Arabic lots – spiritual components of the natal chart (part one)

By definition, Arabic lots represent astrological factors found by mathematical calculations that include three other factors in the horoscope such as planets or angles. The distance between the two factors is added to the third (usually the ascendant), thus obtaining the position of a certain Arabic lot. It is one of the most important astrological concepts, although the most mysterious. The lots are thought to be more closely related to the spiritual part of human existence, so they are ascribed deeper meanings in the interpretation of the natal chart topics. In Hellenistic astrology, they were primarily used to give additional meanings to signs and houses in the interpretation of certain topics in the chart, e.g. if the lot of marriage falls into the second house and Scorpio, that house and its ruler add some significations concerning marriage, although these places would not be observed in connection with the said subject in some ordinary procedure. Furthermore, in practical terms, lots could also be regarded as that third point that astrologers would interpret in the context of a particular natal chart topic, such as offspring, marriage, career, etc. The first step would be to analyze a suitable planet, such as Venus concerning marriage. Then the respective house and its ruler would be considered, in this case, that would be the seventh house, and finally, the third step would be to analyze the appropriate lot, in this example, the lot of marriage. This is also implicit in the “threefold rule”, that is, if something is indicated in one area of ​​life through only one of these three factors, then the outcome is possible, if two factors point to the same, then the outcome is probable, and if confirmed through all three, then the outcome is certain. By far the most famous is the lot of Fortune, also known as the lot of fate, but there are innumerable lots and it can be said that they flourished in medieval astrological practice. But the topic of this two-part study are seven hermetic lots, with special reference to the four lots that Hellenistic astrologer Vettius Valens pointed out as the most important, namely the aforementioned Fortuna, Spirit, Eros (Love), and Necessity, and these are dealt in detail in the part two.

Arabic lots originate from the Babylonian astrological concept of the relationship between the Sun and Moon through the arc of the longitudinal distance between them projected from the point of the horizon (Ascendant). Although some claim that their origins are Egyptian, it seems that, like everything in astrology, two basic astrological factors have been derived and conceived from this original order. In contrast to their commonly known name, Arabic lots have been developed methodologically for the most part in Hellenistic astrology. The Arabs added a large number of new ones to this method while retaining Greek heritage. Arabic lots serve for deeper natal analysis and to uncover the intrinsic meaning of the horoscope. The seven basic Arabic lots are the points of the soul, or those pillars of the soul, derived by analogy from the seven planets of the horoscope. These seven planets are related to Pythagoras’ numerical week and even earlier before him, with dualistic ancient Persian Mithraism, that is, Persian mysteries of the sevenfold initiation of worship, as well as the seven steps of the fall of the soul, which, on the way to the earthly embodiment, passes through 7 planetary spheres and to ascend through them back to one of the four celestial gates after death: Aldebaran – east, Regulus – north, Antares – west and Fomalhaut – south, which are therefore referred to as the royal stars and guardians of the heavenly gates. Plato’s interpretation of the fall (descent) of the soul seems to be inspired by the Persian mysteries. Plato speaks of the eighth sphere, the sphere of the stars, that is, the zodiac, which is considered to be the place where souls originate from and from which everyone, individually, on its journey to Earth, passes through seven planetary spheres in the Chaldean order from Saturn to the Moon. On this journey, the soul is enriched by each sphere, endowed (blessed) with the pure planetary essence of each planetary principle, which is more or less corrupted by earthly incarnation. After the death, the soul ascends in the reverse order of the journey (from the Moon to Saturn) to purify itself from earthly flaws through each sphere individually according to the type of flaw (about them later). The more it rises through the spheres and the cosmic purification, the soul becomes easier and purer to enter the eighth sphere of bliss perfected. Aristotle adopted this theory from his teacher. St. Thomas Aquinas, a worshiper of Aristotle, was familiar with this theory of the connection between soul and planet. There is speculation that this theory is closely related to the seven virtues and the seven deadly sins of Christian theology. The first three virtues: hope, faith, and mercy are known as theological virtues, while the other four (wisdom, steadfastness, temperance, and righteousness) are called natural virtues. These virtues are thus related to the planetary virtues and vices so that we have:

