3/25/2019 Context is Everything: How Charts really work

Context is Everything: How Charts really

work
by Hank Friedman

[Note: all of the charts in this article, unless otherwise noted, are
calculated using the Tropical Zodiac and the Equal House System.]

When we first learn astrology, it's by bits and pieces. It takes us years
to begin to see how different chart factors dance with each other. And
even more years to be able to blend them together successfully.

Ascertaining the "tilt" of a chart – is the person introverted or

extroverted? Successful or challenged? Etc. – is both a fine art and the
result of a finely honed skill at pattern recognition.

Therefore it's not surprising that novices over-rely on astrological

cookbooks and reports, and wonder why these are so often
contradictory and inaccurate.

The Impact of House Placement

I've never seen a single book on Western astrology that focuses on

how house placement modifies the expression of a planet in a sign or
aspect. And yet the house occupied by a planet greatly effects the
expression of all of its attributes and interactions.

How Placement Modifies Expression of Astrological Themes

House Planet's Effect on House House's Effect on Planet and

1 affects vitality, physical
appearance, longevity,
success
2 colors person's voice,
facial appearance, eating
& spending
3 impacts one's courage,
initiative, manual self-
expression, skill set
4 affects person's sense of
well-being, colors one's
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Sign
identified with and
strengthened, presented to
the world, embodied
expressed through one's
voice (consciously or
unconsciously), made
insecure
expressed through habitual
behavior, emboldened or
forcefully expressed
often expressed reflexively &
subjectively, expressed in
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defensive responses private settings

5 affects fertility, clarity of
thinking, nature of &
freedom of self-
expression
6 relationship with
coworkers & clients,
health & rhythms &
routines
7 kind of primary
relationships, sex drive,
nature of one's partners
8 intensity of life's crises,
coping strategies,
intimacy patterns
9 relationship with gurus &
teachers, level of good
fortune, faith
10 patterns of achievement,
relationship with
authorities, degree of
success
11 ability to receive,
relationship with older
sibs, level of fulfillment
interwoven with one's core
thinking & self-expression,
presented easily to others
acute and intermittent
disruptions, magnified
expression of themes
dis-indentified with or
disowned, projected on
others, evoked in
interactions
obstructed, challenged,
redirected towards inner
concerns
integrated into world view
and approach to life, nature
of personal aspirations
themes are augmented,
expressed, motivated &
empowered
continual improvement of
planet's and sign's themes

12 relationship with Spirit, muted, operates

patterns of expenditures, unconsciously, marginalized,
loss, denial, & surrender ignored

[Note: If you want to apply the effects of the table and there is no
planet in a house, look to the house's ruler.]

The Impact of Sign Placement

It is also important to take into account the huge impact the sign a
planet occupies has on the aspects the planet makes and receives, and
upon how the planet responds to transits. I remember reading a
paragraph from Planets in Transit by Rob Hand, and noticed that its
delineation was completely incorrect (more communication) if the
natal planet, Mercury, was in a mute sign. Every astrology cookbook
fails to take the sign occupied by the planet into account when
delineating planets by house, transit, or other factors.

The Impact of Shared Themes

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And we need to avoid focusing upon one meaning of a planet or a

house, because each has many, many significations and only by
keeping ones mind as open as possible to the myriad of meanings can
the correct insights arise. [E.g. when trying to ascertain which
theme(s) will manifest in a specific chart, understanding the themes
shared by the planet, sign, and house becomes paramount.]

The Impact of the Natal Chart

Lip service is given to the principle, "only what is promised in the

birth chart can manifest by transit" but how often is this paradigm
adhered to? People purchase astrology software that claims to help
them succeed at gambling but don't look at their charts to see if such
results are possible! Or they move to a new locations, chosen using
Astro*Carto*Graphy or a relocation chart, for love or career success
– but ignore the issues blocking such themes in their birth chart (or
transits).

The Impact of Good/Strong vs. Bad/Weak Placements

When I was reading in one astrological cookbook, "a person with the
lord of the first house in the ninth house will be optimistic, lucky, and
have a wonderful relationship with his father" I was struck by how
the complete opposite to that was true for a friend of mine with that
configuration. It took me a moment to realize...

the complete opposite

exactly opposite

In other words, the same themes with a minus sign!

(I.e. bad relationship with father, unlucky, and pessimistic!)

Why? Because his first lord was both very weak and conjunct a strong
malefic, turning the interpretation upside down!

This principle: that if a planet is very poorly placed, the significations

it represents are profoundly challenged in their lives, was further
reinforced during a lecture from my Vedic teacher. Hart taught a
course on Nakshatras (Vedic lunar mansions). He made it perfectly
clear that if a planet in a specific Nakshatra was well-placed, the
positive significations would manifest, while if it was poorly placed,
the negative significations would be most evident. [See Example 6
below.]
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I cannot emphasize this principle enough: the placement of a planet

completely governs the expression of its sign, aspects, significations,
and every other attribute of it.

