Definitions and Foundations from Antiochus (Part 2)

[David_Stricker]

Since the first topic on definitions went in numerous directions, I thought wanted to start a fresh topic to continue with my original intentions to review the definitions presented in Definitions and Foundations of Antiochus.

Here are the definitions that were posted so far:

7/25/09
Adherence
Fellow-traveling by concourse
Testimony
Decimation and Overcoming

7/26/09
Neighboring

8/1/09
Enclosure
Enclosure by the rays of two planets

8/5/09
Decimation versus Striking with a ray
Figures on the Left and the Right

I think Testimony and Striking with a Ray need to be looked at in more detail because of how often they are mentioned in the delineations of the Hellenistic writers. But first I would like to at least try and get through the rest of the definitions in the book. I will try to keep the posts short and only include one chart in a post. If I think there are examples that can be shown with multiple charts, I will put them in separate posts.

[David_Stricker]

One of the biggest problems I encountered while studying the early translation by Project Hindsight was some of the descriptions the Hellenistic astrologers used. There were a lot of words and phrases that did not have an exact counterpart in modern astrology or did not have a clear or exact astrological meaning. This is why I am so excited about the Antiochus book and Mr. Schmidt's commentaries. Here are a couple of examples from Vettius Valens, Book II, Chapter II, page 5-6 of the problems I encountered :

"It will be necessary, then to consider the testimonies of every ruler and the disposition of the figurations, whether they are actually congenial or opposed."

" For every kind it will be necessary to investigate the ruler of the ruler, how it should happen to be and what it is witnessed by. For if the universal ruler should fall amiss, while its ruler should be well-figured, the native will have help and support for life and reputation in accordance with the place-positioning of the star."[/i]

I have put in bold/underline a few of the phrases that I did not have a clear definition for when I was reading this book in 1994-95. Without being able to know precisely what "falling amiss", "being witnessed by", "testimonies", "well-figured" and "disposition of the figurations" really meant, it was not possible to clearly understand what Valens was trying to explain in his writings. And this is only on two pages of Book 2. This kind of writing continues though out his and the other Hellenistic writers.

While it was possible to guess at some of the meanings, having the Antiochus translation allows for a better understanding of what Valens was explaining.