Third Decan of Leo

The Third Decan of Leo isn’t subtle, so its intro won’t be either…

Promotion. Marketing. Selling.

Understanding what the People want.

What fuels their desire.

What stokes their appetites.

Whipping up public fervor.

Waving one’s Banner.

Leo D3 governs these topics more directly any other singular influence.

For better (if you’re getting what you want) and for worse (if it comes at the expense of the good, the true, and the virtuous), as some of our grislier examples will soon make clear.

This Decan is Mars-ruled in every system you can splice or dice it.

Which is funny because fire, heat, and iron (Martial things) are used for literal “branding” (as in leaving a mark on an animal to showcase ownership), and the word for “branding” in marketing terms is, well… the actual same.

And the same wind (Air; the other masculine element) which makes flags fly can stoke embers into raging infernos, or simply snuff a flame out. Like the candles on the Altar, which struggled to remain lit, and ended up burning in a pennant-like shape.

This creation cycle opened with the acquisition of a branded triangular banner for the North Star campout, and a happenstance viewing of the documentary The Century of the Self, which details the relationship between Sigmund Freud and his American nephew, Edward Bernays — each having key Leo 3 placements (the Midheaven and Moon respectively).

From the documentary description:

“Bernays invented the public relations profession in the 1920s and was the first person to take Freud’s ideas to manipulate the masses. He showed American corporations how they could make people want things they didn’t need by systematically linking mass-produced goods to their unconscious desires.

Bernays was one of the main architects of the modern techniques of mass-consumer persuasion, using every trick in the book, from celebrity endorsement and outrageous PR stunts (Leo things!), to eroticising the motorcar.

His most notorious coup was breaking the taboo on women smoking by persuading them that cigarettes were a symbol of independence and freedom. But Bernays was convinced that this was more than just a way of selling consumer goods. It was a new political idea of how to control the masses. By satisfying the inner irrational desires that his uncle had identified, people could be made happy and thus docile.

It was the start of the all-consuming self which has come to dominate today’s world.”

Pluto went through the Third Decan of Leo in the 1950s, which were considered the early days of the “golden era” of advertising. The period in which the term “M(ad) Men” was created.

(Which also happens to be one of the greatest shows of all time, which you should watch! Or rewatch!)

A signature / brand many living today have carried with them since — individual-first capitalism being a defining characteristic of Baby Boomer-led culture which still reigns supreme. And a period of time which is bookmarked in the — especially conservative — American imagination as the most quintessentially and idealistically American. A beacon of contrived idealism and nostalgia.

One of the richest decade-based cultural propaganda deposits in the country’s history.

Two other Mars in Leo 3 natives (the precise placement this series captures) are Philip Kohtler (considered the “father of modern marketing”) and a certain 45th and 47th President of the United States, whose Rising is also in the Third Decan of Leo, just a stones throw from Regulus.

A man who essentially shit-talked his way into the highest public office known to man (TWICE!) by appealing to The People’s basest desires, and most animalistic instincts. By being too big, too bright, and too persistent an asshole to fail.

Are we starting to gain the sense of why Leo D3 is so insanely relevant / powerful, and yet so rife with harmful potentiality?

Why on earth would we especially want to bottle such a thing?

Picking up where a portion of the Third Decan of Capricorn left off:

We have a TON of Clients who are in business for themselves (or others), who have products, classes, and services that will actually make the lives of people better, if they were to buy them.

GOOD PEOPLE need access to promotional sales technologies too, lest the masses only EVER get gorged on THINGS THAT ARE BAD FOR THEM by PEOPLE WHO HAVE THEIR ABSOLUTE WORST INTERESTS AT HEART (big oil; big pharma; big agg; big food; the two-party system; multi-national conglomerates; &c.), that make the World a WORSE PLACE, THAT WE’RE ALLLLLL stuck in.

THAT is why Leo D3.

To help inoculate ourselves against all this low-hanging psy-hacking, gaslighting crap our culture buries us in, and to learn how to hijack the same desires that lead people astray, and lead them instead… to water.

Including ourselves.

High-integrity individuals have a famously hard time with self-promotion.

Regulus is in Virgo now to change all that ; )

Truly Good People (not just ones who play “good people” on TV!) must control more resources.

And Leo D3 knows how to get them.

The Third Decan of Leo also inspires animalistic vigor, a certain playfulness and humor inherent to even high-stakes scenarios, litheness of body and mind, bravery, ambition, and drive, along with the type of intelligence one needs to navigate a world ON FIRE with endlessly scrolling news and non-stop streams of mindlessly entertaining slop punctuated by acute furor, both genuine and conjured… and to who’s benefit?

