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Conjunction - Conjunction A conjunction of two heavenly bodies occurs when, as seen from the earth, they are in the same ecliptic longitude, according to astrology; or in the same right ascension, according to astronomy. More than two bodies appearing in exact conjunction is an exceedingly rare occurrence. The planets and the sun and moon are usually considered, but the fixed stars may be included. Such conjunctions have always been held in astrology to indicate, prefigure, or cause important events and changes, and to mark the changes of cycles. The conjunctions of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars together are specially mentioned. The conjunctions of the sun and moon are related to human and animal physiological conception. Also, the fact that the planetary orbits have nodes and apsides with their own periods of revolution, affords us material for the calculation of many longer periods.
See also ANNUS MAGNUS.
Maharishi Parashara - One of the fathers of Vedic astrology. Author of the text which is the basis for the most commonly used astrological system in India
Synchronicity - Jung''s word. An acausal connecting principle. Meaningful, psychic coincidence. Roberts says it is the connection between the psychic and the mundane (inner and outer).
Ancient patterns of reality such as astrology or the I Ching depended originally upon socially agreed-upon qualities that linked things. Many of those qualities have now been lost or forgotten, so that only the links remain. Such links, in turn, may extend no further than the names of the objects involved. Our modern systems, though governed by science and reason, are no less the products of social consensus. They no more necessarily reflect the true nature of the universe than the old systems did.
Riksha Rksa - Riksha rksa (Sanskrit) A bear; the seven rishis or seven stars of the Pleiades. Also a star or constellation in general, and hence of one of the 27 lunar mansions or constellations. In astrology, used for that particular star in one of the 27 mansions of the moon under which a human individual is born.
Nergal - Nergal (Chaldean) The Chaldean deity presiding over the realms of the dead. The entrance to his domain was through a large subterranean cavern named Aralu or Irkalla, which was under the special surveillance of the goddess Allatu (though his consort was Laz). His symbol was the lion, thus the colossal lions engraved upon edifices represented Nergal''s guardianship. He was regarded as regent of the planet Mars.
As a deity with certain solar attributes, he was associated, especially in later times, with the summer solstice, and with the sun at its noon-day position, which was regarded as bringing calamities and destruction upon mankind. Thus Nergal became also associated with wars and pestilences.
In the Bible Nergal is named as an idol of the Cuthites (2 Kings 27:30). He "is also the Hebrew name for the planet Mars, associated invariably with ill-luck and danger. Nergal-Mars is the ''shedder of blood.'' In occult astrology it is less malefic than Saturn, but is more active in its associations with men and its influence on them" (TG 228).
Ephemeris - EPHEMERIS: an astrology term, it refers to a collection of precise dates & calculations, of when certain planets were where & when.
Divination - By stars, cards, and alphabets. These are the three most popular methods of divination that have survived into the twentieth-century. The three occult sciences governing these oracular techniques are astrology (divination by the placement of the stars), cartomancy (divination by the random fall of the tarot or playing cards), and numerology (divination by the numbers concealed in the letters of a name or the digits of a birth date).
Hermeticism - (From Hermes Trismegistus.) The Hermetic sciences are Astrology, Magic, Qabalah and (ultimately) Egyptology. Hermetic philosophy is to be distinguished from Scholastic philosophy ("scholastic" meaning that which was taught in schools) derived from Aristotle, who believed all questions could be resolved either by reason or by debate stemming from a logic based on never-to-be-questioned premises (axioms). Science as we know it today is neither scholastic nor hermetic, but is founded strictly on empirical evidence. Hermetic science is based on universal symbols present within the collective unconscious and therefore available to inner revelation, rather than to ordinary objective experience. Hermes is, like the metal mercury, the amalgamation and contradiction of scattered opposites, the divine marriage (or hieros gamos) of polarities. As the God of messengers, he is a fitting symbol also of the Western version of Eastern Taoism and Buddhism.
