Rectifying the Horoscope

A BIRTH CHART, according to the views presented in these lessons, is a map of the
thought-energies within the astral body of man, and the progressed aspects map the
time and nature of the inner-plane weather which adds planetary energies to these
thought-energies. Thus natal astrology becomes a means of estimating the various
forces within man’s finer body at any selected time.

These forces, like any forces of nature, if left to themselves, flow on in their
accustomed channels. Thus does electricity flow, and the current of a stream, or the
wind through the trees. Thus also does light from the Sun beat upon our earth. Yet all
of these forces have been harnessed by man and diverted from their customary
channels to perform work of his choosing.

And it has been one of the objects of this series of lessons in natal astrology to
indicate not merely how the energies reaching the astral body of man may accurately
be estimated as to volume and their natural trend, but also to indicate the methods by
which they can be controlled, diverted, and employed to do the kind of work he most
desires of them.

But if such estimation of their power is to be accurate, and if the instructions as to the
manner in which they can be manipulated to perform a more constructive purpose is
to be sound, the birth chart which forms the basis from which these matters are
judged must be accurate.

Unfortunately, many people do not know the hour of their birth. It might be held that
Nature should provide a sure and easy way to remedy this negligence upon the part of
man. But so far as I have been able to discover no such easy and certain method is at
hand by which we can offset the ignorance of those who have failed to realize the
importance of accurately timing each birth. And in this Nature seems quite
consistent; for it is her custom to exact dear payment for ignorance, no matter how
innocent of wrong doing it may be.

I wish there were an easy method by which, when the day of birth alone is known, a
birth chart might be rectified so that the sign, degree and minute rising might be
known with certainty. Yet I have experimented with “progressing the house cusps”‘
the “noon-point method”, the “sunrise method,” the “tidal point method,’, the
“octagonal point method,” the “improved Egyptian method,” the “pointer method,”
methods based upon horary charts and methods based upon the person’s name,
without finding in any one the precision and certainty I desire.

The magazines hold glowing advertisements of those who will rectify a birth chart by
some easy and sure method. Yet I find that when a birth which is accurately timed is
sent to these individuals with only the day given, that the chart returned as the correct
one all too often is entirely different than the one erected for the time given by the
electric clock in the maternity hospital.

There are those who boast that they never delineate a chart, even when the time of day
is given, unless they first rectify it.

In our research department we have found it better always to use the time of day
given. The chart thus obtained may be a few degrees in error; but we believe the error
introduced by using the approximate time as ascertained by a clock by someone
present at the birth, is likely to be much smaller than the error commonly occasioned
in trying to make the chart fit some theory. If a birth is accurately timed I consider it a
great mistake to juggle it in any way. Theories should be made to fit facts, and the
observed time of birth is the fact in this case that all theories should be made to fit.

The best solution of uncertain birth-times in the future is to create a public sentiment
that will insure all births being accurately timed and recorded. But in the meantime
those who know the day of birth, but not the hour, need not be discouraged. If enough
work is done upon a chart, with the collaboration of the person to whom the chart
belongs, it is possible to rectify it, that is, to experiment with it until the sign, degree
and minute on the Ascendant are precisely ascertained. But the work involved, while
the benefit to the individual is worth immeasurably more than the labor expended,
often is so great that the professional astrologer can not afford to give it the
painstaking care that is required. His time is worth something, and he can not, for the
compensation received, afford to spend several days perhaps, experimenting with a
single chart.

But the astrological student himself can well afford to experiment with his chart until
he is certain it is correct. Instead of a few paltry dollars, which the professional
astrologer would receive as pay, it means to him, if he takes the pains to understand
his chart, a far more successful life. It may mean all the difference between success
and failure. He can not afford not to have his correct birth chart, whatever the cost to
him in time and labor.

The First Step In Rectification

–The first step, as a general rule, is to find the rising sign. Quite frequently, as
indicated in Course X-I, Chapter 3, planets in the first house, the sign in which the planet
ruling the cusp of the Ascendant is found, the Sun-sign and the Dominant planet, all
have some influence over the personal appearance. Therefore, while occasionally the
rising sign marks the person so clearly that there can be no mistake, more frequently
the combined impress of these other influences is so strong as to make judgment from
the appearance given solely by the rising sign unsatisfactory.

