Weekly Horary: Should I Go Live in This Ashram?

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Background: The querent is very seriously considering going to live in an ashram in India (definition from zoofence.com: ashram is “a Sanskrit word indicating a spiritual community or any place where seekers meet, presumably for instruction, under the authority or auspices of a guru”).

The querent has been dissatisfied with what he perceived as his materialistic existence and wants to direct his energies in a more spiritual direction. He had visited the ashram twice and was impressed with the charismatic guru who leads and presides over this spiritual community.

Living in the ashram would be a major step for this Westerner, both because he would be entering a hermitage lifestyle and because he would move to a foreign country.

Short Answer: You will do well at the ashram, but with some major caveats. It appears that you currently do not have all the information, or are even a bit blinded by your own expectations. While you probably like the community because the people treat you as an honored guest when you visit, the spiritual values or spiritual direction of the ashram seems to have some problems. Further, the ashram itself seems to be in disrepair on a physical or even more metaphorical level.

The chief concern, however, is the guru/director. He and you do not seem a very good match in terms of forming a positive lifelong relationship. In the near future, you may find that the two of you have some differences, which will lead you to abandon your plan to move there.

Finally, it appears that much of your current anguish comes from hating your job, and the only thing making it more bearable now is that you’re considering leaving. It may be more productive and satisfying to reorient your career course than to make a drastic lifestyle change you could later regret.

Astrology:

1. Will he be happy in the ashram? The Querent’s planets are Saturn and the Moon. The ashram itself is signified by the Ninth House of monasteries, spiritual retreats, and long journeys, and its ruler, Venus. Picking up Saturn and dropping it just inside the 9^th cusp shows us how the Querent will do in the ashram. Saturn is exalted in Libra, and so is quite strong. From this we can see that the Querent is treated with extra respect when he is there, and also feels he can get in touch with his highest (exalted) spiritual urgings when he is there.

2. What is going on with the Querent? He is blinded at the time, and does not have all the necessary information; his significator, Saturn, is combust. Luckily, the Sun is moving away from Saturn, indicating that shortly, the veil will be lifted from the Querent’s eyes and he will see previously hidden information. The Moon is in Venus’s sign and so is very interested in the ashram. Saturn is about to be squared by a very essentially weak Mars in Taurus in the 3^rd house. Mars rules the Querent’s 3^rd and 10^th houses, so we can surmise that the Querent is being harmed by his job and it’s only bearable because he’s considering leaving (Saturn recently left Cancer, the fall of Mars). This issue may be at the heart of the matter and should be addressed before making any major changes.

3. What about the ashram itself? Its ruler is Venus in Virgo in the 8^th house, and as such is dreadfully accidentally debilitated. This transforms a natural benefic into an accidental malefic, implying that there is something very wrong with the ashram, either spiritually or physically. Moreover, Jupiter, the natural ruler of religion, is very weak, is peregrine just inside the 9^th house and is conjunct the South Node. This further shows that the spiritual direction of the ashram is not good, perhaps even perverse in some sense.

4. What about the guru? We can take Mercury as the director of the ashram, since he rules Venus. Fortuitously, Mercury also rules the 10^th house from the 9^th, another symbol of the ashram’s boss. Mercury is peregrine in Leo, is also retrograde, and is under the sunbeams. In short, the guru is very weak, and probably does not have the very best of intentions – Mercury’s notion of honesty is notoriously negotiable, and because it’s peregrine, it tends more toward evil than good. Mercury is in Saturn’s detriment, so the guru harms the Querent. Meanwhile, Saturn is not in Mercury’s dignities, so perhaps the Querent doesn’t care for the guru quite as much as he says. The Moon’s next aspect is a square to Mercury, again with no reception between the two, implying that there may be some difficulties between the Querent and the guru in the near future, and may lead to Querent’s abandoning his plan.

Weekly Horary: The Tryall of a Law Suit

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This is the first week's chart, taken from Lilly's England's Propheticall Merline, Foretelling to all Nations of Europe untill 1663 the Actions depending upon the influence of the Conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter, 1641. Yes, the title is that long. By way of background, it's a neat little booklet, where Lilly shows off his natal, horary and mundane skills in various charts.

First, here's Lilly's take on the chart, in his own words, more or less:
The Moon in Cancer is for the Querent, being Lady of the Ascendant: Saturn, Lord of the seventh is for the Adversary.

Jupiter Lord of the 10. house is Significator of the Judge, with whom Mars hath participation, because placed in the 10.

The Question is easily judged, for according to the strength of the Significators the judgment is determined: If the Lord of the Ascendant be stronger than the Lord of 7. the Querent shall overcome, and to the contrary.

Of this opinion is Guido Bonatus, sol. 273. Ille cujus significator est fortior, debebit obtinere; fortiorerit qui est in angulo maxime in aliqua suarum domorum, viz.

He whose significator is most strong, ought to obtain the better, and he is best dignified that is in an Angle, and in any of his own houses:

Being in this figure the Moon to be in her own house and in the Ascendant, in trine to Mars in the 10. and in Sextile dexter with the Sun, Lord of the second, and part of fortune with the dragons head: I judged the Querent should overcome his enemy, and so he did, Cauda draconis in the 10th.

I said that the judge at the tryall would be angry, and so he was, for the adversaries witnesses knew not what to swear, you see the quesited his significator peregrine, and in his fall; yet in accidentall dignities, prettily fortified, but wanting essentiall, it nothing availeth; whereas the Moon is essentially strong, increasing in light, number and motion.

The Querent was a sanguine complexion Gentleman, of a generous Martiall disposition, big-bon'd, strong, and very discrete.

The defendant was lean and thin bodied, hollow cheekes, sad brown hair, bending forwrd, malitious, willfull, and neither better or worse than a true Saturnine man.

If two go to fight, or to make war, the question is thus resolvedfor the most part, but you are to consider in war, the second house, and the Planets therein, signifie the friends and assistance the Querent shall have on his side; the 8th house, and the Planets therein posited, shew the same for the enemy.

Now if it happen that the Lord of the 2d is Peregrine, weak or unfortunate so shall the friends of the querent be, viz. men that promise much, but not able to performe any thing: if the Lord of the second, out of the 6. 8 or 12th Aspect the Lord of the Ascendant with square or opposition, the Querent shall have no ayde come to him, though he be promised some; and moreover it may be doubted, he or they that promise assistance, will betray the Querent, and yet seeme to be willing to help him, but will in fine do nothing; and this is more certain, if the Lord of the second have any benigne Aspect to, or with the Lord of the 7th, then they wish better to the Enemy than the Querent.

And this, to the everlasting dishonour of some in the world was in August 1644 verified: when the noble Essex was worsted, in not having timely assistance, which I foresaw by the houre of his going out, being exactly taken for me: he that could never be beaten by an Army or Armies of men, was foiled by plaine treachery, under pretence of I know not what parsimony: if men forebear to speak of this, the stones of every street will be transformed into Cryers, and cry aloud for vengeance against the perfidious.

The problem with the interpretation above, though it is astrologically correct, is that it is not entirely logically correct. In the adversarial trial system in the US as in England, it ultimately does not matter who has the better case (shown by the strength of the significators as Lilly does), but rather whom the judge favors.

Here, the judge is Jupiter as ruler of the 10th. It is in Taurus in the 11th house, so in Venus's sign and triplicity. It also exalts the Moon. This judge really, really likes our Querent, who, let's be honest, sounds like bit of a stud muffin. Jupiter is not in any dignities of Saturn, the opponent, so just from this information, we can be pretty sure that our Querent will win.

You want more, eh? All right. What does the opponent want? Well, as Saturn is in strong Sun dignities (exaltation and triplicity), and the Sun rules the Querent's 2nd house of money, it's simple - the opponent wants the Querent's cash. Whom does the money like? The Sun exalts the Moon (Querent), and the Moon recently aspected the Sun. So most likely, the Querent will get the money at issue in the suit, because his money wants to be with him.

So, there you have it. If you're wondering what Lilly was talking about, or how to read his sometimes mystifying prose, see this post (click here).

This article and this retype of Lilly's judgment is (c) 2005 Gryphon Astrology.

Free Horary Questions Answered Here Weekly

Okay, folks, you wore me down (y'all know who you are). Thanks for your enthusiasm. Starting next week (Friday July 29th 2005), I will be answering free horaries on this blog, one per week, more if I can. If I find I get more than one question per week, which has been the case in the past with similar ventures of mine (there was this time I got 38 questions in two days. Wow.), I will just take them first come first served.

This week, I will do one published horary to get the ball rolling, and in the meantime, you can send along your questions to be published next week.

Again, much love to all of you.

PS: That's the one nice thing about an astrology blog. I don't have to sweat blood and have a conniption fit, whatever that is, to update my website every time I want to add something. Aaahhh. The lazy woman's Internet.

Categories: Free Weekly Horary Horoscope.

How to Read William Lilly

Hint: With your wits firmly ensconced about you. Or, to paraphrase the 17th century physician and astrologer Nicholas Culpeper, you must keep your brains in your head where they belong and not in your books.

Let's get this out of the way first: why even read William Lilly's Christian Astrology? Because it is the greatest book on astrology that has been written in the English language. Ever. Whatever you may think of the most recent editions of Neptune or Solar Arcs or that timeless classic, Astrology to Instantly Firm Up, Groom, and Tone Your Karma. Reading CA is guaranteed to turn you into a better astrologer, provided you use some common sense when reading. There can arise an infinite number of charts, each different from the last, and even the most explicit 1-2-3 instructions (on which Lilly tends to skimp, anyway) will not work in all cases.

Reading William Lilly is frequently crazy-making, and it's not because of his archaic language (you should know by now that Lilly's "clown" so often mentioned in CA = our peasant/country bumpkin/hick). Rather, it's because he is not a particularly methodical writer or explainer. Don't get me wrong - he was a truly excellent astrologer. It's just that in the conveying of the information, he would be somewhat stream-of-consciousness. Disorganized, we would say nowadays.

So, how do you read Lilly for pleasure and profit? Since he himself provides no handy manual, here are some necessary steps:

1. Check and recheck that brain is in your head not book. Less messy that way.

2. Get pen & paper.

3. Open your CA, and start writing. Organize Lilly's instructions numerically; break each segment down into an outline. Once you have a good algorithm for a certain operation (e.g. how to tell if it will be a girl or boy in a horary), go and test it out on some charts. As you do this, keep asking yourself at each step, why? Why do we care what the 11th house is doing in a pregnancy chart? (Answer: because in most pregnancies, it takes two, and the 11th house is the 5th house of the partner, who is signified by the Querent's 7th. And it's the partner's kid as much as the Querent's.)

Note that in many if not most chapters, Lilly will give several possible algorithms for a certain operation. In such cases, try to use both when learning, but mainly, be very analytical. Observe what common elements arise among the instruction sets. Then try to figure out why these elements are important.

4. Rinse and repeat, banging head against wall as little as possible.

Good luck, and let me know if you have questions. You can always reach me at nina " at " gryphonastrology.info.

(c) Gryphon Astrology, 2005

Categories: William Lilly, Astrology Books, Houses in Astrology.

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