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I don’t predict events; that is not my area of focus. Sometimes I may see something screamingly obvious, such as transiting Saturn conjunct the IC and square the Sun in the chart of a client who has a ninety-eight-year-old father in hospital with a fatal illness. It does not take a mind of great genius to work out that the father will probably die. In that sort of instance I might tell the client the father’s death is probable, because the client already knows it is probable; the doctor has said so. But unless a situation is so clear that there isn’t really any other option for the transit, then I don’t think we can know how that transit is going to come out. We can talk about what it means, and how it might feel, and we can discuss options and possibilities. But usually my only advice is to suggest that the person needs to become more conscious of what is going on inside. Then he or she can make more intelligent choices.
Prediction is just one of many branches within astrology—and also one of the most difficult to master—because the celestial areas and elements on which it relies are, by nature, multifaceted. Error—whether stemming from bias, prejudice, sheer ignorance, or subjectivity—is always a latent possibility. And yet, both enthusiasts and seasoned practitioners of the art continue to weigh possibilities and forecast all manner of things—sometimes successfully, sometimes not.
But beyond technical knowledge and method, the core of the matter lies in the fact that astrology is not about certainties; it is about contexts. It is not always possible—nor ethical—to claim that a transit will manifest as a specific external event. But it is possible to recognize that a particular kind of time is unfolding.
Observers of the Celestial Weather and the Soul’s Seasons
That is precisely what the word horoscope means: observer of the hour. In a sense, astrologers are cartographers of time—observers of celestial weather. And as master astrologer Tito Macià often says, we are not so different from meteorologists. We don't dictate whether someone will wear a raincoat, but we can point out that storm clouds are forming on the horizon.
Under a Saturn transit, for example, we consider a time of contraction, effort, and often necessary endings. Under a Jupiter transit, we consider a time of expansion, opportunity—and sometimes excess. These are the archetypal seasons that give rhythm to the journey of the soul. But how exactly these “seasons” manifest depends on something much more personal: a life already lived, an emotional story already in motion, and the individual’s unique psychological patterns.
If we understand this essential nature of the predictive art, we will be better equipped to read the quality of time, grasp its themes, and—perhaps most importantly—help someone recognize what moment of their life journey they are truly experiencing.
In this first article of a five-part series, I offer you a general overview of the predictive techniques I use in my astrological practice. This introduction will serve as a roadmap for the upcoming pieces, in which we’ll explore each method in more depth and with illustrative examples. Consider it a first encounter with the fascinating world of astrological prediction, approached from a contextual and integrative perspective.