[SilentBreeze]

Originally Posted by Marina

Wow, that so exciting!

I will see if I can find any good free Astrology software for Mac!

Thank you for starting this, Minderwiz!

I just used crossover, and I'm pretty happy with how it runs. The mac programs I found weren't that great.

[kalliope]

Originally Posted by Marina

Wow, that so exciting!

I will see if I can find any good free Astrology software for Mac!

Thank you for starting this, Minderwiz!

Marina and SilentBreeze, check out the new "free astrology software" thread. I've been running Morinus on my Mac via Crossover as I mention there, but Minderwiz just pointed out that there is a Mac version of the standard (non-traditional) program. I hope you'll stop by the thread if you try it out and have success with it. Ironically, I'm having much more trouble getting the Mac version to run than I did finding a way to run the Windows versions!

[Minderwiz]

Firstly two key terms.

The person asking the question is known as the 'Querent' and the subject of the question is known as the 'Quesited' . Your very first task when the querent asks their question is to decide whether the quesited is an acceptable subject for horary. This might seem rather churlish, having asked them to think long and hard about their question but there are some things that you should not attempt to answer and some times that you need to negotiate a change in the question with the querent.

Things that are not acceptable

Any question that asks you to reveal the mind of God or the fundamental purpose of life, or even the existence or not of the deity. You are not authorised to speak for God, nor are you able to read the divine purpose from a horary chart or indeed any chart, unless God chooses to reveal herself through it. So if the question is 'Does God intend me to be a missionary to Alabama?' You don't accept the question but you do try to negotiate a change - see below.

Any question that involves the possible answer never, such as 'Will I ever get married?' or 'Will I ever find my missing arring?' Both questions allow Yes or No answers but the 'No' answer entails that the quesited will never happen. Imagine the headline 'Astrikiger told me I would never marry', says bride or even worse the psychological pain of being told that you will never marry, even though that is your strong desire. Horary deals with the here and now - the word Horary comes from the Greek word that is the basis of our word 'hour' Any Horary answer is transient - the planets move on and the chart changes. So the answer is also transient - it is for the current situation and not for eternity. Again seek to modify the question to a reasonable time period - the next few days, weeks or months as seem appropriate. A maximum of two years is a good rule of thumb for fairly long term questions such as 'Will someone buy my house, now it's up for sale?'

Any question the answer to which is in the full control of the querent, such as 'Will I read Pride and Prejudice during the next month?' Clearly the querent can choose to read it or not and doesn't need a horary question for that. Indeed, sometimes these are asked as trick quesitons to prove that the Astrologer is wrong - the indications in the chart are good but the querent chooses deliberately to thwart the Astrologer. However make sure to check that the question is not really concerned with something else. If the question were asked by a visually impaired person who cannot read a book but is going to have corrective surgery in the next week or so. then the real question is 'Will the operation be a success?' and being able to read Pride and Prejudice is the criterion of being a success.

Any question that is idle speculation - that is the querent has no real interest in the outcome. These may require a bit of detective work and discussion with the querent For example will Tom in Marketing marry Harriet in Accounts, may simply be idle speculation by Richard in Sales and was dreamt up during a morning when his workload was low and he was bored. He doesn't really care and in such circumstances the Cosmos might not care to give him anything but a random answer. However if Richard is desperately in love with Harriet and is thinking of inviting her out for a date, he has an interest and the question is valid. The same goes with a question such as 'Will Prancer win the 3:30 race at Haydock?' it might be idle speculation or the querent might have £300 riding on the outcome.

Things to modify

All modifications should be discussed with the client but the key ones are

Mind of God questions should be modified to something like - 'Have I the talent to be a good missionary to Alabama?'

'Never' questions - agree a time frame, preferably of months rather than years or even shorter if the situation allows it.

Any question that is vague, confused or ambiguous. It's important that the question is understood by you in the same way as it is understood by the querent, so you need to check this through, especially if you realise that one or more words in the question can have different meanings. The question 'Will I get a new job next month?' seems fairly unambiguous but what does the client mean by 'new job' - will a sideways move in the employer's organisation count as a 'new job'? If the querent has been desperately trying to find a job with a new employer this would not be what they meant when they asked the question. The question also implies that they are actively seeking a new job but it's worth checking on that - some people such as high flying executives and football club managers get head hunted but most of us have to actively apply for a new job. So is the question idle speculation, is it seriously intended but the querent is not actually doing anything to secure the outcome or are they actively seeking a new job? All of these will effect the way that you read the chart.

[YDM42]

I hope this question is answered, but what do you mean by casting a chart on astro.com, - go to page, put in your birth information then select which chart or which option to get a chart?

[Minderwiz]

Originally Posted by YDM42

I hope this question is answered, but what do you mean by casting a chart on astro.com, - go to page, put in your birth information then select which chart or which option to get a chart?

