The Wholey Grail: Astrology, Tarot Readings and Consultations

Many astronomers who were employed by the royal courts of the day used their astrological knowledge to cast charts for the rich and powerful so as to finance their less lucrative ‘star-gazing’ activities.

In 1608 a Dutch spectacle maker invented a telescope which was improved upon and brought to the attention of Renaissance scientists by the Italian Galileo Galilei. The new ‘Scientific Rationalism’ took off. As did reductionism – that approach of removing things from their natural context to be examined in isolation. Thus began a rift between the two fields of study.

ASTRONOMY - a science which describes the universe with numbers, by measuring the planets & the stars. The Universe is vast!

ASTROLOGY - an art/science (a ‘pre-science’ as some would have it), of discerning meaning and relevance from the movements and the relationships between the planets and the stars. Astrology uses mythology and its archetypes as metaphor to identify the human condition and behavior.

“As above, so below.” - Hermes Trismegistus.
Carl Jung described astrology as . . . “ The queen of the sciences. “
Dane Rudhyar: “ The greatest value of astrology is in the aid it gives us in discovering the significance of what has already happened.”
Albert Einstein: “ The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.”

While Astronomy is one thing, Astrology is quite another. Astrologers however, make good use of the information provided by astronomical observation.

It is also important to be aware that there are different Zodiacs. Astronomers describe the location of objects in the sky by making reference to points within the Sidereal or Constellational Zodiac, which consists of groups of ‘fixed’ stars (constellations) of unequal size that lay across the ecliptic - the plane of Earths orbit projected onto the celestial sphere.

Astrologers however, use the earth based Tropical Zodiac. This is a band of sky extending 8 degrees either side of the ecliptic, which is derived from an equal division of the 360 degrees of the Celestial Sphere into 12 arcs, each of 30 degrees, thus enabling accurate locations of sky objects to be made.

The Tropical Zodiac commences at zero degrees of Aries. During the Northern Hemisphere Vernal (or spring) Equinox, the plane of the ecliptic intersects the plane of Earths equator at the time that the Sun reaches zero degrees of Aries. Six months later the Sun enters zodiacal Libra at the Autumnal Equinox and this intersection again occurs.
The gradual retrogression of this Equinoctical Point gives rise to the phenomena of Precession of the Equinoxes – that process which creates the changing Ages, each associated with a zodiacal sign, the Age of Aquarius being the most well known.

CURRENT ASTROLOGICAL DYNAMICS & the MAY 2007 – 2010 PERIOD

Its bigger than us!

The effects resulting from the changing dynamics of outer planetary inter-relationships are now being experienced by the masses. The conduct of world leaders, the pace of social change and the nature of global events have outstripped our ability to deal with their impacts. This current period is a fore runner to even greater changes we can expect in the 2012 – 2020 period.

The reins of power are changing hands in many nations. Environmental issues can no longer be ignored. Indeed the survival of humanity is dependent on a practical implementation of wise decision making.

It takes decades for the slow moving outer planets Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, to form and reform the angular orientations of sacred geometry as described by Greek philosopher/mathematician Pythagoras in 500 BCE. These angular relationships (the 'aspects' in astrology), move in and out of phase over time.

The Great Depression of the 1930s was a clear example of the energetic of a Saturn/Pluto aspect. The 1960s embodied an anti establishment energetic, and the 1990s saw such major changes as the fall of the Soviet Union, the birth of gene technology, cloning and the explosion of the internet. These periods all co-incided with the alignments of major planetary aspects.

We are now well on our way into the 2020s era, a period bound to have an equally significant impact.

The catalyst activating those slow moving cycles of heavy impact on humanity, is Mr Serious himself - Saturn, ye olde Lord of Time, Chronos. Saturn in astrology is about personal responsibility, authority and the power to manifest. As Chronos, Saturn castrated his own father Ouranos (Uranus), as part of a power grab. Planet Saturn changes sign every 2 years, and moves into Virgo in September 2007.

Against this backdrop, the faster moving so called personal planets are all doing their respective celestial dance, changing partners hither and thither. Mercury, Venus, Mars and a host of asteroids are all in the mix, synchronizing with the events and comings and goings of humanity. . . or is it the other way around? Or both. . .? Or is it all just a stunning co-incidence?
What does it all mean? Remember the answer Alice in Wonderland was given in response to the question about which way to go? When asked where she wanted to be, she didn’t know, so was told, “ Well if you don’t know where you want to be, then it doesn’t much matter which way you go!”

While the reading of Tarot cards uses Astrology to establish timing, and to identify particular people in the life of the client, the Tarot is yet another thing quite separate in its own right.

TAROT is an art which uses the languages of Astrology, Numerology & Symbology to assist with the recognition of patterns underlying seemingly un-related events, in order to derive meaning from the symbiosis of ‘co-incidence’.

"I am open to the guidance of synchronicity, and do not let expectations
hinder my path." The Dalai Lama

The Tarot functions as a mirror for ones life based on:

The Harmony of the Spheres – Pythagoras – early 5thC BC.
The Law of Correspondences – Bodes Law, 1772. Proportionate distance and ratio between Sun and planets.
The Doctrine of the Signatures – Plants look like the body parts they heal. Herb lore and Pharmacology.
The Collective Unconscious – Jung. ‘Group think’, ancestral memory, synchronicity.
The Wiccan Principle of Increasing Returns – What one puts out, returns in equal measure (or 3 fold, or 7 fold, as some would have it).
The power of ‘The Word’ – What one says and does generates its own harmonic, undetected by those not conscious, yet evident to those using focused consciousness.

Recommended reading:
“ Science and the Akashic Field – Ervin Laszlo.
“The Presence of the Past” - Rupert Sheldrake
“Symbolism of the Tarot” – P.D. Ouspensky
Any astrology booke by Dane Rudyar