More commonly the personal appearance should be taken as but one of a number of
indices pointing to the correct birth chart. It should be used in combination with these
other factors, and to do this the more that is known about the person the better. The
type of fortune he has had in each department of life is significant, and when the
outstanding events relating to each occurred.

When the fortune which has already been attracted relative to any particular
department of life is clear cut in its trend, it signifies that a planet rules the house
governing that department of life which by its Key-word and the Key-word of its
aspects is characteristic of that fortune.

A house may be ruled by a planet which is not in that house, it is true. But by making
inquiry in reference to the events, or conditions, that the life has experienced in
relation to each of the 12 houses, with a trial chart showing the aspects before one, it
often quickly becomes apparent just how the planets must fit into the various houses
to produce the known effects.

This is very much like piecing together a jig-saw puzzle. And to start with, if no
opinion is entertained as to the rising sign, it is well to use a Natural Chart. That is, to
use a chart with no-degrees Aries on the Ascendant. This trial chart may then be
manipulated, by turning it around gradually, until it reaches a place in reference to the
house positions of the planets, and the planetary rulership of the houses, which fits
the known facts of the life. And, like a jig-saw puzzle, when the proper relations are
established, it is clear that the correct combinations have been obtained.

A Natural Chart is one with Aries on the cusp of the 1st house, with Taurus on the
cusp of the 2nd house, with Gemini on the cusp of the 3rd house, and so on; with the
planets inserted just as they appear in the ephemeris at Greenwich on the day of birth.

This is the best of all charts to use when the hour of birth is not even approximately
known, and there is no incentive for doing the great amount of work necessary to
careful rectification. That is, it is better to give judgment from such a chart than to
hazard a mere guess at the rising sign.

From such a Natural Chart no attempt should be made to predict the department of
life influenced by each planet. It is enough in such cases to know the general
significance of the planets in a house as given in Chapter 7 and Course II, Chapter 3.

Starting with such a Natural Chart, which can be copied from the ephemeris for the
day of birth in a few moments, the eye should follow down the page of the ephemeris
and the chief aspects that form between the planets as there shown-the Major
Progressed Aspects to the Progressed Planets-and the chief aspects that form
between the planets in the ephemeris and the birth chart planets-the Major
Progressed Aspects to birth chart planets-noted.

Even without setting up any chart, a person of ready wit can give quite a startling
demonstration of astrology from a public platform with nothing to aid him but a set of
ephemerides.He asks someone in the audience to give the day and year of his birth. This date he
finds in the ephemeris and marks it with his finger.

Then he runs his eye down the column of the ephemeris, or even through several
pages of it if the person receiving the reading is elderly, and picks out the more
spectacular aspects between the Major Progressed Planets, and from them to the birth
chart planets which he has marked with his finger.

Counting ahead as many years as days have passed in the ephemeris since the birth
date to the day when the aspect is formed, he then tells the audience that in such a year
the individual had much trouble, that there were obstacles to overcome, that there
were disappointment and loss, etc. He informs those present that in another year,
which he names, the individual had good fortune, that affectional matters prospered,
or that fine opportunities for advancement were present.

The general nature of the planet indicates the conditions accompanying the event, and the
Key-word of the aspect, as given in Course X-I, Chapter 6, indicates the nature of the
fortune or misfortune attracted into the life. Chapters 3, 4 and 5,
give still further information as to what is commonly attracted under each Major
Progressed Aspect to each of the ten planets.

A student quick to note aspects and count ahead the number of days that have elapsed
when they occur, can thus locate the years in which many of the chief Major
Progressions form temporary stellar aerials across the astral body, and do it about as
fast as he can talk in giving such a reading from the rostrum.

By picking only the most pronounced Major Progressed Aspects in each case, he can
insure that the event he describes in general terms did take place within the
designated year. He can not, of course, give detail, or determine the department of
life affected by the progressed aspect, as this requires that the house positions of the
planets be known. But following such a method he can point out to a large number of
persons in an audience during a single evening the most pronounced events of their
lives, and designate the years in which they occurred.

Trial and Error

–It is because events can thus be described in general terms, and in approximate
dates, without house positions, that the student must carefully distinguish between
the general influence commonly exerted by a planet, and the department of life
affected, in the process of rectification.

