Gryphon Astrology Blog

Accurate astrological prediction is supposed to be complex and incredibly time-consuming. It can be, and if you want detailed predictions, you will have to put in serious time studying the natal chart, directions/progressions, and other steps. However, there is an easy method for determining how good your life will be. Joseph Crane mentions it in his book, Astrological Roots (click for review), but the method comes from the ancient Greek astrologer Dorotheus, whose book, Carmen Astrologicum,  or the Song of Astrology, is widely available in English today.

Everyone’s life has peaks and valleys, times of good fortune and bad, and this method accounts for those variations. But this is not just about one’s material well-being, though of course money will play its role. This method shows which parts of our lives will be happier and easier than others.

Predicting with Dorothean Triplicities

Here is the basic method, step by step:

1. Examine the natal chart. Note which planets are strong or weak by sign, house, and aspect.

2. Determine the length of the native’s life. This is tricky, and merits a full chapter in a book, if not a book in itself. If you’re not familiar with this technique, you can use 75 years for our purposes, and be right much of the time.

3. Identify the luminary of the time (i.e.: the sect luminary). For those born at night, this will be the Moon; the Sun rules day births.

4. Note the elemental triplicity (earth, fire, water, air) of the sect luminary. Look up the planets in the table below, noting their order. For day births, note the planets in the order written. If you were born at night, the planet marked N will go first, then the planet marked D, followed by P:

5. Each planet rules one third of your life. The happiness during that third of your life will depend on the strength of the planet in question.

Example: Barack Obama’s Horoscope

We can try out this method, with abbreviated commentary, on Barack Obama’s horoscope, which is below.

Barack Obama's Horoscope

Obama was born just after sunset, but it was still daylight, so we can consider his horoscope diurnal. Therefore, the sect luminary is the Sun in Leo. Leo is of the fiery triplicity, so the first third of his life is ruled by the Sun, the second by Jupiter, and the last by Saturn.

First third of Obama’s life – Sun in Leo, ruler of the 7^th house, placed in the 6^th house.

The strength of the Sun in its own sign tells us that Obama’s youth was generally positive, but the sixth house rules slavery and low social status, which might indicate difficulties early on in life. The sixth house also rules illness. Because the Sun rules the seventh house of other people, significant others, and open enemies, we might assume that he suffered through interpersonal relationships at this time, and that they created obstacles for him.

Second third of Obama’s life – Jupiter rx in Aquarius in the 12^th house, ruling the 2^nd and 11^th houses, opposing Mercury in Leo in the 6^th house, trine the Moon in Gemini in the 4^th house.

This part of Obama’s life is auspicious for his career and wealth, as Jupiter rules the 11th house of good fortune and ambition, and the second house of money. Jupiter is moderately strong, as it is a triplicity ruler of Aquarius, but it is afflicted by house placement in the malefic 12th house of secret enemies, and by being retrograde. This might indicate partial success, but hindrances from enemies and secrets. There could also be health issues at this time, because the sixth/12th house polarity is involved. The Moon is relatively weak in Gemini, and ruling the sixth house might cast aspersions on his heritage (Moon in the 4^th).

Last third of Obama’s life – Saturn rx in Capricorn in the 12^th house, ruling the 12^th and 1^st houses, trine Mars in Virgo in the 8^th, square Fortuna in the 3^rd.

The last part of Obama’s life will be good, though not without some suffering. Saturn is a malefic placed him in the 12th house, so again we see suffering through hidden enemies. The contact to Fortuna promises financial success, but not without effort. Saturn’s trine to Mars might bring career success, as Mars rules Obama’s 10th house of success and fame. However, the weak house placement of the two planets indicates incomplete success, or even harm through his public standing.

Take a look at your own chart and see what comes up using this method. Is it accurate for you?

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There are not many modern books out there that teach traditional astrology, and that give an accurate representation of what is actually in traditional texts. Astrological roots is such a book. It is a summary of Hellenistic astrology, that is, astrology as recorded by the Greeks 2000 years ago. The book appears written with two goals in mind; first, to give an overview of Hellenistic astrological techniques, and second, to demonstrate these techniques on a multitude of charts. The book stops short of being a true how-to manual, like John Frawley’s The Horary Textbook, for example.

