Kepler Hellenistic Sourcebook

This booklet has been specially prepared for Kepler College students
by Project Hindsight to facilitate their study of Hellenistic Astrology. It

has been adapted from a more comprehensive source book currently in
preparation. All passages selected from works by ancient authors, unless
otherwise noted, were translated by Robert Schmidt and were previously
published by Project Hindsight. The translations have been somewhat
revised and commentary added for this booklet. The auxiliary materials
and tables also have been developed by Robert Schmidt or his students to
accompany the Kepler College lesson plan. The typesetting, production,
and graphics were executed by Slaven Slobodnjak and most of the
diagrams were designed by Mark Kuenzel. Credits to Alan White, Ellen
Black, Demetra George, Bill Johnston, Robert V. Gross and Chris Brennan
for their assistance in this project.
Copyright 2005 by Robert H. Schmidt and the Phaser Foundation.

All rights reserved
THE SOURCES
Vettius Valens: The Anthology. Critical edition by Pingree (Teubner 1986).

Claudius Ptolemy: The Apotelesmatics (a.k.a. Tetrabiblos). Critical edition by Boll & Boer
(Teubner, 1954).
Paulus Alexandrinus: Introductory Matters. Critical edition by Boer (Teubner, 1958).
Firmicus Maternus: The Mathesis. Critical Edition by Kroll, Skutch, Ziegler (1897-1913).
Hephaistio of Thebes: The Apotelesmatics. Critical edition by Pingree (Teubner 1973).
Antiochus of Athens: Summary of Introduction. CCAG, Vol. 8, Part 3, pages 111-119.
Thrasyllus: The Tablet. CCAG 8,3; 99-101.
Porphyry the Philosopher: Introduction to the Apotelesmatics of Ptolemy. CCAG 5,4; 187-228.
Rhetorius the Egyptian: Explanation and Description of the Entire Astronomical Discipline
from the Treasuries of Antiochus, (The Collection). CCAG 1; 140-164.
Pseudo-Serapio: Definitions. CCAG 8,4; 225-232.
All translations by Robert H. Schmidt.
Concerning this book, then, I must before all prescribe an oath for those who happen to
encounter it, that they may keep watch over what is written and withhold it in a manner
appropriate to the mysteries; for I put the proposed precepts into a subtle and sequential
arrangement, which has much value for exhortation and training in elaboration, in order
that they may [lead the reader] to stretch out his desire from the least things to the greater,
and so as not to bring censure down upon us by leaving any gaps. It is better, therefore, for
those who are already practiced to go over these precepts in the books composed by us; for,
the division [of the times] by means of general and particular evaluations will be judged
infallible and venerable. And just as one who goes with much effort up steps and through
switchbacks to a mountain ridge, though upon finding a fixture of a temple and an
extravagance of statues "of gold and amber and silver or ivory," or some purple vestments,
believes that the upward path is not to be regretted and was not tiring, and worships with
pleasure while imagining himself to converse with heavenly gods, in the same fashion also
those who trust in our injunctions. I adjure them by the sacred circle of the Sun and the
irregular courses of the Moon, and by the powers of the remaining stars and the circle of
the twelve zōidia, to keep these things secret, and not to impart them to the unlearned or
the uninitiated, and to give a portion of honor and remembrance to him who introduced
them [to this discipline]. May it go well for those who keep this oath, and may the afore-
mentioned gods be in accord with their wishes, but may the opposite be the case for those
who forswear this oath.
Vettius Valens, The Anthology - Book VII, Preface

WEEK 1: INTRODUCTION
PAPYRUS FRAGMENT CCAG VIII,4;95

FIRMICUS MATERNUS, IV, PREF. 5
AUXILIARY READING
Hellenistic Astrology: An Overview
Catalogue of Hellenistic Astrologers and Their Writings
Glossary of Hellenistic Terminology
Hellenistic Concepts as They Survive in Modern Astrology

Genealogical Family Trees of the Gods
WEEK 1: Introduction 5
From a Papyrus Fragment CCAG 8,4;95

Seven gods. By examining in many books how it was handed down to us by the wise
ancients, that is, by the Chaldeans, and Petosiris and especially the King Nechepso, just as
they also based themselves on our lord Hermes together with Asclepius, who is of Imouthos,
son of Hephestus--in accordance with the time given me for the first year of the lord
Antoninus Caesar.
Firmicus Maternus, IV, pref. 5]

For everything that, Mercurius, [and Hanubus?] have handed down to Aesculapius,
which Petosiris and Nechepso have explicated, and which Abram, Orfeus and Critodemus
have made known...
Auxiliary Reading
Hellenistic Astrology: An Overview

by
Robert H. Schmidt
About Hellenistic Astrology— By the term Hellenistic astrology we mean the kind of astrology
that first made its appearance in Egypt and the surrounding Mediterranean region sometime
between the Alexandrian conquest and the beginning of the Christian era. Not only are its
origins hard to pinpoint more exactly than this, but its authorship is equally elusive, being
associated with a small cast of semi-divine or semi-legendary figures. The mystery of its
founding only grows deeper when we consider that it seems to have sprung forth virtually
fully-formed in a singular act of autogenesis.
We will also use the term Hellenistic to describe the astrology of the Roman and early
Byzantine period, even though technically much of it lies outside the Hellenistic era proper.
This is justified because the astrology of the founders continued to be practiced in something
like its original and unadulterated form during these periods as well. Thus, for us the term
Hellenistic describes a type of astrology more than a historical era.
Hellenistic astrology marked an entirely new beginning in the history of astrology. The
large majority of the concepts, techniques, and principles of interpretation that are the
mainstay of Hellenistic astrology cannot be traced back to any earlier or contemporary source.
They constitute a distinct and original astrology, differing in essential ways from the
indigenous astrologies that developed in other parts of the world.
Hellenistic astrology is the primary source of all later Western astrology. The life-force
breathed into Hellenistic astrology by its founders sustained astrological practice until well
into seventh century. It also left an unmistakable imprint on the astrology of India. In the
eighth century, it lent its vitality to Arabian astrology and assumed the central place in that
6 WEEK 1: Introduction
syncretism. Thence it returned to the West to re-animate European astrology of the late
Medieval era. Most of the concepts and practices that are defining for modern astrology are
still recognizably of Hellenistic origin.
The Texts — The surviving corpus of Hellenistic astrological writings consists of a

comparatively large number of texts. Most of these were composed in Greek, a few in Latin.
The majority of the texts are devoted to the astrology of the individual (“natal” astrology), but
there is a significant amount of material that concerns universal (“mundane”) astrology, as
well as inceptional (“electional” and “event”) astrology. It is still an open question whether
the Hellenistic astrologers practiced horary astrology.
Here is a brief overview of what survives and in what form: FOUR SUBSTANTIAL GENERAL
TREATISES, which survive relatively intact in their original languages, three in Greek and one
in Latin: the Tetrabiblos of Ptolemy, the Anthology of Valens, the Apotelesmatics of Hephaistio,
and the Mathesis of Firmicus Maternus (in Latin). There also survives a representative number
of Greek fragments of a fifth such treatise by Dorotheus, originally composed in didactic
verse, which also survives in a somewhat corrupt Arabic translation. These treatises all show
much kinship of doctrine. A SUBSTANTIAL DIDACTIC POEM in Latin, the Astronomica of
Manilius, somewhat aberrant in doctrine, which may contain material deriving from the pre-
Hellenistic Egyptian period. TWO SHORTER GENERAL TREATISES, the Introductory Matters of
Paulus Alexandrinus and a didactic poem attributed to one Manetho. SOME SMALL TREATISES,
also relatively intact, devoted to specialized astrological subjects, like the delineation text of
Anubio for planetary combinations and the Hermetic iatromathematical texts. PARAPHRASES,
which may be “easier” paraphrases of works originally written in difficult Greek or prose
paraphrases of earlier didactic poems, such as a paraphrase of Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos attributed
to Proclus. SUMMARIES, more or less detailed, of some of the above treatises and many lost
books, such as the summary of the lost Introduction of Antiochus or the summary of the Tablet
of Thrasyllus. These were mostly written during the Byzantine era. FORMAL COMMENTARIES
on some of the above treatises, such as the Olympiodorus commentary on the work of Paulus
Alexandrinus and an anonymous commentary on Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos. “COLLECTIONS” of
material excerpted from various treatises, often paraphrased from the original, such as the
collection of Rhetorius. These have some structure or overall logic to their presentation.
“MISCELLANIES” or random assortments of excerpts and paraphrases from various treatises,
sometimes mixed with opinions and views of the compiler, like the Introduction of Porphyry
and the Liber Hermetis. FRAGMENTS OF ALL SORTS, excerpted from earlier writers, some short,
some long, some evidently verbatim, others paraphrased; for instance, a fragment of a treatise
on the decanates ascribed to Teucer of Babylon. Fragments are found in many places,
sometimes even in non-astrological writings. SCHOLIA (marginal comments added to various
manuscripts by readers and copyists) that sometimes give helpful information. EVIDENCE
FROM NON-LITERARY SOURCES, such as writings on walls and papyrus scraps. These consist
largely of very spare astrological chart readings and a few fragments of procedural texts.
It is difficult to date many of these writings very precisely. The various astrologers who
composed them span a period of about eight hundred years, from the early centuries B.C.E. to
the seventh century C.E. Except for a few short specialized works, only fragments remain of
the writings of the founders or any other astrologers from the pre-Christian era. Almost all the
writings that survive in something like the form in which they were originally composed
come from the Christian era.
Nearly all the surviving writings have been published in “critical editions.” The
editors of these editions have mainly been classicists and philologists, who scoured the
European and middle-Eastern libraries for texts relating to Hellenistic astrology, and then
prepared editions of these texts by comparing all the surviving manuscripts in an effort to
produce a definitive text, usually without translation. This is a high-level craft, requiring an
extensive knowledge of the language and also of hand-writing styles. These scholars also try
to date these texts, identify their authors, and make cross-references of the doctrines to other
texts; often times they index the technical terminology. Most of this work has been completed
in the field of Hellenistic astrology, and we are grateful to these scholars for having performed
this painstaking and often thankless task.
Preliminary Survey of the Contents of the Hellenistic Astrological Corpus — Upon first
perusal, this body of material may give the impression of a vast miscellany of dissociated and
heterogeneous doctrines and precepts, as if there had been numerous independent schools of
Hellenistic astrology down through the centuries, each espousing its own doctrines and
making its own original and idiosyncratic contribution to the astrological practice of this
period. Further study reveals that this elaborate corpus is actually far more coherent than may
have been expected considering the number of authors involved and the extended period of
time over which these writings were composed.
For one thing, there is much overlap in the doctrines found in different authors. At the
same time, nearly every one of the surviving authors includes some material not found in any
of the others. In view of this, it is plausible to assume that what has come down to us is
fragments of a large and complex system from which each author excerpted according to his
own special interests and the sources available to him.
For another thing, all the authors employ the same specialized terminology, bespeaking a
continuity of conceptualization. With only relatively minor differences, all the astrologers
writing during this period associate the same kinds of human events with the planets, the
parts of the zodiac, and the topical places (“houses”). Many of the techniques — that is,
methodical procedures for investigating special topics in the life of the native or certain
periods of life — are reported by two or more authors evidently working independently of
one another. All this commonly accepted doctrine points to derivation from a common earlier
source.
In fact, the lineage recorded by Firmicus Maternus gives credit to Hermes Trismegistus
for the founding of this astrology, whom he says passed it on to one Asclepius, whereupon it
was explicated by Nechepso and Petosiris and promulgated by Abram, Orpheus, and
Critodemus. Moreover, most of the core doctrines that characterize Hellenistic astrology are
independently ascribed to these same astrologers by later Hellenistic authors as well, often in
the form of direct quotations of their writings or paraphrases of their doctrines.
To be sure, there are techniques and bits of lore found only in the writings of some single
author without explicit acknowledgment of an earlier source. However, these astrologers
rarely (if ever) claim originality for such doctrines, so there is no reason not to accept them
provisionally as authentic pieces of the original astrology, pending further examination of
their conceptual connections with those doctrines which may safely be ascribed to the
founders.
On the other hand, it seems quite likely that the Hellenistic astrological corpus also
contains some material that is ascribed to the founders even though it actually derives from
Babylonian or pre-Hellenistic Egyptian astrology. Although some of these doctrines may have
been deliberately integrated into the Hellenistic astrology by the founders, others may have
been rejected even though they continued to be dutifully transmitted by later astrologers.
Such vestigial material can usually be segregated by seeing the extent to which it was actually
incorporated into the practice of later Hellenistic astrologers.
In fact, it is only in the details of the execution of techniques and the extension of their
range of application that we find anything resembling a development of the original tradition.
In the case of techniques reported by several authors, we often find differences of opinion
over the fine points of procedure. But far from being evidence of innovation, such divergence
of views suggests instead that the original source texts were not sufficiently explicit on many
procedural matters — Vettius Valens himself frequently attests to the cryptic nature of his
sources — giving later astrologers the task of fleshing out of what was merely suggested in
the originals. Here again, the determination of which of these variants is a valid elaboration is
not a textual matter; it requires an understanding of the conceptual issues that motivated the
introduction of the technique in the first place.
There are also cases in which a basic technique is independently represented in more
than one author (and thereby may be safely traced back to the founders), yet one of these
authors applies this technique directly or analogically to situations or contexts not recognized
by the other authors. Here the restraint of those other authors argues that such an extension of
the range of application may not have been intended by the founders. Although this may be
regarded as innovation of a sort, there is always the danger that the technique has been
extended beyond its proper range. Once more, only a study of the intrinsic logic of the
technique could legitimate such an extension.
It would seem, then, that the later Hellenistic astrologers were for the most part a very
conservative group, who attempted to remain as faithful to the original tradition as possible.
They understood their own work to be that of preservation and transmission, interpretation
and development. In this their attitude was true to the spirit of the times. In an era more
characterized by commentary than originality, where creative thinking could only take place
within parameters and categories established by the founders of schools and disciplines, it
would indeed have been astonishing for any substantial innovation to have occurred within a
tradition whose founders were regarded as semi-divine beings. The appearance of
heterogeneity in this corpus is partly due to the practice of selective excerpting by later
astrologers, and partly due to divergent readings of ambiguities in the source texts.
Reconstructing the Practice of Hellenistic Astrology — The question of the coherence of

Hellenistic astrological practice thus effectively reduces to one of the integrity of the doctrines
of the founders. Accordingly, we must next ask whether this group of doctrines consists of
separate and unrelated practical insights on the part of the founders, each of which makes an
independent contribution to the reading of a nativity, or whether these doctrines fit together
into an orderly system. This is a question that modern scholarship has hardly bothered to
raise, let alone to address, evidently regarding Hellenistic astrology as a chimerical patchwork
of anthropomorphic concepts, arbitrary interpretations, and bizarre techniques. But here
again, closer analysis reveals something hitherto unsuspected: that these doctrines can be
collected together and organized into a systematic and orderly practice.
First of all, we note that the Hellenistic astrologers themselves tend to collect many of the
numerous concepts related to planetary "condition" into several different groupings. These
same constellations of concepts are represented in many different authors, and some are so
common as to have their own collective names.
Secondly, it can be shown that the manifold and seemingly unrelated meanings (in
terms of human events) of the seven planets individually have a common notion underlying
them, just as the numerous and often disparate definitions of words can be seen to derive
from a basic meaning by applying the rules of word formation. Furthermore, the meanings of
different planets can be interrelated with one another according to an orderly pattern of
“synonyms” and “antonyms.” In addition, in the case of planetary combinations the atomistic
significations grow into more complex phrases or molecules of meaning according to a
determinate syntax, giving evidence that these delineations were generated by a rational
principle. Similar remarks apply to the various meanings of the twelve topical places
("houses") and the characteristics of the twelve signs of the zodiac.
Thirdly, the Hellenistic astrologers themselves often group their techniques in a
coordinate or hierarchical manner. Techniques addressed to topical inquiries into specific
areas of human life are often cross-linked to techniques designed to investigate certain
seasons of human life, and vice versa. The separate components of a given technique can often
be seen to have been motivated by the requirements of the topic or timing technique in
question.
Thus, the practice of Hellenistic astrology displays a threefold systematic character: an
articulate system of concepts, a system of meanings, and a system of topics and seasons of life
addressed by well-motivated techniques.
What assurance is there that the systematic features just mentioned were part of the
original system and not imposed by later Hellenistic astrologers? By paying careful attention
to the technical astrological terminology, which was clearly introduced by the founders and
stable throughout the era, we see that the clusters of concepts related to planetary condition
have their underlying unity in the concrete anthropomorphic paradigms suggested by the
terminology. The paradigms underlying the various modes of planetary combination provide
descriptions in human terms of the syntactical structures that may be uncovered by the study
of the delineations. Finally, the anthropomorphic language used in the procedural texts
likewise suggests how the techniques used in topical inquiries or in the study of time periods
should be interpreted.
In short, the more this material is studied in detail, the more it takes on the appearance
of a complex but orderly system, whose various pieces are scattered about in numerous
astrological treatises.
Uncovering the Theory Underlying Hellenistic Astrology — It is generally acknowledged that

the founding Hellenistic astrologers flourished in the first or second century B.C.E. If this
discipline was fully operational by the beginning of the Christian era, as seems to be the case,
this means that that the conceptual framework, interpretive principles, and basic technical
apparatus of Hellenistic astrology were devised in a relatively short span of time, perhaps less
than a century. How could such a coherent astrological system have developed so quickly?
It is preposterous to assume that the propositions of Hellenistic astrology were derived
inductively from empirical studies correlating celestial phenomena with events in the human
world. Apart from the anachronism of such a view, Hellenistic astrology came on the scene far
too quickly for it to have developed in this way, even supposing that its founders had had
access to empirical data compiled earlier, say, in the form of Babylonian omen texts. This
observation does not, of course, preclude the possibility that the doctrines of Hellenistic
astrology could not have been tested empirically.
And even if the principles of Hellenistic astrology had been developed much earlier, as
the legends about Hermes Trismegistus would have it, there are simply too many variables at
play simultaneously for its propositions to have resulted from such an empirical process
without manifold a priori assumptions. Furthermore, some of its concepts (such as lots) are of
such a nature that they could not even in principle have been discovered empirically. A sign
of this is the fact that the vast legions of modern astrologers never stumbled upon them in
their own studies. Finally, many of the techniques of Hellenistic astrology are so arcane and so
non-intuitive that they could not possibly have been contrived by simply trying things out to
see if they “worked.”
Setting aside the possibility that Hellenistic astrology was revealed to the founders as a
complete system in an inspired moment, it is more plausible to assume that it was some sort
of rational construct devised by the founders. To be sure, this construct must have been based
on a vision of the cosmos and the place of human life within it that would have made room
for the possibility of astrology in the first place, and it is not absurd to regard such a vision as
an inspired revelation. However, this initial vision would then need to have been adequately
worked out and sufficiently articulated to suggest how the details of the practical astrological
system could be derived in a non-arbitrary and conceptually consistent manner. Some vague
notion of “as above, so below,” or some simple hypothesis of “cosmic sympathies” or
“correspondences” would not suffice for the purposes of a full rational construction and could
not account for the coherence of the system.
Unfortunately, we search in vain for evidence of this postulated cosmological vision and
subsequent constructive reasoning in any of the excerpts or paraphrases of doctrine by later
Hellenistic astrologers which may be safely traced back to the founders. Indeed, it is doubtful
whether the early writings contained explicit theoretical statements or expositions, for we do
not find any such citations in the polemics or justifications of astrology on the part of
contemporary philosophers. Instead, we find the rejection or acceptance of astrology argued
almost exclusively on the basis of the philosopher’s own metaphysical views and his own
understanding of what was presupposed by the terminology and details of astrological
practice.
The speculation has been made that the philosophical dialogues of the so-called Corpus
Hermeticum contain the theoretical foundations of the “technical” Hermetica, which include
Hellenistic astrology. We will not here enter into the ongoing controversy surrounding the
dating of these dialogues. Currently their date of composition has been pushed forward to the
first few centuries of the Christian era, although it has been suggested that they may draw on
earlier doctrine. For the purposes of our own inquiry, they are relevant only to the extent that
they contain doctrines antecedent to or contemporaneous with the founding of Hellenistic
astrology. These dialogues do indeed contain a number of explicit references to astrology as
set in a philosophical context, most notably the idea that the planets are the servants of fate,
but there is no trace in them of the principles that would allow one to deduce the practical
system from such a notion. At best they record the cosmological vision behind Hellenistic
astrology, but we cannot even be sure of this until the constructive principles are restored.
However, when all is said and done, what we are faced with is a collection of practical
astrological treatises with no explicit philosophical framing.
For those who argue, as we do, that Hellenistic astrology must have been a rational
construct, it is usual to assume that this kind of astrology was anchored in the metaphysics of
Stoicism, Middle Platonism, and/or Neo-Pythagoreanism, the prevailing philosophical trends
of the day. This assumption is then “confirmed” by quoting philosophical asides by one of the
later Hellenistic astrologers such as Vettius Valens or Firmicus Maternus that espouses a Stoic
conception of fate, or by mentioning that the astrologer Thrasyllus was a Middle Platonist
who arranged the Platonic dialogues into tetralogues, or by noting some kind of
numerological argumentation by one of these later astrologers.
There is a dubious historicism implicit in this view. It carries with it the insinuation that
the founders of Hellenistic astrology were slavishly accepting of the philosophical tenets of
their day and incapable of original theoretical thinking in response the unique demands of
their subject matter, or at best capable of clever eclectic syncretism. But even apart from this,
the simple fact is that there is absolutely no evidence for supposing that the later Hellenistic
astrologers were any more privy to the original theory than the philosophical contemporaries
of the founding Hellenistic astrologers. It is equally possible, and in our view far more likely,
that when these later astrologers exhibit doctrines of the schools, they were simply reflecting
the prevailing philosophical sentiments of their own day and taking sides in the ongoing
learned debate over the possibility of astrology.
Of course, these remarks do not entirely rule out the possibility that Hellenistic astrology
was erected on the foundations of one metaphysical school or other. The effort to think
through such possibilities is at least a rewarding philosophical exercise. For instance, an
astrologer familiar with the first section of Plato’s Timaeus could very well have understood
the following propositions to support an epistemological model for astrology: 1) That the
cosmos is a living animal, with both body and soul 2) That the cosmic soul possesses a
rational consciousness, capable of knowing the events that befall individual human beings in
this world of coming-to-be and passing away; since rationality was conceptualized by
classical philosophers as internalized logos, or the soul speaking to itself, the cognitive acts
taking place in the cosmic soul have the structure of a language. 3) That the observable
celestial phenomena are "expressions" of the inner states and cognitive events of this cosmic
consciousness (just as we express our inner states through our facial expressions or body
language). 4) That the role of the astrologer is to surmise the thoughts that the cosmic mind
entertains relative to any individual human life, by attending to the observable phenomena
that are expressions of those thoughts. This same astrologer could also have been tempted by
the second section of this dialogue, insofar as it suggests that the physical causes that are
responsible for events in the human world may themselves be subject to a kind of formal
causality originating in a higher realm, a notion that might be understood to complement the
first model.
It must also be acknowledged that there are numerous passages in the Hellenistic corpus
that demonstrate that the Hellenistic astrologers (including the founders) were at home with
the natural philosophy of the time. For instance, nearly every Hellenistic astrologer describes
the effects of a planetary transit to a natal planet in terms of the intensification and relaxation
of a planetary quality, which was the classical way of conceptualizing the variation in degree
of a quality. They often make use of the four primary qualities and the four elements. The
notion of seven planetary rays and the difference between planetary rays cast forward and
those cast backward in the order of signs seems to be a clever adaptation of Greek optical
theory. In my opinion, Hellenistic astrology is deserving of serious study for these reasons
alone, since in the astrological writings we find these technical concepts actually applied in
concrete settings rather than merely written about in theoretical treatises, as was the habit of
the Athenian philosophers. But again, should we conclude from this that, like other eclectics
of the day, Hellenistic astrologers simply borrowed whatever terminology they needed from
the common store of contemporary jargon? Or worse, that they adopted this terminology for
want of exact concepts to express their own astrological ideas?
Indeed, there is another reason for questioning whether the founders of Hellenistic
astrology based their rational construct on the metaphysical precepts of the schools. One
would assume that these purported influences would show themselves in the technical
terminology employed by the Hellenistic astrologers. But unlike the philosophical dialogues
of the Corpus Hermeticum, which, according to Iamblichus, deliberately employed the
metaphysical jargon of the schools, there is only sparing evidence of such language in the
technical astrological texts.
This does not, however, in any way mean that Hellenistic astrology was not worked out
in full cognizance of the metaphysical doctrines of the Greek schools. In fact, careful reading
shows that the Hellenistic astrologers went out of their way to avoid contemporary
metaphysical parlance, developing a technical vocabulary of their own that consists of
terminology partly synonymous with the standard terminology, and partly antonymous to it.
The question is why they engaged in this practice.
Given this state of affairs, the only approach to recovering the principles underlying the
theory of Hellenistic astrology is a detailed study of the technical terminology, interpretive
texts, and the practical system itself, guided by the supposition that the theory of Hellenistic
astrology was somehow fully embedded in the practice.
The real question is whether the development of a systematic astrology — a discipline
designed to treat of the concrete particulars of daily human life — was a problem that could
even in principle be addressed by the metaphysical precepts of the contemporary schools. In
our view, this is a dubious proposition. Metaphysics after Plato and Aristotle became the
study of being, formulated in various ways: the study of that which is insofar as it is, of that
which is most really real, of the ultimate causes of that which is, of the ultimate elements
underlying that which is, etc. But being was always understood as that which was permanent
and unchanging, essential and not accidental, independent and not contingent. Even when the
philosopher directed his gaze at the material world of coming-to-be and passing away, he
sought these eternal formal principles to the extent that they were present there. Accordingly,
the philosopher was interested in studying man as man—not man as tall or olive-skinned or
eminent or as one possessing children or wealth. In numerous places, Aristotle even explicitly
banishes accidental or contingent being from the province of metaphysics and the "primary
philosophy."
It is my contention that the framers of Hellenistic astrology took on the systematic study
of the accidental and contingent in the world and in human life as their special province, with
the intention of reinstating it as a proper subject of metaphysical inquiry. Where the Athenian
philosophers were concentrating on the "is," the Hellenistic astrologers would focus on the
"can be," the "may be," and the "ought to be." Theirs was a philosophical program unique and
unprecedented in the ancient world, which nevertheless had to be pursued with all the care
and rigor characteristic of the Athenian philosophical schools themselves. This would be no
easy matter. Many of the basic themes of Athenian philosophical inquiry would have to be
addressed anew. For instance, the concepts of place, time, motion, and event would have to be
re-conceptualized; the very idea of causality would have to be rethought in this new context,
and even the meaning of logical inference. It is my opinion that they succeeded in their
program.
Catalogue of Hellenistic Astrologers and their

Writings
Compiled by Robert Schmidt
This catalogue is not intended to be either definitive or exhaustive. Its purpose is to give
the student a somewhat impressionistic overview of the origins and transmission of
Hellenistic astrology from the 2nd century B.C.E. through the 5th or 6th centuries C.E., up to
the time when Arabian influences begin to change the character of this astrology.
The Pre-Hellenistic Period

Greek writers state that a Chaldean priest named Berosus settled on the island of Cos and
introduced some sort of Babylonian astrology into the Mediterranean region around 275
B.C.E., although none of his astrological writings survives. There was also definitely some
indigenous form of astrology in Egypt prior to the Hellenistic period, based on the decanates,
although we know of no writings or authors from this early period. One text cites three
authors who delineated the passage of Zeus and Kronos through the 12 signs (probably in the
context of mundane astrology), who may have lived during this time: Erimarabos (which
name the text editor suspects may be a corruption for Hermes+Anubus), Phoredas the Indian
(to my knowledge the only Indian mentioned in the entire corpus), and one Ōdapsos. Again,
there are a few writings attributed to Zoroaster, Pythagoras, etc., although most of these are
probably eponymous and composed by later authors. But whatever influence these early
writers may have had on the later Hellenistic astrology, some kind of fresh beginning takes
place at that time, and that is where our true chronicle begins.
The Founders of Hellenistic Astrology Proper

There is a significant body of astrological material surviving from Hellenistic times that is
attributed to "the ancient Egyptians." According to Firmicus Maternus, this material originates
with the legendary sage Mercury (Hermes); it was then handed over to an equally legendary
figure Asclepius (Aesculapius), and subsequently elaborated by an Egyptian pharaoh named
Nechepso and a high priest named Petosiris. The best scholarly evidence tells us that all this
took place sometime in the second century B.C.E. This is the source material from which later
Hellenistic astrology derives, and although little of it survives in its original form, a fair
amount is quoted or cited by later authors. It would not be incorrect to call this material
"Egyptian Astrology" written in the Greek language. However, we have absolutely no reason
to suppose that this Egyptian tradition antedated the Alexandrian conquest.
Hermes Trismegistus. Among the writings explicitly attributed to Hermes are a number
of meteorological texts, works on astrological medicine called "iatromathematical", some of
which employ the decanates, a work on seven basic lots called the Panaretus, and a Method for
Every Katarche that employs one lot-like calculation for all electional purposes; some material
in the so-called Liber Hermetis may also derive from Hermetic writings, particularly a listing
of the decans, their images, and the planets associated with them as their "faces". The twelve-
topic house system is also attributed to him. There are numerous references to Hermes in
later Hellenistic and Medieval authors.
There is also the so-called Corpus Hermeticum, which consists of a number of
philosophical dialogues containing a small amount of astrological material. The relationship
of the author(s) of these writings to the author of the astrological writings is unclear.
Asclepius. As well as being the personage to whom some Hermetic writings are
addresed, he is associated with the eight-topic house system and a work called the
Myriogenesis, which evidently contained delineations based on the degree and minute of the
rising signs.
Nechepso & Petosiris. Egyptian pharaoh and high priest, respectively. An extensive
astrological textbook bearing their names was evidently written or translated into Greek
around the 2nd century B.C.E. Numerous references and direct quotations from it survive in
the later astrological literature. It seems to have been a principal source for all later Greek
astrology. The character of this writing may be gathered from the 20 page excerpt on eclipse
delineation found at the end of Book I of Hephaistio's Apotelesmatics. Judging from some
remarks in Valens concerning the calculation of the Lot of Fortune, much of the text may also
have been cryptic, raising the possibility that some of the variations in the later astrological
writers may have been due to different interpretations of this root text.
The Expositors
Maternus' chronicle continues with the statement that the source text of
Nechepso/Petosiris was exposited, brought to light or published (it is not entirely certain what
the verb edo means here) by Abram, Orpheus, Critodemus and others. Evidently, the source
text required a fair amount of elucidation due to its occasionally enigmatical and elliptical
style of composition. Little survives from most of these authors (except for Critodemus, who
is frequently cited by Valens), and it is hard to assess how authentic their expositions of the
text of Nechepso/Petosiris were, and to what extent their interpretations became definitive for
later astrologers.
Abram. Cited by Valens for the topic of travel, and the time-lord procedure of zodiacal
releasing from the Lots of Fortune and Spirit.
Orpheus. Attributed to him with some suspicion are a work on the twelve year cycle of
Jupiter, a work on planetary ingresses, and possibly one on earthquakes.
Critodemus (of uncertain date, but probably right around the beginning of the C.E.).
Critodemus is last in the line of the Hermetic lineage given by Firmicus Maternus. He wrote a
book called the Vision (now lost, but partially preserved in a later summary), and possibly one
called Table. In the former work, he evidently discussed, among other things, the time-lord
procedure of decennials, giving delineations. He is cited quite frequently by Valens, who
respects his astrological work but evidently found the style of his book quite theatrical and
distasteful. Valens devotes considerable attention in Books VIII & IX to Critodemus' elaborate
method for calculating length of life. There are also a number of shorter excerpts on various
subjects attributed to him, such as various "figures" indicating violent death.
Serapio of Alexandria (of uncertain date, but probably B.C.E.). Not explicitly mentioned
by Firmicus, but perhaps belonging to this period. The few surviving fragments of Serapio
mostly deal with inceptional or katarchic astrology (that is, electional issues); there is one
important fragment that sets out a general strategy for doing such katarchic investigations,
and Serapio may have been one of the earliest systematizers of this theory.
Timaeus. Another astrologer possibly belonging to this period, who is quoted by Valens
in connection with the topic of parents. Although Valens considers his style to be beautiful
and full of marvelous tales (along with another author named Asklation), he does not think
that Timaeus delivers on his promise. There is also a surviving excerpt from a Timaeus
dealing with the subject of fugitive slaves.
Others. Also among the "others" mentioned by Firmicus Maternus may be one Orion,
mentioned by Valens in connection with a dynamical division of the zodiac, and Hermeias,
who had a procedure for determining the sign of the year by profections, directly quoted by
Valens. There is a short summary of a work by an astrologer named Callicrates on the planets,
which, judging from some archaic terminology, may be from this period. Also, a work called
Astrological Practices by Demetrius may date from this period; it dealt with some katarchic
subjects, of which an excerpt dealing with runaways and one about leaving on sea voyages
survive in later texts.
Early Compilers
We may suppose that the next few generations of astrologers perused the writings of
Nechepso/Petosiris and the various expositors, often picking and choosing material from
different authors related to specific themes, topics, or techniques. It is only natural that these
compilations would reflect the biases or interests of the individual authors. Thus, the original
font of astrological material began to be reorganized, rearranged and systematized. The most
important compiler from this period is Dorotheus of Sidon (1st century C.E.), who drew from
many earlier sources in the composition of his book, "like a bee collecting honey from the most
delicious of plants."
Dorotheus of Sidon (presumed 1st Century C.E.). Wrote a long and important
astrological poem, now called the Pentateuch because it exists in five books. Numerous
fragments survive in Greek, but some version of it was translated into Persian, then into
Arabic, and has been translated from Arabic into English by Pingree. There are evidently quite
a number of sections of the original missing from the Arabic version, which also contains
numerous Arabian interpolations. As well as containing an extensive treatment of natal
astrology, Book V is the primary source of Hellenistic katarchic astrology (electional/horary).
This work of Dorotheus was probably the single most important influence on Arabian natal
astrology. Dorotheus advocated the study of trigon lords for virtually every topic.
Manilius (c. 10 C.E.). Wrote the Astronomica in Latin, a long didactic astrological poem
most of which is still extant. It contains a wealth of astrological material about the signs,
houses, derivative houses from the Lot of Fortune, and other matters, presumably deriving
from the Hellenistic Greek tradition, but much of seems very idiosyncratic. It is not clear that
Manilius understood very well the astrological tradition he was versifying. He often makes
claims of originality for what he presents, or at least in versification of astrological doctrine.
Thrasyllus (d. 36 C.E.). A scholar from Rhodes who became the astrological advisor to
Tiberius and apparently had considerable influence over that emperor. He wrote a work
called Table, evidently referring to the writing boards upon which charts were cast. This work
does not survive intact, although some of his ideas are cited by Valens, Porphyry, and
Hephaistio; the work was summarized by a later Byzantine epitomist, so we have some idea
of its contents. It seems to have covered many of the fundamentals on the natures of the signs,
planets, and houses (preserving a number of peculiar house assignments attributed to
Hermes); he advocated there a zodiac with the vernal point at 8 degrees of Aries. The
astrologer Balbillus, who was astrologer to the emperor Claudius, may have been the son of
Thrasyllus.
Teucer of Babylon (presumed 1st Century C.E.). Tradition has it that he was the first to
delineate the decanates astrologically, and fragments of such a treatise do survive. He may
have been the primary source for the delineations of the planets and signs found in Valens,
Rhetorius, and others. Rhetorius also ascribes a work on the Ascendant and the lots to him,
although this evidently does not survive.
Balbillus (late first century C.E.). Probably the son of Thrasyllus, he served as astrological
advisor to the emperor Claudius, as well as other emperors. He wrote a work called
Astrological Matters, which survives only in a much later summary. This summary contains his
treatment of length of life determination, and also a variation on the time-lord method of
decennials, where the minor periods of the planets are reduced in proportion to their
distances from their own exaltation degrees.
Critical Assessment of the Tradition

A turning point in the tradition occurred in the first two centuries of the Christian era
with the work of Ptolemy (2nd century) and Valens (2nd century). Although both were in
touch with the earlier tradition and respected it, each in his own way rethought astrology and
left his own personal mark on it. Ptolemy stands out for his far-reaching attempt to
reconceptualize the fundamental principles of Hellenistic astrology in terms of Stoic and
Aristotelian natural philosophy and for his orderly presentation and systematization of the
astrological doctrines that fit within his theoretical framework. Valens, on the other hand, is
notable for his systematic empirical testing and examination of the methods of his
predecessors. Both men favored astrological procedures that they regarded as "natural" rather
than "mystical" (or connected with the mysteries), meaning those for which a plausible
astronomical or "scientific" explanation could be adduced. Both were also somewhat critical
of the "combinatory" style in which the earlier treatises were composed, where an individual
technique was delineated through all possible combinations of planets and supporting
conditions. Both preferred a more "synoptic" approach whereby the basic natures and basic
forms were presented in isolation, and the astrologer could combine them himself in an
intuitive act.
Claudius Ptolemy (2nd Century C.E.). Ptolemy was an Egyptian by birth and probably a
Roman citizen, although he wrote in Greek. Famous in antiquity for his Almagest, Optics,
Harmonics, Geography, and other writings, he clearly took astrology very seriously. His
astrological treatise was called the Tetrabiblos, because it consists of four booklets. It was
Ptolemy who first reconceptualized astrology in terms of natural philosophy, and the
Tetrabiblos could perhaps be regarded as the completion of Aristotelian physics at the
sublunary level. However, his enormous influence may ultimately have been to the detriment
of astrology, since he was first and foremost a theoretical revisionist. His astrological teaching
is by no means fully representative of the main line of Hellenistic astrology. In fact, he rejected
large portions of the tradition he inherited. Though the Tetrabiblos is a marvel of clear
organization and shows deep philosophical sophistication and subtlety, it is not clear whether
Ptolemy himself was a practicing astrologer. He was also the author of the Phases of the Fixed
Stars, a work on astrological weather prediction.
Vettius Valens (2nd Century C.E.). Evidently a younger contemporary of Ptolemy's, he
compiled the Anthology, a long writing in nine books dealing with most facets of Hellenistic
astrology. More than any other astrologer, Valens may represent the mainstream of the
Hellenistic tradition; he quotes or cites a large number of astrologers who would be otherwise
unknown. Clearly a practicing astrologer, he exercises his critical intelligence on the tradition
and the various competing contemporary astrological schools. According to his own account,
he traveled widely throughout the Middle East in search of astrological wisdom. There is a
distinct and highly religious personality evident in his work. The Anthology also contains a
huge collection of actual horoscopes and their delineations, worked out as examples of his
various techniques. The Anthology as we have it may have been substantially edited in the 5th
Century. Although some of Valens was known to the Medieval Arabian astrologers through
Persian translation, there seems to be no trace in the later tradition of many of the techniques
he discusses, such as the numerous time-lord systems treated of in Book IV.
Later Compilers & Commentators

Now, the writings of Dorotheus, Ptolemy, and Valens become the canonical texts for
several generations of commentators and compilers, although these later authors also had
access to some of the original Hermetic source material and the writings of the first expositors.
Principal among these compilers were Paulus Alexandrinus (4th century), Hephaistio of
Thebes (5th century), and Rhetorius (6th century). Firmicus Maternus (4th century) is in
something of a special category, since he states that his compilation derives directly from the
Hermetic material and seems to be uninfluenced by Dorotheus, Ptolemy, or Valens. Very little
original astrological thinking was done by these later Hellenistic astrologers. They confined
their efforts to the exposition and systematization of the earlier authors, through which much
earlier material was preserved. However, we see that in many cases the writings of
Dorotheus, Ptolemy, and Valens were just as obscure and ambiguous to them as the writings
of the Hermetic tradition were to these three authors themselves.
Anubio. A work by him on planetary configurations, planets in the domiciles and

bounds of other planets, and planets on angles, seems to be derived from the second book of
Dorotheus. It may originally have been in verse, but what we now have is a prose summary.
Hephaistio quotes some verses from him dealing with rectification. A work on ingresses and
transits has been ascribed to him only on the basis of reconstructible lines of verse found in a
prose version. There is also a fragment of a verse work on planets in houses that goes under
his name.
Antigonus of Nicaea (somewhere between the rule of Hadrian and the late third century
C.E.). He is mainly known for having made a large compilation of exemplary horoscopes with
their delineations. Hephaistio preserves three of these in the Book II of his Apotelesmatics; one
of them appears to be that of the emperor Hadrian. These are important because they gives us
some idea of the Hellenistic approach to chart reading, although many of the techniques seem
rather archaic for the time. The natal indicators singled out for mention and their
interpretations are often quite surprising from the perspective of modern astrology.
Antiochus of Athens (of uncertain date, but probably early in the tradition). Composed
an Introduction and possibly a work called the Thesaurus. The Introduction is lost in their
original form, but it was extensively excerpted by Porphyry, Hephaistio, and Rhetorius. His
work is important because it contained explicit definitions of terminology usually assumed by
other astrological authors, as well as other introductory matters. There is a later epitome of
both these works that gives some idea as to their contents. Antiochus is frequently cited by
later Hellenistic and Arabian authors.
Pseudo-Manetho (uncertain, but probably in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd centuries C.E.). Responsible
for a didactic poem in six books. A fair portion survives, but the text editor doubted whether
the attribution to Manetho was genuine. It seems to be fairly standard Hellenistic astrology.
Porphyry (c. 275 C.E.). A disciple of the Neoplatonic philosopher Plotinus who wrote
commentaries or introductions to a number of works, such as his Introduction to the Aristotelian
Organon. A commentary on Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos is attributed to him, which is not so much a
line by line commentary as an attempt to explain the technical vocabulary Ptolemy uses; this
work draws heavily on Antiochus. He evidently wrote a more substantial commentary than
this, for Hephaistio quotes Porphyry's opinion on a number of technical issues connected with
Ptolemy's treatment of length of life.
Pancharius (early 3rd Century C.E.). Wrote a work on astrological medicine entitled
Concerning Bed-Illnesses, which survives only in a few fragments. He also seems to have been
the first to write a commentary on Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos; Hephaistio (Bk II) cites this
commentary frequently when discussing the issue of the house division to be used for the
determination of length of life in Ptolemy's manner. In his attempt to read between the lines in
the Tetrabiblos, he evidently invented what we might call a modified Alchabitius house
system.
Maximus (4th or 5th Century C.E.). May have been a teacher to the emperor Julian. He
wrote a didactic poem on katarchic astrology (electional) of which a considerable portion
survives in verse, and also in a later prose paraphrase.
Paulus Alexandrinus (c. 378 C.E.). Wrote the Introductory Matters, which survives more
or less intact. It is still a good introduction and overview to mainstream Greek astrology.
Among other things, it argues in favor of the Ptolemaic ascensional times, and has clear
discussions of lots, house delineation, twelfth-parts and an introduction to the method of

circumambulations. There is a surviving commentary on this work originally attributed to one
Heliodorus, but now to Olympiodorus.
Anonymous of 379. Wrote a work on the natal delineation of 30 bright fixed stars, the
same stars Ptolemy used in his Phases of the Fixed Stars, studying them when they are angular
in the natal chart, or co-rising or co-culminating with the Moon. It associates each of the stars
with a pair of planets, and uses this as the key to their delineation. This procedure was
considered important in explaining great nativities when nothing else was conspicuously
significant.
Firmicus Maternus (middle 4th Century C.E.). His work is called the Mathesis. This is a
very large work in eight chapters written in Latin for a Roman audience. It draws on many of
the earliest Hellenistic sources and writings of the Hermetic tradition, and preserves much
material not found elsewhere. From a practical astrological perspective, it is the largest single
source of delineation text, treating of planets in houses, aspects, applications and separations
of the Moon, decennials, etc.
Hephaistio of Thebes (c. 415 C.E.). Wrote a clearly organized Apotelesmatics, whose first
book treats of introductory concepts and definitions, and considerations pertaining to
universal or mundane astrology; most of this material derives from Ptolemy, although there
are references to Dorotheus and others, as well as a long section of eclipse delineation from
Nechepso/Petosiris. The second book is concerned with rectification and the topical approach
to natal astrology; again it takes its organization of topics from Ptolemy, but it frequently
quotes or cites the opinions of other authors. The third book elucidates and elaborates the
katarchic astrology found in the fifth book of Dorotheus, with numerous direct verse
quotations from him and other authors.
Proclus (late 5th Century C.E.). The tradition attributes an extant commentary on the
Tetrabiblos to Proclus. There is also a paraphrase of the Tetrabiblos attributed to him, although
this may have been done much later than Proclus.
Julian of Laodikeia (c. 500 C.E.). Wrote a work on katarchic astrology focusing on
military matters. A few chapters survive and are excerpted in the CCAG.
Olympiodorus (c. 564 C.E.). An important commentator on Aristotle, Olympiodorus is
now regarded as the author of a series of lectures on Paulus' Introductory Matters apparently
given at an astrological school in Athens. The original text editor had erroneously guessed
that this work had been written by one Heliodorus. Although the commentary itself does not
seem to be of particularly high quality, it does contain a complete listing of Hellenistic lots.
Rhetorius of Egypt (6th or 7th Century). Rhetorius may be regarded as the last
Hellenistic astrologer of consequence. He made a large collection of excerpts from early
astrological writings (particularly Antiochus), and he was clearly interested in synthesizing
the approaches of his predecessors. In addition to the usual introductory material, his work
contains some accounts of chart-reading technique, extensive delineations of houses,
discussion of house systems, systematizations of time-lord procedures, and much stray lore.
His work no longer survives in its original form, but only in several late Byzantine
compendia.
Theophilus of Edessa (late 8th Century C.E.). Astrologer who lived in Syria but wrote in
Greek on almost all phases of astrology. He drew on Islamic and Indian sources as well as
Greek. A fair amount of his work survives in manuscript, although only some of it has been
edited in the CCAG. Four separate astrological writings are ascribed to him: Labors Concerning
the Beginnings of War, devoted entirely to military astrology, the Astrological Effects, On
Different Beginnings, and Collection of Cosmic Beginnings. Pingree, the source for the above
information, regards Theophilus as one of the most original of the Medieval Greek
astrologers.
Leo the Mathematician (9th Century C.E.). A few stray comments by him survive in the
CCAG.
Demophilus (10th Century C.E.). Some horoscopes survive from this astrologer. He was
also an editor of the older astrological material, and the author of a number of scholia to
Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos.
Glossary of Commonly Used Hellenistic Terminology

