Anthony Louis's Blog, page 44

Lilly’s misleading oversimplification of triplicity rulers

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Recently I posted a discussion of “Should I?” questions in horary astrology. One astrologer commented that she was puzzled by my statement that one of Lilly’s charts (“if she should marry the elderly man”) with Mercury ruling the Ascendant and Jupiter ruling the hour met the traditional criteria for radicality, namely, that when these two planets are “of one triplicity, or be one, or of the name nature” (CA 121).

Her objection was that Lilly would not regard Jupiter and Mercury as being of the same triplicity.  In Lilly’s over-simplification of the traditional system of triplicities, the rulers are:

Lilly’s Oversimplified Triplicity Rulers

Fire: Sun (D), Jupiter (N)
Earth: Venus (D), Moon (N)
Air: Saturn (D), Mercury (N)
Water: Mars (D), Mars (N)

Every since I first read Christian Astrology decades ago, I was suspicious of this simplification, especially because it has Mars ruling Water by day and by night. This did not make intuitive sense. In Lilly’s sheme, Jupiter and Mercury have no relationship by triplicity but in practice they do because both planets rule the Air triplicity, so Lilly must be mistaken in his thinking. The chart with Lord 1 as Mercury and hour lord as Jupiter is one that Lilly regarded as radical enough to be published under his name as an example of his horary art.

Although I initially tried to follow Lilly, eventually I became convinced that the classical Dorothean/Egyptian triplicity rulers were of more value in practice. In the Dorothean system, the triplicity has three planetary rulers: day, night, and participating (a planet that assists the main ruler both by day and by night). The assignment of triplicity rulers has much to do with the sect of the chart, a key concept in Hellenistic astrology.

Classical Dorothean Triplicity Rulers

Fire: Sun (D), Jupiter (N), Saturn (P)
Earth: Venus (D), Moon (N), Mars (P)
Air: Saturn (D), Mercury (N), Jupiter (P)
Water: Venus (D), Mars (N), Moon (P)

This more ancient system of triplicity rulers is quite elegant and makes more sense. In this system, a horary chart with Mercury ruling the Ascendant and Jupiter lord of the hour is radical because Jupiter and Mercury (along with Saturn) are rulers of the Air triplicity.

Unfortunately, when Lilly adopted the old rule that in radical charts the hour ruler and Ascendant-ruler must be “of one triplicity, or be one, or of the name nature” (CA 121), he changed the definition of what constitutes a triplicity ruler in traditional horary texts, which was an essential part of this principle. Essentially Lilly mixed apples with oranges and introduced a half-baked notion into his version of horary astrology. Lilly’s redefinition of triplicity rulership, probably based on his reading of Ptolemy, caused many charts to be considered “not fit to be judged” which traditionally would have been considered radical at the hour of the question.

Deborah Houlding has an interesting discussion of hour agreement and radicality at this site: http://skyscript.co.uk/hour_agreement.pdf.

 

 

Will my cat be put to sleep?

This is a sad horary. My son’s beloved cat, who was in his 18th year of life, had gotten sick several weeks ago. After repeated trips to the veterinarian and a course of medication, the cat appeared to improve but then had a turn for the worse. The vet recommended keeping the cat for a few days of observation.

Today was the day my son was to meet with the vet for a definitive diagnosis. I spoke to my son this morning, and he asked at 9:33 AM EST whether the outcome was that his cat would need to be put to sleep. Here is the chart.

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It is a Saturn day during a Sun hour. Saturn rules the Ascendant. The Sun rules the fire triplicity by day and Saturn is the participating ruler. The Sun rules the radical 8th of death, and the Sun rules the cat’s turned 8th of death (8th from the 6th). The chart appears radical.

Jupiter is angular at the MC. Jupiter rules the radical 12th (grief, sadness), and the radical 12th is the derived 7th of the cat (7th from the 6th) and thus symbolizes the cat’s doctor, the veterinarian.

