Cosmic Artifacts

Osiris: God of the Underworld, Resurrection, and Vegetation

“Isis is that which nourishes and raises the fruits of the earth; and Osiris among the Egyptians is that which provides the fructifying power, which they propitiate with lamentations as it disappears into the earth in the sowing of seeds, and as it is consumed as food.

“Osiris is also taken for the river-power of the Nile. When they signify the terrestrial earth, Osiris is taken as the fructifying power, but when signifying the celestial, Osiris is the Nile, which Egyptians say came down from heaven… And Isis who, in the legends was wedded to Osiris is the land of Egypt, and she is made equal to him, and conceives, and produces the fruits.

“To the moon they dedicated a bull which they call Apis, which is blacker than others, and bears symbols of the Sun and Moon, because the light of the Moon is from the Sun. The blackness of his body is an emblem of the Sun, and so is the beetle-like mark under his tongue; and the symbol of the Moon is the semicircle, and the gibbous figure.” – Porphyry, On Images

Osiris dates back to the Old Kingdom’s first dynasties nearly 5,000 years ago and is the archetypal god of the earthly life cycle. The qualities of Osiris were recognized in many different gods, among them Dionysus, Hades, and Serapis. His mythology encompasses the entire sky and underworld. Hephaestion of Thebes wrote that Osiris corresponds to Aquarius, Pisces and Taurus.

Astrological configurations befitting Osiris requires looking at life in Egypt itself. This is Osiris in his purely Egyptian form and is the only god in Hephaestion’s list that is not named as the Greco-Roman equivalent. Even in late antiquity, when myths from all over the known world had been combined into multitudes of others, Osiris was recognized as being distinctly Egyptian and the god of the dead. His wife, Isis, was the goddess of marriage, motherhood, healing, and magic.

We will need to examine the astrological configurations in light of Egyptian agriculture. It was divided into three seasons of four months.

1. Flood Season (Akhet): From June to September, marked by the Nile’s flooding, depositing fertile silt for farming.
2. Growth Season (Peret): From October to February, characterized by planting and cultivation.
3. Harvest Season (Shemu): From March to May, the time for crop harvesting and storage.

At the time of Roman rule over Egypt, Cancer would have been rising in both the sidereal and tropical zodiac in June, marking the summer solstice and the start of the flood season. Interestingly, the original Sothic calendar dates back to at least 2000 BC and as far back as 2700 BC. This was the division of stars that used the ten-day Decans which began with the heliacal rising of Sirius. The stars move one degree every 72 years in relation to the spring equinox and changes considerably over time. The current position of Sirius in the tropical zodiac is 14′ Cancer, the exact degree of the ascendant in the Thema Mundi that originated in Ptolemaic Egypt.

The specifics of Osiris’s mythology vary because of his immense antiquity, but some themes were consistent. His planetary attributes in Egyptian temples and holy texts shows him identified with nearly every planet, in some cases embodying multiple planets at once. My primary source will be Plutarch’s On Isis and Osiris.

Plutarch lived around the time of Christ and was a priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He visited Egypt at some point in his life and his knowledge of Egyptian rites isn’t as extensive as we might like, but he has the vantage point of a deeply learned philosopher and priest who lived before the wave of countless religious movements swept through the Roman world. He was educated and knowledgeable in the principles that allowed priests from different cultures to see past the outer appearances of gods and recognize the formless principles they conveyed. I’ve paraphrased and summarized the translation by Frank Cole Babbitt of Plutarch’s discourse on Osiris into the story’s key elements.

According to Plutarch, Osiris was a king and child of the sky goddess Nuit and earth god Geb. When the Sun was in the sign of the Scorpion and in the 28^th year of Osiris’s reign, his brother Typhon had him enclosed inside a coffin sealed with nails and molten lead. 72 his attendants carried out the deed. The coffin was thrown into the Nile and Set assumed the throne. Pans and Satyrs witnessed the act and informed Isis, his wife and queen. At this point Isis makes a friend and companion of Anubis or the Cerberus and set out to find her husband.

The coffin floated across the sea to the Phoenician city of Byblos and a tree grew up around it, holding his coffin within itself. The king of Byblos had the tree carved into an important and sacred pillar for his temple and Isis wanted to remove the coffin from inside it. Isis arrived in Byblos and mourned by a spring where the tree had grown. The queen of Byblos pitied her, making her the nursemaid of her baby. She performed frightening acts of magic with the infant that ended her friendship with the queen. Taking the coffin out of the pillar, she set sail with it on a ship towards home. When she arrived, she put the coffin in her home with their son Horus present. When Typhon learned of this, he had the body cut into fourteen pieces and scattered them across the land. Isis set out in a small boat through the swamps to gather the pieces, finding all but his penis which had been devoured by fish. She carved a replica of a phallus and consecrated it after putting his body back together and mummifying him with linen.

The ghost of Osiris appeared to his son Horus to train him for battle and Horus asked for a horse to assist him. Osiris was puzzled as to why he did not choose a lion and Horus explained that the horse was quicker. A serpent attacked Horus on behalf of Typhon and was severed in two. After this, a war between them ensued for many days and Horus prevailed with Set in chains. Isis chose to let her husband’s killer go free while Horus wanted him executed. In a rage Horus took the royal diadem from her head and Hermes replaced it with a helmet that looked like a cow. Typhon then accused Horus of being illegitimate but with the help of Hermes he disproved the accusation. Typhon was defeated again in two further battles.

Plutarch mentions some variations of the story that he feels don’t have value like a decapitation of Isis and talks about the countless Osiris shrines in Egypt. He mentions one in Memphis where the body of Osiris was believed to be buried and the Apis bull was kept there as a living image of his soul.

According to Plutarch, the Egyptians say that the soul of Isis is in the Dog Star, called Sothis by the Egyptians (Sirius), the soul of Horus is in Orion and Typhon in the Bear (Ursa Major). The Egyptians also named Osiris a general and the commander of Canopus, and that the ship called Argo Navis was the ship of Osiris.

Later, Plutarch mentions stories from Greece and other nations that tell of equally implausible events and praises the teachings of Pythagoras, Plato, Xenocrates and Chrysippus regarding sacred subjects so that the multitudes of people can hear the stories freely but their true meanings kept secret in mystic rites. He uses Homer as an example of stories skillfully encrypting deeper meanings, such as calling a character god-like a certain number of times. When these are added up they can make odd or even numbers. Odd numbers equate to Olympian gods, and even numbers to demigods, which are interpreted through Pythagorean teachings to reveal hidden layers. He says the same principles apply to the dates of holy festivals. When the calendrics are examined in light of sacred numbers it is possible to understand the meanings that are hidden under the surface.

Plutarch explains many different Egyptian rites of Osiris, Isis and Horus and all represent the positions of the Sun, Moon and season. Some are purely lunar and held monthly while others are annual, and the temple priests conducted the rites based on a likeness with the astronomical numbers and seasonal events. The waning of the Moon was ritually enacted with Typhon smiting of the Eye of Horus, the eclipse was Typhon swallowing and crippling him, and the return of Horus was the Sun healing the Moon by shining its rays afterward. The New Moon was enacted monthly as the birth of the Eye of Horus and the start of the waning Moon was the end of Osiris’s life. The multiple stories that appear to modern eyes as an incoherent mess is in fact visual mathematical formulas of astronomical configurations and nature’s infinite repeating cycles. Rather than being mere observers of nature and the cosmos, these rites allowed people to experience life as active parts of it.

The main rites of Isis, Osiris and Horus revolved around the two solstices and two equinoxes during three seasons. This is slightly different than the four seasons we are accustomed to using but Egypt’s climate was unique, being an immense fertile oasis situated in the Sahara Desert. The three seasons are:

1. Flood (Akhet): June to September, new earth: Beginning
2. Growth (Peret): October to February, planting, cultivating: Middle
3. Harvest (Shemu): March to May, harvesting, storage: End

In these three seasons we can see an ancient principle: the threefold divisions of the Decans, the three Empyrean worlds of Greek mythology and the triangle of Pythagorean doctrine. Plutarch says that an Egyptian ceremony called Pamylia was conducted with a statue having three phalluses. The esoteric meaning of the male parts was that God is a single Source and multiplies by self-creating with the number three in the form of three primordial elements: Earth, Air, and Fire, which together form the primordial moisture. The Pythagorean Tetractys reflects this principle in the form of a borderless triangle composed of points. One point duplicates itself to become three, balancing the duality of two and being the first creative principle. This principle of three becomes ten which contains infinite potential combinations. Everything that can be perceived and measured is ultimately reducible to this. The Egyptian division of the seasons mirrored the principle of beginning, middle and end and we can see this principle in the divisions of the three Triplicity rulers in astrology.

According to Plutarch, on the winter solstice the Egyptian priests led a cow seven times around the Temple of the Sun in a rite called “Seeking Osiris”. In this season the mother goddess yearns for water and the seven circles reflects the seventh month after the Sun has completed the journey to the summer solstice and the flooding occurs. The seven circles also reflect the days of a lunar phase. This imperfect balance between six and seven embodies the seeming imbalance of the Sun and Moon’s cycles which ultimately synchronize in perfect order when measured with a lunisolar calendar. Egyptians regarded the Moon’s cycles as acts of perfect reason and wisdom while the Sun acted through violence and brute strength. The Sun, when unrestrained, brought scorching heat that was balanced by the generative watery nature of the Moon. The purely solar world Typhon’s spirit and Osiris acted through the Moon to bring about life-giving moisture. Typhon’s spirit was also in the sea where the Nile’s fresh waters were lost and dissipated.

The Dog Star Sirius was a vessel of Isis because its heliacal rising (appearing just before sunrise) heralded the increase of water. The Lion adorned the doorways of shrines because the Nile overflowed when the Sun conjoined its constellation. The Nile itself was Osiris collected together and the narrow portion of earth that the river covered was the body of Isis, both united and fertilizing nature’s growth.

What first appears as haphazard and conflicting pantheons conceals a divine principle underneath its apparent chaos when viewed through Pythagorean doctrine. The endless conflict is the principle of two or the Dyad, opposing forces of light and dark that multiplies through conflict and an endless cycle of order opposing chaos. The fragmentation of one or the Monad into a myriad of forms and actions is the principle underlying the dismemberment of Osiris. The conflict that ensues brings about a transformation of Osiris into the structure of nature. When the many pieces are reintegrated and resurrected, what was one, then many, and finally one again through endless cycles of death and rebirth is the very essence of the world of matter and its creative principles. The act of dismemberment is gruesome reflects a truth of nature: it is beautiful but violent. All living things must continuously kill other things to eat, whether it be animals or plants, and all living things will ultimately succumb to death. In decay their form is reduced to its primordial elements before the creative principles of the cosmos can transform it for rebirth. Osiris is the active creative principle of the cosmos and through his dismemberment becomes the foundation for a trinity of spiritual forces to create, that being Isis, Horus and Set. One is broken apart and reassembled and through the actions of those three, becomes four, the Pythagorean number of matter.

Osiris in the Stars

Hephaestion of Thebes tells us that the astrological configurations for Osiris’s image are the signs of Aquarius, Pisces and Taurus. Aquarius is an air sign and its triplicity rulers are Saturn, Mercury and Jupiter. Pisces is water and its rulers are Venus, Mars and the Moon. Taurus is Earth and the triplicity rulers are Venus, the Moon and Mars.

Those with a keen eye for patterns will notice that the triplicity rulers are all of the planets save one, the Sun. This is fitting for the ruler of the Underworld, which is dark and nocturnal. We will examine the story as Plutarch tells it and look for potential clues.

At the beginning of the story, Osiris is a living king, son of the sky goddess Nuit and earth god Geb. The Sun is in Scorpio, the beginning of Peret or Egypt’s cultivation season. In the night sky, Orion is directly opposite the horizon from the scorpion. When the tail of the scorpion rises, Orion disappears and is not seen again until Scorpio disappears. In some Greek hymns, Hercules is Orion and is struck down by the sting of the scorpion. Orion was attributed to both Osiris and his son Horus in ancient Egypt.

Osiris is power, light, life and all it’s potential. Typhon is the principle of dark and opposition who acts against his brother in the 28^th year of his reign, which signifies Saturn’s return (27 to 29 years). Here we now have Osiris in his aspect as Saturn, the ruler of time itself. Saturn encloses the earth in a division between the planetary spheres below him and the boundless fixed stars above which is the body of Nuit. This enclosing is seen in the plan to encase Osiris in a sarcophagus.

The sarcophagus itself denotes Capricorn, the cold earth sign of Saturn’s rulership. Capricorn’s first degree marks the winter solstice, the grave where the Sun “dies” and the hours of darkness overwhelm the world, the darkest day of the year. The solstice has created an axis in the world which must ultimately be balanced in its opposite point in Cancer.

Typhon, the primordial chaos and darkness, seeks to overcome his brother and has 72 attendants carry out the act. The number 72 is an ancient astronomical division that has largely been forgotten in the past two millenia. It divides the cosmos into seventy-two divisions of five degrees. The number five has parallels with the five planets aside from the Sun and Moon, which were considered subordinates in Egyptian astronomy. This has parallels with the astrological divisions of bounds or terms, which do not include either of the luminaries and total 60 in number. The number five reconciles the division of the ecliptic into 360 degrees with the solar year of 365 days. The Egyptian calendar used 360 solar days and this reconciliation is found in the lore of Thoth. The sky goddess Nuit had been forbidden to have children on any day of the year by her husband Geb. Thoth, upon hearing this, gambled with the moon for a fraction of his light. Thoth won and he created an additional 5 days for Nut so she could bear children on these days. These days were marked in the civil calendar for honoring the gods.

The numbers 70 and 72 are key to understanding this astronomical division of the sky. Plutarch tells us that in the Greek version, the Sun became jealous of Rhea (the earth) for taking Cronus as a lover. The Sun cursed her so that she could not bear children on any day. Hermes played draughts (checkers) with the Moon and won 1/70 of her light. Dividing the 360 degrees by 70 left five days which Hermes added to the year, and these five day increments equal 72 divisions. An astronomical parallel is in the heliacal rising of Sirius, which disappears in the Sun’s light for 70 days before reappearing. Stars that were invisible were in the underworld and 70 days was the exact length of time that people were embalmed for mummification. The number 72 is the number of years that must pass for the stars to shift retrograde one degree against the tropical marker of the solstice. 72 is the number of divisions used in profections as well.

