Category Archives: Astrology

Cancer, the birth sign of June-July

Posted on by
Reply
This depiction of the constellation Cancer (the Crab) is taken from the Celestial Atlas by Alexander Jamieson - 1822.

This depiction of the constellation Cancer (the Crab) is taken from the Celestial Atlas by Alexander Jamieson – 1822.

Although modern astrologers identify the sign of Cancer as a crab, it has been represented as various types of creatures, usually those living in the water, and always those with an exoskeleton.

The identification of Cancer as a crab is rooted in the Twelve Labors of Hercules tale. Hercules battled the multi-headed Lernaean Hydra and Hera had sent a large crab to distract Hercules and put him at a disadvantage during the battle. But Hercules quickly dispatched the creature by kicking it with such force that it was propelled into the sky. Other accounts say the crab grabbed onto Hercules’ toe with its claws, but Hercules simply crushed the crab underfoot. Hera, grateful for the creature’s heroic effort, gave it a place in the sky. (Some scholars have suggested that the crab was a late addition to the myth of Hercules in order to make the Twelve Labors correspond to the twelve signs of the Zodiac.)

In the Egyptian records of about 2000 BC, the Cancer sign was described as Scarabaeus (Scarab), the sacred emblem of immortality. In Babylonia the constellation was known by a name which can refer to both a crab and a snapping turtle. There also appears to be a strong connection between the Babylonian constellation and ideas of death and a passage to the underworld, which may be the origin of these ideas in much later Greek myths associated with Hercules and the Hydra. In the 12th century, an illustrated astronomical manuscript shows it as a water beetle. Albumasar writes of this sign in the work published in 1489 as a large crayfish. Jakob Bartsch and Stanislaus Lubienitzki, in the 17th century, described it as a lobster.

Those born during the Cancer period (June 22–July 22) are said to be emotional and intuitive but shrewd.

IF YOU LIKED THIS POST ABOUT THE FOLKLORE & OCCULT QUALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH CANCER THE CRAB, CLICK HERE TO SEE MY FANTASY NOVELS IN WHICH ALL THE MAGIC AND SUPERNATURAL EVENTS ARE BASED ON AUTHENTIC MEDIEVAL-RENAISSANCE OCCULT BELIEFS AND PRACTICES.

Nimrod

Posted on by
Reply
Building of the Tower of Babel, manuscript illumination from approx. 1410 (British Library Add MS 18850 f17v)

Building of the Tower of Babel, manuscript illumination from approx. 1410 (British Library Add MS 18850 f17v)

The constellation Orion, also identified in some folkloric traditions as Nimrod, is seen most clearly in the night skies of the northern hemisphere from January-March each year. Also, with the approach of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent, Nimrod appears in classical Christian hymnography and sermons as one of the archetypal images of opposition and rebellion against God.

In Hebrew and Christian tradition, Nimrod is considered the leader of those who built the Tower of Babel in the land of Shinar, though the Bible never actually states this. (The illumination above shows Nimrod supervising the construction of the Tower of Babel in the lower left corner.) Nimrod’s kingdom included the cities of Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, all in Shinar. (Genesis 10:10) Therefore it was likely under his direction that the building of Babel and its tower began; in addition to Flavius Josephus, this is also the view found in the Talmud and later midrash such as Genesis Rabba. Several of these early Judaic sources also assert that the king Amraphel, who wars with Abraham later in Genesis, is none other than Nimrod himself.

Judaic interpreters as early as Philo and Yochanan ben Zakai (1st century AD) interpreted “a mighty hunter before the Lord” (Heb. : לפני יהוה, lit. “in the face of the Lord”) as signifying “in opposition to the Lord.” Some rabbinic commentators have also connected the name Nimrod with a Hebrew word meaning ‘rebel’.

The historian Josephus wrote:

Now it was Nimrod who excited them to such an affront and contempt of God. He was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah, a bold man, and of great strength of hand. He persuaded them not to ascribe it to God, as if it were through his means they were happy, but to believe that it was their own courage which procured that happiness. He also gradually changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning men from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power. He also said he would be revenged on God, if he should have a mind to drown the world again; for that he would build a tower too high for the waters to reach. And that he would avenge himself on God for destroying their forefathers.

Now the multitude were very ready to follow the determination of Nimrod, and to esteem it a piece of cowardice to submit to God; and they built a tower, neither sparing any pains, nor being in any degree negligent about the work: and, by reason of the multitude of hands employed in it, it grew very high, sooner than any one could expect; but the thickness of it was so great, and it was so strongly built, that thereby its great height seemed, upon the view, to be less than it really was. It was built of burnt brick, cemented together with mortar, made of bitumen, that it might not be liable to admit water. When God saw that they acted so madly, he did not resolve to destroy them utterly, since they were not grown wiser by the destruction of the former sinners; but he caused a tumult among them, by producing in them diverse languages, and causing that, through the multitude of those languages, they should not be able to understand one another. The place wherein they built the tower is now called Babylon, because of the confusion of that language which they readily understood before; for the Hebrews mean by the word Babel, confusion …

Nimrod, the great hunter, is also said to hunt the newborn Abraham and attempt to slay him, much as Herod slew the infant boys of Bethlehem in an attempt to slay the infant Christ. Nimrod has thus remained in both Jewish and Islamic tradition an emblematic evil person, an archetype of an idolater and a tyrannical king, and often called “Nimrod the Evil.”

Imbolc, the First Day of Spring? And Groundhogs!

Posted on by
4
Blackthorn blooming at Imbolc.

Blackthorn blooming at Imbolc.

Snowdrops at a creek -- photo by Tony Eaglehart

Snowdrops at a creek announce Imbolc. The first blooms of snowdrops or blackthorns or the first birth of the new lambs were often considered the announcement of Imbolc’s arrival. (photo by Tony Eaglehart)

Although #Blizzard2015 might make it hard to believe, the Celtic — and magical! — festival of Imbolc, celebrated February 1-2, was considered the first day of spring in Celtic cultures and across Europe in general during the medieval period. Although we nowadays generally consider the solstice or equinox the first day of a season (December 21 as the first day of winter, March 21 as the first day of spring, June 21 as the first day of summer, and September 21 as the beginning of autumn), those days were previously considered the mid-seasons. (That is why we can sing Christmas carols about “midwinter” in December and have Midsummer night dreams in June!) The traditional changes of the seasons were the “quarter days” which marked the midpoints between the mid-seasons. So we get the Celtic/magical festivals of Samhain (October 31, the first day of winter), Imbolc (February 1-2, the beginning of spring), Beltane (May 1, the first day of summer), and Lammas (August 1, the beginning of autumn).

Because Imbolc is the beginning of spring, it is often associated with various means of predicting the coming weather which is so crucial during the planting season of agricultural societies. Hence, we consult the groundhog to determine if he sees his shadow or not in order to know if cold and snow will last another six weeks or not. In Serbia, a bear who wakes from his hibernation to stumble out of his cave and see his shadow will know whether to go back to sleep for another six weeks or not, based on whether he sees his shadow.

Imbolc was believed to be when the Cailleach—the divine hag of Gaelic tradition—gathers her firewood for the rest of the winter. Legend has it that if she wishes to make the winter last a good while longer, she will make sure the weather on Imbolc is bright and sunny, so she can gather plenty of firewood. Therefore, people would be relieved if Imbolc is a day of foul weather, as it means the Cailleach is asleep and winter is almost over. At Imbolc on the Isle of Man, where she is known as Caillagh ny Groamagh, the Cailleach is said to take the form of a gigantic bird carrying sticks in her beak.