ASTROSOPHY

A brief overview of current research

with particular reference to the astrosophical research program

ASTROFIRE*

Robert Powell

The Sophia Foundation of North America was founded and exists to help usher in the new Age of Sophia and the corresponding Sophianic culture, the Rose of the World, prophesied by Daniel Andreev and other spiritual teachers. Part of the work of the Sophia Foundation is the cultivation of a new star wisdom, Astro-Sophia (astrosophy), now arising in our time in response to the descent of Sophia, who is the bearer of Divine Wisdom just as Christ (the Logos or the Lamb) is the bearer of Divine Love. Like the star wisdom of antiquity, astrosophy is sidereal, which means “of the stars”. Astrosophy, inspired by Divine Sophia descending from stellar heights, directs our consciousness to the glory and majesty of the starry heavens, to encompass the entire celestial sphere of our cosmos and, beyond this, to the galactic realm – the realm referred to by Daniel Andreev as “the heights of our universe” – from which Sophia has descended on her path of approach into our cosmos. Sophia draws our attention not only to the star mysteries of the heights but also to the cosmic mysteries connected with Christ’s deeds of redemption wrought two thousand years ago. To penetrate these mysteries is the purpose of the yearly Christian Star Calendar. Something of these mysteries is indicated in the following words of Rudolf Steiner:

The Egyptians sensed the tragedy of the veiled Isis: No mortal has ever lifted her veil. This meant that during life no human being could attain to that which Isis expressed. She represented the spiritual forces which do not descend upon the earth, which the human being could find only in spiritual worlds. The Egyptians saw these heavenly forces at work in the surrounding kingdoms of nature – whence came, for example, their animal worship – but they knew that the heavenly forces work in the human being only after death and that only then is the human being able to experience the forces belonging to heaven. In the fourth post-Atlantean period [through the Christ events] the forces which never before had worked into a human being descended into humanity. Even if one cannot say that Sophia Maria, the mother of Christ Jesus, was Isis, she nevertheless represents Isis, because those heavenly forces worked on earth – for the first time in her, and then in other human beings – those heavenly forces which since that time, with the help of the motherly organism, unite with the Father forces coming from the earth. So, since then, that which the Egyptians felt could be attained only after death has come to the earth. Thus the kingdom of heaven has come to the earth and here on earth the veil of Isis can be lifted by whoever has the Christ force within. [1]

Astrosophy is a deepening and extension of astronomy and astrology. Astrosophical researchers are those who are working on the basis of research indications for a new star wisdom (astrosophy). A great stimulus to the development of astrosophy was received through the work of Willi Sucher (1902-1985). [2] In the 1930s Willi Sucher was encouraged and supported to do astrosophical research by Elisabeth Vreede (1879-1943),[3] who had been appointed in 1923 by Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925)[4] to lead the Mathematical-Astronomical Section of the School of Spiritual Science established in Switzerland in 1924.

Astrosophy is a vast subject, and here it is possible to give only a brief overview of some of the basic research tools. One of the main innovations in astrosophy, arising from Willi Sucher’s research, is the astrological biography, which in turn depends upon the calculation of the horoscope of conception, computed retrogressively from the birth horoscope by applying the ancient Egyptian hermetic rule.[5] In addition to computing a person’s horoscope of conception (epoch chart) and astrological biography, astrosophical researchers work not only with the usual geocentric horoscope of traditional astrology but also with the heliocentric and hermetic horoscopes.[6] The discovery of two astrological “laws” of incarnation[7] confirms Willi Sucher’s finding that the heliocentric planetary positions at the moment of a person’s birth and conception are just as significant as the geocentric planetary positions. The StarFire research group is concerned with making the findings of Willi Sucher and others working in the field of developing a new star wisdom more well known as well as pursuing ongoing astrosophical research (see report following this article).[8]

As an aid to astrosophical research, the yearly Christian Star Calendar provides a computation of the planetary positions geocentrically and heliocentrically on a daily basis,[9] based on the original zodiac of twelve equal-length constellations/signs, known as the sidereal zodiac,[10] that originated with the Babylonians and was used also by the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, and which is still used to the present day in Indian (Hindu) astrology. The approach to astrosophy exemplified in the yearly Christian Star Calendar, making all computations in the framework of the sidereal zodiac, is “astronomer friendly”, since there is an agreement between astronomical observation and the planetary positions indicated day by day in the calendar.

Decans and Nakshatras (Lunar Mansions): Following Alexander the Great’s conquest of Babylon in 331 B.C., the way was paved for the transmission of Babylonian science to Hellenistic Egypt. With the transmission to Egypt of the sidereal zodiac, originally defined by the Babylonians as twelve 30° signs specified by the location of the star Aldebaran (the “Bull’s eye”) at the center (15°) of the sign of Taurus, the Egyptian decans became assimilated to the Babylonian sidereal zodiac in such a way that three decans became related to each zodiacal sign, with each decan occupying 10° or one-third of a zodiacal sign.

