MOUNTAIN CLIMBING GOAT

The calendar year begins with the sun sailing through Capricorn. That’s a bit strange an earth sign being related to sailing over the sea. Maybe the clue lies in its ancient symbol of a goat with a fish tail. Capricorn is one of the cardinal signs of the zodiac, an important gateway to the rest of the Cosmos, spiritually speaking, although you may not think so when you first meet our Goat. Perhaps that is because some of them have not yet found their path and insist on going around in circles trying to find the way out. Once the exit sign has been found, they also find their legs and their hidden reserves and go bounding up the rocky mountain of discovery ahead of the rest of us.

If our Capricorn goat is feeling a little dour and down it is probably an indication that they haven’t made contact with their higher self, their real self, have not accepted their need to climb whilst contemplating the seriousness of the world without allowing it to overshadow the beauty of life. After all it is reported in mythology that Saturn the planet of Capricorn ruled in a ‘Golden Age’, a time before Jupiter-Zeus got the Olympiad organised.

Capricorn needs to lead and show others the way, but first they need to have trodden the path themselves. This they can do with conscientious hard work, asking for little compensation, although some become over ambitious and won’t do anything for nothing. Other Capricorns tend to be loners and hide themselves away in isolation so that they can contemplate either their own woes or alternatively the troubles of the world; maybe this is the clue to the sailor.

It may be significant that the great star Vega is located in this sign, Vega of the constellation Lyra, the harp of Orpheus. The sun passes by Vega on the 5^th January.

Time is important to the Capricorn for it sets limits and boundaries to their intentions and actions thus giving these intentions power of achievement. Thus the goat is very good at keeping a schedule and meeting deadlines. The down side is that in becoming so careful to avoid waste, they can become mean time-managers and too caught up in economy measures.

   An astrological clock, as kept in many European Renaissance churches.

For the curious or the fanatic see, David Christianson, ‘Timepieces’. Timepieces: Masterpieces of Chronometry

MOON DRAGON # 3

HOT SOLSTICE

We now reach another of the four major points in the yearly sun cycle of birth, growth, decay and rebirth. It is the Solstice point of December 21 to 23^rd  2010. Although officially declared to be an event of the 21^st, the solstice actually covers 3 days as the sun-earth make a readjustment in their relationship.

Half the world has reached its peak in the natural cycle of yearly full bloom, the other half of the world has reached its hidden beginning once again. This is the high and low point of the cycle of Nature.

At the Solstice points, the two points in the 12 month cycle where the sun appears to stand still before reversing its direction, all of nature is poised to start on the second half of its cycle. Thus nature responds to the sun, which is either taking a direction up into the sky towards the zenith or taking the other direction down in the sky towards the nadir depending on which side of the globe you find yourself on.

The sun now stands on the cusp of the sign of Capricorn, one of two cosmic gateways, the other being Cancer.

In the Northern Hemisphere this is to go from the death of winter to the quickening of new seed waiting to burst up through the ground in the coming spring.

In the Southern Hemisphere it marks the time of going from full bloom to bloated growth before commencing the decline towards autumn.

In human affairs it could well mark a time of social-political crisis in response to the pain that has been building through the year. But ‘Crisis’ doesn’t need to be disaster, it just means reaching a peak or point where serious decision making has to be initiated, and that can go either way depending on the motives of those making and taking the lead. There is quite a stressful build up of world tensions in the week before the Solstice when circumstances can be quite explosive as Mars meets Pluto, and then again in the following week as the Sun meets Pluto. Just to complicate things there is a Full Moon eclipse across the Solstice points adding to the darkness and confusion. Watch the acts of governments, big corporations and financial institutions and try to duck out of the way of any backwash as things gear up again following the Christmas break. Maybe it is time to think about the true meaning of this festival.

In ancient Egypt the sun was appreciated for its recognised source of life for the creatures of earth, and it was given reverence at the four points of the year as well as all year round. A pharaoh of about 1358 BCE called Akhenaten wrote a hymn to the sun, which he called ‘The Aten’ another name for the ancient sun god Re.

SUN HYMN OF THE ATEN

Splendid you rise in heaven’s lightland,

O living Aten, creator of life!

When you have dawned in eastern lightland,

You fill every land with your beauty.

You are beauteous, great, radiant,

High over every land;

Your rays embrace the lands

To the limit of all that you made.