 

Planet Virtue Sin
Moon Hope Gluttony
Sun Faith Pride
Mercury Wisdom Envy
Venus Mercy Lust
Mars Courage Rage
Jupiter Temperance Greed
Saturn Justice Laziness

 

Virtues and sins are thus brought into correlation with the lots of the soul. This is especially notable if we observe that each planet has its “own” lot. Specifically, in Chapter 23 of his „Introduction to Astrology“, Paulus of Alexandria presented a method of calculating seven lots that are related to traditional planets, while citing the work known as “Panaretus”, whose authorship is associated with Hermes Trismegistos. These are called “hermetic lots”. In the picture below you can also see the method of calculating these points (all distances are projected from the ascendant):

 

arabic lots
Arabic Lots calculation table

 

The first thing that we can see here is that only the lots of Fortune and Spirit are calculated based on the distance between the luminaries (Sun and Moon), while in other cases, the lots are calculated from the distance between the corresponding planet and either the lot of Fortune or the lot of Spirit or vice versa. When it comes to this calculation, and in connection with the foregoing, we can observe certain important hermetic principles that are coming to light here. First, the ratio in these calculations seems to take into account the ruling luminary, or luminary of the sect. Thus we see that the calculation for the lot of Fortune always starts from the ruling luminary to the other, that is, in day births (where the Sun is the ruling luminary), this lot is calculated by measuring the distance from the Sun to the Moon, that is, the starting point is the Sun, whereas at night births it is the Moon, as the ruling luminary. Such a measurement seems to imply the idea of ​​moving from light to darkness since the calculation literally moves from a dominant luminary at certain times of day or night to the luminary that is somehow obscured at the time observed. This can be related to a deeper hermetic conceptualization that darkness is associated with matter and physical incarnation. In contrast, we see that the math for the lot of Spirit is opposite, that is, it always starts with the luminary that is opposite to the ruling sect, or to the luminary that is dominant at a given time – i.e. from the Moon to the Sun in day births. This also implies a hermetic relation of light with spirit and intellect.

Some other patterns can be observed concerning other lots. As it can be seen in the diagram above, lots associated with positive significations, such as the lot of Eros and the lot of Victory (Jupiter), are both calculated from the lot of the Spirit. The others, which have negative implications, are calculated from a lot of Fortune. It is obvious, then, that the lots of the benefic planets are related to the concept of spirit and light, and therefore to the lot of the Spirit, while the lots of malefic are linked to the concept of darkness and matter, and hence to the lot of Fortune. It seems possible that these assignments were made simply due to the apparent brightness of each of the planets involved, with Venus and Jupiter being the two brightest visible planets, and Mars and Saturn being the darker visible planets.

It is also interesting to note that some lots are calculated from the lot (Spirit or Fortune) to the planet, and some from the planet to the lot, both in the day or night nativities. The possible rationale behind this may again have something to do with the dominant luminary. Namely, the lot of Spirit is also called the lot of the Sun, and the lot of Fortune is considered as the lot of the Moon. As we can see, during the day, the lots of Venus and Jupiter are calculated from the lot of Spirit towards Venus and Jupiter, respectively, or vice versa at night. The concept behind this comes from the principle that the Sun is the one that emits light by day, so his lot assumes the same principle, while at night it behaves more closely to the nature of the Moon, that is, it receives light. In other words, this calculation is based on which of the two luminaries is more dominant in the calculation for lot of Spirit. Therefore, in day births the calculation moves from the lot of the Spirit towards the corresponding planet, imitating the principle of emitting light similar to the Sun, while in night births this calculation will go from the planet to the lot, which now plays the role of “recipient” since the Moon is a dominant luminary. This applies only to these two points since it’s only them that include the lot of the Spirit. However, the same principle seems to apply to the lots that include the Lot of Fortune. As in the daytime, the Moon is the dominant luminary in calculating the Lot of Fortune, and just like the lot of the Moon is opposite to the dominant luminary, the Sun, it acts as the recipient of the light, so the calculation starts from the planet towards Fortune. At night, when the Moon is the ruling luminary and the Sun is the dominant planet in the calculation of the Lot of Fortune, Fortuna is the one that “emits” light, so the calculation goes from it to the corresponding planet. We will return to these observations when we talk about the lots of Eros and Necessity mentioned by Valens, which are calculated differently than described here.

