This is a update, Part II of decan Aries 3. But also we begin on something that was done as an experiment for the Aries 2 decan, but the effects have become noticeable during Aries 3 decan.

So in Aries 2, I had wanted to test out the Three-fold seed spell on some nasturtium plants, which were related to Aries/Sun planetary influences of that decan, as mentioned in the second post for Aries 2. The spell involves reciting an evocation to a plant three times: once at sprouting, once at the true leaf, stage, and once at maturity. In this case I used the evocation of Kore (Persephone) as given there.

The seeds sprouted and one of them got the first recitation in the Aries 2 decan. One seed was chosen to be the recipient of the recitation, and got both the first evocation read at sprout stage in Aries 2 and the second one at true leaf stage. (The third and final one won’t happen until it reaches maturity.)

Now in Aries 3, you can see the four seeds, two in each of the brown peat paper pots above. The one that got the two recitations and was crowned as “Kore/Persephone” has grown twice as large as the three others done as controls! It is the larger one in the pot on the left that was recited to specifically, while touching the plant. Wild! Plants really do like when you talk to them.

So that was fun! Less fun was finishing and sending off taxes for the deadline this decan. But hey, Completion, and now I can pointedly ignore them again for as long as possible.

In the Comments of Part I of the Aries 3/Four of Wands decan, Constance asked if I could expand on the concept of the “man who wishes to do good but cannot” in Part II. This comes from several of the various decan descriptions and significations. While it is not mentioned in the 777 description, various others do. Bruno’s mentions a longing for wealth, but the others mention only “wanting to do good” which seems different. Certainly it is more difficult to do good without resources. But most who have significant resources seem to only become more vapid and greedy, rather than doers of good.

Some of the descriptions mention a gold bracelet, but some don’t mention gold. One says his bracelets are made of wood and he is a blacksmith.

Picatrix:

A restless man, holding in his hands a gold bracelet, wearing red clothing, who wishes to do good, but is not able to do it. Subtlety, subtle mastery, new things, instruments and similar things

Agrippa:

A white man, pale, with reddish hair, and clothed with a red garment, who carrying on the one hand a golden Bracelet, and holding forth a wooden staff, is restless, and like one in wrath, because he cannot perform that good he would. Wit, meekness, joy and beauty.

Bruno:

A man with reddish hair, wearing ruddy clothing; with a bridle in his left hand, wearing a bracelet and carrying a hardwood walking staff in his right hand. Restless and wrathful, his face shows a longing for wealth which he can neither obtain nor hang on to.

Ibn Ezra:

A yellow man whose hair is reddish, and he is irascible and contentious, and in his hand are bracelets of wood and a wand, and his clothes are red, and he is a blacksmith, and he desires to do good but he cannot.

At first I thought the idea of not being able to do something desired may come from the astrological significations, because Venus rules the decan but is in debilitated (detriment) in the sign of Aries. Both Venus and Mars/Aries have to do with desire, and in detriment perhaps Venus, as personification of desire, does not get her way.

There is also that although we think of Aphrodite (Venus) and Ares (Mars/Aries) as consorts and lovers, they were not married. In fact they were rather a case of opposites attract: she as goddess of Love, him as god of War. The sex was good but perhaps that was all!

Aphrodite was married to Hephaestus, against her will, and was unfaithful to him constantly. She didn’t get what she wanted, and neither did Hephaestus. He constantly tried to win her affections, making her beautiful jewelry as he was a very skilled craftsman. But the goddess of love and beauty wanted nothing to do with him. He was rejected by her, and by his own mother, Hera, for being considered unattractive and physically lame, even though clever, inventive, and strong.

Hephaestus is a blacksmith too. I rather think of him as the man in red with the bracelets, who desires to do good, but cannot. Hephaestus was actually considered as one of the “models” for the man in the Telos image. Though I didn’t end up with him on the card, I still think of the figure that way. Hephaestus the master craftsman also fits with “subtlety, mastery, new things, and instruments” as specified in the Picatrix significations.

But Picatrix uses triplicity rulers, in this case Jupiter, so I’m not sure that Venus in detriment is the entirety of why the man cannot do the good he wishes. In the mythology though, Zeus (Jupiter) was the one who gave Aphrodite in marriage to Hephaestus, so hmmmm, food for thought. It may also have something to do with Aries III being a Cadent or dissipating decan of a Cardinal or initiating sign.

You can read a summary of the full mythological tale with all the characters here.

Hephaestus isn’t a listed deity of this decan, but he is there in the Venus/Ares story. As a smith however, he is associated with “force and fire,” much like the Ptolemaic deity listed in 777: Horus.

Speaking of Fire, since this is the last Fire sign decan for a while, in the rest of this decan period I’m hoping to set aside some time to create some talismanic incense experiments. It may take some time to complete, but at least I’ve just given it a start. It seems like a worthy action for this time, since Aries likes fire and burning things, and Venus likes beautiful scents. I may add some of that here at the end of the decan period, but wanted to get this post up during the middle of the Aries 3 decan.

A funny coincidence is that in this decan so far, I read a novel about an affair between a Princess (Venus) and a Gothic warlord in the Roman Empire (Ares/Mars), and read several books in a series about a very tasteful and refined (Venus) dragon soldier (Mars). Yes, that is several books in 5 days. I am a voracious reader and will sacrifice sleep for it.

Brought to you on Mars Day during Venus hour.

Let us know in the comments what you have been up to in Aries III. See you in Taurus season!

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