The 12th part of the Ascendant (at 14 Cap 06) is 19 Gemini 12, conjunct the cusp of the 6th of small animals. The ruler of the 12th part is Mercury in the radical 12th (sadness) which is also the 7th of the cat, symbolizing the veterinarian.

The main signifiers are:

Mercury, ruler of the 6th, is the cat.
Saturn, ruler of the 1st (8th from 6th), is the death of the cat.
Saturn, as ruler of the Ascendant, is also the querent.
Sun rules the radical 8th of death.

Mercury (the cat) is turning stationary Retrograde and will conjoin Saturn (the cat’s death) in a little more than a degree.

The Moon’s last aspect to a visible planet was an opposition to Jupiter (ruler of the 12th) and the Moon’s next aspect is an opposition to Venus, ruler of the radical 9th, which is the turned 4th of the cat (4th from 6th), symbolizing the cat’s ending and final resting place. The Moon co-rules the querent, and its past opposition to Jupiter (the vet) probably symbolizes the fact that he left the cat at the vet several days before the question.

The 1st house is the turned 8th of the cat. Pluto conjoins the cusp of the 1st, and the South node lies at the end of the 1st. Neither placement is favorable to the cat’s survival.

All in all, the chart looked like the vet would recommend putting the cat to sleep.

My son phoned about 4 pm from the vet to say that the cat’s condition was terminal (he was dying of incurable kidney failure) and that they had decided to put the cat to sleep.

Is the rumor about Tillerson true?

Despite denials from the White House, the news broadcasts are all reporting a rumor that Rex Tillerson is about to be replaced as U.S. Secretary of State. I heard such a report at 8:07 AM and wondered whether the rumor was true, so I cast a horary chart and decided to look up Lilly’s rules for its interpretation. Here is the chart:

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Lilly says to check the following factors to decide whether a rumor is true or not (CA 193-194):

Is L1 (Lord of the 1st) or the Moon in an angle? NO, neither Jupiter (L1) nor Moon are angular.
Is the dispositor of the Moon in an angle and a fixed sign? NO
Is L1, Moon or Moon’s dispositor in a succedent house and fixed sign?  YES: Jupiter (L1) lies in Scorpio in the 11th, Moon lies in Taurus in the 5th.
Is L1, Moon or Moon’s dispositor in sextile or trine with Jupiter, Venus or the Sun?  NO
However, if L1 is afflicted by Mars or Saturn, or in a cadent house, then the rumor is false.
All four angles of the chart in fixed signs is supporting evidence of the truth of the rumor.

Etc. …

By criterion #3 it appears that the rumor is true.  Rex Tillerson will resign, at least according the the criteria set forth in Lilly’s Christian Astrology. Let’s see what happens in reality.

 

“Should I … ?” questions in horary astrology

William Lilly often used horary charts to advise his clients about a best course of action. A good example of such a “Should I?” question appears in England’s Prophetical Merline. On 24 June 1644 (NS) at 10:30 AM, a woman asked Lilly “if she should marry the elderly man.” Here is a close approximation to Lilly’s chart cast by a modern computer:

[image error]It is a Venus day during a Jupiter hour. This seems fitting because she is asking about love and marriage (Venus) during an hour ruled by the lord of the 7th (marriage contracts).

Mercury, lord of the Ascendant, and Jupiter, lord of the hour, are both rulers of the airy triplicity. On page 297 of Christian Astrology, Lilly writes that the Question is radical or fit to be judged “when the Lord of the ascendant and hour be of one nature or Triplicity.”  In addition, although Lilly doesn’t use dodecatemoria, the 12th part of the Ascendant lies at 16 Pisces where it conjoins the 7th cusp in a chart about a marriage question.

Mercury rules the Ascendant and thus signifies the querent. The Moon co-rules the querent.

Jupiter rules the 7th and thus signifies the elderly man who is proposing marriage; Jupiter also rules the marriage contract.

Lilly notes that the querent’s rulers (Mercury and Moon) are each recently separating from the quesited’s ruler (Jupiter) and asks the woman whether she has recently been negotiating with the old man about a marriage contract. He also points out that Mercury (the querent) occupies Cancer, the sign of exaltation of Jupiter, who in turn trines the Ascendant (the woman), which Lilly interprets to mean that the elderly gentleman has been in hot pursuit of the querent whose ruler (Mercury) is passing through a place which Jupiter loves to visit because he can bask there in exaltation. She confirms that such is the case.

Lilly next notices a transfer of light in that the Moon, which has just left a square with Jupiter, is applying to sextile malefic Mars, which both rules and occupies the unfortunate 8th house. In short, the Moon is carrying the light from Jupiter, ruler of the 7th of potential marriage partners, and passing the nuptial light on to Mars, a general signifier of virile young men, thus imbuing Mars with her desire for a mate.

In addition, Mercury (the querent) next applies to square Mars from the 11th house of the woman’s hopes and wishes. Lilly takes this to mean the the woman has the hots for some Mars-like captain or hunky soldier who will end up disappointing her because neither of her rulers (Mercury and the Moon) has “any dignities in either the sign or degree of Mars,” that is, her rulers are not passing through a place toward which Mars feels any special affinity and vice versa. In addition, Mars in the 8th and the Moon in the 6th are both in unfortunate houses. The woman bursts into tears and acknowledges that Lilly is correct in his suspicions.

Below is the table of dignities for this chart. As you can see, neither the Moon nor Mercury has any dignity in Aries, the sign occupied by Mars. In addition, the degree occupied by Mars is not within the dignities of either the Moon or Mercury. There is nothing by way of essential dignity that brings Mars together with the querent’s rulers. (I am using the Dorothean terms and triplicities; Lilly preferred the Ptolemaic system.)

Though Lilly does not call our attention to it, Mercury in Cancer also lies in the fall of Mars. In addition, Mars is the malefic of the contrary sect and, as ruler of the 8th house, he is likely to do harm to the querent rather than act to her benefit. Lilly refers to Mars in this chart as the “impediting” planet, which I assume means that he expects Mars to impede her marriage prospects.

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Mars both rules and lies in the 8th, which happens to be the 2nd of the 7th, signifying the elderly man’s financial assets.  From this Lilly concludes the that old man’s money, or lack of it (malefic Saturn in the 8th), will impede the marriage. With this in mind, Lilly advises his client to require that her elderly suitor put up or shut up. She should ask him to give her a “jointure” (a property deed or other valuable tangible asset) if he wants to go forward with the marriage contract. Her suitor reveals that he can’t produce a jointure because there this a legal claim on his land (which he had conveniently forgotten to tell her about). Lilly continues, “after this they broke off all negotiations of marriage, exactly as I told her.”

So the answer to her horary question was: no, you should not marry the elderly man.

Here is Lilly’s original interpretation of this chart:

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Lost and found: the missing keys

People seem always to be misplacing their keys. Recently I had occasion to do a horary chart for missing car keys. My wife’s sister and her husband were visiting for the Thanksgiving holidays. On Saturday 25 Nov 2017 as they were about to leave for their home in an adjoining state, my brother-in-law announced that he could not find he car keys.

As everyone began searching for the keys, I made a mental note of the time so that I would be able to cast the horary chart, “Where are my brother-in-laws keys?”  It was 1:31 pm on the kitchen clock. Fortunately, the keys were found within 10 minutes after a careful search of his car and the locations he had been in the house. I decided to look at the chart anyway to see what I could learn about horary symbolism. Here is the chart.

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It is a Saturn day during a Jupiter hour. Saturn is angular on 9th house side of the MC, which makes sense because the question has to do with an impediment to embarking on a trip. Jupiter is approaching the 8th cusp, which seems fitting for a question about a type of loss.

A very late degree rises on the Ascendant. By the time I cast the chart they keys had already been found. As Lilly says, “if the later degrees arise, the Matter of the Question is elapsed” (CA 297).

Mercury is a natural ruler of keys. Mercury in Sagittarius in the 9th could mean that he left the keys in his car, but his wife searched the car and did not find them there.

