While the difference between astrology and astropoetics is largely a matter of attitude, there are also specific differences in technique and approach that are important. The Astropoetic School of Soul-Discovery exists to guide individuals and groups of individuals in the study of astropoetic principles and techniques and their application to the soul’s journey. The School will necessarily draw upon the wisdom inherent in the collective astrological tradition for much of its teaching, but will also filter its teachings through a particular sensibility which values open-minded exploration above dogma, subjective truth above objective knowledge, whole-brain/body awareness above intellectual understanding, and application of self-knowledge toward personal growth above the mere gathering of information.
Who Will Benefit From The School
The Astropoetic School is oriented toward individuals – from any walk of life – who wish to employ astrology as an intimately personal language of self-discovery with which to more consciously approach their own soul’s journey. The teachings offered by The School revolve around the fundamental premise that self-knowledge truly useful to the soul requires finding one’s own way into the most intimate recesses of one’s own life. There is no one – however well trained and/or well-intentioned – who can do this for anyone else. The Astropoetic School intends instead to provide individuals with the tools they need to undergo the inward journey, by themselves, for themselves, within a nurturing, encouraging context of non-judgmental group support.
One need not have prior knowledge of astrology to enter The School. In fact, because the approach to astrology taken by The School is quite different than that which is normally taught, one who has formed no prior astrological prejudices may actually have an advantage over someone, who by virtue of previous training must unlearn what she thought she already knew. All students, regardless of experience, will be encouraged to reconsider basic astrological principles in light of the astropoetic perspective.
The School is not particularly interested in training professional astrologers, although we make no judgment about those who, after adequate study of astrology, counseling psychology, and their own personal birthcharts, practice astrology responsibly on behalf of others. Professional astrologers and those aspiring to be professional astrologers are welcome at The School, with the understanding that it is their own growth as souls that will serve as the pivot point of their study at The School. We believe that such self-study is essential preparation for working astrologically with others.
How The School Teaches Astrology
Regardless of previous experience with astrology, each student will begin where they are, and move to a deeper level of understanding – both in relation to astrological principles, and in relation to their own soul’s journey. The basic course will systematically introduce the principles of astro-logic, and then require the completion of certain exercises in self-observation and memory work that form the basis for a more intimately personal body of knowledge that cannot be found in any course or book. Astro-logic is not the same as the linear, analytical, left-brain logic developed by the early Greeks, which later came to serve as the foundation of both astrology and science. It is instead, essentially a poetic logic of simile and metaphor. It is suggestive of possibilities, rather than descriptive of literal facts. It is an invitation to contemplate experience with the whole of one’s being - with the senses, the emotions, and the imagination, as well as the rational mind. It is a trigger for the intuition, stretching into realms of subjective awareness inaccessible to merely rational analysis. It is rooted in the power of the symbol to evoke visceral recognition, rather than a mere intellectual interpretation of data. It speaks not just to the mind, but to the whole being, and attempts to place the soul within a larger, more cosmic context.
Once the principles of astro-logic are understood and approached with sensory, emotional, imaginative and intuitive faculties fully engaged, the student can enter the body of data provided by his own life experience, and understand it on a deeper, more organic level. Until astro-logic is applied with the living context of a life in progress, it means no more than algebra or unplayed music in a written score. It is the application of astro-logic to the individual life of each student that will constitute the heart and soul of the process taught by The School. This is necessarily an ongoing empirical exercise for it requires each student to observe and draw conclusions about the astrological patterns in the birthchart as they reveal themselves through actual experience, both in retrospect and in real time. What emerges through such observation will be astro-logical in nature – that is to say, it will in some way, exhibit the principles of astro-logic at work – but it may defy any and all preconceived notions about what the patterns being observed ought to mean from the perspective of traditional astrology.
Astrologers are often taught the objective truth about the collective observations of astrologers who have gone before. But they are rarely taught to observe astro-logically, so that they might derive their own subjective truth in the moment of observation. The School’s approach to astrology will attempt to rectify this by placing each chart squarely within the context of the life that it describes and then teaching the student how to read what the life reveals about the chart. This is the opposite of the way traditional astrology – which aims to read what the chart reveals about the life – is taught, but it is necessary to the cultivation of astro-poetic sensibilities. Students will have the opportunity, not only to observe their own lives with reference to the birthchart – but to share in the observations and discoveries of other students, so that together all participants in The School might cultivate a deeper appreciation for the myriad ways in which the same symbolism can manifest, and the open-minded way in which all symbolism must be approached if it is to yield its richest, tastiest fruit.
Reaching Beyond Astrology
Lastly, once the principles of astro-logic and the practice of astro-logical self-observation have been mastered, more advanced students will have the opportunity to apply their astro-logical self-knowledge toward a more conscious orchestration of their own soul process. Traditional astrology is primarily diagnostic – it describes what is so, and in some cases, attempts to predict what shall be, from an astrological perspective. Astropoetics is also diagnostic, but aims toward a proactive use of astrological knowledge in anticipating and then more consciously approaching the challenges and opportunities that are encoded in the birthchart. By understanding the range of possibilities within a given astrological signature, and then intentionally making choices that allow one to respond more consciously during optimum moments within the appropriate cycles, students can become empowered to take maximum advantage of the opportunity for spiritual growth that is the promise of every birthchart. The School will encourage this proactive approach to the use of astrology, for those who are ready to take their knowledge to this next level of possibility.
While the primary focus of The School is in teaching astrology from the astropoetic perspective, The School also encompasses teachings from other disciplines, and from time to time will elicit the services of various teachers with unique perspectives to offer anyone on a journey toward soul-discovery. Many of these teachers will have little knowledge of astrology per se, but all will carry special wisdom that is useful in pursuing the astropoetic impulse – to know the self within a larger, more deeply spiritual context of meaning and purpose. It is the goal of The School to provide the broadest possible foundation upon which an evolving understanding of the astrological patterns unfolding in the lives of its students might be put to wisest possible use.