Taurus
- Taurus The bull; second sign of the zodiac, a constellation containing the Pleiades. In astrology a fixed earthy sign, the night house of Venus, corresponding to the throat, neck, and base of the brain. It is the bull among the four sacred animals who are the Maharajas of the four quarters, and presides over the south. Called in Sanskrit Rishabha, dedicated to Yama, the god of the Underworld, it stands in Hindu reckoning for Pranava or Aum (12 Signs of the Zodiac). Frequently it is connected with Logos, Verbum, Vach -- for it is another form or aspect of the Third Logos.
Taurus stands for both sun and moon gods, its symbol being sometimes a bull and sometimes a cow, the Third Logos mystically being considered androgyne, differentiation into the two opposites not yet having supervened. Thus Taurus was usually connected with sun gods, such as Osiris; and at others connected with moon goddesses -- Isis, Diana, Cybele, etc. -- with the moon, and with the far higher Magna Mater (great mother), source of Taurus as the Second Logos, a distinctly feminine aspect.
Its symbol represents the cow horns which are also a symbol of the moon and lunar goddesses. "Ancient mystics saw the ansated cross, in the horns of Taurus (the upper portion of the Hebrew Aleph) pushing away the Dragon, and Christians connected the sign and constellation with Christ. St. Augustine calls it ''the great City of God,'' and the Egyptians called it the ''interpreter of the divine voice,'' the Apis-Pacis of Hermonthis" (TG 323).
Designated by the first letter of the alphabet, Taurus is described in many ancient systems as being number one among the signs, because this ascription took place and became static at a time in past history when Taurus opened the spring, and hence was reckoned as the first. Blavatsky suggests that the constellation Taurus was in the first sign of the zodiac at the beginning of kali yuga (3102 BC.), and consequently the equinoctial point fell therein (TG 387).
Associating the Hebrew patriarchs with the signs of the zodiac, Cain presides over Taurus (IU 2:465).
Astrology - Divination through the correlation of earthly events with celestial patterns.
Sun - The Sun rules Leo. Vitality is the energy reflected by the Sun in the astrological chart. Just as the Sun is the source of life for all living things we know of, the Sun’s position in your chart is an indicator of the way you approach life. Nearly everyone knows their Sun sign and a little bit about it. We read the astrology column in the newspaper to see how the day will be for our sign. Many people like the time of year around their birthday, not just because it is near their birthday, but because the energy of the Sun sign is so conformable.
Young children express the Sun sign energy clearly and directly. We tend to move away from this clarity as we learn different forms of expression, yet we always come back to the foundation of the Sun sign, learning to perfect the strengths that it indicates and to compensate for any weaknesses. The Sun is, in addition to being the source of life, the sustainer of our individual character. When you understand the deeper nature of your Sun sign, you also understand the core direction for your personal expression in the world.
The house position of the Sun in your chart indicates one area of life that takes on greater importance than any other. It is the area where you are perhaps the most self-conscious, it is where your will can be best expressed, it is where you can develop the greatest arrogance. You will focus loyalty and generosity in that area, as well as discover your own personal dignity.
The house and sign of the sun indicates an area in which you will strive to express yourself, and you will want to be recognized for your activities in that area of life. As you gain experience in living, you may become bolder in your efforts to attain your Sun sign goals. You can become a leader in this area because you understand the deepest and broadest values of this area of your life.
When you read about your Sun sign, take the details to heart. Make a personal effort – use your will – to develop the highest and best expression of this sign. It is your birthright, and the area where you can learn to speak and act with authority.
Astrology - ASTROLOGY, NATAL: refers to calculating the planetary influences at the time of the subject''s birth.
A - Letter A - A - The first letter in all the world-alphabets save a few, such for instance as the Mongolian, the Japanese, the Tibetan, the Ethiopian, etc. It is a letter of great mystic power and "magic virtue" with those who have adopted it, and with whom its numerical value is one.
It is the Aleph of the Hebrews, symbolized by the Ox or Bull; the Alpha of the Greeks, the one and the first the Az of the Slavonians, signifying the pronoun "I" (referring to the "I am that I am"). Even in Astrology, Taurus (the Ox or Bull or the Aleph) is the first of the Zodiacal signs, its colour being white and yellow.
