Greetings star sisters and brothers,I am a small time astrologer who works at it full time and has been doing so (and somehow surviving!) for nearly 20 years now.
I am now also an author and I would like to tell you about my book. I am writing this not because I want to make money (lol) but because I sincerely believe that what communicated itself through me to the world represents an exciting and completely new approach to astrology and I am seeking to plant these ideas into fertile soil. I can think of no better place than here (the only forum I have visited).
Here is the introduction to my book which explains its purpose and content:
"The only way to learn how to swim is to get in the water. Computer games wont do it for you; nor will books. They can show you the way, give you the knowledge and instruction, but until you have the experience, you wont understand.
This book is all about giving instruction on diving into the deep waters of astrology. It's not designed just to be read and thought about. Its designed to be used and applied like an instruction manual of techniques in the pursuit of your own discoveries, not a mere absorption of knowledge but as a practical approach to exploring it. I am not attempting to prove astrology to anyone in this book because it is not up to me or anyone else to do that. However, even the most extraordinary of things leaves no room for doubt in the mind of someone who has experienced it directly for themselves, again and again and again. This writing is about equipping people with the tools they need to prove it for themselves, whether or not they already know about navigating the ocean having looked at an astrological chart before. Anyone can come at this book and use the tools it provides to explore the magic of astrology for themselves.
Unlike the vast numbers of 'how to do astrology' books that have already been written, the course you take through this book is not merely an intellectual journey, but one which embraces the whole being. The techniques in this book are there for any person of any disposition to approach astrology from an experiential angle and to conduct their own experimentation and it is this approach to astrology that is the heart of the book. Instead of being told about the influences over your life shown in a chart and having them described to you, this book enables you to actually experience the meaning of astrological influences for yourself and encourages you to draw your own conclusions. This is the essence of what I wish to communicate: there is another way to interact with astrology, a less intellectual way which not only proves its validity, but more significantly opens the perceptions to a direct relationship with it, a new way of being and a new way of appreciation for the flow of life and its meaning. This way can be used to supplement the absorption of knowledge from astrologers and their books, but it could also be used alone and replace it entirely.
However, apart from describing the techniques I have also included a sharing of what I have learned from my own experience in creating and practising these techniques and provide it here and there throughout the book, with a more detailed exploration of the theory behind it from a magical point of view collected at the beginning. This will help the reader who is unfamiliar with either astrology or magic to grasp some of the concepts discussed in the keys but it is not necessary to grasp these concepts beforehand because the keys will lead you to grasp them experientially on your own terms. This theoretical explanation of astrology is neither conclusive nor definitive and is not necessary to know in order to practise the techniques. The techniques emerged from my hermetic approach to astrology and so the theory is a hermetic one, exploring the relationship between magic and astrology. I discuss magic in general and hermetic magic in particular, and try to explain the path of the magician to the astrologer and vice versa. It will be of interest to students of either hermetics or astrology, but especially to those interested in both, but it is not the point or the conclusion of this writing, only a supplement to it, one which I have been asked by other initiates to write and present with this material, and which is well suited to share alongside the practical techniques. The keys – the practical tools I teach you how to create and use which appear later in the book - are the main subject matter and they are completely independent of the theory. However, in the keys themselves I have added some suggestions and techniques which are relevant to the observations made in the theory because they touch upon aspects of magic or hermetic praxis. The vast majority of suggestions in the keys, however, are relevant to anyone wanting to work with astrology experientially, not just hermetic practitioners. It is my hope that people of all kinds will find their way to trying out the techniques in the 26 keys and bring their own individual and personal character to it.
The keys are in fact waiting for this to happen. We are facing unprecedented challenges as a species and we have been confronted with a much bigger solar system than the classical one used by astrology for millennia, and I will also provide what guidance I can on both these matters in the course of the book, because they are both vital to the future of astrology, and, indeed, our entire world. Many complex issues are raised by the presence of these challenges and I attempt to shed light on them from a hermetic perspective, sharing what I have learned from my own experience of turning the keys.
In order to construct the keys you will need a copy of your birth chart and an ephemeris, and a large pad of paper if you are working by hand without a word processor. Your chart and ephemeris must include the positions for the centaur called Chiron, as well as the North and South Nodes of the Moon. All of these things can be obtained free online, but it is strongly recommended that you buy a printed copy of an ephemeris. The ephemeris needs to cover your birthday and the 85-100 years which follow it.
The unorthodox but recommended approach to using this book is basically - it depends on your needs. If you are interested in magic, particularly hermetic magic, or if you are interested in what a magicians point of view on astrology looks like, read the book from cover to cover as usual. If on the other hand none of these things appeal to you, or you just want to begin practising straight away, skip the first part of this book, 'The synthesis of magic and astrology', and go immediately to the section introducing you to the 26 keys, proceeding from there. If you have an urge to do both, skip immediately to 'The 26 keys', start the work with the solar map and the first Light key and then return to the theory section in the beginning of the book, reading it while you practice. People who come to this book and dive straight into the practice have in my view got the right idea, but the choice is yours.
The gist of it is: come on in and play! Don’t waste any time listening to me chatter about how fun it is in the water! Don’t be discouraged if you do not agree with or understand the theoretical parts of this book, just put them aside or on ice and experience what is there for you to experience.
And welcome to the ocean of the sky!"
My book is just over 500 pages in length and she is available to buy from Amazon.com. She is called "The 26 Keys" and my name is David Coleman. I am here to answer questions for her and to share with you whatever I can.
Thank you for your time, and sorry if this was not for you.
everloving,
David