Mundane astrology
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{{Astrology}}
'''Mundane astrology''' is the application of [[astrology]] to world affairs and world events, taking its name from the [[Latin]] word ''Mundus'', meaning ''"the [[World]]"''. Mundane astrology is a branch of [[Judicial astrology]] and is widely believed by [[History of astrology|astrological historians]] to be the most [[ancient]] branch of astrology. In the [[Middle Ages]] mundane astrology was more commonly known as the study of [[Revolutions]] - meaning the study of the revolutions of the planets in their apparent orbits around the [[Earth]], as they were then believed to do.
'''Political astrology''' is a branch of mundane astrology dealing with [[politics]], the [[government]], and the [[politicians]]/[[laws]] governing a particular [[nation]], [[state]], or [[city]]. A wider definition of mundane astrology focuses also on natural and man-made disasters.
There are two major approaches to the study of mundane astrology. One is the focus on national horoscopes. It is held that certain countries have [[natal chart|astrological charts]] (or [[horoscope]]s) just like a person is said to in astrology. For example, the modern state of India is widely considered to have come into being at midnight on [[August 15]] [[1947]]. This time gives rise to a national horoscope for this country, which can be analyzed in terms of the natal potential and the impacts of [[astrological transits|transiting]] planets in the horoscope at any given time. The other approach is the ancient practice of finding correlations that exist between [[Geology|geological phenomena]] (such as [[earthquake]]s, [[Volcano|volcanic eruptions]], etc.) and [[astronomical]] phenomena (the movement of celestial bodies in the [[Solar System]]). This approach is based on the horoscope of the astronomical placements at any given time, without reference to a national horoscope.
==Overview==
Mundane astrology had two purposes: one was to look back and explain [[history]], looking for patterns and a sense of some greater purpose in apparently chaotic events such as the rise and fall of [[empire]]s or [[religion]]s. The other was to predict the [[future]]. Some [[philosophers]] believed that the world could be saved from disaster if future troubles could be predicted – and subsequently averted.
Although it was originally developed in ancient [[Babylon]] there have been three subsequent major periods of developments. In [[120]] [[Anno Domini|AD]] the [[Roman and Byzantine Greece|Greek]] [[astrologer]] [[Claudius Ptolemy]] set down the fundamentals of mundane astrology in his famous treatise on astrology, the ''Tetrabiblos''. In the ninth and tenth centuries the astrologers of the [[Islamic world]] added many more techniques, particularly the use of the cycles of [[Jupiter (planet)|Jupiter]] and [[Saturn (planet)|Saturn]] to identify the rise and fall of [[state]]s and religions. The [[twentieth century]] saw a major proliferation of techniques mainly based on the use of [[orbital period|planetary cycles]] rather than, as had always been the case the interpretation of planetary positions in [[horoscope]]s or [[natal chart]]s.
An approach to studying longer-term history through astrology is through the use of "[[precession of the equinoxes]]" indicators, providing a source for the idea of [[Astrological Ages]].
== Planets and areas of life==
Many astrologers have been interested in the area of mundane or political astrology, including the noted British astrologer Charles Carter who proposed that specific areas of life and politics can be correlated to each of the planets. <ref> Charles E. O. Carter, ''An Introduction of Political Astrology'', L. N. Fowler, 1951 </ref> In general, the following associations of areas of society with each of the planets are generally accepted by most astrologers:
*'''[[Sun (astrology)|Sun]]''' : Supreme authority in the State (the President/Prime Minister/Chancellor). Eclipses often signify the death or displacement of the head of state. National character and identity, major events, overall Weltanschauung.
*'''[[Moon (astrology)|Moon]]''' : The population, the popular mood; national security needs, basic necessities, women's issues, agriculture.
*'''[[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]]''' : News media and the Press, literature, all schools leading up to higher education; the post office and means of communication; political speeches, opinion polls, transportation.
*'''[[Venus (planet)|Venus]]''' : Art -painters, sculptors and musicians, entertainment, celebrities and high society, fashion, culture, beauty, women, money and wealth; contributes to national happiness. Victory in war.
