Case Study: Tom Hanks

       Hanks was born on July 9th, he is a Cancer number 9. Curiosity is the marking feature of this day, investigating, researching and discussing many things, they always want to know the deeper workings of anything that catches their interest. These interests are often off the beaten path, esoteric or not what most people would take the time to explore. Mysteries are especially fascinating, they put a great deal of time and effort trying to figure out the unknown or unexplainable. Perhaps his movie The Da Vinci Code (2006) is the best representation of this fascination for mysteries, he plays a professor in religious iconography and symbology who with the help of a police cryptologist is on a search for the Holy Grail. They must decode important anagram messages and cryptic codes. The Da Vinci Code was the second highest grossing film of 2006. Hanks continued to star in its sequel Angels & Demons (2009), also a mystery thriller involving secret societies, ancient history, symbolism and ambigrams.

      People born on July 9th are patriotic but at the same time very tolerant and accepting of people different from them. They love to interact with people of all walks of life and are slow to form judgements and prejudices. Historical events usually hold their interest and they like to understand how what happened in the past continues to impact the present and future. In Forrest Gump (1994), Hanks plays a slow witted but good hearted man from Alabama who witnesses and in some cases influences historical events in the latter part of the 20th century, meeting historical figures across the way. The film starts with his character, Forrest Gump, waiting at the bus stop talking to strangers from all walks of life about his life story. During the film, he meets several historically significant people and participates in culturally significant events. The film was the top grossing of that year and won six Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Hanks. The Library of Congress chose Forest Gump for preservation in the U.S National Film Registry as being culturally, historically or aesthetically significant. The American Film Institute recognized the film on several lists because of its importance to culture.

        In the Western astrological chart, Venus in Gemini is tightly conjunct the MC and square the Asc, Venusian themes are an integral part of his career and the first impressions he gives to people. With Venus connected to the MC, it was a natural choice for him to study theater in University. In the Vedic chart, Venus is in Taurus, it is the 10th house ruler and placed in the 10th house. Actors often have links from the third house of performing arts to the tenth house of career, indeed Venus is the ruler of his third house and placed in the 10th house. Venus is in a Kendra from the lagna, making it malavya mahaparusha yoga which causes a person to be handsome, graceful, wealthy and surrounded by luxuries. A minor weak point might have been that Venus is sandhi (29th degree). Although sandhi planets are traditionally thought of as a weakness, Hanks is a major exception to that rule, as he has had tremendous success with romantic comedies, love and romance is the domain of Venus. Perhaps this is partly because bhava madya is 28 degrees (Ascendant is at 28 degrees Leo). Planets close to bhava madya tend to gain favourability.

       The name Thomas Jeffrey Hanks gives an expression and personality number 6. Number 6 vibrates with Venus. This influence enhances the Venusian theme of his chart and attracts comfort and luxurious circumstances more easily. Number 6 makes him prone to be noticed for romantic movies and movies dealing with relationships as a major theme, as 6 is a number of love, romance, marriage and partnerships. Tom is known for starring in romantic comedies such as Sleepless in Seattle (1993), You’ve Got Mail (1998) and The Terminal (2004). Number 6 gives him natural grace and charm and an easygoing, likeable personality, and especially popular with women.

        In the Vedic chart, Venus is conjunct Ketu indicating an otherworldly, fantasy nature with romance or an attraction to unconventional people.  In fact, his first major successful movie, Splash (1984), was about him falling in love with a mermaid. Venus conjunct Ketu is also thought by some astrologers to represent homosexuality and unconventional attitudes towards romance/ marriage. Hanks won the Academy Award for Best Actor in Philadelphia (1993) about a lawyer who hides his homosexuality at work but eventually gets fired when his office finds out. He represented himself in court and won significant damages but dies at the end of the movie.
Venus is retrograde indicating a very deep love nature capable of long term commitment but that also has a few problems with expressions of love and a certain awkwardness in social skills when young. Hanks has admitted that he wasn’t popular with teachers or students. He told Rolling Stone Magazine "I was a geek, a spaz. I was horribly, painfully, terribly shy. At the same time, I was the guy who'd yell out funny captions during filmstrips. But I didn't get into trouble. I was always a real good kid and pretty responsible." It is very clear that Hanks has outgrown that stage and is immensely popular, he has many fans worldwide who greatly admire him.

        Venus represents the feminine and women. Early in his career, for a TV sitcom called Bosom Buddies, Hanks played an advertising executive who was forced to dress as a woman to stay in a cheap hotel that catered to women only. Although the sitcom didn’t have a very long run time, critics liked it and it caused Ron Howard to contact Hanks about starring in Splash (1984), the romantic-comedy movie that made him a star. Splash was a fantasy where Tom’s character falls in love with a mermaid but at the end realizes the only way for them to be together is if he sacrifices his life on land and moves to into the sea forever. His subsequent movie Big (1988) was another fantasy movie whereby a child makes a wish to be big and transforms into an adult overnight. He realizes the amount of responsibility required with being an adult and longs to be a kid again. This theme of aging and responsibility for Big and sacrifice for love in Splash can be seen in the Vedic chart with Venus’ opposition to Saturn. Neptune is the planet of fantasy, glamour, animation and imagination as well as movies and the entertainment industry. In the Western chart, Neptune is placed in the 2nd house of earned income and since it is in Libra, its dispositor is Venus linking it directly to his house of career. It is a perfect expression of his karma that he had greatly increased his earned income through acting in romance and fantasy movies as well as animated movies such as Polar Express (2004) and the ongoing Toy Story series.
 
        In the Vedic chart, Mars in the 7th house forward squares Venus, ruler of the 10th placed in the 10th (rasi). In the dashamsha, Venus rules the 1st house and is placed in the 6th house strong in Libra conjunct Mars. In the Western chart, Venus makes a square to Mars. Mars is at critical degree 17 Pisces, giving it extra strength. Number 9 vibrates to Mars and his birthday is on the 9th and the name Thomas Jeffrey Hanks gives a soul urge of 9, enhancing the power of Mars in his life. Number 9 represents battles, fighting, courage, bravery and confidence.  Having two number 9 influences show that part of Hank’s life purpose is to portray the life of brave warriors or stories of surviving against all the odds. Number 9 is a survivor, many hardships can be faced, especially in the younger years but it develops a steely determination and strength later. These influences show that his roles could include Mars governed domains such as battles, soldiers, violence, wars and survival against the elements. His movie Saving Private Ryan (1998) is a war drama about the invasion of Normandy during World War 2. Hanks plays a United States Army Rangers Captain. This film was nominated for 11 Academy Awards winning 5 of them and was the second highest grossing film of that year. Hanks was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

      Mars also represents aggressive acts such as hijacking and extortion as well as aggressive people (such as pirates) so it is fitting that in Captain Phillips (2013) Hanks plays a merchant mariner that was taken hostage by pirates and held for ransom in the Indian Ocean. The movie was nominated for 6 Academy Awards. Hanks was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role by several award granting institutions including the BAFTAs and Golden Globes. In Cast Away (2000), he plays a FedEx employee stranded on an uninhabited  island in the South Pacific after his plane crashes during a violent storm. He tries to survive relying on materials from the FedEx packages that wash up on shore, he manages to stay alive for about 4 years. He then was rescued by a passing cargo ship and was taken home.

​    Hanks' life path of 1 could relate to the independence and survival instinct needed to be alone for that many years. Number 1 people blaze their own trails and are very creative using whatever they have. The courage and self-reliance is characteristic of Mars. Hanks won Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Golden Globes and was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Mars also relates to crime, police and criminals. In Catch Me if You Can (2002), Hanks plays a FBI bank fraud agent who is assigned to track Frank Abagnale, whose primary crime was cheque fraud. In the end, he gets Frank a job at the FBI and Frank ends up catching some of the world’s most elusive check forgers

       In the Vedic chart, Venus is on the 4th-10th nodal axis, along with Saturn. Planets along the nodal axis tend to be amplified. Along the 4th-10th, he has become very famous for his romantic comedies (Venus).  Saturn on the nodal axis caused him to be completely devoted mentally, physically and emotionally to his roles, he really wanted to get into the heart and mind of his characters. In some cases this was displayed with dramatic physical changes such as for Cast Away. The tendency towards fame is also shown by the Leo ascendant, Leos crave attention and spotlight. The Sun and Leo vibrate with number 1. By nature, Hanks is creative, pioneering and likes to follow the road less travelled. Number 1 people are authoritative and do best when in positions of authority, they are very good leaders. Jupiter is in the first house in the rasi and Jupiter also opposes the 1st house in the navamsha, this is said to remove many blemishes in the chart and is a nice blessing. It provides a general sense of good fortune in one’s life. Jupiter in Magha promotes success and being a real star, Maghas enjoy being mighty rulers in whatever domain they find themselves in. However, Jupiter in Magha also inclines towards generosity, they are always willing to give freely. In the Western chart, the Sun and Moon are in mutual reception (Sun is in Cancer, Moon is in Leo), therefore each planet is greatly strengthened by being able to behave more naturally as if it were in its own sign.

      The overall Vedic Chart is quite strong as Venus is in Taurus, Mercury is in Gemini, Moon is in Cancer  and Mars in Aquarius and Saturn in Scorpio participate in parivartana yoga allowing each planet to strengthen. That is a total of 5 planets that are functioning most comfortably in their own signs.
Wealth

      In the Vedic chart, Hanks has a first rate dhana yoga in the 11th house of gains. The 1st house ruler Sun is with 2nd and 11th ruler Mercury in the 11th house. The combination is not blemished by any malefics or dusthana influence allowing its full fruit to manifest. This personalizes the massive wealth and allows it come to him.

