where fear occurs the most. Courage, especially, makes no sense by itself; courage is
always courage that overcomes fears, and acts in spite of them.
The significance of Phobos and Deimos for astrology is that astrologers have
traditionally associated fears with Saturn (sometimes with Neptune) and cast that
planet in a role that belongs to Mars’s sons. Psychologically, Saturn represents the prin-
ciple of security-seeking, and its polar opposite principle, which manifests in the sign
and house occupied by Saturn, is insecurity—not fear. Although these two emotions
(insecurity and fear) are clearly related, it should also be evident that they are not iden-
tical. With this distinction in mind, psychologically inclined astrologers (and astrologi-
cally inclined psychologists) can more precisely analyze their clients’ anxieties.
This utilization of the Martian moons—delineating fears in terms of the sign
and house position of Mars (the position where Phobos and Deimos will also be
found)—is fairly straightforward. However, Phobos and Deimos are in constant
motion around their parent body, and the constantly changing dynamic of their orbits
introduces variations that merit further research. For example, with respect to the
geocentric (Earth-centered) perspective, it appears that Phobos and Deimos move for-
ward with Mars half the time and in the opposite (retrograde) direction as the other
half. Recent astronomical ephemerides include information from which this alterna-
tion can be calculated. It should thus be possible to research the variation that retro-
grade motion introduces into the astrological influence of the Martian moons.
Also, following the lead of practitioners of heliocentric astrology (the branch of
astrology that casts Sun-centered charts, even for individuals born on Earth), investiga-
tors should be able to cast areocentric (Mars-centered) charts for the positions of Phobos
and Deimos and obtain a more complex delineation of our fears. Perhaps these areocen-
tric positions can even be placed in a geocentric natal chart, as the geo-helio approach
does with heliocentric planets. These are just a few lines of potential research.
Sources:
Lewis, James R. Martian Astrology.Goleta, CA: Jupiter’s Ink, 1992.
McEvers, Joan, ed. Planets: The Astrological Tools.Saint Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications,
1989.
Room, Adrian. Dictionary of Astronomical Names.London: Routledge, 1988.
Wilford, John Nobel. Mars Beckons: The Mysteries, the Challenges, the Expectations of Our Next
Great Adventure in Space.New York: Vintage, 1991.
PHOTOGRAPHICA
Photographica, asteroid 443 (the 443d asteroid to be discovered, on February 17,
1899), is approximately 32 kilometers in diameter and has an orbital period of 3.3
years. The name derives from a new approach to discovering asteroids with a camera.
When prominent in a natal chart, Photographica may indicate interest or skill in pho-
tographic representation as well as in other media of visual representation.
Sources:
Kowal, Charles T. Asteroids: Their Nature and Utilization.Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Ellis
Horwood Limited, 1988.
THEASTROLOGYBOOK [523]
Photographica