How to Know the Universe.
The relativity of knowledge, understanding,wisdom and truth.
Knowledge is easily understood to be relative to the level of awareness of the knower and the motivation to acquirer knowledge of certain things.
Understanding is different from knowledge because understanding adds purpose to knowledge, knowledge is a collection of facts to understand is to arrange the facts relative to a desired end.
Wisdom is to apply that understanding in a way which furthers a personal goal.
Collection of facts is knowledge, making use of those facts is understanding, knowing how to use those facts is wisdom. This places Wisdom above Understanding and understanding above Knowledge.
This is growth and development of the person or personality. In this case Knowledge must come first but knowledge without understanding can be dangerous and limiting. Knowledge can lead to conceit and the refusal to consider further facts. Knowledge can be misapplied and become destructive. Understanding without Wisdom can result in the wrong road being taken and wasted effort and resources that can lead further away from a more appropriate goal or outcome. Wisdom may eventually correct the situation after a time of difficult personality growth and development as can be witnessed in the history of humanity. What then if we can turn the system on its head and start with Wisdom leading to Understanding and thence to knowledge. Can Wisdom stand on its own with knowledge and understanding?
It can and does however, there needs to be a totally different perspective, one must step out of the mundane personality level of reality and look from above rather than from below. For the reality we perceive is necessarily created by our relativistic stance, Knowledge > Understanding > Wisdom. For Truth to be revealed we need Wisdom > Understanding > Knowledge and thereby Truth.
The road to this perspective is maze like but signs to mark the way can be seen in the study of Natal Astrology, > Mundane Astrology, > Spiritual Astrology, and thereby Universal Astrology. The point here of course is that I have stated in in the natural order of study, i.e. knowledge to wisdom and truth but as stated, to arrive a truth we must start from wisdom and move back to knowledge. To do this though we must begin somewhere, but important to realise that we are moving between levels, up and down, realising the connections how Universal Astrology is linked to Spiritual Astrology, to Mundane Astrology, to Natal Astrology. Or a study of how you fit into the grand scheme of things, or the Cosmic Plan.
Natal Astrology.
With natal astrology you are able to discover truths on a personal level as natal astrology is taken from the moment you first draw breath. This places you within the space time of your locale. You can from this, monitor the times and methods of your interaction with others and the cosmic tides. As of necessity you have free will it is more about choices and developmental lessons, how you react to these is an important measure of your growth and each choice leads to different paths and different circumstance and the way that you experience your life in your space time.
To learn natal astrology is never going to be a waste of your time and effort, but it used to be thought of as complex and difficult, I do not think this needs to be the case today, with computers taking over all the calculation. The delineations of the various factors, planets in signs and houses, aspects and transits can all be looked up in one of the many books available. However, I do not recommend this as you will be constantly referring back to the books and not getting a feel for the cosmic tides and how they shift and have an affect to you personally. The way I recommend is to learn the basics and from these you can piece together a complete picture.
Astrology Signs, the Basics.
Fire, Earth, Air, and Water. Every sign is composed of one of these elements.
Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable. Every sign is composed of one of these modes.
Positive, Negative. Every sign is composed of one of these.
| Aries | Cardinal | Fire | Positive |
| Taurus | Fixed | Earth | Negative |
| Gemini | Mutable | Air | Positive |
| Cancer | Cardinal | Water | Negative |
| Leo | Fixed | Fire | Positive |
| Virgo | Mutable | Earth | Negative |
| Libra | Cardinal | Air | Positive |
| Scorpio | Fixed | Water | Negative |
| Sagittarius | Mutable | Fire | Positive |
| Capricorn | Cardinal | Earth | Negative |
| Aquarius | Fixed | Air | Positive |
| Pisces | Mutable | Water | Negative |
It will be seen that the signs change characteristics in order.
Cardinal: from the Latin cardinālis which means hinge or something on which everything else hinges. The turning of the seasons, each is associated with a solstice or equinox.
Fixed: stable and reluctant to move, solidifying that which the Cardinals begin.
Mutable: from Latin mūtābilis, “to change” changeable, altering and seeing beyond the fixed, development of and culmination.
Every story has a beginning (cardinal) middle (fixed) and end (mutable). Each sign works in one of these ways or modes.
| Fire: | is fiery and enthusiastic |
| Earth: | is practical and grounded. |
| Air: | is thinking and flighty |
| Water: | is emotional and feeling |
| Positive: | Outward looking, engaging. |
| Negative: | Inward looking, receptive. |
Negative is not to be taken as a slur. Simply put every breath has an out, Positive and an in, Negative. If you are in a conversation when you speak you are Positive when you listen you are Negative.
From this you can build up a basic picture of each and every sign. For example if we wanted to study Scorpio we would see that it is Fixed Water what image can you conjure up when you think of fixed water? It is not moving because it is fixed and it is water, don't take this the wrong way but I picture a stagnant pool, deep, dark and foreboding, still waters run deep. If we were looking at Mutable Water as in Pisces the image we conjured up would be completely different. Swirling water like mist or a mountain stream, following every nook and cranny. Cancer, Cardinal Water is much more dynamic and forceful like a river in flood or the incoming tide. Note, all Water signs are Negative.
This is not a teach yourself astrology piece but thinking in this way will open more doors for you than years of study or learning by rote.
Signs are nothing more than the way things are done. Energies, i.e. Planets acting on the Earth, and all its inhabitants, organism and organisations must pass through a filter of the signs. The Signs are also associated with the Houses of the birth chart.
| First House: | self, physical body, appearance. | - | Aries |
| Second House: | value, money, self-worth, possessions | - | Taurus |
| Third House: | communication, early schooling, siblings | - | Gemini |
| Fourth House: | home, family, ancestral patterns | - | Cancer |
| Fifth House: | romance, play, creativity | - | Leo |
| Sixth House: | daily routines, work, health | - | Virgo |
| Seventh House: | committed partnerships | - | Libra |
| Eighth House: | merging, intimacy, death, transformation | - | Scorpio |
| Ninth House: | higher learning, spirituality, media relations | - | Sagittarius |
| Tenth House: | career, public status, legacy | - | Capricorn |
| Eleventh House: | friendships, hopes and dreams, community | - | Aquarius |
| Twelfth House: | endings, spirituality | - | Pisces |
Looking at the related Houses will add further depth to your understanding of the Signs. There are subtle changes to the house meaning when applied to Mundane Astrology.
The Planets.
The Planets are different, for on psychological level or the natal astrology level the planets are seen as functions. That is they are parts and ways of being or functioning this world, this life and this is a useful or indeed functional way of looking at them. However, when applied to Mundane Astrology we can see how the nature of the planets broaden and this is a step closer to the nature of the planets on a spiritual level or Spiritual Astrology.
| Pluto: | Rebirth, | regeneration, | transformation. |
| Neptune: | Transcendence, | higher source | meaning. |
| Saturn: | Limits, | perseverance, | maturity. |
| Uranus: | Freedom, | originality, | separation. |
| Jupiter: | Growth, | expansion, | abundance. |
| Mars: | Courage, | energy, | vigour. |
| Sun: | Ego, | core, | balance. |
| Venus: | Values, | desires, | discrimination. |
| Mercury: | Thinking, | communication, | logic. |
| Moon: | Feelings, | emotions, | moods. |
| Earth: | Instincts, | survival, | life. |
Note the ordering of the Planets as they will become important later on.