Context is Everything.

Vedic texts do realize this point, and emphasize that if a planet is

weak, it will give very different results than if it is strong, etc. but even
here one must take into account a very many factors in order to get a
correct reading.

That's because it's not enough to take into account one planet, or even
its interactions with other planets. The impact of the rising sign on the
expression of every planet in the chart is huge, as are factors like the
shape of the chart as a whole, the unfolding cycles, and planets in
combination.

Lest a beginner throw up their hands and say "what's the use", we do
learn piecemeal, and gradually do build up our understanding of how
to sort out the contradictions and find ways of synthesizing all of the
factors in the chart. And it helps that we have a living, breathing
person in front of us, who is showing us how they embody and who
they are, just with their presence.

In other words, I'm not trying to discourage anyone, but instead to

shine a light on the goal: to see the whole person, as accurately and
completely as possible, by taking into account the whole chart, and
not just its parts.

When context is taken into account, profoundly accurate perceptions

are possible. E.g. The first three Vedic astrologers who looked at my
birth chart immediately said, as their first comment, "you have no
children". That's how obvious it was, astrologically, that children
would be denied to me. To be clear, I wanted children and did try to
have them in my marriage, but my karma, as clearly shown in my
chart, said "absolutely not".

Principles of Context

1. Focus on the Placement of each Planet.

A. Is the planet strong (own sign, exalted, directionally strong1, in

mutual reception, retrograde, a bright Moon2, Vargottama3, focal,
etc.) or weak (combust, weak by sign, in a planetary war4, etc.).

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B. Is the planet with or receiving aspects by benefics (Jupiter, Venus,

bright Moon) or malefics (Saturn, Mars, the Sun, and the Nodes)?

C. Does the planet occupy a good (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11) house or a bad
(3, 6, 8, 12) house? Is it strengthened by being angular?

D. Does the planet rule good or bad houses? If both, which is the
predominate influence? (I find the rulership of houses as ascertained
using the Sidereal Zodiac and Whole Sign Houses most accurate.)

E. Does the planet have either good or bad planets in both adjacent
houses (the previous house and the next house)?

F. Does the planet participate in a major positive (Grand Trine or

Sextile, or positive yogas) or negative (T-square, Grand Cross, or
negative yogas) combination with other planets?

2. Ascendant Effects.

A. Examine the effect of planetary placements upon the First House

and ruler of the First House.

B. Is the planet easily expressed? The Ascendant is the gatekeeper

controlling the expression of each planet. If the planet is in the same
Tropical sign as the Ascendant, it can express itself easily, otherwise
it's expression is to some degree obstructed. Similarly, if the planet is a
friend of the ruler of the Sidereal Rising Sign, then it will express
much more positively than otherwise.

3. Look at the overall placement of the planets in the chart.

A. Overall chart configurations (Bucket, Bowl, Splash, etc.) are major

indicators of life patterns.

B. Hemispheric predominances (most planets in the top, bottom, left,

or right halves of the chart have great impact).

C. Other predominances (e.g. by Mode, Element, the occupation of

one planet's sign, stellia, etc.) color a chart greatly.

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Examples of these principles

1. When the predominate element doesn't manifest.

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Have you ever seen a chart where the person has either significant
planets (like the Sun and Moon) or a majority of planets in a specific
element, but they just don't seem to embody that element? That's
because the Ascendant is muting the expression of it.

For example, Jackie Onassis had her Sun and Moon in Fire signs, but
she didn't appear fiery, or spontaneous, or dominant because her
Ascendant in Scorpio would not permit it (nor would her South Node
rising).

Jackie Onassis

Similarly, Whoopie Goldberg doesn't seem all sensitive and watery

despite her Sun and Moon in water signs, but instead the Saturnian
Rising Sign (both Tropically and Sidereally) -- and Saturn conjunct
the Sun -- gives her a much drier demeanor.

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Whoopie Golderg

2. When a planet is strong.

Harrison Ford has embodied the Hero Archetype largely because his
Jupiter is both exalted and focal (conjunct the top of the chart).

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Harrison Ford

3. The importance of chart patterns.

Albert Einstein has Uranus in Virgo as the handle of a Bucket Chart.

One might overlook that factor when examining his other chart
placements, but that would be a major oversight. In fact, his unique
(Uranus) approach to matter led to some of his greatest insights. He
was also, especially in his later years, unable to cooperate with others,
going down unproductive paths, as reflected by the independence
(Uranus) and narrow focus (Virgo) that were so dominant in his
makeup.

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Albert Einstein

4. When a focal planet doesn't predominate.

No one would consider Bob Newhart -- a very mild-mannered actor --

to be Martian, yet his Mars is rising. But his Mars is in Libra and
conjunct both the Moon and Mercury, all of which occupy the 12th
house. All of these factors mute the expression of Mars in his chart.

