Cicero - Self Initiation into the Golden Dawn Tradition_Part 01

TheNeophyte Grade 43
intellect and thought processes, which are quick, changeable, and abstract. The
direction or cardinal point assigned to Air is East.
The Element ofEarth
(Egyptian-Ta, Hebrew-Aretz, Latin-Terra, Greek-Ge.) Qualities of Earth: passive,
feminine, solid, materialization, physical, stable, slow-moving, and grounded.
In a technical sense, earth is the dry land surface of the planet, made up of
solid organic and inorganic particles. Allegorically it is much more than that.
Earth represents the physical, materialized universe in which we live. It is the tangible
world around us that we can touch and feel. Earth is the Daughter of Fire
and Water, just as Air is the Son. This Element encompasses all activities of productivity,
fertility, growth, and regeneration. Earth is the fourth and final Element
and the result of the actions of the other three. The direction or cardinal point
assigned to Earth is North.e
SECTION 2: The Zodiac
What is Astrology andwhy is it important? Astrology is a science that
examines the action of celestial bodies uponall living beings, non-living
objects, and earthly conditions, as well as their reactions to such
influences. The study of the stars is in fact one of the oldest sciences
known to humankind, tracing its origins back to ancient Sumer and
even earlier. The Astrological arts were also well known to the Egyptians,
Hindus, Chinese, Persians, and the great civilizations of the ancient Americas.
Astrology is the progenitor of astronomy, and for many years the two
existed as one science. Nowadays, astronomy is considered an "objective" science
of distances, masses, speeds, etc., while Astrology is a "subjective" and intuitive
science which not only deals with the astronomical delineation of horoscopes, but
can also be called a philosophy which helps to explain the spiritual essence of life.
There are in reality two branches of Astrology. The first is Exoteric Astrologywhich
includes the mathematics of the art involved with charting a horoscope
and the predictive arts. The second is Esoteric Astrology which deals with mysteries
of the universe itself, the spiritual, moral, intellectual and physical dynamics of
the cosmos. Esoteric Astrology reveals the universal pattern of living and the
means by which human beings can align themselves with the spiritual fabric and
pattern of the universe. It is a system for understanding celestial energies and a
method for viewing the universe as a symmetrical whole.
Of great importance to the art of Astrology is the Zodiac. This is a circle or
belt, which anciently was said to extend eight or nine degrees on each side of the
ecliptic (the Sun's apparent path around the Earth, or the orbit of the Earth as
viewed from the Sun.) The Zodiacal "wheel" is a flat chart which is divided into
twelve houses, each of which is said to be ruled by one of the twelve Signs.
The twelve Signs of the Zodiac are distributed among the four Triplicities
(or sets of three Signs). Each of these triplicities is attributed to one of the four Elements,
and they represent the operation of the Elements in the Zodiac. The twelve