Heartastrology Muse

Hah, Mercury has gone retrograde again. Usually this is met with quite a good deal of misery. Everyone runs around hollering about broken computers, broken down cars, crashing airplanes and everything else that can and does go wrong concerning business, contracts, travel, and electronics. It is actually a time of great joy, because we are given something to blame the struggles of our modern life on. “It is Mercury Retrograde” we can shout from our cubicles and feel no remorse about the disasters that are falling down upon us, like fire and brimstone from the planetary gods above.

But, that is not the best use of Mercury Retrograde. The best use, or…should I say, my personal favorite use, is to go back and pick up projects that have dropped off my radar. This is the astrologers trick for Mercury retrograde…any thing that has to do with a RE- is ok. So restart your projects, buy a refurbished computer, repair your car and get in good with Mercury.  He is quite happy to help you, if your willing to play along with his wily tricks. Mercury will be retrograde until the 11th of May 2010.

Cheers,
Dorje

The universe is at first glance chaotic. Astrology is the noble art of bringing a light of understanding to the chaos of the Universe. If we contemplate energy and time, we find cycles, archetypes, and an underlying simplistic order to the Universe.  These themes can be studied and used through the Art of astrology.

Making order out of the cycles using archetypes is of immense and practical benefit to spiritual, psychological, and material development and success.  The art of astrology is unique in its ability to be applied to any spiritual tradition, its ability to help garner and fill out the knowledge of how one acts psychologically, and the pathway to manifesting successfully with in the world.

Astrology thus can be a map to self development, self accomplishment, self understanding, as well as a deeper profound truth of selflessness. By learning your place within the cycles of time, you will be initiated into your possibilities as a soul contributing to humanity, the possibility of your own perfection as an instrument of the creative process of life itself, and ever unfolding aspects of selflessness.

First there are the outer cycles, and the ancient great astrologer Mashallah deemed the following ones to be important. First the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, Second the middle conjunction of Mars and Saturn, and third the lesser conjunction of Jupiter and Mars.  These three mark cycles which effect all of humanity.

These cycles tend to be forgotten now, as we have come to recognize even slower moving planets that are not visible to the naked eye, Uranus and Neptune, and the Planetoid Pluto as time markers. However, these planets were used successfully by astrologers to predict the future for thousands of years. Perhaps it is worth looking at these cycle historically to examine their effects on humanity, and gather what we can as glimpses of the future.

Monday is ruled by the Moon. Hence it is a day when the powers and energies of the Moon are very accessible, or so the ancient Babylonians thought.  In fact, every day of the week they named after a “planet”. This tradition is still carried on to this day when all of our days are named after the traditional “planets” in astrology. Their naming scheme is still followed to this day. It starts with Sunday, which of course is dedicated to the Sun, then proceeds to Monday (the Moon), Tuesday (Mars), Wednesday (mercury), Thursday (Jupiter), Friday (Venus) and Saturday (Saturn of course.)

It is a challenge in our culture and time to stay connected to the forces of nature, to stay in their rhythm. At one point it was considered vital for humanity to be in harmony with the movements of the planets. For the Babylonians, to leave this rhythm meant that mankind would go out of balance, great natural disasters and wars would become more common place, and humanity would loose its virtue. For a fascinating read on this subject, I recommend The Dawn of Astrology, by Nick Campion.

So here we are! Most of humanity has lost its ability to be in rhythm with the “planets” and their motions. Their are two easy ways for us to reconnect with their natural rhythm. The first is to pay attention to the planets that rule each day. If it is Monday, then pay attention to the Moon in your chart. What is it doing. What is its purpose. On Mondays, do something Lunar, as it is described in your chart. Honor that, and proceed through the week in the same way!

This method, or exercise will have two benefits, one connecting to an ancient outer rhythm. The natural flow of the Chaldean order, and two, it will help you discover new parts of your inner psyche.

Cheers,

Dorje

On Mondays, meditate upon the Moon in your Chart.

The post modern western take on an eclipse is that they have very certain effects. These effects depend on when the first eclipse occurred during what is called the Saros cycle for any given eclipse. At that time the dominate planetary event occurring during the eclipse is taken to be the main theme of the eclipse for its entire Saros cycle. Saros cycles last for 100’s of years. The effect of a given eclipse is said to be 1 year for every hour of the eclipse. The place effected is one of two…The first is where the eclipse path lay, that is where the eclipse is visible from the earth. The second is places where the eclipse point is significant in a chart of a town, city, or country. For instance the current eclipse hit significant points in Haiti and in Eureka California.

