Those bad planets!
July 6, 2007 by kishner
In the comments section of What keeps you from straying? Fiametta writes,
Everyone would be faithful, loyal and fair if it wasn’t for these nasty planets which make people stray, lie and cheat.Bad planets!
Are we blaming the planets for our misbehavior?
An Astrology Lesson
We are all born at a moment in time, and are physical manifestations or “imprints” of the archetypal expression of that moment. The planetary archetypes are “arcs” or subdivisions of the One. Planets are simply “markers” of the planetary archetypes — i.e., the planet Venus is but one — albeit noticeable — manifestation of the Venus archetype (or the goddess Venus/Aphrodite). Love, money, art — these are as “Venusian” as the planet itself.
As Venus moves along the ecliptic (the Sun’s path), it travels through equal subdivisions of the ecliptic — aka “signs of the zodiac” — with the Vernal Equinox being the starting point (0 degrees Aries). These signs modify the expression of Venus.
At the moment of one’s birth in a specific location on Earth, Venus is in a portion of the sky relative to the eastern horizon. Its position (below or above the horizon, at the eastern or western hemisphere) corresponds with the area of life in which it expresses its Venusian impulses. There are many house systems, different ways of dividing time and space into twelve sections. House systems are the least determinate part of Western tropical astrology.
So, if you are born with the planet Venus in the 30-degree section of the zodiac right before the Winter Solstice (Sagittarius) around 1:30 am (falling in the Third House), we take this to mean that you need lots of freedom and adventure in relationships, and that this impulse to relate is best expressed in the realm of communication.
Meanwhile, all the other planets are in different points in the sky at the moment of your birth, making angular relationships to each other called “aspects.” And we’re musing — on this blog and elsewhere — how all these planets (in their particular positions in time and space) correspond with our tendencies to want two lovers at the same time, or what have you.
For whatever reason, this correspondence between Above (the heavens) and Below (our patterns of thought and behavior) is real. We interpret these funny looking symbols on a piece of paper or on our monitors, and try to make sense of why we do what we do, or why stuff just seems to happen to us, in the hopes that we can possibly reduce our suffering and make peace with who we are.
Respect the Gods and Goddesses
So, what is Fiametta saying? That we project the blame for our less-than-functional relationship patterns on the planets? Of course, planets don’t make us do anything. But what about the planetary archetypes — the gods and goddesses? Do they not have power beyond what we mortals can control? It seems that our spiritual paths demand a certain degree of humility in relation to these archetypal forces. They are bigger than us.
We cannot passively blame the gods and goddesses for our patterns. They want us to acknowledge them, perhaps even to worship them — through sacrifice, through ritual, through awareness. It seems that the only way to overcome difficult astrological patterns — beyond Grace — is to find a way to please the planets, to find a way for them to express themselves in our lives that serves both them and us. Maybe Pluto can care less whether you are compulsive and manipulative, or empowered and full of depth. He’s in the picture either way. But perhaps he would let you sample the goods he has to offer — if you do your part, which is to root out the hidden parts of yourself and bring your psychic garbage to the incinerator.
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I was really, really close to writing more substantial comment this time, but there’s no point, since I completely agree with you
I thought fiametta was being sarcastic when she blamed the planets for our actions. Oops.
BlahBlah, I believe she was being sarcastic.
Mercury is, as witnessed, still retrogade until approx tomorrow. (Cough, cough…)
I was being sarcastic and that’s my official stance.
I just wanted to remind that we, as people who believe that planets influence our lives in a tangible way, may be also prone to blaming planets for literally everything that happens in our lives. Even the bad decisions that WE sometimes make.
I think that Jeffrey did a great job in describing that we should find a middle way and “give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
I’m sorry for being the source of your confusion. To be honest, I don’t really understand what this misunderstanding was really about..
..and I was just about to write about Mercury retrograde too, but someone was faster. I’m tired of counting how many times it happened to me today. You all are too intuitive! Stop it this instant!