Compiled by Robert H. Schmidt
This partial glossary of technical Hellenistic terminology concentrates on words used in the
translation of source texts in this course, particularly those that may be unfamiliar to the modern
astrologer.
additive in times (or numbers): prosthetikos. Usually refers to “direct motion” of a planet
faster than its average speed, although sometimes merely to “direct motion” as opposed to
“retrograde motion” (compare with subtractive in times).
adherence: kollēsis. When the faster moving planet approaches the slower, being within three
degrees of it. In other words, an “applying conjunction.” The Hellenistic astrologers
sometimes call this a bodily conjunction to distinguish it from a figural conjunction, which is
what a modern astrologer would call an “applying aspect.”
angle: gōnia; Refers to the 1st, 4th, 7th, or 10th place (“house”) relative to the “Ascendant,” just
as it does in modern astrology, although usually in terms of “whole-sign houses.” The far
more common terms for these places are pivot and goad.
arise, rise: anatellō; arising, rising: anatolē. The same Greek word is used of any body coming
up over the eastern horizon due to the diurnal rotation, but in an astrological context it is
more often applied to the “heliacal rising” of a celestial body, when it rises relative to the
Sun—that is, it first becomes visible after having been obscured by the glare of the Sun. In
order to maintain this distinction, we will reserve the word rise for the normal sense of coming
up over the eastern horizon, and employ the term arise for rising relative to the Sun. The
Hellenistic astrologers normally use a standard interval of 15 degrees elongation from the Sun
as the moment of arising, although they are aware that the exact value depends on
geographical latitude, position in the zodiac, and the intrinsic brightness of the planet.
(near its) arising: eph’ anatolē. When a planet has made its arising (“heliacal rising”) within
seven days before the nativity or will make it within seven days after it.
(able to) arise: anatolikos. When a planet is far enough distant from the Sun to arise or appear
in the night sky at any time after its arising (“heliacal rising”). This concept is related to
“orientality” in the medieval Latin tradition.
(morning) arising: heōia anatolē. When a planet is able to arise in the morning. A “morning
star.”
(evening) arising: hesperia anatolē. When a planet is able to arise in the evening. An “evening
star.”
ascending node: anabibazō. The north lunar node.
ascensional time: anaphoros chronos. Sometimes called “oblique ascension.” The amount of
time it takes for a segment of the ecliptic, such as a zōidion (that is, a “sign”), to fully ascend
over the eastern horizon. It is measured by the number of equatorial degrees that rise over the
eastern horizon during the same time that the ecliptic interval fully ascends. Different zōidia
have different ascensional times, some taking more than two hours to ascend, some less. The
ascensional time of a given ecliptic interval varies according to geographical latitude.
aversion, averse, in aversion to: apostrophē. Planets occupying zōidia (“signs”) that are
unconnected with each other. Planets in aversion correspond to the “semi-sextiles” or
“inconjuncts” of modern astrology. Literally, it means that planets in such zōidia are averted or
turned away from each other in the sense that they cannot cast rays into each other’s zōidion.
bad places. The five zōidia (“signs) unconnected to the ascending zōidion (“rising sign”);
namely, the second, sixth, eighth, and twelfth. The third zōidion from the ascending zōidion is
also considered to be a bad place. Such places are bad in the sense that they are not conducive
to business favorable to the native. When a planet is in such a place it is said to be badly situated.
Compare with good places.
benefic: agathopoios. Literally, a good-maker. The natural benefics are Zeus and Aphrodite,
although the Sun and Moon are often considered to be benefics, at least in certain contexts.
Hermes is a benefic in some nativities and a malefic in others, taking on the nature of the
planet(s) with which it is configured.
bicorporeal or double-bodied zōidia. The Twins, the Virgin, the Archer, the Fish, the four
"mutable signs" of modern astrology.
bodily conjunction. sunaphē sōmatikōs. An “applying conjunction.” See conjunction.
bonification: (from agathunō). The seven conditions of bonification make a benefic even more
favorable for the native, and a malefic less unfavorable. A planet is bonified under any of the
following conditions: 1) when it is struck by a ray cast by a benefic; 2) when it is enclosed by two
benefics; 3) when it is making an adherence with a benefic; 4) when as the faster moving planet
on the right it is in a figural conjunction with a benefic; 5) when it is overcome by a benefic in a
good place, while it is itself pivotal; 6) when it is in a diametrical opposition with a benefic (either
conjoining or flowing away), the benefic being the faster moving planet and in a good place, while
the planet itself is pivotal; 7) when it is pivotal and has as its domicile lord a benefic that occupies
a good place. See maltreatment and figure-description.
bound(s): horion. Traditionally called “term” as derived from Medieval Latin, but this
translation is very misleading in modern English. The Greek word has the sense of a limits or
boundaries, with a collateral sense of the standards or canons that regulate actions or
behaviors. The best English translation seems to be something like “confines,” but for the
purposes of this sourcebook and pending further investigation it will be left translated as
“bounds.” Each zōidion (“sign”) is subdivided into five irregular groupings of contiguous
degrees. Each one of these degrees is called a horion and is under the "rulership" of one of the
planets, usually excluding the Sun and Moon. The degrees are collectively called the horia
belonging to that planet. There are at least four different systems of horia: the Egyptian, the
Chaldean, the Ptolemaic, and one reported by Vettius Valens; the one used most frequently by
Hellenistic astrologers and in this course as well is the Egyptian system.
busy: chrēmatistikos. See (able to) conduct business.
calling to witness: epimarturia. Said of planets in one of the regular polygonal figures
(hexagonal, tetragonal, trigonal) or the diametrical figure. These figures need only be “sign-
based.”
cast a ray: aktinoboleō. Every planet is said to cast seven rays: three upward to a degree at a 60,
90 or 120 degree interval from the planet and corresponding to the side of a regular hexagon,
tetragon, and trigon, respectively; three downward at the same intervals; and one diametrically
opposite to a degree 180 degrees distant from the planet.
Chaldean Order: In Hellenistic texts, this is referred to as the "Order of the Seven-Zoned
Sphere." It is the order of the planets, usually from the slowest to the fastest, Kronos, Zeus,
Ares, Sun, Aphrodite, Hermes, Moon.
chariot: lampanē. One of zodiacal positions belonging to a planet: its domicile, exaltation, or
bound. Some later authors add trigon to this list.
circumambulation: peripatēsis. The Greek word used for walking a degree of the chart around
the fixed natal chart at some rate such as a degree per year (“primary directions”). Used to
establish a series of time-lords in one procedure wherein the lord of the horia of the
circumambulating degree becomes a time-lord for the period of time it is in those horia. The
encounter of the circumambulating degree with a planet or planetary ray is also understood to
activate that planet.
climacterical: klimakterikos. Pertaining to a critical time in one's life, especially in terms of

health.
commixture: sugkrasis. A fundamental mixture of elements or natures, as when the qualities or

significations of individual planets are blended due to presence in the same zōidion.
concourse: sunodos. When a the faster moving planet is about to make an adherence with the
slower, being more than three degrees distant from the slower, but less than 15 degrees. But
see synodic conjunction for a different meaning of the same Greek word.
conduct business: chrēmatizō. Said of the planets in their dealings with one another and
various modes of interaction. The business that they conduct may be regarded as
deliberations concerning the means by which a given native can best be brought to the
fulfillment of his or her destiny, as if they were each members of a grand planetary congress.
(able to) conduct business, busy: chrēmatistikos. Said of the planets when they are in places
conducive to business. They are able to conduct business when they are in the zōidia (“signs”)
that permit the conduct of business. They are actually busy and at work when they are in
zōidia that incite or stimulate this business.
configuration: suschēmatismos. Planets are in configuration or are configured as a result of

their figure-assumption in relation to each other—that is, as a result of having taken up a
position hexagonal, tetragonal, trigonal, or diametrical to each other. Configurations are either
“sign-based” and mediated by the zōidia alone (in which case the planets involved can provide
testimony for each other), or else they are “degree-based” and occupy positions close to the
vertices of regular polygons (in which case they are in a position to look upon (“aspect”) one
another and thereby can call each other to witness.
conjoining, conjunction: sunaphē. When two planets are either in an exact configuration by
conjoining to the degree (a “partile” or “geometrical aspect”), or else are in the process of
forming one (an "applying aspect" in modern jargon), when the difference between the
number of ecliptic degrees currently between them and the number of degrees that defines the
exact configuration is three degrees or less. For instance, two planets in the process of forming
an exact trigonal figure are conjoining when they are 117 to 120 degrees apart, or 123 to 120
degrees apart, depending on whether the faster moving planet is on the left or on the right,
respectively. (In the case of the Moon, the interval is extended to 13 degrees.) The second of
these two scenarios also involved striking with a ray. In modern terms, this condition describes
an “applying aspect” with a three degree “orb.” The Hellenistic astrologers sometimes call
this figural conjunction to distinguish it from bodily conjunction. Adherence (“applying
conjunction” in the modern sense) is considered to be a special case of conjoining. The
definition of conjunction can be confusing to modern astrologers because they restrict the
term to the case of bodily proximity and do not extend it to “aspects.” Furthermore, they also
speak of “separating conjunctions” whereas for the Hellenistic astrologers separation is the
opposite of conjoining and the modern phrase would be a contradiction. The correct
Hellenistic phrase would be “flowing away from a conjunction.” Compare flowing away.
co-presence: sumparousia. When planets are present together in the same zōidion (“sign”).
co-rise: paranatellō. When a celestial body such as a fixed star rises above the horizon at the
same time as a planet or degree of the zodiac. This is the source of the modern astrological
concept of “parans.”
contemplate: theōreō, epitheōreō. The Greek word has strong visual connotations (such as
behold, gaze, inspect, etc.) and is often used as a synonym for look upon. At the same time, it
can mean to act as an emissary sent to consult an oracle, and this sense does seem to be
intended in certain contexts. Thus, we have selected the word contemplate to capture both of
these senses simultaneously, giving due consideration to the original meaning of “templum”
in Latin. Some later authors restrict this word to the visual act involved in casting a ray
forward in zodiacal order in contradistinction to the meaning of a ray cast backward in
zodiacal order.
decan: dekanos. Originally one of 36 divinities associated with 10 degree divisions of the signs,
possibly connected with extra-zodiacal constellations co-rising with these divisions of the
zodiac. Name later transferred to the 10-degree intervals themselves, which more properly
should be called “decanates.” Each decan seems to shape in a special way a particular third of
a sign, and the result of this activity is called the "face" of one of the planets.
(a) decline, (to) decline: apoklima, apoklinō. A “cadent” place, normally used of the 3rd, 6th, 9th,
and 12th, zōidia, but sometimes of the degrees ascending before the four angular degrees.
When a planet is in one of these places, it is said to decline or be declining from that angle.
decreasing in light. Said of the Moon when it is waning.
degree: moira. Conventional term for each of the 360 equal parts of the zodiac, distributed 30
per zōidion. Portion would be a better translation of this Greek word since the Latinate word
degree comes from an entirely different semantic field (“gradus” meaning step). However, for
the purposes of this source book degree will be retained.
depression: tapeinōma. The zōidion opposite the zōidion in which a planet is exalted. “Fall” in
modern parlance. Some authors specify a degree within these zōidia.
descending node: katabibazō. The south lunar node.
diametrical, diametrical (figure): diametros, diametron schēma. Diameter refers to a diameter of

the celestial sphere, one of the geometrical relationships that serve to define relationships that
the planets can have with one another. When planets occupy zōidia that are joined by a
diameter, they are said to assume a diametrical figure. When they are exactly on the ends of
one of these diameters, they have assumed an exact diametrical figure (an “opposition”, one
of the “geometrical aspects”). Diametrical figures are antithetical.
divide the hour: hōronomeō. To be on the Ascendant, either the ascending degree or the
ascending zōidion (“sign”). A synonym for 'mark the hour'.
domicile: oikos. A zōidion that is understood to be a dwelling place of some planet. For
instance, the Crab is the domicile of the Moon, the Lion of the Sun, Aries of Ares, etc. In
modern parlance, a zōidion that a planet “rules.”
domicile master, domicile mastership: oikodespotēs, oikodespoteia. The word suggests a

domestic or native ruler as distinguished from an emperor or world ruler, the person having
responsibility for a household, or the master that oversees an estate. In the strict sense, it is the
domicile lord of a given zōidion (“sign”), although the term may also be used of the lord of an
exaltation, horia, or even trigon.
domicile master of the nativity: oikodespotēs tēs geneseōs. The planet that has responsibility for
the nativity as a whole in the same manner that the domicile lord of a given zōidion (“sign”)
has responsibility for that zōidion. It is normally determined by taking the domicile and/or lord
of the horia of the place occupied by the sect-light, although there are many instances in which
these planets do not qualify for this role and the determination becomes more involved.
enclosure: emperischesis. Said of a planet which is hemmed in by two planets, one on either
side, in such a way that no other planet interposes one of its rays in the interval between the
enclosing planets and the planet so enclosed. Called “besiegement” in the medieval tradition.
An extension of this definition has two planets casting rays within seven degrees of another
planet, one ray on either side.
(in, of the) evening): hesperios. The Greek word also sometimes refers to the west as the place
where the Sun sets in the evening, and sometimes has the meaning of late. It most commonly
describes a planet that is able to arise or sink out of sight in the evening.
exaltation, exalted: hupsōma. A zōidion in which a planet is exalted or raised up: the Sun in the
Ram, Moon in the Bull, Saturn in the Balance, Zeus in the Crab, Ares in the Goat-Horned One,
Aphrodite in the Fishes, Hermes in the Virgin. Some authors posit a degree within these
places. Compare depression.
face: prosōpon. Face is said to be the result of the shaping of the three 10 degree divisions of
each zōidion (“sign”) by the decanic deities; these "faces" are then associated with the planets.
The Greek word could also mean 'person' or 'mask.'
familiarity: oikeiōsis. Term for the affinity between certain zōidia, and for the affinities between
the zōidia (or their subdivisions) and certain planets that have a rulership relation relative to
them. This term is more common in Ptolemy than in earlier authors.
figure-assumption: schēmatismos. When one planet takes up a hexagonal, tetragonal, trigonal, or

diametrical position relative to another. See configuration.
figural conjunction. sunaphē kata schēma. An “applying aspect.” See conjunction.
figure-description: schēmatographia. One of the two major components in the outcome-

description of a planet. The determination of whether the business conducted by the planet is
on the whole favorable or unfavorable for the native, described in terms of its sect status and
its status relative to bonification and maltreatment in its combinations and dealings with other
planets.
flowing away: aporroia. The opposite of conjoining. Translated into Latin as “defluxion.” When
two planets are in the process of moving apart from a figural conjunction exact to the degree (a
“separating aspect”) or from an exact bodily conjunction (a “separating conjunction”), when the
difference between the number of ecliptic degrees currently between them and the number of
degrees that defines the exact configuration is three degrees or less. In modern terms, this
condition describes a “separating aspect” with a three degree “orb.” In the early Hellenistic
tradition, this concept was restricted to the situation in which the faster moving planet was on
the left. For instance, two planets are that are in the process of moving apart from an exact
trigonal figure are flowing away from their prior figural conjunction when they are from 120 to
123 degrees apart. In the later tradition, flowing away was extended to the situation in which
the faster moving planet was on the right. For instance, they are flowing away from an exact
trigonal figure when they are from 120 to 117 degrees apart. However, this condition was
originally called overcoming and had a different interpretation. The general term to cover both
scenarios was originally surpassing, although it seems to have largely dropped out of usage
later. (In the case of the Moon, the interval is extended to 13 degrees in both cases.) Compare
conjoining.
foreign places: alliotrios. Places in the zodiac where a planet has no familiarity, when the place
is neither the domicile, exaltation, or horion of the planet; later authors consider the trigon
belonging to a planet as a familiar place. However, a planet is understood to have some
familiarity to a zōidion (“sign”) that is the domicile or exaltation of a sect-mate.
goad: kentron. The four angular points (Ascendant, Descendant, M.C., I.C.) in so far as they are
understood to incite or stimulate a planet in conducting its business. The degrees close to the
four angular degrees and preceding them are said to bear the mark of the goad. Planets in these
degrees are especially stimulated to conduct their business. Compare pivot.
good places. The “rising sign” and the six zōidia connected to it hexagonally, tetragonally,
trigonally, or by diametrical opposition, exclusive of the third: namely, the first, fourth, fifth,
seventh, ninth, tenth, and eleventh. Such places are good in the sense that they are conducive to
business favorable for the native, although some authors regard the fourth and the seventh as
more favorable for family members than the native himself.
handing over and taking over: paradosis kai paralēpsis; Latin traditio et assumptio. Used in the
context of time-lord systems. When one time-lord hands over or transfers the jurisdiction of a
period of time to another, which conversely is said to take over the times from it.
hexagonal, hexagonal (figure), hexagonal (side): hexagōnos, hexagōnikon schēma, hexagōnikē

pleura. Hexagon refers to an equilateral hexagon, one of the regular polygons that help define
the relationships that planets can have to one another. When planets occupy zōidia (“signs”)
hexagonal to one another, they are said to assume a hexagonal figure. When they define the
side of a regular hexagon, they have assumed an exact or perfect hexagonal figure (an exact
“sextile,” one of the “geometrical aspects”). Hexagonal figures are harmonious but weaker
than trigonal ones.
hide, go into hiding: kruptō. Used specifically of the heliacal setting of a celestial body.
hour: hōra. There are two types of hours in ancient astrology, even or equinoctial hours (the
kind of hours used in modern time-keeping), and uneven or seasonal hours. The latter type of
hours are based on the times of sunrise and sunset and vary according to season and
geographical latitude. The day begins at sunrise. The time between sunrise and sunset is
divided evenly into twelve hours; and likewise the time between sunset and sunrise.
Astrologically, each of these seasonal hours is related to one of the planets (“planetary
hours”).
hour-marker: hōroskopos. The ascending zōidion or sometimes the ascending degree. It is called
the hour-marker because it because it marks the hour of birth.
inception: katarchē. The beginning of an event in electional astrology.
increasing in light. Said of the Moon when it is waxing.
joy: chara. Each planet has its joy in one of the twelve topical places (“whole-sign houses”).
Hermes has its joy in the first, the Moon in the third, Aphrodite in the fifth, Ares in the sixth,
the Sun in the ninth, Zeus in the eleventh, and Kronos in the twelfth.
(on the) left: aristeros, euōnumos. Literally, on the better or well-named side. In a counter
clockwise direction as we view the chart. Most often used to describe the side a planet is on in
its figure assumption. Better and well-named are euphemisms to avoid invoking the sinister
character of the left.
lights: phōta. The Sun and the Moon.
like-engirding: homozōnia. When planets are in zōidia having the same domicile lord. This
condition can give planets in unconnected zōidia (“signs”) a mode of relationship similar to
that of co-presence (when the unconnected zōidia are adjacent, or diametrical opposition (when
they are adjacent to the opposing zōidion).
look upon: ephoraō. A planet looks upon another when one of the seven rays it casts falls
within three degrees of another planet, either before or behind (an “aspect” with a three
degree “orb”). The standard Latin translation of this word was “adspecto,” the source of our
modern word “aspect.” A planet can also look upon a zōidion or some part of one insofar as it
casts its ray into that place.
lord/lady: kurios/kuria. Usually the domicile ruler is meant when this word is used, but
sometimes the lord of the horia, exaltation, or even trigon.
lord of the nativity: kurios tēs geneseōs. The planet that governs the nativity in something like
the manner in which a steersman steers a ship. It is determined by finding the planet that is
most fit to conduct business among those planets that have some relation to the nativity as a
whole by means of their rulership over key places of the nativity, such as the Ascendant, Lot
of Fortune, Moon, Midheaven, and Prenatal Lunation. This determination is said to be the
most difficult astrological matter of all.
lot: klēros. One of the numerous "sensitive points" usually calculated as a function of a pair of
planets and the ascending degree, where the ecliptic interval between two planets is projected
from the ascending degree. The most important of these is the Lot of Fortune. Modern
astrologers know these as “parts” or “Arabic parts” However, the word lot is a better
translation because the Greek word has both the sense of an allotment and an accidental
falling out as with a role of the dice.
malefic: kakopoios. Literally, 'a bad-doer'. The natural malefics are Kronos and Ares. In certain
contexts either the Sun or the Moon can be functionally malefic. Hermes can be either benefic
or malefic. It is benefic in combination with benefics, and malefic in combination with
malefics.
maltreatment: kakōsis: A planet is maltreated under any of the following conditions: 1) when a
planet is struck by a ray of a malefic; 2) when it is enclosed by malefics; 3) when as the faster
moving planet on the right it is in a figural conjunction (“applying aspect”) with a malefic; 4)
when it is in an adherence (“applying conjunction”) with a malefic; 5) when it is overcome by a
malefic in a bad place, itself being in a declining zōidion (“sign”); 6) when it is diametrically
opposed by a faster moving malefic (either conjoining or separating) when it is itself in a decline;
and 7) when it is itself in a declining zōidion that has as its domicile lord a malefic in a bad
place. See bonification and figure-description.
mark the (birth) hour: hōroskopeō. To be either on the ascending degree or to occupy the
ascending zōidion. This is a verb constructed from the noun hōroskopos.
master, mastership: despotēs, despoteia. General word for a “ruler” or “rulership.”
(in, of the) morning: heōios. This Greek word also sometimes refers to the east as the place
where the Sun rises in the morning, and sometimes has the meaning of early. It most
commonly describes a planet that is able to arise or sink out of sight in the morning.
Midheaven: mesouranēma. This generally refers to the tenth sign from the ascending zōidion
(“sign”) when the context relates to zōidia, but to the modern “M.C.” (the intersection of the
local meridian with the ecliptic) if the context suggests degrees. It may occasionally also be
applied to the degree bisecting the 180-degree arc of the ecliptic above the horizon
(“nonogesimal point”).
monomoiria: monomoiria. The allotment of individual degrees of the zodiac to different

planets. There are two systems for doing this, one based on the Chaldean Order and the other
based on the triplicity rulers of the zōidia.
nativity: genesis. Common Greek word for the birth of anything, here used to refer to the birth
of a native. Sometimes extended to refer to an individual's life, as when a text says "this
nativity took a turn for the worse."
non-wandering (star): aplanēs. Said of the fixed stars because, although they do move in
accordance with the diurnal motion, they do not wander about in the somewhat irregular
fashion of the planets.
occupancy: epochē. In astronomy it usually means the 'epoch' or time from which celestial
positions are reckoned. But in astrology it generally pertains to the degree that a planet
occupies in some zōidion.
occupy the Midheaven: mesouraneō. To “culminate.” To occupy either the 10th zōidion or the
“M.C.”
See Midheaven.
outcome: apotelesma. The basic meaning of this word is full completion. It often refers to an
effect or event that results or issues from some cause. It can also mean full payment of a debt.
The Apotelesmatics, or the "Inquiry into Outcomes," is a common title for astrological treatises
throughout the tradition.
outcome-description: apotelesmatographia. The assessment of “planetary condition.” The two

major components of the general outcome-description of a planet are its place-positioning and
its figure-description. The first assesses the overall fitness of a planet to conduct business, the
second whether that business is favorable or unfavorable for the native’s life.
overcoming: kathuperterēsis. 1) One of the two situations in which a figural conjunction occurs,
when the faster moving planet is on the right, thus overcoming that other planet. This used to
be called a “dexter aspect.” 2) A planet occupying the tenth zōidion from the place of another,
having a relationship analogous to that of the Midheaven to the Ascendant, is said to
overcome that other planet. See striking with a ray.
period: periodos. There is a wide variety of planetary periods in ancient astrology, defined
geocentrically. They are classified under the headings least, mean, and greatest periods. They
are all said to be associated with recurrence cycles, although in some cases the particular cycle
is unknown to us. These periods are very important in the direct timing of events and in
certain time-lord systems. In general they are very different from the modern heliocentric
planetary periods. The minor periods are the most commonly used: Kronos takes 30 years,
Zeus 12, Ares 15, the Sun 19, Aphrodite 8, Hermes 20, the Moon 25.
phase: phasis. Literally, an 'appearing'. Used of the phases of the Moon, but also of the
heliacal risings and setting of the stars and planets, and also the stations of the planets.
pivot: kentron. Said of the four angular zōidia insofar as they are the places in which the
ecliptic is understood to be hinged, thus allowing for turning or change and permitting a
planet to conduct business.
place or (topical) place: topos. "House" according to modern idiom. This may be confusing
because the Hellenistic astrologers reserve the word house (oikos) for a zōidion (“sign”) in so
far as it is the dwelling place for a planet. To avoid confusion, we translate oikos as domicile.
place-positioning: topothesia. One of the two major components in the outcome-description of a

planet. The determination of a planet’s overall fitness to conduct business, described in terms of
its position relative to the horizon (whether it is in a zōidion conducive to business or not),
relative to the lights (whether it is able to arise or is under the beams, and whether it looks upon
the Moon or not), and relative to the zodiac (whether it is in its zodiacal places or chariots, those
of a sect-mate, or those with which it is unfamiliar). Part of this assessment is whether the planet
has a relation to the nativity as a whole (being either the domicile lord of the ascending zōidion),
the domicile lord of the Lot of Fortune, or a trigon lord of the sect-light.
post-ascension: epanophora. The zōidion that succeeds a pivotal zōidion and ascends after it (a
“succedent sign
pre-ascension: proanaphora. One name for a declining (“cadent”) zōidion (“sign”) since it
ascends before the angular zōidion.
profection. Actually a Medieval Latin term, but useful to describe the act of setting a zōidion
such as the Ascendant free to move around the chart at some fixed rate, such as one zōidion
per year. Compare circumambulations.
prenatal lunation. The synodic conjunction of the Sun and Moon or the full moon that most
immediately precedes the time of birth.
(simple) reception, mutual reception: hupodoxē. The domicile lord of a zōidion (“sign”) is said
to "receive" other planets into its domicile. When two planets do this for each other, there is
mutual reception.
(zōidia) regulative of business: chrēmatizō or chrēmatistikos. This is normally a designation of

the zōidia insofar as they aid the planets in their conduct of business, both permitting it and
regulating it. These are the four pivotal zōidia (“angular signs”) and their respective post-
ascensional zōidia (“succedent signs”).
rejoice: chairō. There are a number of conditions under which planets are said to rejoice.
Under such conditions, the natural benefic or malefic character of a planet is altered in the
direction of more benefic. Most of these are related to the sect to which the planet belongs.
releasing: aphesis. Used in two ways: 1) The act of setting a single point of the chart free to
move around the fixed natal chart at some fixed rate such as a degree per year (see
circumambulations). 2) The act of keeping some point of the chart fixed, such as the degree
occupied by the Sun or Moon, and allowing the rest of the chart to rotate according to the
diurnal motion at a rate dependent on ascensional times, as is done in length of life
calculations; these are now called “primary directions” (see circumambulation).
(on the) right: dexios. In the clockwise direction as we look at a chart. Most often used to
describe which side a planet occupies in its figure assumption.
rise: anatellō. See arise.
sect: hairesis. The two parties or factions into which the planets are divided, the diurnal sect
and the nocturnal sect (sometimes called the solar and lunar sects instead). The Sun, Kronos,
Zeus belong to the diurnal or solar sect. The Moon, Aphrodite, Ares belong to the nocturnal or
lunar sect. Hermes belongs to the diurnal or solar sect when it rises before the Sun natally, but
to the nocturnal or lunar sect when it sets after the Sun natally. Thus in any given nativity,
Hermes belongs to one sect or the other.
(of the) sect, (belonging to) the sect: tēs haireseōs. The Sun, Kronos, and Zeus are said to be of
the sect in a diurnal nativity (defined as the period of time that the Sun is visible). The Moon,
Aphrodite, and Ares are said to be of the sect in nocturnal nativities. Hermes is of the sect in a
diurnal nativity when it rises before the Sun natally; it is of the sect in a nocturnal nataivity
when it sets after the Sun natally.
(contrary to the) sect: para tēn hairesin. The Sun, Kronos, Zeus are contrary to the sect in a
nocturnal nativity. The Moon, Aphrodite, Ares are contrary to the sect in a diurnal nativity.
Hermes is contrary to the sect when it rises before the Sun in a nocturnal nativity, and when it
sets after the Sun in a diurnal nativity..
sect light, light of the sect: This is the one of the lights, the Sun or the Moon, which is of the
sect--that is, the Sun in a diurnal nativity, the Moon in a nocturnal nativity.
sect-mate: sunairetēs: A planet that belongs to the same sect as another.
sink out of sight, set: dunō; sinking out of sight, setting: dusis or dusmē. These words
originally had the sense of sinking. The same Greek word is used of any body going down
under the western horizon due to the diurnal rotation, but in an astrological context it is more
often applied to the “heliacal setting” of a celestial body, when it sets relative to the Sun—that
is, it first sinks out of sight and disappears due to the glare of the Sun, after which time it is
said to be under the beams and in hiding. In order to maintain this distinction, we will reserve
the word set for the normal sense of going down under the western horizon, and employ the
term sink out of sight for setting relative to the Sun. The Hellenistic astrologers normally use a
standard interval of 15 degrees elongation from the Sun as the moment of sinking out of sight,
although they are aware that the exact value depends on geographical latitude, position in the
zodiac, and the intrinsic brightness of the planet. Compare with arising.
(at or near its) sinking out of sight: epi dusmēi or epi dusmais. When a planet has made its
sinking out of sight (“heliacal setting”) within seven days before the nativity or will make it
within seven days after it.
(able to) sink out of sight: dutikos. When a planet is close enough to the Sun to fail to appear
in the night sky at any time after its sinking out of sight (“heliacal setting”). See under the beams
and in hiding. This concept is related to “occidentality” in the medieval Latin tradition.
sinking out of sight (in the morning): heōia dusmē. When a planet is able to sink out of sight in
the morning.
sinking out of sight (in the evening): hesperia dusmē. When a planet is able to sink out of sight in
the evening.
set: dunō. See sinking out of sight.
solid zōidia: stereon. The Bull, the Lion, the Scorpion, and the Water-Pourer, the four "fixed
signs" of modern astrology.
star: astēr, astron. In Hellenistic texts, it refers both to the “planets” (wandering stars) and to
“fixed stars” (non-wandering stars). Very frequently, if the context clearly involves planets
alone, it will refer to the five planets and the Sun and Moon collectively as "stars."
striking with a ray: aktinobolia. When a planet on the left casts a ray onto the very degree
occupied by the planet on the right, or onto one of the three degrees that ascend before or after
it. The planets may either be conjoining or separating by figure. See overcoming.
subterraneous pivot: hupogeion. Usually the fourth topical place, unless specified as the modern
“I.C.” as determined by the local meridian.
subtractive in times (or numbers): aphairetikos. Usually used to describe planetary motion
slower than average, although sometimes simply for “retrograde motion” rather than “direct
motion.”
synodic conjunction: sunodos. Same meaning as modern term, an exact bodily conjunction. But
see concourse.
take delight in: chairō. As an alternative translation to "rejoice."
testify for, provide testimony for: martureō, epimartureō. When a planet looks upon something
and thus is in a position to testify to it, it can be called to witness by another planet with which
it is configured according to any of the “sign-based” figural relations, whereupon it can
provide testimony relative to what it has seen to that planet in its capacity as judge. When
planets look upon (“aspect”) one another, they can provide testimony for each other as if they
were defendants in a legal proceding, provided that they can also call each other to witness. The
testimony can either be favorable to each other in the case of harmonious figures, or
unfavorable in the case of antithetical figures.
testify to, attest to: martureō, epimartureō. A planet can only attest or testify to something it
sees. It sees something by means of one of the seven rays it can cast. This can be a zōidion into
which it casts one of its rays, or a planet that it can look upon by casting its ray three degrees
before or three degrees after that planet.
tetragonal, tetragonal (figure), tetragonal (side):: tetragōnos, tetragōnikon schēma, tetragōnikē

pleura. Tetragon refers to an equilateral tetragon, one of the regular polygons that help define
the relationships that planets can have to one another. When planets occupy zōidia tetragonal
to one another, they are said to assume a tetragonal figure. When they define the side of a
regular tetragon, they have assumed an exact or perfect tetragonal figure (and exact “square,
one of the “geometrical aspects.”). Tetragonal figures are antithetical.
time-lord: chronokratōr. A planet ruling a certain period of one's life (such as the lord of the
year, month, and day), either generally, or with respect to some topic in the native's life. There
are numerous systems for establishing time-lords. They are the Western analogues to the
Hindu dasa systems.
topical place: topos. See place.
transit: epembasis kata parodon. A planet passing over the natal position of another planet or
sensitive point in real time. It is possible that this term includes a progressed planet passing
over such a natal place. It is also significant when a planet comes to be in opposition or other
figural relation with a natal planet, although this does not seem to be included in this
terminology per se.
trigonal, trigonal (figure), trigonal (side):: trigōnos, trigōnikon schēma, trigōnikē pleura. Trigon
refers to an equilateral trigon, one of the regular polygons that help define the relationships
that planets can have to one another. When planets occupy zōidia trigonal to one another, they
are said to assume a trigonal figure. When they define the side of a regular trigon, they have
assumed an exact or perfect trigonal figure (and exact “trine,” one of the “geometrical
aspects.”). Trigonal figures are harmonious.
trigon: trigōnon. One of the four “triplicities” or “triangles.”
tropical zōidia: tropikos. The Ram, the Crab, the Balance, and the Goat-Horned One, so named
because the Sun makes some special transition or turn when in these places. The Ram and the
Balance are sometimes called equinoctial, referring to the equinoxes; the Crab and the Goat-
Horned One solstitial.
twelfth-part: dōdekatemorion. 1) The zōidia (“signs”) themselves insofar as they are one-twelfth
part of the whole ecliptic circle. 2) A twelfth of a single zōidion. 3) The zōidion analogically
related to a twelfth-part of a given zōidion; for instance, the first 2½ degrees of the Ram are
related to the Ram itself, the next 2½ degrees to the Bull, the next to the Twins, etc. (the
“twelfth harmonic” of a planet, or the “thirteenth harmonic” according to an alternative
tradition.
unconnected: asundetos. Zōidia not joined by the side of one of these regular polygons: the
hexagon, tetragon, or trigon; nor by a diameter of the celestial sphere. See aversion.
under the beams: hupaugos. A celestial body too close to the Sun to be seen when it above the
horizon. The Hellenistic astrologers normally regard a planet as under the beams when it is
within a standard interval of 15 degrees from the Sun, although they recognize that the actual
interval varies according to geographical latitude, place in the zodiac, and the intrinsic
brightness of the planet.
wind: anemos. Associated with the ecliptic latitude of a celestial body. The term is used
especially of the Moon, but also of the planets in general. When a planet is between its
ascending node and its extreme northern celestial latitude, it is said to be "ascending north
wind." When it is between its extreme north latitude and the descending node, it is called
"descending north wind." When it is between the descending node and its extreme southern
latitude, it is said to be "descending south wind." And when it is in the remaining quadrant it
is said to be "ascending south wind."
zōidion (pl. zōidia). The Greek word for an astrological "sign" such as the Crab, the Ram, etc.
Source of our word zodiac. Outside of an astrological context, the word meant a small
representation of something, whether painted or sculptured. Astrologically speaking, it meant
a representation of some lesser terrestrial creature, while at the same time this image was itself
representative of a collection of characteristics. Many of these characteristics are clearly those
of the creature so-depicted (bestial, prolific, etc.), although some of them concern the manner
in which the creature was actually depicted (upright, incomplete, etc.). Since the Latin word
“signum” also had such a representation as one of its meanings, it was a faithful rendering of
the Greek word; hence our English word “sign.” Unfortunately, however, this sense has
become obsolete in modern English. We do not normally say, for instance, that a statue of
George Washington is a sign of that man, or even of the characteristics that he represents. In
modern English, the word “sign” is more bound up with the notion of signification, as in the
case of omens, road signs, musical notation, etc. For that reason, we will leave the word
untranslated for the purposes of this source book.
BASIC CONCEPTS OF HELLENISTIC ASTROLOGY
PLANETS LUNAR PHENOMENA
Signification RULERSHIP Eclipses
Ptolemaic Basic Nature Domicile Phases
Original Basic Nature Exaltation Nodes
Ruler Of Ruler Void Of Course
FIXED STARS Trigon Prenatal Lunation
Paranetellonta (Parans) Terms/Bounds 3rd, 7th & 40th Day
Monomoria (Degree Rulership) Slow/Fast In Motion
HOUSES Ascending/Descending Winds
Dynamical Houses PLANETARY COMBINATIONS Loosing The Bond
Topical Houses Application & Separation
Signification Aspects PREDOMINATION
Basic Nature Witnessing and Testimony
Good/Bad Places Striking with Rays MALTREATMENT & BONIFICATION
Derived Houses (Turning The Wheel) Superior Position
Fortune Houses Overcoming SYNASTRY
Decimation
SIGNS Containment (Besiegement) TWELFTHPARTS (12th Harmonic)
Gender Spear-bearing
Quadruplicity PLANETARY HOURS
Triplicity LOTS (“ Parts”)
Decanates Lot of Fortune TIMING CONCEPTS
Other Modalities Nearly 100 Other Lots Synodic Periods
Prolific/Barren Ascensional Time of Signs
Complete/Incomplete SOLAR PHASE Ages Associated With Houses
Vocal/Mute, etc Direct/Retrograde/Station
Other Sign Relations Rising Before/After the Sun TIMING TECHNIQUES
Signs That See Each Other Under the Beams/Capable of Arising Circumambulations (Directions)
Signs That Command & Obey Heliacal Rising/Setting Profections
Like-Engirding Signs Progressions
Signs of Equal Ascension SECT Transits & Ingresses
Aversions Solar Returns
REJOICING CONDITIONS The Various Time-Lord Systems
DEGREE RELATIONS Sect-Related
Anticia / Contra-anticia Joys RECTIFICATION
Italicized items did not survive into modern astrology. Bracketed items are concepts conflated into single concepts in modern astrology.
Boldface items survived into modern astrology, often in an altered form, sometimes drastically so.
WEEK 2: THE PLANETS
PORPHYRY 45
Concerning the Seven Wandering Stars
VALENS I,1
Concerning the Natures of the Stars
PTOLEMY I,4
Concerning the Power of the Wandering Stars
PTOLEMY I,5
Concerning Benefic and Malefic Planets
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 1 (END)

On the sect of the Stars
PORPHYRY 4
Concerning the Diurnal and Nocturnal Stars
RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) I,2

Concerning the Sect of the Stars
PTOLEMY I,7
Concerning Diurnal and Nocturnal Planets
PTOLEMY I,6
Concerning the Masculine and Feminine Planets
HEPHAISTIO I,2
Concerning the Power of the Seven Wandering Stars

Concerning how the Stars Rejoice
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY II,1

On the Nativity of God
FIRMICUS MATERNUS III, END OF PREFACE, BEGINNING OF 1

The Thema Mundi
PAULUS 37
Genesis of the Cosmos
(See Next Page)

Original Planetary Glyphs Diagram
Thema Mundi Diagram
Planets in Domiciles Diagram
Basic Nature of Planets and Planets Diagram
Sect Diagram
WEEK 2: The Planets 41
The Natures and Topical Significations of the Planets