Next factor in the element the eclipse is occurring in. Last winter the eclipse occurred in an air sign, we had a flu outbreak. Last summer the eclipse occurred in a water sign, Asia had huge floods. This winter the eclipse occurred in an earth sign, we have had two major earthquakes within the eclipse week.

The third consideration is how the eclipse affects a person’s natal chart. For instance, this eclipse is occurring at 25* Capricorn. Anyone with a significant chart pressure point is going to feel the effects of this eclipse strongly in their personal life. For instance, President Barak Obama has Saturn at 25* Capricorn. So his Saturn, and what it means for his chart, is going to be strongly affected by the eclipse. For this reason many people are worried about President Obama’s safety this coming year, but they are missing out on a few important details. One is, his Saturn is very dignified, so it tends to act well in his chart, rather than in a more malefic way. The second is the meaning of this eclipse cycle is generally positive. This eclipse is 12 N in the Saros cycle, the meaning is “opportunities to accept greater responsibilities come suddenly into one’s life. Although the events which lead to these opportunities are difficult, they tend to create greater harmony and self esteem in the end” In this case we can already see that Barack Obama has been given an opportunity to show how a good president, or ruler, relates to a natural disaster. His rising to the occasion of the Haiti earthquake, I expect will have a good effect on how Americans view him.

James Camerons Avatar is on its way to becoming the top grossing box office hit of all time. Its use of CGI technology, Science Fiction and Eco Mythic plot has struck a nerve in our society that is going to cause it to quickly break all previous box office financial and attendance records world wide. We can ask, why this movie and why now. Astrology has a very simple and direct answer. It is, the Jupiter Neptune conjunction in Aquarius.

First let us talk about why. Jupiter represents idealism, spirituality, what is good, alive, abundant, large and expansive. Neptune represents the unconscious and other worldly as a dream experience, an illusion, a visionary experience, an untouchable and unknowable reality. Neptune is the mysterious, but also the visionary, ethereal, spiritual, and hopeful or deluded. First and formeost, when these two large gas planets combine we get big, and Avatar is huge. Over a thousand people worked on the technical production alone. Technology had to catch up with the vision of James Cameron’s script. It took film making  beyond its previous boundaries and set a new standard for the science fiction and fantasy film.

Avatar is a dream film, it is also an illusion, the Na’vi are CGI taken from real actors, a good deal of the film is flawlessly computer generated and then woven into the actual footage, giving the impression that it is real. The Na’vi themselves are a spiritually idealistic people, in the sense that they live in harmony with nature. They are one with a great mind that is plant based, dream like and in the other world. The world they live in is utopian and the people who work with the Avatars in the film are living the dream of being in a new body that is not theirs.

The Neptune Jupiter aspects of the film are undeniable making it a great escapist film with an idealistic natural message. This Idealism is even further reinforced by the planets both being in Aquarius, which is the sign of the universal, tribal, Utopian idealist. Thus in the film we do not get many shades of gray, we get the good, and ideal, the Na’vi and their way of life which is in harmony, and the bad and corrupted, corporate consumptive capitalism. Aquarius is an air sign, and the film has a good deal of its action taking place with in the air, and the planet Pandora itself has a lighter gravity, thus mountains actually float in the air.

This is the what of the Neptune Jupiter conjunction, now how about the when…well, believe it or not, the film was released theatrically between Dec. 16th and 18th, 2 to 4 days before the exact conjunction of Jupiter and Neptune in Aquarius.

We will be able to look back historically and say, what flim embodied this conjunction and its meaning, and the answer will be Avatar.

The Lunar mansions are giving to be the following. Different authors have different variations, but the differences are not that great. This table is from Agrippa and can be found here. Now It should be stated that this is a very curse explanation, but one which is a great guide to beginning your meditations upon the Lunar Mansions, and watching how they effect your life. More on that in the next post!

Lunar mansions are an ancient method of watching how the moon transits the sky in its 28 day cycle. The lunar cycle is actually 27.3 days long, so the mansions are not evenly divided into 24 hours period. The origins of the mansions are heatedly debated by scholars, and the true source of their existence may be more ancient than writing itself, thus a mystery to modern man, and only the subject of speculation. What we do know is that there are currently three main traditions of Lunar Mansion Astrology. These 3 are Chinese, Jyotish, and Arabic mansions. The Jyotish contains for the most part only 27 mansions, while the Chinese and the Arabic contain 28.

