Liz Greene
University of Wales, Lampeter/University of Bristol

Signs, signatures, and symbols: the languages of heaven

This paper will explore the perception and use of astrological symbols – ‘glyphs’ and stylised images for the planets and zodiacal signs – in contemporary astrological currents as well as in different historical contexts. Can there be such a thing as a ‘symbolic’ astrology, or is all astrology symbolic? And if so, what does this term mean? How does a symbol differ from a sign, a metaphor, a signature, or an allegory? ‘Symbol’ is assigned a variety of connotations in contemporary academic usage, from a linguistic referent to a means of establishing social identity, and these connotations may differ widely from the way astrological symbols have been understood in the past and are understood now by astrological practitioners of various persuasions. The manner in which symbols, at different historical epochs, have been perceived as magical or talismanic – containing or embodying the thing symbolised – will be examined in relation to both the astrological glyphs and the charactêres or ‘eye-writing’ found in astral magic over the centuries.

Liz Greene is an analytical psychologist, a practicing astrologer, and a tutor for the MA in Cultural Astronomy and Astrology at the University of Wales, Lampeter. She is the author of many books on mythological, psychological, and astrological themes.