Porphyry 45
Preliminary Remark by Translator. Porphyry excerpted the following passage from a lost
introductory work of Antiochus of Athens. It is notable for using language of rulership for a planet’s
relationship to topics in human life, whereas other astrologers prefer to talk of the” significations” of the
planets or the events that they “cause” or “bring to completion.”
They say that the stars have also been allotted according to these body parts. Of the inner
parts, Kronos has been allotted the phlegmatic fluid and the windpipe (brogchos) and the
loosening of the bowels; Zeus, the liver and its condition and the cords under the stomach;
Arēs, blood and kidneys and the spermatic ducts; Aphroditē, lungs and gall bladder; Hermēs,
the sense of hearing and windpipe (artēria) and tongue; the Sun, heart and the arrangement
that is suited to life-breath (that is, the motion of the life-breath) and the sense of sight (the
right eye in the case of a man and the left in the case of a woman); the Moon, the entire body
in general, but more particularly spleen and membranes and marrow and sight (the left eye in
men and the right eye in women).
In the case of outer events, Kronos rules over matters that are long-lasting, wet and cold,
and old doings, and hoarding, foundations and the land, very old persons and elder brothers,
and those persons without seed and without children, those who sail, completion, and
profound depravity and staying at home and slander and calumny and envy and trouble and
grimness and imprisonment and letting the hair grow and coarse behavior and every
sullenness and acute torture. And that when it conducts business in its own places and
chariots and when it has assumed a good figure in relation to the nativity, it benefits the
natives, though by assigning increases to the detriment of another; but when it is poorly
positioned, it brings on troubles and mishaps. It is called the “Shining One.”
The star of Zeus has command of magnificence, reputation, solemnity, advantage and
good nurture, sovereignty and honor, skillfulness and receptions with leaders and the masses;
it is called the “Radiant One.”
The star of Arēs is fiery and blood-red, and being much like a branding iron, it has
command of the hottest blood in us (as has been said)1 and the procreative impulse and the
conceptions of women, of actions and dangers and spiritedness and anger and audacity and
violence and reckless affairs and acute suffering, military expeditions and war and the use of
iron and blows, and everything that occurs with swiftness and panic; it is called the “Fiery
One.”
1
Porphyry makes this parenthetical remark because in his text he prefaces this exposition of the rulerships of the
planets with a discussion of the parts of the body that they rule. That material is found later in this volume under
ANTIOCHUS 4.
42 WEEK 2: The Planets
The Sun rules over life-breath and its movement and the perceptive soul in us and a
paternal or dominant person.
The star of Aphroditē, lying near to the Sun and possessing magnitude and being
lustrously illuminated by it, is seen as most fine of figure and brilliant, since just as when a
fire is burning, the smoky flame (aithalos) [shines] above the expanse underlying this star.
Whence, through the cheerfulness of the light, it rules over beauty of form, comeliness, purity,
luster of life, decorous behavior, the wearing of crowns, priestly office, the wearing of gold,
delicacy; but because it is also present with the principle (stoicheion) of the cosmos pertaining
to soul and takes on fellow-feeling (sumpatheia) from its beam, it rules over affection, erotic
love, desire, marriage, religious worship, skill in the arts, and the cosmetic and theatrical
offices, and over house-mates and female persons, mother, sister, and daughter; it is called the
“Light-Bringer.”
The star of Hermēs, by being attached to the Sun, appears to be pulsating and is seen
very rarely; but since it is arrayed nearer to the gleam of the Sun and rises and sets very often
under the beams of the Sun, because of lying next to the dominant principle ruling over the
motion that pertains to the soul, it manifestly rules over practical wisdom and reason and
knowledge and everything that is administered with language, over education, commerce,
business affairs, friendship, society, contracts, companionship, service, and furthermore over
younger persons, children and nurslings; it is called the “Twinkling One.”
The Moon, since it is in fact nearest the earth and accepts the effluents of all the stars into
its own magnitude and ministers to underlying earth, rules over our entire body, and its
health and physical condition, and mother and dominant women.
Valens, I,1
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The following treatment of the planets is thought to derive
from a lost treatise by Teucer of Babylon, as is a similar treatment in a work ascribed to Rhetorius.
Concerning the Natures of the Stars
The all-seeing Sun, existent in a fire-like manner and as the light of the mind, the organ of
perception of the soul,2 in the case of a nativity signifies3 kingly office, hegemony, mind,
practical wisdom, outward form, movement, height of fortune, public registration, action,
popular leadership, judgment, father, mastership, friendship, persons of high repute, the
honors of images, statues, and crowns of office, arch-priests of the fatherland... of places. Of
the parts of the body, it is lord4 of the head, sense-organs, right eye, ribs, heart, respiratory or
sensory motion, tendons. It is also lord5 of the essence6 of gold, of the fruits of wheat and
2
phōs noeron, psuchikēs aisthēseōs organon. The text seems to imply that the Sun has this role in the cosmos as a
whole, not in the native.
3
sēmainō. Depending on how we take the circumstantial participle 'existent' that begins the preceding clause, the
text may be saying that the upcoming list of solar significations follows from the role of the Sun in the cosmos, or
in the cosmic soul.
4
kurieuō. Notice how we have shifted from significations to some type of "authority" or "rulership."
5
At this point in his treatment of each planet, the Rhetorius version of this same material shifts the terminology
from "lord of" to "occupies" or "possesses" the metal or substance in question.
6
ousia. Perhaps this is used here in the manner in which we use the word 'substance'.
barley. It is of the diurnal sect, lemon-yellow with respect to color7, and sharp with respect to
taste.
The Moon, generated by8 the reflection of the solar light and possessing a base-born
light,9 in the case of a nativity signifies man's life, body, mother, conception, ... countenance,
goddess, living together or legal marriage, nurse, older sister, house-keeping, queen, mistress
of the house, money10, fortune, city, gathering of crowds, receipts, expenditures, home, ships,
foreign travel, wanderings (for, it does not maintain a straight line because of the Crab). Of the
parts of the body, it is lord of the left eye, stomach, breasts, bladder, spleen, membranes,
marrow (whence it also produces dropsies). It is lord of the essence of silver and glass. It is of
the nocturnal sect, leek-green with regard to color, and salty with regard to taste.
The star of Kronos makes11 those born under it concerned about trifles, slanderers, those
who bring themselves into disrepute, solitary, deceitful, those who conceal their deceit,
austere, downcast, those who have a feigned appearance, squalid,12 black-clad, importunate,
of sorrowful countenance, miserable, given to sailing, those who work at waterside trades.
And it makes depressions,13 torpors, lack of activity, interferences with what is being done,
long-lasting punishments, dismantlings of things, concealments, constrictions, bonds, griefs,
accusations, tears, cases of orphanhood, captivities, exposures.14 It also makes laborers and
farmers because it has authority over the earth. It produces15 tax and customs collectors, and
violent actions.16 It procures great reputation and notable rank, guardianships and the
administration of the affairs of others, and fathers of the children of others. It is lord of lead,
trees, and stones. Of the parts of the body, it is lord of the legs, knees, tendons, blood-serum,
phlegm, bladder, kidneys, and the inner private parts. It is indicative of whatever hurts are
formed from cold and moisture; for example, it is indicative of those who suffer from dropsy,
pain in the tendons, gout, cough, dysentery, tumors, spasms, demoniac possession, unnatural
lust, depravity. It makes those who do not marry, and widowhood, orphanhood, and
childlessness. It produces violent deaths in the water or through strangling or bonds or
dysentery. It also causes falls upon one's face. It is the star of Nemesis and of the diurnal sect,
castor-like with respect to color, astringent with respect to taste.
The star of Zeus signifies the begetting of children, child-birth, desire, erotic love,
alliances, knowledge, friendships with great men, abundance, stipends, great gifts, plenty of
fruits, justice, offices, governments, reputation, mediations of disputes, preferments of priests,
fidelity, inheritances, brotherhood, community, benefaction, confirmation of good things,
7
The text does not exactly say that the Sun is itself lemon-yellow, and similarly with the next phrase.
8
genomene. Or perhaps, 'born from'.
9
nothon phōs. Or perhaps, 'counterfeit light'.
10
Perhaps more broadly, 'items of use'.
11
poieō. Since all the other planets are explicated in terms of their signification, this causal verb stands out. We
should be cautious, however, at jumping to the conclusion that direct planetary causation of the following states
and events is intended, since the Greek verb has many other possible meanings.
12
auchmeros. Literally, dry, parched.
13
tapeinotēs. Related to the word for 'fall', (as opposed to exaltation). This word can mean depression in all its
forms: low estate, dejection, vileness, etc.
14
Of a child at birth.
15
apoteleō. More literally, this word means to bring to completion. Here again we should be careful about assuming
that planetary causation is meant.
16
This may also mean actions that are forced.
deliverance from bad things, loosing of bonds, freedom, trusts, possessions, households. Of
the outer parts of the body, it is lord of the thighs, feet (whence it also pertains to running in
athletic contests); of the inner parts it is lord of the seed, womb, liver, the parts on the right
side. It is lord of the essence of tin. It is of the diurnal sect, grey and rather white with respect
to color, sweet with respect to taste.
The star of Arēs signifies violence, wars, rapine, screams, insolence, adulteries, taking
away of belongings, losses, banishment, estrangement of parents, captivities, ruination of
women, abortion, sexual intercourse, weddings, taking away of good things, lies, situations
void of hope, violent thefts, piracy, plunderings, breaches of friends, anger, combat,
reproaches, enemies, lawsuits. It introduces violent murders and cuts and bloodshed, attacks
of fever, ulcerations, pustules, inflammations, imprisonment, tortures, manliness, perjury,
wandering, excelling at villainy, those who gain their ends through fire or iron,
handicraftsman, workers in hard materials. It makes leaders and military campaigns and
generals, warriors, supremacy, the hunt, the chase, falls from heights or from quadrupeds,
weak vision, apoplexy. Of the parts of the body, it is lord of the head, rump, genitals; of the
inner parts, it is lord of the blood, spermatic ducts, bile, excretion of feces, the hind-parts,
walking backward,17 falling on one's back; it also has that which is hard and severe. It is lord
of the essence iron and order,18 clothes19 because of Aries, and wine and pulse. It is of the
nocturnal sect, red with respect to color, pungent with respect to taste.
Aphroditē is desire and erotic love, and it signifies the mother and nurse. It makes
priestly rites, the office of gymnasiarch, the wearing of gold ornaments, the wearing of
crowns, merriment, friendships, companionships, further acquisition of belongings, purchases
of ornament, reconciliations for the good, weddings, purification arts, euphonies, making
music, sweetness of melody, beauty of form, paintings, combinations and variety of colors,
purple-dying and aromatic arts, both the founders and the authors of these things, the arts or
commercial workshops of emeralds and precious stones, ivory-working. As for those who
spin gold thread and those who adorn with gold, haircutters, those who love cleanliness and
those who are fond of play, it produces them when it is in zodiacal bounds20 and degrees
pertaining to it. It also bestows the office of market-overseer, measures, weights, businesses,
workshops, gifts, receipts, laughter, festive rejoicing, ornament, water-chases. Also, it bestows
advantages from royal women or relatives, and, when it thwarts such matters, it procures an
outstanding reputation. Of the parts of the body, it is lord of the neck, face, lips, the organ of
smell and the foreparts of the body from foot to head, intercourse of the genitals; of the inner
parts, it is lord of the lungs. It is also indicative of the nurturing of another, and of pleasure. It
is lord of precious stones and many-colored ornament and the oils of fruits. It is of the
nocturnal sect, white with respect to color, very greasy with respect to taste.
The star of Hermēs signifies the education of children, letters, disputation, speech, having
brothers, interpretation, the herald's office, number, counters, geometry, commerce, youth,
playthings, theft, community, announcement, service, profit, discoveries, following, contest,
17
anapodismos. This is also the usual word for retrograde motion of a planet.
18
kosmos. Literally, ornament. Probably metaphorical here, as in the honor or credit that one wears as an ornament.
19
Possibly armor.
20
horia. These are the irregular divisions of each zōidia into five segments each of which is ruled by one of the five
planets exclusive of the lights.
wrestling, declamation, sealing, sending messages, setting up, being suspended, scrutinizing,
hearing, versatility. It is the bestower of intellect and practical wisdom, the lord of brothers
and younger children, and the fashioner of every mercantile and banking art. Properly
speaking, it makes temple-builders, brick-makers, sculptors, physicians, writers, lawyers,
orators, philosophers, architects, musicians, mantics, sacrificers, augurs, interpreters of
dreams, braiders, weavers, those who are methodical, and those who are in the forefront in
wars and military actions, and those who try their hand at paradoxes and methodics with
calculations and fallacious reasoning, those who are strong performers or sing mimes, those
who make their living through display, and furthermore through deception and wandering
and confusion, those who come to know the heavens or even become searchers of the sky
with pleasure and contentment, those who covet fame for a wondrous deed for the sake of
profit.
For, since this star is capable of many pursuits, it furnishes activities in accordance with
its various [positions] in the zōidia or its variously configured interweavings with the stars.
For some of these zōidia, it furnishes knowing; for others, a negotiator; for some, service; for
the [stars] in turn, it secures trafficking or instruction; and for some, [the activities] of
agriculture or temple-keeping or public magistracy, for which stars in turn it secures the
exercise of authority or leasing or contracting or well-ordered display or being set at the head
of public service or even guardianship, or it puts on the pomp of linen-wearing of the gods or
rulers. It will make all the irregularities in our fortunes and frequently sidetrack us from our
goals. What is more, for those having this star upon malefic zōidia or their degrees, it will even
give a turn for the worse. Of the parts of the body, it is lord of the hands, shoulders, fingers,
joints, belly, ears, windpipe, guts, tongue. And it is lord of copper and every coinage, of
giving and receiving; for, the god is common.
Ptolemy I,4
Preliminary Remark by Translator. Ptolemy seems to have been the first Hellenistic astrologer
to correlate systematically each planet with the traditional primary qualities: hot, cold, wet, and dry.
We turn to Aristotle for definitions of these qualities. The following descriptions are paraphrased
and slightly elaborated from Aristotle's On Coming to Be and Passing Away, although I believe that
they are true to the spirit of his thought. The student should consider the extent to which Ptolemy's
qualitative definitions of the planets are consistent with the basic natures of the planets according to the
earlier tradition
Hot is the active power that takes away, destroys, or eliminates what has a foreign or alien nature,
so that the residue is more rarefied or porous, thereby allowing things that are of the same class to
become more closely associated; we might say that it is a power of purgation and refinement.
Cold is the active power that aggregates, condenses, or packs things more closely together, whether
they are of the same or a different class; it is a compressive and cohesive power.
Wet is the passive capacity for being easily contained or confined by external limits or boundaries
even though it is not self-defining and will not of itself stay within its own limits or boundaries; en
masse it lacks the capacity for self-limitation or self-articulation that allow of the creation of pores or
empty spaces.
Dry is the capacity for self-definition, staying within its own limits or boundaries even though it is
not easily coerced or confined by other boundaries. En masse, and through its capacity for self-
limitation or self-articulation, it admits of the creation of pores or empty spaces.
So defined, the four primary qualities are broader in their application than the definitions of
modern physics would allow.
Bear in mind that all four qualities are positive for the ancients: cold is not the absence of heat but
a power all of its own, and dry is not simply the absence of moisture but again a positive quality. Hot
and Cold are called the two active qualities, while Wet (or Moist) and Dry are the two "passive"
qualities (sometimes translated as "susceptibilities"). In Aristotelian natural philosophy, the four
elements, Fire, Earth, Air, Water, result from the four possible combinations of an active quality with a
passive quality. According to the Stoics, however, the elements seem to be primary, whereas each
element has only one primary quality associated with it as one of its defining properties: Hot with Fire;
Cold with Air; Wet with Water; and Dry with Earth. We must keep open to the possibility that much of
the astrological thinking of the time shares many of these Stoic presuppositions, and even Ptolemy may
have been strongly influenced by it. We will pass over this interesting problem for now. Suffice it to say
for the present that there is no reason to think that the basic conceptualization of the nature of the
primary qualities was substantially different in these two different schools.
Concerning the Power of the Wandering Stars

The Sun is taken as having the active part of its essence in heating, and slightly in drying.
These become more easily perceptible to us than the others, most of all because of the Sun's
size and what is obvious about the seasonal changes, inasmuch as the more he approaches our
zenith, the more he so disposes us.
The Moon has a higher degree of its power in moistening because of proximity to the
earth (quite obviously) and the exhalation of moisture, and she so disposes by the outright
softening of bodies and by causing them to putrify, for the most part; while she also partakes
slightly of heating due to the illumination from the Sun.
The star of Kronos has a higher degree of its quality in cooling and in slightly drying
because it is the most distant, so it seems, from the warmth of the Sun and, at the same time,
from the exhalation of moisture around the earth. But powers for this star and for the
remainder are also established through the careful observation of their figurations to the Sun
and to the Moon, inasmuch as some of these stars appear to cooperate [with the Sun and the
Moon] in giving a certain turn to the state of the environing atmosphere in the direction of
more or less, other stars a different turn.
The star of Arēs has a nature chiefly to dry and to burn, as is appropriate both to the fiery
nature of its color and to its proximity to the Sun, since the solar sphere lies underneath it.
The star of Zeus has an active [part] of its power that is temperate, between (as is also the
case with its motion) what is cooling in accordance with Kronos and what is burning in
accordance with Arēs; for, it warms and moistens at the same time, and because its warming
[part] is the greater beneath the underlying spheres, it becomes productive of fertile winds.
And the star of Aphroditē is productive of the same things in accordance with its
temperate [activity], but in the opposite manner; for, it warms slightly due to its proximity to
the Sun, but mostly it moistens just like the Moon, and it [does this] by appropriating the
exhalation of moisture from the atmosphere environing the earth by means of the magnitude
of its own light.
The star of Hermēs is, on the whole, taken to be sometimes drying and absorptive of
moisture because it is never distant in longitude from the warmth of the Sun, and equally
moistening at other times because it lies upon the lunar sphere proximate to the earth; and it
makes rapid changes in both [states], filling with wind, as it were, by the keenness of its
motion in the vicinity of the Sun itself.
Commentary by Translator. There are several things that are interesting about this classification.
First of all, Ptolemy clearly does not assign these primary qualities to the planets themselves, as if
Kronos is itself cold and slightly dry; rather, each planet is productive of its proper qualities in the
mundane world. This would be contradictory to the cosmology of the day, in which the stars and
planets were composed primarily of a fifth "ethereal" element, which is not a composite of the four
primary qualities at all, as are the other four elements.
Secondly, every planet has one active quality and one passive quality except for Hermēs, who,
having the two contradictory passive qualities, can only possess them in alternation, changing quickly
from one to the other, for which reason it is "productive of winds." Although Ptolemy's description is a
little vague on this point, it would seem that when Hermēs is closer to the orbit of the Sun (according to
his geocentric model), or on the outer part of his epicycle, it is drying, while when it is closer to the
sphere of the Moon, or on the inner part of his epicycle, it is moistening.
Thirdly, except in the case of Hermēs and Arēs, there is a dominant quality and a secondary
quality; Hermēs possesses its two qualities in equal measure, but in alternation, while Arēs seems to
have both its active and passive qualities equally strong. Finally, Ptolemy has avoided any artificial
schematization that would give balance and symmetry to the distribution of qualities amongst the
planets and luminaries; in fact, Aphroditē and the Moon have exactly the same description.
It is instructive to digress for a moment an see how the later tradition changed some of Ptolemy's
original qualitative assignments, particularly with regard to Aphroditē and the Moon. Here are
Ptolemy's original assignments again, followed by those of Rhetorius and Abu Mashar (taken from The
Abbreviation of the Introduction to Astrology, translated by Charles Burnett).
KRONOS
Ptolemy: Cooling, slightly Drying
Rhetorius: Cold & Dry
Abu Mashar: Cold & Dry
ZEUS
Ptolemy: Heating, slightly Moistening
Rhetorius: Hot; Pneumatic; Fertile.
Abu Mashar: Hot & Moist
ARĒS
Ptolemy: Drying & Burning
Rhetorius: Drying; Fiery, Parched.
Abu Mashar: Hot & Dry
SUN
Ptolemy: Heating, slightly Drying
Rhetorius: Hot & Dry
Abu Mashar: Hot & Dry
APHRODITĒ
Ptolemy: Moistening and slightly Heating
Rhetorius: Temperate and Moist
Abu Mashar: Cold & Moist
HERMĒS
Ptolemy: Sometimes Moistening, sometimes Drying

Rhetorius: Sometimes Moist, sometimes Dry.
Abu Mashar: Variable according to association with other planets
MOON
Ptolemy: Moistening, slightly Heating
Rhetorius: Moist & Cold
Abu Mashar: Cold & Moist
From this comparison we see how the primary qualities are getting somewhat misleadingly
assigned to the planets themselves, instead of being regarded as productive powers on the part of the
planets, although these astrologers are probably just being careless here. Perhaps more significant is
the way in which Rhetorius and Abu Mashar have dropped the description 'slightly' altogether for the
secondary quality and promoted it to an equal rank with Ptolemy's dominant quality. Finally, we see
the beginnings of a revision of the qualities associated with the Aphroditē and the Moon in Rhetorius,
with the heating character of Aphroditē moderated to temperate, and the heating character of the Moon
reversed to cold; in Abu Mashar, the temperate quality of Aphroditē becomes cold. The net result of
these changes is to have a neat system in which, Hermēs aside, the four primary qualities are evenly
distributed amongst the remaining six planets. A lot of such formal schematization occurs in the later
astrological tradition.
The Classification of the Planets as Benefics and Malefics

Preliminary Remark by Translator. All authorities agree that Aphroditē and Zeus are natural
benefics, while Arēs and Kronos are natural malefics. They also all agree that Hermēs is common in
the sense that it is benefic in combinations with benefics and malefic in combinations with malefics.
There is some disagreement about the lights. In the upcoming Ptolemaic passage, we find the Sun given
the same classification as Hermēs, and Hephaistio (lower down in this chapter) follows him. Rhetorius
(lower down in this chapter) states that the Sun is a benefic (although the text has curiously omitted to
mention the Moon. It seems likely that in the earlier tradition both the lights had an equivocal
character, which may have depended on whether they were of the sect or not (see upcoming section).
Ptolemy I,5
Concerning Benefic and Malefic Planets
With these things being so, since of the four fluidities, two are fertile and productive
ones, that of the hot and that of the wet (for everything is compounded and increased by
them), while two are destructive and passive, that of the dry and that of the cold (through
which all things are in turn separated and destroyed), the ancients accepted two of the
planets, the star of Zeus and the star of Aphroditē and the Moon as well, as being benefic and
having their surplus in the hot and wet. But they accepted the star of Kronos and the star of
Arēs as being productive of the opposite nature, the one on account of its excessive coldness,
the other on account of its excessive dryness. And they accepted the Sun and the star of
Hermēs as being capable of both because of the commonality of their natures, and as changing
in keeping with that planet which they happen to be attending.
The Classification of the Planets according to Sect

Preliminary Remark by Translator. The notion of sect (hairesis) is a far-reaching planetary
classification that is invoked countless times in the Hellenistic texts. You may want to liken the two sects
to two political parties or factions, which is not far from the meaning of the Greek word. For a native
born during the day (when the Sun is above the horizon), the diurnal planets are favored and in power
(the technical term is “of” or “belonging to the sect of the chart”). Then the Sun and Zeus are freeer to
pursue their own beneficent agendas for the life of the native, while the nasty tendencies of Kronos, the
diurnal malefic, are suppressed, or at least directed away from the native. In a diurnal nativity, the
planets that belong to the nocturnal sect are not in power (are “contrary to the sect”). The Moon and
Aphroditē cannot fully pursue their own beneficent agendas for the native, but as benefics they can at
least constitute the loyal opposition. The real problem is with Arēs, the malefic contrary to the sect,
because when malefics are suppressed they turn violent. The reverse is the case for those born during
the night, when the nocturnal planets are in power. Hermēs can belong to either sect: to the diurnal
sect when it rises before the Sun and to the nocturnal sect when it sets after the Sun.
Antiochus Summary 1 (end)

….and that of the five wandering stars, Kronos and Zeus belong to the sect (hairesis) of
the Sun since they are of the morning; and they are called diurnal, for they take delight
(chairō) in conducting business in diurnal domiciles and bounds in the day. Arēs and
Aphroditē are called nocturnal and belong to the sect of the Moon. The star of Hermēs is
common to both sects, for in whatever figure of the stars it may be, it familiarizes itself to this
[figure].
Porphyry 4
Concerning the Diurnal and Nocturnal Stars
Whenever they speak of diurnal stars, they mean Kronos and Zeus, saying that they
belong to the sect of the Sun since they do not make many settings or figures (schēma); for they
take delight in conducting business by day and in the domiciles of diurnal stars. And
whenever they speak of nocturnal stars, they are saying Arēs and Aphroditē, positing them to
belong to the sect of the Moon; for they are multiple in their figures and are frequently
capable of sinking out of sight and in obscurity. However, they say that the star of Hermēs is
common indeed; for in whatever figure (schēma) it may happen to be present, it familiarizes
itself to the following [light]: to the Sun when it is of the morning, to the Moon when it is of
the evening.
Rhetorius I,2
For diurnal nativities the Sun, Kronos, Zeus rule over the sect; for nocturnal nativities the
Moon, Aphroditē, Arēs do; for, Hermēs becomes common in relation to the sects. And the
Sun, Zeus, and Aphroditē are held to be benefics; while Kronos and Arēs are considered to be
malefics; for, as common, Hermēs is good with the good planets, and becomes malefic with
the malefics. But concerning the benefics and malefics, they said that they are "so-considered,"
since when the malefics are well situated in phase, sect, and place for a certain nativity, they
often magnify the fortunes; while if the benefics are poorly situated, they harm them. For
Dorotheus spoke on this heading, saying: "For, three-sided evil-workers are dulled; and a star
is not yet base when it should be found in a good place; and a place is not bad when it bids
welcome to a good one.”
Ptolemy 7
Concerning Diurnal and Nocturnal Planets
Similarly, since the two most conspicuous of the intervals which make up time are these,
and the interval of the day happens to be more masculine because of the heat and vigor in it,
but night is more feminine because of its moisture and gift of rest, they have accordingly
handed down that the Moon and the star of Aphroditē are nocturnal, and that the Sun and the
star of Zeus are diurnal, and the star of Hermēs common in regard to these, being diurnal in
the morning figure and nocturnal in the evening figure. And they also assigned to each of the
sects the two planets of destructive essence, not however for the same physical reasons but for
the opposite ones. For, when stars that are similar to stars of a good mixture become familiar
with them, they make their beneficial character greater, though when unfamiliars to the
destructive stars hold intercourse with them, they undo much of the affliction. Whence, since
the star of Kronos is productive of cold, they apportioned it to the heat of day. But since the
star of Arēs is dry, they apportioned it to the moisture of the night. For, thus each star, in
meeting with due measure by mixture, is made akin to the sect that provides the tempering.
The Classification of the Planets according to Gender

Preliminary Remark by Translator. Although Hellenistic astrologers prior to Ptolemy recognized the
gender of the planets, there is scant evidence that any of them posited the conditions of masculinization
and feminization that we find in the next Ptolemy excerpt. Hephaistio and Rhetorius are clearly
following Ptolemy. In the case of Arēs, the gender classification appears to clash with the sect
classification, for earlier astrologers state that the nocturnal planets (of which Arēs is one) rejoice
when they are evening risers, whereas the Rhetorius passage below has it rejoicing when it is a
morning star. Perhaps Ptolemy did not necessarily intend that the conditions of gender modification
were necessarily favorable for a planet.
Ptolemy I,6.
Concerning Masculine and Feminine Planets
Again, since the primary genera of natures are two, the masculine and the feminine,
while, of the powers mentioned above, that of the wet essence happens to be especially
feminine (for, in general this part is innate to a greater degree in all females, but the others are
more in males), they have fairly handed down to us that the Moon and the star of Aphroditē
are feminine because of having their excess in the wet. But the Sun, the star of Kronos, the star
of Zeus, and the star of Arēs are traditionally masculine. And the star of Hermēs is common to
both genera, in accordance with which it is productive equally of the dry essence and the wet
essence.
And they say that the stars are made masculine and feminine during their figurations to
the Sun. For, when they are of the morning in relation to the Sun and preceding it, they
become masculine, but while they are of the evening relative to it and following, they are
made feminine. This also happens during their figurations relative to the horizon. For, in the
figurations from rising up to culminating, or from setting to anti-culmination under the earth,
they become masculine, since they are early [in the day or night]; but in the remaining two
quadrants they are made feminine, since they are late [in the day or night].
Hephaistio I,2.
Concerning the Power of the Seven Wandering Stars
It would be in order to receive in addition [teachings] concerning the power of the seven
wandering stars; for, the power of the fixed stars refers back to this. The Sun, then, is taken as
heating and drying at the same time. The Moon moistens and, as it were, ripens bodies, along
with slightly heating. Kronos chills and slightly dries. Arēs chiefly dries and burns. Zeus has
a productive power that is temperate, heating and moistening at the same time. And the star
of Aphroditē is temperately productive of the same things. The star of Hermēs is sometimes
drying, other times moistening.
Of these planets, Zeus, Aphroditē, the Moon, are benefic, while Kronos, Arēs are malefic,
and the Sun and Hermēs in between.
And the Sun, Kronos, Zeus, Arēs are masculine, while the Moon, Aphroditē are feminine,
and the star of Hermēs is common. Furthermore, they are masculinized and femininized due
to their figurations with the Sun. That is, [being] in the figurations from rising up to
culminating, or from setting up to culminating under the earth, as in eastern quadrants,
signifies masculinization. But [being] in the remaining two quadrants, as in western ones,
signifies feminization.
And they say that the Sun, Kronos, Zeus, are diurnal, while the Moon, Aphroditē, Arēs
are nocturnal, and the star of Hermēs is common.
Rhetorius I,44.
Concerning how the Stars Rejoice
The stars Kronos, Zeus, and Arēs are said to rejoice when they are of the morning in their
figures. But the Moon and Aphroditē when they are of the evening. Moreover, Kronos, Zeus,
and Arēs rejoice when they are configured in the quadrant from the Hour-Marker up to the
Midheaven, and from the Descendent up to the Subterraneous place. But the Moon and
Aphroditē in the alternate quadrants. Hermēs rejoices in both classes because of its being
common.
And during the day the diurnal planets rejoice when they are above the earth, while the
nocturnal planets rejoice when they are below the earth. And again, during the night, the
nocturnal planets rejoice when they are above the earth, while the diurnal planets rejoice
when they are below the earth.
The Thema Mundi
Provisional Remark by Translator. Like Firmicus Maternus below, we have found that a careful
study of the position of the planets in the hypothetical chart of the creation of the cosmos can bring out
many subtle and unsuspected connections between the planets and the lights, and even amongst the
planets themselves.
Antiochus Summary Book II, Section I

The Nativity of the Cosmos
More particularly, the chapters, as one might say, are as follows. In those about god he
says that the nativity occurred in accordance with the opinion of the ancients, in which the
seven stars chance to be in their own domiciles, and that there could not be such a paradigm
even when a mortal nativity turned out to have good fortune. For example, the Crab is
marking the hour having the Moon, the Sun follows occupying the Lion, then Hermēs in the
Virgin, after which Aphroditē in the Balance and Arēs in the Scorpion, Zeus in the Archer and
Kronos in the Goat-Horned; or again, with the Water-Pourer marking the hour having
Kronos, and the Fishes following with Zeus, then with the Ram having Arēs, and the Bull
having Aphroditē and the Twins Hermēs and the Crab the Moon and the Lion the Sun.
However, he says that such nativities are worthy of a more divine fate (moira), but that as
many nativities as share in them with a larger number of planets come close to these divine
nativities, but those sharing in them with only a few differ from them, while those with none
come to the utmost extreme of misfortune. And that when the stars are conducting business in
their own exaltations, they signify a nativity that is brilliant, even if not similarly so.
Firmicus Maternus III, end of preface and beginning of 1

The Thema Mundi
Preface. ...Whereby Petosiris and Nechepso, those divine men deserving of all
admiration, whose sagacity accessed the very secrets of divinity, also handed down the
nativity of the world for the divine priesthood of our science, in order that they might exhibit
and show that mankind is fashioned after the nature and likeness of the world with those
same principles by which the world itself is governed and contained, to be sustained forever
by the tinder of eternity.
1. And so they wanted to follow Aescupalius and Hanubio for the nativity of the world,
to whom the divine will of most powerful Mercury entrusted the secrets of this doctrine. They
established the Sun to be in the 15th degree of Leo, the Moon in the 15th degree of Cancer,
Saturn in the 15th degree of Capricorn, Jupiter in the 15th degree of Sagittarius, Mars in the
15th degree of Scorpio, Venus in the 15th degree of Libra, Mercury in the 15th degree of Virgo,
the Hour in the 15th degree of Cancer. And as it is with this nativity, both according to the
conditions of the stars and according to the testimonies that they offer to this nativity, so they
wished the fates of men also to be arranged in accordance with this rationale, just as is
contained in that book of Aesculapius which is called "Myriogenesis." This is so absolutely
nothing in the nativities of individual men should seem to be foreign to the nativity of the
world.
Let us see, then, to what extent and in what manner each star adapts itself to the lights by
the testimony of their ray, the lights being the Sun and Moon. Saturn first conjoins himself
with the Moon; for, he follows the condition of the Moon. And he follows the condition of the
Moon, because, being located in a feminine sign, he receives the rays of the Moon
diametrically, also located in a feminine sign. But when that same Saturn (namely in that
nativity) makes a transit to the sign of Aquarius, he conjoins himself with the Sun, again by a
similar ray, and again to that condition of which the Sun is constituted; for located in a
masculine sign, he associates himself [to the Sun] with the same testimony of a ray, because
Saturn looks back at the Sun diametrically by the same ray as it did the Moon.
For this reason, Jupiter is located in Sagittarius, so that located in a masculine sign and
offering testimony about the Sun through a triangle, he first conjoins himself to the condition
of the Sun; for this reason, being located in a masculine sign, associated with the Sun in a sign
of the same gender, he first follows the power of the Sun. But when he makes a transit to
Pisces, he conjoins himself to the Moon with a like condition; for located in a similar manner
by triangle in a feminine sign itself, Jupiter looks back at the Moon located in a sign of the
same gender of the same condition.
In a similar manner, the star of Mars, located in Scorpio, because he is in a feminine sign,
offers testimony about the Moon by a triangle.21 But when he comes to Aries, he changes to a
testimony of the Sun; for also located in a masculine sign, he conjoins himself to the Sun with
a triangular ray.
However, this rationale is changed around in the case of Venus; for located in Libra, even
though this is itself a masculine sign, nevertheless she offers testimony about the Moon by a
square; still, when she makes a transit to Taurus, being located in a feminine sign, looking
back at the Sun with a square ray, she offers testimony about him.
But indeed, they wanted the star of Mercury to be common in this nativity, and because
he does not offer testimony to either the Sun or the Moon by square or triangle or
diametrically, he does not conjoin himself with either the Sun or the Moon with a ray. Instead,
they wanted him to rejoice with the Sun by day if he is a morning star, and with the Moon by
night if he is an evening star.
They wanted it to be the case that all that we have said should also observed in the
nativities of men, and they believed that the fate of men could not be discovered unless these
rays have been gathered together with a sagacious inquiry.
However, fabulous stories should not deceive anyone, and lest anyone suppose that this
nativity was composed by these most sagacious men without reason, everything must be
specially explained by us, so that most sagacious reason for this secret may be explained for
all diligent men.
This nativity of the world never existed; for, the world had no definite day of its birth,
nor was there anyone present at that time when the world was fashioned by reason of the
divine mind and providential will....
21
Perhaps Mars is first associated with the Moon by a trine because he is of the same sect as the Moon.
In order that mathematicians could follow an example in the nativities of men, these
divine men fashioned this nativity with a sagacious rationale as if it were the nativity of the
world...
Paulus 37
Genesis of the Cosmos
As for the genesis of the mortal and terrestrial cosmos – since it is amenable to
investigation by the doctrine of nativity-casting – it is necessary to postulate as the creation of
the mortal and terrestrial cosmos [the moment when] the wandering stars began their
recurrent [shining forth], in which fashion they became visible at the position of their own
zōidia to the degree, ordering themselves familiarly as to sect in accordance with the natural
part-assignment of the heavens.
The Sun, then, was on the 19th degree of the Ram, the Moon on the 15th degree of the
Crab, the star of Kronos on the 15th degree of the Goat-Horned One, that of Zeus on the 15th
degree of the Archer, that of Arēs on the 15th degree of the Scorpion, that of Aphroditē on the
3rd degree of the Balance, that of Hermēs on the 7th degree of the Virgin. The Hour-Marker
was rising in the Crab, based on the 15th degree, and being taken at the 11th nocturnal hour.
This is the genesis of the mortal and terrestrial cosmos.
In these zōidia the above-mentioned stars first emerged, having everlasting breath, lying
in the immortal region, whence too the zōidia themselves have been named as their dwelling
places.
The Original Planetary Glyphs as
Found in Hellenistic Astrological Papyri
Gr. lett. 376 c.e. 508 c.e. 11th c. Today
Redrawn from photographs in Astronomical Papyri from Oxyrhyncus (p. 63)

Thema Mundi
A
B L
C K
15º J
W
15º
D 15º I
J
15º D
R V
15º E 15º H
E Q 15º F 15º G
U I
S T
F H
G
Diagram Courtesy of Mark Kuenzel

Basic Natures of the Planets
A
B L
U V
C T W K
ilize
seve
stab
r
un
ct
je
ify
re
S cont
est excl
u de W
D i nclu
d e conf
irm
J
er &
gath
R V
se
ct
ize
pa
le
reco
se
tabil
ra
te
U
ncile
E Q I
de-s
S T
F H
G

Planetary Domiciles
A
B L
U V
C T W K
S W
D J
R V
E Q U I
S T
F H
G

Exaltations
A L
27º L
B 19º A
T K
3º B Q
R
C 28º J
U J
15º
D V D
I
15º F 21º G
E S W H
F G
Sect
Diurnal Sect Nocturnal Sect
Q - Sect Leader R - Sect Leader
V - Diurnal Sectmate T - Nocturnal Sectmate
W - Diurnal Sectmate U - Nocturnal Sectmate
S can belong to either sect
S - if a morning star S - if an evening star
Q In a daytime/diurnal chart, the

diurnal planets, Q V W rejoice
Daytime above the horizon.
Nightime
In a daytime/diurnal chart, the noc-
turnal planets, R T U are happier
beneath the horizon.
In a nightime/nocturnal chart, the

nocturnal planets, R T U rejoice
above the horizon.
Nightime
Daytime In a nightime/nocturnal chart, the

diurnal planets, Q V W are happier
Q beneath the horizon.

WEEK 3: THE ZŌIDIA
VALENS I,2
The Nature of the Twelve Zōidia
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 2 (EXCERPT)

Characteristics of Zōidia, their Gender, Winds
PAULUS 1,2
On the Twelve Zōidia (conclusion)
RHETORIUS (ON THE ZŌIDIA) CONCLUSION

Zodiacal Hexagons, Tetragons, Trigons
RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) PROOEMIUM

The Zodiacal Position of the Sun and the Seasons
PTOLEMY I,12
Concerning Tropical, Equipartite, Solid and Bicorporeal Zōidia

Concerning the Mixture of the Twelve Zōidia
PORPHYRY 5
Concerning the Domiciles of the Stars, Which they also Call Zones
PORPHYRY 6
Concerning Exaltations
RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) 9
On the Sect of the Trigonal Masters
VALENS I,3
Concerning the Sixty Bounds
Diagrams on Hexagons, Squares, Triangles

Diagram of Aversions
Table of Rulerships
Bounds Table 1
Bounds Table 2
Exaltations Diagram
Table of Monomoiria
General Rulership Table
WEEK 3: The Zōidia 57
The Characteristics Belonging to the Zōidia