When this 72-year cycle has occurred 360 times, it becomes the Great Year, a cycle of 25,920 solar years (72 x 360).

(Profection Wheel)

In short, 70 and 72 together represent the full extent of the divisions in space and time. According to Iamblichus, the demiurge is pure intellect who orders and governs the visible world according to numerical divisions. Each of these processes is symbolically personified as a god performing an action.

“For the demiurgic intellect […] when he comes to create and brings into the light the invisible power of the hidden reason-principles is called Amoun in the Egyptian tongue, and when he expertly brings to perfection each thing, he is called Ptah. The Greeks translate Ptah as Hephaistos, concentrating only on his technical ability). When he is productive of goods the demiurge is called Osiris.

There is also among Egyptians another system of rule over all the elements of generation, four masculine and four feminine entities, which they assign to the Sun. Another authority over the whole of nature subject to generation they grant to the Moon. Distinguishing the heavens into parts, dividing it into two sections, or four, twelve, thirty-six or twice that (seventy-two) they assign to these divisions authorities greater or lesser and above them one deity who presides over them.

The Egyptian doctrine on first principles begins from unity and proceeds to multiplicity, the many being in turn governed by a unity.” De Mysteriis (VIII.3, Emma Clarke)

The world can be likened to a chessboard. The demiurge is the lone participant playing both sides of the board. Potential chaos is ordered and contained by dividing the board and pieces along mathematical principles and assigning roles and rules for the pieces. Each piece’s actions, whether king, knight or pawn, is the demiurge. These divisions and potential actions, in the form of Typhon’s 72 attendants, seal away Osiris in the box with molten lead and nails, the containment of infinite light inside the planetary sphere that Saturn represents. In the Dendera Zodiac, the sign of Aquarius ruled by Saturn is depicted as two urns. The water bearer who stands by the river is his sarcophagus placed in the river to float away into the sea.

It is here where the story embodies many important seasonal events and divisions of the heavens crossing paths at once.

The water around Pisces marks the transition to the spring equinox. The preceding constellation Aquarius is the “water-bearer” pouring a jug of water into the area of the sky known as “the sea” and onto the two fish of Pisces. In this portion of the sky outside the ecliptic is Cetus the Whale and other aquatic beings. The Sun is in this sign in the month of February, the last month of Peret, the growth season. It also marks the point when a different group of extra-zodiacal constellations cease to be visible in the night sky and a new group appears. At this point in the story, before Isis sets out to rescue her husband, she befriends Anubis. In the Dendera Zodiac, the constellation Ursa Minor, the “Little Bear” or Little Dipper, is depicted as a jackal. It is one of the circumpolar constellations, who turn eternally around the Pole Star or North Star and are always visible year round. The other stars disappear and descend to the underworld but these never do and embody the principle of immortality. The direction of the jackal or Ursa Minor also denotes the quarter of the year.

Isis must travel north to Byblos in the direction the circumpolar stars are from her location. First, she must cross the sea.

The sea is the primordial abode of Typhon. In ancient symbolism, the primordial sea represented chaos with its incessant and often violent waves and its nature of consuming everything that enters it. Conversely, the water also gives life by birthing the Sun in the sign of Cancer like the waters in a womb. The night sky was seen as the result of an ocean of primordial chaos being put in order. It had its tides and waves, and the river Eridanus embodied the principle of water flowing from the land.

The waters around Pisces and the spring equinox at 0 Aries embodies the division between the constellations of the night sky when the hours of darkness are longer than the light. Though it all, the circumpolar stars are always above the horizon in the night and Isis travels north towards them. The River Eridanus constellation is also important to bear in mind, which Aquarius stands by. It spans over 90 degrees of the zodiac, winding through the sky from Pisces through Aries and Taurus and on to the foot of Orion, now in the middle of Gemini. This river is central to many spiritual themes in the ancient world such as the crossing of a river in the underworld, like the River Styx. When viewing the movements of the cosmos as a reflection of the spiritual worlds, this river marks a boundary between the upper and lower worlds, the former characterized by the domination of daylight and the latter darkness. Rivers on earth were chosen to represent this for ritual purposes, an act of spiritual sympathy in the Great Chain of Being.

After crossing over, Isis is at the end of Pisces where the spring solstice marker of 0 Aries is located. The sarcophagus containing Osiris had come to rest in the small mouth of a river at a freshwater spring in Byblos. Here Isis mourns, because a tree had grown up around his sarcophagus and enclosed it within. The king had the tree cut down and carved into a sacred wooden pillar at his palace. Isis despairing by the water is Andromeda, and the king and queen of Byblos are Cepheus and Cassiopeia, both circumpolar constellations. The tree cut down and the wooden pillar are echoes of spring rites from prehistoric times. Attis had his sacred tree cut down at the spring equinox. Wooden pillars or phalluses were carved for spring rites for many thousands of years. Osiris contained inside the wood represents the generative principle contained within nature. Osiris comes forth as spring when Isis removes him from the pillar.

Now we have two halves of the zodiac established, a key division of light and dark, and the axis line of the equinox.

Isis returns home with Osiris inside his sarcophagus and here we have the divisions of the Moon established. Typhon immediately dismembers the body of Osiris and scatters the pieces around Egypt. Isis sets out in a small boat through the marshes and retrieves each piece. The marshes are freshwater aquatic life, the domain of the Moon.

She gathers 14 pieces of his body and pieces them back together, but the fishes devoured his reproductive organs. Isis crafts a wooden phallus to complete the body and consecrates it with magic, representing the shared generative power of the Moon with the Sun. She mummifies his body with linen wrappings, and this imagery is of the Moon’s white light covering and wrapping it from right to left.

This is the sign of Taurus, the exaltation of the Moon. Many depictions of this event in Egyptian temples depict Osiris mummified with a bull’s head and a disc between the horns. The number 14, his body parts, is also of significance to the Moon. This is the exact number of days for the Moon to wax from dark (new) to full and another fourteen days for it to wane back to dark, 28 in total. The wooden phallus also significant because his penis would have been 15, and had it been present the Moon’s cycle would instead be 30 days, the exact same as the Sun. The corpse of Osiris being mummified also signifies the close relationship between the Moon and the world of matter, also called the Sublunar world and is the link between Osiris and the Apis bulls sacred to him.

The solar aspect of the story is simultaneously taking place in the sign of the spring equinox of Aries. The ghost of Osiris appears to his son Horus to train him for combat against Typhon. Horus chooses a horse to ride instead of a lion, to his father’s surprise. In the Old Kingdom, Aries was depicted as a large cat. Horus explains that the horse is faster. This is an allusion to the chariot the Sun travels in and the horses which had become synonymous with the Sun in Aries.

Typhon sends a serpent to ambush Horus, who chops it in half. This is the eclipse nodes, the Head and Tail of the Dragon that now exists because of the Sun and Moon. The Nodes are the points where the Moon rises and sets on the horizon. Both luminaries travel endless circular paths of the Ouroboros eating its tail and when they both enter one or both nodes at the same time, a solar or lunar eclipse occurs. During these moments, the order of light and dark and the principles they embody are extremely volatile. Claudius Ptolemy lists many different effects these astral rays can have on the natural world depending on the signs they occur in.

Ouroboros amulet, Greek Magical Papyri (PGM), 2^nd Century AD

After a battle, Horus is victorious over Typhon, the triumph of light over dark. The spring equinox has made the proportion of daylight hours greater than the hours of darkness. The Egyptian seasons Shemu has commenced, which is the harvest from March to May in the signs of Aries, Taurus and Gemini. Horus fights a total of three successful battles against Typhon reflecting these three months.

Horus wants to execute Typhon, but Isis orders him set free. Horus fights two more battles against him after this incident which are the signs of Taurus and Gemini. Immediately after Isis sets Typhon free, Horus tears off her crown. Hermes, or Mercury and the ruler of Gemini, replaces it with a horned cow helmet, symbolizing her rule over the sign of Taurus. In this sign, Isis is the Moon. It is also in this sign that the constellation of Orion is visible, which is another embodiment of Horus’s soul outside of the Sun.

Typhon accuses Horus of being illegitimate, which symbolizes the same concept as the Sun’s role of visible Demiurge in Plato’s Theory of Forms.

Hermes assists Horus in proving Typhon’s claims false. This is Mercury in his role as close companion and mediator of the gods, ruling in the sign Gemini and the month of May. This is the final month of the harvest season and followed by the water sign of Cancer, the Egyptian season Akhet from June to September, symbolizing new earth and the summer solstice. At this moment, the Sun emerges from the river Eridanus and engulfs the earth with overwhelming light. One month later, the Sun entered the sign of Leo and the floods reached their peak. An hour before sunrise, the river Eridanus and the crab Cancer would rise just above the eastern horizon. According to Plutarch, the Nile had become the body of Osiris and the fertile earth around it the body of Isis. Cancer rising with the Sun in Leo also reflects the Thema Mundi, the horoscope of creation.

The end of Akhet was marked by the autumn equinox in Libra, the start of cultivation season. The cycle that began with Osiris dethroned in the sign of Scorpio a month later has come full circle and the axes of the solstice and equinox established.

Osiris and Isis crossing the sea to Byblos, the circumpolar stars, established the axis of the equinox. The link between the Pole Star and earth is almost universally depicted as a sacred tree, its branches reaching the heavens and its roots in the underworld.  In astrology, this axis is the basis for contra antiscia.

We also have the solstice axis established by the flooding in the sign of Cancer. This is the astrological basis for antiscia, signs of equal light. Planets cast “shadows” to its mirroring point on the other side of the axis.  Together, they create one of many lattices for astral rays, originally pure light, that are divided across the earth like Osiris.  Osiris had been imprisoned, killed, cast away, torn to pieces, and finally reintegrated into a form so that his spirit could give new life to Egypt with the assistance of his wife and son.  As Iamblichus described the Egyptian doctrine, it “begins from unity and proceeds to multiplicity, the many being in turn governed by a unity.”

Sacred Images of Osiris

“Osiris in Pisces, Aquarius and Taurus” is the information that Hephaestion gives us for images of Osiris. As mentioned much earlier, Aquarius is an air sign and its triplicity rulers are Saturn, Mercury and Jupiter. Pisces is water and its rulers are Venus, Mars and the Moon. Taurus is Earth and the triplicity rulers are Venus, the Moon and Mars. Hephaestion’s astrological rules have triplicity rulers in a crucial role and all of the planets must be considered with the sole exception of the Sun. The Fire signs (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) are not considered either.

The Sun is not a factor in the triplicity scheme, with Fire signs (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) representing his son Horus taking the reins of the Sun’s chariot.  The story of Osiris encompasses the entire cycle of creation and it is impossible to pinpoint one part more significant than the other. The story of Osiris is the story of the Demiurge and Plutarch also describes many different rites occurring in the temples derived from it. Monthly and annual rites occurred, as well as eclipses and many more. Egyptian temples and holy books depict Osiris, Isis and Horus as a multitude of planets depending on the context. The story is the cycle of creation in nature governed by the heavens.

Porphyry, with whom Iamblichus corresponded as Anebo to write De Mysteriis, wrote a treatise On Images which survives in fragments.

“Demeter has the same meaning among the Greeks as Isis amongst the Egyptians: and, again, Kore and Dionysus among the Greeks the same as Isis and Osiris among the Egyptians. Isis is that which nourishes and raises the fruits of the earth; and Osiris among the Egyptians is that which provides the fructifying power, which they propitiate with lamentations as it disappears into the earth in the sowing of seeds, and as it is consumed as food.

“Osiris is also taken for the river-power of the Nile. When they signify the terrestrial earth, Osiris is taken as the fructifying power, but when signifying the celestial, Osiris is the Nile, which Egyptians say came down from heaven… And Isis, in the legends was wedded to Osiris is the land of Egypt, she is made equal to him, and conceives, and produces the fruits.

“To the moon they dedicated a bull which they call Apis, which is blacker than others, and bears symbols of the Sun and Moon, because the light of the Moon is from the Sun. The blackness of his body is an emblem of the Sun, and so is the beetle-like mark under his tongue; and the symbol of the Moon is the semicircle, and the gibbous figure.” – Porphyry, On Images

In ancient Egypt, Osiris was represented by the Djed pillar or the “backbone of Osiris”, which was used with the Sun’s movement in the solstice and equinox axes. A single day when the Sun had risen and set was a microcosm of the annual path of the sun. The column was laid down to represent Osiris being laid down in the sea on the winter solstice and had a daily reflection in the Sun setting in the west. The vertical line “standing” and cutting between the solstice axis is the equinox, and the column stood up to represent the resurrection. This has parallels in the cutting of trees in spring or carving wooden phallic images. Together, the solstice and equinox axes represent the Cross of Matter. The vast majority of Djed pillars from Egypt show a consistent feature: a vertical column with four horizontal bars. The four bars strongly allude to the four points of the solstice and equinox that binds the earth to the heavens, and the single column the axis that links the earth to the still point of the Pole Star. An image of Horus in the exaltation or domicile of the Sun would be very fitting based on this.

Amulet of a Djed Column by Ancient Egyptian
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Original public domain image from Art Institute of Chicago

Placing Taurus in the ascendant has some obvious rationale. In the time of Hephaestion, the constellation Orion rose with Taurus. The Apis bulls were sacred to Osiris, considered living vessels for him. The Moon is the luminary of Sect for Osiris and itself the Exaltation of the Moon.

Placing Taurus as the ascendant puts the two domiciles of Saturn, Capricorn and Aquarius, in the ninth and tenth house. Cancer, the Moon’s rulership, is the third house of the goddess. Assuming Saturn occupies Capricorn in the ninth house of the god, this puts the rising Moon in a trine aspect with Saturn. Pisces is the eleventh house of the Good Daemon and all the ruling planets must presumably be unafflicted along with all triplicity rulers, an incredibly and remarkably rare occurrence. The trine aspect with the greater malefic from the first house would bring its influence front and center through the Moon in the ascendant. Scorpio would oppose the ascendant from the seventh house, reflecting the beginning of Osiris’s overthrow.

