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The asteroids, many thousands of star-like celestial bodies traveling in orbits between Mars and Jupiter, began to be discovered by astronomers at the beginning of the 19th century. The first ones observed were named after four of the great goddesses of antiquity-Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta. These are the Latin-named Roman equivalents of the Greek goddesses Demeter, Athena, Hera and Hestia who held the highest ranking in the Olympian pantheon of gods. It has been 33 years since the first ephemeris listing the positions of Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta became available to the astrological community in 1973 due to the efforts of Eleanor Bach, and 20 years since the publication of my book Asteroid Goddesses in 1986 that discussed their meanings both in the individual birth chart and in society as manifestations of the reawakening feminine consciousness. In the past three decades, we have witnessed an unprecedented emergence of women and the concerns of the feminine in all strata of society, ranging from professionalism, athletics, politics, health, and education to religion.
However, despite the updated look of the feminine at the beginning of the 21st century, the essential symbolism that these four asteroid goddesses represent speak to the four primary relationships that women have always had and are intrinsic to what it means to be a womanmother (Ceres), daughter (Pallas), wife/partner (Juno), and sister (Vesta). As women we are mothers to our children, daughters to our parents, mates to our partners, and sisters to our siblings (and by extension to our close friends). It is around these four relationships that the rest of our lives constellate, and how we are with those closest to us influences the ways in which we impact the world at large. Depending upon where each asteroid was placed at the time of our births, some of these archetypal relationships may be more or less important in our each of our lives.
If one of these asteroid goddesses is conjoined to your Ascendant or Midheaven or to their rulers, and to a lesser...