The 9th House of an astrological chart is traditionally the area of the chart that identifies an individual's psychic receptivity OR how well they receive information from other planes. The sign that occupies the cusp as well as planets and asteroids inherit within defines how psychic impressions are received and processed. It is like having a personal version of the Three Fates at one's disposal.

EDGAR CAYCE - "THE PROPHET"

Edgar Cayce (1877-1945) is known as America's most renowned seer. Cayce had a high sense of spiritual purpose and his mystical visions carried information about the total human condition - mind, body and spirit that have not been surpassed by anyone else since his life and times. He not only exhibited profound insight regarding the Path of the Soul but also served the masses as a medical clairvoyant. A humble man, he never sought compensation or recognition for his healing skill. Nearly 14,000 of his psychic readings and "prescriptions" have been documented.

Cayce was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky the son of devout parents who read to him from the Bible every night. He was the top pupil in his Sunday School class who could easily quote Bible passages from memory.

Considered a "poor Speller" in school, Cayce worked out a formula to help himself after he discovered that if he slept on his spelling textbook he could spell perfectly when he awoke. During those early years Cayce aspired to become a minister but always felt something was missing from the information he sought. His life is said to have changed when one day during prayerful meditation he requested the ability to help his fellow man. During that particular incident he was visited by an angelic who told him, "Thy prayers are heard. You have your wish... Help the sick, the afflicted."

The ability to clairvoyantly prescribe first occurred during a personal medical crisis. Cayce was forced to quit school in the 8th grade so he could help support his family which by then had grown to include three younger sisters. At that time he worked several jobs... as a farmer, bookstore clerk, and amateur photographer. Without warning during this period Cayce mysteriously lost his voice and his condition apparently resisted medical diagnosis. With no other alternative he allowed himself to be hypnotized in an effort to get to the root of the problem. During the hypnosis he fell into a trance describing the particulars of his condition and then went further to prescribe a treatment. The remedy worked and Cayce regained his voice. The success of this feat caused physicians from far and wide to consult him whenever they were presented with a baffling case. Each time Cayce would allow himself to be hypnotized the information from the ensuing trance would provide valuable remedies. He became known as the "Sleeping Prophet." Cayce was mystified by his own abilities and never had any recollection of what he said during a trance session. He gave medical and metaphysical readings upon request and the profoundly complex and insightful information provided by this modest man continues to inspire thousands to this day.

Edgar Cayce believed he would reincarnate in 2158 AD in Nebraska where he, as a young boy, would catch the attention of scientists who would observe him and question him in order to prove validity of his claims that he once lived as Edgar Cayce. This would lead them to rediscover many records of his work that would be collected and studied once again.
 

Edgar Cayce's chart shows the sign of Gemini on the 9th House Cusp. The sign of Cancer intercepts this house and acts as the co-ruler of the energy. There are no planetary bodies "in-house" but the house ruler Mercury is in the 5th House in Pisces conjunct Venus, Saturn and the North Node and sextile Mars in Capricorn in the 3rd House. The co-ruler the Moon is in the 7th house in Taurus conjunct Pluto and widely conjunct Neptune, sextile Venus in Pisces in the 6th House, trine Mars in Capricorn in the 3rd House and square Uranus in Leo in the 10th House.

The Gemini rulership of the 9th House accounts for Cayce lack of waking recollection of the information he received since sensory input tends to be "diffuse and scattered requiring a sorting out before they can be redirected for logical purpose." For Cayce, the trade-off would be that the information would not be available in the waking state but was capable of coming through in a transcendental trance state. The ruler Mercury is well aspected. The conjunction to the North Node and Venus and the sextile to Mars in the 3rd in particular indicate that he would be a metaphysical spokesperson in this lifetime and receive recognition for it while the conjunction to Saturn indicates that he would be an intellectual leader with amazing "scientific" and in this case medical foresight.

The co-ruler Cancer ties him to both the Divine, the Collective and to Karma. In his metaphysical readings Cayce often spoke about the ramifications of Karma. Individuals with a Cancer signature on the 9th are often capable of looking beyond the veil of time like their Capricorn polarity. This accounts for Cayce's prediction of next incarnation in the year 2158 AD. The ruling planet, the Moon in conjunction with Pluto and Neptune in an angular house shows extreme psychic ability and openness to the superphysical realms as well as deep insight into matter of life and death. The sextile to Venus in the 5th House shows an intelligent social awareness which makes it easier to communicate with others. This "rapport" always made itself evident during trance sessions between Cayce and his secretary who recorded the information during the sessions. The square to Uranus is one of the indicators of sudden ill health during Cayce's life. It is also a trigger of mental stimulation and strong insight regarding futuristic trends. Interestingly, the Sun in Pisces in the 5th House (representing Cayce's ego identity) is square the 9th House Cusp (at Anaretic or Karmic Degree) tying his "essence" to his psychic receptivity which would undergo a number of bumps and hurdles throughout his lifetime with regards to his channeling abilities and the "Sleeping Prophet" role he was to fulfill.