Interpreting this from the perspective of the houses as temples of these gods, it fits the mummification of Osiris. The third house of the goddess is in Taurus, exalted, and the first transformation of Osiris as Saturn from the house of the god emanates its rays to the bull and, during Hephaestion’s time, Orion. Ideally, Venus would be exalted in Pisces and received by the Moon, giving Isis a powerful role and reflecting her actions at the river and reviving Osiris by mummification. Aries is the twelfth house, the sign of imprisonment and the bad daemon. Aries is where Osiris was imprisoned in the tree and symbolically this makes sense. The rays being cast are “getting around” the imprisonment in his new earthen form. Many ancient Egyptian images of Osiris as a mummy depict his body wrapped in linen with a bull’s head and a disc between the horns.

Hephaestion’s three signs and their six triplicity rulers imply a bigger picture. In the Thema Mundi, Aquarius is in the eighth house, entering the gates of the underworld like Osiris. Pisces is in the ninth house of the god and the midheaven is Aries, the sign where Isis retrieves him from beyond the sea and Horus becomes the new king. This is the domicile of Jupiter, and the ascendant Cancer mimics the rising of the Nile and is its exaltation. Taurus is the eleventh house of the Good Daemon. Sothis or Sirius, which Plutarch says is the soul of Isis, is now rising in 14 Cancer.

Sources:

“On Images” by Porphyry of Tyre, Translated by Edwin Hamilton Gifford

Of Isis and Osiris, or Of the Ancient Religion and Philosophy of Egypt – Plutarch, The Moralia, edited by William Watson Goodwin

Hellenistic Astrology & Plato’s Metaphysics

Introduction

In the third century of the Common Era, crafting images based on astrological formulas appears to have been a long-established practice. That much is evident from reading Iamblichus, but he gives few details. He also says that some Egyptians had mastered the use of ritual timing to the point that it made the use of materials in their rites irrelevant.

“The information contained in the astrological almanacs comprises only a very small part of the Hermetic system; and doctrine on the heliacal risings and settings of the stars, or the waxing and waning of the moon occupies the lowest place in the Egyptian account of the causes of things…..but they [the Egyptians] recommend that we ascend through the practice of sacred theurgy to the regions that are higher, more universal and superior to fate, towards the god who is the creator, without the aid of matter or anything other than the observation of the critical time for action.” – De Mysteriis, Book 8, 4, Clarke edition

The Hellenized world often synthesized a wide variety of ancient lore into a single system. The Greek lore of Homer and Hesiod were brought together as the Greeks united and expanded, and the philosophical ideas of Pythagoras and Plato united the gods of Egypt. Greek thinking took hold in Persia and Babylon with the Parthians forming astral cults under the name of Zoroaster or combined ancient Iranian gods with their Greek counterparts. By the first century, Rome had taken control of the entire region and tried to emulate the Greeks in practically every way. The old Roman and Etruscan gods followed the same model and were identified as their Greek counterparts based on astrological functions. Rome also occupied Egypt for six centuries and the same thing occurred there. By the time of the Christian emperors the gods of an entire region appear a jumbled mess. Egyptians were writing the names of their own gods as their Greco-Roman counterparts in Koine Greek or Latin, while their older languages were reserved for liturgical purposes.

The philosophers of this period found it rewarding to closely study and analyze the parallel mythologies of the gods. This was itself an important learning process that helped the philosopher grasp subtleties like the Theory of Forms. The Neoplatonists studied a structure of the cosmos that encompassed everything and revealed the underlying order of the gods’ many forms. The Neoplatonists used a three-fold hierarchy based on functions that made mythology accessible and their studies on the gods.

1. Emperor Julian and the Gods of Rome
2. Hephaestion of Thebes and the Gods of Egypt
3. Hellenistic Astrology, 1^st – 5^th Century
4. Temples and Images of Time and Space
5. Thema Mundi
6. Triplicity, Sect & Important Minor Dignities
7. Ritual Petitions and Astrological Timing
8. Ensouling Images and Foundational Principles

1. Emperor Julian and the Gods of Rome

There is no single “correct” source but Saturninius Secundus Salutius, or simply Salutius, is among the best sources for this time period. A close friend and advisor of Rome’s last pagan Emperor, Julian, known as Julian the Apostate by Christian detractors, or as Julian the Philosopher by others. He was widely respected as a philosopher and for his brilliant intellect. Salutius’s small treatise On the Gods and Cosmos is an informative source for the time, as well as the writings of Julian.

Julian had a deep reverence for the works of Iamblichus. He learned theurgy from Maximus of Ephesus, a well-known theurgist. Julian’s early life was spent in the Greek-speaking eastern empire where he was raised as a Christian, until he became enthralled by the Platonist doctrines around the age of 20. He was introduced to Neoplatonism by Aedesius, a former student of Iamblichus. Julian was mainly taught by Eusebius of Myndus who is still remembered as a link in the “Golden Chain” of philosophers. Eusebius was strongly aligned with Plotinus with his approach of pure logic and contemplation and strongly rejected the mystic practices of Iamblichus and theurgy. He had once participated in a rite with Maximus of Ephesus where a statue of Hecate was “animated”, and it disturbed him for the rest of his life. Eusebius was shaken because he witnessed the statue take on a presence in the same way the other participants did. He believed that theurgy was dangerous and best avoided. His warnings had the opposite effect on Julian who was fascinated and became determined to learn this part of philosophy. Julian set off to learn from his new mentor Maximus. The departure wasn’t bitter, and Julian held warm feelings for his old teacher.

Julian was a prodigious learner and spent every moment engrossed in his studies. He became initiated in the Eleusinian and Mithraic mysteries, ordained as a priest of Apollo and learned from the most accomplished Neoplatonist philosophers of the time. He had no desire to rule Rome but circumstances forced it. Julian quickly proved to be a very capable military commander and politician in Gaul before the sudden death of his uncle Constantius made him Emperor at the age of 30.

Julian’s reign coincided with large factions of Christians vying for control of Rome. He surprised the population by disempowering Christians and issuing edicts for religious freedom, repairing the old temples and revoking punitive policies against pagans. His government was guided by Neoplatonist doctrines. He appointed the philosopher Salutius as one of his closest advisors, along with accomplished military officers and dismissing many corrupt bureaucrats. His government reforms and leadership style were unorthodox but by most accounts successful.

He devoted himself to philosophy as much as statecraft, writing orations to Helios and the Mother of the Gods. These works were the culmination of everything he had learned, describing his thought processes, visionary experiences and learning process in great detail, and explaining the rationale for syncretizing deities from more ancient times. These orations give a valuable and personal perspective of traditions that would soon vanish. He held Mithraism, the Chaldean Oracles, and the works of Iamblichus and Plotinus in especially high regard. Julian was incredibly knowledgeable in the writings of the classic philosophers like Plato as well as the older Greek lore. If he hadn’t been emperor he would have still been remembered as a highly accomplished philosopher of the time.

Julian’s surprising rise to power was overshadowed by his catastrophic downfall. After a successful start, he inexplicably set out to make war with the Sasanian Empire on the pretext of a relatively minor border dispute in what is now Iraq. The Persians tried to negotiate but were ignored and in 363 AD he led a military expedition to the Euphrates River. He composed his Hymn to the Mother of the Gods in 362 while passing through Phrygia (northwestern Turkey) where the mother goddess Cybele is thought to have originated.

Julian’s rationale for his campaign has never been understood. He was experienced in war and had excellent military leaders to advise him. He was more than a devout philosopher and mystic. He was fully enraptured by his spiritual practices and almost saintly in many ways, controversially treating people of lower classes with respect. In the Senate he called himself “first among equals” and refused excess honors or flattery. He lived the life of a devout mystic and monk, only having one sexual partner in his life for a brief period, his wife. Every spare moment was spent in study, meditation and mysticism and he surrounded himself with equally devoted Neoplatonists. This is why his choice of war is so bizarre. He consulted numerous seers and diviners who advised him of many ill omens that guaranteed disaster for him. His close friend and advisor Salutius wrote to him and begged him to turn back before it was too late. Julian never explained his actions, so it only leaves room for speculation, but it’s bizarre that he disregarded so many diviners that he respected.

The historian Socrates Scholasticus wrote in “Church History” that Julian believed himself to be Alexander the Great. This claim was repeated by others and isn’t by itself unusual, but the circumstances of Julian’s death is. Shortly after engaging the Persians directly, Julian was wounded in his right side by a spear. It was not immediately life threatening but did cut his lower liver and intestine. His physician successfully disinfected and sewed up the wound. Three days later the intestinal stitching burst and Julian died at the age of 32 on the banks of the Tigris River, about 100 miles north of Babylon where Alexander unexpectedly died at age 32. His fatal wound was a spear to the right side, the same place Christ was stabbed by a Roman soldier, and the namesake of the religious movement that Julian clashed with. Christ was around 33 years old and resurrected after three days. Julian died after three days. In some sense, Christ conquered pagan Rome while Julian embodied its ultimate defeat in an ironic twist.

A Christian officer named Jovian was hastily chosen as emperor by the soldiers. Rome was forced to negotiate the withdrawal on humiliating terms, surrendering five Roman provinces to the Sasanids and allowing Persian annexation of Armenia, ending all Roman influence in the region. Jovian died only seven months later and one of his decrees was a ban on pagan divination and similar practices. Less than thirty years later Emperor Theodosius I issued the famous “Theodosian decrees” that criminalized pagans under severe penalties in all Roman territories.

2. Hephaestion of Thebes and the Gods of Egypt

Hephaestion of Thebes was born during Theodosius’s reign in Egypt and wrote three volumes on astrology. They contain information that other sources will not explicitly state: how to select astrological configurations for images of deities and the timing of rituals. Most of the names are the Greco-Roman equivalent and the details minimal, but enough information survives to fill in the blanks with a high degree of confidence.

Hephaestion of Thebes was a Hellenized Egyptian astrologer born in 380 or 390 AD, not long after Emperor Julian’s short but dramatic reign. In 415, he wrote a three-volume work on astrology called Apotelesmatika. Volume 3 contains a set of instructions for choosing astrological elections to consecrate the statues of seventeen gods, along with instructions for selecting times to perform ritual petitions and divination.  In 2013 Eduardo Gramaglia translated book three and it was published by Cazimi Press and edited by Benjamin Dykes. This is the version that will be referenced here, supplemented with my own research of the Greek text.

Hephaestion consolidates older material by Dorotheus of Sidon (1^st century BC), Claudius Ptolemy and others whose writings would otherwise have been lost. Dorotheus, Ptolemy and Valens were arguably the cornerstone of the system that the medieval Arabs established. Some sources Hephaestion quotes are not always identified like Nechepso and Petosiris, who are portrayed as an ancient Egyptian king and a priest of Thoth. The two are thought to represent a tradition in the same way Aristotle or Hermes were credited with medieval books.

In Volume 3, Hephaestion provides detailed instructions for choosing astrological configurations for crafting and consecrating sacred statues within temples so that they will be suitable for the god. He says that these instructions are “handed down from the wise Egyptians and other ancients” and doesn’t elaborate further. Whatever its origin, it provides instructions that Proclus and others omitted, or has been lost, in their writings on the use of statues and shrines.

Next to nothing is known of Hephaestion’s personal life other than he was a Hellenized Egyptian. He lived immediately before the fall of the Western Roman Empire. During his lifetime the Roman Catholic Church took on much of the governmental authority previously held by the Caesars. Any remaining religious freedoms in Roman territory, including Egypt, were quashed. All pagan temples and practices were outlawed and could be destroyed or reappropriated by the Church. Anyone who didn’t follow the Nicene doctrine was subject to criminal penalties along with social persecutions of all sorts. For a pagan Greek or Egyptian, the practices that involved pagan images would have been an undeniable proof of guilt.

In the two centuries prior, pagan philosophers had widely adopted the Neoplatonist view of the gods that emphasized the three major hierarchies. They had simplified ideas of emanations back into the original structure of upper, middle and lower. The realms of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades were ultimately the same as the Christian trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Three hierarchies of divine chains emanated to produce a fourth world of matter as the Pythagorean Tetractys illustrated. The Chaldean Oracles that Emperor Julian and many other Neoplatonists held in high regard divided the World of Forms into the First Intellect, the World Soul, and the Demiurge, producing our world of matter. Beginning, middle and end were underlying the forms of matter. The identities of pagan gods followed this model in the period that Hephaestion lived and prove valuable for understanding their relationships.

Hephaestion provides a list of zodiac signs and the gods whose images are to be created with them, with an example of a solar and lunar configuration. The first, Fortuna, has much more detail than the others and serves as an example formula to contemplate. Their Greek and Roman names are used. The responsibility is on the reader to formulate the remaining astrological configurations and identify the planets that the god embodies.

Hephaestion’s three volumes will be my primary reference for astrological information and the Roman era Platonists for the gods themselves.

The Goddess Fortune [Fortuna, Tyche] when the Moon is in her own triangle [triplicity] and that of Venus, and well posited in Capricorn or in Cancer.

The “Mother of the Gods” in Leo, Taurus and Capricorn.

Demeter, Kore (Persephone) and Pluto in Virgo and Taurus.

Osiris in Pisces, Aquarius and Taurus.

Victory (Nike) in Virgo and Cancer.

Serapis in Taurus, Leo and Sagittarius.

Asclepius and Hygeia in Sagittarius and Pisces.

Dionysus in Virgo and Capricorn.

Heracles in Gemini and Leo.

Eros and the Graces [Charites] in the domiciles or exaltations of Venus.

Nemesis in those (domicile or exaltation) of Saturn [Capricorn, Aquarius and Libra].

Philosophers of the Roman era identified the planets as gods and distinguished them in hierarchies. There were the planetary beings, but also Encosmic and Sublunar or mundane gods, all of which were interlinked. A god higher in the Golden Chain could descend into the form of a lower god and take on attributes of that level. The simplest example is the creative principle of light descending to become the Sun.

The hierarchical structure of the Neoplatonists can be very confusing, especially when comparing stories from different sources and eras. Homer and Hesiod are from the same period but often portray the same gods differently. In the early Roman era, they all seem to have been combined freely but few people explained or fully understood the underlying rationale. The confusion caused philosophers like Plotinus to dismiss it and Iamblichus to attempt reconciling the “Many and the One” which had become an idea most people couldn’t understand. This was doubtlessly one of the reasons that the monotheistic religions became dogmatic in their doctrines; the idea of a formless source couldn’t fit the worldview of many people.

To make sense of them, it’s important to keep in mind the Great Chain of Being and Theory of Forms which is emanations, multiplying and combining as it descends like the Tetractys. The scheme of beings according to the Chaldean Oracles can be summarized as one source, which emanates three different tiers of being and ultimately culminates in the world of matter in a four-fold structure. Each tier contains potentially endless beings, in the same way the cosmos has endless stars, and the earth has endless creatures.

