The Metaphysical Grounds of the Ascendant. Lecture for the Nightlight Astrology School 2.6.22

This is a talk I gave for the Nightlight Astrology School Speaker Series on Feb 6 2022.

Abstract: The concept of the Ascendant is pivotal to Western Astrology, representing the point at which heavenly bodies step forth into visibility. Yet, despite its centrality, the meaning of this concept has changed over time. Whereas traditional astrologers identified the Ascendant with the helm, basis, and foundation of a nativity, modern astrologers identify it with the persona one adopts to live in society. In this talk, I explain traditional and modern accounts of the Ascendant and highlight their differences. I then ground these differences in deeper disparities in worldview concerning society, and, more importantly, Absolute Reality. While both classical and modern astrologers reject reductive materialism and accept the existence of a spiritual reality, their accounts of the nature of this reality fundamentally contradict each other. If successful, my argument will demonstrate that the choice between classical and modern astrology turns on a more fundamental choice between metaphysical systems.

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The image of the planetary joys was created by Chris Brennan and is used with his permission.

The other images and illustrations are either in the public domain or created by me.

The slide templates are available on Libreoffice and are licensed under
a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. They make use of the works of Kelly Loves Whales and Nick Merritt.