The star Aldebaran (or alpha Tauri) is the brightest in the constellation of Taurus.
The Star Aldebaran
The star Aldebaran (or alpha Tauri) is the brightest in the constellation of Taurus. It is traditionally known as the red eye of the bull because its location in the image determined for the constellation occupies the position of the left eye of the mythical Taurus.
Aldebaran is a giant red star, located about 66.6 light-years away from our Sun. Its name comes from the Arabic word al-dabarān, and in a free translation, it means “the one who follows,” maybe because of the fact that Aldebaran seems to follow the Pleiades cluster during their apparent movement on their heavenly journey across the sky.
Star Aldebaran is the thirteenth brightest star in the night sky that can be seen with the naked eye; it also has been known by the most different civilizations since ancient times.
Aldebaran is one of the most easily identifiable stars in the night sky, both due to its brightness and location. Its popularity is due not only to its intense and reddish bright aura, but also to its proximity to the ecliptic, and to form a known asterism with the Hyads. An asterism is a name given to a set of stars with some very peculiar characteristic, capable of making it recognizable by observers from different countries, and traditions and cultures.
Other examples of asterisms are the Three Maries (three stars of Orion’s belt) and the Pleiades. Although Aldebaran is not part of the star cluster of the Hyads, seen from the perspective of an observer on Earth, it seems to be located at one of the vertices of the triangular figure that the layout of the Hyads suggests.
In 1603, Aldebaran was designated by Johannes Bayer, in his famous stellar Atlas “Uranometria,” as the alpha star of the Taurus constellation, and today he will be the most evident star near and east of the Moon.
The influence of Aldebaran has been associated with a courageous nature, public honors, militarism, and an uncommon love for challenges. Its power can propel an individual to look for established institutions, such as armed forces, religious callings, politics, and the police force.
The person who has Aldebaran in their birth charts will feel a very natural attraction for everything that represents a structured organization with an established hierarchy, a chain of command, and a sense of brotherhood. The native may never achieve his aspiration and, if that is the case, it can be said that they will feel a profound emptiness in their inner sphere. If the native fulfills their aspirations with the help of the beneficial aspects of Mars, the Sun, the Moon, and Jupiter, they can be very successful.
The Taurus Constellation
The Taurus constellation is one of the most easily identifiable in the sky. Many may have seen a set of very bright stars called ‘seven sisters.’ Because they are located precisely in the Taurus constellation, which still brings other fascinating objects, such as the star Aldebaran, or bull’s eye, the Hyades, and the famous Crab nebula. The best time of the year to observe this constellation is the summer, as it is when it stands out the most in the sky, rising in the east around 6 pm and being visible almost all night.
Even though the body of the Bull has only shown his frontal portions, the constellation of Taurus is very rich in its stellar components. Marcus Manilius, a Roman poet, astrologer, call the constellation of Taurus the“dives puellis” – Latin for “rich in maidens.” It is a reference to the fact that within the body of this constellation, we find the Pleiades (Seven Sisters) and the Hyades, the seven mythological daughters of Atlas and Aethra known to be the half-sisters of the Pleiades.
The Hyades form the big V with the powerful Fixed star Aldebaran, regularly known as the “Red Eye of the Bull.”
The Bull’s horns are very long and reach reasonably far from its frame.
The northern point of the horn extends itself into the gathering of stars known as the Charioteer (Auriga). Near the tip of the southern horn, we find the beautiful Crab Nebula, a vast cloud of stardust, which is the remnants of a star that exploded centuries ago.
Using the theme of illumination, Alice Bailey explains the esoteric significance of the constellation of Taurus, as one of the most remarkable of the zodiacal constellations, the Cross of the Disciple.
The “eye of the bull” in Taurus, is the magnificent fixed star, Aldebaran, is one of the reasons why this constellation is regarded as bestowing illumination.
In ancient times, Aldebaran was called the leading star of the heavens, because Taurus has always been connected with light and all its symbols, therefore, with Christ, who proclaimed himself as the Light of the World.
Illumination, Transcendence, and Sound are the creative themes that constitute the influence of this constellation.
In Egyptian art, the Pleiades are occasionally symbolized by a dove with its wings outspread over the bull’s saddle.
The dove is the sacred bird of Venus and, as the Pleiades are part of the Taurus constellation, it is a fitting symbol for this little Taurean star-group.
The three constellations connected with this sign, according to Bailey, are Orion, Eridanus, and Auriga. The nature of the spiritual work in Taurus is beautifully foreseen by the three pictures in the heavens which they present to us.
The ancient name known to Orion was “the Three Kings” because of the three beautiful stars found in his belt.
The three stars represent the three divine aspects of Will, Love, and Intelligence.
Orion symbolizes the human spirit. The name Orion literally means “the light that breaks forth.”
Alice Bailey renders a remark about the reappearance of the spiritual prototype:
“As we circle the zodiac, we find appearing what might be called “the spiritual prototype” of the heroes with many faces and many stories, like Hercules, Perseus, who slew the Medusa, the gorgon that symbolized the world of appearances.”
The Journeys of the Hero may be many, and he can be found in Aries, Orion, whose name means “light”, or found in Taurus. In Scorpio, Hercules himself, triumphant and victorious, appears. Then we have the Hero in Sagittarius as the Archer on the Horse, going straight for his goal, and in Pisces, we find the King.
The closer we examine this heavenly book, the more we realize that ever before, we have held the symbol of our divinity, the symbol of the soul in incarnation, and the story of matter, as it receives purification and glorification through the arduous work of the soul.
Another constellation connected with the Sign of Taurus sign is an immense river of stars, Eridanus, which stream forth from under Orion’s feet.
The River Eridanus, or the “River of the Judge,” is the symbol of the river of life, carrying souls into incarnation.
Just as Orion symbolizes the spiritual aspect of the soul, the River Eridanus withholds the “form-taking” aspect and present to us the thought of incarnation. Meanwhile, another constellation, Auriga, is the charioteer, which is the leading source that helps the soul to reach new lands and experiences.
*This article is based, in part, on the works of Alan Oken’s book, The Complete Astrology and the complete work of Esoteric Astrology by Alice Bailey.
If you enjoyed Aldebaran and the Constellation of Taurus, you will also enjoy Fixed Stars: What Are They? and Constellations and The Celestial Animals
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