Thursday, June 24, 2010

INTUITION

British Astrologer C.E.O.Carter had this to say about intuition in his "little green book" An Encyclopaedia of Psychological Astrology
In a general sense intuition, or the power of perceiving certain truths without the ordinary process of investigation and reasoning, would probably come under Uranus and Neptune, especially in connection with the 9th house.

He goes on to warn that "truths" intuitively grasped are subjective - what may be a truth to one person can be a fallacy to another. He also says
The word "intuition" is often used when "instinct" is meant, as when it is said that someone is "intuitively" disliked.
He considers that heavy afflictions to Mercury, and, in religious and occult matters, to Jupiter Uranus and Neptune, will cloud intuition:
...the native will only reach the truth, if at all, after many mistakes.
I suspect that there are various levels of intuition, ranging from a quite rational but rapid analysis of a situation or person, based on minute details subconsciously perceived by extremely sharp observation, processed in a nanosecond. That'd be at one end of the scale. At the other end of the scale, truly psychic insights arising from exceptional, almost clairvoyant skills. Both levels, and all those inbetween, will involve Mercury, that's for sure. A strongly placed Mercury, challenged by few or no difficult aspects must surely be a basic requirement. After that, I'd say a lot depends on the sign/element placements of Sun and Moon, maybe ascendant too. Water or Air are going to be the easiest elements in which intuition can blossom well. Earth and Fire seem too direct and outwardly active. Yet the analytical skills of Virgo might be instrumental in that first level of intuition, the kind arising from minute, almost unrealised observations.

C.E.O. Carter specifies Uranus and Neptune as other significant planets involved in intuitive ability. Easy aspects between those planets and Mercury will be a definite "plus", especially if one or both lie on or near to the angles (ascendant, midheaven, descendant and nadir) or conjoining one of the Moon's nodes. These are all extra-sensitive points in the natal chart.

Chatting about this subject with Himself brought up the comment that females are generally more intuitive than males. He thinks this stems from a male dislike of being thought "limp-wristed" or overly-feminine. Intuitive ability can be masculine too, I pointed out. Think of jazz musicians improvising, they intuit what others in the group will play and how to complement it. And any sportsman in a sport involving others can, and probably does, gain considerable advantage by using intuition. Perhaps these men just don't call their intuition...intuition.

It's more than likely that we all have the potential within us to be intuitive, but some don't accept this, so fail to use it. Astrological placements and aspects are going to be instrumental in such lack of acceptance. Difficult aspects, in most cases, can be worked on and overcome, but the wish to do so must be strong.

As for me, I think I have, and use, some low level intuition. In my natal chart Mercury is near the descendant angle, in trine to Neptune and also, widely, to Uranus. All three are in Earth signs though. Had these planets been found in Water signs I might have become a psychic phenomenon!

The intuitive mind is a sacred gift
and the rational mind is a faithful servant.
We have created a society that honors the servant
and has forgotten the gift.

-Albert Einstein
.

(Edited and adapted from a 2007 archived post)

12 comments:

gian paul said...

919Being involved with astrology and the question of destiny for many years now, the mystery of intuition or foresight, I believe, is crucial to understanding life itself.

Your comment's and citation of C.E.O. Carter lead me to the following reflections (I happen to have Neptune conj. MC exactly trine Uranus/Venus, conj. DC, and all in air-signs):

Without knowing, all human beings have what some psychatrists, notably Jung, have described as some link to an "overself".

Plotinus, a Greek 3 d. century thinker, has a definite understanding of this type of "superior link" or inter-relation of one's day-to-day ego with what is leading/guiding us in our lives.

Intuition, be it in business or astrological consultation or sports (an excellent, earthbound comment you make) or religion and meditation is , I believe, always linked to destiny. Given that all is related to destiny, closely or not so closely, depending mostly on ones perception.

I state here my personal beliefs, tested so to say out of necessity. In no way can I today imagine that astrology could "function" without the reality of destiny or the small building blocks like intuition or faith or hope which make this all up.

Taking hope as an example: if it's illusionary, or totally unrealistic, it deserves not to lead to success (the "Tower" in the language of the Tarot). If on the contrary hope is linked to some intuition (your Halliburton post, Twilight), it can be a mighty energy leading to the fulfillment of somebody's destiny. This, easily with hindsight, may then be explained by astrological interpretation.

Wisewebwoman said...

Wow, T! Both of us on the same page, so to speak.
I've always loved that Einstein quote, how true, particularly in today's world where we are all slaves to the material neglecting the "other", who is all wise and knowing.
As I read your enlightening post, it got my brain riffing off on affinity to water, which is the moon and all things lunar which I find extraordinarily strong in myself. Which seems to be in opposition to the fire within.
Just riffin'.
XO
WWW
ps And I LOVE how you connected intuition to jazz, my dear!!

