blog | The home of all things esoteric

Welcome to the 'Nudeman' blog

Nudeman is an anagram of mundane, a word which can be interpreted as dull or, as in this context, 'of this earthly world'. Mundane astrology is the branch of astrology dealing with events that affect everyone as opposed to personal astrology which concerns the life of the individual and their relationships.

The chosen title of this page arises from my love of wordplay and interjecting a little humour into everything I do - the live, love and laugh philosophy.

The image of me in my birthday suit posing as Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer, alludes to my Mayan sign (Chicchan - the serpent) and my love of 13 - Ophiuchus is a 13th constellation straddling the celestial equator. The symbol underneath my feet is the astrological glyph for Ophiuchus which I like to interpret as representing the Universe in motion - a perpetual wave of energy moving through you and I.

Mundane astrology can be dull and lacking interest to many people but it helps demonstrate how earthly events are tied to celestial activity.

In this blog I set out to share with you items, not solely astrology related, which I hope you will enjoy and find of interest.

Any feedback or comments may be sent to nudeman@gelageo.com

My ambition with Gelageo has always been to assist people to become their own astrologer and thus I'm excited to announce that very shortly I will be providing details of a new cOURse, known as the jOURney (fOUR participants per class in the peace and quiet of my studio), taking place over six weeks on a choice of days and culminating at the Spring equinox - the start of the astrological/nature's new year on March 20.

This offering will truly be unique, as will be revealed in the coming week, and if you can't wait for the full announcement then you are invited to register your interest now to avoid disappointment as there will be a total of just twelve places which will be offered on a first come first served basis. (No commitment until deposit/payment is made).

Geoff Dykes, January 13, 2025

A little bird forewarned me..

On Friday last I took a walk in nature under a clear blue sky on snow-covered paths with a heavy frost on the trees - this beautiful robin appeared at the outset and posed for a few photos.

40 minutes later I slipped on the ice and fell flat on my back, banging my head on the road - transiting Mars was squaring my Aries (head) south node.

AI versus Human Wisdom or IA

Monday, January 13, 2025 - prior to the full moon in Cancer and in the Chinese zodiac a water horse day and an 'initiate day'

On Saturday the true lunar node switched from Aries to Pisces marking the start of a new eighteen month cycle as alluded to in the blog entry below. It was also the start of a new Mayan trecena (13 day period) of Kan (the seed) which is about cultivating freedom, fertility and inner peace - one example of an ancient wisdom prevailing in mesoamerican countries today. Today is also represented by the Ace of Spades - the ancient symbol of the secret mysteries and considered the most spiritual in the deck.

I am sharing two articles - one perspective on the meaning of the nodes on the Pisces/Virgo axis and the other, an excellent and thought provoking on the subject of this blog title - AI.

IA - I Am of the personal opinion that whilst AI may indeed bring something to the table it is also presenting a real threat to the livelihoods of many, as is most technology, but more importantly, in the sphere of both words and imagery, it has the capability to distort and manipulate the truth and history - rubbish in, rubbish out has already been observed hence one of many reasons I am about to set off on a jOURney in which I am inviting twelve like-minded souls to join me in delving deep into the wisdoms of our ancestors and then applying the knowledge that resonates in our own lives, which very much ties in with the theme of the nodes. Whilst Aries is associated with the head, eyes, adrenals and blood pressure Pisces relates to our feet and lymphatic system. Since Virgo is the abdomen area perhaps one inference is that we get off our backsides and on to our feet? After all, we are all 'magiciam's'!

2025 - the year many will come alive & thrive or be forced to survive.

(Monday, December 16, 2024 - the 1st day of the Mayan trecena of the knife*(Etznab))

The world we live in today is one filled with greed, corruption, self-interest and mendacity. We are all prisoners to a corporate 'governance' system which is disrespecting the planet yet very few of us are actually aware of the part they are actually playing in this process through their thoughts, level of consciousness and continued consumption of goods, legacy media and social media.

“Bless you prison, bless you for being in my life. For there, lying upon the rotting prison straw, I came to realize that the object of life is not prosperity as we are made to believe, but the maturity of the human soul.” (Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956.)

