Today I woke up with the word ‘timing’ in my mind. As an astrologer the astrological clock has always been my go to for timing. Observing the rhythm and cycle of the night sky has been used to inform people across the ages about the best timing for events and as an insight into the nature of things. The longevity of astrology is due to the fact that its primary elements are derived from our generic collective experience on earth. It requires the integration of personal experience within a social context grounded in the natural environment.
Astrologer Dennis Frank argues that astrology is also a nascent science of time wherein nature must be defined as the home planet environment that we experience and that human experience of the temporal continuum must be assumed to be structured by the cycles of the solar system. [1]
According to Rudyard “Astrology is rooted in the mystery of time… the universe appears as a grouping of casually related elements in an abstract matrix which now is called space-time, or the continuum. [2] It is the correlation of events between the cosmic and the Earth’s temporal context that allows for the grand patterns of nature to be grasped.
Anthropologist Gregory Bateson offers: “The pattern which connects is a metapattern. It is a pattern of patterns. It is that metapattern which defines the vast generalisation that, indeed, it is patterns which connect.” [3].
The human brain has evolved to recognise patterns and detecting patterns is an important part of how humans learn and make decisions. The constellations of the night sky form some of the most familiar patterns in the human psyche. Astrologers work with the cycles in both a personal and mundane way and the natal chart or horoscope represents a momentary glimpse of a local manifestation of the metapattern.
The zodiacal archetype functions as a metaphysical frame of reference for astrologers, enabling interpretations of time periods to be ascertained on a trans-cultural basis. For example Aries gives a specific starting point of a natural cycle in time and colours this period with the particular energetic resonance of cardinal fire. The horoscope therefore provides a map of an event, freezing moment (time) in relation to locality (place), and the complexity of the map derives from the traditional astrological frames of reference.
As you can imagine in the current turn of global events, astrologers have a lot to say about the timing and patterns that are occuring in the sky in relation to the larger cycles of time. The planets Saturn, Pluto and Jupiter are conjunct in a once in 800 year occurrence representing a break down of old structures and forms and a type of death and rebirth. Along with other planetary placements Covid-19 is highlighting the broken models that control our political and economic systems and we are being confronted with a need for structural change and innovation.
At a foundational level our values are being called to account to change the global consciousness that is driving our world. Currently the timing of the new moon in Taurus is allowing us to set our intentions for the birth of a fresh way of being that aligns us individually with new and re-inventive ways of creating financial prosperity while at the same time ensuring that there is a fair distribution of resources and wealth for all.
The Sabian Symbol for the New Moon today at 3 degrees Taurus is “The Pot of Gold at the End of the Rainbow”, which represents a promise of abundance if we can conduct ourselves appropriately and have fair commerce with others. The rainbow also links the heavens and the earth reminding us that we are part of a metapattern that bridges the Cosmic realms with the Earth. [4]
[1] http://cura.free.fr/xv/11frank3.html
[2] The Astrology of Personality, D Rudhyar, 1936, p.117
[3] Mind and Nature, G Bateson, 1979, p.11
[4] https://www.jamesburgess.com/the-rainbows-pot-of-gold.html