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A Scheme of Heaven

Alexander Boxer’s A Scheme of Heaven is a new work about the history of astrology. Obviously published to capitalize on astrology’s current popularity, the book benefits from the author’s familiarity with ancient texts, but is ultimately undermined by his scientific point of view.
Boxer is a classics scholar with an affection for the old tomes and languages. His bite-sized coverage of many astrological topics, from Manilius to Cardano, is often easy-to-understand and sometimes even entertaining. While the writer covers much familiar ground, I still learned some new things Chaucer wrote a textbook on using the astrolabe. Alexander the Great’s conquest in 331 BCE is accurately described by an eclipse omen tablet from 300 years before. And some have seen Shakespeare’s Hamlet as an astrological allegory, with the names Rosencrantz and Guildenstern turning up in Tycho Brahe’s family tree.

But the author is also a “data scientist.” The book’s U.S. subtitle, “The History of Astrology and the Search for Our Destiny in Data,” is, it seems to me, a faulty conceit. Boxer assumes that all astrology is essentially reducible to algorithms and statistics, and its allure simply due to our need for patterns. He rather gleefully and cavalierly reduces Bonatti’s rules for trading to a virtual investing program. In practice, it doesn’t work very well, but what could we expect without human judgment involved? (Mr. Boxer: Bonatti wrote aphorisms, NOT algorithms.)

Boxer addresses chart interpretation, the cyclic deaths of U.S. presidents in office and other topics in a similar manner, as the book devolves into a display of his cleverness. He’s solved the houses issue! He’s re-invented the chart wheel! (As his chart can’t even show an obvious opposition, it’s not of much use.) The writer couldn’t resist sharing his own birth data, with Jupiter rising in Leo square Venus and Mars in Taurus. The book’s major flaw is that it’s more about what the author can do than the topic at hand. His arrogance and self-indulgence have led him to presume that he could address a complex topic without being able to grasp its depth or the great continuity of its tradition.

A Scheme of Heaven proves one thing: that astrology is an occult study (one concealed or not apparent to all). Despite reading Ptolemy, Vettius Valens and Guido Bonatti in their original languages, the writer nevertheless lacks an essential understanding of what astrology actually is. While real astrology is thriving and there’s a proliferation of online classes and certification today, Alexander Boxer still considers it “a topic for which the whole idea of expertise seems thoroughly up for grabs.” The reality is either obscured or he hasn’t even bothered to check. He considers Mercury to be “in retrograde,” a dead giveaway to astrological cluelessness.

With nearly 30 people thanked for their contributions to this offering from a major publisher, it’s baffling that not one real astrologer was consulted. And no editor, proofreader or fact-checker was able to rescue Boxer from the intellectual prison of his linear mind. Boxed-in, as it were.

It appears to have become acceptable to admit astrology’s prominence in the past but not the present. The closest the author gets to exploring contemporary astrology is having a cookbook print-out done for himself and family members. He gives short shrift to the last four hundred years, becoming more derivative and disillusioned with each century that lies beyond his expertise.

Alexander Boxer’s attitude towards astrology is ambiguous at best. He assures us he had a wonderful time researching and writing this book and that he’s not a true debunker. But he admits it’s politically incorrect to associate oneself too closely with astrology, and fears he may end up like Otto Neugebauer, who translated Babylonian astrological cuneiform texts and was supposedly labelled as something of a crank. Ironically, the writer will probably never again find another project as uniquely tailored to his own talents.

For those who want to know more about astrology’s past, A Scheme of Heaven is worth reading. It’s also indicative of the modern malaise of those with nothing to believe in, who summarily dismiss anything outside their limited view.

If you’d like to learn more about the history and spirit of astrology, try something like Anthony Aveni’s Conversing with the Planets (by a more simpatico non-believer). Or better yet, just read anything by an actual astrologer. They’re very easy to find these days. Unless, like Mr. Boxer, you choose not to look.

Check out A Scheme of Heaven on Amazon.com.

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Edgar Cayce’s Birth Time

The famous psychic Edgar Cayce said he’d had 37 astrological readings, and nearly half of the astrologers felt his birth time was incorrect! Cayce’s Mercury in Pisces made him visionary and eloquent, but outside of his trance states, exact details may not have been a strength. And since Mercury sextiles his Moon conjunct Neptune, confusion might also follow.

Cayce was born in the 19th century, when many American birth times weren’t recorded, so astrologers often rectified their charts. Several astrologers in touch with Cayce in the early 20th century offered him their own, “quick and dirty” rectifications on his time of birth.

