ESOTERIC ASTROLOGY

SCORPIO 2010
Labor of Hercules
Slaying the Lernaean Hydra

On knees to lift the writhing Hydra of evil and pollution into wind and light — the mystical 9th head of power buried under a Rock. Kundalini with Fire of Mind and Spirit conquer the entrenched reptilian instincts to become Asklepios and Healing Shaktipat; Scorpio wrestles again with Antares (cf. Gemini) as Ophiuchus and Hercules; Victory when Hydra seen as unit.

Motto: Warrior am I and from the battle I emerge triumphant
(Scorpio stages the release of Leo)

The Crises of the Soul — Battleground, Birthplace/Labor, and Burning Ground — All Testing is self-engineered, no matter how clouded one’s apprehension. All initiation is self-administered, otherwise it would not be fully conscious. With Capricorn, Scorpio rules the Twelve Labors of the Sun God Hercules, and particularly the Hydra’s Nine Tests of psychological hygiene (!) In Scorpio we find how spiritual values and life are anchored in daily ephemera.

Scorpio II
Scorpio, Memory, and the Dweller
Scorpio rules memory and the Dweller. The Dweller on the Threshold of initiation is illustrated by the Nine Tests in Scorpio. Initiation takes place in Capricorn and in Aries.

On the reversed Wheel (Libra-Scorpio-Sagittarius) Scorpio challenges us with the first conscious and direct confrontation with the lower mind associated with the mental unit (ruled by Libra). (The Bull has already reversed direction…)

Memory is an interesting phenomenon, distinct from the breadth and depth of consciousness, or from the mind as pure awareness transcending consciousness. For instance, think of a year of your life and all its memories. Now think of your state of mind at that time between those discrete memories. Think of how consciousness is distinct from one's 'state of mind', dreamy free association, memory, and rote 'knowledge'. The Thinker, or Ego in the causal body, is distinct from the thought process and utterly different to conscious thoughtform work.

The lower mind is composed entirely of memory — whether it is the memory of the perceived past with which we construct our conceptualizations, or whether it is the memorization of received ‘knowledge’, or the manipulation of categories of logic with which we analyze memorized, perceived or received data, information and conceptualizations, or cognitive positions, habits or predilections (skandhas). Only the soul thinks. Only cosmic and solar lords think – not lunar lords associated with the human personality. The lower mind is useful for continuous construction of the temporary forms needed for the evolution of consciousness (and societies), and later for the anchoring of spiritually-charged thoughtforms by individuals and groups.

It is amazing that we can directly see the physical past — not just in its geologic traces on Earth or in the face, but actually the physical image of the past itself — by looking at the night sky, at stars light-years away. “Something to remember.”
It is more amazing to realize that all the galaxies of stars perceivable as light are seen by humanity through our dense physical senses on these lowest of systemic subplanes — while awaiting the capacity for and evolution of etheric vision.
It is even more amazing that we can see the physical light bodies and forms of all the cosmic Logoi (at least in our local galaxy) and even that of the UNKNOWN Logos on the same dense physical planes.
It is another thing altogether to recognize (identify) these forms and systems, and then particularly the conduct of the LIVES behind these systems. All we see are the light forms of Their Past.

How do we see the Present when all we see is FLOW, or transience? Can we compare our experience of the “present” with that of the solar Logos — through three entire solar systems — the ETERNAL NOW? Our experience of the present is through the three personality vehicles, later the soul, and later through the three periodical vehicles. Experience of Form is distinct from experience of the formless planes, just as (finite) Time is distinct from (infinite) Duration. Duration is sometimes identified with infinite Space (HPB 1889 Talks), and metaphorically illustrated by Ishvara, the Watcher, Space as an Entity, or Yajna, the Great Sacrifice. These recognitions are the point at which we begin to see the Present as it is, its nature, and its manifestation as the Great Illusion. We begin to have a chance at truly seeing a greater Light within the light.

How do we see the Future except through the Mind’s Eye and our (Humanity’s) place in larger systemic Constitutions? Only with buddhic or triadic awareness or recognition can we sense the LIVES and Impulses behind these systems. The Soul, or the Mind’s Eye, recognizes planetary, solar and cosmic Entities and their Impulses only through the traces left in their systems — the Plan. The Eye of the Monad, the soul on its own plane, begins to see the living Impulses behind the systemic Lives after the third initiation, through recognition of Will, Purpose and Direction on the Path.

This is one of the reasons the great Triangle of Mercury (hierarchic ruler of Scorpio), the Pleiades and Gemini-Sagittarius rules the ability of the disciple to ‘see’ on the Path, after learning to ‘feel’ through the Triangle of Saturn, Sirius, and Cancer-Capricorn.

In the third great Triangle, the seven solar systems, ruled by the Sirian Lodge through Taurus-Scorpio, the disciple, after progressing through Pluto, Mars, and Mercury to arrive at consciousness of our IVth Creative Hierarchic monadic nature, now begins to ‘turn his back’ on that Light, and ‘reverse his path’ (Mercury, Mars, Pluto) to utilize light (Taurus) and will (Scorpio) as a vehicle of higher Purpose in the Three and Five Worlds. We are now speaking of the planetary ring-pass not, the Greater and Lesser Builders, the planetary lower mind, or what corresponds to the human ‘mental unit.’

In the fourth great Triangle of Sun, Ursa Major, and Aries-Libra, the initiate enters into work on the formless levels through pure Vision and Being. This is the state Tibetan Buddhism describes as spontaneous achievement and manifestation (drubchen), where Being and Vision spontaneously produce manifestation. This mastery of the great Law of Karma (deriving from Sirius) has a Taoist ring to it (action/non-action, useful/useless). Such Work taking place on formless levels, it is difficult for humanity to recognize cause and effect here, being habituated to emphatic energy and force, and to the relation of solar fire to fire-by-friction. (We cannot even speak here of the masses who do not recognize they form a part of One Humanity.)

Humanity is only beginning to dimly recognize the relation of formless energy to the Rays (a distinctly higher ‘type’ of ‘energy’) and the brief touchdowns of fire electric into the latter two fires. It can reasonably be assumed that the hierarchic and planetary nirmanakayas anchor the three integrated Fires in the Three, Five and Seven Worlds — in the Mundane, Subtle, and Fiery Worlds.

The Test of Scorpio is essentially to restore the purity of the Three Pure Streams of water, given by Neptune in the myth, but taken over by the nine-headed Hydra in its cave and lair at the source of those three springs. We know Neptune rules the bloodstream. Considering the gross physical body alone, perhaps we can find the other two streams of crystalline purity in the lymphatic system and in the purity and psychological hygiene of (liquid-gaseous) neuro-chemistry associated with human psychic or emotional states — kama-manas. This coincides with the stage or transition at which the Ego in the causal body takes charge of the lower mind and infuses the ‘lower’ threefold personality mechanism. It is important to accomplish this with fire, ignoring the smoke.

The soul body, composed of solar fire, is now integrated, strengthened and ready to receive touches of fire electric in order to reorient itself toward the higher initiations and eventually to the Way of the Higher Evolution.

Tibetan Buddhism speaks of this in terms of the vajra (lightning-diamond) or rainbow body associated with the pranas and bindus, with rays and light disks. Consultation with a lineage-holder lama is required at this point, though the initiation ceremonies (wang) are open to all — with some preparation.

Inspiration: Alice A. Bailey, Esoteric Astrology, and her 24 books on esoteric studies.
NY: Lucis Publishing Company – website (http://www.lucistrust.org/en/publications_store).