Dear Friend:

   "Love" is a much hackneyed word, and the emotion thus miscalled is usually so tainted with passion and desire that it is Martian rather than Venusian in character. Coalition suggests a most intimate union, a blending of the very souls of two or more people who compose a family; but altruism, the keyword of Uranus, hints at such an all-embracing love as our Savior felt when He wept over Jerusalem and applied that wonderful simile of the hen which gathers its brood under its wings. Thus Uranus is the octave of Venus, and anyone ready to enter the Path of Preparation which leads to the Way of Initiation must gradually learn to outgrow the Venus love which makes the immediate family all in all and begin to cultivate the all-embracing Uranus altruism. The aspects of Mercury and Neptune to Uranus bring the tests which further our development, if passed, and delay us when we fail. The goal is high, and those who aim high often fall low. When we essay to transcend the Venus love and cultivate the Uranus altruism we are in great danger, and the most promising lives are sometimes wrecked by the pernicious theory of soul mates, clandestine love affairs, and perversion of the creative function.

   In a horoscope such as we are considering, where the progressed MC squares Neptune in the 12th house, Neptune at the same time opposing Uranus on the cusp of the 7th, we have one of the most dangerous combinations, for the aspect to Neptune tends to attract spirit controls. These despicable entities have a knack of beguiling their unsuspecting victims, by plausible platitudes, into the most abominable practices, as indicated by the aspects of Uranus and Neptune. The double square to the MC, which rules honor and social standing, would indicate that a public scandal is inevitable — if —

   Yes, thank God there is always that "if," for in the final analysis there is the man with this Godlike faculty of reason to be reckoned with. Experience has taught us the unwisdom of depending upon the appearance of an applicant for a position of trust; we demand credentials as to character and antecedents. Ought we not to be much more careful with "spirit voices" from the Invisible? Paul exhorted his followers to "try the spirits." They are known by their fruits. Love, Joy, Peace, Forbearance, Kindness, Goodness, Fidelity, Meekness and Self-Control are mentioned as "fruits of the godly spirit." Paul exhorts his followers particularly not to use their liberty for "an occasion of the flesh," licentiousness being mentioned as prime fruit of the flesh.

   Paul was speaking to people upon the Path of Preparation and all who have qualified to receive these lessons are there also, though at varying stages. They feel the Uranian vibrations urging them to love beyond the confines of the family circle. May God bless their efforts.

   But remember this: Altruism does not require return of the love bestowed upon others; it has absolutely no concern with sex; it will not lessen the love for our family, but they, being nearest to us, will feel the increase of our love to a greater degree than those farther away. Unless our love brings forth such fruits, it is not Uranian, nor even Venusian; it will not further us upon the Path of Attainment. When Neptune is on the Asc. in Pisces or the 12th house, spirit voices are the tempters; in the 9th house, one's own mind; in the 7th, an associate, etc.

   "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the Temple."

  (You are welcome to e-mail your answers and/or comments to us. Please be sure to include the course name and Independent Study Module number in your e-mail to us. Or, you are also welcome to use the answer form below. You will find the answers to the questions below in the next Astrology Independent Study Module.)

1.  What do you think is the connection between Mercury and Neptune?

   The keywords of Venus are coalition, harmony, beauty. It is the planet of attraction and personal love: the love for one's mate and family, and for all that is beautiful in life.

   The keyword of Uranus is altruism. It is the planet of universality, signifying that all-embracing love and compassion which Christ Jesus felt. When the Venus love, through disappointment and sorrow has become selfless, it has been transmuted into the sublime altruism of Uranus, knowing no race, creed, or family. Thus we may say that Uranus is the higher octave of Venus.

