IS COVID FROM A LABORATORY OR ANIMAL SOURCE?
HORARY QUESTION
By Laurie Naughtin www.sublunar.co.za
I was running a horary course during the first wave of COVID-19; on the morning of the 22nd April there was a heated discussion on the news about the true origin of the virus.
It got me wondering what the real story is. As a Horary Astrologer naturally I looked at the time I decided to do the horary chart. It was 7 23 am one Wednesday Morning in April.
Brilliant day for this question as that evening was class, we were working on how to find out if a rumour is true or not? Rumours belong to the 3rd house. The rumour in question was whether Covid-19 came from a Chinese laboratory.
Well for a rumour to be true we need to look at several factors. The angles must be fixed – yes all were fixed. The rulers of the first house, 3rd house and the Moon need to be in fixed signs, especially the 3rd house ruler. Neither the Moon nor the 3rd house ruler are in fixed signs. Hmmm, the fixed signs say yes but the other testimony waters it down somewhat. For the sake of the lesson, the class concluded that there was a possibility that it may have come from the laboratory.
We decided to put this question aside, but to follow the ongoing investigations that may uncover the true origin of this virus. It seemed too much of a coincidence that the first outbreaks of disease were in Wuhan where an advanced virology lab studying bat coronaviruses just happens to be located. Also, the Wuhan Centre for Disease Control and Prevention was only 280 meters from the wet market where the outbreak allegedly occurred.
One of my past students Debbie, now a fully qualified Horary and Traditional Astrologer, remembered we worked on the question and suggested we look at it again. Debbie Pearmain passed on this actual information so that I could further study the Horary
When the lab-leak theory was first mooted, a number of western scientists quickly moved to quash it in a letter to the Lancet medical journal, apparently without any scientific evidence one way or the other. At least one scientist, formerly of the CDC in the US, who disagreed with them received death threats. They were successful until just recently when the theory has re-emerged and is now being taken more seriously as other facts have come to light. It turns out the Lancet statement was written and organized by a zoologist called Peter Daszak, the president of EcoHealth Alliance, who had a vested interest in the virus not originating in the laboratory. EcoHealth in 2018 was the recipient of $15 million in federal grant money that it channelled into research on bat coronaviruses
However, since it first emerged, no-one has been able to prove that the virus came from the wild and China has aggressively resisted attempts to ascertain its origins. US funding for research on bat coronaviruses seems to have made its way to the Wuhan laboratory, courtesy of Mr Daszek’s organisation. There is a heated argument about whether this research included gain of function experiments that allow the virus to infect humans. There were apparently numerous US government officials that also tried to discourage investigations into COVID-19’s origins.
Two Chinese scientists at separate Wuhan universities authored a research paper in February 2020 that asked the question “How did a novel bat coronavirus get to a major metropolis in Central China in the dead of winter when most bats were hibernating and turn a market where bats weren’t sold into the epicentre of an outbreak?” They noted the close proximity of the market to the Wuhan Centre for Disease Control and Prevention which had been known to collect hundreds of bat samples. There was also the Wuhan Institute of Virology which was studying bat corona viruses. They concluded that the virus probably originated from a laboratory in Wuhan. Shortly after the paper was made public on the internet, it disappeared.
Another directorate in the US government started looking and discovered a paper authored by China’s leading scientist on bat coronaviruses in 2015 that proved the spike protein of a novel coronavirus could infect human cells. They inserted protein from a bat virus into a SARS virus and created a new one that could infect humans. The researchers intended to raise the alarm about the dangers of SARS-CoV bat viruses and suggested that further similar studies were too risky.
Evidence has also emerged that some Chinese studies involving live SARS viruses had been conducted in lower security level laboratories and that there was a shortage of highly trained technicians and clear safety protocols.
Those wanting a more detailed summary of the developing lab-leak theory should read the very thorough Vanity Fair article entitled “The Lab-Leak Theory: Inside the Fight to Uncover COVID-19s origins” by Katherine Eban at
Back to the horary
I pulled up the chart and looked at a different way to answer the question. First and most important is to find the significator of Covid 19, the planet that rules the virus and follow the story it can reveal.
Delineation of a horary chart is vital and there are no short cuts! The intense work that is done before we see the outcome of a question is fascinating as we watch the movements of the planets, the aspects, the antiscia, the fixed stars, and the houses they rule. A deep involved story is uncovered layer by layer in what is a seemingly simple question.
Let’s look at this question again. This is how I work with a horary chart – there are times when I get lost and put the chart away but with rested eyes the story begins to unfold again.
First, we need to find what house or planet could possibly rule a coronavirus; I always look to the house first to identify the relevant area of the chart.
At first, the virus was unknown and hidden from the world. It hospitalises many, killing some and leaving others with Long Covid a chronic damaging of lungs, heart, and memory. We cannot see it, but it harms us, it is airborne, frightening, ferocious and surrounded by secrets. The world is in a lockdown situation, we are either isolated in our homes or in our countries, we have become this tiny virus’s prisoners.
All of the above describes the nature of the 12th house, ruler of fear, hospitals, imprisonment, chronic illness, secret enemies, and the unknown. This is the perfect place to find the virus ruler. With Aries on the cusp of the 12th house, a cardinal fire sign, we see the rapid inflammatory nature of the house.
The ruler is Mars which is warrior and soldier like, an action driven planet with a mission. So far all making sense, I have the significator or ruler of the virus as Mars.
Where is Mars placed because that can give us more information? Up in the 9th house…wow this is the house of science, higher learning educational and research institutions such as laboratories. This is testimony that it came from a lab, but let’s find some more evidence.
