"Archetypal Astrology, Prophecy, and Our Times"
by Dr. Charles Bebeau
There has been much misunderstanding in the field of astrology Our culture has distorted this most ancient science to conform to its fatalistic and materialistic beliefs. Astrology was originally based on two important principles:
1. All existence is one whole.
2. All reality is interrelated.
Some study in advanced scientific thinking is necessary to comprehend an archetypal approach to astrology as a “unified field theory.” The Unified Field Theory in physics describes how everything manifests and interrelates in the world and universe. Ancient astrological principles can be more fully understood with the advent of “quanta” in Quantum Mechanics and the development of the study of “wholes” in System Theory. Archetypal Astrology is the unified field theory for which Physics has been searching. In this article on Archetypal Astrology, prophecy, and worldwide manifestations, I hope to give examples of how this works.
The immediate universe was originally perceived to be structured around twelve distinct symbols, with specific characteristics. These twelve symbols are directly related to our immediate cosmos. Twelve planets make up its cosmic body. This can be seen in the earliest myths found in written form, from the Sumerian culture of Mesopotamia. This culture, which existed over a period of approximately 3000 years, from 4000 BC to 1000 BC., was based on the principle of "twelve": the principles of life were dictated by the existence of twelve planets of the solar system. In this culture, life was experienced as an integrated whole. Most life forms were thought to have come to earth from other dimensions which were larger and grander than the earth- based dimension.
The ancient Sumerians knew about the outer planets, which modern humanity has only recently discovered. In addition, the Sumerians wrote about two more planets. Recently astrophysicists have postulated the existence of the two planets of which the Sumerians spoke; one, the planet Tiamat, seems to have existed where the asteroid belt now appears. (Many scientists believe the asteroid belt was once a planet). Due to the peculiar changes in the orbits of the two outer planets, Neptune and Pluto, there is also considerable evidence that another planet exists outside the orbit of Pluto. This, of course, was exactly how Pluto and Neptune were discovered by modern scientists, or shall we say rediscovered. The recent discovery of the planet Sedna mirrors this, although it doesn’t seem the right size or orbit. According to the latest research, it appears to have a very long elliptical orbit, and is of much greater size than Pluto. It is probably only a matter of time before the twelfth planet of ancient Sumerian culture will be rediscovered.
The significance of twelve has been a dominant theme in both Eastern and Western cultures. In the West, the oldest tradition to express this principle is the hermetic wisdom tradition. Eastern healing traditions such as acupuncture are also based on twelve principles. The primary point is that all life is interconnected, and is founded on the actual existence of twelve principles as the basis for understanding and relating to universal law.
Astrology has consistently expressed the twelve patterns of life. I will refer to these twelve basic patterns as archetypes, or archetypal patterns. Astrology has been greatly distorted by the attitudes of patriarchal culture over the last 4000 years, particularly in regard to the archetypal dimensions with the more feminine traits. In many texts on the subject of astrology, the feminine signs contain a strange twist, and are not positively expressed. In order to understand archetypal dimensions through astrology, one must translate the interpretations written about the feminine planets, signs and houses.
In order to be prophetic with astrological interpretation, it is necessary to be conversant with the traditional laws of "rulership". Each of the planets rule a particular sign and house or area of the chart. When a planet is in union or "conjunct" with the sun, moon, or the eastern rising point, called the ascendant, it is said to rule the chart. This is essential in understanding the archetypal dynamics of an astrological chart, whether it be an individual's or that of a particular time in history.
Another key point in understanding historical archetypal dynamics is the concept of a "stellium." A stellium occurs when planets are grouped together in one sign. This configuration tends to emphasize the archetype of the planet that rules that sign.
Our present day and age (the last quarter of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century) is dominated by rare stelliums in the signs of Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. These stelliums are especially important for prophetic insight, as we determine which archetypes rule a particular time. We can intuit the potentials of those archetypes and how they usually manifest. Typically, one cannot determine absolute specifics; but, with a clear understanding of archetypes, and the help of human intuition, one can get very close to predicting the form of manifestation.
For example, for a period of three to four years beginning in 1988, stelliums of as many as six or seven planets conjoined in the sign of Capricorn. These conjunctions involved the three major outer planets of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Saturn rules Capricorn; therefore, there was a profound accent on the planet Saturn, and on the archetypal principle it represents. Capricorn, the planet Saturn, and the 10th House (the very top area of the chart) all represent aspects of the archetype we call The Elder Leader.
