Robert Schmidt Astrology

January 19-21, 1996

Robert Schmidt discusses how the fundamental concepts in logic, mathematics, and physics would need to transform to deal with the phenomenon of astrology. Modern scientific thought commits to the sacrifice of aliveness, soul, and consciousness for what it conceives to be logical rigor. Schmidt challenges the unquestioned assumptions that are the basis of today's science. He demonstrates that other sets of assumptions lead in vastly different directions. He lays the foundation of an alternative that combines logical and philosophical rigor with "soul-friendly" principles. Thus, he shows how it is possible to make room for soul, consciousness, and divinity in a philosophical framework.

March 23-24, 1996

What is Intentionality? Intentionality as the defining characteristic of consciousness. Did the ancients aim their minds in the same way we do today? Primary and secondary modes of Intentionality in Cognition. The question of Moods. Sensation and Emotions in the Greeks & Moderns. Reflecting the problem of Intentionality into the syntax of natural language. Subject and Verb as Same & Other. Logos & Phasis. Derivation of the Five Worlds in terms of the Same & the Other. Intentionality in each of the worlds. The nature of the Collective Unconscious. Intentionality & Time in the Verb. Aspect Tense. Time as Stretch. Relationship to the Astrological Time-Lords. Intensive Magnitude. The relationship of Intensions to Intentions. The hypothesis of the temporal field and the nature of astrological influences. Planets as Consciousnesses with Intentions. Assignment of the Planets to the different worlds.

April 20-21, 1996

A new look at the nature of coincidence, and its bearing on astrology, science, and daily life. What kind of phenomena are astrological? Distinguishing different kinds of coincidence. The concept of an event in classical astrology. Chance & Heimarmene in Greek thought. Critique of Jung's concept of Synchronicity and of the modern scientific definition of Chance. Coincidence as repetition: a way of studying it "scientifically" based on the work of Paul Kammerer. The mesocosm as the proper stage for coincidence. The prevalence of coincidence in daily life. A criterion for distinguishing whether astrological events are synchronistic or causal. A new explanation of psycho-physical parallelisms. How Chance, Seriality, and Synchronicity are related to each other.

June 14-16, 1996

THE problem of time for the ancients: distinguishing between time & change. How modern physics has obliterated the distinction. The Greek view: Time as number (Archytas, Plato & Aristotle), as moment (Corpus Hermeticum). The original modern mathematical views: Time as substance (Newton), as relation (Leibniz), as form of intuition (Kant). The ancient Indo-European conceptualization of time as stretch. Time in the verb (tense & tension). Time & Consciousness (intentionality). The dyadic character of time. Time & Eternality. The arrow of time. Clock Time. The filling of time and other modes of temporality. Relation of space to time. Time in each of the worlds (the Aion, mathematical time, moment, resentment & regret for the past and hope & anxiety for the future, aspect tense) and their planetary correlations. Astrological time-lords as lords of temporal modalities, entraining events. Spatial & temporal fields: "and" and "or" as "glue" for the manifold. The problem of astrological causation. Time & historical Consciousness.

Distinction of logos & phasis. Hellenistic Astrology as the juncture of logos and phasis traditions. Seeing vs. Hearing in the phenomena. Tracing logos & phasis back to Same & Other. Same & Other as a common denominator for comparing Eastern & Western thought; also as tools for discussing the distinction between masculine & feminine, active & passive, subject & object, the simple sentence. As introduced by Plato against the background of pre-Socratics; Pythagorean list of opposites. How the first principles cannot be contraries. Absolute and relative Same & Other. The connection between Same-as & Self; Other-than & Dyad. The Dyad in detail. The historical loss of the Dyad as a principle. The problem of relating Same & Other, their irreducibility and non-numerability. The Dyad as Evil. Form & Matter and Aristotle's approach. Intensification and Intentionality. Qualities & intensive magnitude. The four kinds of opposites under the Dyad. Derivation of the Platonic worlds from Same & Other; the collective unconscious as a world. The imperfection of these worlds. The world of consciousness, or Logos as proper relating of Same & Other. Correlation of planets with the worlds. Analysis of world-schematism in terms of essence & existence; standing firm, standing under, and standing forth. The intertwining of essence & existence in connection with person as the object of intention, and mask as final supported image. The complexity of male/female distinction in terms of world schematism. Correlation of faculties of the soul with different worlds and planets. The experience of logos & phasis, and their interconnection. Stillness & Quietude and proper Logos.