   Physiologically, also, there is a connection between the two planets. Venus rules the thymus gland, while Uranus rules the pituitary body. Both, though in different ways, are glands of nutrition and growth. Pituitary extract is given to women to artificially stimulate the labor pains, thus shortening the suffering attendant at childbirth. Surely it points to a connection between the two planets that the pains of birth — partly due to the Venusian qualities of attraction and coalition — are so greatly helped by an extract of the gland which is ruled by her higher octave, Uranus

   The development of motion pictures as an entertainment-art has been one of the most remarkable phenomena of this age. It has brought drama, comedy, music, color, dance, travel, news, educational advancement, and a pronounced cultural influence in its best forms, into the lives of millions of people who might not, otherwise, have actually experienced these things. We are concerned in this discourse not with the technical development but with the esoteric significance of motion picture acting and its effect on the minds and consciousness of today's people. As in any other art, there are the pioneers who dared to blaze the trail toward a more extended cultural advancement. Then there are those workers who adapt the findings of the pioneers and develop them on a larger and more perfect scale as time goes by. Then there are those motion picture manifestors not particularly interested in or even aware of cultural advancement who "give the public what it wants" in terms of maintaining that which has been established as standards of entertainment-value. The latter group is that which most conspicuously "feeds the public's escapist-tendency;" the first two groups serve to improve, extend, and regenerate the public taste and appreciation and it is they who, for the most part, are responsible for the highest quality of artistic value to be found in this work.

   Many times motion pictures have been referred to as "an escape-mechanism," a "panacea" which serves to help people forget themselves and their troubles. Such an interpretation displays a lack of understanding. The motion picture art is not essentially an escape-mechanism even if some people use it as such. A psychological approach to this "quirk" in human nature should devolve on the human factor, not on the motion-picture factor. The names of "escape-mechanisms " are legion; let us consider their essence. Astrologically speaking, the vibration of unregenerate Neptune in combination with any square or opposition aspect is a potential for escape- mechanism. The square and opposition aspects are points of inner division, congestion of potentials, tendencies to disintegration, points of ignorance, confusion of identities, lack of self-awareness, lack of self-confidence, inhibitions through fear-hatred, etc. The unregeneracy of Neptune is, among other things, our potential to give power to illusions. And, we all do that, in some form or other, until the consciousness is flooded with the light of understanding and clarified perception as the result of learning through disillusionment. When we suffer from any of these negative conditions and we don't know why we suffer, we tend to identify inner truths with something, or someone, outside of ourselves. This is what is, essentially, meant by "escape-mechanism" — the attempt to escape from the pain of inner congestions and confusions.

   If humanity can be said to be motivated by one common objective, that objective is certainly the realization of ideals. The ideal is a music that, once heard, cannot be resisted. The search to realize this ideality is the great evolutionary surge; we have followed this "music," consciously or unconsciously, ever since we first manifested. The realization of ideality is the fulfillment, through regenerated expression, of potentials. Until we fulfill our own as individuals, we tend to be driven to seek its outpicturing in someone or something else. Evolution is dependent on expression; to "not express" or to "not do" is to "not evolve." Even a person who lives in terms of what we call "criminality" is evolving because he is expressing his potentials; he sets up causes which will react as karmic-return from which he may, ultimately, learn more about principles. The possession of money is many people's symbol of life's greatest good and they stop at nothing to realize this ideal; however, in time, and through experience, they learn what money really is and then they are conditioned to adjust their consciousness and actions according to a clarification of principle in their own minds. Gibran said: "Even faltering speech strengthens a weak tongue; " to cease searching for the ideal is to die, in consciousness; to continue to express, as a means of searching for that which is most valued and cherished, is to evolve.