Being Re, you reach their limits,

You bend them for the son whom you love;

Though you are far, your rays are on earth,

Though ones sees you, your strides are unseen. [Lichtheim translation]

Sun disk icon from Cyril Aldred ‘Akhenaten, King of Egypt’ Akhenaten: King of Egypt

GIANT JUPITER

The planet Jupiter is closely associated with the sign of Sagittarius and also with the sign of Pisces. Jupiter is the planet that indicates growth and abundance when looked at in the personal horoscope chart. Jupiter can for some bring all that luck and fortune that so many crave. But as the wise man said, there can be too much of a good thing. When possessions and ‘good fortune’ get too big, the weight can weigh you down most terribly. On the other hand one can run hither and thither scattering energy wastefully trying to achieve what is not possible under the urgings of Jupiter to make it big.

 Egyptian god Horus, Lord of the Ladder to Heaven [Budge]

The beneficial side of Jupiter is seen in his ability to give optimism and protection in the harsher times of life, to balance out his polarity seen in Saturn. These two planets act in unison, or should do for a good working of the horoscope, Jupiter bringing wealth and growth whilst Saturn brings control and discipline to give the growth some direction. Saturn keeps Jupiter within sensible limits and Jupiter prevents Saturn from making everything too austere and limited.

  Greco-Roman god Zeus or Jupiter

Jupiter enjoys a bit of pomp and ceremony when he is not having a good belly laugh at the absurdities of life, for he sees the bigger picture that puts all the smaller events of everyday living into perspective. There is Zeus/Jupiter riding high on throne or horse and there is Zeus/Jupiter mingling amicably with the people and with full understanding of their needs and foibles. That’s wise Jupiter. A little history of astrology for the curious can be found in Campion's History of Western Astrology Volume I: The Ancient and Classical Worlds

The horseman leading us to victory.

TRAVELLING SAGGI

The sun is now travelling through the zodiac sign of Sagittarius, the sign of the centaur, that strange creature who always wants to be somewhere where they are not. Just like the arrow flying from its bow and shot by the centaur, into the air to far distant horizons to land in some far off place we know not where. So the Saggi person always seems to be running and aiming into some unseen and unknown distant or future point; sometimes on the back of a horse, sometimes on the back of a motorbike, sometimes out on the playing field.

 Sagittarian people are generous and full of fiery energy; that sort of energy that needs constant circulation through plenty of physical activity. Thus driven, their main aim in life is to explore the hills and valleys of life, the oceans and the spaces, either physically or in the mental world. Some are deep thinkers and philosophers; others are rather more concerned about how other people are thinking, or about how to spin them a good yarn for amusement.

Rodin’s ‘Thinker’ 

The planet associated with the sign of Sagittarius is Jupiter, that gas giant of the solar system. This should be a hint to the Saggi that they too can expand to too great a size if they are without a little self-discipline and reflection. After all this is the sign of the philosopher and it is wisdom the world needs not over expansive verbalism. It is too easy for Jupiter’s children to spread their energies over too great a distance or to chatter incessantly. Contrast this with the other extreme of expression found in Capricorn who tends to get overly self-disciplined under the influence of Saturn.

Saggi’s gift for words means that they need to transform their wide and deep knowledge into silent wisdom that can contribute to the expansion or growth of other people. Mansions of the Soul might be of interest to you wise ones.

 Orveille Duomo, Italy, showing icons of the four fixed zodiac signs on its facade

MOON DRAGON #2

PLUTONIC MARS

Plutonic Mars, that sounds like a mouth full. Mars and Pluto are the two planets associated with the sign of Scorpio, Mars of physical energy and war, linking up with Pluto the god of what is hidden underground, of potential power, and quite often what has to come to the surface and does so in a most forceful way. That’s a powerful combination.

Mars is also associated with the zodiac sign of Aries. In the natal or birth chart, Mars signifies physical strength and activity. It is also the will and determination to follow through on an idea.

Mars was the ultimate Roman god – the god of war as in conquering circumstances in order to build an Empire. Athena is a female version of the warrior in the Greek Pantheon.

 Greek  Goddess Athena

But Athena was also venerated for her care and protection of the natural world and of human workers.

Before being a war god, Mars was a god of the earth and nature, of that force which keeps things growing and changing, the cycle of life, which brings us to the other planet said to be associated with Scorpio, Pluto, the god of the otherworld, of hidden riches and the life force.

In ancient Egypt the underworld is associated with the god Anubis who leads the soul to discover the mysteries of the hidden world.

 Anubis leads the soul of Hunefer towards the mysteries of the secret world.

R. O. Faulkner has published a classic translation of these Egyptian mysteries called ‘The Coming Forth by Day’ under its more popular title ‘The Book of the Dead’. The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead

In traditional astrology there were only 7 acknowledged planets, then with the aid of ever increasing discovery and invention another 3 planets were discovered and entered into human consciousness. That’s not a problem, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto had always been there, just not seen, and their ‘appearance’ simply signified another stage in human ongoing evolution or growing awareness. However, it did set the human’s a challenge to find out where the energies of the 3 new kids on the block should fit in, but true to their nature the astrologers solved this problem.

Alan Leo, known affectionately as the ‘father’ of modern astrology was also a Theosophist of 19th century and his chore was to bring back the spiritual dimension into ‘popular’ astrology with the aid of what these 3 ‘outer’ planets might signify for evolving human consciousness. Unfortunately Pluto had not yet appeared on the scene when he was writing, so his books have nothing to say on the matter, but otherwise, his many volumes are a treasure trove to the serious student.

Mars with the planet Venus signify complimentary energies; the quality of assertiveness and the quality of compliance are brought together in these two planets. When these two principles of action and reception get together on a good day, there is a spontaneous dance of life and love, often depicted by the Hindu god Siva whose dancing symbolises the 5 cosmic functions of creation, conservation, destruction, incarnation and liberation.

 Siva dancing [from Larousse]

SCORPIO EAGLE

The sun has now entered the much maligned tropical zodiac sign of Scorpio. This rather complex sign has three symbols just to demonstrate how complicated Scorpio can be; they are the scorpion, naturally; the serpent, and the lesser known golden eagle.

Scorpio has received a lot of bad press by those who do not know their astrology too well. Yes, sure its influence can make a person at their worst, cruel and controlling, but when these people reach the height of their best expression, WOW, the sky is the limit – thus the third symbol of the high soaring and dignified Golden Eagle.

When Elizabeth I of the Tudor Age, [who had Scorpio on the Mid-heaven] consulted her astrologer John Dee on a particularly thorning question relating to governing, he is reported to have replied

‘Soar like an Eagle, my Queen’.

Here was one dignified, resourceful and life-changing character who ruled in a ‘Golden Age’ of Britain. The Mid-heaven of a horoscope indicates the best way to interact with the world at large.

The intermediate Scorpio symbol of the Serpent alone has multiple layers of meaning. The scientific-mystical viewpoint is well discussed in Mark Balfour’s ‘The Sign of the Serpent’, where that creature represents the mysterious energy that drives the Cosmos. Sign of the Serpent: The Key to Creative Physics.

Scorpio people have a driving need to understand what makes the universe tick; a driving ambition to get to root causes and find solutions; either through modern orthodox scientific method or if they are a little less traditional, by ploughing the by-ways of ancient arcane knowledge. ‘Life, the Universe and Everything’ really does apply to this sign.

Now, as if having 3 phases of metamorphosis were not enough for our Scorpions to deal with, this sign is the first in the series of twelve to have what is known astrologically as a dual rulership. That means two not one planet is associated with the sign; Mars the ‘traditional’ ruler, and Pluto the newest ruler, allocated after its ‘discovery’ and therefore entrance into human consciousness in 1930.

Some parts of the Tropical 30* arc of Sagittarius (constellation Scorpio) actually cut across the constellation of Ophiuchus, which has been postulated as a 13^th sign of the zodiac, but whose energies are yet to come into play fully for life on earth. Ophiuchus is roughly opposite the constellation Arachne, another contender for a 13^th Ecliptic sign, or perhaps a 14^th ?

Nebula ‘Rho Ophiuchi’

MOON DRAGONS # 1

BEAUTIFUL VENUS

The beautiful planet of Venus is closely associated with the sign of Libra and with that of Taurus. Venus is the planet of love and harmony bringing the desire for companionship and reconciliation after the war or competition. Venus likes to eat and dance, to make music and create. Venus needs to find her comfort zone and enjoy that pleasure to its fullest until she grows wise, then she needs to satisfy the mind.