Oracles of Zoroaster, translated by W. W. Wescott

I’m referencing what remains of the Chaldean Oracles heavily because it was regarded as second only to Plato by most Neoplatonist philosophers of the time. Julian referred to himself as “an initiate of the seven rays”, which points to this book and the Mithras cult.

I’ve attempted to consolidate most of the cosmological descriptions from Pythagoras to the Neoplatonists in this chart. In the center is the Pythagorean emanation of the Tetractys which is, for me at least, the most comprehensive reference point. I’m not illustrating the Tetractys as the more familiar ten points because I’m trying to convey the triad emanating the fourfold world of matter. This is key to grasping the seemingly contradictory and confusing mythologies of gods and astral emanations.

The fourth tier is everything that we can see and sense and the three tiers above that is everything behind the curtain that we cannot sense. The three-dimensional world of matter is the fourth tier in the chain. Everything below the realm of Intellect or Nous has visible counterparts in the sky, water and earth. An imperceptible world of upper, middle and lower is behind all of it. We each have a direct counterpart in the three parts of our soul as Plato explained the composition of our psyche. This triad is the inner world and the fourth is the outer world of matter.

Salutius, the close friend and advisor to Emperor Julian, explains the divine nature of fables and their layers of symbolism and how hierarchies are identified through Pythagorean terms of emanation and harmony. He explains that linking gods to the cosmos and processes of nature frequently reveals the activities of the gods overlapping and appearing on multiple levels, in the same way the Monad becomes a multitude of numbers. A fable conceals truths from the unworthy and compels others to philosophize.

“They also represent the activities of the Gods. For one may call the world a myth, in which bodies and things are visible, but souls and minds hidden. Besides, to wish to teach the whole truth about the Gods to all produces contempt in the foolish, because they cannot understand, and lack of zeal in the good, whereas to conceal the truth by myths prevents the contempt of the foolish and compels the good to practice philosophy.”

Julian shares this sentiment in his Hymn to the Mother of the Gods and Hymn to Helios.  He defends the myths as the highest forms of wisdom. Interpreting them requires using all the mental and spiritual faculties to perceive the truths hidden beneath the outer appearance, just like the material world with its trappings that hypnotize us through the senses. Julian also valued mythology for the ceremonies and pageantry that allowed people incapable of philosophy to still honor and interact with the gods.

Iamblichus explains at length that what we now refer to as “myths” depict the divine order, not as it really exists but in images and symbols we can recognize. Those images and symbols are found throughout creation and have links to their source that are otherwise unintelligible. A ritual enactment of a mythical story using those images and symbols establishes a link to its origin. The actions create sympathy by directly participating in the divine order. For example, a ritual act of lighting a fire has a symbolic link to the creation of the Sun by creating a sympathetic resonance, like a tuning fork. The action and symbolism can awaken part of the human soul that is linked to the Sun and when it stirs, the imagination can receive impressions directly from it through intuition that has been amplified by the event. A mythical story is itself an image.

Iamblichus says of rituals,

“It imitates the order of the gods, both the intelligible and that in the heavens. It possesses eternal measures of what truly exists and wondrous tokens such as have been sent down hither by the creator and father of all, by means of which unutterable truths are expressed through secret symbols, beings beyond form brought under the control of form, things superior to all image reproduced through images, and all things brought to completion through one single divine cause, which itself so far transcends passions that reason is not even capable of grasping it.” (De Mysteriis, I:21, Clark)

Closely examining the underlying order of a deity’s mythology and rites can reveal the astrological correspondence of a season, planet, group of stars or a combination of all. Hephaestion intended for the reader to know it for themselves, but all clues for us today are helpful. The syncretization of gods can appear to be a labyrinth but they’re ultimately “images reproduced through images” as Iamblichus put it. Iamblichus explains in many ways that rituals are enacting a process which “imitates the order of the gods” using images and symbols. The myth itself is an image or symbol of the unintelligible.

Manilius is another authoritative source for this period and his work informed others for several centuries. He writes in Astronomica (30 BC – 37 AD) of the Roman gods who had dominion in particular astral spheres:

“Pallas (Minerva) watches over the Woolbearer (Aries);
Cytherea (Venus) over Taurus;
Phoebus (Apollo) the shapely Gemini;
You, Cyllenius (Mercury), over Cancer;
and Jupiter, you yourself rule Leo with the Mother of the Gods;
Virgo who bears ears of grain belongs to Ceres;
and the forged scales to Vulcan;
quarrelsome Scorpio clings to Mars;
Diana cherishes the hunting man part horse (Sagittarius);
and Vesta the contracted stars of Capricorn;
opposite Jupiter is Aquarius, the star of Juno;
and Neptune acknowledges his own Pisces in the upper air.”

This list is using Roman gods to denote planets and the twelve zodiac signs. Some are easily recognized through their dignities in western astrology but others don’t fit that scheme as easily. They require their mythologies to be examined, in their Greek and Roman forms, before their role becomes clearer.

As will become clearer, the astrological associations were putting mythologies and nature into the form of sacred numbers and were not arbitrary. In addition to Hephaestion’s three volumes, I’ll use Manilius and Firmicus Maternus as references. The Hermetic Lots can be reliable indicators as well. Many of the Lots have the names of Hellenistic gods and are calculated from specific planets, which can reveal that god’s planetary association and the reason for it.

At first it may appear to the outside observer like pareidolia, finding nonexistent patterns in random information (seeing animals and faces in clouds as an example). With enough symbolism, a person can shoehorn any interpretation to fit. But that is very the mental faculty that the philosophers intended to be used while keeping it grounded in reason. It’s a delicate balance between the intuitive and logical parts of the mind. Using only one excessively makes for imbalance. Without the rational faculty to keep it in check, the intuitive mind will become hypnotized and chase phantoms, like a person using intoxicants excessively or having a “Pollyanna” personality. It’s blissful but reality will eventually disrupt it, sometimes painfully. On the other hand, shutting out the intuitive imagination causes a disconnected and isolated perception that’s dismal and empty, devoid of meaning and just as imbalanced. Plutarch, who was a priest of Apollo, repeatedly emphasized that sacred images, stories and symbols must be kept in check through philosophy and reason.

By bridging symbolism with a coherent order, the reader will begin to understand myths like the Neoplatonist philosophers studied them. Emperor Julian learned this process and wrote about it. His writings are helpful but going through the thought process itself is what matters most, enabling a person to grasp the Theory of Forms through astrological events. They knew the myths differed and the planet associations were not always consistent. Getting too caught up in “which is the correct one” can miss the forest for the trees. Zeus in his form of a distant sky father could choose to act more directly by taking on the form of the planet Jupiter, or the Sun. In either case he is descending from the higher heavens to enter the planetary sphere. The gods frequently changed forms to do many things just as the Monad becomes infinitely complex numbers.

The myths were intended to illustrate processes that anyone could perceive at a surface level but also use them as a reference point for connecting many complex things. The intuitive imagination has the urge to find connections everywhere and the myths provide a structure that’s vital for keeping the reasoning faculties involved. In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, this is where the soul first looks outside of the cave and experiences pain by the overwhelming sunlight. He goes back to reexamine the shadows, then reflections in water, eventually looking at the night sky before finally seeing the sun. In myths, a god entering a cave signifies a celestial being (stars or planets) entering the physical in the darkness of the underworld. But there is even more to this symbolism. The underground temples used by the cult of Mithras, collectively known as Mithraeums, are beautifully decorated with astrological images. What little is known of the Mysteries of Eleusis involved elaborate ceremonies in caves. This is a tradition reaching back tens of thousands of years. Archaeo-astronomers are increasingly discovering that ancient cave paintings are highly sophisticated and accurate star maps aligned to the equinoxes and solstices with astonishing expertise. Astrology has become synonymous with the sky above but for most of human history it had an equally important chthonic or underworld aspect. The Sun enters the underworld every evening at sunset and spends exactly half the year there altogether. The heavens and earth linking together, immortal spirits to mortal bodies, was central to understanding and developing the soul. A rite for Demeter and Persephone would take place in a cave for the same reasons as a rite for Zeus and the Olympians would occur on a mountaintop.

The myths were always regarded to have been gifted to humans directly from the gods they portray. According to Julian, philosophers must ultimately comprehend them for themselves.

“Now I think ordinary men derive benefit enough from the irrational myth which instructs them through symbols alone. But those who are more highly endowed with wisdom will find the truth about the gods helpful; though only on condition that such a man examine and discover and comprehend it under the leadership of the gods, and if by such riddles as these he is reminded that he must search out their meaning, and so attains to the goal and summit of his quest through his own researches; he must not be modest and put faith in the opinions of others rather than in his own mental powers.” Julian the Emperor, Hymn to the Mother of the Gods

Julian emphasized the importance of knowing and understanding over blind belief. All the philosophers and sages shared this opinion. I’m often referencing Julian as a matter of personal preference for his clear writing style and the fact that he studied philosophy in the same century as Hephaestion of Thebes.

A major difference between Hellenistic astrology and it’s more technical medieval form is that the former had much more of an overt emphasis on pagan gods in the astral spheres. The house divisions were called “temples”. Temples, in the ordinary sense, are special portions of physical space and matter that allow one or more gods to descend into it so that human beings and nature can be closer to them. The extreme efforts that ancient people made to design temples with sacred number and astronomical alignments in the architecture takes on a new meaning when the relationship between “houses” and “temples” are contemplated in an astrological sense. The heavens are limitless in its primordial form and creation is only possible because its raw elements are divided and combined in endless cycles. The underlying mathematical principles that govern this process are what unifies everything and are part of the sympathy between matter and spirit.

Many of the astrological formula Hephaestion provided are not singular planets, but significant aspects between planets and the luminaries, in the same way that Caput Draconis and Cauda Draconis, the Head and Tail of the Dragon, is the eclipse of the Sun and Moon.

3. Hellenistic Astrology, 1^st – 5^th Century

Heaven, Earth & Underworld

In volume two Hephaestion elaborates on the rising of the Dog Star in the month of Epiphi or “third month of the season of the waters” which is the Sothic calendar. For those who are unfamiliar with Egyptian history, the Dog Star is Sirius, or a goddess called Sopdet (“skilled woman”) and the season of the waters refers to the Nile flooding, which gave life to the fertile land of the Nile Valley situated in a vast desert. The heliacal rising of Sirius coincided with the floods and was the basis of Egyptian time divisions since 3000 BC, and likely much earlier based on evidence at Nabta Playa (5500 to 3400 BC). The Egyptian science of the stars underwent changes during its immense history but the Sothic calendar was the very foundation of its timekeeping.

Hephaestion presents astrology in a form that is seemingly different from the medieval era. The information is given in much less detail and much of its terminology is ancient pagan lore. The planets are portrayed less as lights in the sky and more as gods interacting that result in endless combinations of events in our world. The geocentric worldview that has chains of gods surrounding the earth and carried through the four winds are spoken of as much more real than we are accustomed to. The astrologers of the medieval era lived in a world where monotheism was interpreted strictly and forced to translate older pagan books in terms that were acceptable. Their books are written in far more detail but some of the Greco-Egyptian worldview is gone. The impression on the reader’s imagination is much more mechanical and harder to visualize the figures of Zeus and Hermes “hurling rays” and “bearing spears” in the form of the sky’s lights.

Early astrologers of the Hellenistic era looked at each house or sign division as an abode for gods. Each was a temple that connected the heavens and the underworld. The cosmos was ultimately divided into three primordial realms: the sky, the earth, and the underworld. Each was inhabited by gods and goddesses that together made life. The meaning is the same but the word “house” doesn’t convey the same impression as temple. Imum Coeli or “bottom of the heavens” in Latin is much less straightforward than stake of the underworld. Earth sounds different than Hades.

The result is that the astrology becomes more removed from the myths. The cosmos is harder to visualize as living beings with spirits entering and exiting the world. The cosmos seems less alive and devoid of personality. Without that view, it’s more difficult to understand the reverence that the theurgists had for astrology as a deeply spiritual practice.

The most important window of time and space, from both an astrological and spiritual perspective, was the ascendant and eastern horizon, which was the entrance to the physical world signifying birth, beginnings, and the point on the horizon where the sun and other planets rose each day. The Midheaven was the highest point of the heavens where the gods emanated their actions fully. The descendant, or seventh house, was the western horizon where the sun set and Egyptians considered the passage to the afterlife. The descendant signifies the descent to Hades and the angle of the Imum Coeli, or fourth house, the lowest point of the underworld. The four angles in the chart correspond to the Sun’s four changes in seasons.

The stakes or angles act as windows between the world of matter, time and space, and the spiritual worlds that intersect. Among other things, an astrological chart represented the heavens and underworld intersecting to create our visible world through the geometric Form most sacred to the Pythagoreans, the twelve-faced docecahedron. The dodecahedron contained all possible geometric shapes and was encircled by the ecliptic and twelve zodiac signs, or dodecatropos in Greek. An astrological chart was a microcosmic symbol of a fractal universe. For the Greeks it was three primordial realms: the heavens ruled by Zeus, the underworld of Hades and surrounded by Oceanos, the primordial ocean that contained the visible earth and had its physical counterpart in the ocean.

A heavy focus on the twelve houses as the heavens intersecting with the underworld, influencing nature and the seasons, portrays the events shown in a person’s birth chart as a microcosmic piece of an infinite cycle. A natal horoscope’s first house and ascendant didn’t just signify the moment of birth and the physical body exiting the womb but was also a reflection of the Sun rising to form a new day, in a cycle of endless days, months, years and eras.

Iamblichus emphasized that the spiritual component of astrology was the most important aspect. Hellenistic astrology books can be difficult to understand because the writers did not explain things in detail like the medieval astrologers. One reason for this is that astrology itself was a mystery tradition just like Hermeticism, Mithraism, the Eleusinian rites and so on. Firmicus Maternus, Vettius Valens and most of the important sources tell the reader to not reveal the information to the uninitiated and often provide the bare minimum details. This point of view made astrology a method of deep spiritual contemplation on an individual person’s relationship to the universe as the dialogues of Hermes Trismegistus explains the human soul to be.

