Twelve, Thirteen

Time is up!  So now I am back and I ask--have you solved the Puzzle? Have you figured it out? Or were the Transformations too hard to find?

This is the analysis you should have made. Notice, first, that after the three first postings (24 August--4 September), a certain pattern was established: there were TWELVE postings (10 September--12 October) with a picture at the top left, all of them signed "BELTRANO." To reinforce the point, the last of these twelve was actually posted on the 12th of October, and its title was "The Twelve Horned Witches." Following that (beginning on the 13th of October), there was a series of THIRTEEN postings (13 October--5 December) with a picture at the top right, and these were posted by OLD HAT. As before, to reinforce the point, the last of the thirteen was Old Hat's elucidation of the Thirteenth Aphorism. All thirteen of these, moreover, were decorated with a Hat (an wizard-hat for those pertaining to the astrological aphorisms; a witch-hat for the miscellaneous postings). And there is one further salient detail, this one of the greatest importance: you will notice that the series of Twelve were all posted at 4:20 PM ("let the reader understand"), while the series of Thirteen were posted at 7:40 AM. What is the significance of these times?

Mary Bliss will no doubt take delight in pointing out that Beltrano is an inveterate p****d; an aspersion on which we will not deign to comment at this time. But even in case that should turn out to be true, it would serve to explain the afternoon time, but not the morning one.

Even though the solution was more than hinted at in our comments on the Eleventh Aphorism, I doubt very much that any of you has succeeded in unraveling this aenigma. I will therefore proceed to explain it: If the clock-face is seen as an idealization of the Zodiac (as previously explained, with the hour-hand representing the Sun and the minute-hand representing the Moon, and the twelve segments of 30º representing the Twelve Signs), then what is the meaning of 4:20? When the time is 4:20, the minute-hand points precisely to Four, while the hour-hand points to a point precisely one-third of the way between Four and Five. The two hands form an angle of exactly 10º, thus precisely defining one of the Decans. Which Decan is this? It is the first third of the Fifth Sign, in other words, the First Decan of Leo, whose name is Craumonis and which is symbolized by a Man riding on a Lion. 

As it happens, there are two, and only two, Decans which are defined in this way by the motions of the two hands. The other one is generated at 7:40, when the minute-hand points to Eight and the hour-hand to a point precisely two-thirds of the way between Seven and Eight. This is the Third Decan of Scorpio, which is called Sentineu and which is symbolized by "a Man bowed downwards upon his knees and a Woman striking him with a staff."

But let us return to the numbers 12 and 13. It can be convincingly demonstrated that these two numbers are fundamental to Astrology. The number 12 is associated with the Sun, while the number 13 has Lunar associations. Beltrano has made a detailed analysis of these matters in a paper entitled "Ut Supra Ita Infra: Self-Similarity in Astrology."

We would also like to draw your attention to the opening chapter of the Zohar, which points to the great importance of the number Thirteen: 

Rabbi Chizkiyah opened the discussion: "It is written, 'As the lily amongst the thorns' (Song of Songs 2:2). What is the lily? It is the community of Israel. Because there is a lily; and there is a lily. Just as the lily among the thorns has in it [both] red and white, so the community of Israel has in it [both] Judgment and Mercy. Just as the lily has thirteen petals, so the community of Israel has in it the thirteen attributes of Mercy, surrounding it on all sides. Thus, from the first mention of Elohim [i.e. Genesis 1:1] there are thirteen words, which surround the community of Israel and guard it. After this, [Elohim] is mentioned another time in the passage [i.e. Genesis 1:2]. Why is [Elohim] mentioned again? In order to bring out the five rigid leaves that surround the lily. And these five are called salvation. And these are five gates. And concerning this secret, it is written, "I will raise the cup of salvation" (Psalm 116:13). This is the cup of benediction. The cup of benediction must rest on five fingers and no more, just as the lily rests on five rigid leaves which are a representation of the five fingers. And this lily is the cup of benediction. From the second Elohim to the third Elohim there are five words. From this point on, the light that was created was concealed and enclosed within the Covenant, which entered the lily and brought forth seed in it. This is called "a tree bearing fruit whose seed is within it" (Gen. 1:11) and this seed is none other than the Covenant. And just as the Covenant is sown by forty-two couplings of that same seed, so the engraved and holy Name is sown by the forty-two letters of the act of creation (Zohar 1.1-3).

Now THAT will surely give you something to chew on!

OTTAVIO BELTRANO, Astrologus