The Astrology Podcast

In episode 404 astrologers Stella and Cameron of the Mercuranians podcast stop by the studio for a casual chat about astrology with Chris. Stella and Cameron were on their way back from the Northwest Astrological Conference in Seattle when they came through Denver on a road trip back home, so we decided to meet up a record a conversation where we talked about a bunch of different astrological topics. During the course of the discussion we touched on topics like changes to the astrological community in the past 30 years, how newer astrologers deal with an overabundance of resources for learning astrology, and the role of chance and fortune in astrology. You can find out more about Stella and Cameron on the Mercuranians YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@themercuranians This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Timestamps 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:00 Benefits of astrology conferences 00:06:46 Changes in astrological community in the last 30 years 00:09:38 Synthesizing spirituality with astrology 00:12:30 Saturn in Pisces 00:15:40 Daimon 00:21:48 Astrological consensus 00:31:16 The observer effect in astrology 00:35:54 How to navigate all the astrological information 00:44:56 Importance of chance meetings and encounters 00:49:00 Finding an astrology teacher 00:59:13 Valens 01:03:33 Learning from journals and drafts 01:10:14 Rhetorius 01:15:04 Creative misunderstandings that lead to new techniques 01:18:51 Subjectivity vs. objectivity in astrology 01:33:38 Fortune 01:39:12 Dealing with difficult transits 01:43:10 Simplicity in interpretations 01:52:14 Science and astrology 01:57:59 AI 02:02:35 Stella and Cameron's podcast 02:09:30 Patrons, sponsors, and credits Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MNX3k82eFg - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 404 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

Episode 403 features a look ahead at the astrological forecast for June of 2023, with astrologers Chris Brennan, Austin Coppock, and Kirah Tabourn. This month Venus ingresses into Leo and begins the pre-retrograde shadow period, Pluto retrogrades back into Capricorn, and Saturn stations in Pisces while Jupiter sextiles from Taurus. Our lunations this month are a Full Moon in Sagittarius, and a New Moon in Gemini. At the top of the episode we talk about some recent news and events, such as recent concerns over the safety of AI that were raised when Pluto stationed in Aquarius, as well as King Charles III being coronated under a Scorpio lunar eclipse. This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Archetypal Explorer https://www.archetypalexplorer.com The Astrologers’ Websites https://www.chrisbrennanastrologer.com https://austincoppock.com https://www.kirah.world Auspicious Election for April The most auspicious astrological date this month is June 18 2023 at 11:56 AM, with Virgo rising. For other auspicious dates this month our elections podcast: https://theastrologypodcast.com/elections/ Our year ahead electional report is now on sale for 50% off: https://theastrologypodcast.com/2023report/ Patreon for Early Access + Bonus Content https://www.patreon.com/astrologypodcast Timestamps 00:00:00 June astrology overview 00:02:18 Welcoming Kirah and Austin 00:08:42 Pluto station and AI safety concerns 00:18:45 400 episode milestone 00:19:42 Writer’s strike 00:21:30 Aquarius, AI, and aliens 00:32:00 King Charles coronation eclipse 00:39:20 Ancient eclipse reports 00:45:35 Mercury retrograde stories 00:51:00 Firmicus Maternus 00:52:55 Ellen Black 00:55:50 Archetypal Explorer 00:59:10 June forecast begins 01:03:55 Venus retrograde shadow begins 01:33:40 Full Moon in Sagittarius June 3 01:46:15 Pluto returns to Capricorn June 11 01:47:45 Mercury in Gemini June 11 to 26 01:55:35 Jupiter sextile Saturn June 19 02:02:38 Auspicious date June 18 02:07:00 New Moon in Gemini June 17 02:18:55 Mars square Uranus June 25 02:25:55 Mercury cazimi June 30 02:33:00 Kirah’s projects 02:34:00 Austin’s projects 02:36:21 Chris’s projects 02:38:00 Patrons, sponsors, credits Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VPtonsVZS0 – Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 403 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 402 Demetra George joins the podcast to talk about the recent discovery of the earliest named astrologer from the Hellenistic tradition who was a woman, Heliodora, and the early history of women practitioners of astrology. Heliodora was an astrologer who lived in the city of Terenuthis in Egypt around the 2nd or 3rd century CE. Her tombstone was recently discovered by archeologists, who published a paper in 2021 which noted that she is the earliest known woman in the Greco-Roman tradition that is known by name to have been a practicing astrologer. During the course of the episode we talk about what is known about Heliodora and the location and time period in which she lived, and we also discuss other historical women that may have had some connection with astrology and astronomy. For more information about Demetra see her website: DemetraGeorge.com This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Bibliography Roger S. Bagnall, Cathy L. Callaway, and