There was no misunderstanding as I see
LOL @ noctule & fiametta
That darn retrograde mercury in Cancer. It’s leaving a lot of “misoverstandings” in its wake.
On that note, I had a huge argument this morning with a loved one because of misinterpretations. The argument is a definite turning point in the relationship…can’t wait for mercury to move into Leo (my mercury sign!! whoo hoo!!)
Hah, tell me about it. I was ready to call retrogade Mercury silly and harmless until it demonstrated its great powers of communicational clutter. Misunderstandings and even arguments aplenty, – gee, thanks for the present R-Mercury.
Pure coincidence or not, I still learned to keep my mouth somewhat shut and get my facts straight, at least.
Noctule, as an example of how “silly” this retrograde mercury mess is, I’m going to provide a rather personal example here:
Last night, I told my bf that I think he has an attention span of 10 seconds because he forgot something I just told him about 2 minutes prior to my comment. Something that benefited him, by the way.
We were eating pizza leftovers. Since I already had a piece earlier and he didn’t, I divided the pizza so that he would have at least as many slices as I had, and show him the pieces that I saved for him. Instead of eating one of the 4 slices I saved for him (which are diff. than the ones I like), he comes to tell me that he almost ate one of my 2 slices left. So I say to him, “You do have the attention span of 10 seconds.” I figured he would get the joke since he always says he has the memory of a goldfish (he’s a true-to-form absent-minded Aquarius with daydreaming Pisces mercury to boot).
Well, he didn’t think my comment was so funny and it became a HUGE fight. And over such a throwaway comment…Even when I apologized for the comment, he had a problem with me apologizing because I hurt his feelings instead of apologizing because I think I’m wrong. And so on and so on…
Ugh.
Hi all.
I don’t think the planets “make” us do things either.They suggest a certain personality mix, but we’re all so different, such a mix of background, upbringing,chemistry, culture and planets, and politics.(hows that for some instant alliteration?)
‘Give to the Emperor what is the Emperor’s?’
Sounds like Jesus saying “give to Ceasar what is Ceasar’s” Jeff, LOL
Same thingas a statement, really.
But, I have no problem with Fiametta’s statements as it would be silly to thik we’re made to behave a certian way.
Just look at how many of us disagree, and discuss whether we are the faithful types, or the wandering kinds–and we may have the same Sun signs, or Moon signs–and yet differ greatly.
Hi
been reading this blog for a long time but never commented before. Thanks for writing this post. I really liked it – it’s so true, what you have said. That is, you cannot just let yourself go for the worst and blame the planets or the Gods. Thanks for making this point
Insight like this is what keeps me hooked on reading here (and recommending it to everyone I meet).
The planets ARE pesky, not because they sneak in and cause trouble like little elves; but because, in a way, they can reveal (usually after the fact) that trouble was on its way, in a sort of “I told you so” manner. Smug little planets.
But I was especially touched by the bit about respecting the Gods/Goddesses. Until this very moment, it never really occured to me that constantly struggling against my desire to laze about and wallow in indulgence would put me in some sort of cosmic conflict with Venus, and cause a whole bunch more stress in life than I figured. Instead, because that was Her intention for me at the time of my birth, I should embrace it, own it, and be proud that I’m not like my too-productive-to-smell-the-roses neighbors.
I’m new at this, so, apologies for the amateur stabs at vague analysis. Basically, I just wanted to give major kudos where due for sparking thought. It’s a hard thing to do these days, and when it happens…it’s to be cherished.
Cheryll, I’m glad to hear that this post helped you accept your indulgent side.
And Ricercar, welcome. I think I’ve seen your name at Lunar Tunes.
I don’t really understand what you mean about the Gods and Goddesses, Jeff. Can you give a concrete example of how to honor both Venus and Saturn, say, if they’re in a square aspect? I’m not taking this from my chart, I just thought that Saturn and Venus are Gods that are probably most familiar to people and a square aspect between both of these could sure be tough.