The Brotherhood of Light Astrological Reports will be found of much assistance in
this trial and error process of rotating the chart until the signs and planets occupy the
correct houses. The Birth Chart Constants for the various vocations may furnish
valuable hints. Likewise, the Birth Chart Constants and Progressed Constants for the
diseases from which the client has suffered, as set forth in Course XVI, may be
employed.

Referring to these B. of L. Reports, we find that people marry, separate, or divorce,
for instance, only when there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the 7th. If
legal action is taken, in obtaining a divorce or in other affairs, there is a Major
Progressed Aspect at the time to the ruler of the 9th.

People lose their children. through death only when there is a Major Progressed
Aspect to both the ruler of the 5th and the ruler of the 8th. Mothers die only when
there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the 10th and another to the ruler of
the 8th. Fathers die only when there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the
4th and to the ruler of the 8th. Brothers or sisters die only when there is a Major
Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the 3rd and to the ruler of the 8th.

People make or lose money only when there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler
of the 2nd. They are ill only when there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of
the 6th and a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the 1st. They get employment,
or lose it, only when there is a Major Progressed Aspect to the ruler of the 10th and
another to the ruler of the 6th.

These Progressed Constants, and others which are given in the B. of L. Astrological
Reports, as well as the department of life ruled by the house which an outstanding
event chiefly influences, all can be used as indices to the relation of the houses to the
signs and planets in the correct birth chart

When a chart is obtained through this trial and error method that seems to be close to
the correct one, each house in turn should be given due consideration as to the events
that have occurred in the department of life signified, to ascertain if the planet in it, or
ruling its cusp, indicates such fortune or misfortune. Likewise, the chief Major
Progressed Aspects of the planet ruling the house should be calculated to determine
if the events attracted at the indicated times are such as should be expected.

Minor Progressions also are of great value to the individual who is attempting to
rectify his own chart, or who is attempting to rectify the chart of some person with
whom rather closely associated.

One seldom has long to wait until there is some new Minor Progressed Aspect
formed of significance enough to attract some well defined Minor Event. Such
events are seldom of importance enough to be marked strongly in the memory. But as
they occur they are easily observed. And, quite as much as Major Progressions, they
tend to attract events that relate to the departments of life ruled by the houses which
the aspecting planets rule or occupy. And as they occur so frequently, it is possible to
observe enough of them within a year or so, to quite thoroughly check the accuracy of
the selected birth chart.

Thus if the individual is invited to some social event where he has a particularly good
time, he may look up the Minor Progressed Aspect coincident with it. If a small debt
which he never expected to be paid is collected, let him look up the Minor
Progressions on that day and ascertain how they coincide as to house position in the
selected chart with such collection. Or if he makes an enemy, takes a little trip, or any
other of the numerous Minor Activities that make up the common run of life, let him
observe how the Minor Progressions at the time, through their relation to house
positions, bear out the chart he has decided upon.

Finding the Time of Day of the Trial Chart

–Such a trial and error chart must have approximately some degree of some sign on
the 10th house. From a Table of Houses copy the other signs and degrees upon the
various house cusps that are given when this sign and degree are on the 10th. Then
observe in the Table of Houses what Sidereal Time corresponds to this position of
sign and degree on the cusp of the 10th. Turn to the day of birth in the ephemeris and
note the Sidereal Time at Noon there given. The difference between the Sidereal
Time for noon as given in the ephemeris and the Sidereal Time of birth as determined
from the sign and degree and on the cusp of the 10th, gives approximately the LMT
Interval from Noon on the day that birth took place.

The student should note that this Interval can not be greater than 12 hours without
passing into another day, and this is not permissible; for people usually know the day
on which they were born. Consequently, when the difference appears greater than 12
hours, 24 hours should be added to the less Sidereal Time, and the other Sidereal
Time should be subtracted from it to find the Interval from Noon.

Thus suppose we have a chart for Nov. 30, 1920, with 00 Taurus 00 on the M.C. The
Sidereal Time of birth is 1h 51m 37s. Now if we subtract 1h 51m 37s from 16h 36m
13s, it gives us an Interval of 14h 44m 36s. As the Noon Sidereal Time is 16h 36m 13s
and we subtract this Interval to get 1h 51m 37s, it signifies that to get the time of day
we must subtract 14h 44m 36s from Noon. But this carries us back into the previous
day, or Nov. 29, which as the birth was on Nov. 30 is not permissible.

