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Job's suffering is leading him forward in his spiritual evolution. He is asking questions and pondering the meaning of life; and he is doing so apart from his former religious training. Job is on his own, as he seeks answers to his questions that satisfy and enlighten. No longer will Job be stifled and fenced in by traditional religious teachings. He has experienced a rich, full physical plane life. Now, Job is awakening to an expanded awareness of the life within himself. He has progressed onto the Fixed Cross where he will begin the initiatory process leading eventually to the Christed Consciousness of the Cardinal Cross. Soul-centered astrology points the way. Humanity evolves via experiencing repeatedly the lessons involved in each of the twelve zodiac energies.⁹²

Clues to this wisdom, relating to Job's journey and ours, are found embedded in the symbolic words of this narrative. In the first example, Job complains to God, "And if I exalt myself, thou dost hunt me like a lion, and then thou dost turn and show thyself gigantic over me." ⁹³ Job's words describe symbolically the major soul purpose of the Sun Sign Leo. Leo is the energy of royalty; its symbol is the lion. The exaltation of the personality ego is the first step on Leo's path. Once the ego is strong and steady, Leo compels us to look up to the divine parts of ourselves-our Christ Self/Soul and gigantic I AM PRESENCE.⁹⁴ At this point, the Lion of Leo urges us to sit on our inner throne, as opposed to exalting the little self. In other words, we are to become attuned to our own royalty as Sons and Daughters of God, rather than glorifying our physical self as if it is all we are.

Job, "the greatest of all the men of the East," ⁹⁵ is being hunted by the gigantic Lion of his I AM PRESENCE. His ego is being transformed through his suffering. Instead of sitting on the physical throne of an Edomite Sheik, Job sits on an ashes heap. The crucifixion of the Leo ego-self tends to be dramatic and extremely distressing. Trauma grabs the attention of what can otherwise be very fixed personality level energy. As a result, Job is increasingly conscious of and moving toward attunement to the inner throne of his I AM PRESENCE. We are to do the same.

Our own astrological natal chart is instructive. The journey to our interior throne will take place largely within the areas of life signified by the house cusp ruled by Leo. It is within the activities of this house what we must develop a strong ego or sense of self.⁹⁶ Go to Appendix # 4, read the introductory remarks, then determine the section that relates to you.

A second illustration of astrological hidden wisdom may be found in the words of Eliphaz (representing our material consciousness), as he accuses Job of being the wicked man who "magnifies himself all his days.. Because he has deceived himself with his wealth, and he places Pleiades above Aldebaran." ⁹⁷ The words "magnifies himself all his days" remind us of Leo's egocentric pursuit of an external throne. The energy of Taurus (one of the twelve zodiac signs) explains Eliphaz's accusation of wickedness. The less advanced expression of Taurean energy is that of fixating upon material possessions. At this level, Taurus' value system is askew. However, the soul-centered goal of Taurus is illumination. In order to achieve illumination, Job must release his former concentration upon exalting self and acquiring material possessions. He must focus, instead, upon lifting his desire nature to the level of aspiring to enlightenment. This hidden wisdom is revealed through the zodiac sign of Taurus. Within this constellation are two significant star groups: the Pleiades and the Hyades.⁹⁸

The Pleiades are made up of seven sister stars; the Hyades contain five sister stars.⁹⁹ Most of the brightest stars in the Pleiades are blue, indicating their youth in astronomical terms.¹⁰⁰ The ancient Egyptians were familiar with the spiritual power of the Pleiades to attract abundance. To them, "the power of the Pleiades to bring spring rains was an outward, mundane sign of their spiritual power."¹⁰¹ The Pleiades, with their seven young sisters, adorn the night sky with their sparkling bluish hue. They signify Job's former ability to attract material abundance and beauty into his life.

Among the Hyades sisters, Aldebaran is the most brilliant.¹⁰² Aldebaran is an advanced star, with a luminosity 350 times that of our Sun. The ancient Arabic name for Aldebaran translates "the follower." Aldebaran appears to follow the Pleiades journey in the night sky. Within the constellation of Taurus, Aldebaran is considered the Eye of the Bull.¹⁰³ Taurus' symbol is the bull. The ancient Hebrews viewed Aldebaran as God's Eye.¹⁰⁴ Metaphysicians know the Eye of the Bull is mirrored in our 3^rd eye chakra. It is our spiritual eye, or 3^rd eye chakra, that is illumined when we successfully pass the 3^rd initiation-the Transfiguration.¹⁰⁵ Thus, Eliphaz is accusing Job of demonstrating a distorted value system. With a focus on attracting abundance into his life (indicated by his pursuit of the Pleiades), Job is ignoring Aldebaran, or the process of spiritual illumination.

Jesus connects our spiritual eye, or 3^rd eye chakra, to a major soul purpose of Taurus: "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures buried in the ground.. But lay up for yourselves a treasure in heaven.. For where your treasure is, there also is your heart. The eye is the lamp of the body; if therefore your eye be bright, your whole body is also lighted."¹⁰⁶ In Taurus, we are to re-direct our vision from the material plane and its glamours to the spiritual eye (signified by Aldebaran, the Eye of the Bull), whereby we may be filled with the blinding light of God. Eliphaz accuses Job of placing the lesser light of the Pleiades above Aldebaran, the greatest light in the constellation of Taurus. In other words, Job's value system awaits transformation. Likewise, we may need to evaluate and prioritize our value system, so that it reflects spiritual aspirations.

