The Fourth Path in Astrology
There are roughly three kinds of astrology.
First of all, there is popular astrology. Many millions of people are interested in the signs of the zodiac and popular forecasts, at least to some degree. The problem is that this kind of astrology is very superficial. I guess most people believe that there is nothing to astrology but those twelve signs.
There is also astrology proper, which I tend to call technical astrology — simply because it is highly technical, indeed. It takes years to learn, and if you are serious about it, it turns into a life-long quest for understanding the complexity of life and Nature. I started my journey in the end of the 1980s, and indeed the more I learn the more I understand the vastness of the subject. There are probably not more than a few tens of thousands of people in the world who can figure out the elements of an astrological chart, and perhaps only a few thousands of those who earnestly pursue this path. The problem of technical astrologers is that they are so isolated. They speak the language that nobody understands, and so their insights and discoveries remain largely unknown.
There is also applied astrology, by which I mean the use of some elements of astrology by the adepts of other esoteric arts, gardeners, and simply wise people interested in the ways of Nature. Many of them don’t even know that what they are using is astrology. I remember a discussion with some alchemists a few years ago: they refused to believe that planetary hours are a part of astrology. The problem of this kind of practitioners is that their practices were usually established at the times when the knowledge of astrology was common among educated people. Now they are only able to understand and use a small part of what is available to them. For example, magicians make use of the planetary hours when working on their amulets and talismans, but most of them don’t know that the strength of a planet can vary considerably depending on a number of factors, which in technical astrology are grouped under the headers of essential and accidental dignities and debilities.
What I am trying to do in astrology is to build bridges. This means:
First of all, there is popular astrology. Many millions of people are interested in the signs of the zodiac and popular forecasts, at least to some degree. The problem is that this kind of astrology is very superficial. I guess most people believe that there is nothing to astrology but those twelve signs.
There is also astrology proper, which I tend to call technical astrology — simply because it is highly technical, indeed. It takes years to learn, and if you are serious about it, it turns into a life-long quest for understanding the complexity of life and Nature. I started my journey in the end of the 1980s, and indeed the more I learn the more I understand the vastness of the subject. There are probably not more than a few tens of thousands of people in the world who can figure out the elements of an astrological chart, and perhaps only a few thousands of those who earnestly pursue this path. The problem of technical astrologers is that they are so isolated. They speak the language that nobody understands, and so their insights and discoveries remain largely unknown.
There is also applied astrology, by which I mean the use of some elements of astrology by the adepts of other esoteric arts, gardeners, and simply wise people interested in the ways of Nature. Many of them don’t even know that what they are using is astrology. I remember a discussion with some alchemists a few years ago: they refused to believe that planetary hours are a part of astrology. The problem of this kind of practitioners is that their practices were usually established at the times when the knowledge of astrology was common among educated people. Now they are only able to understand and use a small part of what is available to them. For example, magicians make use of the planetary hours when working on their amulets and talismans, but most of them don’t know that the strength of a planet can vary considerably depending on a number of factors, which in technical astrology are grouped under the headers of essential and accidental dignities and debilities.
What I am trying to do in astrology is to build bridges. This means:
- Educating those interested in popular astrology, to show them that there is a lot more to astrology than the signs of the zodiac. My most successful project on this path is the Moon Sign Calculator.
- Helping the users of applied astrology to be more proficient in what they are doing. My Astrological Moon Calendar and the Lunar Gardening Calendar are the most successful projects in this direction.
- Showing technical astrologers that astrology doesn’t need to be mindblowingly difficult. There are simple approaches that can be surprisingly productive, and they can be helpful when trying to communicate astrology to the general public. One interesting example of my work in this direction is Atmakaraka Calculator.
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