Astrology is divination
by planets and stars. The Chaldea’s and the Assyrians were the first to
discard their sky gods in favor of a non-deistic system of divination
founded upon astronomy and numerology. It is evident that the Egyptians
knew and used astrology many thousands of years before the time of Christ,
and the earliest Egyptian astrologer mentioned is Petosiris, a priest who
lived during the reign of Nicepsos about 800 BC. In Medieval and
Renaissance Europe both medical and judicial Astrology enjoyed great
popularity and legal support. The principle behind Astrology is that by
studying the position of the planets, their relationships to each other
one can interpret the inner nature of people and situations, and predict
the future course of events. Modern astrology also makes use of the three
outer planets visible only by telescope as well as a number of asteroids.
SIGNS
There are twelve signs of the zodiac, namely,
Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius,
Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces—also known as sun signs.
These twelve zodiac signs represent
conditions or fields of operation, and have no power in themselves. The
signs are thought of as areas of action, and the planets are the action.
Also, no one sign is better or worse, nor more or less evolved than
another. They are all different and unique.
The individual signs achieve their prominence
in an individual astrology chart because of the planets and the lights
(the sun and moon) which lie within them. The attributes held by each sign
are due to its rulership. Each sign is ruled by a planet , and some signs
have a second or co-ruler. The co-ruler has a definite influence on the
particular sign, but not as strong as that of the ruler. Each sign
additionally has characteristics derived from its element, its quality and
its polarity.
ELEMENTS
Fire, earth,
water and air are the four astrological elements, and three signs are
associated with each element giving rise to the term triplicities.
The three fire signs are: Aries, Leo and
Sagittarius.
The three earth signs are: Taurus, Virgo and
Capricorn.
The three water signs are: Cancer, Scorpio
and Pisces.
The three air signs are Gemini, Libra and
Aquarius.
QUALITIES
The three
qualities in astrology are cardinal, fixed and mutable. Four signs share a
quality:
Cardinal signs are Aries, Libra, Cancer and
Capricorn.
Fixed signs are Taurus, Scorpio, Leo and
Aquarius.
Mutable signs are Gemini, Sagittarius,
Virgo and Pisces.
Qualities of the cardinal modality are:
skillful - beginning, initiating,
originating, enterprising, direct and active;
unskillful – impatient, dissatisfied, does
not finish what it starts, forceful.
Qualities of the fixed modality include:
skillful - stabilizing, focused, resolving,
constant, determined;
unskillful - stubborn, rigid, obsessed,
stuck.
Qualities of the mutable modality include:
skillful - adaptable, flexible, adjustable,
changing, versatile;
unskillful - scattered, unfocused,
inconsistent, indecisive and unfinishing.
THE PLANETS
The Sun, Moon, Mercury,
Venus, mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto are the astrological
planets.
The planets provide the power, the energy and
the principles while the signs are the areas, circumstances and conditions
through which they operate.
Planets are colored by the signs they are in,
as well as by that sign's ruler and co-ruler. When a planet is in the sign
that it rules, it is said to be in dignity, and when it is in the opposite
sign, it is in its detriment.
THE HOUSES
The horoscope's
division into twelve segments - the twelve houses - represents the twelve
departments of life:
The First House
The First House takes its meaning for the
ascendant and represents the self, the people and their behavior. It is
linked to Aries.
The Second House
The Second House represents all financial
affairs, desires for stability, constructive talents, financial
independence and values. It is linked to Taurus.
The Third House
The Third House represents travel,
communications, trade, the media, the mind, writing, intellectuals,
education, ideas, relatives and speech. It is linked to Gemini.
The Fourth House
The Fourth House represents
home, family, ethnic pride, the land, wealth, the
personal and national soul. It is linked to cancer.
The Fifth House
The Fifth House represents self-expression,
youth, romance, pleasures, financial speculation, sports, games, children,
royalty and nobility. It is linked to Leo.
The Sixth House
The Sixth House represents public health,
work, service industries, civil and military service, labor unions,
employees, charities and welfare. It is linked to Virgo.
The Seventh House
The Seventh House rules international
relations, politics, war, disputes, legal affairs, marriage, divorce,
contracts and public scandal. It is linked to Libra.
The Eighth House
The Eighth House rules financial dealings,
corporations, taxes, insurance, mortgages, communes, stock markets and
debts. It stands for death, rebirth, renewal and the occult. It is linked
to Scorpio.
The Ninth House
The Ninth House rules foreign affairs, trade,
distant travels, higher education, philosophy, the law, the courts, the
church and prophecy. It is linked to Sagittarius.
The Tenth House
The Tenth House stands for the government,
the executive and public life. It is linked to Capricorn.
The Eleventh House
The Eleventh House represents group
cooperation, idealistic associations, government finance, social programs,
theater, friends, profitable inventions and hopes for the future. It is
linked to Aquarius.
The Twelfth House
The Twelfth House rules karma, secret
enemies, prisons, monasteries, hospitals, spirituality, exile, and the
search for self-renewal. It is linked to Pisces.
