by Marilyn Muir, LPMAFA
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In the Sumerian civilization, the knowledge of the circular nature of the planet and the solar system was known as proven by a relic, an actual Akkadian seal from the third millennium B.C. For some reason, only seven bodies in the inner part of the solar system including the Sun (the star around which the system orbits) were used in classical astrology. Those were the bodies that were visible to ancient man’s naked eye observations. The main body of astrological teachings and information were based on those seven bodies. In recent years the discovery of new bodies started slowly and accelerated to thousands per month. Thank goodness the rate of discovery has somewhat slowed. It will take an enormous amount of time to develop concrete astrological definitions as sheer quantity has tested our ability to research and individually define quickly.
An important thing is happening here. These new objects are part of a system that developed 4.5 billion years ago. There is an old saying, “There is nothing new under the Sun”, that suggests that nothing new is invented that did not somehow pre-exist the invention itself. The keyword is discovery, not invention. We discovered electricity, we did not invent it. All the matter in the solar system was in existence, but all the matter was not and is still not visible. Regardless of how these objects were brought to our conscious attention, capturing their location and trajectory made more objects visible, each requiring identification and definition. These objects pre-existed their discovery, so they were out there somewhere, we just didn’t realize they were there. If they had an identity, a purpose and a distinguishable energy, it was operating in the dark or in an unconscious manner. Once they became visible, they literally became conscious to us. That which is unconscious is dealt with in an unconscious way. That which becomes conscious must now be dealt with in a conscious way. Briefly:
- The Sun (which is our star), our Moon (which is our satellite) and the five inner planets (not including the Earth) were the basis of astronomy and astrology down through the centuries. The system used to define them has changed through the ages, but the seven bodies have been well known.
- Comets have been witnessed, named and recorded throughout history. They were thought to be harbingers of disaster for countries and their leaders. Astronomers and citizens identified long period and short period comets, their cyclic nature and their effect on human experience. There were 3648 known comets as of May, 2009 and more are regularly being discovered. It is thought there are a trillion comets.
- Several moons (satellites) of the giant planets were first identified in the 1600s.
- In 1781 Uranus was discovered along with more moons of various planets.
- In 1801 the first asteroid was discovered – 1 Ceres – the largest body in the asteroid belt. Asteroids are thought to be different from comets in that comets appear to come from the left-over debris of the formation of the solar system at the outer reaches of our system. Asteroids appear to come from the inner reaches of the solar system where the main planets and the act of original formation reside.
- In 1802 the second asteroid was discovered – 2 Pallas – which is larger than Pluto.
- In 1804 the third asteroid was discovered – Juno.
- In 1807 the fourth asteroid was discovered – Vesta – the second largest body in the asteroid belt.
- In 1845 the fifth asteroid was discovered – Astraea – and the pace of discovery picked up. For a time, the monthly rate was in the thousands, but has since slowed down.
- In 1846 Neptune was discovered, as well as more moons.
- In 1930 Pluto was discovered, named a planet and the pace of discovery accelerated.
- In 1977 Chiron was discovered. First thought to be an asteroid, then a comet, it is currently classified as both. It is the largest of the comets.
- 90733 Sedna (neighbor of Pluto and dwarf planet) was discovered in 2003, and the list continues.
As each body becomes clearly identified, its status changes from invisible to visible, from unconscious to conscious. What does that mean to us in terms of experience? When a planet, asteroid or comet is not visible to us, therefore unconscious, its effect is just not known to us. There is not a lack of effect when a planet is invisible, we just cannot consciously identify that effect. When a planet becomes visible, we then have the opportunity to observe its’ behavior and effect and a body of information can be developed. We can go back in recorded human history, once a body has been identified, to see how it has affected us and what it has meant to us in our largely unconscious past. That way we can make what was unconscious, conscious. Once we have done that, we can now weave that energy and pattern into our knowns and our ongoing experience.
