Hamish Saunders of Janus leaves for the Astral Plane

Janus, an astrology charting software package, comes from Astrology House in Auckland, New Zealand. On Friday, September 29, the company released the new version Janus 6.

Hank Friedman, from whom I bought Janus software a few years back, sent out a newsletter to inform us that one of the three founders, Hamish Saunders, had passed on August 11th. The chart is available on the internet. It did not provide a bi-wheel for the repose, but I added the bi-wheel with his death date. It is of course a guess, but it gives us some perspective on Hamish’s life.

Hamish Saunders’ rising symbol is 19 Leo 20. Jones writes this symbol shows a group of prehistoric Native Americans seen in an elaborate and impressive invocation to the Sun. Perhaps since he emigrated to New Zealand instead of American Indians, now this symbol should be evocative of the “Maoris”, a Polynesian tribe indigenous to New Zealand¹. It denotes sensibility, for  Jones writes, that one with this degree must be wary of its own dependence on wild notions. The keyword is WORSHIP.

A friend of mine, Isabella, also an astrologer, has this as her Sun Sign, and originally we rectified President Trump to that degree as well. Later as his presidency developed, we retracted it and agreed with the official birth chart from Queens, New York.

Saunders has an interesting opposition from Mars at 18 Pisces 44 to Jupiter at 25 Virgo 36. This aspect also appears in the charts of English novelist George Eliot and the mystic poet William Blake and shows the natives are personable and friendly : they make a lot of friends easily for they have a gentle and suave manner.

Hamish’s strong work ethic showed in this aspect and often resulted in achievement. It also highlights a tendency to over-commit and take on more than they can manage because of their exuberance for the project.

The mystic Yod

It is the Yod in his chart that is most interesting. All yods have as their basis a sextile. In Saunders’ chart, his sextile (the aspect of friendship, association and cooperation) is from Venus in the third house to Saturn, which lies in the fifth.

The focal point of the aspect, also called the yod point, is always inconjunct to both planets. In Saunders chart, the yod point is his Midheaven and lies at 00 Taurus 28. It is opposite his Neptune at 00 Scorpio 47 and points to an intensively mystical person who is often at odds with society — astrology is not a widely accepted field.

It is no surprise he moved from his native Scotland to New Zealand to be with like-minded people working on Janus.

Planets in Aspect

His most aspected planet is the Sun, showing his firm belief in himself. That is important for all success — one must have a strong Sun, or wait for other planets transiting or progressing to buck it up. Nothing productive gets done with a weak Sun.

Saunders’ least aspected planet is Mercury, which is why he had partners — the business end of the astrological business was not his forte. His Venus in Libra in the second house tells that his ability to get along with other like-minded people was his powerful asset and with that commonality, he knew he could overcome other differences of opinion.

Our sincere condolences to his family and friends.

Footnotes:

This chart was updated on December 5,2025.

1. It is a common misconception that the Australian aborgines are related to the New Zealand Maori’s. Alas they are a separate peoples with the Aussie’s predating the Kiwi’s by almost a thousand years. ↩︎