INTRODUCTION to
ASTROLOGY
Why does astrology
work? How does astrology work? To find the answers, it is
necessary to step out of the limited paradigms offered by materialistic
science and 19th-century spiritualism. The following paragraphs
teach the reader how astrology works from a new perspective that takes
the whole spiritual universe into account.
Influences
from Astral Plane
Astrology describes the
structure of the astral body which is created at birth. The birth
chart describes the flow of energy into and out of the astral
body. The soul creates the astral body at the moment of birth in
order to have a link or interface to the physical body. The
energy structure that is created at that time is linked to the
structure of the geocosmic sphere at that instant. Different
moments in time can see each other within the astral plane because it
is intermediate between this world of space-time and the
infinite-eternal center of being.
Sun
and Moon selves
Every person has a dominant
self and a subordinate self. Within the astral body the dominant
self comes from the sun and the subordinate self comes from the
moon. As the center of the solar system, the sun is the vital
self at the center of the person. As the earth's cold,
reflective, fast-moving satellite, the moon is a self of changing moods
and reactions to the dominant self and to others.
The sun corresponds to the
dominant brain hemisphere, which is usually the left hemisphere.
The left hemisphere is the verbal, conscious, unselfish, asexual, and
socially cooperative portion of the brain. The moon corresponds
to the subordinate brain hemisphere, which is usually the right
hemisphere. The right hemisphere is the pattern-recognizing,
unconscious, selfish, sexually motivated, and socially rebellious
portion of the brain.
Role
of the Planets in the Soul's Learning Process
Whereas the sun and the moon
are the outward and inward self-principles within the astral body, the
planets play more specialized roles. The planets control stages
in the soul's learning process. These stages are:
1.
gathering information;
2. creating
desires;
3.
performing action;
4.
experiencing results; and
5.
analyzing and learning the consequences of one's desires.
The five visible planets
Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn correspond to these stages or
functions within the astral body. The visible planets govern the
conscious self that deals with the external world. A similar
sequence of stages involving the unconscious self and the internal
world appears to begin with the invisible planets Uranus, Neptune, and
Pluto. In order for the sequence to be complete, two additional
planets must exist.
The positions of the planets
at the birth of the astral body define the invisible structure of the
person not because of any gravitational or magnetic influence on the
physical plane, but because the creative agency that is responsible for
souls experiencing life in physical bodies structured the astral plane
in this manner. Because the planets correspond to different
aspects of life within a body, these correspondences make it possible
to plan a life starting at a particular time and place in order to work
on particular life lessons or areas.
Incarnating
Through the Planetary Stages
Souls have been progressing
through the stages represented by the sun, moon, and planets in
successive lifetimes. The historical stages of civilization then
mirror the progress of souls through the planetary stages. The
sun and moon lifetimes come first and give the soul the opportunity to
define the characteristic expression of the soul's dominant/outer self
and of the soul's subordinate/inner self. Because the sun
lifetime comes first, the moon lifetime can be a reaction to it, in a
subconscious effort by the moon self to become its own independent
person.
Following the luminary
sequence, the first planetary sequence progresses through the visible
planets. It therefore focuses on left-brain-type goals and
activities. Different souls are working through the planetary
stages at different times, but to focus on the initial appearance of
the stages within Western civilization, we have: 1) the exploration
typical of Mercury in the philosophical inquiry of Hellenistic
civilization; 2) the feelings of Venus in the religious enthusiasm that
swept the civilized world around the time of Christ; 3) the attempts to
implement God's kingdom on earth during the stage of Mars; 4) the
Jupiterian expansion of the external man and world during the
Renaissance; and 5) the scientific revolution, puritanical reaction to
excesses, and more sophisticated political forms characteristic of
analytical, controlling Saturn.