September 20-22, 1996

The question of Being in ancient times and the problem of the zoidion. The three strata of Hellenistic Astrology: Ptolemaic (scientific), Stoic (philosophical), Egyptian (divinatory like). The Aristotelean prime movers move the planets by being loved. The number of planetary motions correlated to the number of Ideas. Can the Ideas correlate to the constellations, providing a link between Being & the zodiac? Exposition of zoidion as image, living thing, place. Rulership as authority over planets in a sign, not the sign itself. The meaning of the dignities for the Greeks, Arabs, and Roger Bacon. Exposition of Stoic concept of familiarization (oikeiosis), the manner in which a sign is related to a planet via dispositorship. The English word "like" and how it shows the deep relationship between resemblance, what is pleasing through familiarity, and a living thing. Exposition of Greek word chrematistikos as active, negotiatory (useful), oracular; paralleled by Greek words for astrological causation. Transformation of use-object into something present at hand, the precondition of all scientific inquiry. Signs can only be signs when they are places of listening. Phasis as the appearance that speaks, its connection with poetic planetary names. The proper characteristics of the signs according to Ptolemy: qualitative vs quantitative considerations. Oracular appearance as a question. Planetary indicator vs dispositor as phasis vs logos. The nature of the Aristotelean primary qualities.

October 18-20, 1996

This discussion centers on some of the ancient views on fate including, Heimarmene in Valens, 'Anangke', 'Pronoia', and 'Tuche' in the Corpus Hermeticum, 'Kleros', the Greek word for Lot, and 'Moira', the Greek word for an allotment. Fuller understanding of the ancient concepts of Fate reveals the special roles of the Lots (later in history called 'Arabic Parts') in ancient astrology. Connections are made between the oracular or omen part of astrology and the logical side of astrology.

November 22-24, 1996

Quantum Theory as science fiction according to Bell. The Heisenberg uncertainty relations and his assumption that our modern concepts of spatiality & temporality are natural. Rejection of modern attempts to link astrology with current developments in science. Discussion of classical views on astrological causation. Criticism of holism, "molecular" approach. The problem of the "lock-out" and the nativity. "Top down" approach and hypotheses to decide between different causal explanations. Consistency argumentation for validation. Elements of any future astrological science derived from an astrological context: house systems & spatiality; aspect temporality and philosophical condition for prediction, time-lords; identification of astrological phenomena; nature of astrological causality; astrological events defined by inception and outcome, ritualistic connection; indeterminacy and statistical considerations, problem of eminence; zoidia and the entities under consideration in astrological science. The hypothesis of the temporal field as a model incorporating these features.

December 13-15, 1996

An overview of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason: the formal & material components in our knowledge and experience; that experience must conform to our knowing; table of judgments & pure concepts; spatial & temporal manifolds and schematism; aggregation & coalescence, homogeneity & heterogeneity; intensive magnitude as a coalescence of homogeneous parts. Dimensionality, topology, geometry & curvature of as extensional characteristics of the spatial field; the intensive components of the spatial field. Temporal fields and fields of consciousness; their intensive & "extensive" (or intentional) components: emotions & moods, premises & conclusions, etc. Planetary consciousness and its unique synthesizing of the temporal manifold, where the events we experience must conform to that consciousness, time-lords; pertinence to the question of astrological causation. The nature of logarithms. Fractal dimension interpreted as a measure of intensive magnitude using the notion of coalescence; application to Koch curves and Cantor dusts. Light Metaphysics of Robert Grossteste and the original construction of a manifold. The manifoldness of the different worlds derived directly from principles of Same & Other; formal principles imposed on those manifolds to create fields. The two "mathematical" problems for a "scientific" account of astrological causation in terms of fields: distinguishing spatial & temporal fields; mathematizing intensification. The interaction of temporal intensification with intentionality in astrological causation.

January 17-19, 1997

The description of the motion of the Same & Other in the Timaeus as a cosmological model for Celestial Grammar, with the motion of Same as Subject, motion of Other as verb. Planets as imperfect logoi: "it Saturns." Signs as imperfect logoi: "Capricorn is." Some grammatical considerations and Greek grammatical terminology. Celestial grammar as the standard for natural languages. The "is" and the proper characteristics of the signs in terms of aspect temporality; modification of planets in signs. The "it" and spatial reference; connection with signs as places (houses). Dispositorship and the Form/Matter distinction. Discussion of meanings of eidos and oikos. A better approach via familiarization, which properly relates Capricorn to Saturn. Its connection with prime mover discussion in Aristotle. Familiarization as prototypical middle voice activity, and the proper relating of Same & Other in logos. Special essences of the planets in familiarization. Dwelling as familiarization. Acknowledgment of signs by planets; meaning of "thank you." Decans as grammatical person in the complete conjugation of verb. Appropriation of Being & Man to each other in Heidegger. Philosophical grammar. The "it is," and transition to phasic grammar.

February 8-9, 1997

In spite of its title, Robert Schmidt presents new material not discussed in previous talks. He reveals his motives behind introducing philosophical material into the discussion of astrology. He explains why the theoretical frameworks are important for astrological work. This less formal talk presents a collection of ideas, such as the Stoic theory of perception, Kant's Pure Concepts of the Understanding, and Schmidt's unique concept of phasis, as ways to stimulate thinking about the broader picture in which astrology plays a key role.

March 1-2, 1997

Should we study history via astrology? Vice versa. How can historical principles apply to the nativity? Vico and the new science of history - 'two eyes of history'. Distinction of certes and commune. Natal chart as hypostasis. Plotinus's' hypostasis as overflow of one world to create next world. Valens' katebole or throwing down. Radix as root of something which develops not a Hellenistic description for the natal chart. Antigenesis charts compete with natal. Conception charts as arche, natal chart as katarche, transits as apotelesmatics. Temporality of astrology - aspect tense. Natal chart as possibilities, timelords as more possible (probabilities) and transits as actualities. Natal astrology vs general (natural) astrology. Planets as consciousnesses which impose form on time and space. Kepler's organ of perception in the soul. Fates - fortune as that which accompanies intentional activity. Aesclepius - necessity acts as ordering principle. Stoic concept of free will as assent or refusal. Remembering vs recollection. Astrological topics constituting historical space. Hegel's criticism of astrology. Synthetic activity of the mind and tuche/order. Should the nativity be understood to have a history or a destiny?

March 28-30, 1997

Logos and phasis - point of contact between scientific and esoteric traditions. First and last appearances of ideas (heliacal rising/setting). Asking questions of the birth chart. Grammatical case for omens. Stoic theory of perception - linguistic component. True phasis and apparent phasis. Different appearances and speakings of the planets. Poetic names of the planets. Plato's Timaeus - Motions of same (diurnal) and other (ecliptic) of the planets. "It is" - diurnal and ecliptic motions together; relating of Same and Dyad. Appropriation as relation of signs and planets. Deriving Person out of logos. Person - decanates as prosposon (face, person). Ptosis - 'falling' or grammatical case. What does it mean to "decline" a noun? Articles - place where entity makes its first announcement. Lot as announcement by first appearing at Ascendant. Heidegger's "It" is, appropriation (familiarization, same like). Nature of questions. Who, where, when, why are derived from what. 'What' creates time and place for phasic appearance and announcement. Houses are the "what" and "it". Astrologers' relation to the Celestial Animal mirrors significator to indicator relationship.

April 25-27, 1997

Hypothesis of temporal fields. Fields existing in medium vs fields as primary relativity. Fields as form imposed on manifold. Discrete and continuous magnitudes. 'Or' as temporal and 'And' as spacial. Intensification of consciousness as analog to extension in space. Planets as consciousnesses. Alternative to Kant's view on matter involving Same and Dyad. Familiarization. Aristotle's four kinds of opposites. Case relationships - falling/ptotis - as the way planets related to signs. Houses as 'cases' relative to Ascendant. Heidegger's four basic problems of phenomenology. Appropriation / familiarization relation of Being to man, signs to planets. Difference between standing forth of zoidion and a non-living thing. Essence/existence problem. How is familiarization? Is there something such as Logos before Same/Other? Being recedes leaving gifts (est Gibt). Historic principle addressing astrology. Ritualistic connection between events. Cause/effect related to ritual. Articulating original experience of the heavens.

June 20-21, 1997

Robert Schmidt parallels the Heideggerian model of the relation of Being and man through appropriation to a model of the relationship of Signs (Zoidia) and Planets. The Hellenistic word used for this relation, familiarization (oikeosis), is akin to Heidegger's appropriation. Astrology as a celestial language (logos and phasis) may be the vehicle for the relation of Being and man. The listeners/participants of this magnificent talk are lead into the concepts of Being and Time, presence and absence, the gifts of Being as beings (for philosophers of the ages these are concepts such as Logos, Idea, One, Energeia, Immanent Will, etc.) and the gifts of the zoidia through planets' temporal course.

November 1-2, 1997 (?)

How do we come to characterize the outer planets, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto? What does it mean when we call them 'transcendental' planets? Robert Schmidt offers a lucid philosophical approach to transcendence, framed in a discussion of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. He makes suggestions about the outer planets as the Transcendental Ideas outlined by Kant. In this talk, he presents a foundation for a new science to investigate metaphysical assertions, including the concepts of intensive magnitude and intensification and remission of forms.