Myra Kingsley, who’d worked for Evangeline Adams, wrote to Cayce with a horoscope interpretation, saying, “I have the chart drawn up for about 3:30 p.m. by West Kentucky time, as I am quite sure, due to your unusual ability, that you have a late degree of Leo rising, and the Sun in the eighth house.”

American Federation of Astrologers founder Ernest Grant had requested Edgar’s birth data and some notable life events, and shared that, “I rather believe that you were born either about 1:10 p.m. or somewhere between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m.”

Thomas Sugrue, in his biography There is a River, quoted Cayce’s grandmother for a time of “three o-clock exactly.” But his biography fictionalizes dialogue and life events, so would not necessarily be trustworthy.

In a 1936 letter, Edgar clearly stated that he was born at 1:30 P.M. on a Sunday afternoon, quoting “the actual record from my parents, the physician and the birth certificate record.” While in a trance state for a reading for himself in 1919, Cayce, through his metaphysical source, provided a 3:03 p.m. birth time. These are the only two documented times that we have; others have been altered by astrologers or those not consulting the original records.

Edgar Cayce regularly differentiated between physical birth, the time of a baby’s first breath, and soul birth, which could occur many hours later. I believe that the 3:03 p.m. time provided by the reading was Edgar Cayce’s soul birth time (rounded off and given to Edgar’s grandmother by Sugrue decades later). The original birth certificate time of 1:30 was probably near his physical time of birth. The readings consistently said that physical birth times should be used for horoscope interpretations.

Edgar Cayce was born on March 18, 1877 at 1:30 p.m. LMT, in the small town of Beverly, Kentucky (Christian County – 36N45, 87W32). I would rate it “AA,” from the birth record. Birth data is listed in reading 254-2, Report 4 and 294-8, Report 13 in the Cayce database. (The soul birth time is also from reading 254-2).

Edgar Cayce’s readings and many records of his life are available to members of the Association for Research and Enlightenment. I write the “Celestial Forces” column for their magazine Venture Inward, which covers many metaphysical topics. Sample issues are available here.

1918 Flu vs. COVID-19

As COVID-19 spreads, many are recalling the influenza pandemic of 1918. With the largest population in the U.S. (5 million), New York City was the worst hit. 33,000 died over a year, a third of all cases in the country. The City’s response was very different than for the 2020 Coronavirus restrictions, as the astrology shows.

When the flu first struck in the spring, it wasn’t serious. But New York was the arrival port for troops returning from Europe in World War I, and that fall influenza became a serious health concern. Young, healthy people were falling ill and dying.

The City’s health system, recently galvanized to combat tuberculosis, advised the public to avoid spitting and to use handkerchiefs – reminiscent of some of the hygiene suggestions we’re receiving a century later. The Health Commissioner ordered staggered work hours to lessen rush-hour crowding. 150 emergency health centers were put to work. But businesses, theaters and schools remained open to avoid panic. Teachers and school personnel were expected to assess children for symptoms and educate them. These measures seem to have worked as the death rate was much lower than in other large cities (about half a percent).

New York City has a dynamic horoscope, with Jupiter rising in Libra: it’s well-known for its focus on business, publishing and the arts. The Sun conjoining the 4th house in Capricorn reminds us that many make their homes here, too, and the T-square with Jupiter in Libra and the Midheaven in Cancer creates a lively, active place. Four planets in Sagittarius put the emphasis on communications and the value of its ports and many immigrants. Venus and Jupiter are in mutual reception and dispose of all the other planets, making New York a rather large and successful city.

As the flu arrived in the spring of 1918, a total Solar Eclipse activated the City’s Neptune conjunct Pluto in air-sign Gemini, and transiting Jupiter conjoined first Pluto, then Neptune in the 9th – allowing for a wide spread of a deadly pathogen by air. In September, when the flu became more dangerous, the progressed Moon in late Capricorn conjoined progressed Venus and the North Node, and squared the progressed Ascendant in Libra. Transiting Jupiter in Cancer conjoined the MC as it stationed on the City’s natal T-square, squaring 1st house Jupiter and opposing Saturn. As is so often the case, the emphasis on angularity made for more significant events.

While the cardinal signs and angular houses are again emphasized, the 2020 Coronavirus scenario is quite different. The authorities’ recommendation to shelter at home and avoid unnecessary travel are clearly shown by the transiting combination of Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn in NYC’s 4th house. With so much Capricorn, there is a more serious, organized and controlled response.

Transiting Saturn conjoined the City’s North Node in the 4th in mid-February, perhaps the time when the infection originally arrived. When the first cases were reported in NY in March, transiting Jupiter in Capricorn conjoined natal Mercury (ruler of the 9th and 12th) in the 4th house. The progressed Ascendant at about 19 Capricorn conjoined the progressed North Node at 20 Capricorn (right on the January Lunar Eclipse at 20 Cancer), further adding to the emphasis on Capricorn and the North Node that we also saw in 1918. But as Mars, Saturn and Pluto have now moved away from these degrees, hopefully the imposed restrictions will help alleviate the contagion.

Evangeline Adams on NPR Podcast

I’m delighted that my biography of Evangeline Adams is featured on NPR’s Throughline podcast. They did a beautiful job of dramatizing her story!

Hosts Rund Abdelfatah and Ramtin Arablouei along with producer Lawrence Wu all did terrific research and learned about astrology before they interviewed me. As objective historians, they covered Evangeline’s story and then moved to the Reagans and astrology in the White House. The result is a beautifully-produced podcast with solid historical information on astrology in the U.S.

Here’s the link to Throughline’s “The Stars” podcast.

Check out my Evangeline Adams biography, Foreseeing the Future.

Mountain Astrologer Review

The Mountain Astrologer reviews my astro-bio, Foreseeing the Future: Evangeline Adams and Astrology in America in their February-March 2020 issue. Judi Vitale writes:

“This biography of one of the 20th-century America’s best-known astrologers never strays far from thoughts of the planets and stars, but Foreseeing the Future does take the reader on a gratifying vacation away from the workaday grind of heavyweight astrology theory and technique. Karen Christino’s tenacious research and passionate reporting give us a tantalizing view of virtually every aspect of Evangeline Adams’ extraordinary life.”

More on Foreseeing the Future here

Robert Zoller

Robert Zoller was an unforgettable character. Despite his focus on Medieval astrology, I always thought of him as a Renaissance man. He liked to call himself a “rogue scholar,” but was also a linguist, dowser, sketch artist and high-wire telephone electrician, as well as a man of extremes. Mild-mannered and modest, he could also be rather opinionated and even imperious (he claimed descent from Irish royalty). Outwardly a regular guy with a light New York accent, his work could be overly intellectual (consider a lecture entitled, “The Role of Hermes as Teacher, Initiator, Heirophant and Psychopomp”). A predictive astrologer, he probably leaned closer to the Fate side of the spectrum than many, yet as an adult he became a Lutheran (a Christian faith with an ideology based on Free Will).

Bob was a footloose vagabond who loved travel and could casually converse in Spanish with NYC waiters. A compelling speaker, his fame in the 1990s followed his translations of Hermes Trismegistus, Al Kindi and Guido Bonatti, and he sometimes lectured to standing-room-only crowds. He may be best remembered for his World Trade Center attack forecast, and while not hitting all the specifics (who could?), it was published in advance and sent to his subscription list in 1999 and 2000.

With no earth in his horoscope, Zoller was not very concerned about the material plane (something he probably thought an “infinite regress”). He lived simply and delved deeply into magic, meditation and spirituality. He argued that “Spirituality is a Saturn trip,” as he considered it involved more renunciation than Jupiterian expansion. He believed in angels and other beings not because the Bible told him so, but because he had experienced them first-hand.

While I had little use for the laborious Medieval astrological calculations he was attached to, I visited the Masonic Library in New York at his request, and accompanied him to W.D. Gann’s grave in Brooklyn (which I’m convinced he psychically found as we had little in the way of a map for guidance). He gave me the opportunity to turn the parchment pages of a 15th century Latin manuscript at the New York Public Library.

Bob’s outlook lay somewhere between radical libertarian and ultraconservative, but it would be wrong to categorize him. He shared subversive 1970s counter-culture classics. He didn’t vote as he felt that election results were pre-ordained. He’d calculate death dates on request from clients (to within 5 or 10 years), though he also felt that in astrological prediction, “If you’re getting 75%, you’re doing really well.” He scoffed at the ideas of evolution or alien UFOs. He suggested he was the reincarnation of Evangeline Adams, as they shared some similar horoscope placements and more than a passing physical resemblance. But as he relished both the profundity of life as well its absurdities, I was never certain whether or not he was joking.

With a consciousness always attuned to the cosmos, I trust that Bob Zoller is now off on another one of his audacious adventures.

