Asteroid Pallas – Warrior Queen

Asteroid Pallas was the second of the asteroids discovered, coming after asteroid Ceres the mother. Pallas is an epithet of the Greek goddess Athena. In some versions of the myth, Athena killed Pallas, daughter of Triton, then adopted her friend’s name out of mourning.

Athena was the goddess of wisdom, courage, just warfare, strategy and skill. Modern astrologers have linked asteroid Pallas to these things but also creative intelligence, political nous, pattern recognition and the relationship between father and daughter. Like her modern day manifestation Wonder Woman her father was Zeus. She is “a feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman. She is as “beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, stronger than Hercules, and swifter than Hermes.” ^[1]

Asteroid Pallas Warrior Queen

Pallas Athena was the goddess of courage and just warfare, and we see this in the discovery chart with Jupiter conjunct Saturn opposite Mars. Here is the balance she is trying to find. Deliberating to find the truth before passing judgement and taking action. She is defensive by nature and will use her creative and strategic intelligence to avoid violence, but when all else fails she will take action, as Medusa knows only too well. The courage is not only shown by Mars, but also Jupiter (from her father) because Jupiter in the Heart of the Lion, on the royal and brave star Regulus. With Jupiter in particular it gives success, fame and honor, “especially of a military nature”.

Asteroid Pallas and Creative Intelligence

In the chart shown below, asteroid Pallas is in a stellium with Uranus, Ceres and the South Node, all aligned with fixed stars in the constellation Crater. The Cup gives intelligence and eminence, a gift, something precious carried by an individual to pass down the generations of the family. So here we get the main theme of Pallas Athena first described by Demetra George, “she represents the principle of creative intelligence”. ^[2]Asteroid Pallas in the constellation of intellect, made creative and intuitive by Uranus, and passed down through the genes (South Node) of the mother. Demetra also links asteroid Pallas with the Midheaven as she “symbolizes one’s ambitions and ones visible, socially useful accomplishments.” So the eminence from constellation Crater fits very well.

Asteroid Pallas Astrology Chart

Asteroid Pallas was discovered by Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers on the night of March 28, 1802. I could not find an exact time for the discovery and have set the chart for 11 pm, so will not pay attention to the Ascendant of Midheaven.

Asteroid Pallas Astrology Chart

Strategic Thinking

While the stellium with the asteroid in her discovery chart shows intuitive, creative, feminine intelligence, we have to look elsewhere for the theme of strategic intelligence which other astrologers have found. This is more logical, left side of the brain, masculine intelligence. Eric Francis puts it really well saying that Pallas Athena “represents political and negotiating skills, having been transformed into a kind of modern lawyer-like warrior”. ^[3] Pallas Athena is a warrior but shows diplomacy and tact, more defensive by nature but will go in for the kill if that is required. We find this in the discovery chart with Mercury which does rule the rational intellect. Mercury conjunct Pluto delves very deeply to uncover the truth. A profound thinker and powerful communicator, and with Pluto we also get the political theme.

The constellation Pegasus also plays an important role in this strategic ability. The Sun, Mercury, Pluto and North Node are all on stars in the Winged Horse. The Sun is on the star Algenib, which according to Elsbeth Ebertin gives a “Penetrating mind and a strong will, as well as determination. An impressive way of speaking and a gift for oratory. In conjunction with the Sun, it will make for a fighting spirit and a love of learning.” The North Node is on the star Markab which Ebertin says influences the “spiritual and mental nature, to give a good head for figures, intellectual alertness, mental powers in general and last but not least, the ability to further propaganda activity”.

Michael O’Reilly has done some excellent research on the role of Pallas Athena in political astrology, “A prominently placed Pallas can make one exceptionally skilled as a political strategist”. ^[4] He goes on to investigate the charts of Henry Kissinger and Caroline Kennedy and mentions a link to tactical vision and pattern recognition.

Pattern Recognition

Michael is not the only astrologer to show that asteroid Pallas is associated with pattern recognition. Christina the Oxford Astrologer ^[5]rightly notes that pattern recognition is a key component of astrology, so she went through some charts of astrologers and concluded that asteroid Pallas really is the goddess of pattern. A little further investigation makes this case absolutely rested. Asteroid Pallas conjunctions under two degrees orb:

Stephen Arroyo (MC), Nick Campion (Mars and POF), Nicholas Culpeper (DC), Roy C. Firebrace (Mercury), Axel Harvey (AC), Jeffrey Kishner (Moon), Alan Leo (POF), Rick Levine (Uranus), George Llewellyn (IC), Susan Miller (MC), Jamie Partridge (Mercury), John Partridge (Saturn), Lucy Pond (Moon), Sepharial (Venus), Robert Schmidt (Sun), Noel Tyl (North Node), Joanne Wickenburg (Sun, Venus and Saturn).

Father Daughter Relationships

It has been said that Pallas Athena had no mother because she was born from the head of her father Zeus (Jupiter). In fact she does a mother, Metis, goddess of crafty thought and wisdom. Zeus made Metis his first wife, but he feared the prophecy that her first child, the bright-eyed maiden Athena would be “equal to her father in strength and in wise understanding”. ^[6]So Zeus swallowed Metis after she had conceived, but he got such a great headache that one of his friends had to chop him in the head with an axe. From the wound jumped Pallas Athena, fully grown and armed to the teeth, screaming her battle cries.

So Pallas is daddy’s little girl, and signifies a close bond between father and daughter. Demetra George bases this on Pallas being the maiden, representing the “second developmental stage in people’s lives, when they look to their fathers to provide them with the firmness and independence to leave the home and go forth into the world”. ^[2]

In the Asteroid Pallas astrology chart we see the girl (Venus) with the father (Sun). A beautiful and loving personality but Sun opposite Uranus makes her strongly independent which gets in the way of her desire for harmony and stability. The Sun and Venus are both on stars in the constellation Cepheus, the King which confirms the royal lineage. Venus is in fact on the brightest star in Cepheus, Alderamin, “It gives authority and a sober mind, sometimes making its natives judges or arbitrators, but exposes to cruel and severe trials.”

I talked earlier about the South Node in the stellium with asteroid Pallas, all in constellation Crater, and how that gave a link to genetics in the female line. As an example of this, plus the father daughter relationship theme, I will use my story. I have asteroid Pallas conjunct Mercury, as does my mom. Mercury ruling children means we both have some shared issue regarding father daughter relationships. Mum never had girls but wanted them, she was close to her father but tragically lost him just after I was born. I have three kids now, and being a single parent I rely on mom and she is passionate about being there for them.

All my kids have conjunctions to Pallas, even the boy with Jupiter. My youngest girl has Pallas conjunct North Node, and my eldest girl has Pallas with Moon and Uranus. Moon Uranus has meant some distance from her mother, so asteroid Pallas in there is so descriptive of this girls life. We obviously have a close relationship and she has to look for me not only for the firmness and independence that Demeter talked about, but also for the maternal nurturing of the Moon, as I have to play the mother role, to some extent anyway. This is where Nan comes in, sharing this role as we both have Mercury conjunct asteroid Pallas.