The current planetary
sequence is progressing through the invisible, newly discovered
planets. It therefore focuses on internal or right-brain forces
and activities. The stages of this sequence are: 1) the discovery
of Uranus in 1781 corresponding to the age of invention, the great
classical music composers, and the Age of Enlightenment involving
liberation from the shackles of narrow, left-brain thinking; 2) the
inner feelings of Neptune (discovered in 1846) as expressed in the
Romantic movement in the arts, bohemianism, spiritualism, and communal
social experiments; 3) attempts to transform the inner person through
psychoanalysis, or through Prohibition together with the rebellion that
followed, in fascist and totalitarian attempts to remake both the world
and the inner man, and the liberation of atomic energy, all
characteristic of Pluto which was discovered in 1930; 4) the flowering
of personal growth and exploration movements which began in the 1960's,
rock and roll which opened up popular music to right-brain emotions,
together with the information revolution, marks the stage of the next
planet, a planet which expands the inner world in the same way that
Jupiter and the Renaissance expanded the outer world (in 1977 an
astronomer discovered a small planet orbiting between Saturn and Uranus
- Chiron the Centaur); 5) the final stage will be marked by inner
science and holistic science - genetic engineering, fine control of
atomic forces, nanotechnology, chaos theory, fuzzy logic, understanding
of global ecology, knowledge of sociobiological programming, use of
hypnosis to research the astral plane and past lives, medical
understanding of the body's energy system, and direct, mystical access
to and control of one's brain pathways by the conscious individual.
The
Framework of the Horoscope
Astrologers calculate a chart
of the sky at the moment of a person's birth in order to see the
corresponding structure of that individual's astral body. The
base structure of the astral body, into which the planets are plugged,
is defined by the geographical birth location. The line between
the east and west horizon points and the line between the upper and
lower meridian points act as lines of energy flow within the structure
of the astral body.
The horizon line describes
the person and the meridian line describes the environment. Astrologers
call the point where the eastern horizon intersects the ecliptic the
Ascendant. The Ascendant controls the energy flow relating to the
private selfhood of the individual. Its opposite, the Descendant,
controls the energy flow relating to the individual's public selfhood.
The lowest point in the sky,
the Imum Coeli or lower meridian, describes the type of energy flow
relating to the individual's private environment. Astrologers
call the intersection of the highest point in the sky with the ecliptic
the Midheaven or upper meridian. The Midheaven describes the
energy flow relating to the individual's public environment.
Astrologers divide the sphere
of the sky at birth into twelve divisions called houses. The
horizon and meridian lines define four quadrants, each of which is
trisected by various systems into three houses, making a total of
twelve houses. The houses are numbered counterclockwise from the
Ascendant at the left of the chart, which point marks the cusp or start
of the First House. The Imum Coeli at the bottom of the chart
marks the cusp of the Fourth House. The Descendant at the right
of the chart marks the cusp of the Seventh House. The Midheaven
at the top of the chart marks the cusp of the Tenth House.
The lower hemisphere of the
chart, consisting of the six houses below the horizon, deals with the
individual's private world and inflowing energies. The upper
hemisphere, consisting of the six houses above the horizon, deals with
the individual's public world and outflowing energies. The first
quadrant of each hemisphere relates to the body or self of the person
while the second quadrant of each hemisphere relates to the environment
or society in which the person lives. The first house of each
quadrant relates to building the character of that quadrant's
focus. The second house of each quadrant relates to the physical
structure or support network for that quadrant's focus. The third
house of each quadrant relates to motion, activity, or change within
that quadrant's focus. Let us now put all of this together.
Descriptions
of the Houses
The First House describes the
character of the individual's private self. This includes the
appearance of the body and inherent qualities of the self.
The Second House relates to
energy flowing into the physical structure of the individual's private
self. This includes sense impressions, food, possessions and
money.
The Third House controls
activity within the individual's private self. The energies of
this house relate to the native's sources of mental stimulation and
personal activities such as thinking, speaking, writing, errands, and
hobbies.
The Fourth House describes
the character of the individual's private environment. This
includes the individual's home life and parents, especially the mother.
The Fifth House describes
energy flow involving the structure of the individual's private
environment. This includes the stimulation provided by the
individual's friends, social network, offspring, and entertainment.
The Sixth House controls
activity within the individual's private environment. The
energies of this house describe the native's private work, type of
employment, and service to others within the native's private world.
The Seventh House relates to
building the self that the individual presents to the public
world. It therefore covers legal definitions of the self such as
marriage and partnerships. It controls the individual's
characteristic public self-expression.
The Eighth House relates to
the physical structure of the individual's public self. It
therefore covers buildings and real estate. It covers energies
emanating from the body so it controls sexual attraction and
death.
The Ninth House controls
activity by the individual's public self. It covers mental
expression and public activities such as lecturing, publishing, and
traveling.
The Tenth House relates to
the character of the individual's public environment. It
describes the individual's career and contribution to the world.
During childhood it can describe the father.