In this chart, I am the querent (Pisces Asc), my wife is the 7th cusp (Virgo) and her sister is the 3rd from the 7th (Sagittarius 9th). Her husband (7th from 9th) or 3rd (Gemini) is my brother-in-law, and his keys are the 2nd from the 3rd, which is the Gemini 4th cusp. The fact that Gemini rules the 3rd and 4th cusps (my brother-in-law and his possessions) suggests that he will find the keys, as does the Part of Fortune in the 3rd. The dispositor of the Part of Fortune can signify the keys, so all indications are that Mercury signifies the keys. By the 5-degree rule Mercury is angular, just inside the 10th house, so the keys are probably inside the home and should be easy to find.

The Moon is a general signifier of things that roam and can also represent the keys. The Moon lies in Aquarius in the 12th, suggesting that the keys could be in an upstairs room (Aquarius is an air sign) and in a hidden or covered location (12th house). The Moon applying to its dispositor Saturn at faster than its average speed is an indication that the keys will be found quickly.

The Moon’s last aspect was a square to Venus in Scorpio in the 8th and her next aspect is a sextile to Mercury (my brother-in-law) in the 9th. This could mean that the keys were last in a location described by Venus in Scorpio in the 8th, which could be a bedroom (traditionally Venus rules beds).

In addition, although I had asked the question, I did it mentally on my brother-in-law’s behalf since he was search for the keys. In this case, he would be the querent (Pisces Asc) and his keys would be signified by Venus, ruler of the 2nd house.

The bottom line was that the keys were found under the edge of the bed where my brother-in-law had slept during his visit. Immediately next to the bed and against the wall in a night table with a lamp, which is probably signified by Mercury in Sagittarius (a fire sign, near sources of heat and light).

 

Missing Argentine Submarine

An Argentine submarine went missing on 15 November 2017. According to the LA Times:

“The last communication between the San Juan and authorities onshore was at 7:30 a.m. on Nov. 15. The submarine surfaced that morning in the area of the San Jorge Gulf, about 270 miles southeast of the Valdes Peninsula in Chubut province.”

I was unable to find an official report of the exact location of the sub’s final communication, but looking at google maps I estimated the coordinates to be about 46s20 and 60w20.  These produce the following chart, which is approximate. The MC may be in the last degree of Leo or the first degree of Virgo, depending on the exact time and the correct location.

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The submarine is signified by the Sagittarius Ascendant, ruled by Jupiter in Scorpio in the 11th.  Jupiter is peregrine (without essential dignity) and under the sunbeams.

The Moon has recently entered the Via Combusta, indicating potential difficulties. This is troubling because the Moon rules the 8th house of death.

The Moon is separating from a conjunction with Mars and a square with Pluto and is applying to an opposition to Uranus and finally a sextile to Saturn before Luna leave the sign Scorpio. The recent conjunction with a debilitated Mars, the malefic of the contrary sect, suggests that the sub ran into problems. Mars also rules the unfortunate 12th house of undoing.

The next lunar aspect being an opposition to Uranus indicates sudden and unexpected circumstances, such as an unanticipated accident, especially because Mars disposes Uranus. The combination of Mars, Pluto and Uranus could indicate a violent or explosive event. The Moon (ruler of the 8th of death) transfers the light of Mars (ruler of the 12th) to Pluto by square and then to Uranus by opposition.

Saturn (a classic symbol of shipwrecks) is the most angular planet and lies on the Ascendant, showing hindrances and difficulties. If the IC lies in Aquarius, then Saturn rules the end-of-the-matter. If the IC lies in Pisces, then Jupiter rules the end-of-the-matter, and Jupiter is without dignity and under the sunbeams.

Neptune occupies the 4th house of endings and is very slow because it is about to make a station and turn direct.  The Lot of Accidents and Infortune (Asc + Mars – Saturn) lies at 10 Pisces 04 in this chart, conjunct the stationing Neptune, suggesting an accident at sea related to some type of confusion or lack of clarity.