The first through sixth houses didn’t only represent the world that we live in every day but was the domain of the chthonic: Hades, nature gods, and terrestrial spirits (or simply demons in later thought) inhabited this sphere. Celestial beings like the Sun took on a chthonic form when they set below the western horizon, like Re traveling the Duat in his solar boat every night. The houses were windows of time and space for the celestial gods to exert their influence in different ways by commanding the natural forces that resided in each. Venus in her celestial form commanded different spiritual forces than she did while she was Queen of the Underworld. Some houses strengthened them and weakened others, depending on their nature. It allowed for infinite combinations with an underlying mathematical structure in the way Pythagoras described all of existence.

As the Platonic philosophers made clear with the Theory of Forms, all that is visible reflects higher principles that are invisible. The Sun in its physical guise of light and heat was the Form of light on a lower plane. The Sun was alive and had a spirit that could be perceived through dreams and altered states of consciousness. Iamblichus described the gods in Book 3 of De Mysteriis appearing to the mind’s eye in various images of light that symbolized their nature and function. For many Greeks, he appeared as Helios. To Egyptians, he appeared as Re and to Chaldeans he took on the image of Shemesh. They did this by activating the sunthemata or “token” embedded in the human soul; the sympathetic relationship between the token and the god caused the soul to perceive it through imagination. The quality of the vision wasn’t always reliable according to Iamblichus. It could be diluted by distorted imagination or phantasia arising from attachment to the physical desires of the body. Divination methods such as astrology were useful tools for gaining clarity.

For Iamblichus, a powerful vision of Helios had more value if an astrological chart was also interpreted to discern the activities of the Sun and the rest of creation. The human faculties are flawed and limited; more context and detail could be gained by exercising more than one. Theurgists looked at an astrological chart as a map of each god’s actions, affecting the natural world as well as the individual’s physical body and life.

As I have examined with the foundations of the tropical zodiac, there was a very important emphasis on the four divisions of the seasons where light and dark played out their endless struggle to engulf the earth. On the summer solstice, the earth is overwhelmed with the Sun’s light and experiences only a few hours of darkness. On the winter solstice the opposite occurs and darkness engulfs the world. On the equinoxes light and dark achieves a perfect but very brief balance. In the spring that moment of balance is followed by increasing light until it peaks in summer and then follows with another perfect but brief balance in the sign of Libra, the autumn equinox. The darkness slowly begins to increase until the cold winter solstice arrives, and this continues endlessly. The solstices are marked by the first degree of their respective zodiac signs: the first degree of Cancer in summer and Capricorn in winter. The equinoxes are marked by the first degree of Aries in spring and Libra in autumn.

The signs govern the type of activity and influence that the planets will have when they reside in their sky temple. The four markers of the solstice and equinox form a cross or X that is called the “cross of matter” in ancient lore. As we will later, the imagery and symbolism of the signs plays a significant role in the mythology of different gods.

4. Temples and Images of Time and Space

Both luminaries are seen as chariots that travel an almost parallel path in the sky. The Sun’s path is the ecliptic (taken from the word eclipse) and the Moon’s orbit is a slightly different one. The Sun’s “temples” on his path are the twelve houses or signs of the zodiac and the Moon has 28 mansions. Their intersections are the nodes. Their paths are depicted as a giant serpent or dragon encircling the earth; one intersection towards the north is its head and the other nearer the south is the tail.

The Moon and Sun pass each other once a month with the New Moon and see each other across the heavens in the Full Moon. When their paths perfectly cross, a solar eclipse occurs. When their view of each other is blocked, a lunar eclipse occurs. From our point of view on earth, they are both the exact same size and fulfill similar functions, lighting the day and night and mediating for the stars and earth.

When they’re imagined as living beings endlessly traveling from one temple to another the imagery is more intuitive. Each temple is populated and characterized by its stars above and the corresponding season below; they both govern the seasons, containing the months, and that window of time is characterized by the temples they’re in. The Sun in the midsummer temple of Leo will take on the bright golden nature of a lion, and his arrival in the spring temple of Taurus will have the nature of a bull plowing the fields. His lunar counterpart works with him harmoniously there to make the fields grow, and she takes on the same nature. There she takes on bull characteristics like horns, reflecting the waxing crescent Moon that appears there when the Sun reaches the spring equinox. They can be imagined as beings performing rites in each temple, wearing different costumes and performing pageants with the temple’s celestial and terrestrial occupants.

Cybele’s chariot pulled by lions is the lunar goddess in Leo and the Sun is the lions. Both support each other in this form because the signs of Cancer and Leo are side by side, each temple being their exclusive rulership. No other planet is exalted in them. Cancer belongs to the Moon but this sign is where the summer solstice occurs and the Sun engulfs the earth in light. Leo follows and his heat increases.

Likewise, the Sun will take the form of a young man riding a horse-drawn chariot in Aries or as the lion itself in Leo. A chariot pulled by bulls is the lunar goddess at her full strength in Taurus. The Moon goddess with bull horns on her head is acting more on her own in Taurus while a lion by himself is more of the nature of the Sun by himself. The lunar goddess holding a mirror is her function as the collector and reflector of the sky’s lights and astral rays. When either one of them is fully absorbed in the nature of the higher sphere of stars, they will take on a form that imitates that group of stars. We can see this in many lunar mansion images and it extends to the other planets as well. The variety of forms may seem counterintuitive but it must be kept in mind that they are forming time and infinite varieties of events. Priesthoods and mystery schools taught initiates methods to alter their consciousness and perceive the spiritual forms around them. Close study of symbolism and the cycles of time gave them the means to comprehend and understand visions of infinity that can’t be understood purely through logic and the senses.

Jacob’s Ladder by William Blake, 1799

The ancients viewed time as endless threads of light forming a giant web or lattice. One of them having the potential to take on many forms simultaneously is natural and reflects the fractal nature of everything. All of it combines into endless chains of spirits ascending and descending to Gaia or earth, called the Golden Chain, Jacob’s Ladder, and so on. Their form will reflect the sky’s temple and the events below. Consequently, the human beings below who perceive and understand it can perform actions at that time which imitates it, synchronizing and enhancing the sympathy between them.

Manilius is a primary source for the Hellenistic era, contemporary with Dorotheus, and his Astronomica is the earliest to assign a special quality or “joy” to each house. Regardless of what the zodiac sign is, some houses cause a planet to “rejoice” simply by being there because the qualities of the house are very similar to its nature. For example, the twelfth house is the most malefic and Saturn rejoices there, being the greater malefic. Manilius referred to these as temples of their respective planets. The joys are overlooked by most but when they’re viewed as the actions of gods then these placements can be much more significant, especially when images are made of multiple planets. Images for enhancing dreams and divination would make the third and ninth houses a much more important factor.

Hephaestion and Julianus also emphasize the sect of the planets as a source of joy. The diurnal planets (Saturn, Jupiter and Sun) rejoice by day and the nocturnal planets (Mars, Venus and Moon) rejoice by night. Mercury can do both. Hermes is a dual-natured intermediary who can traverse all worlds, blend in and act in many more domains than the others. Mercury can also change genders to act in male or female signs of either sect.

This is important when analyzing the actions of gods in ancient stories. Myths that are often dismissed as crude superstitions with bizarre violence and sexual elements are symbols representing celestial events.

5. Thema Mundi

Signs where each planet rejoices according to Hellenistic sources.

The Thema Mundi (Cosmos Genesis in Greek) is another important piece of the Hellenistic world whose importance was diminished over time. It was a horoscope that appeared in Ptolemaic Egypt depicting the birth of creation when everything was perfect.

All of the planets are in 15 degrees of their sign, making the placement of Mercury and Venus impossible. The former cannot be more than 28 degrees from the Sun and the latter no more than 47. Some people have dismissed it as evidence that the astronomers of the time were so unknowledgeable that they couldn’t properly measure those planets in the sky. This is not only an arrogant assumption, but it’s proven false by Hephaestion making multiple references to the equator and the order of the stars changing in the north and south hemispheres. Close examination of the Thema Mundi also reveals that it was made with the accurate circumference of the earth in consideration. Its apparent simplicity masks much deeper principles that progressively reveals the interconnected web of time, space and astral rays the more it is examined.

The Thema Mundi was a contemplative symbol for astrologers of this period. The planetary placements were physically impossible, but deep contemplation forced specific thought processes that continuously reveal important principles. Some were closely interwoven with principles underlying many creation myths.

6.  Triplicity, Sect & Important Minor Dignities

Triplicity rulers are another dignity that was considered more heavily in the Hellenistic era. Their importance and function were eventually regarded as a measure of planetary strength and of less importance than rulership and exaltation. Rather than being a singular indicator of medium strength, they were of vital importance for indicating the beginning, middle and end. The triad corresponds to the three Empyrean realms of Heaven, Earth and the Underworld. Triplicity is crucial for understanding Hephaestion’s instructions for images and ritual petitions.

Dorotheus and Hephaestion make clear that all the triplicity lords are important, and not one planet acting as the sole significator with the others having little or no purpose. The triplicity scheme is significantly different than that used in the medieval period. There are no participating triplicity lords and one triplicity lord is not assigned based on day or night. All three are of equal importance and their placement indicates how much support they can give.

Hephaestion also follows the model of Dorotheus by considering triplicity the more important dignity. His work was not translated into Arabic nor used in codifying Arabic astrology in the medieval period, when Claudius Ptolemy and Valens were the primary sources. Domicile and exaltation were given precedence over triplicity, which was considered an intermediate level of strength and above the bounds and decans. This is not to say that these two dignities aren’t factors in Hephaestion’s system, they are, but triplicity is a primary factor.

Hephaestion, like Dorotheus, doesn’t combine dignities to find a ruler or Almuten. He puts more focus on the decans and the twelfth-parts in lieu of the Almuten. The sect of a planet is of critical importance. An otherwise debilitated planet in its sect still has some dignity and it can be the difference in malefic planets helping or damaging the native. This is important to keep in mind for those who are accustomed to using medieval or Renaissance era systems of astrology and want to use this more ancient methodology.

The triplicity rulers of this era are also different than that of the later systems of astrology, which consist of only two or an additional third participating ruler. There are three rulers of each triplicity and they represent the beginning, middle and end, respectively.

7. Ritual Petitions & Astrological Timing

For ritual petitions, Hephaestion’s information is brief but concise: the Ascendant is the petitioner and the beginning of the matter, the Midheaven the god petitioned and its actions, and the Imum Coeli or fourth house indicates how well the petition will be received. The seventh house or Descendant signifies the sacrifice/offering made to the god petitioned. In other words, the Midheaven is a celestial god acting on the request sent from the Ascendant. The Imum Coeli or the seat of Tartarus is the Underworld receiving the message from the celestial world via the Axis Mundi running from the top of the heavens, through the center of the earth and out the bottom. Hades, having sovereignty over the earth, carries it out in the world of matter.

This simple formula can be of help when navigating the vast amount of detailed instructions for petitions in Picatrix and provide a simplified foundation. It should be noted that the house attributions in the Hellenistic period differ slightly to the scheme later established by the medieval Arabs, the sixth and seventh houses being the biggest difference.

By looking at Hephaestion’s examples of elections, derived from Dorotheus, a framework for ritual petitions can be found. The desired effects of a ritual petition should mirror the astrological timing it uses. If the desired events can be seen playing out in the chart then the gods petitioned can easily influence that outcome.

For example, if the chart can be interpreted as a successful journey occurring, then the astral world can influence those events with their full strength. But the reverse holds true. If the chart shows troubles and failure, the astral gods petitioned will have little strength or willingness to help.

The ancients’ analogy of the helm of a ship is a symbolic example of the soul’s interactions with the astrological forces of the heavens. We are ships and our lives are a journey, and the celestial forces are the ocean and atmosphere. The astral rays can be thought of as weather and water currents and astrology is a means to measure it. Before setting sail, we would want to check the conditions. If the winds and currents are turbulent and flowing opposite to the destination, then a difficult or unsuccessful journey can be expected. But if it is measured and indicates favorable conditions, it makes sense to use that information to our advantage. An astrological election is the use of a forecast, and a petition serves as a sail that allows the winds to easily propel the ship across.

It can be helpful to visualize it with the threefold cosmos as depicted by every ancient culture on earth. The threefold spherical universe would be the heavens above and the god as the midheaven, the Imum Coeli as the bottom of the underworld, and the flat disc of the physical world as the ascendant in the east and the descendant in the west.

This is the ultimate threefold world of spirit. The houses of astrology that depict their relationship with the physical spherical world, based on the four angles (four directions, four points of the equinox and solstice) are easily reconciled by placing them side by side.

The four angles or stakes are the points where the higher threefold world, two dimensional, becomes physical and three dimensional, like the third and fourth rows of the Pythagorean Tetractys. The dodecahedron that Plato says is the geometric shape of the earth and universe corresponds to the division of twelve signs/houses. It provides a means to comprehend the invisible World of Forms becoming the visible world of matter in a chain of emanations that endlessly reflect and refract.

Visualizing the operation as the heavens and underworld working together provides a helpful context. The petitioner is the ascendant, the helm, which always signifies the beginning of something and the individual. The petitioner is the conduit between the heavens and the earth. The ninth house is the divine decree. The top of the celestial pole, the midheaven, is the celestial seat of government and the actions that result from the most powerful part of the sky.

The underworld carries out the decree in the world of matter. Because matter is finite, it needs elemental substances and the astral rays it contains, placed at the entrance to the underworld in the descendant. The fourth house stake is the other end of the celestial pole. It is Tartarus, the seat of Hades’ authority in the underworld and its deepest point. Its house ruler carries the message between above and below and ensures that the flow of communication finishes in an optimal manner.

Examine the first house, particularly the ascendant, midheaven, Sun and Moon. The outcome is successful when benefics are rising and culminating, benefic fixed stars are rising, and the Lot of Fortune favorably placed. Know the beginning and the potential actions, then make the end agree.

First House/Ascendant – Petitioner; Inception of Event

Tenth House/Midheaven – God petitioned and Action

Seventh House/Descendant – Sacrifice offered and Success

Fourth House/Imum Coeli – Outcome; nature of the matter itself

The ascendant, its ruler and lord of the tenth house or midheaven should aspect each other and be unafflicted. The Moon is the secondary significator and should apply to the ruler of the ascendant or tenth, and its sign ruler unafflicted. The signs and significator planets used should suit the nature of the petition.

