O My Stars: Oztrology Downunder

In a previous article (White Magic in Gondwana Land) I explained how the seasons of the year, around which the Wheel of the Year or Sabbats are based in Australia, are an aspect of an imported Neo-Paganism which originated in the Northern Hemisphere and do not fit here in Australia without modification. At the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere the Sun is 0 degrees Capricorn, the traditional sign of Midwinter, but here in Australia we are usually sweltering in the middle of high Summer. According to Astrology, Australians celebrate Litha around December 22nd in the sign of Capricorn, Lughnasad (Lammas) on February 2nd in the sign of Aquarius, Mabon around March 22nd in the sign of Aries, Samhain on the 30th of April in the sign of Taurus, Yule around 22nd June in the sign of Cancer, Brigid (Imbolc) on 1st August in the sign of Leo, Eostre (Ostara) around 22nd September in the sign of Libra, and Beltane on 31st October in the sign of Scorpio. These Sabbat-Zodiac Signs are the opposite of the Northern Hemisphere ones.

Australia still experiences the Sun travelling through the same Zodiac signs as the Northern Hemispher;, however, the Season in which this occurs is the opposite one to that occurring in the Northern Hemisphere. It is not that our Antipodean Seasons occur at the wrong time - it is that Astrology, a Northern Hemisphere art and science, does not fit with the Southern Hemisphere. The Zodiac constellations were originally named with regards to what was happening on Earth at the time that the Sun appeared in a particular sign (or was deduced to be in a particular sign as the Sun cannot be actually ‘seen’ in a sign in the daytime). For example, Aries, the sign of the Vernal Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, contained the Sun at the time when animals were mating, plants were growing and the sap of trees was rising after the Winter dormancy and thus Aries’s attributes are vitality, virility, energy, the releasing of the life force, beginnings, initiation and Springtime.

In his book Astrological Signs: The Pulse of Life, Dane Rudhyar explains the origins of the Northern Hemisphere bias in this way: “The Zodiac is the symbolism of the cycle of the year. It is so essentially in the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere where Astrology was born. Zodiacal symbolism is the product of the experience of human races living in such regions: experience of the Seasons, of the activities of nature and of man through the changing panorama of vegetation - vegetation being the very foundation of animal and human life on Earth. As such races have been, during the last millennia, the active factor in the evolution of human consciousness, their experience has come to acquire a universal validity in the determination of cosmic meaning and human purpose. Civilisation as we know it today is therefore centred in a Northern Hemisphere and temperate kind of consciousness.”- So much for those of us who now live in the Southern Hemisphere!

I believe that Australia should adopt a different system for Astrology; the signs are there in the sky but the meanings, based on the Seasonal characteristics of the signs in the Northern Hemisphere, are six months out of date. Many (non-Pagan) Astrologers, unaware of the Seasonal characteristics of the Zodiac signs, do not understand the idea of tailoring Astrology to fit in better with Australian conditions. This would involve swapping the meanings of the signs with their opposites, or alternately moving the signs six months ahead - similar to how we have altered the Sabbats for the Southern Hemisphere. Also, if Australians had created Astrology, firstly we would have viewed the signs along the Ecliptic upside down and would not have seen them as a Ram, a Bull and so on but perhaps as a Kangaroo, or an Emu, a spotted Cuscus or a Blue-tongued Lizard; and secondly we would have been seeing the same actual constellation as the Northern Hemisphere but experienced it in the opposite Season and therefore named it something that related to the Season it was experienced in.

Australian celebrity Astrologer Milton Black has invented a “Dreamtime” Zodiac. He has retained the traditional twelve-fold form, however changed the names of the signs from the familiar Zodiac menagerie to Australian native animals. This part so far is fine, but Black has also dispensed with the actual Zodiac belt in the sky which runs along the Ecliptic and instead used completely different constellations, most of them of a more Northerly position. Black’s system is as follows:

 

