Many of the articles on this site feature the use of twelfth-parts. Those unfamiliar with the twelfth-parts should check out the information I’ve provided on them starting with the introductory article on them. In this article, we look at finding twelfth-part positions in your head and with free software.
If you would like to use free software to find twelfth-parts then please download the Traditional Morinus software program (click to go to download page). It has undergone a number of great updates, including the addition of twelfth-part calculation. Please see the article on the installation of Morinus.
Finding Twelfth-Parts in Your Head
Of course, you can calculate twelfth-parts with pen and paper. It’s simple and was discussed in the introductory article on the twelfth-parts. However, I’d like to highlight some quick and dirty techniques for finding twelfth-part sign positions. Below are my tips. The numbers that I give are where the twelfth-part sign starts, so always think in 2.5 degree segments. Remember that 10 goes from 10°00′ to 12°30′ of that sign.
0 = Same Sign
This is the easiest one to remember. If the planet is in the first 2.5 degrees of any sign, from 0°00′ to 2°30′, then its twelfth-part is in the same sign.
10, 20 = Trine, Same Element/Triplicity
If the position is in the 2.5 degrees following degree 10 or 20 in the sign then it is in the same element. It is in one of the signs trine to that one. 10 is the beginning of the first trine, the one following. 20 is the beginning of the second trine, the one prior. For instance, if the Moon were at 10°30′ Scorpio, then the twelfth-part Moon is in Pisces, the water sign after Scorpio. If it had been at 22°00′ Scorpio, then the twelfth-part Moon would’ve been in Cancer, the water sign before Scorpio.
15 = Opposite Sign
If a planet were at 15° (up to 17°30′) of some sign, its twelfth-part would be in the opposite sign. For instance, you see someone has Jupiter at 16°47′ Cancer. Capricorn is opposite Cancer, so you know that the twelfth-part of Jupiter is in Capricorn.
5°, 25° = Sextile
You see Jupiter at 6°33′ Libra in someone’s chart, but where is it’s twelfth-part? The segment beginning with 5° is the sign that is the sextile after the one occupied. The segment beginning with 25° is the sign that is the sextile before the one occupied. 5 and 25 – easy enough to remember, especially since 25 is 5 squared, and the sextile is of the nature of Venus who makes a five-pointed pentagram figure in her course. Returning to our example, the twelfth-part of Jupiter must be in the following sextile, Sagittarius.
30′ = 6 degrees of a sign for twelfth-part
Let’s return to our example with Jupiter. Jupiter is at 6°33′, and we determined its twelfth-part is in Sagittarius. However, where in Sagittarius? We know that Sagittarius starts at 5° Libra and goes until 7°30′ Libra. Every half degree after 5° is another 6 degrees of Sagittarius, starting from 0°. Jupiter is about 1.5 degrees past 5°, which is 3 time half a degree. Each half a degree is 6 degrees, so 3 times 6 puts Jupiter at about 18 Sagittarius.
For fine-tuning, note that every 5′ of a degree equals 1 degree for twelfth-part positions.
Examples
In order to get you thinking in twelfth-parts and getting acquainted with these rules, let’s work on a few examples.
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain’s Natal Chart
Where is the twelth-part of Kurt Cobain’s Venus, planet of love, artistry, and beauty? Venus is at about 26.5 degrees Pisces. 25 is the magic number here as it is in that 2.5 degree segment after 25. In the rules above I specify that 25 is the preceding sextile. Venus is in the 7th, Pisces, so the twelfth-part is two signs back in the 5th, Capricorn. How many degrees after 25 is 26.5? 1.5 degrees. Each half degree is equivalent to 6 twelfth-part degrees, so the twelfth-part of Venus is 3*6=18 degrees into Capricorn. 18° Capricorn as the position means that Venus is in her own bound and in her Joy (the 5th place of children, creativity, entertainment, and performance is called the Joy of Venus).
Bill Gates
Bill Gates’ Natal Chart
Where is the twelfth-part of Bill Gates’ Mercury, planet of commerce, scholarship, and technology? Mercury is a little more than 16.5 degrees into Libra at 16°36′ Libra. As Mercury is in the 2.5 degree segment after 15, it is 15 that is the magic number here. 15, being half of 30, also puts us halfway around the zodiac from Libra to the sign that is its opposite Aries. What degree of Aries is Mercury’s twelfth-part? Mercury is a little more than 1.5 degrees past 15, and 1.5 is equivalent to three 1/2 degree segment. Again, each 1/2 degree segment equates to 6 degrees, which puts us 18 degrees into Aries. There is an extra 6′ though, and every 5′ is another degree, so it must be at 19° Aries. Therefore, the twelfth-part of Bill Gates’ Mercury is in its own bound in Aries, with the sect light, the Moon, in the 10th house of authority, honors, and profession.
Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston’s Natal Chart
Where is the twelfth-part of Whitney Houston’s Venus? The magic number is 10, as it’s in the 2.5 degree segment after 10° Leo. As mentioned in the rules above, 10 puts is in the next sign of the same element. The next fire sign or first trine is Sagittarius, the 10th house. What degree in Sagittarius? Venus is at 11°12′ Leo, so it is two 1/2 degree segments plus 12′. Each half degree segment gives 6 degrees, bringing us to 12. Then every 5′ segment is a degree, and there are two of them in 12′. This brings us to 14° Sagittarius. Houston’s Venus twelfth-part is in its own bound in the 10th house of authority, honors, and profession.
Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama’s Natal Chart
Where is the twelfth-part of the Dalai Lama’s Jupiter? The Dalai Lama’s Jupiter is in the 2.5 degree segment after 12.5, so it doesn’t fit exactly with any of our rules. However, our rules can lead us right there. 12.5 is one segment after 10, and one before 15, so Jupiter is one sign after the first trine and one sign before the opposition. We can go either way. If thinking in terms of “10, plus one sign”, then we would find Pisces, which is the next water sign after Scorpio, and we would put Jupiter in the next sign, Aries. In terms of “15, minus one sign”, then we would find Taurus, the sign opposite Scorpio, and put Jupiter in the one before it, Aries. In any case the twelfth-part is in Aries. But what degree of Aries? Jupiter is at 13°28′ Scorpio, so it is nearly 1° past 12°30′ Scorpio. Each 30′ equates to 6°, so it is nearly 12° into Aries. 5′ is equivalent to a degree and it is only short by 2′, so it is less than 12°00′ Aries, but by less than a full degree. This puts the twelfth-part of Jupiter at 11° Aries. The twelfth-part of the Dalai Lama’s Jupiter is in the Venus bound in the 10th house of authority, honors, and profession.
Finding Twelfth-Parts in Morinus
Recently, the developers of the free, open-source, astrology program, Traditional Morinus, added twelfth-part capability to the program. Please read the article on basic installation and chart entry in Morinus.
Settings
Once you have Traditional Morinus installed and ready to go, load one of your charts, or the chart that it comes with. Let’s look at its default chart, that of Morinus (Jean-Baptiste Morin), the prolific 17th century French astrologer and mathematician. Then go to the Option menu and Appearance I, or hit SHIFT-A (that is, hold Shift and press A). Click the bullet in front of “Dodecatemoria” to turn on the twelfth-parts, which will appear marked along the outer edge of the wheel.
