Astrology And Free Will

Astra inclinant, non necessitant.
(The stars incline, they do not compel.)

This ancient astrological dictum ought to be understood in accordance with the Hermetic tradition which gave rise to it. The stars, properly interpreted, are not "out there", but "in here". They are the constellations of our own character and temperament, to which they merely correspond. In the strictest terms, they neither incline nor compel, any more than the hands of a clock incline or compel the procession of time.

Always, in the study of astrological factors, we must bear in mind the unknown, or ungiven factor; which is the individual freedom of the person to whom they bear only partial witness. No rumination on what has gone before, however much it penetrates into the nuances of particular instances or expands to encompass the more general principles, can account for the miracle of the present moment. The merest atoms and the vastest galaxies are phantom distractions, if they do not come to a point, and discover their ultimate terminus, in you. What is matters less than what is recognized, and the will is only truly free the instant it is claimed.

The image reflected in a mirror can tell you something of the state of your health, but it can never tell you as much as you can tell yourself, with the choices you make in response to what the image reveals. The first step is to walk away from the mirror, and to claim your life as your own; not to dwell upon the image any longer than is needed to provoke an authentic, personal response.

All the fateful accidents of environment, of parentage, biology, and breeding must bow the knee to the sovereign will. The world cannot anticipate, -- it can neither explain nor can it contain, -- the mysterious capriciousness of that spirit which inflames it. All these things, no doubt, come to bear upon a man, as the karmic substance which surrounds and encumbers his free spirit. Yet, no path, however deeply cut into the wood, can hold back the sword of an individual determined to carve a new way. The instant he has recognized and reclaimed his power, he is invincible; free for any pursuit he resolutely settles upon. He is the undetermined factor. He is yourself, in this instant; in this eternal moment; this lightning flash, which no clock can track.

Have you been blinded in the darkest depths?
You will be blinded in the light, as well!
Look around you now.