Alexander Jones,  “The Funerary Stele of Heliodora, Astrologer,” Muse: Annual of the Museum of Art and Archaeology, University of Missouri, 53/54, 2019-2020 (published 2021), pp. 28–45. [Link to PDF] Nadia Anderson, Drawing Down the Moon & Aglaonice of Thessaly [Link to PDF] Earlier Episodes Previous episodes of The Astrology Podcast mentioned in this episode: Episode 86: Saturn as Feminine, and the Earliest Female Astrologer Episode 137: Elsbeth Ebertin and the Rise of Women in Astrology Episode 295: Queen Buran, Astrologer in 9th Century Baghdad   Timestamps 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:45 Why there were few ancient female astrologers 00:04:00 Horoscopes for ancient women 00:09:25 Hypatia in the 5th century and Queen Buran in the 9th century 00:10:48 Heliodora article 00:14:05 Heliodora as a "mathematike" or mathematician 00:21:28 Urania, Greek goddess of astrology 00:23:13 Enheduanna, poet and priestess 00:25:44 Egyptian goddess Seshat, scribe and astronomer 00:27:45 Aglaonice, predictor of eclipses 00:34:22 Were women practicing astrology prior to Hellenistic astrology? 00:39:20 Oracle of Delphi and divination 00:44:43 Heliodora's tombstone 00:46:35 Heliodora's time period and location 00:58:04 Blending of Egyptian and Greek cultures with Helidora 01:01:37 Images and inscription on the tombstone 01:03:54 Heliodora remained unmarried to pursue astrology 01:11:40 How Helidora learned astrology 01:18:04 Family lines of astrologers: Balbilla, Thrasyllus, Commagene 01:31:00 Julia Balbilla, poet 01:40:33 Women astronomers in Sumerian-Babylonian history 01:42:04 Death of Ellen Black and her role in starting Project Hindsight 01:46:28 Rise of women astrologers in the 20th century 01:51:04 New discoveries being made of notable Islamic and Indian women astrologers 01:54:40 Lost text of Ptolemy discovered 01:55:55 Demetra's background 01:59:29 Demetra's course on hand-calculating a chart 02:07:14 Asteroid retreat and lectures 02:09:27 Patrons and sponsors Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M1ILOwNd68 - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 402 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 401 Dr. Benjamin Dykes joins the podcast to talk about his new translation of the astrological work of the 4th century astrologer Firmicus Maternus. Firmicus was a lawyer and astrologer from the 4th century who wrote one of the longest surviving texts on astrology that has survived from antiquity, which is titled Mathesis. Firmicus' work is unique because it was written in Latin, and it preserves a lot of material from earlier Greek sources that did not survive into modern times, such as the works of Asclepius or Nechepso and Petosiris. The text also contains huge amounts of delineation material, where Firmicus explains how to interpret different placements in a person's birth chart. During the course of the interview we discuss Firmicus' life and work, Ben's motivation for translating this book, and some of the interesting features of the Mathesis. You can get a copy of Ben's new translation of Firmicus here: Firmicus Maternus Mathesis This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Timestamps 00:00:00 A new translation of the Mathesis 00:09:52 The life and dating of Firmicus Maternus 00:19:50 Firmicus' philosophy and religious views 00:30:40 Later conversion to Christianity 00:37:00 Mathesis as the first comprehensive astrological text in Latin 00:57:00 Mitigating conditions 01:10:00 Firmicus views on fate 01:31:28 The Thema Mundi 01:38:33 Firmicus using whole sign and equal houses together 01:49:29 Firmicus' emphasis on the Moon 01:55:47 Apotelesmata and chart synthesis 01:59:35 Lots as houses/places 02:08:08 Fixed stars 02:13:32 Popularity of Firmicus in later tradition 02:17:53 Ben's upcoming projects 02:19:14 Patrons and sponsors Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on Firmicus Maternus on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoNf5JVNMZI - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 401 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 400 astrologers Chris Brennan and Nick Dagan Best talk about the emergence of artificial general intelligence through the lens of astrology, and discuss if and when it may occur. Usually when I reach major milestones every 100 episodes I'll do a retrospective looking back, but this time I wanted to look forward into the future and see if we could predict where some of the trends are headed with artificial intelligence over the next couple of decades. We focus in particular on the question of if researchers will be successful in developing what is called artificial general intelligence, which is like sentient human level intelligence in a machine, and if so when. I've been meaning to do an episode on some of the new trends in AI ever since things started accelerating in December with the release of ChatGPT, and because of that I wanted to document some of the recent developments that have happened since then towards the beginning of this episode, and how they have overlapped with things like Pluto's ingress into Aquarius in March. After that we get into talking about some of the broader philosophical issues that are being discussed surrounding AI in the world today, like AI alignment, and the implications of creating a new sentience species on Earth. Eventually later in the episode we look ahead at some major transits in the future over the next 20 years while Pluto is transiting through Aquarius, and try to anticipate when some of the most important turning points in this technology will take place. This episode builds on a previous episode I did with Kent Bye in December 2021 titled Artificial Intelligence and Astrology. You can find out more about Nick Dagan Best on his website at: https://www.nickdaganbestastrologer.com This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEMaiAgxJS8 - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 400 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 399 astrologers we look ahead at the astrological forecast for May of 2023, with astrologers Chris Brennan, Austin Coppock, and Claire Moon. May opens with a solar eclipse in Scorpio, as well as the second half of a Mercury retrograde in Taurus. Later in the month Mars moves into Leo and then forms a T-square with Jupiter in Taurus and Pluto in Aquarius. At the top of the episode we talk about some recent news and events, such as the discovery of a lost text by the 2nd century astrologer Claudius Ptolemy, or the identification of the earliest woman who is known by name to have been a practicing astrologer. This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Northwest Astrological Conference https://norwac.net The Behenian Fixed Stars Cards https://www.medievalastrologyguide.com/starcards The Astrologers' Websites https://www.chrisbrennanastrologer.com https://austincoppock.com https://www.aligninglightastrology.com Timestamps 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:52 Quick overview of May astrology 00:02:38 Welcoming Claire and Austin 00:04:14 New Ptolemy text rediscovered 00:07:28 Heliodora, earliest named woman astrologer 00:12:54 Fear of AI and calls for regulation 00:29:22 AI image generators and Saturn in Pisces 00:41:10 Jupiter-Saturn shift to air 00:49:52 Recent eclipse stories 00:56:41 Northwest Astrological Conference 00:59:50 Behenian Fixed Stars Oracle and Guide 01:04:15 Egyptian origins of astrological glyphs 01:12:48 May astrology forecast begins 01:13:48 Mercury retrograde and Pluto station 01:22:00 Lunar eclipse in Scorpio 01:32:20 Jupiter morning star in Aries 01:37:08 Venus square Neptune 01:43:12 Venus into Cancer 01:49:25 Mercury direct and Jupiter in Taurus 01:59:00 Mars-Jupiter-Pluto T-square 02:15:20 Sun square Saturn 02:20:48 Auspicious election on May 30 02:24:19 Archetypal explorer transits 02:27:05 Claire's work 02:28:25 Austin's upcoming work 02:30:28 Chris' work and conclusion 02:31:12 Patrons, sponsors, and end cards Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwtzFQwNMuk – Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 399 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 398 professor Ian Moyer joins the show to talk about the history and practice of astrology in ancient Egypt, and discuss some of the notable Egyptian contributions to the astrological tradition. Ian is the author of the book Egypt and the Limits of Hellenism, which explores the ancient history and modern historiography of cultural and intellectual encounters between ancient Greeks and Egyptians. At the beginning of the episode we talk about the early Egyptian use of the 36 fixed star decans for calendrical and timekeeping purposes, and how these eventually came to be used for the purposes of astrology. Other topics covered in this episode include: The Naos of the Decades The rising decan as a precursor to the Ascendant Zodiacs in the temples of Dendera and Esna The use of astrology by Egyptian priests Demotic horoscopes Astrological glyphs derived from Egyptian Coffin lids with zodiacs This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Timestamps 00:00:00 Introduction 00:09:42 The Egyptian language 00:18:42 The decans 00:35:10 The Naos of the Decades 01:06:25 Decans as precursor for the Ascendant 01:15:10 Egyptian hour priests 01:40:27 Academic sources for Egyptian astrology 01:45:27 What constitutes astrology in Egypt? 01:58:35 Cosmic harmony 02:03:25 Shai, Egyptian God of Fate 02:11:45 Mesopotamian astrology transmitted to Egypt 02:23:25 Hellenistic period and Ptolemaic Egypt 02:32:25 Zodiac of Dendera and Esna 02:56:20 The Thema Mundi 03:14:33 Coffin lids with zodiacs 03:29:05 Heliodora: Earliest known woman astrologer 03:33:24 Demotic horoscopes 04:00:55 Astrological glyphs derived from Egyptian 04:09:15 Reassessing the Egyptian contribution 04:23:50 The Hermetic tradition and origins of Hellenistic astrology 04:55:45 Determinism and magic 05:02:05 The lasting influence of Egypt on the astrological tradition 05:18:58 Credits and sponsors Partial Bibliography Anne-Sophie von Bomhard. The Naos of the Decades: From the Observation of the Sky to Mythology and Astrology. Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology, UK, 2008. Andreas Winkler. "Stellar Scientists: The Egyptian Temple Astrologers". Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History; 8 (1–2), 2021: pp. 91–145. Andreas Winkler. “The First Zodiac Sign and the Daimon: The Advent of an Astrological Tradition and Seven Elaborate Horoscopes.” Studien Zur Altägyptischen Kultur, 51, 2022, pp. 267–323. Andreas Winkler. “On the Demotic-Hieratic Horoscopes from Athribis.” Journal for the History of Astronomy, Vol. 53 (3), 2022, pp. 328 –337. Marina Escolano-Poveda. “Astrologica Athribitana: Four Demotic-Hieratic Horoscopes from Athribis (O. Athribis 17-36-5/1741 and ANAsh.Mus.D.O.633 Reedited).” Journal for the History of Astronomy 53, no. 1 (2022): 49–87. Joachim Quack, "Egypt as an astronomical-astrological centre between Mesopotamia, Greece, and India," in The Interactions of Ancient Astral Science, ed. David Brown, Bremen, 2018, pp. 69-123. Dorian Gieseler Greenbaum. The Daimon in Hellenistic Astrology: Origins and Influence. Brill, Netherlands, 2015. Otto Neugebauer and Richard Anthony Parker. Egyptian Astronomical Texts. 4 vols., Brown University Press, 1960. Kim Ryholt, "New Light on the Legendary King Nechepsos of Egypt," The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 97(1), 2011, pp.61-72. Stephan Heilen, “Some metrical fragments from Nechepsos and Petosiris,” in La poésie astrologique dans l’Antiquité, Paris, 2011, pp. 23-93. Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on Egyptian astrology on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuwb94Hh8xk - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 398 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

Episode 397 is a discussion about the astrology of comedy and comedians with Stevie Goldstein, Julia Loken, and Lisa Chanoux from the What's Your Sign? astrology podcast. During the course of the episode we talk about how a person's birth chart can reflect distinct ways in which they express themselves through comedy. We also look at the birth charts of a number of different comedians, and discuss the ways in which the planetary alignments reflect their unique style and brand of comedy. You can find out more about the What's Your Sign podcast here: https://linktr.ee/whatsyoursignpodcast https://www.youtube.com/@whatsyoursignpodcast This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on astrology and comedy on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpUOX8MKyw0 - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 397 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 396 astrologers Catherine Urban and Patrick Watson join the podcast to discuss calculating astrological charts by hand, without the use of a computer. In the episode we discuss how this is the first generation of astrologers in history who don't need to know how to calculate charts in order to practice astrology, what some of the advantages are of learning how to do it manually, and some related digressions about astrological certification. This isn't a full tutorial on how to calculate charts by hand, but instead it is more of a general discussion about the topic, although we do talk about what books you need in order to calculate charts manually and what each of them does. Here are the books and resources mentioned in this episode: Simply Math: A Comprehensive Guide to Easy & Accurate Chart Calculation The American Ephemeris 1950-2050 at Midnight American Atlas The Michelsen Book of Tables   Catherine's 8-hour workshop on chart calculation: https://www.catherineurban.com/webinars-and-giftcards/chart-calculations-for-the-apocalypse Patrick's article about his journey learning how to calculate charts by hand: https://patrickwatsonastrology.com/should-astrologers-know-how-to-calculate-natal-charts-by-hand/ This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of this episode on calculating birth charts by hand: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwL0OCAkwmE - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 396 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:

In episode 395 we look ahead at the astrological forecast for April of 2023, with astrologers Chris Brennan, Austin Coppock, and Robert Weinstein. In April there will be a solar eclipse in the sign of Aries, which happens right about the same time that Mercury stations retrograde in Taurus conjunct Uranus. At the beginning of the episode we discuss some recent events in the news and what they correlated with astrologically, such as the explosion in popularity of AI, the banking crisis, and the Academy Awards winners, and then in the second half of the episode we get into the astrology of April. This episode is available in both audio and video versions below. StarScribe Our sponsor this month is the StarScribe astrology journaling app, which is running a Kickstarter through April 22nd: https://www.starscribe.co About the Astrologers https://www.chrisbrennanastrologer.com https://austincoppock.com https://www.astrocryptoreport.com Auspicious Election for April The most auspicious astrological date this month is April 10 around 2:15 PM, with Leo rising. For more lucky dates this month see: https://theastrologypodcast.com/elections/ https://theastrologypodcast.com/2023report/ Patreon https://www.patreon.com/astrologypodcast Watch the Video Version of This Episode Watch the video version of our April astrology forecast here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ6uY2mAyF8 - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 395 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3: