Astrologia reformata a reformation of the prognostical part of astronomy, vulgarly termed astrology : being an experimental detection and clear demonstration of the hitherto greatly mistaken, and dubiously by Robert Godson.

A Particular Account and Enumeration of the several Sources, Causes and Occa∣sions of the many erroneous Principles, Doctrines and Aphorisms, now in, or falsly father'd upon the Heavenly Science of Prognostical Astronomy.

1. MAny are so foolishly and careles∣ly credulous, as to receive for absolutely true and certain, whatsoever has been deliver'd as such by the more ancient and more famous Authors in this Science, without either receiving from the said Authors, or making for themselves, any Experimentary Proof or Demonstration of its Verity; and this even in the Grounds and first Rudiments hereof: Which also are in some Particulars variously deliver'd, some saying one thing, and some another; as guided by their own bare Fancies, (by them mis-called Reason,) without the least Testi∣mony from any certain or rational Expe∣rience.

2. Having espoused such affirmed Princi∣ples as they fancifully conceit (rather than solidly find and know) to be genuine, they then, upon Supposition (or rather ground∣lesly

confident Conclusion) of their being so, do by the bare Light of their own weak Reason, without taking or seeking any Help from Experience, (were they able to make a right Use of it,) forge such Rules as to them seem suitable to those Principles; and accordingly, because the Ninth House is said to signifie Religion, (which they on∣ly know by Reading or Hear-say,) there∣fore the Lord of the First in the Ninth, or the Lord of the Ninth in the First, must needs denote a holy, gracious Native. And a Thousand more such shallow, and daily thwarted Whimseys.

3. The very Proper Names of the Signs, given them only for Distinction, by such as little understood their Qualities; and mere∣ly because at that time possessed by some Constellations very imperfectly resembling the Things by whose Names they were cal∣led, are by many very ridiculously made a Rule whereby to judge of their signified Na∣tures and Dispositions, and of the Inclina∣tions and Propensions of those Natives, whose personal Significations are placed in them. And therefore, if in Taurus, the Par∣ty must be laborious; if in Leo, fierce and cruel; if in Scorpio, false and treacherous; if in Aquarius, gentle and courteous; and the like of all other Signs, and for the most part quite contrary to what they really are,

as are these Whimseys concerning the Four here mentioned. And the same is done concerning the Planets also, as confidently, as if Adam had been their God-father.

4. This Science is inspected and studied by many; not in any vertuous Inclination to consider the Works of God, and contem∣plate the wonderful Harmony hereby discer∣nible between Fate and Nature, and to be thereby serviceable to their Generation; but merely in hope of reaping Profit to them∣selves by the Practice of it, if they see any likelihood or possibility of so doing: Or through a sneaking Itch of Praise and Ap∣plause; as thinking that if they can but tru∣ly predict Things to come, it will be ac∣counted a glorious Business, and make them be every where gazed at with Admiration. And all whose Studies are influenc'd by such Ends, do generally prove but ignorant Botchers in any Mystical Science whatso∣ever.

5. The most of those who profess this Science, or pretend an Affection thereunto, do busie themselves in so many other Arts and Studies beside, no way pertinent or ne∣cessary hereunto, and only because they are gainful, creditable, or fashionable, that it is not possible for them to be compleat or competent in any, but especially in this, which is, of all others, the most mysterious

and sublime, yet is commonly afforded but the very-least part of their Time and Endea∣vours, though vast and profound enough to employ the whole of both: Concerning which; so much has been already delivered elsewhere, that I need not say much here.

6. Many who make a deeper Search here∣into, than by bare Speculation, and (con∣ceitedly) rational Deduction and Inference; and who spend some Time and Pains in grounding their Knowledge upon their own Experience, by comparing Fates and Acci∣dents with Radical Positions and Directions, do yet too hastily receive, and too credu∣lously stick to estimate Times of Birth, and the given or computed Times of other sig∣nificant Faces of Heaven, received from the Mouths or Hands of others; and such Po∣sitions, and other Sydereal Particulars as they find in these erroneous Copies of Hea∣ven, they take, without further Scruple, or Examination, to be the true Signs of the subsequent Events and Occurrences: Where∣as, did they but privately observe, and care∣fully compute some few Times of that kind themselves, and compare them with the Ac∣counts taken by, or received from others, they would very frequently find a wide Dis∣agreement. And therefore, such as desire to be perfect and exact, ought, from Ob∣servations and Computations of their own,

or other curious Artists, truly and carefully made, by proper and sufficient Means, to frame and discover Rules concerning, at least, some small Plurality of notable Acci∣dents, especially Death and Marriage; and these will greatly help to discover the true Signs of other Events, and the true Times of other less accurate Observations.

7. Another very mis-guiding Course, fol∣low'd by many Experimentators, and a great Oversight committed by them, is, That they rest satisfied with some very few (and oftentimes one alone) of a Native's Accidents; and this they usually assign to the next agreeably good or bad Direction, which, in their Estimate Figure, happens about that time; requiring no more, but that, in a general manner, it resemble (ac∣cording to received Rudiments) the Quali∣ty of the Event, as to Goodness or Badness, without heeding or considering whether, in all other Nativities, it effect that same kind of Accident in particular: Whereby it comes to pass, that we frequently find the same kind of Direction given for Marriage in one Nativity, for Preferment in another, for Legacy in another, for the Birth of a Child in another, &c. never heeding any more, but that the Direction happen (in their gi∣ven Figure) about the same time with the Accident, and be, in general, good or bad,

as that is: Whereas, did they diligently en∣quire and know the whole Series of a Na∣tive's regardable Accidents, and turn their Estimate (if it needed a Change) to such a corrected Face of Heaven, as afforded an Agreement, both in Time and Quality, be∣tween all the several Accidents and Dire∣ctions, it would much more rightly guide them to make a right Assignation, and thence to discover the proper Effects of par∣ticular Directions more truly; the Omission of which Enquiry, and Lack of which Knowledge, is the Cause that many good and bad Accidents are attributed to (accor∣dingly good or bad) Directions, which do not at all signifie them.

8. The Reports and Accounts of the Time and Quality of Actions and Acci∣dents, both publick and private, are some or oftentimes amiss, and may thereby cause an erroneous Notion of the Significations and Effects of a Planetary Direction and Confi∣guration. Wherefore an honest Student ought to be very careful not to be over-hasty in believing Relations or Histories, without some Plurality of Testimonies, or other very assuring Circumstances; nor to make his Experience by any but such as he is, by those Means, very sure of, and beyond the Danger and Possibility of Deception.

9. It must be confessed, that the long Ig∣norance of the true System of the Heavens, and of the Frame and Order of the Plane∣tary Orbs and Motions, and of the true and natural Equation of Time, and of other chief Uranometrical Matters, and the con∣sequent Unexactness and great Imperfection of Planetary Tables, both General and Di∣urnal, has greatly contributed to the ma∣ny Imperfections of this Mantical part of the Science; which being wholly grounded up∣on the other, can, even with the greatest Care and Judgment, be no further perfect than that is so. But we hope that as the for∣mer daily draws nearer to Perfection, by the Sagacity and Industry of many eminent Skillsmen, so will the other also, whose hi∣therto Defects are altogether as excusable, though I cannot say that its Errours are so too.

10. Many false and ignorant Pretenders, through a groundless Conceit of themselves, or a base Ambition to be thought what they are not, or a shirkish Endeavour to flatter some Patron or Favourite, do give us for certain Signs of great Vertue, Wit, Wisdom and Happiness, such Positions and Configu∣rations as happen'd in their own, or their soothed Minion's Nativity, how dissonant soever to both Art, Nature, Reason and Ex∣perience. And therefore, Mercury in the House

of Saturn or Mars, or in Reception or good Ray with either, or in Airy Signs, or he strong in his own Dignities, or the Ascen∣dant or its Lord in either of his Houses, must give a great Wit, and a very ingenious and judicious Person; and a Thousand more such Trifleries, whose Untruth is obvious and notorious, as being frequently found to be utterly false, and serve only to puff up Fools, and incapable Blockheads, as the Na∣tives of such Positions very often are, (espe∣cially Mercury in the Houses, or in Conjun∣ction with the Persons of Saturn or Mars,) with vain and idle Conceits of their Accom∣plishments; and afford them Colour for Jackanapish Brags and Pretences, when they find such Fables deliver'd by Men of Name, and in large, well bound, and neatly gar∣nish'd Volumes, which to many Capacities gives great Credit to the Matter.

11. Others, in Spight and Malice to some particular Person, and to render him hated or contemned, in revenge of some (perhaps deserved) ill Turn, do canker dly propose, as sure Signs of some great Vice, Defect, or future Calamity, such Positions, Radiations, and Directions as happen at the Birth, or in the Geniture of the said maligned Party. Thus an Infortune in ill Aspect to the Ascen∣dant, its Lord, the Sun, or Moon, must in∣fallibly betoken a Villain, or wicked Person.

Mercury cadent, weak, or afflicted; one void of Wit and Judgment: And Millions more of such forged Sotteries; which, when attended with the aforesaid Circumstances, do glibly go down with many for real Truths, to the Abashment of many honest and ingenious Persons, in whose Nativities they are often to be met with.

12. Such as study this Science, do almost wholly and generally confine their Endea∣vours to only some one part of it; which is a grand Reason of their making so slow Ad∣vances therein, and being all their Lives so far short of any competent Perfection: There being many things discoverable in each Par∣ticular Branch thereof, that may be very helpful to a right Understanding of every of the other Branches; and will not so rea∣dily be found, nor fit Opportunities of dis∣covering them be so frequently met with by such as apply themselves to one part alone. And the Part or Branch thus chiefly pursued, is that of Nativities; which, as things com∣monly happen, is of all others the unfittest, in regard that not only the true Moment is usually much mis-given, but oftentimes the Day, and sometimes the Year also: And even when the true Day and Hour of Birth are given, yet by the Over-sight of the Cal∣culator or Publisher, the Places of all or some of the Planets are amiss, by Errour in

Computation, or Mistake of the Day in their Ephemeris. Of all which kinds of Er∣rour I could give full Proof in sundry Nati∣vities now publick, and which pass current for true ones: Whereby Learners and Ex∣perimentators are often greatly puzzl'd and distracted, as finding no Harmony in the several Genitures examin'd about any one Accident or Circumstance, for the finding and framing a Rule concerning it. So that Beginners have need to try a Nativity throughly in all those Respects, before they receive it as a Foundation of Knowledge or Practice.