The Astrology of Goths, Monsters & Vampires
The first movie I watched in the theatre this year was Nosferatu in January. Earlier this month, I also watched Frankenstein. A lot of discourse has been taking place online with regard to a "goth-revival" or "goth renaissance" going on. And it made me curious about the nakshatras and planetary placements common among people involved in the making of these majestic gothic works.
Frankenstein & Nosferatu (both 2025) are "monster-romances", with a human woman falling in love with a non-human creature/monster.
In the earliest film adaptation of Dracula (Nosferatu, 1922), Max Schreck, Purvaphalguni Sun, Bharani Moon, Venus in Hasta, Saturn in Revati amatyakaraka, Ketu in Punarvasu plays Count Orlok/Dracula
Bram Stoker, the man who wrote Dracula was a Vishaka Sun & Moon with Jupiter in Punarvasu atmakaraka, Mercury in Anuradha, Venus in Hasta
Now I'm going to list some actors who have played Dracula, along with their placements
Bela Lugosi (Dracula, 1931) Shravana Moon and Purvabhadrapada Rising
Carlos Villarius (he starred in the 1931 Spanish adaptation of Dracula) Punarvasu Sun & Venus, Ketu in Vishaka
Klaus Kinski, Purvabhadrapada Moon, Punarvasu Rising, Mercury & Saturn in Vishaka , Jupiter in Dhanishta amatyakaraka and Mars in Bharani
Gary Oldman, UBP Sun, Revati Moon and Ardra Rising
Adam Sandler, Purvaphalguni Sun & Mercury, Ardra Moon, Ketu in Vishaka
Bill Skarsgard, Purvabhadrapada Moon, Venus in Punarvasu, Mars in Bharani amatyakaraka with Mercury in Purvaphalguni
An overwhelming majority of these men are Jupiter dominant with Venus influence, along with Moon and Ardra nak influence as well. This reminds me of Claire's video, where she spoke about how Punarvasu men tend to play ugly/hideous characters.
I had earlier made a post about how the Beauty & the Beast story details the Path of Venus. In it, I had spoken about the myth of Psyche & Cupid and how that is the OG version of Beauty & the Beast. All these monster-romances can be seen as different retellings of this myth between a human woman who transforms a beastly man with her love.
Now, let's look at the naks of some of these women from the films;
Robert Eggers, who directed Nosferatu has Punarvasu Sun, Rohini Moon (Taurus rashi)
Lily Rose Depp, Rohini Sun, Swati Moon, Vishaka Rising, Venus in Punarvasu , Jupiter in Revati atmakaraka, Saturn in Bharani amatyakaraka
Mary Shelley, Purvaphalguni Sun, Venus in Hasta, Jupiter in Revati atmakaraka, Ardra Rising
She is frequently dubbed the mother of the Gothic horror genre
Jacob Elordi, who plays The Creature has Ardra Sun, Purvabhadrapada Moon conjunct Ketu, Jupiter in Dhanishta atmakaraka with Venus in Punarvasu
Mia Goth, who plays Elizabeth (kinda Bride of Frankenstein) Swati Sun, Shatabhisha Moon, Vishaka Mercury (amatyakaraka) conjunct Mars
Guillermo del Toro, Hasta Sun conjunct Mercury, Anuradha Moon
Oscar Isaac, Sun conjunct Ketu in Purva Bhadrapada, Moon conjunct Jupiter in Pushya
In the 1931 adaptation of Frankenstein, The Creature is played by Boris Karloff, Mercury conjunct Jupiter in Vishaka atmakaraka, Venus in Hasta, Purvashada Rising
In the cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Peter Hinwood played Rocky Horror aka The Creature. He has Krittika Sun, Jyeshta Moon and Saturn in Punarvasu atmakaraka
Shape of Water is another creature-romance and it stars;
Doug Jones, Rohini Sun conjunct Mercury, Krittika Moon and Ketu in Purvabhadrapada as the amphibious creature
Sally Hawkins, Bharani Sun conjunct Ketu, Revati Moon, Mercury in Krittika, Mars in Punarvasu atmakaraka as the woman who loves him and saves him
Oscar Isaac played a similar "Creator" esque role in the 2013 film Ex Machina. Alicia Vikander, Hasta Sun, Punarvasu Moon played Ava, a robot that he created.
Emma Stone, Vishaka Sun, Hasta Moon & Venus in Hasta plays a Frankenstein's monster esque creature in Poor Things
Edward Scissorhands is also created by a freak scientist who abandons him.
Johnny Depp, who plays the titular character has
Winona Ryder who plays the woman who loves him, has Swati Sun, Shatabhisha Moon, Vishaka Mercury conjunct Venus
Her placements are almost identical to that of Mia Goth and both of them are known for their work in the horror genre
Now, one thing I have noticed is how all these monster-romances, be it Dracula or Frankenstein or other retellings, have at its heart, a woman loving a male monstrous creature and humanising him. There is a Beauty & the Beast element there (I've mentioned this in the first half of this post as well).
But its deeply interesting to me how certain nakshatras and placements have repeated themselves in an almost identical fashion throughout decades and centuries with relation to these women and people involved in these stories.
Mary Shelly, Mia Goth, Winona Ryder & Lily-Rose Depp all have Rahu naks in their big 3
All Rahu naks belong to the Shudra caste which is one of the lower castes
All of these women kind of innately understand alienation and "otherness", which is why they are drawn to these monstrous creatures who are also lonely and outcasted and feel connected to them.
Both Mia & Lily Rose's dominant naks are either Shudra or Outcaste naks
The men playing the monster often have Manushya Gana/Rakshasa Gana naks whereas the women who love them overwhelmingly tend to have Deva Gana naks.
This is so literal, its kind of funny. Rakshasa means "demon" in Sanskrit and Manushya means "human", whereas Deva means "Godly". Generally people with Deva gana naks are said to possess divine qualities, they're empathetic, understanding, generous and compassionate.
Manushya gana people are more discriminating. They don't give to everyone easily. They're not overly charitable.
Rakshasa gana people are usually described as being selfish, unempathetic, unkind, ruthless, cunning etc
Obviously, we're all a sum of many influences so take all of this with a salt. Nobody is born a saint or a sinner. Its not a zero sum game.
All these Deva girlies loving and humanizing Rakshasa men is so interesting to me because traditionally astrologers in India often say that when a Deva gana woman is paired with a Rakshasa gana man, that relationship might work out but its opposite is seldom true. A Deva gana man x Rakshasa girlie combo isn't ideal apparently. This could just be plain old misogyny because they cant stand to see a gender reverse Frankenstein's monster situation lmao. But I have wondered as to why these stories are always about monstrous men and never monstrous women ๐ค๐ค๐ค. Is it perhaps because our culture is less forgiving of transgressive women? Women are burned as witches for doing far less whereas monstrous males get to redeem themselves and find love. Much to think about ๐ค๐ค๐ค
Also to be noted is the unique intersection between being a Deva gana nak AND being lower caste (Anuradha, Swati, Revati)
Its not just the generosity or benevolence of being a Deva gana nak but the ADDED experience of being othered and outcasted by general society that makes them identify with these creatures and have empathy for them.
Another thing to note is how all of these women have their rashis in Venus ruled signs. Swati is Sidereal Libra, Rohini is Sidereal Taurus and Miss Ma'am Shelly had a Venus nak as her Sun (Purvaphalguni).
Venus influence can come through in manyyyy ways
But one thing that remains a common trope is how Venus influence often draws one to what might be considered "ugly" or "unconventional".
These stories display how someone can love and find beauty in something that others think of as strange or repulsive even.
"Perhaps he finds beauty saddening โ I do myself sometimes. Once when I was quite little I asked father why this was and he explained that it was due to our knowledge of beauty's evanescence, which reminds us that we ourselves shall die."- Dodie Smith, Bharani Sun, Mars in Purvabhadrapada atmakaraka, Saturn in Vishaka amatyakaraka
There's this quote from the novel I Capture the Castle (great read btw) that I come back to often. Only an Outcaste Venusian could have written it.
