About Elbert Benjamine: Hermetic astrology’s superstar

By DW Sutton

Elbert Benjamine, the co-founder and first President of The Church of Light, was born December 12, 1882 in Adel, Iowa. He received a higher-education at the Iowa State University, intending to become a naturalist, but in 1900 had a life changing experience when he encountered astrology. The astrology of the time wasn’t exactly scientific and in 1910, when all the astrologers were marching to a mystical Piscean drumbeat, Elbert recognized that the old astrology had to be re-presented and restated in a new scientific way.

At the start he worked with the current astrological knowledge-base – clarified what was fact and fallacy – developed new concepts and daring theories – and then wiped the slate clean. He commenced to construct an entirely new understanding of astrology. He established a new astrological model that began with interaction. He viewed the birthchart, the soul and the environment as a developmental system. He recognized a dynamic interaction between the chart, the evolving soul-intelligence and the environmental setting that provides experience.

From 1910 to 1922 Elbert conceived and developed a completely new understanding of astrology and when he issued Natal Astrology – Hermetic System in 1922 he provided a systematic procedure for interpreting the astrology code pictured in your birthchart. He explained that your not-conscious mind or soul is an organized system of thoughts, feelings and character traits; that your birthchart is a map of your soul’s thought-structure; that each planet in the chart represents a dynamic urge or driver within your not-conscious psychological landscape; that the zodiac signs represent attitudes and motivations that give these psychological urges distinct modes of expression; that the angular relationships formed by the planets identify unconscious thought-complexes that have constructive or destructive modes of functionality; and the houses represent your local environment – the life-matters and people that influence what happens and what you do.

In 1922 for the first time ever Elbert introduced keywords into the science of astrology. The keywords for the planets and zodiac signs are precise descriptions of their expression as human nature. And the keywords for the angular relationships formed by the planets are precise descriptions of their influence in life. Today many so-called astrologers use these keywords quite unaware that Elbert coined them. And then he described the best and worst qualities of each planet and zodiac sign. He dispensed with static universal explanations of astrological markers. It was a revolution in the evolution of astrological knowledge.

In April 1924, with the help of Lenora Conwell, Elbert established The Brotherhood of Light Astrological Research Department. They developed a research method, statistically analyzed thousands of birthcharts and transformed the Hermetic system of astrology into a science.

Scientific astrology works with four sets of factors: (1) Your character at birth; (2) its modification by events after birth; (3) the astrological positions which add energy of a specific kind to these tendencies; and (4) your local environment’s capacity to resist certain events and facilitate others. And Elbert reckoned with this information you could take control of your life, health and happiness.

In the 1930s Hermetic Astrology was emerging as a science with its own principles. By then Elbert had discovered and explained the rules that must be followed to get an accurate character-life profile from your birthchart. By 1939 he had written lessons on the importance of heredity and environment and explained the apparently unexplainable mind-body mystery. And in 1940 Elbert conducted the only case history study into biological and astrological twins and revolutionized our understanding of progressed aspects.

In March 1946 Elbert in collaboration with William Drake developed Astrodynes, hit the delete button, and dispatched the old technique of chart assessment to the recycle bin. The numbers took a giant leap forward and revolutionized our understanding of the birthchart. And because it contains priceless information your birthchart is your most precious possession and an accurately timed chart allows you to crunch the numbers and make a scientific ‘best-given’ assessment of your character and future potential. Knowing your dominant planet and the power and functionality of each planet, sign, aspect and house in your chart is mighty powerful information.

By 1950 Elbert Benjamine had given the astrology of the ancients an Aquarian age make-over and, due to the combined efforts of a large number of astrologers, united under the one banner, the Hermetic System of Astrology was the most widely used system in America. And students knew that the system’s principles were based on the most comprehensive and accurate astrological data currently available.

Elbert did it better because he had access to newly discovered life information that he integrated into his investigative research. The most recent discoveries on the unconscious mind and endocrine glands, Einstein’s theory of relativity and Rhine’s research into psychokinesis all play an important part in the new astrology, but it took Elbert Benjamine to lock all the pieces into place. He explained all the processes and mechanisms that reveal how and why astrology works. And he knew that you were the best person to assess your astrology code because you can read it from the vantage point of personal experience. You have a birthchart and Elbert gave you the key to accessing its priceless information. Whether you take the key and turn it is entirely up to you.

There are many who describe themselves as astrologers and then there’s Elbert Benjamine. And just for the record Elbert Benjamine never described himself as an astrologer. But no matter what bench-mark you set Elbert achieved more than any other astrologer. His astrological talent far surpasses that of every star-gazer who makes the claim. He may, in fact, be the only genuine astrologer who has ever lived.

Elbert Benjamine married three times and had 5 children. He was President of The Church of Light from November 2, 1932 to November 12, 1951. That’s when his physical body, worn out from a lifetime of non-stop endeavor to discover the facts of astrology, ceased to function and he passed to the inner-plane of life.

Back to EB Classics

Back to Home Page