AC and Isaac welcome John Michael Greer back to the Plant Cunning Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on mundane astrology and the Saturn–Neptune conjunction at 0° Aries on February 20. Greer explains mundane astrology as astrology applied to world events, emphasizing traditional tools like ingress charts for solstices and equinoxes, eclipse charts, and great conjunctions, and describing astrology as an empirical craft built from long historical observation. The episode explores why 0° Aries functions as a zodiac “reset button,” why Saturn (form, limits, structure) combining with Neptune (dissolution, unity, imagination, delusion) suggests major shifts. They discuss competing ways of timing the Age of Aquarius, including the 2020 Jupiter–Saturn conjunction in Aquarius as a possible “dawn” marker, and critique utopian 1960s portrayals of Aquarius, noting traditional rulership by Saturn and the difficult, disruptive qualities associated with Uranus (and Rahu as co-ruler in Vedic astrology). Greer ties Uranus-in-Gemini cycles to U.S. history and “elite replacement” periods, framing current politics as another transition that may include bureaucratic contraction and social conflict without necessarily implying “the end of everything.” Additional themes include long-term decline versus sudden collapse, climate volatility, ice-sheet destabilization, karmic causality as “action and consequence” rather than retribution, and esoteric ideas like Dion Fortune’s “initiation of the nadir” as a potential collective turning point amid peak global population. 02:53 Mundane Astrology 101: The Oldest Branch of Astrology & How It Works 04:26 Tools of Mundane Astrology: Ingresses, Eclipses, and Great Conjunctions 06:29 Why 0° Aries Matters: The Zodiac ‘Reset Button’ 08:27 Saturn Meets Neptune: Form vs Dissolution—and Why This One’s Unprecedented 11:50 Axial Age Echoes: Religion, Philosophy, and What Might Change Next 15:50 Age of Aquarius: Uranus Energy, Myths of Utopia, and Saturn’s Reality Check 21:07 Tech, AI, and Civilizational Fragility 26:25 When Did the Age of Aquarius Begin? 5:26 Wheels Within Wheels: Stacking Cycles and What We’ll Notice in Our Lifetimes 36:42 Historical Parallel: Early Democracy, and How Big Shifts Start Small 37:56 Athens’ Democratic Experiment & the Rise of a Cultural Powerhouse 38:36 Thales and the Birth of Philosophy: Reason Replaces Myth 39:34 Where the Next Breakthrough Comes From: Fringe Ideas That ‘Work’ 41:07 Screens, AI, and a Return to Being Human (in a New Way) 42:46 The Star of Bethlehem, Magi as Magicians, and Modern ‘Messiah’ Speculation 44:37 Aquarius vs Pisces: Why We Can’t Imagine a Truly New Age 45:11 Reading Dead People: Ancient Epics as a Portal to Other Mindsets 46:20 Kali Yuga vs Satya Yuga: Are We in the Spiritual Winter? 48:43 26,000-Year Cycles, Ancient Dread, and ‘This Is as Bad as It Gets’ 52:33 Saturn’s Lesson: Endure, Do Your Dharma, and Get to Work 54:34 Initiation of the Nadir: Hitting Rock Bottom and Rounding the Buoy 58:48 Uranus in Gemini & America’s Elite Replacement Cycles (Revolution–Civil War–WWII) 01:05:43 Mundane Astrology Methods: Updating Planetary Meanings for the Modern World 01:09:06 Mars vs Mercury Masculinity—and What a Future Dark Age Might Look Like 01:13:20 Post-Collapse Cities in ‘Star’s Reach’: A Byzantine-Style Future 01:14:06 What Determines the Shape of a Dark Age? Printing, Farming, and Resilient Tech 01:15:33 Amish & Appropriate Tech: Keeping Urban Life Alive After Collapse 01:18:30 Collapse as Slow ‘Ragged Decline’: Gas Prices, Frogs, and the Long Slide 01:21:48 Punctuated Shocks: Lockdowns, 9/11, and Climate Tipping Points 01:24:05 Astrology as a Tactical Tool: Daily Transits, Timing, and Better Decisions 01:29:29 Intuition, Past Lives, and Skill Carryover: From Mozart to Tarot 01:33:33 Karma Explained: Action, Consequences, and What Charts Can Reveal 01:37:03 Remedies & Magic: Planetary Charity, Talismans, and Natal Chart Mandalas