The astrology for the year ahead is significant and suggests that global events will once again take centre stage forcing many to step outside their own comfort zones. The two remaining trans-generational planets will both change signs as will the nodes of the moon which link back in 18.6 year intervals - revisit events that happened in your life in 2006/7 and 1988/9. However the main catalysts for the upcoming changes will be the conjunction between Uranus (a planet associated with revolution and sudden surprise) and Saturn (challenges/authority) which will be ongoing in 2025 (with a peak separation of 13') and will become exact on February 20, 2026. Alongside this aspect is a trine between Uranus and Pluto (transformation - death & rebirth) which will start applying in September but will be constant from 2026 until 2028.

Whilst Pluto will be at 1 degrees of Aquarius for 11 months of the year Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune will at varying times throughout 2025 all be at 29 degrees of Pisces, Gemini, Taurus and Pisces respectively - this is known as the anaretic degree (highly-loaded) but can also be described as 'the void' between signs as the planet transits to 0 degrees of the following sign. This in turn may be translated as there will be many ups and downs, much uncertainty and events being revisited that have not been properly completed.

How these aspects will affect each individual depends on their own chart and, as the title of this blog suggests, some will truly thrive whilst others may struggle to survive. The key for all is not to fall into the fear trap, as exhibited by the majority in 2020, but instead to listen to your heart and remind yourself that money and material possessions are fleeting distractions from the purpose of life and our fundamental connection with, and reliance on, nature.

The awakening of humanity will become closer to its tipping point as further lies are exposed, truths are revealed and society as a whole will look to being restructured on a more altruistic approach with the focus on local physical communities rather than the dystopian global technology-led web of control.

For the sake of our children and their children we urgently need to address and restore a healthy balance between what we take from the planet and what we give to it. Excessive consumption of natural resources for greed, pollution of our bodies through the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat which are all laced with chemicals (pHARMaceuticals), can only end one way unless it is radically addressed. The illusion of choice is both deceiving and damaging to us all and the perpetrators and their plans/agenda are slowly but surely being exposed.

Will your own soul rise to the call?

An excellent overview of the astrology of 2025 is offered by the wonderful Astro Buttefly

* Fatih Kecelioglu of MyMayanSign.com explains that this thirteen day period is known as the trecena of truth and healing which on a personal level is to stand before the mirror of your soul unclad and unfettered by fear, uncertainty, weakness or falsehood of any kind. Have the courage to look directly into your heart, body and mind, without judgment, opinion, comparison. Face your truth and accept it as yours. There is no journey like the search for personal truth.

THERE'S NO GOING BACK (Wednesday, November 20, 2024)

Pluto has now made it's third and final entry into Aquarius and with it I have tendered my resignation from my part-time paid employment and thus embarked on the final chapter of my own life funding this vocation/mission solely from my state pension thus placing my implicit faith in the astrology governing my own life and that of others.

The big question is whether or not I should do a 'nudeman' vlog? lol

Alfie: What's It All About?

The title of this entry refers to the classic Burt Bacharach and Hal David title song from the movie 'Alfie', starring Michael ("not a lotta people know that") Caine, sung by Cilla Black and also covered by Dionne Warwick and Cher. I've borrowed it to expand on the entry I made two months ago about us being on the precipice of change with Web3 hopefully going to break the duopoly of Meta and Alphabet.

Alfie is an anagram of a life and that's what we're all here to enjoy but it will involve stepping out of our comfort zones and being unwilling to pay the price for convenience. There's a lot of talk about self-sufficiency and off grid living but I feel that we should be looking to restore community values helping each other without the motive of profit.

I have previously linked the work of a fellow astrologer, Caroline Lindon, whose work is published on her Saturn Seminary site with links to articles on substack - if you've not already viewed her writings or subscribed then I recommend, if you do nothing else, that you do so and pay particular attention to her most recent articles and especially the excellent one on Mass Formation Psychosis with a link to a video by the brilliant Unherd interview with Mattias Desmet.

