Seeing Aenon

Alan Leo writes up this optometrist in his magazine way back over 100 hundred years ago,,, noting the preponderance of  Aries, Taurus and Gemini planets highlighting the head and throat area of person.  Of course, Mr Leo used the Placidus format  for all his charts; I have taken the liberty to update that format to a more modern Koch format, and you see that those preponderances all gather around the tenth house.   Obviously, Leo’s optometrist, whether his own personal physician or a friend is unknown, was a gifted physician.

First off,  for the nameless opto, I am calling him Aenon, Hebrew for “his eye”and pronounced EE-non. I think this is more respectful   than the impersonal “Opto”, while  also making him memorable and tangible as an  individual.

The good doctor’s ascendant is 04 Leo 48, which is also tied to the first house in the Koch format.  Sepharial, an associate of Leo’s that the esteemed astrologer himself often used, gives the symbol of “a snake coiled around a tree, its head raised ready to strike.”  Sometimes, those symbols, any symbol really, while picturesque, are perplexing, so it is best to read the short definition below to understand it and the catch phrase becomes a shorthand to the more complete definition.

                         His  Subtlety

This degree Sepharial states  ¹ From The Aries Press, Chicago, Illinois,  copyrighted in 1943 but herein referencing the 1972 edition of the “Degree of the Zodiac Symbolized, pg. 76, that was published in  a small yellow book.   denotes

“a person of scientific powers and learning  capable of carrying out the most elaborate researches with patience and intelligence.  There is within the mind a certain degree of cupidity and cunning, which when wisely directed, can be of great use to his fellowman.  But there is also though a keen sense of rivalry and competition; a love of personal advantage and one-upmanship,  he will use subtly not easily discernible to his fellow.  Because, in spite, however, there will be a moderate success in life.  Above all, it is a degree of Subtlety.”

The ponds of reflection

Dr. Aenon has nothing in the first house, but his second house starts with Regulus at its cusp, suggesting some amount of financial success  in his chosen career.  In the fourth and tenth houses, Scorpio and the corresponding Taurus are intercepted.    While the eye-man  has nothing in Scorpio, and upon reflection Dr. Aenon has little in water overall:  just Uranus  19 Cancer 05 in the twelfth, suggesting work in a modern field, and with the North Node right next to it,  repeating the idea  he would be fortunate in the field.

Unfortunately, Uranus in the twelfth, like  in the chart of Reverend Martin Luther King, signifies confinement, working in small spaces, under restraints and difficult situations.  In both cases, this was not problematic for either man, and in Dr. Aenon’s case, as Uranus is  opposite the Moon in the sixth house suggests instead of being detain he would hold an official position there — like holding a prominent position  in an asylum, hospital, prison, work-house.  This aspect would include even  his working in  faraway places from home, remembering  that in his lifetime the 300 mile round trip from Cardiff to London, ² This link, to a blog, documents Welsh travel and tourism through the 18th to 19th centuries.

                                                                            Neptune reshapes

Neptune, recently discovered just 20 years previous to his Dr. Aenon’s birth, is  closest to the Midheaven noting accuracy, while Mars part of the preponderance in the tenth house of aspirations and dreams at 12 Taurus 42 highlights his surgical mastery. This could mean, according to the College of Optometry’s site, that Aenon was on the forefront (remembering that Uranus) of opthamalogical science, which was just starting at the turn of the twentieth century.  It was a major break in the history of optical treatment, as they were the forerunners of what is now LASIK eye surgery to treat cataracts or just free people from the bother of spectacles by physically reshaping the cornea.

                                                          JONES LINES

1.              The Line of Vitality — aspect between the two luminaries and suggests how a person deal with what gives the most interest i.e. what is vital to their being.  For Aenon, this aspect is sesquiquadrate,  suggesting he enjoyed high-pressure situations where his skill and ability were tested.
2.             The Line of Efficiency  — aspect between Venus and Mars and tells us how they approach their daily life.  For Aenon this aspect is a semi-sextile, an associative aspect.  Most likely Dr. Aenon met his wife through his work.  Perhaps she was a nurse that worked under him.Overall Aenon associated with people who could help him succeed.
3.            The Line of Personality  — aspect between the old guard of Jupiter and Saturn and shows how a persona presents himself to his milieu.  Here we find a triseptile aspect; a rather rare aspect, and suggests that he was charming.  People found him witty and engaging.
4.        The Line of Culture  — aspect between Uranus and Neptune and shows how well the person adapts to modern technology.
   1. 1. 1. Square, which is also his closest square, that Dr. Jones called one’s Dynamic Aptitude because it is how a person reacts to the internal/external stimulation he receives in life and his reaction to it.
         2. Being an inharmonious aspect, it suggests that Dr. Aenon was very touchy about his work, he did not take criticism lightly and often flew off the handle when questioned.  This made him a rather impervious high-strung person, and why he sought a position, where he was in solely in control with rather autonomous authority.
         3. While his quest for optical scientific inquiry may have been noble, and he was daring in his approach, inquisitive and insightful in his field, his bad flighty temper gave him an off-putting reputation.
         4. But then most surgeons, inventors and opera divas  are not sought for the bedside manner and charming disposition but their expertise.

Footnotes:

• 1
  From The Aries Press, Chicago, Illinois,  copyrighted in 1943 but herein referencing the 1972 edition of the “Degree of the Zodiac Symbolized, pg. 76, that was published in  a small yellow book.
• 2
  This link, to a blog, documents Welsh travel and tourism through the 18th to 19th centuries.