Biblical Astrology Why Is The Circle, or Cycle, “Larger” Than 360 Degrees? Who Rules The Earth—Mars or Sun? By GEORGE BAYER (In preseotag this series of articles on Diblical Axtrology, by Mr. Bayer, we feel that we are rendering’ a distinct service to every astrologer End student who will take the trouble to experi- ment along the lines surgested by the euthor. Mz Buyer hus found, by consclentious testice over a jong period ef years, that bis bibifeal measurements work out almost upfailiogiy in the movraients of stocks and conimodities, an well as in the culculation of oiber tpee of “astrological forecasts. ‘The full scope of bis findings ia now uvaflule $n two Important works, which are dt scribed moze fully in the department, “Among the Books.” tn this issue of Editor.) STUDENTS who wish to delve deeply into the subject of astrology usually try to obtain some of the older texts. Of these there are a vast number, the single period from about 1200 to 1600 A.D. hav- ing produced between two and three hun- dred volumes which are still extant, either in manuscript or printed form. In that 400-year period, as well as later, all scientific writing was done in Latin. Actual making of the manuscripts was done chiefly in the monasteries, or by professors of mathematics and astrology in the great universities and other centers of learning, as indicated on the title-pages of each vol- ume. Those ancient writers, naturally, knew a great deal about the Bible and its contents, although it may be questioned as to whether they were always fully informed as to its meaning. Nowadays, very few people have the time or patience to read the Bible thoroughly, and more especially the Old Testament portion. That volume speaks of too many sons, daughters, broth- es, deaths, series of relatives or descen- dants, which seemingly were mentioned in detail merely to fill up the book. With a few examples, I will try to show in this ar- ticle that the compilers of the Bible knew more about mathematics, cycles, laws of na- ture, and other practical yet abstruse mat- ters, than most of those living today will get to know. Astronomers, such as Herschel, who dis- covered the planet Uranus, have sometimes believed that the circle is greater, or rather, that it consists of a great number of par- ticular units, than 360 degrees, Jn his “Outlines of Astronomy,” Herschel makes this assertion, although he does not actually mean what he says, because he did not recognize the great law that he had dis’ covered. So lightly did he regard this fact that he placed it, so to speak, in an obscure corner. My copy of hts work is dated Philadelphia, Pa, 1849. Here is what he says: HERSCHEL’S CALCULATIONS “ Now, although it is true chat the mean motions of no pianets are exactly commensurate, yet cases are not wanting in which there exists an approach to this ad- justment. For instance, in the case of Jupiter and Saturn, a cycle composed of five periods of Jupiter and two of Saturn, although it does not exactly bring about the same configuration, does so pretty nearly. “Five periods of Jupiter are 21,663 days, and two periods of Saturn, 21,519 days. The difference is only 146 days, in which Jupiter describes, on an average, 12 degrees, and Saturn’ about 5 degrees; so that after the lapse of the former interval they willsay be T degrees rrom a conjunction in the wx puts of their orbit as before. Ef we calculate the time which will ex- stily bing about, on the average, three ions of these two planets, we shall it to be 21,760 days, their synodic pe- tod being 7253.4 days. Jn this interval Saturn will have de- pended 8 degrees 6 minutes in excess of wo sidereal Tevolutions, and Jupiter the game angle in excess of five. Brery third conjunction, then, will take pic 8 degrees 6 minutes in advance of the peeding, which is near enough to ex ‘abtish, not, it is truc, an identity with, but sella great approach to the case in ques- oo. The excess of action, for several such The piaret triple conjunctions (7 or 8) in succession, will lie the same way, and at each of them the elements of P's orbit and its angular otion will be similarly influenced, so as to accumulate the eifect upon its longitude; thus giving rise to an irregularity of con- erable magnitude and very long period, Nine s el known to astronomers by the of the Gi it it and Satur reat Inequality of Jupiter “The arc 8 degrees 6 minutes is con’ ined 44 4/9 times in the whole cixcum- 18 ference of 360 degrees; and, accordingly, if we trace round this particular conjunction, we shall find it will retum to the same point of the orbit in so many times 21,760 days, or in 2648 years. “But the