Instead of doing this, therefore, we add 24h to the 1h 51m 37s, giving us 25h 51m 37s.
And from this we subtract the 16h 36m 13s, which gives us 9h 15m 24s. And as to the
Sidereal Time at Noon we must add this 9h 15m 24s to get the Sidereal Time of Birth,
we know that this Interval is After Noon. The time of birth, consequently, is Nov. 30,
1920, 9:15 p.m. LMT minus or plus the correction of 9.86 seconds per hour for
EGMT Interval.

Finding the Exact Degree and Minute on the M.C.

–When the student has the chart of birth as closely rectified as possible by the trial
and error method, he should next endeavor to ascertain the exact degree and minute
on the M.C. In this work he can apply either one or both of two methods. One is the
Prenatal Epoch Method, and the other is to make use of progressions of, and
progressions to, the Ascendant and Midheaven.

The method of using Major and Minor Progressed Aspects to and from the Asc. and
M.C. is feasible only when there are events in the life that can not adequately be
explained by the progressions of the planets.

Progressed aspects to the Asc. and M.C., and from the Asc. and M.C., are quite as
effective in forming temporary stellar aerials which pick up energy and attract events
into the life as are similar aspects to and from the planets. Consequently, if there have
been strong Major Progressed Aspects to or from these Angles in the birth chart, they
should have been marked by characteristic events.

The difficulty encountered in using progressed aspects to or from the Asc. and M.C.
as a basis of rectification lies in the fact that more often than might be expected there
is at the same time one of these progressed aspects is in force, also a progressed
aspect between planets. It is not a simple matter, by any means, to determine under
such circumstances just what part in attracting the event was taken by the Asc. or
M.C., and what part was taken by the Major Progressed planets.

Yet we may be sure of this, that when the Major Progressed Asc. or the Major
Progressed M.C makes outstanding aspects to the planets, or the Major Progressed
planets make outstanding aspects to the Asc. or M.C., events of considerable
importance enter the life. If the Asc. is involved, these relate to personal matters; but
if the M.C. is part to the aspect the honor and business are affected. If it is discovered,
therefore, that no such circumstances were present when these heavy progressed
aspects formed in the trial chart, it is quite certain that it is not yet precisely correct.

A good method is first to compare the events of life that have occurred with the Major
Progressed Aspects of the planets at the time of each, to discern if each event is thus
properly accounted for, and if not whether a progression involving the Asc. or M.C.
would better account for it. With this done, take up the Major Progressed Aspects
from and to the Asc. and M.C., starting with birth and tabulating each up to the time
rectification is attempted.

If the chart is correct as to the exact degree on the Asc. and M.C. the time of each
progressed aspect thus tabulated will correspond to a characteristic event in the life.
If events do not closely coincide with the time of these progressed aspects, the chart
needs further manipulation; and in this case, if it is close to being correct, the amount
of movement forward or backward required to make the Asc. and M.C. properly fit
with events often is clearly indicated. As a further check, the Minor Progressed
Aspects to and from the Asc. and M.C. may be employed.

This trial and error method requires persistent work and careful checking, but if
carried out thoroughly gives a chart that may be relied upon more implicitly than one
rectified by any other method about which I know.

The Truitine of Hermes

–Under normal conditions there seems to be an interchange of positions between
the horizon at the moment of a child’s conception and the place of the Moon at the
moment of birth; and an interchange of positions between the place of the Moon at
the moment of a child’s conception and the horizon at the moment of a child’s birth.

Where sympathetic relations between earth and sky are not interfered with by
artificial conditions or untoward events, the degree of the zodiac on the Ascendant or
Descendant at conception becomes the degree of the zodiac occupied by the Moon at
birth; and the degree of the zodiac occupied by the Moon at conception becomes the
degree of the zodiac on the Ascendant or Descendant at birth.

This law handed down from a remote past as the Truitine of Hermes has been
amplified by modern astrologers, who have added other valuable factors. The
application of this ancient law in connection with modern factors and a vast amount
of detail has given rise to an elaborate theory called the Prenatal Epoch.

The Prenatal Epoch

–The prenatal epoch is of great value in rectifying horoscopes, but in my opinion,
which is not shared by all astrologers, is quite valueless in rectification unless the
time of birth is ascertained within half an hour of the correct time by some other
method.To apply the method it is necessary to know approximately the sign and degree
occupied by the Moon at conception, and to ascertain this it becomes necessary to
know approximately the sign and degree on the Ascendant at birth.