Month	Animal	Constellation
January	Possum	Cassiopoeia - This constellation cannot even be seen from Australia
February	Bat	Pegasus - This can be seen from Australia.
March	Bilby	Andromeda - Visible from November in the Southern Hemisphere.
April	Dingo	Perseus - Hardly rises above horizon in Southern Hemisphere.
May	Wombat	Auriga - Almost circumpolar in North Hemisphere. Capella seen low on horizon in Jan in Southern Hem.
June	Platypus	Ursa Minor - Near North Pole star.
July	Koala	Ursa Major - Circumpolar the North Pole.
August	Crocodile	Draco - Coils around the North pole.
September	Lizard	Bootes - Hardly visible from the Southern Hem, but Arcturus can be seen on Northern horizon in June in the Southern Hem.
October	Emu	Hercules - Visible from May to August in the Southern Hem.
November	Echidna	Lyra - Summer triangle, brightest stars in the Northern Hem. Vega can be seen in Southern Hem in June.
December	Kangaroo	Cygnus - Cygnus can be seen in Southern Hem on the North horizon in September.

 

As can be seen from the above descriptions of the positions of these constellations, most of them cannot even be seen from the Southern Hemisphere. To then call this arrangement a “Dreamtime” Zodiac is preposterous as firstly, the Australian Aboriginals did not use a twelve-fold Zodiac system and secondly, they certainly would not recognise constellations which they could not even see from Australia. It is baffling as to why Black decided to construct his “Dreamtime” Zodiac in this manner as he could have done the same thing but used Southern constellations instead. So the potential merit of this system is ruined by the use of Northern constellations.

Another solution, proposed by Australian Astrologer Craig McIntosh, involves adapting the signs to the Southern Hemisphere without changing the familiar names or positions of those signs. He says “This (the Southern Hemisphere question) is an area where we have remained rigidly traditional. The Northern Hemisphere Seasonal symbolism has acquired an authority which it does not deserve. After all, it is only a symbol used to describe the signs; a convenient tool. But some people have assumed it to be the definitive delineation of the Sun signs and believe that to challenge and change it affects Astrology’s fundamental integrity.” McIntosh suggests the following Seasonal symbolism for the Southern Hemisphere:

Autumn

Aries - The energy to shed the leaves of the old cycle to allow the new to begin.

Taurus - The process of acquisition and accumulation in the home and land for the Winter ahead.

Gemini - A time to be given over to mental persuits and the development of ideas as we move inside.


Winter

Cancer - The expressed need to gather and store food for the family for the Winter.

Leo - The fire, warmth and focus to take us through the cold.

Virgo - The meticulous austerity of Winter, the virgin with the promise of fertility.


Spring

Libra - Coming out and greeting the world with the charm and ambience of Spring.

Scorpio - The intense energy of the bud bursting forth with the sexuality of Spring.

Sagittarius - The verve of Spring leaping into Summer.


Summer

Capricorn - A time when the growth of Spring has crystallised and new growth is restricted.

Aquarius - The sudden electric occurrence of bushfires radically changing the environment.

Pisces - A time of penultimate growth and preparation for the renewal of growth through the shedding of the season.

This system has its good points too, but why not move the actual sign names six months ahead, as is done with the Southern Hemisphere Sabbats, rather than changing their descriptions but leaving them where they are? Then we could keep both the twelve signs and their descriptions, and they would actually be describing the right thing ie/ the Seasons. The Northern Hemisphere form of Zodiac symbolism has become the pervading notion worldwide, despite the obvious incongruity for half the world. The average Astrologer either does not address this problem, or defers to the basic ‘European-ness’ of the Astrological world and dismisses it as a minor point if challenged. It is Pagans, with their familiarity with the idea of the Wheel of the Year, who are more likely to see the merits in adjusting the Zodiac to fit Antipodean conditions. I personally can hardly take Astrology seriously without making allowances for the Southern Hemisphere question.

 

White Magick in Gondwana Land

 

Neo-Paganism is a popular and rapidly growing alternative religious practice in Australia today as witnessed by the hoards of enthusiasts attending gatherings all over the country and the many magazines dedicated to furthering informed discussion and opinion on Paganism and Witchcraft in general.

