Who is Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb aka Saladin?
He is the most famous of Muslim heroes because of his capturing of Jerusalem on October 2, 1187, the third Holy City in the Islamic Religion because of the Dome of the Rock. English writers also praised him because of his good relationship with King Richard II, aka the Lionheart of England, because the two monarchs brokered the Treaty of Ramla, where Jerusalem remained in Muslim hands, but allowed Christians to remain there undisturbed and visit on pilgrimage. Not really a treaty that either king wanted, but it allowed Saladin to save face, and Richard to return home to deal with his usurping brother, John.
While his military exploits are well known, we know little of his personal life except when he died on March 4, 1193, though his crypt is at the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Dimashq, Syria, does not contain his body. It is assumed, and we are going with that, he died nearby in Damascus.
In November 1898, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Prussia paid his respects to the great Sultan, and promised to rebuild his tomb, that was then in shambles as homage to the then ruling Ottoman Empire. He did a wonderful job as shown by the header picture.
Map of seven planets for his Death
I posted two maps for the great Sultan: one with the Hellenistic seven in the Alcabitius format, as I did for the Battle of Karbalā, because he was an Islamic astrologer and I think it appropriate for this time period and place, and the second in modern format with all ten planets, also in Alcabitius.
No matter which method I use, Saladin has an incredible preponderance in Pisces for our mythic time of 11 o’clock at night. IF so, this chart suggests a peaceful death — tired and weary from a lifetime of war, but perhaps also severely wounded, Mars at 26 Pisces 35 1 The Hyperion symbol of a “prostrate man giving smelling salts” to revive and rejuvenate him and Jupiter a vigintile away at 12 Aries 50, getting the Hyperion symbol of “Amazons 2 Amazons were mythic nation of female warriors who lived in Pontus near the shore of the Euxine sea, and formed an independent kingdom under the government of a queen. hunting ” highlighting the dispatch and efficiency of a swift and ferocious hunting party pouncing upon their prey.
Saladin needed rest to recuperate and his ascendant of 21 Scorpio with the Hyperion symbol of “a Persian squirrel eating pine nuts” and the desire to appreciate all they have accumulated. Alas, that was not meant to be.
A modern Look at the Death of Saladin
Everything is similar to before except with Neptune now at 00 Pisces 19, in its rulership, right at the fourth house cusp of end of life, perhaps suggesting his wish to dream and rest, forgetting his cares. Conjunct Neptune is Mercury, his mind active from all its imaginings, and aspirations picturing a peaceful sultanate where the wars would be over and he could enjoy his reign.
From the first to the second shows he worked hard to get all that he had (Moon square Neptune and the Sun) conjunct Saturn in the second, and while he may have had riches, he was probably self-denying and Spartan-like, far unlike his earlier wild days. But the opposite haunts us and suggests a different fitful man, who could not be happy staying still, reigning peacefully, because he was driven, and that ambition would never let up, so in the end his heart (Sun 14 Pisces 17, a “boy watching a salamander” 3 salamanders are mythic magical creatures that feed on fire and self-devour ) did. The great leader died penniless, having given it away to his people, friends, and relatives when they asked for help, following the Koran (verse of 2:177) that without hesitation one should “disburse all his heart, his soul and life, to his faith,” rather than earthly gain.
The funeral for the money was borrowed, and there are no outstanding temples or mosques built during his reign. Instead, Saladin left behind the legacy of “jihad,” or holy war. 4 John Davenport Saladin, Chelsea House Publishers, c. 2003 pp. 97-100The afterward
Three years later, Saladin’s son and successor, Al-Afdal, buried him in the crypt, his reign was troubled by jealous brothers and a grasping uncle who eventually beat them all out. Saif al-Din al-Adil ruled from 1200 to 1218 and there was some harmony within the realm, but the Ayyubid Empire was dying from within.
The Mamluks, Arabic for slave, were rising in rebellion from their home base in Egypt, where in 1169 Saladin had become vizier of Egypt, his first step on the road to sultan. While they ruled from 1250 to 1570, on their tails was imposing and illustrious Genghis Khan with his golden horde of Mongols who would capture Baghdād, the jewel of the Middle East, in 1258 and peace would not be found in the sands of the Middle East, for a bit while longer.Footnotes:
- 1The Hyperion symbol of a “prostrate man giving smelling salts” to revive and rejuvenate him
- 2Amazons were mythic nation of female warriors who lived in Pontus near the shore of the Euxine sea, and formed an independent kingdom under the government of a queen.
- 3salamanders are mythic magical creatures that feed on fire and self-devour
- 4John Davenport Saladin, Chelsea House Publishers, c. 2003 pp. 97-100
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