Briefly…

Because Astrological Roots is both an overview and a manual, it cannot serve both functions perfectly, but that does not seem to have been the intent. The real beauty of Astrological Roots is that it is accessible to nearly all levels of astrologers. A beginning astrologer could start working through the book, which gives a good introduction to the signs, and houses. An advanced astrologer would find much here of value as well, though probably later in the volume, among the chapters on the Hellenistic Lots (Arabian Parts) and profection.

It’s important to remember that Hellenistic astrology is a system. As a result, not all of its methods might translate 100% into more recent astrological systems; the use of whole houses, for instance, may not work as well if we are looking at progressions or directions to house cusps. However, most of the techniques can be fruitfully incorporated into any astrological practice. Highly recommended as an introduction to traditional concepts.

Book Contents and Structure

Astrological Roots covers a large amount of ground in 14 chapters. The first three chapters introduce the traditional perspective on the planets, signs, and astronomical concepts such as sect. Herein lurk extremely useful modern updates of occupations, physical traits, and personality characteristics associated with the traditional planets. Yes, all of these can be had from the source and traditional texts, but a modern perspective can be very useful, especially on things like descriptions of the native’s profession, which has changed substantially over the last 2000 years. We are also introduced to the concept of the sign subdivisions called bounds, more commonly known as terms, and their use in natal astrology.

The following five chapters get into the gnarly bits of traditional astrology, including the use of triplicity Lords to determine the quality of the native’s life experiences by thirds. This is a method primarily detailed by the astrologer-poet Dorotheus. The author then whisks us along to the determination of soul, which today might be called personality or motivation (we discussed the significator of soul here), the Arabian parts, the meanings of the 12 houses, and aspects.

All of these techniques are illustrated with charts, not all of which have reliable birth data, which seemed a slightly odd choice. The methods presented in these chapters are very profound, reaching to the depth of the native’s existence and fate, and verifying their accuracy might only work in a heart-to-heart conversation with the native. Since that level of feedback is not possible from those whose charts were used, a few charts explored deeply, combined with detailed biographical information, would have been more informative.

We are then treated to more specialized topics, such as determining love, marriage, and indicators of the parents. A lovely chapter on the fixed stars follows, with heavy reference to traditional authorities. The author gives various methods for incorporating fixed stars into the natal horoscope, such as parallels of declination, rising/co-rising, and paranatella.

The last three chapters focus on specific prediction using transits (though these were used very little by ancient astrologers), and profections, which move natal points forward through the chart at a set rate. We are also introduced to firdaria, and other planetary time lord systems, as the author calls them. The concept here is that any given moment of our lives is governed by at least one, more often two planets, and the quality and nature of our experience during that time will depend on the quality and nature of the planet(s) in our natal horoscopes. The final chapter focuses on progressions, directions, and ascensions. As the author demonstrates, these can be used to determine the native’s length of life.

Observations.

An engrossing astrology book, better as an in-depth overview than as a step-by-step textbook. Upon receiving it, I felt compelled to try out all of the methods, because the resulting information is so concrete and useful. Crane’s book demonstrates that traditional astrology can be simultaneously concretely predictive and psychologically illuminating. The use of traditional terms for commonly understood concepts was interesting (zoidia, rather than signs), though perhaps confusing to a beginner. The author clearly wishes to immerse the reader in traditional thought, not just to present interesting techniques for cherry-picking. This is commendable, showing the author’s understanding that traditional methods should be approached with respect and an open mind. Astrological Roots engages our hearts and minds, which is the only way to study astrology.

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Astrological Roots: The Hellenistic Legacy

By: Joseph Crane

The Wessex Astrologer, 2007

Available from www.astroamerica.com and www.amazon.com.

305 pages, softcover.

22.50 GBP (about double in USD)

(If you have written or published an astrology book you would like reviewed on Gryphon Astrology, please contact me at nina [at] gryphonastrology.com or write to me here (don’t forget to include your contact info).

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Our goal in the Iran series is to discover whether Iran is headed for war. To do so, we will explore the astrological indications of Iran’s previous war, that with Iraq. Last week, we looked at the foundation chart for the Islamic Republic of Iran, that of Khomeini returning from exile in 1979. We also examined the great conjunction of 1980 set for Tehran, Iran. Both of these horoscopes have sensitive points that may be activated when war is imminent; the Great Conjunction horoscope indicated that war during the following 20 years (between 1980 and 2000) was a real possibility.