Preliminary Note by Translator. The following texts record the characteristics assigned to the
zōidia (a.k.a. "signs") by the Hellenistic astrologers. The first text, by Valens, is thought to derive from
an earlier treatment by Teucer of Babylon. Unfortunately, it is rather corrupt in various places. Similar
texts may be found in Hephaistio and Rhetorius.
The reader will see here the traditional groupings of zōidia according to gender, quadruplicity,
and elemental triplicity. However, note that in the Antiochus text and that of Paulus, winds (or cardinal
directions) are assigned to the trigons (that is, “triplicities”) instead of elements. The Valens text
reports many other characteristics of the zōidia not commonly used in modern astrology; there are
occasional variations in the assignment of these other characteristics in the different authors,
particularly with respect to the characteristic of vocal, semi-vocal, and mute. The Valens text also
provides delineations of each zōidion when it is the Ascendant. Note that these delineations vary
depending on the position and condition of the domicile lord.
Valens I,2
Concerning the Nature of the Twelve Zōidia
The Ram is a domicile of Arēs, a masculine zōidion, tropical, terrestrial, authoritative, fire-
like, free, bearing upwards,22 semi-vocal, good, changeable,23 administrative, public, civic,
unprolific, servile, Midheaven of the cosmos24 and cause of repute, two-skinned (since the Sun
and the Moon make leprosies, skin-eruptions); it is also unconnected, a place for eclipses.
Those who are born in this zōidion,25 then, will, depending on relationship of domicile
mastership,26 be bright, notable, commanding, just, with a hatred of knaves, free,
authoritative, bold in purpose, braggarts, great-souled, inconstant, irregular, haughty, up-in-
the-air, threatening, quickly changing, well-off. When the domicile masters are well situated
and witnessed by benefics, the natives become kingly, powerful, and have the power of life
and death.
The Ram is watery in nature, full of thunder, hail.27 More particularly, the first parts up to
the equipartite [place]28 are full of thunderstorms, hail, wind, and destruction; the middle
parts up to the 15th degree are temperate, [while the following parts are scorching and
especially pestilential] for quadrupeds.
This zōidion has 19 bright stars. And it has 13 bright stars through the belt, 27 shadowy
ones, 28 under-bright bright ones, and 48 faint ones. The first part of Perseus from the
northern regions co-rises with it, as does the remaining parts and the left part of Auriga, and
22
Not descriptive of the constellation, but rather of the fire element, which carries things upward.
23
This is not the "mutable" of modern astrology.
24
In the thema mundi, the hypothetical chart of creation, which has Cancer rising.
25
When it is the Hour-Marker or Ascendant.
26
That is, depending on the position of the domicile lord, and perhaps the other lords as well.
27
It is clear from the parallel descriptions in the upcoming zōidia that these characteristics are not thought to
belong to the zōidia per se. Rather, the Ram is "full of thunder" in the sense that there tends to be thunder when
the Sun is present in it in the spring.
28
The vernal point. Obviously, we are not dealing here with a tropical zodiac in which 0 degrees of the Ram is
assigned to the vernal point.
58 WEEK 3: The Zōidia
from the south the back fin and tail of the Sea Monster. From the north, the [feet] of Bootes
set.29 From the south, the remainder of Lupus.30
These zones are subject to the Ram: the front, Babylonia; the head, Elymais;31 the right,
Persia; the left, the vale of Syria32 and the contiguous places; for the curve of the face,
Babylonia; for the breast, Armenia; under the shoulders, Thrace; for the belly, Cappadocia and
Susa and the Red Sea and Rhypara;33 the hind parts, Egypt and the Persian Ocean.
The Bull is feminine, solid, lying in the spring tropic, bony, rising from the hind-parts,
setting upright, of which the greatest part lies in the invisible cosmos.34 It is the wealth-
bringing zōidion of the cosmos, earthy, rural, pertaining to freedmen, bearing downward,35
unprolific, semi-vocal and mute, good, unchangeable, industrious, incomplete, significant for
foundations, acquisitions. The ecliptic circle lies in the north, rising at some distance.36
Those born in this zōidion will be good, versed in a handicraft, hard-working, good at
preserving things, pleasure-loving, music-loving, generous, while some of them will be
husbandman, planters, builders. And if the benefics should somehow incline37 toward this
place, or also, if the ruler should be well-situated, the natives will become archpriests, and
gymnasiarchs, those who are deemed worthy of crowns and purple, of images and statues,
those who stand in the forefront of priests, notable, bright.
It is a calm zōidion. By parts: From the 1st degree up to the 5th degree, the place round the
Pleiades, it is paltry, destructive, pestilential, thunder-causing, productive of earthquakes and
thunderbolts and generative of lightning. The next 2 degrees are fiery, and full of fog; the
parts on the right near Auriga are temperate, cooling; the parts on the left are undistinguished
and excite motion, and are sometimes chilling, other times scorching; the head up to the 23rd
degree has temperate air, but pestilential and destructive of living beings; those [following]
are destructive, paltry, full of pestilence.
It has 27 stars, the remaining part of Auriga co-rising from the north, the remainder of the
Sea Monster and the first part of Eridanus co-rising from the south. It is [sacred to] Aphroditē,
Selene, Demeter, Arēs, Hermēs. Bootes as far as the belt and [the shoulders] of Ophiuchus as
far as the knees set from the north.38 Orion, who has a sword set up in his right hand, [co-
rises] from the south. On the left dwells the so-called Herald, who is sitting in the middle of
the body.
The zones subject to it are: for the head, Media and the contiguous places; with respect to
the breast, Babylonia; the part near Auriga, the right side of Scythia; the Pleiades, Cyprus; the
29
That is, they set from the north when Aries is rising.
30
Again, the remainder of Lupus sets from the south when Aries is rising.
31
A country of Persia between the Persian Gulf and Media.
32
Region between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon.
33
A small island of the Aegean near Samus
34
The rear part of the Bull is obscured by the Ram.
35
This does not describe the constellation, but the fact that it belongs to the earth element, which like water, have
their natural place down upon the earth.
36
The last two sentences in this paragraph, and the entire next paragraph, occur two paragraphs down in the
critical edition. We have moved them to this more logical position, parallel to the treatments of the other zōidia.
37
This probably means that they direct their rays to this place.
38
Again, they set when Taurus is rising, and the same phraseology is used for the rest of the zōidia.
left side, Arabia and the nearby places; for the shoulders, Persia and the Caucasian mountains;
under the hump, [Sarmatia];39 under the loins, Ethiopia; under the horns, Carthage; with
respect to the middle parts, Armenia, India, Germania.
The Twins are masculine, bicorporeal, euphonious, a domicile of Hermēs, ascending, air-
like, feminized, pertaining to freedmen, barren, public.
Those so born, then, become fond of discourse, those who work with letters and
education, poetic, lovers of music, teachers of the use of the voice, capable in matters of
household management, those who receive trust. They also become interpreters, those with
an aptitude for commerce, critics of good and bad, prudent, curious, initiates in occult
matters.
And whatever the domicile master is at times accustomed to bring to completion by its
own nature, whether good or base, or lesser or greater, each one of the zōidia will also bring
these things to completion depending on whether the figure-description of the domicile
master is one of conducting business or one of idleness – in order that we should not to seem
to be writing the same matters.
It is a calm zōidion. By parts: The 3 degrees are paltry, destructive. From the 3rd to the 7th,
mildly wet. It is temperate from the 7th to the 15th. The south is mildly wet. The last degrees
are mixed.
It has 21 stars. It lies in the west wind. In accordance with the doctrine of spherics, the tail
of the Sea Monster, which touches some of the southern parts, lies next to it. From the parts
that occur toward the south within the line to the south is Satyr, touching [the Club], the skin
of which is actually seen from behind from its southern parts. Lyra lies toward the northern
part. Gemini has stepped upon the southern line, being the middle of the north and south.
Under its feet upon the southern line is the so-called Dog in front of the right foot, and it is cut
by the southern pole from its hindparts up to its head, mounting up vertically with the pole.
The remainder of Eridanus and Orion co-rise from the south. The gods Apollo, Heracles,
Hephaistos, Hera, and Kronos associate with [the Twins]. Bootes sets from the north, as does
Ophiuchus except for the head, and half of Corona as well.
These zones are subject to the Twins: the front, India and the contiguous places, and
Celtica; the breast, Sicily, Galatia, Thrace, and Boeotia; the middle, Egypt, Libya, the Roman
region, Arabia, Syria.
[The Crab] is the domicile of the Moon, feminine, tropical, Hour-Marker of the cosmos,
slavish, descending, mute, water-like, good, changeable, public, popular, civil, prolific,
amphibious.
Those so born, then, will be fond of repute, popular, changeable, theatrical, cheerful, fond
of pleasure and entertaining, public, inconstant in knowledge, saying one thing but thinking
another, those who do not remain with one activity or two for long, who end up wandering
and sojourning abroad.40
The Crab is a calm zōidion. By parts: For the first two south-easterly stars it is paltry,
destructive, stifling, and productive of earthquakes. From these up to the 10th degree it makes
39
Conjecture on part of the editor of the text.
40
In the text, these first two paragraphs of Cancer occur after the following two paragraphs.
the air very wet, scorching, having a downpour of water and continuous thunder-storms. The
parts on the right are paltry and destructive.
The Hare and the foreparts of the Dog and Procyon co-rise from the south. It has 4 stars.
It is a zōidion [sacred to] Arēs, Hermēs, Zeus, Pan, Aphroditē. The head of Bootes sets from the
north, as well as the star in the knees, and Aquila and half of Corona.
These are subject to the Crab: the front, Bactria; the left, Zacynthus,41 Acarnania;42 the
hindparts, Ethiopia, Schine;43 for the head, the Sea of Azof and the nations dwelling around it,
the Red Sea, the Hyrcanian Sea, the Hellespont, the Libyan Sea, Brittanica, and the island of
Thoule;44 for the feet, Armenia, Cappadocia, Rhodes, Cos; for the last parts of Cancer upon the
belly; Troglodytia,45 Ionia, Hellespont.
The Lion is masculine, the domicile of the Sun, free, fire-like, well-tempered, intellectual,
kingly, sedentary, good, ascending, changeable, solid, authoritative, civil, originative,
irascible.
Those so born are notable, good, unchangeable, just, hating work, insubordinate,
despising flattery, beneficent, puffed up with intentions. If the ruler chances to be upon a
pivot or with benefics, the natives will become bright, esteemed, tyrannical, kingly.
It is scorching. The bright star in the breast is fiery and stifling. It is, by parts, up to the
10th degree, stifling, pestilential for quadrupeds in the underlying zones and places. The parts
on the right excite motion and are fiery. The parts in the south are mildly wet. The lower parts
are deadly for all. The parts in the middle and on the left are temperate.
The Lion has ...46 stars. According to the doctrine of spherics, the left arm of Bootes co-
rises from the north. The stern of Argo and the remainder of the Dog co-rise from the south, as
does the remainder of Hydra, whose tail lies alongside as far as the claw of Scorpio, but the
head as far as claw of Cancer. Above it stands the Lesser Bear,47 and the head of Serpens,
which Ophiuchos holds, stretches down along the line.48 Dolphin, Lyra, and Zeugma,49
Cygnus except for the bright star on its rump, and the head of Pegasus set from the north.
These zones are subject to the Lion: in the head, Ceitica and the contiguous places; the
foreparts, Bithynia; the right side, Macedonia and the contiguous places; the left side,
Propontis;50 the feet, Galatia; for the belly, Ceitica; to the shoulders, Thrace; to the flanks,
Phoenicia, the Adriatic, Libya; in the middle, Phrygia, Syria; to the tail, Pisinous.51
41
An island south of Cephalenia and west of the Peloponnesus, later called Zante.
42
A country at the north of the Ionian sea between Macedonia and Achaia.
43
We have not been able to identify this yet.
44
An island far north of England or Scandinavia, usually spelled Thule in other literature.
45
Apparently, a region in Ethiopia where the people dwelt in caves.
46
Lacuna.
47
So says the text, but this must be the Greater Bear.
48
Presumably, the equator.
49
Unknown constellation. The name means "something which connects or joins."
50
The Sea of Marmora.
51
A region of Umbria.
The Virgin is a domicile of Hermēs, feminine, winged, human in form, fastidious, set in
the shape of Justice, bicorporeal, barren, pertaining to freedman, unfruitful, descending, earth-
like, common, semi-vocal and mute, corporeal, incomplete, changeable, pertaining to those
who practice a handicraft, dual-natured.
Those who are so born are good, modest, involved with the mysteries, full of care, those
who lead a diverse life, managers of the property of others, faithful, good at domestic affairs,
writers, those who are supported by speeches and calculations, hypocritical, curious,52
initiates into occult matters, those who spend their initial resources but prosper in middle
age.53
The Balance is a domicile of Aphroditē, masculine, tropical, human in form, ascending,

air-like, feminized, vocal, good, changeable, diminishing of one's belongings, the
subterraneous zōidion of the cosmos, public, a place for eclipses, productive of fruits, wines,
olives, unguents, of balances, measures, pertaining to those who practice handicrafts.
Those so born are good and just, though malicious, desirous of the goods of others,
moderate, those who lose what they have first acquired and those who have their ups and
downs, those who live irregularly, those who oversee measures and weights or supplies.
The Scorpion is a domicile of Arēs, feminine, solid, water-like, prolific, destructive,

descending, mute, slavish, unchangeable, cause of foul smells, subtractive of one's belongings,
a place for eclipses, diverse.
Those so born are treacherous, knavish, rapacious, murderous, traitors, unchangeable,
those who are liable to have their belongings taken away, secretive plotters, thieves, perjured,
desirous of the things of others, privy to murders or sorcery or malicious doings, haters of
their own families.
The Archer is a domicile of Zeus, masculine, fire-like, ascending, vocal, very watery
because of Argo, good, winged, changeable, bicorporeal, dual-natured, enigmatical, barren,
semi-complete, authoritative, kingly.
Those so born are good, just, great-souled, critical, generous, fond of brothers and
friends, those who diminish what they first acquired but acquire them again, those who
prevail over enemies, lovers of reputation, versatile, notable, those who weave matters in a
riddling fashion.
The Goat-Horned One is a domicile of Kronos, feminine, tropical, earth-like, destructive,

unfruitful, descending, chilled, mute, cause of evils, licentious, servile, enigmatical, dual-
natured, very watery, semi-complete, a zōidion for hunchbacks and cripples, the setting of the
cosmos, indicator of toil and trouble, a zōidion for stone-cutters and farmers.
52
With an overtone of meddlesome.
53
A full and parallel treatment of Virgo is lacking in the text. The meteorological discussion, the description of the
constellation itself, and the list of countries subject to it, are all missing. This is also true of Libra, Scorpio, and
Sagittarius in the upcoming discussion.
Those so born will be bad, of a different sort, good and simple at exposition,54
hardworking, full of care, sleepless, fond of laughter, planners of great works, those who
make bad mistakes, fickle, mischievous, liars, culpable, shameful.55
It is temperate toward both sides. By parts, the first parts are destructive; the second very
wet, having to do with thunder-storms. exciting motion; the middle parts are fiery; the last
parts are destructive.
It has ...56 stars. According to the doctrine of spherics, Cassiopia and the right side of
Pegasus rise from the north. The rear of Centaurus and the claws of Hydra as far as the Cup
set from the south. The gods are Aphroditē, Selene, Demeter, Hermēs. There is nothing from
the north.
These zones are subject to the Goat-Horned One: the West and all the South; for the ribs,
the Aegean Sea and the nations dwelling around it and Corinth; for the belt, Sicyon;57 for the
back, the Great Sea; for the tail, Iberia; for the head, the Tyrrhenic Sea;58 for the belly, the
middle of Egypt, Syria.
The Water-Pourer is a masculine zōidion in the heavens, solid, human in shape. pertaining
to waterside trades, one of a kind; it is mute, very cold, free, ascending, feminized,
unchangeable, bad, barren, cause of troubles through struggle, or of burdens and working in
hard materials, pertaining to those who practice handicrafts, public.
Those so born are malicious and haters of their own families, unchangeable, single-
minded, deceitful, treacherous, those who conceal everything, misanthropists, impious,
accusers, betrayers of opinion and truth, begrudging, concerned with trifles, at times generous
through the efflux of water, incontinent.
It is entirely wet. The first parts are very wet, the upper parts fiery, the lower parts
undistinguished and unserviceable.
It has ...59 stars. According to the doctrine of spherics, some of the middle part of the right
side of Andromeda co-rises from the north, as well as the remainder of Pegasus. The southern
fish of Pisces except for the head co-rises from the south. It is of Hera, Heracles, Hephaistos,
Kronos. Nothing sets from the north, but the remainder of Centaurus and the remainder of
Hydra as far as Corvus set from the south.
According to the doctrine of spherics, the river down to the south pole, the so-called
Eridanus, lies near it; also the great Fish which touches the tail of Capricorn. The so-called
Cygnus is in the northern places within the north pole, beyond which stretches Sagitta, where
the so-called Bear is looking closely at the Dog's Tail60 toward the north..
[These zones lie near to it:] The zōidion lies in the west wind. It lies near the zone of Egypt
and the nearby cities. From its southern parts as far as Pselcheus61 and Dodekaschonos62 and
54
Or perhaps, good and open in their style of performing.
55
Or perhaps ugly.
56
Lacuna
57
A town of Peloponnesus, now Basilico.
58
Part of the Mediterranean along the coast of Etruria.
59
Lacuna.
60
Ursa Minor.
61
We have not been able to locate this region.
62
District in Egypt.
Sycaminon,63 from the parts toward the west as far as the Ammoniac region and the nearby
cities, from the parts to the east as far as the Red Sea which it touches, from the parts to the
north of it as far as the places of Sebennytus64 and the mouth of Heraclea.
These zones are subject to the Water-Pourer: the front, Syria; the middle, Euphrates and
Tigris, Egypt and Libya and the contiguous rivers of Egypt and the Indus river; for the middle
of the pitcher, Tanais65 and the remaining rivers from the Hyperborei66 flowing to the
southwest.67
The Fishes are a feminine zōidion in the heavens, very wet, pertaining to waterside trades,
bicorporeal, prolific, full of eruptions, scaly, sinewy, humped, leprous, of twin form, mute,
restless, rough, opposed to itself because of being both in the south and in the north. It is also
very wet, descending, slavish, changeable, prolific, bicorporeal, sociable, mutilated, a cause of
wandering, complicated.68
Those so born are inconstant, of two minds, those who change from bad to good, erotic,
servile, licentious, prolific, popular.
It is entirely cooling, full of breezes. By parts, the first are temperate; the middle, very
wet; the last, destructive and undistinguished.
It has ...69 stars. The remaining parts of Andromeda and the remainder of Perseus on the
right side and the Triangle beyond Aries co-rise from the north, while the head of the
southern fish of Pisces co-rises from the south. It is of Poseidon, Arēs, Hermēs, Aphroditē,
Zeus. Ara and the remaining parts of Hydra set from the south, while nothing sets from the
north.
It lies near the north wind. It lies near the zone of the Red Sea, which has not a few
islands along it, beyond which India and the so-called Indian Ocean lie. In its eastern parts it
touches Parthia and the Indian region and the Eastern Ocean. From its northern parts it
touches the Scythian region. From the parts toward the West it touches the Mouse harbor70
and the harbor of Orthos and the nearby cities.
In accordance with the doctrine of spherics, there lies near to the northern part of the
Fishes Aquila, which is cut by the north pole,71 and for a certain part Sagitta, but within the
north pole not much is divided. The so-called Pegasus is within the arctic pole. The arctic
pole, lying in the middle of everything, is far from the whole sections, having in itself the Bear
that carries the so-called Dog's Tail from the north to the east, at times also from the south,
and the other so-called Great Bear which rises in the middle of the night. The so-called Bootes
holds them fast while carrying a peritasis72 for the two Bears. It is invisible for the issuing
forth of the two Bears; for, the one looks directly at the north, the other at the south.
63
A city of the Phoenicians.
64
A town of the Nile Delta.
65
A river of Scythia, now called the Don.
66
A nation in the northern parts of Europe and Asia.
67
In the text, this whole paragraph occurs two paragraphs earlier.
68
Literally, many-colored. Metaphorically, complicated, perhaps subtle.
69
Lacuna.
70
sic.
71
That is, the polar region.
72
This word is cited in this particular instance by Liddell and Scott as being of dubious meaning.
These are the zones subject to it by part; the front, Euphrates and Tigris; the middle,
Syria, Red Sea, the Indian Sea, the middle of Persia and the contiguous places; [under the
back], the Arabian Sea and the Borysthenes73 river; for the knot, in the north Thrace, in the
south, Asia and Sardinia.
Antiochus Summary 2
Characteristics of the Zōidia
He makes distinctions about the zōidia, which ones are tropical and which are double-
bodied and which are solid, and which have superfluous limbs and which are human in form,
which have amputated limbs and which are fierce, which are inclined toward intercourse,
which are abundant in seed and fruitful and which are unfruitful, which are vocal and which
mute, and which [zōidia] are masculine and which feminine, and that the masculine ones are
of the heliacal sect while the feminine are of the lunar sect. And that the Crab and those on
each side of it are northern, but the Goat-Horned and those on each side of it are southern,
and the Ram and those on each side of it are eastern, and the Balance and those on each side
of it are western; and that some, in distinguishing the winds (anemos) differently, call the
Crab and its two trigonal [figures] northern (I mean the Scorpion and the Fishes); eastern, the
Ram, the Lion, and the Archer; western, the Balance and its two trigonal figures; [southern,
the Goat-Horned, the Bull, and the Virgin]. However, these are as if in relation to the whole
cosmos.
Paulus 2 (conclusion)
Let the twelve zōidia be described in some such way [as above] for the exposition of them
one at a time, but let them be set out as follows for conceiving them in groups.
Masculine zōidia are these: the Ram, the Twins, the Lion, the Balance, the Archer, the
Water-Pourer. The remainder are feminine: the Bull, the Crab, the Virgin, the Scorpion, the
Goat-Horned One, the Fishes. And generally speaking, as many zōidia as receive an odd
number starting from the Ram as the first, let these be conceived of as masculine; as many as
receive an even number, let them be conceived as feminine.
Tropical zōidia are the Ram, the Crab, the Balance, the Goat-Horned One, with the Ram
and the Balance being equinoctial. The solid zōidia are equal in number to these, being the
Bull, the Lion, the Scorpion, the Water-Pourer. And the bicorporeals also happen to be equal
in number to these, being the Twins, the Virgin, the Archer, the Fishes.
And to speak of them as groups, as many zōidia as stand apart by fours, these receive the
same nature of zōidia.
Dwelling places: the Ram and the Scorpion, of Arēs; the Bull and the Balance, of
Aphroditē; the Twins and the Virgin, of Hermēs; the Crab of the Moon; the Lion of the Sun;
the Archer and the Fishes, of Zeus; the Goat-Horned One and the Water-Pourer, of Kronos.
73
The Dnieper.
Exaltations: the Ram of the Sun, the Bull of the Moon, the Crab of Zeus, the Virgin of
Hermēs, the Balance of Kronos, the Goat-Horned One of Arēs, the Fishes of Aphroditē. Zōidia
which stand apart from these by seven zōidia happen to be the depressions of these same.74
Trigons: the Ram, the Lion, and the Archer, of the Sun by day, of Zeus by night; the Bull,
the Virgin and the Goat-Horned One, of Aphroditē by day, of the Moon by night; the Twins,
the Balance and the Water-Pourer, of Kronos by day, of Hermēs by night; the Crab, the
Scorpion, and the Fishes, of Aphroditē by day, of Arēs by night.75
The first trigon was associated with the East Wind, the second with the South, the third
with the West, and the fourth with the North.76
The zōidia have a special feeling for these regions: the Ram for Persia, the Bull for
Babylonia, the Twins for Cappadocia, the Crab for Armenia, the Lion for Asia, the Virgin for
Hellas, the Balance for Libya, the Scorpion for Italy, the Archer for Crete, with the Goat-
Horned One apportioned to Syria, the Water-Pourer allotted Egypt, and the Fishes associated
with the region of India.
Of the human parts the Ram appropriates the head; the Bull has authority over the neck;
the Twins is like the shoulders; with the Crab having been allotted the breast; the Lion has
gotten the stomach and the ribs; the Virgin the lower bowels; the Balance is master of the
buttocks; the Scorpion has gotten the genitals; the Archer the thighs; the Goat-Horned One the
knees; the Water-Pourer the legs; the Fishes the feet.
Each of these zōidia ascends77 for Egypt in the third latitude, which is through Alexandria:
the Ram and the Fishes in 1:26:40 hours and 21;40 times; the Bull and the Water-Pourer in
1:40:00 hours and 25 times; the Twins and the Goat-Horned One in 1:53:20 hours and 28;20
times; the Crab and the Archer in 2:6:40 hours and 31;40 times; the Lion and the Scorpion in
2:20:00 hours and 35 times; the Virgin and the Balance in 2:33:20 hours and 38;20 times.78
Rhetorius (On the Zōidia) conclusion

Zodiacal Hexagons, Tetragons, Trigons
Of these zōidia, some are upright, some oblique: those from the Crab to the Archer are
upright, those from the Goat-Horned One to the Twins are oblique. And further, some of
these are diurnal, others nocturnal: the Ram, the Twins, the Lion, the Balance, the Archer, and
the Water-Pourer are diurnal; the Bull, the Crab, the Virgin, the Scorpion, the Goat-Horned
One, and the Fishes are nocturnal. As far as trigonal zōidia are concerned, those which are also
called eastern are the Ram, the Lion, and the Archer; these same ones are both fiery and regal.
The Bull, the Virgin, and the Goat-Horned One are earthy; these are also called northern. The
trigon consisting of the Twins and the Balance and the Water-Pourer, which are also called
airy, happens to be western. Similarly, as for the trigonal zōidia the Crab, the Scorpion, and the
74
A single text ascribed to Rhetorius says that the Twins are the exaltation of the north or ascending node, the
Archer of the descending or south node.
75
Paulus does not mention the third or cooperating trigon lord.
76
Because the cardinal directions were often referred to by the name for the wind that blew from that direction,
these might refer to directions rather than winds.
77
Here we are referring to the time it takes for a zōidion to fully rise over the eastern horizon. These times are
dependent on geographical latitude. Ascensional times were used in the astrological timing of events.
78
In the original, Paulus expresses these ascensional times and numbers in an earlier, non-sexagesimal system, in
which 1:26:40 is expressed as 1,3'9", meaning 1 hour, a 3rd part of an hour (20'), a 9th part of an hour (00:06:40).
Fishes, which they call watery and prolific, these also happen to be southern. As far as
tetragons are concerned, one consists of the Ram, the Crab, the Balance, and the Goat-Horned
One, which are also called tropical. Again, there is that of the Bull, the Lion, the Scorpion, and
the Water-Pourer, which is called solid. And double-bodied tetragonal zōidia are the Twins,
the Virgin, the Archer, and the Fishes. As far as diameters are concerned, of the tropical zōidia
there is the Ram in relation to the Balance and the Crab in relation to the Goat-Horned One; of
the solid zōidia, there is the Bull in relation to the Scorpion and the Lion in relation to the
Water-Pourer; [and of the double-bodied zōidia, there is the Twins in relation to the Archer
and the Virgin in relation to the Fishes]. As far as hexagons are concerned, there are the
masculine zōidia in relation to the masculine, and the feminine in relation to the feminine. Or
rather, masculine zōidia are those which we also wrote about before as diurnal, such as the
Ram, the Twins, the Lion, the Balance, the Archer, and the Water-Pourer; these hexagonal
zōidia are called both diurnal and masculine. The Bull, the Crab, the Virgin, the Scorpion, the
Goat-Horned One, and the Fishes are hexagonal in relation to one another and are called both
feminine and nocturnal.
Rhetorius (Collection), Prooemium

The Zodiacal Position of the Sun and the Seasons
Why did we start the twelve zōidia, which are in the form of a circle, from the Ram, and
not instead from the Crab where the cosmic Hour-Marker took place; nor from the Lion as
from the solar zōidion? Why was the Ram, the place of Arēs, honored above the two lights?
We say, then, that since the ancients made the twelve zōidia corporeal in accordance with the
parts of man, beginning from the Ram, calling it the head, the Bull the neck and so forth in
succession up to the feet, they began from the Ram, in order to begin from the more dominant
part that signifies the brain and all that appertains to the head. And for another reason:
because they formed the ages of man in relation to the tropics by starting from the spring
zōidion, that is, from the Ram. For, the spring signifies the suckling, the summer youth, the fall
middle age, and the winter old age.
Four zōidia, then, are called tropical, and four solid, and four double-bodied. Tropical
zōidia are so called from the fact that when the Sun comes to be in them, the weather turns
about. For example, when the Sun comes to be in the tropical zōidion the Ram, it ushers in the
change that pertains to the spring and the equinox, and from then on the weather becomes
finer, and the day lengthens from the equal hours. When it comes to be in the solid and spring
zōidion the Bull, it makes the weather calmer and unchangeable, while it increases the day
even more. When it comes to be in the double-bodied zōidion the Twins, it makes the weather
ambiguous, and makes a commixture in between spring and summer, while it increases the
day even more. In this [quadrant] of three zōidia, then, the spring, which is air, is completed.
Again, when the Sun comes to be in the tropical zōidion the Crab, it ushers in the change
to summer. The weather starts to become warmer, and from then on it subtracts from the
magnitude of the day and adds to the magnitude of the night. Again, when it comes to be in
the solid and summer zōidion the Lion, it makes the weather calmer and unchangeable, still
subtracting from the magnitude of the day and adding to the magnitude of the night. Again,
when it comes to be in the double-bodied zōidion the Virgin, it makes the weather ambiguous
and a commixture in between summer and autumn, while it further increases the night and
shortens the day. In this [quadrant] of three zōidia, then, the summer, which is fire, comes to
fullness.
Again, when the Sun comes to be in the tropical zōidion the Balance, it ushers in the
change that pertains to the autumn and the equinox, and from then on the weather turns to
colder. The night now lengthens from equal hours. Again, when it comes to be in the solid
zōidion the Scorpion, it makes the weather calmer and unchangeable, still subtracting from the
magnitude of the day and adding to the magnitude of the night. Again, when it comes to be in
the double-bodied zōidion the Archer, it makes the weather ambiguous and makes a
commixture in between autumn and winter. And it further subtracts from the magnitude of
the day, and adds to the magnitude of the night. In this [quadrant] of three zōidia, then, the
autumn, which is earth, comes to fullness.
Again, when the Sun comes to be in the tropical zōidion the Goat-Horned, it makes the
change to winter. And from then on the weather turns to the more wintry; and the day starts
to increase, while the night starts to leave off. Again, when it comes to be in the solid and
wintry zōidion the Water-Pourer, it makes the wintry weather calmer and unchangeable, by
subtracting from the magnitude of the night having added to the magnitude of the day.
Again, when it comes to be in the double-bodied zōidion the Fishes, it makes the weather
ambiguous, and makes a commixture in between winter and spring, [and] by subtracting
from the magnitude of the night and adding the magnitude of the day, it [makes] the hours of
day and night equal. In this [quadrant] of three zōidia, the wintry air, which is water, is
completed.
Ptolemy I,12
Concerning Tropical, Solid, and Bicorporeal Zōidia
With these things set forth, it would be in order to adjoin the traditional specific natural
characteristics of the zodiacal twelfth-parts themselves. Now, the more general mixtures for
each of them are analogous to the seasons that arise in them, but some of their peculiarities
are also established from their familiarity with the Sun and the Moon and the stars, which we
will recount in the following sections, setting first the powers of the twelfth-parts themselves
alone in their purity, regarded by themselves and in relation to each other.
The first distinctions, then, are of the so-called tropical, equipartite, solid, and bicorporeal
twelfth-parts. Now, two are tropical, the first thirty-degree interval from the summer tropic,
that of the Crab, and the first from the winter tropic, along the Goat-Horned One. These have
received their names from a proper attribute; for, the Sun turns when it comes to be at the
beginnings of them, reversing in the opposite direction of its latitudinal passage, causing
summer in the Crab and winter in the Goat-Horned One.
Also, two are called equipartite, the first twelfth-part from the spring equipartition, that
of the Ram, and the one from the autumn equipartition, that of the Claws [i.e., the Balance].
These, again, have been named from a proper attribute, since when the Sun comes to be at the
beginning of them, it makes the nights everywhere equal to the days.
Of the remaining twelfth-parts, four are called solid and four bicorporeal; and those
following the tropical and equipartite twelfth-parts are solid – the Bull, the Lion, the Scorpion,
and the Water-Pourer – since the wetness, hotness, dryness, and coldness of the seasons that
begin in those preceding twelfth-parts bear down upon us more firmly when the Sun comes
to be in these [solid] twelfth-parts, not because the conditions naturally existing at that time
are more pure, but rather, after we have already continued in them a long time, we also for
that reason perceive their power more sensibly.
Those following the solid twelfth-parts are bicorporeal – the Twins, the Virgin, the
Archer, and the Fishes – because of their being in between the solid and the tropical and
equipartite twelfth-parts, and, as it were, because of their sharing the specific natural
characteristics of the two states of weather at their ends and at their beginnings.
Rhetorius I,3
Concerning the Mixture of the 12 Zōidia
We have said that the Ram is fire-like; the Bull, earth-like; the Twins, air-like; the Crab,
water-like. Again, we have said that the Lion is fire-like; the Virgin, earth-like; the Balance,
air-like; the Scorpion, water-like. And again, the Archer, fire-like; the Goat-Horned, earth-like;
the Water-Pourer, air-like; the Fishes, water-like. So that the trigon of the Ram, the Lion, the
Archer is fire-like; the trigon of the Bull, the Virgin, the Goat-Horned earth-like; the trigon of
the Twins, the Balance, the Water-Pourer air-like; the trigon of the Crab, the Scorpion, the
Fishes, water-like.
This was not said aimlessly by the ancients. For, since everything material is composed
of these four elements or bodies, it is necessary that man, as participating in the same nature,
also share in these elements. And they assigned the four pivots of the nativity in accordance
with the four mixtures of these four elements, thusly: If the Ram marks the birth-hour (that is,
a fire-like zōidion), and if the Goat-Horned occupies the Midheaven (that is, an earth-like
zōidion), and if the Balance is setting (that is, an air-like zōidion), and if the Crab chances to be
in the subterraneous pivot (that is, a water-like zōidion), the mixture will be best. Again, if you
seek the post-ascensions and the declines of the pivots, you will find them to lie analogously
in accordance with the four elements.
Parts of the Zodiac Ruled by the Planets

Preliminary Note by Translator. The next four excerpts discuss four modes of rulership: by zōidion,
by exaltation, trigon and by bound. There is a fifth mode of rulership, that by degree, which will not be
reported here, although we have placed a table of such rulership at the end of this week’s readings.
Porphyry 5
On Domiciles, Which Are also Called Belts of the Stars
They say that the twelve twelfth-parts of the zodiacal [circle] are domiciles and belts of
stars, which they also call zōidia. Of these, the twelfth-parts more northerly and nearer to us
are given to the lights: the Crab to the Moon; and the Lion to the Sun. Next, the Twins and the
Virgin are given to the star nearest the lights, Hermēs; after this, the Bull and the Balance are
given to Aphroditē; then the Ram and the Scorpion to Arēs; then the Archer and the Fishes to
Zeus; then the Goat-Horned and the Water-Pourer to the one farthest from us, Kronos.
Porphyry 6
On Exaltations
Porphyry 6 (On Exaltations). Exaltations are posited of the stars: of diurnal stars, the
trigonal [figures] of the domiciles, the ones sympathetic to them in nature. For example, since
the Lion is a domicile of the Sun, its exaltation will be the Ram, which is its four-footed
trigonal [figure]; and it has its exaltation around 19 degrees. Since the Water-Pourer is a
domicile of Kronos, its exaltation will be the Balance around 20 degrees. Since the Fishes is a
domicile of Zeus, its exaltation will be the Crab around 15 degrees. And for nocturnal stars,
which are all of the sect of the Moon, the hexagonal [figures] of the domiciles are the
exaltations due to the weakness of the ray. Let the exaltation of the Moon, then, be the
hexagonal [figure] of the Crab, which is the Bull around 3 degrees. The hexagonal [figure] of
the Scorpion is the exaltation of Arēs, which is the Goat-Horned around 28 degrees. The
hexagonal [figure] of the Bull is the exaltation of Aphroditē, which is the Fishes around 26
degrees. And the star of Hermēs, since it is common and its ray is quite dim due to its
frequently setting, has the same domicile and exaltation, which is the Virgin around 15
degrees. The zōidia directly opposite happen to be the depressions, in which the stars have a
fainter power.
Rhetorius (Collection) 9
On the Sect of the Trigonal Masters
Of each trigonal side (pleura), then—I mean by a trigonal side that which is counted
through 5 zōidia; for example, from the Ram to the Lion, and from the Lion to the Archer, and
from the Archer to the Ram there are 5 zōidia, and they produce a trigonal side or line of 120
portions in the zodiacal circle. For three times one hundred twenty results in 360 portions,
which are the number of portions that the whole zodiacal circle has.—Of this trigonal side,
then, Hēlios has mastery by day; Zeus has mastery by night; and Kronos is the third and
common master of these. Again, Aphroditē has mastery over the Bull, the Virgin, and the
Goat-Horned by day; Selēnē has mastery over them by night; and Arēs is the third and
common master. Again, Kronos has mastery over the Twins, the Balance, and the Water-
Pourer by day; Hermēs has mastery over them by night; and Zeus is the third and common
master. Again, Aphroditē has mastery over the Crab, the Scorpion, and the Fishes by day;
Arēs has mastery over them by night; and Selēnē is the third and common master.
Valens I,3
Concerning the Sixty Bounds
The first 6 degrees of the Ram, those of Zeus, are temperate, robust, abundant in seed,
benefic. The 6 degrees of Aphroditē are cheerful, skillful, radiant, even, pure, well-colored.
The 8 degrees possessed by Hermēs are ambiguous, changeable and well-grown, immovable,
windy, full of hail and thunder, hurling thunderbolts. The 5 degrees of Arēs are bearers of
destruction, intensely hot, unstable due to the mischief of men, or rash and .... The next 5
degrees of Kronos are very cold, barren, malicious, injurious.
The first 8 degrees of the Bull, those of Aphroditē, are abundant in seed, prolific, wet,
prone to vice, allowing of conviction, hating strife. The next 6 degrees of Hermēs are
sagacious, prudent, mischievous, deficient in seed, short-sighted, death-bringing. The next 8
degrees of Zeus are high minded, manly, fortunate, pertaining to rulers and benefactors, great
souled, temperated, modesty-loving. The fourth group of degrees, the 5 of Kronos, are very
barren, sterile, pertaining to eunuchs, vagabond, blameworthy, theatrical, joyless, toilsome.
The final 3 degrees, those of Arēs, are masculine, tyrannical, fiery, harsh, murderous,
sacrilegious, thoroughly depraved, but not unnotable, except that they are destructive and not
long lived.
The first 6 degrees of the Twins, those of Hermēs, are temperate, mild, sagacious, skillful,
knowledgeable, practical, sung about, abundant in seed. The next 6 degrees of Zeus are
contentious, temperate, mild, abundant in seed, well-fed, beneficent. The fourth group of
degrees, the 5 of Aphroditē, are flowery, musical, acroamatic, poetic, crown-wearing, popular,
merry, abundant in seed. The 4th group of degrees, those 7 of Arēs, are toilsome, brotherless,
with few children, staying at home, resourceful, destructive, raw, meddlesome. Finally, the
next group of degrees, the 6 of Kronos, are temperate, administrative, acquisitive, noetic,
erudite, notable, distinguished in sagacity, able to succeed at great things, highly esteemed.
The first 7 degrees of the Crab, those of Arēs, have to do with the hurling of thunderbolts,
and are distracted, irregular, of contrary purpose, full of madness, abundant in seed, lacking,
destructive, bad for completion. The next 6 degrees of Aphroditē are abundant in seed,
blameworthy, pure, changeable, artistic, popular and mixed of many types. The following 6
degrees are precisely those of Hermēs, thievish, leading in public matters, pertaining to tax-
farming, popular, resourceful, bring surplus. The fourth group of degrees, the 7 of Zeus, are
kingly, autonomous, esteemed, litigious, high-minded, temperate, pertaining to rulers and the
good of the whole. The final degrees, the 4 of Kronos – since the whole is water – are very wet
and lacking in properties and deficient for accomplishment.
The first 6 degrees of the Lion, those of Zeus, are experienced, masculine, autonomous,
always domineering, practical, eminent, having no depression. The next 5 degrees, those of
Aphroditē, are rather temperate, consecrated, very wise, devoted to enjoyment. The third
group of degrees, the 7 of Kronos, are much experienced, timid, natural, well-grown, narrow,
secret, with many children, inquisitive about occult matters, but [barren] and unsown. The
next degrees, the 6 of Hermēs, are acroamatic, popular, professional, [educative], legal,
sagacious – these are also unsown, but of long-lived men. The final degrees, the 6 of Arēs, are
most base, monstrous, destructive, injurious, slothful, blameworthy and unfortunate.
The first 7 degrees of the Virgin, those of Hermēs, are most-exalted, administrative, very
orderly, quite wise, fitting, ordaining great things, most sagacious, noble and eminent in all
things, unfortunate only in regard to matters of love – in general the whole of Virgo, but
especially these degrees and those of Aphroditē; for, these degrees are open to accusation,
while those of Aphroditē go astray in all things. They especially yield eminence in education.
The next 10 degrees of Aphroditē are blameworthy, erring in matters of marriage,
encountering bad things because of these, fortunate in theatrical matters, most shameful in
relation to the passions, especially when Kronos is co-testifying, and they pertain to adulterers
when Hermēs is co-testifying, and to a multitude of errors combined when Zeus is co-
testifying, and furthermore condemnations and clandestine actions when the Sun is,
deterrents and political oppositions when the Moon is, and if it should be seen by the
malefics, it causes prostitution. The third degrees, the 4 of Zeus, are fond of farming, fitting, of
those who have withdrawn, not uneducated; they are also protective and abundant in seed
and preservative. The fourth degrees, the 7 of Arēs, are male, harsh, popular, crowd-pleasing
and wandering about at night, secretive, counterfeiting, adventitious. These degrees
themselves commit outrages on men and lead them into bondage and mutilation and tortures
and custody. The remaining 2 degrees of Kronos are monstrous, very cold, destructive, short-
lived, of men who are defrauded.
The first 6 degrees of the Balance, those of Kronos, are kingly, exalted, practical, and
especially so by day, but overly exacting by night; they are sterile, very wet, destructive. The
next 5 degrees of Hermēs are mercantile, pertaining to handicrafts, commercial, able to draw
up contracts and to total up numbers; in general, legally correct, sagacious. The third group of
degrees, the 8 of Zeus, are productive of wealth, but at least when Zeus is upon them, they are
degrees of ill-faring, joyless, degrees of things being hoarded, of insignificant and sordid life,
with no love of beauty, of the censorious, nor even blest with children. The forth group, the 7
degrees of Aphroditē, are those of the love of beauty, love of the arts, or even those of artistry
(for example, plastering, painting, relief carving); in general, they are degrees of those who are
rhythmical, religious, mild, who gradually have good fortune, who advance by their own
efforts, and those who are greatly fortunate in the area of marriage, being blest in every
regard. The remaining 4 degrees, those of Arēs, are of those who are dominant, of squadron
commanders, of those who are fortunate in such matters and in every art of Arēs, and of the
easy-going and the steadfast and those who hold fast and of the high-minded, but not of those
who are favored in their brothers or those with many brothers.79
The first 7 degrees of the Scorpion, those of Arēs, are uproarious, fickle, inconstant,
irascible, free of speech, high-minded, with few children, many brothers, irregular in fortune,
extremely fiery, fit for births related to military service and going away from home. The next
4, those of Aphroditē, are degrees of those fortunate in marriage, of the religious, of those
loved by all, of those who love of the arts, of those well-provided, of those chosen by all, of
sweet life. The third degrees, the 8 of Hermēs, are those pertaining to arms, contentious,
degrees of those who bear crowns and of those who are sharp of speech, of matters pertaining
to contest, of those who are not to be despised; these are also abundant in seed, and in
general, degrees of those who are busy with thoughts of mischief, especially in respect of
those who seek to tempt or those who perpetrate wickedness. The fourth group, the 5 of Zeus,
are degrees of the resourceful, the fortunate, of archpriests, of those being distinguished with
gold, with purple, with offices in accordance with the specific magnitude of the births, of the
beneficent; in general, of those who love man and the gods. Finally, the 6 of Kronos are
degrees of the punitive, of those with few children, with few brothers, of those who hate their
own families, of poisoners, of the melancholic, of misogynists, of those having hidden injuries;
in general, of the most punitive, of the most querulous; they are also hated by gods and by
men, they offer resistance to those in authority, and they are despised by those of low estate.
The first 12 degrees of the Archer, those of Zeus, are degrees of practical men; they are
wet along with being temperate, quite versatile in every art and activity, abundant in seed and
79
Although the order of planets here is that of the Egyptian boundaries, the degree assignments belong to no
recognized system. According to Ptolemy, they should be 6, 8, 7, 7, and 2, respectively.
with many children and many brothers, but poor. The next 5 degrees of Aphroditē are
temperate, esteemed, conducive to victory, crown-bearing, religious, degrees of those who are
honored by men in crowds and by rulers, graced with children and brothers, used to being
more around women. The third group, the 4 of Hermēs, are degrees of lovers of discourse, of
the eccentric, of the practical, of those born with a title for life, of philosophers – in general, of
those who are preeminent in knowledge and wisdom, of those fond of learning when Hermēs
should incline [toward it], fond of weapons and tactics when Arēs should so incline. The next
5 of Kronos inflict, are sterile and injurious, very cold, hurtful, degrees of base men and those
who are unfortunate in everything. The next 4 of Arēs are fervid, foolhardy, haughty,
shameless, destructive, except that they are those who are restless in everything; all the
degrees in Sagittarius are diverse in all things.
The first 7 degrees of the Goat-Horned One, those of Hermēs, are theatrical, satyr-like,
imitative, mendacious, pertaining to prostitutes, given to pandering, desirous of the things of
others, and disreputable, though well-disposed for everything and agreeable and successful,
yet not proud. The next 7 degrees of Zeus are those that make for ups and downs of
reputation and disrepute, of wealth and poverty, of charitable contributions and theatrical
displays, sterile degrees, with a tendency to female or monstrous offspring, petty, private.
The next 8 degrees of Aphroditē are those of the hopeless, of the lecherous and vice-prone,
without judgment, culpable, changeable in relation to goals, neither dying well nor sound in
the area of marriage. The fourth group of degrees, the 4 of Kronos, are severe, cheerless,
eccentric, unfortunate in children, and in brothers, crude, destructive, exceeding cold,
incompatible, malicious, inclined to procrastination, treacherous. The final group of degrees,
the 4 of Arēs, are exalted, authoritative, tyrannical, degrees that confer hegemony over
everything, poor in relatives and homicidal, fond of travelling, fond of solitude, contentious to
the end.
The first 7 degrees of the Water-Pourer, those of Hermēs, are for the wealthy, the lovers
of treasure, those who contentedly save up against the mediocrity of birth, degrees of the
intelligent, the legalistic, those who give an exact accounting of everything, those who are
commanding, small-souled, care-laden, those who love children and are highly skilled in
every art, degrees of the administrative, the economical, the philanthropist. The next six
degrees of Aphroditē are of those who are well loved, of the religious, of those who are
successful without trouble, degrees of those who have strokes of good luck, of the successful,
of those given to seafaring; these are the prolific degrees, but it happens that he who is born in
them copulates with old or diseased women or eunuchs, while he is advanced by those
without seed or those who have succeeded. The next 7 degrees, those of Zeus, are fortunate,
concerned with trifles, stay-at-home, not caring about reputation, without ostentation, blest
with children, not fond of one's brothers. The next 5 of Arēs are injurious (especially in the
middle), are occupied with lawsuits, degrees of worthless men, of the feeble, of those who fail,
except that they are degrees of those who quickly set their hand to villainy. The remaining 5
of Kronos are sterile, very wet, difficult of conception, injurious (and especially for
membranes and the forms inside and dropsy and convulsions) lacking, with few brothers, few
children, envious, not fortunate up to the end.
The first degrees of the Fishes, the 12 of Aphroditē, are cheerful, abundant in seed, prone
to vice, dedicated to enjoyment, living pleasantly, hilarious, lovable, agreeable, seeing to one's
own advancement, dear to the gods. The next 4 of Zeus are those of the lover of discourse, of
the scientific, of those who are conspicuous in a crowd and those who prevail over all in
arguments, the degrees for having many brothers, degrees which are prolific, with many
children, with extra limbs, with a huge number of brothers. The next 3 of Hermēs are
abundant in seed, the first of those held in honor, bounteous, fond of nurture, merciful, god-
loving, temperate. The next 9 of Arēs are practical, for sea battles, guides, and pleasantly cool,
poetic concerning the things that cannot be said, rapacious and yet generous, diverse, not
dying a natural death. The final degrees, the 2 of Kronos, are injurious, very wet, convulsive,
unfortunate in every regard.
Having set out in an instructive manner, then, what it produces for each single degree,
when its ruler lies upon it, it will produce its base or good property.
Hexagon
J
K I
L H
A G
B F
C E
D
Hexagons Provide Gender

Masculine A C E G I K
Feminine B D F H J L

Square
J
K I
L H
A G
B F
C E
D
Squares Determine Quadruplicities
Tropical Solid B E H K
Solstitial D J Bicorporeal C F I L
Equinoctial A G

Triangle
J
K I
L H
A G
B F
C E
D
Triangles Determine Elemental Triplicities
Fire A E I Air C G K
Earth B F J Water D H L

Aversions
J
K I
Av
ers
io
L n
H
ions
Aver
A G
ions
Aver
Av
B ers
io
n
F
C E
D
Aversions as zoidia not linked by polygon configurations

Table of Rulerships (by zoidion)
Trigon Lord Trigon Lord Trigon Lord
Zoidion Domicile Exaltation
Diurnal Nocturnal Co-operating
A U Q Q V W
B T R T R U
C S == W S V
D R V T U R
E Q == Q V W
F S S T R U
G T W W S V
H U == T U R
I V == Q V W
J W U T R U
K W == W S V
L V T T U R
Table of Rulerships (by planet)

Planet Domicile Detriment Exaltation Depression
Q E K A G
R D J B H
S CF IL F L
T BG HA L F
U AH BG J D
V IL CF D J
W JK DE G A
Trigon Lords of the Sect

Diurnal Nocturnal Participating
Fire AEI Q V W
Earth BFJ T R U
Air CGK W S V
Water DHL T U R
Planetary Periods
R S T Q U V W
25 20 8 19 15 12 30

Bounds According to the Egyptians
A B C D E F
V 6 6 T 8 8 S 6 6 U 7 7 V 6 6 S 7 7
T 6 12 S 6 14 V 6 12 T 6 13 T 5 11 T 10 17
S 8 20 V 8 22 T 5 17 S 6 19 W 7 18 V 4 21
U 5 25 W 5 27 U 7 24 V 7 26 S 6 24 U 7 28
W 5 30 U 3 30 W 6 30 W 4 30 U 6 30 W 2 30
G H I J K L
W 6 6 U 7 7 V 12 12 S 7 7 S 7 7 T 12 12
S 8 14 T 4 11 T 5 17 V 7 14 T 6 13 V 4 16
V 7 21 S 8 19 S 4 21 T 8 22 V 7 20 S 3 19
T 7 28 V 5 24 W 5 26 W 4 26 U 5 25 U 9 28
U 2 30 W 6 30 U 4 30 U 4 30 W 5 30 W 2 30
Table of Faces or Decanic Rulerships

A B C D E F G H I J K L
1st U S V T W Q R U S V T W
2nd Q R U S V T W Q R U S V
3rd T W Q R U S V T W Q R U

! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ +
Domicile 5 4 3 2 1 3 4 5 6 7 7 6
Exal. 1 (19) 2 (3) - (3) 6 (15) 3 (15) 7 (21) = (3) 5 (28) 4 (27)
D 1 4 7 4 1 4 7 4 1 4 7 4
Trigon
Lords N 6 2 3 5 6 2 3 5 6 2 3 5
C 7 5 6 2 7 5 6 2 7 5 6 2
6 4 3 5 6 3 7 5 6 3 3 4
6 (6) 8 (8) 6 (6) 7 (7) 6 (6) 7 (7) 6 (6) 7 (7) 12 (12) 7 (7) 7 (7) 12 (12)
4 3 6 4 4 4 3 4 4 6 4 6
12 (6) 14 (6) 12 (6) 13 (6) 11 (5) 17 (10) 14 (8) 11 (4) 17 (5) 14 (7) 13 (6) 16 (4)
Bounds 3 6 4 3 7 6 6 3 3 4 6 3
20 (8) 22 (8) 17 (5) 19 (6) 18 (7) 21 (4) 21 (7) 19 (8) 21 (4) 22 (8) 20 (7) 19 (3)
5 7 5 6 3 5 4 6 7 7 5 5
25 (5) 27 (5) 24 (7) 26 (7) 24 (6) 28 (7) 28 (7) 24 (5) 26 (5) 26 (4) 25 (5) 28 (9)
7 5 7 7 5 7 5 7 5 5 7 7
30 (5) 30 (3) 30 (6) 30 (4) 30 (6) 30 (2) 30 (2) 30 (6) 30 (4) 30 (4) 30 (5) 30 (2)
1st 5 3 6 4 7 1 2 5 3 6 4 7
Decanic
faces 2nd 1 2 5 3 6 4 7 1 2 5 3 6
3rd 4 7 1 2 5 3 6 4 7 1 2 5
© 2004 The Golden Hind Press. All rights reserved.