Yes, exactly as if you were doing your natal chart, except that you will enter the date and time of your question and use the location where you were when you decided on your question. This will usually be your home town and it'e almost certain that astro.com has its coordinates.

It's rather like doing a chart for a new born baby, except that the 'new born' is your question

[SilentBreeze]

So if the question I got asked is When will I find a job? then that would be an unacceptable question because it could turn out that it could be never. Or is that question still okay because I'm just looking for a time frame?

[Minderwiz]

You've accepted the question (modified if necessary) and you're ready to proceed. The next step is to do the chart, using astro.com or Morinus (or your own software). The date and time of the question are the date and time when the question was finally settled and you understand the finished question. If you've had to discuss the question with the querent and sort out any modifications, it's the point where those modifications are agreed and you are satisfied that you understand the finished question. Do not cast the chart before that point, as it may then refer to a question which has since changed or which you didn't fully understand. That means that it is not the date and time when the querent first asked the question, even if they've included that data in their email or post. If your're discussing the question live with the querent, via phone or in person it's still the time when you understood the question.

When you cast the chart you have to enter a location for the chart, just as you have to do with a natal chart. The usual entry here is the place where you were when the question was finalised and understood by you. If you and the querent were physically in the same place at that time - you were doing a live consultation, then that's the end of the matter. However if the querent is somewhere else you might wonder if you should use their location or yours. The answer is ALWAYS that it is the time and place where the Astrologer understands the question - it is your location. Lee Lehman says that if you are curious about the querent's state of mind when they asked the question then you can cast a chart relating to that, using their time and place but the horary proper is when you understand the question and your location at that time.

The only teensy exception to this might be if you suggest a modification to the question (so that you understand it and it avoids any of the pitfalls over acceptance) and they then agree through an email or phone call where the date and time is clear. In this case you understood the question but you are really asking the querent to confirm that is what they want to ask. Use this very sparingly. I will still wait for the confirmation.

Using Aeclectic for timing is a bad idea anyway as after an hour the time posted is quoted in hours, and there's no minutes for you to work out the exact time of the post.

OK we have our chart the next question is:

Is this chart valid for this question?

[Minderwiz]

Originally Posted by SilentBreeze

So if the question I got asked is When will I find a job? then that would be an unacceptable question because it could turn out that it could be never. Or is that question still okay because I'm just looking for a time frame?

If this question were asked you should settle a time frame with the querent. If it's your own question you should put a time limit on it. I would usually suggest one month up to three months for such a question' though you need to exercise some judgement here. Take into account the current economic circumstances and the querent's qualifications. Some people will walk into a job, even in a recession others may find that a recession closes them out of the job market to a large extent. In such a case you go ahead with the reading but you would want a far stronger chart for person #2 than person #1, before you answer 'yes' though you might qualify a 'yes' by adding some rider, such as the chances are not high but you could well get one during this period. With a strong chart you will say 'yes' it's very likely.

We'll deal with strong charts later in the thread. The important thing to ask yourself is what is the default outcome?' in a boom it's the querent will very likely get a job and you will need a very weak chart to say 'No'. In a recession it's the other way round - you only say yes, if the chart is very convincing.

Incidentally the above indicates a problem that the Horary Astrologer often has to deal with. There is a great pleasure in telling the querent good news, and we want things to work out for them. It's easy then to add a rosy gloss to the chart, so as not to disappoint them. However if the chart is weak we may have to suggest that the querents hopes are not really as strong as they would wish. This is sometimes seen as a 'bad' way to counsel people. However in Horary our principle job initially is not to counsel but to answer the question. Moreover, querent's are not stupid. If the job market is bad for their skill, then they will be very suspicious of an answer that says 'Of course you will'. It leads to them not trusting you. So you only say 'Yes' if the chart is convincing. If you tell them the chart is weak and not to expect too much, though nicely put you may well find that that is what they were expecting and they then place more weight on your judgement in future questions. Do it kindly but don't build their hopes up on the basis of a mediocre chart.

[inanna_tarot]

When should you do a horary chart about your own questions?

This is something I consider a lot, as there are a few questions I have that I would enjoy a horary answer about (or at least the practice of using horary and astrology!) but I sometimes feel that I don't 'feel' the question enough for it to be valid. I feel sometimes my concerns are too fleeting (although important) to cast a chart, thinking that it would be invalid or not heart-felt enough to the astrological standard to get a reply.

Would you say the need to ask a question/need the answer is the same as when you are consulting the tarot cards? Or does it have to be a real mind-busting question that you are really incredibly desperate to get answers about?

[Nytebugg]

will we be creating individual threads for this or will it be one thread?


on the subject for questions lets say you have a romance one. Would a viable question be "will I have a serious relationship in the next 6 months" or does it need to be more specific to a person such as "will I have a serious relationship with Joe in the next 6 months"? or are both types questions valid?