Challenge Corner

Zip Dobyns

One pair of readers responded to the double challenge, and they were right on the female twins but guessed wrong on the male twins. They seem to be using a different dwad system than the one I prefer. There are several in existence, but the one that has worked best for me starts every sign with its own dwad so the first 2 1/2 degrees of each sign is the “pure” quality of that sign. Using that dwad system, the first female twin has the Taurus dwad rising and the second has the Cancer dwad rising. In general, Taurus suggests solid physical endurance in contrast to the potential helplessness of the baby side of Cancer. Of course, if the individual survives, she can move into the mother side of Cancer. The MC dwads of Aquarius and Aries respectively, do not offer much help, nor do the East Point dwads of Aries and Gemini. The first-born has the Antivertex in Capricorn, more closely conjunct Jupiter than is the Aquarian Antivertex of the second-born. But, the first-born also has a closer opposition to Pluto in the 8th house, and Capricorn is often found with health problems in the early life which may clear when the person finds strength through successful work. So on balance, the rest of the dwads are not helpful or even misleading in this case.

Our readers pointed out the strong, close Venus conjunction with the Ascendant as one major key, with which I agree. The ability to enjoy ourselves and life is a primary source of health and longevity. Another key which our correspondents mentioned is the movement of Uranus from the 5th house to the 4th house. In general, fire is an indication of vitality while water can symbolize holding in or retreating. Another water emphasis in twin two is the closer square of the Ascendant to Neptune, while her close Antivertex square to Vesta can imply health challenges in the early life. Twin two also has her East Point closely semisquare or octile Ceres, the other Virgo asteroid, again suggesting possible health challenges. The primary Virgo meaning is the ability to function effectively; first with our physical body, and later in our jobs in the material world. In this case, the aspects to the angles seem more helpful than the dwads. I do not know the cause of death for twin two. The first male twin was born dead and the second one, with the Aries MC is fine. I’m not sure whether that is unusual. I would have expected the living twin to push out first, but my knowledge of medical details is pretty minimal. It is interesting that the dead one had both MC and Ascendant in the Capricorn dwads. Both Capricorn and Virgo in high focus in the early life can mean a challenge in mastering the material world, with Capricorn (and Saturn and 10th house) often symbolizing circumstances beyond our control. The only planet to change houses was Venus, moving from the 9th to the 8th house, which would count against the correct answer.

Aspects to the angles are again the best clue. Twin one has the Ascendant exactly quincunx Moon in the 6th house, octile Vesta in Virgo, and it is closely tri-octile Uranus. Uranus and Venus are square in both charts, but twin two has the MC in close, harmonious aspects to both of them; trine Uranus and semisextile Venus. However, reminding us that there are no absolutes in astrology, twin two has his East Point exactly quincunx Uranus, and his Ascendant is closer to the quincunx to Mercury. Both twins had the MC contraparallel Saturn and the Ascendant contraparallel Neptune. Twin one had the Antivertex contraparallel Uranus while for twin two, the Antivertex had moved to be contraparallel Neptune. Again, there is no clear indication, but I would tend to weight the choice the wrong way.

Some interesting Arabic Parts tip the scales back in the right direction again. Twin one has the Part of Pluto (Ascendant plus Pluto minus Sun) opposite Vesta and tri-octile Ascendant. He also has the Part of Mars square Pluto and the Part of Fortune opposite Pluto. I only consider aspects to Arabic Parts that are exact within a one degree orb. The Part of Mars uses the standard formula; Mars plus Ascendant minus Sun. Most astrologers are familiar with the Part of Fortune; Ascendant plus Moon minus Sun. I would prefer to call the latter the Part of the Moon and have a standard terminology. I interpret all such Arabic Parts as similar to another placement of the key planet, so Part of Mars is like another Mars in the chart; Part of Fortune like another Moon, etc. The aspect combination is therefore like saying twin one has Moon opposite Pluto with Mars square to both while Pluto is opposite Vesta. Since Arabic Parts use the angles of the chart and angles change in the short interval between the births of twins, the Parts can be additional useful keys to the picture.

Still another type of factor that can be useful is the midpoint system. Planetary positions are virtually the same for twins, so the differences can be seen in aspects of planetary midpoints to angles (which change) or in aspects involving midpoints derived from angles. One striking combination in this set of twins is the clustering of midpoints around 16 Libra. The midpoints of Vesta/Uranus, Jupiter/Pluto, Saturn/Pluto, and Neptune/north node of the Moon are all within a one degree square to the Ascendant of twin one! We will probably never exhaust the possibilities of astrology. Every technique seems to say the same thing again, if you persist until you get a preponderance on one side. This case is another good one to support the theory that the baby comes when its nature fits the sky. Twin one had been dead about two days before the actual birth, but the more deeply we go into the details of the case, the stronger is the picture of an aborted life. Of course, after we know the details, it is easy to make it fit, and we can “justify” the misleading clues. We can say that the 9th house Venus of twin one was a key to his trip to a higher realm rather than staying on earth, while twin two had to face death though being told about the lost brother, as well as being in pretty close quarters with his body for the two days before birth. One wonders what he will do with his life, after such a beginning. Since I have known his grandmother for many years, this may be one case where we can keep you informed now and then.

The challenge for this issue is a pair of female identical twins born on June 24, 1913 in Philadelphia, PA, one at 11:25 A.M., the other at 11:40 A.M. Although they are identical in looks and voice, they hate each other with intense bitterness. Their parents came from Russia and were harsh, stern, and very poor. The twins had seven brothers and sisters, and both left home at age 16.

The source of the data claims that one twin is a hard worker on a job and in her home. She is neat and clean in appearance, has a mild temper unless backed into a corner. She is honest, truthful, compassionate, with a giving nature and an open mind, according to our source. Events in her life included marriage in 1930, a premature girl Dec. 1, 1930 with both baby and mother almost dying in the birth. She separated from her alcoholic husband sometime in 1931 and divorced in 1938. She married again in 1943 and took her daughter into her new home. She moved to Calif. in 1949. She was widowed in 1960.

Our informant says that the other twin is lazy, indolent, careless in appearance, a liar and thief, has a temper (considered a shrew) , is totally selfish with a closed mind to any new ideas. Her events included an illegitimate son born Jan. 12, 1931 and she had no problems in the birth. She married in the fall of either 1943 or 1944 (my source is not sure), had a girl and a boy, separated in 1957 and divorced in 1959. She married again in 1968 and was widowed in 1969. She moved to Florida after the last marriage.

Have fun with this one.

Copyright © 1981 Los Angeles Community Church of Religious Science, Inc.

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