WEEK 4: THE PLACES
THRASYLLUS SUMMARY (EXCERPT)

On the Topical Places in the Manner of Hermēs
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 24,25

On the Twelve and Eight-Topic Systems
VALENS IV,12
Concerning the Naming of the 12 Places
PAULUS 24, (EXCERPT)
On the Tabular Exposition of the Twelve Places
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 19
On the Zōidia Regulative of Business
VALENS: IV,11 (EXCERPT)
Excerpt on Zōidia fit to Regulate Business and Energetic
PAULUS 27
On the Declines
VALENS III,2
Concerning the Degrees that Bear the Mark of the Pivots
PTOLEMY: I,24 (END)
About the Places Where a Planet has power
PAULUS 7
Concerning Quadrants
Topical Places Diagram

Good and Bad Places/Dynamical Division Diagram
How Diurnal Rotation Manifests in Each of the Twelve Topical Places Diagram
WEEK 4: The Places 77
Excerpts on Topical Places (a.k.a. "houses")
General Remark by Translator. The following excerpts make it abundantly clear that the Hellenistic
astrologers originally identified the topical places with the zōidia – that is, they only used “whole-sign
houses” in their inquiry into the various topics of human life. There are some exceptions to this in the
later Hellenistic tradition, primarily with regard to the subject of derivative houses, but these instances
do not contradict the notion that it is the zōidion itself that “gives signs” for topics, almost in the
manner of an oracle.
From the Thrasyllus Summary

Preliminary Remark by Translator. The following excerpt records a summary of assignments of
topics to places in the twelve-topic system that is attributed to Hermēs. It may represent the original set
of such assignments in Hellenistic astrology.
He also treats of how the so-called Hermēs Trismegistus thought fit to call and consider
each twelfth-part of the disposition (diathema), such as declaring the Hour-Marker to be the
helm and indicative of fortune and soul and way of life, and that the same is also indicative of
siblings; and the post-ascension to be indicative of expectations; the third twelfth-part to be
indicative of action (praxis), but also of siblings; the fourth he calls the foundation of
happiness, indicative of paternal possessions and the acquisition of slaves; he calls the fifth
Good Fortune; but the sixth, indicative of being subject to a daimon80 and vengeance and
injury; the seventh setting place, indicative of death and wife; the eighth he calls life (zoē) and
livelihood (bios); the ninth, indicative of being abroad and the passing of life in a foreign
country; the tenth, which is the Midheaven, he says is fortune and livelihood (bios) and life
(zoē), indicating children and conception and action and honor and ruling and leading; the
eleventh zōidion in the disposition he calls Good Spirit; the twelfth, the pre-ascension, the Evil
Spirit, [which he says] is indicative of livelihood (bios) and submission of slaves.
Antiochus 24,25
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The following two excerpts from a later Byzantine summary of
an Introduction attributed to Antiochus show that the later assignment of topics to places may be a
conflation of two different systems: an eight-topic system (that may be due to Asclepius, a confederate
of Hermēs) and a twelve-topic system. Note that it is only the eight-topic system that contains other
persons in the native's life, such as children and parents. Note also that the underlying rationale for
these two systems must be different insofar as the place of death is different in each system.
24. Having said these things, he recounts the names and significances of the twelve places
of the chart. For example, that the Hour-Marker (hōroskopos) is both the helm of the life (oiax
biou) and the entrance into physical life (zōē), indicative of the soul and behavior and all such
matters. He says that the [zōidion]81 ascending after it is the place of expectations and things
corresponding to them; the third from the Hour-Marker is called the place of goddess , and it
is significant for friends and the like; the fourth, which is the subterraneous pivot, he says is
80
Reading daimonia as per the manuscript instead of kakodaimonia as the editor has emended it.
81
The neuter article here implies zoidion. See description of the eighth place, where this is made explicit.
78 WEEK 4: The Places
called home and hearth, and it is significant for treasures and nobility of birth and lands and
such; that the fifth zōidion from the Hour-Marker is called good fortune, and that it signifies
the acquisition of animals and the increase of things pertaining to livelihood; that the sixth is
called spirit82 and pre-setting, indicative of troubles and sufferings and enemies; that the
seventh is called the pivot subject to setting and is significant for the final age of life and
death; that the eighth is called post-setting and the idle zōidion; that the ninth is called the
place of god or decline of the Midheaven, indicative of being away from home and traveling
abroad. He says that the tenth, which is the Midheaven, is called the summit of life, and that it
presides over the business (chrēmatizō) of reputation and action and technique, and for middle
of life and fortune pertaining to livelihood; and that the eleventh is called the post-ascension
of the Midheaven and good spirit and signifies the increase of things in the future. He says
that the twelfth is called decline and bad spirit and necessity, and it signifies the things during
birth, as well as troubles and sufferings; but some say that it is conducive to business.
25. That some treated of the so-called eight-topic [investigation] (hē oktatopos) for this
same inquiry. They called the Hour-Marker the place of life (zōē), for the things concerning life
are studied from it; they say that the [zōidion] ascending after the Hour-Marker discloses the
things that follow upon life; they called the third the place of siblings; the fourth, the place of
parents; the fifth, that of children; the sixth, that of injuries to the body; the seventh the place
of marriage; and the eighth the place of the end of life. And through these eight places they
examine the whole life (bios) of the native.
Valens IV, 12.

Preliminary Remark by Translator. This excerpt is typical of the later descriptions of topical places
in Hellenistic astrology that combine both the eight-topic and the twelve-topic systems into one list.
Concerning the Naming of the 12 Places and Concerning the Twelve-Turning

Let the beginning be from the Hour-Marker, which is life, helm, body, breath. The 2nd:
manner of living, Gates of Hades, shaded place, giving, receiving, community. The 3rd:
siblings, being abroad, kingdom, authority, friends, relatives, heart, slaves. The 4th:
reputation, father, children, one's own woman83 and older persons, what one does, city,
household, possessions, abidings,84 retribution, changes of place, dangers, death, constraints,
mystical matters. The 5th: place of children, friendship, community, putting out of
emancipated slaves, a kind of good or well-doing. The 6th: the place of slaves, injuries,
enemies, ailments, weaknesses. The 7th: the place of marriage, luck, intercourse with a
woman, friendship, being abroad. The 8th: death, benefits from fatality, idle place, lawsuits,85
weaknesses. The 9th: the place of friendship, being away from home, benefits from foreigners,
the place of god, king, sovereignty, astrology,86 negotiation,87 manifestation of gods,
82
We might have expected the designation “bad fortune” here to oppose the “bad spirit” of the twelfth, in the same
way that “good spirit” of the eleventh is opposite to “good fortune” of the fifth.
83
gunē idia.
84
monē. Perhaps 'stopping places'.
85
dikē.
86
astronomia.
prophesying, place of mystical or secret matters, community. The 10th: place of what one
does, reputation, advancement, children, wife, change, renewal of things. The 11th: place of
friends, hopes, gifts, children, of emancipated slaves. The 12th: place of foreign countries,
enmities, slaves, injuries, dangers, courts of judgment, ailments, death, weakness.
Each place, then, properly produces what it signifies, but also the nature of the place of
the diametrical zōidion cooperates.
Paulus 24
Preliminary Remark by Translator. Here are a few excerpts from Paulus that show how the
Hellenistic astrologers delineated planets in topical places. There are two substantially more elaborate
texts in Rhetorius and Firmicus Maternus.
On the Tabular Exposition of the Twelve Places

Of the twelve places which are taken in relation to every event-description, the origin and
foundation is the Hour-Marker, through which everything bearing upon man is apprehended.
For, the Hour-Marker is the giver of life and breath, whence it is called the "helm." It signifies
the season of youth, which is the first. And it shows the workings of either base or good
things in this season. Only the star of Hermēs, among all the stars, rejoices in this place. If one
of the benefic stars, or one of the lights, or the star of Hermēs, is busy upon the Hour-Marker,
while standing apart from a figure-description of the malefics,88 the child will be likely to
survive and be reared and will continue through life in good fortune. But if one of the malefic
stars should mark the birth-hour, and should scrutinize89 the Sun or the Moon, the children
will be unreared or short-lived, or continue their lives in injury, or suffering, or as orphans.
The ninth zōidion from the Hour-Marker gives signs for the account that concerns gods,
dreams, and traveling abroad. It also pertains to Astronomy, and is called Pre-Culmination (if
one walks from setting to rising), and the place of the Sun. Only the Sun rejoices in this place.
And it is called Good Decline. If the Sun, Kronos, Zeus, or Hermēs have been busy in this
place, they freely give favors, gifts, or benefits from gods and kings. And they make
philosophers, mystics, and good business men. Sometimes they furnish rank in the sacred
rites, or they produce the ones who take the privileged position in them. For indeed they give
kingly gifts, except that they indicate those who live abroad. When the Sun is busy with the
star of Hermēs there, they will make mantics, dream-interpreters, astrologers, augurs, and
altogether those who participate in the mysteries. And when the Moon is present there,
making a conjoining to one of the malefics or to the star of Hermēs, it makes for those who
live abroad.
The tenth zōidion from the Hour-Marker, which is really the southern pivot, is called the
Midheaven and bifurcation of the upper part, and it points out the workings from middle age.
87
chrēmatismos. Or perhaps 'oracular response'.
88
As a technical term, this means that the planet in question has no ray hurled at it by a malefic, is not aspected by
a malefic according to a square or opposition, is not contained by malefics, is not conjoined to a malefic, and is
not ruled by a malefic in a bad place. These conditions will be further explicated in upcoming lessons.
89
This usually means to be in a superior square configuration with another planet.
It gives signs for the account of work, reputation, worth, alliance, privilege, fatherland,
and permanence; and it becomes the indicator of marriage and male children. When the Sun
chances to be in this place, it shows men who are royal, esteemed, and eminent, if indeed it is
found to be a stranger to the rays of the malefics. And it makes those who are sprung from a
notable father. When the Moon occupies this place at a nocturnal birth, it will make men who
are distinguished and wealthy, tax-collectors of kings, treasurers of cities, if indeed it is not
regarded by Kronos or Arēs, either by co-presence or according to a square or diametrical
position. You will find the mothers of such to be highborn.
When Kronos occupies this place for diurnal births and is present at zōidia in which it
rejoices, it will make for employment at waterside jobs, and shows those who become
wealthy, fond of husbandry, and protective of the country, as well as those who become
owners of land and of foundations. When it occupies this place for nocturnal births, it brings
about work at the waterside, and it will produce those who become dysfunctional,
unsuccessful at acquiring property, unable to get ahead, slothful, ill-wedded, with few
children, and poor; some times it will make those who live abroad for a long time or those
who live outside of their own city, and those who wander for a long time.
When the star of Zeus happens to be present there by day, as long as it should be
increasing in numbers90 and should be found outside the ray of Arēs, it shows those who
become illustrious, magnificent, splendid, eminent, those who are trusted with the affairs of
kings or the great, notable and famous, well-loved and effective, but it will not make those
who are also happy in such things, nor those who are listened to, nor yet those who have
good success in their work throughout.
When the star of Arēs occupies the pivot at the peak (I mean the culminating place) for
diurnal births, for some it will cause the separation of the parents, for others it will turn them
away from each other. And it shows those who go through the entire span of their life in
poverty and narrow straits, with no living and unmarried at youth. Sometimes it will make
for violent deaths, if indeed it is found outside the ray of the benefics. If the star of Zeus and
the star of Aphroditē configure with it, they will have a fine old age, and they will escape the
danger of violent death. But if this star is busy on the culminating place on masculine zōidia,
whether by day or by night, it will make for hardly any children for the male parent.
When the star of Aphroditē culminates at an evening rising,91 without the malefics
contemplating it, it will make those whose lives are splendid, who are high-priests, fortunate,
custodians of the temple, councilors, princes, crown-bearers, distinguished; and it becomes
the cause of good marriage and fruitfulness. Further, it shows those who are applauded by
the masses, popular, and famed far and abroad. But when it is busy at a morning rising, it
alters the order of the aforesaid and changes into its opposite. And sometimes in the first case
it shows those who are fond of art, but in the second case those who have a pitiable life,
except that they are refined for the most part and experienced in proper behavior. And
sometimes it produces musicians and those who make their living through sound.
When the star of Hermēs occupies the place at peak, it will produce those who make their
living from arguments, science, writings, or by delivering speeches. And sometimes it shows
inspectors, secretaries, clerks, notaries, pleaders [at law], public advocates, lawyers,
90
This means that it has faster than average motion.
91
Meaning that Aphroditē rises after the Sun but is not under the beams.
interpreters, or bankers. When it is configured with the star of Arēs, either by co-presence,92
square or diameter, it shows those who are liars, atheists, impious, sacrilegious,93 or those
who diminish the divine; in addition to these, it shows poisoners94 or their accomplices, and
forgers, counterfeiters, robbers, slayers, or accomplices to these; and those who will have an
evil name, and be altogether infamous on account of these things. But sometimes it will make
public executioners, jailers, mine overseers, or tax collectors. For, the mixture of Arēs with the
star of Hermēs, without the succor of the benefics, is always the supplier of evil deeds and
makes for an evil path.
The twelfth zōidion from the Hour-Marker, being the place of Kronos, is called Evil Spirit
and pre-ascension of the Hour-Marker. When the star of Kronos occupies a masculine zōidion
for a diurnal birth, it alone rejoices in this place. And it will always make those who prevail
over their enemies and oppress them, and those who are proudly confident in their own
work. For, it shows regional governors, magistrates, those who perform great deeds, and
those who dictate customs. This place also gives signs for the account of sufferings, childbirth,
enemies, male slaves, and quadrupeds.
When the Sun happens to be present in this place, it indicates that the father lives abroad,
or else orphanhood. And it afflicts the father with suffering, injury, or banishment, or plainly
shows the father himself to be subject to poverty, ill-repute, or low-birth, while showing those
who spring from them to be themselves obscure, laborers, and needy.
The Moon in this place indicates those born of a slave mother, base, of ill-repute, or
abject. And if it is regarded by one of the malefic stars or makes an conjoining to one of them,
it shows the mother to be susceptible to disease, to have sustained an injury, or to be short-
lived, while making those who are born from them to be those who will themselves be placed
on the roll of the poor, struggling, and ever-misfortunate.
When the star of Zeus occupies this same place, it will make rebellions of enemies,
litigations with those of least account, and diminution of one's patrimony, except that in the
account of slaves and quadrupeds it is good and helpful, since it is suitable for this part.
When the star of Arēs chances to be upon this place, it afflicts the account of slaves and
quadrupeds, and supplies treacheries from servile persons and furnishes the occasions.
When the star of Aphroditē chances to be upon this place, it will make those who are
tormented by feminine excuses, and those who roll about in mental suffering – namely those
who are amorous. And they have intercourse with slaves, old women, or courtesans, and for
this reason they go through their lives without children. If the star welcoming95 the star of
Aphroditē into its domicile makes a figure upon a pivot, it will make those who consort with
slaves and those who marry illegally; sometimes also those who are panders to their own
wives.
When the star of Hermēs occupies this place, it will produce thieves, evil-speakers, evil-
doers, exploiters, deceivers, and hypocrites. But sometimes it will make secretaries,
schoolmasters, interpreters or advocates.
92
That is, presence in the same zōidion.
93
Literally temple-robbers, figuratively sacrilegious.
94
This word also means sorcerer.
95
That is, the domicile lord of Aphroditē, which is the planet that "receives" this planet into its own domicile.
Regulative Places
General Remark by Translator. We have introduced the term “regulative places” to distinguish them
from the topical places discussed above. Like the topical places, the regulative places are identified
with the zōidia. However, they are not addressed to topics or areas of life per se, such as children,
profession, health, etc. Instead, they are places that in a general way allow or restrict the business
conducted by the planets in a certain mode and manner.
Antiochus Summary 19
Preliminary Remark by Translator. In this passage we find that there were two different systems of
distinguishing the regulative zōidia. In the first system, attributed to Hermes, the Hour-Marker itself
and all the zōidia connected with it by configuration except the third are regarded as regulating
business favorable for the native, while the regulation of the remainder is without advantage to the
native. In other authors, these are called the good and bad places, respectively. Note that in the
following Serapio excerpt this distinction is articulated in terms of the kind of configuration that a
zōidion has with the Hour-Marker.
In the second system, attributed to Nechepso the King, the four angular zōidia and those
succeeding them are regarded as regulating the business associated with that angle. Each of the four
angular zōidia is called a kentron, a Greek word one of whose meanings is “pivot” or “hinge.” A hinge
both allows a door to swing back and forth, but at the same time it controls this turning motion and
restricts it to a circle. This is how it symbolizes the regulative function of the angles. Each of the four
succeeding zōidia is called an epanaphora. Although astronomically this word describes a zōidion
insofar as it ascends after its respective angle, it at the same time has the sense of a reference back to
that angle. Thus, the zōidia that succeed an angle regulate the business of a planet by referring it back
to that angle. The declining (“cadent”) zōidia do not refer business back to the angle; instead, they
divert this business away from the regulation of the angle and in a sense leave the business
unregulated.
Thus, these two different systems are in no way incompatible with one another. The first regulates
the business of planets by connecting it with the ascending zōidion, which as we learned above, is the
helm and entrance into life and, as the best of all the places, confers a benefic character on the zōidia
configured with it. The second either directly regulates the business of the planets by virtue of the
pivotal character of the four angular zōidia, or else by referring that business back to the primary
source of regulation in the case of the post-ascensional places.
On the Zōidia that Regulate Business

Following Timaeus, they say that seven zōidia regulate business (chrēmatizō)— I mean the
four pivots (kentron): the Hour-Marker and Midheaven and Descendant and Anti-Midheaven;
the two trigonal figures to the Hour-Marker, and the post-ascension of the Midheaven. The
remainder are unprofitable (achrēstos). But often, should the majority of the degrees of the
Hour-Marker pre-ascend while the last degrees mark the hour, then the post-ascensional
zōidion will conduct business jointly (sugchrēmatizō) with the Hour-Marker. There are four
declines (apoklima), the zōidia going in advance of the pivots and dropping away (aporreō)
from them in reference to ascension. Similarly, there are four zōidia following the pivots, as
Hermēs says, according to Timaeus. But according to the King, the four pivots and their post-
ascensions (epanophora) are said to regulate business.
Serapio (Definitions)
On the Benefic and Malefic Zōidia
226, 20-23 (second sentence). ...That the benefic zōidia are the Hour-Marker, the
Midheaven, eleventh, fifth, place of God, of Goddess, while the malefic zōidia are the second,
fourth, sixth, seventh, eighth, twelfth.
226, 27-28. Of the post-ascensions, the second place, and of the four declines, the sixth
place, are better because the Midheaven is a trigonal figure.
Valens IV,11
Preliminary Remark by Translator. Although this excerpt comes from a passage on time-lords, we
have included the following excerpt primarily because it mentions that the presence of four special
Hermetic lots can make a zōidion able to regulate business.
Excerpt on Zōidia fit to Regulate Business and Energetic

Zōidia that are fit to regulate business (chrēmatistikos) and able to affect it (energētikos),
then, are the Hour-Marker, Midheaven, Good Spirit, Good Fortune, Lot of Fortune, Spirit,
Eros, Necessity. Middling are God, Goddess, and the remaining two pivots. Base and afflictive
are the remainder. But the power of the places is utterly exhausted or else is established to be
more able to affect business from the benefics or malefics present or witnessing. Indeed, the
Evil Fortune seems to be better than the Evil Spirit because it possesses a triangular figure in
relation to the Midheaven.
Paulus 27
Preliminary Remark by Translator. We append this selection to show that there are certain special
cases wherein a planet may be in a declining zōidion but still can conduct business.. This lore is found
only in Paulus.
On the Declines
There being four pivots, four post-ascensions, and four declines, one must know that
sometimes even the declines conduct business (chrēmatizō) and are at work in no ordinary
way with regards to the subject of bringing matters to completion. This is whenever one of the
stars that happens to be upon one of the declines brings its rays to bear within a three-degree
interval of a pivot or a star in a triangular figure that is harmonious to it.
For example, say that the Hour-Marker is at the 15th degree of the Lion, and that the star
of Zeus is at the 16th degree of the Ram. Since the Lion happened to possess the pivot that
marks the birth hour at its 15th degree, while the ninth zōidion, a good decline, chanced to be
found with Zeus present there and bringing its rays to bear on the degree next after the Hour-
Marker, Zeus became active.
We will also make use of another illustration that employs the Hour-Marker as set out.
The 15th degree of the Bull was occupying the Midheaven,96 but the star of Aphroditē was
96
Notice the use here of the 90-degree point from the Hour-Marker instead of the meridian to designate the Midheaven.
found upon the 16th degree of the Goat-Horned One, being in a right-sided trigon of the
degree occupying the Midheaven and having brought its rays to bear on the succeeding
degree of the pivot at the peak; the star was busy and became active with regards to the
subject of bringing matters to completion.
A declining star is still more potent whenever another one of the stars is busy by lying
upon the pivot harmonious to it. But it is said that the ninth and the sixth places are
distinguished from the rest, the one through being harmonious to the Hour-Marker, the other
through being configured to the pivot at the peak (I mean the zōidion occupying the
Midheaven) by a trigonal side. And it results that the sixth place is more energetic because it
is harmonious to the zōidion occupying the Midheaven. For they wanted it to take the lead
over the remaining pivots, just as they laid down that the second from the Hour-Marker
differs from the remaining post-ascensions because it is harmonious to the zōidion occupying
the Midheaven by a trigonal side. And they say that the acquisition of livelihood comes from
the zōidion occupying the Midheaven and the other pivots, as well as from a star that is jointly
busy upon one of the pivots, while they contend that the quality of this acquisition is
indicated by the star that is found upon the four declines of the nativity.
For the sake of an illustration, say that the star of Zeus is busy upon the place at the peak
while the star of Aphroditē is upon a right-sided trigon of the zōidion occupying the
Midheaven, which is a decline and the sixth place of the nativity. The acquisition comes from
Zeus, while the quality of acquisition comes from the star of Aphroditē, just as is the case
should one of the malefic stars (I mean the star of Kronos and that of Arēs) be busy upon one
of the pivots while Aphroditē has declined and chances to be harmonious to it, the cause due
to the pivotal character of the malefic star is brought to completion through the motivations of
women.
The malefic stars in the declines become more energetic in relation to hindering and
outright wrongdoing when one of the malefic stars chances to be busy upon one of the four
pivots; for, the causes of a harmful situation are brought to completion through these, and
especially whenever one of the malefic stars is found upon the sixth place. And whenever one
of the benefics occupies the sixth place with no star chancing to be upon the Midheaven, nor
indeed upon the post-ascension of the Hour-Marker, it becomes altogether unemployed and
ineffectual and powerless and idle in relation to every work of bringing to completion, and
especially in relation to activities useful for livelihood and those able to accommodate
something good.
Dynamical Divisions of the Zodiac

General Remark by Translator. We have introduced the term “dynamical division” to differentiate
such places from the topical and regulative places, both of which are based on the zōidia. These
divisions are intended to demarcate regions of the zodiac where a planet can be stimulated into activity.
This notion is based on a different meaning of the word kentron, which was translated above as
“pivot.” Originally, kentron meant a “goad” or “prod,” and that is the sense intended here. From the
following two passages, it is quite clear that the early Hellenistic astrologers regarded the “house”
systems originating from the division of the mundane quadrants to be concerned with the issue of
stimulating a planet into activity, and not in any way with the investigation of topics. This raises the
intriguing possibility that later astrologers who argued over the question of house division were
confusing two entirely different issues..
Valens III,2
Preliminary Remark by Translator. It is clear from this passage that for dynamical purposes the
Hellenistic astrologers were originally only concerned about the proximity of a planet to an angular
degree, with no thought of articulating the four mundane quadrants into twelve parts. In fact, Valens
himself may be responsible for this practice. This mode of dynamical division would later be called the
“Porphyry” system, which is clearly inaccurate from a historical perspective.
Concerning the Degrees that Bear the Mark of the Pivots

Before all, then, after one has established the degree marking the hour and the degree
occupying the Midheaven and the degrees of the remaining pivot points, one must take the
interval from the degree marking the hour up to the degree opposite the one occupying the
Midheaven, and one must suppose that a third of the total multitude [of degrees] in the figure
defined by the pivots consists of busy97 degrees, and that either benefic or malefic stars are
powerful in these degrees. But one must also suppose that the remaining degrees [from the
next degrees] up to the subterraneous pivot point are inactive98 and the stars upon them
inactive and ineffectual; and that the diameters of the Hour-Marker and the remaining pivot
points possess the same power in relation to the busy and inactive degrees, the stars upon
them being likewise intensified.99 Now, it is clear that there are not always 30 degrees
following a pivot point, but sometimes more and sometimes fewer. And if the powerful
degrees in the [pivot] marking the hour and the one setting should be fewer than 30, then
there will be more than 30 degrees in the Midheaven and the subterraneous pivot. And if
there should be more than 30 degrees in the pivot marking the hour and the one opposite this,
then there will be fewer than 30 degrees in the Midheaven and the subterraneous pivot.
For example, let the Fishes be marking the hour at 13 degrees, the 22nd degree of the Archer
occupying the Midheaven, the same degree of the Twins being under the earth, and the 13th
degree of the Virgin setting. I took the interval from the Hour-Marker to the subterraneous
pivot point; it comes to 99 degrees. A third of these is 33. I count these out from the Hour-
Marker. It left off at the 16th degree of the Ram. These degrees and the stars upon them will
be powerful, but the remaining degrees from the 17th degree up to the subterraneous place
will be inactive. And their diameters will hold sway in the same manner.
Again, I took the interval from the culminating degree up to the degree marking the
hour. The result is 81 degrees. Of these, one-third becomes 27. I count these out from the
culminating degree. It left off at the 19th degree of the Goat-Horned One. These degrees, then,
and their diameters will be busy, while the remaining degrees will be inactive. It is necessary
to do something similar for the remaining nativities in order to know whether the stars are in
busy or inactive degrees.
However, it seems to me more natural for it to hold as follows: After taking the interval
from the degree marking the hour up to the subterraneous pivot point and reckoning a third
97
chrēmatizo.
98
achrēmatistos.
99
eutoneō.
of these just as above, and after counting in order from the degree marking the hour, to judge
these degrees and their diameters to be powerful, and to judge another third of the degrees as
middling – neither more good nor more base100 – on account of the post-ascension of the
Hour-Marker and the Goddess and the diameter of God.101 The first third of the degrees from
the Hour-Marker, then, are busy and powerful; another third is middling; and another third
noxious and base.102 And the stars are also energetic after the same fashion. It is also necessary
to suppose the first third from the degree of the Midheaven and in the pivotal order [to be
busy]; another third, that of the post-ascension [to be middling (as it was also named Good
Spirit by the ancients)]; and the remaining third up to the Hour-Marker – the declining
degrees – to be afflictive and inactive. The diameters of these give their support in a similar
fashion. Orion gave an exposition of all this in his book.
Ptolemy I,24 (end)

Preliminary Remark by Translator. Ptolemy here confirms that divisions of the mundane quadrant
are for the purpose of assessing planetary power. According to Ptolemy's rationale, it is not even
necessary that there always be twelve such divisions, as we will see.
"Then also, [one must examine their power] from the relation they have to the horizon,
for they are especially powerful when they are upon the Midheaven or post-ascending it; and
second whenever they should be upon the horizon itself or should post-ascend it, and more
when they are upon the ascending horizon, while they are less when they are in the
subterraneous Midheaven or otherwise configured to the ascending place; but should they not
be so configured, they happen to be entirely without power."
Commentary by Translator. In this system, planets directly upon the ascending and culminating
degrees, as well as those in the degrees post-ascending (succedent to) these angles, are in the strongest
positions, with the Midheaven degrees being more powerful than those of the Ascendant. Ptolemy does
not define how many degrees belong to this sector of the Midheaven or Ascendant, but this will be
automatically taken care of. Planets directly upon the degree of the I.C. or in the degrees post-
ascending it are less powerful still. Thus, as far as the angles are concerned, and the degrees post-
ascending them respectively, we have the following order of strength: Midheaven, Ascendant,
Descendant, I.C. Planets on degrees in partile configuration to the Ascendant degree (by sextile,
square, or trine) have the same power as those upon the I.C. or its succedent degrees; and context
dictates that we must assume that degrees succedent to the degrees in partile configuration to the
Ascendant also have this same power. The four degrees in aversion to the Ascendant (the two semi-
sextiles and the two inconjuncts), and their own post-ascensional degrees, have no power at all
according to this one factor of planetary strength.
According to the principles of this dynamical division, there may not always be three neat divisions
of greater, lesser, and absent power in order in each mundane quadrant. This all depends on the
position of the M.C. For instance, if the Midheaven degree falls just three degrees west of the partile
100
Because both the benefics and malefics have only moderate power in this place.
101
It is interesting that Valens seems to be deriving the good or bad character of this sector from the fact that it
contains part of the second zōidion and part of the third, the second being in aversion to the ascending zōidion and
therefore a bad place, while the third is configured by sextile to the ascending zōidion and therefore is somewhat
good.
102
This cadent sector is bad primarily because the benefics are inactive, not because the malefics are likewise
inactive. In other words, bad is here regarded as the absence of good.
trine to the Ascendant degree, in the mundane quadrant between the Midheaven and the Descendant
degree there will be the fairly powerful region of thirty degrees in the sector succedent to the
Descendant, and then a powerless sector covering the twenty-seven degrees up to the Midheaven itself.
But in the quadrant from the Ascendant to the Midheaven, there will be a very short three degree
interval of greatest power from the Midheaven up to the partile trine, then a very long interval of ninety
degrees that possesses a power like the I.C., and then the powerless region of thirty degrees cadent to
the Ascendant degree.
This may seem strange at first, but remember that dynamical divisions have their own principles
and should not be influenced by thinking originating with topical divisions. Once we extricate ourselves
from the confusion between topical and dynamical divisions, there is no apriori reason for thinking that
there should be three neat divisions within each quadrant at all. The Ptolemaic division does have one
very strong advantage, which is that it stays defined even at extreme northern latitudes, although it will
produce sectors of power like those I just described.
Chronological Places
General Remark by Translator. There is one final classification of the places relating to the evolution
of the life through time. There are two systems, one based on the zōidia and one based on quadrants.
The texts are self-explanatory.
The Association of the Zōidia with the Ages of Life
p. 231, 24-25. That the Hour-Marker indicates the first age of life, and of this time the
twelfth place indicates the parts prior to birth, the second the last parts of the first age, while
the Hour-Marker itself indicates the middle age of the first age. The Midheaven indicates the
middle age of the entire life; and of this age the ninth indicates the first parts of middle age,
the tenth the middle parts of middle age, and the eleventh the last parts of middle age. The
pivot subject to setting indicates the last age of the life, but the sixth the beginnings of the last
age, the seventh the middle parts of the last age, and the eighth the last parts of the last age
(for this reason it is called “deadly”). The subterraneous pivot indicates death itself, and of
this time the third indicates the parts prior to death, the fourth death itself, and the fifth the
parts after death.
Paulus 7
Concerning Quadrants
The first quadrant, that from the degree marking the birth-hour to the degree occupying
the Midheaven, is masculine. This same quadrant is also rising, and is called easterly. It
signifies the first age – I mean youth. The second quadrant, from the degree occupying the
Midheaven to the setting degree, is related to the feminine. It is southerly and noon-tide. It
signifies the age after youth, which is maturity. The third quadrant, from the setting degree to
the subterraneous degree, happens to be masculine, is thought of in terms of setting, and
called westerly. It signifies seniority. The fourth quadrant, from the subterraneous degree to
the degree marking the birth-hour, is feminine and northerly, and it signifies old age until the
end at death.
Places
Culminating Pivot
Acti ssion
eign eligion
Pro
vel
M
id
d
ons
Tra
fe
dl
Go
Go
h
ut
e
R
od
Yo
Ag
G
e
Al ood Da a th
lia E De
For
im
nc xp
es ec
on
e
Ev
ta
t io Idl
il D ns
aim
on
Suffe
Enem
rings Q Mar
ria ge
Illne ies
sses
V 10 9
W 12
11 8
7 Setting Pivot
Helm 1 6
S 2
3 4
5 U Inju
ries
&A
Bre
a th, L
ife T ilme
nts
de
s n s R Ev
il F
a sio or
fH es tun
eo ss e
at
Sub-Terranian Pivot
o
G lP
C
ria
Go
hi
e
at
ld
od
El
re
M
de
e
Fo
rl
Ag
es
y
ings
rt
Par
d
Ag
dd
un
Ol
e/
ents
Go
Sibl
e
De
at
h
Joys
Q 9
Good Places R 3
1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11 S 1
T 5
Bad Places U 6
2, 6, 8, 12 V 11
W 12

Good and Bad Places
X
XI IX
Shaded
XII VIII Zôidia
Are Bad
Places.
Ascendant
Zôidion of
Remaining
I VII Zôidia
Are Good
Places.
II VI
III V
IV
Dynamical Division of Zodiac ("Porphyry")

Trisection of quadrant between Meridian and Horizon
ian
rid
Me
Shaded Places
Ascendant Are Weaker.
White Places
Are Strongest.
How the Diurnal Rotation Manifests
in Each of the Twelve Topical Places
Occupation
& Going Gu
ts through Te ides
Lif th n
n
Te er Work Ov th
ov k Pe er
Re a ak
Em sists Pe s
ep h
X e
K nt
of erge XI IX ve d
F ir n
st ce Se erge
m
Sub
XII VIII
Emergence I VII Immersion
II VI
s Su Gi
p ort ce b me ay ves
W
u p gen
S er III V of rge to
m
E Fir s t IV Se nc
ve e
of E r s nth
x
&
Dr tend e nte lizes
a s C abi
Fo ws o St urth
u r t ut &
h Occupancy Fo
& Dwelling
88 Week 5: Symposium
WEEK 5: SYMPOSIUM
On Chariots
VALENS I,20 (END)

Excerpt on the Place-Positioning of the Planets
SERAPIO (DEFINITIONS)
When Stars Are Conducting Business and When they Are Strong
On Stars that are Commanding and Conducting Business
PTOLEMY III,3 (END)

Excerpt on the Manner of Rulership in General
PTOLEMY III,4 (END)

Excerpt on How to Investigate Topics

Concerning the Stars in Power
VALENS I,1 (END)

Excerpt on when and how the Planets Effect their own Significations for Good or Ill,
and the Principles of their Combination with One Another
VALENS IV,17
Excerpt on How a Time-Lord Effects its Significations for Good or Ill
On Stars Opposite their own Domiciles
On Places in which the Stars Rejoice
RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) 1
Concerning the Masculine and Feminine Zōidia and Places and Stars that are
Masculinized and Femininized
Planetary Condition and the Preliminary Natal Analysis
General Remark by Translator. The following texts have been assembled to justify the grouping of
some of the basic concepts discussed in the earlier lessons under three basic headings. Collectively,
these headings pertain to the “effect-description” of a planet. They help the astrologer understand the
overall condition of the planets in the nativity in a preliminary natal analysis prior to any further
investigation conducted with the Universal Techniques, the Topical Methods, or the Time-Lord
Procedures. Notice that, for the most part, in each grouping there is one concept defined relative to the
horizon, one defined relative to the lights, and one defined relative to the zodiac.
The Fitness of the Planets for their Conduct of Business: the

Place-Positioning of the Planets (Topothesia)
General Remark by Translator. The first heading (corresponding to Table I of the Preliminary Natal
Analysis, or PNA for short) concerns the fitness of a planet for conducting its business. In Greek, this
grouping is called the topothesia, or the overall "place-positioning" of a planet. By a study of the
following texts, we may infer that the following conditions are relevant to this heading.
1) Whether a planet is in any of its own zodiacal places or the domicile or exaltation of a sect-
mate. From earlier chapters, we may further surmise that a planet in its own domicile, it is self-
sufficient and in command of its own resources. If it is in its own exaltation, the domicile lord of that
place acts as its manager in seeing to it that the significations of the exaltation lord are effected, thus
elevating its importance in the chart. If it is in its own bounds, it is autonomous and need conform to no
other planet in its conduct of business. Some authors add presence in its own trigon to this list, but this
seems to be a later development. If a planet is in the place of a sect-mate, its may effect its significations
through the sect-mate. However, if such a place is the depression (“fall”) of a planet, what it effects is
of short duration. If a planet is in a totally alien place, it has a harder time effecting its own
significations, although it may still affect the lord of that alien place in accordance with its own benefic
or malefic nature.
2) Whether it is capable of arising (that is, not under the beams of the Sun and direct in motion), or
configured with the Moon. Here we may surmise that when a planet is in such a condition as to be
capable of arising with respect to the Sun, this symbolizes that its own effects can be appear and be
realized in the native’s life. When a planet is under the beams of the Sun, it does not have the power of
manifesting its own effects unless it is at the same time in its own places; when it is retrograde, it may
manifest its own effects, but they are subsequently taken back and do not last. And when a planet looks
upon the Moon, it is in a condition to issue orders, again ensuring the realization of its own effect; if
not, it is more subservient.
3) Whether it is pivotal or in a zōidion ascending after a pivot. Then a planet is in a place fit for
the dispatch of its own business. Serapio, like Valens in the selection from last week, also considers the
presence of a lot (presumably Fortune, Spirit, Eros, and Necessity) to make a zōidion more fit for the
dispatch of planetary business. When a planet is in one of the declines without one of these four lots
present in the same zōidion, its business is unregulated or diverted away from the native.
Note that Valens and Ptolemy relate these conditions to the ruler of a topic. Ptolemy groups his
version of these conditions under the collective rubric of the magnitude of an event ruled by the planet,
whereas Valens associates them with the stability of the event.
On Chariots
That stars are said to be in their own chariots (lampēnē) when they are in their own
domicile or exaltation or bounds. For, such a star is mighty even if it is ending its course
under the beams of the Sun; but if they are also arising or pivotal or look upon the Moon, they
show the nativity to be authoritative.
Valens I,20 (end)

Excerpt on the Place-Positioning of the Planets
And there is found in this treatise the grounds upon which the place-positioning of each
star – that is, the manner in which it was figured – must be determined (either upon a pivot or
capable of arising, lord of the lot, of the Hour-Marker, or of a trigon103). Similarly also, the
zōidia in which they chance to be found (either familiar ones,104 or those belonging to its own
sect while being witnessed by those stars whose zōidia they are). And in such manner the
events are revealed to be steady. But if the planets are cast out in inactive places, the effects
related to action and fortune will become less so.
When Stars Are Conducting Business and When they Are Strong
225, 8-12. The four pivots and their post-ascensions are said to be zōidia that are fit to
regulate business (chrēmatistikos). Stars are said to be conducting business (chrēmatizōn) which
are in power (epi dunameōs) upon pivots or by making an appearance or by being upon a lot or
by being trigonal to the Sun. Those that are together in a pivot or in a lot or in making an
appearance are said to be jointly busy. Those that are not so are said to be at leisure
(achrēmatistos).
226, 17-19. Stars that chance to be upon the important (epikairos) places of the nativity —
that is, those that are upon pivots — are said to be strong (ischuontes), as well as those that are
making an appearance (epi phaseōs) and those that are upon a lot (epiklēros) and those that are
exactly in their concourses [with the Sun].
On Stars that are Commanding and Conducting Business
226, 9-16. A star is said to be in command (prostassein) whenever it chances to be pivotal
above the earth in its own domicile and contemplates (epitheōreō) the two lights as it is
conducting business (chrēmatizō). For this reason it is said to be issuing orders (prostassōn)
when it chances to be pivotal in its own domicile and is configured with the Moon. But if one
of the five stars chances to be pivotal while not testifying to the Moon, it conducts business;
103
The domicile lord of the Lot of Fortune, the domicile lord of the Hour-Marker, and the trigon lord of the sect-
light were considered to be the three planets that "support" the nativity as a whole. However, it is not necessary
for a planet to be one of these three lords in order to assess its fitness to conduct business.
104
The places mentioned here are probably domicile and exaltation.
and if it also testifies for the Moon in conformity with a trigonal, tetragonal, or diametrical
figure, it issues orders. If the Sun marks the hour, it is commanding, but if the Moon chances
to be trigonal to it, the Sun both issues orders and conducts business.
Ptolemy III,3
Excerpt on the Manner of Rulership in General
...On the whole, the manner of rulership is contemplated in these five [ways]: by trigon
and by domicile and by exaltation and by bound and by phase or configuration; that is,
whenever the place in question has one or more or even all of these in relation to the star that
is about to rule. …
Ptolemy III,4 (end)

First it is necessary to examine that place of the zodiac which is familiar to the specific
heading in question in the nativity, as for example, the Midheaven for the inquiry concerning
what one does, or the solar [place] for the inquiry concerning the father. Then it is necessary to
observe the planets having a relationship of rulership to the posited place, according to the
five ways we spoke of above. And if there is one essential ruler, it is necessary to give it the
rulership of that prognostication. But if there are two or three, to those having more counters.
After these matters, for the quality of the event it is necessary to examine the natures of the
ruling stars themselves, and the natures of the twelfth-parts in which they are, as well as the
places to which they are familiar. But for the magnitude of the effect, it is necessary to
examine their power, whether they happen to be actively disposed in relation to the cosmos
itself and in relation to the nativity, or the opposite. For they are most effective whenever they
should be in their own or familiar places105 with respect to the cosmos; and again, whenever
they chance to be capable of arising and additive in numbers. And they are most effective
with respect to the nativity whenever they should be passing through the pivots or the post-
ascensional twelfth-parts, and especially the primary pivots (I mean those ascending and
those culminating). They are weakest with respect to the cosmos whenever they should be in
another's or unfamiliar places, and able to sink out of sight or else retreating in their course.106
And they are weakest with respect to the nativity whenever they are declining from the
pivots.
Rhetorius (Collection) I,42.

