posted February 23, 2007 08:01 AM            

Quoting Carol Rushman: This part in the book is about the general progressions.

I find that progressions are the key to all predictive astrology When I lecture and travel, I am surprised to find that many astrologers don't use them. Without progressions, the whole story is not told. There is a gap in the information needed to make an accurate assessment of a person's chart. When progressions are positive and the transits are adverse, matters can turn out in a constructive manner. However, that often is not the case when the progressions are difficult and the transits are easy. A problem can be lurking that is unknown or masked.

Personally i use secondary progressions. This is the day-for-a-year-system The progressions are divided into four categories:

1.The progressed Moon

2. Progressed planets to natal planets

3. Progressed planets to progressed planets

4. Progressed house cusps

The most significant progressions are the progressed planets to natal planets. I am incorporating progressed house cusps more and more into my work, as they give important additional emphasis, value, and insight. They are invariably active at the time of a major event or change.

One planetary influence or aspect standing alone will not produce a major event, but a combination of transits, progressions, lunations, etc. all working together will produce a major event. It is critical to analyze all of these aspects, synthesize them, and then come to a conclusion as to what to expect. A personal system is very useful in helping you accomplish this. I often need to return to my basic structure and review the natal promise, the psychological profile, and all progressions, transits, eclipses, and lunations before I make a prediction. I do want to state one more time the necessity of looking at the whole picture. Many times when I was teaching, a student would approach me in a panic expecting a horrible event because an eclipse in the heavens was aspecting a planet in his or her chart. The student was not looking at the whole story and making an accurate assessment of what could happen, but rather taking one factor out of context and coming to the wrong conclusion.

Rules for Progressions

1. The progression will impact the houses in which the two planets involved in the progression are placed natally. For example, say Venus is in the sixth house natally. When Venus is involved in a progression (either when natal Venus is being aspected by a progressed planet, or when progressed Venus is making an aspect to a planet), sixth-house matters will be involved.

2. The progression will impact the house the progressed planet is in if it is different than its natal placement. If Venus is in the natal sixth house but has progressed into the natal seventh, seventh-house matters will be activated. The progression will impact the natal house or houses that the progressed planet rules.

3. If the progression involves Venus, look to the natal houses where Taurus and Libra are placed because they will be important.

4. The progression will impact the natural house or houses that the progressed planet rules. If the progression involves Venus, the second and seventh houses will be important.

5. The progression will express the basic nature of the planets involved. For example, Venus rules love, money, relationships, values, and things of beauty. A progression involving Venus will be about these matters.

6. The progression will express the signs that the planets involved in the progression are in. For example, if progressed Venus is in Gemini and is involved in a progression, the object of love and affection could be a Gemini. There could be some duality involved, perhaps two love interests. If finances are indicated, there could be two sources of income.

7. Progressions are usually strongest when they are applying. Typically, as the progressed planet approaches the natal or progressed planet, the influence strengthens. This influence lessens after the progression has been exact and is leaving the natal planet. This does not seem to be the case though if the progression is in fixed signs. Fixed progressions can and often work very late, even 2° or 3° past the exact aspect. While the influence will be felt as the progression forms, the event may occur later. An example of this is a progression I had that involved the progressed Sun and natal Saturn in fixed signs. I felt disciplined in my personal habits, exercise, diet, etc., and both my husband and I felt life was treating us just fine when the progression was exact and even 2° past. But after that time, we both had problems. He had business problems and I was forced to sue the city of Milwaukee in order to practice astrology in a public way, such as personal appearances on Milwaukee radio and television shows. I also was banned from lecturing and teaching in the city of Milwaukee. My institute was in a suburb, and while I could work there, I felt compelled to sue for the right for me and all of the other Milwaukee metaphysicians to practice. I won the case and a financial settlement, but it was a terribly difficult two years.

8. Progressions involving progressed planets to other progressed planets can be very powerful, but the length of influence seems to be shortened to only about one year. This is even true when one of the planets is the progressed Sun. Typically, progressed Sun aspects to natal planets will operate for at least three years.