By the Hellenistic period the twelve zodiacal signs had become a well-defined coordinate system in Babylonian mathematical astronomy, on which the computations of Hellenistic astrology were based. One may conjecture that, when these doctrines reached Egypt, the native priests claimed to have had from time immemorial the equivalent of the zodiacal belt in the form of the belt of decans...Thus the decans, in their last, Hellenistic phase, became simply 10° sections of the zodiacal signs.[11]

The assimilation of the decans to the signs of the zodiac is represented on the circular zodiac of Dendera, from the Temple of Hathor (circa 30 B.C.), now in the Louvre Museum, which portrays the thirty-six decans in relation to the twelve zodiacal signs, where the decans are arranged circularly around the outside of the twelve zodiacal figures.

Those astrosophical researchers who wish to work with the Egyptian decans can easily do so by using the sidereal zodiac and simply dividing the signs into 10° sections to obtain the 36 decans.[12]

Practically all fundamental concepts and methods of ancient astronomy, for the better or the worse, can be traced back either to Babylonian or to Greek astronomy. In other words, none of the other civilizations of antiquity, which have otherwise contributed so much to the material and artistic culture of the world, have ever reached an independent level of scientific thought. Only into astrology were incorporated two remnants of pre-scientific astronomical lore from other than Mesopotamian or Greek background: the thirty-six Egyptian “decans” and the twenty-eight Indian “lunar mansions” (nakshatras).[13]

The Egyptian decans are of considerable antiquity. Similarly, the Indian lunar mansions have a history possibly dating back to around the beginning of the last millennium of the pre-Christian era. The twenty-eight lunar mansions or nakshatras are alluded to in the Vedas. Seeking favour of the twenty-eight-fold wondrous ones, shining in the sky together, ever-moving, hasting in the creation, I worship with songs the days, the firmament.[14]

As in the Egyptian decan lists, the earliest lists of nakshatras associate each lunar mansion with a presiding deity, e.g. the deity of Krittika, the first nakshatra in the Vedic lists, is Agni.[15] The Pleiades in the constellation of Taurus (marking the neck of the Bull) are the stellar determinants of Krittika.[16] (Originally the Egyptian decans were not rigorously defined but were only loosely associated with certain stars or groupings of stars, and likewise the nakshatras originally were only loosely identified with specific stars or stellar configurations). Just as the contribution of the Egyptian priests to star lore was the 36 decans (“solar mansions”) following the passage of the Sun in relation to the heliacal rising of certain stars, beginning with Sirius, through 10-day periods during the course of the year, so the contribution of the Vedic priests was originally a list of twenty-eight nakshatras (“lunar mansions”) as a descriptive device for following the passage of the Moon through the stars during the course of a sidereal month which lasts 27⅓ days, signifying that the Moon spends approximately one day in each nakshatra.

Thus, India, Egypt and Mesopotamia each contributed sidereal divisions that later became incorporated as standard elements into astrology. From Egypt and India came the thirty-six decans and the twenty-eight lunar mansions, respectively. The lunar mansions (nakshatras) and the decans, however, both became assimilated into the sidereal division which originated with the Babylonians: the zodiac, with twelve 30° signs. The relationship of the 28 nakshatras to the sidereal zodiac is an interesting one, which allows one to gain an overview of the 28 nakshatras (lunar mansions) used by the Vedic priests.[17]

As a wonderful aid to astrosophical research, the computer programs ASTRO and ASTROFIRE written by Peter Treadgold and forming the basis for the computations given in the yearly Christian Star Calendar, should be mentioned.[18] Both readily allow the implementation of the astrosophical research areas outlined above. In relation to ASTRO, there are several new features in ASTROFIRE, two of the most significant one’s being:

(1)   the inclusion of a star catalog; and

(2)   the inclusion of a database of birth and death data of historical personalities.

ASTROFIRE’S STAR CATALOG  includes over 3000 stars – primarily those that are visible to the naked eye. The significance of the fixed stars in astronomy and astrology has long been known. Recent research indicates that knowledge of the fixed stars is important to the understanding of any horoscope. For example, in the horoscope of Rudolf Steiner (born on February 25, 1861) there is a striking conjunction of the planets Mars and Pluto in sidereal Aries. Their positions in the sidereal zodiac are: Mars 12°48’ Aries and Pluto 14°57’ Aries. From the ASTROFIRE star catalog it is apparent that the main star in Aries, Hamal (Alpha [α] Arietis), is located in the sidereal zodiac at 12°55’ Aries about 10° above the ecliptic (latitude 9N58) – further, that Hamal is a 2^nd magnitude star (m=2.1) of the spectral type K (orange “Arcturian”) and luminosity class III (normal giant), that it is 66 light years away and has an absolute magnitude M=0.5 and luminosity L=56, signifying that its intrinsic brightness is 56 times that of our Sun. All this information is given for each star in ASTROFIRE’s star catalog.

