Challenge Corner
Zip Dobyns
I guess everyone took me at my word or agreed that last issue’s challenge was probably impossible. Or maybe, like me, everyone is too busy to write letters. Of course, even with a minute difference in time, there are still changes in the charts. The angles only change about a quarter of a degree, but if aspects are limited to one degree orb, we have changes in aspects from angles to planets, midpoints, nodes of the planets, etc.
I ran a variety of programs on both charts, including parans (a form of aspect using right ascension), Arabic Parts, aspect analyses of several sorts, progressions, and arcs for the date the male twin was killed in the plane crash. One of the most striking differences was that progressed Jupiter was in orb of the seventh cusp (opposite the Ascendant) for one twin and out of orb for the other. I’m sure most astrologers would assume that the twin with Jupiter on an angle would be the one to be protected, but the aspect was there for the one who died. As I have written before, I do find Jupiter always involved in death, whether it indicates the importance of faith at that time, a trip to another “world”, or rash over- confidence leading to excessive behavior. As indicated in our last issue, the death did occur on a trip in another country; another Jupiter meaning.
In spite of the closeness of the birth times (one minute apart), I was surprised to find changes in Moon aspects. Though the printed degree and minute was the same for both twins, the change in seconds was enough to give the first born twin (the female) a paran of Moon and Uranus rising together. The second born twin (the male) missed the aspect. The difference is not much help in differentiating the two, since the female expressed a freedom-closeness dilemma by not having children; the male by leaving home, temporarily through military service and permanently through death.
Another Moon difference between the two twins was that the female had the Moon semisextile to Pluto listed as her closest aspect, while in the male chart, the very slight change in the Moon’s position put the Jupiter conjunction to the true south node of the Moon as the closest aspect. Interesting that, again, Jupiter is highlighted for him.
There were some changes of aspects to midpoints formed with the angles. Limiting our orb to one degree, aspects present in the female chart and lacking in the male chart included Neptune/East Point sextile Ceres, Jupiter/East Point trine Mars, and Antivertex/East Point quincunx Mercury. Exclusively in the male chart were Chiron/Asc. square Neptune, Jupiter/MC semisextile Ceres, Juno/Asc. sextile Venus, Juno/MC square Jupiter and the south node of the Moon, north node/MC sextile Ceres, and south node/Antivertex square Sun. This collection of aspects does include both more aspects and more stressful aspects for the male chart.
One of the aspect analysis programs which I ran on the computer figures the importance of all divisions of the circle up to a division by 60. A division by two includes oppositions, by three produces trines, etc. Conjunctions will be counted in all cases, as well as any aspect whose number can divide evenly into the higher number used to divide the circle. That is, aspects derived by dividing the circle by eight, the octile, are lumped with division by four (squares), by two (oppositions), and by one (conjunctions). I noted that the female chart had a little more emphasis on semisextiles while the male chart had more emphasis on the division by nine (noviles—a little used aspect) and by eighteen. Tentative results connect the divisions by nine and eighteen with a Jupiter or Neptune quality which may express as a spiritual quest or as escapism.
An Arabic Part which I formerly included in my charts but dropped after adding the asteroids, is the Part of Status. The formula is MC plus Moon minus Sun. It seems to represent past tendencies involving the MC, our status, career, handling of power, practicality, etc. The Part of Status was conjunct Saturn within the one degree orb for the male chart and outside the orb for the female. The importance of the pattern was emphasized because at the time of the death, progressed Moon was square Saturn and the progressed Part of Death was opposite Saturn, square progressed Moon; a fixed T-square in mutable houses. Natal Saturn in Scorpio in the ninth house fits the death in a foreign land.
Of course there were many aspects present in both charts, including the classic separation aspects we expect for death. Progressed Ascendant was opposite Pluto, quincunx progressed Uranus and progressed Juno (a yod). Progressed East Point was opposite progressed Mercury. Progressed Antivertex was quincunx Ceres. With Ceres a key to our parental role and Juno symbolizing a mate, as well as Mercury which rules part of the seventh and eighth houses and was in the eighth house, the aspects show the potential of a separation of the individual (symbolized by the various angles) from his mate and family. Progressed MC was opposite progressed Vesta in the fifth house, repeating the theme.
For an accidental and violent death, we would expect activity with Mars and Uranus. Both charts had the progressed south node of Mars square the natal Ascendant, progressed north node of Mars conjunct the sixth house cusp, progressed south node of Uranus conjunct the progressed MC opposite progressed Vesta and the natal Part of Mars (Mars plus Ascendant minus Sun), as well as quincunx heliocentric Jupiter. Progressed south node of Saturn was conjunct the natal Ascendant, progressed south node of Venus was conjunct the progressed eighth house cusp, etc. The quotidian (daily) angles also had strong aspects, repeating the same themes.
In the Pisces Mutable Dilemma, I mentioned in passing an aspect in Gary Hart’s chart using harmonic arcs. One of our readers called to get more details about the procedure of calculating harmonic arcs. I found, in trying to help her, that it is not easy to get the figures accurately on a calculator. A computer is really needed. In the process of working with Susan’s chart for a win in Las Vegas, I became increasingly intrigued by the patterns, and ran a bunch of the harmonic arcs for my own chart and some members of the family. It really does look like a potentially valuable technique though it certainly needs much more testing.
Since the procedure involves multiplying all the planets and angles by the solar arc (instead of adding it), the technique does accentuate any differences between the factors in the twins’ charts. I found that it gave wider variances between the twins’ angles than the rest of the techniques I tried, and that some of the aspects at the time of the accidental death were quite meaningful. The female twin had her harmonic arc directed MC trine her Sun, her Ascendant sextile Ascendant, her East Point square Mercury, and her Antivertex semisextile Vesta. The male twin had MC quincunx the true south node of the Moon, Ascendant semisextile Mars and sextile Chiron, East Point square Neptune in the ninth house, and Antivertex conjunct Mercury square Ceres.
I am not sure I would have guessed right if I hadn’t had the answer, but it was an interesting investigation.
Our new challenge involves fraternal twins, both female. They were born in Chicago on March 14, 1949; one at 5:41 A.M. and the other at 5:43 A.M.
One twin is quite stable, completed an advanced degree in college and is a high school counselor as well as in private practice. She married in 1977 and had twins in 1978.
The other twin has had mental health problems, has been involved in substance abuse, has moved around the country, never married but had a daughter in July, 1974.
Try your luck or your skill?