We would also keep an eye out for any indications of Khomeini’s death, since he was already an old man when he assumed power, and the likelihood of him dying between 1980 and 2000 was quite high.

Today, we will use eclipses to determine just when war and Khomeini’s death were indicated. Twenty years is a long time, and eclipses are a handy way to narrow down our time horizon.

1981: Indications of War

Two solar eclipses aspecting the Khomeini chart promised war. They both activated the Sun conjunct Mars in that horoscope. There was another such eclipse in 1990, but it did not produce anything, except an American invasion of Iran’s neighbor. It appears that at least two such eclipse hits are necessary to produce an effect in Iran:

February 1981 – the eclipse activated the Sun

July 1981 – the eclipse activated the Sun, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter

Two lunar eclipses, in July 1981, and January 1982, activated the Midheaven of the Tehran Great Conjunction of 1980 around the same time as the eclipses hit the Khomeini chart.

Because the first eclipse occurred in February 1981, we would look at the Aries Ingress horoscope for March 1980, and for March 1981. The actual invasion by Iraq occurred in September 1980. We will look at the Ingress charts next week

Khomeini’s Death

No fewer than three eclipses in 1988 and 1989 hit Saturn in the Khomeini chart (January 1988, March 1989, and August 1989). Why is Saturn important? It rules the 10^th house of the King, or the Supreme Leader, in this case. Three hits to the King’s significator in the Reza Khan coronation chart were more than enough to depose and eventually kill the Shah. Khomeini died in June 1989.

We will look at the Aries Ingress horoscopes for the 1980, 1981, 1988, and 1989 next week. The goal is to follow the thought process of an astrologer examining these charts in 1980, who did not have the benefit of hindsight, like ourselves. Only then can we hope to predict major events with confidence and accuracy.

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Read Part I of the Iran Series - The seeds of the revolution in the Shah’s Coronation and 1961 Great Conjunction charts.

Part II of the Iran Series - The revolution draws near: Eclipse hits to the coronation and 1961 Great Conjunction.

Part III of the Iran Series - The revolution is here and the Shah is deposed.  Aries Ingress charts for 1977 and 1978.

Part IV of the Iran Series - War comes again: the charts for the Islamic Republic and the 1980 Great Conjunction.

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Reader Question: I am 29 years old and my husband is 34. We have a healthy daughter. We have been trying to conceive again for over a year now. My base-line blood tests are normal and the sperm test for my hubby is normal. The doctor has suggested to stop trying too hard and taking it easy for a while and if we are still not pregnant in another 4-5 months, he will send me to a specialist. Any advice? Do you see a pregnancy in the near future?

—G.

Dear G.,

The horary horoscope for your question is very finely balanced, and while there is a good chance of you conceiving, it is not guaranteed, due to some obstacles shown in the chart.

Because this is a medical chart, I should mention that I am not a doctor, and you should listen to your doctor first and foremost. We first notice Jupiter in fall, retrograde, just inside the first house. This house represents your body, so any planets therein are important. Jupiter is the natural ruler of sperm, and seeing it afflicted in this chart is not encouraging. Also, we see the Moon in Capricorn, the sign of its detriment, afflicting the first house as well. The Moon rules the seventh house of your husband, so both indicators show that it may be worthwhile having him tested more extensively.

The baby is represented by Venus, ruler of your fifth house of children, which is in the sign of its fall, in Virgo. This is not terribly auspicious, but if we see a connection between you and the baby, the strength of Venus will be much less important. Venus has just separated from a conjunction with Saturn, the planet representing you, so unless you just got pregnant extremely recently, we will need to see a third planet bring the separating planets together.

Mercury is about to conjoin Saturn, which likely shows your visit to the doctor in a few months. Mercury is the natural ruler of doctors. Thereafter, a complex sequence of planetary aspects unfolds, mirroring the complexity of the situation. Venus trines Jupiter, Mercury trines Jupiter, and finally, Mercury conjoins Venus. Since Jupiter represents the health challenge that is likely keeping you from becoming pregnant, it looks as though the fertility specialist will help you address that obstacle before you can become pregnant.

Because of the domino effect indicating multiple dependencies, and because the planets involved are not terribly strong by sign or house, we cannot be absolutely certain that you will become pregnant. However, if you do, it is likely to happen a bit over a year from now, in the fall of 2009.

[Readers interested in a private astrological reading may use the PayPal button at top left, or find out more at my Astrology Readings page.]