*'''[[Mars (planet)|Mars]]''' : The armed forces and police; violent crime, war, industrial concerns; when associated with Uranus may cause explosions, terrorism; with Neptune, treachery. Divisive elements in society.
*'''[[Jupiter (planet)|Jupiter]]''' : Clergy and churches, religion, judges, law and court system, higher education, prosperity, publishing, banking, insurance; the 'upper classes'; philanthropic institutions (especially in association with Neptune).
*'''[[Saturn (planet)|Saturn]]''' : Property, the system of government, institutions and bureaucracy, economy, conservatism, infrastructure, law, control
*'''[[Uranus (planet)|Uranus]]''' : Administration, revolutions, progressive or radical movements, countercultures; power in its physical sense - electrical and nuclear, new technology, innovation.
*'''[[Neptune (planet)|Neptune]]''' : The arts, glamor, hope, idealism, covert actions, socialism; hospitals, charitable institutions; the navy. Under affiction associated with muddle, fraud, crime, scandal; brewing and alcohol, drugs; chemicals, footwear.
*'''[[Pluto (planet)|Pluto]]''' : Financial or political power, factions, big business, nuclear energy, mines; criminal detection, but under affliction the criminal underworld, death, catastrophes, dictators.
*'''[[Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres]]''' : Native needs to feel loved and nurtured, the reproductive issues of an adult woman, pregnancy, family bonds and relationships. Deals with grief, worry, negative emotions and places of perceived imprisonment.
==Houses and Signs==
Carter also associated each of the houses and signs with different aspects of politics and the state as follows:
*'''1st House-Aries''' : The nation as a whole, its self image and how it projects itself to the world.
*'''2nd House-Taurus''' : The economy
*'''3rd House-Gemini''' : Education; periodical publications; the post office, radio and transport; communications in general; science.
*'''4th House-Cancer''' : Land and housing; agriculture; the opposition in parliament
*'''5th House-Leo''' : All forms of national pleasure and entertainment; sports, general amusements; Society, children
*'''6th House-Virgo''' : The 'working classes'; left wing organisations; public health. The armed forces and civil service.
*'''7th House-Libra''' : Foreign affairs generally; war as well as treaties.
*'''8th House-Scorpio''' : Financial relations with foreign countries; public safety and crime.
*'''9th House-Sagittarius''' : The law; religion; philosophy; and science.
*'''10th House-Capricorn''' : Heads of state; government; national prestige.
*'''11th House-Aquarius''' : Parliament, especially the lower house. Local government.
*'''12th House-Pisces''' : Prisons, hospitals, homes for the aged; philanthropic societies; secret societies; monasteries and institutional religion.
==Mundane Horoscopes==
Just as a person has a horoscope cast for the moment of their birth, so too can states and nations have horoscopes cast for the moment of their beginning. <ref> Derek and Julia Parker, ''The New Compleat Astrologer'', pp184-5, Crescent Books, New York, 1990 </ref> Sometimes the choice of date appears to be obvious.
In many cases the correct date is not so clear, and in most cases a nation or country has multiple birth charts. For example, many astrologers take the date of England's horoscope as Christmas Day 1066 - the day when that William the Conqueror had the crown set upon his head. There is also a chart set for midnight on 1st May 1707 (Old Style), the time of the Union of England and Wales with Scotland creating Great Britain. The Union then grew again on 1st January 1801 with the Union of Great Britain and Ireland. A further change took place as the Republic of Ireland left the Union, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was created.
Another example of a country/state that has multiple 'birthdays' is France, which regained its independence after the occupation of the Second World War as the Fourth Republic on 10th October 1946, while the present French system came into being as the Fifth Republic after a referendum held on 28th September 1958. Similarly in Germany the present state system came into effect with the enactment of the Basic Law in August 1949, yet it is also considered by most astrologers that a new state has come into being with German re-unification in October 1990.
