Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Urania

Occasionally I ask myself what's the source of my longtime interest in astrology. My parents had no knowledge of the subject, nor did any close relative that I know of. None of my contemporaries have ever shown the slightest interest. The only people I've known who cared about astrology at all were a few work friends, none of whom were of my own generation.

Discussions of where astrology is to be found in a natal chart come up frequently on astrology forums. Many people seek to identify a source for their love of the subject, seeing it reflected in their own astrology must prove very satisfying. I've often looked for clues in my own.

Aquarian Sun with Uranus conjunct South Node of Moon might be a helpful start. Aquarius and Uranus have been said to have links with astrology. Countless people with Sun in Aquarius couldn't care less about my favourite subject though, so there's more to it than that. My Moon in Aries didn't, on first thought, seem helpful in this regard, but I made a recent discovery - Asteroid Urania lies very close to my natal Moon. This celestial body was named for the Muse of Astronomy (and by association astrology). Natal position of Urania can be checked at Extended Chart Section of Astro.com. Urania is #30 in the list of asteroids there.

Urania, as I came into the world, lay at 20.58 Aries, around 3 degrees from natal Moon, and trine Venus in Sagittarius. Does this solve the puzzle as to the source of my keen astrological interest? Whether it does or not, it works for me. I rather like the idea ! And whether there's an astrological reason for my love of astrology or not, it will continue, of that I am absolutely confident.

"In Greek mythology, Urania (Ουρανία), which means "heavenly", was the muse of astronomy and astrology. She is usually depicted as having a globe in her left hand and a peg in the right, and her foot on a turtle, symbol of silence. She is able to foretell the future by the position of the stars. She is often associated with Universal Love and the Holy Spirit. She is dressed in a cloak embroidered with stars and keeps her eyes and attention focused on the Heavens. Those who are most concerned with philosophy and the heavens are dearest to her." (See here)



Above: Urania, Muse of Astronomy (from Henry Peacham's 1612 Minerva Brittana)

Top:Small photograph of statue in the Vatican: Urania, Muse of astronomy. Marble, head and torso: Roman copies after Greek originals from the 4th century BC, rest of the body: modern restoration. The head does not belong to the body
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

coolio

Twilight said...

Anonymous ~~~

:-)