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The 5th and last part of GA’s interview with astrologer and translator Benjamin Dykes, where he discusses his upcoming translations.  To catch up, read Part 1, Part 2 , Part 3 , and Part 4 of the interview.

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NG: That actually leads to my last question. I was curious what your next publications are going to be and why you’re going that direction?

BD: My next book is going to be called “Revolutions and Nativities.” It will be a collection of Arabic astrologers writing on nativities and solar revolutions—both of the native and of the world. While I was writing the Sahl and Masha’allah book I was disappointed with the natal material in it. It has largely to do with life expectancy and then a little bit about some general issues in the native’s life. But other than that there’s not much there. And there’s almost nothing on the revolutions of nativities. So, since most traditional astrologers practice horary or native astrology, and there aren’t a lot of books on natal astrology out there, I wanted to devote my next volume to that.

I’m very excited because several of these works have never been translated out of Latin. And some of them were never even printed: they’re still in manuscript form. But I’m really excited about them. There will be works by Sahl, Masha’allah, Abu Ma’shar, Abu Bakr, and others.

NG: That’s wonderful. So I take it you’re still working with the manuscript collector that you met or have you now branched out to other ways of obtaining manuscripts?

BD: I’ve branched out. I have slowly been collecting my own printed editions and manuscript editions for the last few years. I have plenty of material to work on for years to come.

NG: That’s great. I think the traditional astrological community and really the whole astrological community owes a lot to you and your efforts because only now is someone putting these works out in a very accessible form.

BD: It’s very fun for me and I hope I’m performing a good service for other astrologers. I’m learning a lot ,so I’m going to continue doing it.

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Isaac Hayes, who died this week, is best known for his music, spanning soul, R&B, and funk, but he is most famous for his theme song for Shaft. Using traditional astrological methods, we can find music in Hayes’s horoscope.

Isaac Hayes Has Soul

It is said that the planet rising just before the Sun is the strongest indicator of one’s profession. For Hayes, that is Venus in Leo in the Ascendant trine the Moon in the 5^th house. Venus in Leo loves to be center stage, and in the 1^st house, Hayes had a relentless drive to be famous and unique (Venus ruled by the Sun).

The Moon is in Sagittarius in the 5^th house of pleasure and creativity, a high-energy placement for a musician. Bonatti writes that planets in mutable signs make one “expert at gaining the knowledge of music”. This is true for Isaac Hayes: five out of seven planets are in mutable signs, including the all-important Mercury and Moon.

A Prolific Musician…

The 5^th house of creativity is important for any artist, and Isaac Hayes’s 5^th is activated by the Moon trine Venus. However, the Moon is also opposite Saturn in Gemini, a barren but multiple sign, which is strongly placed in the 11^th house of good fortune. For Hayes, creativity is combined with a capacity for hard work, but there would have been difficulties stemming from Hayes’s fickle audience and friends. Saturn rules the 7^th house of the public, and the 11^th house of friends.

Hayes’s sheer quantity of work came from the Moon-Mercury-Mars-Jupiter-Saturn combination, heavily involving the 5^th house. All of the planets are in double signs, giving quantity, and Jupiter is in hyper-fertile Cancer. The squares and opposition indicate that creativity was not easy, and Hayes had to work hard to create music. The strength of exalted Jupiter and Mercury suggests the result was worth it.

…with a Prolific Personal Life

Isaac Hayes was married four times, and had a total of 12 children. Saturn, ruler of his 7^th house of marriage, is in double sign Gemini, aspecting three planets, all of which are in double signs themselves. Three marriages would have been the absolute bare minimum for someone with this configuration.

The 12 children are shown by the same combination as Hayes’s prolific creativity; the 5^th house and the five associated planets. Similarly to his marriages, an astrologer predicting Hayes’s future would probably lose count of the possible number of children, and say he would have lots of offspring. Lots and lots of offspring!

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There has never been a better time for astrologers interested in adding time-tested astrological techniques to their repertoire. New English translations of astrological classics are popping up everywhere, and James Herschel Holden’s Five Medieval Astrologers is a recent addition to a growing genre.

Holden has been translating books for many years now, and is perhaps best known for his translations of Jean-Baptiste Morin’s Astrologia Gallica. In Five Medieval Astrologers, Holden pulled together five essential astrological treatises, none of which were readily available to English readers.

