Hello Everyone I recently read a good book entitled "Astrology for Beginners: A Simple Way to Read Your Chart" and I think it fills a necessary void. It shows you how to to read your birth chart without having to learn all the intricacies of astrology. It gives you lots of interpretive material including the meaning of your chart pattern - something few books even go into. When I first discovered astrology I wanted to understand my own birth chart but I really didn't want to undertake a serious study of astrology. While there were plenty of books teaching in-depth astrology, there was nothing that simply explained the birth chart. Well now there is. The publisher is Llewellyn and the author is Hampar.
Hi everyone Here is an excerpt from "Astrology for Beginners: A Simple Way to Read Your Chart" on Oprah Winfrey's chart pattern. Her horoscope is also illustrated in the book. "Oprah Winfrey has a Locomotive chart pattern. Someone with this pattern may be described as a self-driving individual whose persistence often results in great accomplishments. This often is complemented by a strong need to solve problems and to make a contribution to society as a whole. The personality can reflect an innate power to achieve one's goals, so this pattern usually is associated with executive ambition. Sometimes a strong desire to succeed can result in a rebellious nature. The person with this pattern usually is motivated by external factors associated with the lead planet in the pattern. To locate the lead planet, place your finger in the empty trine and move it counterclockwise. The first planet you see is the lead planet."
sounds like a great tutorial! i'd also recommend picking up a Llewellyn astrological calendar if you're interested in daily planetary movements, retrogrades and the like - it's chock full o' easy beginner information, yet still loaded with all the mathematics a serious adept would get off on
Hello Phoenix I was reading in Astrology for Beginners - that the planet at the midheaven is very important in helping to define a persons occupational capabilities and possible career choices. My daughter found this chapter especially helpful because it gives so much information about a planet at the midheaven. Thanks.
Hi guys, I am completely new here, just getting used to it! I am just starting out with Astrology, find it all so interesting. Life is so exciting at the moment for me, so many changes going on around me almost like I'm shedding a layer of skin and staring a new in so many areas. Some really interesting posts here, I look forward to getting to know you all! :cheers2:
Astrology is best used to gain self-awareness. Those who attempt to predict the future with astrology often fall short because the future is in your hands. If you have ever wanted to learn how to read your own astrological chart but thought it was too complex, "Astrology for Beginners: A Simple Way to Read Your Chart" breaks down the language of the stars and makes it simple, informative and fun. Straightforward and practical, this guide teaches you the basics of chart interpretation in just six chapters. You will gain individual insight into yourself and loved ones as astrology's unique language of sumbols is revealed.
"The first thing you notice when you look at your horoscope wheel is that the planets are dispersed in such a way as to form a distinct pattern. This pattern has meaning in the broadest sense, defining the way you approach life. It offers a whole view of your being that is necessary before you begin the process of defining all its parts. In selecting which pattern is closest to your own, use only the ten planets. Your horoscope may not fit precisely into one specific pattern. In that case, look for the signature in each chart pattern that is closest to your own." Excerpt from Astrology for Beginners: A Simple Way to Read Your Chart
That's not very helpful though. If I did a horary about whether I was getting laid off, I'd expect to know if it was going to happen - not how I would handle it. I already know how I handle that kind of experience. Astrology CAN be used for self discovery. There is no doubt there. It's shortsighted to say that's all it can be used for, or even if that's the "best" use. There are times self discovery is better, and times when learning what's in store for you is better. In my 20+ years of learning and using metaphysics, I've learned that the future may not be set in stone, but most people never change their path, so that's how it ends up anyway. If I as a reader tell you that your wife will leave you because of your negativity, and then she does because you didn't change , does that mean your wife was always fated to leave, or does it mean you missed an opportunity to shape up?
The future is not set in stone because we have free will or to put it another way we have choice. Once we become aware of a behavior or pattern of thought that may have negative consequences, we have the option to change that pattern and thus change our lives. Have you ever seen the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know" . . it explains these complex theories rooted in quantum physics - in a way that is easily understood. If you haven't seen it I think you will find it quite interesting and enlightening.
I subscribe the Hermetic doctrine that people have free will, but few actually use it. However we have to define what free will encompasses. Many people confuse "free will" with "free whim". Free whim is deciding what movie to go to or how you arrange your desk. Free will is about your destiny. When I say few people use their free will, I mean that when you are born, you are part of a family, a society, a community, and also have the personality you were born with. Assuming you went to college, while you could avoid it and still get a job, chances are you didn't. You felt like you needed to go. Assuming you have a significant other (I don't know you gender or orientation), you probably felt compelled you go with him/her. I would have to assume this person wasn't chosen among a pool of candidates. There are a zillion other examples. To add to this, if you are homeless or poor, you don't have a lot of free will. You have almost no control over your life. You simply aren't in a position to do so. Sure you can be poor and be a wild mountain man if you choose, but that would be part of your makeup right? Also, most people in the world are not American or even Western. Most people do not have a choice of how they live their lives or what kind of religion or spirituality they have. They can't choose their career and in some cases don't choose who they marry. This is not free will. Free will as you know it is unique to our society. Now also part of Hermetic doctrine is that you can rise above this condition with wisdom. Astrology can be one of those tools but not the only one. In traditional astrology you learn your destiny. The idea is that if you know your destiny, then you can work with it and make it even better. This isn's easy, because frankly most people are lazy and settle into their habits - that's assuming you have the leisure time to do so. Some people simply aren't in a position or even care to change themselves. So is that free will? I've seen it and The Secret and hated them both. I know that one of the physicists in "What the Bleep", David Albert, disavowed himself from the film saying the filmakers took his comments out of context. I know the premise sounds sexy, but there's not much under the surface.
hey phoenix one more comment - this book is the first one i found that really explains my birth chart. i would recommend it to every beginner.