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Bob Newhart

That Clint Eastwood is Saturnine is pretty obvious, given Saturn's

strength (in Capricorn Tropically and also retrograde) but its
placement as the bucket handle makes it the overwhelmingly most
important planet in his chart. (Much more important than his Sun in
Gemini or Moon in Leo.)

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Clint Eastwood

5. Mistaking one factor for another

If we look at Madonna's chart, we might conclude that I'm wrong

about the 12th house obscuring major chart factors. After all, isn't
her whole manner, and fame, about her being a Leo?

In fact, as has been repeatedly written about her, she's the

consummate business woman with remarkable perseverance and
common sense.

What many attribute to her Sun in Leo misses very important points.
She's primarily serious and perfectionistic (Mercury and Moon in
Virgo rising), but has also shown a pattern of rebellion (e.g marrying
bad boy Sean Penn), intense drive and determination, and heterodoxy
(e.g. her extreme rejection of her strict Catholic upbringing) that can
only be attributed to Mars (in the house of religion!).

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A closer look at her chart shows that her Mars in Taurus reigns
supreme because it is the bucket handle planet. Suddenly her
contrived sensuality and endless striving make tremendous sense.

[Note: because Mars has an incredibly unpredictable orbit around the

time of its station, it was been as the planet that goes its own way
centuries before the discovery of Uranus.]

Madonna

6. The Power of Minus.

As I pointed out above, planets poorly placed manifest in very

challenging life themes, and often as the opposite of what one would
expect for a given planetary placement.

The ruler of the Ascendant in the Ninth House is usually a blessing,

but when the planet's placement is poor, the situation is reversed.

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The famous tennis player Maureen Connolly provides us with an

excellent example of this principle. She was born with the ruler of her
(Sidereal) Scorpio Ascendant, Mars, in the 9th house. But like my
friend (mentioned above), her Mars is debilitated in Cancer, and
impacted by two malefics: conjunct Ketu (the South Node) and
opposite to a doubly-strong Saturn:

Maureen Connolly

[Note: the chart above is the only one in this article using Vedic
coordinates: the Lahiri Sidereal Zodiac, Whole Sign Houses, and the
Mean Node.]

Her Mars is in the lunar mansion of Ashlesha, whose dark sides

include manipulation, coldness, conflict, and intense ambition, as well
as potential medical problems.

Maureen was abandoned by her Father (9th house issue) as a toddler,

while being told he was dead. At age 10, she started learning tennis,
and quickly rose in the ranks. She was know for her hatred of her
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opponents, expressionless demeanor, and as an "assassin" on the

court. She is quoted (in Wikipedia) as saying, “I have always believed
greatness on a tennis court was my destiny, a dark destiny, at times,
where the court became my secret jungle and I a lonely, fear-stricken
hunter. I was a strange little girl armed with hate, fear, and a Golden
Racket.”

Sadly, her tennis career was cut short when she was thrown from
horseback and severely shattered her leg. She died of cancer at the age
of 34 (the lord of the Ascendant governs longevity, and hers was
compromised by the negative placement of Mars).

[Lest readers with a weak Ascendant ruler jump to conclusions about

themselves, there are many factors that can reverse the impact on
longevity of a weak Ascendant lord. They include participation in
yogas, neecha bhanga (amelioration of weakness by sign), the
influence of a strong benefic, and others.]

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Conclusion

Each of us, while viewing a chart, needs to embrace as much of the

chart as possible. To first examine its details, to the best of our
abilities, and then to let our deeper mind create a story, or form an
image, about the workings of the whole chart.

Then the chart comes alive, and magic happens.

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[There are many articles that support this theme on my website, e.g.
focusing on the effects of the rising sign on planetary expression, on
focal planets, and much more. Please explore the rest of my Learn
Astrology Free website for further understanding.]

terminology used in this website

1. Directional Strength, known as Dig Bala, means that a planet is

strong when it a specific house. Mercury and Jupiter in the First
House, the Sun and Mars in the Tenth House, Saturn in the Seventh
House, and Venus and the Moon in the Fourth House gain directional
strength.

2. Bright Moon: if the Moon is in the sign opposite to the Sun, or

either of the two adjacent signs, it is considered bright (and therefore
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strong).

3. Vargottama: Vargottama means "best division". If a planet is in the

same sign in the birth chart and the Navamsha (9th harmonic) chart,
it is said to be Vargottama (and thereby gains strength).

4. Planetary War: If two True Planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter,

and Saturn) are within one degree of each other, they are considered
to be in a territorial battle, i.e. in planetary war. Both planets are
"bloodied" -- unsettled -- by being at war, but the loser of the war is
significantly weakened.

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Thanks to Kathi Seasons for her help with this article.

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Copyright © 2012 Hank Friedman --- ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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