The Book of Flowers, a classic guide to mundane astrology, has not been translated into English until now. Three of the treatises were translated, or rather paraphrased, by Henry Coley, William Lilly’s amanuensis. Holden translated them more accurately, and added footnotes to show where the translations differ from Coley’s version. The result is a readable, accessible collection of short texts.

Briefly…

Five Medieval Astrologers is accessible to intermediate-level astrologers, or motivated not-quite-rookie beginners. The language is very accessible, and most cryptic phrases are explained in the footnotes, so we would recommend some familiarity with astrological concepts, such as solar ingresses, planetary latitude, and planetary dignities. Treatise 1 deals exclusively with mundane astrology, while treatises 2 - 5 encompass horary, natal, and electional astrology.

Astrologers familiar with modern techniques wanting to dip their toes into astrological tradition will be well served by this inexpensive but content-rich book. A word of guidance: the aphorisms found in Centiloquies are not necessarily meant to be followed slavishly, as some modern readers believe. Rather, aphorisms are educational tools meant to test and guide the reader’s reasoning. If we ask “why?” while studying these rules, they can greatly enhance our astrological reasoning and understanding.

Five Medieval Astrologers not only enriches our immediate knowledge, but steeps us in the tradition, as though we sat at lectures of five ancient master astrologers.

Book Contents and Structure

Each book begins with an introduction of varying length, explaining the provenance and translation history of the treatise. The contents are as follows:

1. Abu Ma’shar: The Book of Flowers. A collection of rules for mundane astrology. This book is a small treasure, written by the Afghani religious scholar and astrologer Abu Ma’shar in the ninth century. Having experimented with some of his interpretations, I can say that his guidelines are highly accurate. For the Aries Ingress set for Washington, DC prior to the 9/11 attacks, Abu Mashar says that Saturn as Lord of the year in terrestrial signs [it was in Taurus] “signifies troubles and injuries from tremors and earthquakes, and the destruction of houses, cities, and country places.” There is much more to be said about that chart, of course, but Abu Ma’shar’s pithy and minimalistic interpretations get right to the point. This treatise alone is worth the price of the book.

2. Pseudo-Ptolemy: The Centiloquy. A collection of astrological rules and aphorisms. This treatise is written to seem like one of Ptolemy’s books, but Holden says it is not authored by Ptolemy himself. He doesn’t state why, but it is a heavily Arabic-influenced text but also exists in a sparser, earlier version in Greek. The aphorisms range from natal to horary to electional astrology, with a little philosophy mixed in.

An example aphorism is #28: “When you’re not able to put the Moon to conjoin two stars [in an electional horoscope], put her to join a fixed star having the nature of the two.” According to the aphorism, if we want the Moon conjunct Venus and Jupiter, but are unable to wait for this configuration, we could simply find a fixed star assigned those two values by Ptolemy, and the Moon will draw upon the energies of Venus and Jupiter via the benefic fixed star. Indeed, this is a very useful text dotted with gems.

3. Hermes Trismegistus: The Centiloquy. Another collection of 100 astrological rules. This is an excellent collection of rules, again spanning several astrological disciplines, including astrometeorology, the forecasting of weather using astrology. One interesting aphorism is #33: “When Saturn is transiting from one sign to another, there are made in the sky shooting stars […] or some other celestial signs of the nature of fire.” When Saturn entered Virgo from Leo last year, this did in fact occur.

4. Bethen: The Centiloquy. A collection of 100 rules, including some quick electional guidelines. My favorite part of this text is the collection of 30 rules for daily elections. For example, see aphorism #49: “When the Moon is joined to Mercury, that day is good for every kind of action, especially bestowing dowries, to meet with writers and stewards; it is good to buy, sell, and make computations.” All major aspects to all the other planets are also listed. A dynamic collection of aphorisms.

5. Almansor: The Propositions. A collection of 150 astrological rules. Some of these aphorisms are obscure, and invite serious thought. Mundane astrology is addressed here, though not explicitly.

Some aphorisms in this treatise are veritable mines of pure astrological gold, such as #63: “The accidents of the body are known from the degree of the ascendant; from the degree of the Part of Fortune the essence of his personal assets is known. But from the degree of the Moon the essence of his body and mind is apprehended. Moreover, from the degree of the Sun, his health, but from the degree of the Midheaven his personal status and actions are distinguished; give one year to each degree.” Voila; natal astrology in a nutshell!