 This is the Egyptian goddess Hathor representing the planet Venus. [from Budge]

And here is an Ancient Egyptian hymn to the goddess.

HYMN TO HATHOR

All hail, Jubilation to you, O Golden One,

Sole ruler, Uraeus of the Supreme Lord himself!

Mysterious one who gives birth to the divine entities,

forms the animals, models them as she pleases, fashions men..

O Mother!...Luminous One who thrusts back the

darkness, who illuminates every human creature with her rays,

Hail, Great One of many names..

You from whom the divine entities come forth in this your name of Mut-Isis!

You-who-cause the throat to breathe, daughter of Re,

whom he spat forth from his mouth in this your name of Tefnut!

O Neith who appeared in your barque in this your

name of Mut!

O Venerable Mother, you who subdue

your adversaries in this your name of Nekhebet!

O You-who-know-how-to-make-right-use-of-the-heart,

you who triumph over your enemies in

this your name of Sekhmet!

It is the Golden One...the lady of drunkenness

of music, of dance, of frankincense, of the crown,

of young women, whom men acclaim because they love her!

It is the Gold of the divine entities who comes forth at

her season, in the month of Epiphi, the day of the

new moon, at the festival of 'She is Delivered'....

Heaven makes merry, the earth is full of gladness,

the Castle of Horus rejoices.

(Translation after M. Alliot, Le Culte d'Horus a Edfou. From Lucy Lamy Egyptian Mysteries: New Light on Ancient Knowledge (Art and Imagination)   )

VENUS in the astrological natal chart represents a search for balance, love and harmony – in the form of inner contentment, and in the outside world through satisfying relationships with other people and pleasant sensations.

The Greeks anthropomorphised the concept of love and beauty in the goddess Aphrodite.

[Picture from Larousse]

The ultimate aim of the sensory experience of Venus is to awaken the inner spirit or soul. This is achieved as life experience teaches one to truly evaluate the material world and not just succumb to its pleasures. By and through the symbol of Venus one attracts what one thinks one would like. The lesson being, to discriminate between what one truly likes, loves and what is simply a passing desire on the one hand, or on the other simply an uncontrollable fascination or wanting.

In her orbit Venus hurries after the sun and they travel the zodiac almost together for Venus is never more than 48º from that great star, although sometimes running ahead of him, and sometimes behind. Thus Venus sometimes rises before the sun and sometimes she sets after the sun. In this way she acquired the names of ‘morning star’ and the ‘evening star’ depending on where she is in her orbit.

 Birth of Venus by Botticelli

VENUSIAN SCALES

The sun is now passing through the Tropical zodiac sign of Libra, the sign of the scales of balance and justice, which may account for the Libran tendency to weigh up matters sometimes to the point of extreme annoyance and futile procrastination. But where would we be without them on a good day when they can maintain the harmony and balance of relationships so essential to profitable progress. Such progress in personal development is well guided through AMORC http://www.amorc.org/

The beautiful planet Venus has a close attachment to the sign Libra, so that when the whole is synchronising there is much peace and love in the world. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that anything associated with this sign and planet is therefore simplistic and empty headed just because it likes peace and quiet. The complicated cycles of Venus, if studied will soon dispel this mistaken view. http://www.lunarplanner.com/HCpages/Venus.html

The Swan is an emblem of Venus and Libra in their desire to bring love and companionship to its highest form; but neither the swan nor the Libran enjoys being caged simply for another’s pleasure alone.

The swan has the magic of music and symbolises one of the polarities of the great cosmic energy. J.C. Cooper in his ‘Symbolic Mythological Animals’, supplies a wealth of knowledge on the spiritual symbolism of earthly and imaginary creatures. Although this particular book doesn't appear to be available any more you could try Cooper's  An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols

It is the desire for love and harmony, for justice seen to be done, that can sometimes make the Libran quite combative and whirl into a flurry of fury and indignation. Librans can often be found amongst those fighting for human rights and defending those unable to do so for themselves, and even going to war if this is the only way perceived to return the missing equilibrium. That is, unless it is a Libran on an eternal holiday of rest, relaxation, coffee mornings and sun baths, because they just couldn’t get up the energy to take part in life!

This is an 18^th Century woodcut of Tressan’s retelling of the story of Tristan and Iseult from the Arthurian cycle.

