Planet principles
as vehicles for the Self
a further elaboration
21.1
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Frame of reference
After our journey over the rotating Earth (14.1), the work of Erich Neumann provided us with a frame of reference that enables us to describe the process of Self-development in the astrological terms that we arrived at earlier (18.4). For as we have seen, where Earths’ circumference coincides with Earth’s axis (13.8), the Solar and Saturnian principles converge.
This conjunction embodies the (rotating) Self and is undetermined in time and space (13.8, 15.4, 17.1).
Here the Sun is the center of radiance and Saturn provides the anchoring. Together they form the radix (literally: the root). Based on this conjunction, we can now proceed to describe the various forms of manifestation or vehicles of the Self (14.1, 19.1) in more detail.
The Moon – in her orbit
The Moon’s orbit has settled itself at a distance where the centrifugal force, away from Earth, equals the pulling force of Earth’s gravity towards itself. At this border or edge of flying off and falling back, the Moon runs her self-established course around Earth, enwrapping it with her atmosphere.
Due to the fast orbit time of the Moon (faster than that of any of the planets, 19.1), all outside influences must first pass through this Lunar sphere before being able to reach Earth. In this sense, the Moon acts as a kind of checkpoint and passageway for any incoming and outgoing influences. Seen from Earth, the Moon can also be regarded as the outpost between Earth and space.
The Moon – as intermediary for a Self
For the Moon, Earth (that is, Man) is at the center of her circling movement. As an enveloping source of nourishment and protection for the new-born child, she initially is a continuation of the womb, of Nature itself.
Yet, its sensory impressions now start to stimulate the new-born child, waking it up to its environment and to the mirror of its mother (20.1). In her reflected image, the child realizes its first relationship with itself. The Moon as mirror gives the child a first Saturnian application point for a Self. She projects this core into the child. In this way, as a border guard and passageway, the Moon offers a point of application for this first core of Self (19.1).
First form of Self
This basic form of Self does not yet constitute a separate Self that is able to take a stand against its environment as a non-Self. In other words, in this application point, its Self-awareness hardly differentiates itself, or not at all; it predominantly lives in unity with, and in reaction to, its mirroring environment. Here, the symbiotic state can still serve as a passageway for the unbroken connection with the Cosmic unity. In scientific circles, the common view is that in this infant phase, no memories can be recorded yet. Nevertheless, the ability to generate images, through the Moon, is already connected and active in that phase.
Saturn – functioning as Self
Saturn’s orbit confines the part of the planetary field that is still visible to the human eye. Although in an astronomical sense, the Sun is at the center of Saturn’s orbit, in an astrological sense, as seen from Earth, Saturn demarcates the border of the part of the Solar System that is within the reach of our human eyesight. This implies that his function of border guard is directly related to Man (that is, Earth).
Through this Saturnian point of application, the Self embraces the part of the environment that is known to it, calling everything outside of that ‘a non-Self’. It derives its sense of Self from this self-established border.
So the primal, Saturnian Self provides an environment-related Self-awareness, characterized (as a temporary solution) by separation. Neumann calls this form of manifestation ‘the masculine face of the Self’.
The Moon - as conductor
In her enwrapping function, the Moon rules the individual sphere, not just by nourishing and protecting the processes taking place there, but also by phasing and timing them. By adjusting incoming impressions to our capacity to digest them (think of a semi-permeable membrane), she directs our growth processes. For this mirroring task, she has at her disposal many different angles and lines of approach. These give her a fluctuating, mouldable character, enabling her to present herself in ever changing forms, like the phases of the physical Moon (18.3). This is also how she presents or reflects these processes to the outside world, as we shall see later.
As an application point for the Self and a catalyst of Self-development, the Moon represents a quality of customized protection and personal growth. Neumann calls this form of manifestation the feminine face of the Self.
Saturn - as border shifter and passageway
As the Moon enables growth processes and emancipation to take place, in Saturn this will open up the possibility to absorb and digest the resulting growth. Although Saturn owes it to himself to remain unchanged, he does allow the integration of these changes, once they have been sufficiently consolidated, by shifting his boundaries, or by allowing them to pass through, transferring them to a different realm or different dimension (3.1.a). In his function as ferryman, he works together with Uranus and is called ‘the two-faced Janus’.
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