The natal chart house cusp ruled by Taurus reveals the area of life in which we are to seek illumination and to transform our value system from accumulating treasures on earth to laying up treasures in heaven.¹⁰⁷ At this point, you might like to go to Appendix # 3, read the introductory remarks, determine the house cusp in your natal chart that is ruled by Taurus, and see in which area of life your value system lessons take place.

A third occurrence of astrological hidden wisdom is found in Job's answer to Eliphaz, "I was at ease, but [God] has smitten me .and set me up for his target. His arrows are round about me, he shoots at my kidneys and does not spare; he pours out my gall on the ground." ¹⁰⁸ Here, our God of Love is depicted as a horrific mutilator. This depiction sends a sure signal to the reader: "This passage contains hidden wisdom. Look beneath the surface." Job is describing his indwelling God's activation-in his life-of the major soul purpose of the zodiac sign Sagittarius. Typically, the Sagittarian individual enjoys the first half of a particular incarnation. Ruled by the benefic planet Jupiter, Sagittarius often experiences no pressing need to question life or to search for his own Truth. Though usually interested in philosophy and/or religion, Sagittarius can be content with the traditional religious teachings. "I was at ease, but [God] has smitten me." Job had enjoyed his life up to the time of his encounter with Saturn. Now, however, he feels that he is being attacked by God. Around mid-life, Sagittarius is jarred by his soul's desire to awaken spiritually. The former contentment with life inexplicably disappears. This transition is often marked by the appearance of physical illness or a painful condition. "His arrows are round about me, he shoots at my kidneys and does not spare; he pours out my gall on the ground."

The soul-centered symbol for Sagittarius is an arrow in a bow, signifying the One-Pointed Disciple.¹⁰⁹ The arrow symbolizes the shaft of light flowing from the I AM PRESENCE into the mind of one who is awakening to the soul's presence. Job's mental picture of himself surrounded by the arrows of God, confirms his approach to the Light of his I AM PRESENCE. Job is awakening to his higher Self. Once we embark on our intentional spiritual journey into the Light, we must grow in a wholistic manner: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. We cannot take negative emotions and thoughts into the higher realms of consciousness. It is for this reason that Saturn becomes active in our lives. When we say, "God, I want to awaken," we are agreeing to Saturn's purification process-essential for a safe and glorious journey into the realms of Spirit. It is on the Fixed Cross that Saturn leads us through the purification process and first two initiations.

Jupiter, the planetary ruler of Sagittarius, also rules the kidneys, liver, and the elimination system. ". he shoots at my kidneys . he pours out my gall on the ground." The purification process denotes the elimination of all toxins within our physical, emotional, and mental bodies. The arrows of light, from Job's I AM PRESENCE, are shooting into his conscious awareness, piercing the pockets of toxins within his energy field, and expelling them to the ground. Gall symbolizes the bitterness of spirit that Job exhibited when first struck by the arrows of God. The entrance of arrows of light into Job's auric field produced the suffering that is a part of his elimination process. Job is growing into a One-Pointed Disciple with his vision (or arrow) aimed toward the heavens of his I AM PRESENCE.

At some point in time, the light arrows of our I AM PRESENCE will stimulate the elimination of toxins within our auric field. We can avoid much suffering by making a conscious choice to transmute these toxins and to strive intentionally to awaken to our true identities as Sons & Daughters of God. Job suffered because he was sleepwalking.

The natal chart house cusp ruled by Sagittarius will indicate the area of life in which we are likely to experience the suffering that leads to discipleship.¹¹⁰ You might like to turn to Appendix # 5 . read the introductory remarks . determine the house cusp in your natal chart that is ruled by Sagittarius and read the information provided.

Within the astrological symbolism of these few verses in Job, we learn some of the requirements for achieving enlightenment. Moving through this process is not easy. There are many periods when we feel like Job. "My spirit is weary, my days are extinct; the grave is ready for me. For there is no falsehood in me, and yet my spirit dwells in their bitterness." ¹¹¹ We sincerely strive to live out our highest potential. We do our best to love God with all of our heart, mind, and soul; however, life appears stacked against us. We swim against the stream of our society's customs and beliefs; we feel alone and hopeless; we grow weary and feel that our efforts are counting for nothing. Friends and family cannot understand. They attempt to be helpful, but we feel their concern and bewilderment. We know within ourselves that there is no falsehood; yet, we appear within our physical plane lives to have it all wrong. It seems to others that we have gone off on a tangent that is leading us downhill. Explanations are impossible because we do not know where the tunnel-in which we are undergoing the dark night of our soul-is leading us. We don't know whether we are heading for the grave or for the Light at the end of the tunnel. We walk in the darkness that signifies our approach to the Light of our indwelling God.

