Thomas Aquinas said that the heavenly bodies are the cause of what happens in this world, but not all consequences are inevitable. It’s hard to predict them. That the fate of Simone Morandi – born in Rome under the sign of Aquarius, lawyer, son of art and agent of many actors – was destined by the stars, is unknown. Of course, the consequences of giving yourself to the world as Simon and the stars he did not take them into account: website, school of astrology, live broadcasts on instagram, hundreds of thousands of subscribers, a channel on YouTube, TV shows, newspaper columns (also on El), books (last, Oroscopo 2023. All year round in twelve stages, just released for Rizzoli). “The astrologer ate the lawyer. The creature chased the creator like Frankenstein. The astrologer in me is an eternally insatiable being. Before meeting Simon, I had a lot of free time, I read books, traveled. Now nothing. But I’m happy.”
Are stars addictive?
Partly yes. Even if astrology has always divided the world into two parts, between those who love it and those who hate it, albeit too much.
You are more than an astrologer, you divulge the stars.
My father already called me professor when I was 7 years old. The awakening of an interest that goes beyond the need to know what tomorrow will be, I see this as a personal victory.
What are the skeptics telling you?
That the planet cannot influence our lives. The last, 16-year-old boy who accompanied his mother to the presentation of my book. And they are right: Jupiter in its gaseous immensity is indifferent to our affairs. But the planets have regular cycles around the sun: we can use them to measure time and observe their impact on our lives.
Before turning to astrology, did you believe in it?
I, too, was skeptical. Then, at dinner, I found myself next to Louise De Julie, the queen of Tg5 stars. When it was time to get up, he told me: “You are very gifted, if I finish the course, I will call you.” From the next day I started buying books. But he doesn’t know how many times over time I thought I never wanted to open that Pandora’s box.
What do you mean?
The more I saw, re-reading the past, that in my delicate years what astrology says actually happened to me, the more I panicked. But it was impossible to turn back.
How many years have passed since that first book?
Twelve. Jupiter cycle. Now I’m revisiting the beginning and I’m going to take a new path.
Meanwhile, he returns with a new book after missing a year.
I wanted to include some news: songs, New Year’s tarot edited by Claudio Rowe, monthly charts, as if they were stock exchange performances. Combine compatibility, keywords and QR codes to unlock labyrinths of multimedia content. To the long introductions, I added milestones of the year, sign by sign.
Why stages?
Because if you see the year as a cycle, like a game of goose, you understand that in certain months the same thing always happens. Every box matters, and if you understand what the key themes are for your sign, you have a card that lasts forever.
How does he live with all these planets, signs, moons on his head?
If you’re behind everything, you go crazy. I try to focus on the basics of the year, the slow planets, the milestones I talked about, and then the moon phases, which is a metronome in the short term. For example, in the growing moon there is a landing energy: the more you bake, the better.
What is the use of knowing so many things?
It makes you face every moment, including the difficult ones, knowing how long it will last. Heaven does not tease: by studying astrology, you find that even difficult times are useful for something. I am Aquarius: May is the time of the year when I have to work hard, then in November I pull the nets.
What will 2023 bring us?
Many things. Pluto, representing the darkest depths of the unconscious and being to the Sun what Voldemort is to Harry Potter, after 14 and a half years in Capricorn, looks into Aquarius in March.
AS WELL AS…?
boom! Because Pluto is the planet of desires, but it is raw energy. The last time he passed through there was during the French Revolution. It won’t be a quiet year, but it will be a great awakening. For Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius, the cap will burst.
What about other signs?
Aries, Libra, Capricorn and Cancer, under pressure since 2008, will take a breather in 2023. On the other hand, for Gemini, Sagittarius, Virgo and Pisces, the cycle of chaos that began in 2012 is ending.
Paolo Fox predicted a fabulous year in 2020, a pandemic came instead. And he was crucified. Are you afraid to overdo it?
In fact, a rather rare conjunction of Saturn, Pluto, and Jupiter took place in 2020. This has only happened three times in the twentieth century: in 1981 AIDS came, in 1947 the Marshall Plan and the great influenza epidemic, and in 1917 World War I and the Spaniards. The far-sighted astrologer should have said: let’s put on tin clothes, because something might happen.
Are there any unfinished business between you and astrology?
The question of questions, namely, how much what I see is written and how much I make it up, remains in the background. But some of the coincidences leave me stunned. It’s a theme that you can never put down on paper, there are always nuances that you don’t catch.
Simon, the stars and the world. How does a triangle work?
I can’t go to a dinner party anymore without discussing the signs. Now I say: I am going, but we must not talk about anything above the clouds. But then I give up and I have no brakes. I’m like a Duracell puppet, the perfect victim without self-help.
What is the audience asking you?
The most popular question is: will she leave her husband or wife to be with me?
Does it give hope?
I try to be kind. The thing is, you can see if there is compatibility, but whether two people love each other or not, astrology can never tell.
Let’s talk about love. When he introduces himself to someone, after what time will he ask for a sign?
I enjoy the discovery and try to guess. But the thought immediately goes there. But I don’t let compatibility affect me, also because I believe in dynamic relationships. And in fact, as an Aquarius, I always find myself around signs that are theoretically incompatible with mine: for example, I am attracted to Scorpio, and I tend to attract Taurus. Sooner or later I will make a pamphlet about paired “inconsistencies.”
Are there any questions you can’t ask the stars?
As I said, ask if anyone loves us: this feeling eludes the radar. And then when we die: you can see drastic changes, yes, but not in a deterministic way. In retrospect, one can look for an explanation, but the truth is that there is none: one can die or not, under any sky.
Source: Elle