conjunction we are now con: sidexing is only one out of three. The other two will happen at points of the orbit about 123 degrees and 246 degrees distant, and these points will also advance by the same arc of 8 degrees 6 minutes in 21,760 days. “Consequently, the period of 2648 years will bring them all around, and in that in- terval each of them will pass through that point of the two orbits from which we commenced; hence a conjunction (one or other of the three) will happen at that point once in one-third of this period, of in 883 years; and this, therefore, is the cycle in which the Great Inequality would un- dergo its full compensation, did the ele- ments of the orbits continue all that time invariable. Their variation, however, is considerable in so long an interval; and, owing to this-cause, the period itself is pro- longed to about $18 years.” ‘That is what the great astronomer Her- schel has to say. A cycle, or rather the circle, has a length of 368 degrees 6 min- utes. One-third of that circle is 122 de- grees 42 minutes, To follow the astrological path through the Bible is rather difficult, because of the peculiar idiom and phrascology which the writers employed. The maze of statements and stories, the different meanings and pur- poses of the various chapters, and especially the fact that everything referring to the measurement of degrees is based upon the circle of 368 degrees 6 minutes, and not upon the familiar circle of 360 degrees, in- evitably produces confusion. Another fac- tor which contributes to the difficulty of correct understanding is that the writers took it for granted that the reader was aware of the rules and terms employed. (it may be mentioned that the 360-degree circle is merely based upon convenience,360 being evenly divisible by every digit except 7.—Ed.) Ezra Agrees Havinc read Herschel on this subject, let us take an illuminating example from the Bible itself. In the Book of Ezra, chapter 2, verse 2, we read that the people of Israel came with 11 leaders. Using the first 11 items as one unit and adding them together, we obtain the following results: Children of Parosh.. 2,172 Childen of Shphatiah 372 Children of Arah... 715 Children of Pahathmoa! tees 2,812 Children of Elam.. 1,254 Children of Zarea. 945 Children of Zaccai 760 Children of Bani 62 Children of Bebai 623 Children of Azgad 1,222 Children of Adenikam. 666 Children of 11 tribes total. Note the first figure given—2,172—and its close identity with cyclic figure 21,760 mentioned by Herschel. Note also the simi- larity of the total of the 11 tribes—12,243 —and its absolute identity with the arc of 122 degrees 43 minutes mentioned by Her- echel. It appears from this that Herschel “discovered” a cyclic measure that was commonplace knowledge among the an- cients. ‘The remainder of the “count” given in this portion of Ezra is not of interest here, since it deals with other cycles, such as that of 37 degrees 10 minutes, of 82 degrees 36 minutes, which latter is shown as 81 de grecs 96 minutes but amounts to identicaliy the same thing. ‘he total of these cycles is 242 degrecs 29 minutes, which total should be kept in mind, Ezra, chapter 2, verse 65, states that the total number of men in the community was 42,360. Leave off the 0 and you have 42-36, or 42 degrees 36 minutes. 12,243 19 The Mean Sidereal Period For another illustration, let us tum to the Book of Numbers, chapter 26, from verse 7 on, where we find the follow- ing count of “the people”: Tribe of Reuben. . 43,730 Tribe of Simeon... 22,200 Tribe of Gad 40,500 ‘Tribe of Juda... 76,500 Tribe of Isasher. 64,300 Tribe of Sebuion. 60,500 ‘Tribe of Manasse. . 52,700 Tribe of Ephraim. . 32,500 Tribe of Benjamin. 45,600 Tribe of Dan. 64,400 Tribe of Asser « $3,400 Tribe of Naphtali............. 45,400 691,730 Taking 360 degrees from this figure, we obtain 242 degrees 13 minutes, which value is within minutes of being identical with that given in Ezra, noted above. It is to be noted also that the total given here (601,- 730) is approximately the same as the sidereal period in mean solar days of Nep- tune, which is 60,12634 days. In Numbers 33:39, we find: “And Aaron was one hundred and twenty and three years old (123) when he died Mount Hor.” Aaron thus equals third of the Jupiter cycle, which ends at a place in the horoscope called Mount Hor. How close the ancients came with their in- equalities of Satur and Jupiter may be seen in Chronicles I, chapter 15, wherein the number of men who carry the Ark is tabulated: 120 men i 220 men Joel . 130 men Shemaizh . 200 men Eliel ... 80 men Amminadab .. 112 men 862 men Inasmuch as we are to use these “men”