Archetypes and the Planets

In this episode we explore ancient Babylonian star lore as a synchronistic “heavenly writing” that links sky and earth through meaning rather than physical causation, drawing on the work of scholars like Francesca Rochberg and Gavin White’s book Babylonian Star-lore. These works allow us to connect Babylonian ideas about constellations, portals of the dead, and ancestral sky myths with Jung’s notion of synchronicity, Marie-Louise von Franz’s insights into number and myth, and Rick Tarnas’s view of the living cosmos. The conversation ranges through cultural astronomy (including Bernadette Brady’s work), the misdating and later dismissal of the Corpus Hermeticum, and historical episodes such as George Smith’s discovery of the Babylonian flood tablets in Ashurbanipal’s library, which emerged alongside Darwin, Nietzsche, Marx, and Freud in a period that shook religious certainties. We also discuss how indigenous and Babylonian sky stories encode seasonal tasks and ritual responses to planetary configurations, Along the way, we return repeatedly to the need for a living, metaphorical relationship with the cosmos, arguing that when astrology is treated as a qualitative language of time rather than a failed “science,” it restores a sense of dialogue with an ensouled universe.

In this episode, we trace how the Romantic era still shapes inner life and culture, moving from Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley to Frankenstein and Guillermo del Toro’s new film to ask what they reveal about technology, AI, and the rejected “other.” We follow the radical lives and charts of Wollstonecraft and Shelley, reading Frankenstein as a warning from a mechanistic worldview that exiles feeling, relationship, and the feminine. Along the way we track Saturn–Neptune cycles and Pluto in Aquarius from the French Revolution and the steam engine to today’s AI moment, draw on Liz Greene’s view of artists as Saturn–Neptune mediators of the imaginal, and weave in works that speak to this moment including del Toro’s Frankenstein, and Rosalía’s orchestral track Berghain. We consider whether we may again be at a threshold when any new renaissance of consciousness will hinge on bringing feeling, imagination, and the feminine principle back into both psyche and culture.

Books and other material mentioned in the episode:

Andrea Wulf, “Magnificent Rebels: The First Romantics and the Invention of the Self” 

Charlotte Gordon, “Romantic Outlaws: The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley” 

Thomas Elsner, “A Flash of Golden Fire: The Birth, Death, and Rebirth of the Modern Soul in Coleridge’s ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’”

Liz Greene, “Neptune and the Quest for Redemption”

Neil Howe, “The Fourth Turning Is Here: What the Seasons of History Tell Us about How and When This Crisis Will End” 

Film and television

Simon Schama, “The Romantics and Us” (BBC series on Romantic art, politics, and the modern self):

Music

Podcasts and online resources

In this episode of Archetypes and the Planets, we follow Hermes’ trail through history to rethink what Uranus in Gemini (c. 2025–2033) might signal. Instead of focusing on geopolitics, we track Mercurial patterns: dialogue, translation, dispersal of knowledge, trickster authorship, and sudden cross-pollination between disciplines.

Stops on the journey include Plato’s formative years amid the Peloponnesian aftermath; Pythagorean/Egyptian influences; the Renaissance return of Plato via Cosimo de’ Medici, Marsilio Ficino, and the Corpus Hermeticum; the printing press and the Council of Florence (a Gemini-style East/West bridge); Paracelsus’ iconoclastic blend of alchemy, medicine, and folk knowledge; Rosicrucian pamphlets and networked secrecy; Shakespeare’s alchemical imagination (with a nod to The Winter’s Tale). The hour culminates with Isaac Casaubon’s linguistic redating of the Corpus (1614) and a reflection on our present: AI, translation at scale, cybersecurity, and the perennial need to converse with a living cosmos (à la Richard Tarnas). Part 2 will pick up with Jung’s late works and the 19th–20th-century occult revivals.

Richard Tarnas — Cosmos and Psyche: Intimations of a New World View

Thomas Moore — The Planets Within: The Astrological Psychology of Marsilio Ficino

Thomas Moore — The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life

Frances Yates — Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition

“Three Initiates” — The Kybalion

C. G. Jung — Psychology and Alchemy

C. G. Jung — Answer to Job

C. G. Jung — Mysterium Coniunctionis

Priscilla Costello — Shakespeare and the Stars

Corpus Hermeticum (classical Hermetic texts; frequently published in book form)

NOTE: Some spaces are still available in Jenny's course on family dynamics! Here is the info:

Here is the link: https://caeli.institute/event/three-deep/

This six-week Zoom lab for those with a basic grasp of astrological synthesis explores the compelling presence of ancestors’ lives in the natal chart. We will survey ancient and modern techniques for identifying uncanny patterns within family lines. Chart your genogram, work in cozy breakout sessions, and consider rituals and remediations for working with genealogical sludge. Limited to 16 students.

