Universal Astrology

By Sam Geppi
Anchoring Condition Principle
COMBUSTION
Combust Planets
In the above diagram all planets are combust.
Planets are combust when they move so close to the Sun, from our Earthly vantage point,
that their rays become consumed or burnt. Each planet has a specific orb of sensitivity to the Suns
light, anytime it falls within that orb, its rays will be combust.
These degrees of combustion are:
Moon: ! degrees
Mars: " degrees
Mercury: # degrees $ ! degrees when retrograde
%upiter: degrees
&enus: ' degrees when direct, ( degrees when retrograde
Saturn: ) degrees
*ombustion is from a group of +avasthas,, which measure a planets temperament. The
Sans-rit word for combustion is +-opa, which literally means +angry,, though . generally consider
+frustrated, to be more appropriate.
The effects of combustion can be illustrated by this e/ample.
.magine a !0liter pot of water on the stove. .f the pot of water is filled close to the top, it will ta-e a
long time for the water to come to a steady boil. The less water in the pot the faster the water will
boil. 1 combust planet is li-e a planet with not a lot of water in the pot. The more severe the
combustion 2the closer to the Sun it is3 the closer it is to boiling, and the more sensitivity will be
surrounding the use of that planet and the easier it is for us to become angry and frustrated with its
use.
The water element is related to stability, peace and contentment. This translates to the
capacity to receive something unpleasant with patience and love. The combust planet has difficulties
in this area, as it is prone to lash out in frustration in an attempt to protect the sensitivity.
Mercury and &enus especially are prone to combustion, as they never move more than
appro/imately #) degrees from the Sun. The increased fre4uency of these +personal planets,
combustion also reveals the nature of combustion to primarily affect our personal relationships.
*NOTE: Mercury and &enus are not considered malefic when combust and retrograde as
they are closest to the Earth at that time and become very powerful.
. have seen combustion as the result of certain life lessons and energies not being validated in our
childhood, many times by the father. 2The Sun3 .n such cases, as a child the father or authority figure
may have been too busy or 5ust emotionally unavailable themselves to validate and honor the needs
of the native relative to the combust planet.
E6: *ombust &enus would show a child who, when wanting to show love, affection and appreciation,
was spurned by a parent too busy, rigid or unconcerned. Their affection and love was not
appreciated and a deep hypersensitivity surrounding love, affection and feeling appreciated was the
result.
7hen assessing combustion, the planets as psychological -ara-as are mainly how the
results are seen $ although half of the time combust planets as house rulers are also denigrated. The
combust planet will try to get their insecurities assuaged relative to the nature of the planets behavior8
meaning Mercury will try through humor, &enus through beauty or affection, Mars through logic or
force. 7hen this does not wor-, 2as it often will not, given their -arma to have these frustrating
e/periences3 they become angry and prone to boiling over.
.n general, gentle planets will first try to hide their frustration through compensatory displays, in an
attempt to get validation. The cruel planets of Saturn and Mars will be assertive and e/pressive,
demanding answers for the frustrations they are feeling.
Moon rules peace and connection $ 9ecause the Moon is the mind itself, special
attention will be paid to the combust Moon as it affects the entire psychology of the native. The native
with a combust Moon has a difficult time feeling peaceful, patient and receptive to what life has to
offer. 1s a result of not feeling protected or properly cared for as a child, there will be the fear of
being receptive, which compels the ever restless mind to try to fill itself with what feels good rather
than be vulnerable to the un-nown. This leaves the native unable to feel peaceful and connected to
life as it simply is. The planets most strongly influencing the Moon by either con5unction or aspect,
will show how the stable ground the native see-s. :et rather than feeling grounded or peaceful
through what this supporting planet has to offer, many times this will serve to actually unground the
native more, as what they are truly see-ing is the capacity to 5ust sit still and accept what is, without
needing to anchor on something e/ternal. ;bserve:
< Mars influence will show reliance on logic, mental concepts or right and wrong and e/ternal activity,
which e/hausts the native physically or psychologically.
< Mercurys influence shows a reliance on learning new s-ills or gathering more information, leading
to emotional stress, neurotic nitpic-ing behavior and an/iety.
< %upiters influence shows a reliance on faith, optimism and philosophy, leading to unrealistic ideas
and trying to rise above things. 2though, all things considered, %upiters influence is the least
troublesome3
< &enuss influence shows a reliance on worldly pleasure, manners and courtesy, leading to sensual
indulgence and a preoccupation with pleasing others and refining worldly matters, all of which
ultimately drain our energy.
