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Horary Astrology Introduction
By Serena Powers
Horary Astrology was an extremely popular branch of astrology in Europe in times past but it still lives on as a major force in astrology today in other parts of the world.
Do you need to know where those lost keys are? Then erect a chart for the time you posed the question and read off the answer. Do you need to know if you'll pass that exam? Erect the chart for the time the question occurred to you and discover the answer. Maybe a friend needs top know whether she'll get that new job or not. Erect the chart for the time you received the phone call about it and calculate the answer.
Horary astrology sounds simple when you first delve into it but it is surprisingly complex. There are certain basic rules you need to adhere to, and there are less planets to consider, however, the skill, as always, lies in the exact interpretation of the chart.
CLASSICAL CONSIDERATIONS
First of all, establish when the moment was that you either asked the question or received the question from another person and where you were. This is the time and place you will be basing your calculations on. Calculate your chart. Now there are several basic considerations to assess before you can continue with judgement:
- Is the Ascendant less than 3º or more than 27º? If the Ascendant is less tha 3º then it may be too early to reach an answer, if the Ascendant is more than 27º than it may be too late. Sometimes issues involving new beginnings may still work with an Ascendant less than 3º. This does not apply if the Ascendant of the querent is less than 3º or more than 27º.
- Is the Moon in Via Combusta? The Via Combusta is 15º Libra to 15º Scorpio. A malefic and unpredictable influence.
- Is the Moon Void of Course? The Moon is void of course when it will not complete any major aspects before leaving its current sign. Nothing works smoothly when a Moon is void of course. Lilly defines the Moon as being void of course when it will not be in orb of applying to a major aspect before leaving its current sign. Lilly also accepts that a void of course Moon can still perform in Cancer, Taurus, Sagittarius or Pisces.
- Is the Moon in late degrees? A chart may be unsafe to judge if the Moon is in the last degrees of a sign, especially Gemini, Scorpio and Capricorn.
- Is Saturn in the Seventh House? Your judgement as an astrologer may be compromised or restricted (unless you are the querent as well).
- Is Saturn in the First House when the astrologer is the querent? Your judgement as an astrologer may be compromised or restricted.
Next you need to decide which planet(s) rule the querent and the question. The querent is always co-ruled by the Moon as well as by the ruler of the Ascendant, the Almuten(s) of the Ascendant and the rulers of any planets in the first house.
You also need to decide which is the natural ruler for the issue and which houses are important in the matter. You may need to turn the chart, in other words if you are asking about the career of your partner then you will not be looking in the tenth house (your own career) but using the seventh house (your partner) as his or her first house and counting on ten houses from there. So 7th house plus 10 is counted around the chart to the 4th house. Matters involving the partner's career are ruled by the 4th house.
Rulerships of the Planets
- Sun - Self-expression, life force, authority, men, employers, power, officials, ego.
- Moon - Emotions, intuition, cycles, home, women, the public, lost objects, short trips, changes, mother.
- Mercury - Thoughts, speech, communication, business matters, transport, contracts, neighbours, young people, students, office workers.
- Venus (The Lesser Benefic) - Love life, creativity, beauty, social life, gifts, money, marriage, young women, mother, wife, pleasures, luxury goods.
- Mars (The Lesser Malefic) - Action, energy, accidents, willpower, sex, weapons, accidents, quarrels, injury, assertiveness.
- Jupiter (The Greater Benefic) - Luck, expansion, opportunity, excess, gambling, higher education, long journeys, prophecy, foreigners, the wealthy, professionals.
- Saturn (The Greater Malefic) - Duties, responsibilities, burdens, lessons, ambitions, old people, debts, delays, poveryt, obstacles, loss father, death, restrictions.
- Pars Fortuna (Part of Fortune: not a planet but one of the numerous Arabic Parts) - Income, possessions, treasure, money.
Planets are considered Under the Sunbeams when they are in the same sign as the Sun and within 17º. It is weakened in this position.
A planet is combust when it is in conjunction with the Sun (orb of 8º). It is weakened in this position.
Planets are cazimi when they are within 0º17' of the Sun . In this position, unlike combust, they are strengthened. The exception is the Moon which is malefic in this position, being a New Moon.
ARABIC PARTS
The Arabic Parts (also called lots) are calculated by adding and subtracting the position of planets and other features on a chart. They were put to great use by the 8th and 9th century Arab astrologers who inherited the knowledge from Babylonian, Egyptian and Greek astrology. For example, the Pars Fortuna or Part of Fortune (by day) is Ascendant + Moon - Sun and the Part of Fortune (by night) is Ascendant + Sun - Moon. The very ancient astrologers believed the Ascendant and the Part of Fortune were the most important elements of the chart relating to the Sun rising and the Moon rising respectively.
There are many Arabic Parts such as the Part of Death, the Part of Marriage and the Part of Cucumbers & Melons (yes, there really is one!).
