Theos-Talk Archives (January 2001 Message tt00000)

Following are the dates of the solstices, equinoxes, perihelion, and
aphelion for the next few years. Upcoming is the Sun's perihelion
on Jan 4th at 09:00 AM Universal Time. (In California, Pacific Standard
Time would make it at 5:00 PM.

These dates are from the "Earth's Seasons" web page of the U.S.
Naval Observatory:

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/data/docs/EarthSeasons.html

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2001 2001
Perihelion Jan 4 09 Equinoxes Mar 20 13 31 Sept 22 23 05
Aphelion July 4 14 Solstices June 21 07 38 Dec 21 19 22

2002 2002
Perihelion Jan 2 14 Equinoxes Mar 20 19 16 Sept 23 04 56
Aphelion July 6 04 Solstices June 21 13 24 Dec 22 01 15

2003 2003
Perihelion Jan 4 05 Equinoxes Mar 21 01 00 Sept 23 10 47
Aphelion July 4 06 Solstices June 21 19 10 Dec 22 07 04

2004 2004
Perihelion Jan 4 18 Equinoxes Mar 20 06 49 Sept 22 16 30
Aphelion July 5 11 Solstices June 21 00 57 Dec 21 12 42

2005 2005
Perihelion Jan 2 01 Equinoxes Mar 20 12 34 Sept 22 22 23
Aphelion July 5 05 Solstices June 21 06 46 Dec 21 18 35

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At the Perihelion, the Earth is at its closest point in the year to
the Sun. (The farthest point away from the Sun is the Aphelion.)

Since outer physical events are symbolic of things on the inner
planes, especially outer events of astronomical nature, we might
assume that the equinoxes and solstices, and the perihelion/aphelion
cycles have special significance.

The solstices and equinoxes come from the obliquity of the
ecliptic. They come from the fact that the earth, in spinning on
its axis, is not exactly at right angles to the plane of its
orbit around the sun. The plane representing the earth's revolution
about its axis is the celestial equator, a projection outwards of
the earth's equator. The plane representing the earth's orbit of
the sun is the ecliptic. They match in springtime at the Vernal
Equinox. They are farthest apart (with the Sun most northward of
the earth's equator) at the Summer Solstice. They are again matched
in the autumn, at the Autumnal Equinox. And they are again farthest
apart (with the Sun most southward of the earth's equator) at the
Winter Solstice. The solstices and equinoxes, then, represent the
points of change in the difference between the earth's independent
view of the universe (it's revolution) and the earth's dependent
relationship with its parent sun (it's orbit of the sun).

The perihelion and aphelion cycle are on a different cycle, and
it is only at the present that the perihelion happens to be about
two weeks after the Winter Solstice. Thousands of years later,
it will happen at a different time of the year. We can't, therefore,
assume that anything of a mystical nature involved in the
perihelion is specifically tied to the Winter Solstice. Right
now, it's about two weeks or half a lunar month later, but it
wasn't always so, and won't remain so into the distant future.

If we want to understand the special significance of the
perihelion/aphelion cycle, we have to consider what it might
symbolize, using the astronomical key, our intuition, and any
stray references in the theosophical and other mystery tradition
literature. I suspect, since the perihelion is the closest
point to the sun, and the aphelion the farthest, that with
the former there is communion with beings of earth and inner
life forces of the sun, and with the latter there is communion
with beings outside our solar scheme, with the aphelion being
the time of easiest escape of the solar influence. This are
only, of course, some initial, stray thoughts on the matter.

What do others think?

-- Eldon