True meaning of the Age of Aquarius.

AquarianRising

Well-known member
Just got through watching a few minutes of a video about the nearing Age and I was again made aware of just how far off-center peoples' understanding of the symbology is. They keep defining it in a very Piscean way, talking about "blending the physical world with the spiritual world" and all this other escapist cr@p that presumes the existence of another world to escape to.

Aquarius in the "Water Bearer". Most people know that, but it seems like some astrologers just can't be bothered to consider what that means. We acknowledge that Aquarius represents technology and innovation, even science. We even know enough to explain that the air element, of which Aquarius is one of three in the zodiac, is intellectual and detached. Yet when we talk about Aquarius, many astrologers talk as though Aquarius were just as sappy and emotional a sign as Pisces. It's really bizarre to someone like myself who actually understands just how neurotic and harmful these past two thousand years have been.

The Piscean Age brought us out of the Arian warrior mentality, sure, but it hardly eliminated violence or hatred, it just painted it in pretty, idealistic colors and pretended it had the moral high ground to do harm to others, which is typical of the Pisces archetype, even if those with Pisces strong in their charts resent the exposition. Pisces doesn't like conflict, so it attempts to inspire others to do it's violence for it while it pretends everything's great and the sky smells of honeydews and poetry. The archetype lacks resolve or personal accountability, and I, for one, am happy to let the door hit it in the butt on the way out.

Looking closer at Aquarius, though, and its bearing of waters, we see that water represents spirituality and emotion, but that rather than being in the water, Aquarius flies above it, scooping it up into conveyances. In doing so, Aquarius is able to make use of these qualities without being submerged in their depths. In other words, they keep an emotional distance while still understanding the value and purpose of emotion and sentimentality. (At this point, it should be fairly evident that I hold a deep respect for these things, as well, I just cannot appreciate or accept how they've been irresponsibly manifested in this present Age.)

Aquarius is a humanitarian archetype. And also very idealistic. But in the Age soon to come, humanity will have presumably gotten it's shh!t together enough to understand how these things can become degrading and destructive, not only to ourselves but our peers, when we allow our idealism and emotionality to become the fabric of our world-views. It will herald a period of informing our thoughts with idealism while still having enough objectivity to separate the generally positive ideas from the generally harmful. Among these positive-seeming but ultimately harmful ideas being the concept of collectivism. We're not a hive mind. We're not "one people". We're individuals who each have our own separate motives and psychological makeup. Treating humans like one big amalgamated blob of biological mass or singular entities within a unified spiritual whole denies us our autonomy and robs us of our ability to think for ourselves and generate ideas that might actually go somewhere. Collectivism doesn't work. The laste hundred years alone prove that fact sufficiently.
 

david starling

Well-known member
If all you've got is the Sidereal version of the Ages, you'll never be able to fully understand the true meaning of the Aquarian Age. It's like trying to do a job without a very necessary tool. Btw, the Tropical Ages are Direct, and make sense in that regard. The Sidereal Ages are Retrograde,so they lack the seasonal order so important to Tropical Astrology. Most of those writing about the Earth's Ages are Tropicalists who have intruded into Sidereal territory without a compass--pretty much clueless. [IMO]
 

AquarianRising

Well-known member
If all you've got is the Sidereal version of the Ages, you'll never be able to fully understand the true meaning of the Aquarian Age. It's like trying to do a job without a very necessary tool. Btw, the Tropical Ages are Direct, and make sense in that regard. The Sidereal Ages are Retrograde,so they lack the seasonal order so important to Tropical Astrology. Most of those writing about the Earth's Ages are Tropicalists who have intruded into Sidereal territory without a compass--pretty much clueless. [IMO]

Whether or not a uni-directional rotation is even remotely significant, let alone important, is a matter for debate. And it could also be argued that using tropical astrology prohibits realistic comprehension of the signs' meanings. Until I have conclusive evidence to the contrary, I'm going to utilize the system that is most symbolically rational, which when contemplating the nuances of astrological symbolism, is sidereal. I know myself rather well, and when comparing my tropical and sidereal natal charts, there is significantly greater substance to the sidereal system's interpretation of my personality.