In principle, any organisation or object can have a chart cast for the moment of its 'birth'. <ref> Derek and Julia Parker, ''Ibid'', p184 </ref> For example, the ship ''Titanic's'' horoscope is generally cast for noon on 10th April 1910 when the ocean liner first set sail. The ship's chart showed its ascendant in opposition to Uranus, and Neptune (ruler of the sea) was squared to the Sun, both aspects indicating the potential for danger. The chart also contains a 'Void of course Moon', a period in which the Moon does not make any applying major aspects with any of the planets before it enters the next sign: this is said to be a period in which new ventures are not likely to succeed.
===Horoscopes for the USA===
There are many contending dates and times for a national horoscope for the [[United States of America]], but the primary events considered are on the one hand when the states declared their independence from [[Great Britain]] and on the other when they formed a lasting union.
====''Declaration of Independence (1776)''====
Most astrologers view the birth of the USA as having occurred sometime during the day of [[July 4]], [[1776]], when the [[United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of Independence]] was adopted [http://www.astrodatabank.com/NM/usa.htm]. Of the many charts proposed for that day, the most widely accepted continues to be the [[Sibly chart]], set for 5.10pm on 4th July 1776 in Philadelphia. This chart was generated using medieval techniques which signified the event, rather than purporting to represent the actual time. (See Nick Campion's Book of World Horoscopes p417).
Other dates also configure in this event. The document, formally entitled ''The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States of America'', explained the justifications for separation from the British crown, and was an expansion of [[Richard Henry Lee]]'s [[Lee Resolution|Resolution]] (passed by Congress in [[July 2]]), which first proclaimed independence. An engrossed copy of the Declaration was signed by most of the delegates on [[August 2]].
====''Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union (1777-1781)''====
In recent years, some astrologers and historians consider the formation of the country to have occurred with the [[Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union]] when the country became legally a [[nation-state]] with its own constitution.
[[David Solte|David Solte's]] chart is based on [[November 15]], [[1777]], when the ''Articles'' were approved by the [[Continental Congress]] to be sent to the states for their ratification. Solte rectified the time as 12.46pm. It bears noting that the Articles had at this time not been ratified by the 13 still [[sovereign]] or independent [[US States|states]].
The SAMVA USA ([[Perpetual Union]]) chart [http://cosmologer.blogspot.com/2007/12/samva-usa-chart.html] is based on the event when [[Maryland]] became the 13th and final state to pass an Act [[ratification|ratifying]] the [[Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union|Articles]] on [[February 2]], [[1781]]. The Act provided the ''requisite unanimous consent for the formation of a perpetual union'' of the thirteen states. The chart was rectified using the techniques of ancient [[vedic astrology]], notably the [[Systems' Approach (astrology)|Systems' Approach]], determining that the [[Thomas Sim Lee|signing of the law]] took place at 5.00pm on that day.
Another chart is based on the formal ratification ceremony of the Articles on [[March 1]], [[1781]], when the [[constitution]] of the new [[Confederation]] entered into force.
==Planetary Cycles==
In contrast to Mundane horoscopes, which provide individual snapshots of moments of time and interpretations of the potential developmental possibilities of those snapshots, the study of [[orbital period|planetary cycles]] provides an overview of real-time historical perspectives. Each planet has a tropical period (the time it takes to transit the complete tropical Zodiac) from 0 degrees Aries to 0 degrees Aries, and each of those periods of time reveals a complete cycle of expression on Earth, in keeping with the key astrological principles of that planet. A related field of study is the [[astrological aspect|Aspect]] cycle, which combines the principles of two planets (or more) in aspect, from one conjunction to the next conjunction. The Aspect cycle provides much additional detail to a single planetary cycle, because of the "easy" and "difficult" expressions indicated by each aspect, as well as the relative positions of each aspect within Zodiacal signs, and [[retrograde and direct motion|retrograde]] motion applying during aspects. Sun/Moon [[eclipse]] cycles are also studied by some astrologers, together with examination of their Zodiacal positions later, at the [[Midheaven]] and [[Ascendant]] positions of actual event locations (usually disasters).