We can empathize with Job as he speaks to his friends. "God . has fenced up my ways so that I cannot pass, and he has set darkness in my paths. He has stripped me of my glory and taken the crown from my head [another reference to the Leo soul purpose]. My kinsfolk have failed me, and my familiar friends have forsaken me. I have become a stranger to my wife, and have implored the children of my own body.. Have pity upon me.. Why do you also persecute me like God?" ¹¹²

Suddenly, through the darkness, an arrow pierces Job's consciousness and Truth flows from his Soul. "For I know that my Saviour lives, and at the end he will reveal himself upon the earth; although devouring worms have covered my skin and my flesh, yet, if my eyes shall see God, then my heart also will see the light." ¹¹³ Job is awakening to his inner Leonian throne. Job's affirmation, "He will reveal himself upon the earth," signifies Job's growing capacity to allow his earth plane life to be permeated with the light of God. He is learning to bring spirit into matter. "If my eyes shall see God, then my heart also will see the light." Leo rules the heart. Gradually, Job is comprehending that as he beholds the light of his I AM PRESENCE, he will sit within this light on his inner heart throne.

But Zophar (the one who chirps tidbits of Truth) is sure he knows more than Job. "Therefore my discipline has caused me to discern .I will make you hear the instruction of my discipline .this I know from of old, since man was created upon the earth, that the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless but for a moment." ¹¹⁴ Job's friends do not budge. He cannot convince them that he is truly the righteous man they have known for years. This inability of family and friends to understand the spiritual growth process creates a means for us to learn self-discipline.

First, when we perceive new facets of Truth and strive to integrate that Truth into our lifestyles, we are shaky in our efforts. One minute, we understand and appear to be succeeding with the integration of Truth; the next, a single statement by a friend or family member can send us catapulting downhill. And then, we wonder if the perceived Truth is true at all. We ask ourselves, "Are we imagining that we have seized upon a facet of Truth?" It requires self-discipline to believe in our intuitive guidance enough to stand and trudge back up the hill to our newfound Truth.

Second, the explanations of life offered by traditional religious beliefs, and to which family and friends may continue to conform, become so irrelevant that we must push onward in our search for Truth. It requires self-discipline to continue the search in the face of rejection by others. The comfortable thing to do is to sit back and not rock the boat. But developing the mind that was in Jesus the Christ is not about settling for the status quo. It takes self-discipline to go against the tide, to disrupt the status quo. That is why the Leo soul purpose is essential. We must have a strong sense of ego-self in order to stand apart within the crowd. Otherwise, we simply lose ourselves within the flood of others' resistance to our newfound Truth. One powerful stimulus for the courage to persist on our individual journey is knowledge of divine will for our lives. With this in mind, I encourage you to study the astrological indicators within your natal chart. Information to assist you in doing so may be found in the Appendixes.

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"Astrology became in ancient Israelite minds the Divine Science, that body of knowledge which informed man of God's will and of His intentions for man. Thus, man was given the opportunity to respond to this knowledge of God's will by correcting his own life in accordance with Divine Will. Thus, Astrology became the science of balance; the balance between God and His universe of created matter, and God and His created partner, humanity." ¹¹⁵

92 See Appendix #1 for a summary of each of the Sun signs as they relate to soul growth.  Additional information may be found on this web site by clicking on Sun Signs in the left column on the Home Page. 

93 Job 10:16.

94 Each of us are actually spirit beings temporarily incarnated in a physical body.  Thus, our entire being consists of:  the lower personality self or ego, the Christ or Higher Self, and the I AM PRESENCE that is God indwelling us or our spark of divinity.  You may see this illustrated in the Divine Self Chart . click on Divine Self in the left hand column on this web site's Home Page.

95 Job 1:3.

96 See Appendix #4 for explanations of Leo on each natal chart house cusp.

97 Job 15:20, 27.

98 "Taurus (astronomy),"  Microsoft @ Encarta @ Online Encyclopedia 2001   http://encarta.msn.com  1997-2001 Microsoft.

99 http://www.pantheon.org/articles/pleiades.html

100 http://www.macalester.edu/astronomy/courses/Phys20/VS/Pleiades.html

101 Kathleen Burt, Archetypes of the Zodiac  (St. Paul, Minnesota:  Llewellyn Publications, 1994) 51.

102 Helen P. Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine, Vol. II (London:  The Theosophical Publishing Company, 1888) 785.

103 http://www.astro.uniuc.edu/~kaler/sow/aldebaran.html

104 http://www.winshop.com.au/annew/Aldebaran.html

105 Bailey  383-384.

106 Matthew 6:19-22.

107 See Appendix #3 for explanations of Taurus on each natal chart house cusp.

108 Job 16:12-13.

109 Oken  216.

110 See Appendix #5 for explanations of Sagittarius on each natal chart house cusp.

111 Job 17:1-2.

112 Job 19:8-9, 14, 17, 21, 22.

113 Job 19:25-27.

114 Job 20:2-5.

115 Rabbi Joel C. Dobin, To Rule Both Day and Night:  Astrology in the Bible, Midrash, and Talmud  (New York:  Inner Traditions International, 1977) 27.