< Saturns influence shows a reliance on controlling the feelings and the e/ternal environment by
erecting walls of protection, resulting in fatigue, depression and loneliness.
Mars rules strength$ *ombust Mars feels frustrated due to the perception that they are
not powerful, tough or courageous enough. Mars as a cruel planet will e/press the combustion with
aggression. 7hen scenarios unfold that appear to challenge the strength or power of the native with
combust Mars, they will assert their own strength as a direct challenge. =sually this results in very
touchy and argumentative native who feels threatened by any ideas that do not fall within their
current understood paradigm of how things should or should not be. Mars is a planet of principal,
thus, especially as it relates to ones principles, the combust Mars native may have a +win at all
costs, attitude when the combustion awa-ens, producing a stream of impeccable logic 2in their
mind3 to support their position.
Mercur! rules speech $ *ombust Mercury feels frustrated due to the perception that
they are not understood correctly and that unfairness has resulted. Mercury as a gentle planet and
one of fle/ibility and humor will try to ca5ole and 5o-e their way to a solution first, often times unsure if
the miscommunication > misunderstanding is their fault or not. They may gather information, appearing
to be lighthearted and neutral. ?or instance, they may have a 5ob where there is a goal with an
incentive bonus attached. They meet the goal and the incentive bonus is not given. The combust
Mercury native may approach the boss and will first 5o-e about how +some people actually get
bonuses at wor-,. The boss may 5o-e bac-, not reali@ing what the person is even tal-ing about.
Eventually the native as-s more roundabout 4uestions, rather than directly stating what is troubling
them. Aowever, once these attempts fail, the e/pected anger results. This cycle teaches the native
how to be less sensitive about details, fairness and communication.
"upiter rules #od$s grace and %isdom 0 The *ombust %upiter native feels frustrated
that they do not feel worthy of Bods grace or good enough, wise enough, etc. 0 which results in a
lac- of hope and feeling of purposelessness. 1s a gentle planet %upiter will first try to rise above
these feelings of unworthiness with another philosophy, one less conditioned on some ideal that they
do not feel capable of measuring up to. ;r they may pretend not to care about spirituality, religion or
feeling unwise. 1theism may be shown or there will be displayed a certain humble appreciation for
the philosophy of the common man, yet this is hiding a deeper pain. ;nce confronted by religion or
religious ideals, ethics and values that lead to a righteous path of conduct and choices that shape a
spiritual path, the native will react strongly. .n personal relationships the native may attract partners
who they feel hold values superior to theirs and will li-ely feel 5udged, or pro5ect 5udgement onto these
partners. This native li-ely had a rigid, authoritarian, dogmatic path laid before them as a child, one
with no tolerance for typical human shortcomings or techni4ues to deal with our limitations.
&enus rules appreciation and value $ The native with a combust &enus has a hard
time feeling valued and appreciated. 1s a child, when displaying love and affection, they were
spurned or it was not appreciated in a way they understood. This left the native insecure about
showing affection and maintaining a healthy sense of dignity when loo-ing for affection. &enus as a
planet of beauty and giving may try to give to the beloved in order to feel appreciated themselves,
perhaps by adorning themselves, serving their partner in some way, through se/, or other ways they
perceive will please the other. Many times in this case, no matter what the beloved does, it will not be
enough, as the combust &enus native will li-ely feel disrespected and unappreciated. The result of
this feeling actually brings the dreaded disrespect to them and their partners. They will often times
attract partners who are inattentive or not respectful, ensuring their attempts at appreciation will fail.
'aturn rules hard %or( and responsibilit! $ The native with a combust Saturn has
hard time meeting lifes day to day duties and challenges without feeling put upon or overburdened.
7orldly duties and responsibilities weigh heavily on them. 1s a child they may have had e/cessive
amounts of responsibility placed on them and laborious duties they had to fulfill. Saturn will display
this put upon feeling very clearly with a potentially sour disposition when as-ed to do anything e/tra.
There is the feeling that +. have done enough, as resentments build about even the most basic
duties in personal or professional situations. This often results in a lac- of ambition and an
unwillingness to assume worldly responsibility with grace and humor. 9ut it may also show a very high
commitment level and sense of ambition. 9ut there will usually be a certain bitterness and feeling of
being overwor-ed. Cue to this unwillingness to simply perform their duties with detachment, life
situations often deteriorate to the point where action is re4uired in spite of their protests. This further
reinforces their put upon feeling and gives the opportunity to better manage this area of life.