Being an imported religion originating in the Northern Hemisphere, many aspects of Witchcraft, such as its reliance on the Seasonal calendar or Sabbats, are topsy-turvy when applied to Southern Hemisphere conditions. Most Occultism, including Astrology, originated in the Northern Hemisphere and the majority of books on the subject of Witchcraft and Neo-Paganism are written by authors from the UK and the USA. Australian Witches have to juggle the dates, directions and symbolism prescribed in these books to fit them into Antipodean conditions which, judging by the ongoing queries appearing in local Neo-Pagan journals, is often a confusing process.

According to the Collins English Dictionary, the word Austral means “coming from the South.” The word Australia comes from the Latin Australis deriving from Auster, the South wind. Rather than only reversing the Northern Hemisphere Sabbats to fit the Australian calendar, Australians need to look at the Indigenous Seasons, Southern Hemisphere Astrology, the Sacred Directions and different Latitudes within Australia, all of which affect the practice of Witchcraft in this unique part of the world. Being an Earth-based religion, with a calendar that aligns to both Earthly and Celestial events such as the local Seasons and the Lunar cycle, Witchcraft’s festival year is a reflection of its environment - that environment being Australian, not British or American.

In the Northern Hemisphere, where the Western Magickal tradition originated, generally East is ruled by Air, North is ruled by Earth, West by Water and South by Fire. Australian Witches, practicing Magick in the Southern Hemisphere encounter various differences when applying a Magickal theory that originated in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, East is the direction of birth, beginnings and initiation, South is the direction of victory, adulthood and community involvement, West is the direction of old age, death and transformation and North is the direction of the abode of the Gods. These Elemental attribution’s of the directions are based on the movement of the Sun through the Northern Hemisphere’s sky, for example; when facing East in the Northern Hemisphere, the Sun rises and travels through the sky slightly to the right of someone standing there watching. It reaches its zenith in the Southern part of the sky before sinking in the West and therefore, in the Northern Hemisphere, South is considered the Direction of Fire.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the Sun rises in the East but then travels to the left of the observer achieving its zenith in the Northern part of the sky. Australians therefore attribute Fire to the North and Earth to the South, South being the cold area where the Sun does not venture. East and West are generally kept the same as the Northern Hemisphere, being the areas of Air and Water. Thus we end up with our North and South Elemental attribution reversed; South ruling Earth, East ruling Air, North ruling Fire and West ruling Water. Some Witches localise their Directions even more, for example on the East Coast of Australia many attribute East to Water, because the Pacific Ocean is at their East, West to Earth, as the whole remainder of the continent is in the West, North to Fire, for the reasons explained above, which leaves South ruling Air. West Coast Witches usually do not reverse East and West as the Indian Ocean lies to their West and they tend to leave East to Air, although theoretically they could attribute East to Earth as the rest of the continent spreads out towards their East. Like the Magickal Circle, Horoscope charts as maps of the heavens calculated for the Southern Hemisphere, should really have the Ascendant position, which represents East, on the right of the Zodiac wheel rather than the left where it usually is because if the Midheaven of the chart represents midday and North in an Australian chart, then the right side of the chart is where the Sun rises, not the left.

The movements within the Circle to the left or the right, Deosil and Widdershins, are also reversed in the Southern Hemisphere. Deosil means “with the Sun” and Widdershins means “against the Sun.” If we are going to follow the Sun to move Deosil in Australia we will move to the left, not to the right as in the Northern Hemisphere. Invoking, represented by Deosil movement and Banishing represented by Widdershins therefore change directions compared with the Northern Hemisphere. The words “clockwise” and “anticlockwise” are irrelevant for Circle Casting in the Southern Hemisphere as clocks were invented in the Northern Hemisphere and the movement of a clock’s hands in a “clockwise” direction are modelled on the movement of the Sun in the Northern Hemisphere sky. If clock makers in Australia were aware of the reason for the direction of the movement of the clock’s hands, I would like to think they would make a Southern Hemisphere clock! Another example of Northern centrism are the words Sinister and Dexter which are the Anglicised version of the Latin words for the directions left and right. Sinister has connotations of evil and Dexter has connotations of good, witness the reputations of “The Left Hand Path” and “The Right hand Path.” To get more technical, if Sinister is associated with “leftness” and Dexter is associated with “rightness” then we Australians are all travelling on the Left Hand Path and obviously something very sinister is going on!

