ASTROLOGY
Depression
Astrology
Astrology is a discipline more than 2000 years old and is nowadays experiencing a great rebirth: it is being re-studied and rediscovered thanks to numerous translations of ancient texts and manuscripts. Also thanks to the development of academic knowledge that accompanies these discoveries and funds these researches, most of which, in History of Science in the ancient world. This has become possible there, where academics have astrological knowledge as well.
I am referring here to the English-speaking countries; United States and England especially. Unfortunately Italy, where I am, has a heavy cultural lag in astrology as well as in many other areas, it has become a small province in the world that, sadly, only talks to itself. The astrology that has reached the general public, in the modern era, is the popular version that was born in the nineteenth century with the spiritualist movements. First of all Theosophy, which developed a New Age version of Astrology, erasing its ancient legacy because it was quite complex to study and therefore not usable by everyone. Astrology has been practically re-written, back then, in order to made it practicable and understandable for a wider audience.
Then within the development of human science, that characterize the twentieth century, especially psychology and psychoanalysis, astrology became a discipline to read the individual’s personality and path in life. At a certain point this created a strong need to better integrate Psychological skills into Astrology, both regarding the basic concepts of the discipline that regulates the development of the psyche and personality, and a study of the most suitable methodologies to offer a Consultations.
That is to say that all the serious psychologically oriented astrologers had at least a degree in Psychology or Counseling, thing which unfortunately has seldom happened here in Italy. Even the Psychological approach then came to an end, because it exasperated the symbolic aspects of the discipline by completely erasing its predictive capacity, everything was lost in the mists of "transformation", without ever mentioning the possibility of concrete facts. Mediating between modernity and Tradition is my approach to Astrology, because coming from in-depth psychological studies I do not find an attentive approach to the person and his times of growth and development in contrast with dissecting the contents of the astrological narrative concerning him, in a language that is pragmatic and concrete, capable of making sensible predictions.
GENETHLIACAL ASTROLOGY
Genethliacal astrology
Genethliacal astrology is that part of astrology that analyzes a person's birth chart to draw information on his temperament, character and potential life experiences. The birth chart is a map constructed by showing the planetary positions for the time and place of birth of the person. From the most recent astrological discoveries we know that this type of astrology developed around the 5th century BC. and that the oldest natal chart is from 410 BC. and it is a cuneiform tablet.(1)Therefore nothing new under the sky , men have always recognized this indissoluble link between the sky, the planetary positions and the destiny of the unborn child.
Their view, however, has never been totally deterministic; the concept of "fate" that runs throughout antiquity, from the Egyptians to Hellenistic Greece, is a concept that is partly fluid and in the making. This certainly does not mean that there is no share of determinism in astrology, but the accusation of strong determinism aimed at Classical Astrology, emerges only in the Christian world and is then resumed in the Enlightenment era to condemn to oblivion the discipline that has traveled undisturbed more than 2000 years of history (2). The share of determinism present in Astrology can be compared to the share of genetic heritage present at the physical level in a human being; being born short will not allow us to grow tall, but being predisposed to certain diseases does not mean that we will certainly develop such diseases. The primacy of genetics in biology has been flanked by epigenetics and the environmental context to explain the development of certain pathologies or certain characteristics. Similarly, we can say that Astrology describes our innate predisposition, the "fate" that we have been assigned or that we have chosen, depending on our philosophy of life, but other factors will contribute to the development of some of these traits rather than others. "Free will" will also contribute to this development.