Traditions are meant to be a platform to build from, David. Not a manacle prohibiting the development of greater comprehension. When you place greater importance on maintaining traditions than in surpassing them (rather than simply breaking them) you find yourself mired and unable to move forward. The elemental symbolisms are not under debate, nor is the nature, it would seem, of the use of conveyances to move emotional waters without submersion in them. So where does my analysis of the symbolism differ from what you believe tropical astrology asserts? I was introduced to astrology via the tropical system, and my interpretation of the sign Aquarius does not differ substantially from what has been laid out therein, beyond my toning down the religious rhetoric.
 

david starling

Well-known member
Siderealism predates Tropicalism. So, it's the Traditional-platform of the Sidereal Ages that I'm building on. I like your metaphor. But it's the Sidereal-only version of the Ages that's ".... a manacle prohibiting the development of greater comprehension".
 

AquarianRising

Well-known member
Siderealism predates Tropicalism. So, it's the Traditional-platform of the Sidereal Ages that I'm building on. I like your metaphor. But it's the Sidereal-only version of the Ages that's ".... a manacle prohibiting the development of greater comprehension".

Yet sidereal isn't your tradition, or such would be a reasonable conclusion given that it was tropical astrology that has been popularized here in the western world. Therein lies the issue. I didn't select sidereal as my beginning point. In fact, I didn't even know it was a thing until years after I'd begun learning tropical astrology, which at the time I only knew as "astrology" -- I was unaware of divergent traditions. I had begun hearing that Vedic astrology was considered more accurate, but every time I attempted to learn it, the unusual format of their charts would turn me off. Wasn't until maybe about two or three years ago at most that I discovered that Vedic astrology is sidereal and that there was a westernized version of it with charts I'd already learned to read.

What I'm getting at is that sidereal astrology won me over with observable facts about my own personality and those around me, not because of its traditions. Also, so I'm not misunderstood, you referred to yourself at one point in the past 24 hours as a traditionalist, indicating that the system you use is the system you were initially taught, so my assumption that tropical is the system of your tradition is not without basis.
 

david starling

Well-known member
Astrology is a way of "seeing" what otherwise would be unknown to us. Think of these differing Astrological schools as "corrective lenses" which can improve our vision. I tried both Tropical and Sidereal, and Tropical worked best for me. You tried them both, and Western Sidereal worked best for you. It's not a "one-prescription-fits-all" practice, but the end result is clear vision. It's a different angle of view of the same phenomenon. No sense arguing about it.
 

AquarianRising

Well-known member
Astrology is a way of "seeing" what otherwise would be unknown to us. Think of these differing Astrological schools as "corrective lenses" which can improve our vision. I tried both Tropical and Sidereal, and Tropical worked best for me. You tried them both, and Western Sidereal worked best for you. It's not a "one-prescription-fits-all" practice, but the end result is clear vision. It's a different angle of view of the same phenomenon. No sense arguing about it.

I can agree that some form of astrology is better than no astrology. The system was created to give us some frame of reference in life, and things become exponentially more difficult without it. But I'm not comfortable with such a pat answer to the question of function. Astrology has so much more potential for accuracy than just "whatever works." It's a science, if not one commonly thought of as such. And sciences demand definitive facts. (At least until new facts are brought to bear in contradiction.)

It's one of the same issues I have with religion. All these deities claiming they're the true Gods, and that doesn't conflict with itself? Of course, the issue is more one of sociology that theology, but the underlying issue remains the same: we only have one reality, and so long as people keep trying to subvert it with fantasy, we can't truly begin to master its laws.
 

david starling

Well-known member
.

.

.

.

.

Realism.

"Realism" doesn't specify WHICH reality-structure you're realistic ABOUT. The nature of Reality on the MUNDANE level, which is what the Tropical Ages are about, changes from one Age to another. The nature of Reality on the SPIRITUAL level, which is what the Sidereal Ages are about, remains the same, but how best to connect with it, and understand it, changes with the Ages. The Sidereal Age of Pisces helped get us through the Tropical Age of Capricorn, in which Mundane reality has become entirely materialistic, and is cut off from the Spiritual Plane. Now, with the Age-signs matching up, the separation is ending, and the new Mundane reality-structure will be interconnected with Spiritual reality. IF, by "Realism", you mean "Materialism", you're talking about Age of (Tropical) Capricorn reality, as described by the Modern-scientific-materialistic model.
[I said IF.]:biggrin:
 
Last edited:

AquarianRising

Well-known member
"Realism" doesn't specify WHICH reality-structure you're realistic ABOUT. The nature of Reality on the MUNDANE level, which is what the Tropical Ages are about, changes from one Age to another. The nature of Reality on the SPIRITUAL level, which is what the Sidereal Ages are about, remains the same, but how best to connect with it, and understand it, changes with the Ages. The Sidereal Age of Pisces helped get us through the Tropical Age of Capricorn, in which Mundane reality has become entirely materialistic, and is cut off from the Spiritual Plane. Now, with the Age-signs matching up, the separation is ending, and the new Mundane reality-structure will be interconnected with Spiritual reality. IF, by "Realism", you mean "Materialism", you're talking about Age of (Tropical) Capricorn reality, as described by the Modern-scientific-materialistic model.
[I said IF.]:biggrin:

I realize you have a completely different understanding of zodiacal interpretation than I've ever read anywhere in my time in this practice, so I'm not sure if your understanding of Pisces is the same as mine. But the contemporary interpretation, both in Tropical and Sidereal astrology, includes the concept of "other worlds" that exist apart from our actual reality. It's a fantasy-realm that enables one to dream of life after death, thus letting go of the fear of death. But like so many Piscean illusions, it doesn't exist. It's an obfuscation of reality. "Spirituality" isn't synonymous with otherworldliness, it's the practice of understanding and connecting with others. That's something people can choose to do now, with our present resources.

Saying that people can't choose to be more empathic and understanding because "the material world and the spiritual world have not yet merged" is a typical Piscean cop-out, David, and you know that as well as I do. What people need is a change in perspective, not some Tracers-style, interdimensional bull. And change is what Aquarius is all about, from every source I can possibly cite. More than that, its air element is indicative of thought which is, in other words, perspective. So between its various inherent symbolism, Aquarius is what is needed to break the illusions of angels, demons, and afterlives that the world has been choking on for two millennia. That pragmatism may seem Capricornian, but let's not forget that Aquarius is as much a sign of thought and rationality as Pisces is a sign of emotion and delusion. So far, your argument that we're reading the astrological ages from the wrong direction isn't holding much water. Even the bible (much as I hate to use religious scripture as evidence of anything) had Jesus talking about the next age being recognized by a man bearing a pitcher of water.

Which, by the way, is a pretty trippy thing for a presumably anti-astrological cult to record. I mean, Abraham killing a Ram in place of his son ending the Age of Aries, the Fishes of Christianity, and now Jesus telling us we'll recognize the next age by a man carrying a pitcher of water? Men didn't carry water from the well in the period that scripture was written; that was a woman's job, however unequal and sexist that may seem by today's standards. Point is, this stuff was written well before sidereal astrology was really introduced to the west, albeit you could reasonably argue that sidereal was the astrology of the middle east at that time. And if you already don't like Christianity, that sure as sh!t ain't gonna change your mind, eh? :lol:

Look, David, I get that you believe steadfastly in what you're talking, but I go where the evidence takes me, and the evidence can be as human as it is rational. Emotions and foibles are facts of life, so never assume I'm discounting them out of hand. They're integral to how humans operate and are therefore a crucial piece of evidence. I'm not some idiot who's convinced the world runs like a machine. There are laws, there are cause-and-effect relationships, and the only separation between the "spiritual" and the "mundane" are what we "believe" those differences to be. Human language is tricky like that. If I show you an orange, no matter what we call it, an orange is an orange. There's no room to argue it, really. But when we're talking about as complex a subject as other worlds and the definition of spirituality, dude, every one of us could easily have a slightly different interpretation from the last. That's why evidence is so d@mn important, because it gives us common information to agree upon. You can dismiss it as being "mundane" and "materialistic" but it's an extremely important element of effective communication.