I have made much of Pluto's final entry into Aquarius on November 19 from a tropical zodiac perspective yet I know those who deride astrology will argue that in the sidereal zodiac (that aligned with the actual constellations on the ecliptic) this event does not happen for some time. Computations for the sidereal zodiac have produced numerous 'ayanamsa', a Sanskrit term for the system used to account for the precession of the equinoxes, which give the earliest date as March 20, 2036 and the latest as May 2, 2042.

Finding this huge variance confusing I then discovered that there is a sidereal system which uses the Julian calendar, the forerunner of our modern day Gregorian calendar, and the results for this tie in with the tropical zodiac more closely with a date range of December 6 to January 22 depending which of three calculations is chosen. Thus I have now satisfied myself that by the start of 2025 Pluto will be in Aquarius. Of course this is purely my own perspective.

To learn a little about the month of November I recommend the Astro Butterfly article and the video of master astrologers Steve Judd & Rick Levine being interviewed by Amanda Walsh of the Astrology Hub.

Finally if you want some alternative news/views (uncomfortable truths for many) then I recommend the YT channel of Katie Hopkins, this thought-provoking video by Sofo Archon and a publication that has recently published its 50th edition - have you see the Light yet? You may not agree with nor even like these suggestions nonethless they are but a small sample of perspectives that are fuelling the collective consciousness at this time. People who are all doing something to expose the endemic corruption and counter the lies and propaganda we are fed by the mainstream media and the corporations that control them. A highly recommended read is '180 Degrees: Unlearn the Lies You've Been Taught to Believe' by Fergus O'Connor Greenwood.

Astrology The Disrespected Science

In my diligent effort to increase my knowledge of the esoteric I subscribe to many different sources of information amongst which is the platform academia.edu which hosts an amazing collection of works on the subject of astrology.

Recently my attention was drawn to a paper addressing an issue which I face constantly in my efforts to promote a better understanding of proper astrology in our own lives - the view perpetuated by the media, the church and the education system that astrology is a pseudoscience and has no purpose other than for entertainment/amusement.

I hope that visitors to my studio have been convinced otherwise yet I feel that the complexity of the subject when properly introduced can be overwhelmingly daunting as it does require/merit a level of understanding and commitment to research by the individual which is not always possible nor a priority in the hectic pace of today's world.

I will let you read the paper for yourself by clicking on the title of this blog entry.

TUE03SEP24: New moon in Virgo in the early hours, the start of the Mayan trecena of connection to source and at 0928 UT the sun enters the Human Design gate of confusion (click on images for detailed explanations).

We are truly on the precipice of change and, as many are saying, it is a time to connect to source/nature, our authentic being and recognise that our collective consciousness can restore this world to its true glory. We must question everything we know, have been taught, hear and even see. We must challenge ourselves and those who believe they have a right to rule over us. We must step up to the plate by defying rather than complying. I refer you here to the perspective offered by Caroline Lindon in a recent substack post and to the words of Birgitte Rasine, author of the Jaguar & Serpent book linked to on the Mayan IX image to the right:

"Industrialized society keeps us all at the thin surface of our potential. The communication and messages carried by the media, in the workplace, at home, at social events, almost wherever you go today, continually pull you out to the external world, telling you that you should look a certain way, have a certain status, live a certain type of lifestyle. It keeps you entertained so you don’t think, overfed so you don’t move, scared so you don’t risk. The non stop stream of media and commerce gushing at you from an ever-increasing number of channels and platforms, wants your attention 24x7 . Today, you have to work at it if you want a bit of time and room for silence, for thoughtful reflection and meditation."

The global corporations and their trauma based social engineering are now posing a significant threat to our lives yet still we continue to fuel it - Alphabet (Google's parent) and Meta (Facebook's mask) dominate cyberspace and are using our freely provided data to determine their next move which is likely to see yet more control and censorship prior to further monetisation of all social media channels and restricted access.

Meanwhile, as consumers, our minds are overfed with a daily diet of information/misinformation/disinformation with AI and ChatGPT technology threatening to remove our individual expression, creativity and logical thought processes - a continuation of the dumbing down of society which of course extends to the ridicule of astrology and 'new age' practices whilst those in the know utilise them for their own end. For instance, Ray Merriman is an amazing astrologer employed by those who seek to make vast profits from the financial markets.