The sacred Aleph acquires a still more marked sanctity with the Christian Kabalists when they learn that this letter typifies the Trinity in Unity, as it is composed of two Yods, one upright, the other reversed with a slanting bar or nexus, thus - a. Kenneth R. H. Mackenzie states that "the St. Andrew cross is occultly connected therewith". The divine name, the first in the series corresponding with Aleph, is AeHeIeH or Ahih when vowelless, and this is a Sanskrit root.
Antipathy - Disharmony between two planets that rule or are exalted in opposite signs in astrology. (NAD)For example, the Sun which rules Leo has an antipathy for Saturn which rules the opposite sign Aquarius
Prophecy - Prophecy The power of predicting the future, either by mystic vision or by a knowledge of the laws of cycles. Those versed in the latter can predict future cataclysms, racial events, etc., as surely as astronomers can predict eclipses, and astrology insofar as it concerns prediction, comes under this head. Prophet originally meant one who speaks for another, usually the deity, as in the view of the Hebrews expressed in the Old Testament.
See also PREVISION; PREMONITION
Putrasthana - Putrasthana (Sanskrit) [from putra son + sthana place, dwelling, astrological mansion]
Son''s mansion; the fifth house or sign in Hindu astrology.
Keys Of Magical Discovery And Participation - Yoga: self-control
Tarot: archetypes
Astrology: time patterns
Ritual: participation in eternal reality orders
Scrying: evocation of visions
Dreams: spontaneous visions
I Ching: randomness superimposed on frozen reality
Psychedelics: differences of perspective and insight, plus avenues of perichoresis
Death or Thanatomimesis: means of taking the self apart and putting it back together again in a new way.
Kala 64 - (Sanskrit) "Sixty-four arts."
A classical curriculum of sacred sciences, studies, arts and skills of cultured living listed in various Hindu shastras. Its most well-known appearance is in the Kama Sutra, an extensive manual devoted to sensual pleasures. The Kama Sutra details as its primary subject matter the 64 secret arts, abhyantara kala, of erotic love. In addition to these it lists 64 bahya kalas, or practical arts, as required study for cultured persons. They are:
They are: 1) singing, 2) instrumental music, 3) dancing, 4) painting, 5) forehead adornments, 6) making decorative floral and grain designs on the floor, 7) home and temple flower arranging, 8) personal grooming, 9) mosaic tiling, 10) bedroom arrangements, 11)creating music with water, 12) splashing and squirting with water, 13) secret mantras, 14) making flower garlands, 15) head adornments, 16) dressing, 17) costume decorations, 18) perfumery, 19) jewelry making, 20) magic and illusions, 21) ointments for charm and virility, 22) manual dexterity, 23) skills of cooking, eating and drinking, 24) beverage and dessert preparation, 25) sewing (making and mending garments), 26) embroidery, 27) playing vina and drum, 28) riddles and rhymes, 29) poetry games, 30)tongue twisters and difficult recitation, 31) literary recitation, 32) drama and story telling, 33) verse composition game, 34) furniture caning, 35)erotic devices and knowledge of sexual arts, 36) crafting wooden furniture, 37)architecture and house construction, 38) distinguishing between ordinary and precious stones and metals, 39) metal-working, 40) gems and mining, 41) gardening and horticulture, 42) games of wager involving animals, 43) training parrots and mynas to speak, 44) hairdressing, 45) coding messages, 46) speaking in code, 47) knowledge of foreign languages and dialects, 48) making flower carriages, 49) spells, charms and omens, 50)making simple mechanical devices, 51) memory training, 52) game of reciting verses from hearing, 53) decoding messages, 54) the meanings of words, 55) dictionary studies, 56) prosody and rhetoric, 57) impersonation, 58) artful dressing, 59) games of dice, 60) the game of akarsha (a dice game played on a board), 61) making dolls and toys for children, 62) personal etiquette and animal training, 63) knowledge of dharmic warfare and victory, and 64) physical culture.