And it's that sort of understanding that Aquarius is going to bring. An appreciation for the intellectual as much as the spiritual. If we were just moving from Earth to Air, as you believe, our world would gain little in the way of "spiritual" insight. But if we're in a watery age and moving into an airy, intellectual age, then we're already coming out of an age of rampant, undefined spirituality and moving into a period of intelligence that allows us to parse and manifest the lessons we learned in this exciting age. You see how important that is, on an evolutionary level? Air is not sensitive, it's intuitive and ideological. It has no more capacity in its own archetype than Earth does to feel the sort of emotionality and empathy that is a prerequisite of what we term "spirituality."

The emotional disconnect you believe is a result of an exiting Age of Capricorn is actually the growing pains of a world on the cusp of new understanding. And the industrialization you refer to is the cross-pollination of an age in which collectivism was seen as beneficial for support and security and an age in which technology will ultimately be doing all the mundane **** for us so we can focus our minds on the things that really matter. It's an in-between state in which we've had to make and operate the machines of our coming Aquarian Age so as to be able to build upon those technologies until the technologies themselves become effectively self-sufficient. Aquarius' ruling planet represents sudden changes, but given how technology historically develops and how little time we've actually spent developing our present technologies in the present tense, it's incredibly unrealistic to see this techno-splosion as anything but sudden. Over ten thousand years (or more) of human civilization and then -- BAM! Computer chips. It's f*ckin' amazing when you really stop and think about it. That Aquarius, not Capricorn.

Anyway, off to nab a shower and some Thanksgiving dinner. Wish me luck not to choke on a giblet.
 

david starling

Well-known member
The conventional interpretation of the Ages is based solely on the Sidereal version. And, with only that to go on, mistakes have been made, and these mistakes have become accepted as facts. They're now embedded in the "conventional wisdom", and are difficult, if not impossible, to refute, because people WANT to believe them. Which is fine. What's important to me is, you expect a good result from the "Aquarian Age". I see this as a very rare matchup (I should compute the last time it happened) of Tropical and Sidereal Ages of the same Sign. My expectations for the Aquarian Age are probably higher than yours, but you might be surprised to learn how many actually fear it, and think it will be something terrible.
Here, I'll give you a quick rundown of the cultures that developed during the Tropical Ages since written language-records began being kept. But first, here are the logical ground rules for when these Ages manifest their full results.
1) Tropical Ages are seasonally based. The "Fall of Man", as Scripture refers to it, is synchronistic with the Fall Season of Ages, beginning with the Age of Tropical Libra. But, there's an overlap of one Age-sign. Nearly everyone who studies the Ages relative to the historical timeline notices it, especially Cyril Fagan, but many others as well. So, when a CARDINAL-SIGN Age begins, it starts out having to overcome the entrenched collective order. It's keyword is INNOVATE, as the new Season differs from the old. This pushes its true manifestations to the last Decant of the Age, with that process starting at the middle and gradually gaining momentum as it speeds up towards the end. (That's the suddenness you've noted about the technological advances of this Cardinal-sign Age.)

2)Once the innovations are in place, it's immediately time for the FIXED-SIGN Age to begin its manifestations quickly, because the previous Seasonal influence no longer holds anything back--the unfettered Season of Ages is underway. Keyword is ESTABLISH. So, first Decant results, right off the bat. By the end of the first Decant, the no-longer-new Season is firmly in place.

3)The MUTABLE-SIGN Age that follows, is about variation on the seasonal theme introduced by the Cardinal-sign Age and established by the Fixed-sign Age. Keyword, DIVERSIFY. So, after absorbing from the first two Ages of the Season during its first Decant, it's the middle Decant where its own distinctive results arise. The last Decant is about preparation for the changeover to the next Season.

4)The most immediately obvious Seasonal theme of the Fall Ages is City-state Civilization, and all that comes with it. That was very locational in nature, with some areas manifesting obvious results far more than others. The first truly City-state civilization was in Ancient Mesopotamia, and is known as the Uruk culture, which was the model for the culture of Ancient-Sumeria, and later, Ancient-Babylonia. Highest deity, Inanna/Ishtar, Goddess of our Planet Venus, Astrological ruler of the Age of Libra.
The last great City-state was that of Ancient Rome, at the end of the Fall-season of Ages. Most important deity, Jupiter, Astrological ruler of that Age of Tropical Sagittarius.
Ancient Egypt began its Dynasties right on schedule, at the very beginning of the Fixed-sign Age of Scorpio. In that early period, down to the beginning of the third Decant, that culture's most important deity was Osiris. The Greco-Roman God Pluto was derived from Osiris, so, Astrologically speaking, Pluto ruled that Age of Scorpio.

5)The beginning of the Winter-season of Ages was devastating to the cultural heritage of the Fall Season. The Dark Ages began immediately. The darkest time of the Solar year, the Sun's transit into Capricorn, correlates to the Spiritual darkness that spread fear and despair throughout Western Civilization. Rome fell, and the Church formed to battle the great Enemy, Saturn, Astrological ruler of the Age of Capricorn which it named "Satan, Prince of this World", meaning our material existence. But it was still a Fall-seasonal paradigm, based on the long line of deities from the three, Spiritually-oriented Age of the Fall. The extreme materialism of the Capricornian Age was too much to absorb. The emotional acceptance of the Age of Capricorn began on schedule, with the Renaissance at the middle of the Age. By the third Decant, when Cardinal-sign Ages go into high gear, the banking system, accurate clocks, and the beginning of Materialistic-Modern-Science, the Age of Capricorn's religion-substitute, were ready to start taking control. That process accelerated, and gave the absolutely incorrect impression that the strangely premature onset of Aquarian Age influence, STILL not in effect, was the cause. But, what else COULD it have been, with the only other choice being the Age of Pisces? PISCES???! Nah, HAS to be Aquarius. :lol:
 
Last edited:

Oddity

Well-known member
Would either of you see world domination by sea power switching to world domination by air power as a sign of the ages switching from Pisces to Aquarius?
 

david starling

Well-known member
Would either of you see world domination by sea power switching to world domination by air power as a sign of the ages switching from Pisces to Aquarius?

No. I see it as a metaphor for Saturn, ruler of this (Foreground) Age of Tropical Capricorn, wresting power from sky-god Jupiter, ruler of this (Background) Age of Tropical Sagittarius. Saturn (Cronus) was originally a sea-god, but when he deposed his father Ouranos, he took dominion over the land and sky, as well. In the War of the Titans, Jupiter (Zeus) took the sky away from him, and now he's taking it back.
 

david starling

Well-known member
Btw, people are so focused on the Sidereal version of the Ages, that they're thinking Spiritual Water-sign Pisces, instead of the correct Mundane, Tropical version--the materialistic Age of Capricorn as the Sea-Goat. Nothing Spiritual about bombs and rockets, even if they are calling them "Hellfire" missiles. Saturn, as Satan, is undoubtedly pleased with that naming.:devil:
 

david starling

Well-known member
One thing should be of small comfort to Robert Zoller--if this really WAS the Mundane Age of Pisces, Jupiter has put on a REALLY poor showing! Knowing Saturn's to blame gets Jupiter off the hook. (Foreground Age-ruler trumps Background Age-ruler).
 

Oddity

Well-known member
Remember, Zoller blends the mutable archetype over the immutable one. So you end up with immutable Cap on the MC overlaid by mutable Sag on the MC. Immutable Aries rising, overlaid with mutable Pisces rising.

Not talking mutable in terms of sign qualities here - it's a comparison of what changes and what doesn't when discussing the ages.
 
Top