Hellenistic Astrology

Triplicity Lords of the Sect Light

This is a technique that I've only recently come across, so this might be an appropriate place to try it out.

The Sect Light for FilleAspirant is the Sun, as she was born during the day. The Sun is in Virgo so it is in the Earth Triplicity or Trigon. The Lords are, Venus by Day, Moon by Night and Mars as the co-operating Lord. The first two are indicators of the two parts of life, the third gives support to the other two. The key to assessing their strength is their angularity: So we have:

Venus - eighth plance - post ascensional or succedent.
Moon - second place - post ascensional or succedent
Mars - fourth place - Pivotal or angular.

For the best indication of how life should go we would want to see angular triplicity rulers, for an average life we would expect succedent or post ascensional triplicity rulers, and for a difficult life we would expect cadent or declining triplicity rulers.

The indicators here are for an average life, perhaps a little above average given Mars support from an angular place. It appears that angularity is much more important than any other condition, so note that both Venus and Moon are not in good places, yet promise a middling life Mars status as the out of sect malefic and its condition of being retrograde might be given some weight but the important characteristic for Mars, in this respect, is that it is angular by place.

It appears that the two parts of life are not necessarily equal, indeed there are indications to the contrary in the texts but no clear examples are given as to where one Triplicity Lord yields influence to the other.

There are indications that timing techniques could be applied using the Triplicity Lords. These are based on two factors - the periods of the planets and ascensional times of the signs.

The periods of the planets are:

Saturn 30 years - conjunction with the Sun by degree on the same date (dd/mm).

Jupiter 12 years - conjunction with the Sun same sign on the same date within 2 degrees

Mars 15 years - conjunction with the sun in the same sign on the same date

Sun 19 years - the metonic cycle of eclipses

Venus 8 years - conjunction with the Sun on the same date within 2 degrees

Mercury 20 years - conjunction with the Sun on the same date by degree

Moon 25 years - the same phase of the Moon on the same date.

The timings would be applied to the year of life - so Venus' cycle of 8 years would indicate something important aged 7 - 8 (though occasionally it might be aged 8)

The Ascensional times of the signs depend on Latitude - the Ascensional times for FilleAspirant are given in the centre of the chart.

Venus is in Leo which has an Ascensional time of 25.91 years. It's Ascensional degrees at the place of birth were 25.91 and these are converted directly to years. The measure is degrees of right ascension passing over the MC. So whilst Leo's 30 degrees rose, 25.91 degrees passed over the MC.

The Moon is in Aquarius. It's Ascensional time is 33.91 years (33.91 degrees pass over the MC whilst Aquarius rises).

So we have two more timings, though the Ascensional time of Leo and the period of the Moon both suggest something happening aged 24 - 26 which will be an important event in life.

Vettius Valens does some fairly hairy things with these timings, as he will add period years to Ascensional years and modify them somewhat for angularity. This might lead us to add the period of Venus 8 years to the Ascensional Time of Leo to get 34 years. Again this is close to the Ascensional time of Aquarius, suggesting that age 32 - 35 might also contain key events.

The triplicity Lords are not taken in isolation, there are other factors that must be considered along side - the strength of the Lot of Fortune, which shows how favourable the fates may be (as it is configured to the Ascendant and its ruler it is not badly placed at all).

The Lot of Spirit and other lots would also play a part in determining how strong the underlying basis of the chart was and thus how well the native might cope with life.

The Lot of Spirit is in Virgo, ruled by Mercury - it is in the ninth place - a declining place yet one configure to the Ascendant by trine. Mercury is angular in the tenth place and is one of the better placed planets.

That concludes the first part of the analysis and I'm now dependent on FilleAspirant picking a topic (house) for a more detailed consideration.

Like I told Minderwiz, I have little knowledge of Astrology so I'm going to only be able to contribute with feedback.

That being said, so far no major situation has come to pass (I am currently 25 years old). I am hoping something will, though, as that would probably reflect on what I've been focused on for the past 2 and a half years: my career.

At age 7 my parents started having marital problems (dad moved out before my 9th birthday, when I was 8 years old) that ended up in legal separation by the age of 12.

Thanks for the feedback. So we have something that did happen aged 7-8 (your parents' marital break up), which (sadly) gives some evidence for the technique.

The suggested time for a second significant event is between 24 and 26, depending on whether we use the Moon's period or the Ascensional time of Leo. As you haven't yet completed that age range, I guess we will have to wait and see for that one.