All quotes for this Astro-Historical review of Edgar Cayce from No Soul Left Behind.

JOAN GRANT - THE VISIONARY

Joan Grant (1907-1989) is widely known and respected for her work involving reincarnation and the use of past life recall to identify and heal residual energies causing current life phobias and emotional disabilities. Joan was a prolific writer having produced many books based upon her own past lifetimes including the 1937 best selling Winged pharaoh as well as several children's books.

Joan's referred to her psychic gift as "far memory" which was originally taught to her in an Egyptian lifetime as a pharaoh's daughter who spent ten years in a temple being trained to recall the past. Joan's ancient gift allowed her to recall in great detail centuries of her own past lifetimes and eventually she drew a correlation between some of her past life traumas with her own current life phobias. She further perfected the far memory technique by ‘shifting the level of consciousness' between sleeping and waking so she could dictate her impressions allowing them to be put into writing. Joan recognized that once a past life trauma could be recalled and understood current life phobias and/or emotional disabilities could be healed. Enhancing this ability was Joan's extensive psychiatric training while working with a psychiatrist during the war years.

All of this extraordinary past life training and current life experience would become invaluable when Joan met and married her third husband Dr. Denys Kelsey. Kelsey was a psychiatrist who had begun using hypnosis as a healing tool. He believed that the use of hypnosis combined with Joan's knowledge of reincarnation and ability to resonate with the past lives of others (sometimes with aid of Psychometry) would be invaluable in curing those who suffered from trauma induced fears and phobias because once the original source was identified, the "reason" could be integrated by the current life personality and then diffused. Working as a team they were able to help many people with this unique version of psychotherapy. Here's an example...

One of Dr. Kelsey's patients was a young man suffering from severe anxiety. The anxiety had escalated to the point where the young man was suicidal. One day, Joan decided to delve into the young man's past lifetimes on her own and when Dr. Kelsey returned home later that day he was confronted by a very distressed, pain riddled Joan who was in the midst of past life recall on behalf of the young man. When questioned she told Kelsey -

" I can feel the blood clots in the tooth sockets ... It was bad enough during the first two days, after he pulled out all her teeth, but then the taste got worse and worse, not only dead blood but pus. Then the fever started ... and she died on the fourth day."

Upon examination Joan revealed that the "woman" in that past lifetime had beautiful teeth that had been pulled out with nail pincers by her jealous husband. That "woman" was the young man in a past incarnation.

Everything began to fit together when Dr. Kelsey remembered that in an earlier session with the young man, he revealed that his anxiety started after an incident in a bar when someone threatened him saying, "I'm going to kick your teeth in!" When the young man was told about Joan's experience and findings on his behalf he accepted the past life explanation with no problem. His anxiety disappeared and did not recur.

Joan Grant's "far memory" work used in humanitarian capacity to help others is an absolute example of metaphysics at it's best!

Joan's chart shows the sign of Aquarius on the 9th House Cusp with no planetary or asteroid signature "in house." The role of Aquarius on this cusp is to "externalize consciousness" which is exactly what Joan did by using her finely tuned abilities to tap into past lives in order to aid others in overcoming present life phobias based in residual energies from past life trauma and drama. In true Aquarian fashion, Joan was a very human counselor who used extraordinary means.

Usually, the Aquarian signature indicates sensory information that comes in a series of psychic flashes but Joan's process of reception could be likened more to watching a scene in a movie. The involvement of the 9th House ruler Uranus is key in understanding Joan's finely tuned abilities. In this case, the 9th House receiving "antennae" is finely tuned by a configuration known as a T-Square consisting of the 9th House ruler Uranus (occupying Capricorn) in the 7th House opposed Neptune (occupying Cancer) in the 1st House and both square the Moon (occupying Aries) in the 11th House. The Uranus/Neptune opposition occurs in angular houses which is a very strong combination signature for intuitive/psychic sensitivity. It also indicates a "direct line" to the Astral Plane where collective information is stored. The individual is a type of "remote viewer" who can tap into the Akashic and experience or view "playback" of different periods of time. It is also important to note that the planet Mars is conjunct Uranus and also opposed Neptune. These combined energies further show an uncanny ability to decipher psychosomatic ailments or other mysterious and hard to diagnose mental or physical ailments. This made it easier for Joan to access the "root" causes of a currently held debilitating problems.