Overall this chart does not look promising.

ADDENDUM: My thanks to Lisbon Gaviotta for sending me this information which was posted on Twitter by Lassina Zerbo, Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization.

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As you can see in the graphic, the impulsive event occurred at 10:51 AM local time, slightly north of the site of the last communication with the submarine, so the MC of that chart must correspond to 59.69W at 7:30 AM, namely at 00 Virgo 26.  The latitude of the last communication chart is at about 46S20, just slightly due south of the explosion.  Here is the corrected chart:

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Here the ruler of the 4th house of endings is Jupiter.  The Lot of Infortune and Accidents lies at 10 Pisces 40 where it conjoins Neptune.

Jupiter’s last aspect was an opposition to Uranus.  The Moon applies to conjoin Jupiter but the Moon is separating from a conjunction with Mars and a square with Pluto, and the Moon will oppose Uranus and then sextile Saturn before leaving Libra to join Jupiter in Scorpio. Thus, the Moon will transfer the light from Uranus to Jupiter, reactivating the Jupiter/Uranus opposition, with both Jupiter and Uranus disposed by malefic Mars in his detriment in Libra and ruling the 12th house of undoing.

In addition, the difference in arc between Saturn (shipwrecks) and the Ascendant (the submarine) is about 3.5 degrees, which translates to about 3.5 hours or a time of approximately 11 AM.  The impulsive event occurred at 10:51 AM.

From the chart it appears as if the crew became aware of a problem at about 7:30 AM and called for help.  They headed due north but were stopped by a sudden unexpected violent or explosive event (Mars, Pluto, Uranus) which severely damaged their vessel (Saturn 3.5 degrees from the Ascendant).

 

An interesting horary: lost and found

One of the horary guidelines for finding lost objects is that when the Sun and the Moon are both below the horizon, the missing item will likely not be found. Recently a querent asked for help in finding a missing item, and with the aid of the horary chart she was able to locate it rather quickly.

It was a Sunday night about 10:15 pm when a friend telephoned. She apologized for calling so late in the evening but said that she had an important meeting at work the next day and was planning to wear a particular necklace that goes well with her outfit. She normally keeps her jewelry in a special location in her bedroom but the necklace was nowhere to be found. She asked if I could do a chart and give her some advice about where to look. I glanced at my watch and it was 10:17 pm.

Going to the computer, I calculated the chart and was a bit disconcerted to find 0 Leo 01 on the 2nd house cusp (Regiomontanus). Because the 2nd house signifies missing possessions, I wasn’t sure if Cancer (ruled by the Moon) or Leo (ruled by the Sun) should represent the necklace. Here is the chart:

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It was a Sun day during a Venus hour, which seemed appropriate for a question about a missing necklace made of gold. The Sun and the Moon are both “under the Earth,” which is supposed to be an indication of non-recovery.

The querent’s ruler is the Moon (Cancer rising). The necklace is signified by the Sun, ruler of the 2nd house. The Moon does not apply to the Sun, again an argument against recovery. However, if Cancer happened to be on the 2nd cusp, then the Moon would rule both the Ascendant and the missing item, which could show the necklace returning to the querent.

The Moon’s next aspect to a visible planet is a square to Saturn in the 6th. This also looked like an argument against recovery, but then I noticed that the Sun (the necklace) was also applying to Saturn within 21 minutes of arc.  This meant that Saturn would collect the light of the Sun and the Moon, uniting the two — an argument for recovery and rather quickly because the Sun was in the cardinal sign Libra.

For hints about where to look for the necklace I considered the following potential rulers of the missing item:

Sun, ruling the 2nd house, lies in Libra in the 5th house. Libra is an air sign, so it would be above waist height, maybe on a shelf. The 5th is the house of children, and I knew that that querent had a young daughter of pre-school age.
Moon, the general signifier of lost things. Moon in Virgo in the 3rd suggests that the necklace might be in some kind of compartment or container.
Dispositor of the Part of Fortune in Leo takes us back to the Sun in Libra in the 5th.
Venus, the natural ruler of jewelry, lies in Libra in the 4th house, suggesting that it is in the querent’s home. Libra is the sign on the 5th cusp, again suggesting that it may be with a child.

