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Astrology and Relocation


We've traveled - a lot - and studied our relocated charts (and the Astro*Carto*Graphy computer maps) and we've yet to see much relationship between astrologically-based locations and experience. We think local environments overwhelm the relocated energies projected on them. (If you're a New Yorker, think how different life is in Harlem vs: Greenwich Village.) But then, we've been shouted down repeatedly by friends who "found it" (whatever it was) at Glastonbury Tor with their Venus culminating. Yet, some things do happen that only relocation can explain. You should relocate your chart to the birthplace of all the significant people in your life. You should relocate yourself to the site of origin of any interesting objects you may own. The ability to find greener pastures astrologically must always be limited. Move from one side of the States to the other (the biggest move most Americans will ever make) and your planets will shift by only one house. Permanent relocation elsewhere in the world is subject to the whims of nearly 200 sovereign states. So our feelings about relocation are mixed.

March, 2006: I've had an interesting email exchange. You can read it here.

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ASTRO*CARTO*GRAPHY - Jim Lewis, with Kenneth Irving, $24.95

Contents:

List of figures
List of tables
Introduction to the second edition

Part 1: Lines around the world:
1. Space and time in the horoscope: The dimension of Astrocartography
2. Lines and crossings
3. Shadowed planets: Stages of psychological growth
4. Grace's Saturnian journey
5. Winds of Neptune, fires of Mars
6. War lines across the world
7. Prisoners of the horoscope no more

Part 2: Your planets and their lines: Natal Astrocartography:
Introduction: Zen and the art of (not) cookbooking
8. The Sun: Can anyone really be a star?
9. The Moon: Why is everyone so emotional?
10. Mercury: The taming power of the small
11. Venus: Is there more to life than happiness?
12. Mars: Mary Poppins, watch out!
13. Jupiter: Does more really mean better?
14. Saturn: It's tough to know when you need discipline
15. Uranus: Can anyone change the world?
16. Neptune: Materialists beware!
17. Pluto: The intensity addict

Part 3: Transits and progressions: Cyclocartography
Introduction: Location is the key
18. The Sun: Let your big light shine
19. The Moon: An emotional interlude
20. Mercury: Link to the network
21. Venus: A time for love and pleasure
22. Mars: Stress, competition, and energy
23. Jupiter: Full speed ahead
24. Saturn: Responsibility is the keynote
25. Uranus: Excitement, change and nonconformity
26. Neptune: Go with the flow
27. Pluto: The beginning of the rest of your life

Afterword and resources
About Jim Lewis: Teacher, friend, humanitarian
Historical and technical notes on Astrocartography
Notes and resources
Definitions of some useful terms
Index

Author biographies

Comment:

This is the definitive book on Astro*Carto*Graphy by the man who, in fact, invented it, Jim Lewis. (Kenneth Irving got his name in here because Lewis died before the book was quite complete. Irving did a very nice job of finishing the work, and was the driving force behind the new reprint.) This was originally a Penguin Arkana title. For those of you unfamiliar with Penguin Arkanas, know that the type is typically very small. I used to be able to read this quite well, but it is something of an eyestrain now. So you are warned.

In addition to Astrocartography, in this book Lewis also develops shadow planets, a concept borrowed from Jung. This refers to planets which are trying to manifest but are not quite able to do so. If you're curious, both this book, and Lewis himseslf, were products of his day, which were the psychologically obsessed 1970's and 1980's.

Also in this book, Cyclo*Carto*Graphy, which are transits and progressions, as projected on the globe. Take your Astrocartography map and then layer on progressions and transits. Go to the line of your progressed Sun and you will get a progressed Sun experience. Well, presuming that particular degree of the Sun is important in your chart.

First published in 1995 and out of print for many years, this is has been nicely reprinted. Various sections concerning Lewis himself have been updated.

Words and Things, 305 pages.


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PLANETS IN LOCALITY: Local Space Astrology - Steve Cozzi, $22.00
Contents:
1. The horizon system; 2. The local space chart in the home & community; 3. Relocation & long distance travel; 4. The Geomantic circle; 5. The local space chart & physical health; 6. Relocation techniques; 7. Grid systems; 8. Horoscope examples;

Appendix A: Three articles by Michael & Margaret Erlewine: The celestial sphere, The astrology of local space, Local space; Appendix B: The Holonomic Model of Knowledge, by Jose Arguelles; Appendix C: Three banishing rituals by Steve Cozzi (all rather weak, in our view); Appendix D: Geographical Harmonics, by Bruce Cathie; Appendix E: Software for local space charts; Appendix F: Secrets of the Pyramids, by Peter Tompkins; Appendix G: Formula for calculating milage distance on planetary lines, by Steve Cozzi.

