Heliocentric Sociological Astrology: Flowering a new 'Magickal Form' from Rudhyar's 'Seed Form'
Heliocentric Sociological Astrology: Flowering a new 'Magickal Form' from Rudhyar's 'Seed Form'
In my early twenties, disillusioned, out of money, and without desire to accumulate a mountain of debt, I left college to 'see the world'.I came to know and love the freedom of the open road while traveling the West with only my guitar and a blanket for possessions. Somewhere along the way I was given a deck of Tarot cards by a kind soul who said I looked wise. Soon I had another valuable tool in my repertoire. If I could not find a club or productive street-corner to play my guitar, I could always get a few bucks doing impromptu Tarot readings. After mastering the Tarot, in 1992 my life was changed by a dream in which I was shown planetary alignments and soon I became an Astrologer.
When I first started doing Astrology 'readings' for friends and family, I quickly realized that, in order for my offering to have any real value, it must fulfill a real need. I could sit and tell people about themselves all day, but unless I was answering a question that the person legitimately did not feel they had an answer for, I was wasting my breath. So my Astrology readings soon began the same way my Tarot readings always had, with a question. Of course this question often had to do with the future, so I became well versed in the techniques of 'predictive Astrology.' I even learned how to do a pretty good solar return analysis armed with only a paperback ephemeris and aspectarian 'by interpreting the aspects on a given person's birthday and relating them to the natal aspects.
Eventually I came to feel this approach lacking somehow, and began to immerse myself in the teachings of 'psychological Astrology.' I found that ever since the Great Dane Rudhyar first coined the phrase, 'Humanistic Astrology' , Astrologers have increasingly embarked on a new odyssey, a quest to plumb psychological depths and practice the arts of counseling. Modern torchbearers such as Stephen Arroyo , and more recently Glenn Perry , have spoken at length of the need to turn away from outer event-oriented 'predictive' Astrology and instead focus on the inner life, to which a language of symbol naturally lends itself. So I went and got myself a counseling degree and learned valuable techniques such as reflective listening and the basics of modern psychology. Now that I was able to deal with all the inner workings of my clients I would be a complete Astrologer.
However, experience would again bring me back to the beginning: the question. All too often I found the major underlying question for clients was: 'What am I supposed to do with myself and my life'' Unlocking the mechanics of the personality is great, but even if we manage to answer the Psychological questions 'who am I'' and 'how do I best relate to others''-there remains the problem of what to do with it. I knew from my University training that this is a Sociological question. How do I fit into the world of humans, into society, is another level question than what sort of person/individual am I and how do I adjust my inner workings' Further, I realized that often there is a third level of inquiry which asks the Evolutionary questions of past lives/ Karma -'where do I come from'' and 'where am I going''What we have are really three levels of inquiry: Psychological, Sociological, and Evolutionary.
At this point, I finally came to realize that, if my Astrology practice was to be truly valuable, not only must I fill a need for the individual client, but also for the greater Whole. By elucidating an Astrological system in which I could formulate an answer specifically aimed at each level of potential questions, I would be embarking on 'the path of the 'heirophanic artist'of Rhudyar's Culture Crisis and Creativity. Rudhyar believed that as a 'transpersonal being' the heirophanic artist transmutes unresolved karma of both the personal and ancestral past by creating "magical forms"--images, myths, creative works that are appropriate responses to the needs of the environment and that exert a liberating and transformative influence within that environment. The transpersonalized individual becomes the living embodiment of a new way of life by dramatically revealing the "seed forms" of a future cycle.
The creation of such 'magical forms' is what Rudhyar calls "a purposeful release of focalized power through an effective form in answer to a need."In order to purposefully conceive the form for my astrological system, I returned to the work of the Master himself. Although Rudhyar believed that to demonstrate its genius, Astrology must focus on the individual situation-he was aware and understood that this (psychological level) was not the complete picture that Astrology could paint. Rudhyar envisioned three types of Astrology. Rudhyar argued that since there are three basic types of planetary motion (axial, orbital, and precessional) there should be three basic types of astrology. 'One type'will function primarily in terms of axial motion (geocentric), and stress the individual (psychological) factor in a man' Another type will emphasize' orbital (heliocentric) revolution'and stress the collective (sociological) factor in the behavior of man'The third type of astrology is concerned with 'the evolutionary process'the polar axis and its motions.''parentheses and emphasis mine.
So Rudhyar recognized a specific type of astrology to deal with Sociological questions. In fact, he later names heliocentric Astrology as belonging to this 'astrology of the collective'.He further elucidates this distinction in his article 'Heliocentric Astrology and Human Nature'.Here, Rudhyar argues that the geocentric chart, with its retrogradations and other distortions, represents the bias of the individual approach which is a result of the ongoing growth and transformation as an individual with Karmic requirements. In this sense, the geocentric chart can be seen as the merging of both the Psychological and Evolutionary forces: both the effect and the cause. This Rudhyar calls 'the realm of personality'.
Heliocentric Astrology, on the other hand, represents 'the realm of Life'. Or as Rudhyar later puts it: 'He (the individual) must stop saying: 'My way is the way'. He must say instead: 'My way 'of what use can it be to humanity' How does it fit into the evolution of humanity'''This underscores yet again the distinction that personal idiosyncrasies really have no bearing on what the collective role of the individual is, only on how they carry out the role. The heliocentric chart is the 'human nature, as this human nature is in itself before it becomes subject to the stresses and pressures of an individualized personal consciousness and destiny.''The heliocentric approach reveals the way in which the life energies'operate if they are left free to develop according to their natural rhythms, without any interference from the individual's ego and its frustrations or complexes.'In other words, this is what we do best after we learn to get out of our own way!
Rudhyar believed that each person's birth represents a potential answer to a need of the greater whole--the tribe or nation, humanity-as-a-whole, planet Earth.Where else but from the Sun would we look for such an all-encompassing vision'certainly not in a geocentric, locale-specific chart! Indeed as I began to investigate heliocentric charts, I began to find a relatively simple vocational indicator. Often the closest angle (smallest orb) in the chart -particularly to a personal planet -reflects the 'calling.'One often finds close Venus or Neptune contacts in the charts of artists, Mars in athletes and soldiers, Jupiter in philosophers or teachers, Saturn and/or Uranus for scientists, and curiously Mercury and Pluto for politicians. Pluto can also be psychologists, dictators etc. I use all the Ptolemaic aspects as well as those that divide the circle by eight or twelve.
In order to demonstrate the application of this Sociological type of astrology, I will refer to the chart of the Master himself, Dane Rudhyar (Mar 23, 1895 Paris, FR 12:42 am). The closest heliocentric aspect would be the very tight Earth-Uranus closing semi-square. Even more to the point, this is the balsamic phase of their relationship, which echoes the soli-lunar phase, and represents someone who would "sow the seed of astrology." The next closest aspect is Mars trine Uranus. Being the closing trine (Letter 9 Sagg-Jupiter) it represents a Teacher who uses astrology. Another important part of heliocentric Astrology is the formations the planets make by the inter-related aspects. In Rudhyar's heliocentric chart the major formation is the wedge made by the Earth's trine to Venus and sextile to Mercury. The fact that these three most personal planets are linked shows us why, though Rudhyar recognized at least three distinct branches of Astrology, he found that astrology was best suited to the individual situation. Rudhyar became the champion of 'Humanistic Astrology'.
So the 'what', the 'dharma', the niche in the collective for this human is to instill a respect for the individual situation and the consequent empathy, congruency, and genuineness this entails. Think about the Mercury/Venus opposition for a minute-impossible in a geocentric chart, yet the perfect symbol for the reflective awareness, the 'listening without judging' of the humanist counselor. Softened by the sextile and trine to Earth, this awareness is then channeled to the client by being a genuine and congruent human being.
For further illumination of this concept we must remember that Rudhyar's collective is focused on the exceptional individual who embodies collective forces 'what I would call a Shaman. 'The great man was the flower and fruition of his tribe or race, a collective expression brought to the point of structural perfection' the conscious focalization of a higher collectivity'Such a man became mediator between Heaven and Earth.'To this end I am interested in looking at the charts of the two 'great men' of the Humanist movement: Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow.
Carl Rogers (1/08/1902) is famous for pioneering a non-directive, 'person-centered' approach to therapy. The tightest aspects in the heliocentric chart are from Mars -trine Pluto and sextile Uranus'the innovative Psychologist! We also see a very tight Yod pattern (often called the finger of God) with the Earth quincunx the Mars/Uranus sextile. Like other humanists, Rogers insisted that the underlying drive or motivation (Mars) for people was to develop in a positive direction (opening sextile) toward some ultimately satisfying state (Uranus-enlightenment). Rogers referred to this process as becoming a fully functioning individual. The characteristics Rogers gives of fully functioning people reads like an astrology report for Mars/Uranus opening sextile. They are open to experience (Mars), eschewing familiar patterns to see what life has to offer (Uranus). They trust their own feelings, and are less prone to conform, preferring to follow their own interests (letter 3 =opening sextile/Gemini). They accept and express their feelings (even anger) and thus experience them more fully.
Abraham Maslow (4/01/1908) is famous for his hierarchy of needs. The Humanists definitely saw life as a process. Maslow saw this process as occurring in a series of steps or stages.Fulfilling more complex needs and attaining higher consciousness at each level, the self- actualized individual reaches 'peak experiences' where his/her understanding of self and relationship to the universe are wholly realized, infusing life with meaning and inspiration. To anyone who has studied Maslow's hierarchyof needs, it should come as no surprise that inter-personal needs 'love, belongingness and esteem 'fall in between our basic physical and safety needs and our higher self-actualization needs.As a good friend of mine puts it, 'God speaks to us through each other.'
The ultimate crescendo of the self-actualization process, the peak experience, can be clearly seen in Maslow's heliocentric chart. A 'peak experience' is one where time and place are transcended and one experiences unity of self with the universe and a sense of power and wonder 'symbolized perfectly by the tight heliocentric t-square from Earth to the Uranus/Neptune opposition 'the tightest aspect (the Visionary). What better way to symbolize 'a visit to a personally defined heaven' (as Maslow described the peak experience). The fact that it is a t-square and not a grand trine suggests that people earn these experiences through the hard work of being true to themselves even during the 'crisis in action' (opening square) and the 'crisis of consciousness' (closing square).
Perhaps the best modern example of these principles is the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1/15/1929 ). King embodied Rudhyar's vision of the 'great man' as a mediator between Heaven and Earth. King's 'dream' that a nation would one day live up to its ideals made him the focalization for the Civil Rights movement which sought to put an end to hundreds of years of injustice. Further, King embodied Roger's fully functioning individual and Maslow's self-actualized individual perfectly.
King eschewed his natural place in his father's and grandfather's pulpit and sought first to train himself intellectually. This training of his mind would later result in acts of strategical genius(signified by his extremely tight heliocentric Mercury/Uranus conjunction) that would bring him and his movement to the forefront of the Nation's awareness and inside the White House. King then took a position in a church in Montgomery, Alabama and seized upon the courage of Rose Parks to become the spokesman for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. In this way, King met what Life had in store for him. His subsequent refusal to conform (even in the face of direct pressure from the FBI) and trusting of his feelings of outrage and injustice led him to the 'mountaintop' of peak experience and a Nobel Peace Prize.
The major formation in Kings heliocentric chart is a closing square, a 'crisis of consciousness,' between Venus and Neptune, with Mars/Pluto at the midpoint. His calling was to use his intelligence to bring to focus the moral conscience of a nation. By enacting his heliocentric Mercury/Uranus conjunction, King was able to stage non-violent protests where the heinous nature of majority opinion was on display for the whole Nation to witness. He believed that witnessing women and children being blasted by fire-hoses and attacked by dogs (Mars/Pluto) would awaken the conscience, and indeed the self-actualization principle of a Nation. By showing us the discrepancy between our ideal self (Neptune) and real self (Venus), King was enacting on a national level one of the basic principles of Humanist Psychology.
After having been to the 'mountaintop' of self-actualization and prompting the end of segregation and denial of voting rights, King found that another mountain awaited. The achievement of the 'crisis of consciousness' of the closing heliocentric square of Venus/Neptune had brought into sharp focus the Mars/Pluto conjunction at its mid-point. Within his own ranks, King began to find 'black power' radicals who rejected his non-violent stance. King found his focus drawn from national to international issues of poverty and the Viet Nam War. On April 3, 1968, at the Mason Street Temple, King addressed the striking Memphis sanitation workers in a speech eerily foreboding. He spoke of changing his mind with regard to the value of longevity, and told them that though 'I may not get there with you,' 'I have been to the Mountaintop'and glimpsed The Promised Land'and mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.' Within twenty four hours he was shot dead.
In such a shining example, it is easy to see that from the mind of wholeness or Rudhyar's "eonic consciousness" (the awareness of the cycle as a whole) the three levels of inquiry are still very much inter-related and cyclical. The basic psychological faculties (geocentric) can be seen as Karmic 'gifts' (Kings Jupiter/Saturn/Neptune grand trine) and 'challenges' (Sun and Moon squares to grand trine). The evolution of King's soul can be seen in the striking similarity of geocentric/Karmic cycles between birth and death. At his birth, Jupiter was in closing trine to Neptune, signifying an individual gifted in communicating an idealistic vision. At his death, Jupiter had moved to the closing square with Neptune, signifying that through accepting his sociological (heliocentric) 'calling' he had enacted the 'crisis of consciousness' that prepares for a new cycle. Perhaps when this soul next incarnates it will experience a world where people truly 'are judged not by the color of their skin but the content of their character.'
In summary, I would like to say that while vocational factors in the geocentric chart certainly abound, I am not convinced this is the best or most appropriate place to begin this level of inquiry. A heliocentric analysis is much more straight-forward with the complications of signs/houses being removed. Further, it seems to be a more appropriate place to look for a spiritual connection with vocation, thus we are more likely to identify the calling, or dharma 'rather than just a 'job.'
For a final illustration, and to end where we started, I would like to share my own heliocentric data. The tightest aspect is Venus sesqui-quadrate Earth, so I was following my calling in learning to practice the counseling arts. Further, Venus forms a tight opposition to Jupiter, who in turn is semi-square Earth. Thus, it is natural and appropriate that I find myself developing a system (Jupiter) for addressing the problems (octiles) of others (Venus), through humanistic (Earth) awareness (opposition). Hope it works for you too!
References:
Dane Rudhyar, Humanistic Astrology. 1971 Aquarian Agent Vol. 2 Issue 1 pgs. 4-5. As cited in: Stephen Arroyo, Astrology, Psychology and the Four Elements. 1975 CRCS Publications: Sebastopol, Ca.
Stephen Arroyo, Astrology, Psychology and the Four Elements. 1975 CRCS Publications: Sebastopol, Ca.
Glenn Perry PhD., An Introduction to AstroPsychology 1998 The Association for Astrological Psychology, San Rafael, Ca.
Greg Bogart. Rhudyar's Prophetic Vison see www.dawnmountain.com/Prophetic%20Vision.htm
Ibid.
Ibid.
Dane Rudhyar, Humanistic Astrology. 1971 Aquarian Agent Vol. 2 Issue 1 pgs. 4-5. As cited in: Stephen Arroyo, Astrology, Psychology and the Four Elements. 1975 CRCS Publications: Sebastopol, Ca.
Dane Rudhyar, The Astrology of Personality. 1970 Doubleday: Garden City, NY. Pg.183.
Ibid. pg.190
Dane Rudhyar, The Astrology of Personality. 1970 Doubleday: Garden City, NY. Pp.186-87.
Dane Rudhyar, 'Heliocentric Astrology and Human Nature', NCGR Journal Autumn 1990 reprinted from: World Astrology Magazine August 1944 no.7
Ibid.
Dane Rudhyar, 'Heliocentric Astrology and Human Nature', NCGR Journal Autumn 1990 reprinted from: World Astrology Magazine August 1944 no.7
Ibid.
Greg Bogart. Rhudyar's Prophetic Vison see www.dawnmountain.com/Prophetic%20Vision.htm
Some other examples: see chart info @ www.astropro.com/bday-m01.html
Artists (Venus/Neptune in closest aspect)
Rod Stewart (Venus sesquare Neptune); Carl Sandburg (Mercury semi-square Neptune)
Dolly Parton (Venus opposite Saturn); Lord Byron (Mercury sextile Neptune);
Mozart (Mercury opposite Neptune) Oprah (Earth opposite Venus)
Athletes (Mars in closest aspect)
Jackie Robinson (Mars conjunct Venus); George Foreman (Mars opposite Pluto);
A.J. Foyt (Earth semi-square Mars); Muhammad Ali (Earth semi-square Mars);
Wayne Gretzky (Mars opposite Saturn) Jack Nicklaus (Mars conjunct Uranus)
Politicians (Mercury or Pluto in closest aspect)
FDR (Jupiter conjunct Pluto); Barry Goldwater (Mercury square Mars)
Nixon (Mercury semi-square Jupiter) Millard Fillmore (Earth semi-square Pluto)
Matrix Software Big Rapids, MI. Win-Star 2.0 Professional Astrology Software 1994
Dane Rudhyar, The Astrology of Personality. 1970 Doubleday: Garden City, NY. Pp.188-9.
Burger, Jerry (2000). Personality. Belmont, Ca: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
Maslow, Abraham (1954). Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper & Row.
Ibid.
Astrologer and Psychologist Glenn Perry describes the first four signs as 'personal', the second four 'interpersonal', and the final four 'transpersonal' and relates their needs to Maslow's hierarchy. See Glenn Perry, An Introduction to Astro-Psychology. 1998, The Association for Astrological Psychology: San Rafael, Ca.
Dane Rudhyar, The Lunation Cycle. 1967, Llewellyn Publications: St. Paul MN.
Let us not forget that this man was a literary genius as well. His 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail' showed the depth of his intellect.
Dane Rudhyar, The Lunation Cycle. 1967, Llewellyn Publications: St. Paul MN.
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