In fact, it represents the freedom of man to determine his own acts and choices. However, if we investigate this concept we find, for example, that from a distinctly psychological point of view our free will ends whenever we are moved by unconscious character impulses, that is 80% of the time. Our acts and our choices are mostly the result of an ego or a character that tends to self-perpetuate, that is to say, to repeat the primary experiences. Without bothering the spiritual disciplines that describe this unawareness as a state of man's sleep, even for psychology itself, we are, by virtue of these defensive mechanisms, highly predictable. Once the primary wounds have been discovered, we will know how the personality will tend to organize itself in all those contexts where some investment is at stake. That is, we will know his defense strategies and this will make him highly predictable. Here too, we have come a long way to return to what Heraclitus said: it is the character that determines the destiny of man. For the same reason, by dismantling one's character armor, with a long and profitable course of Psychotherapy, studded with tears and blood, one can negotiate a share of destiny, but only a share. That is, you can learn to resist certain impulses that make you repeat the same patterns over and over again, that is, the primary wounds. Carlos Castaneda, from a shamanic point of view, said the same thing, namely: freeing oneself from personal history, killing the ego to be reborn to the self, becoming an unpredictable being. Even the ancients knew that "the only way to free oneself from the stars" is to realize oneself in the natural being; that part of us that is beyond the individual ego, beyond character, beyond the sublunary world, to wake up to one's essence, which is essentially the journey of a lifetime for those who wish to undertake it. As long as we are living through our ego, with its desires, its insecurities, its wounds, the narration proceeds as we have chosen it, or if you prefer, as it has been assigned to us and it is the narration of the stars.
Reading the Birth Chart, will then illustrate the basic constitution of the individual in psycho-physical terms, his character and realization predispositions, providing us with information on the various areas of his life and the experiences he can have in them.
(1) Francesca Rochberg, Babylonian Horoscopes, American Philosophical Society, United States, 1998, pag.53
(2) Dorian Greenbaum, Philosophy and Fate in Hellenistic Astrology. Seminar 1, MA Cultural Astronomy and Astrology, 7 July 2020.
PREDICTIVE ASTROLOGY
Predictive Astrology
Predictive Astrology refers to an informative analysis of trends over a specified period of time; usually one year. This is done by applying different techniques, of real and symbolic planetary motions (Solar Revolutions, Profections, Directions, Transits, etc.) to the Natal chart, in order to outline future trends. We must imagine that on the one hand it is as if we were setting the natal chart in motion, as if it were a clock whose hands move according to the age of prediction and observing how the angular relationships in the chart change we can express some judgments rather than others. On the other hand, we must imagine to hold the natal chart still and apply current planetary motions to it. Predictive Astrology offers a valid tool to investigate a future period of time, revealing those themes and moods that are being emphasized in that period of time. A good practice of Astrology cannot avoid this aspect and the detractors of the forecast are usually those who do not know how to make it. Making predictions does not imply giving shocking information or not being attentive to the sensitivity of those in front of you, in fact every respected astrologer has signed same sort of code of ethics. What this implies is to reveal the Client what can be expected within a given period of time, focusing on general themes and areas of life that come to the forefront . Then to say it with Ptolemy:
“We will now try to demonstrate that the criticisms based on the impossibility of forecasting are plausible but unfounded. To begin with, even those who approach superficially such a complex science often make mistakes, so that the conviction has arisen that even exact predictions are random; it is not true: the error does not depend on science, but on whoever practices it. And then, under the name of astrological science, most people gabell another one for profit ....... Even here the accounts do not add up; it is not science to be disavowed, but the charlatans who screen it. "(3) Ptolemy wrote in the 2nd century AD, since then little has changed, for a good prediction you need a good astrologer, prepared and qualified, who does not consider himself omnipotent but who in the long term can give you information that you can verify, the rest is roguery or at best hot air, now as then.
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(3) Claudio Tolomeo, Le Previsioni Astrologiche (Tetrabiblos) a cura di Simonetta Feraboli, I,2-12, I,2-13.
Horary and Electional Astrology
Horary and Electional Astrology represent two branches of Astrology very close to each other, which originate from the so-called katarchic Astrology, from the Greek Katarche’, relating to the beginnings. The origins of katarchic Astrology date back to the Hellenistic era. We find evidence of this in book V of the Carmen Astrologicum of Dorotheus of Sidon, an author who compiled this astrological poem around the 1st century AD.(4)
Electional Astrology is the one appointed to identify the best time to start something. The astrologer is called to look in the future for a moment in which the factors of the chart will be particularly strong (dignified and prominent) and in good aspect with each other. The events to which we refer can be the most disparate, from the opening of a business, to the publication of a book, to the date of a wedding, to the purchase of a car, etc. Each beginning contains the seed of the development that will follow, so if the seed is particularly strong and well disposed, its fruits will be strong and abundant. In ancient time Electional Astrology was widely used for the foundation of cities: “ In one of his books, the 11th century astronomer, astrologer and scholar al-Bîrûnî has preserved the foundation chart of the city of Baghad.