Location of a missing thing is also shown by the placement of the ruler of the 4th house of “burried treasure.” The 4th cusp in Virgo is ruled by Mercury in Libra in the 5th, again suggesting perhaps a shelf in the child’s room.  I was also struck by Mars in the 4th, lying in the midst of the necklace’s significators Moon, Venus and the Sun and thought it might indicate something red.

The querent thanked me and said that she would let me know how it worked out. The next day she informed me that after our phone call she had looked in her daughter’s room. On a shelf where she keeps her toys was a red “play” pocketbook, and inside it was her missing necklace. Apparently her young daughter had gone into her bedroom over that weekend and was playing with her mother’s jewelry. She must have put the necklace into her little red pocketbook and placed it safely on the shelf in her bedroom

Will Roy Moore win the election? Ask the Golden Apples of Hesperides.

Despite mounting allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior, Roy Moore has vowed to remain in the Alabama special election for the U.S. Senate seat in December of this year.  This week an astrologer friend sent me an email with the horary question, “Will Roy Moore win the election?”

This was my response:

I cast a chart for when I read and understood your question: 13 Nov 2017 in Orange, CT at 12:38 PM EST.

18 Aquarius rises with the South Node on the Ascendant, probably reflecting your negative state of mind about the matter.

Roy Moore, a public official, would be signified by the Sagittarius 10th house, ruled by Jupiter, which only has dignity by term.  This seems fitting, given his religious convictions.

The office he seeks is the 10th from the 10th = the Leo 7th, ruled by the Sun.  The Sun has no essential dignity and is separating from Jupiter, suggesting a loss rather than a win.  The Sun in the radical 9th occupies the derived 12th of the 10th house person, so it is in a house of undoing or exile for Moore.

This chart suggests that he will not win.

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I noticed after sending my response that the Part of Infortune or Misfortune (Asc + Mars – Saturn by day) lies at 6 Sagittarius 02, almost exactly on the MC, which symbolizes public officials and specifically Roy Moore in this chart. This Part of Infortune is also called Hermes’ Part of Defects, Infirmities and Accidents. Deborah Houlding mentions this Part of Disease and Defects in her discussion of Al Biruni’s Lots at http://www.skyscript.co.uk/alparts.html#9.

Bonatti attributes onions and apricots to this Part as well; onions make some sense because they cause you to cry, but why apricots? I can venture a guess. In ancient Greece apricots were known as the golden apples of Hesperides. In trying to obtain the golden apples, Heracles tricked Atlas into holding the sky on his shoulders for eternity. I guess having the weight of the world on your shoulders without respite would also be a misfortune and give you something to lament.

I have noticed that in the Spanish astrological literature there is much discussion of El Parte del Infortunio. For example, Segundo Ruiz writes, “el Parte del Infortunio representa un punto de la carta natal donde tenemos mala suerte, dificultades, nos boicoteamos y somos débiles” (the Part of Infortune  represents a point in the natal chart where we have bad luck and difficulties, where we sabotage ourselves and are weak). Its meaning appears to be related to taking the distance from the malefic of the sect of the chart to the malefic of the contrary sect (going from bad to worse) and projecting that difference from the Ascendant. In addition, Saturn rejoices in the 12th House and Mars rejoices in the 6th — these are the two most unfortunate houses in classical astrology, which associates them with illness, infirmities, defects, misfortune, sorrow and undoing.

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Astrology and the Tell Tale Yearbook

The Republican Alabama Senate nominee Roy Moore has been much in the news lately. Several women have accused him of inappropriate sexual advances when they were teenage girls and he was a single man in his 30s. The most recent accusation came from a woman who said that Moore had sexually assaulted her when she was 16 years old.  She was working at the Olde Hickory House Restaurant which he liked to frequent. Moore responded by saying: “I can tell you without hesitation this is absolutely false. I never did what she said I did. I don’t even know the woman. I don’t know anything about her.”