9. Progressions that involve a progressed planet to a natal planet and then continue on to hit the same progressed planet have a very long duration. An example of this would be a progressed planet aspecting natal Saturn at 10° and then continuing on to aspect progressed Saturn at 13°. This would be a very long progression.

10. Progressions can form with a very slow-moving planet, such as progressed Saturn to a natal planet. I refer to this as a permanent progression. For example, progressed Saturn closing a trine to Jupiter would ensure financial security for life if there were not mitigating circumstances present. This would be a very beneficial progression.

I will do the Progressed Moon next.

posted February 23, 2007 08:31 AM            

I owe so much to the many astrologers who have mentored me. Some have done it with workshops and classes, and some by openly sharing their knowledge in a very unselfish way. One of these is Katherine de Jersey. I remember sitting at an AFA Conference with her in 1972, and staying up until maybe three or four in the morning while she generously shared her knowledge with me. In the course of our conversation, whenever I would talk about events in my life, she kept asking, "What was the progressed Moon doing? What was the progressed Moon doing?" I thought, "I don't know." Finally I said, "You know, Katherine, your a Cancer and I'm a Virgo, and I think the progressed Moon works more in your life than in mine for that reason." And she said “No. The progressed Moon is an important predictive tool.

You'll find that nothing ever happens in a person's life without a progressed-Moon aspect. It may be 3° applying or leaving, but its effects will be felt." I was doubtful, but I went back to my room, got out my hundred-year ephemeris, and reviewed my life. I was up the rest of the night and found that every major thing that happened in my life did have a progressed-Moon aspect. From that time on, I studied, researched, and utilized the progressed Moon in my work. That was a very important turning point for me with my predictive work.

It is my opinion that astrologers have overlooked the great importance of progressions as a predictive tool, especially the importance of the progressed Moon.

Indeed, I have found that the progressed Moon has a strong effect in the lives of people who have the Moon prominent. If a person has the Sun, Moon, or Ascendant in Cancer or if the Moon is angular in the chart, the progressed Moon takes on added significance. However, it is extremely important in everyone's chart.

After talking with Katherine de Jersey, and going back through my own chart and the charts of my children and close friends, I was astounded at how I could pinpoint every major event in our lives in spite of the fact that we don't all have Cancer prominent. I have since worked with the progressed Moon in the charts of all my clients and have concluded that it is one of the best predictive tools available. If you wish to predict and are event-oriented, you must use the progressed Moon to come up with an event-oriented chart interpretation.

All progressions set the stage for our lives to unfold. They acclimate us to the different signs and houses. They allow us to experience the personality traits and characteristics of the signs other than our natal signs. Progressions highlight and focus our attention on the affairs of the house being spotlighted. That house and its issues become significant in our lives for a certain period of time.

The progressed Sun (which we will discuss in chapter 6) is the ego being acclimated to the new sign, house, or aspect. Someone with the Sun in Virgo, for example, will always be a Sun in Virgo. That never changes, but as the Sun progresses through Libra, the person will experience many characteristics of that sign for that thirty-year period. For example, a man who is born and raised in France will always be a Frenchman. But when he moves to the United States, he adapts socially and culturally to the new country. He is a Frenchman, but he is modified. The progressed Sun is the ego being acclimated, its purpose being altered or changed. The Sun and progressed Sun have a great deal to do with your career life and ego needs.

The Moon, on the other hand, controls your emotional life. The progressed Moon is extremely important because it determines the cycles of your emotional needs. Since the progressed Moon is in each sign for two-and-a-half years, it takes the Moon twenty - eight to thirty years to go through all the signs and houses. During this time, you have a chance to experience all of the signs emotionally and to integrate them into your personality. That, coupled with Saturn transiting through all the signs and houses during the same twenty-eight-year period, brings you to a new level of maturity. There are so many changes happening for you if you are with someone, you could outgrow him or her. That’s why I believe no one should marry until they have their Saturn and Progressed Moon Returns. Both the Moon and Saturn return to their natal positions by progression at roughly the same time—at about age twenty-eight.

In counseling clients, I always recommend that they wait to marry until they have experienced these returns, because afterward they are who they are going to be for a while. They have had enough experience to step into life on their own terms, based on their own choices. How they adapt to each sign molds personalities. They have had opportunities to broaden themselves. The progressed Moon shows intuitive and subconscious choices they will make, habitual responses they develop, the people they draw into their lives, and the cycles and trends they are under at a given time. It is therefore essential to give the progressed Moon careful attention when predicting.

The beauty of the progressed Moon is that by age twenty eight you've had the ability to experience the wide spectrum of emotions of every sign in the zodiac. You've stood in other people's shoes emotionally, and hopefully it has given you a greater understanding of others' emotional needs.
The influence of the progressed Moon is especially strong in the following four areas of personal life:

1. The progressed Moon highlights the basic emotional need of the period. Noel Tyl once told me, " The natal Moon in the chart is the reigning need of the person." In the same way that the natal Moon determines your lifelong emotional needs, the progressed Moon is your emotional barometer for that point in time. For example, when your Moon progresses from Pisces into Aries, you will experience a big shift in consciousness. You will stop sacrificing yourself for others and begin to take care of yourself. You will watch out for your own interests and explore what you can do. Your emotional needs will revolve around you.

2. As the progressed Moon travels through a certain house, the affairs of that house are highlighted. When the progressed Moon is transiting through the natal fifth house (children, creativity, etc.), many times that is when a child is conceived. In my case, that is when I began writing my first book. There is almost always a dramatic career change when the progressed Moon goes through the tenth house. Many a confirmed bachelor has decided to get married when the progressed Moon entered his seventh house. Through the sixth house, you may find that your emotions affect your health.

3. The progressed Moon has a strong influence on the kind of people you draw into your life. When your progressed Moon is going through Scorpio, you will draw to yourself deep, intense people, and power struggles may occur. When it is in Sagittarius, you will attract world travellers, educators, foreigners, and free spirits. With the Moon in Capricorn you may gravitate toward older people and more business-minded people. So you see, you literally draw to yourself people who represent that sign and who often are that sign. If a client whose progressed Moon is in Leo asks about a new relationship with someone who has strong Leo, I feel very comfortable saying, "Well, he'll certainly be in your life or thoughts the whole time your progressed Moon is in Leo." When the Moon leaves Leo, the client may no longer connect to that sign or the person in the same way.

4. The progressed Moon has a lot to do with our instinctive habit patterns. When my progressed Moon was going through Libra, it was a lovely period, a time when I appreciated the arts and dressed very carefully to project the romantic image this beautiful sign represents. During this time, I had a habit of wearing false eyelashes. As soon as my progressed Moon moved into Scorpio, off they came, and I haven't worn them since.

One word of caution. It's important when we're interpreting the progressed Moon to take into consideration not only the sign it is in. but the natal house it is passing through. They will influence eachother, and a good synthesis should reflect the blend. For example. when my progressed Moon was in Cancer, it was an uncomfortable and emotional time for me. My natal Moon is in Aquarius. so the experience of a water sign is not easy for me. the same time my progressed Moon was in Cancer, it was going through my sixth house. The net result was that I didn't want to go out much and I became a real homebody and I focused on fixing up my house. Health issues were highlighted, and I had a terrible mood swings for no apparent reason. The progressed Moon should be good in Cancer because that's the sign it rules. But because my natal Moon is in an air sign, I always feel uncomfortable when the Moon progresses through a water sign. So another factor to consider is whether or not the Moon's natal sign is harmonious with the progressd sign. Also my clients have reported discomfort when the Moon progresses in to one of the water houses - houses four, eight, and twelve. The progressed moon in the eight house, no matter what the sign is like having the Moon in Scorpio, and that is the most intense, most difficult sign for the Moon to be in. One client had the progressed Moon in Libra going through her 8th house. Her emotions were very deep focused, and sometimes overwhelming. So you see sometimes the house can override the effect of the sign.

posted February 23, 2007 08:51 AM            

The natal Moon must be given close attention when studying a chart for prediction since the natal Moon is the expression of your emotional nature. A natal Moon in Capricorn indicates emotional control, discipline, or strong ambition. A natal Moon in Aquarius shows a tendency to be involved with groups, friends, organizations, or good causes. If you have your natal Moon in the second house, you will always have a lot of emotion around financial matters. Your emotions will fluctuate according to your financial state. So if your natal Moon is in Leo in the second house, there could be some rigidity in your emotional nature, especially when the focus is on money or values. The Moon in Leo is fixed, and the second-house placement (an underlying Taurean influence) makes it more fixed. Remember, this is a fixed sign in a fixed house. Both the house and sign define the natal Moon and describe the ultimate emotional nature. This must be blended and considered with the progressed Moon interpretation.

posted February 23, 2007 09:11 AM            

Your affairs will be public when the progressed Moon is transiting an angular natal house (the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth houses). Other people will be aware of the changes you experience and the conditions around you. For example, when the progressed Moon is going through the tenth, it will be public knowledge that you got a promotion or lost your job. Through the first house, people will easily recognize any physical changes in you.

When the Moon progresses through an angular house, events manifest early, even before the Moon is in the sign or before it has made an exact aspect. This is particularly true when the progressed Moon is in a cardinal sign (Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. When the Moon progresses through a succedent house the second, fifth, eighth, and eleventh houses) or through a fixed sign Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius), the affairs of your life will be less public. Changes and adjustments are necessary. There is more resistance and delay in events manifesting themselves. In fact many times you feel your emotional life has slowed down and things are on hold. Through the cadent houses (the third, sixth, ninth, and twelfth houses) or mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces), you go through psychological changes, changes in attitude. Many will be of a deep nature, hidden rather than apparent, and many things happen on a mental level rather than in an event-oriented way. Obviously, it is a challenge to synthesize and come up with the correct interpretation when the progressed Moon is going through an angular house in a fixed sign, or any other mixed combination.

In astrology, because of synchronicity, there will always be many planetary influences operating at the same time. There is never just one thing happening. I had my progressed Moon at 14° Cancer square my natal Venus at 14° Libra, and transiting Mars was stationing at the same time. It brought on a rash and terrible pain in my hand that lasted for a good two weeks. It's interesting that as the progressed Moon made the exact square to Venus, the diagnosis was made and I got the medicine to cure it. This coincided with Mars moving forward, away from its stationing position. The day the transiting Moon went through Cancer, and con-juncted my progressed Moon, was the beginning of the end. The rash started to dry up and fall off my hand. However, it wasn't totally over until the progressed Moon made its next positive aspect, a trine to my progressed Sun. This example also illustrates that there is a beginning and ending to progressions.

This is a very important point to remember. There are always beginnings and endings in astrology, and this is certainly true with the progressed Moon. As the progressed Moon applies, you're going to feel its influence. For instance, if your progressed Moon makes an applying square to natal Saturn, you may feel unloved, or unable to express love, or emotionally heavy. This experience will continue as the progressed Moon goes on to apply to progressed Saturn (this is assuming that progressed Saturn is direct, not retrograde), which could last for several more months, depending on how far your Saturn has progressed.

This feeling or emotional climate won't abate until the progressed Moon makes a positive aspect. Just leaving the square to natal and progressed Saturn won't change the experience—the progressed Moon must make a good aspect before the mood goes away or changes. Sometimes you can have several more months of being in that emotional funk, although it will wane and not be as intense, but ±e feelings will continue. This is how you determine for your clients when they will experience relief. I've seen too many astrologers make mistakes and think that when the aspect is over, and the effect will be over. I have found it's not totally complete until the progressed Moon makes its next good aspect.