Re: VMs: VMS Revisited

[RSRICHMOND@xxxxxxx]

Nick Pelling points out:

>>Another tradition, possibly Persian in origin, was to associate signs of 
the zodiac with parts of the anatomy. This was a commonplace by the 15th century 
but a combination of this astrological system with that governing the 
planting, ripening, picking and application of medicinal plants would have been a 
novelty even in the time of the VMS.<<

This custom is alive and well in rural Appalachia, where printed calendars 
often contain directions for "planting by the signs" - planting according to the 
astrological sign (tropical year) that the Moon is in on a particular day, 
sometimes with attention to the phase of the Moon also. Signs are always 
referred to by their anatomic correspondences - "the Moon is in the Bowels" rather 
than "the Moon is in Virgo" - rather than their names. 

I think you plant beans, for example, when the Moon is in the transverse 
colon.

Bob Richmond
Knoxville, Tennessee USA
______________________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send mail to majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxx with a body saying:
unsubscribe vms-list