Happy Birthday Tom Cruise!
By Kelli Fox, The Astrologer
If actor and producer Tom Cruise hasn’t been called every name in the book, then he’s been called more than most. He’s won several Golden Globe awards. He’s been nominated for a couple of Razzies. He’s been seen as a heterosexual hottie, then as gay, and perhaps clinging to the closet. He’s been on both People Magazine’s top 50 Most Beautiful People list, and The Beast’s 50 Most Loathsome People list. Mind you, this all happened at different times, but Tom Cruise is no stranger to extremes.
He was born while the Sun was in Cancer. This means at his core he is a sensitive individual who tends to cover that fact as if with a hard shell – much like the Crab for which the sign is named. Cancer rules home and mother, and with the Sun here, a relationship with a caring parent is key to how he fares in life.
The closest aspect to the Sun in Tom Cruise’s chart is a trine to generous Jupiter in Pisces. Trines are very supportive and Jupiter is helpful by nature – also very well-placed in Pisces, planet of compassion and sacrifice. His mother worked hard to support and raise Tom and his sisters – while enduring regular abuse at the hands of his father. And apparently, he practically worshipped her for it.
Saturn, which rules the father, makes a difficult square to mysterious Neptune. In this position, Neptune acts as a deceiver and absentee in relation to father figures. Like his mother Tom was beaten by his father, often after being lulled into a false sense of security. He has called his Father “a Merchant of Chaos”, saying he learned early on that the man couldn’t be trusted. Saturn rules stability in general, and square Neptune – that means shaky ground. He moved as many as 15 times in the first 12 years of life, and was picked on throughout his school years.
Most of us are aware of his intense involvement with Scientology. He was also a devoted Catholic in his youth, and even aspired to the Priesthood. This leaning toward the mystical and spiritual is the reflection of a trine from Sun to Neptune in Mr. Cruise’s chart. Together with Jupiter, that makes an auspicious Grand Trine – lucky for him! More than any other aspect formation, the grand trine provides stability and eases the way in life.
As to Scientology, rumors of homosexuality, the couch-jumping…that’s easy! Action planet Mars makes a square to unpredictable, eccentric Uranus in his chart. Mars deals with the ego and Uranus is the planet that goes its own way, so his personal M.O. would naturally stand out as strange and invite speculation. Squares are challenging and hard to handle gracefully. They’re best when put to work, especially of a physical nature. He’s made loads of thrill-packed action pictures and played a lot of lone heroes – but don’t ask him to just sit on a couch!
