This is going to be the first in a series of blog posts I write analyzing Serial Killers from an Astrological perspective. This is a study to see how certain transits look in a natal chart when taken to the most extreme degree. Not every single person with similar placements to Bundy is going to turn out to be a serial killer. Also, some of my interpretations of placements may seem like a stretch, however, we have to keep in mind that interpretations are usually made for he general population and the general population isn't made up of a lot of serial killers, so again, many things are taken to their most extreme manifestations.
Natal Chart Break Down
Everyone has heard the name Ted Bundy. Whether you are into true crime or not, he left his mark as America's most charming serial killer. But what makes up who Ted Bundy is? Let's begin by breaking down his chart.
Let's start with his first house.
The first house in astrology is the only house that completely encompasses the self. This is where you can find out a lot about a person's personality. His Ascendant is in Leo, making his chart ruler the sun, which falls in the 5th house. The ruler of your first house shows what you take into consideration when making decisions. In this case, we have the sun which represents the ego in the 5th house which represents pleasure/indulgence. The decisions he makes are going to based on what pleases/indulges his ego... like killing people, or escaping prison twice, or being the lawyer for your own murder trial, or proposing to your girlfriend in the middle of said murder trial.
Inside the first house, we also have Saturn and Pluto. We've been hearing a lot about what Saturn conjunct Pluto is like in transit but in a natal chart, this combination can make the native really secretive about their true nature and gives them a talent for reading others. This makes a lot of sense given that many people describe Bundy as charming, despite being a killer. He was able to keep his true nature hidden by using his talent for reading people and taking advantage of their weaknesses.
Something I'd also like to point out is Saturn being in the sign of Leo specifically. Saturn is seen to be in its detriment in Leo, making this Saturn quite afflicted. Saturn has a lot to do with taking personal responsibility for your actions and Leo isn't the best at seeing themselves as the problem. Saturn in Leo natives, at their worst manifestation, can view everything they do as the best and blame everyone else for their problems. You can see this with Bundy several times, but most notably when he blames pornography for his murders, as well as him basically saying, 'I'm too cool for prison' and just leaving. This lack of taking responsibility for the things he's done is something that appears many times throughout the chart.
The next house that he has planets in is the third house, where he has Neptune in Libra. Since Neptune is a generational planet, the sign of Neptune isn't as relevant, but the house that it is in is. The third house represents siblings and Neptune creates confusion and blurs lines between what is real and what isn't. For most people, this can make it so that the native has siblings they never met, or has many step or half-siblings. Bundy did end up having 4 half-siblings, however, there is something in his life that shows an even more extreme manifestation of this placement. He grew up thinking his mother was actually his sister and that his grandparents were his parents. His mother wasn't married to Bundy's father when she conceived of him, which in the 40's was a really bad thing to do, so the grandparents took up the job of raising him in order to keep the family from humiliation.
Something that is also interesting regarding this is his 12th house being in Cancer. Cancer, being ruled by the Moon, represents the mother. The 12th house is where secrets can be found, so this further adds to the narrative of this family dynamic in the chart.
One of the most notable things in Bundy's chart is his 4th house Scorpio stellium. He has Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury Retrograde, in this one house (and Chiron, if you care about that). Typically, having two benefics in the 4th house means a pretty happy childhood and home life, but in this case, these two benefics are really poorly aspected. All 3 planets in this house square the Ascendant; both Venus and Jupiter Square Pluto; and Jupiter is square Saturn. Also, they are in the sign of Scorpio where Venus is in her detriment. This means that the benefits that usually come from Jupiter and Venus aren't really going to be very beneficial, rather, we are going to see the more negative attributes of these placements come out.
Let's run through some these aspects really quick:
Mercury Square the Ascendant: I have the perfect quote to sum up this aspect and it comes from Robert Hand's book, Planets In Aspect, and it says about this square, "Your air of superiority doesn't quite hide your feelings of inferiority." Mercury square the ascendant makes the native of this aspect feel inadequate. They resent others that are more successful than them and to hide this weakness they act as though they are superior to everyone. This is only amplified by the Ascendant, in this case, being in Leo, a sign associated with performing greatness, whether genuine or not.
In an article by Psychology Today, they talk about how insecure Bundy was. One piece of the article reads:
"In a book about Bundy’s death penalty appeals, defense attorney Polly Nelson recalled that when Bundy first called her, he sounded insecure. She expected him to be grateful for her help but was surprised by his many self-centered demands. He seemed to want to appear suave and knowledgeable, but he mostly stuttered and stammered. As they talked, Nelson searched for a sign that she would have spotted danger. “But I saw nothing… This dangerous man was not detectable by sight or sound. But not for the reasons people usually suggest. It was not because Ted exuded charm – he was too obviously disingenuous to be truly charming. It was not because Ted was such a ‘diabolical genius’ that he could fool you – believe me, he was not that smart.'"
This basically is describing the same phenomenon that Hand is describing in this quote. He acted superior, but it was see-through. The article goes on to quote many of the women that Bundy had interacted with in his life and they all said similar things, including his first girlfriend.
Something to note here as well is that Mercury is in retrograde. Natal Mercury in retrograde makes it hard for the native to communicate and express themself in a way that they truly mean. Bundy is said to have a slight stutter, which is something that is common amongst people with a poorly aspected natal Mercury retrograde.
Venus Square the Ascendant: This aspect makes the native extremally attached to their past and defines themselves through that lens. Venus is in Scorpio, in its worst manifestation, it can create this pattern of seeing people as things you control and possess and when someone does something you don't approve of it can bring out a wave of very strong anger. They cannot get passed how they have been harmed and this creates a chip on the native's shoulder. They believe that they have to fend for themselves constantly and will only do things that will benefit themselves because everyone screws them over anyways.
Bundy killed women that looked like his ex-girlfriend, which also happened to look like a younger version of his mom. Because he resented these women from his past and could not get over it, it's said that he used these victims as surrogates to let out this anger he had toward them.
Jupiter Square the Ascendant: People with Jupiter Square the ascendant take the indulgence of Jupiter to the extreme. They have no sense of self-moderation. Since Jupiter here is in Scorpio, these indulgences will likely have to do with sex and/or death. I think this doesn't really need much explanation...the dude fucked dead bodies.
Jupiter Square Saturn: This placement can explain where the feelings of inadequacy that is referenced in the Mercury square Ascendant comes from. People with this placement tend to have some sort of childhood that taught them that they aren't good enough and that is something that they carry with them into adulthood. I'm not going to do a deep dive in Bundy's childhood, but he was really bothered by the fact that he was an illegitimate child, the only one within his family of 4 other siblings. He was also bullied for being socially awkward. So, I'm sure somewhere between those two things he felt as though he wasn't good enough. Saturn, a planet that is never satisfied with one's self, being in the 1st house, the house of the self, in this case further amplifies the fact that he would take all of these things to heart.
Now let's move onto the last house I am going to talk about here, and that is the 5th house. In the 5th house, Bundy has the Sun, Mars, and the Moon. The 5th house is the house of pleasure and indulgence and it is in the sign of Sagittarius. This combination of planets, house, and sign is going to really make someone over-indulgent (this overindulgence is seen in a lot of places in his chart). They act on ego and instinct without much thought about the consequences. Both the Moon and Mars are impulsive in nature and the Sun, in this house, really loves to do whatever it wants, especially given the fact that it is the ruler of the Ascendant. Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter and adds an expanding factor to this house, really blowing the qualities of what is in there out of proportion. None of the planets in this house aspect anything, for the exception of the Moon and Mars.
Moon conjunct Mars: At its worst, this aspect makes for an emotionally immature person. They are extremally sensitive to criticism to a point where they will think that people are insulting them when they aren't and will lash out inappropriately in response. These people are constantly defensive and are terribly sore losers. They are incredibly assertive and will be vicious if ever rejected in any capacity. Again, this plays to Bundy's lovely personality.
This is a man who, despite being seen as this genius killer who could persuade his way out of anything and was so charming people couldn't help but fall for him, was really just a big baby. He couldn't handle the fact that his girlfriend dumped him and that his family wasn't what he thought it would be, so he lashed out on innocent women who did nothing to him. He couldn't handle the fact that he got caught, so he'd run away instead of facing his trial, and when he did eventually stand-in court the mere idea of having to work with people who actually were able to do what he couldn't enraged him so much he just had to show off and show that he was better than them. He was a thin-skinned man with the emotional capacity of a 12-year-old. In the end, that is what sentenced him to his death.
Other Interesting Facts about Bundy's Chart
-Using the Annual Profections technique, Bundy would have committed his first recorded murder during a 4th house profection year.
- Ted Bundy's first recorded attack happened the night after a new moon and Solar Eclipse in Taurus. His first recorded murder also happened the night after a new moon in Taurus, one month later. Taurus rules the 10th house and the 10th house in astrology shows what your reputation and what you are most known for is. Bundy would eventually become most well known for his murders.
- When Bundy is finally executed transiting Saturn falls in his 6th house. The 6th house represents health and your enemies. Saturn represents the law and responsibility.
- Both Bundy and I have: a Sagittarius Sun, Venus and Mercury in the 4th house squaring our Asc, a 4th house stellium, a smaller 5th house stellium, Moon in the 5th house, Saturn Retrograde, and a Sun-Mercury conjunction.