The Eleventh House describes
energy flow involving the structure of the individual's public
environment. This includes altruistic, humanitarian social
networking by the native.
The Twelfth House controls
activity and change within the individual's public environment.
The energies of this house describe selfless service to the public,
creating work or problems for the self, activities to dissolve the
self, and solitary retreat.
If a planet is positioned in
a house, then that affects the flow of energy through the house.
If the planet is harmoniously aspected by other planets then the
affairs of that house will flow smoothly. If the planet is under
stressful aspects then the affairs of that house will be
difficult. A planet in a house by its own nature affects the
character of the particular life area which the house controls.
The houses defined by the
native's birthplace sweep around the 360 degrees of the sky every 23
hours, 56 minutes. This is the duration of the sidereal
day. Due to the earth's revolution around the sun, the duration
of the solar day is 4 minutes longer. The degree on the eastern
horizon at sunrise increments by one each day. The field of the
twelve houses in which the planets have what is called their mundane or
apparent motion is defined to start at the intersection of the
observer's eastern horizon with the plane of the ecliptic where the sun
rises.
The
Revolution of the Planets
The plane of the ecliptic in
which the planets have their true motion is similarly divided into a
field of twelve signs which in tropical astrology is defined to start
at the point of the vernal equinox, which is the ecliptic's ascending
node or point of intersection with the plane of the earth's celestial
equator. While the houses are based on the observer's viewpoint,
the signs of the zodiac are geocentric or based on the earth's
viewpoint. Unlike the houses, which the planets transit every
day, the planets transit the signs according to their own rates of
revolution. The revolution periods are as follows: Moon 27.3
days, Mercury 87.9 days, Venus 224.7 days, Earth/Sun 365.25 days, Mars
1.88 years, Jupiter 11.9 years, Saturn 29.5 years, Chiron 50-51 years,
Uranus 84 years, Neptune 164.8 years, and Pluto 248.5 years.
Although the normal motion of
the planets is direct, all of the planets (except for the sun and moon)
can appear to move backward or retrograde relative to the geocentric
zodiac of the signs. This is due to the earth's motion around the
sun and for the inner planets additionally their own motion around the
sun. AstrolDeluxe ReportWriter indicates planets that are
temporarily retrograde by printing the letter R after their positions.
Due to the earth's
revolution, the sun moves with direct motion through each sign of the
zodiac at approximately the same time each year. The sun position
is the basis of sun-sign astrology according to which a person
considers himself an Aries if he was born from March 21 to April 19, a
Taurus from April 20 to May 20, and so on.
The
Signs of the Zodiac
The meaning of the signs is
very similar to the meaning of the houses. One difference is that
while the planets color the areas of life associated with the houses in
which they are located, the signs color the planets' expression of
their own functions. While the character of each sign can
principally be deduced from that of the corresponding house, such as
Aries from the first house, astrologers do consider that other factors
contribute to the character of the twelve zodiac signs.
A factor that can be
dispensed with as an influence on the signs is the constellation figure
associated with the sign, such as Ram, Bull, Twins, Crab, Lion, Virgin,
Balance Scales, Scorpion, Archer, Goat-Fish, Water-Bearer, or
Fishes. These are just what the Sumerians and Babylonians
imagined that the stars drew in the sky. Furthermore, due to
precession the Babylonian constellations no longer occupy the same
ecliptic longitudes. And the sign that the Babylonians always
called the "hired man" the Greeks of Alexandria, Egypt transformed into
a sheep or ram through a scribal misunderstanding. In Late
Babylonian times the cuneiform scribes wrote the Sumerian name for
Aries, which is lú-hun-gá, in abbreviated form by writing
just the cuneiform sign lú, which means 'man', but sometimes
also the homophonic but different sign lu, which, if read as a
logogram, means "sheep" (ref: O. Neugebauer, Astronomical Cuneiform
Texts, vol. II, p. 475, Springer-Verlag publ.). The Babylonians
knew what the sign represented, but when the zodiac shows up among the
astrologers of Alexandria, Egypt in the wake of Alexander the Great's
conquests the hired man has become a sheep, as depicted in the late
Egyptian Zodiac of Denderah. If the signs can acquire their
symbols in such an accidental fashion, then the symbols can be no more
than mnemonic labels.