            From Richard Hinckley Allen’s book Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning Hamal has various titles such as the “Proclaimer of the Dawn” or the “Messenger of Light” and was associated with Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom born from the head of her father Zeus.[19] In short, Hamal is a star that exerts an extraordinary influence upon the human thinking capacity, and it is precisely the conjunction of Mars and Pluto with Hamal (in the case of Mars the conjunction is exact to within 0°07’) in Rudolf Steiner’s horoscope that is a primary indicator of his remarkable philosophical gifts. (Also significant in this respect is that in his horoscope Jupiter, the planet most associated with profound thinking activity, is located at the midheaven).[20] By enabling comparisons of planetary positions with fixed star locations, ASTROFIRE opens a new and exciting chapter in astronomical/astrological/astrosophical research. ASTROFIRE permits such comparisons not only in individual horoscopes (as in the example of Rudolf Steiner) but also in whole groups of horoscopes belonging to ASTROFIRE’s database or which may be input (or also imported) into the ASTROFIRE database. This leads to the second major innovation of ASTROFIRE – the database (see below).

Here follows a summary of the features of ASTROFIRE’s star catalog.

Star identification: Each star is identified either by its Greek letter designation (from Bayer’s Uranometria, 1603) or by its Flamsteed number (from Flamsteed’s Historia Coelestis Britannica, 1725), with the exception of the mega stars (see below concerning these stars).

Here with the Greek alphabet for identification purposes: α Alpha, β Beta, γ Gamma,

δ Delta, ε Epsilon, ζ Zeta, η Eta, θ Theta, ι Iota, κ Kappa, λ Lambda, μ Mu, ν Nu, ξ Xi,

 ο Omicron, π Pi, ρ Rho, σ Sigma, τ Tau, υ Upsilon, φ Phi, χ Chi, ψ Psi, ω Omega.

Double stars are marked with superscripts, e.g. α¹ and α².

Triple stars are marked with superscripts, e.g. γ¹,γ², and γ³, etc.

Star name: If the star has a name, it is indicated alongside the star identification – for example, alongside Alpha (α) Aries is given the name “Hamal”.

Star position in longitude and latitude: The next two columns give the star’s longitude (LONG) and latitude (LAT). The longitude is given in the sidereal zodiac (or in the tropical zodiac, if one chooses this; note also that there are different possibilities in specifying the sidereal zodiac). In the above example, the longitude of Hamal is given as 12°55’ Aries and in the following column its latitude is given as 9N58. This is Hamal’s longitude in the sidereal zodiac specified by the Synetic Vernal Point (SVP), which is the standard sidereal zodiac used in the West, based upon the Babylonian standard location of Aldebaran (the “Bull’s eye”), at 15° Taurus (now at 15°03’ Taurus, owing to proper motion).

Proper motion: Since the fixed stars have proper motion, their positions in the sidereal zodiac change slightly during the course of thousands of years. The proper motions of stars is included in the ASTROFIRE star catalog, which recomputes the stellar positions according to historical date. For example, inputting the date -100 it is evident that Hamal’s coordinates in the sidereal zodiac (SVP) in 100 B.C. were 12°44’ Aries and 9N54. Thus during the space of 2100 years (from -100 to +2000) Hamal has shifted 0°11’ in longitude and 0°04’ in latitude. These are typical values for the shift in longitude and latitude of any star, occasioned by proper motion over two thousand years or so, indicating that the fixed stars really are fixed – apart from these slight shifts over long periods of time.

Apparent magnitude: The next column indicates the star’s apparent magnitude, denoted by a small letter “m”. The brightest star, Sirius, has an apparent magnitude of -1.44, whereas the fourth brightest star, Arcturus, has an apparent magnitude of -0.05, the fifth brightest star, Vega, has an apparent magnitude of 0.03, the sixth brightest star, Capella, has an apparent magnitude of 0.08, the seventh brightest star, Rigel, has an apparent magnitude of 0.18, and the 19^th brightest star, Deneb, has an apparent magnitude of 1.25. The brighter a star appears to be, the lower its apparent magnitude, i.e. the magnitude number grows larger as the star grows fainter. This might seem confusing. However, it brings to expression the idea of classes of stars. This idea goes back to Greek astronomers such as Ptolemy (second century A.D.) who designated the twenty brightest stars as those of first magnitude. According to modern astronomy there are in fact 22 stars with an apparent magnitude of 1.50 or less, which are thus designated as stars of the first magnitude. Similarly, stars with an apparent magnitude of 2.50 or less are classed as second magnitude; those where m is 3.50 or less are classed as third magnitude, etc. This is a logarithmic scale which expresses that a star of apparent magnitude 1.00 is 2½ times brighter than a star where m=2.00 which, in turn, is 2½ times brighter than a star where m=3.00, etc. Thus a star of apparent magnitude 1.00 is one hundred times brighter than a star of apparent magnitude 6.00. Stars of the sixth magnitude are at the limit of naked-eye visibility.

Absolute magnitude: The next column indicates the star’s absolute magnitude, denoted by a capital letter “M”. Apparent magnitude is accurately measured by a photometer or photo-electric device that measures the intensity of light emanating from a light source. Since the intensity of light decreases with the square of the distance, astronomy has devised a measure of the intrinsic brightness of a star by taking account of its apparent magnitude AND its distance in light years from our solar system. This measure, the absolute magnitude (M) of a star, is the magnitude the star would have if it were placed at a standard distance away of 10 parsecs or about 32½ light years. M values follow the same logarithmic scale as m values.

Distance: The star’s distance from our solar system in light years is indicated in the column headed “ly” next to the last column. For example, Sirius appears so bright because it is one of our closest neighboring stars, located only 8.6 light years from our solar system (approximately 50 trillion miles or 80 trillion kilometers away).

Luminosity: This value is listed in the last column of ASTROFIRE’s star catalog. This column is headed “LUM”. Luminosity is a simple conversion from the logarithmic scale of absolute magnitude, assuming that our Sun has a luminosity of one (L=1). The luminosity of a star expresses how much brighter (or less brighter) it is than our Sun. Sirius, for example, is 23 times brighter than our Sun (L=23), whereas Vega is 51 times brighter (L=51). From our perspective our Sun is an extremely bright star. However, if the Earth were revolving around Sirius—in other words, if Sirius were our Sun—it would be seen by us to be 23 times brighter. If we imagine a second Sun alongside our Sun, then a third Sun, a fourth Sun, a fifth Sun, up to a 22^nd Sun, all bunched together as 23 Suns, we gain a conception of the luminosity of Sirius, which would blaze down upon us with the light of 23 of our Suns.

Sirius is 8½ light years away from our solar system. Vega at 25 light years is three times the distance of Sirius. If Vega would appear to us to be equally bright as Sirius then, because the intensity of light decreases proportionately to the square of the distance, it would follow that the intrinsic brightness (luminosity) of Vega would be nine times (3x3) that of Sirius. However, Vega—as the fifth brightest star— appears a lot less bright to us than Sirius. In fact, the luminosity of Vega (L=51) is a little more than twice that of Sirius. Vega’s luminosity is 51, so that if the Earth were revolving around the star Vega as our Sun, Vega would blaze down upon us with a light over fifty times brighter than that of our Sun. Very luminous stars such as Deneb (L=270,000) are called mega stars (see below).

Spectral type: After the columns indicating apparent and absolute magnitude, the next column in the ASTROFIRE star catalog indicates the spectral type of a star. This column is headed “Ty”. There are eleven main spectral types:

O: blue-white; high temperature (35,000°K); large mass; high luminosity; lines of ionized helium, nitrogen, oxygen, in addition to hydrogen.

Examples: Zeta (ζ) Puppis, Lambda (λ) Orionis, 15 Monocerotis.

B: blue-white, sometimes called “Orion stars”; temperature 20,000°K; large mass; high luminosity; strong helium lines.

Examples: Rigel, Spica, Regulus, Alpha (α) Eridani.

A: white “Sirian” or hydrogen stars; temperature 10,000°K, average luminosity generally ranging from 50 to 100 times that of our Sun; strong hydrogen lines; helium absent.

Examples: Sirius, Vega, Altair.

F: yellow-white; temperature 7000°K; weaker hydrogen lines; strong lines of calcium with other metallic lines increasing.

Examples: Canopus, Procyon, Alpha (α) Persei.

G: yellow “solar type” stars; temperature 6000°K; weaker hydrogen lines; prominent lines of many metals.

Examples: our Sun, Capella, Alpha (α) Centauri.

K: orange “Arcturian” stars; temperature 4000°K to 4700°K; faint hydrogen lines; complex spectra with many strong lines of metals; hydrocarbon bands appear.

Examples: Arcturus, Pollux, Alpha (α) Ursa Maioris.

M: red stars; temperature 2500°K to 3000°K; many M-type variables show bright hydrogen lines; rich spectra showing many strong metallic lines with wide bands produced by titanium oxide.

Examples: Antares, Betelgeuse, Mira.

N: deep red, mostly variable stars; cool giants of temperature 2500°K; peculiar banded spectra showing carbon compounds.

Examples: S Cephei, R Leporis, Y Canum Venaticorum.

R: orange-red; similar to type N but with somewhat higher temperature; weaker carbon bands; this spectral type may form a connecting link between types G and N.

Examples: S Camelopardi, RU Virginis.

S: red; resembles type M, but titanium oxide bands are replaced by zirconium oxide; complex spectra, usually variable, with hydrogen emission lines.

Example: R Cygni.

W: Wolf-Rayet stars; hot blue giants; high temperatures (50,000°K and higher); high luminosities; these resemble O-type stars, but show broad emission features caused by expanding gaseous shell; extremely turbulent atmospheres.

Example: Gamma (γ) Velorum.

Luminosity class: The next column in ASTROFIRE’s star catalog after that of the spectral type indicates the star’s luminosity class. This column is headed “Cl”. In addition to the spectral type astronomers use the following luminosity classes in the form of Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, VI), signifying:

I supergiants; II bright giants; III normal giants; IV subgiants; V main sequence; and

VI subdwarfs.

For example, looking at the relevant columns of ASTROFIRE’s star catalog, the star Betelgeuse (Alpha [α] Orionis) in the right shoulder of the hunter Orion is classified as type “M” and class “I”. This means that Betelgeuse is a red supergiant, not only vastly larger and more brilliant than our Sun but also operating on a different nuclear energy source, which tells us something about the life history and evolutionary path of this star. In terms of its astrological influence, “Betelgeuze portended fortune, martial honors, wealth, and other kingly attributes.”[21] The martial significance of this red supergiant marking the shoulder of the Giant – this being the meaning of Gibbor in the ancient Hebrew for Orion, also called “the mighty Hunter before the Lord”[22] – is born out by astrosophical research investigating the conjunctions of Saturn with Betelgeuse, whose longitude in the sidereal zodiac is 4° Gemini. Throughout the 20^th century Saturn’s passage through the Gemini the Twins – occurring at 29½ year intervals – has had striking consequences for humanity. The first passage saw the outbreak of World War I on August 1, 1914, when Saturn was in conjunction with Betelgeuse at 4° Gemini. Its second passage saw the devastation of World War II. In fact, on D-Day (June 6, 1944) Saturn was at the same zodiacal location in the Twins (4˚ Gemini, in conjunction with Betelgeuse) as it had been on August 1, 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War. And its third passage in the 20^th century through the sidereal sign of Gemini the Twins witnessed the Cold War between East and West and an intensification of the Arab-Israeli conflict. In fact, in October 1973, when the Yom Kippur War took place, heliocentric Saturn was at 4˚ Gemini, once more in conjunction with Betelgeuse. And when heliocentric Saturn in March 2003 subsequently returned to 4˚ Gemini – yet again in conjunction with Betelgeuse – the US-led Iraq War broke out.[23] It is this kind of research that ASTROFIRE makes possible, also research into the conjunctions of the Sun, Moon, or any planet (geocentrically or heliocentrically) with any fixed star such as Betelgeuse in the horoscopes of individuals or groups in ASTROFIRE’s database. These research options are breathtaking and remarkable, signifying a new era in astrological and astrosophical research.

Mega stars: Another area of astrosophical research that has recently opened up is that of the mega stars, stars of high luminosity. One example is Deneb (α Cygni), the main star in the constellation of the Swan, sometimes also referred to as the constellation of the Northern Cross. Seen as the Swan, Deneb marks the Swan’s tail; seen as the Cross, Deneb is located at the head of the Cross. In terms of apparent magnitude this first magnitude star is the 19^th brightest star visible to the naked eye. Located at a distance of 3200 light years from our solar system, Deneb is a mega star, some 270,000 times more luminous than our Sun. In 2003 Robert Powell discovered the significance of mega stars when he noticed the extraordinary role played by these stars at events in the life of Christ.[24] Deneb well illustrates the significance of mega stars. Looking up at Deneb, we see that it is 60° North of the zodiac—this is its latitude. If we trace an arc down from the ecliptic pole through Deneb, it intersects the sidereal zodiac at 10½° Aquarius—this is Deneb’s longitude. According to astrosophical research, at Christ’s feeding of the 5000 the Sun was at 10½° Aquarius.[25] This is especially striking in light of Rudolf Steiner’s indication that, “It was always in accordance with the collective Being of the whole Universe with whom the Earth is in harmony, that all which Christ Jesus did took place.”[26] From these words it is clear that it was not mere coincidence that there was a conjunction between the Sun and the mega star Deneb at the feeding of the 5000, but that the cosmic forces streaming from Deneb were received by our Sun and transmitted to Christ at the time of the miracle of the multiplication of bread and fish. Here the word “conjunction” means a conjunction in longitude, both at 10½° Aquarius. Even though the Sun and Deneb were 60° apart in terms of latitude, there was still a conjunction in longitude, with the Sun crossing the Deneb meridian at the time of the miracle. Just as there are meridians—lines of energy flow—in the human being, these meridians exist also in the greater cosmos of the macrocosm. As may be understood from the law of correspondences “as above, so below”, if there are meridians in the human being, they must exist also “above” in the cosmos. Thus we can picture an energy flow streaming from each star and intersecting the zodiac, the place of intersection indicating the point of influx of the energy flow from our cosmos into our solar system. For Deneb this point of influx is 10½° Aquarius, and so whenever the Sun or any planet in our solar system crosses the Deneb meridian at 10½° Aquarius, the Deneb energy flows in to unite with that planet or with our Sun. (Here energy is to be understood as the Divine Energy or Divine Love radiating from the stars). Focusing upon the meridians as energy lines flowing through every star, the entire celestial sphere becomes significant. The significance of Deneb at the feeding of the 5000 is just one example, and there are many more examples of the important role played by mega stars at various events in the life of Christ. The meridians which run through the mega stars circle around the entire celestial globe. For astrosophical research purposes all that needs to be known is the mega stars’ longitudes in the sidereal zodiac, which are listed in ASTROFIRE’s star catalog. These longitudes (such as 10½° Aquarius, where Deneb’s meridian intersects the zodiac) are especially potent points in the zodiac. Included in ASTROFIRE’s star catalog—in addition to the stars identified by Greek letters (Bayer) and by number (Flamsteed)—are a group of stars referred to as Mega and numbered 1 Mega, 2 Mega, 3 Mega etc. This group comprises 1070 stars with a luminosity of at least 550. The inclusion of these mega stars in ASTROFIRE’s star catalog makes further research into the significance of these most luminous stars possible.[27]