The Elder Leader archetype relates to the principles of leadership and structure. Whenever there is a strong focus on this principle, political, social, and cultural structures begin to fall apart and restructure. In their place, new forms begin to solidify, and new directions in leadership and cultural structures come into being. The archetypal energies of the Elder Leader cut through all boundaries, and old forms no longer work as they did in the past.
This Elder Leader period continued from 1988 through 1991. During this period, no existing political ideologies seemed appealing or workable, whether Communist, Capitalist, or Socialist. Old leaders were removed, as people desired new leaders with new goals and ideals. This was a fairly long period of focus on the Elder Leader - there were remnants of the Capricorn stellium through 1994 - and the world changed dramatically, as the Soviet Union dissolved and Communism in Europe and Asia ended or changed as a political form.
One of the important ways in which archetypes operate is through the Jungian concepts of "collective soul” and "personal soul." Collective astrological charts portray a picture of the movement and symbolic expression of the collective soul's unfolding process. The greater solar system is actually a grand interconnected cosmic being of which we are an expression. By following its movement, we get a map of the the collective soul movement of humanity. The individual soul is particularly linked to this collective soul through the unconscious mind. Soul unfoldment, both personal and collective, and can be seen through a series of dreams. Dreams are the window into the personal and collective dimensions of life. This is the reason I have been able to predict actual dream sequences in most of my clients. This is also what my mentor Carl Jung meant when he spoke of "big dreams" and "little dreams".
There are some people who are able to connect to soul dimensions and receive insights into what may be unfolding in the collective soul. Nostradamus was believed to be one of these men. Over 300 years ago, he prophesied that the 1990's would be a time of great political change and turmoil. This process of prophecy begins by tapping into the archetypal symbols as they are expressed in an astrological chart and simultaneously found in one's dream life. The more one works with these soul symbols, the more one is able to discern and intuit the possible meanings of archetypal unfoldment.
The concept of a collective soul unfoldment as well as a personal soul unfoldment is not well understood in our culture, and is not even well developed in the field of psychology. Carl Jung, the great psychiatrist of the last century, introduced this understanding, and we at the Archetypal Academy have further developed our awareness of how these concepts operate in the human psyche.
There was a second stage to this stellium dynamic, which began in the middle 1990's, when the stellium of planets in Capricorn shifted into Aquarius, the next sign in the zodiac. The same major outer planets, Uranus and Neptune, along with others, moved into Aquarius. The planet Uranus was especially important in this movement, as it rules Aquarius. The archetypal focus was thus on the principle of the "Idealist” archetype, or what Jung called the “Self.” This archetypal energy expresses the quality of synthesizing polarities.
The “Idealist” principle rules the coming eon or age. This is a major principle for our time, and for the next 2000 years! In 1981 we formally entered the beginning of this new age, with the "Magnificent Conjunction" of Jupiter and Saturn. This special conjunction happens once every 2000 years, and has throughout the ages been considered to usher in the next age. Jung wrote of this extensively in his book “Aion” (1951). Since we came into a Uranian/Aquarian focus in the mid 1990's, it appears that the principle of the dance of the polarities governs the next major archetypal manifestation.
This principle, which was a focus in 1995 and beyond into 2012, initiated itself with the PC computer and worldwide web revolution. The web was born in 1995 with the emergence of Uranus in Aquarius. I actually predicted this in articles running from 1988 – 1991, the last appearing in Nexus Magazine in March 1991.
By 2003 a new archetypal blend emerged: Neptune still in “Self/Idealist” Aquarius, while Uranus moved into Pisces “The Mystic” for the first time in 72 years.
Today we have Uranus in Neptune’s sign of Pisces and Neptune in Uranus’ sign of Aquarius. This twofold archetypal interplay is called “mutual reception”, and indicates that the two archetypes are operating in a combined way at this time, and will continue through 2010. Uranus/Aquarius/”The Idealist” rules wind and the Jet stream, and Neptune/Pisces/“The Mystic” rules oceans. The planetary weather pattern has featured big winds over oceans: major, record breaking hurricanes, typhoons and Tsunamis in a number of places in the world.
This has also manifested as worldwide conflict and polarization between radical fundamentalist religions/spiritual beliefs. This collective upheaval is trying to move from hatred and rejection to worldwide acceptance and changes in religious/spiritual beliefs, as we move toward a unitive world view and the acceptance of all humanity as one family. The intense destruction on both these fronts can galvanize the world community towards support and understanding.
We can read and understand collective archetypal dynamics to bring meaning to a chaotic, violent world. This is so important in these times of collective conflict and world cataclysm, when we need to find direction in the midst of turmoil. This is all part of a collective revolution, as we move toward “ultimate holism” as a dominant principle, myth and belief.