By PM you indicated that you'd like me to cover the topic of relationships both romantic and friendships, so I'll see what I can do with that area in the next post.

FilleAspirant Relationships - Part 1

There are types of relationships that have been asked about - friendships and romantic ones. For both the Hellenistic Astrologers seem to have used two distinct approaches. The first is similar to the modern approach - examine the relevant house and possibly natural significators. The second is the use of Lots. The use of Lots lasted through till the medieval period but had largely fallen into disuse by the seventeenth century and is almost entirely absent from most Modern Astrology.

I'll look at both these approaches in turn and see what they indicate. In this post I'll concentrate on the houses or places, any planets in them and those planets that have relationship, either by configuration or by rulership. In the next post I'll look at the Lots related to the topic.

For friendships the relevant house is the eleventh, for long term romantic relationships the relevant house is the seventh. Looking at friendships first:

The eleventh Place (house) is the Sign of Scorpio. This is ruled by Mars, which is the out of sect malefic. Mars is placed in Aries, where it has rulership by domicile, this will mitigate Mars, malefic nature a little. Mars is retrograde so delays or difficulties can be associated with it's influence. Mars is averse (no major aspect) to the eleventh place, so it is unlikely to directly influence what happens with friendships. Other planets might influence the area though. The next planets to check are the exaltation ruler (no planet has exaltation in Scorpio) and failing that, the planets that rule the signs in trine to Scorpio. These are Jupiter which rules Pisces and the Moon that rules Cancer. Jupiter in the sixth is also averse to Scorpio but the Moon in Aquarius is configured by trine. Thus the planet most likely to influence events related to friendships is the Moon. The Moon is also sextile to the domicile ruler, Mars, applying by degree.This is a harmonious relationship, so Mars is unlikely to adversely affect friendships. Of the other planets, Mercury and Saturn do not aspect the eleventh place but both have harmonious aspects to the Moon and so are not likely to cause trouble. The Sun does aspect the elventh by sextile but is averse to the Moon, so its effect is unlikely to have much influence. Finally Venus squares the eleventh place and is in opposition to the Moon. This might introduce some tension, if the aspect were to be applying but at the time of birth the Moon was not within its 13 degree orb of Venus. Moreover Venus is the out of sect benefic and so is not naturally disposed to disruption. Friendships should therefore go reasonably well, though it is unlikely that this area will be a major influence in your life.

The area of long term romance (marriage) is read from the seventh place, which is the whole sign of Cancer. This sign is ruled by the Moon, but as with Mars and the eleventh, the Moon is averse to it's own sign (no major aspect). So it's necessary to look at the exaltation ruler, and if necessary the other two sign rulers in the triplicity. Jupiter is the exaltation ruler of Cancer but it to is averse in Gemini in the sixth House. As with the previous area, the triplicity rulers are the other two Water sign rulers. Jupiter is one through Pisces, and Jupiter has already been seen to be averse to the seventh. That leaves Mars as the ruler of Scorpio. Mars in Aries is in a square relationship to Cancer, so Mars does aspect but not in a harmonious way. Mars does have a harmonious relationship with the Moon by sextile but again, this is only likely to mitigate Mars overall effects. Of the remaining planets, Venus is averse to the seventh place but in a harmonious relationship to Mars. The Sun is sextile to the seventh but it is averse to Mars and so does not directly influence the area. Mercury is square to the Seventh and opposed to Mars. This could show Mercury as having a malefic affect on the seventh, but only if it were applying to Mars. In fact Mercury is separating from Mars, so, whilst there might be some problems, probably caused by miscommunication (Mars is retrograde, even if Mercury is not), these are unlikely to do serious damage. Saturn is also averse to the Seventh place, though it is in a harmonious relationship with Mars. Looking solely at the planets involved with the seventh, the problems will come from Mars itself, as it's the out of sect malefic and from the Mercury/Mars opposition (though this is separating). You need to take some care in this area to ensure that communication issues or issues relating to hasty action (Mars) don't lead to problems

FilleAspirant Relatonships - Part 2

The first part concentrated on the relevant houses, an approach familiar to Modern Astrologers. The second part will look at the relevant Lots. Lots are directly related to fairly specific topics such as marriage or friendships or slightly more wider, relationships. The analysis looks at the placement of the Lot in the chart, its ruler, and aspects both to the Lot and to it's ruler. Good placement, a harmonious relationship with its ruler and aspects from benefics coupled with no aspects from malefics should see the topic represented by the Lot become a successful part of the life of the native.