Robert Zoller had a number of self-published books, though his one traditionally published title, the Arabic Parts in Astrology: A Lost Key to Prediction is still available at Amazon.com.

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Novel About Astrologer

Astrology is back in the mainstream and has been for a while. Astrologer Barbara Shafferman recommended a book that she discovered by chance – it just happened to be about an astrologer – 2009’s literary and mystery novel Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Nobel Prize winner Olga Tokarczuk. It’s a good read that says something about the contemporary human condition.

Janina, our protagonist and narrator, is a retired teacher living in rural Poland. She has a passion for studying astrology and helping a student translate William Blake’s letters. A vegetarian, she tries to live simply and shares great empathy with animals. But she suffers from debilitating health attacks and nightmares about her dead mother, while also finding herself in the midst of a series of local murders.

The book is part detective story and part psychological study: we get to know this marginalized woman living in an unbalanced, harsh environment. Her frustrations in dealing with the corrupt, ineffectual and even violent local authorities are very relatable since her age and unconventional beliefs make her someone who’s not taken seriously.

Janina admits she’s not a good astrologer, and maybe she’s not, as she puts small animals in the 3rd house. It’s hard to know whether the use of words like quadrature (for square) or cosmogram (for horoscope) were a translator’s lack of expertise or a choice to make Janina seem quaint (she also talks of using a slide rule for calculations). Does knowing her date of death support that the character is unrealistic or show the writer’s limitations on the subject?

Janina has some lovely thoughts about her place in the universe:
“The world is a great big net, it is a whole, where no single thing exists separately, every scrap of the world, every last tiny piece, is bound up with the rest by a complex cosmos of correspondences, hard for the ordinary mind to penetrate.”

Tokarczuk clearly knows astrology herself as she refers to it throughout the text; she worked as a Jungian therapist before her writing career. Born on January 29, 1962 in Sulechrow, Poland, she has the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn all in Aquarius – no surprise for someone attracted to astrology!

I won’t reveal the ending, but I found Drive Your Plow engrossing, with a skillfully balanced plot and the extra bonus of following a real character whose astrology – for better or worse – is part of the tapestry of her life.

Buy Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead on Amazon.com
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Dell Horoscope Review

I was delighted to read Chris Lorenz’ review of my book about Evangeline Adams in the Dell Horoscope 2020 Yearbook!

He writes, “In this deeply researched and fascinating biography, readers can follow the evolution of astrology… as experienced and shaped by Evangeline Adams… Thank you, Karen Christino, for bringing us her story.”

Sorry to see this magazine leave us. It’s come full circle for me, as Horoscope was the first mainstream publication to publish my work.

More about the book here.

Jupiter in Capricorn

Jupiter in Capricorn is traditionally in its “fall” – since Jupiter wants everything big and upbeat, and Capricorn likes things simple and realistic. It’s a bit of a conundrum to have the planet of expansion in the sign of contraction and restriction. But obviously some make it work! These people may not find lucky breaks as often as those with Jupiter in more compatible signs, but those with Jupiter in Capricorn often achieve positions through genuine hard work and earnest application to their goals. Their careers can be long-lasting, and we remember many of them well after they’ve passed.

Some become quite accomplished at what they do, and find a commitment to their work. Jupiter rules the higher mind and ideals, and the sign of Capricorn makes them pragmatic realists. Many are self-contained and low-key, not flashy.

Government Boosters
Jupiter and Capricorn share an interest in larger issues, which can include the government. So it’s no surprise to see many with this placement in positions of authority. They often conduct themselves with Capricornian decorum:
Elena Kagan, Amy Klobuchar, Beto O’Rourke, Barbara Bush, Gerald Ford, Margaret Thatcher, Madeline Albright.

Memorable Classics
Jupiter’s need for self-expression meets Capricorn’s ability to be succinct and pithy. These examples show how memorable Jupiter in Capricorn can be:
Langston Hughes, Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Emily Bronte.

Authentic Voices
Jupiter in Capricorn may also bless many with the ability to accomplish their goals – no matter what area of life Jupiter chooses to expand to. These individuals can have a deeply personal connection with their ideals, along with a Capricornian authenticity, sharing with others who they really are, perhaps based on hard-won personal experience:
Alyssa Milano, Pope Francis, George Takei, Caitlyn Jenner, Prince Harry, RuPaul, Edgar Cayce, Malcolm X, Vanessa Redgrave.

