Intelligence in the horoscope - human or artificial?

In his book, Astrological Psychosynthesis, Bruno Huber explores significators of intelligence in the horoscope. He takes into account the importance of the formative background influences and conditioning which shape the direction and expression of the individual's intelligence and this might be used.

Bruo says there are "differences between innate intelligence and conditioned intelligence". This is so important to bear in mind in view of current proliferation of AI as its development moves apace. Does it have the potential to push aside more tried, tested and conventional routes to problem-solving and finding answers? Is it, could it be, a good thing? Or are we in danger of being overtaken by robots?

Much is written about AI at the moment, and it's easy to overlook the deeper meaning of the "A" part of its moniker. "A" stands for "artificial" - defined in the Concise Oxford Dictionary as "produced by human art or effort rather than originating naturally", with Artifical Intelligence defined as "the application of computers to areas normally regarded as requiring human intelligence".

That's the nub of it the conflict  - human or artificial intelligence? How to choose, how to use AI responsibly? And which would you choose? As Shakespeare said, "Ay, there's the rub". 

Personally, give me the real human stuff everytime, although I appreciate that AI can be beneficial if used wisely and responsibly. AI is not real, It has no heart, no feelings, no morals and will only be as good, skilled, clever, capable and knowledgeable as the information it gleans from what is already available.

How about intelligence in the horoscope? Where would you look for it? Which planets or significators would you home in on? Bruno Huber suggests that for well-functioning intelligence we could look at:

Jupiter - gives us the ablity to observe, perceive, comprehend, assess and evaluate. With Jupiter we experience the world around us at first hand. We don't know what "hot" means until we touch something hot, and the experience tells us that if the hot is too hot, we could be burned and hurt. Can AI do that? Apart from describing what "hot" is in words, along with the  implications  and descriptions of getting burned, it can't offer any real hands-on experience.

Mercury -  gathers up information and, combining our memory bank (Saturn) with observations (Jupiter), allows us to arrive at logical conclusions, communicate these and strive for synthesis. With Mercury we can learn things by rote - very AI, parroting information in a logical manner - and it can be useful in synthesing facts, but it functions mainly as a gatherer of information, vacuuming up what's out there in an fairly indiscriminate way.

Saturn - ability to retain, store and recall knowledge and observations.  AI again, especially as Saturn relates to organisation, systems, regulations, boundaries and structure. However, for humans, Saturn is the keeper of our memory store, based on real experiences we have had. It's the keeper of those memory banks, personal to all of us as individuals, and the guardian of not overstepping the mark and keeping us safe. Saturn might hold us back and make us cautious when challenged to do something new, but  this can be counterbalanced by Jupiter's adventurous spirit and Mercury's grasp of the facts. 

Saturn is important, and combined with Jupiter and Mercury the three planets working together are fundamental to human intelligence and intellect.

One final thought  on looking for indicators of intelligence in the natal chart - the aspect patterns can offer clues as to how and in what areas of life the individual uses their human intelligence. One of these patterns is called the Ear/Eye or Information triangle, which acts as a sensor picking up all manner of unrelated facts and interesting snippets from the environment, very Mercurial and again AI-like. But in astrological psychology, this aspect pattern relies on being connected to other parts of the chart and other planets. We are, after all, real and not computers!

Suggested reading - Aspect Pattern Astrology and Aspect Patterns in Colour,

Communication – how do you do it?

Mercury is the tool planet associated with communication of all kinds and in all forms, but before we even get to words, we are able to communicate in so many varied and diverse ways – we smile, scowl, turn up our noses, grit our teeth, pull funny faces, frown, glower, raise an eyebrow, wink, grimace – and that’s just a few of the many facial expressions we have at our disposal.

Body language speaks in volumes too – hand gestures (from friendly waves to giving the finger), taking an open stance with arms held loosely by the side, or a closed-off defensive or protected stance with arms crossed over the body, legs crossed protectively as we sit, or legs wide open and splayed out (sorry guys, it’s usually men who do this) in a “power” pose.

Arms, hands, fingers can also speak. Watch people being interviewed on TV (politicians are fair game here!). Does what is being said concur with what the limbs are saying? How the head is held? And how the eyes are engaged or not. Are they shifty or focussed on something else? And that’s before we get to voice, tone of voice and use of words.