These are among the skills traditionally taught to both genders, while emphasizing masculinity in men and femininity in women. Their subject matter draws on such texts as the Vedangas and Upavedas, and the Shilpa Shastras, or craft manuals. Through the centuries, writers have prescribed many more skills and accomplishments. These include sculpture, pottery, weaving, astronomy and astrology, mathematics, weights and measures, philosophy, scriptural study, agriculture, navigation, trade and shipping, knowledge of time, logic, psychology and ayurveda. In modern times, two unique sets of 64 kalas have been developed, one for girls and one for boys.
See: hereditary, Shilpa Shastra.
Rahu - (Sanskrit) "The seizer."
In Hindu astrology, Rahu is one of the nine important planets (graha), but is an invisible or "astral" one, along with its counterpart, Ketu. Physically speaking, it is one of two points in the heavens where the moon crosses the ecliptic or path of the sun. The point where the moon crosses the ecliptic moving from south to north is Rahu, the north node. The south node is Ketu. Rahu and Ketu are depicted as a serpent demon who encircles the earth. Ketu is the dragon''s tail and Rahu is the head. Both are believed to cause general consternation among people.
See: jyotisha, vedic astrology.
Divination - Works on the principle that meaningful coincidence, or synchronicity, is not the exception, but the rule of reality. All things and events reflect all other things and events in past, present and future. The trick is merely learning how to read the meaning in the connection. Thus astrology is the correlation of simultaneously parallel events in heaven and earth, the patterns in tea leaves indicate comparable patterns in life, and so on. (See TAROT , GEOMANCY, SCRYING.)
Jyotisha - Jyotisha jyotisa (Sanskrit) (from the verbal root jyut to shine)
An astronomer; as a neuter noun, astronomy, also called jyotisha-vidya. One name for Hindu astrology. Likewise the name of one of the six Vedangas (parts of the Vedas), a short tract giving instructions for fixing the days and hours of Vedic sacrifices.
Latitude - LATITUDE: used in Astrology; Latitude ON EARTH is distances North & South from the Equator. However CELESTIAL LATITUDE is the distances North & South of the ECLIPTIC.
Aquarius - Aquarius (Latin) Pertaining to water; the water-bearer, the 11th sign of the zodiac. In astrology an airy, fixed, masculine sign, the principal house of Saturn, though sometimes said to by ruled by Uranus. In about 1898, the equinoctial point passed from Pisces to Aquarius of the stellar (movable) zodiac, thus initiating a new Messianic cycle succeeding that of Pisces -- the fish-man, associated with Jesus Christ.
The Gnostic sun god is depicted as a man covered with breasts, having a fish on his head and a sea monster at his feet, which plainly indicates the group of three signs -- Pisces, Aquarius, and Capricorn -- and points to a fourfold division of the zodiac, each division embracing three signs; Taurus perhaps represented by the Egyptian bull Apis, standing for the triad of signs which preceded Aquarius.
The Brahmanical equivalent to Aquarius, presided over by the sky god Indra, is Kumbha, which Subba Row states is equivalent in its numerical value to 14, a number intended to represent the 14 lokas or chaturdasa-bhuvana (Theos, Nov 1881). Assigning the twelve sons of Jacob in the Hebrew system to the signs of the zodiac, Reuben is ascribed to Aquarius, who is "unstable as water"; also associated with Rimmon, the god of storms and rain (SD 2:353), and equated with Ganymede.
Karaka - (Sanskrit) In Vedic astrology, the planetary Significator which remains the same for all houses
Exaltation - A classical astrology term for the sign or house where a planet is capable of its best expression, with the possible exception of domicile (the house or sign the planet rules).
Horoscope - A chart drawn up through the art of astrology. See Astrology.
Rasi - Rasi (Sanskrit) A heap, mass, quantity, number; in astronomy, a sign of the zodiac (as being a certain number of degrees); in astrology a mansion or house, a twelfth part of the ecliptic.
Jyotisha - (Sanskrit) From jyoti, "light." "
The science of the lights (or stars)." Hindu astrology, the knowledge and practice of analyzing events and circumstances, delineating character and determining auspicious moments, according to the positions and movements of heavenly bodies.
In calculating horoscopes, jyotisha uses the sidereal (fixed-star) system, whereas Western astrology uses the tropical (fixed-date) method.