Comment: Steve's classic book from the 1980's, reprinted by the AFA. Local Space - an astrological technique - is centuries older than Astro*Carto*Graphy. (It was used by William Lilly, among others.) The local space technique is to draw vertical lines from the planets in the sky down to the horizon, and then plot the direction of these points using a standard magnetic compass. This can be done using a natal chart & the original birth location, it can also be done with a relocated chart. (If you've moved from your place of birth, you should do both.) Moving in the compass direction of a given planet reinforces that planet's energies. Move towards Jupiter & get abundance, towards Venus & get love & harmony, towards Mars for action, towards Saturn for restrictions. The size of your operating theater is not important. There are distinct lines in your home, in your community, in your state/country of residence, in the world as a whole. Cozzi explains the rules for all this & more, then expands his book to consider the magical properties of space in general, including Feng Shui, Geomancy & other spatial systems. A fascinating book.

AFA, 284 pages, paper.


ASTROLOCALITY ASTROLOGY: A Guide to What It Is & How to Use It - Martin Davis, $25.00
Contents:
Time & Space in Astrology, by Nicholas Campion; Foreword; Preface; List of figures;
1. An introduction, Astro*Carto*Graphy basics, Advanced Astro*Carto*Graphy; 2. Local space, Using local space charts, chart maps & maps; 3. Local space maps, Destiny points: Combining ACG & LS information; 4. The local space chart in the home, community & beyond, Special studies in local space; 5. Geodetics: the geodetic world map, The geodetic chart: what it is & what it tells us. Afterword.

Appendices: 1. Astro*Carto*Graphy Interpretations, by Jeff Jawer; 2. Local Space Angular Locations, by Martin Davis; 3. Planetary Lines in Your House, by Angel Thompson; 4. The Astrology of Local Space, and, Local Space, by Michael Erlewine; 5. The Local Space Chart, by Sean Lovatt; 6. Pluto's Position on ACG Maps, by Martin Davis; 7. Memorial to Jim Lewis (1941-1995). Bibliography. The Dimensions of Astrology, an additional article by Martin Davis.

Comment: One of two new books (1999) written by astrologers who have spent the bulk of their lives traveling (the other new book follows immediately below). Because of this, their techniques are more complex & sophisticated than earlier writers.

Wessex Astrologer, 228 pages, paper.


EVALUATING ASTRO*CARTO*GRAPHY MAPS Finding the best places to live and travel, your step by step guide - Elliot Jay Tanzer, $49.95

Contents:

How to order Astrocartography maps

What you need to know to evaluate an Astrocartography map:
1. Making a conscious choice to live where life is best - you do have a choice
2. Quick and easy step-by-step instructions with sample ACG map interpretation #1
3. For astrology students and curious non-astrologers - why this step-by-step guide is important
4. Principles of ACG map analysis - Things you need to know
5. The secret to successful ACG map evaluations: How close is close? And how far away is far enough? It's all about measurements
6. Interpretation of planetary lines - Thumbnail sketches and risk assessments
7. More than one line - Planetary combinations

Evaluating ACG maps step-by-step:
8. Prepping the ACG map - Determining best and worst areas
9. Prepping latitude crossings - Fine tuning the good areas to find the best areas
10. Sample ACG map interpretation #2
11. Transposing the ACG map results onto a world atlas with sample ACG map interpretations #3, #4, and #5

12. Case histories and the ACG story of some US presidents

Some stuff students of astrology might want to know:
13. Other techniques - Cyclo*Carto*Graphy, solar returns, relocated natal charts, and local space
14. Other variables to consider - East or west, four angles, and how an ACG map relates to a birth chart
15. Home computer programs pros and cons
16. Fifteen techniques for reading ACG maps by Jim Lewis
17. Important trademark information about the term Astro*Carto*Graphy by Ken Irving
18. Jim Lewis' certification course contact information and ACG blog sites

Bibliography

About the author and contact information

Comment:

This is the first point-and-shoot book on relocation. Get your Official Jim Lewis Astro*Carto*Graphy Map and follow Tanzer's instructions. You measure half an inch on either side of the nasty lines and scratch them out. Tanzer gives a list. You then highlight the favorable lines. This leaves you with a world map marked by big vertical stripes.