The Caliph al-Mansûr (c.679-777) desired to build a new capital city. He told his court astrologer, Nawbakht the Persian (c.679-777) to select a favorable time to begin construction. Nawbakht, with the assistance of the young Mâshâ'allâh (c.740-c.815) and other prominent astrologers of the time, selected the early afternoon of 4 Jumada I 145 A.H., which is equivalent to Saturday 31 July 762 in the Julian calendar”. (5)
Horary Astrology, on the other hand, is that branch of Astrology that allows you to answer a question. It refers to a chart that is drawn up by the astrologer, when he becomes aware of the question. Within the chart, the astrologer will trace the answer to the question posed by the Client. The complexity of questions that an horary chart can answer varies from the degree of competence of the astrologer. However, it is always an excellent rule to ask clear questions, which do not contain other questions and which can be answered with a simple yes or a no, detailed by the specifications that accompany the answer. This type of Astrology is enjoying some success, thanks to its
rediscovery. The most suitable questions for an Horary consultation are the more specific ones, such as: will I get the job? Will I pass the exam? Will I have a relationship with X? Will I sell the house? etc. Horary astrology interrogations are also used to find lost items. It is a very pragmatic tool that serves to shed light on a specific thing and is useful where one is not interested in investigating a given situation in depth. One thing, for example, is to ask: will I have a relationship with X or will I meet someone who is emotionally significant? Another thing is to investigate the emotional life of a person for a given year, perhaps starting from his individual predisposition in the matter as it is describes in his Natal chart. These are rather two different things, both in terms of content and in the type of investigation they allude to.
(4) Dorotheus of Sidon, Carmen Astrologicum, translate by Benjamin N.Dykes, Cazimi Press 2017, pag.230.
(5) The Foundation Chart of Baghdad, by James H. Holden. http://cura.free.fr/xxv/25hold3.html. Traduzione mia.
HORARY AND ELECTIONAL ASTROLOGY
ASTROLOGICAL MAGIC
IN THE RENAISSANCE TRADITION
Astrological magic in the Renaissance tradition
Spearhead of astrological studies, Renaissance Astrological Magic is that tradition that comes to us mostly from medieval and Renaissance authors, Arabs and Europeans, such as Ya'Qub Ibn Ishaq Al-Kindi, Thabit Ibn Qurra, Cornelius Agrippa, Marsilio Ficino, Paracelsus, Alfonso the Wise, Albertus Magnus, etc. A good part of this Magic is represented by Talismanic Magic or Science of Images; the art of conveying and modifying planetary "rays", through the use of images encoded and created when the planetary energies are at the peak of their effect and reflect the desired work. The talismans thus created become receptacles for planetary rays and their intelligences and have the power to alter the attributes and path of those who wear them.
But let's start from the beginning, the Astrological Magic to which I refer and which I practice, is close to Natural Magic, that magic that Marsilio Ficino believed to express through sympathies and similarities, as well as through the occult properties of natural substances. This allows me to take distance, in my practice, form Ceremonial Magic, as well as from the Grimoires or Goetia; that Magic that uses the invocations of Spirits and Entities, called to satisfy certain worldly requests. In the teaching that has been transmitted to me, Astrological Magic is part of a transcendent and spiritual path, that is, it belongs to the Path of the right hand, in opposition to the Path of the left hand. Robert Zoller, initiator of this lineage, said that to enter this path it was a good idea to be involved in a religious path. For my personal background I do not like the word Religion and I replace it with Spirituality, still Ficino was a priest.
Involvement in a spiritual path serves to provide the widest possible vision of one's work, whose ultimate goal is always to be aligned with the divine, with the higher forces. The path of Astrological Magic combines Theurgical work, Ritual work and working with the planetary powers. My mentor, Christopher Warnock, describes this type of Magic as a devotional practice, which is aimed at most at Angelic and Archangelic forces, creating a clear watershed between Natural Magic, Celestial Magic and the dark arts.