I also recommend adding the terms (bounds) into the wheel, making the wheel black and white, and thickening up the lines for the angles, as shown below.
A couple other things you can do quickly to set your charts like mine include pressing SHIFT+F6 to switch to whole sign houses, and pressing SHIFT+W to have the Node position be the true position (note: I may have still had the Node at mean position in some examples). Finally, make sure you press SHIFT+U, so that your settings will be saved for the next time you start up the program.
Morinus Twelfth-Parts
Morinus’ Natal Chart with Twelfth-Parts
Look at Morinus! The twelfth-part of Jupiter is right on the Ascendant. The twelfth-part of Mercury is in its own bound in his 10th.
The Example Charts
Below are the charts that I discussed above, but this time with the twelfth-part placements included.
Cobain with Twelfth-Parts
Gates with Twelfth-Parts
Houston with Twelfth-Parts
Dalai Lama with Twelfth-Parts
Have fun and feel free to discuss in the comments!
A return, also called a revolution, is the arrival of a transiting planet to the same position it held at the time of one’s birth. The solar return, or return of the Sun, occurs approximately at a person’s birthday. It was regarded as a very important event in Hellenistic astrology, the original form of horoscopic astrology. The solar return provides indications of the major events for the year. Similarly, the Moon’s return, or lunar return, can be used for indications regarding the month.
I have personally come to regard solar returns to be one of the most informative and indispensable predictive techniques. In this series of articles, we will start with some Hellenistic basics of return interpretation. Future article may add additional ways of interpreting returns as given by later Hellenistic and medieval astrologers.
The Solar Return as a Set of Transits to the Natal Chart
For the most part, in early Hellenistic astrology, solar returns were not regarded as separate charts in their own right. Rather they were viewed in terms of transits to the natal chart. That is the approach of Dorotheus (1st century CE). In this post, I address Dorotheus-style returns, in which we examine returns as a series of transits about the natal chart. The rules for interpreting returns in Dorotheus do not rely heavily upon exact timing of the return. Therefore, questions of precession and relocation of the return chart are largely irrelevant. To find the transits of the return, we look to “…when the Sun enters the beginning of the minute in which it was on the day of the native’s nativity” (Dorotheus, Book IV, Ch. 1, #4, Pingree trans., 2005, p. 245).
Dorotheus on Returns
Dorotheus of Sidon gave some guidelines and aphorisms for the interpretation of transits “on the day on which that native was born” and “in the turning of the years”. These guidelines can be found in Book IV of his Carmen Astrologicum (#185-233 of Pingree trans.; Ch. 4 of Dykes trans.). His approach focuses on planetary transits into specific natal houses, such as those occupied by certain natal planets.
For a complete understanding of the guidelines given by Dorotheus, I urge the reader to pick up a copy of his work (click image below for best translation). It is essential reading in Hellenistic astrology, and one of the most influential astrological works of all time. Later Persian and European medieval astrology owes a great debt to Dorotheus.
Dorothean Return Guidelines
For the reader’s convenience, I summarize some of his guidelines below. Generally, there are many guidelines that relate to the bad indicated when a return malefic is with, opposed, or square itself or an important natal position. By contrast, there are many good indications pertaining to when a return benefic is with or trine itself or an important natal position. There is even good pertaining to a return benefic dominating (right side square) a natal malefic (see below).
1st Rule: Return Oppositions to Natal Positions Show Difficulties
These are whole sign oppositions of a planet to itself. For instance, if Mars were in Capricorn in the natal chart but in Cancer on the solar return. Note that this configuration is impossible with the return Sun, Mercury, or Venus (except in regards to their twelfth-part positions).
2nd Rule: Transit of Out of Sect Malefic to Natal Sect Light or Benefic is Difficult
This pertains to the out of sect malefic of the natal chart transiting to the sign containing the sect light or sect benefic in the natal chart. For instance, take a person born by day with Sun or Jupiter in Sagittarius. If the solar return Mars is in Sagittarius this would indicate difficulty concerning those placements. From Dorotheus (Book IV, Ch. 1, #188, Pingree trans., 2005): “It is worse for this [native] and more difficult in its maleficence if Mars is reaching the place in which Jupiter or the Sun was by day, or [if] Saturn is reaching the place in which the Moon was by night.”
3rd Rule: Watch Malefic Squares and Oppositions, and Benefic Trines
Overall, it is good when a malefic (Saturn or Mars) is in a whole sign trine to its natal position. It is generally difficult if the malefic is in a whole sign opposition or square to its natal position, particularly if dominating the natal position. It is also good if a return benefic (Jupiter or Venus) is in a dominating position to a natal malefic. If dominating a return malefic, it is also likely to ease the difficulty. Similarly, it is good when the benefics are trine their natal positions. However, it is difficult when the malefics are trine the natal positions of the benefics. For instance, take one with Mars in Gemini. It would be good for Mars to be in Libra or Aquarius at the return. Furthermore, it is especially good if return Venus were in Pisces because that sign is in a dominating position to Gemini.
4th Rule: Watch Transits to Dark Places of the Natal Chart
It is difficult when a return planet is in a place (i.e. house) of the nativity which is bad. This is especially so if it also occupies such a place in the natal chart. According to Dorotheus (Book I, Ch. 5), the best places are the 1st, 10th, 11th, 5th, 7th, 4th, and 9th, in that order. The worst places are the 6th and 12th, while the 8th, 2nd, and 3rd are moderately bad (from worst to least bad).
For instance, take one born with Aquarius rising and Mars in Capricorn. It will be particularly bad if Mars is in Capricorn (natal 12th) or Cancer (natal 6th) in the return. Cancer would be the most difficult as it would also be opposed its natal position (see above). It could also be difficult if Mars is in Virgo (natal 8th), Pisces (natal 2nd), or Aries (natal 3rd). Of those placements, Aries would be more difficult due to the square to the natal position, while Virgo would be least difficult due to the trine to natal position.
5th Rule: The Natal and Return Moon are Particularly Important
The house of the return Moon is a focal area, as are return planets reaching the house occupied by the natal Moon. The Moon is particularly important for health. Overall, the idea is that the return Moon with benefic natal planets shows good things,while with malefic natal planets shows bad things. It is similar when return benefics and malefics reach the place of the natal Moon.
Dorotheus notes many miscellaneous indications for the Moon. The return Moon with natal Mercury shows work pertaining to the signification of natal Mercury. Solar return Moon in natal 1st can show health danger. The solar return Moon in natal 10th shows public events which are good or bad in accordance with influence of benefics and malefics. Return Moon in natal 7th shows success over enemies. Solar return Moon in natal 4th shows secret matters and/or success with writing a will.
Overall, these four whole sign places, also called the angles or stakes of the chart (the 1st, 10th, 7th, and 4th), give indications regarding important life matters. For instance, take one born with Pisces rising and Saturn as the out of sect malefic in the natal 10th (Sagittarius). The Moon transiting in Sagittarius in the return could be indicative of some difficult public event, and even of health problems pertaining to cold or depletion.
