On the 26th of June 2024, I was being curious about astrology (as I very much have been lately especially with Jupiter transiting my Gemini 9th house) and was researching Secondary and Solar Arc Progressions. Secondary Progressions map each day from birth to a year of life, so that the degrees that the luminaries and planets usually advance in one day are stretched out to span one year. Solar Arc Directions advance each planet, point, and house cusp forward by the difference between the position of the natal and progressed Sun on any particular day, which roughly equates to moving all natal placements forward by 1° per year of life. Progressions add a flavour to your natal chart that hint at the growth and development brought on by transformative events that happen due to external circumstances (Solar Arcs) or from the force within (Secondary).

This is my Solar Arc Directed chart overlaying my natal chart:

So I look at my progressed charts and that’s when I noticed that my solar arc progressed Pluto was conjunct my natal Sun in Sagittarius 3H. After a little more research I discovered that the progressed Pluto-Sun conjunction was a marker for death (Pluto) of a father (Sun), whether that be physical or a metaphorical death and rebirth of the relationship with a father figure. I then found that the exact conjunction at my Sun in Sagittarius 29°35’ happens on the 26th October 2024. I thought, geez that’s not long away, but didn’t want to give it much more thought.

On the 28th July, 2 days after learning about my progressed Pluto-Sun conjunction, my dad popped by and mentioned that he started losing his appetite a couple of days ago - exactly when I received the download to research and look at my progressions? Crazy synchronicity.

My dad, Nghia Le, was born on the 10th of November 1939 some time after midnight in Hanoi, Vietnam. That makes him almost 85 years old. With that information, knowing him personally, and knowing roughly when some of the significant events in his life happened, I attempted to rectify his birth time. Although I’m not super confident, at this stage I’m satisfied with my estimate. I hope that I’m within maybe 10 minutes of accuracy?

That would make this his solar return chart for the current year:

Counting houses in an anticlockwise direction from the Ascendant (November) makes the 12th house represent October 2024. Notice Pluto in the last degrees of the 12th house about to be reborn into the 1st house, and its sextile to Mercury and trine to the Moon. I interpret this as the passing of my dad’s mind and physical body during the month of October.

I actually visualise the “passing of the mind” as the transmutation of his bridge to higher consciousness. The energy of his body and mind will be transformed into something new while his soul is released from the physical and mental bounds of his body, to prepare to reincarnate into the next life.

Looking at the overall chart, I also notice:

A T-square between Uranus, Mars and the Ascendant which I interpret as a shocking (Uranus) ending (Mars) of my dad’s physical body (Ascendant), especially as the Ascendant is the release point of the tense Mars-Uranus energy.
The moon (physical body) is in the 8th house of death.
Saturn (karmic endings) moving towards Ascendant (physical body)? Ascendant ruler in the 2nd house has definitely manifested at the forefront of his attention with his gathering of personal resources, with the one intention of passing on as much of an inheritance as possible to his only daughter, and her partner who he totally adores. Something of which I really don’t care about or need from him, but it is the one goal that has been giving him a sense of purpose this year.
Since Saturn is also squaring his MC at the critical degree of the Sagittarius 11th house, this can be interpreted as tension between his declining physical body and a calling for his soul to start anew on a more spiritually aligned path. This makes sense to me because he has experienced major spiritual blockages in this lifetime.

And this is his solar return overlaying his natal chart:

Some things I notice:

Ascendant ruler (Venus) at the critical degree of his natal 1st house is also screaming karmic rebirth of identity and body to me. Being in the sign of Libra I further interpret this as the divine rebalancing of the scales of karmic fate and destiny. The conjunction with the Moon can represent him and his emotions being aligned as he humbly accepts his fate.
The Moon (physical body) in the last degrees of his 12th house a.k.a. about to conclude and be reborn into the 1st house. With it being conjunct his natal Neptune, I would have to say he is currently in very high spirits and not fully realising the implications of his diagnosis.
Natal Saturn-Moon opposition being amplified by the Lunar Nodes - North node expanding Saturn’s constriction on the moon (physical body).
Jupiter copresent with a Uranus-Uranus conjunction in his 8th house can be interpreted as the expansion of sudden changes that may bring physical death, liberation of the soul, or freedom through release. Can also indicate themes of deeper psychological connection with others and shining a spotlight on inheritance.
I’m honoured to have been able to share many bittersweet conversations with my dad towards the end of his life. We’ve been facing his diagnosis head on and have been fortunate enough to create some new beautiful memories. These are moments that I will cherish forever. I feel like this is the most closure that I’ll be able to get and we’re as ready as we can be. My adult self is at peace with his imminent passing, understanding that beautiful transformation is needing to happen and is part of the nature of the life-death-rebirth cycle, but at the same time a small part of me feels like my inner child reaching out because she’s scared to lose her dad.
Possibly the Sun-Mars conjunction in the 2nd house that can sometimes represent the physical body? And with Mercury copresent this could indicate the severing of the soul from the physical body and from the mind.

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Next, the upcoming Annular Solar Eclipse is happening at Libra 10°03’ on the 3rd October, 2024, at about 2:48am here in Perth, Australia (GMT+8). It’s actually exactly conjunct my own Ascendant of Libra 10°55’, but that’s a story for another day and a journey that’s just unfolding.