The offerings should correspond to the sign in the descendant. If Virgo descends, wheat, flowers or something relating to agriculture are acceptable. Correspondences for natural materials are plentiful in works of traditional astrology. The petitioned gods who embody the signs and planets should also be of a compatible nature. For instance, Saturn would not be petitioned for matters that are of Venus like love or aesthetics. There is an abundance of myths that contain possibilities, like pomegranates or the narcissus flower for Persephone. Texts like the Greek Magical Papyri also have many lists of materials used in ancient rites that may be feasible to use.

The incantations for the petition have many possibilities as well. Many hymns and invocations from the Hellenistic world survive to the present day and some can even be spoken aloud in their original language with some effort and ingenuity. Thomas Taylor’s translations of the Orphic Hymns are not precise and that wasn’t his intent. Taylor’s goal was practical and he wanted to preserve the hexameter structure, which wasn’t possible when translating the Greek words to English. A great many of the invocations and rituals in Picatrix are also well suited. For those who wish to put forth the effort, reciting a relevant part of a myth that reflects the desired outcome would not be out of place. These principles of rituals are explained in the Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy, Chapter 10, attributed to Heinrich Agrippa.

Iamblichus and Proclus are excellent sources as well. Prayer and incantations are unfortunately overlooked today because many mainstream religions made a poor impression and fail to explain the original methods and purpose. Long ago prayer involved a great deal of meditation and altered states of consciousness, much like the mantras of Hinduism or lengthy prayers of the Sufis. Proclus explains it eloquently in his Commentary on Plato’s Timaeus, and Iamblichus provides one of the oldest practical guides from ancient times.

8. Ensouling Images and Foundational Principles

In the same sentence that he quotes the ancients, Hephaestion says that a statue made of wood should also be used in preparation. Creating statues using lost wax casting or sand casting was the preferred method of Thabit Ibn Qurra for crafting talismanic images. Using wax or clay to sculpt the statue mold that will be disintegrated with molten metal and solidify into the statue is the most common method now, but wooden models are equally viable. He adds that these instructions are to be used for statues, images, or figures carved in relief. It is worth noting that effigies of Osiris, made of grain seeds, were made as ritual objects and planted at astrologically auspicious times. In this way, Osiris could incarnate physically as the crops every year.

He doesn’t specify that statues should be made in this way, nor does he address sacred statues or images in jewelry sculpted in relief, which were also prevalent. These require a great deal of time and it presents a dilemma with precise astrological timing. Porphyry and Proclus address this in their treatises on statues, saying that the astrologically timed moment to observe is when the synthemata is added to the statue. This can mean adding an herbal mixture to the statue or a carved symbol, establishing a link to that moment. Synthemata is a spiritual idea that is known through something that can be perceived.

Hephaestion explains some optimal planetary configurations and some to be avoided, like the eclipse and oppositions from malefics, Sacred objects and statues are to be prepared, built and dedicated as follows:

“…when the Moon is suitably posited in the triangle of Jupiter, and when this star is in harmony with her, that is to say, in the same triangle (triplicity), and let the Sun be configured similarly, and let Saturn chance to be posited alike in the same triangle.”

In this example, both the Luminaries are implied to be in a fire sign.

For lunar elections, the Moon and Jupiter should both be in the fiery triplicity, a trine.  The Sun in a fiery triplicity is his own triplicity rulership, along with Saturn. Triplicity is clearly important in these elections. It’s strongly implied that the example uses the Sun and Moon in Aries, Leo or Sagittarius because that is the only logic for emphasizing Jupiter and then Saturn with day and night charts.

For the Moon election formula, Saturn is not mentioned. Hephaestion is using schematics that are two thousand years old. Dorotheus of Sidon explains this for each of the signs. For instance, Aries has three planets for day and three for night; all are triplicity rulers and the order indicates the level of support that each provides.

“The lords of the triplicity of Aries by day are the Sun, then Jupiter, then Saturn; and by night Jupiter, then the Sun, then Saturn.” (Dorotheus, Carmen Astrologicum, Book 1, Chapter 1, David Pingree, p. 161-62)

Hephaestion chooses his words sparingly and carefully, but they reveal an underlying order: male gods are assigned to masculine diurnal signs and the female gods to feminine nocturnal signs. The single exception is Dionysus with two female signs, but he is personified by Mercury who encompasses different genders and natures, as does his mythology.

Triplicity rulers should be considered the primary significators unless he specifies otherwise, like Fortuna. He specifies where the Moon and Venus should be placed. The Graces are clearly Venus because Hephaestion explicitly states that the domiciles and exaltation of Venus are to be used. The Moon should apply to trine the significator unless something else is stated, and the sect of the chart should match the significator.

The other rules for inceptions, according to Hephaestion, generally follow that of the medieval and Renaissance astrologers with a few exceptions. Oppositions and squares to malefics are severely debilitating.  In volumes one and two, Hephaestion repeatedly indicates that he considers the eclipse especially harmful. He also makes mention of the degrees of exaltation for each planet, and if the opportunity to use them presents itself they should be utilized.

Sun and Moon

“…when the Moon is suitably posited in the triangle of Jupiter, and when this star is in harmony with her, that is to say, in the same triangle (triplicity), and let the Sun be configured similarly, and let Saturn chance to be posited alike in the same triangle.”

This seems to be elections only for statues or talismans of the Sun and Moon.

In this example, both the Luminaries are implied to be in a fire sign. The Moon is in Aries which makes for an excellent solar election, provided the Sun is in a fire sign too, and the triplicity rulers preferably in a fire sign. At a minimum they should not be seriously afflicted.  No images are specified, but a scarab or Re for the Sun is a suitable choice.

Isis with bull horns for the Moon in Taurus is an obvious choice, provided that the earth triplicity rulers are suitably configured. Optimally, the Moon would trine Venus and separate from a trine to Mars. Firmicus Maternus alludes to the Moon and Mars having a volatile nature and that configuration should be handled with care. Mars should not be seriously afflicted as he is the other earth triplicity ruler. Realistically, Venus should take priority after the Moon.

The same rules will apply to either of the luminaries in any sign. The triplicity rulers will be the secondary factors.

Sacred Images & Talismans in the Greco-Egyptian World

Hephaestion of Thebes was a Hellenized Egyptian astrologer born around 380 AD in Roman Egypt, not long after Emperor Julian’s short but dramatic reign. In 415, he wrote a three-volume work on astrology called Apotelesmatika. Volume 3 contains a set of instructions for choosing astrological elections for ensouling images (eikons) of seventeen gods, along with formulas for selecting times to perform ritual petitions and divination.  In 2013 Eduardo Gramaglia translated book three and it was published by Cazimi Press and edited by Benjamin Dykes.

His system is rooted heavily in the works of Dorotheus of Sidon (1^st Century BCE) and also utilizes the Sothic cycle that dates back to predynastic times, which measures cycles of time based on the heliacal rising of Sirius. In the two millennium that has passed, Canis Major or the Dog Star now occupies the rising degree of the Thema Mundi, 14’24 Cancer.

Hephaestion’s writings on astrology are among the oldest known sources of instructions for crafting sacred or talismanic images and maintaining shrines of the gods. He provides astrological configurations for crafting images of seventeen specific gods and goddesses, and a formula for ritual petitions. Each divinity has at least two signs that can be used.

Like Julianus of Laodicia, he considers the triplicity rulers one of the most important factors. A trine aspect between the significator planet and the Moon is optimal. For example, images of Tyche are made when the Moon is in Taurus (her own trigon and domicile of Venus) but Capricorn is also suitable, as well as Cancer.

Furthermore, Hephaestion sheds light on the astrological requirements for maintaining or adding to the images, only doing so when the Moon returns to the sign under which the image was made. This rule for using the image’s lunar (or solar) return is also found in Book of the Treasure of Alexander.

Historical Context

Hephaestion says that these instructions are “handed down from the wise Egyptians and other ancients” and doesn’t elaborate further (perhaps a reference to texts attributed to Nechepso and Petosiris) Whatever its origin, it provides specific astrological instructions that Proclus, Porphyry and others didn’t include in their writings on the use of images, statues and shrines.

In his Apotelesmatics, Hephaestion presents astrology as it was used in Egyptian temples of the time. In Hermetic and Platonic philosophy, the gods dwell within the celestial spheres, and the planets serve as their vehicles. The motions of every planet and sign is a living link between the divine intellect (nous) and the material world.

Ancient people viewed the sky as a living hierarchy of gods that connected in some way to everything in the earth. Exact astronomical timing, images, prayers, and other rites could be used to establish links to the celestial world. Iamblichus called this theurgy or divine work, which sought to raise the human soul with the order of the cosmos.

After Alexander the Great’s conquest that spread the Greek language from the Mediterranean to India, the star lore of the Hellenized world was consolidated. Greek, Egyptian, Babylonian, Indian and Persian astronomy could use the same technical language with the tropical zodiac. places heavy emphasis on sacred numbers and prioritizes the equinoxes and solstices. The Greek gods were syncretized with the Egyptian pantheon during the reign of the Ptolemies, and their Greek names are used by Hephaestion with the notable exception of Osiris.

Hephaestion of Thebes, Apotelesmatica (On Elections)  III 7.13-18

(13) “In the temples one must set up the statues, after they have been made in their form,
(14) and likewise of suitable material, as the wise Egyptians and the rest of the ancients have transmitted,
(15) when the Moon is full and has appeared in her phase; for the powers of such images, when they are completed in harmony with the cosmic motion,
(16) are produced more ‘theōdéstera’ (more divine-filled) and ensouled.

(17) And each of the sacred objects and statues is advantageous to fashion and consecrate (ensoul) while the Moon is in Jupiter’s trigon (triplicity) and Jupiter is harmonious with her, in the same trigon, and likewise when the Sun has been configured in the same way, and Saturn in his own trigon.

(18) And for the rest of the stars one must in the same way prepare both the sacred objects and the statues; it is auspicious when they themselves are in their exaltations and domiciles, to fashion them, and none of the malefic stars is opposing.

One must dedicate Tyche (Fortuna) when the Moon is in her own trigon and in that of Aphrodite (Taurus), and it is also fitting in Capricorn and in Cancer.

The Mother of the Gods when the Moon is in Leo and Taurus and Capricorn;

Demeter and Kore and Ploutos in Virgo and Taurus;

Osiris in Pisces, Aquarius, Taurus;

Nike in Virgo, Cancer;

Serapis in Taurus, Leo, Sagittarius;

Asclepius and Hygieia in Sagittarius and Pisces;

Dionysus in Virgo and Capricorn;

Heracles in Gemini and Leo;

Eros and the Graces in the signs and the exaltation of Aphrodite;

Nemesis in the signs of Kronos (Saturn).

And for the rest of the gods one must make the statues or images or carved rings, and consecrate each of them and renew it when the Moon is in the aforesaid signs.

Sources

• Hephaistio, Apotelesmatics III 7.16-18: Moon-sign rules for consecrating statues (Dionysus placed in Virgo and Capricorn).
• David Pingree, ed., Hephaestionis Thebani Apotelesmaticorum libri tres, vol. II (Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1974), Book III, chapter 7, §§13–18, pp. 258–259.
• Porphyry, De statuis “On Cult Images”

Further Reading:

Aurelio Pérez Jiménez, “Hephaestion and the Consecration of Statues,” Culture and Cosmos 11, nos. 1–2 (2007)

Porphyry of Tyre, “On Cult Images”

Manilius, Astronomica

Original Greek:
Ἐν δὲ τοῖς ναοῖς καθιδρυτέον τὰ ἀγάλματα σκευασθέντα τῷ προσφόρῳ εἴδει, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὕλῃ, καθὼς οἱ σοφοὶ Αἰγύπτιοι καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ ἀρχαῖοι παραδεδώκασιν,
Σελήνης πληθούσης ἐπὶ φάσεως· θεωδέστεραι γὰρ καὶ ἐμψυχοπεποιημέναι αἱ δυνάμεις αὐτῶν οὕτω τελεσθέντων ἐκ τῆς κοσμικῆς κινήσεως ἀποτελοῦνται.
Ἕκαστον δὲ τῶν ἱερῶν καὶ ἀγάλματος κατασκευάζειν καὶ ἱεροῦν σύμφορον ἐν τῷ τριγώνῳ τῆς Διὸς τῆς Σελήνης οὔσης καὶ τοῦ Διὸς συμφώνου πρὸς αὐτὴν ὄντος, τουτέστιν ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ τριγώνῳ, καὶ Ἡλίου ὁμοίως ἐσχηματισμένου, τοῦ δὲ Κρόνου ὁμοίως τυγχάνοντος ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ τριγώνῳ.
καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν λοιπῶν ἀστέρων οὕτω κατασκευαστέον τὰ τε ἱερά καὶ τὰ ἀγάλματα· ἔτι μὴν καὶ ὄντων αὐτῶν ἐν τοῖς ὑψώμασι τε καὶ οἴκοις κατασκευάζειν αἴσιον μηδενὸς τῶν κακούντων ἀστέρων ἐναντιουμένου.
ἀφιεροῦν δὲ Τύχην χρὴ τῆς Σελήνης οὔσης ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ τριγώνῳ καὶ τῆς Ἀφροδίτης, καὶ ἐν Αἰγοκέρωτι δὲ καὶ Καρκίνῳ εὔθετον,
Μητέρα δὲ θεῶν ἐν Λέοντι καὶ Ταύρῳ καὶ Αἰγοκέρωτι, ἐν δὲ Παρθένῳ καὶ Ταύρῳ Δήμητρα καὶ Κόρην Πλοῦτον, Ὄσιριν δὲ Ἰχθύσιν,
Ὑδροχόῳ, Ταύρῳ, Νίκην δὲ ἐν Παρθένῳ, Καρκίνῳ, τὸν δὲ Σάραπιν Ταύρῳ, Λέοντι,
Τοξότῃ, ἐν Τοξότῃ δὲ καὶ Ἰχθύσιν Ἀσκληπιὸν καὶ Ὑγίειαν, ἐν δὲ Παρθένῳ καὶ
Αἰγοκέρωτι Διόνυσον, ἐν Διδύμοις καὶ Λέοντι Ἡρακλέα,
Ἔρωτα δὲ καὶ Χάριτας ἐν τοῖς τῆς Ἀφροδίτης ζῳδίοις καὶ ὑψώματι,
Νέμεσιν δὲ ἐν τοῖς τοῦ Κρόνου.
καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν λοιπῶν θεῶν ὁμοίως δεῖ ποιεῖν τὰ ἀγάλματα ἢ τὰς εἰκόνας ἢ ἐκτυπώματα ἐπὶ σφραγίδων καὶ τελεῖν ἕκαστον καὶ ἀνανεοῦν προσφόρως ἐν τοῖς προλελεγμένοις ζῳδίοις τῆς Σελήνης οὔσης.

