Let's Play ! Seriously . . .

Dedicated to
Lauren Lesko

This post is an examination of certain particulars of Elvis Presley's chart and also an exploration of the necessity to Play with the interpretive system I've created. This system is introduced in my free-to-download book, Astrological Repair Manual. You can also have a free download of a special edition of the interpretive system all by itself. I strongly suggest you download at least one of these so you can follow along with the interpretation of people's charts and, hopefully, offer your comments and suggestions for other interpretations in the comments!

Last post, I introduced an analogy to help you understand the approach I offer with my system. I used the words: Fire, Air, Water, and Earth to designate levels of interpretive perception. Last night I received a lesson of extremely helpful critique about the use of those particular words and the confusion they may cause for people already familiar with the elements as commonly used in astrology.

So...

I'll re-introduce that analogy and give you words that won't cause any stress in philosophic understanding.

My approach to astrological interpretation is based on the ancient aphorism, "As Above, So Below". In the four decades of my study and practice, I've come to the firm conclusion that the most honest and valuable approach to astrology is to start Above and work your way down to Below. Reversing the direction is one of the most serious mistakes an astrological aspirant can make...

The highest level of interpretive perception is the Spiritual, followed by the Social, Personal, and Practical levels. Each level enfolds or encompasses the level below...

My system was designed to enable you to begin at the highest level and Play your way down through the others to find the most appropriate interpretation for any concern or issue in your life.

Now, some examples of Playing with the system while we consider Elvis' chart (that link will open another window so you can easily reference the chart while we go through the interpretation {Check out Wikipedia if you want to read a fascinating biography).

I'm only going to cover two of Elvis' ten planets—the Sun or Central Life Purpose and the Mooon or Style of Doing the Life Purpose. This analysis isn't intended to be complete but it is intended to show you how to find a few indications of the Man behind the Media and the Soul behind the Music...

We'll start with his Sun in Capricorn in the Second House. Since my system provides 64 interpretations for each placement, I'll simplify things a bit by giving you three that seem to me to express Elvis' Central Life Purpose:

Focusing Structural Innovations in order to Realize his Heritage.

Integrating Constructive Initiatives in order to Ground his Plans.

Vitalizing a Desire for Enduring Patterns in order to Be Aware of his Worth.

Yes, those are very abstract interpretations yet they give us the Space necessary to consider much more than what the entertainment press ever offered about Elvis' reasons for being who he was. And, yes, those sentences demand that you spend some time thinking about deeper issues than just his gyrating body or hypnotic voice...

Now, I want to Play a bit...

I'm going to take part of one of those sentences and mate it with part of another:

Vitalizing a Desire for Enduring Patterns in order to Realize his Heritage.

Just a hint from his biography: He was early on a lover of Gospel and it seems to me he immortalized a soaring spiritual presentation of whatever he sang...

Now, the Moon—the Style of doing his Central Life Purpose.

Considering the last symbolic sentence from the system for Elvis' Sun, here's what I came up with for his Moon placement (in Pisces in the Third House):

Nourishing Universal Feeling in order to Make Connections.

Connections? How about connections between his Heritage (Gospel) and his Audience (the Universal Audience he attracted...)...

Soon, I'll be introducing the phrases for my system that permit interpretation of aspects between various factors in the chart. For now, consider that Elvis' had a Sun/Moon relationship expressed through the waxing Semisquare. Now, consider those two symbolic sentences I constructed for Elvis' Central Life Purpose and Style of Doing that Purpose with the meaning of their relationship included:

Vitalizing a Desire for Enduring Patterns in order to Realize his Heritage

finds intense expression through

Nourishing Universal Feeling in order to Make Connections.

And, connections he did, emphatically, make. People who love Elvis, who have no other social connection, find soul-mates when they encounter another Elvis lover. Music created from the depths of human suffering—Gospel and Soul—now have a connection to people who have never suffered the depravities that gave that music birth...

No matter the way he died, I feel he more than accomplished his Style of Doing his Central Life Purpose...

~~~~~~~~~

Now, it's your turn: Download my system and Play with all the possible interpretations of Elvis' Sun and Moon, Play with the act of discovering more than the media could ever tell you about a Musical Icon. And, hopefully, share your experience in the Comments...

What's Important To You?

I was going to look at Elvis Presley's chart in this post but that will have to wait. There's a more important topic that should be dealt with since I've launched into showing you how the interpretive system in my book (Astrological Repair Manual) can be used to arrive at more honest and positive insights into those strange entities called charts.

As you noticed in the last post, while considering Adolf Hitler's chart, my focus isn't from the ground, up; it's from the sky, down...

I didn't try to find the evil actions of Hitler in his chart, I considered the positive factors in his life-blueprint and gave a few reasons why he didn't fulfill his positive potential. Hitler was born with all the positive potential for creative contribution to our human family as any of us but his environment and his own free-will conspired against his developing a desire to be a trustworthy member of the human race.

Our ego minds seem to never get enough of seeing life as good/bad, white/black, for me/against me...

But, we all have higher or, if you prefer, deeper minds that can bridge the gap between "good" and "bad" and find a position of Best, for ourselves and for others we relate to.

Here's an analogy to help you see why I propose that a top-down interpretation is always better than a bottom-up one:

Let's consider a view of the ancient alchemical elements Earth, Water, Air, Fire. In fact, that ordering of the elements (which is at least 4,000 years-old) is very valuable for getting from a street-view of astrology to a cosmic view of the potential our inner solar system contains.

Important Note: This consideration goes beyond how much of each element you have planets in. Don't forget, we All have All the elements at our disposal. Matter of fact, the view I propose can help us "activate" those elements we may think we don't have...

Earth is where we all live, the place of daily chores, relationships with other humans, and, eventually, our body's grave. If we fashion an interpretive process that sticks to the Earth, we only have at our disposal a view that's limited to concrete processes; and, our range of tools is reduced to our own physical experience or the "indications" of chart factors borrowed from other's physical experience...

When we shift to the Water perspective, we don't lose our Earth bearings because Water encompasses and enfolds Earth. What we do, though, is to widen our range of tools in our astrological kit. We have now the powerful tools of empathy, sympathy, compassion and concern. Our astrological bedside-manner becomes more valuable because we're relating to the other person (or, even ourselves) with a gut-level understanding. The trials and temptations of a merely physical life are tempered at the fountain of fellow-feeling...

It takes more willed work but transition to the Air perspective has valuable rewards, for ourselves and those we may counsel. Now, we have a point-of-view that encompasses and enfolds both Water and Earth yet can operate above their enticing attractions and give us a far-seeing approach that can warn more effectively of approaching danger or steer more efficiently across the canvas that Earth and Water have given birth to...

Finally, for we earth-dwellers, is the realm of Fire. Few can maintain their position within this framework for long, mostly because they have no tools to help them maintain their interpretive focus at this intuitive and dramatically dynamic level of astrological awareness. The Fire perspective enfolds and inspires creative responses at the levels of Air, Water, and Earth...

I claim that the system I present the basics of in my book, in the section at the back called The Instructions, and which I'll be using to consider the charts of famous people {and regular folk like you and me when you begin to contribute to the comments section about your experience with it}, this system can and does operate at the Fire level. It stays above the possible confusions of the Air level, above the possible swampings of the Water level, above the possible petrifications of the Earth level, while still offering aid and assistance for all those realms.

Download the book, try the system on yourself or a few friends (be sure they get to pick their own options!), and seriously consider sharing your experience in the comments. The more we Share, the more we Grow.

Next time, Elvis' chart...