Unfortunately for Moore, the woman accuser has his signature and a loving message, allegedly in Moore’s distinctive handwriting, in her 1977 high school yearbook: “To a sweeter more beautiful girl I could not say ‘Merry Christmas.’ Christmas 1977. Love, Roy Moore, D.A. … Olde Hickory House.” This message made the rounds on Twitter around midday on 13 Nov 2017.

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As you can see, the Yearbook message was dated 22 Dec 1977, and I thought it would be interesting to compare the chart for the message with the chart for its recent notoriety. Since the message is not dated, I used a Noon chart on Dec 22, 1977 in Gadsden, Alabama (inner wheel below). Outside are the transits for the time of the Twitter message posted above.

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What struck me about the transits is that transiting Moon is square transiting Saturn, which is in a close trine with transiting Uranus. A possible delineation would be an unexpected opportunity to confront reality.

Transiting Saturn happens to be almost exactly on the midpoint of Mercury/Venus (25 Sag 44) in the Yearbook chart. Ebertin defines this midpoint as “thoughts of love” and a “love union.” Mercury signifies thinking and communications. Venus is the goddess of love. Transiting Saturn on this midpoint could thus mean confronting reality or facing the consequences of thoughts of love or a love union.

Transiting Mars, in its detriment in Libra, has recently crossed over the Yearbook North Node, which is often connected with our relationships with others. This might be interpreted as needing to deal with stress associated with our relationships, which is also a theme of Mars in Libra.

The comparison of the Solar Arc (SA) directions with the “natal” Yearbook chart is also interesting:

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There is a strong emphasis on planets at 11 degrees of their signs:

SA Saturn conjoins the Yearbook North Node in Libra: confronting reality about our connections with others.
SA Sun, debilitated in Aquarius opposes Yearbook Mars at 11 Leo, which is simultaneously being stimulated by SA Jupiter: an excess of arrogance causes difficulties.
SA Moon is at 11 Cancer but this may not be of much significance because we don’t have an exactly timed radical chart.

Also noteworthy in the Solar Arc chart is that SA Uranus (sudden disruptive events) is almost exactly at the midpoint (25 Sag 44) of Mercury/Venus of the Yearbook chart: expect the unexpected with regard to love unions and thoughts of love.

Horary: Where am I? A tale of the Moon’s Nodes

I had an interesting horary experience today. A colleague and I had agreed to meet in Skype at 10 AM to discuss some charts. She lives in Argentina and was surprised to find that I was not online when she tried to call. Since I am usually very punctual, she became concerned and cast a horary chart to find out what happened to me. The reality was that the United States had switched from Daylight Saving Time to Standard Time last weekend but there had been no time change in Argentina, so I was inadvertently an hour late to our session.  Here is the chart she cast about my whereabouts and well-being.

[image error]Aquarius rises, which seems fitting for two astrologers meeting online to discuss charts. The querent’s ruler is thus Saturn in Sagittarius in the 11th house of friends. She is asking about me, her partner in this endeavor, so my significator is the Sun, ruler of the Leo 7th house. The querent’s ruler Saturn is mutually applying to Uranus, which lies at the end of the 3rd house of communications, suggesting some type of disruption.

The 12th-part of the Ascendant lies in Taurus, which is the querent’s 4th house. She is at home, calling me, and wondering why I am not answering. The ruler of Taurus is Venus in the 10th house (my turned 4th), and I am at home reading in another room and not noticing that she is calling on my computer. Her ruler (Saturn) and my ruler (Sun) are in aversion.  I am not seeing that she is calling, and we are not connecting.

The Sun lies in Scorpio in the radical 10th house, which is my 4th house. This makes sense because I am at home but in another room and away from the computer. The Sun conjoins the Part of Fortune and occupies the same sign and house as both benefics, Venus and Jupiter. Neither Saturn nor Mars, the two malefics, afflict the Sun, so I am in fairly good shape. The Sun is disposed by Mars, which is in mutual reception with benfic and angular Venus, so again there is nothing to worry about.