Professor Charles Burnett, from the Warburg institute, describes the system of learning that was meant to lead to the knowledge of the Talismanic art in middle age. First you had to study the 7 liberal arts: the Trivium and the Quadrivium and then you would progress thorough the Alchemical arts and at the very peak of this system of learning you would find Talismanic Knowledge.(6) Why such a long education? “Because Talismanic Knowledge taught how to bring power to material objects, that could be a stone, a garments or any object which has been made powerful through the infusion of power from elsewhere, usually from the planets and the stars. Through empowering these objects you can actually achieve changes within the world. So the wise man who had this long education should also be a man of impeccable morality, somebody who is able to do good for the community”(7). We must also reflect on the philosophical context in which this type of magic has established itself, since it makes little sense to speak of sympathies and similarities if we do not think about the medieval vision of the cosmos, that is, its philosophy. The Aristotelian universe represented the cosmos as a series of successive planes that descended from the Primum Mobile, under it were the fixed stars and below the 7 traditional planets, of which the last, the moon acted as an intermediary between the higher and the terrestrial or sublunar plane.
Everything was connected to the One, to the divine and through the planetary spheres it descended into matter. For the ancients the cosmos had a threefold hierarchy: Material, Celestial and Divine. The celestial hierarchy, formed by the planets, the zodiac and the angelic forces attributed to them, represented the universal archetypes of all material reality and presided over the creation and degeneration of all aspects of material life. This is a very important aspect for Astrological Magic, since as it is then suggested in the many texts of the time, when something on the material plane corrupts and deteriorates, we can always recreate it starting from its higher form, that is, from its planetary archetype.
But what is the elective ground of Astrological Magic, of the art of creating a Personal Planetary Talisman? We have said that through the Birth Chart we can identify individual potentials and therefore individual weaknesses. Let's imagine we can intervene on these specific points. That is, imagine that we can intercede in some dimensions of our life to rewrite the script.
This work as I live it and do it presupposes a certain degree of personal and spiritual involvement of the person who wishes to have a Talisman made. Depending on which area of ​​his-her life shows a crisis or a desire for improvement, I can identify which celestial energy is most suitable for the specific case. So through a special election, I can create a Talisman, which can be related to a Planet, a Fixed Star, a zodiac sign or a Lunar Mansion. It should be noted that the rules for the Elections of these talismans are very stringent and come to us from the Renaissance sources themselves. Sometimes to create a Talisman it is necessary to wait even over a year because there are some planetary requisites suitable for intervening.
Sometimes it is not feasible for several years, it is not the rule but it happens more often than we would like and I think it can help to reflect on the uniqueness of such a practice, the adequate creation of an Astrological Talisman within this precise tradition. In this creation, the metal or stone is engraved with specific images and related seals of that planetary or astrological principle, in the chosen time window. Then once I have finished the creation and blessing of the Talisman, it will be up to the applicant to proceed with its consecration and dedication, thus starting a flow of communication with that celestial energy that will allow him-her to make a certain individual path, as if taking him/her benignly under the its wing. We are tempted to look for the Talisman to change an external reality and often this happens, infact the Talisman also changes our inner reality, both internal and external are reflected as in a mirror, both transformed. Some people will want to focus on practical aspects of life, such as having more abundance and more well-being and this is not wrong, it is obtainable, another thing is to want to become a millionaire, this is a bit far from the principles and practices of this type of Magic and probably closer to Goetia, or to Solomonic Magic. Basically with Astrological Magic we can enhance or perfect a good portion of our being, but we should not mistake it for a trivial acquisition of practical things. It is much more, it is a privileged relationship with some Angelic and Archangelic forces, it is an inner spiritual journey which will manifest at the material level with different results that are always in our best interest.
(6) Charles Burnett, On Astrology, Talismans e images. The Astra Project, Historical research on astrological techniques and practices, ad Astra Podcast, Youtube 2020.
(7) Ibidem.