==[[Astrological Ages]]==
The [[Astrological Ages]] provide another astrological technique for examining the correlations between historical events on a large scale with Ages such as the [[Age of Aquarius]], that are generally linked to [[precession of the equinoxes]]. One complete precessional cycle (Great Year) is approximately 25,600 years, and the average length of an Astrological Age is approximately 2160 years.
Many astrologers believe that the world is currently on the cusp of the Age of Pisces, passing into the [[Age of Aquarius]]. [[Archetypes]] traditionally linked to [[Pisces]] include [[Christianity]], salvation and faith-based religions, [[slavery]], [[drugs]] (especially [[tobacco]], but also including all forms of drugs both legal and illicit), [[oil]], [[pharmaceuticals]], [[corporations]], psychic phenomena, all esoteric subjects and massive problems that humanity has created for itself. [[Archetypes]] associated with [[Aquarius]] include [[democracy]], freedom, [[technology]], [[electricity]], [[computers]], [[Spaceflight|space travel]], [[flight]], [[dictators]], freedom fighters and revolutionaries, excitement and the effects of mental instability upon societies.
==Some historical predictions==
Before reading this section it should be noted that in modern Mundane Astrology it is a matter of considerable debate whether the purpose of astrology is elucidation of meaning, or a tool to make predictions about events. These "noted" predictions are not particularly "noted" at all; many astrologers will not recognise them.
Throughout history many astrologers have made predictions about the future course of world events, and these are often remarkable either for their fulfilment, or for the ruin and confusion they brought upon their authors.
A favourite topic of a minority of astrologers around the world has been the immediate end of the world. As early as [[1186]] the Earth had escaped one threatened cataclysm of the astrologers.
This did not prevent [[Stöffler]] from predicting a universal deluge for the year [[1524]] - a year, as it turned out, distinguished for drought. His aspect of the heavens told him that in that year three planets would meet in the aqueous sign of [[Pisces (astrology)|Pisces]]. The prediction was believed far and wide, and President Aurial, at [[Toulouse]], built himself a [[Noah's ark]] - a curious realization, in fact, of [[Chaucer]]'s merry invention in the ''Miller's Tale''.
The most famous predictions about European and world affairs were made by the French astrologer [[Nostradamus]] (1503 - 66), however many astrologers dispute whether many of his prophecies were based on astrology. <ref> Derek and Julia Parker, ''Ibid'', pp201-2, Crescent Books, New York, 1990 </ref> Nostradamus became famous after the publication in 1555 of his work ''Centuries'' , which was a series of prophecies in cryptic verse. So obscure are the predictions that they have been interpreted as relating to a great variety of events since, including the French and English Revolutions, and the [[World War II|Second World War]]. In 1556 Nostradamus was summoned to the French court by [[Catherine de Medici]] and commissioned to draw up the horoscopes of the royal children.
According to [[Francis Bacon]] in his essay ''Of Prophesies'' Nostradamus foretold the death of King [[Henry II of France]]: "When I was in France, I heard from one Dr Pena, that the queen mother, who was given to curious arts, caused the king, her husband's, nativity to be calculated, under a false name; and the astrologer (Nostradamus) gave a judgment, that he should be killed in a duel; at which the queene laughed, thinking her husband to be above challenges and duels; but he was slaine, upon a course at tilt, the splinters of the staffe of Montgomery going in at his beaver." Although Nostradamus later fell out of favour with many in the court and was accused of [[witchcraft]], Catherine continued to support him and patronized him until his death.
[[Tycho Brahe]] was from his fifteenth year devoted to astrology, and adjoining his observatory at Uranienburg the astronomer-royal of Denmark had a laboratory built. We may here notice one very remarkable prediction of this master of [[Johannes Kepler|Kepler]] from the appearance of a comet in [[1577]] . It announced, he tells us, that in the north, in Finland, there should be born a prince who should lay waste Germany and vanish in [[1632]]. [[Gustavus Adolphus]], it is well known, was born in Stockholm, Sweden, overran Germany, and died in 1632.