6th Rule: Annual Profection of the Ascendant Shows the Most Important Places
The natal and return factors in the sign of the annual profection of the Ascendant are particularly important. The ruler of the annual profection is also highlighted, both in terms of return transits to it and in terms of its solar return placement.
Solar returns were meant to be used with profections as part of a suite of annual predictive techniques. Therefore, the fourth book of Dorotheus explains both profections and solar returns. For example, Dorotheus noted, “If the year reaches the sign in which Saturn was and Saturn is in it or aspects if from trine or quartile [i.e. square] or the seventh [i.e. opposition], then the native will have a bad reputation, and there will reach him folly and injury and hostility from men …” (Book IV, Ch. 1, #23, Pingree trans., 2005).
I will examine the return by look first at the annual profection and indications related to it from the natal and return, then the impact concerning the angles of the chart and the Lights, especially the Moon. For each example, ignore the numbers on the outside of the chart, as those are for the house positions in the return chart itself, which Dorotheus ignored.
Example 1: 10th House Mars Opposed Natal 4th House Mars
Example 1
Mercury-Saturn and the Profection
Example 1 (above) is the 1958 return of someone born in 1935, and thus is that of someone who has turned 23. Age 23 signals an annual profection of the Ascendant to the 12th place, Gemini, ruled by and natally occupied by Mercury.
Mercury in the return is transiting in the natal 2nd, which is considered one of the bad places. Natally, Mercury is in the 12th, which is considered one of the worst places. Therefore, by rule #4, we are getting the sense that the year could be difficult for this native, relating to Mercurial themes of movement and communication. Furthermore, the out of sect malefic Saturn, is transiting through the 6th of the natal, opposing Mercury. This is difficult in itself given Mercury’s status as lord of the year, but it also emphasizes the natal configuration of Saturn dominating Mercury. Natally, Saturn in IX dominates Mercury, and IX concerns religion and foreign influence. Saturn transiting in the 6th in the return dominates (right-hand square) natal Saturn, exacerbating the maleficence of Saturn (see rule #3).
Influence of Venus
The transit of Venus through the sign of the profection, Gemini, is mixed. She is the sect benefic and has influence upon the lord of the year. Venus provides a positive and protective indication but she is transiting through one of the worst places (the 12th), and occupies a bad place natally (the 2nd). She rules the 4th of land and origins and the 11th of friends and aid, so she connects the native with those themes.
Example 1
4th House Mars and the Angles
Both Jupiter and Mars are transiting in natal angles. Jupiter in the 4th, where natal Mars is, signifies some degree of fortune as concerns land, origins, and workings in secret. However, Mars is opposed to it and opposed to its natal position (see rule #1). This activates the worst of the difficulty signified by Mars in the 4th. With return Mars in the rather public and authority-oriented 10th, it is bringing violence from on high from authority. Additionally, return Mars is in a dominating position to the natal Sun, signifying the threat of violence to the native.
Return Moon in IX with Saturn
The return Moon is in the 9th of foreign influence and religion.It is with natal Saturn, the out of sect malefic. This is a sign of great difficulty and threat. The Moon and the 9th naturally signify journeys, so it suggests a focus on a journey, with great difficulty.
Dalai Lama XIV
Example 1 was the chart of the 14th Dalai Lama (chart rated A for accuracy). The solar return is that which preceded his fleeing his country, Tibet, which he had previously ruled. He fled in fear of his life to his exile in India, amid the spring 1959 Tibetan uprising.
Example 2: 7th House Saturn Opposes Natal 1st House Saturn
Example 2
1st House Profection Ruled by 11th House Jupiter
Example 2 is the chart of someone turning 72, and as 72 is a multiple of 12. Therefore, the annual profection was to the 1st place, Pisces. Pisces is occupied by natal Saturn and ruled by Jupiter. Jupiter, the lord of the profection is returning to its natal position in the 11th. The 11th is Jupiter’ joy and this is a great placement, significant for popularity, friends, aid, and so forth. This person is a movie star and did in fact have a dozen films in the works in the year under consideration.
Saturn, the 1st House Occupant
Deeper inspection reveals that not only is natal Saturn highlighted by the profection to the 1st, but Saturn is also transiting in an angle, the natal 7th, pertaining to partnership and sexuality. Saturn is opposed to its natal position (see rule #1). The natal Sun is additionally dominated by that angular Saturn in the 7th (as is Mercury). Therefore, we find Saturn (constriction, death) in the house of partnership and sexuality (VII) activating the adverse indications for the body (I) and reputation (Sun in X) signified by the natal partile Sun-Saturn square.
Return Mars in the 10th
Looking at other angular factors, we find that return Mars, the out of sect malefic, is in the 10th and actually conjunct the Sun within a degree. Given the affliction of the 1st house and the Sun by both malefics, we are seeing some major indications of danger to the health and reputation.
Example 2
Return Moon
Examining the Moon we find that it is in the 2nd, ruled by Mars. The Moon is opposed to its natal position (see rule #1). It is also in a bad place (2nd) and occupies a bad place in the natal chart (8th). Additionally, in the natal chart she is in the 8th pertaining to death and she is with Mars, the out of sect malefic. Mars (violence) with the Moon (physicality) is a natal indication of bodily harm. The return Moon’s opposition to that configuration while under the rulership of Mars (Scorpio) reinforces the difficult natal indications in that regard. Therefore, we have strong indications of threat to health in the chart.
David Carradine
Example 2 is the chart of David Carradine (chart AA rated for accuracy). His 2008 solar return preceded his death by autoerotic asphyxiation. His manner of death had a particularly damning effect upon the public image he left behind.
Example 3: Out of Sect Saturn Conjoins Natal Sun
Example 3
I will briefly touch on one more chart to emphasize the difficulty of return malefics with Lights. Example 2 had return Mars (out of sect malefic) conjoin the Sect Light (Sun) reflecting Rule 2.
Profections Alone Are Not Enough
Example 3 is the 1994 return of someone born in 1967, thus 27 years of age, in a 4th place profection. From the profection alone, the indications appear to be largely positive. Jupiter is lord of the profection and natally is in its joy in the 11th. However, the solar return reveals a different story. What is striking about the return is the occurrence of a conjunction of transiting Saturn to the Sun within a degree in an angle of the chart. Additionally, Saturn is returning to its natal place and the return Moon is square to natal Saturn (and all the other planets in Pisces).
Kurt Cobain
Example 3 is the chart of Kurt Cobain (rated A for accuracy). The solar return is the one from 1994, which preceded his suicide.
Return Malefic to Natal Light
This theme of a close conjunction between a malefic and a Light occurs with some frequency in returns that precede death, even those by suicide. It can strongly indicate a threat to health, even from one’s own self! For instance, Ilya Zhitomirskiy, one of the founders of the social network Diaspora, had a similar tight Sun-Saturn conjunction in the return preceding his own suicide. I wrote about that configuration at the end of my article on Diaspora.
