The Galactic Center and The Centaurs

THE GALACTIC CENTER

I was first introduced to the concept of the Galactic Center over 20 years ago while skipping around in one of my favorite astrological books, Nicholas de Vore's "Encyclopedia of Astrology." (Note: this excellent book comes in digital form with every copy purchased of Solar Fire astrological software.) In one place he wrote that "at the time of the Winter Solstice, the Galactic Center is a few degrees South of the Sun." (He was assuming a 0 Capricorn position for the G.C.)

In another article, he puts forth the proposition that the motion of our Earth around the Sun brings our planet alternately closer and then further away from the G.C. de Vore theorizes that this, in part, helps to describe the difference in energies of each sign. He writes that when the Sun is at 0 Capricorn, the Earth is at 0 Cancer, and thus "at its greatest distance from the G.C. From this point it moves toward and in the direction of G.C. accelerating to its maximum speed at the midway point, and slowing down to a dead center when the Sun reaches 0 Cancer, where it reverses its motion and for the next half year travels against the gravitational pull from the G.C."

There is a lot more to this article (under "Solar System" in de Vore's book), and it is quite intriguing. He may have been off a few degrees from the actual G.C., but only a few, and there may be some validity in the basic principle...that the nature of each sign is shaped in part by the fact that, during different times of year, the Earth is moving toward, or away, from the G.C.

I filed this away as an intriguing theory and didn't go any further with it for several years. That is, until I read a book by Phil Sedgewick ("The Astrology of Deep Space") that talked of using the G.C. as a major point in one's chart. Phil concluded that any body in the chart that was in close aspect to the G.C. would be deserving of special interpretation....that these individuals have a special link "with whatever is behind all this."

(When Phil gave the G.C.'s position I was quite excited. The year I was born, the G.C. was about 26 Sag 11, and my natal Sun is 26 Gem 09, so it makes not only a rather close opposition....but you could also say the G.C. was quite intimately connected to the Earth in my chart.)

Phil also mentioned that because our solar system rotates around the GC, the GC can be thought of as the sun of our solar system.

What does the G.C. indicate? Phil talks a little about that in an article on his website: http://www.philipsedgwick.com/Galactic/GalacticCtr.htm
I'd like to quote a bit of his writings on the GC:

"the Galactic Center surges like a Roman candle of infrared energy. Emanations of infrared energy (IFR) blast down upon us and perform two primary functions on our awareness.
"First, IFR opens up the subconscious mind. This opening asks us to release and forget emotional trauma. Of course, this also means relinquishing your greatest emotional grievances. Perhaps this contributes largely to the popular metaphysical model of cellular reprogramming. Second, IFR blasts open the root chakra in the energy system. This chakra releases the old, regenerates our energy, and lifts us off our duffs with renewed inspiration and a sense of real progress."
AND
"The Galactic Center acts like a satellite dish, directing divinely inspired information straight to the potentially receptive gray matter of our brains. If you believe in God, this might be the voice you hear. Regardless, within this connection you have the ability to pull down wild information which you would otherwise have no way of knowing."

In his book Phil writes that when an individual ignores this transpersonal link he can experience stress and confusion, but when the link is consciously utilized the individual can grasp information that they may seem to have no outward way of knowing.

Pretty heavy stuff, isn't it?

Another powerful article on the G.C., written by Paul O. Hewit, can be found at https://www.heavenlymessagesbymelissa.com/2017/04/05/galactic-center-26-27-degrees-sagittarius/. Paul feels that "it is probably the second strongest spot in any astrology chart, following the Sun. It is a stunning source of energy, motivation, and aspiration. The Galactic Center is the Sun of our Sun. It is the source of most of the gravitational energy present in our galaxy, and probably the source of most of the energy in any chart, transformed through our own Sun."

He mentions that William Lilly, one of the fathers of modern horary astrology, wrote that the Moon was not Void of Course when in late Sagittarius. If there is truth to this, could the G.C. be the reason?

RASA School of Astrology has a G.C. ephemeris on the web at https://rasa.ws/rasa-library-menu-page/rasa-library-menu-journals/news-by-degrees-v22/galactis-centre-degree-ephemeris/ so you can see exactly where it was at the moment of your own birth.

Here are some additional articles on the Galactic Center:

By Lynn Koiner: Thoughts on the Galactic Center
By Lynn Hayes: Decoding the Galactic Center
By Michael Erlewine: The Galactic Nucleus
By Dharmaruci, several entries on the Glactic Centre: at AstroTableTalk
By Robert Wilkinson: Galactic Center Conjunctions by Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto - the Newest Influences What's Coming in 2012
by Alex Miller-Mignone: The Pluto-Galactic Center Conjunction
various articles on the GC: The Galactic Center
Wikipedia's astronomy page on The Galactic Center

ENTER CHIRON

When Chiron was discovered, the Galactic Center was almost exactly conjunct the Ascendant. With Chiron's discovery degree described as "A bridge linking the earthly with the celestial", it seems that Chiron has come to bridge the gap between us and the center of our galaxy.

The Sabian Symbol for this degree is brimming over with the potential for creativity: "The sculptor's vision is taking form under his hands."

ENTER CHIRON'S FRIEND

This year the Galactic Center has precessed to 26 Sagittarius 51. When I wrote it down, that number practically jumped off the page at me. One of the most recently discovered Centaurs, 1999 UG5, has its north node at 26 Gemini 49, which of course means that its' south node is 26 Sagittarius 49. UG5 was discovered when its south node was almost exactly conjunct the Galactic Center, and with its nodal axis directly on the Asc/Desc line of the Chiron discovery chart. Thus, all three are intimately linked.

This new Centaur was officially named (31824) Elatus. You may remember in your mythology that Elatus was one of the Centaurs that tried to flee, after Hercules started shooting at them. In one story, Hercules' arrow hits Elatus in the arm, but passes right through, and ends up hitting Chiron, much to Hercules' sorry. So it is definitely intimately connected with Chiron.

Since Elatus' North Node is the 27th degree of Gemini, let me also mention this Sabian Symbol: "A young gypsy emerging from the woods gazes at far cities." This is a symbol both of far sightedness and deep longing on one hand, but can also be very much the feeling of being an outcast. Lynda Hill writes that the negative expression is "dissatisfaction with your own surroundings and always looking elsewhere." (I just heard an old Petula Clark song run through my mind, "The other man's grass is always greener..."

TWO CENTAURS

In addition to this axis, and the mythology, Elatus has other things in common with Chiron.

As I mentioned, the latter's discovery degree is that bridge linking the heavens with what is here below. Well Elatus' discovery degree is the 6th degree of Taurus. Dane Rudhyar writes: "A cantilever bridge in construction across a deep canyon." Or if you prefer Lynda Hill's description, "A bridge being built across a gorge." In either case, we again have a bridge, like Chiron. But with Elatus it is not a bridge that is already existant...but rather, the focus is on BUILDING the bridge. The bridge to the Galactic Center?
Elatus' discovery plate was taken with the Sun at 5 Scorpio 22, only 9 minutes past exact opposition to that Centaur. I think that this opposition will be indicative of much that we will discover about this Centaur. The Sabian Symbol for that degree is "A gold rush tears men away from their native soil." (Petula Clark is still singing in my head..."The grass is always greener on the other side"....someone help me!) This Elatus/Sun opposition is closely squaring the Sun/Chiron midpoint at the Chiron discovery chart.
Elatus was discovered only hours away from when the above plate was photographed on Oct. 29. Chiron was discovered on Nov. 1.
Chiron has been described as tapping the energy found at the Saturn/Uranus midpoint. Elatus may do this even moreso, for its current orbit is calculated as 44.0881 years.....and one Saturn/Uranus cycle is 45.36 years.
Uranus at Elatus discovery was a degree away from exactly squaring Uranus at Chiron's discovery.
The Moon was in Cancer when each Centaur was found.
Both Centaurs move closer to the Sun than Saturn, aiming toward Jupiter, and both aim out toward Uranus at their aphelions. In fact, Elatus' semi-major axis is closer to that of Chiron than to any other body yet discovered.

CONCLUSIONS

I hypothesize that both Chiron and Elatus are here to help us to better understand, better integrate, the energy that emnates from the Galactic Center.

The first year of the 21st Century, I think, was indicative of a century that will be one of the most significant for mankind in thousands of years. Chiron reached a conjunction with the Galactic Center, the Ascendant on its own discovery chart, and Elatus' South Node. Definitely something to think about.

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