In the real world of ordinary folk we are faced with vastly inflated food, interest and energy prices - with the former we have seen the double-edged sword of reduced product quality and quantity thus disguising the true inflationary cost.

We have conspicuous consumption, built in obsolescence, excess production and exploitation of both resources and people with both being viewed as dispensible. Sadly too much faith is placed in governments, the mainstream media and the professions with cognitive dissonance being a major issue keeping the populace disempowered and manipulated.

Whether you accept this as fact or not this planet is experiencing a rise in consciousness and an increasing vibration which is moving us all into a higher dimension of being which will ultimately be for the good of all.

All that has been achieved to date is sufficient for us to know that the dark controllers of this planet have had their day and thus there is nothing for us to do but surrender … Let go! What is happening … is happening! Let it unfold as it is meant to do. Let all the lies and the politics live in their environment and let the Light Love that you are … live in yours.

Whilst I say be open to all possibilites and perspectives I maintain that the overriding energy in life is LOVE and being aware that fear has been used to keep people blind to their true potential and power. Keep away from negative news channels, get out in nature, embrace your fellow man and learn to question absolutely everything.

That we are all connected was demonstrated today by a visitor to the studio involved in a project to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Gustav Holst - known as Holst Spaceship Earth it reminds us that, in the words of Marshall McLuhan "we are not merely passengers on this planet but the actual crew". Holst's seminal work, 'The Planets', was based on astrology rather than astronomy and thus each planet had an association: Mars - the bringer of war, Venus - the bringer of peace, Mercury - the winged messenger, Jupiter - the bringer of jollity, Saturn - the bringer of old age, Uranus - the magician and Neptune - the mystic.

There is a growing sense amongst many people that we are on the verge of major change with many looking for freedom whilst also seeking to be part of community and no where is this better illustrated than in the sun's annual incursion into gate 40 of the i ching (known as deliverance) where it will be for six days from August 28 at 13:59 UT. I will leave you with this interpretation of the channel of community linking the heart and solar plexus in what is known as the Human Design System.

'The Four Turnings' - a prophecy unfolding or rather vindication of astrology

FRI 23AUG: As storm 'Lilian' abates I would like to share with you a recent serendipitous discovery resulting from a link shared by a friend to an article on this subject entitled 'Perspectives & Prerogatives' which led me to reading a book first published in 1997 with the sequel, shown above/left, published just last year.

The basic premise is that life is cyclical, as anyone with interest in the esoteric would know, and that every 80-100 years a new cycle begins and there is plenty of corroborating evidence provided by the authors in their original book which was subsequently substantiated by the global events of the following 26 years. The time period equates to one generation and like an astrology chart and nature itself it is divided into quarters or the seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter.

I recommend you read the article linked in the opening paragraph to appreciate why this blog entry exists for although there is little reference to astrology the fact is that these cycles are closely aligned with the orbit of Uranus, a planet associated with sudden change, unpredictability and rebellion. The solar eclipse in April and the full moon just past are the triggers for the closing of the winter cycle which will be hastened in 2025 by several significant movements - in January the lunar nodes move onto the Pisces/Virgo axis, Neptune and Saturn move into Aries and on July 7 Uranus will leave Taurus and enter Gemini. Beyond all this astral activity the underlying powerhouse is Pluto which on September 1 (UT) will reenter Capricorn for a brief two month stay before returning to Aquarius until 2044 - I choose to liken this brief incursion as 'Custer's last stand' and expect to see the old global power structure making one last attempt to hold on to their control by whatever nefarious means they deem necessary. Twelve hours after making this blog entry, in the early hours of Saturday morning, I turned to my phone to discover a YT video by Steve Judd entitled 'The Great Reset 0.1' which I highly recommend you to watch and share with others as I myself have already done.

The new moon of Sunday, August 4, exact at 10:12 UT (11:12 BST) is at 12 degrees of Leo in tropical astrology - 'so what?' I hear you cry! Not another astrology blog!