In a T-Square the "opposing energies" are filtered through the apex planet which in this case is the goal seeking and pioneering 11th House Arien Moon. The apex planet indicates how the energies involved will manifest. The Lunar/Uranian contact shows a strong desire to throw over the conditions of "the past" thus creating a "clean slate" for the future. The Lunar/Neptunian contact expresses powerful mediumistic tendencies buoyed by astral influences from different etheric planes and spaces in time. These energies combined not only show Joan's capacity to tap into her own past lives but also into the lives of others with the goal of "cleaning the slate" or manifesting a cure for current issues.

Not surprisingly, the South Node which represents past lifetimes is in Capricorn in the 8th House. This is a very mystical combination which is known in esoteric circles as the "Gate Out" or the "Capricorn Gate of Death." It signifies the soul's exit from the Earth Plane and subsequent "life review" before moving on. This life review consists not only of the what was learned and experienced in the recent lifetime but of all past lifetimes. Joan's South Node is in an out-of-sign conjunction with the 9th House Cusp. This is very significant with regards to Joan's psychic /sensory visions concerning reincarnation. A conjunction represents combined energies so basically this aspect made it easy for her to receive psychic impressions via the 9th House that filtered in from the nether regions as the veil of death was lifted via the 8th House Capricornian South Node and the information was made available. The 9th House Cusp itself is an Anaretic or Karmic degree indicating "master level" with regards to all 9th House propositions. This not only includes Joan's soul desire to "publish" writings (a 9th House venue) in the current lifetime but also her soul willingness in choosing this particular lifetime to speak her "truth" about her gift of recall since her soul essence had reached cumulative mastery regarding her abilities.

For FULL information about the fascinating life of Joan Grant please visit her official website www.JoanGrant.net.

All quotes for this Astro-Historical review of Joan Grant from Mysteries of Mind, Space and Time Vol. 11.

DR. MARC E. JONES -THE SYMBOLOGIST

The late, great Marc Edmund Jones (1888-1980)is widely remembered and accepted as the Dean of American Astrology. He remains one of the foremost reformers and pioneers in the field of astrology who made great strides in de-mystifying the science by correcting many of the misnomers connected to it. His work was dedicated to finding competent rather than superficial answers to the problems of life. He did not believe that an astrological chart carried "pre-destiny" but rather reflected human tendencies that could be understood and corrected by the proper use of astrology.

Jones was a high school drop out who ventured into the "business" world at an early age. This included experience with railroad yards, a machine shop and a stint at the Western Electric Company. He managed to finish his formal education years later earning a Ph.D. in philosophy from Columbia University and as a philosopher par excellence authored Occult Philosophy a major metaphysical work. A highly spiritual and creative Soul, he served as a Presbyterian minister and as a screen writer at the dawn of the movie industry. He was instrumental in founding the Photoplay Authors League which would eventually become known as the Screen Writer's Guild of America. As an astrology master and teacher, he believed in a comprehensive yet varied approach to astrology and his works and techniques are invaluable to today's contemporary astrologers and students.

The art and science of Symbology is found in the traditional 9th House of an astrological chart so it is fitting that the creation of the Sabian Symbols be addressed here. The Sabian Symbols, original to Marc Jones, are channeled symbols for each degree of the Zodiac. Each symbol carries a psychic description, a short vignette, a psychological delineation, and a keyword. Jones was not the first astrologer to accomplish the feat of psychically channeled astro symbols. He was inspired to create a new set after studying the work of Charubel, an English seer whose real name was John Thomas. Charubel had psychically channeled his own set of astrological degrees which he used in the rectification process of horoscopes. Jones contemplated getting permission from Charubel to recast the overall descriptions of the symbols which he felt did not suit his more psychological purposes but quickly decided this was not the best route to follow. He decided to experiment and with the help of experienced psychic Zoe Wells obtained symbolic degrees for a deck of regular playing cards. During this experiment, Wells apparently tapped into information that was pre-Mesopotamian and at the end of the session, "...an ancient seal was described by Miss Wells, as a mode of certification for what had been put down." This impacted Jones but because of his own admitted scientific skepticism he disavowed the information. He also felt that the channeled interpretation was too general and not specific enough for his needs so he let the experiment slide. Unfortunately, there were no records made of the session and later attempts to retrieve the information were unsuccessful.

