Mars is dignified by domicile in Scorpio this month from 9 December and will remain in that sign until the 19th of January next year. It is a good time to do all those martial things you’ve been putting off like crushing your enemies, seeing them driven before you and hearing the lamentation of their women.
Of course, if you are not a Cimmerian barbarian, or you are simply short of worthy enemies to vanquish, you may want to use the time to create a Mars talisman for strength, courage, protection and general Martian goodness.
Seek from Mars what is consistent with his nature, such as petitions against soldiers, officials, fighters, and those who busy themselves with warlike acts; and on behalf of friends of kings, and those who destroy homes and citizens, and do evil to humanity, killers, executioners, those who work with fire or in places such as stables, litigators, sheperds, thieves, companions on the road, liars, traitors, and the like. Similar, ask him concerning infirmities of the body from the groin downwards, and also for phlebotomy, accumulation of gas, and the like. – Picatrix II.7, transl .John Michael Greer & Christopher Warnock
Generally Mars can be petitioned to either ensure success when you engage in warlike acts or to defend yourself against the aggression of others. It can also be used, according to the Picatrix, to stop blood flow from a part of the body, but in that case, it is probably better to visit a hospital than it is to wait for a suitable election.
Mars is known as the lesser malefic, and even when he is well behaved in his sign, his influence does not sit well with everyone. It is well worth checking if Mars is afflicted in your nativity and consider whether you have a good handle on your own aggressive impulses. If you are naturally choleric and fly of the handle easily – or if you have serious anger issues stemming from watching your whole village being slaughtered before your eyes by snake cultists when you were a child – you may well want to practice some caution if you start carrying around a Mars talisman.
William Lilly says of a native with Mars debilitated in his horoscope: “he is Pratler without modesty or honesty, a lover of Slaughter and Quarrels, Murder, Theevery, a promoter of Sedition, Frayes and Commotions; and Highway-Theef, as wavering as the Wind, a Traytor, of turbulent Spirit, Perjurer, Obscene, Rash, Inhumane, neither fearing God or caring for man, Unthankful, Trecherous, Oppressors, Ravenous, Cheater, Furious, Violent.” While that may represent a worst case scenario, none of these are qualities that you should want magnified.
If you find yourself subject to bouts of sudden anger or a desire to become a highway thief soon after working with Mars, you may wish to take some cooling baths containing some herbs associated with Venus as She is the natural remedy of afflictions arising from Mars.
Examples of Talismans
Agrippa in his 3 Books of Occult Philosophy (Book 2, Chapter 22) describes a particular form of Mars talisman that involves scribing an iron plate with the magical square associated with Mars as well as its divine names, Angel and Inteligence:
“The third table belongs to Mars, which is made of a square of four containing twenty five numbers, and of these in every side and Diameter five, which make sixty five, and the sum of all is 325. And there are over it Divine names with an Intelligence to good, with a spirit to bad, and out of it is drawn the Character of Mars, and of his spirits. These with Mars being fortunate, being engraven on an Iron plate, or sword, makes a man potent in war, and judgements, and petitions, and terrible to his enemies, and victorious against them..”
The second book of the Picatrix gives us a Mars election that would be particularly suited for the first election we provide below:
“In the hour of Mars, mars rising in the first face of scorpio, make an image for strengthening timidity and humbling the anger of a king and to turn aside robbers, wolves, wild beasts and all evil doers.” Picatrix II.7
The image is left up to us, but the images described in the Picatrix for Mars generally involve a man bearing a sword in his right hand and a severed head in his left, either standing or riding a lion. For materials,the Picatrix suggests iron or red copper or carnelian.
The elections
As always these are set for London, UK.
11 December 2017, 3:38am
The Moon is dignified by triplicity. She has just separated from a square to Saturn (by 18 minutes) and applies by sextile to Venus. It is Mars hour. Mars is rising in Scorpio, is dignified also by term and face, and makes an applying sextile to the Sun.
12 December 2017, 8:34am
The Moon is peregrine and applies by sextile to the Sun and Mercury. It is Mars hour. Mars is culminating in Scorpio and makes no applying aspects.
The moon is waning which is not necessarily a bad thing when you want to weaken potential enemies.