[Side Quest: Quick Lesson on Eclipses and Lunar Nodes]

Solar eclipses happen when the Moon travels between the Earth and the Sun in such a way that the sun’s light is blocked and a shadow is cast on Earth. There are 3 main types of solar eclipses that are classified by the amount of sunlight that is blocked - total, annular (ring), and partial. Hybrid eclipses are a rare combination of total and annular eclipses.

The images below show the geometry and visualisation of an annular eclipse.

Astrologically, solar eclipses activate the Lunar Nodes which are the two celestial points corresponding to karma, fate and destiny. In the darkness of the eclipse, thinned veils allow for bounds of cosmic energy to rush in and bring forth fated, life-changing experiences that realign us with our destiny. Whilst the axial tilt of the Earth with reference to the ecliptic plane is 23.5°, the Moon’s orbit is only tilted at 5° with reference to the ecliptic plane. Due to this tilt, the two potent points of the South Node (Descending Lunar Node or Ketu) and the North Node (Ascending Lunar Node or Rahu) are produced. The North Node is the point of intersection of the Moon’s orbit and the ecliptic plane (the plane that contains the Sun-Earth orbit), i.e. the point in which the Moon crosses the ecliptic plane as it ascends into the Northern hemisphere from the Southern hemisphere. The South Node is therefore the point in which the Moon crosses the ecliptic plane to descend into the Southern hemisphere.

SO when you hear the term “eclipse season” being thrown around, that’s referring to the season in which the full and new moons happen within 18.5° of the Lunar Nodes.

[Side Quest Completed]

Now let’s look at the eclipse chart over my dad’s natal chart:

First and foremost, the Solar Eclipse is happening conjunct his Ascendant - a classic signification of death. This is because the eclipse brings fated endings and beginnings to my dad’s Earthly identity and physical body (Ascendant).

Mars conjunct Midheaven can also mean the swift sever of my dad’s public reputation, which could very well be an outcome of his passing. As it stands, his public reputation of being physically here on Earth may be severed and replaced with one where his physical body has passed and his spirit has transcended. Mars is also in a hard aspect (opposition) to Pluto by whole sign houses which could further indicate the conclusion of this chapter.

Continuing to look at the aspects by house, the eclipse is opposing my dad’s natal Saturn and South Node which can indicate a karmic death. Transiting Saturn in Pisces 6th house also supports this as it can indicate closure, transcendence, and the ending of daily routines and physical life. A death and rebirth of the current way of being.

—

After a month of continued appetite loss, my dad finally went to the doctors when it got to the point that he felt like skipping dinner. His doctor sent him to get blood tests to which the practice received an urgent callback from the lab to refer my dad to the emergency room because his haemoglobin, red and white blood cell count, and human growth hormone (hCG) were all extremely low.

He was immediately admitted into the emergency room and received 2 units of blood. I have now started donating blood - please consider doing the same if you’re capable. You don’t realise how important generosity is until you’re the one that needs it. After a couple of weeks in hospital and further testing as an outpatient, we received the sad news that his diagnosis is Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), a rare group of bone marrow disorders that are considered a form of blood cancer, and often progresses to Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML).

He has a small frame and has always been thin, his heaviest was maybe 43kg. These days he’s been sitting closer to 39kg. He has since deteriorated, losing muscle by the day, and that is the most difficult thing to see. He is such a resilient and persevering man who is STILL strong spirited even in these final moments. What a fucking inspiration.

As per doctors’ recommendations, we had to make the correct and difficult decision that he was too frail to receive any chemotherapy. It was too risky. Well difficult for me anyway, Dad actually just completely trusted the doctors without hesitation. We’re always so grateful for the care that we have been so lucky to receive through the public health system here in Australia. Luckily it hasn’t had to be on too many occasions, but nevertheless, we need to overhaul that understaffed and overworked structure. WHoop almost getting sidetracked.

So to put it altogether, it pains me to say that I believe that my dad is ready to pass and that the eclipse will activate the karmic portal for his soul to transcend. The month of October is looking scary to me, but at the same time I’m also ready to surrender to the pain and evolution to come. Just like my dad. He feels satisfied. He is proud. He is rest assured that his only daughter - the apple of his eye, his pride and joy, the one who gives him the most purpose in life - can take care of herself and is taken care of. And best of all, he completely trusts that his daughter will take care of his best interests when the time comes.

He was 55 when he became a father so he knew from the beginning that his time with his daughter was limited. That’s something that I’ve been aware of my whole life. That I would have to face the grief of the loss of my parents earlier rather than later in my life. I turn 30 in December and just that fact alone makes my dad proud of himself. He made it three whole decades! The passing of his own mother when he was barely 6 years old helps to put things in perspective.

That doesn’t make it any easier though. It’s incredibly difficult to witness the physical deterioration of someone you love so dearly. The plunging new depths of pain that I’ve been allowing myself to feel, as I’ve undoubtedly started my grieving process, have simultaneously contributed to my enhancing intuition. I feel completely aligned with my soul purpose and am ready to transform into a completely new chapter of my identity.

Thank you for reading,

Anh

x

how I can foresee my dad’s passing

eep @ the upcoming Full Moon in Taurus

sometimes a teacher, always a student