Synchronizing Astrological Talismans and the Nativity

I. Introduction

“But before you elect a thing for anyone, you ought to consider his nativity, if it can be had. And if it cannot be had, consider his revolution, or his profection. For in them are things which demonstrate how the native ought to behave in that year. And there are some who say that his transit should be considered, so that the election might be made from it.”
— Bonatti, Book of Astronomy, Treatise 7, Chapter 1, Dykes trans., p. 329

The most dramatic successes I’ve seen with astrological magic were the result of successfully synchronizing a person’s nativity with astrological talismans, sometimes referred to as “rooting” or “radical elections”.

The concept can be summarized as: the more that the natal chart, election chart (talisman and/or ritual) and real-time transits can work harmoniously the more easily the desired outcome takes place and the more drastic the results can be. Selecting astrological talismans and elections based on those three primary factors increases their effectiveness drastically.

This technique is, in a word, complicated. It is too complex to fully explain here but this article will briefly explore the main principles that prominent medieval and Renaissance astrologers used, and how to apply them. The natal chart and election must be compatible and overlap with each other in several key ways, along with several crucial prohibitions.

It requires techniques from all four branches of traditional astrology and is intended to make maximum use of astrological elections, for both mundane and occult purposes. The principles are deceptively simple yet applying it is infinitely complex. Like a human being, and everything else that exists, an astrological talisman has “birth chart”: the moment it was created.

Everything in nature is born with a subtle but complex energy body that serves as the interface between the physical body and human mind, or “microcosm” and the higher spiritual forces or “macrocosm” that governs nature and the earth as a whole. The astral body is made of those same spiritual energies and can interact with them via the principle of sympathy.

Choosing moments when the tides of astral forces are best aligned with one’s intent is called an election, meaning “to choose”. An astrologer chooses a moment when the cycles of the earth and heavens align so that a human being can seemingly influence nature to their will. This is done by carefully manipulating the subtle currents of spiritual energy that permeate the cosmos, earth and all living things.

Finding and identifying an election to the high standards of sources like Picatrix is a considerably difficult task. Even mediocre opportunities are rare. The addition of a natal chart can be overwhelming because both must be closely examined together and overlap in specific ways to find a suitable election. The astrological factors that must be considered are quadrupled in the best of cases. Applying the information in a practical way is perhaps the biggest challenge. A talisman that was made with an election fitting that criteria must be found and if that is not feasible, the only option is to wait for an election.

This process does not guarantee success and is not required for astrological talismans to work. It does improve the odds of success exponentially if enough astrological factors can be met.

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Traditional Sources & Terminology
3. Historical Context
4. Four Major Branches of Traditional Astrology
5. Procedures Explained
6. Remediation
7. Effects
8. Success Rate

2. TRADTIONAL SOURCES AND TERMINOLOGY

This technique is often mentioned in foundational sources like Picatrix, Agrippa’s Second Book of Occult Philosophy, and Thabit Ibn Qurra’s “On Images” all of which strongly imply that it can produce optimal results. In the Ottoman Empire, those who could afford the services of expert astrologers had astrological talismans custom-made for their children at young ages using their time of birth, which was carefully observed and recorded specifically for astrological uses. This was intended to mitigate the effects of astrological afflictions that would presumably grow worse with time as a pre-emptive measure. (1)

Agrippa, in his Second Book of Occult Philosophy, Chapter 50, explains how to choose a multitude of elections based on the natal chart. Each is prefaced with, “let there be made an image under the ascendent of the nativity [birth chart]…” followed by a complex list of astrological criteria. (2)

Ibn Qurra recommended this technique for all talismans except for an image to repel scorpions. He provides an alternative for people who did not know their time of birth, which was very common in that time. He recommends casting a horary chart to discern whether the desired outcome is possible to achieve, and if it agrees then that horary chart can be used in place of the natal chart. Picatrix echoes this in Book 1, Chapter 5 but also provides no further details.

Terms such as nativity and radix (Latin for “root”) are synonymous with the entire natal chart in the major sources, and at times “ascendant” is used as well. The ascendant, the exact position of stars in the eastern horizon at the moment of birth, is itself a powerful significator on par with the Sun, Moon and other planets. Depending on the context it can mean the specific degree of the ecliptic rising in the east at any particular moment or a birth chart. It can be a bit confusing.

There hasn’t been, to my knowledge, a standardized term that specifies using or not using the nativity to choose elections. The terminology varies widely depending on the era, language, translation, and often the individual astrologer’s writing style.

The technique is sometimes referred to as “radical elections” in more recent times. Many medieval and Renaissance astrologers referred to natal charts as “radical figures” based on the word radix. Guido Bonatti simply termed it “those elections founded upon the nativity”. Hellenistic astrologers often described the heavens as an immense theater where mythic stories eternally played out. An astrologer in the 3^rd century would probably have said, “the gods harmoniously witness the inception and agree with the nativity”.

“The first consideration is, that the election be founded upon the nativity of the one for whom the election is made… For otherwise, the election will not be perfect…”
— Bonatti, Treatise 7, Ch. 1, trans. Benjamin Dykes, Bonatti on Elections, p. 331

Bonatti uses the phrase “founded upon” (fundata super) meaning that an optimal election should reflect or harmonize with the nativity.

Because of the various terms used for it, and the large number of factors involved, I simply refer to it as synchronization. When the flow of time is imagined as an immense cosmic clock made of geometric wheels forming the astral body of the earth or World Soul, living things are then seen as small clocks within it. The strength of the astral rays reaching the natural world can be predicted by determining how many of these layers align.

3. HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The authors of these texts assumed that the reader has immense expertise in all branches of astrology (natal, horary, electional, mundane) by the standards of the time and can easily apply it to both the election and the birth chart. Few, if any, have achieved this level of expertise in modern times, not least because the western world effectively banished traditional astrology long ago. The indoctrinations that came with the Industrial Age did the worst damage. In recent years considerable efforts have been made by highly dedicated people to reconstruct and revive the practice, but it is still a work in progress.

For perspective, expert astrologers long ago were employed by kings, queens and other nobility, often in a role much like a modern president or prime minister’s director of intelligence services. They were among the closest advisors and expected to always answer the most difficult questions with a high degree of accuracy and detail. Their information was often used for decisions that affected their entire kingdom, i.e. waging war, establishing important alliances, economic planning, and more. Failures on the part of the astrologer could result in prison, banishment or the death penalty. Astrologers with this level of expertise were the intended audience for books like Picatrix.

The techniques to synchronize astrological talismans with a natal chart draw on all branches of traditional astrology. Electional, natal, and horary are used heavily as well as techniques specific to astrological magic or the Science of Images.

4. MAJOR BRANCHES OF TRADITIONAL ASTROLOGY

Natal Astrology: “Who am I?”

The most familiar concept to westerners is natal astrology that interprets the “birth chart” or “nativity”. There are immense differences between modern natal astrology, which is psychology based, and what is collectively termed “traditional western astrology”. The latter refers to what was practiced beginning approximately 200-100 BC and thrived in the Roman world.

During the rise of the Islamic Golden Age in the late 700s, Islamic royalty sponsored one of the biggest translation projects in history, assimilating and consolidating as much knowledge from the Hellenistic world as possible.

Persian, Muslim, Christian, Jewish and pagan astrologers compiled immense tomes of their own astrological texts into Arabic and helped the Islamic kingdoms to become what was the world’s most scientifically advanced

The efforts of the Arab kingdoms led to the Renaissance in western Europe in the 15^th and 16^th centuries, as well as the lesser-known Byzantine Renaissance in the Greek speaking world beginning around the year 1000 CE.

NATAL ASTROLOGY: “Who Am I?”

Natal astrology uses a map of the heavens at the moment of birth to reveal life patterns, strengths, and challenges. It provides a broader picture than horary but is excellent for self-knowledge and long-range planning. To some extent it can indicate future events for the individual. The exact time of birth is required.

Natal astrology has an important and unique role in many ancient spiritual and esoteric practices. The influential Neoplatonist philosopher and theurgist Iamblichus of Chalcis considered it to be a valuable tool for identifying and understanding the hidden aspects of oneself which could be harnessed for soul development. Hermeticists and many Gnostics had a similar view and devoted their lives to deep exploration of the planetary spheres with the intent of venturing outside it and experiencing higher states of existence beyond the material world.

Thabit Ibn Qurra wrote that the Science of Images is the culmination and pinnacle of philosophy. In its highest form, it requires a working knowledge of astronomy, astrology, Pythagorean number theology, calendrics, horticulture, ritual magic, chemistry, metallurgy, harmonics, and practically all branches of human learning. The Image or talisman is created by combining all of those skills and more. According to De Radiis, the theurgist, the Images and the act of performing the rites activates the Great Chain of Being through sympathy.

Picatrix describes astrological magic as , who skillfully selects the best possible location and natural materials (seeds, soil, tools). Even more critically, the farmer must carefully choose the best possible time and season to plant each seed or the effort is wasted. This is done by measuring, with extreme precision, how the stars move in relation to our perspective on earth.

If the farmer makes the best possible choice, he maximizes the plant’s chances of thriving and providing the desired result (fruits and vegetables).

This analogy perfectly fits astrological magic. Like farming, it requires the use of multiple skillsets. In the case of synchronization, it also requires delineating charts simultaneously from multiple angles using all four branches.

Electional Astrology:  “When should I do something?”

This is choosing a time when astral rays are supporting your success. Electional astrology selects astrologically auspicious dates and times for major endeavors. Using traditional techniques, it can pinpoint favorable moments for action, anticipate likely outcomes, and provide a more broad and holistic perspective to better understand the whole situation or “bigger picture”.

Electional astrology has been used throughout history for things like getting married, starting a business, embarking on a long journey, choosing times for medical treatment, and establishing business partnerships. Throughout history, it has been used to choose the time of a new king or queen’s coronation, their reign being “born” at that moment and the founding of cities. It was often used in warfare by identifying the time when astrological forces were most favorable for victory.

Horary Astrology: “What is happening?”

Horary answers a clear, pressing question by casting a chart for the exact moment the question is asked. It’s an ancient, time-tested method and it does not require birth data.

Typical horary questions include:

• Will he or she propose?
• What is the future of my relationship?
• Will my home sell?
• Should I stay or relocate?
• Will I get the job I applied for?

Horary astrology can be used to answer a wide range of questions and often helps the querent to understand the situation on a much deeper level by recognizing hidden connections that have gone unnoticed, allowing for much more informed decisions. When taken to its highest level, horary can even be used to help locate lost objects or stolen items. William Lilly, the famous astrologer who played an important role in the English Civil War (1642-1651) and predicted the Great Fire of London, was renowned for his skill in horary and his ability to apply it effectively to any situation.

Mundane Astrology: “What will happen in the world?”

This is perhaps the oldest branch of astrology and is concerned with predicting major events affecting an entire kingdom or region. It was used extensively in the past to predict things like political and economic developments, natural disasters, and wars. Mundane astrology would be utilized for crafting talismans or electing events intended to influence a large area. In ancient times cities and kingdoms were founded using electional astrology in much the same way as the coronation of monarchs.

5. PROCEDURES EXPLAINED

John Gadbury (1627 – 1704) explained synchronization by illustrating the basic principles for electing a time to begin a safe and successful journey by sea. In his example, the astrological birth of ships was well known by their owners. The “berthing ceremony” for each ship was itself an astrologically elected time, chosen so that the ship could have a birth chart. This is why the word “berth” was chosen because of its likeness to “birth”. Gadbury’s preferred method is to choose an election whose aspects overlap with benefic natal sensitive points.

Just like human beings and organic life, all ships and manmade things also have an astrological birth chart that can be used to discern optimal elections for most anything. The more these factors are harmoniously aligned (birth, election, real-time astrological transits) the desired outcome is likely to happen because it is more strongly supported by the forces of nature. This exact same principle applies to talismans and astrologically timed rituals. And all things.

This simplified example uses the Sun and Moon to illustrate the basic principles. In this hypothetical birth chart, the Sun in 15 Aries. The malefics, Saturn and Mars, are in 9 Leo and 9 Taurus respectively. This person wants a Sun in Leo talisman that works optimally with their nativity.

Malefic placements are sensitive points that function like “astral wounds” for the luminaries and benefics. This not only applies to the degree where the malefic planet is, but also the points of the chart that they oppose or square. Sun and Moon transits are affected by them. Talismans with significators in either of those sensitive points are negatively affected, often making them work poorly. For some people they may never work.

In this hypothetical election, the Sun cannot conjoin Saturn’s natal placement, from 0 to 9 Leo. Its placement is limited to the second and third face (10 to 29 Leo) which is not applying to the afflicted degree.

The Moon is always the secondary significator in all matters, including elections. Her placement and condition are of critical importance, and the same rules apply.

Because this person’s birth chart has a malefic in 9 Taurus, the Moon cannot be in 0 to 9 Taurus, only the second and third faces (10 to 29 degrees). This sensitive point also casts its rays to the other signs which must also be considered. She cannot be in the first face of Virgo and Capricorn which natal Mars squares, or Scorpio which it opposes. Natal Saturn also opposes 9 Aquarius and squares both 9 Taurus and Scorpio.

Above: Malefic placements and prohibitive sensitive points

For the Moon to aspect the Sun and avoid major natal afflictions, she can only be placed in the second or third faces of Aries or Sagittarius for a trine or Taurus for a square. Libra and Gemini are suitable for a sextile.

In conclusion, the Sun must be rising in the second or third face of Leo, ideally during the planetary day and/or hour. The Moon should be in Aries, Sagittarius, Libra or Gemini or Taurus (not in the first face) making an applying aspect. Other factors in the election must be considered such as the South Node, malefics on the descendant, and other prohibitive conditions.  These points in the natal chart must not overlap with the election’s significators. This election, in our hypothetical scenario, has a much better chance of working well than selecting one at random.

By now the reader should understand some of the complexities of this process. Again, this is a hypothetical scenario for illustrative purposes using the simplest charts. Real-world applications are far more complex and include an additional challenge: procuring a talisman that meets all the stringent requirements.