Since the lots calculation methods are given in the diagram above, in the rest of the text we will focus on the description of enumerated hermetic lots according to Paulus of Alexandria:

Paulus connects the lot of Fortune with the Moon and points out that it signifies the body, the things that native does to acquire possessions, reputation, and privileges.

As stated, the lot of the Spirit is connected with the Sun, hence it signifies the soul, intelligence, the exercise of all power (dunasteia), and is sometimes relevant in determining the career of the native or his profession (praxis).

The lot of Eros is associated with Venus and signifies desire and appetites as well as friendships and services.

The lot of Necessity associated with Mercury signifies restrictions, oppression, fighting, wars, hostilities, hatred, condemnation, and other limiting circumstances.

The lot of Courage is associated with Mars, thus denoting boldness, betrayal, strength (or raw power) and all evil deeds.

The lot of Victory is associated with Jupiter, thus signifying faith, good hope, competition, all kinds of benevolence, enterprise, and success.

The Lot of Nemesis is related to Saturn, so it refers to the ghosts of the underworld, things that are hidden, weakness, sadness, and the quality of death.

 

Izvori korišćeni u tekstu:

  • Chris Brennan – Hellenistic Astrology: The study of Fate and Fortune
  • Chris Brennan –  The Theoretical Rationale Underlying the Seven Hermetic Lots
  • Robert Zoller – Arabic parts in Medieval Astrology (a lesson from DMA course)
  • Nataša Karalić Koprivica – traditional astrology blog link

 

Age of Aquarius – part two

In the previous text, we have considered the Age of Aquarius from the perspective of religion, mythology and esoteric philosophy, now it’s time to look at the astrological connotations regarding this issue. At the outset, it is worth considering the traditional astrological symbolism of the Aquarius zodiac sign. First, it should be said that Aquarius is a male, airy, fixed, hot and moist sign of human and Western symbolism. It symbolizes high places, roofs, eaves. It has a light blue color. In terms of the west, it may be significant to notice that religions and mystery schools have been saying that the Messiah will appear in the west.

The symbolic emblem of Aquarius is the aquifer, who is, while kneeling, pouring the water he brings in the act of humble service. Although classified as an air sign by its elemental qualities, Aquarius is, in many respects, considered a “forgotten” water sign, its very name indicates this connection to water, and ultimately it draws many of its symbolism from the aquifer’s spout. But this symbolism of the free flow of water has little to do with the ever-burdening ocean of the psyche displayed by the signs of water triplicity, but in this act it seeks to purify, enlighten, and clarify. The floods that followed the culmination of this sign and seasonal change were seen by the ancients as periods of refreshment, when the earth, again baptized, would be cleansed of sin. The month of February was named in honor of the purification ceremonies that would take place during the passage of the Sun through Aquarius (Latin: Februa = purify + auris = pertaining to), when society’s attention would be focused on purifying home, body and soul. After the cleansing, we are restored, so this classic symbolism also captures the element of youth and innocence through the identification of the aquifer with Ganymede, whose gentleness and beauty captivated Zeus, as we saw earlier.

In traditional astrological sources, we come across the following descriptions of  Aquarius:

aquarius
The symbol of Aquarius

Vettius Valens says that „Aquarius is the celestial sign which is masculine, solid, anthropomorphic, somewhat damp, single. It is mute, quite cold, free, upward-trending, feminizing, unchanging, base, with few offspring, the cause of troubles arising from athletic training, carrying burdens, or work in hard materials, an artisan, public. Men born under this sign are malicious, haters of their own families, incorrigible, self-willed, deceitful, tricky, concealing everything, misanthropic, godless, accusers, betrayers of reputations and the truth, envious, petty, occasionally generous (because of water flow), uncontrollable.“ (Anthologies, Book I)

The astrological influences of the constellation given by Manilius:

“The youthful Waterman, who from upturned pot pours forth his stream, likewise bestows skills which have affinity with himself: how to divine springs under the ground and conduct them above, to transform the flow of water so as to spray the very stars, to mock the sea with man-made shores at the bidding of luxury, to construct different types of artificial lakes and rivers,” and to support aloft for domestic use streams that come from afar. Beneath this sign there dwell a thousand crafts regulated by water. Why, water will even set in motion the face of heaven and the starry habitations, and will cause the skies to move in a novel rotation. Never will the sons of Aquarius grow tired of the works which come in the wake of water and follow springs. They who issue from this sign are a gentle sort and a lovable breed, and no meanness of heart is theirs; they are prone to suffer losses; and of riches they have neither need nor surfeit. Even thus doth the urn’s stream flow” [Astronomica, Manilius, 1st century AD, book 4, p.243.]

Firmicus Maternus in „Mathesis“:

“If the ascendant is in Aquarius, whatever the native attains will be lost and ruined; whatever he seeks he will lose again, but whatever he has lost he will regain easily. He will do favors for many and help them with means of subsistence, but they will always be ungrateful. He will be in great danger so that his life is despaired of, but he will be freed by protection of the gods. Many men will attack him with fierce hatred. He will work with divine or religious writings and will be known to many for his good deeds. ”

Abraham Ibn Ezra:

“Aquarius is one of the air signs, male and day, moderate in the group of winter signs, immobile, its ascension hours shorter than normal (short ascension), tilted on the ecliptic. Its nature is warm, moist and destructive, symbolizing the air that destroys everything that is alive and exterminates. A man born under this sign will be low in stature, with a large head and one foot larger than the other. He is generous, attractive and confident, and his only ambition will be to increase his wealth. He will either be impotent or with few or no children. Born in the first face (decan) of this sign, he will have a beautiful face and body, with a scar on his chest and will be refined. Born in the second face, he will be tall and ugly and have a scar on his back and below the elbow. Throughout his entire life he will be miserable. The one who is born in the third decan of this sign will be low but attractive and will be lover of women (will be craving). At the very end of the sign, a man will be inconsistent in his appearance and actions… ”

To understand Aquarius, we can hardly do anything better than take the other three kerubic signs and harmonize them. The Aquarian has all their powers and qualities to some extent, but never to excess. He has the kindness of Taurus without its blind devotion, the courage of Leo without his combative and challenging qualities, the scientific spirit of Scorpio without the passionate intensity. Aquarius is essentially the all-round man. One cannot put one’s finger upon a definite lack in his character, and at the same time, one cannot say that he markedly excels in any feature save that of being armed at all points.

As we can see, the descriptions vary a lot, which partially complicates our task of putting them in the context of the Age and its peculiarities that we are talking about. Nevertheless, the interpretation of Robert Zoller, one of the leading astrological authorities, especially from the point of view of its esoteric essence, can certainly help us here, which interpretation we find to be the most complete. Therefore, Zoller notes the following:

During the Piscean Age, the benefic Jupiter ruled the angles. Jupiter ruled both Pisces on the 1st and Sagittarius on the 10th, and thus, while there was confusion of hierarchical religious institutions and political institutions and while this inevitably led to hypocrisy, the Age was nevertheless one in which truth and philosophy mattered to men. The Piscean Age will, as this Aquarian Age unfolds, be seen as a halcyon period of semirespite from the essentially malefic and spiritually destructive nature of life.

In the Aquarian Age the malefics once again rule the angles and with them returns the natural severity of worldly life. Where once the religions of the Age south to embody the City of God in early hierarchies, the New Order will seek to perfect the Machiavellian political philosophy that “its better to be feared than loved if one cannot be both.