In this episode, we explore James Hillman's book The Soul's Code, focusing on Hillman's "acorn theory," which posits that individuals are born with the full potential for their unique gifts—much like an acorn contains the pattern of an oak tree. We contrast this with compensatory psychological theories and argue that Hillman offers a more empowering perspective on adversity. The conversation also touches on astrological concepts as metaphors for understanding fate, destiny, and the human psyche, examining how Hillman's work challenges traditional empirical psychology by emphasizing meaning and purpose over causality. Finally, we look at Hillman's chart to see how it aligns with his revolutionary ideas.

Information about Jenny's course at the CAELI Institute:

Here is the link: https://caeli.institute/event/three-deep/

This six-week Zoom lab for those with a basic grasp of astrological synthesis explores the compelling presence of ancestors’ lives in the natal chart. We will survey ancient and modern techniques for identifying uncanny patterns within family lines. Chart your genogram, work in cozy breakout sessions, and consider rituals and remediations for working with genealogical sludge. Limited to 16 students.

In this episode we explore how writers—those mythic figures of our cultural psyche—embody astrological archetypes. From the enigma of Shakespeare’s authorship to the Neptunian dreamscapes of García Márquez, we ask: what patterns recur in the charts of those whose words reshape worlds?

Jenny dives deep into the Shakespeare authorship debate through the lens of astrology, comparing the birth charts of Shakespeare and the fascinating Amelia Bassano—court insider, musician, and possible contributor to the plays. Together, we reflect on Neptune’s veil, Mercury’s signature, and the literary imagination as a mirror of the collective unconscious.

Béa brings her own obsessions to the table: the magical realism of Gabriel García Márquez, the witty social commentary of Jane Austen, and the radical linguistic experiments of James Joyce. What do their charts reveal? And how do these planetary patterns resonate with the creative forces that shaped their genius?

🪐 Writers discussed: Shakespeare, Amelia Bassano, Gabriel García Márquez, Jane Austen, James Joyce

In this episode, we explore how eclipse placements and Scorpio themes in the British Royal Family’s charts reveal patterns of duty, sacrifice and buried tensions. We then turn to Tim and Jeff Buckley, tracing recurring astrological signatures of grief and abandonment back to their Irish immigrant roots and the trauma of the Potato Famine. By mapping family charts together, we uncover how generational wounds and strengths continue to shape personal destinies.

Do you ever wonder how your family’s past might quietly shape your destiny? In this episode we delve into ancestral patterns hidden in astrology charts. From repeating family dramas to generational secrets and trauma, we explore how becoming aware of these unseen influences can empower you to rewrite your story. Tune in to discover how your ancestors' stories live on--and how you can consciously change the narrative.

The books mentioned in the podcast episode are:

In this episode, Béa and Jenny consider the definition of “psychological astrology” and revisit a classic by Dr. Liz Greene, “Barriers and Boundaries: The Horoscope and the Defenses of the Personality.” What does each sign or planet fear most, and what are its defenses against these primal fears? How are such defenses adaptive, even creative, and when do they cross the line into pathology or self destruction? 

We contrast 20th century psychological astrology with current trends in traditional astrology. Have efforts to recover Hellenistic, Islamicate, and Babylonian astrology in recent decades emphasized technique while often downplaying the voluminous psychological material implicit in traditional delineations? How do fate and remediation show up in each approach? 

We look at the vibrant archetypal astrology movement inspired by Stan Grof which often employs holotropic/psychedelic depth work to “enter” and work directly with the deepest fears in the chart. Lastly, we consider the current Zeitgeist and how fears and defenses can play out on the national and global level.

In this episode, Jenny and Béa discuss dreamwork—how to get started, what to do if dream recall is challenging, and the catalytic role of dream groups in enriching our engagement with the unconscious. We look at vivid dream symbols that are rooted in powerful natal astrological placements as well as world transits. Finally, Jenny chats with John Temple, a dedicated student of Jung and creator of the Temenos dream app, which uses a sophisticated “workbook” format and AI to amplify dream symbols in unexpected ways. Join us for a far-ranging conversation that examines John’s personal journey with dreams, the psyche’s reaction to “contact” with AI, and a dream of Jenny’s that grapples with the arrival of this new technology in the realm of the unconscious. 

Books mentioned:

Jeremy Taylor, The Wisdom of Your Dreams

Jeremy Taylor, Dream Work: Techniques for Discovering the Creative Power in Dreams

Robert A. Johnson, Inner Work

In our latest episode, we explore the life and work of one of Carl Jung’s greatest students and collaborators, Marie-Louise von Franz. We examine von Franz's considerable contributions to Jungian psychology, particularly in the areas of alchemy, fairy tales, and dream interpretation. We analyze von Franz's birth chart and look at her synastry with Jung. Additionally, we take a brief look at von Franz's collaboration with Wolfgang Pauli—a relationship we will explore in depth in a future episode.

We recommend several resources for further exploration of Von Franz's work: