Skyscript Astrology Forum

Hi Everyone,

This is to let you know that volume 1 of Ben Dykes's "Using Medieval Astrology - A Compendium of Concepts and Techniques" is now available for purchase as a 100+ page downloadable PDF from www.bendykes.com. This volume is Part 1: Universal Astrology, and deals with a number of concepts that are often discussed here: dignities and debilities, house strengths, interpreting aspects, malefic and benefic planets, relationships to the sun, retrogradation, fixed stars, and others. It ends with a couple of extensive chapters on how to delineate houses, with an lengthy example of a delineation of a natal chart.

Future volumes will include mundane, horary, natal, and electional astrology treated in medieval/traditional fashions.

Another work that is forthcoming is the first published English translation of the <i>Flowers of Abu Ma'shar</i>, a famous work on mundane astrology. This translation is based on the 1488 Latin edition.

I'm sure these topics are of interest to many of you, and I hope you take the opportunity to check them out.

Best Wishes,
Ben Dykes, Ph.D., AMA

I?ve received a bit more information about this book and it is well worth checking out if you are a fairly new student of astrology, or if your background is in modern astrology and you?d like to start learning more about the theory and application of medieval techniques. It?s available for online purchase at a very reasonable price - $25 US.

Topics include:
1. The differences between medieval/traditional and modern astrology
2. Universal significators
3. The different types of zodiac and their use
4. The zodiacal signs in medieval/traditional astrology
5. Whole sign and quadrant house systems
6. The natures and significations of the seven traditional planets
7. Evaluating the major and minor dignities and debilities
8. The multiple uses of triplicity rulers
9. Evaluating malefic and benefic influences
10. How to analyze and interpret planetary aspects
11. Relations to the Sun such as being under the sunbeams, combustion, and orientality/occidentality
12. The use of sect rulers and sect conditions like halb/hayz/dustoria
13. Special conditions like retrogradation and reception
14. The derivation of Arabic Parts
15. Basic interpretative advice for fixed stars, and the equations for calculating their rising and culminating positions with a calculator

Chapters 6 and 7 supply extensive templates and explanations for standard house delineation, including valuable, house-by-house information based on Henry Coley, Morin, and Abu 'Ali on how to delineate the ruler of each house when it is in any other house. Chapter 7 concludes with an in-depth delineation of several features of a natal chart, employing many features of the preceding chapters.

If you?re interested go to http://www.bendykes.com/comingsoon.htm

And well done Ben on completing the first volume of what looks like quite a monumental project!
Deb