Observations.

The texts themselves are fascinating, and I am thankful to Holden for translating them. The footnotes are extremely useful as well, and I learned at least one new thing from the footnotes. Ancient astrologers often make reference to planets “increasing in number,” which mystifies most of us today, because the reference is obviously not to planets moving forward by degree. Holden has a very plausible explanation that this refers to a planet’s swiftness — is the planet speeding up or slowing down?

The translation is simple and lucid, which I appreciated. I believe in making ancient texts as accessible as possible to a wide audience, without compromising the integrity and style of the original. Holden seems to have a similar approach. In a recent conversation, the translator indicated that he welcomes feedback or questions regarding the translations from his readers (he can be contacted via the AFA website). This is much appreciated when reading ancient texts, no matter how clearly translated.

Five Medieval Astrologers is a highly recommended book, whether for seasoned traditional astrologers, or those just dipping their toes into the vast pool of tradition.

Note: This is one of several forthcoming translations by Holden, with the AFA slated to publish a half-dozen of his others in the next six months.

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Five Medieval Astrologers

Translated by: James Herschel Holden, M.A.

American Federation of Astrologers, 2008

Available from www.astrologers.com, www.astroamerica.com, and www.amazon.com.

148 pages, softcover.

21.95 USD

(If you have written or published an astrology book you would like reviewed on Gryphon Astrology, please contact me at nina [at] gryphonastrology.com or write to me here (don’t forget to include your contact info).

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This is Part 4 of Gryphon Astrology’s interview with astrologer and translator Benjamin Dykes.  To catch up on prior parts of the interview, read Part 1, Part 2 , and Part 3 here.  In Part 4, Benjamin discusses traditional thought and its application to astrology.

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NG: It seems like in some ways it’s almost not possible for us to get away from traditional thought. We can maybe layer it over or twist it but you can never really get away from certain concepts entirely.

BD: Yes. Traditional thinkers worked for a couple of thousand years on a set of themes and questions that were of interest to people in many different times and many different places. And in order to get these conversations going we need to know what they said. There are a lot of fantasies that modern people have about themselves and about what it means to be modern. And traditional thought can sometimes be a corrective that can help dispel these fantasies.

NG: I think conveying that traditional knowledge back into a modern person’s language might be a challenge. Have you experienced that? Or do you feel, as you said, that people just kind of naturally are open to what you’re saying?

BD: It depends. I have met both clients and people in social settings who are modern astrologers, and even if they don’t take on clients themselves, they’re modern people who have mainly studied modern astrology and understand its ethical, cosmological, and social claims. And when I can look at their chart and speak frankly about both good and bad things that are going on in their lives it comes often as a breath of fresh air. They are appreciative. There is a belief out there, and part of it is because of modern fantasies, that you can’t ever say anything bad to the client, because the client is so fragile and probably has so many traumas and so many potential mental illnesses that are just waiting to be unearthed, that you might scar them forever—so someone comes to you for advice but you are not supposed to recognize conventionally bad things in their lives. But clients, even those studying modern astrology, often know the bad things that are present or on the horizon, and they themselves consider it bad, and they are pleased when you acknowledge that. That is one of the things I mean about modern people being receptive to traditional thought: because in traditional thought we can say something is conventionally good or bad.

NG: Perhaps that is why for many people that’s a relief when they start studying traditional techniques that hey, you are allowed to acknowledge the whole of the life or the whole of the person rather than just start working with these fantasies about everything about being good or beneficial.

BD: Or even indulging in fantasies, as I said, about most people having mental illnesses and neuroses and having all sorts of traumas that you have to tiptoe around.

NG: I suppose people are slightly hardier than modern thought would allow them to be. What do you think the current revival of traditional astrology, where do you think that fits on the astrological timeline? At first, we have traditional thought, then for a few hundred years it really goes into dormancy, and now we’re experiencing this revival. Why do you think that is happening now? And where do you think it might go from here kind of on a very large timeline? What do you think it means?

BD: I think several things are happening. First, there are issues of modern culture in general, having to do with people not really being sure what value system they hold, or who are even afraid to say what is good or bad. And I think this leads to people feeling adrift and alienated: so they might naturally turn to traditional thought. And then in various New Age, occult, magical, or astrological circles there are trends back to traditional practices. I’ve met a lot of modern astrologers who say that after studying and practicing for a long time, they’re exhausted with modern astrology. And I think it is partly because astrologers are experiencing some of the same problems that are in the culture in general. There’s always a new technique, always a new vision of the universe, but very little agreement on how to even read a chart.