Concerning the Stars in Power
Each one of the planets is said to be in power whenever it chances to be in its own
domicile, exaltation, bounds, familiar phase, or configuration, or in some more intense place
of the twelve-fold placement.
105
Ptolemy also regards the places of sect-mates as familiar places, as does Valens above, although he does not
make that explicit here.
106
Retrogradation.
The Favorable or Unfavorable Character of the Business
Conducted by a Planet
General Remark by Translator. The second constellation of concepts (corresponding to Table II of
the Preliminary Natal Analysis) concerns whether the business conducted by a planet is favorable or
unfavorable for the native. From the study of the following texts and numerous others not cited here, we
may infer that the following conditions make the business conducted by the planet more favorable.
1) Whether a planet is in its own places or in the domicile or exaltation of a natural benefic. This
partially overlaps the first fitness condition enumerated above; for, as many texts tell us, even a malefic
in its own places is never without beneficence. In this second table the condition of being in the places
of a sect-mate is replaced by being in the places of a benefic planet. One would indeed expect that when
a planet was “received” or welcomed into a domicile by a benefic lord, it would be provided with good
things by its host; however, in the case that such a planet is opposite its own domicile, it turns bad in
the sense of being excessive or over-reactive. But when a planet is in alien places that are not those of a
benefic, it turns bad in the sense that it becomes a willing conspirator in the mischief of the malefic
lord.
2) Whether a planet is of the sect and/or bonified by benefics. We may surmise that when a benefic
planet belongs to the sect of the nativity, it is freer to pursue its beneficent agenda for the native’s life;
a malefic belonging to the sect puts its natural malefic tendencies in the service of the native—by
directing them toward enemies, for instance. And when a benefic planet is contrary to the sect, it can
only pursue its own benefic agenda to the extent that it is consistent with that of the planets of the sect
in favor, although in their capacity as the loyal opposition, they may also be in a position to curb any
excesses of the planets of the sect; but when a malefic planet is contrary to the sect, it tends to turn
violent. Similar remarks apply to the seven conditions of bonification and maltreatment, which we
cannot enumerate until next week.
3) Whether a planet is in good places of the nativity, the ascending zōidion and the six places
configured with it. Then its business becomes connected to the natural character of the ascending
zōidion, the best of all the places, which is the helm and emergence into the light and the entrance into
life. Planets in such places contribute to these processes, although planets in the fourth or seventh may
also be somewhat antithetical to them. Planets in the bad places, which are the remaining five zōidia,
connect their business to the other angular zōidia, which are not so naturally favorable to the native,
although those of these bad places that are connected with the tenth zōidion are less unfavorable by
contributing to the work and labor of the native.
Valens I,1 (end)

Excerpt on when and how the Planets Effect their own Significations for Good
or Ill, and the Principles of their Combination with One Another
When the benefics are well situated and upon their places, they effect their own
significations in accordance with their own nature and the nature of the zōidion, with the
additional admixture of the testimony or co-presence of each star; but when they fall amiss,107
they are indicative of impediments. Similarly, if the malefics are conducting business by being
placed upon their places and are of the sect, even they are dispensers of good things, and they
are indicative of higher positions and advancements; but if they are in places not fit for the
dispatch of business, they effect dismissals and accusations.
And each star is the lord a special essence in relation to the cosmos, both with regard to
their sympathies and antipathies and in being subject to mutual influence, and with regard to
107
That is, when they are in bad places and not in their own zodiacal places.
their commixtures with one another, sometimes in accordance with conjoining and flowing
away, other times overcoming, enclosure, spear-bearing, striking with a ray, and what the
masters have to offer. 108
Valens IV,17
Excerpt on how a Time-Lord Effects its Significations for Good or Ill
First, then, we must examine the natures of the stars and their figure-description; for if
each happens to be of its proper sect and well-figured according to the support of the nativity,
it will show the power of events, while the testimonies of the remaining stars and their
transits109 are able to break down or intensify still further what is harmful or else to be
beneficial and seem good. It is better, then, for them to be found in zōidia fit for the dispatch of
business and capable of arising; but if they chance to be able to sink out of sight or fall amiss
in an improper fashion while being maltreated [by other planets], they will be turned toward
the opposite.
On Stars Opposite their own Domiciles
231, 1. That the stars turn bad (kakunō) when opposed to their own domiciles.
On Places in which the Stars Rejoice
230, 26-27. That the stars rejoice in the places of benefics and those sect-mates, just as
when they are occupying their own places; for then even the destructive planets are bonified.
108
With the exception of spear-bearing, Valens has mentioned here all the factors that belong to the conditions of
bonification and maltreatment.
109
This is mentioned because the passage is in the context of the delineation of time-lords, and transits further
intensify a time-lord.
The Gender-Description of a Planet
General Remark by Translator. In week two we included texts by Ptolemy and Hephaistio that
concerned the masculinization or feminization of a planet, and we now subjoin a related text by
Rhetorius that is no doubt directly dependent on Ptolemy, with the precautionary observation that this
entire doctrine may be a Ptolemaic innovation. Again, we find three conditions: 1) presence in a
masculine or feminine zōidion; 2) presence in a masculine or feminine sector defined relative to the
Sun; and 3) presence in a masculine or feminine mundane quadrant as definined relative to the horizon
and M.C.
Rhetorius (Collection) 1
Concerning the Masculine and Feminine Zōidia and Places and Stars that are
Masculinized and Femininized
There are six masculine zōidia: the Ram, the Twins, the Lion, the Balance, the Archer, the
Water-Pourer; and there are six feminine zōidia: the Bull, the Crab, the Virgin, the Scorpion,
the Goat-Horned, the Fishes.
Again, the stars Hēlios, Kronos, Zeus, Arēs, and Hermēs are masculine, while Selēnē and
Aphroditē are feminine.
These stars are sometimes masculinized, other times feminized. They become
masculinized when they chance to be morning rising in relation to Hēlios; that is, when they
chance to be in the zōidia preceding Hēlios at least 15 portions away from it. But they become
feminized when they chance to be evening setting in relation to Hēlios, being at least 15
portions away from it.
Again, the stars that chance to be in masculine zōidia and are northern become
masculinized. But they become feminized when they are in feminine zōidia and southern.
Again, the stars that chance to be in masculine quadrants (from the Midheaven to the
Hour-Marker, and from the subterraneous pivot to the setting one) become masculinized. But
those in the feminine quadrants (that is, from the Hour-Marker to the subterraneous pivot,
and from the setting pivot to the Midheaven) become feminized.
WEEK 6: CONFIGURATION
ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 6
On Testimony
PORPHYRY 8
Concerning Testimony
PORPHYRY 9
Concerning Right and Left-Sided Figures
PETOSIRIS
A Surprising Point from Petosiris Concerning Harmonious Tetragons
PAULUS 10, 11, 12, 13

Concerning Triangles, Hexagons, Squares, and Diameters as Figures
Concerning Zōidia Unconnected to Each Other
Concerning Those Zōidia in Aversion and in Sympathy to Each Other
Concerning the Like-engirding and Equally Rising
PORPHYRY 11, 12, 13, 15, 20, 21, 24

Concerning Conjunction and Adherence
Concerning Flowing Away
Concerning Flowing Away in a Different Manner
Concerning Decimation
Concerning Overcoming
Concerning Enclosure
Concerning Striking with a Ray
PORPHYRY 28
Concerning Maltreatment
RHETORIUS I,27
Mitigating Sympathies Diagram

Zōidia that See or Hear Each Other
Meaning of Aspects from Thema Mundi Diagram
Seven Partile Ray Diagram
Inferior/Superior Position & Looking Upon/Striking with a Ray Diagram
Overcoming Diagram
WEEK 6: Configuration 99
Planetary Combinations Mediated by the Zōidia
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The next group of excerpts from Antiochus, Porphyry, and
Paulus presents the standard Hellenistic doctrine of planetary combinations that are mediated by zōidia
connected by the sides of regular polygons. The operative word here is “testimony.” Planets that are in
these “sign-based” configurations are in a position to “call each other to witness” and thereby “provide
their testimony” to or for one another. The notion of testimony presupposes that a planet has seen
something (as in the case of “eye-witness” testimony). If one planet sees another (that is, “aspects” it
according to the relationship of figural conjunction that will be discussed in the next section below), the
sign-based testimony relation allows it to provide testimony as to what the other planet is able to effect.
This is the principle used to generate aspect delineations. However, a planet may also see or look upon
something else, such as a topical place (that is, a “house”), if it is in position to cast one of its rays
therein (also discussed below). In that case, the planet can provide its testimony to another planet, such
as the domicile lord of that place, as long as it can be called to witness by the domicile lord of the place
by means of the sign-based testimony relation. According to this logic, the two planets can generate a
delineation that is specific to the topic under consideration.
The Paulus chapters also discuss certain special cases in which planets that are unconnected to
each other by polygonal configuration, and thus “in aversion” to one another, may have yet have a
sympathy amounting to a configuration – a doctrine that has, for all intents and purposes, been lost to
the modern astrologer until now.
Antiochus Summary 6
On Testimony
That the stars are said to testify (epimartureō) for each other110 whenever they chance to be
tetragonals or trigonals or diametricals or hexagonals of each other,111 and [he says] at an
interval of how many [zōidia] each of the aforesaid figures is assumed (schēmatizō). And that
the figure (schēma) conforming to a trigon is sympathetic and helpful even if one of the stars is
destructive, for it causes less harm; the tetragonal figure is the opposite even if one of the stars
is benefic; the figure conforming to a diameter is adversative, and worse if a malefic is
present; the hexagonal figure is feebler than the other figures. The aforesaid figures are
rendered in two different ways, either by zōidion simply or by degree; for this reason the stars
that assume a trigonal figure with each in conformity with their zōidia frequently do not
assume a trigonal figure in conformity with their degrees, and similarly in the case of the
other figures.
Porphyry 8
Concerning Testimony
They call the figural assumptions (schēmatismos) of the stars in relation to each other
invocations to witness (epimarturia). There are these figures (schēma): a trigonal figure is that at
110
The dative is used here.
111
The genitive is used here.
100 WEEK 6: Configuration
an interval of five zōidia, whenever there are three zōidia between the two; a tetragonal one is
that at an interval of four, whenever there are two between them; a diametrical one is in the
seventh, whenever there are five intermediate zōidia; a hexagonal one is that at an interval of
three, whenever there is one intermediate zōidion. And the assumption of a trigonal figure is
sympathetic and helpful; and even if a destructive star is present, it is less harmful. That of a
tetragonal figure is harsh and discordant and capable of giving pain if a destructive star is
present. That of a diametrical figure is adversative, but worse if a malefic is present. That of a
hexagonal figure is feebler. But it is necessary to see if the stars possess figures perfect by
degree and not only by zōidion: the assumption of a trigonal figure is at an interval of 120
degrees, that of a tetragonal figure at an interval of 90 degrees, that of a hexagonal one at an
interval of 60 degrees, and that of a diametrical one at an interval of 180 degrees. For, stars are
frequently configured (eschēmatismenos) according to zōidion no longer according to degree.
Porphyry 9
Concerning Right and Left-Sided Figures
They say that a trigonal and tetragonal and hexagonal [figure] from which the star has
departed is on the right, but that to which it is making its passage is on the well-named side.
For example, with Hēlios in the Lion, the [configuration] of the Ram and Lion (to tou Kriou kai
Leontos) is a trigonal on the right side, but that of the Archer is one on the well-named side.
That of the Bull and Lion is a tetragonal on the right side, but that of the Scorpion one on the
well-named side. That of the Twins and Lion is a hexagonal on the right side, but that of the
Balance one on the well-named side. For, each of the stars emits (aphiēmi) seven rays, three to
the upper figure (eis to anō) and three to the lower figure (eis to katō) and one to the
diametrically, of which the upward rays (epi to anō) are on the right side, but the downward
rays (epi to katō) are on the well-named side.
Petosiris
A Surprising Point from Petosiris Concerning Harmonious Tetragons
Everyone supposes that the trigonal sides are harmonious throughout our [lives] and the
cause of good things, but they are in error. For, the tetragons have the strongest activity
whether they are indicative of good things or foul. And the trigon often makes neither a good,
well-fitted figure nor a bad one. Again, of the tetragons, the ones on the right are more active
than those on the left. And in the diameters the malefics are difficult, but diametrical benefics
are never bad, neither with each other nor with the lights. And Kronos and Arēs are
exceedingly malefic in this figure if they are able to act while stationing.
Paulus 10
Concerning Triangles, Hexagons, Squares, and Diameters as Figures
Since the zodiacal circle is in fact an assembly of 360 degrees, the side of a trigon is
formed on the one hand from five zōidia, on the other hand from 120 degrees;112 for when the
120 degrees are tripled they exactly total the 360 degrees of the circle of zōidia. The side of a
hexagon is formed on the one hand from three zōidia, on the other from 60 degrees; for here
too, when the 60 degrees are sextupled they exactly total the 360 degrees of the zodiacal circle.
The side of a tetragon is formed on the one hand from four zōidia, on the other from 90
degrees; for when the 90 degrees are quadrupled, they exactly total the 360 degrees of the
zodiacal circle. The side of the diameter is formed on the one hand from seven zōidia, on the
other from 180 degrees, which, being doubled, exactly total the 360 degrees of the zodiacal
circle.
The side of a trigon is harmonious and without harm. That of a tetragon becomes
disharmonious and irregular in relation to the issuance of the events. That of the hexagon, if it
should be found in those zōidia which hear or see one another,113 has the power of the triangle,
the hexagonal three-zōidia [interval] being half of the zōidia of the trigon. The side of the
diameter makes for a contrary, opposed, and irregular result. Of those stars which are
configured with regard to one and the same place, in the very same zōidion, let their co-
presence be conceived as harmonious and at work in relation to each of the events, and let it
be conceived as like in power to the side of the trigon.
But those zōidia which are separated by intervals other than these are called averted114
and unconnected.
Paulus 11
Concerning Zōidia Unconnected to Each Other
The position of zōidia which are unconnected to each other has an interval of two, six,
eight, and twelve. And those zōidia taken in relation to some such numerical interval are also
said to be averted from one another. The stars being found in these zōidia, then, become
disharmonious. And sometimes they bring about enmities and factionalisms, other times
separations and exiles, with such a stance being adopted in all cases, whether by parents
toward children, by brothers, by man and wife, by an association, by slaves and masters, and
by all such like.
Paulus 12
Concerning Those Zōidia in Aversion and in Sympathy to Each Other
The twelfth-parts115 in aversion and unsympathetic to one another become sympathetic
through like-engirding116 and through ascending in the same times. Like-engirding occurs
112
Notice that the counting of zōidia is from the first zōidion, as is customary for the Hellenistic astrologers.
113
This is a subclass of sextiles, those that are symmetrical around the axis of the Ram and the Balance, or those
that are symmetrical around the axis of the Crab and the Goat-Horned One.
114
Literally, turned away.
115
Here this word is a synonym for a zōidion, a twelfth-part of the zodiac.
whenever the zōidia happen to belong to the same star. Equal ascension is whenever the zōidia
ascend in equal hours from the invisible to the visible. The intervals of the like-engirding
zōidia, in accordance with the count of the unconnected zōidia, are as follows: the Ram in
relation to the Scorpion, the Scorpion to the Ram; the Bull in relation to the Balance and the
Balance the Bull; the Goat-Horned One to the Water-Pourer, and the Water-Pourer to the
Goat-Horned One. Of the equally ascending zōidia, the arrangements are these: the Ram in
relation to the Fishes, the Twins to the Goat-Horned One, the Crab to the Archer, the Virgin to
the Balance; for they are present at 2, 6, 8, and 12 zōidia from one another. Those zōidia which
are neighbors to each other also have a sympathy for each other that is exactly like those
which are arranged in accordance with the same domicile mastership.
Those zōidia which are apart by 6 or 8, have a power exactly like those that stand upon a
diameter, there being more power in the case of zōidia which are like-engirding and those that
are equally ascending, in the star that comes to be on the right side in this manner.117 For
example, for those zōidia which are like-engirding [and] in aversion, the Bull will exert more
power in relation to the Balance and the Scorpion in relation to the Ram. In the same fashion,
for the equally ascending zōidia also, the Crab will be judged to exert more power in relation
to the Archer, and the Goat-Horned One in relation to the Twins. The equally ascending
zōidia that neighbor on one another will likewise exert a power just as has been said – just as
those that are ordered to according to like-engirding or some configuration.
Paulus 13
Concerning the Like-engirding and Equally Rising Twelfth-Parts that are
Configured
The remaining pairs of the like-engirding zōidia, which are in fact tetragonal to each
other, have a regard118 that is double the power of the like-engirding zōidia that are ordered by
aversion to each other. The Archer is to the Fishes and the Twins to the Virgin just like those
zōidia which are themselves ordered by being on the right side and by superiority of position.
As for those zōidia which are equally ascending but also configured, the Lion will have more
power in relation to the Scorpion, and the Water-Pourer in relation to the Bull. For, the zōidia
which are neighbors in accordance with like-engirding will have a power just like those zōidia
that have made a configuration.
Planetary Combinations Mediated by Degrees

Preliminary Remark by Translator. The following excerpts articulate different modes of planetary
combination that are based on degree relations rather than zōidia. Although there is much that is
cryptic in these texts (particularly with regard to the doctrine of seven planetary rays), they are the
ultimate source of the modern doctrine of aspects, application and separation, and affliction.
116
The planets are here thought of as being engirdled by certain zones of the zodiac, that is, certain zōidia. Certain
other deities were called "ungirded," meaning that they were not confined to any local region.
117
The planet on the right side in any configuration is often said to be in superior position.
118
That is, have an "aspect."
Since much of this terminology may be new or misleading to the modern astrologer, we will offer a
few preliminary remarks in the interest of orientation. The Hellenistic notion of aspect is linked to their
own concept of conjunction, though only implicitly in the texts before us. This connection implies that
the Hellenistic astrologers used a three-degree “orb” for aspects. Whereas modern astrologers
distinguish conjunctions from aspects, the Hellenistic astrologers employ the term “conjunction” for
both cases, although they call the first “bodily conjunctions” and the second “figural conjunctions.”
They often favor the term “adherence” for bodily conjunctions. Furthermore, the term “conjunction” is
in both cases reserved for what a modern astrologer would call an applying aspect or an applying
conjunction. Although the Hellenistic astrologers do use the term “separation” for the case when a
bodily or figural conjunction has past exactitude, they prefer the term “flowing away.” Furthermore, in
the case of figural conjunctions, they single out those in which the faster moving planet is on the right.
This used to be called a “dexter aspect.” However, the Hellenistic astrologers understood the faster
moving planet on the right to “overcome” the slower one on the left.
There are also two concepts no longer represented in modern astrology even in a modified form.
They are “enclosure” (known in Medieval astrology as “besiegement”), and “striking with a ray,” a
concept that helps differentiate the manner in which a planet on the left aspects one on the right from
the manner in which the planet on the right looks upon the one on the left.
Porphyry 11
Concerning Conjunction and Adherence
But they say conjunction (sunaphē) and adherence119 (kollēsis) whenever the stars are
joining together to the degree in conformity with any figure whatsoever, or whenever they are
about to join together within three degrees. But adherence may also be said thusly: there is
adherence whenever a star approaches a star, the faster moving the slower, yet being no more
than three degrees apart from it. In the case of the Moon, some say to observe the conjunction
within thirteen degrees — that is, to observe with what it conjoins during the course of a day
and a night.
Porphyry 12
Concerning Flowing Away
There is flowing away (aporroia) from the place where (hothen) a star moves apart from a
star [or ray], but there is conjunction (sunaphē) with a star or ray to which it moves. For
example, the Moon in the Scorpion at the 20th degree, Kronos in the same zōidion at the 10th
degree, and the star of Zeus likewise in the Scorpion at the 25th degree. It is clear that the
Moon will be separated from Kronos, but it is conjoining with Zeus. Let the Moon again be in
the Scorpion at the 20th degree, Kronos in the Water-Pourer at the 10th degree, and Zeus in the
Lion at the 25th degree. Therefore, the Moon will be separated from the 10th degree of the
Scorpion, which has a ray cast to it by Kronos from a tetragon, but it is conjoining with the 25th
degree of the Scorpion, which has a ray cast to it by Zeus from the aforesaid zōidion.
119
Grammatically speaking, this clause could also be translated as “They say that conjunction is also adherence,
whenever etc.”
Porphyry 13
Concerning Flowing Away in a Different Manner
Furthermore, they also give an account of flowing away as follows: there is flowing away
whenever a star flows from (aporreō) a star, the faster from the slower, or from an adherence
that has become quite close, or else from a conjunction conforming to a figure, whenever the
stars begin to have more intermediate degrees than are required for the figure.
Porphyry 15
Concerning Enclosure
Again, they give an account of enclosure in the following manner: there is said to be
enclosure when two stars enclose (emperiechō) one in the middle with no other star interposing
(paremballō) its ray into intermediate interval. Or again, when different stars cast their rays
(aktina epiballō) in conformity with a figure upon the degrees a star has gone past within seven
degrees and120 upon those toward which it is traveling within seven degrees. Or when one
and the same planet casts its rays from different figures, as we said before. Such an enclosure
happening by malefics is difficult, but by benefics beneficent.
Porphyry 20
Concerning Decimation
A star situated in the tenth zōidion is said to decimate and overtop one121 in the fourth. For
example, a star chancing to be in the Balance decimates a star122 in the Goat-Horned, and a
star in the Goat-Horned decimates a star in the Ram.
Porphyry 21
Concerning Overcoming
Every star situated in a trigonal or tetragonal or hexagonal [figure] on the right
overcomes (kathupertereō) one situated in the figure on the well-named side; for, it goes to it.
For example, a star that is in the Goat-Horned overcomes a star in the trigonal figure in the
Bull, and one in the tetragonal figure in the Ram, and one in the hexagonal figure in the
Fishes, while it itself is overcome by one in the Balance and one in the Virgin and one in the
Scorpion. And they say that the overcomings exist more powerfully, may they be either
trigonal or tetragonal; for a star that overcomes in this way is stronger, should it be a benefic
or a malefic, even than one that is pivotal.123 For when it is a benefic, it shows the nativity to
be notable, but when it is a destructive star, undistinguished. And in general every star in a
figure on the right overcomes a star in a figure on the well-named side, to which [star] it
moves.
120
Reading kai instead of ē according to the manuscript variation.
121
The accusative is used here.
122
The accusative is used here with the verb epidekateuō.
123
ē kai epikentros.
Porphyry 24
Concerning Striking with a Ray
The star preceding strikes the star following with a ray, in conformity with a figure; for
example, a star in the Ram strikes a star in the Goat-Horned tetragonally, and a star in the
Archer trigonally. The star following looks upon (ephoraō) the one preceding and overcomes it
[in] moving toward it, as was said before, but it does not strike it with a ray; for, though the
vision of every beam moves forwards, the ray moves backwards. And here it is necessary to
consider whether it strikes with a ray zodiacally alone, or also conjoins in terms of degree.
Bonification and Maltreatment
Preliminary Note by Translator. The following seven conditions of maltreatment depend on the
modes of planetary combination discussed in the last section. The earlier texts imply, but do not make
fully explicit, that there are seven corresponding conditions of bonification by benefics. These two sets
of conditions are an essential component of the Preliminary Natal Analysis. Other texts make it clear
that when a benefic planet is maltreated by malefics, many of its benefic significations are suppressed;
however, when a malefic is maltreated, it turns violent, becoming malevolent instead of merely malefic.
Conversely, when a malefic is bonified by benefics, many of its malefic significations are surpressed;
but when a benefic is so bonified, its benefic significations are enhanced, making it positively
benevolent.
Porphyry 28
There is said to be maltreatment whenever some star is struck with a ray by malefics or is
enclosed by them, or is engaged in a conjunction or adherence with a malefic, or is
diametrically opposed or overcome or has a poorly-situated destructive star as domicile
master, while it is itself declining in places not fit for the dispatch of business.
Rhetorius (Collection) 27 (first part)

There is said to be maltreatment whenever some star is struck with a ray by malefics or
enclosed by them, or is engaged in a conjunction or adherence with a malefic, or is
diametrically opposed or has as a domicile master a malefic poorly-situated in places not
conducive to business, which are the sixth from the Hour-Marker and the third and the
second and the eighth and the twelfth.
Mitigating Sympathies
J
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B F
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Signs Sharing Domicile Rulers Signs Sharing Same Ascensional Time
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Signs Sharing Equal Light (Antiscia) F G
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by Same
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ime Same
Ascensional
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Commanding --> Obeying Zôidia

that
Looking --> Perceiving
See
Each Other
or
those that
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and Obey
Basic Meanings of Configurations
Derived from Thema Mundi
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WEEK 7: SOLAR & LUNAR CONCEPTS
PTOLEMY (PHASES OF THE FIXED STARS)

Excerpt from the Introduction
Concerning Arising and Sinking
PORPHYRY 2 (193,19—195,6)
Excerpt on the Solar Phase Cycle of the Planets
PAULUS 14
Concerning the Phases that the Five Stars Make in Relation to the Sun
PAULUS 15
Concerning Stations
VALENS I,14
Concerning the third, seventh, and fortieth Days of the Moon
PAULUS 17
Concerning the Flowing Away and Conjoining That the Moon Makes in Relation to the
Wandering Stars
PORPHYRY 23
Concerning Running in the Void of the Moon
VALENS II,23
Excerpt on the Prenatal Lunation
VALENS V,2
Excerpt on Lunar Nodes and Pre-Natal Lunation
VALENS II,23
PORPHYRY 29
Concerning Spear-Bearing
Solar Phase Cycle Table

WEEK 7: Solar & Lunar Concepts 109
The Solar Phase Cycle of the Planets

General Remark by Translator. Here we will attempt to clarify how the crucially important
Hellenistic concepts of “arising” and “sinking” were understood by the Hellenistic astrologers
(“orientality” and “occidentality” in the Medieval tradition). These astrological concepts originate in
the astronomical phenomena of heliacal rising and setting, which, along with stations, are key moments
in the solar phase cycle of the planets. The terminology requires some preliminary clarification,
particularly since the language of the astrologers departs somewhat from that of the astronomers, as
can be seen from the following excerpt from the Introduction to Astronomy of Geminus (p. 146 of the
critical edition),
The cosmos, after moving from rising to setting by day, by night returns from its setting to its
rising. In the spinning round of the cosmos, all the stars rise and set during the course of each day. And
rising (anatolē) is the appearance that occurs every day in relation to the horizon, while setting (dusis)
is the concealment (krupsis) that occurs each day under the horizon.
But arisings (epitolē) and sinkings (dusis) are said in another fashion. Some erroneously consider
them to be said according to the same conception. But the difference between rising (anatolē) and
arising (epitolē) is great, for rising is what I have described above, while arising is the appearance that
occurs in relation to the horizon, which is taken with the distance relative to the Sun. The same account
holds in the case of setting, for setting is said to be the concealment (krupsis) under the horizon that
happens each day, but in another fashion the concealment that results in a relation to the horizon and
Sun at the same time.
The astrologers are among the culprits alluded to in this passage. To maintain the distinction
between rising and setting relative to the horizon and relative to the Sun, we will reserve the usual
terms “rising” and “setting” for the appearance of a celestial body above the eastern horizon and its
disappearance under the western horizon, respectively. We will introduce the term “capable of arising”
for the ability of a celestial body to appear in the night sky after it is sufficiently far from the Sun not to
be obscured by its glare. Likewise we will employ the term “capable of sinking” for the ability of a planet
to (as it were) disappear from sight when it has become too close to the Sun, even though it is above the
horizon in the night sky; such a star is also said to be “under the beams” of the Sun. When a celestial
body is capable of arising or putting in an appearance in the morning, it is what we would call a
“morning star;” when in the evening, an “evening star.”
The moments of first and last appearance are especially important astrologically. The standard
interval of first arising or first sinking was set at fifteen degrees, which is close to the average value for
most of the planets and bright fixed stars, even though the actual value depends on the zodiacal position
of the celestial body, the geographical latitude of the observer, and the intrinsic brightness of the star or
planet. A celestial body is said to be “at its arising” or “at its sinking” if it will be at this fifteen degree
interval with seven days of the nativity, or has been at it seven days prior to the nativity.
The situation is complicated by the fact that fixed stars and the planets Kronos, Zeus, and Arēs
are also capable of arising or capable of sinking out of sight when they are near their opposition to the
Sun, while Aphroditē and Hermēs can both arise and sink when they are either direct or retrograde in
motion. It takes a little practice to visualize these phenomena, so we have appended a diagram of the
solar phase cycle of the planets.
110 WEEK 7: Solar & Lunar Concepts
Ptolemy (Phases of the Fixed Stars)

Excerpt from the Introduction
We call the phase of a fixed star the figuration being taken in relation to the Sun and the
horizon for the first or last of its appearances, by which it also obtains such a name. Of the
figurations proposed in this way, four more genera are assembled; for, just that many
positions of the Sun and star, and the two semicircles of the horizon (for arisings and sinkings,
respectively), interchange with one another.
And the position of the stars with respect to each of the semicircles is more commonly
designated by "rising" and "setting," while the position of the Sun, in accordance with the
property of the times being shown by it, is designated by "morning" or "evening". For this
reason, whenever we take the star and the Sun on the semicircle where risings occur, we
commonly call such a figuration "morning arising;” and again, whenever we take both on the
semicircle where settings occur, we call this configuration "evening sinking.” But alternating
these terms, whenever we conceive the star to be on the semicircle where risings occur and the
Sun on that where settings occur, we call such a figuration "evening arising;" and whenever,
conversely, we conceive the Sun to be on the semicircle where risings occur and the star on
that where settings occur, we likewise call this figuration "morning sinking."
Concerning Arising and Sinking
That on the whole every star sinks when it has come to be within 15 degrees of the Sun,
but it arises whenever it is more distant than this; and it is morning arisen when it ascends
before the Sun, and evening [arisen] when it comes down after the Sun.
Porphyry 2 (193,19—195,6).
Excerpt on the Solar Phase Cycle of the Planets
All these stars arise in the morning whenever they stand apart from concourse (sunodos)
with the Sun by 15 degrees, more or less, in the direction of the zōidia that precede. But in a
special way, when the star of Kronos and the star of Zeus and the star of Arēs are still of the
morning, but they stand apart from the Sun about 120 degrees, they make the first station as
they become retrograde. And having come to be in the sixth zōidion, by retrograding even
more, they move to [a phase] at nightfall (ep’ akronuchon) by assuming a diametrical figure
with the Sun and arising at the beginning of the night at the same time as the setting of the
Sun. And from the phase at nightfall, by subtracting in numbers in such a manner, after
having arrived at the trigonal figure following the Sun, they make the second station. Once
again adding in numbers and having come down to the post-ascension of the Sun and having
made an evening sinking, they return to concourse; for concourse in the proper sense is
whenever they chance to be equal in degrees with the Sun in accordance with the same
zōidion, being not more distant from it than 59 minutes, more or less. The star of the Fiery One
alone also makes two other figures in relation to the Sun, which those who are most careful
about such matters are accustomed to call “anomalies.” It makes its first anomaly whenever it
precedes the Sun by 82 or 90 degrees, being of the morning, but the second whenever the star
is the same distance apart from the Sun while being of the evening. And these stars always
bring [things] to completion with a motion less than the Sun, as has been shown.
The star of Aphroditē and the star of Hermēs bring to completion those things that
change the life of men and those that cause changes upon the earth, with a daily motion
sometimes more and sometimes less in relation to the Sun. Whence, they also make double
phases in relation to the Sun, a morning arising whenever by preceding they ascend124 before
it by 15 degrees more or less, but an evening arising whenever by following125 they ascend
after it by 15 degrees more or less. Chancing to be within the aforesaid intervals in the degrees
ascending before the Sun, they complete a morning sinking, but in the degrees ascending after
it, an evening sinking. The star of Aphroditē stations when it is apart from Hēlios by
approximately 47 degrees, but the star of Hermēs around 23 degrees. However, they complete
the first station in the direction of the zōidia that follow when they are subtractive [in
numbers], but the second station in the direction of the zōidia that precede when they are
advancing.
Paulus 14.
Concerning the Phases that the Five Stars Make in Relation to the Sun
The wandering stars make phases in relation to the Sun, sometimes morning arisings and
evening sinkings, other times evening arisings and morning sinkings as they are born along in
their course to first and second station. For this reason, they sometimes become subtractive in
numbers and make a phase at nightfall, and other times they are taken to be additive in
numbers. And when the stars happen to be at morning arising, let them be conceived to be at
work and effective from youth in relation to their specific events. And at evening arising they
are at work on their specific events according to the advance of time. When making morning
or evening sinkings, or when retracing their path, or when declining, they have a completion
that is inactive, unavailing, and insignificant.
The stars become capable of arising in the morning whenever they are separated from the
Sun by 15 degrees in the preceding degrees, or even in the preceding zōidia; this lasts until, in
the course of their motion, they are found to move into a right-hand trigon with it. They are
capable of arising in the evening whenever they are separated from the Sun by the said 15
degrees in the succeeding degrees, or even in the succeeding zōidia, up until they are found in
a left-hand trigon with it. When they have had an interval in relation to the Sun within the
said 15 degrees, being present in the degrees pre-ascending the Sun, they make a sinking in
the morning; in the degrees post-ascending it, a sinking in the evening. They become synodic
whenever they happen to be in the same degree of the same zōidion as the Sun, not being 59
minutes apart from it, more or less. The stars become more inactive and unavailing in relation
to their specific events whenever one of them is within a distance of 9 degrees from the Sun,
whether it should occur at the morning or evening sinking.
We will make use of an illustration in order to conceive the aforesaid more easily. Let it
be the case that the Sun is in the 17th degree of the Fishes, while the star of Zeus is in the 2nd
124
Replacing ē epanapherōntai with proēgoumenoi.
125
Deleting ē proēgoumenoi
degree of the same zōidion, and Kronos is upon the 26th degree of the Fishes. We say that the
star of Zeus is capable of arising in the morming, because it was busy in the 15 degrees
preceding the Sun, while Kronos is capable of sinking in the evening, because it did not stand
apart from the Sun the said 15 degrees in the succeeding degrees.
In order to make what we have said quite clear, the degrees and zōidia preceding the Sun
up until the side of the trigon in the degrees pre-ascending the Sun and on the right-hand side
of it are busy in the morning. The degrees and zōidia succeeding the Sun up until the side of
the trigon in the degrees post-ascending the Sun and on the left-hand side of it conduct their
mission in the evening.
And those of the stars which become spear-bearers for the Sun are in the degrees and
zōidia preceding the Sun, up until the side of the trigon. The spear-bearers for the Moon are in
the degrees succeeding it, up until the next zōidion.
Then, those of the stars which become spear-bearers for the Sun are in fact more energetic
and stronger whenever they are found to be busy as capable of arising in the morning in the
same zōidion as the Sun in advantageous places of the nativity, while being of the sect of the
Sun or being its domicile masters. Let those for the Moon be conceived as more effective and
more energetic in the same fashion.
Paulus 15
Concerning Stations
The stations of the stars are different and they do not occur in the same way. The stars of
Kronos, of Zeus, and of Arēs make their first station when they are distant from the Sun by
more or less than 120 degrees and appear in a right hand trigon, and as they are moving more
slowly they pivot around at about that same degree until they become subtractive in numbers
by retrograding, (their first station changing to the subtraction of numbers, the second to
addition). And generally, the aforesaid three planets are subtractive in numbers, whenever
they are 6 or 7 or 8 zōidia distant from the Sun. And when they appear opposite it, within 180
degrees, which is 7 zōidia, they have the phase at nightfall from the solar ray, and as they
continue to go back they are subtracting in numbers even more, and they appear to be greater
in their circumference by taking the transparent light from the ray of the Sun.
The second station of the aforesaid stars comes about whenever they are distant from the
ray of the Sun by more or less than 120 degrees in the succeeding part of the zodiac, making a
left hand trigon with the Sun, and as they begin go forward, becoming additive in numbers,
they move even faster at this figure.
Whence they have properly been called stations. The first, then, from the stars' having
come to a stand and retracing their steps by subtracting in numbers was called the subtractive
station. The second, from the stars' having come to a stand and adding in numbers for a faster
motion, was called the additive station. The stars are called “acronycal” when they happen to
be at the diameter of the Sun, rising with its setting."
The star of Aphroditē and the star of Hermēs have a different change over in the motion
of the stations, for, the first station for these two stars comes about in different degrees. The
first stations whenever it should be distant from the Sun by 48 degrees in the succeeding part
of the zodiac. For then, after making the motion slower, it begins to retrace its steps and
subtract in numbers, until, after becoming conjunct with the Sun, it will arrive at its morning
arising. And it will make its second station when it is distant from the Sun by the same 48
degrees.
The star of Hermēs makes its first station whenever it should be distant from the Sun by
22 degrees in the succeeding zōidion. Then, after becoming slower in motion, it will similarly
begin to retrace its steps, until, after becoming conjunct with the Sun, it will arrive at its
morning arising, and it makes its second station the same 22 degrees distant from the Sun.
The star of Aphroditē is not apart from the Sun by more than two zōidia, while the star of
Hermēs is up to one sign apart.
Special Lunar Phenomena