The next step is to consider the various latitude crossings. These are latitudes at which one planet is on the ascendant/descendant, while another planet is on the MC/IC, and, according to theory, extend their influence around the globe at that particular latitude (N/S). You again scratch out the bad ones (Saturn on the ascendant, Mars on the MC sound like fun to you? Me neither!) and go for the good ones.

You are to ignore places which have no lines running through them, as these are areas of no great interest.

The result will be places where you can actually live. If you're lucky, at least one of them will be in a country in which you have a legal right to live and work.

What do I think? Elliot was kind and gave me the full, personal treatment a year ago. Head-to-head, and I can be most awful under such circumstances. I could not see that it worked for me, but then, I am fussy. I also think the "half inch" rule should be expanded when a malefic is natally on the 4th house cusp, as the result is extreme geographic sensitivity. I am of the opinion that when Pluto (or Saturn) is on the 4th houes natally, that it's best to leave one's place of birth and go a long way east or west, as Pluto will make one unhappy with his native country as a whole.

Otherwise, I find that what people need in life is an overall sense of direction. When you're six months old, do you know which of the many languages spoken on this planet will be the best for you to learn? Absolutely not. Is this an important question? Positively, yes. It may make a great deal of difference if you grow up speaking, say, Russian, even though you were born in, say, San Francisco. But for the most part we have no say about this. The decision is made for us, we merely adapt.

Such, increasingly, are my feelings about relocation. Use Tanzer's techniques and you will not go anyplace bad. You should, in fact, end up someplace fairly good. And, for better or worse (hopefully better), you will adapt and get on with things. It's not that I disagree with Tanzer's methodology (avoid malefic planets, pursue benefic planets), so much as I've never lived under benefic lines, and, as my Jupiter is opposed by my Saturn, while my Venus is opposed by my Uranus, I never will. It's also helpful to remember that moves inside your native country are conditioned by your third house, its ruler, and planets in it, while moves to foreign countries are conditioned by your 9th house, its ruler, and planets in it. There are people who compulsively cannot stop moving, such as myself, as well as others who cannot move at all. If you are in one of these circumstances, formal relocation will neither force a move, nor keep you in one place.

Because these lines move rapidly, minute by minute, it is important that your birth time be within five minutes of exact. Normally, if your birth time was recorded on your birth certificate, you have a good enough time.

The book is lavishly illustrated, in color, of Astro*Carto*Graphy maps under study, complete with pencil scribblings and red ink notations. You can easily, and graphically, see what Tanzer is up to, and do it yourself.

In the back is a bizarre note on "Astro*Carto*Grapy" as a trademark term, by Ken Irving. Suffice to say, the only way Elliot could get "Astro*Carto*Graphy" in the title of his book was if he used only genuine Astro*Carto*Graphy maps in it. Among the admonitions is this, from pg. 104:

My publishing house is coming out with a book on Astro*Carto*Graphy next year. Is this all right?

Go through the title and manuscript and consider whether that term is being used to describe Jim Lewis's techniques and maps, or whether it really is being applied to competing products. . . We'd be happy to review the manuscript and suggest changes or additions.

Which sounds heavy-handed. Who is this "we" ? Ken Irving himself? At the end of the notice, Irving is described as an editor of American Astrology since 1974. He's not identified as a legal representative of the estate of Jim Lewis, so what he wrote is presumably his personal opinion. We are instead referred to Greg Howe at Astronumeric. So why did Greg not write this, since he, not Irving, has legal standing to do so? I mention this as Uranian-Transneptunian astrology has long been ruined by heavy-handed trademark/copyright issues. It would be a pity to see that copied here.

The originator of this mapping system, Jim Lewis, died in 1995.

My review copy lacked the DVD that is part of this book. While I did not read every word on every page, I did not find any references to the DVD in the book. There is no entry for it in the Table of Contents. I presume it will show Tanzer giving a presentation of his method of interpretation.

