Mars and what changes they coincided with in their life.
Mars is recently coming off of its retrograde in Cancer and Leo, while Venus is wrapping up its retrograde in Aries and Pisces, so it felt like a good moment to check in with some people and see how these retrogrades played out depending on where the transits happened in the chart.
During the course of the discussion we hear about some unique and interesting ways that the transits manifested, especially in terms of the houses that the retrograde periods happened in.
This episode is available in both audio and video versions below.
Watch the Video Version on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRLXFU_qDeI
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Transcript
A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 486 transcript
Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode
Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:
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2:06:51
Venus Retrograde in Aries and Queer History
In episode 485 astrologer Elly Higgins joins the show to discuss the 8-year repetitions of Venus retrograde in Aries and how they tie into queer history over the past century.
In this episode we start with the Venus retrograde in Aries of 1905, and then work our way forward in 8 year increments, discussing how important moments and turning points in queer history keep coinciding with this retrograde.
In the process we ended up finding a bunch of repetitions, many of which give insight into the Venus retrograde that we are currently living through today.
Elly is the host of Star Gays: The Queer Astrology Archives Podcast, and you can find more information here:
https://ellyhiggins.com
https://stargaysastrology.ghost.io
This episode is available in audio and video versions below.
Timestamps
00:00:00 Introduction
00:16:32 Inanna
00:24:03 1905
00:29:22 1913
00:35:12 1921
00:40:59 1929
00:48:27 1937
00:58:45 1945
01:05:49 1953
01:37:53 1961
01:43:55 1969
02:25:57 1977
02:55:36 1985
03:36:05 1993
04:14:33 2001
04:27:42 2009
04:43:31 2017
04:59:26 2025
05:40:46 Conclusions
06:07:28 Credits
Watch the Video Version of This Episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg7Ug8-tC1g
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Transcript
A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 485 transcript
Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode
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Ireland