Part 8

We meet with the first accounts of Astrology in Chaldea; and at Rome it was known by the name of the BABYLONISH CALCULATION; against which Horace very wisely cautioned his readers—

—— nec Babylonios Tentaris numeros.—Lib. l. od. xi.

that is, consult not the tables or planetary calculations used by Astrologers of Babylonish origin. This therefore was the opinion of the Romans on the subject of Astrology. Others have ascribed the invention of this deception to the Arabs: be this as it may, judicial Astrology has been too much used by the priests of all nations to increase their own power and emoluments.

The Egyptians, the Chaldeans, the Greeks and Romans, furnish us with innumerable instances of the extent to which Astrology was carried for interested purposes. Brahmins in India, who take upon themselves to be the arbiters of good and evil hours, and who set an extravagant price upon their pretended knowledge of planetary influence and predictions, maintain their authority at the present day by similar means. Nor among the Christians, notwithstanding the enlightened era in which we live, are we without our Astrologers, as well as its admirers and advocates; for though they may not have all pursued and adopted the same technical method, still it is certain, that whoever pretends to discover future events by other means than through the light of Divine revelation, may be properly classed under the species of judicial Astrologers.

Astrological Schemes, &c.

Those who pretend to reduce the practice of Astrology to a system, present the world with certain schemes formed upon the ASPECTS of the planets, and attribute certain qualities or powers to each sign. Thus, to discover the influence of the heavens over the life of a person, they erect a THEME, at the given time of the moment the person was born, by which the Astrologers pretend to discover the star that presided, or in what part of the hemisphere it was placed, when the individual came into the world. The erection of this THEME they perform, or at least pretend to reform, with the assistance of the celestial globe, or planisphere, with regard to the fixed stars; but with respect to the planets, they do it with Astronomical tables. To accomplish these, they have recourse to a semi-circle, which they call POSITION, by which they represent the six great circles passing through the intersection of the Meridian and Horizon, and dividing the Equator into twelve equal parts. The spaces included between these circles, are what they call the twelve HOUSES; which they refer to the twelve triangles marked in their theme; placing six of those HOUSES above and six underneath the horizon.

The first of the HOUSES under the horizon toward the East, they call the HOROSCOPE, or HOUSE OF LIFE; the second, the HOUSE OF WEALTH; the third, the HOUSE OF BROTHERS; the fourth, the HOUSE OF PARENTS, &c.; as is clearly expressed in the following lines:

Vita, lucrum, fratres, genitor, natique Valetud, Uxor, Mors, pietas, et munia, amici inimici.

Which, translated by some English students in Astrology, runs thus:

The first house shews life, the second wealth doth give; The third how brethren, fourth how parents live; Issue the fifth; the sixth diseases bring; The seventh wedlock, and the eighth death’s sting; The ninth religion; the tenth honour shews; Friendship the eleventh, and twelfth our woes.

Table of the Twelve Houses.

Astrologers draw their table of the TWELVE HOUSES into a triple quadrangle prepared for the purpose, of which there are four principal angles, two of them falling equally upon the horizon, and the other two upon the meridian, which angles are sudivided into 12 triangles for the 12 houses, in which they place the 12 signs of the Zodiac, to each of which is attributed a particular quality,—viz.

1.— ARIES, denoted by the sign ♈︎, is, in their extravagant opinion, a masculine, diurnal, cardinal, equinoctial, easterly sign, hot and dry,—the day house of Mars.

2.— TAURUS, ♉︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, melancholy, bestial, furious sign—cold and dry.

3.— GEMINI, ♊︎, is a masculine sign, hot and moist, diurnal, aërial, human, double-bodied, &c.

4.— CANCER, ♋︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, phlegmatic sign, by nature cold and moist, the only house of Luna.

5.— LEO, ♌︎, is a sign, masculine, diurnal, bestial, choleric and barren; a commanding, kingly sign—hot and dry, the only house of the sun.

6.— VIRGO, ♍︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, melancholy, and barren sign.

7.— LIBRA, ♎︎, is a sign masculine, cardinal, equinoctial, diurnal, sanguine and human, hot and moist.

8.— SCORPIO, ♏︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, cold and phlegmatic northern sign.

9.— SAGITTARIUS, ♐︎, is a sign masculine, choleric, and diurnal, by nature hot and dry.

10.— CAPRICORN, ♑︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, melancholy, solstitial, moveable, cardinal, and southern sign.

11.— AQUARIUS, ♒︎, is a masculine, diurnal, fixed, sanguine, and human sign.

12.— PISCES, ♓︎, is a feminine, nocturnal, phlegmatic, northerly double-bodied sign, the last of the twelve.

Having thus housed their signs and directed them in their operations, they afterwards come to enquire of their tenants, what planet and fixed stars they have for LODGERS, at the moment of the nativity of such person; from whence they draw conclusions with regard to the future incident of that person’s life. For if at the time of that person’s nativity they find Mercury in 27° 52 min. of Aquarius, and in the sextile aspect of the horoscope, they pretend to foretel that that infant will be a person of great sagacity, genius, and understanding; and therefore capable of learning the most sublime sciences.

Astrologers have also imagined, for the same ridiculous purpose, to be in the same houses different positions of the signs and planets, and from their different aspects, opposition and conjunction, and according to the rules and axioms they have prescribed to themselves and invented, have the sacrilegious presumption to judge, in dernier resort, of the fate of mankind, though their pretended art or science is quite barren either of proofs or demonstrations.

Signs to the Houses of the Planets.

The planets have allowed themselves each, except SOL and LUNA, two signs for their houses; to SATURN, Capricorn and Aquarius; to JUPITER, Sagittarius and Pisces; to MARS, Aries and Scorpio; to SOL, Leo; to VENUS, Taurus and Libra; to MERCURY, Gemini and Virgo; and to LUNA, Cancer.