Thank you both Khem and Pitch for your detailed replies. This is a
really interesting thread.
I still don't think we have got to the why of this question. Why should
we proceed in the order of the zodiac, the seasons, the Coriolis force
or the winds? Why should we follow, or not, the direction of the sun?
To answer this I think we need to consider what it is we are doing when
erecting a circle. Yes, we are creating a sacred space, but what are the
referent/s?
Some thoughts on this. If one was working a nature based rite, saw
Wiccan, then I can see why one would want to follow the sun, and why the
seasons would be important. In such traditions one is describing sacred
space as a mirror of the physical shape of the universe. I can also see
why one might want to have Fire in the North (for the Southern
Hemisphere), but what would be the rationale for placing the other
elements on the points of the compass? Some Wiccans who contributed to
my research said they would always place Fire where the Sun was, and
moreover that they would alter their directional elemental attributions
depending on the physical location. e.g. if the sea was to their East
they would place Water there. If a landmass was to their West they would
place Earth there. Some said they would never alter the directional
attributions from those set down in the source material of their
tradition, even if it meant that Fire was in the South in the Southern
Hemisphere. These people were those who also said they didn't know why
the attributions were as they were.
If one was working a more Qabbalistic rite I suggest one would be less
inclined to adapt one's directional attributions depending on the
physical environment. In such traditions one is describing sacred space
as a mirror of the spiritual shape of the universe. One might then
choose to maintain the order of the elements as they occur in the order
of the four worlds, the suits of the Tarot and the Cardinal signs of the
Zodiac. i.e. FWAE. Some Ceremonial Magicians who contributed to my
research said exactly this. While others simply said they would use
what was put down in the source material by, say Regardie.
Regards,
Morgan Leigh
PhD Candidate
School of Sociology and Social Work
University of Tasmania
On 13/05/2012 4:11 AM, Khem Caigan wrote:
> Morgan Leigh doth schreibble :
>>
>> Very interesting. However I have to suggest that there is a problem with
>> using the seasons rather than the zodiac. That is that there aren't four
>> seasons everywhere, while the zodiac never changes, except in the
>> direction it rises.
>>
>> Hardly anywhere here in Australia has four seasons. Many Aboriginal
>> cultures describe six, or even eight, seasons...
>
> Hi, Morgan!
>
>
> Once again, when I speak of the Four Seasons, I am
> speaking as a practitioner of Ptolemaic / Hellenic /
> Hermetic / Mediaeval / Tropical / Daemonic Astrology,
> and of Astral Magic.
>
> The Twelve Signs of the Tropical Zodiac uniformly span
> thirty degrees each. Some of the Twelve Constellations,
> on the other hand, occupy more or less space on the
> three-hundred-and-sixty degrees of the Ecliptic.
>
> And, as Schmidt and some others have pointed out (see:
> Stephen Schmidt, *Astrology 14: Your New Sun Sign*,
> Pyramid Books, 1971 <http://tinyurl.com/ygfj5lq>),
> there are one or two other Constellations that overlap
> the Ecliptic besides the Twelve Constellations whose
> names coincide with the Twelve Signs that have been
> employed by Tropical Astrologers over the past couple
> of millenia (see Jim Tester's *History of Western
> Astrology*, page 14 < http://tinyurl.com/cpp3t8x>).
>
> Similarly, the interval between the two Equinoxes and
> the two Solstices is uniformly 90 degrees - for example,
> the arc from the Vernal Equinox to Summer Solstice spans
> three Signs: Aries, Taurus & Gemini. These are the
> three Signs of Spring <in the Northern Hemisphere> that
> you will find in the upper right-hand corner of the
> Astral Rebis figure at the link below:
>
> http://tinyurl.com/yjrkbgb
>
> The interval from Summer Solstice to Autumnal Equinox
> covers the three Signs of Summer <in the Northern
> Hemisphere>: Cancer, Leo & Virgo.
>
> The interval from Autumnal Equinox to Winter Solstice
> covers the three Signs of Autumn <in the Northern
> Hemisphere>: Libra, Scorpio & Sagittarius.
>
> The interval from Winter Solstice to Vernal Equinox
> covers the three Signs of Winter <in the Northern
> Hemisphere>: Capricorn, Aquarius & Pisces.
>
> Hope this helps clear up some of the confusion arising
> from my use of the term "Season".
>
> Cors in Manu Domine,
>
>
> ~ Khem Caigan
> <[log in to unmask]>
>
> "Heat and Moisture are Active to Generation;
> Cold and Dryness are Passive, in and to each Thing;
> Fire and Air, Active by Elementation;
> Water and Earth, Passive to Generation."
>
> *Of the Division of Chaos*
> -Dr. Simon Forman
--
|