Conclusion
So far, I’ve only looked at a few solar return examples, and very briefly. From Dorotheus we learn that returns can be significant as a set of transits to the natal chart itself. The natal angles, the Lights, and the annual profection help to guide our way and show which significations are most important. Dorotheus looked at the overall influence of the benefics and malefics. He paid particular attention to the role of sect, house, and aspect in modifying indications for better or worse. Later astrologers would expand on these notions. In the medieval period, the houses and Ascendant of the return itself also came to be important. However, the guidelines laid out by Dorotheus provide us with a solid foundation from which to start our examination of the year from the solar return.
References
Dorotheus of Sidon. (2005). Carmen Astrologicum. (D. Pingree, Trans.). Abingdon, MD: Astrology Center of America.
This article was edited for clarity on 12/16/2018. Some additional links were also added at that time including a link to a superior translation of Dorotheus which was published after the original publication of this article.
This article was significantly updated in April of 2018.
Primary Directions Buzz
Few techniques are accompanied by more hype than primary directions. Late traditional astrology was a time when the complexity of an astrologer’s mathematical abilities were more important than the veracity of one’s predictions. It is little wonder that primary directions were the key predictive technique of the era and that they grew increasingly complex.
I often hear it said that primary directions are the key to predicting the time of death. Also, that a type of primary directions can time out all of the major events in a person’s life to the very day that they occur. Additionally, because of the last belief, I’ve heard that birth times need to be rectified (even if recorded with a stopwatch at birth) so that important life events line up with primary directions to the exact day.
Primary Directions in Ancient Astrology
While primary directions are over-hyped, they are an important addition to the astrologer’s predictive toolbox. They also have their origins in Hellenistic astrology and were popular in Persian medieval astrology. Directions through the bounds and directions to angles, especially the Ascendant, were the earliest types of directions used. They are also among the most important types of directions.
I feel that it is best to start from the beginning, with the way primary directions were used in early Hellenistic astrology. We will progress gradually from there. I will not explore the increasingly diverse approaches to primary directions that arise during and after the Renaissance. I’m of the rather cynical opinion that the reader will be better off for that.
According to Martin Gansten who wrote the definitive text on the subject, prior to the 15th century, directions were always in the zodiac (i.e. in zodiaco as opposed to in mundo), without latitude, used semi-arc proportions, and without any relationship to particular system of quadrant house division (Gansten, 2009, p. 61). That dispenses with about 90% of possible software settings for primary directions. Let’s keep it simple and stick with primary directions as they were done for about the first 1500 years of horoscopic astrology.
What are Primary Directions?
As you’ve probably heard, the Earth spins once around over a 24 hour period. The planets rise, culminate, and set with this spin. The apparent motion of the planets as they rise, culminate, and set with this spin is called their primary motion.
The Primary Motion of the Planets and Signs
Now imagine we were to freeze copies of the positions of the planets in the sky relative to the Earth at the moment of birth. Then we were to let everything spin as usual and watch the planetary conjunctions and aspects that occur in the sky relative to those copies as the day goes on, with the planets continuing to rise, culminate, and set. If we did this we would see planets arrive at (i.e. be directed to) our birth planets and our birth angles by the primary motion. These are the primary directions of the planets.
The clock time that it would take for these conjunctions and aspects to occur is the timing of these directions. For instance, we may say that 4 minutes of elapsed clock time is symbolic of 1 year of life.
Right Ascension
The 24 hours of spin is given a constant measure called Right Ascension (RA), such that 30 degrees of RA pass over the Meridian of the location in exactly 2 hours of clock time. Therefore, 360 degrees of right ascension passes over the meridian in 24 hours. Since 24 hours equals 1,440 minutes, each of the 360 degrees corresponds to about 4 minutes of clock time (i.e. 1,440/360=4). In other words, if a planet were to culminate (i.e. reach the MC) 8 minutes of clock time after birth, then we’d convert this to degrees of RA as being a direction to the MC 2 degrees (of RA) after birth.
The Annual Key
To convert these degrees of RA into years of life, we use an annual key. The original key is 1 degree of RA equals 1 year of life. This key is sometimes called the Ptolemaic key. However, it was not Ptolemy that originally used it. This is the annual key used for primary directions until about the Renaissance, and thus it’s the only one we’ll use. Remember, 1 degree of RA = 1 year of life = 4 minutes of clock time.
Smaller Units of Time
We now know that 1 degree of RA is symbolic of 1 year of life, but there are 365.25 days in a year, so how much RA is a day? 1 degree is equivalent to 60 minutes of a degree which is equivalent to 3,600 seconds of a degree. By dividing 3,600 by 365.25 we get that a day is about 9.86 seconds of a degree of right ascension.
We really don’t need that sort of precision, as primary directions are not the appropriate technique for timing to the day anyway. When we do want greater precision we can let a good software program do the calculation for us. It was common practice in the ancient world to approximate with a 360 day year. This would give an even approximation of 10 seconds of a degree for one day (i.e. 3,600/360=10) and 5 minutes of a degree for one month (i.e. 10 seconds * 30 = 300 seconds = 5 minutes).
Estimating Primary Directions to Angles with Astro-Clocks
Because about 4 minutes of clock time is equal to a year of life by primary directions, one can actually use an astro-clock to find key years quickly. Look at the time in minutes that it takes from birth to when a planet conjoins or aspects an angle of the chart. Take that time, divide by 4, and you will get a rough approximation of the year (and quarter) when an event is likely to occur. Out of all of the primary directions that are aspect-based (as opposed to the time lords discussed below), these directions to the angles are the most pivotal, especially the direct hits. It is handy to be able to approximate these with an astro-clock or by manually time adjusting a chart.
Example: Kurt Cobain
The divorce of Kurt Cobain’s parents when he was seven years old is often cited as a very influential event in his life. Looking at his natal chart we see that Jupiter is the ruler of his 4th of family, and that Venus (one significator of the mother in the chart) is conjunct Saturn in his natal chart. This Venus-Saturn conjunction was a particularly significant combination in his musical career, his marriage to Courtney Love, and his suicide.
Kurt Cobain’s Natal Chart
30 Minutes After Birth = 7.5 Years
Sure enough, about a half hour (about 30 / 4 = about 7.5) after Kurt’s birth Jupiter, ruler of the 4th, exactly aspects the Descendant, and Venus conjoins the Descendant. The setting of Venus is more significant here because it is a direction to the horizon itself, rather than a direction of an aspect of a planet to the horizon (the Jupiter direction is from the trine of Jupiter to the horizon). While a traumatic parental separation may not strike one as a particularly Venus and Jupiter type of event, Jupiter, in Cancer and ruling the 4th shows the emphasis on parents, and Venus, being conjunct Saturn, shows the effect on his sense of relationships, and the loss and burden associated with that.
30 Minutes after Cobain’s Birth
48 Minutes After Birth = 12 Years
At age 12, his mother granted full custody to his father. Age 12 would correspond to about 48 minutes after birth (4*12=48), and sure enough Saturn sets in the chart about 48 minutes after birth. The setting of Saturn rounds out the impact of this very powerful Jupiter-Venus-Saturn configuration coming due by direction to the Descendant.
