The Principles of Astrology

Charles E.O. Carter, the eminent British astrologer who lived from 1887 until 1968, left behind a legacy of ten books written between 1924 and 1951. The Principles of Astrology, his second work published in 1925, is a classic textbook on the subject and after having been out of print for many years, has made its advent back to the bookshelves of astrological literature some 84 years later, at its Uranus return. Carter was an astrological genius who excelled like no other in human observation welded to celestial correlation. Born with an Aquarius Sun in an applying waxing trine to retrograde Uranus in Libra, it is no small coincidence that this book has seen its resurrection as his posthumous progressed Sun perfected its waning trine to that natal Uranus. The Jupiter-Neptune conjunction of late May 2009, right as this book went to press, was exactly conjunct Carter's chart ruler, Venus, in 26 degrees of Aquarius. For the beginning and intermediate student of astrology, there is no finer treatise than this. The opening chapter covers Astrology and its Subject Matter and therein one finds a succinct summary of the Sun, Moon and planets, the signs, the houses, and the nature of the astrological aspects. Chapter Two on The Erection of the Horoscope is especially valuable in today's astrology as nearly all new students of this celestial science start out calculating their horoscopes with astrology software, or doing so on-line at astrology web sites. This chapter introduces the student to the tools of the trade from years gone by - the Ephemeris, the Tables of Houses, and the Atlas showing the world's time zones. Chapters Three, Four and Five enlighten the reader with insightful and detailed essays on The Sun, Moon, and Plants (3), The Qualities, Elements, and Signs (4), and The Houses (5). One will discover in these chapters original underpinnings for the modern textbooks written by contemporary authors in the field since the 1970s. Why not get it straight from the author upon whom the others work was built? The next two chapters are the heart and soul of Carter's masterpiece. The Judgment of the Horoscope: Character (6) and The Judgment of the Horoscope: Destiny (7) are unsurpassed in their treatment of character (including delineations of the planets in the signs), assessment of moral status, understanding temperament, and determining intellectual abilities. A table summarizing the effects of the aspects rounds out Chapter Six. In his next chapter on Destiny, the crossroads of free will and fate that lie at the center of astrological inquiry are examined with a thoroughness that will delight the reader with its wide ranging considerations. Health and death; relatives, marriage and friends; vocation and finance; accidents and violent deaths; parents and children; travel; and religion, mysticism, and occultism are all addressed in a comprehensive way that allows the student to begin to 'think astrologically' - perceiving the real and tangible c