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"Superman falls from horse and breaks neck" - The headlines were devastating for anyone who remembers Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel. Astrologers examine his chart to see the reflection of the accident in his chart; we also look to his chart for confirmation of the spirit of the man that carried him to the stage of the Oscar ceremony less than a year after being fully paralyzed. This article uses The Combination of Stellar Influences by Reinhold Ebertin to consider some of the possibilities in Reeve’s chart.

One cannot miss Pluto conjunct the Ascendant and Jupiter close to the Midheaven in the natal chart. Reeve was born with potential awareness of his aim in life. A noble soul resides within him, generally filled with optimism. His harmonious disposition brings social success. Many actors have found that one outstanding role limits their later opportunities; Reeve has had many interesting and compelling roles besides that of Superman to round out his career.

Pluto on the Ascendant tells of the influence Reeve has over other people. He has a strong will and the ability to exert unusual personal influence. These qualities suit the Superman role, yet they also suit other roles. Reeve has been filmed in situation comedies and stolen the scene, in this writer’s opinion. He has been filmed swimming with whales, revealing the gentle power of his persona in a totally different environment.

Pluto and Jupiter also indicate the potential that manifested in his accident. Pluto on the Ascendant is described as "physical change, the commencing stage of a disease, radical change of one’s circumstances in life." Jupiter at the Midheaven indicates "changing circumstances, changes in one’s style of living or in one’s occupation."

Not everyone who has these positions must look forward to a broken neck. It is the combination of will and circumstance that put Christopher Reeve in the path of that particular kind of danger. Astrologically we can map the circumstances in his chart and we can see the potential for recovery as well. At the time of the accident solar arc Neptune formed a 135 degree aspect to natal Uranus. This combination indicates, on the up side, an unusual psychic state accompanied by the potential for spiritual understanding. On the down side it indicates a lack of stamina and vitality, as well as loses.

Solar arc Mercury has just passed the opposition to the Midheaven, suggesting several possibilities: a change of occupation on the social level, the potential for greater self-awareness on the personal level, and the motor-nerve centers on the physical level. The Midheaven, in fact, can be used in this case to define a picture of the potential of that moment in Christopher Reeve’s life.

The Midheaven in the birth chart is at 15 degrees Taurus. It forms a 45 degree aspect to the Aries Point (0 degrees Aries), and is in the midpoint of Moon/Uranus and Moon/Saturn. The direct connection to the Aries Point reflects Reeve’s exceptional will, as the internal nature of the astrological aspect suggests the powerful spirit that drives the man. The midpoints indicate an up side of self-control, high energy, ambition and determination, with a down side of feeling lonely or deserted or a tendency to sudden interference.

Among the many indications of the nature of this accident, a prominent one is the midpoint of solar arc Mars and Uranus falling on the Midheaven, along with the midpoint of solar arc Sun and Mercury. And there is a direct contact of solar arc Mercury opposing the Midheaven. The birth combination is brought under stress in this manner.

The natal Midheaven tells the story of Christopher Reeves’ self-awareness. He knows his own strength. While the sun in Taurus and its aspects would address the strength itself, the Taurus Midheaven shows what he KNOWS about that strength. Reeve knows that thoughts have life and they need to be cultivated. He also knows that persistence and discrimination together provide the tools of success. He knows what security means for HIM. We may be blessed to find out what he believes or not.

Christopher Reeve has measured his own desire and will over the years and knows its measure. Thus he is able to come back from an accident that might easily have left him in a hospital somewhere with no hope. We can see that he has overcome some negative neurotic tendencies of the Taurus Midheaven, such as selfish emotional passion, and applied the broader sanity of this placement, namely the identification of those thoughts, feelings, people and material things that hold lasting significance for him. He has seen the opportunity in this accident as well as experiencing the severe limitations.

The key to higher expression of the Taurus Midheaven lies in the awareness of the difference between personal desire and divine will. The filming with whales revealed the joy and awe with which Reeve met the world. In his actions since the accident, we see Reeve’s clear vision of how his desire works with divine will in his life. It is in the gentleness of his response to Lois Lane, to the whales, and to himself in the recent months that we find the essence of self realization. His acting skill notwithstanding, here is a person who SHOWS his understanding of the principles of unity.