Around the 17^th October the Sun will be with the star Spica which marks the ear of corn held by the Virgin in that constellation. Although bearing the same name, the constellation is not the same space as the Tropical sign of the Virgin. The constellation and the Ecliptic sign once coincided but due to the phenomena of ‘Precession’ they have moved apart. Some systems of Astrology still use the celestial groups of stars rather than the 30 degree divisions of the Ecliptic.

BLUE EQUINOX

 The whole of life is a struggle to balance the scales of MAAT, that is the scales of Truth and Justice.

 And so we come to one of two points in the year of equal day and night reflecting the great Cosmic scales. This one is known as the Libran Equinox and it occurs over the 3 days 22^rd, 23^th and 24^th September.

This year the Libran Equinox is heavily emphasised by a tense astrological formation known as a ‘T square’. This means that 3 or more planets hold aspects between each other of 90º and 180º. In this present scenario, Pluto is in the cardinal sign of Capricorn and is 90º from Jupiter and Uranus on the cusp of Aries-Pisces and 90º from Saturn in Libra on the other side of the zodiac.

This back-ground of global tension, indicated by such a stress pattern in the heavens, is likely to be sparked off by the Full Moon occurring during the 3 days of the Equinox. A Full Moon on the Equinox doesn’t happen every year, but it does this year. Perhaps we all need to send out into the Cosmos a little prayer for equality, freedom and understanding commensurate with Libran traits; let us have peace not war; compromise not argument.

[Apologies for mistakenly putting Solstice instead of Equinox. My head was already looking at the coming Solstice of December which is also building to a point of tension]

CLEVER MERCURY

The small planet Mercury, with deep meanings, is said to have a close affinity with the sign Virgo. This planet is also closely associated with the sign Gemini. Other planets of the ‘traditional’ group also have affinity with two signs of the zodiac, unlike the Sun and Moon which rule only one sign each. These other traditional planets in order from the Sun are, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. These 5 planets plus the Sun and Moon are known in astrology as the ‘traditional’ seven planets. They are observable in the sky by the naked eye [in clear skies] and they formed the basis of astrological interpretation for a very long time before the ‘new’ planets of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto entered into the human consciousness. These late comers were ‘discovered’ with the aid of new technological innovation, that is the telescope, in relatively recent times.

Mercury is a very important planet, one whose qualities indicate how we perceive and intellectually respond to the world around us, what our nerve energy is like. In Ancient Egypt the god Thoth represented these qualities and later this role was taken over by the Greek god Hermes.

THOTH Ancient Egyptian god of writing and communication. [Budge]

By the time of the Greeks and Romans Thoth had becomes Hermes/Mercury [Larousse]

In Egypt, Thoth as master of writing, transcribed the word of the gods so that humans could understand what was being communicated. The gods being represented by the other planets and acting as symbols for the different human traits such as, loving [Venus] giving [Jupiter] conserving [Saturn] feeling [Moon] strength [Mars] generosity [Sun].

In Greece, as a descendent of Thoth, Hermes too communicated between the gods and humans; he wears wings on his heels for speedy transport between the two worlds, that of man and that of gods. This hints at another Egyptian god, that of Anubis who also commutes between worlds and is known as a psychopomp or one who leads and guides the dead to the world of the spirit or gods.

Here is an amusing composite of Anubis and the Greeco-Roman Hermes/Mercury. [Barnett]

Moving back through time, Mercury -> Hermes -> Thoth. The Greeks called an inherited collection of ancient Egyptian essays on Divine Wisdom, ‘The Hermetica’. The Corpus Hermeticum

MERCURIAL VIRGIN

 The glorious sun has now entered the gentle but astute sign of Tropical Virgo, the sign of the Virgin. Virgo people like to be neat and organised, in striving for cleanliness and purity in their life. These qualities taken to extreme become ‘nit-picking’ and overly critical of themselves and all those around. Then there are those who rebel in their own quiet way and take to the bohemian road of complete disregard for the conventional ways of living. Then Virgo is inclined to spurn the rules of ‘neat and tidy’ or the careful attention to practicalities and duty.

 This sign has always been a bit of a mystery, especially as it is really difficult to have a baby if you are a virgin – or is it. The fact that Virgo is ruled by the planet Mercury would point to a mental virgin rather than a physical one; that is, someone with uncorrupted thinking processes or a pure heart. Such a person is best placed to see things clearly and truthfully without personal prejudice and bias.

This part of the zodiac has been associated with the Virgin Mary carrier of the Christ principal and possibly indicating an Essene priestess or priest, and before her time there was Isis and her son Horus, the well-known god and goddess of ancient Egypt.

Fred Gettings spent 16 long years researching his book    The Secret Zodiac   

from which the following wood cut was taken of the ‘Wheat Maiden’, a symbol of the sign Virgo. Gettings has much to say about the zodiac located on the floor of the Basilica of San Minato in Florence with reference to the Virgin giving birth to the Piscean sun/son.

 Virgo people have careful thinking processes that can take them to the height of their profession, and equally are they careful and practical in producing their creations, which are often in the form of potting and weaving.

GLORIOUS SUN

Egyptian goddess Sekhmet, partner of the sun god Ra.

The Sun has a special affinity with the sign Leo and in astrological terms is said to rule this sign. The sun is hot and fiery, warming and sustaining, pleasant at the right temperature but destructive when you get too much of it. The sun fires our soul and tempers our character, guiding us to our full potential.

In Alchemy, gold, the metal of the sun, is the ultimate aim of the disciple, for gold symbolises the highest attainment of human nature simply because it is the only incorruptible metal. The so called discipline of Alchemy is not really so, for it does not exist as a discipline to be studied. Alchemy is a life process and can only be lived. The endless books written on the topic are a blind for those who cannot accept the hard road of experience, which alone moulds and perfects us.

 From the alchemical text ‘The Book of Lambspring’, Figure IV reads,

The Sages do faithfully teach us

That two strong lions, to wit, male and female,

Lurk in the dark and rugged valley.

These the Master must catch,

Though they are swift and fierce,

And of terrible and savage aspect.

He who, by wisdom and cunning,

Can snare and bind them,

And lead them into the same forest,

Of him it may be said with justice and truth

That he has merited the meed of praise before all others,

And that his wisdom transcends that of the worldly wise.

Throughout mythology there are many sun gods who represent several things, among which is the hero of legend, the conqueror, the leader of the way symbolised in the magnificence of a beautiful and benign but life giving sun. Joseph Campbell is the well-known author who explores these myths and legends in some great works, not least  The Hero with a Thousand Faces (Bollingen Series)

SOLAR LION

Now the Sun is in the Tropical Zodiac sign of Leo. Leo types will greet you with warmth and a generous heart. But wait – did you insult the cubs? In which case you had better duck quickly in order to avoid the swift and heavy paw across your ear, for a Leo has much pride in its offspring.

Naturally, the lion is the emblem of this sign. The proud beast of the jungle, the soft pussy-cat of the den or nest. You can tell when they are unhappy for they stop their incessant grooming and walk around lonely, dejected and dishevelled. They do need your attention and understanding of their ways, even if they do roar a little at times.

Leos are proud and regal, and justly so if they are living up to the highest of their nature. This is a truth when the sun occupies any sign of the zodiac, the sun in a zodiac sign indicates where a person’s highest qualities of character are and to be striven for, such qualities at their highest expression make a true and noble character of strong individuality. A Leo shunned or abused can turn into a stubborn and dictatorial creature who has no patience with the perceived ‘enemy’.

The Sun has close ties to this sign and it too sends its warmth and vitality to its human children who inhabit Earth. Science measures the solar influence upon Earth as it reaches us from the regular and cyclic nature of the solar-flares or sun spots. These great outpourings of sun energy stream through space and influence Earth’s atmosphere with a direct hit of extra energy approximately every 11 years.

From French history we have a fine example of a ‘Sun King’ in Louis XIV, he could dance yet he could lead men to battle, he was majestic and dignified, yet rather self-indulgent. He built a sun palace at Versailles, called such for the amount of gold glittering around about! Although very popular, powerful and successful in his time, some say that over spending set the ball rolling towards the future ‘French Revolution’, a time when those who felt themselves neglected and abused, rebelled. Nancy Mitford had written a very nice book on the ‘Sun King’. The Sun King

   

Louis XIV ridding his charger, before the time of motor bikes.

[Detail from a Goblelins Tapestry reproduced in Mitford’s book]

 On the 22^nd August the sun moving from the sign of Leo to the sign of Virgo will meet the star ‘Regulus’ of the constellation Leo. This is a royal star once used to mark one of the four corners of the celestial vault in the era of the old astrologers.