Published by the author, 112 pages, oversize. Includes 60 minute DVD.


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Kris Brandt Riske


Maritha Pottenger

MAPPING YOUR TRAVELS AND RELOCATIONS - Finding the best place for you - Maritha Pottenger and Kris Brandt Riske, $19.95

Contents:

Introduction

1. Astrology: the basics
2. Planets
3. Angles
4. Planets aspecting angles
5. Changing ascendant signs
6. Changing midheaven signs
7. Planets changing houses
8. Ruling planets aspecting angles
9. Romance
10. Career
11. College
12. Money
13. Recreationand retirement

Appendices:
1. Goals and locations
2. Map your travels & relocations using the CD-Rom

Glossary

Comment:

The opening chapters give basic astrological background, with reference to relocation. Emphasis is placed on aspects to relocated angles, relocated sign changes on the ascendant and MC, relocated planets in houses, and relocated rulers of the various houses. Rulers are a welcome addition to this branch of (generalized) astrology, as they were never included, not even ten years ago. In this book there are NO Astro*Carto*Graphy maps, which is what professionals use. (If you're unsure what A*C*G's are, Google the term and go to images.)

Also new, or more precisely, a throwback to astrology books of a century ago, this book ends with a series of specific topics: romance, career, college, money, retirement, etc. For each, there is a list of key essentials to look for in your relocated chart. For romance, these include:

Sun or Venus conjunct, sextile or trine an [relocated] angle.
Fifth house ruler or co-ruler conjunct, trine or sextile an [relocated] angle.
Several [relocated] planets in the 5th house. (pg. 163)
There are then examples of relocated charts with these features.

Although this is a joint collaboration, it smells more of Maritha than Kris. The writing is not challenging. An example:

Tenth house ruler sextile/trine ascendant/descendant
When the ruler of your tenth house is in harmony with the Ascendant/Descendant, you devote much energy to career achievementand rising to the top. You're likely to be more practical, responsible, dedicated, and oriented toward tangible results. Relationships with authority figures may improve, and you might find it easier to pursue your personal desires within realistic limits of the world while balancing your love and work lives. Your career and relationships may support one another, and you're effective as a co-worker and as an executive or leader. You can keep people happy while getting the job done. (pg. 160)
Well, who wouldn't like that - ? I looked to see if there were evil square or semi-square delineations to relocated angles, or even conjunctions, but such delineations are omitted entirely. Well, if you're voluntarily going someplace, you surely would not go to places where you might be stressed or challenged in any way, or so I guess. But on the other hand, if you have foolishly found yourself in such a place and were looking for help (a bad marriage, perhaps), this book would be of no use. Nor would it help if you found yourself balancing nice trines with evil squares.

Sitting here I had a wicked thought: What about relocating to a prison? In America there are many thousands who have been so relocated. In a relocated chart, what makes for a good versus bad prison experience? Prisons are certainly places you won't soon get out of. As are tours of duty in war zones. Always nice to know in advance what you'll be like when it's over and you're safely home again. In this book is the natal chart, and its relocation for Kuwait, for Norman Schwartzkopf, commander of American forces during the first Gulf War of 1991. I find it in the chapter on careers (pgs. 179-182). Norman was about the best protected man in the entire army at the time. He knew he was coming home.

Relocating a chart, using a computer program, is an easy matter: Change the latitude and longitude to the new location, but keep the original time and the time zone. The software in the back should be outstanding, as it's by David Cochrane, of Kepler fame. Relocating by manual calculation, presuming you know how to calculate charts by hand, is also not difficult.

This is a simplification of the Pottenger/Dobyns Planets on the Move, which you can find below (scroll down).

Llewellyn, 228 pages. Includes CD-Rom program by Cosmic Patterns for Windows computers.


