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Astrologer's Notes:
AstroDPsychology:A Synthesis |
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Fate and Causality |
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by Glenn Perry, Ph.D., MFT |
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As a theory of causality, psychological astrology is radically opposed to the mechanistic determinism implicit in most psychological models. It does not assume that psychological problems are invariably the by-products of an unhealthy culture, traumatic experiences, or faulty child rearing. Neither does it assume that the arbitrary placement of planets at the moment of birth is the primary determinant of one's character. Because the precise nature of the person as well as his or her environment is implicit in the symbolism of the chart from the first breath, astrology suggests that character and destiny are fated. But as Greene (1984) points out, what we call Fate is indissolubly bound up with justice and law rather than a random predetermining force that dictates a person's every action and experience. Fate was called Moira by the Greeks and evolved from a vision of an orderly, interconnected cosmos. As the guardian of justice, Moira was simply natural law raised to the status of a deity. She embodied the principle that because humans are part of Nature they cannot violate nature's laws without suffering the consequences; i.e., they cannot repudiate an archetype or express an archetype to excess without exacting a penalty designed to correct the transgression.
In this regard, fate is a cause and effect principle analogous to the eastern doctrine of karma. Fate is not simply a blessing or punishment conspired by the gods, but a corrective process in the service of a transcendent purpose. And this purpose is that the individual evolve toward a fuller realization of the divine order that humans naturally embody.
By combining the doctrine of karma with the theory of astrology we can account for the fated quality of a person's life and character. We may see the chart as a seed-plan or blueprint of destiny, but in the end we are talking about a self-created fate. This perspective suggests that the infinite wisdom of the cosmos decrees that a person is born when the planets are arranged in a structure that reflects the fate which that individual has earned on the basis of past actions in past lives. Subsequent experiences with one's culture and caretakers derive from a pre-existent psychic structure. The environment then, beginning with the body, is not so much a primary as a secondary cause of behavior; it is a mirror reflecting the soul's already existing internal structure.
I believe that in regard to the etiology of a pathological condition, the environment confirms, but it does not originate, the child's primary anxieties and inner conflicts. Of course, one cannot dispute environmental deficits and their effects. What needs to be emphasized, however, is the individual's accountability. In this view, the experienced environment constitutes karmic feedback to activate, correct, and refine a person's innate character, however long and painful this process may be. Some studies indicate the child has as much effect on the parent as the parent has on the child, thus the parent-child relationship is circular and reciprocal (Segal & Yahres, 1978). Likewise, recent developments in past-lives therapy suggest that a given life may be but a single chapter in a long and ongoing evolutionary process (Moody, 1990; Weiss, 1992; Woolger, 1988).
Psychological astrology emphasizes character over fate and does so for a simple reason: human beings have more control over character than fate, thus character deserves the greater emphasis. As for fate, early childhood conditions signify the first and thus prototypical event pattern that reflects psychic structure. This, however, does not mean that the environment is merely the effect of how we perceive it (constructivism). The constructivist position that we construct a reality on the basis of our meaning attributions is only relatively valid. It is valid in the sense that how a person interprets events is going to shape his subsequent experience. His interpretations will influence his feelings and behavior (subjective reality), and these, in turn, will influence subsequent responses from others (objective reality). In this sense, each person does construct a reality that conforms to his or her subjective world. That subjective world, however, may derive initially from early childhood experiences -- an objective fate -- that was earned on the basis of past actions in past lives. Such emotionally significant childhood experiences -- the prototype event pattern -- become internalized and subsequently flesh out the innate contours of a pre-existent character. Early formative experiences are metabolized to become part of psychic structure, i.e., mental habits, beliefs, expectations, and images of self and other, all of which are symbolized by the horoscope.
This formulation is consistent with his Jung's (1955) theory of synchronicity and his definition of archetypes as having a psychoid factor, meaning they shape matter as well as mind. A basic tenet of Jungian psychology (and psychological astrology) is that archetypes/planets are non-local; they do not reside solely within the psyche as structural elements, but rather are inherent in nature as a whole. Archetypes are immanent and thus infinitely diffused throughout nature. It is precisely this psychoid quality of the archetype that mediates a meaningful connection between inner, psychic factors and outer, objective events.
Heraclitus' statement, "character is destiny," implied that subjective character and objective fate were two sides of the same issue. Unless this issue is framed in a context that includes multiple lives, astrologers are forced into a deterministic model-the assumption that the planets, a capricious creator, or random chance is the final and ultimate determinant of destiny. We are creatures of fate, yet have the power to choose. This is the classic paradox in which astrology and all human life is embedded. So the horoscope can be interpreted on multiple levels -- objective world, subjective world, and the dynamic relations between the two.
It may be that evolution is built into the structure of these relations in that we have the opportunity to learn from self-created experiences (fate). Of course, this is an article of faith, not of fact. However, it is unlikely that all elements of fate are absolutely fixed because that would leave no room for growth or change. If there is one thing that modern psychology has established it's that people can and do change. The view here is that fate can be massaged in the direction of more satisfying outcomes to the extent that the individual learns. The exact degree to which fate can be altered must remain speculative. Still, this is an infinitely more hopeful vision of human beings that the idea that we are determined by forces beyond our control. Perhaps the greatest contribution of psychological astrology is the idea that character is fate, and if we can alter our character, we can mutate our fate.
References
Greene, Liz (1984). The astrology of fate. York Beach, MI: Samuel Weiser.
Jung, C. (1955). Synchronicity: An acausal connecting principle. In C. Jung & W. Pauli, The Interpretation of nature and psyche (pp. 1-146). New York: Pantheon.
Moody, R. (1990). Coming Back: A psychiatrist explores past-life journeys. New York: Bantam.
Segal, J. & Yahres, H. (1978). "Bringing Up Mother," Psychology Today, November, 1978, p. 93.
Weiss, B. (1992). Many lives, many masters. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Woolger, R. (1988). Other lives, other selves. New York: Bantam.
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"Astrology is a religion inasmuch as it reveals the anatomy and psychology of God."
~ Manly Palmer Hall
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Glenn Perry,
Ph.D., MFT
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Glenn Perry, Ph.D., MFT
Doctorate in Clinical Psychology
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist
Director of the Association for Astrological Psychology
Board Member of the International Society of Astrological Research
Glenn Perry lectures and conducts workshops throughout the world on the application of astrology to the fields of counseling and psychotherapy.
He has written four books, including "Essays In Psychological Astrology," and teaches classes in Astro-Psychology at various colleges on the west coast.
Information on Glenn's books, tapes, and on-line mentorship program can be obtained at:
www.aaperry.com.
E-mail: aaperry@attbi.com
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