And so what traditional thought does, I think, is to help ground us. You don’t have to believe everything that medieval people did in order to feel a lot more grounded and confident in talking about stuff in ways that they do. You don’t have to stop being a modern person. But a traditional dialogue on matters of good and bad, or of fate and freedom, helps to articulate issues and values in ways that modern people often have not been prepared for, because we have modern myths that blind us to alternatives. In one sense modern conservatives are right about how an extreme multiculturalism and de facto moral and intellectual relativism has bad effects on people. But you don’t have to be a judgmental jerk in order to cure yourself of that. Traditional thought often has a very realistic, down to earth way of dealing with these issues.

NG: I think one of the things that people find perhaps confusing with modern astrology is they find issues of morality or things not being right or wrong. In that sense, the traditional astrologers can be very refreshing. They say this person is going to be on the evil side and they don’t have to tell you what exactly evil means because we all understand some of these basic concepts.

BD: And it’s not only more refreshing but it’s more helpful. For example, a modern astrologer recently wrote that we should not give bad news to a client if we see something terrible in the chart about the native’s relationships. Now you wouldn’t even treat your best friend that way, leaving them in the dark about something important like that. But there is a certain strand in some modern astrology that says we just can’t talk about that stuff. Someone comes to us for help and we just can’t talk realistically about it.

The issue of good and bad is also interesting because there are a couple of ways that we can look at matters. In traditional astrology, when you look at the houses, the houses are filled with things that are conventionally good and bad, and I think that’s the key. They’re conventionally good and bad: wealth is good, God is good, death is bad, slavery is bad, friends are good. These are conventional values and they are the ones embraced by a philosophers like Aristotle and most of the astrologers in the tradition. The chart, in essence, presents conventional, Aristotelian values.

But there are other ways of looking at things, and this is where you can adopt different philosophical views and adopt a different cosmology. You can say that from God’s perspective, none of this is good or bad. The planets are doing nothing more than carrying out their natures as God has willed their natures to be. Mars, from a God perspective, is not evil. Mars does what he does. But what he does may be conventionally bad for us.

You could take this further in a Stoic direction, a philosophy which is implied but not often articulated well in many Hellenistic texts. This could be useful in astrological therapy. The Stoics disagreed completely with how Aristotle grouped values together. And their whole attitude towards philosophical therapy and healing emotional problems had to do with realizing that what we conventionally recognize as good and evil are not good and evil in themselves; they’re things we should select or deselect in accordance with our natures and what the situation requires. But getting too wrapped up in conventional values sets you up for either misery or false happiness.

So when we’re talking about good and evil with a client, we can talk about conventional good and evils, but we can also talk about—and I think in the future we need to start doing this—something more of a Stoic approach, in which we realize that we are part of a universe in which everything acts according to its nature. And if we can get a bit of critical distance from these conventional values we’ll be a lot more happy and relieved and confident about what we get or do not get, than if we only think our happiness has to do with having these conventional values, and either get scared out of our wits when we lack them or have a false sense of joy when we have them.

You asked about where are we going in the future. I don’t know about the reception of traditional astrology among astrologers generally. But I am confident that within the next five years we will have all of the major and most of the minor works of these key medieval astrologers translated. And we will have resolved issues like whole-sign houses versus quadrant houses, and other matters. I think we’ll have resolved all the main issues and have all the material there. The next step will be to train a new generation of traditional astrologers to work with it.

[Read part 5 of the interview with Ben Dykes.]

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Mars enters Libra, the sign of its detriment, and will zip through the sign in about six weeks. Generally speaking, this is a bad time to do martial tasks, such as fighting, physically exerting yourself, or working with tools. Theoretically at least, you can put off that renovation project and exercise routine you’ve been dreading. However, the good news is that Mars will be in a Cardinal sign in Libra, and it will be moving very fast. So any martial activity that you want to happen quickly might be helped by Mars’s placement in the next month and a half.