   Our emotional reaction to another person identifies him as a symbol to us. If the reaction is one of envy, jealousy, hatred, fear, etc., he has served to stimulate one of our inner congestions, confusions or unfulfillments; the person we "hate" (wish to destroy) serves, by the stimulus of his vibration, to remind us of a past very serious, as yet unadjusted wrong. We do not ever "hate" another person; we can hate only our unfulfillments and we can destroy them only by regenerated expression. If our reaction to another is one of harmony, joy, love, admiration, inspiration, etc., then, whoever, or whatever he maybe, his vibration has served to remind us of our own inner regeneracies. This explains why people faith-fully and deeply love those who may mistreat and hurt them; the magnetic tie of karma provides the loving one with "pabulum" on which to pour his love. We love the ideal that another person represents to us and that "personalized ideal" is always a pattern of our own deep "dream of perfection." The financially successful older criminal may be an "ideal" to the younger, inexperienced one who has determined to exercise himself in what we call " criminal ways." Yet, in his anti-social, destructive, and unprincipled actions he still expresses in his deep urge to emulate the symbol of the older man. In justice to those who are ignorant and unevolved, let us remember that the person we designate as "criminal" may express a deep devotion to those he works for or with and within his particular limitations of consciousness, he may deal honorably with those of his "profession," and he may utilize much of his "ill-gotten gain" to be truly helpful. No one is entirely a criminal because everyone is seeking to realize an ideal. The parasitic "do nothing" is a worse traducer of his own nature than the active criminal is of his. A thief or what not at least can possess a modicum of courage. The "do nothing" hasn't even that and he is, by his very nature, non-contributory. He will have to make intensified effort in future to compensate for his deficiencies in the present.

   So, the person whose potentialities are not being satisfactorily expressed or who has conditioned himself out of line with his inner ideal may, and often does, turn to motion pictures and the players who work in them, to attain a living, if artificial, contact with his personal ideals. It is not the purpose of this discourse to criticize or judge the work of specific players except as an evaluation pertaining to this subject; but certain players will be mentioned because of the remarkable archetypal quality of personality and physical appearance, plus a certain level of technical skill, by which they exercise the power of living symbolism on the subconscious of individuals or groups. Of the many who have exercised a long- lasting influence over the public subconscious we will consider four men, of contrasting type, whose work in American motion pictures represents outstanding examples of symbolic archetypal personality: Lon Chaney, Bing Crosby, Rudolph Valentino, and Clark Gable.

   Mr. Chaney, whose work in silent pictures ranked him as the greatest make-up artist and one of the greatest pantomimists in the American theater, fulfilled, as an archetype, the universal, instinctive impulse of humanity to desire to transcend the hum-drum monotony of "everyday experience." His characterizations were, almost without exception, of deformed bodies and twisted personalities. He gave to audiences a satisfaction of their subconscious attraction to the weird and the horrible. His characterizations resulted in great emotional impact, he had great projective powers and the best of his performances, such as Quasimodo in Hunchback of Notre Dame, were unforgettable dramatic experiences. He epitomized the "quirks of Fate" by which humanity suffers through physical malformation and terrible frustrations of normal, natural urges. In short, his esoteric purpose was to bring to movie-audiences an awareness of the tragic in dramatic art. He was not an "entertainer" at all, either in purpose or in type of characterization. To have responded truly and whole-heartedly to Mr. Chaney 's remarkable work meant an intensified awareness of the pathos of human suffering. His esoteric purpose was aimed directly at stimulating compassion in the human heart.

   The author has long felt that the work of Mr. Bing Crosby on the screen is one of the most remarkable spiritual influences in the world. (1951). With much in present-day organized religion in a state of unrest and mutation, the vibration and talent of this man serves to bring, through song and light comedy, a "gently expressed" but powerfully far- reaching stimulus to humanity's ideal of simple goodness and natural friendliness. His vibration, from an astrological standpoint, is strongly Venusian — having Libra as Ascendant, Sun in Taurus, and Moon trine Mercury and Venus. And who personifies more perfectly the ideal of constructive non- resistance? To exercise a (possibly) fanciful analogy, he might be called the "twentieth century 's St. Francis of Assisi," so compelling is the goodness and sincerity of the archetype he represents. Words are written and actions planned but he, in himself, has the specialization of consciousness that projects this archetypal quality. Others act and sing, they are enjoyable and command the respect of the public, but there is only one Bing Crosby, the "world's troubadour" and, archetypally, the friend of all whom he contacts. Who would not love to possess the friendship power that he symbolizes? He melts the hardest hearts and, with his complete lack of tension — his are the most effortless of performances — he symbolizes the un-congested personality, expressive, kindly, persuasive rather than forceful, with a perception of the good that is inherent in all. If people who flock to his pictures would recognize that they, as individuals, need only to emulate this archetype and decrystallize residues of malice, envy, jealousy, hurtful impulses, etc., they would not only enjoy his performances even more but they would be taking his example to heart. Mr. Crosby personifies truths of the regenerated human nature — his work is a series of sermons-through-acting-and-singing. People the world over love him because he outpictures their own inner best potentials of heart and spirit. Do you regard Mr. Crosby — on the screen — as an "imagination-figment" completely remote from you and your life, or do you recognize that he holds up a mirror that reflects aspects of your own innate gentleness, friendliness and harmony? Think this over carefully.