A factor which affects the
character of the zodiac signs, but not the houses, is that of the
element triplicities, according to which Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius
are Fire signs, Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn are Earth signs, Gemini,
Libra, and Aquarius are Air signs, and Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces are
Water signs. The elements are related to the doctrine according
to which the odd-numbered signs are masculine and extroverted while the
even-numbered signs are feminine and introverted. The Fire and
Air signs are masculine while the Earth and Water signs are
feminine. Signs of the same element and gender are all related by
harmonious trine or sextile angles, indicating compatible
natures. While both the Fire and Air signs are extroverted, the
Fire signs tend to be passionate while the Air signs show a mental
approach to life. And while both the Earth and Water signs are
introverted, the Earth signs tend to have a pragmatic approach to life
while the Water signs are more sensitive and emotional.
One of the major distinctions
between the three signs which make up an element triplicity is whether
the sign is Cardinal, Fixed, or Mutable. The modality of the sign
relates back to the same distinction that we made between the first,
second, and third houses of a mundane quadrant. The four Cardinal
signs, Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn, tend to be self-centered
builders. The four Fixed signs, Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and
Aquarius, tend to be stable, sociable types. The four Mutable
signs, Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces, tend to be restless
changers.
Another more problematic
factor affecting the signs is that of each sign's ruling planet.
Ptolemy set the two luminaries to rule the northern hemisphere summer
signs Leo and Cancer because as he says these signs are 'most
productive of heat and warmth' and Leo is masculine like the sun and
Cancer feminine like the moon. He chose distant Saturn to rule
the opposite winter signs Capricorn and Aquarius which, in the northern
hemisphere, are cold and dark like Saturn.
By placing Mercury as the
ruler of the signs Virgo and Gemini on either side of the luminary
signs, the visible planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn
ruled two sets of five signs, from Virgo to Capricorn and from Gemini
to Aquarius. According to this system, the signs Aries and
Scorpio not only had the qualities of the first and eighth houses, as
well as masculine fire and feminine water qualities, but they were also
influenced by the nature of the planet Mars. When the modern
planets Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto were discovered, astrologers
assigned them as co-rulers of Aquarius, Pisces, and Scorpio along with
the traditional rulers. It would have made more sense for the
invisible planets to replace the rulers of Gemini through Aquarius, or
at least to be consistent in continuing around the zodiac from Aquarius
to Gemini. The haphazard manner in which these new planets have
been linked to the signs does not say much for the concept of sign
rulership in general.
Aspects
Between the Planets
Having discussed the
character of the planets, houses, and signs, there remains only the
character of the aspects between the planets to be discussed.
Aspects are specific angles between planets which set up communication
between the functions of the person which those planets represent.
The aspect angles recognized
in astrology result from dividing the 360 degree circle by whole
numbers. The fewer the divisions, the stronger the effect of the
angle. The conjunction of 0° results from division of the
circle by 1. The opposition of 180° results from division of
the 360° circle by 2. The trine of 120° results from
division by 3. The square of 90° results from division by
4. The quintile of 72° and the biquintile of 144° result
from division by 5. The sextile of 60° results from division
by 6. The semisquare of 45° and the sesquiquadrate of
135° result from division by 8. For a more sophisticated view
of aspect angle strength, look up Harmonic Strength Function in the
index to the program's on-line Windows Help manual.
Because astrologers normally
express the planet positions according to their degree position
within the signs of 30 degrees each, the aspects of 0°, 180°,
120°, 90°, and 60° are easy to spot visually because the
degree numbers are the same. So the sextile has traditionally
been emphasized more than the quintile and biquintile, which should
actually be stronger. The computer easily calculates and lists
aspects which are not multiples of 30 degrees. The traditional
emphasis on comparing planets which are at the same degree position
within the 30 degree signs has led to the creation of two other aspects
- the 150° inconjunct (this word origiinally meant 'not in aspect';
it is also called the quincunx) aspect and the 30° semisextile
aspect.
The hard or discordant
aspects are the 180°, 90°, 45°, 135°, and 150°
aspects. The soft or harmonious aspects are the 120°,
72°, 144°, 60°, and 30° aspects. The 0°
conjunction is strong for communication between the planets involved,
but is neither hard nor soft. The 180° opposition is
stressful, but in a stimulating and challenging way instead of being
warping and difficult like the 90° square. The harmonious
120° trine facilitates the most cooperation between the functions
of the two planets. The influence of the 72° quintile and
144° biquintile is similar to that of the harmonious 60°
sextile, but it also stimulates creativity. If there is a
150° inconjunct aspect between two planets, then the lack of
cooperation causes one to overcompensate or try too hard in the areas
involved.
