Position of the Sun

The Position of the Sun

It appears there is a cycle within the zodiac that is older than Egyptian myths and yet, still can be found in our modern Christian calendar. It is the cycle of the birth of the Sun/Son. This is our invitation to you to participate in the annual re-birth of the initiate , this is played out every new  year. Based on the actual cycle of human gestation, the zodiac celebrates the return of the Sun/Son, reborn every winter solstice growing and thriving until the old kings death at summer’s eve or summer solstice. We then enter the introspective half of the year where internal changes takes place.

If you follow the stellar year, the Zodiac starts at the end of March with the sign of Aries, the Pagan Spring celebration of Easter/Oester, and then ends with a baby being born at Christmas or at winter solstice. Note these are the nine months of gestation. Many modern Christian holidays were overlaid onto this Egyptian/Druid/Judeo-Christian year. January brings a moment of empty quiet in which to recharge and February, a moment of silence and quickening before the cycle starts anew. Each year we have the opportunity to relive this cycle of the birth and death with the zodiac, and be changed and inspired by it.

Other faiths around the world celebrate this same cycle of life, death and rebirth in their festivals for the same holidays (holy days) based on the solar year, or one revolution of the sun through the zodiac. It appears that at very special moments during the year, humanity around the planet celebrates identical spiritual milestones regardless of our differing faiths.

An important point to remember is that when the sun is said to be in a certain sign of the zodiac, the ancients really meant that it occupied the opposite sign and cast its long ray of light into the opposite sign. Therefore, when it is said that the sun is in Gemini, it means (astrologically) that the sun is physically in the sign opposite, or Sagittarius. 

This is why opposing signs are so important to take into account. The opposing sign means the opposite side of the zodiac. In our current age of Pisces, our opposing sign is Virgo and we all know how women have fared these last 2,148 years. Perhaps in the Age of Aquarius women will take their rightful place in harmony with men, as the opposing sign here is Leo or the symbol of royalty, also the great heart of the Universe. This age of Aquarius will be a time of instant communication, group work, no more individual spiritual quests but group enlightenment and a need to  balance our heart with our head.

Changing North

In space, our Earth not only feels the gravitational pull of the Sun, but it also feels the gravitational effect of the Moon. Our Moon may be much smaller than our Sun, but it is much much closer. Since our Earth is not completely solid, centrifugal force causes the equator to bulge in response to the pull of the Sun and the Moon. This undulating gravitational force causes the Earth to wobble as it spins around it axis, just like a spinning top that is almost toppling over.

 Technically, this wobble is called precession. Precession means each 26,000-years (one cycle), the direction in the sky to which the Earth’s axis points true North goes around a big circle. In other words, precession changes the “North Star” as seen from Earth. The precession of the Earth's axis has a number of observable effects. 

Thus, while today the star Polaris lies approximately at the exact north celestial pole, this will change over time, and other stars will become the "north star". This is why the spiritual student or light worker orients him/herself to the East, and the Master to the North. This is also why many churches are oriented to the rising sun in the East. 

Solstices

Once a year we can observe the longest day and shortest night of the year (summer solstice) and again the shortest day and longest night (winter solstice). On these days the Sun also can be measured to reach its highest or lowest annual altitude above the horizon at noon. 

The word solstice comes to us from the Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still), because, at the solstices, the Sun appears to stand still on the horizon for three days until it can be observed to reverse direction towards the next season. This is why the Sun/Son born at Christmas is celebrated threes days after the solstice of the 21st, ancient humanity held its breath waiting each winter to see if the Sun would reverse its course to head back towards summer. Equally at Midsummer the Old King dies and the Sun begins its slow decline towards winter. There is also a connection here for Christ’s three days in the tomb at Easter or Spring Equinox.

Equinoxes

There are two equinoxes each year, one in the Spring and one in the Fall. They are the only moment when we can observe a noontime shadow (where the center of the Sun can be observed exactly overhead) crosses the Equator moving northward at the March equinox and crosses the Equator moving southward at the September equinox. The word "equinox" is derived from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night), because we can also observe on these days, night and day are equal of length.

 Zodiacal Ages

Far from being a system that never changes. Humanity has observed over thousands of years that the equinoxes (or days when daylight and nighttime are equal) appear to travel backwards through the zodiac. Myth and folklore around the world speak of vast cycles of time and describe alternating Dark and Golden Ages. 

An astrological age is a period of time in which astrological phenomena parallel major changes in the development of Earth's inhabitants, particularly relating to religion, culture, society and politics. There are twelve astrological ages corresponding to the twelve signs of the zodiac. At the close of one cycle of twelve astrological ages, the cycle repeats itself.

Many astrologers believe we are now in the Age of Aquarius or will be in the near future.

Age of Cancer          (8,728 – 6,580 BC)             The Crab
Age of Gemini          (6,580 – 4,432 BC)             The Twins
Age of Taurus          (4,432 – 2,284 BC)             The Bull
Age of Aries             (2,284 – 136 BC)                The Ram
Age of Pisces           (136 BC – 2,012 AD)           The Fishes
Age of Aquarius       (2,012 AD – 4,160 AD)        The Water-Bearer

                       

For example, we are currently experiencing beginning waves of energy for the beginning cycle of the Aquarian Age. About 2,148 years ago, the "Bethlehem Star" marked the dawning of the Age of Pisces, the Fish. About 2,148 years prior to that, Moses helped usher in the Age of Aries, the Ram. Two millennia prior to that, the Egyptians rose to power in the Age of Taurus, the Bull (Ba'al).

In the age of Pisces, the fish became an important symbol for Christianity.  Remember that Jesus was called the lamb of God, that is, a child coming out of the Age of Aries. His symbol though is Icthus – or the fish. His birth was announced by three kings or the three stars found in constellation of Orion’s belt. They point to Sirius or the star of Bethlehem.        

According to the Vedas, sacred texts from India, which are some of the most ancient texts in the world, these cycles are called “Yugas”. They say we are currently at the end of the Kali yuga.  Kali, or "age of vice" or “iron age”, the last of four stages that the world must go through before it can rise up a step, it is currently at its lowest point before starting an upward swing. The Vedic yugas are:

·         Satya Yuga

·         Treta Yuga

·         Dwapar Yuga

·         Kali Yuga

Temple of Dendra 

One of the oldest depictions of the full Zodiac, is a bas-relief  found on the ceiling of a chapel dedicated to Osiris in the Hathor Temple complex in Dendra, Egypt. It was created around 50 BC. It is interesting to note that the star patterns shown here are the oldest complete sky map we have found to date.  We can clearly see the fish, the bull, the lion, Sagittarius, Capricorn and Gemini. It is currently on display at the Musée du Louvre, Paris.