Play with Astro-Clocking
I invite the reader to take a few minutes to play around with this on one’s own chart and other working charts. I want you to get a rough idea of when directions to angles occur in the life, especially those that are complex configurations involving a series of hits over a few years. Think in terms of natal significations that could be unlocked by the prominence that lining up with angles can bring.
Early Primary Directions
According to Gansten (2009, p. 11), there is evidence of the use of primary directions as far back as the 1st century CE. They appear in the Carmen Astrologicum of Dorotheus and possibly also in a paraphrase of the early 1st century CE astrologer Balbillus.
There are three things that you should know about the earliest primary directions:
There is an exclusive focus on the Ascendant.
The rising of the bounds of a sign give rise to a time lord of the period and this bound lord sets the tone of the period.
Directions of planets to the Ascendant and planetary aspects to the Ascendant mark transitory events.
As noted in the series of lessons, the Ascendant is symbolic of the self, so this focus on the Ascendant makes sense. As with the metaphorical journey of the self through the houses by profection of the Ascendant, the directed Ascendant shows a journey of the self through the bounds of the planets. Directed aspects to the Ascendant show the self encountering significant sets of circumstances.
Directing through the Bounds
This second point about directing the Ascendant through the bounds was lost to later traditional astrology. Today, primary directions are used as a suped-up set of transits rather than as a time lord system. However, this was a critical facet of this technique from the beginning right on through the Persian period. During the Persian medieval period, the bound lord of the directed Ascendant is known as the jarbakhtar (distributor of time, much like the Greek chronocrator). In Hellenistic and Persian astrology, this use of directions appears to have been given more stress than the aspectual type.
The bounds used were the Egyptian bounds. Note that the “Egyptian” bounds were the only set which were widespread and independently attested in multiple Hellenistic sources, and are rooted farther back in Mesopotamian astrology. You can find a table of Egyptian bounds online at Altair Astrology’s blog here, or download a free pdf of the bounds and more from Project Hindsight here.
Astro-clocking can be used to roughly estimate the distributor as well. Simply note the time it takes for the Ascendant to change bounds.
Dorotheus on Directing through the Bounds
When Dorotheus directed the Ascendant through the bounds in Book III, Ch. 2 of Carmen, he emphasized both the bound lord and planets aspecting the bound. For instance, when the Ascendant reaches 24-30 degrees of Scorpio, the bound of Saturn, he gives the distribution to Saturn and Venus. Venus in the chart is at 27 degrees Leo, aspecting the bound, so Venusian events occur. Overall, the period is marked by difficult Saturnian events though.
I would interpret the bound lord as the overall distributor characterizing many key events which take place over the period, The aspecting planet then comes to the forefront and characterizes important during the year when the aspect is close. Study the following excerpt of Dorotheus (Book III, Ch. 2, 2017, Dykes trans., p. 193; note that information in {} brackets is mine):
Then the distribution reached Saturn, and Venus cast rays to 27° of Scorpio from the square: so Saturn and Venus governed this distribution together. {…} And because of the place of Saturn his mother died in that time, and he acquired goods because Saturn indicated these {Saturn was in the 2nd}, and he will marry a woman with a dowry, and a child will be born to him ([and]live a little bit, and die) in the third year; so his joy will be from women and children due to Venus, and his weeping and the death of his children due to Saturn.
Distributor Sets the Tone
In this case, the native has many difficult events occur as the main distributor is Saturn. This is due to the natural significations of Saturn as well as his indications in the chart. In the chart, Saturn is in the 2nd, rules the 3rd and 4th, dominates the 5th, and is closely dominated by an out of sect Mars who squares him within a degree. However, around the 3rd year, when the aspect of Venus is effective, he marries and has children. Venus naturally signifies marriage, she rules the 7th and is the exalted ruler of the 5th, and she is in the 10th house where she confers children. Thereafter, misery strikes again with the death of the child due to the fact that Saturn is still the distributor.
Estimating Ascendant Directions with Ascensional Times
The ecliptic is at an angle to the horizon, so signs rise somewhat diagonally. For this reason, they take more or less than 2 hours to rise, rather than a steady 2 hours per sign. The length of time it takes for a given sign to rise depends on the latitude of the location, and this length of time is measured in Right Ascension (RA). You will recall that 1 degree of RA is basically 4 minutes of clock time. Therefore, if a sign rose uniformly, then all 30 degrees of the sign would rise in 30 degrees of RA or 2 hours (30 degrees RA * 4 minutes clock time = 120 minutes clock time).
What are Ascensional Times?
When a sign takes longer than 2 hours to rise, it is called a sign of long ascension. Let’s say it rose in 3 hours, then we’d call this 3 hours its “ascensional time” for that latitude. However, we want to express the ascensional time in RA. 2 hours of clock time is 30 degrees RA, so 3 hours of clock time would be 45 degrees RA. Therefore, the ascensional time for that sign which took 3 hours at that latitude would be 45 degrees of RA.
Ascensional Times as the Years of the Signs
The ascensional times of the signs for the latitude of birth are important to know. They are used in various Hellenistic predictive methods. The ancient key of 1 year for each degree of RA was used in multiple ways in Hellenistic astrology. For instance, an activation of the sign in the chart was thought to occur around the same number of years as the ascensional time of the sign. In our 45 degree sign example, we might expect some special activation of that sign in the birth chart at 45 years of age.
Ascensional Times in Valens
For instance, in Book II, Ch. 2 of Anthology, Valens advised to look at the sect light and its triplicity lords to assess if one has an overall fortunate life or not. The position of the sect light itself is important, but the triplicity lords, which typically indicate supportive influences, preside over certain periods of life. The first triplicity lord assists in the first period of life, with the second taking over after that, and then the third after that. Valens instructs that the time that the first triplicity lord rules is either its minor years or the ascensional time of the sign it occupies.
For nativities which are badly situated (whether day or night births), if the predominant houseruler is unfavorably located, but its successor is at an angle or otherwise configured well, the native will experience ups and downs during his early years or until the rising time of the sign or until the cyclical return of the chronocrator, but will afterwards be vigorous and effective–except for being unsteady and anxious. (Valens, Book II. Ch. 2, 2010, Riley trans., p. 25)
There are many other areas in the Anthology in which Valens uses the ascensional times of the signs. See for instance Book II, Ch. 28, Book III, Ch. 14-15, Book IV, Ch. 29, and throughout much of Book 7. The examples in Book VII are particularly revealing as he considered the age corresponding to the ascensional time of the sign to activate events symbolized by planets in and aspecting the sign. He also does quite a bit of adding the ascensional times of the signs to the minor years of the planets in or aspecting the sign to show combined activation.
Ascensional Times in Primary Directions
Additionally, the ascensional times were used to estimate primary directions pertaining to the Ascendant. They were also sometimes used as a sort of rough symbolic direction of other points, even though it is not astronomically correct to use them for directing other points. Gansten (2009, p. 14) mentioned that at least Valens and Paulus Alexandrinus employed this short cut method. The method is as follows: take the ascensional time of the sign, divide it by 30, and use that as a conversion unit for the RA of one zodiacal degree of the sign.