   Mr. Valentino, a Latin-European of extraordinarily fine appearance, personified in his time a romantic ideal which superseded in power that of any other actor of his type. Psychology could say much concerning the hold that this man exercised over the subconscious of American women. It is true, un-pleasant as it may be to say so, that the miasma of puritanism has been an influence of blight on the minds and hearts of people for many years, and this influence has deflected people — millions of them — from realizing the ideal of spontaneous fulfillment of love-relationship. The archetype represented by Mr. Valentino was the complete antithesis of this false, materialistic, corruptive, and subnormalizing "philosophy." The composite factors of ardent Latin temperament, plus handsome face and physique, plus a great skill in projecting the intensities of sexual magnetism, made it possible for this actor to effect a focused archetype of masculine personality which outpictured, to the feminine subconscious, an ideal of love-complementation. Under the spell of his vibration, women re- found their basic, instinctive womanhood — the desire to be conquered, over- whelmed, and transfigured by the projective power of the skillful, cultivated male. Nothing in this man's vibration and personality was at all "American;" he represented a personality-type of masculine graciousness, courtliness, amatory skill, and the cultivated charm of an older civilization. There may or may not be others on the screen today who compare favorably with this man's particular vibration and ability, but he was, in his time, archetypal of that which many if not most, women seek as an ideal love-partner. No one suggests that any man pattern his life after that of Mr. Valentino, but what he symbolized could be thought about and learned from by many men who have permitted their concepts of man-woman relationship to be congested through gracelessness, ignorance, puritanism — with its guilt complexes and lack of perception of that which is true beauty in woman. In his screen- representations, Mr. Valentino paid homage to the ideal of feminine beauty. In personal vanity, many women seek to compel the homage of men by tricks and artifices but man pays homage, ultimately, to his ideals, never to masks and bricks. There is a lesson to be learned, by men, in consideration of the work of this actor. For man to perceive, and to ignite by perception, the true beauty of woman so that woman might become and be the beauty that inspires, was the esoteric purpose of this actor's work on the screen.

   Mr. Gable, a personification of the Mars-Saturn- Mercury type, is probably the greatest American counterpart of that which, Mr. Valentino represented as a European. He has been designated, and with justice, the greatest archetype of masculine personality on the screen today. He is all men to all people — his Moon in Cancer designates his esoteric faculty to "feed the collective subconscious," and his work is attended as enthusiastically by men as it is by women. It is easy to think of him, in his screen-portrayals, as fulfilling a form of "priesthood" in so far as a priest in ceremonial religion is a personification of life-principles. Far fetched as it might at first seem, the esoteric significance of this actor's work is profoundly religious because he ignites in the subconscious of people an intensified perception of masculine principles of personality.