The lunar mansions are extraordinarily helpful to developing harmony with the current of life. We can, and many people do track the moon through the 12 signs of the Zodiac. This gives us 2 and a half day energetic emphasis to watch for and learn from. The Lunar mansions give us 24 hour specific energy patterns to observe in the current of life.

I am using the arabic tradition, as I practice a mix of current thinking and medieval astrology. Medieval astrology takes as one of its roots definitions that came from Ptolemy. The mansions are defined by the nature of the specific stars.

This brings us to an interesting modern dilemma which is whether to use the tropical or sidereal Zodiac. This was not a question for Greek astrologers, from which western astrology has grown, as at that time, the two Zodiacs were in harmony. Now they are significantly out of phase. In a future post I will go into detail about the differences, but here let us just say, we will be using the Tropical Zodiac. Why, because this is considered to be the “immovable” or “archetypal” zodiac, meaning that it is beyond the passage of time, its effects are more subtle and pervasive than the Sidereal Zodiac which is “moveable” and thus closer to the imperfection of human existence.

The 28 lunar mansions, as one can see were considered an extremely important part of astrology, only behind the 12 zodiac signs in there ability to confer information about the native, and the courses of action a person should take on a given day. Modern astrology has not even scratched the surface on the utility of this. For instance let us take a look at the Moons placement in Barak Obama’s Natal chart. His moon abides in 3 degrees Gemini which is the mansion under the angel guide Gabiel known as “the white spot” . The Key words for this are ” intellectual activity, goodwill, universal body, health, and safety.” The image is of a King surrounded by stars.”  this adds a much deeper interpretation of President Barack Obama’s emotional motivation than just the Gemini’s “a rapid learner operating on a mental plane who is out of touch with others emotional needs.”

Cheers and always happy for feedback.

It is said by the Astrology teacher Robert Zoller, that only what is promised in the astrology chart may come to pass. When these things come to pass is based upon transit, progression, and direction. An astrologer who is trained in predictive art will look at these three to see when promised events in the chart will occur.  In the case of Tiger Woods, a brilliant and public challenge from his wife, destruction of his home, and life changing obsessions with sex are all promised in his chart. Here is the chart:

In this chart one can see Jupiter rules the 4^th and 7^th house. This is the house of home and marriage respectively. Likewise Jupiter is in the sign of Aries, which according to the Libra Hermetis implies “Powerful tyrants” and ones who are honored and achieve success in physical and martial activities. Is this Tiger, yes it is. Likewise, this Jupiter is in the terms of Mercury, indicating “being successful at business.” Is this Tiger, yes it is. This Jupiter is giving Tiger a good deal of his fame and fortune in the chart, so what is going on, why have things gone bad.

This Jupiter is squaring the Sun in the fourth house, so we know that Jupiter is going to be involved in creating soul lessons for Tiger.  Jupiter is also opposed Pluto in Libra for Tiger. Pluto in Libra is going to fixate on and crave beauty and passion. Thus the goodness of his career, marriage, and home, are going to be opposed at times in his life by his powerful fixation upon passion.

Look at the nodes in the chart. The South Node is in Taurus, the North Node is in Scorpio.  This nodal access suggests karmic lessons through relationships, specifically, relationships that are passionate and sensual. Why now? The solar directed Jupiter, is conjunct the malefic south node.  Thus Jupiter, Tiger’s great boon, is being consumed by the South Node.

Jupiter will always do things with a great blowout. It is a gas giant after all. So it is extravagantly self destructing in a public way now that it has reached the South Node. What would an astrologers advice be to Tiger this year, I would have said, be careful with your family and lay low.

I expect that when Jupiter moves past the South Node, Brand Tiger will recover. But because Solar Directions create permanent physical experiential changes, and not just emotional changes (as transits tend to), Tiger Woods will not have the same wife or home by the end of it all.

The moon, considered by the ancient western astrologers as the gateway of the soul to the earth, has always been an object of veneration and mystery for humanity.  The moon’s movements through the archetypal zodiac signs creates a monthly pulse that a person can use to develop their sensitivity to the natural flow of the world around them. This subtle dynamic energy of life and personality which is observable as the moon travels through the archtypes of the zodiac, has a pause points. We call these pause moon void of course. A void of course moon is when the moon is in one of the Zodiac signs, but will make no further aspects to a planet while in that sign. This  can occur for only a few minutes, or can even last a couple of days. It usually occurs every two days.

Western astrological thought at its roots is influenced by the aristotilian idea that as the soul descendeds from the divine it picks up pure energy from the planets and then this energy in its natural divine order is scrambled as the soul travels through the moon on its final descent to earth. It is inferred that the moon is the translator of the energy of the planets. Sahl, a Persian astrologer who lived in the 9^th century, stated it thus, “Know that the Moon, whose circle is closer to the earth than the circles of all the planets, is similar to the things of the world more so than all the planets. Do you not see that man begins being small, then he grows until he is finished? The moon does likewise. Therefore, consider the Moon as significatrix of all matters: Because her soundness is the soundness of every matter: and her detriment is the detriment of every matter. And she pushes her own disposition likewise to him to whom she projects her own rays, and to whom, of the planets, she is joined: and she changes her own being to that planet( and this planet is called the “receiver of the disposition” because he receives what has been committed to him)> Therefore the moon herself is these planets’ bearer of information, and she reconciles them and bear off from certain ones of them to others.”1 The implication here is that it is the moon which translates the energies of the planets.

So what happens when no planetary energies are left for the moon to transmit when in a given sign? The moon is void of course. There is no direction left for a matter to undertake. Traditionally void of course moon was used in Horary and electional astrology. It has also come to be associated with the idea that actions undertaken when the moon is void of course will come to not. In other words, there is no planetary energy to drive an action to fulfillment.

This is why in l we would avoid signing contracts, starting projects, initiating stock trades, initiating new relationships and planting seeds when the moon is void of course. During this time unexpected events occur, or plans go awry.  Because of this, the general recommendation of astrologers is during a void of course moon, is to stick to routines or projects that are already under way. It is thus the time to indulge your laziness and rest. If you try and push through that term paper or grant proposal when the moon is void of course, it is probably going to be frustrating and need a rewrite anyways, so instead take the opportunity to be nurturing to your soul, enjoy some tea and think about things. People do this naturally anyways, and it can be observed that during void of course moons less people eat out at restraints, go to movies, or engage in social activities.

The most common recommendation for a void of course moon is that you do something spiritual. Like yoga, or tai chi, or meditate. Certainly watching Lost or Battlestar Galactica can be spiritual, why not? The point is that you can take advantage of the void of course moon to relax. Our society is mad with accomplishing, so allow the void of course moon to help inform your nurturing still side. There is another implication, which is it is easier to perceive the spiritual when the moon is in this passive moment.

A spiritual practice can be very potent during void of course moon, Michal Mugrage, a healer and soul worker in Arcata, has noticed that she can see  subtle energies and spirits more clearly when the moon is void of course. For those who practice sitting meditation, thoughts will be less disturbing. The moon is not pushing a planetary energy into the atmosphere at this time, so we can reflect more clearly on where our own hearts are. It is a time when we, as confused humans, with very scrambled energies, can go deeper into the stillness of our souls. When we are there, in that stillness, we will find a peace that is not in need of any material goods, or cravings. We will be free of our habitual patterns of anger and desire, and completely satisfied. Then, when we come out of our void of course meditation, back into coursing action, we will be clear, and have a pure heart.

This is the best way to work with Void of Course moon. Using it as a tool to help enrich and purify our hearts, so that we can be better human beings.  When the moon is direct, channeling a planets energy, then it is upon us to use that planets energy in a conscious way. As an example, take when the moon is squaring mars in Capricorn. Well, this planetary energy could be used to wage war (Mars) to define state boundaries (Capricorn), as Isreal doing in Gaza at the writing of this article. It may have served the state of Isreal better to engage in aggressive (Mars) statesman diplomacy (Capricorn), as a use of this planetary transit. The nature of mankind though, is one of unconscious impulses propelling action. When we use the moon void of course as a time to reflect on our emotions and souls, then we are bringing consciousness to our lives, as well as humanities.

If you reflect upon it, there are many examples of how we react impulsively, and hurt ourselves, others, and the environment through these reactions. Were we to use the void of course moon times to reflect on how we use our lives and what our emotional and spiritual nature is truly like, then conscious directing of planetary energies and impulses becomes more likely.  This is the gift of when the moon is void of course and pure spirit.