To better understand how this is done, the reader will have to first obtain a table of sign ascensional times for the latitudes. One such table is available from Project Hindsight for free as the last pdf link on this page. Please download that table at this time and refer to it for the discussion in the next few paragraphs.
Calculate Kurt Cobain’s Directions by Ascensional Times
Let’s return to Kurt Cobain. He was born at about 47 North, for latitude, and his Ascendant is Virgo. At the intersection of latitude 47 and the sign Virgo, you will find the ascensional time of 40°29′. Dividing by 30 we get 1°21′ or 1.35°, which is our conversion factor. In other words, while the Ascendant is in Virgo, we pretend that 1° of zodiacal longitude is equivalent to 1.35 years of life (about 1 year, 4 months, and 1 week).
Bounds of Virgo
Kurt’s Ascendant is at 20 Virgo in the bound of Jupiter but the bound switches to that of Mars in a degree, and thus at about age 1 year, 4 months. Mars rules that time in the life until the Ascendant enters the bound of Saturn which starts at 28 Virgo, 8 degrees past the Ascendant. We calculate the entry into the Saturn bound as 8*1.35=10.8 years, or about 10 years and 9 1/2 months of age. In other words, from about age 1 1/2 until almost age 11, Mars is the lord of the time, and will set the tone for events. The Saturn bound lasts for 2 degrees, or 2.7 years (1.35*2=2.7), until he is about 13 1/2. After that point the Ascendant enters the first bound of Libra, which is another Saturn bound.
Bounds of Libra
When entering a new sign we have to find the conversion factor for the new sign. However, in this case it is easy, because Virgo and Libra have the same ascensional times, and thus the same conversion factor. That Mars and Saturn as time lords set the tone during Kurt’s childhood for the other directions is significant, particularly in relation to our speculations about the meaning of the Jupiter and Venus directions above.
Aspects
We can do the same thing for aspects to the Ascendant. The Ascendant is at 20 Virgo and Saturn is at 28°44′ (about 28.75) Pisces. When 28°44′ Virgo rises this direction of Saturn opposite the Ascendant (same direction we mentioned as occurring around age 12 above on astro-clocking) will be complete. Therefore, we are interested in the age that corresponds to about 8.75 degrees of zodiacal longitude. Multiplying by our Virgo conversion factor for this latitude of 1.35, we get 11.8 years of age for the setting of Saturn, which is pretty close to the estimate we got by astro-clocking.
Quick Pen and Paper Primary Directions
Hopefully, you now have a good grasp of how the sign conversion factors can be used to convert zodiacal distance into years of life. This is simply a rough estimate because each sign does not rise at a constant rate. It is not precisely accurate to equate any arbitrary zodiacal degree of Virgo with the same particular unit of time. However, it is useful when you don’t have access to a program that can calculate primary directions or even an astro-clock.
Directing through the Bounds with Free Software
In a future article, I’ll give more details about finding primary directions with free software. However, I want to leave the reader with at least the chance to create and print off tables for the Ascendant jarbakhtar periods of any chart. This is done with the free open-source traditional astrology program Traditional Morinus.
I won’t get into the details of installing the program and entering basic chart data here because I’ve addressed it in this prior post, and further in this one. If you are new to Morinus, please check out those posts. Please download, install, and get a chart in there, before continuing on.
OK, now that you have a birth chart up, you should have a screen that somewhat resembles the following:
Settings
First, let’s set the Key. Click Options, then Primary Keys (or press SHIFT-K). Select “Static” and select “Ptolemy” from the list, then click OK.
Second, let’s set the other Primary Directions options for some traditional Ascendant through the bounds type of directions. Click Options, then Primary Directions (or press SHIFT-D). Make sure your selections look as follows. You can do this by deselecting everything (by clicking “reset”) and then selecting the options shown (Terms as the only promissor; Conjunction as the only aspect; Asc as the only significator). Recall that semiarc and zodiacal without latitude are the standard approaches prior to the Renaissance.
Pulling Up the Distributors
Now we are ready to calculate the tables. Go to Tables in the top menu, then Primary Directions. You might as well check 0-100. Make sure only Direct is checked. Converse here are actually not traditional converse primary directions at all, but a sort of reverse primary direction where we imagine that the signs are moving across the sky in reverse (i.e. moving opposite the primary motion), so they are a very weird modern experimental thing which we we’ll ignore, always choosing Direct.
When you hit OK, you should end up with a Table of primary directions of the Ascendant through bounds.
Example: Whitney Houston’s Death
For the example below, I pulled up the jarbakhtars for Whitney Houston from Age 25-50.
One thing that we notice is that for the period from April 18, 2009 until March 3, 2013, the Ascendant directs through the Saturn bound of Taurus (22 to 27 Taurus). This tells us that Saturn is jarbakhtar for the period and sets the tone as a time lord. Saturn characterizes very significant events as it is located in her 12th House, opposite her natal Sun. Houston died during the period on Feb. 11, 2012. For some more on the importance of Saturn in the timing of her death, please see the article on her death.
Whitney Houston’s Natal Chart
Pulling Up Distributors and Aspects
As mentioned above, the distributor (bound lord) and the aspectual directions to the Ascendant were typically looked at together. These primary directions are the most important ones due to the symbolic nature of the Ascendant, so I highly recommend that you save a table which includes just these directions for your own chart and all the charts you analyze.
Let’s pull up the table. Go back into primary directions options (press SHIFT-D). Now you will need to check some additional promissors and aspects, but everything else will remain the same. For promissors, check all of the 7 classical planets (Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury Moon). Also, check that the secondary motion of the Moon is accounted for (i.e. check Sec. Motion). For aspects, check Conjunction, Sextile, Square, Trine, and Opposition.
Example: Trump’s Political Rise
Let’s pull up the table of directions for the Ascendant for ages 50-75 for Donald Trump (birth data AA rated).
We find that the Ascendant is in Libra, going through the bounds of Jupiter, Venus, and Mars during the final 20 years of the period (ages 55-75). Libra is ruled by Venus (ruler of the MC) and occupied by Jupiter (ruler of the 5th house of children) in the natal chart. Interestingly, Jupiter is located in the bound of Jupiter, and Venus strongly aspects her own Venus bound in the sign, so both planets make eventful aspects during their distributorships.
Trump’s Natal Chart with Twelfth-Parts (outer wheel) – CTRL-Click to enlarge
Jupiter Distribution
The Jupiter distribution from 2002-2010 saw a number of important Jupiterian events in his life, especially as it relates to Jupiter’s position in the 3rd house and rulership of the 5th house. Also, there is the presence of twelfth-part of Mercury in the Jupiter bound.
Trump became a television star with the start of the Apprentice in 2004. He married his third wife in 2005. However, the most important period is when the aspect of Jupiter aspects his bound, which is in 2006 and sees the birth of his fifth child.
