For over thirty years, Carlos Santana has been proving that consistency and change can make beautiful music together. His guitar still resonates with the same bell-like clarity first heard by many at Woodstock in 1969, yet he continues to explore new musical genres with an ever-increasing circle of creative compadres. The eight Grammy awards he just received for his CD Supernatural reflect the timelessness of his work.

The Roots of Caring

Carlos Santana was born July 20, 1947 at 2:00 am in Autlan De Navarro, Mexico, with the Sun, the heart of consciousness, in the tradition-loving sign of Cancer. No sign is more aware of its roots than this one. It is about connecting to the river of feeling that binds families and cultures into communities of mutual care and concern. Cancers are rarely detached or aloof. While circumstances may occasionally drive them into their protective shells, they tend to be acutely sensitive to themselves and those around them. They're natural nurturers.

This caring quality is demonstrated on Santana's web site, which devotes considerable space to charitable concerns. Among them is the Milagro Foundation, described as follows:

"The Milagro Foundation, founded by Carlos and Deborah Santana, provides financial assistance for educational, medical and housing needs of children all over the world. The Santanas believe that life is a miracle (milagro) and that children everywhere deserve the opportunity to lead safe, healthy and educationally creative lives."

Santana, though, is not parochial. An area of the site called "We Care About" provides contact information for the United Farm Workers, Save the Children, The Rainforest Action Network, Greenpeace, Doctors Without Borders, Amnesty International, The American Indian College Fund, Childreach and Larkin Street Youth Services.

The Need to Create

The Sun describes the purpose of our being, but the Moon represents the food we need to sustain ourselves and fulfill that purpose. Santana was born with the Moon in Leo, a sign of creativity and self-expression. This is ideal for an artist whose goal is to open hearts as much as it is to entertain. Those born with the Moon in Leo are frequently comfortable in the spotlight. In fact, they are often needy for it.

A key element to the healthy expression of a Leo Moon is to keep connected with issues larger than oneself. This enables Leo power to be about more than the ego and to apply its gifts of creativity to larger purposes. Aquarius, the sign opposite Leo, reflects this consciousness of the collective. Santana's interest in social causes, diverse cultures and spirituality provides a healthy outlet for his artistic talents.

Santana recently revealed that he was a victim of sexual abuse during his childhood. He has a close conjunction (union) between controlling Saturn and intense Pluto in Leo at the bottom of his chart (Fourth House cusp). This combination corresponds with possible misuse (Saturn) of power (Pluto) in a familiar situation (Fourth House). Digging up the painful past may be the hardest work there is, but it's a necessary step for healing and another means to free up creativity.

Gemini Diversity

Santana's work has been extraordinarily diverse. Mars, the action planet, is in Gemini, the sign of variety and curiosity, in his birth chart. His core of Latin-flavored rock has been extended by playing with jazz artists (Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Weather Report, John McLaughlin), blues, r 'n' b and hip-hop musicians (John Lee Hooker, Aretha Franklin, Eric Clapton, Lauryn Hill, Neville Brothers) and rockers (Boz Scaggs, Jefferson Airplane). He's even collaborated with country star Willie Nelson, reggae man Jimmy Cliff, neo-flamenco guitarist Ottmar Liebert, Africans Mory Kante and Babatunde Olatunji, and the unclassifiable Bob Dylan.

Bringing It All Back Home

Cancer and Leo are perhaps the two most personal signs in the zodiac. Santana's Sun and Moon in these signs show clearly in his warm smile and openhearted approach to his music and his life. He has endured hardship and achieved great public success, yet seems so much more of a person than a personality. As rapidly advancing technology continues to dislodge us from our old, familiar ways, we are blessed to have such a loving model for consistency and change. Viva Carlos!

Jeff Jawer is a founder of StarIQ.com. He has been a professional astrologer since 1973 and is well-known as a writer, counselor and lecturer in North and South America, Europe and Australia.