Almost never your own.

To report on my own lived experience while beta testing, Leo 3 milestones have paced nicely with the branding development and release of L’etoile — the all-natural “mainstream” (yet extraordinarily niche) perfume imprint yours truly just launched, that I’ve probably ruined already with too much talk of animism in the toggles (see: Spiritual Considerations).

Oh well, to water we march!

Notable because Sphere + Sundry is a non-brand brand, while L’etoile has pretty pretty boxes and bottles banners that say our name on them. Which, like some trippy Third Decan of Leo-ception, was served back at me in 3rd party ads run by a company we pilot tested labels from just days before writing this (don’t get them; they were terrible!). With branding I made!

Anyway, the idea behind L’etoile being that it will be much easier to promote (Leo 3), and having a “straight” business in case “they” decide to start “burning witches” again might not be such a shortsighted thing in today’s climate.

Though there will be collaborations between the two imprints! + BPALs 4ever!

Getting to the working itself — done back in June — Leo 3’s Altar cloth featured a deerskin rug taken from the entry of the Thema Mundi house.

Because this Decan is associated with MEAT, and all the myriad things MEAT means and entails.

When Tony did Talismans for Leo 3 in the past it had culminated in an invitation to a giant barbecue.

For all these reasons, I imported genuine Hokkaido Wagyu A5 steak from Japan and seared it in real-time on the Altar as an offering to the Spirits of Leo 3 (what magnificent Incense!), invoking their finest blessings. Which was later dried and incorporated into thee Incense + Powder for the series.

At the same time I ordered the steak, I summoned a branded flag to begin flying on the empty flagpole for the historic house. Its chosen colors are navy and gold, but the flag arrived white (all the wrong iconography!), so we made a last-minute dash (literally minutes before the working!) to dye it pomegranate (the traditional color of Leo 3) and raised a flag for the first time ever since taking the property over, just before the working began.

Simultaneously, a bus pulled into our parking lot (the gate is usually closed), and asked if they could tour the property. “No, but thanks for stopping by! This is an incredible sync!” I boasted, waving its confounded driver toward the exit .

Months later (it is now November), after production for Leo 3 began in earnest:

The local trolley tour contacted us to ask if we would trim the hedges (which we’ve been growing for privacy) to give the tourists a better view of the house (opening the way to request… contemporary, self-serving additions to their script, which we have not followed through on for all the “witch burning” reasons aforementioned).

Someone also recently let us know that a campaign to make the 7th Guest / Thema Mundi House into a real-life LEGO set is underway, asking if we would help promote it.

They also offered to include information about “what we currently do” to the page, which was likewise, politely declined. What I wouldn’t give for a lego Austin and Sumo, however! Please do vote if that would be fun!

A regional Northwest magazine reached out weeks after the working, offering to do a feature on Sphere + Sundry and / or the House, unprompted.

Just a handful of lived examples showcasing what Leo 3 tries to bring the modern practitioner in terms of opportunities for visibility, branding, sales, and related whatnot.

In addition, deer hunting season has begun, and people at work who try to secure meat to feed their family (who didn’t get any last year, despite trying multiple times) asked if they could pilot test Leo 3 to see if it improved their results.

They reported back it was the fastest trip they’ve ever had, with 1 bullet fired in less than 1 hour of arrival, which dropped a 6-point buck with a clean kill straight to the heart.

Not Buddy! Though one of the weirder series bleeding into each other syncs for sure… Venus to Mars is a rude pivot : /

Note that Decans have their own Intelligence, but whatever the base planet opened the door still has its (s)way.

Martial materia is hot, and can induce headaches, sweating, and stank, and this is no exception.

Layering with Asclepius for personal application is advised.

It could very well also bring contention as a form of publicity. I haven’t experienced that yet per se (and have been trying to avoid it, by turning down opportunities for more visibility and stream-crossing), but am on the lookout for it.

Leo 3 also makes productivity EASY.

I can’t tell you how simple and fast this series has been to produce and usher out the door — almost like we didn’t even have to try — and this write-up came together faster than any other — in one clean shot, straight to the heart.

The Third Decan of Leo might be brazen, but it is also — in its own way — delightfully uncomplicated.

Use in magic for promotion and media opportunities, for creative brainstorming re: increasing sales, and when otherwise engaged in meaty marketing endeavors (preferably for good over evil!).

