Silly Season: About the Void of Course Moon

Silly Season

About the Void of Course Moon

or De evacuatione cursus luna

[Cursus means course by the way, not curse.]

“ . . . when the Moon in transit makes the last major aspect it will make before it changes from one sign of the zodiac to the next. It ends when the Moon enters the next sign. The name of this period is Void of Course Moon. You may call it a silly season or vacation from normal living.”  -- Al H. Morrison

I began my study of the Void of Course Moon in the 1970s with the help of the little annual Void of Course Moon ephemerides prepared by the astrologer Al H. Morrison.  Since then, noting voids is as common to me as tracking the phases of the Moon and the Signs she transits.

The astrology is that the Moon "wanders aimlessly," after making that last aspect; that things just don't seem to connect or click into gear.

For example, on a shopping trip one may buy something that later you ask, “Now what was I thinking? What did I get that for?” I like the image of a child's power boat in a tub of water, bumping here and taking off there, but ultimately not going much of anywhere.

Far from impeding me from action or outings I am delighted with long VOC days. I stick to my shopping list as much as I can, always find a parking place, and sometimes enjoy whatever not-on-the-list oddity that I bring home.

"Every couple of days there comes a time which is best used for subjective, spiritual non-material concerns, like prayer, yoga, play, psychotherapy, or passive experience, sleep or meditation.

"This period may last a few seconds, or it may be three days and nights in a single session.”  [When we have many planets in the early degrees of Sign the likelihood of the Moon spending longer times Void of Course (VOC) increases.]

"It begins when the Moon in transit makes the last major aspect it will make before it changes from one sign of the zodiac to the next. It ends when the Moon enters the next sign. The name of this period is Void of Course Moon. You may call it a silly season or vacation from normal living.

"Decision making in such periods turns out later to be unrealistic. Creativity diverges into unpleasant directions, improvisations, false starts, error. Business moves fail to generate profits, or meet unexpected difficulties. If you buy any object it usually fails of its intended use.

"Human judgment is more fallible than usual during the time the Moon is Void of Course. This is the principle factor in all observed experience thus far.

"Routine proceeds readily, but often requires an adjustment later. Defects or shortages come to light. Delay and frustration are commonly experienced while the Moon is Void of Course.

"Neurotic tendencies, bad habits are more open to change. ESP experiments show odd results.

"Historic events during such periods have a wild, Pandora’s Box impact on cultural evolution. The first two dozen successful spaceshots were all launched with the Moon Void of Course, to open an all-new age in which old concepts and ideas are corrected or disproven.

"In every presidential election from 1900 through 1972 one of the two major party candidates was nominated with the Moon Void of Course. Every one of the candidates nominated with the Moon Void of Course lost.

"Jimmy Carter's 1980 nomination came in a Void of Course Moon."

From Al H. Morrison’s “Void of Course Moon Ephemeris.”

For more on Al see:  http://www.solsticepoint.com/astrologersmemorial/morrison.html

On her website Debbi Kempton-Smith notes that Al Gore’s 2000 nomination and John Kerry’s 2004 nomination both occurred with the Moon VOC.

     http://www.topquarkia.com/Docs/Stargazer/VOID2004and05.HTM

Astrology, the Cosmos, and Life, can all be pretty complex, and this technique of analyzing the flow of time is no exception.  For example, there is another range of astrological aspects that occurs in declination; the parallel and the contraparallel.

The PARALLEL is an aspect made in declination (angular distance North or South of the celestial equator ... like latitude on earth) when two planets share the same degree N or S.  In a CONTRAPARALLEL the aspect is made when one planet is the same degree N declination as another is S.

When we include these aspects (and/or Ptolemaic aspects to the Nodes of the Moon, which horary astrologers may also utilize) the period of VOC may be shortened.

I utilize both.  For my primary analysis I use the aspects in longitude but for fine tuning or detailed electional or horary work, I include the aspects in declination.

The VOC concept applies to the motion of all of the planets.  Robert Zoller notes in his translation of Guido Bonatti’s Liber astronomiae: Tractatus Tertius, Section II, Chapter X (written around 1277, was reputed "the most important astrological work produced in Latin in the 13th century").

“After one planet has been joined to another, and their conjunction has been completed, and after completion has been passed over, so that one of them is separated from the other and, after the separation, is joined to no other planet, it is called void of course until it is joined to another, or seeks its conjunction as was said elsewhere and this is a certain impediment to it.”

Here the only aspect considered is the conjunction but the idea of an “impediment” is clear.

Kaye Shinker writes:  “Early in my study of astrology I was a clerk for our Weight Watchers group. I did a short research project, if someone signed up for the program on a void of course moon would they stick with it or would they drop out. Results 60% stuck with the program.  My conclusion, start the program on a VOC moon. I did not consider the phase of the moon.”

-- Kaye Shinker, Instructor of Financial Astrology, www.astrocollege.org

Since I am writing this on April 27, 2011, with the Moon VOC, it is likely that I’ll revisit it for a tune-up somewhere along the line.  I also notice that “The Royal Wedding” of Prince William and Kate Middleton occurs with the Moon VOC.  Hmmm.  [Prince William & Kate Middleton wedding, Apr 29 2011, 11:00 AM, Westminster,

England]