      In the Western chart, Neptune placed in the second house is very favourable for gaining wealth, especially if one does Neptunian inspired work which Hanks did. He has many of the traditional money making aspects such as the Venus-Neptune trine, Venus sextile Jupiter, Venus-Pluto sextile, Jupiter semisextile Uranus, Jupiter-Neptune sextile, and Jupiter-Pluto conjunction. He also has some non-traditional money making aspects such as the Sun-Mars trine, Mercury quincunx North Node and Uranus trine North Node. In total he has 9 aspects favourable for making money so that it came naturally to him.
 

Fame

There are numerous raja yogas contributing to fame. Raja yogas propel one out of ordinary circumstances and allow them to achieve extraordinary success.
1.5th house ruler Jupiter is placed in the 1st house
2.9th house ruler Mars is in the 7th house
3.4th house ruler is placed in the 7th house
4.7th house ruler Saturn is in the 4th house
Hanks has won numerous awards for his acting skills throughout the years including Golden Globes, Academy Awards and BAFTA.
 In 2002, he was the youngest actor to win the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 2014, he won the Kennedy Center Honours Medallion
 

Significant events for Tom

      For his work in Philadelphia which was released on December 22nd 1993, Tom received an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role on March 21st 1994. For his work on Forrest Gump which was released on July 6 1994, Tom received several awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role: he received an Academy Award, a Screen Actor’s Guild Award, a Golden Globe and was nominated for a BAFTA, all of which occurred between January and March 1995. He was running Venus-Saturn during this time. In the rasi, Venus is the ruler of the 10th house and opposes Saturn along the 4th-10th axis. In the Navamsha, Saturn makes a special forward sextile onto Venus. In the Dashamsha, Saturn rules the 10th house and from the 4th house makes a special forward sextile onto Venus in the 6th house.

​      For his work on Big which was released on June 3rd 1988, Tom received a Golden Globe for Best Actor Musical or Comedy on January 28 1989. At this time, he was running Venus-Rahu. In the rasi, Venus rules the 10th house and opposes Rahu along the 4th-10th axis. In the dashamsha, Venus rules the ascendant and is conjunct Mars. Mars is the dispositor of Rahu in Scorpio.

       For his work on Cast Away which was released on December 22nd, 2000, Tom received a Golden Globe for Best Actor Motion Picture Drama on  January 21st , 2001. At this time, he was running Sun-Moon. In the Navamsha, Sun opposes Moon along the 6th -12th axis. In the dashamsha, the Sun is in the 10th house and opposes the Moon in the 4th house. The Sun and Moon do not appear to be connected in the rasi chart, perhaps because we grow more like our Navamsha chart after the age of 36 and he was 44 when Cast Away was released.

      In the Western system, there were several transits to Tom’s 10th house. Because Forrest Gump is a movie he is most remembered for, I will illustrate the transits on March 27th 1995, the evening he won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
 
Natal 10th house indicators
MC 20 degrees (d) Gemini
10th house ruler Mercury at 5d Cancer (Mercury is placed in the 10th house)
Moon, (dispositor of Mercury) at 9d Leo
Sun in the 10th house at 17d Cancer
Venus in the 10th house at 22d Gemini
 
Transits (using 5:00pm PST in Los Angeles, California)
Tr Pluto at 0d Sag biquintile Mercury 1d
Tr Pluto sesquiquadrate Sun 2d
Tr Neptune at 25d Capricorn biquintile MC 1d
Tr Neptune quincunx Venus 3d
Tr Uranus at 29d Capricorn biquintile Venus 1d
Tr Saturn at 17d Pisces square MC 3d
Tr Saturn trine Sun exact
Tr Jupiter at 15d Sag quincunx Sun 2d
Tr Mars at 13d Leo conjunct Moon 4d
Tr Venus at 29d Aqu sesquiquadrate Sun 3d
Tr Mercury at 20d Pisces square MC exact
Tr Mercury square Venus 2d
Tr Mercury trine Sun 3d
Tr Sun at 6d Aries Mercury 1d
Tr Sun trine Moon 3d
Tr Moon at 0d Pisces sesquiquadrate Sun 2d
Tr North Node sesquiquadrate MC 2d
 
     
​      In total there are 17 tight transiting aspects with 2 of them being exact.
In Numerology, the birthday of March 27th 1995 is 9 and the life path is 9 as well. Tom’s birthday is on the 9th of the month, the soul urge number for Thomas Jeffrey Hanks is 9, and he was in his second cycle number 9 in 1995. This indicates a time in his life where his skills and abilities are really put into public focus. It is interesting that the movie deals with Forest Gump’s interactions with strangers from all walks of life and a wide range of different people in history, number 9 is a universal number with a global perspective. His essence for age 38 was 1, same as his life path 1, number 1 is highly associated with achieving power and positive recognition. Tom was in a personal month 7 and a personal day 7 on March 27th 1995, 7 vibrates to Neptune which corresponds to film making, drama, imagination and creativity.
 

---