“This is her horoscope. Suppose I explain some of it to you, and you tell me whether this thing we contemplate is wise.”
Ivo doubted that this particular tack would help, but he was becoming accustomed to Groton’s method of getting at a problem. If the astrological chart helped him to make up his mind (as Beatryx had once hinted), more power to it. He also remembered the coincidental insight of his own horoscope, that had pointed to Schön rather than to himself. That had been uncanny.
“Do you know what I mean by the houses, cardinal signs, alchemy of the elements, portmanteau analysis—”
“Say again, quarterspeed?”
Groton smiled. “Just testing. I didn’t want to insult you by oversimplifying. I’ll stick as much as I can to layman’s language — but I want you to understand that this is simplified, to the point where what I tell you is only approximately true.”
“Why can’t you just give me the summaries, as you did before?” Ivo did not want to say that a detailed technical lecture was something other than he had bargained for.
“Because that would be too much of me speaking. I need to show you enough of the principles so that you understand the essence of what the chart says, on your own. You may have a different opinion from mine, and your interpretation could help me to reach my own decision.”
Groton’s manner reminded him of Afra’s when she had insisted on the handling. The full meaning and validity of her request had not been clear to him until later; then he realized that her instinct had been sure. Groton evidently had reservations about this procedure, but was overruling them for some good reason. It would be wise to oblige. More and more, he was being made aware that his own views of things were often based on pitifully inadequate information.
“All right. One opinion on tap, for what it’s worth.”
Groton pointed to the chart. “Notice that this is in twelve segments. Actually, it is twenty-four segments: twelve superimposed on the other twelve, but for convenience we employ a single diagram. I have placed the identifiers around the rim, you see.”
“I recognize the numbers one through twelve; that’s about all.” He continued to study the obscure markings, however. “And Neptune! I couldn’t forget that symbol. There in the six-box.”
“That’s enough for a start. Let’s call that the top disk: the twelve houses, numbered counterclockwise. The houses, roughly, represent circumstance: the situation, the potentiality the individual has to work with. That’s not good or bad in itself; he may exploit it or not. But it’s there, much as the chessmen we discussed before are there, ready for the game.”
“Twelve different circumstances?”
“Yes. The first house represents identity, the second possessions, the third environment, and so on. That’s really an oversimplification—”
“You explained. Ballpark estimates.”
“Yes. Now the planets move through these houses, that are really segments of the celestial equator. Three-dimensional segments, to be sure, like those of an orange — but twelve of them make up the heavens about Earth.”
Ivo looked at the chart again. “So the center circle is Earth, and the outer one is the rest of the universe, carved up into twelve big houses, and we’re looking down at an orange sliced in half. Yes.”
“Close enough. The planets represent the particular ways in which the individual asserts himself. The sun in the first house means—”
“The sun? I thought you said planets.”
“We consider the sun and moon to be planets. It is best to set aside what you know about astronomy, for this; it has almost no genuine relation to astrology.”
“I begin to appreciate your sincerity. So the sun is a planet.”
“Viewed from Earth, they are all moving bodies, Sol and Luna no less than Venus or Pluto. They all have changing positions in the sky. We’re not revising astronomy; we are merely arranging our terms to suit our convenience. Technically, it is astronomy that did the revising; it was originally a subdivision of astrology, and all the early astronomers were primarily astrologers. There is no conflict.”
“I follow.”
“The sun indicates purpose, the moon feeling, Mars initiative, and so on. There are tables in the books that give all this, if you find it helps. So the sun in the first house puts the planet of purpose in the house of identity. A person with this configuration, according to one description, is determined to exalt his ego one way or another, and tries to dominate his immediate situation. That doesn’t mean he succeeds; this is merely his impulse. He may be bombastic rather than great.”
“You sound as if you have a reservation. Are there other descriptions for what sun-in-first means?”
“There are always differences in interpretation. But my reservation stems from the oversimplification. The whole chart must be considered, not just the sun, or unfortunate mistakes can be made. You see, one of our group has this particular placement.”
“Afra!”
“That’s what I mean. It isn’t Afra, as you can see by her chart; the first house is empty. It’s Beatryx.”
“I think I’m catching on. If a person is born when the sun is in one of these segments, that tells something about his personality — but only something, not everything. And I guess the sun has to be somewhere. What is the second house?”
“Possessions, among other things. Here, I’ll make out a list; that’s easiest, I think.”
“Oh yes. So the sun in the second house puts purpose in possessions. That man will be out to make money.”
“Or to achieve personal advantage some other way,” Groton said, not pausing in his listing. “You have the general idea. Again, there is no guarantee he’ll make a fortune — but he’ll probably try.”
“Where is the sun in my — in Schön’s horoscope?”
“The twelfth house. That’s confinement.”
“Purpose in confinement.” Ivo thought that over. “This begins to grow on me, I must admit.”
“Just remember that the sun, important as it is, can be outweighed by an opposing configuration elsewhere. And of course the entire horoscope represents probability, not certainty. Heredity is obviously a major influence. Leo is the sign of the lion, but a mouse born into Leo is still a mouse.”
“I’ll remember,” Ivo agreed, smiling. “A leonine Mickey.”
“Notice the position of the sun in Afra’s horoscope.”
Ivo studied the chart once more, finding it less confusing. “Is that the little circle with the dot inside? That’s in the ninth house. But that’s not the only thing there.”
“It certainly isn’t alone, and in certain respects this is a remarkable chart. But let’s ignore the others for the moment. The sun symbol goes near the rim, you see, followed by the ecliptic position in degrees and minutes, and on the inside is the zodiacal sign, which we’ll go into in a moment.”
“What does the ninth house stand for?”
“Understanding, consciousness, knowledge.”
“So Afra has purpose in understanding. That means she wants to know things — and if her heredity gives her high intelligence, she’ll come to know a great deal.”
“The text says: ‘The sun in the ninth house places the practical focus of life in a determination to exalt the ego through high standards and broadened interests. This position always encourages a conscious lean towards an intellectual understanding or a religious orientation. At his best the native is able to bring effective insights or genuine wisdom to every situation, and at his worst he is apt to meet all reality with a complacent intolerance or bigotry.’ ”
“That sounds close enough. But it is really so general it could apply to almost anyone.”