Happy Birthday to our beloved Min Yoongi, aka SUGA aka Agust D!

There is so much to say about Yoongi – genius producer and writer, resident BTS water sun, sharp-tongued rapper, and secret marshmallow. In many ways he embodies contradiction through his fluidity – even as I try to write about him, he shapeshifts and resists definite terms. There’s always an impulse towards change about Yoongi.

His multiplicity makes sense when I think about the Sun and Mercury in Pisces in his natal chart. Jupiter’s watery domain is an environment where planets ask the big questions, connect through generous sharing, and are moved by a felt sense of beliefs, ideas and ideals. It’s a space that, like the ocean, is in endless motion. We see it in the way Yoongi always wants to push the boundaries of his work, whether in his production or solo work (waiting for that acoustic folk album!), as well as in what he writes about and his realistic optimism.

So much of what he does in his writing is set the personal against and in relation to the collective, juxtapose the micro and the macro forces of change, and grapple with what it means to be human amidst forces we can’t control. There is, for example, a clear evolution between his mixtapes, but he doesn’t limit himself to a linear way of expressing his growth. Instead, he’s always willing to court complexity and recognise the different selves that make him who he is in the present. We see this clearly in D-2, where there’s a movement towards acceptance, whether it’s about change or the collective experience of being alive:

변화는 모두에게 필연적이지
Changes are fated to happen to everyone

어떻게 변해가는지가 우리의 업일지도
Perhaps, how we change is what our undertaking is about
(Moonlight)

사람들은 변하지 너도 변했듯이
People change — like you have

세상살이 영원한 건 없어
Living a life in the world, there’s nothing that lasts forever

다 지나가는 해프닝
Everything is just a happening that passes by
(People)

Yoongi’s hopefulness is grounded in these ideas of cycles and movement, in the idea that life itself is worth living with all of the good and bad, the special and the ordinary. I think about how he was born on the day of a full moon, which is both the culmination point of a cycle and the start of the moon’s waning phase. So much of what Yoongi represents to me is the deep care that arises because he doesn’t shy away from acknowledging the painful and complicated aspects of life. It has a quiet thoughtfulness and generosity that shows through whether it’s about snack preparation, gifting songs, responses to ARMY, or affirming and praising his fellow members. He’s able to be fully immersed in the undercurrents of life – bloody, sweet, messy and beautiful – and to let it inform what he puts out into the world.

To celebrate this birthday and Yoongi season, we’ve put together a collective reading for ARMY!

Kristen Wu — @kirstin_yzw

5 of Pentacles Rx - Sometimes, when things are difficult and it feels like everything’s against us, the best thing to do is to keep our hands moving. To refuse despair, or rather, to believe in our capacity to shape change while we wrestle with despair. Scarcity and precarity are unfortunately very real experiences in our world, but trust that the lack is never with you. Let yourself feel the grief and anger at what is beyond your control so that other reminders of abundance can be present. This isn’t to say you should keep working in a harmful situation, but sometimes when we can’t see the way forward we can only acknowledge what resources we do have, and let our actions lead us towards more clarity. This reminds me of Yoongi – and Bangtan’s – fierce determination to keep trying, especially during the early years (see Intro: Never Mind). The 5 of Pentacles reversed is an affirmation that you’ve been able to do just that, and that you’re moving in the right direction. Stitch by stitch, moment by moment, your efforts are shifting the heaviness and you may well begin to see the fruits of your efforts soon.

Happy Birthday Suga!

FIVE OF SWORDS

THREE OF PENTACLES