General Remark by Translator. There are five special lunar phenomena that are of considerable
importance in Hellenistic astrology: 1) the third, seventh, and fortieth days of the Moon; 2) the
conjoining and flowing away of the Moon (its “application and separation”); 3) when the Moon is
running in the void (“void of course”); 4) the lunar nodes; 5) the Prenatal Lunation.
Valens I,14
Concerning the third, seventh, and fortieth Days of the Moon
Let the Moon be at the 7th degree of the Scorpion. The third day it will be at the 7th degree
of the Archer. For one must inquire about the days in such a manner. The 7th degree of the
Scorpion is especially established as the third day. And in relation to the effect-description,
the seventh day will be found in the tetragonal side around 7 degrees of the Water-Pourer, the
fortieth around 7 degrees of the Bull. Some add 160 to the degrees of the Moon at birth and
depart from the lunar zōidion. Others, by adding and calculating the lunar natal degree along
with the three and seven and forty days, reckon the Moon to be there.
Generally, then, fortunate and unfortunate and mediocre births are indicated by the 3rd
and 7th and 40th days. For, if these places are contemplated by benefics in places fit for the
dispatch of business, and are not contemplated by malefics, you reveal very fortunate and
great births. If two of the places are regarded by benefics, and the other by a malefic, you
reveal mediocre births. And if the three places are regarded by malefics alone, with the
benefics being in aversion to them, you reveal unfortunate births. If they are mixed, call them
mediocre.
Commentary by Translator. Some authors indicate that the study of the third day of the Moon is for
the purpose of determining wealth and possessions, while the study of the fortieth day is for determining
the quality of death. The purpose of studying the seventh day is not made explicit in the surviving
sources.
Paulus 17.
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The importance of the doctrine of the conjoining and flowing
away of the Moon stems from the fact that, since it moves faster than any other planet, it is the only
planet can conjoin with or flow away from all the others. This may be connected with the notion that the
Moon accepts the “effluxes” of all the other planets and sends them downward to the earth, which is
often repeated by many Hellenistic astrologers.
Concerning the Flowing Away and Conjoining That the Moon Makes in
Relation to the Wandering Stars
Since the account of conjoining and flowing away is given in manifold ways, it is
necessary to present the teaching concerning it. It holds thusly: With regard to a star with
which the Moon chances to have more degrees in the same zōidion, the Moon has separated
from it, just as also if one of the stars that is upon the same zōidion as the Moon is busy by
having more degrees than the Moon, this star accepts a conjoining by the Moon. And in the
same fashion, if the stars are found in the zōidion following or preceding the Moon, being
within an arc of thirty degrees, they maintain the relation of flowing away and conjoining.
For example, with the Moon in the 20th degree of the Archer, the star of Arēs in the 20th
degree of the Scorpion, and the star of Aphroditē in the 20th degree of the Goat-Horned One,
we say that the separation of the Moon from the star of Arēs is done, its conjoining to the star
of Aphroditē has begun.
As regards the conjunction and flowing away that arises through the presence of the stars
in the same zōidion as the Moon, one must treat them thusly: Say that the Moon is in the 10th
degree of the Bull, the star of Hermēs in the 9th degree, that of Zeus in the 11th degree. We
say here that the Moon has begun to flow away from Hermēs and is conjoining to the star of
Zeus.
The account of flowing away and conjunction, when being treated of from the first
degree up to an arc of three degrees, is always the most active in relation to the form of the
events being brought about. Second of the aforesaid description of degrees is that having a
number from the first degree up to an arc of seven degrees. The third in activity is that from
the first degree up to the 15th. The fourth for the account of flowing away and conjunction is
treated of from the first degree up to the 30th. The flowing away and conjunction that are
taken from these latter intervals have their activity late in one's years and not from youth (I
mean from middle age, or even for old age), bringing to completion the activity of those good
or base events which are to come.
We will make use of yet another example to fully understand the account of flowing
away and conjunction. Say that the Moon is in the 13th degree of the Balance, the star of Arēs
in the 6th degree, the star of Zeus being in the 20th degree of the same zōidion. The Moon has
finished separating from the star of Arēs and has begun to conjoin to the star of Zeus within
the delimitation of the arc of seven degrees.
The form of flowing away and conjunction is also treated in accordance with figures and
in accordance with wind.126 It is taken in relation to the stars partly according to a trigon,
partly according to a hexagon, partly according to a tetragon and diameter. The conjunction
according to a trigonal side is busy within 120 to 117 degrees, that according to a hexagonal
side within 60 to 57 degrees, that according to a tetragonal side within 90 to 87 degrees, that
according to a diameter within 180 to 177 degrees, either according to a right hand or a left
hand figure of the stars in relation to the Moon.
For the purpose of illustrating the conjunction upon the side of a trigon, let it be given
that the Moon is at the 15th degree of the Ram, Zeus at the 18th to the 15th degree of the
126
A term that relates to celestial latitude of a planet.
Archer. We say that the conjoining of the Moon to Zeus has taken place according to a right
hand trigon. One must conceive of the Moon being similarly figured by degrees for the
remaining sides.
...Without there being an account of flowing away and conjoining, there is established at
birth no longness or shortness of life, no suffering, no injury, no wealth, no ill-fortune, no
good or bad reputation, no manhood, no weakness.
Porphyry 23
Concerning Running in the Void of the Moon
23. Void of course is said whenever the Moon is not conjoining to any star, neither by
zōidion nor by degree, neither by figure nor by adherence, nor indeed is it about to make a
conjunction or synodic conjunction within the nearest thirty degrees.127
Valens II,23
If the zōidion of the conjunction of whole Moon, or the lords of these, happen to be
marking the hour or occupying the Midheaven, the offspring will be fortunate.
Valens V, 2
Excerpt on the Lunar Nodes in a Nativity and in Inceptions
...it will be necessary to examine in what kind of zōidion the ascending node chances to be
in each nativity, whether tropical or solid or bicorporeal, and to what star it belongs; and the
power of the zōidion will be broken down. Often, then, we will find stars able to provide
something by the nativity or by transit in these places and they effect nothing. But if they
should make a phase upon the ascending or descending node, the causes of evil are
established, especially if they should also be found to be retrograding or setting. And in
relation to the current year, it will be necessary to examine in what sort of place of the nativity
the ascending node pertaining to the time makes an ingress; for similarly, it will break down
the power of the zōidion and its ruler. And especially if these same should be found to be time-
lords, they will be unable to provide anything until they should be separated from the place.
Concerning Inceptions.
For the days that are drawing near, when the Moon is traversing the ascending [node] at
that time, and its squares and diameters, especially when it is traversing its very degrees, one
must guard against beginning anything, or sailing, or marrying, or having an encounter, or
building, or planting, or assembling, or in general doing anything; for that which comes about
will be judged neither stable nor easily brought to completion, but rather inconstant and
incomplete and subject to punishment or painful and not enduring. If someone should seem
to have made a kind of escape from some matter in these times, it will be reversed and it will
become very disturbing and subject to punishment or easily demolished and readily
127
Note that this definition says nothing about the last aspect made within a sign; in fact, it seems to ignore the
question of sign boundaries altogether.
encountering resistance. For when the benefics chance to be near these places, they do not
achieve anything fully good; whence also, if someone should watch closely, apart from a
nativity, the transits of the Moon to the ascending node at that time, he will not go entirely
astray. And if perchance he should find someone else commencing a matter while the Moon is
being carried over the eclipsing places, he foretells it to be incomplete and inconstant and
subject to punishment. I myself, since I keep a watch during such days on what is possible
and make the inceptions of activities or of friendships in accordance with the time-description
of the opportunities, was in the habit of regarding this inception as inconstant and incomplete;
but sometimes I was wandering, and when I had to make a beginning of something due to the
untimely presence or alliance of a friend or due to necessity, I got a result which was subject
to punishment or painful or dilatory. Whence, in the case of every inception, one must
observe carefully, in the putting out of a fleet and in military commandership and in the
directorship of war and in advancing and in marching out on expeditions and in everything
that is just now to be accomplished. Truly, it is useless to sacrifice to god or to consecrate
offerings; for, prayers will not be answered and god will not let himself be worshipped, but he
will be called upon idly and in vain. Also, those swearing an oath will be forsworn and trusts
will not be fulfilled. Gifts to the masses or extravagance of buildings will not become
laudatory or enduring, but rather censorious and likely to be destroyed. Truly, bodily
treatments will not be easily healed, but prone to disease and hard to heal, and especially
when the malefics testify to the places or the Moon is carried over them to the degree; for
when it is in the same zōidion, it will be effective with some delay and some impediments,
except that it will also make activities unstable.
Porphyry 29
Preliminary Remark by Translator. Spear-bearers were bodyguards. This suggests that when one of
the planets has spear-bearers, it is protected against maltreatment by malefics. The third kind of spear-
bearing was already mentioned by Paulus in his discussion of the phases that the planets make with the
Sun above. When the lights have spear-bearers in a given nativity, it is said to be a sign of a great life.
Concerning Spear-Bearing
There are three kinds of spear-bearing. First, if a star situated in its own domicile or
exaltation is on the lookout for some star that is pivotal in its own domicile or exaltation by
emitting its ray in conformity with a figure upon the degree ascending before that star. For
example, Kronos from the Water-Pourer assumes a diametrical figure with the Sun in the
Lion, or Zeus assumes a trigonal figure from the Archer; or again, Arēs in the Goat-Horned
One assumes a diametrical figure with Zeus situated in the Crab, or Arēs assumes a trigonal
figure from the Ram with Zeus in the Archer; or Hermēs assumes a diametrical figure from
the Twins; or Arēs assumes a trigonal figure from the Scorpion with the Moon situated in the
Crab, or either Zeus or Aphroditē from the Fishes; or again, either Aphroditē or Zeus assumes
a hexagonal figure from the Fishes with the Moon in the Bull, or Aphroditē assumes a
hexagonal figure from the Bull with the Moon situated in the Crab, or either Zeus or
Aphroditē assumes a trigonal figure with it from the Fishes. The nativity is great, then, if the
domicile masters of the sect act as spear-bearers, but not base if the reverse, unless they
chance to be entirely destructive planets, and these harm in some things but benefit in others.
For in fact no star that conducts business in its own domicile or exaltation is without
beneficence.
There is another kind of spear-bearing, that according to the so-called striking with a ray,
as when a star of the sect strikes a light that is pivotal in the Hour-Marker or Midheaven with
a ray—even if the light is situated in an alien domicile—by striking it in accordance with an
isosceles line, the Sun in the pre-ascending degree, but the Moon in the degree to which it is
going next. All the trigonal spear-bearers are better than tetragonal and diametrical and
hexagonal ones, which are weaker.
There is a third kind of spear-bearing, if for a star situated either in the Hour-Marker or
the Midheaven, diurnal stars act as spear-bearers in a diurnal nativity and nocturnal ones in a
nocturnal nativity by preceding or following. According to this figure, the Sun will be subject
to spear-bearing by a pre-ascending star, while the Moon by a post-ascending star within
seven degrees. Of course, those stars acting as spear-bearers do not harm the Sun when they
are fifteen degrees distant from it in the pre-ascending region, if they are rising and have
power. According to the same things, the Sun itself can act as a spear-bearer to a sect-mate
that is pivotal, and the Moon similarly. Spear-bearing contrary to sect occurs whenever the
diurnal stars act as spear-bearers for the nocturnal stars, and the nocturnal stars for the
diurnal ones. However, if this spear-bearing occurs by benefics, the nativity will even so not
be so unnotable.
The Solar Phase Cycle
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WEEK 8: UNIVERSAL TECHNIQUES I
VALENS II,18
Concerning Hour-Marking [Power] of the Lot of Fortune
VALENS II, 20
Concerning the Lot of Fortune and of Spirit in Relation to Happiness and the
Prevention of Actions
PAULUS 23
Concerning the Seven Lots in the Panaretus
VALENS II, 19
Concerning the Exaltation of the Sun and Moon in Relation to Happiness
VALENS II,4 - 15
Concerning the Star Allotted the Hour or the Lot
The Place of the Evil Spirit
The Place of the Good Spirit...
The Midheaven
The Place of the God of the Sun...
The Eighth Place, Of Death
The Setting Place
The Sixth Place of Ares
The Fifth Place
The Fourth, Subterraneous Place
The Third Place
The Second Place
Table of Selected Hellenistic Lots

Lot Construction Diagram
WEEK 8: Universal Techniques I 121
Overview of the Hellenistic Predictive System

General Remark by Translator. The Hellenistic predictive system may be articulated into three grand
approaches to reading a chart. The first approach consists of a number of Universal Techniques
designed to give the astrologer some idea of the life as a whole. The second consists of Topical
Methods focused on specific areas of life, such as children, profession, health, etc. There are also some
specialized devices for the direct timing of the events studied under the first two approaches. The third
approach relates to timing and employs a number of Time-Lord Procedures to determine the planets
that are prevailing during various periods of the native’s life; these are the analogues of the Indian
dasa systems. In their details, all of these techniques, methods, and procedures depend on the
Preliminary Natal Analysis for assessing a planet’s overall condition. In this course, we will only be
able to cover, all too briefly, some of the universal techniques, some direct timing procedures, and a
pair of time-lord procedures.
The Universal Techniques in General
General Remark by Translator. In the previous week we already reported on three techniques that
the Hellenistic astrologers regard as having a universal import in the examination of the native’s life as
a whole. These were: 1) the study of the third, seventh, and fortieth days of the Moon; 2) the study of the
Prenatal Lunation and its lord; 3) the determination of whether the lights have spear-bearers.
In the next section of this week’s readings, we will give special attention to two other universal
technique: first, the study of the rising zōidion and its lord; second, the examination of the Lot of
Fortune (commonly called the “Part of Fortune”) and its lord. Next week we will also introduce a third
such technique, the study of the trigon lords of the sect light. These three techniques are closely
interrelated, and the respective lords of the ascending zōidion, the Lot of Fortune, and the trigon of the
sect light are often referred to as the three planets “having a relation to the nativity” by virtue of the
fact that they have rulership relative to the most important topical place in the nativity, the most
important lot, and the most important planet. They are also understood to “support” the nativity as a
whole. This trio of universal techniques is also the prototype for most of the specialized topical
methods, which is one of the reasons why we can omit any detailed treatment of the topical approach in
this brief sketch of the Hellenistic predictive system.
There are also two highly important universal techniques that will have to await a later course:the
determination of the domicile master of the nativity and the determination of the lord of the nativity.
Vettius Valens is the best source for most of the universal techniques.
The Study of the Ascending Zōidion and its Domicile Lord

Recapitulation by Translator. Look back at Valens’ treatment of the ascending zōidion and its lord in
week 3 (Valens I,2). There he delineated each zōidion when it was rising in a very general manner, but
also made the passing remark that a full delineation depends on the condition of the domicile lord.
From the Preliminary Natal Analysis, we now know how to assess the planet’s condition.
The Hellenistic astrologers called the rising zōidion “the helm of life,” the helm being the end of
the rudder by means of which a ship was steered. This designation, then, likens a human life to a sailing
vessel. In order for this ship to get to its destination – a metaphor for the destiny of an individual
human being – it must be steered. Thus, the ruler of the rising zōidion represents the steersman, which
122 WEEK 8: Universal Techniques I
was the first officer on a Greek ship, and the study of its position and condition in the chart tells us
something about how skillfully that planet fulfills its function.
In modern astrology, the ruler of the rising sign is often considered to be the ruler of the chart as a
whole, and we can now see that this concept is a legacy from the Hellenistic astrologers. However, you
also need to know that, from a Hellenistic perspective, when the sign ruler is not fully qualified for this
function, some other planet may assume the responsibility for actually directing the course of the life,
leaving the ruler of the rising sign the menial task of turning the rudder. The planet that assumes the
full responsibility for directing the course of the life is called the lord of the nativity, and its
determination can be quite tricky.
In the final excerpt for this week, we will consider how we can delineate the domicile lord of the
ascending zōidion even further by considering the topical place in which it is located.
The Study of the Lot of Fortune and its Domicile Lord, with
Supplementary Material on the other Hermetic Lots
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The Lot of Fortune is one of the most important points in any
nativity, equal in rank to the rising zōidion and the lights. In a day chart, when the Sun is above the
horizon, it is calculated by taking the ecliptic arc from the Sun forward in zodiacal order to the Moon,
and projecting an equal number of degrees forward in zodiacal order from the ascending degree. For
those born at night, this calculation is reversed by taking the ecliptic interval from the Moon forward in
zodiacal order to the Sun, and projecting an equal number of degrees from the rising degree. This is the
normal Hellenistic procedure, although Ptolemy calculates the Lot of Fortune in the same way both by
day and by night in accordance with the diurnal algorithm.
Referring back to the nautical paradigm introduced above, no matter how well the ship of life is
steered, it may encounter events that are beyond the control of the steersman, such as unfavorable
weather, pirates, sandbars. This is where the study of the Lot of Fortune and its ruler comes in. The Lot
of Fortune represents all the events that befall the life on its voyage. In general, the Hellenistic lots
(and there were many) were a device for separating and distributing the manifold meanings of a given
planet around the chart so that they could be studied individually. (You may know the Hellenistic lots
by the name “Arabic Parts,” although they were definitely introduced by the Hellenistic astrologers.)
In ancient Greek times, soldiers were often assigned dangerous missions “by lot.” They would each put
their mark on a potshard, and all of these were then placed in a helmet. The shard that fell out of the
helmet when it was shaken determined which man was allotted this mission. The algorithms for lot
construction are meant to represent this process, giving a lot a somewhat “accidental” character. It is
tempting to relate the rising and falling and twisting motion of the ecliptic during the course of a day to
the shaking of the helmet, where the various lots “fall out” from the Ascendant in different places of the
chart. Be that as it may, the important point is that the Moon itself has Fortune as one of its
significations (as we learned in week 2). When it is related to the Sun by means of the construction of
the Lot of Fortune, this particular meaning of the Moon is singled out and represented as the Lot of
Fortune.
Now, the ruler of the Lot of Fortune was the analogue of the second officer on the sailing vessel, the
officer at the prow, whose function it was to be on the lookout for events that befall the native so as to
take advantage of favorable fortune and avoid accidental disasters. Not surprisingly, the iconography
for the goddess Fortuna frequently represents her as striding upon the prow of a ship. It also depicts
her as holding a rudder in her hand. Why? Because the officer at the prow must communicate to the
steersman and tell him how to turn the vessel in response to these impersonal acts of wind and weather.
One would suppose, then, that there should be some harmonious relationship between the ruler of the
Ascendant and the ruler of the Lot of Fortune in order for the life voyage to be more successful.
The next excerpt from Valens treats more fully of the interpretation of the Lot of Fortune and its
lord, and also explains that the zōidion occupied by the Lot of Fortune can become the origin of a
system of topical places on analogy with the basic system reckoned from the Hour-Marker. We will then
include passages related to the Lot of Spirit, the inverse of the Lot of Fortune, the seven Hermetic lots,
and a very curious lot called the Lot of Exaltation.
Valens II,18
Concerning Hour-Marking [Power] of the Lot of Fortune
...Before all, it is necessary to place the Lot of Fortune precisely and see in which part of
the cosmos it [fell out], whether upon the pivots or upon the post-ascensions or upon the
declines; likewise, seek its lord. For if [it]128 marks the hour by day or chances to be upon one
of the other busy zōidia while being witnessed by the Sun and Moon and the benefics, it will
make the natives brilliant, notable, fortunate. And if it chances to be upon the remaining
pivots or upon the post-ascensions, more toward the average. But if upon the declines, let him
be considered abandoned, unreared.
In another manner, when you have come to know the place allotted for Fortune, also
consider the tetragaons to it and the remaining figures to be, as it were, upon the
genethlialogical pivots. That is, the Lot itself will possess the meaning of the Hour-Marker,
that of life; the tenth zōidion from this, the meaning of the Midheaven, that of reputation; the
7th, the meaning of the Descendant; the 4th, of the subterraneous zōidion, and the remaining
places will possess the meaning of the 12 regions. For some, in a manner pertaining the
mysteries, have established the universal Hour-Marker and its tetragons to be the cosmic
pivots, but the Lot and its squares to be the genethlialogical pivots. They also make
prognostications on these grounds in their writings, saying,
"Since the Lot obtains the sovereignty of the pivots in the variously turning figure, indeed
neither the tropical zōidia nor the solid nor the bicorporeal will possess the same power
throughout. It is necessary, then, to consider the testimonies of the stars or their co-presences
in relation to the Lot in order that, if a benefic should be upon it or should testify to it, it will
be prophetic of good things and a bestower of belongings; but if a destructive planet, then it
will become a cause of the squandering of belongings and the wasting of the body."
Valens II, 20
Concerning the Lot of Fortune and of Spirit in Relation to Happiness and the
Prevention of Actions
Whence the Lot of Fortune and of Spirit will have much power over the imposing and
turning back of actions. For, the one shows matters concerning the body and handicrafts, but
Spirit and its domicile master matters concerning the soul and the intellect, and actions
through discourse and through giving and receiving. It will be necessary, then, to consider in
what kind of zōidia the places and their domicile masters are, and to combine the natures of
these zōidia for the determination of action and fortune, and for the kind of action.
128
It is not entirely clear whether this pronoun refers to the Lot or its lord, or both.
Nativities from the Sun and Moon, then, while the benefics are either upon or are
inclining to the places or to the domicile masters, will be considered to be brilliant and
estimable and effective. Those resulting from Kronos and Arēs will be mediocre, obscure,
reduced, and contrary.
It is better, then, to find the domicile master of Spirit upon the Lot of Fortune or the
tenth zōidion from this, which is the Midheaven; for in this way the nativities become brilliant
and notable. And if it happens to be in its own places or else upon a pivot instead, they will
become effective, estimable to a certain extent. But if [the domicile master of Spirit] happens
to be in aversion to its own place or declining instead, while being witnessed by malefics, it
signifies fugitives or those who disgrace themselves in a foreign land. And if a benefic is co-
present with it, or if it is witnessed by benefics, they will spend much time in a foreign land
living a varied and irregular life; but if a malefic is co-present with it, they will become those
who live poorly and in want, having the experience of accusation and constraint. Similarly, if
[the domicile master of Spirit] is opposite to the place, it foretells those who dwell in a foreign
land and undergo troubles. Often times such natives do not inherit from their kin, but they do
inherit from someone else.
Paulus 23
Preliminary Note by Translator. As the name indicates, the seven Hermetic Lots are attributed to
the legendary Hermēs, who wrote a book called the Panaretus (All-Excellent or All-Virtuous) that
treated of them. This book does not survive but it is mentioned by Paulus in the following chapter of his
Introductory Matters. The study of these lots constitutes a technique that might be considered universal
in that one can gain information about the life as a whole.
In a commentary on this work by Paulus that is now usually attributed to Olympiodorus (chapter
21), the universal character of this technique is explicitly attested to. The commentator writes:
And it must be known that the treatment of these lots has been written about in the book called the
Panaretos by Hermēs Trismegistus, where he gives the effects of these lots, through which alone one
could make predictions for each matter even without anything else.
The title of Hermēs' book may be significant because there were seven classical virtues, each of
which was understood to be a mean of sorts (compare Ptolemy's Harmonika), while the seven lots
discussed in this chapter can also be formulated as means in the mathematical sense.
Concerning the Seven Lots in the Panaretus

First is the Lot of Fortune. For this, it will be necessary to count from the solar degree up
to the lunar degree for those born in the day; and then it is necessary to cast out129 the total
number [of degrees] from the degree-count of the Hour-Marker, giving 30 degrees to each
zōidion, and at whatever place the total number should leave off, call that the Lot of Fortune.
For those born at night, it is the reverse; that is, from the lunar degree to the solar degree. And
similarly, it is necessary to cast out the remaining [zōidia] from the degree of the Hour-Marker.
129
This is the language of division, where we cast out a certain number as much as we can (here 30 degrees at a
time) until we are left with a remainder. This is equivalent to dividing by 30.
Second is the Lot of Spirit. For this, you will count from the degree of the Moon to the
degree of the Sun for diurnal births, and it is necessary to extend the total number from the
degree of the Hour-Marker, again distributing 30 degrees to each zōidion. And at whatever
place the number should leave off, that will be the Lot of Spirit. Thus for the day, but the
reverse for the night.
Third is the Lot of Eros. For this, you will count from the Lot of Spirit to the degree of
Aphroditē for those born in the day, and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker. But for
those born at night, the reverse.
Fourth is the Lot of Necessity. For this too, you will calculate it from the degree of
Hermēs to the Lot of Fortune for those born in the day, and an equal amount from the Hour-
Marker. But for those born at night, the reverse.
Fifth is the Lot of Courage. For this, you will make your treatment from the degree of
Arēs to the Lot of Fortune for those born in the day, and an equal amount from the Hour-
Marker. But for those born at night, the reverse.
Sixth is the Lot of Victory. For this, you will count from the Lot of Spirit to the degree of
Zeus for those born in the day, and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker. But for those
born at night, the reverse.
Seventh is the Lot of Nemesis. For this, you will count from Kronos to the Lot of Fortune
for diurnal births, and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker. But for night births, the
reverse.
It is seemly that the Lots have this as their genesis, since by nature the Moon is
established to be Fortune; the Sun, Spirit; Aphroditē, Eros; the star of Hermēs, Necessity; that
of Ares, Courage; that of Zeus, Victory; that of Saturn, Nemesis. The Hour-Marker acts as a
mediating judge of these, becoming the basis of the entire cosmos.
And Fortune signifies everything that concerns the body, and what one does through the
course of life. It is established as indicative of possessions, reputation and privilege.
Spirit chances to be lord of soul, character, mindfulness, and every power; and sometimes
it also cooperates in the account concerning what one does.
Eros signifies the appetites and the voluntative desires. It becomes a contributing cause of
friendship and mutual favor.
Necessity signifies constraints, submissions, struggles, and wars, and makes enmities,
hatreds, condemnations, all the other restrictive things befalling men as a result of their birth.
Courage becomes a contributing cause of boldness, treachery, might, and every villainy.
Victory becomes a contributing cause of trust, good expectation, contest, and every
association; but sometimes it contributes to penalties and rewards.
Nemesis becomes a contributing cause of subterranean fates and of everything which is
ice-cold, of demonstration, impotence, exile, destruction, grief, and quality of death.
The Basis which is the Hour-Marker, is a contributing cause of life and breath, since at the
moment of being born every child tears away the breath of life from the breathing air in the
turning point of the water-clock's hour, which is set according to the birth. This is indicative of
one's all.
Illustration: For the Lot of Fortune, it will be necessary – just as was said before – to count
from the degree of the Sun up to the degree of the Moon for diurnal births, collecting together
all the degrees of the intermediate zōidia, and the degrees of the Hour-Marker as well, and to
cast out the total number from the Hour-Marker, giving 30 degree to each zōidion. And at the
place where the whole number leaves off, that it will be necessary to declare as the Lot of
Fortune. For example, let there be given a diurnal birth with the Sun at the 29th degree of the
Fish, the Moon at the 29th degree of the Water-Pourer, and the Hour-Marker at the 11th
degree of the Lion. We will calculate from the Sun to the Moon; the result is 330 degrees. We
will also add the 11 degrees of the Hour-Marker; together all the degrees are 341. We will
count out from the Lion;130 it left off at the 11th degree of the Crab. This is the Lot of Fortune.
Similarly also for the Lot of Spirit, from the degree of the Moon to the degree of the Sun,
which are 30. We will also add the 11 degrees of the Hour-Marker; all the degrees are 41. We
will count out from the Lion; it left off at the 11th degree of the Virgin. This is the Lot of Spirit.
Similarly also for the Lot of Eros, from the Lot of Spirit to the degree of Aphroditē. The
Lot of Spirit is the 11th degree of the Virgin, while Aphroditē is the 15th degree of the Water-
Pourer. We will calculate from the Virgin to Aphroditē; the result is 154 degrees. When the 11
degrees of the Hour-Marker are added to these, we will count out from the Hour-Marker
itself, and the Lot of Eros is found at the 15th degree of the Goat-Horned One.
Thus, for day births, the reverse for night ones. For example, we took the Lot of Fortune
for a diurnal birth from the Sun to the Moon, but for a nocturnal birth we deal from the Moon
to the Sun. And similarly with the others.
For the Lot of the Father in a diurnal birth, it will be necessary to treat by degrees from
the Sun to Kronos, and to cast out the total number together with the degrees of the Hour-
Marker from the Hour-Marker itself, and to consider that where it should leave off: there will
be the Lot of the Father. For a night birth, the reverse. And if the star of Kronos should be
found under the rays, work from Arēs to Zeus, and take the equal amount from the Hour-
Marker both for those born at night and those born in the day.
For the Lot of the Mother by day, count from Aphroditē to the Moon and an equal
amount through from the Hour-Marker. By night, the reverse.
For the Lot of Brothers in both diurnal and nocturnal births, count from Kronos to Zeus
and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker.
For the Lot of Children for both those born in the day and at night, from Zeus to Kronos
and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker.
For the Lot of Marriage in male births, both diurnal and nocturnal, from Kronos to
Aphroditē and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker. In female births, both diurnal and
nocturnal, from Aphroditē to Kronos and an equal amount from the Hour-Marker.131
Valens II, 19
Concerning the Exaltation of the Sun and Moon in Relation to Happiness
We have found a certain place that pertains to the mysteries, and by experience we take
by day from the Sun at birth to the Ram (which is its exaltation) and by night from the Moon
130
That is, we count from the beginning of the Lion, since we already added the degrees of the Hour-Marker in the
Lion to the interval from Sun to Moon. Alternatively, we could simply have added the 330 degrees to the exact
degree of the Hour-Marker.
131
There are variant versions of all these lots in other texts.
to the Bull, and equal amounts from the Hour-Marker. And wherever it should leave off,
consider this place and its domicile master. For if it should be found to be marking the hour or
occupying the Midheaven, especially upon a pivot of the Lot, this figure foretells one who is
royal, with the remaining stars and sects showing the support of the nativity to be great.
In another manner, when the nativity is of good reputation and the exaltation or its
domicile master is well situated, the native will be exalted by command or by political or
royal rulership or by some other reputable trust. But if, when the support is mediocre, the
domicile master of the exaltation or the place happens to be ill situated, the native will be
happy in that area in which he is just then engaged in doing, either his craft or his science or
his business. And the domicile master itself and the zōidion will foretell the kind of success
from its own nature or from the nature of the zōidion it is set upon. For often times those who
are in a plight or fail at doing something in their early years will be successful in other matters
in later years.
Valens II, 4–15

4. Concerning the Star Allotted the Hour or the Lot
When Kronos is allotted the Hour or the Lot, if it marks the hour but is not opposed by
Ares, such a one will be accounted happy in the activity apportioned by Kronos. And if it is
witnessed by Zeus, [the happiness] will be double. If by Aphroditē, it will be through a
woman or one without progeny. But if the star of Arēs is with it or is opposed to it – such a
one will have troubles and oppositions. If the star of Hermēs marks the hour along with it –
such a one will be hampered in his ears.
When Zeus is allotted the Hour or the Lot, if it marks the hour, it produces complete
happiness from youth. If Arēs is present or upon the same pivot point or if it is trigonal, such
a one will advance in magnificent military campaigns, and he will acquire a living. If Kronos
is there too, the natives will come into preeminence. If Aphroditē is also there, still more. If
Hermēs is also there, they will engage in receipts and disbursements.
When Arēs is allotted the Hour or the Lot, if it marks the hour, it causes an impulse
toward the military. If Zeus bears witness also, such a native will advance in rank. If
Aphroditē also, they come into no ordinary rank. If Hermēs alone is present, the native will
decline to accept a trust. If Kronos also, he will acquire many things from many sources, and
after his death it will be dispersed for the royal interests.
When Aphroditē is allotted the Hour or the Lot, it signifies great goods and causes great
reputations. If Hermēs is present too, it makes for those who are musical. With these being so,
while Kronos opposed them or overcomes the ones present, it deprives such ones of their
possessions.
When Hermēs is allotted the Hour or the Lot, if it marks the hour, it causes good fortune.
If the star of Zeus is present as well or makes a tetragon with it, the natives will have the
rulership of tribunals and wars. If the star of Kronos is also present with these, they will have
twice the rulership and honor and goods and advancement.
When the Sun obtains the Hour or the Fortune as its lot while it marks the hour, if the
star of Zeus is present as well or bears witness tetragaonally, he who is brought forth will be
fortunate. If the star of Hermēs is also present with it, such a one will advance by means of
discourse. If the star of Arēs is also present or makes a tetragon with the star of Zeus, he will
be great and will have authority over life and death. And if, while these are so, Kronos makes
a square or a diameter, they will meet with accidents and losses.
When the Moon obtains the Hour or the Lot of Fortune as its lot, it will make those who
are great, especially in its own trigon. And if the star of Aphroditē is present or happens to be
tetragonal, such a one will be considered worthy of great honor. If the star of Arēs happens to
be with the Moon, he will have authority over life and death. If the star of Kronos is also, he
will lead many countries. If the star of Zeus is also present or tetragonal, they will become
great kings. And if, while these are absent, the star of Hermēs is configured with the Moon,
the advancements will be from discourse and skills.
If the star of Arēs is present with the sovereign ones or is tetragonal to them, it makes
great men. If Arēs makes a diameter with the Moon apart from the benefics, it makes those
who are exposed; but if a benefic is present with Ares, he will be reared even though exposed.
Likewise, even if Arēs appears in a tetragon or if it is found to be overcoming, it will involve
[him] in wanderings or captivities or else ups and downs.
If the star of Aphroditē makes a tetragon at a pivot, the natives will be wronged by
women. If Kronos is present as well in a licentious zōidion, they will waste their substance in
brothels. If the star of Arēs also bears witness to them, they will prostitute their women to
others.
If the star of Kronos is tetragonal to the Moon or makes a diameter in accordance with an
equal-sided line, the native will have claim to nurture [even though] he will not be allotted
parents. If the star of Hermēs makes a tetragon or a diameter with the Moon, such come to be
at cross purposes and of two minds, and they become subject to slanders and accusations
from their superiors. And if a malefic also bears witness with Hermēs or is configured with it,
it will make for disfigurement and condemnations. And if the star of Zeus lies opposite the
side of the Moon, it will cause a deprivation of children and oppositions from those who are
superiors.
In general, when the malefics look upon the lights and the Hour-Marker apart from the
benefics, they make for short lives. When the ruler of the Hour-Marker is suitably situated or
belonging to the sect, he becomes the distributor of the years of life. And if it should be
configured with the master of the Lot, such a one becomes very old and fortunate. But if it
should be found subject to the setting place, he will be short lived. And if a malefic should be
present with it as well or should be superior to the Moon, the foetuses will come to nothing.
5. The Place of the Evil Spirit – Many Considerations

If the malefics happen to be in this place, they will produce great injuries and calamities,
especially if they are in their own faces [i.e., decanates]. And if the Lot of Fortune is there, and
some [malefic] should have authority over it, there will never be anything beneficial in the
transits; for they were enemies from the outset, from the moment of birth.
And similarly, when the benefics happen to be in this place, they do not distribute their
goods. And whenever the three stars should fall in this zōidion – the lord of the Hour-Marker,
of the Lot, and of the Spirit – they make those who are unfortunate and disfigured and in need
of daily subsistence, and many will have their hands held out.
6. The Place of the Good Spirit – Many Figures

If the benefics are suitably situated upon the zōidion occupying the Good Spirit, or are in
their own faces, they make those who are notable and wealthy from youth, and more when
they regard the Lot of Fortune in a trigonal sense and the Hour-Marker by a hexagon. They
furnish the most and the greatest goods in a hearing or seeing zōidion. And if one of the
benefics appears on a diameter to the Good Spirit while the ruler is present there, they will
produce great goods and greater advancements.
But if the malefics are present with the Good Spirit, they will not have the power to do
anything evil. And this is all the more necessary if the ruler of the Lot and of the Hour-Marker
and of the Spirit happen to be at their arising, or most of the stars are present with them as
well or bear witness to them in advantageous zōidia; for they produce those who are esteemed
and wealthy above measure.
7. The Midheaven
In this place both the benefics and the malefics rejoice, especially when obtaining the Lot
of Fortune or the Hour-Marker or Spirit as their lot. And if each of the [benefic] stars falls in
this place when it is arising or when it is conjoined by the Moon, sovereigns or kings are
made, those who are leaders of countries, or they will be renowned in many places. When the
ruler of this place is well situated, it makes those who are effective; but when it is poorly
situated, those who are unsuccessful. If it happens to be upon the setting place and a malefic
is present with it or makes a diameter, it makes evil-doers or those who are barren or
childless.
8. The Place of the God of the Sun, the Pre-Midheaven, 9th from the Hour-
Marker – It Has Many Figures
If the benefics occur upon this place, and they obtain as lot the Hour-Marker or the
Fortune, the child will be blessed, pious, a prophet of the great god, and he will be listened to
as god. But when these are absent, and Hermēs alone bears witness, the natives become
subject to oracular warnings, and they interpret their experience to the crowds, and they
become royal scribes from the time of their middle years.
But when the malefics are present and have authority over the places in question, the
Hour-Marker and Fortune – or when they regard the Lot, the child will be tyrannical. He will
found cities, destroy others, and impiously disenfranchise many of many things. And if Spirit
or Fortune occurs in the zōidion which is the Evil Spirit, and the planets ruling the Lot or the
Hour-Marker are found in this place, he will undergo the greatest afflictions and exiles, and
he will squander all that he acquires. Or the natives become recluses engaged in sacred rites
for the sake of suffering and pleasure.
9. The Eighth Place, Of Death – All Sorts of Considerations

When the benefics are present in this place, they are ineffective, weak, and unable to
impart their own goods. If they also have authority over the Hour-Marker and the Lot, they
are found to be even more ineffective and irregular.
If the malefics are present there, having authority over the Lot, the natives will be
wanderers; and if they acquire something, they will squander it. If the Lot falls in this place
while the malefics are present and rule the Lot, the native will be needy, unable to clothe
himself. If they should also have authority over the Hour-Marker, he will be a disgrace for his
whole life. And if the ruler of the Lot or the Hour also happens to be under the beams, the
native will be one to hold out his hand and beg.
If the star of Hermēs alone is present upon the zōidion and has authority of thought over
what is called Spirit, it makes those who are dull and unintelligent, and those who are tongue
tied and illiterate. And if the Lot of Fortune is also, along with being unintelligent, he will be
out of his senses and a beggar, especially when it happens to be under the beams. And if,
these things being so, the malefics are present as well, he will be out of his senses and mute.
The Moon alone, in the increase of its light, seems to rejoice in this zōidion. And if the star
of Zeus occupies the Good Spirit, such a one will be fortunate and successful and versatile.
And if it is also lord of the Lot of Fortune, he will be wealthy and happy. And if the star of
Hermēs is present with it, he will be an administrator for kings and will be gladdened with
children.
10. The Setting Place
When the benefics and those ruling the Hour-Marker or the Lot of Fortune are present
here, they signify good things for the natives, for example inheritances and the unforeseen
acquisition of other belongings and they signify something good from a death. If they are in
the places of others, such will be less successful, yet they will not be totally at a loss.
If Hermēs alone is present here while being in its own face, he will have profits in old age
and will be trusted with cities and the affairs of kings.
And if malefics are present in this place and have authority over the Hour-Marker or the
Lot while being in their own face, he will have an irregular livelihood, especially in old age,
yet he will not be totally at a loss; for he will squander what he obtains with calumnies and
evil words. But if the malefics, while being both in another's face and contrary to the sect, rule
the Lot, the native will spend his old age poorly, and a few will even land in prison for a while
and experience sickness and disease.
But if the star of Zeus regards it, they practice priestly rites on account of sickness, and
they are also troubled with hemorrhoids and experience suffering in their private parts or
finger. And if the star of Hermēs happens to be with Arēs upon the setting zōidion, he will
consort with robbers and murderers, on which account they are later cleansed with an evil
death. When the malefics are setting in another's zōidion, they cause violent deaths; but when
the benefics are so setting, they [produce] those who have much experience and have good
fortune in old age.
11. The Sixth Place of Arēs

If the benefics happen to be in this place, whatever the native should acquire he will
waste, and property will not remain with him. After advancing in youth, he will be reduced
by losses in old age.
When the Sun is present upon this place and has authority over the Lot of Fortune or of
the Hour, he causes the native to be condemned by a great power. If the star of Kronos is so
situated, he will be a wanderer and ready to take offense, and he will flee his own fatherland
in distress to procure a living. And if the star of Zeus has authority over the Lot or the Hour-
Marker, he will waste his life in public affairs. And if the star of Aphroditē does, they will levy
fines on account of disputes with a woman, and they will also become those unlucky in love,
those not possessing grace. And if the star of Arēs, it produces injury and suffering
corresponding to the member of the zōidion, but it makes foot soldiers, beggars, those who
have their lives turned around for ill. And when the star of Hermēs has authority over the Lot
or the Hour, it makes those who are ill intentioned, thieves, maledictors, and those who are
reviled among the crowds. And if the Moon is also present, he will be a slave and powerless,
if indeed the remaining stars are also present along with the Moon. For if the other stars are
well situated while the Moon chances to be ill situated, the natives are capable of becoming
freedmen and gentlemen.
12. The Fifth Place – Many Considerations

If the benefics happen to be allotted the Hour-Marker or the Lot of Fortune, the native
will be great and will be a leader of the crowds and will institute laws. Aphroditē gives the
greatest favor when it has authority over the Hour-Marker or the Lot, especially when it is in
its own face or in its own place – it produces those who are wealthy, honored. The same also
for all the stars; for if they have sway over the Hour or the Fortune, they will cause good
things in accordance with the application of the nature of each and the specific property of the
Good Fortune.
And if the star of Arēs happens to be at the place in question, they will rule over regions
in every direction; for they will either be commanders or sovereigns and have authority over
life and death, not only of the least but also of noteworthy men. And if Kronos is additionally
present upon the place, [it produces] those exceedingly rich in land and masters of
quadrupeds, those who build villages and locations. And if the Sun is present additionally,
friends of the great, those near to kings, leaders of priests. And if the star of Hermēs,
advancements by means of discourse and those deemed worthy of the most money.
And if, when the Moon is well figured, it is allotted the Lot or the Hour-Marker while it
happens to be upon the zōidion with its ruler, they become long lived and grow old with
another in happiness
The benefics, then, assist a great deal during transits; the malefics do not have the power
to hinder.
13. The Fourth, Subterraneous Place
If the benefics have authority over the Hour-Marker or the Fortune and are present, such
natives will have their living in priestly matters. And if those which are ruling should also be
allotted the archetypal lot while being in the subterraneous place, the natives will receive
messages from divine visitations and phantoms of the imagination. And if the star of Arēs is
co-present with them when it is allotted the Fortune or the Hour-Marker, the native will have
a life full of ills by his unseemly behavior, and after acting villainously together with others,
he will suddenly change his circumstances, and he will die a violent death. One must observe
closely that this place causes praises after death and legacies for one's family. When malefics
happen to be in this place, the [natives] bequeath their property to whom they wish.
14. The Third Place of the Goddess of the Moon

In this zōidion, if the Moon happens to be allotted the Hour-Marker or the Lot while being
in its own face, the native will be great and will have authority over many good things. He
will rule over cities, and he will command many, and he will be followed and have the
authority over treasuries. And if the Sun is present along with the Moon and the Moon is
making its rising, the native will be a priest or priestess of the greatest goddess and will have
a life that lacks nothing. And if the star of Kronos is present along with the Moon, he will be
subject to god's wrath, likely to experience loss, one who often goes to judges, and he
blasphemes the gods much on account of the matters that happen to him. And if the star of
Zeus is present along with the Moon, he will be a prophet, fortunate, wealthy, estimable, and
he will have authority over many goods. And if the star of Arēs is present along with the
Moon, the native will be effective but impious, and he will steal what is entrusted to him;
whence he will make his living from the things of others and from murders and thefts, and he
will travel abroad a lot. And if it should appropriately happen to be in its own face, in keeping
with the sect of the nativity, he will be a governor of countries and cities, unjust, perjured,
desirous of the things of others, and he will be suddenly ruined by the wrath of the
authorities. And if Aphroditē holds sway over the place of the Goddess and the Lot of Fortune
in its own places, especially in a nocturnal nativity, the native will be wealthy and will be well
regarded by a woman. And some will be kingly, those who rule over cities, administrators
through having been allotted the Fortune in addition to the Goddess in the house of the
Goddess. And if the star of Hermēs is present together with the Moon in the zōidion of the
Goddess and has authority over the Fortune or the Hour-Marker, the native will tell the future
for everyone and will participate in the mysteries of the gods.
15. The Second Place – Called the Gate of Hades

The post-ascension of the Hour-Marker – in this zōidion the benefics are of no avail, while
the malefics produce those who are sluggish, diseased, those unable to continue life up to the
end. And if the lot is present upon this zōidion, while malefics rule the Lot or the Hour-
Marker, the natives become guardians of the dead, living their lives outside the gate.
When the star of Kronos, then, has authority over the Lot of Fortune, being present upon
this zōidion, it makes those who are spiritless, those who are sickly, and those who have the
experience of bonds for a time sufficient to complete the period of the star. When the star of
Zeus is present upon the place, it makes a waste of one's belongings all the way to the end so
that nothing is left to him, yet it grants him children albeit not fortunately. When the star of
Arēs is present in this place, if it rules the Lot or the Hour-Marker, it makes those who are
ready to take offense, those likely to experience loss, those who are impeded; and some are
taken captive, and later returned. And if it is allotted the Lot of Fortune while being present in
this zōidion, while being in its own degrees or zōidia, the natives become jailers who make their
living in prison or those who spend their lives in prisons. And if the Sun is present upon this
zōidion while ruling the Lot or the Hour-Marker in its own domicile or in the places of Kronos,
the native will ruin his sight in the times of Ares, and will be deprived of his patrimony, and
he will be beggar. And if the star of Aphroditē is present upon the zōidion and rules the Lot or
the Hour-Marker, it will produce public and disgraceful deeds, if indeed it happens to be
arising in the morning. And when the star of Hermēs is present upon the zōidion, if it is under
the beams of the Sun, it produces those who are stupid and illiterate; but if it becomes lord of
the second lot (which is called Spirit), it makes those who are dull or mute; and if it is oriental,
the natives become meddlesome, those who try to do what they have not learned, but able to
succeed with mathematics. And if the Moon is present upon the zōidion while Kronos is
marking the hour, alternations [of fortune] will happen; they will suffer from a cataract or
from glaucoma.
A Selection of Greek Lots
Livelihood Strength Discovery

Asc + 2nd - Lord (nr) Asc + MC - Q (r) Asc + V - W (r)
Wealth Vitality Revealer

Asc + Q - V (r) Asc + W - V (r) Asc + T - S (r)
Inheritance Marriage Exaltation

Asc + T - W (r) Asc + T - V (r) Asc + Ex(Q) - Q(d)
Debt Marriage -Man Asc + Ex(R) - R(n)

Asc + W - S (r) Asc + T - W (r)
Asc + T - Q (r) Reputation
Siblings Asc + T - V (r)
Asc + V - W (r) Marriage-Women Asc + MC - | (nr)
Asc + V - S (r) Asc + W - T (r)
Asc + U - R (r) Honor
Father Asc + U - Q (r)
Asc + W - Q (r) Happiness of Asc + Q - V (r)
Asc + 7TH - T (r)
Mother Authority
Asc + R - T (r) Wedding Asc + Q - U (r)
T + R – Q (r)
Children Accusation
Asc + W - V (r) Adultery Asc + U - W (r)
Asc + U - T (r)
Children, Male Legal Judgements
Asc + Q - V (r) Desire Asc + V - W (r)
Asc + S – V (r) Asc + T - V (r)
Friends
Children, Female Travel Abroad Asc + S - V (r)
Asc + T - R (r) Asc + U - Q (r) Asc + T - V (r)
Asc + T - V (r)
Exile Associates
Children, Time of Asc + U - W (r) Asc + T - S (r)
Asc + V - U (r)
Craft Enemies
Injury Asc + Q - U (r) Asc + S - U (r)
Asc + U - W (r) Asc + T - U (r)
Treachery
Illness Practical Ability Asc + U - Q (r)
Asc + W - U (r) Asc + R - S (r)
Pain Pursuits
Asc + Q - W (r) Asc + W - V (r)
Asc + U - V (r)
(r) reverse by night

Visual Representation of the Construction of a Lot
Expressed Algebraically by the Formulae
Day: Lot = Long. of Asc + Long. of Planet A - Long. of Planet B
Night: Lot = Long. of Asc + Long. of Planet B - Long. of Planet A
First Representation:
Arc from Asc Equals Arc between Planets,
Always Taken forward in Zodiacal Order
Lot
(by Night)
A Distance from A to B
A
Distance from B to A
B B
Lot
(by Day)
Alternative Representation:
Regarding Asc as if it were Planet B
Lot
(by Night)
A A
A Distance
from B to A
projected backward
Distance in zodiacal order Distance
from B to A from B to A
B (by Day) B
(by Night)
Distance from B to A
projected Forward
in zodiacal
order B B
A
Lot
(by Day)
WEEK 9: UNIVERSAL TECHNIQUES II &
DIRECT TIMING
VALENS II,1
On Trigons
VALENS II,2
The Differentiation of the Trigons, and Rulers, and Co-workers
VALENS VII, 5 (END)