The Seasons of the year, around which the Wheel of the Year or Sabbats are based in Australia, is another aspect of an imported Neo-Paganism that originated in the Northern Hemisphere and just does not fit here in Australia without modification. Thankfully the Seasons are rather obvious and most Pagans get the idea that following the Northern Hemisphere dates does not work here. At the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere the Sun is 0 degrees Capricorn, the traditional sign of Midwinter, but here in Australia, we are usually sweltering in the middle of high Summer. Australian Christians usually spray fake snow on their windows while sweating over their hot Xmas turkey, just not understanding the nature of worshipping a SOLAR god born on the Winter Solstice. Pagans know better and we ‘flip’ the Wheel of the Year to coincide with the Seasons as they occur in Australia. Thus both the Greater and Lesser Sabbats occur with a six month difference between here and the Northern Hemisphere.

According to Northern Hemisphere Astrology, Australians have Litha around December 22nd in the sign of Capricorn, Lughnasad on Februrary 2nd in the sign of Aquarius, Mabon around March 22nd in the sign of Aries, Samhain on the 30th of April in the sign of Taurus, Yule around 22nd June in the sign of Cancer, Brigid on 1st August in the sign of Leo, Eostre around 22nd September in the sign of Libra and Beltane on 31st October in the sign of Scorpio. Again, it is not that our Seasons occur at the wrong time, it is Astrology, a Northern Hemisphere art and science that does not fit with the Southern Hemisphere Seasons. In my opinion, the Zodiac constellations were named with regards to what was happening on Earth at the time that the Sun appeared in a particular sign (or was deduced to be in a particular sign as the Sun cannot be actually ‘seen’ in a sign in the daytime), for example Aries, the sign of the Vernal Equinox contained the Sun at the time that animals were mating, plants were growing and the sap of trees was rising after the Winter dormancy and thus Aries’ attributes are vitality, virility, energy, the releasing of the life force, beginnings, initiation and Springtime.

Australia still experiences the Sun travelling through the same Zodiac signs as the Northern Hemisphere, however the Season in which this occours is the opposite one to that occurring in the Northern Hemisphere. In regards to the Astrological attributes and yearly placements of the Sabbats, we know that many Pagan traditions encompass the symbolism of the Goddess-Cancer-Moon ruling the Summer months between the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes and the God-Capricorn-Saturn ruling the Winter months from the Autumnal to the Vernal Equinoxes. In Australia this too is usually swapped around, the Goddess being aligned with Capricorn and the God with Cancer as these are the signs associated with our Summer and Winter. Depending where in Australia the observer is living, sometimes the Goddess is associated with Winter, as Summer is way too dry and barren, or the Summer Goddess will be a Crone rather than a fertile Mother to reflect the appearance of that locality.

I believe that Australia should adopt a different system for Astrology; the signs are there but the meanings, based partly on the Seasonal characteristics of the signs in the Northern Hemisphere are six months out of date. Many Astrologers, unaware of the Seasonal characteristics of the Zodiac signs do not understand the idea of tailoring Astrology to fit in better with Australian conditions which would involve swapping the meanings of the signs with their opposites. If Australians had created Astrology, firstly we would have viewed the signs along the Ecliptic upside down and would not have seen them as a Ram, a Bull and so on but perhaps as a Kangaroo, or an Emu, a spotted Cuscus or a Blue-tongued Lizard and secondly we would have been seeing the same actual constellation as the Northern Hemisphere but experienced it in the opposite Season and therefore named it something that related to the Season it was experienced in.

It will take a determined effort for Australian Witches and Pagans to create a real link with this part of the world. Some Australians even insist on sticking completely to the Northern Hemisphere method, Compass attributes, Deosil and Widdershins AND even the Sabbats! Their justification is that rituals occur on the Astral Plane and so it does not really matter what direction you use or on what date the Seasons fall in the real world. Basically the Paganism which we practice in Australia IS British and many people recognise a race-bloodline affinity with their Northern Gods, however, when we create the Circle, salute the Earth and place our hands upon Mother Earth’s body, we must take into account her Gondwanan heritage.