Asking
About Asteroids
June 24, 3005
http://cainer.com/ericfrancis/jun24.html
Dear Eric,
Please could you tell us all about the
asteroids you regularly use in all your charts and why you use them?
Many Thanks
Mary
Dear Mary,
This is big territory -- very big. I've
devoted quite a few articles to it, some of which I'll include at the bottom of
this reply.
At the peak of my asteroid use, late last
year, I was working with about 80 bodies in all. These included the major
planets, the first four asteroids (Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta, discovered
between 1801 and 1807), a different kind of planet called Chiron (discovered in
1977, not an asteroid), and a variety of named centaur planets (bodies in
Chiron's class, discovered 1992 to present). I also used about 8 planets beyond
Pluto (called transneptunian objects, or TNOs) and then about 50 asteroids.
Collectively, there are other planets
besides the big nine that are called the 'minor planets'. There are many
categorizations, mainly used by astronomers, and also by some astrologers.
Each type of body has a different feel,
and a different place in human experience and psychology. And while some tend
to be deeper or more psychological than others, in truth, any of these planets
can offer truly profound insight into the nature of a person or of how their
chart works.
In general, the asteroids (such as Pallas
Athene, Psyche, Sphinx, and
J. Lee Lehman, in "The Ultimate
Asteroid Book," says that asteroids, 'have few concepts allocated to
[each] and their being small and numerous may allow for many, very exact
meanings'. Conversely, the planets have many very large, vague meanings, but
the asteroids have very precise significance. This statement is only half true;
some of the asteroids are exceedingly complex, and at the same time,
conventional planets can have highly specific meanings in a given context.
The centaurs (Chiron-like bodies,
including Pholus, Nessus, Asbolus, Chariklo, and Hylonome) talk about
transformation processes, healing processes, as well as psychological tools we
use to get through life. For example, Asbolus talks about how we handle
extremes of adversity and danger as children. Nessus talks about abuse patterns
in the family of origin, and how they manifest psychologically in adults.
The TNOs (objects in andbeyond Pluto's
orbit) talk about where the deep psychological patterns of society meet the
deep psychological patterns of an individual. For example, Quaoar talks about
the family patterns of our personal lives and how they mirror society. It also
addresses our personal creation mythology, including how we came to be who we
are.
Now, astrologers who don't use these
planets often say, 'The regular planets can give you the same information'.
Perhaps, and I try to make a habit of, every time I make an interpretation
using minor planets, looking at the chart and asking what a traditional
astrologer would see if they did not have the advantage of the minor planets.
However, here's the catch. The minor
planets help us define issues, they help us spot specific circumstances, and
they tell us a lot about the stories that we live by. They open up our minds to
ideas and to ways of looking at the world. It is true that you can tell a lot
about someone from their major planets. But when you discover that a person has
an asteroid right in their ascendant that speaks volumes to the themes of their
life...well, that's another story. When you find out they have an exact
conjunction of a centaur to the Moon and another to the Sun, that deepens the
chart.
It's neither necessary nor possible to
use all the minor planets in a session. There are tens of thousands with names,
so that's not going to happen. But the way to work with them is to develop
relationships over long periods of time, so that you have some sense of who
these critters are when you need them, or when they show up.
The influences of newly discovered minor
planets are studied by observing charts (for people or events) when there is a
conjunction to a major planet or the ascendant, and then noticing the themes
and correlations to 'real life'. The themes are also deduced through the names
and mythology of the body, the shape of its orbit, and other astronomical
details.
One of the more stunning examples I have
ever seen of a minor planet revealing its nature was that during the Scorpio
New Moon last year, the Sun and Moon were conjunct the centaur Hylonome.
Scorpio is about death, rebirth and transformation. This is a centaur about the
healing of grief and that has been given the additional keywords, 'the cry of
the people'. The New Moon was, exact to the day and hour, during the funeral of
Yasser Arafat.
To give you an idea of what one of my
typical minor planet charts looks like, here's an example, partly hand drawn,
from my collection -- an eclipse from later in the year:
I've found that the best sources on the
minor planets, all in Google, include the "Astrology Encyclopedia" by
James R. Lewis, as well as anything by Martha Lang Wescott (very detailed and
technically oriented, but excellent keywords), as well as Melanie Reinhart.
Here are two of my articles, the first on
the first four asteroids and the second on Chiron, some centaurs and TNOs, and
the third on two newer outer planets, from this column, plus extras:
Goddesses of
Astrology by Eric
Q/A response from this series
about Sedna and Quaoar
Chiron homepage on Planet
Waves with many articles
Maratha Lang Wescott,
awesome author
Melanie Reinhart, another
awesome author
 |
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |