For Best Results: Ignore Traditional Astrology Rules

It never fails that traditional astrologers keep on parroting the same old horary rules that will guarantee you won't be able to read a chart accurately.

Here's a recent trope I came across written by one of Hamaker-Zondag's students:

1. Formulate the question so that you can get a yes or no answer 

2. Asc in the first 3 degrees: question is too early (horary can not be interpreted) 

3. Asc in the last 3 degrees: question is too late (horary can not be interpreted) 

4. Moon void of course = Moon makes no more aspects before leaving the sign he is in: nothing happens (horary can not be interpreted) 

Well, life isn't black and white or yes/no, so horary questions don't have to be, either. And of course a horary can still be interpreted with void Moons and late/early ASCs. Why these people think the charts will automatically stop working if these strictures are present is ridiculous. Either all horary charts can be read, or none can be read. Period.

It's all just a parroting of ancient dogma. And the more it fails, the more people repeat it and believe it.

Don't take my word for it--here's proof: Below is a chart with a void Moon and very late ASC. Guess what? It described the situation perfectly:

The querent was having housing issues. Late 29 degree ASC is via combust, showing the upsetting situation. But it shows also that the situation IS ABOUT TO CHANGE from Libra (strong Venus in the 9th) to Scorpio (Pluto retrograde in the 3rd). This means the situation will be changing from okay (Libra/Venus benefic) to bad (Pluto retrograde/malefic). The void of course Moon shows the querent can't really do anything about the matter; it's the end of that phase of the issue.

So what was the querent told? That bad news was on the way (Pluto Rx in the 3rd house, with Saturn Rx at a critical degree ruling the 3rd house) that they could do nothing about (void Moon). Simple, huh?

But wait, there's more. What KIND of bad news?

ASC ruler Venus is in the 9th house of legal issues, with the void Moon ruling the 9th. Within two hours of the chart being cast, the querent was served with an eviction notice. Upsetting news (Uranus ruling 4th house cusp of home) to say the least.

But wait--can that Venus sextile to the stationing direct Mercury in rulership help? You bet. The eviction notice was invalid because it didn't follow state law. So the eviction was null and void before it ever got to the querent, and the landlord has to start all over again because their case literally went up in flames (Mars combust Sun dispositing an RX Mercury; Saturn retrograde ruling the landlord's derived 9th house of legal documents).

So the querent got bad news, but the good news is the written bad news was flawed, and so there was no need to do anything about the issue because the papers were invalid (void Moon).

So, would you rather consult with a modern astrologer who can tell you all of that? Or would you prefer to be sent away by the dogma of tradition, by being told your chart can't be read and to ask again in six months? It's a no brainer: IGNORE TRADITIONAL RULES AND LOOK AT THE REALITY OF THE SITUATION.

Modern Horary Astrology 2014 -- A Prelude

This blog will be on hiatus the first half of 2014 as I rush to complete my next astrology book (title and subject secret for now!) and get it into print by the end of the year.

In the meantime, for a prelude to 2014, head over to michaellutin.com and check out the good, the bad, and the ugly in relation to the cardinal grand cross, and the 1/1/14 New Moon at Pluto, right in the thick of it.

Big hint with Mars retrograde in detriment for most of the first half of the year:

Medical Horary Astrology -- Go See a Doctor, Not an Astrologer

Medical astrology is an ancient medical system that associates various parts of the body and diseases as under the influence of the Sun, Moon, and planets, along with the twelve astrological signs. For example (from Wikipedia):

• Aries - head, face, brain, eyes
• Taurus - throat, neck, thyroid gland, vocal tract
• Gemini - arms, lungs, shoulders, hands, nervous system, brain
• Cancer - chest, breasts, stomach, alimentary canal
• Leo - heart, chest, spine, spinal column, upper back
• Virgo - digestive system, intestines, spleen, nervous system
• Libra - kidneys, skin, lumbar region, buttocks
• Scorpio - reproductive system, sexual organs, bowels, excretory system
• Sagittarius - hips, thighs, liver, sciatic nerve
• Capricorn - knees, joints, skeletal system
• Aquarius - ankles, calves, circulatory system
• Pisces - feet, toes, lymphatic system, adipose tissue

 The planets are also associated with certain portions and functions within the body: 

The anatomical-astrological human:

• Sun - heart, spine, and general vitality
• Moon - stomach, digestive system, female organs, lymphatic system
• Mercury - brain, central nervous system, thyroid gland, five senses, hands
• Venus - throat, kidneys, thymus gland, sense of touch, ovaries
• Mars - muscles, head, adrenal glands, senses of smell and taste
• Jupiter - liver, thighs, feet, growth, pituitary gland
• Saturn - skin, hair, teeth, bones, the body's defenses, spleen
• Uranus - parathyroid gland, neural activity, aura
• Neptune - pineal gland, psychic healing
• Pluto - pancreas, metabolism, elimination

After examining an individual's natal chart, a medical astrologer may give advice to the client about the areas of the body in which they are most likely to experience trouble. (1)

Medical astrology has its own set of rules and understandings separate from horary—the two shouldn't even be considered distant cousins--since the inroads into interpreting the chart, and the houses and aspects, for example, take on very different meanings than "regular" horary. But the medical questions are absoutely horary-like, and run the gamut of:

"What's causing me to feel X symptoms?"
"Are X symptoms because I have Y disease?"
"Do I have X cancer or something else wrong?"
"Should I see another doctor about X symptom?"
"Will the tumor be malignant or benign?"
"Will the tumor be successfully removed?"