Venus Distribution
By 2011, Trump is in his Venus distribution. Venus rules the 10th house of rank and authority and she has her twelfth-part in the 10th house. There is a strong orientation toward political leadership during the period.
This is a particularly important bound. It is aspected by 5 planets, including its ruler (Venus), both lights (Sun and Moon), and both malefic (Saturn and Mars). The fact that the lights aspect the bound highlights themes of leadership and authority shown by the fact that the ruler of the MC (Venus) also rules and aspects the bound. Saturn and Mars highlight that this is also going to be one of the most difficult periods.
Trump has had a political aspirations as various points in his life, but his real political career within the Republic party kicks off in 2011 during this period. It kicks of with a 2011 CPAC speaking engagement. After that engagement, his political contributions, which had been mixed but mainly to Democrats, decidedly shifted to Republican candidates.
In 2013, with aspects from the Sun and Moon within a degree, the political direction intensifies. We see our first intimations of candidate Trump. While Trump does not announce his candidacy until 2015, Trump spends a million dollars in 2013 to research a possible presidential run and is a popular featured speaker at CPAC. His popularity with the conservative base takes off.
However, the most important period is when Venus aspects her bound. The aspect is exact in January of 2017 and sees Trump sworn in as the President of the USA.
Conclusion
If you’ve found primary directions to be confusing or overly intimidating in the past, I hope I’ve helped to make them clear. In the next article, we’ll delve a little deeper into the use of primary directions.
References
Dorotheus of Sidon, & al-Tabari, U. (2017). Carmen Astrologicum: The ’Umar al-Tabari Translation. (B. N. Dykes, Trans.). Minneapolis, Minn.,: The Cazimi Press.
Gansten, M. (2009). Primary Directions: Astrology’s Old Master Technique. Bournemouth, England: The Wessex Astrologer Ltd.
Synastry is the art of comparing the astrological birth charts of two or more people. Typically, this is done for relationship insight. We look for complimentary strengths, personality compatibility, and possible conflict or contention.
You may be familiar with the idea of Sun sign compatibility. This has been popularized by newspaper horoscopes and popular books like Linda Goodman’s “Love Signs”. However, you may not have known that synastry was used in the earliest chart-based astrology (Hellenistic astrology). An analysis of marriage and friendship often involved some amount of synastry.
Sources for Ancient Synastry
I’ll be exploring a few of the basics of synastry as found in Dorotheus’s Carmen (1st century CE), Ptolemy‘s Tetrabiblos (2nd century CE), and Masha’allah‘s The Book of Aristotle (8th century CE).
Carmen of Dorotheus can be picked up here. An English translation of the Tetrabiblos can be found online here. The interested reader will want to refer to Book IV, Ch. 5, “On Marriage”.
The first and only English translation of Masha’allah’s The Book of Aristotle was made by Dr. Ben Dykes in 2009. The Book of Aristotle is a mammoth indispensable work covering all aspects of natal delineation, It was published with Abu’Ali‘s On the Judgments of Nativities as the first volume of the “Persian Nativities” series, which you can purchase here. I’ll be referring to Book 3, Ch. 7, Section 11, “On the concord and esteem of each”. It is assumed that the author is Masha’allah, but Dykes has recently speculated that the author could al-Andarzaghar (another astrologer of the period).
Both Ptolemy and Masha’allah place a premium on the relationships between the Sun, Moon, and Venus, both in the natal chart and between charts.
Sun-Moon
For Ptolemy, the Sun in a woman’s chart is particularly significant for describing a husband and facets of her marriage. The Moon in a man’s chart describes the wife and facets of his marriage. Harmony between the Sun and Moon was very important for marriage. Ptolemy does not neatly separate out natal and synastry factors, but rather seems to refer often to both and sometimes to one or the other. He appears to refer to synastry when he says “by exchange” in the following passage.
Marriages for the most part are lasting when in both the genitures the luminaries happen to be in harmonious aspect, that is, in trine or in sextile with one another, and particularly when this comes about by exchange; and even more when the husband’s moon is in such aspect with the wife’s sun. Divorces on slight pretexts and complete alienations occur when the aforesaid positions of the luminaries are in disjunct signs, or in opposition or in quartile. (Ptolemy, Tetrabiblos, Book IV, Ch. 5, Robbins trans., 1940, p. 184-185)
Natal Sun-Moon Harmony
My sense is that this consideration of harmony between the luminaries is more important in synastry than the natal chart. I believe that harmony between the Sun and Moon in a natal chart is symbolic of harmony between the sexes and/or parents. Perhaps co-presence, trines, and sextiles are symbolic of a natural harmony between two partners, sexes, or gender roles. This could relate to a sense that partners should get together and deepen bonds. Squares and oppositions draw out a symbolism of dynamism and possible tension and conflict. Aversion between the lights symbolize a detachment between them.
Natal Sun-Moon in Examples
Courtney Love’s Natal Chart
Looking at this consideration in the charts of Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain we’d conclude that there is strong impetus for both to be in a serious relationship. Courtney’s Sun and Moon are co-present in Cancer. Kurt’s Sun and Moon are trine across Pisces and Cancer. There is a symbolism of partners sticking together and deepening bonds, a harmony and glue between the sexes, gender roles, or partners. For Kurt, particularly, with his Sun-Moon trine, this relates to his desire for a lasting long-term traditional relationship, as well as disappointment in his parents for failing to uphold such a relationship.
Kurt Cobain’s Natal Chart
Moon-Venus Natal Harmony
Masha’allah, following Dorotheus, stressed the relationship between the Moon and Venus in both the natal chart and synastry. He noted that “the traversal of Venus and the Moon in the same sign denotes the insoluable concord of the conjugal agreement” (Masha’allah, The Book of Aristotle, Book III, Ch. 7.11, Dykes trans., 2009, p. 149).
Dorotheus noted in Book II, Ch. 5 of Carmen, “Similarly [does it happen] if you find that wherever is the Venus of one of the two [marriage partners], there is the Moon of the other, especially if the Moon of one of the two is in trine with the Moon of the other” (Pingree trans., 2005, p. 206). Therefore, regards between the Moon and Venus are important, and especially their co-presence in the same sign.
The strength of the Moon-Venus relationship is perhaps symbolic of personal and emotional investment in love. In many authors, such as Firmicus Maternus, it is said to indicate heightened investment in sexual activity in the natal chart, especially when the Moon separates from or applies to Venus.
Intimate and Sexual
Where Sun and Moon may show partnership in a more idealistic, general, abstract form (i.e. along the lines of husband and wife), this is perhaps shows the more personal desire for intimacy. In some authors, strong Moon-Venus connections (together with other factors) come up in relation to incest, such as with the mother. This again relates to the personal life, nurture, familiarity, and even emotional fulfillment (Moon) being linked with love, beauty, and sexuality (Venus). Relationship bonds can be shaken by a lack of sexual intimacy and affectionate personal space. Perhaps Masha’allah’s stress on Moon-Venus connections for strength of bond relates to this sense.