Astrologers
Astrologers can also be Jupiterian idealists with an interest in Capricornian timing. Based upon the number of astrologers with this combination, it seems a common one:
Linda Goodman, Noel Tyl, Steven Forrest, Marion Mayer Drew, Kim Farnell, Cheiro – and many more.

Inspired Careerists
The folks that follow may not seem like typical Capricornians – somehow the emphasis is on an expansive Jupiter. But they also have long-lived careers and continue working – not satisfied with being a “flash in the pan.”
Tilda Swinton, Courtney Vance, Miley Cyrus, Marie Kondo, Mark Zuckerberg, k.d. lang, Katy Perry, Dwayne Johnson, Lorde.

Humorists
Another commonality between this planet and sign is comedy. It can bestow a dry sense of humor, good timing or an appreciation of irony. Those who have it also seem to be down-to-earth and grounded:
Scarlett Johansson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Gwynyth Paltrow, Sofia Vergara, Kathy Griffin, Valerie Bertinelli, Mary Tyler Moore.

Questionable Ethics
There’s a down-side to every astrological combination, and we might say that those with Jupiter in Capricorn can go too far or be too ambitious, insensitive to others in pursuit of their goals, or even become autocrats. With Saturn ruling Capricorn, however, they may ultimately pay the price for their bad behavior:
Benjamin Netanyahu, Paul Manafort, Linda Tripp, Michael Flynn, Bill Cosby, Dustin Hoffman, Saddam Hussein, Richard Nixon.

Planetary Powers

Patti Tobin Brittain’s book, Planetary Powers: The Morin Method takes the reader through the first steps in understanding how her teacher, Gerhard Houwing and his accomplished source, Jean-Baptiste Morin (1583–1656), may have interpreted a horoscope. As I have a background in this method myself, it was fascinating to see her approach.

This is a clear introductory text that focuses on what the author calls “cause and effect.” Brittain uses stripped-down charts with only a few key elements to show how the ruler of one house placed in another creates meaning. She provides numerous examples to familiarize the reader with these mechanics, almost like drills. They are often illuminating, but it can be unclear whether the examples represent real people or theory.

Another important concept is “analogy.” The Sun has an affinity for the 10th house, and Venus for the 7th, for example. These will vary by sign, ruler, house or aspect and are also clearly illustrated. This is another concept that I had personally absorbed but never reviewed in such detail.

The planets’ essential nature (their basic meanings and whether malefic or benefic) are significant, as is cosmic state (dignities and debilities). Morin used simplified triplicity rulers (different than those in Ptolemy or William Lilly).

Students interested in Morin’s methods should find this book a good, accessible starting point. Houwing emphasized “the concise, the specific, the concrete” and a “systematic approach to reading a chart.” These do reflect Morin’s traditional practices, which are very different from modern psychological astrology.

Houwing “felt it was worse to be unresolute than to be wrong” and Brittain admits this “may sound fatalistic.” I found it so myself when one of her “malefic” examples reflected components of my own chart! I personally strive to be accurate in a more general way than rigorously specific, as the latter can often be misleading, judgmental, or just plain wrong. Horoscopes, like human beings, are complex.

Some intriguing tidbits are mentioned but not addressed and are certainly beyond the scope of the book. But I would’ve liked to read more about what factors could indicate events in childhood, middle or late life, or what placements might show experiences that are fleeting vs. constant and ongoing, for example.

Patti Tobin Brittain died in March of 2019 at the age of 91. Born on 10/28/27 in Forney, Texas, she had the Sun, Moon, Mercury and Mars all in Scorpio in a grand trine with Jupiter in Pisces and Pluto. Her mentor Houwing was born on 10/27/23 – just a day and four years before Brittain, so we can understand their connection astrologically. They share the Sun and Venus in Scorpio and both appear to have been single-minded and incisive. Houwing’s Jupiter closely conjoins Brittain’s Mercury, and he passed along his knowledge and experience to her. But while the teacher had Mercury sextile Neptune, the student had a square between these planets, so something may have been lost in this rendition of Houwing and Morin’s work.

Taking apart a horoscope to understand its working parts may be valuable, but putting an emphasis on isolated elements makes for a somewhat linear and literal approach. Another book is needed to fill in the vast spaces between the simplified examples shown and an interpretation and synthesis of the full horoscopes presented at the end of the book. Nevertheless, Planetary Powers provides a valuable introduction to Morin’s methods.

Check out Planetary Powers (AFA, 2010) on Amazon.com
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Brittain’s birth date is from her obituary.

Houwing’s birth date is from public records on Ancestry.com