The questions are legitimate, but astrology NEVER EVER supersedes medical science. Medical astrology has its roots in traditional astrology, which means it's based on an incomplete system. Just as ancient astrologers did not know Uranus and Neptune existed (let alone Pluto, regardless of its classification), their medical knowledge was incomplete and inaccurate by modern standards. (E.g., modern medicine does not recognize humors, a staple of ancient medicine). Medical astrology flourished in an era when people believed prayer to a merciless god, or a pocket full of posies, could cure bubonic plague, when in reality, a few good housecats would have been a far better preventative measure, not to mention the curative antiobiotics to wipe out the plague hadn't been discovered yet. So pre-modern medicine, astrology provided a frame of guesswork with little practical value. To be fair, modern medicine is only roughly 200 years old, but medical astrology's obsolescence is underscored today, as doctors have access to all sorts of diagnostics and technology that the physicians and astrologers of eras past could only dream of (Defibrillators, anyone?).

The "problem" with contemporary medical astrology is that to be able to correctly translate the symbolism to reality, the astrologer has to have a solid background in anatomy and physiology. If that is lacking, the attempted diagnosis will be wild stabs in the dark, along the lines of, "Taurus is on the 6th house; therefore you have something wrong in the throat area." That's enormously vague and unhelpful. Worse than that, even, without the necessary A&P background, I've seen astrologers excuse this ineptness with haughty lectures to the querent about how it's unethical to diagnose health problems, etc. It isn't if the intent is to parallel or verify the actual medical diagnosis. In truth, there are serious liability issues, as it's illegal for a non-physician to diagnose and treat. That being said, it happens all the time. So if you don't know the difference between a larynx and a lymph node, don't interpret the chart. Instead, refer out to someone with more experience. How do you get more medical astrology experience? Look at case studies where the outcome is already known, to know what to look for and see how to do it.

So the best rule of thumb with medical astrology (if you have the sufficient A&P understanding) is to refuse to interpret any medical horary questions (or natal for that matter) until the querent has first seen a doctor. Usually, by the time the querent is resorting to horary questions, they are getting unsatisfactory results or treatment. Make sure they've had the appropriate labs and bloodwork, or x-rays. And remember that reality always supersedes astrology. Jupiter conjunct the ASC, or in the 6th, is no guarantee of any cure. So speculate medically all you want on a chart, but know that it's never a substitue for a real medical care.

NOTES: (1) See also: http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/magen324.htm

You Can't Put the Cart Before the Horse in Life or in Horary Astrology

If an acquaintance approached you and asked, "What kind of mansion will I buy after I win the lottery?", you'd tell the person to stop talking nonsense. After all, would a naked man worry about where to put his clothes if he decides to take a bath?

Of course not.

Unfortunately, there is a misconception about horary astrology that—almost Santa Claus-like—certain configurations mean a "yes" answer, and can make things happen that don't have the foundation first that is needed to even be remotely possible. It's as if horary offers the promise of "someday." The truth is that astrology can only work and deliver a reliable answer within the framework of the reality of the situation, or the person's life. It can't make magic happen.

An example is the chart below. A woman who hasn't dated in years is now exploring the online scene, and failing abysmally. She asked the horary question, "When and where will I meet my future husband?"

Uranus is retrograde in the 7th, ruling the 5th, with Neptune retrograde in the 5th in Pisces. She's dreaming. There's no one there currently, or on the horizon even, who is going to be in a relationship with her. So wondering about marriage is premature to say the least. 

You can't hate your boss if you don't have a job. You can't get the job you want if you don't first apply for it. You can't get married if you aren't even in a relationship. You can't get alimony if you haven't filed for divorce yet. You can't publish a book if it hasn't even been written yet.

So you can't put the cart before the horse in astrology, because you can't do that in real life, which is all the chart is a reflection of.

A Brief "Big Picture" Update on the Uranus-Pluto Square As T-Squared by Jupiter

With Jupiter now T-squaring the Uranus-Pluto square, a reminder of the BIG picture:

"The masses are in the grip of the religious leaders, of the political leaders. And these people don't want any change to happen because every change means a danger to the status quo, a danger to the establishment. Any change is going to bring other changes, and they will have to adjust to those changes. Who knows - are those adjustments going to be favorable to them, or unfavorable? Life for those leaders of the establishment is so comfortable and so luxurious it is better that everything remains the same."

"But now the situation is totally different. The establishment itself has brought the situation of an ultimate change - either life or death. And the choice is such that I don't think anybody is going to choose death." 

"If people choose life, they will have to choose life values. Then the old renunciation of religions will become out-of-date; saintliness will have to find new dimensions. Then poets and painters, singers and dancers will be the saints. Then meditators, the enlightened people, the more conscious and awakened people will be the sages."

"We are coming close to a tremendous transformation, and we are going to see it in our own lives - something so rare and unique which has never happened before, and will never happen again."

"You should feel fortunate, blessed, to see the great transformation of all the old values, of all the old ideals; to see the birth of new values, new ideals, new categories of honor and respectability."

-- Osho, from The Rebel, "Herald A New Dawn"

Don't worry, it will all make sense when Pluto is in Pisces.