In 1923, Jones met Elise Wheeler who became one of his students. There is very little known about Elsie Wheeler. She was severely crippled with arthritis and was confined to a wheel chair. Due to her incapacitation, she was limited in worldly experience and for the most part, frightened of anything psychic but Jones recognized and appreciated her inner spark and accepted her as a student. Elsie was a natural medium and she learned a great deal from Jones. In a short time, her mediumistic talents grew enough to the point where she was able to support herself. She often complained to Jones that she wanted to do something more meaningful. When Jones decided to run the experiment again he asked Elise Wheeler to assist him. His feeling was that Elsie would have a fresher perspective because of her lesser degree of experience. So the experiment began...

The first concern was finding a place that would be environmentally proper for Elsie. She would be channeling symbols for the entire 360 degrees of the zodiac while tapping into information from what Jones referred to as "one of the (ancient spirit) Brothers who had the age-old saturation in the true Memphite (earlier Egyptian) schematism from which the zodiac was originally derived." The experiment needed to be conducted in privacy and without distraction or interruption. Jones selected a section of Balboa Park in San Diego, California where there was little traffic and where the two could sit in a parked car without attracting attention. So, on an unrecorded date in 1925, Marc Jones picked Elsie Wheeler up in his car and drove them both to Balboa Park to begin the laborious task that would bear the fruits known as the Sabian Symbols.

Jones had prepared 360 plain index cards each bearing one of the astrological degrees upon which he would record the images that Elsie reported. Allowing for possible interruptions, he broke the session into quarters. The cards were shuffled continuously during the sessions and were placed face down so neither of them knew which degree was being channeled. Jones believed that shuffling "maintained the immediate synchronization with the source material." As Elsie described each image, Jones would write the description down as quickly as he could with, "critical rejection and selection at each point of progress." After the experiment was completed, Jones felt that one of the symbols was incorrect and he asked Elsie to channel it again. Since Jones was relying on cooperation from the ancient spirit "Brother" he asked Elsie if the Brother was there and if so, why he hadn't corrected the error. Elsie responded that the Brother was there, "standing with his arms folded." Concerning the error, she retorted that the Brother said ... "that is up to you," indicating that it was up to Jones to correct the error! (Nice to know that humor has no Universal bounds!)

Since Jones was still in a more scientific frame of mind at that time, he put the cards away in a trunk until he was able to structurally correlate them. After he worked out a mathematical structure for them, he expanded each original description with an accompanying vignette and keyword. He then turned them into an astrological lesson series called Symbolic Astrology. His ongoing dissatisfaction with the project lead to further changes until the official version of his work currently known as the Sabian Symbols in Astrology was published in 1953. The use of the word Sabian came about by accident according to Jones. It was a term that was used casually by his students while they were studying the Babylonian cultures. The students preferred to refer to these cultures as Sabian rather than Chaldean due to the unpleasant connotation connected to the term Chaldean at that time. Dr. Jones left the planet on March 5, 1980. He was 91 years young.

The Sabian symbols are used extensively by today's astrological community but use of them is not restricted to this group. According to Jones, "There are unlimited ways in which these Sabian symbols can be interpreted and the practiced student or professional astrologer need not confine himself to any one mode of approach ... however, the Sabian symbols are a fact and they may be examined and employed by anyone who wishes. They have entered the realm of common reality and become subject to the universal logic of man's mind." The symbols often add psychological depth to an astrological exoteric delineation and are used in various ways in esoteric techniques. Some astrologers believe that the degree and Sabian Symbol of one's Ascendant holds special importance that is connected to past and future lifetimes.