Numbering Of Hours - NUMBERING OF HOURS: this is an Astrology term; the start of SIDEREAL TIME bigins the exact moment when the beginning of the ZODIAC is midway between rising & setting. This is called, "0h 0ms 0s" with the ''h'', ''m'', & ''s'' written little & up like a degree symbol is...and this means ''no hours, no minutes, no seconds of ST at the location concerned. The NUMBERING OF HOURS of MEAN TIME starts at MEAN Midnight which is 12 hours earlier than MEAN Noon; when the Sun would be halfway fron setting to rising IF it kept mean rather than solar time. This then is ''0h 0m 0s of LOCAL MEAN time at the location involved.
Occult - Occult means "hidden ". It covers practices that are not approved of by God e.g., astrology (Isaiah 47:13), casting spells (Deut. 18:11), consulting with spirits (Deut. 18:11), magic (Gen. 41:8), sorcery (Exodus. 22:8), witchcraft (Deut. 18:10), and spiritism (Deut. 18:11).
Occult practices such as Ouija boards, tarot cards, astrology charts, contacting the dead, séances, etc. are to be avoided by the Christian and Jews alike.
Cadent Houses - In astrology, the third, sixth, ninth and twelfth houses of the horoscope, representing compromise.
Oriental Zodiac - astrology system prevalent in the Far East, base on the order in which the animals arrived to pay tribute to the Buddha, the rat jumping off the ox’s back to win.
rat-April ox-May
tiger-June rabbit-July
dragon-August serpent-September
horse-October sheep-November
monkey-December cock-January
dog-February bear-March
Moon Sign - In astrology, the zodiacal sign that the moon appeared to be in at the time and location for which the chart is cast.
Sideral Time - SIDERAL TIME, ST: an astrology term, this is the apparent movement of the sky as a whole but which movement is caused by theEarth rotating. 360 degree of RA pass over a location in 24 SIDEREAL HOURS (which equals 1 SIDEREAL DAY);1 hour of sidereal time equals 15 degree of RA; 1 degree of RA equals 4 minutes of time.
Jalapatanasaham - A sensitive point in Vedic astrology relating to going on a voyage. One of many used and similar in idea to Arabic parts
Nakshatra - In Vedic astrology, a division of the Zodiac into 27 parts. There were originally 28 parts but one seems to have been dropped. Each Division is ruled by a planet and is further divided into Padas or quarters. The nakshatra contains 9 navaa. nshas and forms the base position for lunar Dasha systems
Vedanga - (Sanskrit) "Veda-limb." Six branches of post- Vedic studies revered as auxiliary to the Vedas.
Four Vedangas govern correct chanting of the Vedas:
Shiksha (phonetics),
Çhandas (meter),
Nirukta (etymology),
Vyakarana (grammar). The two other Vedangas are
)Jyotisha Vedanga (astronomy-astrology) and
Kalpa Vedanga (procedural canon) which includes the Shrauta and Shulba Shastras (ritual codes), Dharma Shastras (social law) and Grihya Shastras (domestic codes).
See: Kalpa Vedanga, Vedas, and individual entries for named texts.
Eclipses - Eclipses of the sun and moon take place when a new or full moon occurs near one of the lunar nodes.
These events were recognized by the ancients as spiritually and cyclically significant, for the universe was regarded as a corporate whole, and throughout by analogy outer events are keys to inner correspondences. According to many ancient legends, eclipses were caused by the sun''s or moon''s being swallowed by a cosmic dragon -- figurative language, as for instance in Sanskrit where the dragon''s head and tail, Rahu and Katu are the moon''s nodes.
In astrology, the moment of an eclipse is regarded as one of those epochs when the planetary configurations of the moment are significant of coming events -- the birth moment of a cycle, in fact; and eclipses are mentioned in The Secret Doctrine as being guideposts in fixing the dates of ancient epochs that mark the junction of long cycles.
Hemethterith - The fifteenth sentinel of the Qliphotic Tree. She is the mother or wet-nurse. Her magickal gift is astrology. Grant says she was raped by a variant of the Holy Ghost and, whilst fleeing from him, fell over backwards, whereupon her breasts became the two streams of Aquarius. Corresponds to the Empress.