Austin Coppock, author of the highly anticipated Decan book, resident electional architect, and CLEAR ex-face kicking front-runner to appear on Joe Rogan repping traditional astrology (which he may also decline if offered; but what a hilarious sync constellating around this release!) says of Leo D3:

The moment chosen to enchant the Leo III materia saw the Ascendant and Mars in the third decan of Leo during the hour of Mars, reinforced powerfully with a nearly-exact trine from the Moon in Sagittarius. This is a textbook election, with the planet ruling the decan positioned within it, while on the Ascendant, its hour at hand, and supported by the Moon.

Though not required to unlock this decan’s power, a dignified and angular Venus makes a nice addition to this election, both for the blessing of glory it brings, as well as a hedge against too-harsh Mars results.

The only note of unorthodoxy is the square between Mars and Uranus. Though Uranus can disrupt some of the other planets’ work, its power reinforces several of Mars’ core significations. Both planets love radical autonomy and enjoy a little shock and awe.

Though there was some trepidation around Uranus’ position, mitigating factors are also present, and auguries were good. Nonetheless, we kept an eye open for negative Uranian side-effects around the operation, such as unfortunate surprises or physical accidents. Nothing of the sort presented itself.

What surprises did occur (see above) were fortunate and in line with the banner-waving, beast-wrangling nature of the decan.

Regarding his personal syncs and observations, Austin offers the following:

Beast Modus Operandi

The Leo III working had me obsessed not only with banners, marketing, and delicious meats, but with all things animal. The Picatrix notes that when Mars is in this decan, one might craft “an image to bring together wolves, bears and other wild beasts in whichever city, village or any place you wish.”

As I contemplated beast-summoning, I thought of the wonderful/terrible 80’s movie The Beastmaster, about a shirtless, sword-wielding man who triumphs over evil with the help of his animal friends.

More bleed-through between Venus’ Earthly Delights and Leo III!

Was it released while the Sun was in Leo III? Of course it was.

My thoughts also turned to the summoning and excitation of the animal spirits within—going beast mode.

I was reminded of the classic Sega Genesis game, Altered Beast, whose protagonist’s power is to somehow be a werewolf, a weredragon, a werebear, and a weretiger. The game was, of course, released in North America with the Sun in Leo III.

A more literal instance of animal vigor present at this time was my father-in-law, who has the Sun in Leo III, and had recently gone viral for going beast mode on his fellow senior citizens at the US Open Masters wrestling tournament, where he took first place.

BRIEF KAIT INTERMISSION: After winning the US Open, my Sun in Leo D3 dad recently went to Warsaw Poland to compete in the World Masters Wrestling Championship, where he took THIRD OVERALL(!) in BOTH Greco-Roman and Freestyle divisions! So proud of him! 

Now back to Austin:

As animals within and without filled my mind, I was thinking about what my physical regime was going to be for the summer. I was coming to the end of a program of heavy lifting and wanted to change things up. I was beginning to feel like I lived in a body built solely to pick up and then put down a very heavy thing. Which is what I had been doing, but not how I want to feel.

My mind a Leo III menagerie, I remembered that I had bought a book of animal-based movements and routines years ago, and never cracked it open. I located it, and found the perfect summer system. The animal routines addressed my concerns about mobility, as well as providing the cardio I had been lacking.

Leo, the HEART!

What I didn’t expect was that the regimen of animal movements fixed the litany of complaints I’ve developed since I began work as a human limousine for a giant toddler. The lower back, psoas, and right hip issues which had become chronic disappeared within two weeks. Furthermore, practicing crawling, jumping, and a variety of funny walks ended up being the best possible training for playing with a toddler whose only mode is beast mode.

Leo 3 has also inspired me to finally start offering something I’ve resisted ever since Sphere + Sundry began, which is embracing professional commission-based affiliates.

If you are running a class — say, about Planetary magic, fixed Stars, Astrology, or Magic in general — and would like to include information about Talismanic Materia, Remediation, or teach people how to 10x their ritual results with some of the most effective materia magica being made in the world today, let us know.

Likewise, if you are putting together a Holiday Gift Guide (or any gift guide!) and would like to feature Sphere + Sundry, let us know.

Consultants… creatives… welcome!

A rising tide raises all boats… it’s about time we more formally rise together!

This is a mid-way step to the longer-term goal of bringing in wholesale retail partners.

If you have a brick and mortar and would like to offer Sphere + Sundry for sale in person, also get in touch!

The new affiliate program offers QR codes that enable in-person referral tracking through displays, print-media, or just your phone.

We’ll be onboarding affiliates after Mercury goes direct, as early as late November.