Sources of information on sidereal astrology

[Deb]

I am aware that Kenneth Bowser is soon to have his book An Introduction to Western Sidereal Astrology published by AFA. I believe the deadline is to have it ready for the UAC conference in May. I think this will be quite a significant publication in terms of generating more interest in sidereal techniques amongst western practitioners, but have come to understand that within the general definition of 'sidereal astrology' there are areas where approaches differ.

It would be useful to outline some of the most useful and accessible sources of reference for sidereal techniques. Please use this thread to make your recommendations of books or other sources of information on this topic (ie, YouTube videos, links or blogs). Please try to give some information on why the book or resource is useful, whether it takes a specific focus or covers a certain approach, and whether it is aimed at beginners or advanced students, etc.

[Therese Hamilton]

I believe that James Eshelman's web site is the most up-to-date source for Western sidereal astrology. The site contains various topics and postings as well as active discussion forums. Questions are welcome.
Note: The sidereal signs on this web site are called "constellations." This can be very confusing as 30 degree equal signs are not constellations.
http://solunars.net/index.php
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http://www.snowcrest.net/sunrise/LostZodiac.htm

[Astraea]

Another thing that can be confusing (if one is not expecting it) about Eshelman's approach, is that he advocates clockwise house numbering. Here is his rationale, as outlined on his forum:

The key point in this model is that the series of houses is necessarily a clockwise cycle.

Consider that astrology, as a window upon the rest of Nature, reflects natural rhythms and cycles in human behavior. The series of signs is recognizably in the order Aries, Taurus, Gemini, etc. because this is the order in which we continually experience the sign qualities due to the passage of the Sun, Moon, and (with periodic back-and-forthing) all of the other planets through the signs. In other words, each time we finish the experience of "Aries-ness" we can rightly expect to move into a phase of "Taurus-ness." Each year, the Sun and its inner-planet entourage reinforce this westward movement. Each month the Moon replicates it as well. The order of the signs is repeatedly reinstated in our consciousness, reinforced by a reiterated rhythm.

However, there is no comparable counter-clockwise pattern to the houses in nature. Every day, each planet rises, ascends to the Midheaven, sets, anticulminates, and prepares to reascend. The rhythm of the houses is clockwise. Every day, each of us experiences the sequential flow of two luminaries, eight planets, and however many other significant astrological bodies exist, passing through the houses in the order 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, ,5 ,4, 3, 2, 1 - a "countdown to selfhood." If there is to be found in the houses an orderly, sequential pattern - as I believe exists - it will most likely be found in following the path through the houses described by the planets themselves every day, even every hour, of our lives.

Eshelman is not alone in this approach. An English translation of a book by the late French siderealist, Jacques Dorsan, was published last year, entitled The Clockwise House System: A True Foundation for Sidereal and Tropical Astrology. As the title suggests, Dorsan advocates a numbering system which he claims works well with either zodiac - though he, like Eshelman, is an avowed siderealist. The book's example charts are cast in the sidereal zodiac, with Placidus houses (a departure from the more common use of the Campanus system among western siderealists - Eshelman among them).

[Therese Hamilton]

Here's the link to Dave Roell's (astroamerica.com) lengthy review of Kenneth Bowser's new book, An Introduction to Western Sidereal Astrology.
http://www.astroamerica.com/refer.html#b123
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http://www.snowcrest.net/sunrise/LostZodiac.htm

[Martin Gansten]

[Therese Hamilton]