Moon-Venus in Examples
The Moon and Venus are in aversion (disregard each other) in Courtney Love’s chart. They are in trine (powerful harmony) in Kurt Cobain’s chart. This could symbolize that it is more natural for Kurt that intimate familiarity go hand-in-hand with sexuality and affection. For Courtney, they may be more disconnected facets of life.
The regards of benefics and malefics (as well as house placement and other factors) are also examined in the literature. For instance, that Saturn, the out of sect malefic in Kurt’s chart, is with the Sun and Venus (strongly conjunct Venus), may be indicative of weight, isolation, and melancholy in relationships. It may also indicate the sorrow of the husband (or father) in the relationship, as opposed to the idealized wife shown through Moon-Jupiter. Courtney’s own Mars-Venus indicates things getting heated surrounding love and sexuality, including contentions and aggression related to such matters.
Sun, Moon, Venus, and the Angles in Synastry
There are many ways to delineate aspects of marriage and love from the natal chart. I’ve mentioned the ones above because they are used by Ptolemy and Masha’allah as springboards into looking at the same factors in synastry.
Intense and harmonious connections between the Lights (esp. man’s Moon and woman’s Sun) and between the Moon and Venus in synastry indicate strong bonds between partners. Squares, oppositions, and aversions between them can indicate problems, especially if malefics are involved.
The Stakes in Synastry
Additionally, the “stakes” (1st, 10th, 7th, and 4th places, also known as “angles” or “pivots”) of the charts are very important. When the same signs are angles or the above mentioned planets are in each other’s angles, it increases the bond. See the following quotes from Dorotheus and Masha’allah (drawing on Dorotheus).
The man is suitable for the woman and the woman for the man if the ascendent[s] of these two are the same cardine. If the two luminaries or one of the two is in the ascendent or midheaven, then also it is suitable. (Dorotheus, Carmen Astrologicum, Book II, Ch. 5, Pingree trans., 2005, p. 205)
Which if each Sun, under the birthdays of both, would be lingering in the same sign and in a pivot, it promises [the same]. (Masha’allah, The Book of Aristotle, Book III, Ch. 7.11, Dykes trans., 2009, p. 149)
Malefics and Benefics in Synastry
All three authors, Dorotheus, Ptolemy, and Masha’allah, stress the role of malefic planets (i.e. Saturn and Mars) in splitting up the relationship. This particularly the case when a malefic in one person’s chart is with (i.e. co-present) one of the Lights in the partner’s chart. The timing would seem to coincide with an activation of the malefic that is making the connection.
By contrast, benefics co-present with the Lights or regarding them harmoniously increase the stability of marriage. They may also reunite partners when other problems such as hard connections between the Lights are indicated.
Kurt and Courtney Synastry
Let’s look at the synastry of Kurt and Courtney to illustrate. I have a chart pictured which has Courtney’s chart on the inside with Kurt’s planetary and angular positions marked on the outside. Some of the more positive configurations for their relationships are marked out with blue, while the more problematic configurations are marked out with red.
Kurt-Courtney Synastry – Kurt’s natal placements are on the outside of Courtney’s natal chart.
The Angles
Kurt has Virgo rising and Courtney has Libra rising, and since these are adjacent signs which are in aversion this is not a strong connection between their Ascendants. However, it should be noted that the signs Libra and Virgo are contra-antiscia to each other which lends an affinity between the two signs (see my post on antiscia and contra-antiscia for more on this).
The Lights
The Lights (Sun and Moon) reveal a very powerful connection between the two of them, particularly in that his Moon is conjunct her Sun, in Cancer, which is the midheaven of her chart (one of the “stakes”). Additionally, both have their Suns trine each other, and his Moon-Jupiter with her Sun-Moon is an extremely powerful positive connection.
However, there is a very difficult configuration in the chart also, shown by her Saturn in Pisces, which is the place of both his Sun and his Venus. In fact, her Saturn is in close conjunction with his Sun and this Saturn draws out his own Saturn-Venus conjunction in the same place in his natal chart. This Saturn is definitely the most difficult factor in their synastry.
Venus
Venus in one chart is square to Venus in the other. The squares between Venus are not necessarily indicative of problems, and may in fact show more passion and a stronger love connection than if they were in aversion. Additionally, Courtney’s Venus is in Kurt’s midheaven (a “stake” of his chart), so it has an intense attractive impact on him. However, both have Venus conjunct a malefic, Saturn in Kurt’s case and Mars in Courtney’s, so Venus in each chart is also afflicted by the malefic conjunct each other’s Venus, and Mars joins Venus on Kurt’s midheaven, fostering conflicts.
Kurt’s Death
Shortly after Kurt’s last solar return in February of 1994, his behavior began to spiral out of control. The behavioral problems often pertained to relationship matters with Love. Kurt’s drug habit had also gotten out of control.
Sun-Saturn Solar Return
In February of 1994, Saturn had just entered Pisces. Saturn was at 2 Pisces at the time of Kurt’s last solar, two degrees from Courtney’s own Saturn, and within a degree of both Kurt’s Sun. It was also within a degree of the solar return Mercury (ruler of Kurt’s Ascendant), and was with the solar return Venus. These configurations reinforced the natal configuration of Sun, Saturn, Venus, and Mercury in Pisces.
Kurt’s 1994 Solar Return (precessed) – Saturn is conjuct return Sun within 1 degree.
Kurt’s Natal Chart with Solar Return Positions on Outside Showing Return Transits to the Natal Chart – Sun-Saturn-Mercury conjunction on the natal Sun at solar return.
Sun-Saturn Symbolism
The most potent symbolism of Sun-Saturn is loss of the vital heat and spirit, i.e. death. This indication at death (Sun-Saturn) has been discussed in my article on the death of Ilya Zhitomirskiy (committed suicide after a solar return with a tight Sun-Saturn conjunction) and my article on the death of Whitney Houston (activated Sun-Saturn opposition).
Day of Death
I am not implying that Courtney directly had anything to do with Kurt’s death. It is simply interesting that conflicts in their relationship intensified as Saturn came into Pisces activating that synastry. Kurt’s self-inflicted death, which ended their relationship, was clearly symbolized in the chart. Kurt’s death occurred on April 5, 1994 with Saturn at 7 Pisces. Courtney Love was going through her Saturn return. Transiting Mars had also entered Pisces and was conjunct transiting Mercury, both of them just a couple degrees from Kurt’s Venus, at the time of the suicide.
Cobain’s Natal Chart with Transits on the day of death around outer wheel. Both of the malefics and Mercury were transiting in the 7th, where most of Kurt’s natal planets are located.
References
Masha’allah, & al-Khayyat, A. ’Ali. (2009). Persian Nativities I: Masha’allah and Abu ’Ali. (B. N. Dykes, Trans.). Minneapolis, MN: The Cazimi Press.
Ptolemy, C. (1940). Ptolemy: Tetrabiblos. (F. E. Robbins, Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Loeb Classical Library. Retrieved from http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Ptolemy/Tetrabiblos/home.html
Dorotheus of Sidon. (2005). Carmen Astrologicum. (D. Pingree, Trans.). Abingdon, MD: Astrology Center of America.
Featured image for this article is courtesy of Kate Petty (modified for display purposes).
