An interview with Dr. Benjamin Dykes about his new translation of a highly influential book on solar returns by the 9th century astrologer Abu Ma’shar.
The title of the book is Persian Nativities IV: On the Revolutions of the Years of Nativities:
https://amzn.to/2KCjXue
Abu Ma’shar (d. 886 CE) was one of the most prolific and influential early Medieval astrologers who wrote in Arabic, living in Baghdad in the middle of the 9th century.
He wrote one of the most famous and comprehensive works on solar returns, titled On the Revolutions of the Years of Nativities.
Portions of this book were translated from Arabic into Latin in the 12th century, which then influenced many subsequent generations of astrologers in the west.
In 2010 Ben translated the Latin version of Abu Ma’shar’s book on solar returns and published it as Persian Nativities III.
Now he has gone back and translated the entirety of the original Arabic text, which not only contains a lot of material that was missing in the Latin version, but the meaning of the text is much richer and more nuanced because the translation is from the original language.
The book was just released today, on August 9, 2019, to coincide with the release of this interview, and you can buy it on Amazon.
During the course of the interview we talk about who Abu Ma’shar was, why he thought that calculating solar return charts was important, and some of the specific things that he recommended looking at when trying to interpret a solar return.
This is episode 218 of The Astrology Podcast, and you can download the audio version on the podcast website:
http://theastrologypodcast.com/2019/08/09/abu-mashar-on-solar-returns-with-benjamin-dykes/
To get early access to new episodes like this one and other bonus content become a patron:
https://www.patreon.com/astrologypodcast
Let us know if you have any questions in the comments section below!
#TheAstrologyPodcast
Timestamps:
00:00:00 Intro
00:02:08 Who was Abu Ma'shar?
00:05:40 Benjamin Dykes' translation background
00:10:36 Historical context of the solar returns book
00:15:49 What is a solar return chart?
00:19:06 How to calculate the solar return chart
00:26:50 Ma'shar's theory of prediction for solar returns
00:34:24 Why we can never fully experience our nativity
00:41:28 Why we need time lords
00:47:05 Abu Ma'shar's background and nativity
00:55:35 Abu Ma'shar on house division issue
01:10:00 Interpretive principles for solar returns
01:20:45 Monthly solar return techniques
01:27:18 Fidaria time lord technique
01:33:04 Longevity and length of life technique
01:42:00 More about Abu Ma'shar
01:45:40 Importance of using time lord techniques
01:47:00 Where to buy Ben's book
01:47:45 Ben's natal course and projects