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FROM HERE TO THERE: An Astrologer's Guide to Astromapping - edited by Martin Davis, $40.00

Contents:

Preface
Introduction

1. History, by Martin Davis
2. The Astro*Carto*Graphy Book of Maps, by Jim Lewis & Ariel Guttman
3. The uses of astromapping in astrology, by Martin Davis
4. Relocation can be a career move, by Robert Currey
5. My summer vacation, by Maya White
6. Between heaven & earth: The influence of astrology on earth, by Angel Z. Thompson
7. Reincarnation in local space & A*G*C maps, by AT Mann
8. Looking at the world Geodetically, by Chris McRae
9. Would relocation change your life?, by Donna Cunningham
10. Jyotish locality, by Dennis Flaherty
11. A locality tale, by Kathryn Cassidy
12. The stars & stripes, by Bernadette Brady
13. The solar return Astro*Carto*Graphy map, by David Meadows
14. The business of place & The place of business, by Faye Cossar
15. Locality & the question of the USA birth chart, by Dale O'Brien & Martin Davis
16. A history lesson: The A*C*G, Geodetics & local space of the George W Bush presidency, by Ariel Guttman

Index

Comment: Sixteen essays on Astrocartography & relocation, intended for the hard core. The first, History, tells the story of Jim Lewis & Michael Erlewine & what they spawned. The future will merge ACG maps with Google Earth. The second essay is the history & background of The AstroCartoGraphy Book of Maps, an epochal book of 1989, and long out of print. (Dear Margaret, Why don't you reprint it?) Davis's Uses of Astrocartography combines ACG with Local Space, in both natal & mundane maps & has some interesting ideas about maps & rectification. Relocation as a career move is a hagiography of GW Bush written by an Scotsman who gets all the details right but misunderstands the meaning.

The Summer Vacation is the sad story of a trip cut short by a drunk driver & the power of a Sun/Uranus crossing. Between Heaven & Earth is philosophical. Thompson suggests that if you want the benefits of a Venus line in Siberia but don't want to live there, you could take up Russian music & art. AT Mann's ideas in Reincarnation in local space, featuring Napoleon & Thor Heyerdahl & others, suffer from too much exposure to pop ideas & not enough hard study. Chris McRae introduces Sepharial's Geodetic mundane earth mapping system, which she has written about elsewhere. Regrettably, since I wrote these notes, Chris's book has gone out of print.

Donna Cunningham is always a breath of fresh air. (Would Relocation Change Your Life?) What transits are going on, why do you want to move now, what to you expect to find when you get there, etc., etc. I have more than once given much the same lecture. Donna is also the only author in this book who understands the critical importance of rural vs: urban.

In Jyotish locality, Dennis Flaherty suggests that during the period of a favorable dasa, you should move to one of that planet's planetary lines, and, conversely, if the current dasa is unfavorable, moving away from that planet's lines, an interesting idea. Kathryn Cassidy was once a flight attendant for British Airways. She tells of her experiences in the brief Locality Tale. In Stars & Stripes Bernadette Brady tells us of fixed stars, precession & ACG. The subject of David Meadows's essay, on AstroCartoGraphy & Solar Returns is self-explanatory. In The Business of Place, we learn that Faye Cossar has some high-powered clients. (Should I take the job in France, or the one in Poland? I am thinking of expanding our international group, which countries should I look at?) The next essay is in two parts. The first, by Martin Davis, proposes a July 4, 1776 chart set for 11:00 am, as the Saturn line that springs from this seems to fit a number of recent disasters. (Though, as a friend of mine says, much of the US is soaked in blood, one way or another.) The second, by Dale O'Brien, proposes the date of November 15, 1777, the day the Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation, in York, PA. He says this was the day the elite took over from the common masses. His essay is extensive & will repay study.

The final essay is by Ariel Guttman, Jim Lewis's long-time associate, and is self-explanatory: The A*C*G, Geodetics & local space of the George W Bush presidency.

Wessex Astrologer, 271 pages.


ASTROLOCALITY MAGIC - Advanced AstroMap features of Kepler - David Cochrane, $8.95

Contents:

Introduction: Assumptions & presumptions

1. Minor aspects & the emperor's clothes
2. Big surprises come in small packages
3. 'tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be free
4. Another key to romantic compatibility
5. To move or not to move
6. In mundo or in longitude
7. A small research study
8. The zodiac sign map
9. Local space & horizon maps & parans
10. The geodetic map & charts of cities & countries.

Comment: Ostensibly this is a plug for the author's sophisticated Kepler software (see at Cosmic Patterns). Cochrane's done a lot of work with astro mapping & the results are in this small book. He includes aspects & midpoints to planets, as well as harmonic astro maps. He's also developed specialized maps for Career and Romance, maps that prominently feature one or two factors (in Romance, all aspects to Venus, for example). Kepler is not the only astro mapping program available. If you've got it, or any of the others, get this book & get the most from it.

Cosmic Patterns Software, 66 pages.


X MARKS MY PLACE - Paul Councel, $9.95
Contents:

How to use this book
Preface to the first edition (1935)
Preface to the second edition (1938)
Introduction: Geographic astrology as a pure science

Section 1: Theory
1. Our latitude and longitude
2. Seasons of birth
3. Astro-planning & management
4. Career and vocation
5. The law of place

Section 2: Application
6. Finding our best locality
7. Practical examples
8. Comparative nativities in the constellations
Astro-geographic birth tables
Astro-geographic location tables
Astro-geographic map of the United States
Application to the United States possessions

Section 3: Astro-locality charting
Illustrative charts
ABC's of astro-locality charting
Application to foreign countries

Comment:

Originally published in Los Angeles in 1938 by the Astro-Guidance Education Society. This might be the very first book of what became modern Astro*Carto*Graphy, as the author uses latitude and longitude to establish direction, as opposed to the classical system of assigning concrete sign values to specific locations (as with Lilly and Ptolemy, et al). (In the classical system, if Virgo is determined to be your lucky sign, you travel to a known location which has been designated as Virgo. You avoid locations that are Piscean, or Sagittarian, or Geminian.)

The first section, Theory, generates a lot of enthusiasm about how your life will improve greatly if you move to the right location. The second section, Application, goes into details. Councel refreshingly limits his work to the continental United States (at that time of 48 states only), as the US is, for the majority of us, the only place in which we can actually settle, or resettle.

Councel's technique is to assign a specific value to each degree of longitude, based on Sepharial's Geodetic World Map (which I believe he does not credit), where 0 Aries is assigned to London, counting upwards by degrees as you proceed westwards. One then takes the RAMC, which is Right Ascension on the Midheaven, to determine the operative midheaven degree. Working this out, New York, which is 74 degrees west, therefore has 14 degrees Gemini as an ascendant, which translates into 19 Aquarius on the MC (tropical), which becomes New York's key number. Councel then relates this to birthdays, which is to say that New York favors those born on February 9, as the Sun on that day is more or less at 19 Aquarius. New York also has a secondary number, 25 Capricorn, which is the same thing, only in the sidereal zodiac. To this, Councel permits the usual Ptolemaic aspects, of sextile, square, trine and opposition.

At the end of the book, Councel presents a map of the 48 states with lines drawn on it showing the (sidereal) ascendants of the Geodetic World Map system. I am not sure how the author squares sidereal locations with tropical natal charts.

Published by Clara Darr, who puts her name in giant letters on the cover and who is often mistaken for the author. 78 pages.


move

PLANETS ON THE MOVE - Maritha Pottenger & Zip Dobyns, $16.95
Contents:

1. The astrology of relocation: What this book will teach you about your place on earth
2. Case studies in relocation: New tools and techniques support symbolic nature of astrology
3. Aspects to angles
4. Aspects to the angles from house rulers
5. Rulers changing houses
6. Sign changes on the self-other angles
7. Changing signs on the midheaven
8. "Instant" relocation for specific questions

Comment:

This book, from 1994, is more comprehensive than Maritha's later collaboration with Kris Riske (see above, Mapping Your Travels). It has the same basic concepts and with more details, but lacks the CD-Rom. The case studies are much more fully worked out. Instead of only "harmony" aspects to the ascendant and midheaven, there are also "conflict" as well as delineations for actual conjunctions to the angles. Delineations include the four major asteroids, Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta, as well as Chiron. As with the more recent book, delineations are theoretical. The authors catalog what should happen with the given astrological energies, not what they have actually observed.

An example will illustrate. See Mapping Your Money, above. Here is this book's Ruler of the Midheaven:

HARMONY TO ASCENDANT
You can easily direct your energies toward vocational accomplishment. Your natural instincts support practicality, responsibility and achievement. You can get along with authority figures.

CONFLICT TO ASCENDANT
You may feel torn between doing what you want, and fitting into societal structures or limits. Don't succumb to the extreme of fighting all the rules (or authorities), nor to the extreme of feeling blocked and inhibited by what is necessary. You need to determine what is possible and do what you can within that framework. (pg. 138)

To these basic delineations, we also get [planet] harmony/conflict/conjunct to ascendant/midheaven, which, again, includes the four asteroids and Chiron. There are also delineations for the rulers of each of the houses in harmony or conflict to the ascendant and descendant, which sounds a touch on the abstract side to me. And there are delineations for the relocated rulers of the ascendant and midheaven, as well as the signs of the relocated ascendant and midheaven.

So I read all of these for my relocated London chart (the most significant place I ever lived, by far), which was a large shift from my natal Kansan chart: So far as I can see, the intense, vibrant energy of London far outshone the relocated energies. I am of the opinion that major cities, in general, are stronger influences than relocated charts, but this might not be true in the countryside, which, so far as I can tell, is pretty much the same, world over.

Case studies in Chapter two include Bill Clinton, Norman Schwartzkopf, Bette Midler, David Koresh, a child who died in Koresh's Waco disaster of 1993, Ross Perot, Michael Milken, the junk bond king, Pearl Bailey, Erik Menendez, O.J. Simpson and a number of others. The analysis of Clinton and Perot each go on for many pages.

ACS, 291 pages.


BON VOYAGE: An Astrological Study of Relocation - Marc Penfield, $16.00
Contents:

Introduction: What is relocation?

1. The relocation chart
2. Aspects to the ascendant and midheaven
3. The local space chart
4. The geodetic chart
5. The declination chart
6. Planetary longitudes
7. Chart comparison or synastry
8. The composite chart
9. Numerology and relocation
10. Biorhythms and relocation

Postscript: The final choice

Data sources
Abbreviations

Comment:

Marc Penfield worked in the travel industry and has himself travelled widely through the world as a whole, though I do not know how long he may have stayed at any one place. (I suspect not long.) He starts the book talking about the importance of location - with which I whole-heartedly agree - but never once mentions his own travel experiences, good or bad. This is a pity, as there are very few accomplished astrologers with actual travel experience. It would be nice to have first-person experiences, aside from my own, which, as I have mentioned endlessly, generally do not support astrological relocation.

As a format for the book, Penfield uses the chart of Las Vegas, Nevada, as its exact birthtime is known, from the start of an auction for the sale of lots on May 15, 1905, at 10 am PST. He then contrasts and compares the Las Vegas chart with five of its better-known citizens: Howard Hughes, Liberace, Bugsy Siegal, Robert Ulrich and Ken Uston. This is a very good test of incorporation charts and relocated natal charts, though does have the drawback that only a handful of cities have known birth charts and of those, you might not want, or be able to, live in any of them. (see his many mundane books - scroll down, for charts of many world cities).

For relocated charts, Penfield's primary means of analysis are aspects from natal planets to relocated angles. Aspects include the inconjunct. For each aspect, Penfield gives a number of key concepts, and then a list of people who had that aspect in their various relocated charts. In checking Penfield's delineations of the only two close aspects I had with my relocated London ascendant (sextile Mars, sextile Uranus, both of which had an orb of one degree), I find Penfield's delineatins more clear cut than Pottenger/Dobyns/Riske (above), but I don't find Penfield very descriptive of the two extended stays I had in London, totaling some 30 months.

The second stay was two years, built upon the success of the earlier six month stay, with the clear intention of making London a permanent home and then remaining there. According to Penfield, of the two precise relocated aspects I had in London, one of them could be relied upon to make me highly unsociable, which is not an advantageous trait for a foreigner to have, and not one I exhibited while I was there. (Uranus sextile ascendant: Peculiar ideas about life which often upset others. Unusual lifestyle. . . Do or say the unexpected. Loves to shock others, etc.) On the other hand, London has a traditional ascendant in the middle of Gemini within a couple of degrees of my rectified natal ascendant. Which might have been a factor in what was very nearly a great personal success, but this observation is beyond the scope of Penfield's book. (London is one of the very few cities where the exact degree of the ascendant is actually known.)

Penfield follows this with a chapter on relocation by declination. This is a novel invention of his that takes multiples of the various declinations of the natal planets, considers them as degrees of latitude and longitude, and then plots them against a world map. Penfield says he first noticed it with the declination of his Jupiter being half the latitude of Boston, Mass. Boston was where he was first published many years ago, Jupiter is the natural ruler of Sagittarius, which has a traditional home in the 9th house, which rules publishing, etc. So far as plotting someplace to go, this is just a bit spacey, since there are virtually limitless numbers of possible combinations among the ten planets. In his examples, Penfield restricts himself to puzzling out his system with historical figures, which might be the best use of the system.

Penfield also includes overviews of Local Space and Geodetic. He then launches into another unique system, this one in which the difference in longitude between your birth place and your relocated address is added (or subtracted) from each of your natal planets, resulting in an entirely new birth chart. For example, the difference in longitude between New York and Las Vegas is 41 degrees, 12 minutes. Which is to be subtracted from the chart of someone relocating from New York to Las Vegas, and added if a Vegas native moves to the Big Apple. This is said to produce surprising results.

The chapters on synastry and composite charts are interesting, comparing the natal chart to the incorporation chart of the city where you want to end up. Somehow Penfield fails to stumble upon the relationship between the mayor's (or governor's or president's) natal chart and the locale he governs. I figured this out some years ago: The resulting synastry or composite chart shows the man's administration. For mere mortals, such an analysis could show business or relationship prospects, etc.

Penfield concludes the book with chapters on numerology and biorhythms. He reduces your name to various numbers, and then compares these to the numerical reduction of the name of the city, as well as the reduction of the city's date. He also considers a city's biorthyms, giving a useful list of biorhythms for numerous American cities.

A wide-ranging, useful book.

AFA, oversize, 135 pages.


WHAT'S A RELOCATED CHART? - Maxine Taylor, $8.00
Contents:

What's a relocated chart?
How do you relocate your birth chart?
Example charts
Math work on example charts.

Comment:

A brief overview of the subject. The case study is a man born in England who came to live in the US. Taylor says to be sure to progress the relocated angles.

Three Penny Press Inc, 12 pages.



Dear Dave,

And what do you think about individual astrocartography charts?

Sincerely

C.

Dear C,

Personally, I've not seen the simple ones have any use at all, BUT

I have Moon & Pluto in the 4th & they are opposite the Sun & Mercury on the MC.

I haven't spent more than four years at the same address in my entire life. My average is about two years.

I have lived several years abroad.

All of this combines to make me a bit more fussy, a bit more skeptical of the astrocartography premise, which I think simplistic. I have more than once observed Americans having a perfectly miserable time abroad, which, as soon as they got home, magically became the time of their life. I have also seen people go to predetermined places, find what their astrocartography said they would find, and then come home fulfilled. Neither of these cases are travel, but rather, projection. I would also mention that any American relocating anywhere in the US (with a few exceptions: Alaska, Hawaii, New York City) is merely moving about inside his own culture & that therefore his natal chart remains his natal chart. When you change cultures you experience something called "culture shock", which is an ongoing series of nine-month experiences. The first 9 months is the worst & is universally dreaded by those who move about, but I have also experienced two further nine-month cycles.

There is, in other words, a lot more to travel than astrocartography can describe. A better premise is astrolocality, which is ancient. You convert the positions of the planets in your chart to directions, find the most favorable planet in the chart, and go in its direction until you come to a place which is ruled by a sign favorable to it, or to your chart generally. In this you should be guided by the traditional astrological rulers of cities & countries. (Regrettably, most of the places & cities are European. There isn't a lot known about the rest of the world.) Steve Cozzi has a nice book on that, William Lilly in Christian Astrology (I forget if in book 2 or 3) has a nice treatment of it.

Robert Couteau added an interesting wrinkle to astrocartography. That transformational experiences come to those who move to their least aspected planet. Unfortunately, he did not further observe that the time when the move is made is critical. Move too soon or too late, and nothing much happens. This I have also experienced. Once this experience has occurred, you are liberated from the location & may take the benefits (if any) with you. This Couteau also seems to be unaware of, but it might be that I have not read him closely enough.

Martin Davis & David Meadows both have their own sophisticated ideas about astrocartography. I still think the premise is an uphill struggle, but I'm willing to hear more about it.

All of which means you should move where you want to move, when it is right for you to do so. You should go to your library & do basic research about where you want to go & how you're going to get there. You should make at least one (preferably more) extended visits to see how you get on with the place. Various magazines have annual articles about "The Best Places to Live". Combine them with traditional guide books (Fromer's, etc.) and you have a lot of useful material.

If you're planning a move, my best wishes -

Dave

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