When one is exposed to the Sabian Symbols for the first time it is an experience that can be likened to Walt Disney meets Carl Jung. Elsie Wheeler's seemingly naïve one line impressions are backed by the powerful philosophy and psychology of Marc Jones. Consider the Sabian symbol for 21 degrees Pisces, A little white lamb, a child and a Chinese servant (can't get much more Disney than that!). The keyword for this degree is TALENT and by vignette, Jones describes this as, "a symbol of the scattered divisions of labor through which any over-all reality is encountered by man in his everyday or more haphazard existence, and of the necessity that he brings the threads of his diffusion into a skein of meaning and opportunity." Psychologically, Jones goes on to say that man, "... must learn that nothing acts alone or persists in a vacuum, and that in consequence there is an integrating significance throughout his own experience. He must find this and draw it to a single focus in some special design of expression." Simply put, this degree signifies that cohesive use of one's talents leads to ‘Self' discovery which contributes to ‘Self' expansion. Conversely, choosing to remain clueless equates with refusal to grow in Spirit which contributes to an aimless state of life. So, what would an astrologer do with this information? Generally speaking, an astrologer would apply the Sabian information to a planet or point of the same degree and sign. It should be noted that just like everything else in astrology, the symbols work in polarity, yin/yang, positive/negative. For example, a person with Venus well aspected in Pisces could be capable of great artistry. At 21 degrees colored by the Sabian symbol, the individual would be able to draw on the Higher realms as artistic resources, bring the information into reality and create productively (integration). Poorly aspected Venus under these conditions could be ‘Self' indulgent and ‘Self" centered and with Sabian coloring, lacking in objective perception of reality resulting in diffused talent (vacuum). 

The chart of Dr. Marc Edmund Jones has the sign of Cancer on the 9th House. Cancer on the 9th House Cusp always indicates identification with the Collective and the need to give something back to the Collective generation. The Moon (its ruler), Saturn, North Node, asteroid Ceres and planetoid Chiron are "in-house." The Moon and Saturn conjunction is trine Mars in the 2nd House in Sagittarius and sextile Uranus in Libra in the 12th House. This indicates an open mind to the Collective (sextile to Uranus), strong intuition buoyed by psychic flashes (sextile to Uranus), discipline (Moon conjunct Saturn), "collective consciousness caring" (Ceres conjunct North Node) and metaphysical mastery (Chiron square Sun in 11th in Libra and trine the Ascendant in Scorpio). The Ascendant also trines the 9th House Cusp lending to his projection of a great philosopher.

Out of curiosity, let's look at the Sabian Symbol for the 9th House cuspal degree for this chart (note that symbols are always rounded up to the next degree) and see how it applies. The Sabian Symbol of the 9th House (8˚Cancer) is "Rabbits dressed in clothes on parade." The keyword is appropriation. The meaning according to Jones, "...an upward reach of consciousness towards spirit, or the necessity that in all worth-while experience that events in some fashion make their continual and stimulating contribution to whatever values the self may be building into its own nature."

Jones personal expansion of consciousness led him to conduct the Sabian Symbol experiment ("... an upward reach of consciousness towards spirit...")where he commandeered meanings for each degree of the Zodiac with the help of Elsie Wheeler. The entire experience of allocating the symbols was tied not only to his sense of self worth but also to his sense of the "truth" (... in all worth-while experience events in some fashion make their continual and stimulating contribution to whatever values the self may be building into its own nature"). He was able to further validate astrology via the blend of the arcane channelings with his own brand of visionary psychology and philosophy.

The chart of Psychic Elsie Wheeler has the sign of Capricorn on the 9th House cusp indicating one who can peer through the veil of time evidenced by Elsie's communication with "an ancient brother." 

There are no planets "in-house" but the ruler of the 9th House, Saturn is posited in the 3rd House conjunct Mars both in the sign of Leo squared by Jupiter in Scorpio in the 6th House showing her physical disability as well as her capacity for enduring strength in the face of great difficulty AND a whole hearted involvement in chosen cause. A sextile from Mars to Pluto in Gemini in the angular 1st house and a sextile from Saturn to Neptune in Gemini at Anaretic or Karmic degree in the 1st House helped to make Elsie a psychic conduit whenever she wanted to tap in. The 4th House Sun in Virgo trines the 9th House Cusp tying her ego identity to the service of humanity, metaphysics and philosophy.

The Sabian Symbol on the cusp of the 9th House, 17˚Capricorn is "A girl surreptitiously bathing in the nude." The keyword is immersion. The meaning according to Jones, "... the human body as a temple of spirit, or as the archetype representing total potentiality in a personal experience. Here is successful resort to self sacrifice or psychological renunciation in order to achieve a new dimension of conscious reality." This Sabian Symbol reflects Elsie desire to do achieve something "meaningful" in the realm of "human" service by allowing herself to psychically tap or willingly "immerse" herself into the psychic plane to glean each symbol during the experiment.

All quotes for this astro-historical review of Dr. Marc Edmund Jones from The Sabian Symbols in Astrology.