Exaltations - another take

[Jim Eshelman]

I remain persuaded that Cyril Fagan in Zodiacs Old & New uncovered he actual origins of the planetary exaltations.

It is clear that the original exaltations are not a single chart since Mercury in Virgo could not exist concurrent with Sun in Aries. Nonetheless, all the others could exist together, so I thought I would see if ever in the history of astrology the other six exaltations could exist at the same time. I did computer search across 10,000 years [EDIT: 5,400 years] and I found one brief period when Saturn was in Libra, Jupiter in Cancer, Mars in Capricorn, Sun in Aries, Venus in Pisces, and Moon in Taurus. It was from February 24, 5352 BC at 2:15 am UT to February 26, at 11:17 am UT. (Actually, that should be ET.)

In short, there was never a time that these all (even excepting Mercury) existed at the same time. Fagan's theory of heliacal and acronychal risings and settings is the better theory.

Unless someone can find something distinctive about February 24, 5352 BC.

I suggest a chart for that date at sunset in Heliopolis, as Saturn rose in Libra in the east opposite the setting Aries Sun in the west, both square Mars in Capricorn on Nadir with Jupiter (invisibly conjunct Uranus) in Cancer in the southern sky. The fresh New Moon in Taurus road high enough in the western sky. Visual sunset was 5:39 PM LMT. There is nothing remarkable about the chart unless we slide it 13 minutes later, to 5:52 PM LMT, when Sirius directly culminated with Spica visible well above the horizon in the east. At least, if someone was standing looking at the sunset and glanced at the new Moon, they'd have next seen the scintillating Sirius high in the sky.

UPDATE NOTE: The final search was from about 5400 BC through 2021 AD. Only this one occasion was found.

[SteveS]

Jim wrote:

I did computer search across 10,000 years….

Can we get charts going back to c. 10,500 BC in SF?

[Jim Eshelman]

Steve, that was an on-target question. The answer is no, planet calculations don't go back that far.

I missed it because the search didn't complain when I ran it, but it was cranking part of the time against no data.

SF calculations go back about half that far, at least to 5100 BC and I think not to 5500. I'll figure out the threshold later this morning.

[Jim Eshelman]

Steve, the earliest date for which Solar Fire will calculate is December 30, 5402 BC.

[Jim Eshelman]

Totally idle musings, but thoughts I hadn't had before: This curiosity started when I was musing yesterday about the pattern of the exaltations. I'm quite surprised that I had never noticed until yesterday that the Sun and the superior planets (i.e., anything further from the sun than Earth) completely loop the Rim signs. In fact, if you diagram the exaltation signs on classic Qabbalistic diagrams (such as the Tree of Life or, especially and probably much older, the 7 Palaces), you get in Saturn, Jupiter, Sol, and Mars the loop Libra - Cancer - Aries - Capricorn.

Then the two inferior planets (Mercury and Venus) are opposite signs: Virgo and Pisces, respectively.

Then Moon is in Taurus.

I don't know what this means (or whether it means anything), but the patterns are interesting. That the superior planets follow one pattern, the inferior planets another, and Moon stands alone reminded me that I'd always wanted to use modern tools to calculate whether there was any time in astrology's history when these planets actually were in those signs. Having covered at least half of astrology's history, I find it happened once - and that one time probably has no particular meaning (at least, none I can discern).

[By Jove]

I do notice a few trends with traditional exaltations.

All the Rim/Cardinal signs have exaltations.
Aries - Sun, Cancer - Jupiter, Libra - Saturn, Capricorn - Mars.

Almost all Hub/Fixed signs have no exaltations.
Only Taurus – Moon is the exception.

The Spoke/Mutable signs are a mixed bag.
Virgo - Mercury and Pisces - Venus have exaltations.
Gemini and Sagittarius have none.

The Hub signs seem to more "purely" represent their ruling planets than the Rim signs. Like Taurus is 100% Venus while Libra is more 50/50 with Venus and Saturn. (Something like that.) And the Hub signs are the foundation of the zodiac, with the planet rulerships and exaltations of the other signs derived from them.

[Jim Eshelman]

I do notice a few trends with traditional exaltations.

All the Rim/Cardinal signs have exaltations.
Aries - Sun, Cancer - Jupiter, Libra - Saturn, Capricorn - Mars.

And they're all superior planets (plus Sun, so I perhaps should say "none of them are inferior planets").

The Spoke/Mutable signs are a mixed bag.
Virgo - Mercury and Pisces - Venus have exaltations.
Gemini and Sagittarius have none.

Yes, but it's of great interest that these are the only two inferior planets and they are defined as polar opposites.

[By Jove]

What makes a planet superior/inferior?

[Jim Eshelman]

These are astronomy terms. A superior planet is one farther from the Sun than Earth is. An inferior planet is closer to the Sun.

Another way to say it: By their relative speeds, the ancients saw the spheres of the planets in the order Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon. The first four are exalted in Rims, the next two in opposed Spokes.