Brahe's prophecy did not accurately predict Gustavus Adolphus' birthplace - Brahe predicted this would be Finland, not Sweden. But the partial fulfillment of the details of this prophecy - namely, that a prince born in the north would lay waste to Germany and vanish in 1632 - suggests that Brahe possibly had some basis of reason for his prediction.
Born in [[Denmark]] of a noble Swedish family, a politician, as were all his contemporaries of distinction, Tycho, though no conjuror, appeared to foresee the advent of some great northern hero. Moreover, he was doubtless well acquainted with a very ancient tradition, that heroes generally came from the northern frontiers of their native land, where they are hardened and tempered by the threefold struggle they wage with soil, climate and barbarian neighbours.
The astronomer [[Johannes Kepler|Kepler]] , who in his youth made almanacs, and once prophesied a hard winter which came to pass, made an astrological interpretation of the disappearance of the brilliant star of [[1572]], which Tycho had observed.
[[Theodore Beza]] thought that this star, which in December [[1573]] equalled Jupiter in brilliancy, predicted the [[second coming]] of [[Christ]]. Astronomers were only then beginning to study variable and periodic stars, and disturbances in that part of the heavens, which had till then, on the authority of [[Aristotle]], been regarded as incorruptible, combined with the troubles of the times, must have given a new stimulus to belief in the signs in heaven.
[[Montaigne]] (''Essais'', lib. i. chap, x.) relates a singular episode in the history of astrology. [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] and [[Francis I of France|Francis I]], who both bid for the friendship of the infamous [[Pietro Aretino]], surnamed the divine, both likewise engaged astrologers to fight their battles.
In [[Italy]] those who prophesied the ruin of [[France]] were sure to be listened to. These prophecies affected the public funds much as telegrams used to in 1911. "At Rome," [[Montaigne]] tells us, "a large sum of money was lost on the Change by this prognostication of our ruin."
The Marquis of Saluces, notwithstanding his gratitude to Francis I for the many favours he had received, including his marquisate, of which the brother was despoiled for his benefit, was led in [[1536]] to betray his country, being scared by the glorious prophecies of the ultimate success of Charles V which were then rife.
During [[World War II]] the British and German governments (among others) hired astrologers to make predictions about the opposing side [http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/03/03/hitler.horoscope.ap/index.html]. One Swiss astrologer, [[Karl Ernst Krafft]], attracted the attention of the Nazis due to his accurate predictions.
==References==
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==Further reading==
Michael Baigent, Nicholas Campion & Charles Harvey, ''Mundane Astrology'' , The Aquarian Press, London, 1984
Nicholas Campion, ''The Book of World Horoscopes'', The Aquarian Press, London, 1988
Stan Barker, ''The Signs of The Times - The Neptune Factor: America's Future and Past as Seen Through Planetary Cycles'', Llewellyn Publications, St Paul, MN USA 1986
Dhruva, ''Astrological analysis of Indian Affairs (1947-2050)'', New Delhi: Readworthy Publications (P) Ltd., 2008 (ISBN: 9788189973025)
== External links ==
*[http://www.siderum.com SIDERUM NUNTIUM ] - Astrodata, Event, Politic Personality, Nation and City
* [http://www.skyscript.co.uk/ingresses.html Mundane Astrology] - A very cogent introduction to Mundane Astrology, the most ancient branch of astrology.
* [http://www.halloran.com/astnews.htm Weekly NewsScope] - A weekly column which, since 1998, has applied Mundane Astrology to interpreting news events from around the world.
* [http://www.quakestar.org - A Forum to discuss scientific astrology as a cause of earthquakes and other natural events
* [http://www.mundaneastrology.net mundaneastrology.net] - Comprehensive information covering mundane astrology ranging from 4500BCE through 2384. Also covers history, politics and social studies past present and future.
* [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/samva Mundane Vedic Astrology Discussion List] - A forum for the discussion of the application of [[vedic astrology]] based on the Systems' Approach by [[V. K. Choudhry]] to mundane questions with a focus on predictive accuracy.
[[Category:Astrology by type|Mundane]]
[[Category:History of astrology]]