Astrology Beginners Course.doc

Astrology. Beginners course by Dr. Walter Coleman and Prof. Thomas Coleman

LESSON NO. I

I. Introduction

   Astrology is a science - not an orthodox, material one - but a science that is based on centuries of observation and thought. In order to learn astrology, you will have to study, think, ponder and study some more.

   Astrology is like many other sciences. It is not difficult, but it takes time and patience to learn the accumulated knowledge of thousands of years. Do not despair, the rewards will be great. You will find, as you progress through the course, a rising sense of personal worth and accomplishment, a feeling that - perhaps for the first time - the world has meaning and value. You will discover that there is much more to the sun than just having a place in it. And you will know why.

II. Study Plan

   Proper study should be planned. The stars may have planned your destiny, but they're not going to tell you when and how to study. Pick a specific time of day and adhere to it. Tell yourself you are going to devote so many hours - at least one - each day to this course, come what may. Be realistic, too. Don't, for example, tell yourself that you're going to get up an hour early each day and study if you know that you just can't do it. And don't plan on studying on Friday and Saturday nights if you know you will want to go out. Make a plan you know you can follow. If you do, you won't "cut class" and get discouraged.

Materials: Fortunately, astrology doesn't require a lot of expensive tools or gadgets. Your brain is the main tool and you will have to use it a lot. There are certain charts which you will need in future lessons. You will need pencils, pens, a ruler, protractor, and compass - the kind that you can draw circles with.

   A stock market analyst is contemplating advising a client on the purchase of a well known stock. The analyst takes the firm's financial information down from the shelf and studies the tables. He then makes careful notes of the time and place the company was incorporated and he figures out the firm's astrological chart. He will also do the same with the charts of the principal's in the firm. Last, he looks over a quarterly news letter that gives an overall picture of the Dow Jones stocks for the next few months. Then he makes his decision.

   A psychiatrist expectantly awaits a patient who has been threatening suicide. The analyst must be especially cautious this session because he is certain that if the patient is seriously contemplating suicide he will attempt the act within the next week. This crucial period of the person's life is discerned not from what the patient says but strictly from what an Astrologer has read in the patient's horoscope. The psychiatrist has carefully consulted the Astrologer and is basing his professional opinion on what the patient's horoscope holds.

   A young couple have decided that they are serious enough to entertain the plans for matrimony. They realize that the time and date will be the most important time of their lives. They consult a well known reliable Astrologer and after erecting and comparing their charts he advises them on the most favorable time to commence their marriage.

   The potential uses for Astrology are endless. Once you have mastered the intricacies of Astrology you will be equipped to offer people assistance with every single move they make. The beauty of the astrological method is swiftly gaining influence.

Where to Study: You don't need any special place to study but it is important to select a place where you can have peace and quiet. You will have to do some solid thinking, and interruptions and noise will certainly not be conducive to that. You should have a desk or a table, at least where you can lay out your work and charts that demonstrate the meanderings of the planets.

   Got everything? Then let's get started!

III. Astrology Defined and Defended

   The word "astrology" comes ultimately from two Greek words - "astron" meaning "star" and "logos" meaning "discourse." Merriam-Webster defines it as "1. Practical astronomy. 2. The pseudo science which treats of the influences of the stars upon human affairs, and of foretelling terrestrial events by their positions and aspects."

   Now, Merriam-Webster makes good dictionaries and the definition is a good one except for one word "pseudo." That word is defined in the same dictionary as "sham; feigned; spurious."

   Let's tackle this problem right away because you're going to hear the same thing from some of your relatives and friends.

   From the time of the Industrial Revolution, with its technological focus on man, it has been regarded as smart and fashionable to think of anything that was not materialistic in outlook as "sham; feigned; spurious." Science would answer all man's questions and cure all his problems. Well, it hasn't happened and it never will.

   It is true that astrology is not as much of a slave of the "scientific method" as physics and chemistry are. It is also true that astrology has more than its fair share of quacks and charlatans and that there were many dark years when astrology was in disrepute. It was during those years that Merriam Webster and others casually referred to astrology as being "pseudo," as if there wasn't even another side to the story.