   Students may not see any connection between the words "religious" or "spiritual and Mr. Gable's tough, hard-hitting, usually unsubtle, and earthy characterizations; but his person and vibration convey a symbol of resourcefulness, endurance, self-reliance, physical strength, genial good humor, and, above all, the quality of courage, which is the archetypal regenerate quality of the Mars-vibration. (He has Mars in the Ascendant-sign, making four major aspects, disposited by the ruler of the chart and trine both Jupiter and Saturn.) People, at times, tend to "sicken inside" with their own futilities, incompetencies, and weaknesses and those of others around them. Mr. Gable presents to their attention the actuality of patterns of great strength of body, mind, and character. His vibration certainly ignites an ideality-pattern since courage, self-reliance, endurance, and physical power are Mars-archetypes, and as such they represent qualities which we are all seeking to realize in ourselves. The trinity of Moon, Mars, and Saturn is the planetary base of each evolutionary cycle; Moon-Saturn, as rulers of the structure-diameter of Cancer-Capricorn, represents the parental source of the "I Am" of Mars as well as its fulfillment in maturity. A strong, well- integrated maturity presupposes a well-integrated Mars and the strongly individualized dynamic qualities of the Mars-archetype which Mr. Gable symbolizes is a vibratory essence which we all, men or women, have as a potential to be fulfilled and expressed. The universal appeal of his characterizations is pictured in the composite of two distinct patterns in his chart: Cancer-Moon and Capricorn-Saturn, with Sun and ruler in Aquarius sextile to Uranus; the twelfth house placement of his Ascendant-Mars gives us a key to the esoteric significance of his vibration as an archetypal personality-symbol.

   If you are one who has felt "compelled" to "find yourself through motion-picture representations " and you wish to free yourself from this symbolic imprisonment, make a copy of your chart with no degree-numbers; this is what the author calls your "White-Light" chart — it is the symbolic portrait of yourself as an archetype. Study it with an eye to determining what your vibratory focal-points are (forget square and opposition in this study) and start doing something to organize your life so that you can give fuller and freer expression to your essential vibratory potentials. Study the work of the actor and/or actress whose work on the screen "fascinates" you and recognize that something in their personality or vibration is in you too. It is your right and duty to find the truth of you as an individualized expression of the archetype humanity. When you commence this reorganization, you will find yourself gradually freed from the compulsion to identify yourself through another — and your enjoyment of theatrical art and entertainment will take on a greater sincerity because you will be more and more able to enjoy it and appreciate it for its own sake. The art of living is to find out who and what we realize of ourselves.

   The art of healing is an impersonalized extension of bi-polar parental love. The preservation of the begotten body is one of the factors involved in parental responsibility; wisdom, which is knowledge distilled from experience through incarnations, is added to the basic love- urge of parenthood to form the essence of the arts of healing by which humanity, in service, preserves and protects the composite of its myriads of bodies. We will consider a basic mandala indicative of this extension:

   First, a circle with the vertical diameter, the signs of Cancer and Capricorn at the lower and upper points, respectively. This is the essential mandala of parentage — the maternal and paternal of the abstract I AM of the Ascendant. In primitive states, humanity functioned instinctively in parenthood, following the call of the generative urge as a fulfillment of an intensely expressed desire-with, perhaps, the barest modicum of what might be called "affection." With the conception, bearing, and hit- and-miss preservation of children, primitive mankind fulfilled the form- begetting responsibility. However, with evolution and the unfoldment of the love-potential, parents developed a consideration of children as individuals, and with this consideration was born a desire to understand them. The healing arts may be said to have been born with the first human who exercised his thought and ingenuity, as an expression of an instinctive parental protectiveness, to preserve the life of another. This hypothetical person, whoever he or she was, projected from the love-wisdom potential an imposition of mind and will on the phenomena of Nature to fulfill the dawning of the impersonalized love-service urge. Man ever urges toward extensions of blood- relationship in the unfoldments of his potentials. First, his parents, brothers and sisters, mate and children; then members of the clan or tribe to which he belongs; then members of another clan and so on — until he reaches an octave of consciousness in which he perceives a glimmering of his life- relationship with all people. He "took care" of his animals, first, because he was dependent on them for work and food; however, with the "glimmer of life-relationship" he perceived that he is related to his animals as well as to his human relatives and other humans and, as consequence, he has extended his knowledge of healing to benefit not only people but all animal-life as well. The universalist is decrystallized to such a degree that whatever he has of love-service potential is radiated to all creatures who need it.