ASTROFIRE’S DATABASE is made up of three Tables:

(a)    birth data of historical personalities;

(b)   death data of historical personalities; and

(c)    astrosophical data relating to events in the life of Christ.

There are now several astrological databases available, the most well-known being the Astrodatabank (ADB), so it is reasonable to ask: Why does ASTROFIRE provide its own database? To answer this question, it is helpful to look at how this database came into existence. It began with the data collected by Willi Sucher, for whom historical similars played an important role in his astrosophical work. Willi Sucher was well aware of the danger of what he called “cookbook recipes” in interpreting astrological configurations at someone’s birth. For example, he made an extensive study of the birth horoscope of the German operatic composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883).[28] Wagner (birthdate: May 22, 1813) was born at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun, i.e. Venus (7°34’ Taurus) was “behind” the Sun (8°28’ Taurus) at Wagner’s birth, in the region of the Pleiades star cluster located at 5° Taurus in the sidereal zodiac.[29] The first thing to note is that Willi Sucher drew a distinction between superior and inferior conjunctions of Venus with the Sun (the same applies to Mercury), whereas traditional astrology generally does not pay any attention to this difference. In astrosophy one generally distinguishes between these two kinds of conjunction, and it is interesting to ask the question: Which historical personalities were also born at the time of such a configuration? For example, the following people were all born at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun:

Richard Wagner (1813-1883), the German operatic composer, who wrote the poems (texts) of his operas before setting them to music. Wagner was highly gifted both as a poet and composer, whose “music dramas”, as his operas have come to be known, are milestones in the history of Western culture.

Rabindrath Tagore (1861-1941), the Bengali poet, philosopher, social reformer and dramatist, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1913, whose poems express his profound love of God, Man, and Nature.

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822), the English romantic poet who ranks as one of the greatest lyric poets in the history of English literature.

Hölderlin (1770-1843), the German romantic poet who sought to express a religious vision in which humanity would be reconciled to the world of Nature and to all the forms through which God has revealed himself, who drew his inspiration particularly from the ancient Greek culture and religion.

Matthew Arnold (1822-1888), the English poet and social critic, who was concerned with preserving personal values in a world drastically transformed by industrialism, science, and democracy. In Arnold’s case the superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun was exact. Matthew Arnold later lived at Rydal in the Lake District of England, where his neighbor was the aged romantic poet William Wordsworth, also born when Venus was loosely in superior conjunction with the Sun.                                                                                                   All of the above examples are of poets, each born at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun. (In addition to being a poet, Wagner was also a composer, of course). In the case of each of these examples an element of social criticism (in Shelley’s case he was an outright rebel or revolutionary in his younger years) is indicated, and all of them display a great love of Nature and (with the possible exception of Matthew Arnold) a mystical tendency. Of course, not all people born at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun become poets or mystics, but a characteristic tendency or leaning is indicated. And regarding a love of Nature it is perhaps symptomatic that the Earth Summit, the world’s largest-ever gathering to focus on ecological/environmental issues, which took place in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, occurred at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun in the region of the horns of the Bull (28 ½º Taurus).[30]

            The foregoing provides an example of what Willi Sucher called “historical similars” – looking for a collection of historical personalities who all were born at the time of a particular planetary configuration and thus deducing, by way of empirical research, the essential quality of that configuration. This is a very different approach from that of the traditional astrological one of consulting a textbook to find out what a conjunction of the Sun and Venus at someone’s birth signifies.

            A further differentiation in the above cases of historical personalities would be to look at each example of the superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun and ascertain the zodiacal location, i.e. the stellar background (near the Pleiades in Wagner’s case).

            The foregoing illustration of what is meant by the term historical similars reveals that a database is extremely useful in order to quickly and easily find historical similars. From the very beginning of the collaboration with the leading pioneer of a new star wisdom, Willi Sucher, it was clear to us that a reliable data collection of historical personalities is essential in order to investigate the kind of questions raised above in connection with specific stellar configurations (in this case, conjunctions between Venus and the Sun). Willi Sucher built up a collection of data over a period of time and this data collection was expanded into a larger database of birth and death dates of historical personalities that is now included in ASTROFIRE, which makes it easy to empirically investigate the significance of different kinds of stellar configurations.

The reader of this article will now have some idea regarding the question: Why does ASTROFIRE provide a database? It is the fulfillment of the idea, conceived of by Peter Treadgold in the 1970’s, to make astrosophical resources available to everyone – and historical similars is an important part of these resources.

            As referred to earler, Willi Sucher’s data collection provided the ground stock for ASTROFIRE’s database. This ground stock has been thoroughly checked over, making corrections where necessary, and considerably expanded upon by Robert Powell, who would like to gratefully acknowledge the help of numerous people in this endeavor.

            What distinguishes this database from most other astrological databases is the inclusion of the death data. As mentioned above, the historical personalities data is divided into two Tables: birth data and death data. The inclusion of the death data is essential for astrosophical research – for example, the discovery of two of the “laws” of astrological incarnation would not have been possible without recourse to both birth and death data.[31] One of the most fascinating areas of research is to compare the horoscopes of birth and death for a given historical personality. Through including not only the horoscope of birth but also the horoscope of conception in this comparison, another important discovery was made. It was found that there are often significant planetary alignments between the horoscope of death and the horoscope of conception. Using ASTROFIRE’s comparison chart option, the death horoscope of a historical personality can be easily compared with his or her conception horoscope. For example, in the case of the German Romantic poet Novalis (1772-1801), Saturn (25°41’ Cancer) in the death horoscope was exactly transiting the Sun (25°24’ Cancer) in the most probable horoscope of conception as determined by the hermetic rule. (Novalis was born on May 2, 1772; applying the hermetic rule it was found that his most probable date of conception was on August 9, 1771). Many other examples of this kind could be given. This discovery answers an age-old preoccupation with the astrological determinants of the moment of death: these are to be found not so much in the birth horoscope but rather in the horoscope of conception.[32]

In comparison to the AstroDatabank (ADB), ASTROFIRE’s historical personalities’ database is relatively small (but it can be expanded upon). Obviously many more historical personalities could have been chosen. However, a limit had to be drawn somewhere, otherwise the work of compiling the database would never have been completed. The advantage of a relatively small database is that it is easier to get to know the biographies of the personalities in the database. For the area of biographical research is a vast one. One glance at the number of books written about Mozart, for example, is enough to indicate that one could spend one’s entire life studying one historical personality. In order for work with the database to be meaningful, one has to have a modicum of knowledge of the biographies of the persons belonging to the database. Thus, having found the several personalities mentioned above, who all were born at the time of a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun, if one has no idea as to who Wagner, Rabindrath Tagore, Shelley, Hölderlin, and Matthew Arnold were, this group of “historical similars” (having in common a superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun in their birth horoscopes) would not tell one very much about the nature of this conjunction. The more one knows of their biographies, the more informative a group of historic similars is with respect to a give planetary configuration.

The Life of Christ Jesus: Lastly a few words about the inclusion in the database of data relating to events in the life of Jesus Christ:

Central to Willi Sucher’s astrosophical work was his focus upon the cosmic background to events in the life of Christ. He viewed Christ as a Cosmic Being whose life – and every event in his life – resonated with the whole cosmos and was inscribed into the cosmos as an archetype for humanity for all time. He considered it extremely meaningful to compare an individual’s horoscope with the positions of the planets at events in Christ’s life, for “resonances” discovered in this way point to an archetypal level indicating the higher goals of an individual’s existence here on Earth.[33]

For example, the Sun at the birth of the great Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), the painter of the world-famous Last Supper in Milan, was at 16°33’ Aries, conjunct (to within 1°) with the Sun at Christ’s resurrection – 15°40’ Aries in the sidereal zodiac (SVP). In light of Willi Sucher’s indication, it is evident that Leonardo was working out of the resurrection impulse, which accounts for the extraordinary creative power and genius of this outstanding human being. This example points to the advantage of the inclusion in the database of events in the life of Christ with which one can readily make comparisons of any horoscope with planetary positions in these events drawn from Christ’s life.

An obvious question to raise is: How accurate is the astrosophical data concerning the life of Christ Jesus? The computations of Peter Treadgold in his ASTRO and ASTROFIRE programs are based on astronomical research of the highest order of accuracy and agree closely with the data published in Neil Michelsen's American Sidereal Ephemeris and American Heliocentric Ephemeris.[34]

In Robert Powell’s book Chronicle of the Living Christ[35] secure dates for the birth of Jesus of Nazareth and for the baptism in the Jordan are given on the basis of a scientifically controlled method of research, using the dates of events in Christ's life in terms of the Jewish calendar as indicated by the stigmatized nun Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824).[36] According to this method, the probability that Anne Catherine Emmerich could have arbitrarily determined dates in the Hebrew calendar on the correct days of the week is one in 435 billion.[37] The only possible conclusion is that Anne Catherine Emmerich’s calendar indications are true (albeit sometimes with a one-day discrepancy). In the light of this research it can be stated with 99.99% certainty that her indications for the Christ events are accurate. This means, for example, that the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan took place on September 23, A.D. 29 when Jesus was 29 years 9½ months old, in agreement with the statement that “Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age” (Luke 3:23). Moreover, it follows that the ministry – from the baptism to the crucifixion – lasted almost exactly 3½ years. This signifies that at the Mystery of Golgotha, Jesus was 33⅓ years old, in agreement with Rudolf Steiner’s statement:

For all things arise from the grave historically in a metamorphosed form after 33 years through a force that has to do with what is most holy and most redemptive which humanity has received through the Mystery of Golgotha…[38] And when such a seed which has been planted ripens, then it works on further. A thought seed ripens during one generation of 33 years to become a seed for deeds. Once ripened, then it further works during 66 years in the historical process. One recognizes the intensity of an impulse which the human being implants into the historical process if it takes effect through three generations – through a whole century.[39]

A whole century is 100 years = 3 x 33⅓ years, confirming that Rudolf Steiner meant 33⅓ years even though he said “33 years” probably for the sake of simplicity in speaking. In addition, Chronicle of the Living Christ follows the life of Jesus Christ day-by-day through the 3½ years of the ministry, with the exception of a period of ten months (July 9, A.D. 31 to May 16, A.D. 32). Apart from those events – such as the healing of the man born blind – which took place within these missing ten months, it proved possible to date with a high degree of exactitude most of the major events in the ministry of Jesus Christ. Also included in the Chronicle of the Living Christ are the horoscopes of conception and birth of Jesus (from 7/6 B.C. and 2 B.C.) and also the horoscopes of conception and birth of Mary (from 22/21 B.C. and 18/17 B.C.). In addition, the horoscopes of conception and birth of John the Baptist (from 3/2 B.C.) are given. Moreover, the horoscopes at the death of Jesus, Mary and John are also included.

The reader of this article may justifiably ask: How did it prove possible to determine with such a high degree of certainty the daily chronicle of the ministry of Jesus Christ, and how was it possible to find the horoscopes of conception, birth and death of Jesus, Mary and John? In answer to this the reader can only be referred to the Chronicle of the Living Christ. Along the path of searching for the truth, ultimately each person must decide for themselves whether any particular results are indeed true. Due to the integrity of the scientific method used, confirmed by the certainty of the probability indicated above, anyone who carefully reads Chronicle of the Living Christ will be able to convince themselves that it contains the actual chronology of Christ's ministry, and likewise that the research findings presented there concerning the horoscopes of Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary are true.[40]

There are, of course, other research findings concerning the chronology of the life of Christ, but none that have been subjected to an assessment of their validity by way of applying probability theory. The weight of the probability of one in 435 billion (see footnote 37) is convincing proof to anyone who understands the mathematical principles involved, and it is in this sense that the astrosophical data collection relating to the life of Christ Jesus offers secure dates that have been tested on the basis of a scientifically controlled method of research. This is important to know in terms of being able to trust the reliability of the data but of course does not exonerate users from verifying the truth themselves. It is the scientifically validated dating of the life of Christ presented in Chronicle of the Living Christ which provides the foundation for the monthly commentaries on the Christ events in the yearly Christian Star Calendar.

            In terms of correspondences with the Christ events, in the year 2005 Saturn and Neptune are highlighted. In 2005 Saturn re-enters Cancer on June 3 and progresses through the first half of sidereal Cancer, reaching 16½° Cancer in the second half of November 2005. Thus Saturn approaches the zodiacal location (17½° Cancer) where it was at the raising of Lazarus from the dead. However, Saturn then goes retrograde and does not actually reach 17½° Cancer until July 19, 2006. Between July 19 and August 23, 2006 Saturn moves through that part of the zodiac (17½° Cancer to 22° Cancer) where it was located during the events leading up to the Mystery of Golgotha and beyond to Pentecost (at Pentecost Saturn was at 22° Cancer), crossing its exact Golgotha position (18°45’ Cancer) on July 28, 2006. In mid-September 2005 (and again in early February 2006 and early June 2006) Saturn can be seen in conjunction with the beautiful star cluster known as the Beehive (Praesepe) at 12½° Cancer, which is the zodiacal location of the exaltation of Jupiter. In his article “Saturn in the Crab and the Mysteries of the Holy Grail” in the Christian Star Calendar 2005, William Bento explores the significance of Saturn’s passage through Cancer in 2005.

During the 3½ years of Christ’s ministry Neptune moved through the last decan of Capricorn and – after the raising of Lazarus – into the first decan of Aquarius. In the year 2005 there is a correspondence with the life of Christ since in January Neptune moves into the last decan of Capricorn and remains near the beginning of this decan throughout 2005, moving back and forth in the region of its location at the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan, which signified the start of Christ’s ministry. Neptune is at its exact location at the baptism (21°56’ Capricorn) on March 24 and July 19, 2005 – and again on January 23, 2006. In his article “Neptune in the Year 2005 and at the Baptism of Christ” in the Christian Star Calendar 2005 Wain Farrants draws our attention to the special signature of Neptune at this time, pointing out that Neptune has made twelve orbits around the sidereal zodiac since the baptism took place in AD 29.