   All that has changed, however, and it is certain that dictionaries will delete the prejudicial "pseudo" from the definition in forthcoming editions. Let's look at the facts.

   The respected science of astronomy was at one time a branch of astrology, which was broken down into four divisions:

Natural Astrology: The study of the motion of the heavenly bodies and their effects upon earth such as earthquakes) weather, etc.

Judicial Astrology: Nations and governments as they are affected by celestial bodies.

Genethliacal Astrology: Pertaining to birth or "genesis."

Horary Astrology: Applying astrology to some specific question of the moment - of the "hour" ("hora" is Latin for "hour")

   Natural Astrology became Astronomy while Judicial and Horary Astrology have become specialities of certain astrologers. Genethliacal has blossomed into the more popular and easier-to-pronounce "Natal Astrology". This course covers all branches but concentrates on Natal.

   Astronomy isn't the only science connected with astrology. Hippocrates, the founder of medical science and author of the famous physicians' oath, was an astrologer. Copernicus learned his basic science at an astrology school founded by the King of Poland. Ptolemy and Sir Isaac Newton were astrologers. Mark Twain estimated the period in which his own death might occur by astrology, and it did.

   In our day there has been a tremendous rebirth of interest in - and corresponding respect for - astrology. Our space program verified many of the cosmobiological claims of astrology. The discovery of electro-magnetic forces within the human body and the same forces in the atmosphere have revived "respectable" scientific theories that there may be a connection between the forces in our bodies and the influences of the heavenly bodies. After all, our bodies are 80% water. If the moon can influence the water in the ocean, why not in our bodies? Sunspots cause changes in the weather, why not in us? The sun warms vast bodies of water and, as we all know, the human body is mostly water.

   It has recently been determined that an electric charge sent into a human cell will be emitted in a distinct wave pattern. Each human cell is 80% water. They are all being continuously exposed to electric waves from outer space as well as the moon and the sun. Current research shows that a cancerous cell emits a different wave pattern than a healthy cell!

   A two year study by the: police, hospitals and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, observed human reactions to the phases of the moon. Part of the report states: "Crime against the person seem to increase as the night of the Full Moon draws near. People whose anti-social behavior has psychotic roots (firebugs, kleptomaniacs and homicidal alcoholics) seem to go on a rampage as the Moon turns full, and remember the moon is only refracting sunlight to the earth when we are on the dark side of the sun. They calm down when the Moon begins to crescent."

   A Northwestern University professor performed an extremely interesting and now well known experiment showing the moon's influence on oysters. Dr. Frank Brown, a biologist, transferred a shipment of oysters from New Haven, Conn. to Evanston, III., where he immersed them in a tank of sea water. For two weeks they opened and closed their shells in rhythm with the tides at New Haven. Then a strange thing happened, in spite of the fact that the nearest ocean was 500 miles away, the oysters began to open and close in time to the tides that would have existed if there were an ocean in Illinois. Since there were no actual tides in Illinois, it was clear that the moon, itself caused the oysters to react in this manner. It is not in the province of astrology to explain why this happened. The astrologer says that the moon had an effect upon the oysters and that is all. The moon is just one of the celestial bodies, and oysters are living organisms.

   Astrology is gaining worldwide acceptance and from all indications this new found interest in the Astrological method will continue to increase. Surprisingly, much of this new found interest is among Europeans who once would have mocked the notion that celestial bodies influence human affairs.

   The study of the stars as a guide to behavior, personality and a way of life is receiving its most serious appraisal since it was swept off the shelf of respectable divisions of learning, during the first few hundred years A.D. Not long ago, Astrology was strictly a study for the untutored and anyone with a lot of spare time on their hands. Now, however, it has attracted many educated people and it is even a subject of university debate.

   Most striking is that thousands of well educated Frenchmen, Germans and other Europeans regularly consult Astrologers or cast their own horoscopes without displaying the least bit of sheepishness about admitting it. France's president, Georges Pompidou readily confessed at a recent press conference that he follows the prophecies of his country's most renouned Astrologer, Madame Solei, with deep interest. At least one prominent French politician is reliably said to consult his Astrologer before making important public speeches.

