Sarah Bernhardt: Sun Scorpio-Moon Aries sparked by Uranus

Image: Sarah Bernhardt appr 20 yo; Nadar, public domain 1864

In the natal horoscope of legendary French actress Sarah Bernhardt a distinguishing feature that would have certainly sparked the public's interest in her work and given her public appeal is an exciting Moon-Uranus conjunction in early Mars-ruled Aries, sign of the pioneer and path finder. Add to this the fact that natal Jupiter, planet of thespians rises with the alpha star of Aries, Hamal (keywords: to follow one's own path). Combined with her natural acting talent, Bernhardt's career as the premiere actress of her time is understandable on an astrological level and is well supported by her life's story.

Then with her Jupiter Rx in late Pisces, the thespian planet's own sign, the lady expressed onstage a gamut of human emotions with incomparable pathos. Perhaps the phrase "not a dry eye in the house" became 'a thing' during Sarah's career!

Nee Henriette Rosine Bernard October 23, 1844 8:00 pm LMT Paris France (RR: B)

Yet Bernardt's Moon-Uranus conjunction also suggests that she was an ambitious, restless, and possibly nervous woman (electrical Uranus!) with a yen for reformist activities, a lady who was willing to make sacrifices in order to achieve her special aims. As we know, sudden success was her reward along with fame and recognition. However, she may have over-strained her nerves and seemed quite the fanatic at times with a tendency to crave sensation. That such qualities would have spilled from stage into her private life seems a given and may have been part of her well known relationship difficulties.

Of course, natal Sun in very early Scorpio tells of an intense personality, brilliant but a brooder perhaps. And emotionally, her Aries Moon identifies her as an impulsive and willful woman with a lust for power and a strong personality, tending to act without thinking. In fact, both her Sun and Moon are ruled by me-first planet Mars but with a Pluto undertone--Pluto, the planet of power, manipulation, and wealth. (See her Sun-Moon personality blend details, below - and amazingly, here's a film clip of Sarah Bernhardt onstage in 1905!

Venus: Attraction Principle and Mars: Desire Nature

Venus in Virgo, sign of The Virgin, relates directly to Mary and to other archetypal goddesses, and suggests a lady indecisive in romantic matters. Practical considerations of this placement may have offset some of her impulsive tendencies, and a Venus-Chiron conjunction suggests a measure of childlike innocence in her personal relationships.

As for her Mars in early Libra, a friendly manner would have aided her in gaining success and suggests a desire to engage in teamwork, a necessity in the theater. However, a certain moodiness may have interfered in Sarah's relationships, as well as an overly frank attitude which may have caused disagreements - especially since natal Mars directly opposes her Moon-Uranus conjunction! The midpoint picture formed is one of a male or males challenging her excitable Moon-Uranus tendencies of restlessness and nervous anxieties, yet her ambitions would have been stimulated while a potential for violence or injury may have been engendered.

The steamy, volatile Water-Fire blend of Sun Scorpio-Moon Aries provided Sarah with a large appetite for life, a proud and persuasive personality, and a streak of missionary zeal. Sarah was a pugnacious fighter and strategist according to her combination of Sun-Moon conscious-unconscious energies; highly intelligent, she was aware of the need for self-control, a Scorpio quality. With a gracious amount of self-esteem intact, she was determined to 'make her mark upon the world' and through her large measure of creative talent and sense of fearlessness she did just that. Her Scorpio Sun gave her the ability to express smoldering intensity with passionate zeal at her command, both onstage and off.

Add to all this Sarah Bernhardt's sharp wit, raucous sense of humor, and tendency to drive herself toward self-imposed goals and it's no wonder that Miss Bernhardt reached the pinnacle of success in the theaters of Paris and has remained to this day one of the legendary actresses for young thespians to immulate, even idolize as the charismatic Neptunian goddess that she was, and a glowing, magnetic inspiration to others in her time and in ours.

And so as always with my astro-tributes to Thespians of the Silver Screen and Stage, I'm sending out a R.I.P. for the incomparable Sarah Bernhardt whose star of worldwide fame twinkles brightly here on Neptune's Silver Screen!

(For more personality blend information, I recommend Sun Sign-Moon Sign by Charles and Suzi Harvey #ad.)

A curious tidbit of thespianism: Miss Bernhardt was born in 1844 then 48 years later in 1892, another famous thespian was born who also acted under the determined influences of a volatile Sun Scorpio-Moon Aries combination: Dame Sybil Thorndike who began her career as a concert pianist. So for the sake of comparison, why not check out the natal planets of Dame Sybil!