I first search through the many talismans I’ve made over the years and keep stored away. I compare their election charts in search of something that meets the criteria. If a suitable talisman is found, it gets to its new owner. The efforts pay off as I often get glowing feedback. Some results would sound farfetched to many people.

If I don’t have a suitable talisman, my only option is to search for an upcoming election that fits. This can be days, months, or years later depending on the individual factors involved. For instance, Jupiter takes twelve years to pass through all the zodiac signs, one sign per year. An election with Jupiter in Sagittarius will not be possible until 2032. If this is the case, the natal chart is reexamined, and I attempt to identify an alternative talisman that could serve a similar purpose.

6. Is this Remediation?

In some ways. Remediation is a buzzword that is becoming more popular with the growing interest in astrological magic and Vedic astrology. Remediation is a Jyotish concept that has some similarities in concept but is not the same thing. The two systems are not irreconcilable or more “correct” than the other. They’re different in the same way that kickboxing and karate are different ways of doing the same things.

The techniques of synchronizing natal and election charts make maximum use of individual strengths and avoids relying on weaknesses. It allows a talisman to amplify and direct the astral influences that are already working strongly for the individual so that the invisible influences of the natural world support the people involved.

So, what does it do?

Simply put, it is working with fate and not attempting to resist it. This is an important distinction. If the natal planet is weak, you can still strengthen its influence in the election but you must not do so in a place (applying to the degree) that was harmed in the nativity, according to medieval sources.(4)

For example, the nativity indicates some financial gain during a certain time period. The natural effect could simply be finding a small amount of money dropped on the ground. But if the individual has an astrological talisman that is highly compatible with their nativity, specifically the planets and houses that influence money, this unremarkable event can be amplified to be something of a higher magnitude.

It is the same principle as using a sail on a boat, working with the winds and currents so it can carry you where you want to go. Utilizing an election that strongly conflicts with the natal chart is like rowing against the currents and not using the winds. The natal chart functions as a sort of map to predict “astral weather”.

This is described by Guido Bonatti in his Seventh and Eighth Treatises On Elections. He is referring to elections in a general sense and not astrological magic, but both overlap with each other considerably. Bonatti says that if the birth chart and election are compatible, they strongly reinforce each other and help to bring the desired outcome to completion. However, when they conflict with each other then it diminishes the quality of the outcome or “subtracts the good”.

Bonatti was fully aware of the fact that a perfect election does not exist “because the malefics cannot be removed from the sky; so, it is necessary for us to adapt those things which we can adapt and do what we can of the good.” (3)

He was also well acquainted with the enormous challenges of adapting an election to a nativity. No birth chart is perfect either, and many problems in real life cannot wait many years for the best election. We are forced to be practical, make the best of the opportunities available and have realistic expectations. Bonatti says,

“It is necessary that we adapt our elections as well as we can; and if we cannot have everything that we want, we still might have something better than we can have”. (4)

7. EFFECTS

This technique has produced some of the most remarkable results I’ve ever seen.  It has been used fifteen times for clients and has delivered successful results eleven times, an incredible 73% success rate. Of those results, two pushed the limits of belief.

One of these was for a friend in a dire financial situation. Using his natal chart, I identified an excellent election for him almost a year later. When the time came the talisman was made. Three weeks later, he received a check in the mail for over two hundred thousand dollars from the government. Unbeknownst to him, an audit had found that he and his spouse were entitled to a sizeable COVID-19 stimulus grant from five years prior which they had never applied for or were even aware of.

The other was a client who suffered from fertility problems. He and his wife had one child only after she received in vitro fertilization. He sought assistance for several problems, one of which was to conceive a child naturally. Neither of them were receiving further medical or fertility treatment. I did considerable research of medieval astrology texts, applied this technique and identified two Venus elections that met the criteria. He received his talismans in May 2025. In July he and his wife successfully conceived while Venus was transiting a key natal placement among other factors. I was able to identify the Venus transit because they had sex at the same time every day. Their doctors were at a loss to explain how it was possible.

Venus is a fast-moving inner planet and makes this same aspect at least once a year and this is their first time achieving pregnancy naturally, despite many years trying unsuccessfully, so it cannot all be attributed to a Venus transit by itself.

De Radiis, “On the Stellar Rays” is a medieval esoteric text on the properties of astral light attributed to the Arab polymath al-Kindi and in many ways it accurately mirrors early 20^th century electromagnetic theory. I believe that the two Venus talismans compatibility with his nativity, coupled with the real-time Venus transit, allowed the talismans to function as a sort of lightning rod and antenna for Venus astral rays that were attuned in a way that was harmonious with his astral body, which is a sacred geometric pattern imprinted at birth.

The other results were very impressive in their own ways but these two cases were the most compelling and live up to some of the fantastic claims in Picatrix and other ancient sources.

8. SUCCESS RATE

As of February 2026, this technique has provided satisfactory results with a 60 percent success rate. Most of these people were in very difficult situations with no expectation of success. I defined success as: the desired result occurred after the person exhausted all conventional means. All of these were for specific purposes (job, business, health) that had to produce concrete, real-world results in a reasonable amount of time.

Out of the first ten trials, seven achieved the desired results with very discernable effects, and three had no effect. The second trial run produced five successful results out of ten.

The first reaction some people may have is to think, “60 percent is nowhere near 100 percent.” This is true. It should also be kept in mind that the successful outcomes were deemed impossible before they happened. The potential applications are vast.

——-SOURCES——-

1. Accordingly, whenever a child was born, they would determine the newborn’s Ascendant. If the moment of birth implied misfortune and detrimental state, they would calculate from the near future another hour that would be auspicious. Upon designating the new Ascendant and determining the ruler planet, they would mold an imago of the baby with the metal corresponding to that planet. As they took the imago to the newborn, the auspicious celestial influences derived from the imago’s Ascendant were virtually transferred to the infant. For the author, the celestial configuration at the time of birth, which is determined only by God’s orders and will, is the single most important criteria for the efficacy of talismans; both suffumigations and invocations to the spirits of the planets pale in importance next to electing an auspicious hour.

• Tunc Sen. Practicing Astral Magic in Sixteenth-Century Ottoman Istanbul: A Treatise on Talismans Attributed to Ibn Kemal (d. 1534) page 77. Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft, Spring 2017)

2.

Second Book of Occult Philosophy (Agrippa)

Chap. 50. Of certain Celestial observations and the practice of some Images.

I will now shew thee the observation of Celestial bodies, which are required for the practice of some of these kinds of images; So to make any one fortunate, we make an image in which these are fortunate, viz. the significator of the life thereof, the givers of life, the signs, and Planets. Moreover, let the ascendent, the midheaven, and the Lords thereof be fortunate: also the place of the Sun, and place of the Moon; part of fortune, and Lord of conjunction or prevention made before their nativity, by depressing the Malignant Planets. But if we will make an image to procure misery, we must do contrarywise, and those which we place here fortunate, must there be infortunate, by raising malignant Stars. In like manner must we do to make any place, Region, City, or house fortunate. Also for destroying or prejudicing any of the foresaid; Let there be made an image under the ascension of that man whom thou wouldst destroy, and prejudice, and thou shall make unfortunate, the Lord of the house of his life, the Lord of the ascending, and the Moon, the lord of the house of the Moon, and the lord of the house of the lord ascending, and the tenth house, and the lord thereof. Now for the fitting of any place, place fortunes in the ascendent thereof; and in the first, and tenth, and second, and eighth house, thou shall make the lord of the ascendent, and the lord of the house of the Moon fortunate. But to chase away certain Animals from certain places, that they may not be generated, or abide there, let there be an image made under the ascension of that Animal, which thou wouldst chase away, and after the likeness thereof; as if thou wouldest chase away Scorpions from any place, let an image of the Scorpion be made, the sign of Scorpio ascending with the Moon, and thou shalt make unfortunate the ascendent, and lord thereof, and the Lord of the house of Mars; and thou shall make unfortunate the lord of the ascendent in the eighth house, and let them be joyned with an aspect malignant, opposite, or quadrant: and let there be writ upon the image the name of the ascendent, of the Lord thereof, and of the Moon, and of the lord of the day, and of the Lord of the hour. And let there be a pit made in the middle of the place, from which thou wouldst drive them; and let there be carryed into it, some of the earth taken out of the four corners of the same place, and let the image be buryed there with the head downward, with saying, this is the burying of the Scorpions, that they may not come into this place, and so of the rest. So for gain let there be made an image under the ascendent of the nativity of the man, or under the ascension of that place to which thou wouldest appoint the gain; and thou shall make the lord of the second house, which is in the house of substance to be joined with the Lord of the ascendent in the trine or sextil, and let there be a reception amongst them; thou shall make fortunate the eleventh and the Lord thereof, and the eighth; and if thou canst, put part of the fortune in the ascendent, or second; and let the image be buryed in that place, or carryed from that place, to which thou would appoint the gain. Also for concord, and love, let there be an image made in the day of Jupiter under the ascendent of the nativity of him whom thou wouldst have be beloved, make fortunate the ascendent, and the tenth, and hide the evil from the ascendent; and thou must have the Lord of the tenth, and planets of the eleventh fortune, joined to the Lord of the ascendent, from the trine or sextile with reception; then make another image for him whom thou would stir up to love; consider if he be a friend, or companion of him whom thou wouldst have be beloved; and if so, let there be an image made under the ascension of the eleventh house from the ascendent of the first image; but if the party be a wife, or a husband, let it be made under the ascension of the seventh; if a brother, or a sister, or a cousin, let it be made under the ascension of the third, and so of the like; and put the significator of the ascendent of the second image, joined to the significator of the ascendent of the first image; and let there be betwixt them a reception, and let the rest be fortunate, as in the first image; afterwards join both images together into a mutual embracing or put the face of the second image to the back of the first image, and let them be wrapped up in silk, and cast away or spoiled. Also for success of petitions, and for the obtaining of a thing denied, or taken, or possessed by an other, let there be an image made under the ascendent of him who petitions for the thing; and cause that the Lord of the second be joyned with the lord of the ascendent from a trine, or sextile, and let there be a reception betwixt them, and if it can be, let the Lord of the second be in the obeying signs, and the Lord of the ascendent in the ruling, make fortunate the ascendent, and the Lord thereof, and take heed that the lord of the ascendent be not retrograde or combust, or falling, or in the house of opposition i.e. in the seventh from his own house; let him not be hindred by the malignant, let him be strong, & in an angle; Thou shalt make fortunate the ascendent, and the Lord of the second and the Moon; and make another image for him that petitioned to, and begin it under the ascendent belonging to him, as if he be a King or a Prince, begin it under the ascendent of the tenth house from the ascendent of the first image; If he be a father under the fourth; if a son under fifth, and so of the like; and put the significator of the second image, joyned with the lord of the ascendent of the first image, from a trine,or sextile, and let him receive it, and put them both strong, and fortunate without any let; make all evil fall from them. Thou shall make fortunate the tenth, and the fourth if thou canst, or any of them; and when the second image shall be perfected, joy nit [knit] with the first, face to face, and wrap them in clean linen, and bury them in the middle of his house who is the petitioner under a fortunate significator, the fortune being strong, and let the face of the first image be toward the North, or rather toward the place where the thing petitioned for doth abide; or if it happen that the petitioner goeth forward towards him with whom the thing petitioned for is, let him bring the images with him as far as he goes.

(Joseph Peterson, Twilit Grotto. Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa: Occult Philosophy. Book II. (part 1)

3. Bonatti, Seventh Treatise

“For an election operates according to “more” and “less”: if we were to elect for him whose nativity we knew, or whose question we had, and the nativity or question signified something good for him in its root, and the election were to agree with one of them, it signifies good and a perfected end of that matter and of that effect; if however one were to disagree with the other, it subtracts the good.” (Bonatti’s Seventh Treatise on Elections, translated by Ben Dykes)

4. Bonatti, Eighth Treatise

“It is necessary that we adapt our elections as well as we can; and if we cannot have everything that we want, we still might have something better than we can have, so that our labor is not more frustrated [….] it is impossible for us to adapt the twelve houses, because the malefics cannot be removed from the sky; so it is necessary for us to adapt those things which we can adapt, and do what we can of the good.” (Bonatti’s Eighth Treatise on Elections, translated by Ben Dykes)

“And the elections of the wise are not made only from the Ascendant, nor only from the Moon, nor from the Planets alone, nor from their places; but from all of them together, and with respect to the nativity. For by this is it known how the native’s nature, and the matters he desires to perform, are disposed.”
— Bonatti Treatise 7, Chapter 1, p. 330

“Do not place the Moon or the significator in a degree afflicted in the nativity, or in the degree of the natal malefics, or opposing them, or square to them — lest the matter be corrupted. And especially, do not place the Ascendant or the significator in the same degree as Mars or Saturn in the nativity, if they were malefic there.”
— Treatise 7, Chapter 1, p. 331

“If any planet is the significator of the desired matter, or ruler of the house of that matter, and it is strong in the nativity — by being in its own dignities, or by being received or free from affliction — then it ought to be similarly strong in the election. For otherwise, the election will not be useful to the native.”
— Treatise 7, Chapter 2, p. 334

“But if the native has a weak Jupiter in his nativity, and you are electing for wealth or gain — then you must fortify Jupiter in the election as much as you are able. Yet you must not place him in a degree or sign which was afflicted in the nativity, or which received opposition or square from a natal malefic.”
— Treatise 7, Chapter 3, p. 336

“If however someone had said that we ought not to prolong elections as I said, when nearly all would seem to want to say otherwise than that, it can be responded to him, “Because the wise wanted to bless their elections that they be perfect in every respect; and they considered elections which someone could not always anticipate, until the significators could all be adapted as they said.”

But we often do not have time to wait, whence it is necessary that we elect within the interval we have, and commingle what of the good we have in our election.”

TERMINOLOGY SOURCES

“The first consideration is, that the election be founded upon the nativity of the one for whom the election is made… For otherwise, the election will not be perfect…”
— Bonatti, Treatise 7, Ch. 1, trans. Benjamin Dykes, Bonatti on Elections, p. 331

“Let it be seen whether the significator of the matter is in a good place in the nativity… and whether it is received by a fortunate planet, and is not impeded; and let him observe how it is disposed in the nativity and [then] make the election accordingly.”
— Bonatti, Treatise 7, Ch. 1, p. 331