Cicero - Self Initiation into the Golden Dawn Tradition_Part 01

270 SELF-INITIATION INTO THE GoLDEN DAWN TRAOmON
One can therefore summarize Mercury in Taurus in the fifth house (of Leo)
in the sentence: The stable andpracticalfaculty ofreason andawareness willbe displayed
creatively with self-confidence, (or) communication of pleasures and love will be given
with charity andsensuality.
For another example: Jupiter in Cancer in the third house. Important words
for Jupiter are expansion, philosophy, and prosperity. Key words for Cancer are devotion,
nurturing, and sensitive. The third house is the house of conscious awareness and
communication. Gemini, the natural Sign of the third house is associated with the
keywords versatile, literary and inquisitive.
Thus Jupiter in Cancer in the third house (of Gemini) can be described as:
The philosophical nurturing urge of this individual will be communicated withgreat versatility
andskill, (or) Sensitive awareness anddevotion tohigher philosophical ideals will
lead toexpansion ofliterary pursuits.
(Of course no Astrologer would use such convoluted language while talking
to a Querent. In simpler terms, a person with this placement of Jupiter in the
chart will tend to talk a lot about his/her feelings.)
Oftentimes house placement of a Planet will modify the influences of certain
Signs in which the Planet is located. For instance Venus in Aries in the tenth
house (Capricorn rules the tenth house). Aries is Aggressive and Impulsive. Venus
symbolizes affections, and social pursuits. The tenth house refers to honor, ambition,
and profession. Capricorn is conservative and prudent. One might conclude that this
individual's professional and social pursuits would be approached in an aggressive
fashion, however the prudent nature of Capricorn would serve to temper the
impulsiveness of Aries.
A Planet will also function differently depending upon whether the house it
is located in is Angular, Succedent or Cadent. An individual with Sun in Scorpio will
be less temperamental and more easy-going when the Sun in Scorpio falls within a
Cadent (Mutable) house rather than a Succedent (Kerubicor Fixed)house. An Angular
(Cardinal) house placement might still indicate a temperament that is still volatile
butnot long lasting.
The houses are the constant variables in a horoscope. The Signs and the
Planets do not change their basic characteristics; it is always the houses which are
the various arenas for activity, and they are subject to change quite a bit.
The only way to truly learn how to interpret a Zodiacal chart is through
constant practice. We highly recommend that the student obtain some good books
on horoscope interpretation, including the series The Only Way to Learn Astrology
(vol. 1-3)by Marion D. March and Joan McEvers.
A Zodiacal chart should bring questions to the Astrologer's mind. While
interpreting the chart, the Astrologer should dialogue with the Querent and ask
for answers to those questions in order to ground him/her self within the framework
of the Querent's circumstances and worldview first. Then the Astrologer
reads the possibilities which are apt to apply to the Querent.
Using the techniques mentioned here, the student is encouraged to look at
several different horoscopes and try to delineate each one in accordance with the
information s/he has accumulated through the Knowledge Lectures.