Mars in Libra

Libra is the beginning of the dark time of the year, when night begins to outweigh daylight in the northern hemisphere. The fiery planets, the Sun and Mars, are ill at ease in Libra, while Saturn, the planet of darkness, is exalted there. Libra is also the beginning of the cold and dry quarter of the year, associated with the melancholic temperament. None of this makes fiery Mars very happy, as he is already uncomfortable being placed in an air sign. Mars is all about action, and Libra is altogether too cerebral for the Lord of War.

Further, Libra is considered one of the human signs, because it has to do with the human quality of reason. To Mars, this is an alien concept, further weakening the planet. Ibn Ezra, in The Beginning of Wisdom, writes that Libra rules “the marketplace people, judges, mathematicians, musicians, and merchants who deal with food and drink.” None of these occupations are particularly congenial to physically-oriented Mars.

The one bright spot of Mars’s transit through Libra is its conjunction to the very benefic fixed star Spica at 24° Libra, which brings Venusian and Mercurial blessings.

Mars Aspects in Libra for 2008

September 7 – Mars square Jupiter in Capricorn. This is a very expensive combination, and might be useful for intimidating your opponents. Jupiter is weak in Capricorn, but exalts Mars, so this might be a good day to verbally confront those higher in social standing than yourself.

September 8 and 23 – Mercury conjunct Mars in Libra. This might be another day for verbal confrontation; there might be a lot of talking and weighing arguments, but not necessarily with a tangible result.

September 11 – Venus conjunct Mars in Libra. This is an attractive combination, because Venus is in its own sign. It’s a good day for romance, and generally making your roof. Mars in Libra may be a little wimpy, but a good time should be had by most.

September 26 – Mars conjunct Spica at 24 Libra. A bright spot of beauty during Mars’s otherwise uncomfortable sojourn through Libra. A good day to try your luck in most things if your natal ascendant is Aries or Scorpio.

[Missed Mars in Cancer?  Read about it here.]

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This series looks for indications of war in Iran’s horoscope, both to examine past events and to identify the possibility of war in the future.  Last week, we examined Iran’s 1977 and 1978 horoscopes for indications of the Shah’s fall and of the revolution.  This week, we examine the horoscopes for the Islamic Republic, with an eye out for indications of the devastating Iran-Iraq war.  We hypothesize that the same indicators promising the Iran-Iraq war will also forecast any major future conflict in Iran.

Khomeini Arrives in Iran

Just as Reza Khan’s dynasty had a founding chart, that of the 1926 coronation, the start of the Islamic Republic can be traced to Khomeini’s disembarking in Iran after a period of exile. Khomeini returned to Tehran on February 1, 1979.

This chart is stunning in its symbolism of opposition to the Shah: its ascendant at 4° Aries is exactly opposite the coronation ascendant at 4° Libra. Moreover, the Khomeini chart also has the Moon just inside the ascendant at 7° Aries, opposing the coronation Moon at 5° Libra.

There are plenty of indicators of future violence in this horoscope. The Khomeini Moon and ascendant are near violent stars of the nature of Mercury, Mars, and Saturn. We also want to keep an eye out for the eighth house cusp near the South Scale, which indicates violence and evil. The chart’s close conjunction between Mars and the Sun is also important, indicating the warlike nature of the Republic’s rulers, and their propensity to get Iran involved in conflict.

The Iran-Iraq War and the Great Conjunction of 1980

The Great Conjunction of December 31, 1980 triggered most of the violence-prone points in the Khomeini chart.

The Great Conjunction itself fell on the malefic fixed star Vindemiatrix, a.k.a. the Widowmaker. This was the case worldwide, but in Tehran, Jupiter and Saturn opposed the Khomeini ascendant and Moon (both indicators of the country’s people). Jupiter and Saturn also activated the Sun-Mars conjunction by trine aspect. The Great Conjunction Moon is in fall in Scorpio, a Mars sign, conjunct the Khomeini eighth house of death. Finally, the Great Conjunction MC is at 21° Cancer, halfway between Castor and Pollux, the mortal and immortal twins, respectively. Both stars are violent.

In contrast to the Great Conjunction which presaged the Shah’s fall, the 1980 Great Conjunction does not show danger to the government. However, there is plenty of suffering directed at the Iranian people, since it is mostly the first house of the people, its ruler, Mars, and the Moon (natural ruler of the people), which are heavily afflicted.

Next week, we will look at more specific timing for the conflict predicted in the 1980 Great Conjunction in Tehran, Iran.

[Read Part I, Part II, and Part III of the Iran Series to catch up, if you're just joining us.]

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