When Uranus was discovered, it was at the time of the American and the French Revolutions, the emergence of man’s drive to govern himself and not just be governed. It signaled the new paradigm that became the industrial revolution and the roadway to the future. So many inventions and discoveries that are currently a normal part of our culture were initiated. Most importantly, the drive for freedom and equality motivated humans to reach for a better life and for the future. Mankind had longed for individual freedoms and the ability to better their lives for the future for centuries but in a less visible, less strident way. Once the planet that represented that independence, that freedom, that willingness to risk became visible, we had to act on it.
When Neptune was discovered, the absolute confusion that was the lead-up period to the Civil War was in progress. That was a slippery slope as a clear direction eluded our country. Brother fought brother and slavery was a tinderbox issue. We almost destroyed ourselves as we acted on the inspiration for a better way but fought each other on how to manifest it. There were epidemics, a flowering of philosophy and religion, discovery of medicines and medical advances, the invention of photography which eventually led to the films, television and videos we now take for granted. The photograph was a false impression of a human. It was a flat representation of a whole person but not the person itself. At times we get caught in the delusions we create. We again went to school for the unconscious in us, but this time for Neptune principles. We certainly have made them visible and conscious.
When Pluto was discovered, we had already been involved in a World War (I) and were closing in on the Great Depression with all the financial mishandling by supposedly noble capitalists. Mobsters almost took control of areas of our country and the FBI was introduced to control the crime. Research began on rockets and nuclear weapons, which led to the use of the A-bomb in World War II. Psychology was rising through the ranks of its development, which allowed us to start searching out our inner demons, to come to grips with unconscious drives and forces that were surfacing in humanity. Man’s inhumanity to man became visible and conscious and we have been struggling with understanding and controlling those drives. Man has had those negatives latent within him and some of them have now surfaced. In order for us to heal, we must recognize, know and understand those drives. The more we discover, the more we make those unconscious drives and needs conscious. Today we must know and not just believe – an Aquarian theme for the new age of enlightenment.
The comets and asteroids also contribute qualities that are raising our consciousness and should be researched and applied just as planets are. We know less about them and are developing their meanings, but they are visible. They are conscious. We must learn how to live with them and their messages.
Comets have been with us for centuries, with lots of recorded sightings and observations of the effect on man’s experience. Comets were thought to be celestial messengers that indicated the rise and fall of rulers and countries. When Halley’s Comet revealed itself last time (February, 1986), the skeptics laughed at the concept of the rise or fall of a leader or a country. But history shows the fall of Jean-Claude Duvalier of Haiti (February, 1986) and Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines (also February, 1986). For something that is scoffed at by skeptics, this is a pretty amazing set of coincidences, is it not?
The physical effect of comets was seriously debated until 1994 when the fragments of the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet impacted on Jupiter, one right after the other with devastating effects on that giant planet. No longer was there any doubt that a comet landing could make an amazing impact. When we landed on the comet on July 4, 2005 (Deep Impact), we really made comets conscious in our human awareness. Now we must understand their effect on mankind in a conscious way.
We have found so many kinds of asteroids in so many places both far away and close enough to affect Earth and its inhabitants. Due to the possibility of impact we are making close scientific observations and planning our response should an Earth grazer come too close. As I write this, an asteroid or a piece of space debris is due to pass close to the Earth, something like 80,000 miles (that’s between us and our Moon). We ignore these bodies or debris at our peril. They have always been there and have affected our Earth and the other planets and moons from the beginning of the formation of the solar system. They now must become part of our consciousness and a part of our knowns just as a matter of survival.
When an object is invisible and unknown, it has its’ effect on us in a similar unconscious manner. At our rapid rate of discovery, we are hard-pressed to make so much conscious so fast. When we go out and smack a planet, an asteroid, a satellite, or a comet, we make it personal. Can we handle a similar response from the universe? Consciousness is the answer and the time is now.
Published on EZine online January, 2010, republished with slight editing.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.