The Novus Ordo Saeculorum, the New Order of the Ages, will rule through the power of life and death (Scorpio, which is on the 10th), through behaviour modification, cloning, genetic engineering, mind control and the occult. Might makes right in this New Age. If the preceding Age produced metaphysical materialists, who duped the people through the opiate of religion, the New Age will produce materialist metaphysicians who will make the preceding political power elites look like inept apprentices.

In the Age of Aquarius, religion will be humanistic love of fairness and justice. While feeding the people with Libran platitudes, the Scorpionic rulers will work tirelessly toward the realization of their goal – absolute power over others, as Leo is seen in position on the 7th house. The will of the people will be towards freedom of expression (Aquarius), and they will be encouraged to do their own thing so that they keep their minds off what their rulers do.

Scorpio rules through oligarchic power elites who manage to be seen in the light they wish to be seen in. This means capturing to the utopian hopes of the people: offering them the collective doctrines such as socialism (not necessarily Marxism, but in one of its many guises). Extreme brands of Fabian communism and new versions of communism have merged with technocratic, scientific socialisms to produce a new strain of sociopolitical reality in which it is often impossible to discern left from right. These changes have been apparent since the 1990s and will continue. The west, as was so tragically shown on September 11th 2001, is increasingly coming into conflict with the traditional values predominating in the east. We will see this conflict intensify until the dialectic brings a proper resolution.

The family will be considered property, and in the great selfless movement to come, great pressures will be put upon the population to dissolve family completely. So great will be the pressure that in some cases familial connections will have to be kept secret. Those who are able to maintain the blood bond (in all its various manifestations) will be in a position to wield extraordinary power temporally, economically, and politically. These groups will give rise to certain secret societies, which will quietly cultivate the traditional values and institutions until the 2160 year dark age is passed. These secret societies, or secret families, as indicated by the earthy triplicity Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn – especially Taurus and Capricorn – will be the only direct route to the traditional Prisca Theologica, the true, secret, esoteric tradition, since ten signs from Capricorn brings us to Libra. This indicates the area in which the activities of these groups will be felt, in the 9th house, where they will be surreptitiously supplanting the official party line regarding religion, or more properly philosophy. The word religion will be offensive to the humanistic emphasis of the Age.

We cannot forget, however, that Saturn, ruler of Aquarius, is exalted in Libra and that in the Aquarian Age Libra will be on the 9th house. Thus there will be strong drives among Men during the Aquarian Age for 9th house teachings. The emphasis will be for the most part humanistic, for the preference for ancient forms in Aquarius and Saturn will preserve the ancient teachings, even though other forces in society will, as we have said, seek to suppress them.

Thus, the Aquarian Age, while not a dualistic Age, will nevertheless be intrinsically one in which the battle between spirit and matter will go on as never before. The opportunities for perfection, (Saturn as ruler of the 1st and exalted in the 9th) will be greater than ever, and the obstacles due to the doubt inherent in the Air signs. Aquarius, for instance, in an Air sign, and in the libertinism of the Age will also be greater than ever. Social interaction will be philosophic (Sagittarius is on the cusp of the 11th house). Groups of friends discussing and studying philosophical subjects should be a common enough occurrence that, occasionally, one will find some who seriously approach the teaching, (Sagittarius – three signs from Libra and from the archetypical 9th house). Many social groups will centre on the athletic activities, which are also Sagittarian.

Money will be seen as a means for satisfying one’s sensual drives and fantasies (Pisces on the 2nd), as well as providing emotional security, specifically as a means of escaping from the unpleasantness of the world. The co-rulership of Jupiter of the 2nd and the 11th points to income being a more important means to social selection than at present, despite the apparent universal socialism of the Age.

Knowledge will be valued only insofar as it leads to the ability to wage war and destroy, because Aries is on the 3rd house. In fact, the cultivation of knowledge as a source of military power will eventually lead to a secret means of altering and controlling such things as earthquakes and the Earth itself, even the core. This knowledge will be held by secret societies and eventually leads to a new socio-political system far more earthbound than the Capricornian Age after the year 4320.

As the Aquarian dream of humanistic science and universal brotherhood is a vision of the world to come in Pisces, and realized in Aquarius, so too, the Aquarian avant-garde will look forward to an Aquarian Golden Age on the one hand, while the Aquarian technocrats will look for a world corporation to fossilize society into a rigid caste system run technologically. Elements are already working for this, but, while it may be realized to some degree in Aquarius, the Age being essentially rebellious will deny it and present innumerable obstacles to its completion until the Age of Capricorn.

The danger in Aquarius is the abuse of knowledge and science, not of industry and trade.“

age of aquarius
Richard Moult – The Exile’s Song

We can already testify to many aspects that indicate that this famous Aquarian era will not be as colorful and beautiful as the descriptions that are often encountered suggest, because one cannot neglect the fact that it is an era dominated by the essential malefic. However, it is true that Saturn is slightly different in Aquarius, it is its main house and the place he most rejoices in, so it has more intellectual qualities here. Aquarius is the sign of the highest intellectual abstractions and achievements, and in it Saturn gives an intelligent, very stable and rational nature capable of understanding the most difficult intellectual problems, and as such is more scientific, and therefore this rapid development of science and technology is not surprising. But we are also fearful as to where is all that development leading us , because robotics, genetic engineering and the like are leading towards the creation of a mass of obedient robots and dehumanization. Yet, when we recall Saturn’s symbolism, we see that it also symbolizes all those who are humble and withdrawn, persistent, serious and devoted to science, symbolizing orphans, eunuchs, monks, ascetics and sages, magicians and those who practice magic and those who know the secrets and who convey the secret knowledge. It represents our grandparents, symbolizes long life and longevity, the elderly, and in the night charts it represents native’s father. The reference I find most intriguing is about those who know the secrets and pass on the secret knowledge, since Saturn is the planet of esoteric philosophy, and especially in nativities that have this planet as almutem figuris. I particularly find this evident in the airy Aquarius, which is also one of the best positions for Mercury. Consequently, and as Hall correctly observes, the Sun assumes the symbolism of the sign of precession, and therefore its divine form, so it is to be expected that this time will bring some new symbolic synthesis of science and religion, or spirituality, that complement each other. This is especially notable when we consider fanaticism of science as the antithesis of religion, so it is only logical that, according to the old dialectical formula: thesis-antithesis = synthesis, some new science and spirituality will emerge, which will be the paradigm of this new age. Something like this can already be observed in theories of quantum mechanics, parallel universes, and the like that are increasingly gaining scientific ground, while dealing with those unfathomable segments we traditionally regard as god. On the other hand, in this theological and symbolic sense, Saturn indeed represents Satan, and in many ways his age is already here, but we cannot say that this new age entirely can go into such heavy materialism and self-indulgence, since these conditions are a kind of antithesis to centuries long  religious suppression. Ultimately, I believe that in the future, in this new age, science will evolve towards the development of cosmic potential and the conquest of the Cosmos, but not through a purely empirical and over-obsolete scientific method that is fundamentally materialistic, but through a new method by which we will attain parallel universes, thus developing our potentials and awareness for a new evolutionary leap, which is certainly the Cosmic destiny of humanity. The Age of Aquarius will indeed give us unprecedented opportunities to attain spiritual liberation, purification toward enlightenment, but nevertheless, as astrologers, we cannot ignore the darker, sinister, and malefic forces of the planet Saturn that will be in operation during this period. Moreover, I think we will witness a dystopian future in at least one period, but there are still enough indicators to hope that we will be able to direct our evolution toward the vision described above, even if we have to go through the already described technocratic tyranny.

From these two texts we have been able to gain enough interesting insights into the characteristics of this new age, whose outlines we can clearly recognize in the present, so we have yet to determine when this new age comes, which we will deal with in the third part of this series of texts.