Hard Planetary Aspects: The Curious Case of Gavin de Becker

I spoke in earlier Substack pieces about the need to see hard aspects in the chart not merely as “afflictions” or as signs of dysfunction, but as sources of possible strength and resilience. (See “Malala Yousafzai - A Study in Challenging Planetary Aspects,” as well as “Hard Planetary Aspects: Giving Strength and Resilience to Horoscopes.”)

In this article I’d like to look very briefly at another case study I’ve recently come across: security specialist and best-selling author Gavin de Becker. He’s had an interesting life that’s included working with some of the most famous and most powerful individuals on the planet.

While we don’t have his time of birth, we do know the date. Take a moment to look at this chart.

As you can see, there are major challenges indicated there. Imagine a client coming into your office with these configurations, with that planetary line-up (“stellium”) in Scorpio, and Mars squaring all of those planets; plus Pluto squaring Venus and Jupiter-Uranus squaring his Neptune . . .

On the surface of things, those energies look extremely challenging. Even with the more “benefic” energies involved (Jupiter-Uranus conjunct trining Venus, particularly) this horoscope would pose an extremely heavy lift for almost anybody.

And indeed, his childhood was especially tough and mired in violence. His parents divorced when he was three; his mother was a heroin addict who physically abused him and who once shot Gavin’s stepfather while de Becker was present. She committed suicide when he was sixteen. . .

Yet in the wake of all that he nonetheless wound up forming a very successful company in his mid-20s; wrote a best-selling book, is reportedly a billionaire, and has worked for governments, large corporations, and countless celebrities, politicians, and movie stars through the years. (He was friends with Beatle George Harrison, who supposedly died in de Becker’s home.) In addition to fathering two sons, he adopted and raised eight children. He also founded and funded the group Patient Pets, which provides pet therapy for violently inclined patients at Atascadero State Hospital in California. The list goes on.

It naturally raises the question: Would any of those achievements have occurred if those difficult aspects weren’t there? In particular, the squares from Mars to his Sun and Moon in Scorpio held the potential for violence and acrimony, that’s true, but also gave him the drive and toughness he needed to achieve what he did. Likewise, the conjunction of Saturn and Mercury in Scorpio suggests major challenges in communication or even self-confidence when he was younger, but also gave him the intellectual focus he needed to not only create his company and communicate effectively, but write a best-selling book. The squares from Jupiter and Uranus to his Neptune no doubt account for the drug-related situations he encountered in childhood, but also fueled his altruistic and humanitarian impulses as well.

So, should we regard those difficult planetary patterns as “afflictions” or as potential strengths? In his case, certainly, I think the answer is obvious.

Here is an extended, very interesting interview with Gavin. If nothing else, tune into the portion that runs from 1 hr. 24 min. to 1 hr. 33 min., for his comments on leading a “fulfilling life.”

Ray Grasse is a writer, astrologer, and photographer living in the American Midwest. He is author of ten books, including The Waking Dream, Under a Sacred Sky, and An Infinity of Gods. His websites are www.raygrasse.com and www.raygrassephotography.com.