The word conception as used in this connection is not coincident with any physical
act, but denotes the moment when, through the union of ovum and spermatozoon, the
astral body of the child to be born becomes attached to the ovum thus fertilized. In my
opinion, which is not shared by all, this attachment is never previous to the physical
relations of the parents. The fertilization of the ovum and the attachment of the astral
form to it, however, may occur any time during several days after the union of the
parents.

With the time of birth approximately known, and the number of days of gestation
definitely known, it is a simple matter to calculate the time of conception closely; for
the degree occupied by the Moon in the birth chart represents the degree on the
horizon at that time, and the Moon must be in a degree of the zodiac not far removed
from the approximately known horizon of the birth chart.

From the degree and sign on the horizon at conception the time of day at the moment
of conception may readily be calculated, and from this time the degree of the Moon at
conception may be ascertained, as in any birth chart. The degree of the Moon at
conception, thus found, represents the exact degree on the horizon of the birth chart.

Unfortunately for the infallibility of this method, in some cases it is very difficult to
determine the exact number of days of gestation.

The enthusiastic advocates of the method have formulated some very complex Laws
of Sex, based upon the supposed value of the quadrants, and the supposed sex value
of certain degrees of the zodiac. Unless the chart erected for the epoch-as the true
moment of conception commonly is known-by the value of the area occupied by the
Moon and Ascendant confirm the sex of the child, the epoch is regarded as fictitious,
and an epoch for a different day is sought.

While the Truitine of Hermes certainly seems to formulate a natural law, this
“Paramount Law of Sex”, as it is called by its advocates, seems to me to be too
artificial and theoretical to be relied upon implicitly. Yet it does deserve
investigation and critical study, as it is a serious attempt, at least partially successful,
to solve one of the most difficult situations met with in the practice of natal astrology.

Those who wish to do so can find a full exposition of the various ramifications of the
“Paramount Law of Sex,” in connection with the Prenatal Epoch in a book of
considerable size by E. H. Bailey, bearing the title, The Prenatal Epoch.

In my own investigations, and those of our research department, as near as it is
possible to decide so uncertain a matter, we have found that without recourse to the
“Paramount Law of Sex”, when the birth-time is approximately known, the birth
chart may be rectified to the correct degree and minute of the rising sign by the
Prenatal Epoch in about seven charts out of ten. About 30% of all charts, apparently,
do not yield to the regular method of treatment, because the duration of gestation, due
to instrumental deliveries, to artificial environment, or other conditions, does not
conform to the regular rule.

There are rules given by Bailey for calculating these variations, but they soon lead
into bewildering complexities that make them not entirely satisfactory.
Consequently, unless the student has the time and inclination to give a very thorough
and detailed study to the Prenatal Epoch, when he finds that rectification by the
Prenatal Epoch gives a birth-time beyond the probable error of observation, it is
better for him to make the rectification by the other previously mentioned methods.

Whether Moon and Ascendant or Moon and Descendant Should Be Used

–In applying the Prenatal Epoch the first essential knowledge is whether the
interchange of places occurs between the Moon and Ascendant or between the Moon
and Descendant. In determining this, as well as in determining whether the period of
gestation is shorter or longer than the average, the other of the three most important
birth chart factors, the Sun, must also be considered RULE 19. When in the birth
chart the Moon is Increasing in light, its position is the degree on the Ascendant at the
epoch, and the position of the Moon at the epoch is the degree on the Ascendant in the
birth chart.

RULE 20. When in the birth chart the Moon is Decreasing in light, its position is the
degree on the Descendant at the epoch, and the position of the Moon at the epoch is
the degree on the Descendant in the birth chart.

Whether Gestation Is Shorter or Longer Than 273 Days

–The average period of gestation is considered to be ten lunar months, or nine
calendar months, or 273 days. To know whether the period of gestation was longer or
shorter than 273 days the following rules have been formulated:

RULE XXI When in the birth chart the Moon is Increasing in light and Below the
earth, or is Decreasing in light and Above the earth, the period of gestation is more
than 273 days.RULE XXII.

When in the birth chart the Moon is Increasing in light and Above the
earth, or is Decreasing in light and Below the earth, the period of gestation is less than
273 days.

How Much Gestation Is Shorter or Longer Than 273 Days

–To find the number of days that the period of gestation was more or less than 273
days the following two rules customarily are used:RULE XXIII.

When the period of gestation is shown to be more than the average
length, find the number of degrees in the birth chart between the Moon and the
Horizon to which it is approaching by the diurnal rotation of the earth, and divide this
number by 13 (the average daily motion of the Moon), which will give the number of
days in excess of 273 occupied by gestation.RULE XXIV.

When the period of gestation is shown to be less than the average
length, find the number of degrees in the birth chart between the Moon and the
Horizon last crossed by it due to the diurnal motion of the earth, and divide this
number by 13 (the average daily motion of the Moon), which will give the number of
days less than 273 occupied by gestation.

Theoretically, counting back in the ephemeris as many days as is indicated by the
above rules, the Moon should be found in the same sign and near the exact degree
occupied by the Ascendant or Descendant, as determined by the above rules, in the
approximate birth chart.

Unfortunately this is not always actually the case, but is usually near a day in the
ephemeris in which the Moon is in such a sign and degree, and in this case that latter
day should be used. In applying the Law of Sex there is a variation to the rule given by
which a still further 14 days are added to the period of gestation when it is more than
273 days, or 14 additional days are subtracted when the period of gestation is shown
to be less than 273 days. Further, there are supposed to be Three Irregular Epochs that
because of the Law of Sex require special treatment.

Complexities begin to multiply. I believe, however, that about seven out of every ten
birth charts can be rectified by the Prenatal Epoch when the time of birth is
approximately known without reference to any of these elaborate and special
considerations which are not held in favor by all astrologers. Let us, therefore, apply
the regular Prenatal Rules to two example charts:

Example 1. A child was born in New York City, November 22, 1920, at
approximately 5:00 a.m., Local Mean Time. What was the exact degree and minute
rising at the true moment of birth?

First we erect a trial chart for the time of birth, inserting only the Sun and Moon
(Diagram A at front of this lesson).

As the Moon is Increasing in light-moving toward the opposition with the Sun-the
place of the Moon in the birth chart, 11 Aries 41, is the Ascendant at the epoch (Rule
XIX). Also (Rule XXI) the period of gestation is more than 273 days.

From 6 Scorpio to 12 Aries is 156 degrees. Divide this by 13 and it gives 12 days
more than 273 as the period of gestation (Rule XXIII).

Counting back 9 calendar months brings us to Feb. 22; and as we desire to find 273
days, or 10 lunar months, we look to see on what date near this day the Moon is in 12
Aries, as at birth. This is Feb. 23, 1920.

Counting 12 days back from Feb. 23 gives us Feb. 11. Here we find the Moon in 17
Scorpio. But as we have reason to believe the birth was timed within half an hour or
less of being correct, we drop back another day to Feb. 10, with the Moon in 5
Scorpio 28. This then is one of the many cases in which the rule for finding the length
of gestation brings us close to the correct day but does not give us the exact day.

As the Ascendant on this day of conception, or Epoch, was the place of the Moon in
the birth chart, we must find at what time 11 Aries 41 was on the Ascendant on Feb.
10, 1920. The Table of Houses for New York shows that when 11 Aries 41 is on the
Ascendant the Sidereal Time is 18h 27m 00s. The Sidereal Time at noon on Feb. 10
was 21h 17m 06s. Subtracting 18h 27m 00s from 21h 17m 06s gives an Interval of 2h
50m 06s before noon. To this add the correction of 9.86s per hour for the plus 2h 06m
EGMT Interval (equivalent to subtracting it from the S.T.) and it gives 2h 50m 27s as
the minus LMT Interval of the Epoch at New York. This means 9:10 a.m. LMT New
York or plus 2h 06m EGMT Interval on Feb. 10, 1920.

The place of the Moon on Feb. 10, at plus EGMT Interval 2h 06m (9:10 a.m. LMT
New York) is found to be 6 Scorpio 31. Therefore 6 Scorpio 31 was on the Ascendant
at birth.

The Table of Houses for New York shows that when 6 Scorpio 31 is on the
Ascendant the Sidereal Time is 9h 05m 07s. The Sidereal Time at noon on November
22, 1920, is 16h 04m 40s. Subtracting 9h 05m 07s from 16h 04m 40s gives an
Interval of 6h 59m 33s before noon. From this subtract the correction of 9.86s per
hour for the minus 2h 04m EGMT Interval and it gives minus 6h 59m 12s LMT
Interval. Subtracting this from noon gives the LMT time of birth at New York as 5:01
a.m.