“The all seeing Sun, then, being truly fire-like and the light of the mind is the organ of perception of the soul”-Vettius Valens

The Sun. In astrology the sun is the center. That is, a symbol which represents the soul. The soul, your soul, an immaterial, unlocatable, empty phenomena, which has the nature of ongoing unending awareness is represented by the Sun. As such, it is the place, around which all the other planets, a great cosmic display dance. The Sun is externalized by  all cultures throughout history, which have worshipped the Sun as a principle deity. This is rightly so, as life on earth could not exist without the Sun maintaining its constant and steady presence. Its warmth chases away darkness on a daily basis, allowing all plants and beings to thrive on our unique and beautiful planet full of life. The idea of a solar deity is that the Sun itself is a living being, with its own consciousness, It is not just a mass of atoms, but has its own embodiment. Some suggest that Christ is a representation of the Solar Deity in a Christian form. In our own charts we look at the Sun as a place where we gain illumination. Where our soul is revealed and naturally emanates.  Whichever house it falls into, that is a house which will receive its warm benefit, a place that will feel natural to our soul, and what our soul will naturally express to the world.

The planets revolve around the Sun. The Sun is considered in general benefic, it illuminates the house it is in. It signifies the father in daytime charts (Saturn signifies the father in nighttime charts.) It also signifies life force, or the king and ruler. It rules all other planets, and has power over them. This concept is related to visual astrology. In visual astrology when a planet is conjunct the sun, it is combust, which means that it can no longer be seen. The empirical art of astrology is based upon visible light that reaching the earth. Thus, if a planet can not be seen, it is weak and, it can not fulfill its purpose. Perhaps a better way to think of is that a combust planet, that is a planet within 6 degree orb of the Sun in both directions, is hidden. It is in what we might call the fairy world or the other world. Its activity and purpose cannot be seen clearly in the male solar linear world in which we live. Thus, whichever planets we find in these places in our natal charts, that is where we have intuitive psychic gifts, and also shadows that need our full awareness to become useful energies in our lives.

How we do that is a personal but essential question. The indication is that we need to bring our awareness into that underworld place. For example if Mercury is combust we may not be so good at communicating and thinking in a clear logical way, however, our intuition and insight can be outstandingly powerful. Such a person very well may be able to communicate with fairies or gods. Initially though, before a person with such a natal aspect engenders that planet with aware insight, they may be often misunderstood, or act in detriment to their benifit. Likewise, because it is combust, the areas of the chart ruled by that planet, will be approached in an alternative manner, one which differs from the approaches mainstream society would take. Thus when a planet is combust it is empowered and engaged  through alternative approaches.

If the planet is even closer to conjunct the Sun, that is within 30 minutes or half a degree, it is then what was termed Cazimi which is an Arabic term for “in the heart of the Sun.” This planet is then imbued with the life giving rays of the Sun and becomes more potent and powerful, a super planet, capable of excelling and illuminating far and wide its interests. An example of this would be Oprah Winfrey who has Venus Cazimi. Venus embodies womanhood, and so Oprah has embodied the Venusian ideal of woman. In her chart, Venus rules her ninth house, thus we see Oprah’s powerful reach in publishing, spirituality, and educating the tv watching American public. It also rules her 2^nd house, and we thus see her immense capacity for wealth, becoming one of the richest entertainers in the world.

The only object in the sky that has this power is the Sun, that is why it is considered the ruler of all planets. Likewise, it is considered the most noble of all planets. It is the only one that does not go retrograde, that is reverse its course, and fall back within its trajectory. We can say thus that the Sun is symbolic of true integrity, it never hides its intentions, and it never deceives in its path. The Sun becomes malefic, that is capable of creating harm in the world and one’s personal psyche when it is squared, conjunct, or opposed Mars. In this case the Sun will overheat Mars. We all know what happens when Mars, the warrior gets over heated! If one has this aspect in the chart, then it is essential to learn how to calm down when heated.

As the Sun moves through your birth chart on a monthly basis, it will occupy all twelve houses and signs of the zodiac. When it goes into each new sign it is an opportunity to invoke in your experience understanding of that archetype. For instance, when the sun moves into Aries, recognize the initiating, bold, and enthusiastic energy that is invoked. Likewise, If the Sun moves into your second house, that is a time to take advantage of its illuminating rays and look at your financial situation, and what your possessions which are usable to you are. If you need to make changes, this is the perfect time to evoke them. This can be applied to all the houses, and all of the signs.

Using the Sun in this way, on a yearly basis, to become aware of different aspects of your personality and your environment, is a very good way of honoring your Solar Deity and coming to learn how it illuminates your life and being.