The Sun is essentially void of course in this chart.  It’s next applying aspect occurs after it leaves Scorpio and enters Sagittarius, where it will conjoin Mercury, which rules the 9th house of long-distance communication. My guess is that the void-of-course Sun represents the fact that I am in another room, reading and making some notes in preparation for the online meeting which I mistakenly think is an hour away. The eventual conjunction with Mercury must signify my finally making contact with my colleague in Argentina after the void-of-course period.

A striking feature of this chart is the almost exact square of the Sun (me) to the Moon’s Nodes which straddle the 1st and 7th houses. A modern convention is to refer to the Sun square the Nodes as the Sun being “at the bendings” of the Nodes, that is, at the points on the moon’s orbit where it switches from north to south, or vice versa. These often represent some sort of crisis period.

Note that the “bends” or “bendings” in the Moon’s orbit are those point which are furthest north or south of the Sun’s path (ecliptic) at which the direction of motion reverses itself. The “bendings” of the Moon are analogous to the solstices of the Sun at which the Sun appears to stop and change direction from north to south, and vice versa. We on Earth experience the solstices as the longest and the shortest days of the year.

One experienced astrologer (Astrojin at Skyscript.co, 5 Nov 2011, 5:42 AM) delineates a planet square the Moon’s node in a horary chart as follows: “When a planet is conjoined to the lunar bendings (squares the nodes), it can mean crisis due to unwelcome change or [that] things will bend in the direction that is away from that which is proper.” I would add that the change may not necessarily be “unwelcome” or “improper” but may simply be something that is unexpected, not customary, or different from the habitual way things have been happening up to that point.

In Western astrology the Moon’s Nodes are often referred to as the Head and Tail of the Dragon. The North Node (Head) is supposedly expansive and of the nature of Jupiter. The South Node, in contrast, is supposedly constricting and of the nature of Saturn. The astrologer  al-Biruni in his Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of Astrology (1027 CE) wrote that the Head of the Dragon is “hot, auspicious, and indicates increase (of property, etc.). The Tail is cold, brings misfortune, and indicates diminution (of wealth, etc.).” William Lilly followed this tradition in his practice of horary astrology.

Olivia Barclay called the Nodes degrees of fatality, which may have been her understanding of Ivy Goldstein-Jacobson’s description of the Nodes as fateful degrees, in the sense that fate or destiny intervenes so that the querent has no say or control over what happens. Apparently this “fatedness” spreads to the degree of the Nodes in all twelve signs of the zodiac.  Ivy went a bit overboard in her description, stating: “Any planet or angle in the same degree as the Nodes points to a catastrophe, casualty, fatality or tragedy in a horary or natal chart, the more far-reaching when a malefic is involved.”

The Vedic tradition treats the Nodes somewhat differently. The North Node, Rahu, swallows the sun and causes eclipses. The time of day governed by Rahu is inauspicious rather than favorable.  The South Node, Ketu, on the other hand, carries with it the idea of spiritual progress, wisdom and non-attachment that results from undergoing suffering and loss. Thus, Ketu is Mars-like and is associated with broken relationships which cause sorrow but bring about release and transformation.

In this horary chart the Sun (my signifier) is applying to a superior square with the South Node, Ketu, in the 1st house (the querent), suggesting some kind of crisis or break in the relationship. Something happens that is unusual or different from what has been the norm. Because the square occurs in the degrees of the Moon’s Nodes, fate or destiny may also be involved, perhaps referring to the time change from DST to EST over which neither the querent nor I had any control. Fortunately we weathered our crisis and managed to speak an hour later than originally planned.  Ivy Goldstein-Jacobson’s warning did not apply; we did not suffer a “catastrophe, casualty, fatality or tragedy” — which goes to show that you need to take what you read in astrology texts with a large grain of salt.