Example 2. A child was born in New York City, December 3, 1920, at 3:08 p.m.,
Local Mean Time. What was the exact degree and minute on the Ascendant at the
true moment of birth?

First we erect a trial chart inserting the Sun and Moon only (Diagram B at the front of
this lesson).

In this chart for the time given the Moon is seen to be Decreasing in light-going
toward the conjunction with the Sun. Therefore (Rule XX), the position of the Moon
at birth, 25 Virgo 41, was the Descendant at conception. Also (Rule XXII), the period
of gestation was less than 273 days.

Applying Rule XXIV, from 26 Virgo to 17 Scorpio is 51 degrees. Divide the 51 by 13
and it gives 4 as the number of days the period of gestation was less than 273 days.

Going back in the ephemeris 9 calendar months and looking for a day close to this
time that shows the Moon again in 26 Virgo, we come to March 5, 1920. However, as
seen, the period of gestation was 4 days less than this average time, so we come to
March 9 as the day of the Epoch.

Next we desire to know the time of day at New York when 25 Virgo 41 was on the
Descendant, which is the same as when 25 Pisces 41 is on the Ascendant.

A Table of Houses for New York shows us that when 25 Pisces 41 is on the
Ascendant the Sidereal Time is 17h 50m 05s. The Sidereal Time at noon on March 9,
1920, was 23h 07m 29s. Subtracting 17h 50m 05s from 23h 07m 29s gives us an
Interval of 5h 17m 24s. From this subtract the correction of 9.86s per hour for the
minus 21m EGMT Interval and it gives us 5h 17m 20s as the minus LMT Interval of
the Epoch at New York. This means 6:43 a.m. LMT New York or 11 :39 a.m.
Greenwich, March 5, 1920.

Then we calculate the position of the Moon on March 9, 1920, at 11:39 a.m.
Greenwich and find it was 13 Scorpio 01. Therefore, in the birth chart 13 Scorpio 01
was on the Descendant, which gives 13 Taurus 01 on the Ascendant at the true
moment of birth.

The Table of Houses for New York shows that when 13 Taurus 01 is on the
Ascendant the Sidereal Time is 19h 45m 55s. The Sidereal Time at noon on
December 3, 1920, is 16h 48m 02s. Subtracting 16h 48m 02s from 19h 45m 55s gives
an interval of 2h 57m 53s after noon. From this subtract the correction of 9.86s per
hour for the plus 7h 54m EGMT Interval, and it gives 2h 56m 35s as the plus LMT
Interval. This gives the LMT time of birth at New York as 2:57 p.m.

It will be seen from the above two typical examples that rectification by the Prenatal
Epoch, except when unusual conditions are present, offers no greater mathematical
difficulties than are ordinarily present in the erection of a birth chart.

Occasionally a birth is encountered which does not yield to the simple rules
illustrated above, and then the astrologer’s resourcefulness may be taxed to the limit.
In these complex cases results are more satisfactory if other methods than the
Prenatal Epoch be used to check the accuracy of the birth chart obtained.

Responsibility of the Astrologer to His Client

–Telling the fortune of his client plays a very small part in the work of a reputable
astrologer. Instead, his work largely consists in a careful appraisal of the possibilities
open to his client as revealed by a study of his birth chart and the progressed aspects,
and in offering advice and instructions that will enable him to take the utmost
advantage of such possibilities.

There may be, and often are, conditions arising from the trend of national events and
the activities and fortunes of other people, over which the individual has no control.
And if he is informed of the nature of these events, when they will happen, and the
bearing they will have upon his life, it will give him a certain advantage. With this
knowledge he is able to shape his affairs in advance to conform to these conditions as
they present themselves.

Yet the astrologer should be at some pains to impress upon him that most events
affecting his life are not inevitable. They are attracted to him only because he has
within his astral body thought-cells organized in a definite manner. It lies within his
power to change the thought organization of his astral body, and to divert the energy
of progressed aspects into channels that will enable only such groups of thought-cells
as he chooses to become more than normally active.