   That the various parts of the universe as well as earth itself influence human behavior is among mankind's oldest beliefs. Until nearly the middle of the 17th Century, it easily commanded as much prestige as the natural sciences. From the time of Sir Isaac Newton, however, the rapid development of natural science coupled with its pretensions of possessing the exclusive key to "truth" condemned Astrology to 500 years of intellectual stagnancy. Yet, we feel that Astrology has answers which the physical sciences do not. This is a direct cause of the now obvious limitations of these physical sciences. They evidently do not answer all the questions which perplex man. Astrology, more than any other science, explains the basic nature of the Universe and man's part in it. The questions Why? and What For? can effectively be answered only through Astrology. No other science seeks to explain the nature of human life in such a realistic way. Astrology is easily the most powerful tool for measuring any man's character and emotional constitution.

   It is high time that man should realize what a tremendous help Astrology can be to create a better understanding among men whether at the individual level, the industrial level or most importantly at the international political level where we find the horrible seeds of genocide. It is our intention in this course to help to spread the true value of Astrology. We can train and unite competent Astrologers throughout the world and together we can reduce the elements causing riots, ware, revolutions, and other major and minor unfortunate misunderstandings among men. We can do this because Astrology teaches us not only to analyze ourselves but also to understand the behavior of our fellow man in its entirety. Let us now look at the basic principles behind Astrology. We are establishing Astro centers, birth information centers which will not only guide man and woman in this profound phase of love and life but also educate them to avoid abnormal births; to understand their offspring and one another as parts of an ever changing universe. (If you are interested in this program let us know with a short note and we will consider you for this special area). Our students are located all over the World and we intend to have centers at all locations sponsored financed and guided by our school and its alumni. The centers will also guide its clients in marriage and all other major life decisions and relations of humans to humans.

IV. Basic Theory

   It is most difficult to summarize astrology in a few paragraphs; basic principles can be stated as follows:

All bodies in the Universe - the stars, the planets, the moon and the sun have effects upon earth and everything in and on it. The result of these effects is precisely what the study of Astrology is all about. Perhaps it is magnetic fields, sunspots, heat, light, or other unknown forces. We are not sure, but the effects are undeniable and they are vital life indicators.

Man's living organism (just as the New England oysters organism after removal to the mid-west) is affected by the stars and the other heavenly bodies. The stars (meaning all bodies of the universe, for the sake of brevity) have a continuing influence upon the life of each individual, but one of the biggest factors in his life is the position of the heavenly bodies at the time of his birth. The closer the astrologer can come to the exact minute of birth, the more accurately he can "write the horoscope."

An astrologer writes a horoscope by determining the position of the sun, the moon, the planets and the "houses" of the zodiac, (we will deal with the zodiac shortly.) Since no man knows the position of the heavens at the time of his own birth, the astrologer determines this from his knowledge of astronomy, and his ephemeris (Ephemeris is a book of statistics showing every position of all bodies of the universe at any given moment and place on earth) and charts. (More about ephemerides later.)

Once the position of the heavens at the time of birth is known with precision, the astrologer is able to determine the character, life-style, destiny and other influencing factors in a person's life. Since two people in only extreme rare situations have the same horoscope, these influences are constantly shifting. Thus, the horoscope becomes as individual as the personality. It is your own celestial "fingerprint."

Since a horoscope is such an individual matter, the serious student of astrology can know only the most general influences from the so-called "daily horoscopes." The continuing influence of the heavens can be determined only after the natal horoscope is erected.

 V. The Zodiac

   There is a great deal of confusion in the average person's mind over the signs and the houses of the zodiac. The zodiac is a map of the heavens and is based on astronomical positions of the stars. The signs were originally named after constellations of stars, which were thought in the beginning to move through the heavens. We know now - as an astrologer named Manlius told us in the days of Julius Caesar - that the world is round and that the earth revolves, not the stars. It may be mistakenly thought that astrology contradicts known science by presuming that the heavens move around the earth. Actually, astrology knows that the sun is the center of the solar system, but places man in the center of the zodiac for convenience. It is much easier and clearer to plot the position of the universe in relation to man than vice-versa

   If the student stares at the universe on a clear night, it appears that he is inside a giant sphere. (See Illustration I) We know, of course that there is a great deal more of this sphere below our horizon. Within the entire sphere lie twelve constellations of stars. Watch long enough and you will note that the stars "move" across the skies - from one "house" to another (more about "houses" later).

