Behenian Bulletin #1: Feb '26

Full Moon conjunct Regulus

The Full Moon of February 12 will be rising in conjunction with the Behenian star Regulus. Given clear skies, this should be an amazing sight to behold! Look to the East about 30-60 minutes after Sunset. Regulus will be very close to the Moon, just to the right. If it is already dark, the Moon will be bright enough that you may need to shade your eyes just a little bit (either with your hands, or a nearby object like a building or a tree). An hour or so later, as the Moon has risen a bit further, you may be able to pick out the full figure of the constellation Leo, which looks like a profile of the famous Sphynx.

Regulus is one of fifteen stars given by Hermes and mentioned in ancient texts as being of a group called Behenian (meaning root). These stars were each associated with particular magical properties and also had associations with certain planets, images, plants and stones. Thus, we have a ready made “chain of correspondences” where the spirits of the stars can be magically invoked by including the corresponding symbols in a “chain” that reaches from the high heavens and “connects the dots” down to earth.

One of the most enigmatic of these correspondences are a series of (seemingly cabalistic?) sigils that can be drawn to symbolically invoke the spirits of these 15 stars. For Regulus this sigil appears as follows:

The other associations for Regulus are of course the image of a lion or cat, the image of an honorable person sitting in a chair (or perhaps a throne), the planets Mars and Jupiter, the plants cellendine and mugwort, the resin incense mastic and the stones granite or garnet (the latter seems to fit better, and the former may result from typos as ancient manuscripts were copied by hand). Any combination of these correspondences can be used as magical aids in invoking the spirit of Regulus which is said to grant temperance (takes away anger and melancholy, and so “tempering” the emotions) and also favor.

Astronomically, one of the most notable things about Regulus is that it is not only very bright but also lies very close to the ecliptic. Thus, a planet that is even 6 degrees away may still be much closer to this star than one in exact conjunction to a star like Fomalhaut (which lies about twenty degrees south of the ecliptic). Thus, I tend to give stars like Regulus (and Spica, which we will talk about later in the month) a bit more of an “orb” than I might for stars like Arcturus (which is even farther, about 40 degrees north of the ecliptic).

Myself, I was born with Jupiter at 26 Leo (in retrograde, but nearing the direct station). And I consider this to be conjunct Regulus.

photo by Wonder Bright at the inaugural Sky Astrology Conference in 2015

Though I have hardly gained the level of notoriety as someone like Jim Morrison (who also had Jupiter at 26 Leo), I definitely have enjoyed a certain amount of “favor” in astrological circles (my Facebook friends from high school think I’m “famous,” lol). I’m fortunate enough to count among my personal mentors a couple astrologers who have been awarded the prestigious Regulus award (Robert Schmidt & Demetra George). I have also worked closely with a few other Regulus winners (Michael Munkasey, Michael Erlewine, Michael Lutin, Robert Blaschke) and count several others amongst my respected colleagues. At this point in my career, the younger generations refer to me as OG (meaning “original gangsta”) which is a term used to show respect. Not a “king” -but still somebody noteworthy. I mention all this mainly to show that these stars can clearly show up in someone’s life story, without expecting the over the top manifestations of a pop star or political figure (like Donald Trump, who has Mars conjunct Regulus rising).

The Lunar activation of these Behenian stars opens a potential window for calling upon and invoking their magical energies. If everything is just right, (depending on the rest of the astrological configurations) we might even be able to engrave a stone with the sigil of the star and create a permanent talisman. To that end, I create an auspicious elections report each month for my members (it only costs $10 to join the list!). In this report I include not only elections for the 15 Behenian stars, but also other sections for planets, decans, constellations, lunar mansions and house based elections. No other report that I know of contains this breadth!

Going forward, I’m going to begin podcasting about the stars here on Substack as well. I’m going to be joined by Sylvia Mouzourou. We are going to do a couple series. One will be here, called the Behenian Bulletin, where we focus on whats happening with the Behenian stars. And then on Sylvia’s substack we’ll have conversations called “Exploring the Firmament” where we look into the wider array of fixed stars and constellations active in the sky at that time. Hope you will check in with us from time to time -and enjoy the Full Moon with Regulus! May it bring temperance and favor into your life.

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