Magic doesn’t suit everyone. Only those prepared to take full responsibility for themselves should apply.
Peter J. Carroll
Human beings have sought to divine the future since the beginnings of history. The very nature of our humanity, living here on earth, urges us to look beyond where we stand, to look up into the mysteries of the endless stars that adorn the night skies, and to find something greater than the clay beneath our feet.
In a way, we all sense that we come from something more expansive than that which we can see in our daily lives. This sense, transposes itself into a yearning to connect, that seems to become greater with each passing generation, as we move further and further from the “earth” which gave us birth, and which ruled the lives of most of us until the turn of the last century.
In our modern times, in our “New Age Society”, we are all looking for a quick fix, an excuse, a reason, something to blame, something to point the finger at, some understanding, some insight, some knowledge of “why it hurts”; or, in more and more cases it seems, to try to understand further, the nature of our humanity, and what it really means, to be human.
Astrology is the perfect “Holy Grail” for this kind of quest. An ancient and powerful magical art, that looks seductively fetching in the garb of modern science, Astrology masquerades around the fringes of “New Age Spirituality”, courting its advocates with starry promises, and the lure of power. Power over your boss, your lover, your parents, yourself, it can seem to the novice, that if only you could understand the midpoint structure of the fixed stars in your chart, then you would have it, you could understand the rambunctious tangle of your life through the serene and stately web of the heavens.
We can nod sagaciously, and tell our friends that it was this asteroid, or that node, or the “Finger of God” that resonated to the 12th Harmonic, and that that was the reason that our relationships have always failed, or that has attracted such Karmic lessons, or that is the reason that we have suffered abuse, over and over again, despite all of our most strenuous efforts to channel the positive angelic vibrations of the planet Venus. I might complain that my 10th house Saturn always shows up as a dictatorial boss, never mind my overbearing mother, and as for that Sun square Neptune, well isn’t it obvious that that is the reason that I always fall for the same get rich quick schemes? Perhaps its no wonder that I have OCD, with retrograde Mercury in Virgo, and Mars in Libra, sure, I’ll never be able to make up my mind about what I want to do in life!!
Astrology is notorious for attracting people who love order and detail, who like the safety and certainty of values and rules. The degrees and numbers, patterns and cycles, give a “safe” feeling, a sense that if only you can join all the dots up, that you will be able to see yourself, finally, as the perfect work of art that you are.
I have noticed, somewhat worryingly, that recently it has become trendy to talk of “harnessing” the energy of the planets; of invoking the angelic beings that associate with various planets, and to use these energies for one’s own short term gain, as if yoking horses to the proverbial plough in order to till a field…. to do what? to save ourselves the effort of the work????
I often wonder how these projects turn out…. as if there were not evidence enough of planetary action in my life, without inviting more in. I would worry about the balance of power, and whether too much Venus might cause more harm than good, in the absence of a little Mars and a good dose of Saturn.
In my own mind, the planets are not playthings; toy soldiers to be ordered about at the whim of a dictatorial infant, but rather energies that need to be discovered within. “As Above So Below”, the ancient maxim goes, and it is my opinion that no amount of planetary incense burning or candle consecrating will make the blind bit of difference, unless we are able to understand the cycles of time that we are dancing to, on an internal level.
In order to sing in harmony with the stars, we need to be able to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. Blaming the planets for the catastrophe that is our life, is about as childish as trying to blame our baby brother for making us forget to eat our breakfast, and as laughable.
Astrology is a magical and ancient practice, which can shed light on many situations in life. It is a snapshot of the heavens at the time that you were born, and is unique to all those who were born at exactly the same time, in exactly the same place. This seed moment is a promise, a potential, but it is not our destiny….. our choice, is what we make of it.
Joanna-Kate Grant 