An interesting view of how we interact with one another is worth a look. Virginia Satir’s Methods of Communication makes a lot of sense. My experience as a facilitator in practical group work in some of the psychosynthesis/self-awareness trainings I’ve been involved in delivering bears this out. We had a lot of fun and learning, taking on each of these roles in turn, so as to experience them, and with a thumbnail situation to role play within, they are:

The Blamer, who shifts the onus as far away from his/herself by throwing blame on others

The Placator, who tries to please & doesn’t want to upset things

The Distractor, who changes the subject as fast as possible

The Computor, who is logical and factual but is also totally unemotional as he or she doles out the dry facts

The Leveller however is where it’s at. Levelling is about being honest, truthful, coming from what is known as your centre in psychoynthesis terms. Even if you’ve never heard of “the (your!) centre” before, you will have a sense of  what it means.

It means to be solid, honest, secure,  true and “right on” in what you’re saying and doing, to be authentic…..if you’re coming from this place, and are levelling (like speaking your own truth and admitting you don’t always know the answers to things), people will respect you and believe you. You will be credible because of your vulnerability and authenticity.

Whatever happened to Lobby Ludd? Some Mercurial musings.

 

Family Group in London, 1950s. Personal archives. Is that Lobby Ludd in the hat?

An inconsequential incident at home has provoked a few Mercurial musings, mainly about how ingrained the symbolism of the planets is in our daily lives and our culture.

The question, "Whatever happened to Lobby Ludd?" arose as my husband was  giving a touch of fresh paint to the area between our kitchen door, which leads to the utility room and also has a door  giving access to the garage. I call it the lobby. He calls it an alcove. Daughter calls it a porch.

Using the word “lobby” had us both remembering a certain character called Lobby Lud, who was around in the late 1950s/early 1960s when we were taken on seaside holidays with our respective parents – me to Clacton-on-Sea, him to Blackpool and Scarborough.

Mercury, the winged messenger

As I remember, Lobby Lud was a mystery man who roamed around the resort, probably wearing a trilby hat and carrying a newspaper. People were encouraged to look out for him, and if they recognised him from his picture in the newspaper, to approach him and say “You are Lobby Lud and I claim my £5”.

The whole thing was a promotional ruse to get people on holiday to buy a daily newspaper. As I recall, it was probably either The Daily Mail, or The News Chronicle who ran this event, and it was done to boost newspaper sales. People often didn’t bother to buy a paper whilst on holiday so this was a way to encourage them to do so, with the potential £5 as the prize. £5 was quite a lot of money in the 1950s. Enter the planet Mercury and some of its manifestations in our world. We speak of mercurial minds, mercurial wit, and the speed at which this planet orbits the Sun in our solar system is relevant here. 

 

Mercury, closest to the Sun, completes its orbit in 88 days as opposed to our 365 days for Earth, with Saturn clocking up 29 years. Mercury, in astrological parlance, symbolises speedy communication of all kinds plus the learning and gathering of facts and sometimes snippets of useful information. English-speaking Newspapers have adopted the qualities of this planet of communication in their names, such as The Daily Mail, The Daily Express, and The Telegraph all have associations of speed and communication. Other regional newspapers attach a Mercurial association to their name by using the word Courier. 

 

Mercury, renowned as a trickster too, is also known as the messenger of the gods. The delivery company Hermes uses this name, which is the Greek version. Hermes was the Greek god of trade, language and travel, amongst other things.

Back to Lobby Ludd carrying his newspaper, and with a nod to Mecury in trickster mode, the whole thing had a quaint, slightly quirky ring to it. I don’t think my dad ever saw Lobby Ludd when we were out and about – or if he did, he tried to get me, but an innocent young child at the time, to go and challege Lobby and ask for the £5. I would never have dared to do this, but I was always on the lookout for a man in a trilby hat, carrying a newspaper when we were walking around in the central promenade area near the pier.

Those were days of innocent holiday family fun alright. In Clacton, as well as Lobby Ludd, there was a concert party on the pier twice daily and live entertainment and shows to go to. Today’s holiday makers are more likely to go to a multi-screen cinema with a bar, and read the news on their smart phones or tablets. And more often than not it’s only the older generation who have a folded, well-thumbed tabloid tucked under one arm. 

The essence Mercury prevails, but now it comes in different, technological forms.