The problem with the Lots is that over the course of the 1,000 years that they were in common use, several versions of them arose. Different authors took slightly different takes on them. For example the topic of marriage could be looked at from the point of view of the presence or absence of a loving relationship, but it could also be looked at from the point of view of the legal contract between the two spouses. It could also be looked at from the emotional commitment or exposure involved - marriage as an emotional risk. Each one of these variants in approach could lead to different planets being used in its calculation.

So with that consideration in mind here are some Lots that are relevant to the topic.

At a general level we have the Lots of Fortune and Spirit - how prone we are to the vagaries of fate and how well we can influence what happens around us.

For FilleAspirant the Lot of Fortune is placed in Taurus and therefore ruled by Venus. In the fifth it is trine to the Ascendant. It is squared by it's ruler which is in the dominating position and it is squared from the Moon. No malefic aspects it, so there is no major debility. However the ruler Venus is in the eighth place which is not configured to the Ascendant. The interpretation of this, according to Schmidt is that opportunities will only be spotted late on, making it difficult to have foresight of events but it is possible to turn events to the advantage of the native. Clearly this latter point may involve some difficulty because of the 'late notice'

The Lot of Spirit lies just inside the ninth place, so it too is configured to the Ascendant by trine. Being in Virgo it is ruled by Mercury in the tenth place, so it's Lord is configured to the Ascendant but not to the Lot itself. It's not going to be easy putting plans for action into place, even if you recognise that action is needed and that action can be successful in changing events. The Lot is squared by Saturn the malefic of sect and by Jupiter the benefic of sect. Jupiter being earlier in the zodiac is in the dominating position, so the outcome is more likely to be favourabel than unfavourable.

Both rulers suffer from aspects from the out of sect malefic, Mars. Of the two, Mercury is the worst positioned because Mars is in opposition. Venus is configured by Trien, so Mars may have some adverse effects on Fortune, but not a major one. Spirit may well be more adveresly affected because of the Mars/Mercury opposition. It's likely that on balance you are more prone to outside forces than you are able to influence the envioronent, as plans to act may wellrun into difficulties.

For relationships specifically there are:

The Lot of Eros - which is not quite what you might expect but is concerned with relationships in general. Paulus of Alexandria defines the Lot as Asc + Venus - Spirit. Venus is a natural significator of relationships of all kinds, Spirit an indicator of how well you can influence events {in this case the formation of relationships). This Lot is in Sagittarius and thus in the twelfth Place. It is co-present with Saturn, the malefic of sect and is trined by Mars the out of sect malefic. It is ruled by Jupiter the benefic of sect. Both the Lot and its ruler are not configured to the Ascendant, Jupiter too has a wide opposition from Saturn and is in a close sextile to Mars, which dominates. Whilst none of the aspects from the malefics are serious, they do suggest that there could be problems with general relationships.

Firmicus uses a different measure, taking Asc + Fortune - Spirit. This measure is placed in Virgo and therefore is in a similar condition to Spirit. Both measures suggest some issues with relationships but nothing that is going to cause serious difficulties in forming relationships or seeing them through. This will be an area of life that requires a little effort to keep things on track but that effort should pay off.

For long term relationships there are the Lots of Marriage.

The more formal Lot of marriage - that representing the institution of marriage - marriage as a committment - is the Paulus Lot of Marriage, which for women is:

Asc + Saturn - Venus:

For FilleAspirant this Lot is in the fifth Place (Taurus) and is ruled by Venus the out of sect benefic. It lies in the same place as the Lot of Fortune and as seen above with Fortune, it's quite well placed, though it's ruler is averse to the Ascendant. There's no serious affliction from the malefics and what aspects there are from the malefics are harmonious and by sign rather than degree. It looks therefore that a marriage or relationship with commitment is a good possibility.

Marital happiness is more likely to be described by Valens Lot of Marriage, which for a day birth is:

Asc + Venus - Jupiter

This Lot is in Pisces, ruled by the Benefic of Sect, Jupiter. The Lot is squared by Saturn though it's a very wide square, so the amount of 'affliction' is only small. Mars does not aspect the Lot. Jupiter is in the sixth place of Gemini. It is opposed by Saturn (though again the aspect is not strong) and it is in a sextile to Mars, which dominates. By degree the aspect is not strong, As the aspect in harmonious Mars, will be influential but will not be actively damaging. The marriage is going to have some highs and lows but overall it looks likely to be a happy one.

Marriage looks likely to be stronger and longer lasting than friendships, though they are not seriously impeded. Overall the outlook is definitely positive and is especially so for marriage.

One additional point - with the Valens Lot of Marriage in a double bodied or bicorporeal sign, it is possible that there might be two marriges or long term relationships.

Ah, I should've picked an easier topic to give feedback, Minderwiz. Sorry! Let me see what I can do with what I already know.

My friendships do go well, but they're not my top priority and comes in third in my list of priorities, after career/studies and family. I asked after this matter because I tend to be more of quality over quantity type of friend, in the sense that many of what I thought to be real friendships blow up and end without prior notice. From the little I understand, this might be Pluto's influence in my 11th and the Pluto-Venus square, right? I'm just throwing this idea out there because it's something that intrigues me, how quickly I fall into and out of a friendship, from irreconcilable differences.

In the area of romance/marriage, I do relate to having communication issues and acting too hastily. I certainly suffer from late foresight in this area, as you very well put it; one must be very persistent and clear with his intentions lest I brush it all off as a fancy from my imagination. Indeed, every time I have tried to pursue a relationship, it doesn't work out as well when it's the other person chasing me; it is very frustrating and limiting to be the pursuer, in my experiences.

I can't speak for the marriage assessment yet, as I'm currently single, not dating and not exactly looking, but I do see it having its ups and downs, since I'm a naturally difficult person to live with. Marriage seems to be auspicious, nevertheless.I'm glad.

FilleAspirant said:

Ah, I should've picked an easier topic to give feedback, Minderwiz. Sorry! Let me see what I can do with what I already know.

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Actually I think you picked a good topic because I found this feedback really helpful

FilleASpirant said:

My friendships do go well, but they're not my top priority and comes in third in my list of priorities, after career/studies and family. I asked after this matter because I tend to be more of quality over quantity type of friend, in the sense that many of what I thought to be real friendships blow up and end without prior notice. From the little I understand, this might be Pluto's influence in my 11th and the Pluto-Venus square, right? I'm just throwing this idea out there because it's something that intrigues me, how quickly I fall into and out of a friendship, from irreconcilable differences.

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Thanks for this. I picked up that friendships would not be an area of prime importance to you and it's good to have that confirmed. The issue of friendships breaking up 'without prior' warning, seems to be a Mars issue, as Mars is linked to separations, severance and cutting. Mars does rule your eleventh WSH of Scorpio and I think I might have downplayed the lack of an aspect between Mars in Aries and Scorpio more than I should. It seems that whilst your friendships are not awkward or difficult there's still that severance/separation dimension to them. I'll try and make use of that in future readings.

FilleAsirant said:

In the area of romance/marriage, I do relate to having communication issues and acting too hastily. I certainly suffer from late foresight in this area, as you very well put it; one must be very persistent and clear with his intentions lest I brush it all off as a fancy from my imagination. Indeed, every time I have tried to pursue a relationship, it doesn't work out as well when it's the other person chasing me; it is very frustrating and limiting to be the pursuer, in my experiences.

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Again your feedback is very useful. The latter point about the differences between being the pursuer or pursued is interesting. Your Lot of Necessity is placed in Cancer, in the Seventh Place. This Lot is Asc + Fortune - Mercury. Fortune as we have seen is the extent to which the outside world determines the outcomes in your life. Mercury relates to communications and mental processes. This Lot is seen to relate to difficult circumstances, including adversarial relationships. It shows where you have to adapt in order to overcome the difficult circumstances in life. So you might well find that your approach to relationships is something you've got to deal with - maybe the pursuer should get a better deal

Both the Moon that rules the Lot and Mercury are changeable in nature, and your approach seems to change depending on whether you are the pursued or the pursuer. Might be worth thinking about. Incidentally the Lot although it shows the challenges of life also allows for change in behaviour to overcome those challenges. If you work on them.

FilleAspirantI can't speak for the marriage assessment yet said:

In previous readings I've looked at time lords to see if I can identify key dates or times when things are likely to happen. You can keep to this area if you like - so I can see if I can identify likely marriage dates in the future. Or you can choose a new topic - you gave career and family as your two key priorities,, so I can look at one of those if you like.

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FilleAspirant said:

As much as I'd like to get an idea of when I might marry (possibly twice), I would LOVE to hear more on my career, if you don't mind, Minderwiz. That is something that is usually much more in my mind than relationships.

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OK Career it is

Career and Career forecasts

Career can be seen through the Tenth house, the MC and the Lot of Spirit. Your Tenth Whole Sign House is Libra, ruled by Venus. The only planet in the tenth is Mercury. Venus is in the eighth place but is in aspect to the tenth by sextile. Moreover the Exaltation Lord, Saturn is also in sextile to the tenth place, from Sagittarius. Saturn is also the Triplicity Lord by Day. and is likely to be the stronger of the two. Moreover Saturn is in Sect and although the Malefic of Sect is likely to be a neutral influence on Career. All planets but the Sun are configured to the tenth, so it's not surprising that this is your key priority and one that gives you greatest flexibility.

The MC is in Virgo and is ruled by Mercury in the tenth. This may then bring Mercury to the fore in Career matters. The MC was only really considered for career in the latter part of the Hellenistic period as it can be placed anywhere between the eighth and twelfth places. When it did begin to be related to Career, it was the topical nature of the place of the MC that was taken as important. So here we have the MC in the ninth place, which would suggest areas such as travel and travel related areas, higher education and the law as possible areas emphasised by the MC. Mercury suggests that there will be a communications or mental dimension, Saturn as the lead planet suggests structure and format. So clerical duties, planning duties, analytical duties would be relevant though as Moon, Venus and Jupiter and Mars also make contributions this may be modified. Certainly you might find that the Mars influence makes it more difficult to take an objective approach to any career activity.

The Lot related to Career is the Lot of Spirit and that is the one that I will use for forecasts about career. The Lot of Spirit shows the extent to which you are able to influence events in the environment. Your Lot of Spirit lies in Virgo in the ninth place and is therefore trine to the Ascendant. Mercury as shown above is one of the key planets involved in career. Being in the tenth, the Lot ruler is able to influence events, the key issue is the opposition from Mars, though this is wide and separating. It's therefore unlikely to be a major concern.

Possible significant dates up to now.

Your first main period from birth till 2008 was a Mercury period - remember Mercury is a key planet for your career. Something seems to have happened around late January 2006. This may well be related to a decision on higher education with career in mind. This looks likely to have coincided with the beginning of a Mercury transit of your second house and a conjunction with the Moon in particular. Something that is likely to have shown the importance of earning or income.

The next most likely event occurred in early June 2008, when you began a Libra main period, that will last through to 2016. Libra is your tenth place, so this redoubles the emphasis on career as a main focus. At the beginning of this period Venus is in exact conjunction with the Sun (itself a significator of status and career) the exact conjunction is a position of great power and both Venus and the Sun were in Gemini trining the tenth place. This seems a very significant date. Mercury was also in Gemin, a couple of degrees behind and in a loose trine to it's natal position. Around the 10th of June with the Venus/Sun conjunction still in place, the Moon transited your MC and then went on to transit your tenth.

Around the 30th August of the same year, Mercury began it's transit of your tenth with Venus following a day later. Does the end of August/beginning of September mark your entry into work or your entry on to a professional qualification or higher degree?

In April 2010 you moved into a Sagtittarius level 2 period, this activated Saturn (natally in Sagittarius) and Jupiter the two other diurnal planets besides the Sun. In July Saturn began transiting Libra and your tenth and this looks like the bginning of a good period for you. Moreover the Sagittarius level 2 was followed by a Capricorn level 2 and an Aquarius level 2 (still in force), both of which keep Saturn active. Career is strongly favoured by Saturn but in July 2012 Mars entered your tenth place and this would not be particularly beneficial. Towards the middle of August 2012 Mars and Saturn were conjunct in Libra and conjunct your natal Mercury. This may have been a difficult period in some respects.

The current Aquarius sub period began last July (2013) and will continue through till 2016. Two years after the last Mars transit of natal Mercury by conjunction, this happened again three days ago. Mars will actually station retrograde on March 2nd so Mars is going to remain in your tenth for some time. I'm not sure of how far this will cause issues but I don't see the next few weeks being easy. Indeed it will be late July before Mars finally leaves Libra and it will have transited your natal Mercury by conjunction three times. Mid September should mark something of a return to good things with natal Mercury transiting your tenth and giving you a Mercury return.

I've only given a very general consideration here, as a more detailed one would occupy a lot of space. However a more detailed one would also allow a consideration of several planets for each period and that would modifiy things. If there's a period you'd like to see covered in more depth let me know.