The birth chart should be viewed by the astrologer as mapping the natural tendencies
and qualifications with which the individual was born. It is a map of the effect of
previous experiences of the soul. It is not a map of unchanging conditions, but merely
of the character, and power to attract conditions, as they exist at birth.

Yet even so, it reveals the raw materials, so to speak, with which the life begins. From
it the astrologer should be able to discern the avenues of endeavor which will yield
the most satisfactory results from effort expended. And he should advise his client
and instruct him how to proceed, utilizing the raw materials he has, to make the most
of his life.

From the birth chart the astrologer thus should analyze each department of life, and
discern the normal trend of the events attracted as they relate to each of these twelve
departments. This information not only should be used, as indicated, to determine the
line of effort into which the energies should be directed to make the most progress,
but also as a basis for advice which should be given the client on how to remodel the
thought-organizations in the discordant departments of life so that they will cease to
attract misfortune.

Progressed aspects should not be regarded as implying inevitable events, but as
temporary stellar aerials stretching across the astral body that pick up, radio fashion,
new energy, which if not manipulated by the individual, is added to the thought-cells
in his astral body at their terminals.

If the thought-cells, working from the inner plane, are to accomplish much, that is, if
they are to attract events of consequence, they must be supplied with energy. Any
progressed aspect maps an aerial that supplies additional energy and thus enables the
thought-cells of the astral body to do more work. They can attract events of an
importance comparable to the amount of energy thus reaching them. Any progressed
aspect, therefore, offers possibilities for attracting events that otherwise would not be
present.

The problem is, not to prevent the energy picked up by even a discordant temporary
stellar aerial from reaching the astral body, but so to divert, manipulate, or control it
that the resulting activity of the throught-cells it reaches will be harmonious enough
to attract fortunate events instead of disaster.

Even the most discordant temporary energy added to thought-cells in the astral body
which, as shown by powerfully fortunate aspects of the planets mapping them in the
birth chart, are themselves basically fortunate, is not difficult to divert, by the mental
attitude or by harmonious Rallying Forces which may be present, into channels that
will attract considerable good fortune. The astrologer should thus not be hasty to
discourage effort under such conditions; but rather make a careful analysis of how
advantage may be taken of the additional energy.

A more difficult problem is when, from the birth chart and progressed aspect, it is
clear that the energy if left to itself will attract misfortune. But even in such cases
possibilities are open for changing the quality of the new energy through the mental
attitude. Just what those possibilities are, and to what extent his client should as
completely as possible avoid certain activities and certain kinds of environment,
requires keen judgment upon the part of the astrologer.

As the harmony or discord of the thought-cells determines the fortune or misfortune
of the event attracted, to the extent the thought-cells in a given department of life are
given greater harmony, to that extent are the events attracted more fortunate. Such
harmony can be imparted either through the proper application of a Mental Antidote,
or through Conversion, in either method the composition of the thought-cells being
changed; or through the application of harmonious Rallying Forces, by which
process harmonious energies are so completely tuned in on that they reach all
temporary stellar aerials mapped by progressed aspects at the time, and thus find
their way to the stellar cells governing various departments of life.

It thus becomes the work of the astrologer, among other things, to appraise the
possibilities offered by progressed aspects, and to instruct his client how the thought
structure of his astral body can be changed, and the new energies mapped by
progressed aspects manipulated to the best advantage.

Life presents a series of problems to each individual, and the astrologer should be an
expert in assisting people, with his knowledge of astrology and the working of the
unconscious mind, to solve these problems in the most advantageous manner. There
is a best course of action and a best mental attitude under any condition that may
arise; and it is the function of the astrologer to discover these for his client, and to
make them plain to him.

When pointing out to his client the trend of developing conditions which make a
course of action and mental attitude advisable, he should ever bear in mind the power
of suggestion. Instead of instilling the feeling of fear, he should point out the path of
constructive endeavor. His outlook should be that something always can be done,
even under the most adverse conditions, to make them better than they otherwise
would be.

To the extent the astrologer is able to assist people, through his advice, to overcome
the limitations otherwise imposed by their birth charts, to escape the afflictions
otherwise attracted by the temporary stellar aerials mapped by progressed aspects,
and to attain usefulness, happiness and spirituality, is he justified in considering
himself successful in his calling.

Thus will he assist others, as well as himself, to CONTRIBUTE THEIR UTMOST
TO UNIVERSAL WELFARE.