Twilight said...

gian paul ~~~ Great comment, gp!
Thank you!

Destiny - the idea of it - has me in two minds. I can easily accept what you have said about it though, and that intuition is one of its building blocks.

Thanks for reading the Halliburton post - I found him an interesting subject, and he certainly found his destiny. I hope that in the process he didn't also shape ours......and our downfall bearing in mind the tragedy now unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico.

On this my intuition says that we'll get another chance - but only a very slim one, and if we don't take it....the consequences don't bear thinking about.

Twilight said...

WWW ~~ Thanks :-)

Your astrological Water - if I recall correctly - comes from a Moon in Pisces. Mutable Water - more easily compatible with Fire I guess, soft and easy, dreamy Water.

Michelle said...

I don't agree about Fire signs not being intuitive. Intuition is immediate cognition without rational thought:
http://www.answers.com/topic/intuition

Who better than Fire to achieve the immediate?

I totally agree about instinct and intuition being used interchangeably.
I often think that Water is credited with being intuitive while really being instinctive. They have gut level knowing and response- not direct perception. Signs like Cancer and Scorpio seem to have strong instincts- they feel what they don't know. Intuition, imo, has nothing to do with feelings. The exception, I think, is Pisces because its connection with Neptune.

Air seems the least intuitive, or instinctual, because they run everything through their minds first- the exception being Aquarius because of its connection to Uranus. Uranus connections speed up cognition processes and help a person to skip steps to reach understanding. Neptune connections blur boundaries and make the unknowable, knowable.

That's my 2 cents :D

Twilight said...

Michelle ~~ Hi! thank you for your input.

I see your point about Fire signs, but I'm still wary about this.

Wiki says
(Intuition) is the apparent ability to acquire knowledge without inference or the use of reason. The word 'intuition' comes from the Latin word 'intueri', which is often roughly translated as meaning 'to look inside'’ or 'to contemplate'." Intuition provides us with beliefs that we cannot necessarily justify

It's a tricky area, I do agree, and can be explained in more than one way - as can most astrological interpretations. ;-)

The rapid-fire intuiting of something - as is needed to excel in sport for instance, could certianly relate to Fire. I can see that.

And quick analytical assessments, that often seem like intuition, could come naturally to Air particularly Aquarius, and I think Gemini.

(Not talking about Sun signs here though!)

Water - agreed - definitely instinctive, but might also be intutive with the right mix in a chart.

As you say instinct and intuition have a grey area between- sometimes people do use a blend of the two, I guess.

Twilight said...

Michelle- Forgot to say - I'll add your blog to my links in the sidebar .

Michelle said...

Thank you so much.

Just one more bit- and I have Virgo rising- analysis requires forethought, it requires thinking, so, in my mind, it's not the same as intuition.

Thinking about this topic more today, it occurred to me that people probably have layers of cognitive ability depending on how many of each element (plus aspects, etc...) they have. So a person might be primarily empathic, then intuitive, then have a great big bag of common sense :D

Michelle said...

I thought I already had your blog in my blogroll, but I didn't, so I just added it :D

gian paul said...

Instinct - Intuition: If the frontiers there appear sometimes blurred, it's that our level of perception, or of consciousness is often quite low.

Instinct is "animal", serves survival. Physical and not much more than that.

Intuition and insight, both are related, have an inward orientation, non-material. A difficulty arises here for whom believes that Heaven is "up-there". Not so for whom conceives that Heaven might be within ourselves.

The astrological element of a given sign, under this perspective, has in my view little importance, other then to influence the way intuition may be recognized and expressed.

If Water appears more intuitive, it's that being more sensitive, it recognizes intuition probably in it's finer stages.

Earth (have to think of Moon in Virgo or Mercury in Taurus) may have very penetrating intuition/insights, much firmer than a water oriented person.

Fire now doubt has as many intuitions then the others, only it might "burn the signposts" instead of following them, particularly Aries (me).

Air oriented: Needs to listen to his/her intuitions and believe in them. Too much thinking or analysis is obstructive.

Twilight said...

Michelle - Oh -thank you for linking!

Yes, I'm with you on the idea of layering.

Very few of us are "single-lane" beings, we're more like those often scary highways with 12 lanes in each direction, and crossovers, interchanges, tunnels etc.

:-)

Twilight said...

gian paul ~ thank you for some valuable further insights.
:-)

I like the way you describe the elements in relation to intuition.

I always feel "safe" using the elements to help solve any astrological conundrum. As you say (if I understand you correctly) in this case the elements may be indicating how and whether we recognise intuition, rather than having any influence upon intuition directly....eg -whether a person is likely to be intuitive or not.