[antognini]

It's kind of interesting to compare this to Ptolemy's eras. In the Tetrabiblios, Ptolemy argued that man went through seven ages in his life, each associated with a different celestial object.

1. Infancy --- The Moon. Since the Moon waxes and wanes more rapidly than any other celestial object, this period is characterized by the fastest development.

2. Childhood --- Mercury. As Mercury is the fastest of the planets, at this age children have the short attention spans and flit from one thing to the next.

3. Youth --- Venus. Starting around puberty, a man's mind starts to become focused on love.

4. Young Adulthood --- The Sun. A man comes of age, he starts to think about his work and people begin to take him seriously.

5. Middle Adulthood --- Mars. In his mid 30s a man's demeanor becomes more severe. He realizes he has certain goals he would like to accomplish and there is not much time left to achieve them.

6. Maturity --- Jupiter. By his mid 50s, having achieved what he can in his life, he has arrived at a position of authority in the community. He has gravitas and respect.

7. Old Age --- Saturn. By his late 60s, he starts to decline physically and mentally.

[ryandv]

It is worth noting that this exact sequence (the Chaldean sequence) of the seven classical celestial objects follows the same paths as the Serpent of Wisdom coiled about the Tree of Life in the Hermetic Qabalah. This is the western analogue to the Hindu notion of Kundalini, which shares the same serpentine symbolism; both of which represent the process of the psychological maturation of man.

See Liber 777 Col. VII [0], Key Scales 3 through 9 inclusive. Also note that Key Scales 4 through 9 in Col. XCVII, excluding Saturn in old age, correspond to the "Ruach," "soul," "mind," or (one could say) "post-bicameral ego" of man.

[0] https://ia902906.us.archive.org/22/items/Liber777Revised/Lib...

[alexjplant]

I sat down and divided my own life into thematic epochs not long ago. Mine are split differently and more specifically to my own lived experience but I, too, arrived at the fact that I'm entering #5 in my mid-30s. Interesting coincidence!

[ryandv]

I suppose that constantly changing and revising the language we use to refer to everything at least has the upside of allowing us to use the latest frontend frameworks every year.