Aries - Aries The ram; the first sign of zodiac, in astrology a masculine, cardinal, fiery sign which governs the eastern quarter and, in the human frame, the head. It is the positive house of Mars and the exaltation of the sun.
In Sanskrit it is called Mesha, presided over or dedicated to the Vedic divinity Varuna, one of the interpretations of the latter being the primeval ocean of galactic space. The twelve great gods of the ancients were equivalent to the celestial regents presiding over the twelve signs of the zodiac. Equating the sons of Jacob with the signs of the zodiac, Aries falls to Gad.
If we take 1897-8 as date of the approximate entry of the sun into Aquarius, the Aries cycle would then have begun about 2400 BC ((originally given as 2443 BC, Blavatsky gives 2410 BC in BCW 8:174n)) and closed around 263 BC when the Pisces cycle began. This agrees very well with other calculations based on the 25,920 years of the precessional cycle, and with very early Babylonian zodiacal records, making due allowance for the uncertainties inherent in the problem.
Gajakeshariyoga - In Vedic astrology, when the Moon is in an angular position (Kendra) or 1,4,7,10 signs from Jupiter. Good aspect for wealth and power based on strength and other factors in the chart
Mulatrikona - A root trine in Vedic astrology. Especially favorable sign positions for planets. Almost as good as an exaltation
Dava - Dava (Tibet, Tibetan) The moon, in Tibetan astrology.
Zonei - The most ancient gods (the "Seven Stars" of astrology). These are also sometimes referred to as "The Star Gates." (See ARRA.)
Cancer - Cancer The Crab. Fourth zodiacal sign, being watery, cardinal, feminine, and the only house of the moon; in astrology it corresponds to the stomach and breast. Its symbol is a crab; in Sanskrit it is called Karkataka, and is dedicated to Surya, the god of the sun.
In the Hebrew allocation of the signs to the 12 sons of Jacob, it is give to Benjamin, who is said to ravin as a wolf. This sign is that of the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere and is associated with heat, but in the southern hemisphere it is at the winter solstice, and we are told of times when the earth''s poles were inverted so that the south pole was in Cancer.
According to Subba Row (Theos 3:42), Cancer represents the sacred Tetragram; the Parabrahmatharaca; the Pranava resolved into four separate entities corresponding to its four matras; the four avastas or four states of consciousness; the four states of Brahman, etc.
Vedanga - (Sanskrit) "Veda-limb." Six branches of post-
Vedic studies revered as auxiliary to the Vedas. Four
Vedangas govern correct chanting of the Vedas: 1)
Shiksha (phonetics), 2) Çhandas (meter), 3) Nirukta
(etymology), 4) Vyakarana (grammar). The two other
Vedangas are 5) Jyotisha Vedanga (astronomy-astrology)
and 6) Kalpa Vedanga (procedural canon) which includes
the Shrauta and Shulba Shastras (ritual codes), Dharma
Shastras (social law) and Grihya Shastras (domestic
codes).
See: Kalpa Vedanga, Vedas, and individual entries
for named texts.
Ashtakavarga - (Sanskrit) A predictive method of Astrology that uses a system of points based upon planetary positions
Lhagpa - Lhagpa hlag pa (Tibetan) In Tibetan astrology and mysticism the planet Mercury, symbolized by a hand. His solar house is Gemini, which signifies the arms and hands; like them he stands for action and executive still. Equivalent to the Sanskrit Budha. Also Wednesday.
Janmarashi - In Vedic astrology, the sign occupied by the Moon at birth
Rising Sign - In Astrology, the zodiacal sign that was coming over the eastern horizon at the time and location for which the chart is cast.
Nakshatra - Literally refers to a star in the zodiac. There are 27 main nakshatras encircling the entire zodiac each ruling a span of the zodiac equal to 13o20'' of arc. The Moon travels through roughly one nakshatra per day. The nakshatras are said to be the wives of the Moon. Each has a ruler planet, a ruler demigod or devata, a specific nature, and various predictions associated with it. The nakshatras are extremely important in all aspects of vedic astrology.
Electional Astrology - Science of choosing an auspicious time for an undertaking
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