Our lives are so fragile and delicate, its no wonder that we are so unforgiving of "ugliness" and "unconventionality" as a society. It disturbs our psyche- which values beauty, symmetry and harmony. But true beauty is also true sadness (I am quoting another Venusian, Namjoon, Purvaphalguni Sun, Ketu in Bharani here) Because its fleeting and impermanent. It's the same way Japanese people regard the cherry blossoms.
A placement common among many who played The Creature and Mary Shelley herself is Venus in Hasta
The deity of Hasta is Savitar, who represents the sun before sunrise as opposed to God Surya who represents the sun after sunrise. Savitar carries the energy of Sun in its life-giving aspect, setting things in motion. He is the son of Aditi (Punarvasu's deity btw)
Savitar is the "impeller" or "instigator" of all motion, inspiring life and progress. He is associated with light, energy, and the cyclical nature of time. He is also a protector.
Hasta falls entirely within Virgo rashi. Virgo's critical nature and intellect blend with soft Lunar sensitivity to produce people who may seem harsh or overly analytical but are actually soft, gentle and understanding. I think this is evident in Frankenstein, the novel. It contains a lot of heavy, complex themes but at its heart, its a deeply emotional and moving story.
Whether you want to admit it or not, these women drive the plot of the story. Their love is what propels the story forward and gives it momentum.
Bharani is also frequently found in the charts of people who play these characters. I have spoken in depth about Bharani, Venus and ugliness in other posts so I'll avoid repeating myself too much here but its pretty simple? Bharani is a Venusian nak and an outcaste one. It longs for beauty but is lowkey forbidden from accessing it. Perhaps due to being isolated and othered their whole lives, they have a deep desire to find true love. They're as Claire Nakti said in her video, one of the most deeply romantic naks. They crave to belong. To be accepted. Fitting for someone playing a monstrous creature ngl.
Revati is the birth of Saturn. Venus exalts in Revati. Revati belongs to Pisces rashi and is ruled by Jupiter. Its a melting pot of many different influences.
Its also a lower caste, Deva Gana nakshatra. Being the concluding nak, Revati is said to contain the wisdom of all the naks that came before it. This can either mean they descend into a "jester" or "trickster" archetype because they see and understand everything so deeply that life feels like a game to them.
OR, they can be deeply imaginative, empathetic, compassionate people who love unconditionally and give abundantly.
Now lets address the elephant in the room. The overwhelming majority of these characters are played by Jupiter dominant men (Punarvasu, Vishaka, Purvabhadrapada). Many of them have Jupiter atmakaraka or Jupiter conjunctions.
I have said enough about Jupiter's duality in other posts. Here, I want to talk about how Jupiter influence can make you feel "othered" from society.
The Creature is largely innocent. Sure, he kills people and stuff, but he's more or less cornered into it and does it as self-defence. Jupiter is considered the planet of luck. Paradoxically, every planet challenges you to consider its themes by putting you in circumstances that are the opposite of it. You experience luck in ways that would maybe strike others as "normal". For someone growing up in abject poverty, having 3 meals a day would seem "lucky" but for most others, it's "normal".
Whenever I read about the lives of different Jupiter dominant people, there seems to be a lot of hardship and turmoil but also veryyy unnaturally fortunate experiences.
Due to the extreme nature of Jupiter, which tends to expand or exaggerate experiences (the good and the bad), Jupiter natives spend most of their lives living on the fringes of society. They often accumulate prestige, status and wealth, but this feeling of never quite fitting in does not leave them.
If you think about it, The Creature is a scientific wonder. He's a miracle. But he's seldom treated as such. He's treated like an oddity or as someone abnormal. The people around him are often trying to exploit him. Desperate for love, belonging and connection, The Creature gives in sometimes.
Dracula is also literally just a foreigner from Transylvania trying to buy a house in London. He is literally "the other". A lot of scholars interpret the work as representative of racial anxiety in Victorian England, where the idea of a foreign man coming into their country and "infecting" white people was terrifying.
Jupiter forces one to withdraw into oneself and be their own Guru so that they can cultivate the necessary abundance to advance in life. This is an arduous journey and often, a depressing one.
There will be a part 2 where I discuss these themes further but I'll suffice for now because this post is tooo long as it is.