- Fortunes, wealth/poverty:
- Part of Fortune (day birth) = Moon - Sun + Ascendant
- Part of Fortune (night birth) = Sun - Moon + Ascendant
- How life's fulfilment achieved:
- Part of the Sun (day birth) = Moon - Sun - Ascendant
- Part of the Sun (night birth) = Sun - Moon - Ascendant
- Part of Death = Ascendant + 8th cusp - Moon (using equal houses)
- Medieval Part of Death = 8th cusp + Saturn - Moon
- Part of Sickness = Ascendant + Mars - Saturn
- Part of Marriage = Ascendant + 7th cusp - Venus
- Part of Love = Ascendant + Jupiter - Venus
- Part of Children (Pars Filiorum) = Ascendant + Jupiter - Mars
- Part of Luck = Ascendant + Moon - Jupiter
- Part of Commerce = Mercury + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Love (alternative) = Venus + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Passion = Mars + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Increase = Jupiter + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Fatality = Saturn + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Catastrophe = Uranus + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Treachery = Neptune + Ascendant - Sun
- Part of Organisation = Pluto + Ascendant - Sun
- Seconday Ascendant = Ascendant + Ascendant - Sun
and for the astro-horticulturally curious:
Part of Cucumbers & Melons = Ascendant + Saturn - Mercury
Arabic Points without a Time of Birth
To find out your Arabic Parts without a known Ascendant (that is, the Time of Birth is not known), you have the option of constructing a chart cast with Aries 0° as an Ascendant and then proceed as follows:
- Revolve the chart until the Sun's degree is on the Ascendant. Divide the chart into equal Houses of 30° from that degree.
- The Moon's position is the Part of Fortune
- Mercury's position is the Caduceus, the Point of Commerce
- Venus' position is the Heart, the Point of Love
- Mars' position is the Sword, of Point the Passion
- Jupiter's position is the Pomegranate, the Point of Increase
- Saturn's position is the Hour Glass, the Point of Fatality
- Uranus' position is the Lightning Flash, the Point of Catastrophe
- Neptune's position is the Trident, the Point of Treachery
- Pluto's position is the Gavel, the Point of Organisation
- Revolve the chart again until the Moon's degree is on the Ascendant.
- The Sun's position is the Point of Spirit
- Mercury's position is the Point of Faith
- Venus' position is the Point of Female Children
- Jupiter's position is the Point of Male Children
- (Mars and Saturn have no relation under matters of the Moon)
- Revolve the chart until the Point of the Spirit is on the Ascendant.
- The Moon's position is the Point of Merchandise
- Revolve the chart until the Moon's Dispositor (the Ruler of the Sign in which the Moon is posited) is on the Ascendant.
- The Moon's position is the Point of Bondage
- Revolve the chart until the Lunation or Full Moon next preceding the day of birth is on the Ascendant.
- The Moon's position is the Point of Life
- Revolve the chart again until Mercury is on the Ascendant.
- The Moon's position is the Point of Servants
- Mars' position is the Point of Understanding
- Revolve the chart again until Venus is on the Ascendant.
- The Moon's position is the Point of the Mother
- Saturn's position is the Point of Husbandry
- Revolve the chart again until Mars is on the Ascendant.
- Venus' position is the Point of Plays
- Jupiter's position is the Point of Discord
- Revolve the chart again until Saturn is on the Ascendant.
- The Sun's position is the Point of the Father
- The Moon's position is the Point of Magistery and Possessions as well as the Point of Inheritance
- Mars' position is the Point of Sickness
- Jupiter's position is the Point of Brothers and Sisters
- Cancer 15° is the Point of Journeys by Water
Fixed Stars
Fixed Stars also can have an influence on the chart if a planet appears in conjunction (with an orb of 1º).
- Caput Algol 26º10' Taurus - Failure, difficulties, disaster, death.
- Alcyone 00º00' Gemini - Compassion and disappointment.
- Aldebaran 9º35' Gemini - Violence and victory.
- Regulus 29º50' Leo - Royalty, success and glory.
- Vindematrix 9º56' Libra - Misfortune and war, widowhood.
- Spica 23º50' Libra - Success and prosperity.
- Arcturus 24º14' Libra - Success and prosperity.
- Antares 9º38' Sagittarius - Conflict and violence.
- Serpentis 19º Scorpio (always) - Disaster.
- Vega 15º19' Capricorn - Success in politics and finance.
- Fomalhaut 3º52' Pisces - Good or bad depending on its aspects.
- Scheat 29º22' Pisces - Failure and difficulties (especially at sea).
The Houses
- First House - Personal life and appearance, beginnings, accidents, new projects, length of life.
- Second House - Finances, values, lost objects, possessions, potential poverty or wealth, resources.
- Third House - Siblings, neighbours, communication, short journeys, schooling, gossip and rumours, news, family relations, cars.
- Fourth House - Home and family, father, domestic issues, buried treasure, land, real estate, houses, farms, old age, mines.
- Fifth House - Hobbies, children, affairs, gambling, stocks, romance, pregnancy, elections, entertainment, feasts.
- Sixth House - Health, work, daily routines, pets, servants, employees, food, hygiene, healing.
- Seventh House - Partner (marriage and business), competitor, open rival, the astrologer, thief, divorce, lawsuits.
- Eighth House - Shared resources, inheritances, death, birth, other people's money, surgery, transformations, occult, taxes, debts, mortgages and loans, inheritance, investigations.
- Ninth House - Long-distance travel, religion, philosophy, higher education, religion, prophecy, lawyers, professionals, horary astrology.
- Tenth House - Career, social reputation, environment, mother, superiors, authority, employer, ruler, status, success.
- Eleventh House - Friends, goals, social activities, groups, counselling, hopes and wishes, praise, business clients, legislation.
- Twelfth House - Unconscious thoughts, hidden enemies, secrets, hidden life, institutions, hospitalisation, prison, secret dealings, suicide, murder, charity, large animals, widowhood, fears, drugs and alcohol, sorrows.
The Equal House system is never used with Horary Astrology. Use the Placidus or the Regiomontanus House Systems.
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