Analysis of Bob Dylan's astrological chart

When one is born with the Sun in Gemini and the Ascendant in Sagittarius, movement is the word which sums up one's personality. As far as the living myth Bob Dylan is concerned, undoubtedly, this first analysis, though simplified, is accurate. He resents so much being locked in a mould that he would not disown this concept! Actually, he spontaneously acknowledged it in his memoirs, published in 2004, and unanimously acclaimed. He wrote: "A song is like a dream, and you try to make it come true. They're like strange countries that you have to enter. You can write a song anywhere, in a railroad compartment, on a boat, on horseback – it helps to be moving. Sometimes people who have the greatest talent for writing songs never write any because they are not moving."

Bob Dylan, who practiced the art of wriggling out of any rough patch, spent his life throwing out red herrings. He was driven by the duality of Gemini, half-troubadour, half-intellectual, with the faith and the authority of Sagittarius. However, his background was not conducive to his becoming such a universal reference. Born in Duluth, Minnesota, he was a little man of the heartlands of America ; his Jewish family fled Eastern Europe because of the war. He confessed that he rapidly felt that he belonged to a pivotal period. He wrote: "I was born in the spring of 1941. The Second World War was raging in Europe, and America would soon be in it. The world was being blown apart, and chaos was already driving its fist into the face of all new visitors. If you were born around this time or were living and alive, you could feel the old world go and the new one beginning."

With so many planets in mutable signs in his horoscope, Robert Zimmermann looked further for prospects more in line with his deeper self. It will be music – folk to begin with – and New York above all. Although he did not know anyone, as soon as he arrived there, on a chilly January 1961 day, he felt tremendously comfortable. His knack for establishing contacts, his sense of human relations, but also the quality of his references, enabled him to enter the creative circles of Greenwich and to become acquainted with a singer and a guitar player he admired, Woody Guthrie. Guthrie rapidly understood the potential of Dylan and predicted him a great career. Dylan has a peculiar voice, hoarse and nasal, which may not please everyone, but which is perfect for singing songs focusing on social issues and on the true meaning of life. Strangely enough, even when he was unknown, he was full of self-confidence. "It's been a long way, and I started from scratch. But destiny was to have its say. It was as if it wanted me, no one else." This is typical of a Sagittarius Ascendant's logics, always trusting its own capacities. This prompts us to examine Jupiter's role, ruler of the Ascendant, in Taurus, and playing the dominants.

In this Earth sign - corresponding to his origins - he has four planets, and not the least important ones, Uranus, Jupiter, and also a Saturn-Moon conjunction, which explains his melancholic temperament. He is eager to live life to its full and to go though all sorts of experiences, but he equally enjoys being alone. This trait can be seen in the way he charted his path, typical of the beat generation, but driven by his inner personal freedom. Although the public worshipped him and despite fans who were as famous as himself, he refused to endorse the role of half-god. In 1969, he did not attend Woodstock, the biggest rock concert which was supposed to take place in his honour.

Later on, different periods of his life also illustrate what may be a constant spiritual search, from Christianity to Judaism, and on various paths. It must be borne in mind that Sagittarius is mainly related to religion – or sometimes to great causes. Many Dylan's songs refer to this quest, rather tormented, as if he were torn between his Saturn-Moon conjunction which demands that he be logical or at least that he always remain distant, and Jupiter, who prompts him to seek a better life, or even paradise.

It seems that, in a more exalted form, Neptune must be reckoned with, because he is well posited in the 9th House (in analogy with Sagittarius), conjunct the North Node, and moreover, trine the planets in Taurus. This is an evidence of the impact Dylan had on crowds, whether he wanted it or not. As for Uranus, he adds a touch of radicalisation of the change expected and hoped for.

Whereas Bod Dylan underwent a few withdrawn or less successful periods, he apparently was in constant rebirth. It is obvious that Jupiter (again!) protects this lucky man whose star never fades away, even though through the years, the personality of the poet remains unfathomable. Since the end of the nineties, he keeps on going on endless tours (is it necessary to precise that he disapproves of this title?). In any case, his performances are always brimming with creative ebullience, and attentive fans sometimes have difficulty in recognising which popular song Dylan is singing. And yet, the collection of standards representing over 50 years of popular music (Taurus!) is impressive: Blowin' in the Wind, Like A Rolling Stone, Knocking on Heaven's door, or Shadows in the Night, etc.

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Author: Alberto Cabello from Vitoria Gasteiz
Credits: Bob Dylan
Licence: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0

Saturday, May 24, 1941

Duluth (MN) (United States)

3°31' Gemini

21°31' Taurus

20°20' Sagittarius

17°51' Libra

DominantDom. Signs

DominantDom. Planets

DominantDom. Houses

DominantDom. Elements

Metal Snake

Birth Path

5' 6½" (1m69) tall

217,062

Biography of Bob Dylan (excerpt)

Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941 (birth time source: Steinbrecher, Bob Garner, BC)) is a Grammy, Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, author, musician, and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Much of Dylan's most notable work dates from the 1960s, when he became an informal documentarian and reluctant figurehead of...

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Bob Garner

You can also read the Astrotheme astrological portrait of Bob Dylan.

Today, at 74, Dylan looks like an emaciated cow-boy or an old wise man. He has been experiencing Saturn's influence for a few years, since this planet transited Scorpio in opposition with his group of four natal planets at the end of Taurus. By the end of 2015, Saturn, well-known for being austere, but also for offering the fruits of maturity, is opposing Jupiter and the Sun. This is an important time, which probably conjures up one of Dylan's sayings: "Remember, Robert, in life, anything may happen. If you don't have everything you wish, be glad that you don't have what you don't want."

You will also find below the interactive horoscope of Bob Dylan:

^* A planet less than 1° from the next House cusp is considered to be posited in the said House. 2° when the AS and the MC are involved