Excerpt on the Cyclical Periods of the Planets
VALENS II,28
Concerning the Successful and Unsuccessful Times of Life from
the Pivot Points and the Post-Ascensions
ANONYMOUS ON THE PLANETS (CCAG 2, 168-169)

Examples of Direct Timing by Planetary Periods and Ascensional Times
Table of Minor Years of the Planetary Periods:

Table of Ascensional Times of the Zōidia
WEEK 9: Universal Techniques II & Direct Timing 137
Universal Techniques Continued: The Trigon Lords

of the Sect Light
Preliminary Remark by Translator. The next two excerpts from Valens deal with the study of the
trigon lords of the sect light, a third universal technique intimately connected with the study of the Lot
of Fortune and its lord. Note that Valens defaults to that technique if the outcome of the study of the
trigon lords of the sect light is not promising. We may also surmise that it is connected to the study of
the ascending zōidion and its lord as well.
Valens understands the study of the trigons lords of the sect light to assess the “general support”
of the nativity as a whole. Elsewhere he calls this assessment the “magnitude of the nativity,” from
which it is clear that he understands this technique to address the grandeur or eminence of the life. The
same technique is also reported in Dorotheus, although not in so much detail.
Valens is the earliest Hellenistic author to associate the four trigons with the four elements,
although he does not claim this as an innovation. The normal practice before Valens was to correlate
them to the four “winds,” a name for the four cardinal directions. And I believe that it is in fact easier
to link the technique to the two preceding ones if we keep to this conceptualization.
There is yet one concept lacking to complete our suggested nautical paradigm for the life of the
native as a whole. In order for the ship of life to get to its destination, there must be favorable winds.
The “light of the sect” – that is, the Sun in a daytime birth and the Moon for those born at night – may
be viewed as setting the course according to the wind associated with the trigon in which it is found.
The first two trigon lords themselves represents this wind, and the study of these rulers according to its
position in the chart provides information as to whether the life voyage is facilitated by a favorable
wind or hindered by a headwind. We may even speculate that the third trigon lord, which is said to
cooperate with both the first and the second, represents the other motive power of the ship – namely,
oars. Again, one would expect that the light of the sect, whose responsibility it is to set the course,
should be in a position to communicate with the ruler of the Ascendant, who has to execute these
instructions. Similarly, one would hope that the light of the sect can receive input from the ruler of the
Lot of Fortune so as to make any necessary course corrections on behalf of the native’s life voyage as a
result of accidents that befall the voyage along the way.
Valens II,1
On Trigons
When we have ordered the zodiacal circle by difference and by property, we find two
sects – a diurnal and a nocturnal sect [belonging to] the Sun and the Moon respectively. The
Sun, being in fact fire-like, was associated with the Ram, the Lion, the Archer, which was
named its diurnal trigon; and it is also fire-like by nature. The Sun attached to itself Zeus and
Kronos as co-workers in its own sect and as guardians of what is accomplished by it – Zeus as
closely imitating the king and as his successor, the chooser of good things, the bestower of
reputation and life; Kronos as the promoter of ills and oppositions and as the depriver of time.
Of the trigon in question, then, the Sun is master by day, the star of Zeus is master by
succession at night, while Kronos cooperates with both.
Next, the Moon, as it is near the earth, took as its lot the mastership of the following
trigon – the Bull, the Virgin, the Goat-Horned One – which is in fact earth-like. It has
Aphroditē and Arēs as sect-mates – Aphroditē, suitably enough, for benefaction and to
distribute reputation and time; Arēs for looking askance at nativities. Whence, at night the
138 WEEK 9: Universal Techniques II & Direct Timing
Moon stands in the forefront, Aphroditē in second place, and Arēs in third. But in diurnal
nativities, Aphroditē is advanced, the Moon cooperates in second place, Arēs in third.
Next, Kronos will be master of the air-like trigon, the Twins, the Balance, the Water-
Pourer, by day, while Hermēs will cooperate in the second place, and Zeus in third. But by
night the star of Hermēs is advanced, and the star of Kronos is in second place, the star of
Zeus in third.
Next, the star of Arēs will maintain the mastership of the water-like trigon the Crab, the
Scorpion, the Fish, by night, with Aphroditē in second place, and the Moon in third. But by
day the star of Aphroditē is advanced, after which is the star of Arēs, and third the Moon.
Yet the star of Hermēs, since it is in fact common, does its utmost to assist the two sects in
relation to the good or the base and in relation to the property and figure-description of each
star.
Valens II,2
The Differentiation of the Trigons, and Rulers, and Co-workers, and the Sects
of the Sun and Moon by Day and by Night
This will be clear by examining the difference of the trigons in question and the
happiness or middling condition in relation to the nativity of each [person]. Now, for those
who are born by day, it will be necessary to consider in what trigon the Sun is found, and the
preeminent master132 of this trigon, and the co-worker of this trigon, whether they are upon a
pivot at that time, or post-ascensional or declining, whether capable of arising or sinking or in
their own zōidia, and whether they are witnessed by benefics or malefics, and to make the
declaration accordingly. For if they mark the hour or occupy the Midheaven or chance to be
on another of the zōidia fit for the dispatch of business, they will show beforehand that the
nativities are fortunate and bright. And if they are found in the post-ascensions, they will
show the nativities to be middling. But if in the declines, depressed and unfortunate. We also
need to look at how the Sun is situated and by what stars it is witnessed. And for those born
at night, it will be necessary to consider the Moon in a similar fashion, the preeminent master
of its trigon, and the common master of this trigon, with regard to how they have been
figured, just as we have set out above.
For if the preeminent master by day or by night falls amiss upon the badly situated zōidia,
while the master by succession is in fact upon a pivot and well figured, then after the native
has had his ups and downs in his early years until the ascension of the zōidion or until the
recurrence of the circular period, he will later be successful, except that he will spend his life
without stability and in fear. But if the principal ruler falls out well, while the following ruler
falls amiss, then after having been carried forth well in his early years, he will later be reduced
from the time of the ascension of the zōidion in which the succeeding ruler has fallen amiss.133
132
The word used for a trigon lord is oikodespotēs, the same word used for a domicile lord proper. It is even used for
an exaltation and bound lord. Here I have translated it simply as “master” to avoid confusion, although there
are some places in the upcoming text where the domicile master may be intended.
133
Although the text is not perfectly clear at this point, it seems that in the case where one of the two trigon lords is
poorly situated and the other is well situated, we time the change-over from the first trigon lord to the second
according to the completion of the planetary period of the one that is poorly situated, or the ascension of the zōidion
in which it occurs.
We will explain how to judge the times more precisely at the proper moment. And if both fall
well, the circumstances of good fortune will persist and he will become an outstanding person
(unless a malefic should have opposed it or should have overcome it), nor will the
circumstances of the nativity reverse. But every star, when it has the mastership and is in fact
in decline, will be contrary and become a despoiler. For, it makes those who are subordinate
to others, those who have ups and downs, or those who are reduced in reputation, those who
encounter injury and suffering and accusations or want of livelihood.
If, then, for those born in the day, the Sun is found in the Ram, the Lion, the Archer, it is
better for it to be upon a pivot. If its co-sectarians are likewise found upon the post-
ascensional places, while Arēs is not opposing or tetragonal, it will be judged indicative of
good fortune. If they are the reverse, impediments will result. And if the Sun is found by day
in the Bull, the Virgin, the Goat-Horned One, it will be necessary to seek for the star of
Aphroditē in the first place, and for the Moon in the second, and for Arēs in the third, how
they are figured and by what stars they are witnessed. Similarly also, when the Sun is found
by day in the following trigon – the Twins, the Balance, the Water-Pourer – it will be
necessary to consider the star of Kronos and that of Hermēs and that of Zeus. In the same way
also, when the Sun is by day upon the Crab, the Scorpion, the Fish, it will be necessary to
consider whether the star of Aphroditē and that of Arēs and the Moon are upon pivots, and in
this way to show those who are distinguished. Also, we must consider the Moon by night
with the same rationale.
It is better, then, for the diurnal planets to be found upon pivots in their own trigons or in
places fit for the dispatch of business, and similarly for the nocturnal planets. But if they are
found to be in another's trigon or one contrary to the sect, the circumstances of happiness will
become less and the native will be subject to fears. When the masters and co-workers fall
amiss, it will be necessary to investigate the Lot of Fortune and its master.134 For if they are
found upon pivots and post-ascending while being witnessed by benefics, the native will
partake of good fortune and reputation, and though at times he will undergo irregularities
and oppositions, he will not be met with impasse. But if these fall badly, mediocre and most
austere circumstances will be adjudged; for, such natives will be ineffectual with regard to
plots, needy, in debt, those who blaspheme in divine matters. And if the Lot of Fortune and its
master are witnessed by malefics, such natives will be full of troubles, vagabonds, prisoners,
subordinates, living a hard life, liable to injury, insecure. But if while the Lot and its master
have fallen badly, benefics should bear witness, they will live through the pity of others, or at
a certain time they decently cease being taken in by others after obtaining a share in work or
trusts or gifts, except that they do not go through life free of troubles or reproach.
It will be necessary, then, to consider the testimonies to every master and the disposition
of the figurations, whether they are in fact congenial or opposed. For if the star of Kronos is
found in a diametrical or tetragonal position for those who are born at night, it produces
oppositions and reductions, dangers and sufferings, and those who are slothful about
intrigues. But when the star of Arēs is so found for those born by day, it produces those who
are rash, deceitful, unstable in their affairs and livelihood; for they encounter constraint, trials,
insults, cuts, burns, bloodshed, falls. But when the malefics are congenially figured and of
134
oikodespotēs. Presumably, this is the domicile lord of the Lot of Fortune, not the trigon lord.
their own sect, they happen to be conducive to action. Whence they are not adjudged malefics,
but rather even the bestowers of goods, and especially whenever Kronos chances to be well
witnessed by Zeus and the Sun by day while having a relationship to the mastership, it
produces those who are very rich, estimable, those who are beneficiaries from deaths, lords of
foundations and of slaves, stewards, those who are set over the affairs of others. But when it is
well figured by night and has the relationship of mastership, it will become an agent of the
above, but the throwing away of what has been acquired and the reduction of reputation or
disenfranchisement will result. Let the same be supposed for Arēs. For by night it entrusts
leadership and generalship and popular rank in public affairs. But when it is in places fit for
business by day, it does produce the above, though it also involves the natives in oppositions
and controversies and fears, and makes the leadership factious and frightened; for, it opens
the channels for hostilities and brings on insurrections of the crowds and multitudes,
pestilence and famine due to war, violence, conflagrations, causes of danger.
Similarly also, the benefics will possess the character of malefics whenever they fall amiss
while acting as masters. And if they chance to be upon pivots while the master is declining,
they will be weak in furnishing any good thing.
For every kind it will be necessary to examine how the master of the master135 chances to
be [situated] and by what it is witnessed. For if the general master falls amiss while its lord is
well figured, the native will have help and support for life and reputation according to the
place-positioning of the star.
The Basic Logic of the Topical Approach
General Remark by Translator. The Hellenistic astrologers did possess a sophisticated doctrine of
the delineation of planets and planetary combinations that bears some distant resemblance to the way
in which modern astrologers delineate a chart, although not in the usual psychological context. They
delineated both adherences and figural conjunctions (“conjunctions” and “aspects”), planets in the
domiciles or bounds of other planets (corresponding roughly to modern delineations of planets in
signs), and planets in topical places (“houses”), especially those upon angular zōidia. This entire
doctrine was referred to as the determination of the diastolē of the nativity, meaning “writs for payment
due to the native,” stemming from the notion that the planets are servants of fate (heimarmenē), the
cosmological principle that determines what is due to each human being in his or her life. This
determination could be made at the nativity, in which case these “writs” constitute a kind of
downpayment (katabolē) on what is due the native, but also at the solar return, in which case the writs
were likened to installment payments.
However, because the delineation of planets and planetary combinations may have multiple
meanings, there is no immediate assurance that they directly address all the topics that the astrologer
needs to examine in the native’s life. Consequently, the Hellenistic astrologers introduced more
methodical ways of investigating these various topics, and collectively they constitute the Topical
Approach. Although there is often an idiosyncratic way of investigating a given topic, in general the
Hellenistic astrologers always looked at the appropriate topical place (“house”) and lot (“part”) and
their respective domicile lords. At least one astrologer, namely Dorotheus, also examined the trigon
lords of the planetary significator most relevant to the topic. With this addition, the general topical
135
oikodesptēs tou oikodespotou. It is not clear whether he means the domicile lord of the trigon lord, or the trigon
lord of the trigon lord.
approach becomes a scaled down version of the three universal techniques we have just explicated,
although we must caution the reader that no astrologer independent of Dorortheus seems to have
extended the trigon lord technique in this manner, so it must be viewed with some suspicion.
Direct Timing by Planetary Periods and Ascensional Times

General Remark by Translator. In this final section of readings for week 9, we introduce the subject
of the direct timing of events. Although the Hellenistic astrologers did use transits, progressions, and
directive procedures in the context of timing, these mainstays of modern astrological practice were
normally adduced as intensification factors within the framework of time-lords, which govern longer or
shorter stretches of time. The customary procedure for the direct timing of events employed the
Hellenistic planetary periods (different from the planetary return cycles used in modern astrology) and
the ascensional times of the zōidia. This procedure was already alluded to in the passage above, where
Valens instructs us on how to time the change-over from the first to the second trigon lord of the sect
light.
Valens VII, 5 (end)

Excerpt on the Cyclical Periods of the Planets
The stars also distribute the mean times of the times over which they have mastery. The
Sun, taking into its possession half of its 120 years, takes over 60 years and its least years, 19;
they come to 79, half of which is 39 years, 6 months. The Moon, half of its 108 years, 54, and its
least years, 25; altogether they come to 79, half of which is 39 years, 6 months, and it will
distribute these. [Kronos, its greatest years 57 and its least years 30; they come to 87, half of
which is 43 years, 6 months.] Arēs, its greatest years 66 and its least years 15; they come to 81,
half of which if 40 years, 6 months. Aphroditē, its final years 84 and its least years 8; they
come to 92, half of which is 46. Hermēs, its greatest years 76 and its least years 20; they come
to 96, half of which is 48. Zeus, its greatest years 79 and its least years 12; they come to 91, half
of which is 45 years, 6 months. These mean times seemed to me to hold in a more natural
manner.136
Valens II,28
Concerning the Successful and Unsuccessful Times of Life from the Pivots and
the Post-Ascensions
The times of good or bad fortune, and those of irregularity and success, are to be
comprehended from the ascension of each zōidion or from the circular period of the star. That
is, for those who wish to inquire about the times of vitality, it is necessary to attend to the
Hour-Marker and the Moon or to the zōidion upon which their lords are present; and for
occupation or reputation, to attend to the Lot of Fortune and Spirit137 and the Sun, or to the
conjunction or whole Moon,138 as well as to the Exaltation139 and its lord.
136
The only difference between the normal calculation of the mean years of the planets and the one that Valens is
presently presenting is that the mean periods of the Sun and Moon were normally taken as half the sum of their
greatest and least years, just as in the case of the other planets.
137
That is, the Lot of Spirit.
138
That is, the Prenatal Lunation.
With respect to the first subject,140 those upon the Hour-Marker will begin to rule over
the first period of time, then those in the Midheaven or in the Descendant or in the
subterraneous place. And if these places are empty, those upon the post-ascensions. But if
these happen to be empty, then those in the declines (even if they are not potent for such
matters, they will however administer to them). Those planets which have gone turned away
from the Hour-Marker and the Midheaven will apportion first, and then those in the
remaining declines, though they will not apportion the complete ascensions or periods; but
rather, as much a part of the zōidion as they occupy, [they will apportion] a proportionate
amount both of the period and of the ascension. For, those planets which are properly figured
upon the pivots or post-ascensions and are found to be capable of arising, especially those
having a relationship to the matters of the nativity, whichever they are,141 when they are
masters of the aforesaid places, they will apportion both the ascension of the zōidion and their
own periods, or the ascension and period of the zōidia upon which the lords are present.
Similarly also, it is necessary for those seeking the times to compare the remaining places
and masters (for example, concerning one's living, siblings, parents, children, etc.), the stars
that damage or benefit, and what each of them is able to produce, in order that we should not
have to write about these things several times. For, their natures are set out above, but we will
also give reminders in the upcoming chapters. Whether, then, it behooves us to distribute the
least period of the lord and that of that star lying upon the place, then likewise the ascension
of the zōidion or that of that zōidion upon which the lord is, it behooves us in another manner
(just as we said above) to consider the stars ruling the trigon. For if both be well situated, the
periods of time will become estimable and helpful. If partly so, then [the periods will become]
similarly so. But if they fall amiss, the nativity will be irregular from beginning to end, or it
will be upset with grief and dangers unless the Lot of Fortune or its properly figured lord
settles the nativity in prosperity and reputation according to its own support.
And if two or more stars happen to be in one zōidion, the period of each will act alone as
it is being completed, and the commixture of two or three stars will indicate the event.
Similarly also, the ascension of the zōidion, after it has been completed, will again act alone
and together with the period of the star lying upon it or its lord. And if such times from the
ascensions and the periods either of benefic or malefic stars or zōidia coincide, both base and
good things will result for each period of time.
Anonymous on the Planets (CCAG 2, 168-169)142

Examples of Direct Timing by Planetary Periods and Ascensional Times
One must know that such renderings as those from bodily adherence and those from the
figures of the stars in relation to each other are rendered especially in those times in which the
ascensions or periods of these are fulfilled, either by themselves or with each other.
139
That is, the Lot of Exaltation.
140
Presumably, the subject of the times of vitality.
141
The planets having a relation to the nativity are usually considered to be the trigon lord of the sect light, the
domicile lord of the Lot of Fortune, and the domicile lord of the ascending zōidion. Here Valens may also be
including the respective lords of the Prenatal Lunation, the Lot of Spirit, and the Lot of Exaltation.
142
The two examples in this excerpt appear to have been derived from Valens VII,3, unless Valens and this
anonymous author have taken them from a common source.
For example, let there be a nativity in the second zone: the Sun, [Hermēs] and the Hour-
Marker in the Archer; the Moon in the Crab; Kronos in the Lion; Zeus in the Goat-Horned
One; Arēs [in the Water-Pourer]; Aphroditē in the Scorpion. The death of the wife occurred in
the 34th year; for, the tetragon of Kronos and Aphroditē with Kronos decimating it, as here,
brought on harm and pain from women. The time is reasonable, for there are 19 from the Lion
in which is Kronos and 15 from the Scorpion where Aphroditē is; together there are 34 years,
for the periods were taken from the lords of the stars of the Lion and the Scorpion. But
sometimes the times are taken from the ascensions. Having been accused in his 36th year that
he had plotted against his wife, the native was likely to be in peril and was banished; for
Kronos in decimating Aphroditē causes expulsion and grief due to female persons. And the
ascensional time of the Lion, in which Kronos was, indicated the time, [and similarly of the
Scorpion]. For, the stars both by themselves and in commixture indicate the time of rendering.
Through the tetragon of Kronos and Aphroditē, then, he was likely to be in peril. The cause
was from the figure in relation to Aphroditē, but since Zeus also saw Aphroditē, he was likely
to escape the danger. And in fact Aphroditē was indicating the 36 years in the Scorpion, while
in his 37th year he also had the benefit of greater kindliness due to the diameter of the Moon
and Zeus: the Moon 25 years, Zeus 12; together 37.
And again: the Sun, Arēs, Aphroditē in the Archer; the Moon in the Balance; Kronos in
the Twins; Zeus in the Virgin; Hermēs in the Scorpion; the Hour-Marker in the Goat-Horned
One. In the 19th year the father died a violent death; for in such a rendering the period of the
Sun was busy because of being co-present with Arēs, while Arēs with the Sun indicates a bad
death for the father, and they themselves are harmed in the eyes and put in danger. All these
things occurred; for whereas the father died violently in the native’s 19th year, he himself was
maimed in the eyes, and having traveled abroad, had danger at sea; for, Argo in the Archer
indicates a ship. It was said that if the stars lie together by twos or are looking by figure, well
then the period or ascension of each will be at work alone and with that of the star lying upon
it or configured. And that rendering will be at work which the commixture from both of them
together indicates. Since then the Sun indicates both the fatherland and vision, both occurred.
And especially in the places pertaining to injury, it also pertains to the eyes when the Sun is
harmed by malefics. However, in his 20th year he regained his sight by divine providence; for,
Aphroditē was also present with the Sun and Zeus was looking from a tetragon. The Virgin
indicates the 20 years due to Hermēs being the lord, in which the star of Zeus saw the Sun.
However, also from the tetragon, Zeus 12 and Aphroditē 8; for, both were seeing the suffering
of the eyes. And the benefics were superior in power through being found in places more fit
for the dispatch of business. The aforesaid renderings are also at work in the recasting of
nativities (antigenesis). For, it is necessary to see with what the lord of the year is configured by
transit, and especially if a similar figure preserves the sort of thing also in the case of the
nativity, but it is also necessary to observe the transits.
TABLE OF ASCENSIONAL ARCS OF ZODIACAL SIGNS
Modern Format Using Ptolemaic Methods
Latitude - - - - - -
0 27°55' 29°54' 32°11' 32°11' 29°54' 27°55'
5 26°54 29°05 31°51 32°31 30°44 28°56
10 25°51 28°15 31°30 32°51 31°34 29°58
15 24°47 27°23 31°09 33°13 32°26 31°02
20 23°40 26°28 30°47 33°35 33°21 32°09
21 23°26 26°17 30°42 33°40 33°32 32°23
22 23°12 26°05 30°37 33°45 3344 32°37
23 22°58 25°53 30°32 33°50 33°56 32°51
24 22°43 25°41 30°27 33°55 34°08 33°06
25 22°29 25°29 30°22 34°00 34°20 33°20
26 22°14 25°17 30°17 34°05 34°32 33°35
27 21°58 25°04 30°12 34°10 34°45 33°51
28 21°43 24°51 30°06 34°16 34°58 34°06
29 21°27 24°38 30°01 34°21 35°11 34°22
30 21°11 24°24 29°55 34°27 35°25 34°38
31 20°54 24°10 29°49 34°33 35°39 34°55
32 20°37 23°56 29°43 34°39 35°53 35°12
33 20°20 23°42 29°37 34°45 36°07 35°29
34 20°02 23°27 29°30 34°51 36°22 35°47
35 19°44 23°11 29°24 34°58 36°38 36°05
36 19°26 22°55 29°17 35°05 36°54 36°23
37 19°07 22°39 29°10 35°12 37°10 36°43
38 18°47 22°22 29°02 35°19 37°27 37°02
39 18°27 22°05 28°55 35°27 37°44 37°22
40 18°06 21°47 28°47 35°35 38°20 37°43
41 17°45 21°28 28°38 35°43 38°21 38°04
42 17°23 21°08 28°30 35°52 38°41 38°26
43 17°00 20°48 28°21 36°01 39°01 38°49
44 16°36 20°27 28°11 36°11 39°22 39°13
45 16°12 20°05 28°01 36°21 39°44 39°37
46 15°46 19°42 27°50 36°32 40°07 40°03
47 15°20 19°18 27°39 36°43 40°31 40°29
48 14°53 18°53 27°27 36°55 40°56 40°56
49 14°24 18°26 27°14 37°08 41°23 41°25
50 13°55 17°58 27°00 37°22 41°51 41°55
51 13°23 17°28 26°45 37°37 42°21 42°26
52 12°51 16°57 26°29 37°53 42°52 42°58
53 12°17 16°23 26°12 38°10 43°26 43°32
54 11°41 15°47 25°53 38°29 44°02 44°08
55 11°03 15°09 25°32 38°50 44°40 44°46
56 10°24 14°27 25°08 39°14 45°22 45°25
57 09°42 13°42 24°42 39°40 46°07 46°07
58 08°57 12°54 24°12 40°10 46°55 46°52
59 08°10 12°00 23°38 40°44 47°49 47°39
60 07°19 11°01 22°58 41°24 48°48 48°30
61 06°26 09°55 22°10 42°12 49°54 49°24
62 05°28 08°42 21°11 43°11 51°07 50°21
63 04°26 07°18 19°56 44°26 52°31 51°23
64 03°19 05°41 18°13 46°08 54°08 52°30
65 02°06 03°48 15°40 48°42 56°01 53°43
66 00°47 01°30 10°47 53°35 58°19 55°02
© 2004 The Golden Hind Press. All rights reserved.

WEEK 10: TIME-LORD PROCEDURES
PAULUS 31
Concerning Year and Month and Day
HEPHAISTIO II, 27
Concerning the Year
VALENS V, 3 (END)
Concerning the Recasting of the Nativity
HEPHAISTIO II, 28
Concerning the Month and Day
HEPHAISTIO II, 26 (END)

Excerpt on Dorotheus’ Procedure for Circumambulations
DOROTHEUS III, 2 (P. 243-234)

Example paraphrased from Pingree's translation of Dorotheus
Profections Table
Circumambulations Template
146 WEEK 5: Symposium
Time-Lord Procedures
General Remark by Translator. Unlike the direct timing procedures studied last week, the various
time-lord procedures of Hellenistic astrology establish a planetary ruler that has jurisdiction for
greater or lesser stretches of time, which may often be successively subdivided into ever smaller
intervals. These time-lord procedures are the Hellenistic analogues of the Indian dasas, although for
the most part the ordering of the planets and the periods of time over which they have sway are
different.
There are at least seven basic time-lord procedures reported in the sources, although some of
these have variants. Each primary procedure is based on a different logic for ordering the planets in a
sequence and assigning lengths of time-lordship. The simplest device for ordering the planets is to take
them in zodiacal order starting from some particular planet. This device is used in the 10 year, 9 month
procedure called “decennials,” and also in one we call “Quarters of the Minor Periods of the
Planets.” In these two procedures the intervals of time ruled by the time lord is based on the minor
periods of the planets. In a third such procedure, the ordering of the planets begins from the degree
ruler of the Moon, and each successive planet in zodiacal order is assigned a value from one to seven
years, the Moon getting one year, Hermēs two, Aphroditē three, and so on in ascending Chaldean
order.
A second device is to move from zōidion to zōidion at some rate, taking the domcile lords of these
successive places. This is called “profections.” When this movement takes place every year, we call
them “annual profections,” of which there are monthly and daily profections as subdivisions. In
another important procedure that we call “Zodiacal Releasing,” the profections occur at times
proportionate to the minor periods of the lords of the successive zōidia, starting from one of the seven
Hermetic lots.
A third device is “circumambulations,” in which some planet or other important significator is
moved degree by degree at some rate. The most important of the circumambulation procedures moves
the significator at a rate proportionate to the ascensional time of the ecliptic interval traversed by the
circumambulating significator. In this case the primary time-lords are taken as the successive bound
lords of the intervals traversed by the circumambulator. In a second such procedure, the ecliptic
interval traversed by the significator is converted to times proportionate to the minor period of the
planet from which the circumambulation commences.
There are also a number of procedures for directly dividing the year into intervals based on
planetary periods; we will not enumerate these here.
I believe that at least several of these procedures fit together into a natural hierarchy, although it
is beyond the scope of this course to go into the logic behind such an arrangement. One thing that can
be said for certainty, however, is that from the Hellenistic perspective transits and secondary
progressions are at the bottom of this hierarchy, serving as “triggers” or intensification factors for the
prevailing time-lords. It is also clear that the study of the solar return was linked to the determination
of the lord of the year established by annual profections.
In this course, we will only be able to report on two of these time-lord procedures: annual
profections and cirumambulations from the predominating significator.
.
WEEK 5: Symposium 147
Annual Profections from the Ascending Zōidion

Preliminary Remark by Translator. In the following selections we will study the procedure of annual
profections from the ascending zōidion. The reader should note that there were variant procedures for
studying the month and day with the framework of these annual profections. By looking at all the texts,
it is clear that both the domicile lord of the profection for a given year and any planets present in or
testifying to that zōidion were important in interpreting the year. It is also worth noting that the lord of
the year seems to have been regarded as a way of linking the solar return chart to the natal chart.
Finally, pay careful attention to the Valens passage on the recasting of the nativity, for it is the only
surviving Hellenistic source that gives explicit instructions as to how to find the rising degree of the
solar return. It is not certain whether this was the sole Hellenistic procedure or not.
Paulus 31
Concerning Year and Month and Day
As many years should be current in a nativity we project from the zōidion marking the
birth hour, giving the first year of the generative time to the Hour-Marker, and the second to
the post-ascension of the Hour-Marker, then the next to the third zōidion from the Hour-
Marker, and so in the succeeding zōidia for the remaining years until the 12th number should
be completed. And again, we give the 13th year to the zōidion marking the birth hour, and
wherever the number should leave off, there we say the year to be.
Again, you will treat the month similarly by beginning from the zōidion where the year
left off, and giving to the next zōidia in succession the sought number of months, and
wherever it should run out, we will deem that the month.
So also, you will treat the day by beginning from the zōidion where the month ran out,
and by similarly apportioning the number of days that are found to the next zōidia in
succession, giving one day to each until the number of twelve days should be completed, and
beginning again from the preceding and filling out the number. For wherever the number
should run out, there will be the day, just as in the construction of the year.
For the purpose of illustration: Someone has 26 years current, having the Lion as an
Hour-Marker. We give the first year to the Hour-Marker, which is Leo; the second to the post-
ascension of the Hour-Marker, which is the Virgin; the third to the next one, the Balance; the
fourth to the Scorpion, the fifth to the following one, the Archer; the sixth to the Goat-Horned
One; the seventh to the Water-Pourer; the eighth to the Fishes; the ninth to the Ram; the tenth
to the Bull; the eleventh to the Twins; the twelfth to the Crab. With the first dozen filled up,
we begin all over again, giving the thirteenth to the Hour-Marker, which is the Lion; the
fourteenth to the Virgin, and so on as above, until the number of a dozen should be filled
again. And so, we again give the 25th to the Hour-Marker, which is the Lion, and the 26th
falls to the Virgin.
Hephaistio II, 27
Concerning the Year
Project the multitude of years from the Hour-Marker, and consider the lord of the zōidion
at which it leaves off, whether it sees the Hour-Marker, and whether it is capable or arising
and additive [in numbers], and in its own places (that is, in its bounds or domicile or trigon or
exaltation). That it is also necessary to set up the Hour-Marker of the year in the recasting of
the nativity (antigenesis), and the stars that contemplate it and its lord by fixity143 and by
transit. That the stars occupying their own thrones rejoice even if they should be under the
beams; the benefics increase the good things and the destroyers are changed over in the
direction of beneficence. That when the stars are in opposition to their own domiciles, they
turn bad. That when we make the circumambulations of the stars in the divisions of the times,
it is necessary to know that the adherences of the planets and the Hour-Marker and the
Midheaven and the Lot of Fortune with the non-wandering stars have a very great strength
and actualization in accordance with their mixture, and especially if they should have the
same wind. That, before all, it is necessary to investigate the lord of the year and its mixture
and position and phase, and the planets that see it by fixity and by transit, and how it was
situated at the nativity, and how it was found at the time of the transit. That the synodic stars
are in power through participation in the solar light, though they render up their
actualizations in later times.
If the lord should be well configured by benefics, reveal the year to be the best, and if it is
found in a condition opposite to the aforesaid, it is clear that one must suppose the opposite.
And if it also chances to be in an alien domicile, it will be worse; and if the malefics that are so
[configured] should be in an alien domicile, still worse (for they cause illnesses or
condemnations or travel abroad), but if the benefics [that are so configured should be in an
alien domicile], it will be lighter and more moderate (and they cause suspense, bringing
expenditures for a voluntary purpose in the case of Zeus, some feminine reproaches in the
case of Aphroditē, and fines and breaches of contract in the case of Hermēs).
When the malefics are well situated, then, in the recasting of the nativity, they cause good
things, Arēs causing activities with heat, Kronos energetic activity concerning agriculture or
domestic management. But the benefics furnish better things, Zeus providing an alliance and
good marriage and friendship and acclaim, and sometimes also the begetting of children,
Aphroditē likewise providing the same things as well as favor from females, and Hermēs
profit from speaking.
Valens V, 3 (end)
Concerning the Recasting of the Nativity
We must do the recasting of the nativity (antigenesis), for it contributes much to the
occasional changes of the times; at times one that confirms the power of the effects is
significant, and at other times one that hinders the proper effects. After reckoning accurately
the stars at the birthday of the current year, we will find the Hour-Marker as follows. With the
Sun still in the natal zōidion, we examine where the Moon is at that time and at what hour it
arrives by recurrence at the degree which it also had for the nativity. And we will say that that
is the time marking the hour. If when the nativity is nocturnal, the recurrence should be
found to be diurnal, we will compare the diurnal rulers and the lord of the bound and of the
Hour-Marker with the stars at the nativity.
143
That is, natally.
Hephaistio II, 28
Concerning the Month and Day
And concerning the months and days, likewise examine those of the stars present upon
the zōidion on which the month or the day falls, or those seeing it, and make your conjecture
accordingly. The zōidion on which it falls is known from the multitude of months projected
from the natal month at one zōidion for one month in succession from the zōidion allotted the
year. For each year, he says, keep an eye on the tetragonal and diametrical figures of the
malefics in relation to the zōidion allotted the year, and one must likewise examine whether
the conjunctions and full moons were made in relation to benefics or the years in these four
places.
For the days project the multitude of days from the birthday from the zōidion of the
month at one zōidion every two and one-half days, and that zōidion upon which the multitude
leaves off will have the days. And Dorotheus has the following things to say about months
and days. "And let it be for you when inquiring in this manner that we narrowly watch the
month."
Circumambulations from the Predominating Significator

Preliminary Remark by Translator. Ptolemy and Hephaistio are the only two surviving authors to
detail this time-lord procedure, although it is mentioned or alluded to by many other authors. And
Dorotheus is the only author to exemplify it, so we have paraphrased Pingree’s translation of this
example from his Arabic source, cleaning up some obvious errors in the Arabic original as we go.
Hephaistio II, 26 (end)

Excerpt on Dorotheus’ Procedure for Circumambulations
Dorotheus made use of the primary place for releasing144 when dividing the times. If the
nativity is diurnal and the Sun upon the Hour-Marker or in the Midheaven or in the eleventh,
he used the lord of its bounds; but he did not use it simply, but rather, as he says, it is
requisite that it see its own bounds. And if it should not be so, and some other star sees the
Sun when the Sun occupies that star's own domicile, this one is taken; but if this one should
be in aversion to the Sun, while some other star sees the Sun while the Sun occupies that star's
own exaltation, this one is taken; but if this one should also be in aversion to the Sun, some
other star is taken that sees the Sun when the Sun occupies that star's own trigon. These
things, then, if the Sun should be in advantageous places and is seen by the lord of its bounds
or of its domicile or of its exaltation or of its trigon. But if the Sun is not in advantageous
places, but the Moon chances to be in such places, we prefer its lord in the same manner; but if
not, we prefer the lord of the Lot of Fortune; and again, if the Lot should not be so found, if
the lord of the prenatal lunation should be in an advantageous place, we prefer its lord; and if
there is a full moon, we likewise prefer its lord; and if the lord of these should not be so
found, last of all we take the lord of the Hour-Marker in the same manner. As he says,
144
aphetēs.
"Always, then, that the releaser must gain the testimony of these."
In the case of a nocturnal nativity, we prefer the Moon when it is in an advantageous

place; but if we do not find it so, and the Sun chances to be in the degrees close to the side of
the Hour-Marker under the earth, we will again make use of its lord. In addition to these
matters, we must examine the places of releasing and give preference to the one removed
from and free from connection to a malefic. The times are given in the successive order of the
bounds according to the ascensions of the appropriate zone, he says.
Dorotheus III, 2 (p. 243-234)

Example paraphrased from Pingree's translation of Dorotheus
Data: Sun (22th degree of Balance), Moon (6th of the Crab), Kronos (12th of the Archer),
Zeus (28th of the Twins), Arēs (7th of the Virgin), Aphroditē 28th of the Lion), Hermēs (29th
of the Balance), Ascendant (6th of the Scorpion), Lot of Fortune (21st of the Crab).
Because the nativity was diurnal, in search of the place to be released I looked at the Sun,
and I found the Sun to be declining. I also looked at the Moon, and I found it declining. I
found the Lot of Fortune and the fullness [of the Moon] also in declines. There was nothing
obvious from which the placed to be released might be found except the Ascendant. The lord
of the bound of the Ascendant, Arēs, was above the earth and capable of arising and [in] the
place of the Good Spirit, one of the four places mentioned, looking upon the Ascendant by
being in superior position and hurling its rays to that bound in which the Ascendent is,
hurling its ray to the domicile and bound together; if that hurling of rays were to the domicile
only, it would not have [such] power. There is one degree left of the bounds that belong to
Arēs.
So Arēs takes over the lordship of the releasing and ray until the end of this degree. Since
the releasing [through these bounds] ends without the ray of any other planet, Arēs indicates
injury from fire and disease in this year; even though it is in a good place, it is necessary that it
have such an indication. The misfortune is worse for the native because the Moon testifies to
Arēs. If it were not the case that the Sun stands between its ray and the Ascendant and breaks
the power of Arēs, it would be worse. Then the releasing of the Ascendant comes to the bound
of Aphroditē till the eleventh degree. Because Arēs has left off and Aphroditē has entered
[into time-lordship], it is necessary to mix together the power of these two. Because of this, the
native will be blessed with love from his parents since both of these planets are in good
places, but nevertheless pain will touch him. Then the releasing belongs to Hermēs till the
nineteenth degree, and during this period the native will increase his learning and culture and
the like. Then the releasing reaches Zeus at puberty, and it will indicate praise on account of
his culture and good things from his eloquence and his displaying behavior that is pleasing to
people. However, since Zeus is retrograde in motion and does not see the Moon and the
Ascendant, this decreases the [good], because whenever the planets are thus their power is
weakened and their gifts muddied; if Zeus were in a better place than it is, it would increase
the good. Then the releasing comes to Kronos, while Aphroditē casts its rays to the twenty-
seventh degree of the Scorpion from a square, so that Kronos and Aphroditē have authority
over the releasing together. Kronos indicates slowness in work and disease and being away
from home and grief and impasse and difficulty, and this is worse because Arēs is in superior
position to Kronos upon the tenth. If it were not that Zeus looks upon Kronos, it would be
worse. Because of the place of Kronos, his mother will die during this period, but he will
make acquisitions because Kronos indicates this, and he will take a wife with a dowry, and a
child will be born to him who will live a short time and die in the third year; his enjoyment of
women and children will be due to Aphroditē, but his lament and the death of his child will
be from Kronos. Then the releasing arrives at the first bound of the Archer, which is the
domicile and bound of Zeus. Because Zeus makes this place its domicile and bound, it has
authority over the releasing alone without any of the other planets, and this increases its
power. It indicates leadership for the native and honor among groups of men, and his
elevation among them. Because Kronos is in the twelfth degree, it indicates the last day of his
life, and he will live after the twelfth degree forty-eight nights because Kronos is in the
beginning of the degree [at 12;8]."
And having investigated and discovered these matters, O Marcus; with much
effort and self-discipline, I have made an orderly arrangement of them and given
over the precepts in my charge. Therefore, I adjure you by the Sun and Moon and
the courses of the five stars, and by nature and providence and the four elements,
not to impart these matters quickly to anyone unlearned nor to any random person
whatever, but only after reckoning his effort and yearning and the length of time he
has for study and investigation. For, I have left [them] to you instead of much
money, since I have figured the action of time; for, money is in fact easily spent and
subjects one to jealousy and exposes him to treachery, but the treatises of mine will
provide livelihood for you and reputation and honor and pleasure and benefit if
you behave in a fitting manner without faltering, as was written earlier, neither
giving grounds for complaint nor merely touching the surface. And when you
yourself, then, come to believe that your suffering will be the same as if you
yourself had composed [this teaching] – but nevertheless you have already suffered
in receiving [the teaching], and in carrying of honor as your recompense you have
already passed your examination – [only then] impart it to those who have the
ability. By doing this, though you will extol both me and the teaching, you will
benefit yourself and demonstrate your love of work and your love of the fine. To
you who keep this oath, [may there be] a consummation according to your wishes.
Vettius Valens, The Anthology - Book VII, Conclusion

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This booklet has been specially prepared for Kepler College students

by Project Hindsight to facilitate their study of Hellenistic Astrology. It

Copyright 2005 by Robert H. Schmidt and the Phaser Foundation.

Vettius Valens: The Anthology. Critical edition by Pingree (Teubner 1986).

All translations by Robert H. Schmidt.

Vettius Valens, The Anthology - Book VII, Preface

PAPYRUS FRAGMENT CCAG VIII,4;95

Hellenistic Concepts as They Survive in Modern Astrology

From a Papyrus Fragment CCAG 8,4;95

Firmicus Maternus, IV, pref. 5]

Hellenistic Astrology: An Overview

The Texts — The surviving corpus of Hellenistic astrological writings consists of a

Reconstructing the Practice of Hellenistic Astrology — The question of the coherence of

Uncovering the Theory Underlying Hellenistic Astrology — It is generally acknowledged that

Catalogue of Hellenistic Astrologers and their

The Pre-Hellenistic Period

The Founders of Hellenistic Astrology Proper

Critical Assessment of the Tradition

Later Compilers & Commentators

Anubio. A work by him on planetary configurations, planets in the domiciles and

discussions of lots, house delineation, twelfth-parts and an introduction to the method of

Glossary of Commonly Used Hellenistic Terminology

ascending node: anabibazō. The north lunar node.

bodily conjunction. sunaphē sōmatikōs. An “applying conjunction.” See conjunction.

busy: chrēmatistikos. See (able to) conduct business.

climacterical: klimakterikos. Pertaining to a critical time in one's life, especially in terms of

commixture: sugkrasis. A fundamental mixture of elements or natures, as when the qualities or

configuration: suschēmatismos. Planets are in configuration or are configured as a result of

decreasing in light. Said of the Moon when it is waning.

descending node: katabibazō. The south lunar node.

diametrical, diametrical (figure): diametros, diametron schēma. Diameter refers to a diameter of

domicile master, domicile mastership: oikodespotēs, oikodespoteia. The word suggests a

figure-assumption: schēmatismos. When one planet takes up a hexagonal, tetragonal, trigonal, or

figural conjunction. sunaphē kata schēma. An “applying aspect.” See conjunction.

figure-description: schēmatographia. One of the two major components in the outcome-

hexagonal, hexagonal (figure), hexagonal (side): hexagōnos, hexagōnikon schēma, hexagōnikē

inception: katarchē. The beginning of an event in electional astrology.

increasing in light. Said of the Moon when it is waxing.

lights: phōta. The Sun and the Moon.

master, mastership: despotēs, despoteia. General word for a “ruler” or “rulership.”

monomoiria: monomoiria. The allotment of individual degrees of the zodiac to different

outcome-description: apotelesmatographia. The assessment of “planetary condition.” The two

place-positioning: topothesia. One of the two major components in the outcome-description of a

(zōidia) regulative of business: chrēmatizō or chrēmatistikos. This is normally a designation of

rise: anatellō. See arise.

sect-mate: sunairetēs: A planet that belongs to the same sect as another.

set: dunō. See sinking out of sight.

take delight in: chairō. As an alternative translation to "rejoice."

tetragonal, tetragonal (figure), tetragonal (side):: tetragōnos, tetragōnikon schēma, tetragōnikē

topical place: topos. See place.

trigon: trigōnon. One of the four “triplicities” or “triangles.”

ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY 1 (END)

RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) I,2

RHETORIUS (COLLECTION) I,44

ANTIOCHUS SUMMARY II,1

FIRMICUS MATERNUS III, END OF PREFACE, BEGINNING OF 1

(See Next Page)

The Natures and Topical Significations of the Planets

Concerning the Power of the Wandering Stars

Ptolemy: Sometimes Moistening, sometimes Drying

The Classification of the Planets as Benefics and Malefics

The Classification of the Planets according to Sect

Antiochus Summary 1 (end)

The Classification of the Planets according to Gender