   To the mandala at hand, now add the Pisces-Virgo diameter; comparable points on Cancer-Pisces and Capricorn-Virgo are connected by curved, counter-clockwise lines. In this way we see a composite motion- picture of the Cancer-Capricorn diameter turned nine signs, coming to rest at the signs which represent the wisdom-octave of parentage. "Wisdom born of evolutionary experience" is the archetypal meaning of any ninth house-sign pattern. A devoted but unenlightened parent may make every effort to heal a loved child, but wisdom results in the art of doing anything according to its essential principles. So, the medical specialists, diagnosticians, surgeons, nurses, dentists, gynecologists, dietitians, herbalists, veterinarians, psychiatrists, etc., comprise the great fraternity of therapeutists, the "impersonal fathers and mothers" who consecrate their efforts to the maintenance of inner and outer health of all creatures. Of this fraternity, there are two basic types which we will study by mandalas. The mandala of the exoteric healer is the Virgo-Pisces diameter polarized by Gemini, ruled by Mercury, and third house sign from Aries. Gemini is factual knowledge, it is understanding derived from observation of physical phenomena and the study of recorded facts and data. The exoteric approach to the therapeutic arts is based on an approach that the body itself is the source of its own ills and, as such, it was the means by which man was impelled to acquaint himself with the structure and functions of his physical vehicle. In his early stages of evolution, he knew only what he saw, or perceived by physical means; his consciousness and appreciation of life focused on his reaction to the objective world around him. So, he studied his body by observing what happened to it under certain conditions and experiences. He learned the different kinds of pain-reaction he was capable of when his body was affected in specialized ways by external forces or agencies. This "healing-mandala," polarized by Gemini, being essentially objective, is the mandala of all diagnostic art that pertains to any branch of healing, inner and outer. It also refers to the arts of surgery and medical treatment which apply directly to the physical condition.

   Man began to learn about external effects fairly early in evolutionary stages, but it was not for a long time until he came into an awareness of the significance of inner states to affect his physical well-being. The (hypothetical) first human who realized that an emotional or mental state had a direct bearing on the condition of his body, as the cause of an abnormality, was the first esoteric therapeutist. He was the first to recognize the co-existence of subjective life with objective life. His observations were the genesis of those which were subsequently evolved pertaining to the subjective cause of all physical abnormality or in-harmony — injury as well as disease. In short, these observations refer to the karmic causation of physical disharmonies. (Winged Pharaoh, by Joan Grant, tells how the great healer-priests of ancient Egypt perceived, by clairvoyant examination, the inner causes of physical inharmonies.) The immortal Paracelsus may be referred to as an "epitome" (in relatively recent history) of this "first esoteric therapeutist." To the mandala at hand we now add the symbol for Sagittarius, polarizing Gemini, thus forming the mutable cross of instrumentation, the extension of the mandala of the exoteric healer, the portrait of man as an instrument for his own healing. The principal congestion involved is the congestion in ignorance, the "blindness to principle" which is ultimately the causation of all disease and physical injury. The initiating point of this cross is the fire sign Sagittarius — corresponding to the Aries of the Cardinal Cross. The identity is: "I am a healer."

   Now, for clarity, "build" the Sagittarius-mandala as follows: the left horizontal, Sagittarius; the upward vertical, Virgo; the right horizontal, Gemini; the downward vertical, Pisces. The healing, preservative radiation of Sagittarius is polarized by the knowledge of Gemini; the parentage-diameter is the abstract service-diameter of Virgo-Pisces. The primitive maternal instinct of Cancer is here shown to be the universal maternity of the compassionate Pisces; the primitive paternal instinct of Capricorn, exaltation of the male principle, Mars, is here shown as the stewardship of the earth-element through Virgo, as wisdom expressing through love-service. Now add the fifth and ninth cusps and the appropriate signs Aries and Leo, respectively; connect the three fire-points by straight lines forming the trine of dynamic individualization that characterizes all great esoteric healers; each one of these, by the very nature of his purpose and responsibility-fulfillment, is a fore-runner in so far as each adds a point of understanding that serves to transcend the limitations of purely exoteric knowledge. Every healer, no matter what branch of the art he serves, who applies an inspired awareness of the inner causes of injury and disease is an esoteric healer; only those who focus on the body only are to be considered "pure exotericists" of the healing-arts.