I hope that my opening paragraph will convince you to stick with me for I don't intend to go heavy on the astrological jargon albeit there may be the occasional lapse and this first blog entry is going to be relatively short and sweet since the internet connection in the studio is very unreliable especially when there are throngs of visitors in Hebden using their phones. Thus yesterday it was frustrating that I wasn't able to access the sites I rely on to produce some of the reports that I offer. C'est la vie. Everything happens for a reason and fortunately the visitors were understanding and hopefully they enjoyed the interaction as much as I certainly did.

Anyway, last month, amongst the many global events there were two that have been the subject of attention by astrologers - the attempted assassination of Donald Trump and the global IT outage (reputedly caused by Microsoft's aptly named 'Crowdstrike' software) barely a week later, which may prove to be a foretaste of what is to come. Since, time and bandwidth issues (Mercury retrograde tomorrow for four weeks) prevent me from expanding on these personally I have only beeen able to place an hyperlink to one of these thus far from which you will see the reference to Algol, a computer programming language from 1958, but more relevantly a fixed star known as the demon star.

As for the coming month and what it's likely to hold I have decided to invite you to listen to a brilliant astrologer I've known for many years who shares my birthday, Steve Judd, and his sage advice to not get caught up in the hype and spin that is likely to unfold in the coming weeks.

Coincidentally, Steve (active in the Green Gathering from its inception) is also the guy who introduced me to the fascinating subject of crop circles which occur largely in the UK around his neck of the woods, Wiltshire. There were dozens of these amazing structures appearing overnight a decade or so ago since when they have declined in frequency. So far this year there have been just six reported and I invite you to take a look at the images and decide for yourself whether they can be man-made, as the media would have us believe, or if they are messages from the universe.

CLI CK

IMAGE

QUOTE FROM 'THE ESOTERIC ASTROLOGER'

(explaining the image of the lions in my first blog entry earlier.

Leo New Moon 2024
Aug.4, 2024 is the Leo new moon - a seed for the Leo-Aquarius full moon festival in two weeks time. This is a very powerful period that coincides with Sirius becoming brighter in the sky since its heliacal (with the sun) rising from late July to mid-August, depending from which latitude observed.

Some authors refer to this window of time as the “Lion’s Gate” - possibly a “new agey” term that has no known origin to this author, except the Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece.

But it is an apt phrase and there is certainly a gateway of opportunity to invoke the highly refined forces of Sirius. Yet this gate does not “close” on Aug.12, as some assert - the whole month of August is important, particularly the full moon period on Aug.19:

“August, which is ruled by Leo, is the month of the Dog-star, or of Sirius, which thus brings Sirius into close relation to Leo.” (Esoteric Astrology, p.299.)

The new moon conjunction of Sun-Moon falls close to one of the pointer stars - Dubhe, whose influence, “… guides humanity upon the involutionary path, and is constantly active in its influence upon the man who is still upon the Mutable Cross [generically speaking] …”. (Esoteric Astrology, p.299.)

The new moon chart has some powerful planetary placements: Mercury stationary in early Virgo, going retrograde for four weeks (see my July 26 post). Venus in the last degree of Leo conjunct Regulus:

“The influences of Sirius, three in number, are focussed in Regulus … a star of the first magnitude and which is frequently called “the heart of the Lion.” (Esoteric Astrology, p.301.)

This conjunction between Venus and Mercury spanning two signs, is a reminder of the “mystery of the sphinx”. Esoterically the sphinx is regarded as one zodiac sign Leo-Virgo: A body of a lion with the face of the virgin:

“Virgo and Leo together stand for the whole man, for the God-man as well as for spirit-matter … when the nature of the world is revealed, then the mystery of the Sphinx will no longer exist.” (Esoteric Astrology, p.288.)

It so happens that Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, is also the name of my advanced astrology software, the image of it is captured in the logo I designed for my narrowboat and Sirius Joy is a fabulous astrology site run by Christopher Witecki. I am deadly 'sirius' about helping others yet I don't take myself too 'siriusly'!