Conclusion
The planets, houses, signs,
and aspects form the foundation of astrology. The principal task
of astrology is to understand how their combination in the horoscope at
birth has shaped and directed the individual. This is called
delineating the natal horoscope. Another important task of
astrology is understanding the timing and nature of planetary
influences upon the individual during the course of a lifetime.
The best way to do this is by tracing when the planets overhead move
through the houses of the natal horoscope and investigating the aspects
that these transiting planets make to the planets in the natal
chart. Another valid application of astrology is to investigate
the effect that two people have on each other by seeing how their
charts compare, by seeing what are the aspects between the planets in
the two natal charts. This technique, called synastry, is the
most popular technique for analyzing astrological compatibility.
There are many other astrological procedures, but delineation of the
natal chart, daily transits and relationship compatibility are
fundamental.
Bibliography
Filbey, John; and Filbey, Peter; The Astrologer's Companion. The Aquarian Press, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England, 1986. A technical reference book.
Granite, Robert Hurzt; The Fortunes of Astrology. ACS Publications, Inc., San Diego, CA, 1980. Book on the Arabic Parts has good interpretations for the placement of the Part of Fortune.
Hand, Robert; Planets in Transit; Whitford Press, 1976. Excellent, definitive manual of transit interpretations.
Hastings, Nancy; Secondary Progressions: A Time to Remember
. Introduction, case studies, theory, and cookbook style interpretations of progressions.
The best book on progressions for beginning students.
Holden, James Herschel; A History of Horoscopic Astrology: From the Babylonian Period to the Modern Age; AFA, 1996.
Discusses the major contributors to astrology since it began.
Holden, Ralph William; The Elements of House Division, 1977. Well-balanced survey of the strengths and weaknesses of the various systems.
Lewi, Grant; Heaven Knows What. Excellent source for interpreting horoscopes and aspects.
Lewi, Grant; Astrology for the Millions. Companion volume for interpreting transits and planetary sign positions.
March, Marion D.; and McEvers, Joan; The Only Way to...Learn Astrology, Volumes I, II, III, The Only Way to...Learn About Tomorrow, and The Only Way to...Learn About Relationships.
A detailed, modern textbook series on astrology by the teacher co-founders of Aquarius Workshops, Inc.
Meyer, Michael R.; The Handbook for the Humanistic Astrologer. Detailed explanations on the effect of moon phases in addition to being a good introductory work.
Sakoian, Frances; and Acker, Louis; The Astrologer's Handbook. Good source of information on exaltations and dispositors.
Also good all around introduction for the beginning astrologer.
Sakoian, Frances; and Acker, Louis; The Astrology of Human Relationships. Detailed information on synastry and relationships.
Teal, Celeste; Predicting Events with Astrology, Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN, 1999. Includes: progressions, returns, transits, eclipses, horary, nodes.
Townley, John; Composite Charts: The Astrology of Relationships, Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN, 2000.
Authoritative reference book on this relationship technique.
Zoller, Robert; The Arabic Parts in Astrology, Inner Traditions Int'l., Rochester, Vermont, 1980,1989.
A scholarly book about ancient use of the Arabic Parts. For the advanced astrologer.
Information from AstrolDeluxe ReportWriter Help file, © 1993-2002 Halloran Software.
Halloran Software for
the best astrology software.
Halloran astrology software
astrology:
A beginners guide
A good astrology site
a
good astrologer.. Stephen Arroyo
A fun site
about Chiron
My favorite all time astrologer is Jeff Green. His site is down evolutionary
astrology by J. W. Green may be able to contact some of his info.
or.....articles
A good
link to Jeff's astrology is here.
I could give several pages of links to astrology..... perhaps on
another page????
Here are my areas of interest and links to my pages:
personal Shamanism section
My
services page:
My
Interpretation page
Mandala of The Astrology Chart: an article
My health
link
my Dream
section
my
family section is underconstruction
A
section on Using Drugs and Recovery.
The
Tao
Thoughts
on time and creation and stuff
More about Time?? reality or not?
More
thoughts - I love Hermann Hesse
and
John Steinbeck
Insights
A
message from Downunder
Shamanism
Immanuel
Velikousky has an interesting theory
About the 12th planet
Nibiru
Halloran Astrology
Software
Stay tuned!! Awake and Aware.
enjoy :-)