   The love-potential (fifth cusp) of this mandala focusses the arch-regeneracy of courage and all esoteric healers must, to fulfill, express this virtue. The majority of humanity are, and always have been,"esoterically minded" — congested on outer appearances and blind to inner realities. To tear aside the veil of ignorance so that mankind might be alerted to "himself as the cause of his own disharmonies" has required a dauntless courage and a blazing zeal on the part of great healers. The instinctive "fear-of-the-unknown" which characterizes ignorance has always been the greatest challenge to the personal integrity of healers and this challenge has had to be met by exercise of the utmost dynamic urge represented by Mars' Aries. Leo, at the ninth cusp of this mandala focuses the "power and authority" vibration of the Sun at the house which refers to understanding and teaching. Who, in the healing arts, would presume or dare to present speculations as truths regarding subjective healing — that is, without the authority of true understanding of principles involved? In this factor of the mandala, we see the "king-ship of true understanding," the "nobility of illumined perceptions." The truths of the outer, important and significant as they are to the development of the healing arts, are mirrored reflections of the truths of the inner. Ninth house Leo is the "wisdom that radiates love" and the expression of realized truths of the inner is the essence of healing on any plane; this wisdom is a vitalizing contribution to human experiences in any aspect.

   As Cancer is the symbol of that which, in consciousness, impels the woman to sacrifice her body-substance for the incarnation of Egos, so is Pisces, as the fourth house sign of the "healer- mandala," the spiritual sacrifice which is made by all true healers. The "substance" of this sacrifice is the ideality of all healers, male or female, which is offered continually in order that the ideal of health may be manifested in human experience. As the primitive woman instinctively loves her offspring, so does the feminine polarity in all human beings love that which is young, helpless, and unformed. And — "unformed" means "ignorant." The sacrifice, through ideality, which is offered by healers is often infinitely worse in degree than any physical suffering could be. To have a vision of a radiantly healthy humanity traduced continually by the congested and dark forces of materialism, prejudice, stupidity, and envy is a crucifixion of the spirit that can be — and has been — abysmal in degree. The maternal heart of all healers endures these lacerations in service just as, in another degree, the woman endures the pain of gestation and parturition. So the picture is shown to all who would be healers: be willing to neutralize the forces of congestion by a continual outpouring of your identity and of your sympathetic impulses. In this universalizing service, everything in your nature which is, or has been, "Mother" reaches into extended octaves of consciousness in order that all may benefit from the outpouring of your compassionate and sympathetic impulses.

   If the urge to heal is derived from the feminine, maternal essence, then the actual work of healing is derived from the paternal essence as an extended universalization of the principle of stewardship inherent in the earth-trine, initiated by Saturn's Capricorn but focalized in this mandala as Mercury 's Virgo, the "male placement" of this mental planet. All the sympathy in the world may be, from a vibratory standpoint, an agency of healing, but so complex is the total of healing-arts and so varied are the factors they deal with that, in evolutionary processes, application of much study and observation is entailed. The polarization of Sagittarius by Gemini and of Pisces by Virgo shows us that factual knowledge of all planes of existence, in human terms, represents the completion or the fulfillment (complementation) of the basic urge or instinct by which a human seeks to make himself an instrument for healing powers. All the study and learning-from- experience ultimately serves the purpose of alerting the consciousness of the healer to a perception of health as being a universal attribute. An intelligent human father does not conceive his responsibility to comprise a "doing everything for the child;" he knows that his responsibility is to guide and alert the child to his exercise of individual potentials. So the healer, as a "universalized father," studies disease and injury for the purpose of alerting the patient (his "child") to an awareness of the patient's own responsibility in the matter. The "father-heart" of the healer says: "My child, you must learn why you have this condition and exercise yourself according to a clearer understanding of the principles of your body."

   The healer, an evolving human-being with problems like anyone else, can, and sometimes does, congest and cause himself to "back- slide" in the fulfillment of his universal service. He is, like anyone else, an aspect of the Great Mandala which gives clues as to certain specialized dangers if the healer operates from a basis of congestions-in-consciousness.

   The sign Cancer symbolizes not only "home and private life" but it is archetypal of the consciousness of adherence to particular race, nationality, or religion. These factors are all part of our "nest-consciousness" and serve as "evolutionary moldings." The healer who "congests on Cancer" is one who will exert himself to the utmost to help one "of his own kind" but may refuse his aid to one who is, in relationship to him, "outside the pale." Regardless of skill or ability, such an action displays ignorance of the principles of the healing arts. The sign Capricorn, focalized by Saturn, is orthodoxy, organization, and conventional standards. It is through the Saturn-vibration, in certain patterns, that the healer's individuality is challenged by "that which has been established as professional standards and ethics." All great healers are great because of their individuality and the courage of their inspired convictions. The greed for money, applause, and "reputation " which characterizes crystallized healers is a composite force which often challenges the integrity of the individual. If he transcends that challenge, his Light continues to burn brightly and purely; if he succumbs to any factor of it, his Light, sooner or later, dims and splutters. The healer cannot "sell his Light down the river" in acquiescence to that which his crystallized and unprincipled and hope to keep that Light clear and illuminative. The complementation of Sagittarius by Gemini, unregenerate, is congestion on intellectual attainment at the expense of the spiritual impulse. If a healer has reacted to disappointments and difficulties with an accretion of cynicism and gradually intensified un- sympathy, he may be tempted to find a consolation in turning "to books and away from people." A healer exists, as such, because of the needs of other living things not because of what is in books. Knowledge should be "married" to the spiritual ideal to complete, as fully as possible, the love-service which is the healer 's reason-for-being.

   Any astrological student who wishes to inaugurate a period of study pertaining to the charts of healers or to astrological factors pertaining to "healing abilities" should prepare his mind for this study by first reading biographies of great healers as an "at-tunement" to the spirit in human-nature which makes people healers. He should acquaint himself, "Mercury-ishly," with the significant steps in the development of the healing arts through humanity's evolution. This is comparable, on the intellectual plane, of "meditation on mandalas" since the mind is thereby sensitized to the vibration of healers. Suggest also a reading of Franz Werfel's exquisite Song of Bernadette as a "must" for all students who wish to sensitize their awareness of the instrumentation of all great healers and the esoteric agencies by which great healing-centers are established. Theosophical and Rosicrucian literature is, of course, a fathomless well of knowledge concerning healing-subjects.

   A few general observations: the surgical arts are characterized by the Mars-vibration; those of medicinal treatment and diagnosis, by Mercury. The Moon and Venus are conspicuous in the patterns referring to feminine specializations; Saturn for the chiropractic and orthopedic arts. A person endowed with healing vibratory power will have, usually, a strongly aspected and clear Sun, with an emphasis on the fixed signs, particularly Scorpio and Leo. The signs Pisces and Cancer and the planet Jupiter are "basic" in healing-charts. If the healer is a true one, he is a preserver — and Jupiter is the principle of preservation and improvement. The twelfth house — that of karmic responsibility-fulfillment to those limited- -must be configurated in the charts of those who serve through hospitals or other healing-institutions. Venus may or may not be conspicuous in such charts but the Moon must be — since it is the symbol of instinctive maternal sympathy and also of the public need. A form of inspirational healing can take place in the consciousness of anyone who studies the subject of healing — and the astrologer, "twin-brother" to the esoteric healer, must radiate healing by his friendliness, perceptions, and impersonalized love. He functions as a "healer of the psyche" by his alertment of the consciousness of humanity to the truths of life-principles.

Supplemental Student
Material Reference:
Studies in Astrology,
Elman Bacher