Mars is in Aquarius ruled by Saturn a restrictive planet and ruler of the laboratory. Aquarius is a fixed air sign. Covid is airborne and literally fixes itself into the airways of infected people. Another symptom is blood clots, so I look at the temperament of Aquarius. It is a hot moist sign which is the temperament of the blood humour. Richard Saunders, The Astrological Judgement and Practice of Physick, 1677
In Horary we look at the shadow position of a planet called the antiscion as it carries a sense of ‘hiddenness’. There it is just in the 7th house cusp in the transformative sign of Scorpio. The 7th house is the house of open enemies…interesting antiscion placement as the virus became an open enemy.
Fixed Stars are very important in Horary, but they need to be within a degree of a planet. They convey a deeper meaning to any planet that conjuncts them. A conjunction is when two bodies connect in the same degree of the same sign.
Mars is conjunct a fixed star called Dorsum, it is of the nature of Saturn ruler of the laboratory, as well as Jupiter an expansive planet and the ruler of the 8th house of death (the 8th house is not always about death it is about change and transformation, elimination…in the tradition it is known as the house of death and endings). This fixed star is an unfortunate star as it represents danger from the ‘bite of venomous creatures’ – such as the Covid virus.
I am now interested in the actual laboratory to see what it tells us. As Capricorn, a sign of structure is on the cusp, the laboratory is ruled by Saturn. The antiscion of Saturn is also in the 7th house in the sign of Scorpio – just like Mars. We have a fixed star conjunct Saturn, Altair, of the nature of Mars (the virus) and Jupiter, the planet ruling the house of death. Altair with Saturn brings about hospital treatments, death, great sorrow and an inability to work.
My curiosity is to see how Covid actually found its way out of the laboratory. For that to happen some planet must have connected with it at some time to take it out. In Horary we use aspects to see the way planets communicate and connect with each other. Understanding the movements and speed of the planets is vital.
Mercury who is in the sign of Aries and ruled by Mars, the Covid virus, was in contact with Covid in the Lab in 5 units of time. We take Mercury in real time backwards to see that the last contact was with Mars. Mercury moves faster than Mars and is separating by sextile aspect, an easy aspect and taking it into the unknown area of the 12th house. As Mercury is ruled by Mars, it is beholden to what Mars dictates.
Who is Mercury one may ask? This is where we need to understand the method of turning the chart. Mercury rules the radical 2nd house with Gemini, a mutable air sign, on the cusp describing the disease that is spread through air and shared amongst all. If we take the laboratory’s house as our starting point and turn it into the 1st house, then count the houses from the laboratory, Mercury becomes ruler of the turned 6th house.
No surprise as the 6th house is about service, health, servants, employees, and the work we do. Mercury was an employee from the laboratory according to this chart. For more testimony I looked and found Mercury was also conjunct the Fixed Star Baten Katos, of the nature of Saturn and Jupiter. Saturn is the ruler of the laboratory and Jupiter the ruler of the 8th house of Death and transformation. This Star brings us the energy of transportation, emigration, misfortune, falls and blows. It seems Mercury literally transported the virus out of the lab and from there it spread worldwide.
The Moon in all Horaries is vitally important as the Moon can be a co-significator and, most importantly in a question such as this one, represent the flow of events.
If we follow the Moon, when she entered Aries she immediately made a conjunction with Saturn, the significator of the laboratory, then a trine to Venus the Ascendant ruler of this chart and the planet ruling the question. Both very easy aspects. This was a health situation that could easily spread.
Now this is interesting as Venus is ruled by Mercury, the carrier or messenger. Venus is in the air sign that spreads very far and wide, Gemini a mutable social air sign, onto Mercury the employee who this chart shows contracted the virus. Venus is also the ruler of the house of health, the 6th house.
The Moon immediately after connects with the virus, once again by sextile, easily done, then takes it to our Mercury also easily by sextile. From here the aspects become what are called hard aspects, they are nasty, the Moon then squares Pluto.
Pluto known as a killer planet is found in the sign of Capricorn. Capricorn is all about building a structure and Pluto can damage as well as transform. This is what has happened throughout the world and life as we know it has ended. Pluto is very powerful when triggered by an aspect.
The Moon’s final aspect whilst in Aries, ruled and controlled by Mars (Covid) is a square to Jupiter, a planet that brings about a lot of expansive energy. In this horary, Jupiter is the ruler of the 8th house of death.
Is this Covid virus here to stay? The answer is not rosy, the angles of the chart are fixed, a fixed chart in horary locks in a situation. How do we survive? What we need to see is which planet can most harm Mars. And we have one as when the Moon changes sign into Taurus, it conjuncts with the Sun.
The Sun is the ruler in natal charts, as well as medical horary charts, of our vital energy and lifeforce. This Sun is in Taurus a fixed earth sign, practical and focused. In Taurus the Sun receives Mars in its detriment therefore this is the way we can combat the disease that comes with the virus.
The Sun is ruler of the 4th house of Home…we need to stay at home; the Sun is ruled by Venus the ruler of health and the 6th house. Sixth house matters are how we work hard to keep healthy and protect ourselves.
We need to keep healthy, boost our immune systems and yes vaccines are one of the best ways to teach our immune systems how to combat Covid.
Covid will always be here according to this horary, but we can survive it like we have influenza and other viruses such as polio and smallpox. We may all get it, but with a vaccine, it will behave like a nasty cold rather have the deadly outcomes we are now seeing.
In conclusion, the Horary strongly suggests that the lab-theory is true and the chart delineation shows exactly why.
I would like to give my appreciation and thanks to Debbie Pearmain, both traditional and fellow Horary Astrologer for her input, research, and support.