   To demonstrate this phenomenon, if you left a camera with the lens open pointing towards the sky in the morning, you have nothing but streaks on the film showing how the stars move in a slightly curved line against the sky.

   These constellations were given names by ancient astrologers and originally conformed to one constellation within each house at a given time of day. Groups of stars were thought to convey certain images, like the stars of the Big Dipper. The constellations were named after the images they presented to the astrologers. Sometimes it is difficult for us to associate these names with the constellations. The astrologers had good imaginations! Perhaps the easiest one to see is Scorpio. Its winding shape does remind the present-day stargazer of a scorpion. The constellations of the heavens and the signs of the zodiac have the same names and so they are often confused. They have identical names because their positions used to coincide approximately. In actual time, this was about the year 2000 b.c.) when the spring equinox was posited in the constellation of the Ram. Now the signs and the constellations are nearly one sign apart. Astrologers have corrected delineation records through the years so as to compensate for this change.) The spring equinox lies in the sign Aries, although it is in the constellation of the Fishes. The Astrologer uses the sign and not the constellations when he lists the various planetary positions. The signs are merely thirty degree divisions of space in the heavens and the first sign, Aries, is the first thirty degrees of space that subtends the vernal equinox. The vernal equinox is the day in Spring when day and night are equal in time. Astrologically, the equinox falls on the day when the Sun reaches the zero degree, Aries. Our signs are thus calculated from what is termed by Astrologers "the Aries ingress," meaning the time the sun enters Aries.

   ZODIAC is a Greek word meaning "circle of animals." It is a group of twelve constellations forming the apparent pathway of the sun around the earth. The moon and the nine planets also follow this path. Aries, the Ram; Taurus, the Bull; Cancer, the Crab; Leo, the Lion; Scorpius, the Scorpion; Capricornus, the Sea Goat; and Pisces, the Fishes - these seven are the constellations named for animals by the Greeks. The other five are: Virgo, the Virgin; Sagittarius, the Archer; Gemini, the Twins; Libra, the Balance; and Aquarius, the Water Bearer. The Zodiac constellations are useful in locating planets.

   It is important to remember that there are twelve zodiac signs and that these revolve astrologically in a clockwise manner. They are said to rise in the Ascendant from a nine o'clock position to the Descendant, at three o'clock. (See Illustration II)

   The signs are as follows:

*Note: the dates for each sign vary slightly that is, by one or two days in different years. This is because the sun ingresses and egresses the sign at a slightly different time from year to year. The dates given here are average and generally accepted.

   The above symbols are to the astrologers as the alphabet is to a writer. Actually, they are no different from symbols which are used to express numbers. When you see the number "3" you immediately envision a group of three objects of some kind. When you see a zodiac symbol, in the future, you will instantly be reminded of a certain group of stars which represent a specific place in the horoscope. Actually, the word "horoscope" means "hour pointer," so start with Aries at nine o'clock and memorize the signs in a counter-clockwise fashion around the zodiac; i.e. Taurus is at eight o'clock, Gemini at seven, etc. (See Illustration III)

   This is a little confusing at first, but remember again that the constellations move clockwise as we view them. Therefore, when Aries moves from nine o'clock to ten o'clock, Taurus then assumes the ascendant position at the horizon and becomes nine o'clock. Therefore, we named them backwards, so to speak. Imagine, if you will, the numbers of the clock moving in a clockwise direction around the clock. The nine would move to ten o'clock and the eight would move up to where the nine was. As the numbers revolve clockwise, the ascendant position would read nine, eight, seven, etc., and we would be counting backwards.

The Signs and the Human Body

   There are many things to learn about the signs, but these will come later. You should know, however, that the signs also correspond to various parts of the body and that taken together the signs represent a complete human body. The bodily breakdown is as follows: