{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_70850/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_70850","id":"gutenberg_70850","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/70850","summary":null,"tags":["Astrology -- Early works to 1800","Category: Philosophy & Ethics","Category: Religion/Spirituality"],"text":"Transcriber\u2019s Notes:\n\nUnderscores \u201c_\u201d before and after a word or phrase indicate _italics_\nin the original text. Small capitals have been converted to SOLID\ncapitals. Illustrations have been moved so they do not break up\nparagraphs. Old or antiquated spellings have been preserved.\nTypographical and punctuation errors have been silently corrected.\n\n\n\n\n PTOLEMY\u2019S TETRABIBLOS\n OR\n QUADRIPARTITE\n BEING\n FOUR BOOKS\n OF THE\n _INFLUENCE OF THE STARS_\n\n NEWLY TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK PARAPHRASE OF PROCLUS\n WITH\n A PREFACE, EXPLANATORY NOTES\n AND\n _AN APPENDIX_\n CONTAINING\n EXTRACTS FROM THE ALMAGEST OF PTOLEMY\n AND THE WHOLE OF HIS\n CENTILOQUY\n TOGETHER WITH\n _A Short Notice of Mr. Ranger\u2019s Zodiacal Planisphere_\n AND AN EXPLANATORY PLATE\n\n By J. M. ASHMAND\n\n NEW EDITION\n\n \u201cYe stars, which are the poetry of Heaven!\n If, in your bright leaves, we would read the fate\n Of men and empires,\u2014\u2019tis to be forgiven.\u201d\n LORD BYRON.\n\n LONDON:\n _PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY W. FOULSHAM & CO., Ltd._\n DEALERS IN SCIENTIFIC BOOKS\n 10/11 RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET, LONDON, E.C.4\n\n _Made and Printed in Great Britain_\n\n TO THE\n _AUTHOR OF \u201cWAVERLEY\u201d_\n THIS TRANSLATION\n OF A\n WORK CONTAINING THE BEST ACCREDITED PRINCIPLES\n OF\n _ASTROLOGY_\n IS DEDICATED\n _With the most profound admiration of his unrivalled Talents_\n WHICH COULD ALONE HAVE RESTORED\n INTEREST TO THE SPECULATIONS\n OF AN\n _ANTIQUATED SCIENCE_\n\n\n\n\nADVERTISEMENT\n\n\nThe use recently made of Astrology in the poetical machinery of certain\nworks of genius (which are of the highest popularity, and above all\npraise), seems to have excited in the world at large a desire to learn\nsomething of the mysteries of that science which has, in all former\nages, if not in these days, more or less engaged reverence and usurped\nbelief. The apparent existence of such a general desire has caused the\ncompletion of the following Translation, and its presentation to the\npublic; although it was originally undertaken only in part, and merely\nto satisfy two or three individuals of the grounds on which the now\nneglected doctrines of Astrology had so long and so fully maintained\ncredit.\n\n\n\n\nTABLE OF CONTENTS\n\n\n CHAP. PAGE\n BOOK I\n I. Proem 1\n II. Knowledge may be acquired by Astronomy to a certain Extent 2\n III. That Prescience is useful 8\n IV. The Influences of the Planetary Orbs 13\n V. Benefics and Malefics 14\n VI. Masculine and Feminine 14\n VII. Diurnal and Nocturnal 15\n VIII. The Influence of Position with regard to the Sun 16\n IX. The Influence of the fixed Stars 16\n X. Constellations North of the Zodiac 19\n XI. Constellations South of the Zodiac 20\n XII. The Annual Seasons 21\n XIII. The Influence of the Four Angles 21\n XIV. Tropical, Equinoctial, Fixed, and Bicorporeal Signs 23\n XV. Masculine and Feminine Signs 23\n XVI. Mutual Configurations of the Signs 24\n XVII. Signs commanding and obeying 26\n XVIII. Signs beholding each other, and of equal Power 26\n XIX. Signs Inconjunct 27\n XX. Houses of the Planets 28\n XXI. The Triplicities 29\n XXII. Exaltations 31\n XXIII. The Disposition of the Terms 32\n XXIV. The Terms (according to Ptolemy) 35\n XXV. The Places and Degrees of every Planet 36\n XXVI. Faces, Chariots, and other similar Attributes\n of the Planets 37\n XXVII. Application, Separation, and other Faculties 38\n\n BOOK II\n I. General Division of the Subject 40\n II. Peculiarities observable throughout every entire Climate 41\n III. The Familiarity of the Regions of the Earth with the\n Triplicities and the Planets 43\n IV. The Familiarity of the Regions of the Earth with the\n Fixed Stars 52\n V. Mode of Particular Prediction in Eclipses 52\n VI. The Regions or Countries to be considered as liable\n to be comprehended in the Event 53\n VII. The Time and Period of the Event 54\n VIII. The Genus, Class, or Kind, liable to be affected 55\n IX. The Quality and Nature of the Effect 58\n X. Colours in Eclipses, Comets, and Similar Phenomena 62\n XI. The New Moon of the Year 63\n XII. The particular Natures of the Signs by which the\n different Constitutions of the Atmosphere are\n Produced 64\n XIII. Mode of Consideration for particular Constitutions\n of the Atmosphere 66\n XIV. The Signification of Meteors 68\n\n BOOK III\n I. Proem 71\n II. The Conception, and the Parturition, or Birth;\n by which latter Event the Animal quits the Womb,\n and assumes another State of Existence 72\n III. The Degree Ascending 74\n IV. Distribution of the Doctrine of Nativities 75\n V. The Parents 77\n VI. Brothers and Sisters 81\n VII. Male or Female 82\n VIII. Twins 83\n IX. Monstrous or Defective Births 85\n X. Children not Reared 86\n XI. The Duration of Life 88\n XII. The Prorogatory Places 88\n XIII. The Number of Prorogators, and also the Part of Fortune 89\n XIV. Number of the Modes of Prorogation 91\n XV. Exemplification 96\n XVI. The Form and Temperament of the Body 100\n XVII. The Hurts, Injuries, and Diseases of the Body 106\n XVIII. The Quality of the Mind 107\n XIX. The Diseases of the Mind 114\n\n BOOK IV\n I. Proem 117\n II. The Fortune of Wealth 117\n III. The Fortune of Rank 118\n IV. The Quality of Employment 120\n V. Marriage 124\n VI. Children 128\n VII. Friends and Enemies 130\n VIII. Travelling 132\n IX. The Kind of Death 134\n X. The Periodical Divisions of Time 137\n\n APPENDIX\n NO.\n I. Almagest, Book viii, Chap. 4 144\n II. Extract from the Almagest, Book II, Chap. 9 147\n Table of Latitudes, from the Almagest 151\n Extract from the Table of Ascensions, in the Almagest 152\n III. Ptolemy\u2019s Centiloquy 153\n IV. The Zodiacal Planisphere, and plate 161\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\n\nOf all sciences, whether true or false, which have at any time engaged\nthe attention of the world, there is not one of which the real or\nassumed principles are less generally known, in the present age, than\nthose of Astrology. The whole doctrine of this science is commonly\nunderstood to have been completely overturned; and, of late, people\nseem to have satisfied themselves with merely knowing the import of its\nname. Such contented ignorance, in persons, too, sufficiently informed\nin other respects, is the more extraordinary, since Astrology has\nsustained a most conspicuous part throughout the history of the world,\neven until days comparatively recent. In the East, where it first\narose, at a period of very remote antiquity,[1] and whence it came to\nsubjugate the intellect of Europe, it still even now holds sway. In\nEurope, and in every part of the world where learning had \u201cimpress\u2019d\nthe human soil,\u201d Astrology reigned supreme until the middle of the\n17th century. It entered into the councils of princes, it guided the\npolicy of nations, and ruled the daily actions of individuals. All this\nis attested by the records of every nation which has a history, and\nby none more fully than by those of England. Yet, with these striking\nfacts before their eyes, the present generation seem never, until now,\nto have inquired on what basis this belief of their forefathers was\nestablished, nor by what authority the delusion (if it was one) could\nhave been for so many ages supported. Among a thousand persons who\nnow treat the mention of Astrology with supercilious ridicule, there\nis scarcely one who knows distinctly what it is he laughs at, or on\nwhat plea his ancestors should stand excused for having, in their day,\ncontemplated with respect the unfortunate object of modern derision.\n\n[1] Sir Isaac Newton has the following remarks in regard to the origin\nof Astrology:\u2014\u201cAfter the study of Astronomy was set on foot for the use\nof navigation, and the \u00c6gyptians, by the heliacal risings and settings\nof the stars, had determined the length of the solar year of 365 days,\nand by other observations had fixed the solstices, and formed the\nfixed stars into asterisms, all which was done in the reigns of Ammon,\nSesac, Orus, and Memnon,\u201d (about 1000 years before Christ), \u201cit may be\npresumed that they continued to observe the motions of the planets,\nfor they called them after the names of their gods; and Nechepsos, or\nNicepsos, King of Sais,\u201d (772 B.C.), \u201cby the assistance of Petosiris, a\npriest of \u00c6gypt, invented astrology, grounding it upon the aspects of\nthe planets, and the qualities of the men and women to whom they were\ndedicated;\u2020 and in the beginning of the reign of Nabonassar, King of\nBabylon, about which time the \u00c6thiopians, under Sabacon, invaded \u00c6gypt\u201d\n(751 B.C.), \u201cthose \u00c6gyptians who fled from him to Babylon, carried\nthither the \u00c6gyptian year of 365 days, and the study of astronomy and\nastrology, and founded the \u00e6ra of Nabonassar, dating it from the first\nyear of that king\u2019s reign\u201d (747 B.C.), \u201cand beginning the year on the\nsame day with the \u00c6gyptians for the sake of their calculations. So\nDiodorus: \u2018_they say that the Chald\u00e6an in Babylon, being colonies of\nthe \u00c6gyptians, became famous for astrology, having learned it from the\npriests of \u00c6gypt_.\u2019\u201d\u2014Newton\u2019s Chronology, pp. 251, 252.\n\nAgain, in p. 327: \u201cThe practice of observing the stars began in \u00c6gypt\nin the days of Ammon, as above, and was propagated from thence, in the\nreign of his son Sesac, into Afric, Europe, and Asia, by conquest;\nand then Atlas formed the sphere of the Libyans\u201d (956 B.C.), \u201cand\nChiron that of the Greeks (939 B.C.); and the Chald\u00e6ans also made a\nsphere of their own. But astrology was invented in \u00c6gypt by Nichepsos,\nor Necepsos, one of the Kings of the Lower \u00c6gypt, and Petosiris his\npriest, a little before the days of Sabacon, and propagated thence into\nChald\u00e6a, where Zoroaster, the legislator of the Magi, met with it: so\nPaulinus;\n\n \u2018_Quique magos docuit mysteria vana Necepsos._\u2019\u201d\n\nThe arcana of Astrology constituted a main feature in the doctrines of\nthe Persian Magi; and it further appears, by Newton\u2019s Chronology, p.\n347, that Zoroaster (although the \u00e6ra of his life has been erroneously\nassigned to various remoter periods) lived in the reign of Darius\nHystaspis, about 520 B.C., and assisted Hystaspes, the father of\nDarius, in reforming the Magi, of whom the said Hystaspes was Master.\nNewton adds, p. 352, that \u201cabout the same time with Hystaspes and\nZoroaster, lived also Ostanes, another eminent Magus: Pliny places him\nunder Darius Hystaspis, and Suidas makes him the follower of Zoroaster:\nhe came into Greece with Xerxes about 480 B.C., and seems to be the\nOtanes of Herodotus. In his book, called the Octateuchus, he taught the\nsame doctrine of the Deity as Zoroaster.\u201d\n\nHaving quoted thus far from Newton, it seems proper to subjoin the\nfollowing extract from the \u201cAncient Universal History:\u201d\u2014\u201cIn the reign\nof Gushtasp\u201d (the oriental name of Darius Hystaspis), \u201cKing of Persia,\nflourished a celebrated astrologer, whose name was Gjamasp, surnamed\nAl Hakim, or the wise. The most credible writers say that he was the\nbrother of King Gushtasp, and his confidant and chief minister. He is\nsaid to have predicted the coming of the Messiah; and some treatises\nunder his name are yet current in the East. Dr. Thomas Hyde, in\nspeaking of this philosopher, cites a passage from a very ancient\nauthor, having before told us that this author asserted there had been\namong the Persians ten doctors of such consummate wisdom as the whole\nworld could not boast the like. He then gives the author\u2019s words: \u2018Of\nthese, the sixth was Gjamasp, an astrologer, who was counsellor to\nHystaspis. He is the author of a book intitled _Judicia Gjamaspis_,\nin which is contained his judgment on the planetary conjunctions. And\ntherein he gave notice that Jesus should appear; that Mohammed should\nbe born; that the Magian religion should be abolished, etc.; nor did\nany astrologer ever come up to him.\u2019 (_E. lib. Mucj. apud Hyde._) Of\nthis book there is an Arabic version, the title of which runs thus:\nThe Book of the Philosopher Gjamasp, containing Judgments on the Grand\nConjunctions of the Planets, and on the Events produced by them.\nThis version was made by Lali; the title he gave it in Arabic was Al\nKeranai, and he published it A.D. 1280. In the preface of his version\nit is said that, after the times of Zoroaster, or Zerdusht, reigned\nGushtasp, the son of Lohrasp,\u2020\u2020 a very powerful prince; and that in his\nreign flourished in the city of Balch, on the borders of Chorassan,\na most excellent philosopher, whose name was Gjamasp, author of this\nbook; wherein is contained an account of all the great conjunctions\nof the planets which had happened before his time, and which were to\nhappen in succeeding ages; and wherein the appearances of new religions\nand the rise of new monarchies were exactly set down. This author,\nthroughout his whole piece, styles Zerdusht, or Zoroaster, our Prophet.\n(D\u2019Herbelot, Bibl. Orient. Art. Gjamasp.) The notion of predicting\nthe rise and progress of religions from the grand conjunctions of the\nplanets, has been likewise propagated in our western parts: Cardan\nwas a bold assertor of this doctrine. The modern Persians are still\ngreat votaries of astrology, and although they distinguish between\nit and astronomy, they have but one word to express astronomer and\nastrologer; viz. _manegjim_, which is exactly equivalent to the Greek\nword \u03b1\u03c2\u03c4\u03c1\u03bf\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03bf\u03c2. Of all the provinces of Persia, Chorassan is the most\nfamous for producing great men in that art; and in Chorassan there is\na little town called Genabed, and in that town a certain family which,\nfor 6 or 700 years past, has produced the most famous astrologers\nin Persia; and the king\u2019s astrologer is always either a native of\nGenabed, or one brought up there. Sir John Chardin affirms that the\nappointments in his time for these sages amounted to six millions of\nFrench livres per annum.\u2014Albumazar of Balch scholar of Alkendi, a Jew,\nwho was professor of judicial astrology at Bagdad, in the Caliphate\nof Almamoum\u2020\u2020\u2020 became wonderfully famous. He wrote expressly from the\nPersian astrologers, and it may be from the works of Gjamasp, since\nhe also reports a prediction of the coming of Christ in the following\nwords: viz. \u2018In the sphere of Persia, saith Aben Ezra, there ariseth\nupon the face of the sign Virgo a beautiful maiden, she holding two\nears of corn in her hand, and a child in her arm: she feedeth him,\nand giveth him suck, &c. This maiden,\u2019 saith Albumazar, \u2018we call\nAdrenedefa, the pure Virgin. She bringeth up a child in a place which\nis called Abrie (the Hebrew land), and the child\u2019s name is called Eisi\n(Jesus).\u2019 This made Albertus Magnus believe that our Saviour, Christ,\nwas born in Virgo; and therefore Cardinal Alliac, erecting our Lord\u2019s\nnativity by his description, casteth this sign into the horoscope.\nBut the meaning of Albumazar was, saith Friar Bacon, that the said\nvirgin was born, the Sun being in that sign, and so it is noted in the\ncalendar; and that she was to bring up her son in the Hebrew land.\n(Mr. John Gregory\u2019s Notes on various Passages of Scripture.)\u201d\u2014_Ancient\nUniversal History, vol. 5, pp. 415 to 419._\n\n\u2020It is maintained by astrologers, that the planets, _having been\nobserved_ to produce certain effects, were _consequently_ dedicated to\nthe several personages whose names they respectively bear.\n\n\u2020\u2020This caliph reigned in the earlier part of the 9th century, and\ncaused Ptolemy\u2019s Great Construction to be translated into Arabic, as\nhereafter mentioned.\n\n\u2020\u2020\u2020This seems to be a mistake of the Arabian author, for Gushtasp was\nidentical with Darius Hystaspis, and Lohrasp (otherwise Cyaxares) was\nfather of Darius the Mede, who was overcome by Cyrus, 536 B.C.\u2014See\nNewton.\n\nThe general want of information on these points, and the indifference\nwith which such want has been hitherto regarded, cannot surely be\nattributed solely to the modern disrepute of the science; for mankind\nhave usually, in every successive age, exercised great industry in\ntracing all previous customs, however trifling or obsolete, and in\nexamining all sorts of creeds, however unimportant or erroneous,\nwhenever there has appeared any striking connection between\nsuch matters and historical facts; and, since astrology is most\nunquestionably blended intimately with history, it therefore becomes\nnecessary to seek for some further hypothesis, by which this ignorance\nand indifference may be accounted for.\n\nPerhaps astrology has been conceived to have borne the same relation\nto astronomy as alchymy did to chymistry. If such has been the notion,\nit has certainly been adopted in error, for a modern chymist is still\nalmost an alchymist: it is true that he no longer delays his work in\ndeference to the planets, nor does he now try to make gold, nor to\ndistil elixir of earthly immortality; but nevertheless he still avails\nhimself, to a certain degree, of the same rules and the same means\nas those of the old alchymist: he is still intent upon the subtle\nprocesses of Nature, and still imitates her as far as he can. He\nreduces the diamond to charcoal by an operation analogous to that by\nwhich the alchymist sought to transmute lead into gold; and he mainly\ndiffers from the alchymist only in having assured himself that there\nis a point beyond which Nature forbids facsimiles. Not so slightly,\nhowever, does the astronomer differ from the astrologer, but _toto\nc\u0153lo_: the astrologer considered the heavenly bodies and their motions\nmerely as the mechanism wherewith he was to weave the tissue of his\npredictions; and astronomy is no more an integral part of astrology,\nthan the loom is of the web which has been woven by it. To have an idea\nof what alchymy was, it is sufficient to have an idea of chymistry;\nbut astronomy, in itself, will never give a notion of astrology, which\nrequires additional and distinct consideration.\n\nIt may be urged, that in the present day a general idea of this\nbygone and disused science is quite sufficient for everybody not\nprofessedly antiquarian. Such an assertion would doubtless never be\ncontroverted, provided the proposed general idea might comprehend the\ntruth. But the present actual general idea of astrology is by no means\nso comprehensive; indeed, nothing can well be more inaccurate, or\neven more false: it seems to have been adopted not from the elements\nof the science itself, but from trite observations made by writers\nagainst the science; and consequently the world now wonders at the\nlamentable defect of understanding that could ever have permitted\nbelief in it\u2014forgetting that astrology has been consigned to neglect,\nnot in consequence of any _prim\u00e2 facie_ palpability in its imputed\nfallacies, nor indeed of any special skill or acuteness on the part of\nits professed adversaries, but rather in consequence of the sudden and\nastonishing growth of other undoubted sciences, with which it has been\npresumed to be incompatible, and which during the thousands of years\nof the reign of astrology were either unborn, or still slumbering in\ncontinued infancy.[2]\n\nThe words \u201cprofessed adversaries,\u201d which have just now been used, are\nof course not intended to be applied to those mighty explorers of\nNature\u2019s laws and man\u2019s powers, who, in their lofty career, may have\nmade an incidental swoop at the pretensions of astrology. Directly\nengaged in more exact pursuits, they stopped not to dissect this\ntheir casual prey, which, after having been thus struck by eagles,\nwas left to regale crows and daws, and these, in their convivial\nloquacity, accused their unfortunate victims of crimes incapable of\nbeing committed, and of offences which had never been imagined. Of the\nreal faults of their victim these garrulous bipeds seem not to have\nbeen aware, or, if aware, they seem to have considered them as not\nsufficiently prominent. Nor was this want of candour or information\nabsolutely confined to the mere vulgar herd of vituperative scribblers,\nfor even the sparkling essay against astrology, written by Voltaire (in\nhis irrepressible desire to convince the world that he was _au fait_\nin everything), proves only that the writer, though the most generally\ninformed man of his time, had mistaken the really assailable points of\nthe object of his attack.\n\n[2] To this view of the case, the following remarks seem not\ninapplicable: they are taken from a periodical work of deserved\nreputation:\u2014\n\n\u201cThe study of astrology itself, as professing to discover, by celestial\nphenomena, future mutations in the elements and terrestrial bodies,\nought, perhaps, not to be despised.\u2020 The theory of the tides, for\nexample, is altogether an astrological doctrine, and, long before the\ndays of Sir Isaac Newton, was as well understood as it is at this\nmoment. The correspondence alleged by the ancient physicians to exist\nbetween the positions of the Moon and the stages of various diseases,\nis so far from being rejected by the modern faculty, that it has been\nopenly maintained.\u201d\u2020\u2020 The writer then recounts sundry incidents,\nasserted by the astrologers to be dependent on the Moon, and he\nadds these words: \u201cThe fact of these allegations might be so easily\nascertained, that it is surprising they should still be pronounced\nincredible, and _denied_ rather than _contradicted_.\u201d\n\n\u2020\u201cSir Christopher Heydon\u2019s Defence of Astrology, p. 2, edit. 1603.\u201d\n\n\u2020\u2020\u201cDr. Mead on the Influence of the Sun and Moon upon Human Bodies.\nSee also Edinb. Rev. vol. 12, p. 36\u2014Balfour on Sol-Lunar Influence.\u201d\n_Blackwood\u2019s Magazine for Dec., 1821, Part 2, No. 59._\n\nThe author of the present Translation has no intention now of either\nadvocating or impugning the doctrines of the science of which his\nTranslation discourses: his purpose is a different one. He has that\nsort of respect for \u201cthe dead, which are really dead,\u201d which, although\nit does not incline him to \u201cpraise\u201d them \u201c_more_ than the living, which\nare yet alive,\u201d is still sufficient to incite him to endeavour to avert\nthe imputation of idiot credulity, to which their faith in astrology\nseems now to subject them in the general opinion of the enlightened\n\u201cliving.\u201d And, while he disclaims all idea of presuming to offer any\nargument on either side of the question, as to the validity of the\nscience, he must still, at the same time, confess his admiration of the\ningenuity and contrivance manifest in its construction, and avow his\nreadiness to believe that all its harmonized complications might have\neasily held dominion over some of the strongest minds in that darker\nperiod when it flourished.\n\nIn executing here the desire of attempting to vindicate the ancient\ncredence in astrology, an elaborate disquisition would surely be not\nonly unnecessary, but misplaced: it seems sufficient to refer the\nreader to the work of which the following is a translation, and to\nthese undisputed facts\u2014that the science was formerly inculcated by the\nhighest and most erudite authorities of the period\u2014that it was insisted\non by votaries in all parts of the world, attesting and producing\ninstances of its truth;\u2014and, moreover, that it was so finely and\nbeautifully put together, as to cause the only deficiency of one small,\nthough most important, link in its whole chain of argument, to be\nundetected by dull minds, and readily supplied by enthusiastic genius.\nFor centuries after centuries all branches of learning were either made\nsubservient to astrology, or carried on in close alliance with it; and\nmany of the illustrious names which it recalls to our recollection\nare gratefully reverenced even by modern science. The genius of Roger\nBacon, although he was the first of that school of natural philosophy\nwhich acknowledges none but experimented truths, was nevertheless bowed\nto the doctrines of judicial astrology; and his greater Namesake, who\nafter an interval of several centuries succeeded to him in giving\nproper direction to the mental energy, was still an arguer in favour of\ncelestial influences: it may be, therefore, fairly inferred, that the\nsubtle spell which had strength to enthrall \u201cstuff\u201d so \u201cstern,\u201d could\nhave been of no weak or vulgar order, but that it was sufficiently\npotent and refined to interest and amuse even the present age.[3]\n\n[3] In the 51st No. of the Quarterly Review, Art. \u201c_Astrology and\nAlchymy_,\u201d the following observations are made:\u2014\n\n\u201cCertainly, if man may ever found his glory on the achievements of\nhis wisdom, he may reasonably exult in the discoveries of astronomy;\nbut the knowledge which avails us has been created solely by the\nabsurdities which it has extirpated. Delusion became the basis of\ntruth. Horoscopes and nativities have taught us to place the planet in\nits sure and silent path; and the acquirements which, of all others,\nnow testify the might of the human intellect, derived their origin from\nweakness and credulity\u201d (p. 181). Again; \u201cAstrology, like alchymy,\nderives no protection from sober reason; yet, with all its vanity\nand idleness, it was not a corrupting weakness. Tokens, predictions,\nprognostics, possess a psychological reality. All events are but the\nconsummation of preceding causes, clearly felt, but not distinctly\napprehended. When the strain is sounded, the most untutored listener\ncan tell that it will end with the key-note, though he cannot explain\nwhy each successive bar must at last lead to the concluding chord. The\nomen embodies the presentiment, and receives its consistency from our\nhopes or fears.\u201d (p. 208).\n\nIt may, perhaps, be difficult to assent to all of the propositions\ninvolved in these extracts; but there are among them some which are\nclearly unquestionable.\n\nIn this little volume will be found the whole of the elements of\nastrology, and the entire ground-work of those stupendous tomes in\nfolio and quarto on the same subject, which were produced in myriads\nduring the 16th and 17th centuries, for the due mystification of the\nthen world. The present volume is addressed equally to the general\nreader, as well as to the votary of pure astrology, if any such there\nbe; to the one it offers amusement; for the other, it should contain\nthe most glowing interest. Even to the speculative metaphysician it\nwill furnish food for contemplation; for, in addition to its peculiar\nhypothesis of cause and effect, it develops many of those apparent\nincongruities of character so often united in the same individual; and\nthis development, even although adapted to the doctrine of the stars,\nstill merits attention; inasmuch as the phenomena of which it treats\n(in whatever way they may be produced or regulated) will ever remain in\nactual existence.\n\nThe only English translation of Ptolemy\u2019s Tetrabiblos, hitherto\npublished, appears to have been first set forth in 1701, under the name\nof \u201cThe Quadripartite.\u201d That publication has been long removed from\ngeneral sale; and its gross misinterpretation of the author, caused by\nthe carelessness or ignorance of Whalley and his assistants, by whom\nit was produced, has rendered most of its pages unintelligible: its\nabsence is, therefore, scarcely to be regretted. The second edition\nof the same translation, professing to be \u201crevised, corrected, and\nimproved,\u201d and published by Browne and Sibley, in 1786, was not, in\nany one instance, purified from the blunders and obscurities which\ndisgraced its predecessor: it seems, in fact, less excusable than the\nformer edition, of which it was merely a reprint, without being at all\ncorrected, not even in certain typographical _errata_ which the former\nprinter had been zealous enough to point out in his final page. Even\nthis second publication, worthless as it intrinsically is, can rarely\nnow be met with, and, like the former, only at a very heavy price.\n\nThe present Translation has been made from Proclus\u2019s Greek Paraphrase\nof Ptolemy\u2019s original text; the edition followed is that of the\nElzevirs, dated in 1635.[4] But, in the course of translation,\ncontinual references have been also had to various editions of the\noriginal text, in order to ascertain the proper acceptation of doubtful\npassages. The editions thus inspected were that by Camerarius, printed\nat Nuremberg in 1535; that by Melancthon, printed at Basle in 1553;\nand that by Junctinus, printed, with his own enormous commentaries,\nat Lyons, in 1581. Independently of these references, the present\ntranslation has been collated with the Latin of Leo Allatius, and with\ntwo other Latin translations: one printed at Basle, together with a\ntranslation of the Almagest in 1541; the other by itself at Perugio, in\n1646.[5] The Translator has devoted all this extreme care and attention\nto his labours, in the wish to render Ptolemy\u2019s astro-judicial\ndoctrine into English as purely and perfectly as possible; and, with\nthe same view, he has likewise added, in an Appendix, certain extracts\nfrom such parts of the Almagest as were found to be referred to in his\npresent work. Further illustration is also given by notes gathered\nfrom the \u201cPrimum Mobile\u201d of Placidus,[6] and from a variety of other\nsources whence any elucidation of the text might be derived. Even\nWhalley\u2019s \u201cAnnotations\u201d (to use his own grandiloquent designation) have\noccasionally yielded information, not altogether unimportant, although\ngenerally incomplete.\n\n[4] This edition was printed in double columns, one containing\nProclus\u2019s Greek Paraphrase, the other the Latin translation of Leo\nAllatius; and William Lilly (no light authority in these matters)\nthus wrote of it in the year 1647: \u201cIndeed Ptolemy hath been printed\nin folio, in quarto, in octavo, in sixteens: that lately printed at\nLeyden\u201d (where cthe Elzevirs were established) \u201cI conceive to be most\nexact; it was performed by Allatius.\u201d To the said edition is prefixed\nan anonymous address to the reader, in Latin, and to the following\neffect:\u2014\n\n\u201cI have reckoned it part of my duty to give you, benevolent reader,\nsome short information as to the publication of this little work,\nwhich, having hitherto existed only in Greek,\u2020 is now, in its Latin\ndress, accessible to the curiosity of all persons. This Paraphrase of\nProclus on the Tetrabiblos of Ptolemy was translated a few years ago by\nLeo Allatius, a Greek by birth, eminently skilled in the learning of\nhis own nation, as well as in Latin literature, and already celebrated\nfor other writings in both languages. He lives, I have understood, in\nRome, in the family of Cardinal Biscia, and holds some office in the\nVatican Library. He undertook his present work, however, for his own\nprivate gratification, and that of certain friends; but when writings\ncompiled with this view have once quitted their author\u2019s hands, it\nwill often happen that they have also, at the same time, escaped his\ncontrol. So this offspring of Allatius, having emerged from Rome,\narrived at Venice, from whence it was forwarded to me by a certain\ngreat personage of illustrious rank, in order that I might cause\nit to be printed. The names of Ptolemy and Proclus, so celebrated\namong mathematicians and philosophers, besides the subject of the\nwork itself, seemed to me a sufficient warrant for committing it to\nthe press. Whereupon I delayed not to avail myself of the advantages\nI possessed in having access to our excellent and most accurate\ntypographers, the Elzevirs, and I earnestly solicited them to publish\nit: they, in their love for the commonwealth of letters, took upon\nthemselves the charge of printing it in the form you see. You will\nlearn from it, inquisitive Reader, how much power the stars have over\nthe atmosphere and all sublunary things: for the stars, and those\nbrighter bodies of heaven, must not be imagined to be idle. The whole\ndoctrine of the stars is not, however, here treated of, but only that\ndistinct part of it which the Greeks call judicial and prognostic,\nand which, while confined within certain limits is as entertaining\nas it is useful, and is partly considered to be agreeable to nature.\nBut should it pretend to subject to the skies such things as do not\ndepend thereupon, and should it invite us to foresee by the stars such\nthings as are above the weakness of our apprehension, it will assuredly\ndeserve to be reprehended as a vain and empty art, which has been\ndemonstrated in many learned books by the great Picus of Mirandola.\nThe Chald\u00e6ans, Genethliacs, and Planetarians, have been always held\nin disrepute, because they professed to know not only more than they\nactually did know, but also more than is allowed to man to know. Even\nPtolemy, while he employs himself in his present work upon the Doctrine\nof Nativities, is scarcely free from the charge of superstition and\nvanity: perhaps, in a Pagan, this may be forgiven; but it is hardly\nto be tolerated, that persons professing Christianity should be led\naway by such an empty study, in which there is no solid utility, and\nthe whole pleasure of which is puerile. Finally, I warn you that\nsome persons doubt whether this was really produced by Ptolemy\u2020\u2020:\nnevertheless, it has certainly appeared to Porphyry and Proclus (who\nwere doubtless great philosophers, although hostile to the Christian\nfaith) to be worthy of receiving elucidation by their Commentaries upon\nit.\u2020\u2020\u2020 Peruse it, however, friendly reader, with caution, having first\nshaken off the weakness of credulity, for the sinew of wisdom is not to\nbelieve rashly. Farewell.\u201d\n\nIn addition to the remarks made in the foregoing address regarding\nLeo Allatius, it may be observed that he was appointed Keeper of the\nVatican Library by Pope Alexander VII, with whom he was in high favour.\nIt is said of him, that he had a pen with which he had written Greek\nfor forty years, and that he shed tears on losing it. Another story\nof him states, that the Pope had often urged him to take holy orders,\nthat he might be advanced in the church, and one day asked him why\nhe had not done so: \u201cBecause,\u201d said Allatius, \u201cI would be free to\nmarry.\u201d\u2014\u201cWhy, then, do you not marry?\u201d\u2014\u201cBecause I would be free to take\norders.\u201d\u2014_Chalmer\u2019s Biographical Dictionary._\n\n\u2020 This assertion is applicable only to Proclus\u2019s Paraphrase. There\nwere several prior translations of the original Tetrabiblos in Latin\nand Arabic; and it appears by an extract from the Bibliotheca Gr\u00e6ca\nof Fabricius (which will be found in a subsequent page), that a Latin\nversion, done from the Arabic, was printed at Venice as early as the\nyear 1493.\n\n\u2020\u2020The reader is again referred to the extract from Fabricius (inserted\nin a subsequent page), containing that learned person\u2019s account of this\nbook among the other works of Ptolemy.\n\n\u2020\u2020\u2020 Their Commentaries were printed at Basle, in 1559.\n\n[5] This translation from the Perugio press has been serviceable in\npresenting certain various readings; but it does not seem to possess\nany other peculiar merit. It professes to be a translation from the\noriginal text of Ptolemy; and so likewise does the translation printed\nat Basle, as above quoted.\n\n[6] It appears by the printed works of this author, that he was named\nDidacus Placidus de Titis. He was a native of Bologna, by profession\na monk, and was styled Mathematician to the Archduke Leopold William\nof Austria. He wrote in the earlier part of the 17th century, and\nhis work, now cited, is considered to contain the most successful\napplication of Ptolemy\u2019s astrological rules to practice. The original\nis extremely scarce; but a new English edition, by Cooper, may be had\nof the Publishers of this work.\n\nIt seems improper to close this Preface (notwithstanding the bulk it\nhas already attained), without annexing the following short notice\nof the life and works of the great man from whom the Tetrabiblos has\nemanated.\n\nClaudius Ptolemy was born at Pelusium, in \u00c6gypt, and became an\nillustrious disciple of the school of Alexandria, in which city he\nflourished during the reign of Adrian and that of Antoninus Pius. The\ndate of his birth has been commonly assigned to the 70th year of the\nChristian \u00e6ra; but the accuracy of this date seems questionable; for\nhe has himself noted in one part of his works, that Antoninus reigned\ntwenty-three years. He must have, therefore, survived that prince; and,\nas it is not probable that he continued his scientific labours until\nafter ninety years of age, which he must have done had he been born\nabout the year 70, because Antoninus died in the year 161, it seems\nthat his birth would be more properly ascribed to some later period.\nMoreover, it is asserted by the Arabians, that he died in the 78th year\nof his age; and a similar statement is also made by Luca Gauricus,\nin the dedication of his version of the Almagest[7] to Dominico\nPalavicini: Gauricus has, however, placed his death in the year 147,\nwhich does not accord with the fact of his having survived Antoninus.\n\nPtolemy has recorded that he observed, at Alexandria, an eclipse of the\nMoon, in the 9th year of Adrian; and that he made many observations\nupon the fixed stars in the 2nd year of Antoninus Pius: whence it may\nbe concluded, that his observations upon the heavens were principally\nmade during the period from A.D. 125 to A.D. 140, or thereabouts; and\nit also follows, of course, that the supposition, entertained by some\nauthors, of his identity with the Ptolemy who was always in attendance\nupon Galba, as his personal astrologer, and who promised Otho that\nhe should survive Nero and obtain the empire, is entirely without\nfoundation. To Gauricus\u2019s[8] version of the Almagest there is also\nanother dedication, addressed to Pope Sixtus, and composed by George\nTrapezuntius, describing Ptolemy as \u201c_regi\u00e2 stirpe oriundum_,\u201d and\nexplaining that he had, \u201cwith a truly regal mind,\u201d applied himself\nto the sciences, because the ancient sceptre of the Ptolemies had\npreviously passed into the hands of Cleopatra, and because the kingdom\nof \u00c6gypt had been since reduced to the state of a Roman province. The\nauthentic details of the circumstances of Ptolemy\u2019s life are, however,\nextremely few. It is said that he was distinguished among the Greeks by\nthe epithets \u201cmost wise,\u201d and \u201cmost divine,\u201d on account of his great\nlearning; and, according to the Preface to Whalley\u2019s translation of the\nTetrabiblos, the Arabians report that \u201che was extremely abstemious,\nand rode much on horseback\u201d; adding, that although he was \u201cspruce in\napparel,\u201d yet his breath was not remarkable for an agreeable odour.\n\n[7] Printed at Basle, 1541.\n\n[8] Chalmer\u2019s Biographical Dictionary.\n\nThe errors of the Ptolemaic theory of the universe have now been long\ndiscarded; but there are many points in which modern sciences, and\nmodern astronomy in particular, have reaped incalculable benefits from\nthe labours and researches of its great founder. He has preserved\nand transmitted to us the observations and principal discoveries of\nremoter periods, and has enriched and augmented them with his own. He\ncorrected Hipparchus\u2019s catalogue of the fixed stars, and formed tables\nfor the calculation and regulation of the motions of the Sun, Moon,\nand planets. He was, in fact, the first who collected the scattered\nand detached observations of Aristotle, Hipparchus, Posidonius, and\nothers on the economy of the world, and digested them into a system,\nwhich he set forth in his \u039c\u03b5\u03b3\u03b1\u03bb\u03b7 \u03a3\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03be\u03b9\u03c2 or Great Construction, divided\ninto thirteen books, and called, after him, the Ptolemaic System. This\nand all his other astronomical works are founded upon the hypothesis,\nthat the earth is at rest in the centre of the universe, and that the\nheavenly bodies, stars, and planets, all move round it in solid orbs,\nwhose motions are all directed by one _primum mobile_, or first mover,\nof which he discourses at large in the \u201cGreat Construction.\u201d In that\nwork he also treats of the figure and divisions of the earth, of the\nright and oblique ascensions of the heavenly bodies, and of the motions\nof the Sun, Moon, and planets; and he gives tables for finding their\nsituations, latitudes, longitudes, and motions: he treats also of\neclipses, and the methods of computing them; and he discourses of the\nfixed stars, of which he furnishes a numerous catalogue, with their\nmagnitudes, latitudes, and longitudes.[9]\n\nIt has been truly said, that \u201cPtolemy\u2019s order, false as it was, enabled\nobservers to give a plausible account of the motions of the Sun and\nMoon, to foretell eclipses, and to improve geography[10];\u201d or, in other\nwords, that it represented the actual phenomena of the heavens as\nthey really appear to a spectator on the earth. It is therefore clear\nthat Ptolemy\u2019s astrology is just as applicable to modern and improved\nastronomy as it was to his own.[11]\n\n[9] In France, about the beginning of the 16th century, Oronce Fin\u00e9,\nthe Royal Reader, attempted, under the patronage of Francis I, to\nproduce an astronomical clock, in which everything moved according\nto the principles of Ptolemy. It was kept, about fifty years ago, in\nthe monastery of St. Genevi\u00e9ve, at Paris. In Lilly\u2019s Catalogue of\nAstrological Authors, Orontius Fin\u00e6us is mentioned as the writer of a\nwork on the twelve houses of heaven, printed in Paris, 1553.\n\n[10] _Spectacle de la Nature._\n\n[11] The objection which has been urged against astrology, that the\nsigns are continually moving from their positions, cannot invalidate\nthis conclusion. That objection has, in fact, no real existence; for\nPtolemy seems to have been aware of this motion of the signs, and\nhas fully provided for it in the 25th Chapter of the 1st Book of\nthe Tetrabiblos. From that chapter it is clear that the respective\ninfluences he ascribes to the twelve signs (or divisions of the zodiac)\nwere considered by him as appurtenant to the _places_ they occupied,\nand not to the _stars_ of which they were composed. He has expressly\nand repeatedly declared that the point of the vernal equinox is ever\nthe beginning of the zodiac, and that the 30 degrees following it ever\nretain the same virtue as that which he has in this work attributed to\nAries, although the stars forming Aries may have quitted those degrees:\nthe next 30 degrees are still be accounted as Taurus, and so of the\nrest. There is abundant proof throughout the Tetrabiblos, that Ptolemy\nconsidered the virtues of the _constellations_ of the zodiac distinctly\nfrom those of the _spaces_ they occupied.\n\nIn the year 827[12] the \u201cGreat Construction\u201d was translated by the\nArabians into their own language, and by them communicated to Europe.\nIt is through them that it has been usually known by the name of the\nAlmagest. In the 13th century, the Emperor Frederic II caused it to\nbe translated from the Arabic into Latin, and Sacrobosco[13] was\nconsequently enabled to write his famous work upon the sphere. It\nwas not, however, until about the end of the 15th century that the\n\u201cGreat Construction\u201d was translated into Latin from the _original_\ntext; and this important service was rendered to science by Purbach,\na professor of philosophy at Vienna, who learned the Greek tongue at\nthe instigation of Cardinal Bessarion. By means of this translation,\nthe Ephemerides of George M\u00fcller, surnamed Regiomontanus, a disciple\nof Purbach\u2019s, were first composed. The Greek text of the Almagest, or\nGreat Construction, was first published at Basle, by Simon Gryn\u00e6us, in\n1538; and it was again printed at the same place in 1551, with certain\nother works of Ptolemy.[14] The rest of Ptolemy\u2019s works connected with\nastronomy, and now extant, are the Tetrabiblos, or Four Books of the\nInfluence of the Stars[15] (now translated); the Centiloquy, or Fruit\nof his Four Books, being a kind of supplement to the former; and the\nSignifications of the Fixed Stars. The last is merely a daily calendar,\nshowing the risings and settings of the stars, and the nature of the\nweather thereby produced. There are likewise extant his geographical\nwork (which has rendered important service to modern geographers), and\nalso his celebrated book on Harmonics, or the Theory of Sound.\n\n[12] The French say 813, but 827 is the date given by English\nchronologists.\n\n[13] This scientific man was a Mathurine Friar, and a professor in\nthe University of Paris: he died in 1256. It is pointed out in the\nEdinburgh Review, No. 68, that he was a native of Yorkshire, and his\nreal name John Holywood, euphonized, in Paris, into Sacrobosco.\n\n[14] Chalmers.\u2014The Tetrabiblos was among these works.\n\n[15] To such readers as may be curious to know in what manner this\nbook was promulgated in Europe, after the revival of letters, the\nfollowing extract from the Bibliotheca Gr\u00e6ca of Fabricius will furnish\ninformation:\u2014\n\n\u201cLib. IV. Cap. XIV. \u00a74. \u03a4\u03b5\u03c4\u03c1\u03b1\u03b2\u03b9\u03b2\u03bb\u03bf\u03c2, \u03a3\u03c5\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03be\u03b9\u03c2 \u039c\u03b1\u03b8\u03b7\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03b7\n_Quadripartitum, sive quatuor libri de apotelesmatibus et judiciis\nastrorum, ad Syrum_ (h). Gr\u00e6ce primum editi a _Joachimo Camerario_,\ncum versione su\u00e2 duorum priorum librorum, et pr\u00e6cipuorum e reliquis\nlocorum. Norimb. 1535, 4to.\u2014Hinc cum versione _Phil._ Melancthonis,\nqui in pr\u00e6fat, ad Erasmum Ebnerum Senatorem Norimbergensem testatur\nse editionem Camerarii multis mendis purgasse, tum numeros in locis\napheticis tam Gr\u00e6ci quam Latini textus emendasse. Basil, 1553;\n8vo.\u2014_Latine_ pridem verterat _\u00c6gidius Tebaldinus_, sive latino-barbar\u00e9\nex Hispanica versione, Alfonsi Castell\u00e6 Regis jussu, ex Arabico (i)\nconfect\u00e2. Vertit et _Antonius Gogava_, Lovan. 1548, 4to; Patavii,\n1658, 12mo; Prag\u00e6, 1610, 12mo. Commentario illustravit _Hieron.\nCardanus_ prioribus duobus libris Camerarii, posterioribus Gogav\u00e6\nversione servat\u00e2, Basil, 1554, fol.; 1579, fol.; Lugd. 1555, 8vo, et\nin Cardani opp.\u2014_Georgii Vall\u00e6_ commentarius, anno 1502 editus, nihil\naliud est, quam Latina versio scholiorum Gr\u00e6corum, sive exegeseos\njejun\u00e6 _Demophili_ in tetrabiblon, qu\u00e6 cum _Porphyrii_ sive _Antiochi_\nisagoge, Gr\u00e6ce et Latine, addita _Hieron Wolfii_ versione, lucem vidit\nBasil. 1559, his scholiis Dorotheus allegatur, p. 48, 110, et 139;\nCleopatra, p. 88; Porphyrius Philosophus, p. 169. Meminit et auctor\nPetosiridis ac Necepso, p. 112:\u2014\u03bb\u03b5\u03b3\u03b5\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03c0\u03b1\u03bb\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf\u03bd \u039d\u03b5\u03c7\u03b5\u03c8\u03c9 (ita leg,\npro \u03c7\u03b5\u03c8\u03c9 ut p. 112) \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03a0\u03b5\u03c4\u03bf\u03c3\u03b9\u03c1\u03b9\u03bd, \u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c7\u03b1\u03c1 \u03c0\u03c1\u03c9\u03c4\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c4\u03bf \u03b4\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c2\u03c1\u03bf\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2\n\u03b5\u03c7\u03b7\u03c0\u03bb\u03c9\u03c3\u03b1\u03bd \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03b3\u03bd\u03c9\u03c2\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03bd\u2020 Paraphrasin tetrabibli a _Proclo_ concinnatam\nGr\u00e6ce edidit Melancthon, Basil. 1554, 8vo. Gr\u00e6ce et Latine cum versione\nsu\u00e2 _Leo Allatius_, Lugd. Batav. 1654,\u2020\u2020 8vo. Locum Ptolem\u00e6i e codice\nGr\u00e6co MS. in collegio Corporis Christi Oxon, feliciter restituit\nSeldenus, p. 35 ad Marmora Arundeliana. Haly Heben Rodoan Arabis\ncommentarium laudat Cardanus, cum Demophilo Latine editum.\u201d\n\n \u201c(h) Schol. Gr\u00e6c.\u2014\u03a0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03c6\u03c9\u03bd\u03b5\u03b9 \u03c4\u03c9 \u03a3\u03c5\u03c1\u03c9 \u03bf \u03a0\u03c4\u03bf\u03bb\u03b5\u03bc\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2\n \u03c4\u03bf \u03b2\u03b9\u03b2\u03bb\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd, \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03bf\u03bd \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b1\u03bb\u03bb\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b1\u03bd\u03c4\u03bf\u03c5 \u03c0\u03b1\u03c3\u03b1\u03c2\n \u03c0\u03c1\u03b1\u03b3\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03b5\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03c6\u03c9\u03bd\u03b7\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd. \u039b\u03b5\u03b3\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03b9\u03bd\u03b5\u03c2 \u03c9\u03c2\n \u03c0\u03b5\u03c0\u03bb\u03b1\u03c2\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf \u03c4\u03bf \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5 \u03a3\u03c5\u03c1\u03c9 \u03bf\u03bd\u03bf\u03bc\u03b1. \u0391\u03bb\u03bb\u03bf\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03bf\u03c4\u03b9 \u03bf\u03bd\n \u03c0\u03b5\u03c0\u03bb\u03b1\u03c2\u03b1\u03b9, \u03b1\u03bb\u03bb\u2019 \u03b9\u03b1\u03c4\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b7\u03bd \u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b1\u03c7\u03b8\u03b5\u03b9\u03c2 \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\n \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03bc\u03b1\u03b8\u03b7\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd.\u201d\n\n\u201c(i) Selden. Uxor Hebr. p. 342. C\u00e6terum de Alphonsi Regis cur\u00e2 in\npromovenda Arabica Quadripartiti versione, vide, si placet, Nic:\nAntonium in Bibl. veteri Hispana, t. 2, p. 55, vel Acta Erud. A.\n1697, p. 302. Latino versio ex Arabico facta lucem vidit Venet, 1493,\nfol. Viderit porro Gassendus qui in Philosophia Epicuri, ubi contra\nAstrologos disputat. t. 2, p. 501, contendit tetrabiblon indignum esse\nPtolem\u00e6i genio et subdititum. Equidem Jo. Pico judice, l. 1, contra\nAstrologos, p. 285, Ptolem\u00e6us _malorum_ sive Apotelesmaticorum est\n_optimus_.\u201d\n\n\u2020 \u201cNechepsos and Petosiris are anciently spoken of, for they first\nexplained prognostication by Astrology.\u201d\n\n\u2020\u2020 This was perhaps a reprint of the edition of 1635, from which the\npresent translation has been made; unless there may have been an error\nof the press in stating 1654 instead of 1635, which seems probable, as\nthe edition of 1635 is unnoticed by Fabricius.\n\nProclus, to whom the world is indebted for the improved text of the\nTetrabiblos,[16] was born at Constantinople, in the year 410. He\nstudied at Alexandria and at Athens, and became very eminent among\nthe later Platonists. He succeeded Syrianus, a celebrated philosopher,\nin the rectorship of the Platonic school at Athens, and died there\nin 485.[17] He was a most voluminous author, in poetry as well as in\nprose. Among his works there are Hymns to the Sun, to Venus, and to the\nMuses; Commentaries upon several pieces of Plato, and upon Ptolemy\u2019s\nTetrabiblos[18]; an Epitome or Commendium of all the Astronomical\nPrecepts demonstrated in the Almagest; and elements of Theology and\nNatural Philosophy. He was in dispute with the Christians on the\nquestion of the eternity of the world, which he undertook to prove in\neighteen elaborate arguments. A late writer in a certain periodical\nwork has erroneously identified him with another Proclus, who was in\nfavour with the Emperor Anastasius, and who destroyed the ships of\nVitalianus, when besieging Constantinople in 514, by burning them with\ngreat brazen mirrors, or _specula_.\n\n[16] It will be seen by the preceding note, that Proclus\u2019s Paraphrase\nof the Tetrabiblos should properly be considered as superior to the\nother readings of that book; since it appears, on the authority\nof Fabricius, that Melancthon, after having been at the pains of\ncorrecting and republishing, in 1553 (with his own emendations),\nthe edition of Camerarius, containing the reputed original text,\nstill deemed it advisible, in the following year, to edit Proclus\u2019s\nParaphrase. This Paraphrase must, therefore, necessarily have had\nclaims to his attention not found in the text he had previously edited.\u2020\n\n\u2020\u201cPtolemy addresses the book to Syrus, to whom he has also addressed\nall his other treatises. Some say that this name of Syrus was feigned;\nothers, that it was not feigned, but that he was a physician, and\neducated in these sciences.\u201d\n\n[17] Chalmer\u2019s Biographical Dictionary.\n\n[18] It will, of course, be understood that this Commentary is distinct\nfrom his Paraphrase, now translated.\n\n_Signs of the Zodiac._\n\n \u2648 Aries\n \u2649 Taurus\n \u264a Gemini\n \u264b Cancer\n \u264c Leo\n \u264d Virgo\n \u264e Libra\n \u264f Scorpio\n \u2650 Sagittarius\n \u2651 Capricorn\n \u2652 Aquarius\n \u2653 Pisces\n\n\n\n\n PTOLEMY\u2019S TETRABIBLOS OR\n FOUR BOOKS OF THE\n _INFLUENCE OF THE STARS_\n\n\n\n\nBOOK THE FIRST\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nPROEM\n\n\nThe studies preliminary to astronomical prognostication, O Syrus! are\ntwo: the one, first alike in order and in power, leads to the knowledge\nof the figurations of the Sun, the Moon, and the stars; and of their\nrelative aspects to each other, and to the earth: the other takes into\nconsideration the changes which their aspects create, by means of their\nnatural properties, in objects under their influence.\n\nThe first mentioned study has been already explained in the\nSyntaxis[19] to the utmost practicable extent; for it is complete\nin itself, and of essential utility even without being blended with\nthe second; to which this treatise will be devoted, and which is not\nequally self-complete. The present work shall, however, be regulated\nby that due regard for truth which philosophy demands: and since the\nmaterial quality of the objects acted upon renders them weak and\nvariable, and difficult to be accurately apprehended, no positive or\ninfallible rules (as were given in detailing the first doctrine, which\nis always governed by the same immutable laws) can be here set forth:\nwhile, on the other hand, a due observation of most of those general\nevents, which evidently trace their causes to the Ambient, shall not be\nomitted.\n\n[19] The Almagest, or _Magna Constructio_.\n\nIt is, however, a common practice with the vulgar to slander everything\nwhich is difficult of attainment, and surely they who condemn the\nfirst of these two studies must be considered totally blind, whatever\narguments may be produced in support of those who impugn the second.\nThere are also persons who imagine that whatever they themselves have\nnot been able to acquire, must be utterly beyond the reach of all\nunderstanding; while others again will consider as useless any science\nof which (although they may have been often instructed in it) they\nhave failed to preserve the recollection, owing to its difficulty of\nretention. In reference to these opinions, therefore, an endeavour\nshall be made to investigate the extent to which prognostication\nby astronomy is practicable, as well as serviceable, previously to\ndetailing the particulars of the doctrine.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nKNOWLEDGE MAY BE ACQUIRED BY ASTRONOMY TO A CERTAIN EXTENT\n\n\nThat a certain power, derived from the \u00e6thereal nature, is diffused\nover and pervades the whole atmosphere of the earth, is clearly evident\nto all men. Fire and air, the first of the sublunary elements, are\nencompassed and altered by the motions of the \u00e6ther. These elements\nin their turn encompass all inferior matter, and vary it as they\nthemselves are varied; acting on earth and water, on plants and\nanimals.[20]\n\n[20] The following extract from an old geographical work, framed on the\nrules of Ptolemy, explains the system on which this action of the \u00e6ther\nis made to depend:\u2014\n\n\u201cChap. 2. The world is divided into two parts, the elemental region\nand the \u00e6thereal. The elemental region is constantly subject to\nalteration, and comprises the four elements; earth, water, air and\nfire. The \u00e6thereal region, which philosophers call the fifth essence,\nencompasses, by its concavity, the elemental; its substance remains\nalways unvaried, and consists of ten spheres; of which the greater one\nalways spherically environs the next smaller, and so on in consecutive\norder. First, therefore, around the sphere of fire, GOD, the creator of\nthe world, placed the sphere of the Moon, then that of Mercury, then\nthat of Venus, then that of the Sun, and afterwards those of Mars,\nof Jupiter, and of Saturn. Each of these spheres, however, contains\nbut one star: and these stars, in passing through the zodiac, always\nstruggle against the _primum mobile_, or the motion of the tenth\nsphere; they are also entirely luminous. In the next place follows the\nfirmament, which is the eighth or starry sphere, and which trembles or\nvibrates (_trepidat_) in two small circles at the beginning of Aries\nand Libra (as placed in the ninth sphere); this motion is called by\nastronomers the motion of the access and recess of the fixed stars.\u201d\n(Probably in order to account for the procession of the equinoxes.)\n\u201cThis is surrounded by the ninth sphere, called the chrystalline\nor watery heaven, because no star is discovered in it. Lastly, the\n_primum mobile_, styled also the tenth sphere, encompasses all the\nbefore-mentioned \u00e6thereal spheres, and is continually turned upon the\npoles of the world, by one revolution in twenty-four hours, from the\neast through the meridian to the west, again coming round to the east.\nAt the same time, it rolls all the inferior spheres round with it,\nby its own force; and there is no star in it. Against this _primum\nmobile_, the motion of the other spheres, running from the west through\nthe meridian to the east, contends. Whatever is beyond this, is fixed\nand immovable, and the professors of our orthodox faith affirm it to be\nthe empyrean heaven which GOD inhabits with the elect.\u201d\u2014Cosmographia\nof Peter Apianus (named Benewitz), dedicated to the Archbishop of\nSalzburg, edited by Gemma Frisius, and printed at Antwerp 1574.\n\nThe Sun, always acting in connection with the Ambient, contributes to\nthe regulation of all earthly things: not only by the revolution of the\nseasons does he bring to perfection the embryo of animals, the buds of\nplants, the spring of waters, and the alteration of bodies, but by his\ndaily progress also he operates other changes in light, heat, moisture,\ndryness and cold; dependent upon his situation with regard to the\nzenith.\n\nThe Moon, being of all the heavenly bodies the nearest to the Earth,\nalso dispenses much influence; and things animate and inanimate\nsympathize and vary with her. By the changes of her illumination,\nrivers swell and are reduced; the tides of the sea are ruled by her\nrisings and settings; and plants and animals are expanded or collapsed,\nif not entirely at least partially, as she waxes or wanes.\n\nThe stars likewise (as well the fixed stars as the planets), in\nperforming their revolutions,[21] produce many impressions on the\nAmbient. They cause heats, winds, and storms, to the influence of which\nearthly things are conformably subjected.\n\n[21] It will be recollected that the Ptolemaic astronomy attributes\nmotion and a regular course to those stars which we now call fixed, but\nwhich the Greeks merely termed \u03b1\u03c0\u03bb\u03b1\u03bd\u03b5\u03b9\u03c2, _undeviating_.\n\nAnd, further, the mutual configurations of all these heavenly bodies,\nby commingling the influence with which each is separately invested,\nproduce a multiplicity of changes. The power of the Sun however\npredominates, because it is more generally distributed; the others\neither co-operate with his power or diminish its effect: the Moon more\nfrequently and more plainly performs this at her conjunction, at her\nfirst and last quarter, and at her opposition: the stars act also to a\nsimilar purpose, but at longer intervals and more obscurely than the\nMoon; and their operation principally depends upon the mode of their\nvisibility, their occultation and their declination.\n\nFrom these premises it follows not only that all bodies, which may\nbe already compounded, are subjected to the motion of the stars, but\nalso that the impregnation and growth of the seeds from which all\nbodies proceed, are framed and moulded by the quality existing in the\nAmbient at the time of such impregnation and growth. And it is upon\nthis principle that the more observant husbandmen and shepherds are\naccustomed, by drawing their inferences from the particular breezes\nwhich may happen at seed-time and at the impregnation of their cattle,\nto form predictions as to the quality of the expected produce. In\nshort, however unlearned in the philosophy of nature, these men\ncan foretell, solely by their previous observation, all the more\ngeneral and usual effects which result from the plainer and more\nvisible configurations of the Sun, Moon, and stars. It is daily seen\nthat even most illiterate persons, with no other aid than their own\nexperienced observation, are capable of predicting events which may\nbe consequent on the more extended influence of the Sun and the more\nsimple order of the Ambient, and which may not be open to variation by\nany complex configurations of the Moon and stars towards the Sun. There\nare, moreover, among the brute creation, animals who evidently form\nprognostication, and use this wonderful instinct at the changes of the\nseveral seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn, and winter; and,\nalso, at the changes of the wind.\n\nIn producing the changes of the seasons, the Sun itself is chiefly the\noperating and visible cause. There are, however, other events which,\nalthough they are not indicated in so simple a manner, but dependent on\na slight complication of causes in the Ambient, are also foreknown by\npersons who have applied their observation to that end. Of this kind,\nare tempests and gales of wind, produced by certain aspects of the\nMoon, or the fixed stars, towards the Sun, according to their several\ncourses, and the approach of which is usually foreseen by mariners. At\nthe same time, prognostication made by persons of this class must be\nfrequently fallacious, owing to their deficiency in science and their\nconsequent inability to give necessary consideration to the time and\nplace, or to the revolutions of the planets; all which circumstances,\nwhen exactly defined and understood, certainly tend towards accurate\nforeknowledge.\n\nWhen, therefore, a thorough knowledge of the motions of the stars,\nand of the Sun and Moon, shall have been acquired, and when the\nsituation of the place, the time, and all the configurations actually\nexisting at that place and time, shall also be duly known; and such\nknowledge be yet further improved by an acquaintance with the natures\nof the heavenly bodies\u2014not of what they are composed, but of the\neffective influences they possess; as, for instance, that heat is the\nproperty of the Sun, and moisture of the Moon, and that other peculiar\nproperties respectively appertain to the rest of them;\u2014when all these\nqualifications for prescience may be possessed by any individual,\nthere seems no obstacle to deprive him of the insight, offered at once\nby nature and his own judgment, into the effects arising out of the\nquality of all the various influences compounded together. So that\nhe will thus be competent to predict the peculiar constitution of\nthe atmosphere in every season, as, for instance, with regard to its\ngreater heat or moisture, or other similar qualities; all which may be\nforeseen by the visible position or configuration of the stars and the\nMoon towards the Sun.\n\nSince it is thus clearly practicable, by an accurate knowledge of the\npoints above enumerated, to make predictions concerning the proper\nquality of the seasons, there also seems no impediment to the formation\nof similar prognostication concerning the destiny and disposition of\nevery human being. For by the constitution of the Ambient, even at the\ntime of any individual\u2019s primary conformation, the general quality\nof that individual\u2019s temperament may be perceived; and the corporeal\nshape and mental capacity with which the person will be endowed at\nbirth may be pronounced; as well as the favourable and unfavourable\nevents indicated by the state of the Ambient, and liable to attend the\nindividual at certain future periods; since, for instance, an event\ndependent on one disposition of the Ambient will be advantageous to a\nparticular temperament, and that resulting from another unfavourable\nand injurious. From these circumstances, and others of similar import,\nthe possibility of prescience is certainly evident.\n\nThere are, however, some plausible assailants of this doctrine, whose\nattacks although greatly misapplied seem yet worthy of the following\nobservations.\n\nIn the first place, the science demands the greatest study and a\nconstant attention to a multitude of different points; and as all\npersons who are but imperfectly practised in it must necessarily\ncommit frequent mistakes, it has been supposed that even such events\nas have been truly predicted have taken place by chance only, and not\nfrom any operative cause in nature. But it should be remembered that\nthese mistakes arise, not from any deficiency or want of power in the\nscience itself, but from the incompetency of unqualified persons who\npretend to exercise it. And, besides this, the majority of the persons\nwho set themselves up as professors of this science, avail themselves\nof its name and credit for the sake of passing off some other mode\nof divination; by that means defrauding the ignorant, and pretending\nto foretell many things which from their nature cannot possibly be\nforeknown; and consequently affording opportunities to more intelligent\npeople to impugn the value even of such predictions as can rationally\nbe made. The reproach, however, thus brought upon the science is\nwholly unmerited; for it would be equally just to condemn all other\nbranches of philosophy, because each numbers among its professors some\nmischievous pretenders.\n\nSecondly, it is not attempted to be denied that any individual,\nalthough he may have attained to the greatest possible accuracy in the\nscience, must still be liable to frequent error, arising out of the\nvery nature of his undertaking, and from the weakness of his limited\ncapacity in comparison with the magnitude of his object. For the whole\ntheory of the quality of matter is supported by inference rather than\nby positive and scientific proof; and this is caused principally by\nthe concretion of its temperament out of a multitude of dissimilar\ningredients. And, although the former configurations of the planets\nhave been observed to produce certain consequences (which have been\nadapted to configurations now taking place), and are, after long\nperiods, and in a greater or less degree, resembled by subsequent\nconfigurations, yet these subsequent configurations never become\nexactly similar to those which have preceded them. For an entire\nreturn of all the heavenly bodies to the exact situation in which they\nhave once stood with regard to the earth will never take place, or at\nleast not in any period determinable by human calculation, whatever\nvain attempts may be made to acquire such unattainable knowledge.[22]\nThe examples referred to for guidance being therefore not exactly\nsimilar to the existing cases to which they are now applied, it must\nnaturally follow that predictions are sometimes not borne out by the\nevents. Hence arises the sole difficulty in the consideration of\nevents produced by the Ambient. For no other concurrent cause has been\nhitherto combined with the motion of the heavenly bodies; although\nthe doctrine of nativities, particularly that part of it relating to\npeculiar individual temperament, demands also the consideration of\nother concomitant causes, which are neither trifling nor unimportant,\nbut essentially potent in affecting the individual properties of the\ncreatures born. Thus the variety in seed has the chief influence in\nsupplying the peculiar quality of each species; for, under the same\ndisposition of the Ambient and of the horizon, each various kind of\nseed prevails in determining the distinct formation of its own proper\nspecies; thus man is born, or the horse is foaled; and by the same law\nare brought forth all the other various creatures and productions of\nthe earth. It is also to be remembered, that considerable variations\nare caused in all creatures by the respective places where they may\nbe brought forth: for although, under the same disposition of the\nAmbient, the germs of the future creatures may be of one species,\nwhether human or of the horse, the difference in situation, of the\nplaces in which they are generated, produces a dissimilarity in the\nbody and spirit of one from the body and spirit of another: and in\naddition to this it must be considered that different modes of nurture,\nand the variety of ranks, manners, and customs, contribute to render\nthe course of life of one individual greatly different from that of\nanother[23]; consequently, unless every one of these varieties be duly\nblended with the causes arising in the Ambient, the prejudgment of any\nevent will doubtless be very incomplete. For, although the greatest\nmultiplicity of power exists in the Ambient, and although all other\nthings act as concurrent causes in unison with it, and can never claim\nit as a concurrent cause in subservience to them, there will still,\nnevertheless, be a great deficiency in predictions attempted to be made\nby means of the heavenly motions alone, without regard to the other\nconcurrent causes just now adverted to.\n\n[22] There seems reason to suppose that this was a favourite\nspeculation among the ancients. In Scipio\u2019s Dream, as related by\nCicero, the phantom of his illustrious grandfather is made to speak\nof this entire return of all the celestial bodies to some original\nposition which they once held, as being the completion of the\nrevolution of one great universal year: and the phantom adds, \u201cbut I\nmust acquaint you that not one-twentieth part of that great year has\nbeen yet accomplished.\u201d\n\nThis quotation is from memory, and perhaps may not be verbally correct.\n\n[23] In this passage the author seems to have anticipated, and exposed\nthe absurdity of an argument now considered very forcible against\nastrology: viz. that \u201cif the art were true, then any two individuals\nborn under the same meridian, in the same latitude, and at the same\nmoment of time, must have one and the same destiny; although one\nwere born a prince, and the other a mendicant.\u201d Such a monstrous\nconclusion is nowhere authorized by any astrological writer; it is,\non the contrary, always maintained by all of them, that the worldly\ndifferences and distinctions, alluded to in the text, inevitably\nprevent this exact resemblance of destiny; and all that they presume to\nassert is, that, in their respective degrees, any two individuals, so\nborn, will have a partial similarity in the leading features of their\nfate. Whether their assertion is _uniformly_ borne out, I will not\ntake upon me to determine, but it would be unfair not to subjoin the\nfollowing fact:\u2014\n\nIn the newspapers of the month of February, 1820, the death of a\nMr. Samuel Hemmings is noticed: it was stated that he had been an\nironmonger, and prosperous in trade; that he was born on the 4th of\nJune, 1738, at nearly the same moment as his late Majesty, and in the\nsame parish of St. Martin\u2019s-in-the-Fields; that he went into business\nfor himself in October, 1760; that he married on the 8th September,\n1761; and finally, after other events of his life had resembled those\nwhich happened to the late King, that he died on Saturday, the 29th\nJanuary, 1820.\n\nThese coincidences are, at least, highly remarkable.\n\nUnder these circumstances, it would seem judicious neither to deny\naltogether the practicability of prescience, because prognostications\nthus imperfectly derived are sometimes liable to be fallacious; nor,\non the other hand, to admit that all events, whatever, are open to\nprevious inquiry; as if such inquiry could in all cases be securely\nconducted without having recourse to mere inference, and as if it\nwere not limited by the narrow extent of mere human abilities. The\nart of navigation, for instance, is not rejected, although it is in\nmany points incomplete; therefore the bare fact that predictions are\nfrequently imperfect cannot authorise the rejection of the art of\nprescience: the magnitude of its scope, and the faint resemblance\nthat it bears to a divine attribute, should rather demand grateful\ncommendations, and receive the utmost regard and attention. And,\nsince no weakness is imputed to a physician, because he inquires\ninto the individual habit of his patient, as well as into the nature\nof the disease, no imputation can justly attach to the professor of\nprognostication, because he combines the consideration of species,\nnurture, education and country, with that of the motion of the heavens:\nfor as the physician acts but reasonably, in thus considering the\nproper constitution of the sick person as well as his disease; so,\nin forming predictions, it must surely be justifiably allowable to\ncomprehend in that consideration every other thing connected with the\nsubject in addition to the motion of the heavens, and to collect and\ncompare with that motion all other co-operating circumstances arising\nelsewhere.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nTHAT PRESCIENCE IS USEFUL\n\n\nIt appears, then, that prescience by astronomy is possible under\ncertain adaptation; and that alone it will afford premonition, as far\nas symptoms in the Ambient enable it to do so, of all such events\nas happen to men by the influence of the Ambient. These events are,\nfrom their commencement, always in conformity with the spiritual and\ncorporeal faculties, and their occasional affections; as well as with\nthe shorter or longer duration of those affections. They are also\nconformable with other things which, although not actually in man\u2019s\nimmediate person, are still absolutely and naturally connected with\nhim: in connection with his body they are applicable to his estate, and\nhis conjugal cohabitations; in connection with his spirit, they relate\nto his offspring[24] and his rank; and they are also connected with all\nfortuitous circumstances which may occasionally befall him.\n\n[24] The Greek word for this, \u03b3\u03bf\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9, though found in the Elzevir\nedition from which this translation is made, does not appear in other\ncopies; the Basle edition of 1553 says merely, \u03b7 \u03c4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03b9\u03bc\u03b7 \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c4\u03bf \u03b1\u03be\u03b9\u03c9\u03bc\u03b1,\n\u201c_honour and rank_,\u201d which is the sense also given in the Latin\ntranslation of Perugio, 1646, without any mention of \u201c_offspring_.\u201d\n\nThat the foreknowledge of these can be attained has already been\ndemonstrated; and it remains to speak of the utility of the attainment.\nFirst, however, let it be said in what respect and with what view it\nis proposed to draw advantage from this science; if it be considered\nin its tendency to promote the good of the mind, no object more\nadvantageous can surely be wanting to induce the world to rejoice and\ndelight in it, since it offers an acquaintance with things divine and\nhuman: if it be considered in respect to the benefits it is capable\nof conferring on the body, its utility in this view also, will be\nfound on comparison to excel that of all other arts conducive to the\ncomforts of life, for it is of more general application and service\nthan all the others together. And, although it may be objected to the\nart of prescience, that it does not co-operate towards the acquirement\nof riches or glory, let it also be remembered that the same objection\nattaches to every other art and science; since there is not one which\ncan of itself produce either riches or glory, not yet is there one\nwhich is on that plea deemed useless: it seems, therefore, that the\nscience of prognostication, with its high qualifications and its\naptitude to the most important objects, does not, in any greater\ndegree, deserve to be condemned.\n\nIn general, however, the persons who attack and reprobate it as being\nuseless, do not pay due regard to the manner in which it becomes\nnecessary; but deny its utility on the specious argument that it\nis superfluous and puerile to attempt to foreknow things which\nmust inevitably come to pass: thus considering it in a mode at once\nabstracted, unlearned, and unfair. For, in the first place, this fact\nought to be kept in view, that events which necessarily and fully\nhappen, whether exciting fear or creating joy, if arriving unforeseen,\nwill either overwhelm the mind with terror or destroy its composure by\nsudden delight; if, however, such events should have been foreknown,\nthe mind will have been previously prepared for their reception,\nand will preserve an equable calmness, by having been accustomed to\ncontemplate the approaching event as though it were present, so that,\non its actual arrival, it will be sustained with tranquillity and\nconstancy.\n\nIn the next place, it must not be imagined that all things happen to\nmankind, as though every individual circumstance were ordained by\ndivine decree and some indissoluble supernal cause; nor is it to be\nthought that all events are shown to proceed from one single inevitable\nfate, without being influenced by the interposition of any other\nagency. Such an opinion is entirely inadmissable; for it is on the\ncontrary most essential to observe, not only the heavenly motion which,\nperfect in its divine institution and order, is eternally regular and\nundeviating; but also the variety which exists in earthly things,\nsubjected to and diversified by the institutions and courses of nature,\nand in connection with which the superior cause operates in respect to\nthe accidents produced.\n\nIt is further to be remarked that man is subject, not only to events\napplicable to his own private and individual nature, but also to others\narising from general causes. He suffers, for instance, by pestilences,\ninundations, or conflagrations, produced by certain extensive changes\nin the Ambient, and destroying multitudes at once; since a greater and\nmore powerful agency must of course always absorb and overcome one\nthat is more minute and weaker. In great changes, therefore, where\na stronger cause predominates, more general affections, like those\njust mentioned, are put in operation, but affections which attach to\none individual solely are excited when his own natural constitution\npeculiar to himself may be overcome by some opposing impulse of the\nAmbient, however small or faint. And in this point of view it is\nmanifest that all events whatsoever, whether general or particular, of\nwhich the primary cause is strong and irresistible, and against which\nno other contrary agency has sufficient power to interpose, must of\nnecessity be wholly fulfilled; and that events indicated by a minor\ncause must of course be prevented and annihilated, when some other\nagency may be found contending for an opposite effect; if, however,\nno such opposing agency can be found, they also must be fulfilled, in\ndue succession to the primary cause. Nevertheless, the fulfilment of\nevents thus indicated must not be ascribed solely to the vigour of the\ncause producing them, nor to any inevitable fate, but rather to the\nabsence of any opposing influence capable of prevention. And thus,\nwith all things whatsoeverwhich trace their causes and origin to\nnature, the case is exactly similar; for stones,[25] plants, animals,\nwounds, passions, and diseases, all will of necessity operate on man\nto a certain degree; and they fail to do so, if antidotes be found and\napplied against their influence.\n\n[25] In allusion to the sympathetic powers anciently attributed to\ncertain stones.\n\nIn exercising prognostication, therefore, strict care must be taken\nto foretell future events by that natural process only which is\nadmitted in the doctrine here delivered; and, setting aside all vain\nand unfounded opinions, to predict that, when the existing agency is\nmanifold and great, and of a power impossible to be resisted, the\ncorresponding event which it indicates shall absolutely take place;\nand also, in other cases, that another event shall not happen when\nits exciting causes are counteracted by some interposing influence.\nIt is in this manner that experienced physicians, accustomed to the\nobservation of diseases, foresee that some will be inevitably mortal,\nand that others are susceptible of cure.\n\nThus, when any opinion is given by the astrologer with respect to\nthe various accidents liable to happen, it should be understood that\nhe advances nothing more than this proposition; viz. that, by the\nproperty inherent in the Ambient, any conformation of it, suitable\nto a particular temperament, being varied more or less, will produce\nin that temperament some particular affection. And it is also to be\nunderstood that he ventures this opinion with the same degree of\nconfidence, as that with which a physician may declare that a certain\nwound will increase or grow putrid; or a man acquainted with metals\nsay that the magnet[26] will attract iron. But neither the increase\nnor putrefaction of the wound nor the magnet\u2019s attraction of iron,\nis ordained by any inevitable law, although these consequences must\nnecessarily follow, in due obedience to the first principles of the\nexisting order of nature, when no means of prevention can be found\nand applied. But, however, neither of these consequences will take\nplace, when such antidotes shall be presented as will naturally prevent\nthem\u2014and a similar consideration should be given to the predictions of\nthe astrologer\u2014because, if garlick be rubbed on the magnet, iron will\nexperience no attraction;[27] and if proper medicines be applied to\nthe wound, it will cease to increase or to putrefy. And therefore all\nevents which happen to mankind take place also in the regular course\nof nature, when no impediments thereto are found or known: but again,\non the other hand, if any impediments or obstructions be found in the\nway of events which may be predicted by the regular course of nature\nto happen, such events will either not take place at all, or, if they\nshould take place, will be much diminished in their force and extent.\n\n[26] Whalley, in translating this chapter, makes the following remark\non this mention of the magnet: \u201cHowever much later it was that the\nloadstone became known in Europe, what is mentioned of it in this\nchapter makes it evident that it was known in \u00c6gypt, where Ptolemy\nlived, in his time.\u201d\u2014That worthy translator forgot (if indeed he ever\nknew) that the loadstone\u2019s property of attracting iron was known to\nThales, and commented on by Plato and Aristotle, all of whom lived\nsome centuries, more or less, before Ptolemy. It is its polarity that\nwas not known until the 11th or 12th century; and the French say that\nthe earliest notice of that polarity is found in a poem of Guyot\nof Provence, who was at the Emperor Frederick\u2019s Court at Mentz in\n1181.\u2014See the French Encyclop\u00e6dia, &c.\n\n[27] Respecting the effect here asserted to be produced on the magnet\nby garlick, I have found the following mention in a book called\n\u201cThe Gardener\u2019s Labyrinth,\u201d printed at London in 1586. \u201cHere also I\nthought not to ouerpasse the maruellous discord of the adamant-stone\nand garlike, which the Greeks name to be an Antipatheia or naturall\ncontrarietie betweene them; for such is the hatred or contrarietie\nbetween these two bodies (lacking both hearing and feeling), that\nthe adamant rather putteth away, than draweth to it, iron, if the\nsame afore be rubbed with garlike; as Plutarchus hath noted, and,\nafter him, Claudius Ptolem\u00e6us. Which matter, examined by divers\nlearned, and founde the contrarie, caused them to judge, that those\nskilful men (especially Ptolemie) ment the same to be done with the\nEgyptian Garlike; which Dioscorides wrote to be small garlike, and\nthe same sweete in taste, possessing a bewtifull head, tending unto\na purple colour. There be which attribute the same to Ophioscoridon,\nwhich Antonius Microphonius Biturix, a singular learned man, and wel\npractised in sundry skilles, uttered this approoued secrete to a friend\nwhom he loued.\u201d\n\nIn the same book, the \u201cOphioscoridon\u201d is thus spoken of: \u201cThere is\nanother wild garlike which the Greeks name Ophioscoridon; in English\nRamsies; growing of the owne accord in the fallow fieldes.\u201d\n\nCornelius Agrippa (according to the English translation) has stated\nthat the presence of the diamond also neutralizes the attractive power\nof the magnet. But as that great magician was somewhat inclined to\nquibbling, it is not impossible that by the word he uses for \u201cdiamond\u201d\n(viz. _adamas_) he may mean the adamant or loadstone; which would\nreduce his assertion merely to this, that one magnet will counteract\nanother.\n\nThe same order and consequence exist in all cases, whether the events\nhave a general or only a particular operation; and it may therefore\nwell be demanded, why prescience is believed to be possible as far as\nit regards general events, and why it is allowed to be serviceable in\npreparing for their approach; while in particular instances its power\nand use are altogether denied. That the weather and the seasons, and\nthe indications of the fixed stars, as well as the configurations\nof the Moon, afford means of prognostication, many persons admit;\nand they exercise this foreknowledge for their own preservation and\ncomfort, adapting their constitutions to the expected temperature, by\ncooling and refreshing things for the summer, and by warm things for\nthe winter. They also watch the significations of the fixed stars, to\navoid dangerous weather, in making voyages by sea; and they notice\nthe aspects of the Moon, when at the full, in order to direct the\ncopulation of their herds and flocks, and the setting of plants or\nsewing of seeds: and there is not an individual who considers these\ngeneral precautions as impossible or unprofitable. Still, however,\nthese same persons withhold their assent to the possibility of applying\nprescience to particular cases; such, for instance, as any particular\nexcess or diminution of cold or heat, whether arising out of the\npeculiar temperament producing the original cold or heat, or from the\ncombination of other properties; nor do they admit that there are any\nmeans of guarding against many of these particular circumstances.\nAnd yet, if it be clear that persons, who prepare themselves by\ncooling things, are less affected by any general heat of the weather,\nthere seems no reason for supposing that a similar preparation\nwould not be equally effectual against any particular conjuncture\noppressed by immoderate heat. It appears, however, that this idea,\nof the impracticability of attaining foreknowledge of particular\ncircumstances, must originate solely in the mere difficulty of the\nacquirement; which difficulty is certainly rendered peculiarly arduous\nby the necessity of conducting the enquiry with the greatest accuracy\nand precision: and to this it must be added, that, as there is rarely\nfound a person capable of arranging the whole subject so perfectly\nthat no part of the opposing influence can escape his attention, it\nfrequently happens that predictions are not properly regulated by\ndue consideration of that opposing influence, and that the effects\nare at once considered fully liable to be brought to pass, agreeably\nto the primary agency and without any intervention. This defect, of\nnot sufficiently considering the opposing influence, has naturally\ninduced an opinion that all future events are entirely unalterable and\ninevitable. But, since the foreknowledge of particular circumstances,\nalthough it may not wholly claim infallibility, seems yet so far\npracticable as to merit consideration, so the precaution it affords, in\nparticular circumstances, deserves in like manner to be attended to;\nand, if it be not of universal advantage, but useful in few instances\nonly, it is still most worthy of estimation, and to be considered\nof no moderate value. Of this, the \u00c6gyptians seem to have been well\naware; their discoveries of the great faculties of this science have\nexceeded those of other nations, and they have in all cases combined\nthe medical art with astronomical prognostication. And, had they been\nof opinion that all expected events are unalterable and not to be\naverted, they never would have instituted any propitiations, remedies,\nand preservatives against the influence of the Ambient, whether present\nor approaching, general or particular. But, by means of the science\ncalled by them Medical Mathematics, they combined with the power of\nprognostication the concurrent secondary influence arising out of the\ninstitutions and courses of nature, as well as the contrary influence\nwhich might be procured out of nature\u2019s variety; and by means of these\nthey rendered the indicated agency useful and advantageous: since\ntheir astronomy pointed out to them the kind of temperament liable to\nbe acted upon, as well as the events about to proceed from the Ambient,\nand the peculiar influence of those events, while their medical skill\nmade them acquainted with everything suitable or unsuitable to each of\nthe effects to be procured. And it is by this process that remedies for\npresent and preservatives against future disorders are to be acquired:\nfor, without astronomical knowledge, medical aid would be most\nfrequently unavailing; since the same identical remedies are not better\ncalculated for all persons whatsoever, than they are for all diseases\nwhatsoever.[28]\n\nThe practicability and utility of prescience having been thus far\nbriefly explained, the ensuing discourse must be proceeded with. It\ncommences, introductorily, with an account of the efficient properties\nof each of the heavenly bodies, taken from the rules of the ancients,\nwhose observations were founded in nature. And, first, of the\ninfluences of the planets and of the Sun and Moon.\n\n[28] This seems to explain the origin of the old alliance between\nmedicine and astrology, so universally preserved until almost within\nthe last century.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nTHE INFLUENCES OF THE PLANETARY ORBS\n\n\nThe Sun[29] is found to produce heat and moderate dryness. His\nmagnitude, and the changes which he so evidently makes in the seasons,\nrender his power more plainly perceptible than that of the other\nheavenly bodies; since his approach to the zenith of any part of the\nearth creates a greater degree of heat in that part and proportionately\ndisposes its inhabitants after his own nature.\n\n[29] It will be recollected that the Ptolemaic hypothesis considers the\nSun as a planetary orb, in consequence of his apparent progress through\nthe zodiac.\n\nThe Moon principally generates moisture; her proximity to the earth\nrenders her highly capable of exciting damp vapours, and of thus\noperating sensibly upon animal bodies by relaxation and putrefaction.\nShe has, however, also a moderate share in the production of heat, in\nconsequence of the illumination she receives from the Sun.\n\nSaturn produces cold and dryness, for he is most remote both from the\nSun\u2019s heat and from the earth\u2019s vapours. But he is more effective\nin the production of cold than of dryness. And he and the rest of\nthe planets derive their energy from the positions which they hold\nwith regard to the Sun and Moon; and they are all seen to alter the\nconstitution of the Ambient in various ways.\n\nMars chiefly causes dryness, and is also strongly heating, by means\nof his own fiery nature, which is indicated by his colour, and in\nconsequence of his vicinity to the Sun; the sphere of which is\nimmediately below him.\n\nJupiter revolves in an intermediate sphere between the extreme cold of\nSaturn and the burning heat of Mars, and has consequently a temperate\ninfluence: he therefore at once promotes both warmth and moisture. But,\nowing to the spheres of Mars and the Sun, which lie beneath him, his\nwarmth is predominant: and hence he produces fertilizing breezes.\n\nTo Venus also the same temperate quality belongs, although it exists\nconversely; since the heat she produces by her vicinity to the Sun is\nnot so great as the moisture which she generates by the magnitude of\nher light, and by appropriating to herself the moist vapours of the\nearth, in the same manner that the Moon does.\n\nMercury sometimes produces dryness, and at other times moisture, and\neach with equal vigour. His faculty of absorbing moisture and creating\ndryness proceeds from his situation with regard to the Sun, from which\nhe is at no time far distant in longitude; and, on the other hand, he\nproduces moisture, because he borders upon the Moon\u2019s sphere, which is\nnearest to the earth; and, being thus excited by the velocity of his\nmotion with the Sun, he consequently operates rapid changes tending to\nproduce alternately either quality.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nBENEFICS AND MALEFICS\n\n\nOf the four temperaments or qualities above mentioned, two are\nnutritive and prolific, viz. heat and moisture; by these all matter\ncoalesces and is nourished: the other two are noxious and destructive,\nviz. dryness and cold; by these all matter is decayed and dissipated.\n\nTherefore, two of the planets, on account of their temperate quality,\nand because heat and moisture are predominant in them, are considered\nby the ancients as benefic, or causers of good: these are Jupiter and\nVenus. And the Moon also is so considered for the same reasons.\n\nBut Saturn and Mars are esteemed of a contrary nature, and malefic, or\ncausers of evil: the first from his excess of cold, the other from his\nexcess of dryness.\n\nThe Sun and Mercury are deemed of common influence, and productive\neither of good or evil in unison with whatever planets they may be\nconnected with.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nMASCULINE AND FEMININE\n\n\nThere are two primary sexes, male and female; and the female sex\npartakes chiefly of moisture. The Moon and Venus are therefore said to\nbe feminine, since their qualities are principally moist.\n\nThe Sun, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars are called masculine. Mercury is\ncommon to both genders, because at certain times he produces dryness,\nand at others moisture, and performs each in an equal ratio.\n\nThe stars, however, are also said to be masculine and feminine, by\ntheir positions with regard to the Sun. While they are matutine and\npreceding the Sun, they are masculine; when vespertine and following\nthe Sun, they become feminine.[30]\n\nAnd they are further regulated in this respect by their positions\nwith regard to the horizon. From the ascendant to the mid-heaven, or\nfrom the angle of the west to the lower heaven, they are considered\nto be masculine, being then oriental: and in the other two quadrants,\nfeminine, being then occidental.\n\n[30] \u201cAstronomers call the planets matutine, when, being oriental from\nthe Sun, they are above the earth when he rises; and vespertine, when\nthey set after him.\u201d Moxon\u2019s Mathematical Dictionary.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII\n\nDIURNAL AND NOCTURNAL\n\n\nThe day and the night are the visible divisions of time. The day, in\nits heat and its aptitude for action, is masculine:\u2014the night, in its\nmoisture and its appropriation to rest, feminine.\n\nHence, again, the Moon and Venus are esteemed to be nocturnal; the\nSun and Jupiter, diurnal; and Mercury, common; since in his matutine\nposition he is diurnal, but nocturnal when vespertine.\n\nOf the other two planets, Saturn and Mars, which are noxious, one is\nconsidered to be diurnal, and the other nocturnal. Neither of them,\nhowever, is allotted to that division of time with which its nature\naccords (as heat accords with heat), but each is disposed of on a\ncontrary principle: and for this reason, that, although the benefit is\nincreased when a favourable temperament receives an addition of its\nown nature, yet, the evil arising from a pernicious influence is much\nmitigated when dissimilar qualities are mingled with that influence.\nHence the coldness of Saturn is allotted to the day, to counterbalance\nits heat; and the dryness of Mars to the night, to counterbalance\nits moisture. Thus each of these planets, being moderated by this\ncombination, is placed in a condition calculated to produce a\nfavourable temperament.[31]\n\n[31] Whalley here appends the following note: \u201cTo this chapter may be\nproperly added, that a planet is said to be diurnal, when, in a diurnal\nnativity, above the earth; and, in a nocturnal nativity, under the\nearth: but nocturnal, when, in a nocturnal nativity, above the earth;\nor, in a diurnal nativity, under the earth.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII\n\nTHE INFLUENCE OF POSITION WITH REGARD TO THE SUN\n\n\nThe respective powers of the Moon and of the three superior planets are\neither augmented or diminished by their several positions with regard\nto the Sun.\n\nThe Moon, during her increase, from her first emerging to her first\nquarter, produces chiefly moisture; on continuing her increase from her\nfirst quarter to her full state of illumination, she causes heat; from\nher full state to her third quarter she causes dryness; and from her\nthird quarter to her occultation she causes cold.\n\nThe planets, when matutine, and from their first emerging until they\narrive at their first station, are chiefly productive of moisture;\nfrom their first station until they rise at night, of heat; from their\nrising at night until their second station, of dryness; and from their\nsecond station until their occultation, they produce cold.[32]\n\nBut it is also sufficiently plain that they must likewise cause, by\ntheir intermixture with each other, many varieties of quality in the\nAmbient: because, although their individual and peculiar influence may\nfor the most part prevail, it will still be more or less varied by the\npower of the other heavenly bodies configurated with them.\n\n[32] Although all the positions mentioned in this paragraph are not\napplicable to Venus and Mercury, which can never rise at night, that\nis to say, at sunset, and although the author in the beginning of the\nchapter speaks only of the Moon and the three superior planets, there\nyet seems no reason why the orbits of Venus and Mercury should not be\nsimilarly divided by their inferior and superior conjunctions, and\ntheir greatest elongations.\n\nThe following is from Whalley: \u201cThe first station, in this chapter\nmentioned, is when a planet begins to be retrograde; and the second\nstation when, from retrogradation, a planet becomes direct. They\u201d (the\nplanets) \u201cbegin to rise at night when in opposition to the Sun.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX\n\nTHE INFLUENCE OF THE FIXED STARS\n\n\nNext in succession, it is necessary to detail the natures and\nproperties of the fixed stars; all of which have their respective\ninfluences, analogous to the influences of the planets: and those\nstars which form the constellations of the zodiac require to be first\ndescribed.\n\n_Aries._ The stars in the head of Aries possess an influence similar\nin its effects to that of Mars and Saturn: those in the mouth act\nsimilarly to Mercury, and in some degree to Saturn; those in the hinder\nfoot, to Mars; those in the tail, to Venus.\n\n_Taurus._ Those stars in Taurus, which are in the abscission of the\nsign, resemble in their temperament the influence of Venus, and in some\ndegree that of Saturn: those in the Pleiades are like the Moon and\nMars. Of the stars in the head, that one of the Hyades which is bright\nand ruddy, and called Facula,[33] has the same temperament as Mars: the\nothers resemble Saturn, and, partly, Mercury; and those at the top of\nthe horns are like Mars.\n\n_Gemini._ The stars in the feet of Gemini have an influence similar to\nthat of Mercury, and moderately to that of Venus.\n\nThe bright stars in the thighs are like Saturn: of the two bright stars\non the heads, the one, which precedes and is called Apollo,[34] is like\nMercury; the other which follows, called Hercules,[35] is like Mars.\n\n_Cancer._ The two stars in the eyes of Cancer are of the same influence\nas Mercury, and are also moderately like Mars. Those in the claws are\nlike Saturn and Mercury. The nebulous mass in the breast, called the\nPr\u00e6sepe, has the same efficacy as Mars and the Moon. The two placed\non either side of the nebulous mass, and called the Asini, have an\ninfluence similar to that of Mars and the Sun.\n\n_Leo._ Of the stars in Leo, two in the head are like Saturn and partly\nlike Mars. The three in the neck are like Saturn, and in some degree\nlike Mercury. The bright one in the heart, called Regulus,[36] agrees\nwith Mars and Jupiter. Those in the loins, and the bright one in the\ntail, are like Saturn and Venus: those in the thighs resemble Venus,\nand, in some degree, Mercury.\n\n_Virgo._ The stars in the head of Virgo, and that at the top of the\nsouthern wing, operate like Mercury and somewhat like Mars: the other\nbright stars in the same wing, and those about the girdle, resemble\nMercury in their influence, and also Venus moderately. The bright one\nin the northern wing, called Vindemiator, is of the same influence as\nSaturn and Mercury: that called Spica Virginis is like Venus and partly\nMars: those at the points of the feet and at the bottom of the garments\nare like Mercury, and also Mars, moderately.\n\n_Libra._[37] Those stars at the points of the claws of Scorpio operate\nlike Jupiter and Mercury: those in the middle of the claws, like\nSaturn, and in some degree like Mars.\n\n[33] The little Torch; now known by the name of Aldebaran.\n\n[34] Castor.\n\n[35] Pollux.\n\n[36] Cor Leonis.\n\n[37] Called by the ancients \u03c7\u03b7\u03bb\u03b1\u03b9, Chel\u00e6, or the _claws_ of Scorpio;\nwhich sign they made to consist of 60 degrees, omitting Libra. Thus\nVirgil in the first Georgic, line 33, &c.\n\n Quo locus Erigonen inter, Chelasque sequentes\n Panditur: ipse tibi jam brachia contrahit ardens\n Scorpius, et c\u0153li just\u00e2 plus parte reliquit.\n\nOvid, likewise, takes the following notice of Scorpio:\u2014\n\n Porrigit in spatium signorum membra duorum.\n _Met._ 2, l. 198.\n\n\n_Scorpio._ The bright stars in the front of the body of Scorpio have an\neffect similar to that produced by the influence of Mars, and partly to\nthat produced by Saturn: the three in the body itself, the middle one\nof which, called Antares,[38] is ruddy and more luminous, are similar\nto Mars and moderately to Jupiter: those in the joints of the tail are\nlike Saturn and partly like Venus: those in the sting, like Mercury and\nMars. The nebula is like Mars and the Moon.\n\n_Sagittarius._ The stars at the point of the arrow in Sagittarius have\ninfluence similar to that of Mars and the Moon: those on the bow, and\nat the grasp of the hand, act like Jupiter and Mars: the nebula in\nthe face is like the Sun and Mars: those in the waist and in the back\nresemble Jupiter, and also Mercury moderately: those in the feet,\nJupiter and Saturn: the four-sided figure in the tail is similar to\nVenus, and in some degree to Saturn.\n\n_Capricorn._ The stars in the horns of Capricorn have efficacy similar\nto that of Venus, and partly to that of Mars. The stars in the mouth\nare like Saturn, and partly like Venus: those in the feet and in the\nbelly act in the same manner as Mars and Mercury: those in the tail are\nlike Saturn and Jupiter.\n\n_Aquarius._ The stars in the shoulders of Aquarius operate like Saturn\nand Mercury; those in the left hand and in the face do the same: those\nin the thighs have an influence more consonant with that of Mercury,\nand in a less degree with that of Saturn: those in the stream of water\nhave power similar to that of Saturn, and, moderately, to that of\nJupiter.\n\n_Pisces._ Those stars in Pisces, which are in the head of the southern\nfish, have the same influence as Mercury, and, in some degree, as\nSaturn: those in the body are like Jupiter and Mercury: those in the\ntail and in the southern line are like Saturn, and, moderately, like\nMercury. In the northern fish, those on its body and back-bone resemble\nJupiter, and also Venus in some degree: those in the northern line are\nlike Saturn and Jupiter; and the bright star in the knot acts like\nMars, and moderately like Mercury.[39]\n\n[38] Adams\u2019s Treatise on the Globes calls this star \u201cKalb al Akrab,\nor the Scorpion\u2019s heart,\u201d and adds, that \u201cthe word Antares (if it is\nnot a corruption) has no signification.\u201d But it should be observed\nthat Ptolemy states that this star partakes of the nature of Mars: it\nseems therefore not improbable that Antares may be a regular Greek\nword, compounded of \u03b1\u03bd\u03c4\u03b9 _pro_ and \u03b1\u03c1\u03b7\u03c2 _Mars_, and signifying _Mars\u2019s\ndeputy_, or _lieutenant_, or _one acting for Mars_.\n\n[39] Salmon, in his \u201cHor\u00e6 Mathematic\u00e6, or Soul of Astrology\u201d (printed\nby Dawks, 1679) divides each sign of the zodiac into six faces of five\ndegrees each, \u201cbecause that in every sign there are various stars of\ndiffering natures\u201d; and he gives a particular description to each\nface, depending on its ascension or culmination. This seems an attempt\nto adapt Ptolemy\u2019s signification of the several stars, composing the\ndifferent signs, to some general rule or mode of judgment: but it does\nnot merit the implicit assent of astrologers. It is understood that\nSalmon was not the inventor of this division of the signs into faces,\nbut that it came originally from the Arabian schools.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X\n\nCONSTELLATIONS NORTH OF THE ZODIAC\n\n\nThe constellations north of the zodiac have their respective\ninfluences, analogous to those of the planets, existing in the mode\ndescribed in the following list.\n\n _Ursa Minor._ The bright stars in this constellation\n are like Saturn, and in some degree like Venus.\n _Ursa Major_ is like Mars, but the nebula under the\n tail resembles the Moon and Venus in its influence.\n _Draco._ The bright stars operate like Saturn and Mars.\n _Cepheus_ is like Saturn and Jupiter.\n _Bootes_ is like Mercury and Saturn; but the bright and\n ruddy star, called Arcturus, is like Mars and Jupiter.\n _Corona Borealis_ is like Venus and Mercury.\n _Hercules_ (or the Kneeler) is like Mercury.\n _Lyra_ is like Venus and Mercury.\n _Cygnus_ is like Venus and Mercury.\n _Cassiopeia_ is like Saturn and Venus.\n _Perseus_ is like Jupiter and Saturn: but the nebula,\n in the hilt of the sword, is like Mars and Mercury.\n _Auriga._ The bright stars are like Mars and Mercury.\n _Serpentarius_ is like Saturn, and moderately like Venus.\n _Serpens_ is like Saturn and Mars.\n _Sagitta_ is like Saturn, and moderately like Venus.\n _Aquila_ is like Mars and Jupiter.\n _Delphinus_ is like Saturn and Mars.\n _Equus_ (or Pegasus). The bright stars are like Mars\n and Mercury.\n _Andromeda_ is like Venus.\n _Delta_ (or the Triangle) is like Mercury.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI\n\nCONSTELLATIONS SOUTH OF THE ZODIAC\n\n\nThe influences of the constellations south of the zodiac, existing in a\nsimilar mode, are as follows:\u2014\n\n _Piscis Australis._ The bright star in the mouth is of the\n same influence as Venus and Mercury.\n _Cetus_ is like Saturn.\n _Orion._ The stars on the shoulders operate similarly to\n Mars and Mercury; and the other bright stars to Jupiter\n and Saturn.\n _Fluvius_ (or _Eridanus_). The last bright one is of\n the same influence as Jupiter; the rest are like Saturn.\n _Lepus_ is like Saturn and Mercury.\n _Canis._ The bright star in the mouth is like Jupiter, and\n partly like Mars: the others are like Venus.\n _Procyon._[40] The bright star is like Mercury, and in some\n degree like Mars.\n _Hydrus._ The bright stars are like Saturn and Venus.\n _Crater_ is like Venus, and in some degree like Mercury.\n _Corvus_ is like Mars and Saturn.\n _Argo._ The bright stars are like Saturn and Jupiter.\n _Centaurus._ The stars in the human part of the figure are\n of the same influence as Venus and Mercury; the bright\n stars in the horse\u2019s part are like Venus and Jupiter.\n _Lupus._ The bright stars are like Saturn, and partly\n like Mars.\n _Ara_ is like Venus, and also Mercury in some degree.\n _Corona Australis._ The bright stars are like Saturn\n and Jupiter.\n\nThe respective influences of the several stars have been observed by\nthe ancients to operate in conformity with the mode pointed out in the\nforegoing distributions.[41]\n\n[40] Canis Minor.\n\n[41] \u201cOf the fixed stars in general,\u201d Whalley says, \u201cThose of the\ngreatest magnitude are the most efficacious; and those in, or near,\nthe ecliptic, more powerful than those more remote from it. Those\nwith north latitude and declination affect us most. Those in the\nzenith, influence more than others, more remote. Likewise such as are\nin partial conjunction with, or in the antiscions of any planets, or\nwhich rise and set, or culminate with any planet, or are beheld by any\nplanet, have an increase of power: but of themselves the fixed stars\nemit no rays.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII\n\nTHE ANNUAL SEASONS\n\n\nThe year comprises four seasons; spring, summer, autumn, and winter; of\nthese, the spring partakes chiefly of moisture, for on the dissipation\nof cold and recommencement of warmth, an expansion of the fluids takes\nplace: the summer is principally hot, owing to the Sun\u2019s nearest\napproach to the zenith: the autumn is principally dry, because the\nrecent heat has absorbed the moisture: and the winter is chiefly cold,\nthe Sun being then at his farthest distance from the zenith.\n\nThe beginning of the whole zodiacal circle (which in its nature as\na circle can have no other beginning, nor end, capable of being\ndetermined), is therefore assumed to be the sign of Aries, which\ncommences at the vernal equinox:[42] since the moisture of spring forms\na primary beginning in the zodiac, analogous to the beginning of all\nanimal life; which, in its first age of existence, abounds principally\nin moisture: the spring, too, like the first age of animal life, is\nsoft and tender; it is therefore suitably placed as the opening of the\nyear, and is followed by the other seasons in appropriate succession.\nThe summer comes second, and, in its vigour and heat, agrees with the\nsecond age of animals; the prime of life, and the period most abounding\nin heat. Again, the age when the prime of life has passed away, and in\nwhich decay prepares to advance, is chiefly abundant in dryness, and\ncorresponds to the autumn. And the final period of old age, hastening\nto dissolution, is principally cold, like the winter.\n\n[42] This sentence shows the futility of the objection raised against\nastrology (and mentioned in the Preface to this translation) that the\nsigns have changed and are changing places. It is clear from this\nsentence that Ptolemy ascribes to the 30 degrees after the vernal\nequinox, that influence which he has herein mentioned to belong to\nAries; to the next 30 degrees, the influence herein said to belong to\nTaurus; and so of the rest of the zodiac. We should rather say that\nthe stars have changed places, than that the parts of heaven, in which\nthey were once situated, have done so. Ptolemy himself seems to have\nforeseen this groundless objection of the moderns, and has written, in\nthe 25th chapter of this book, what ought completely to have prevented\nit. It has certainly been one of the misfortunes of astrology to be\nattacked by people entirely ignorant of its principles.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII\n\nTHE INFLUENCE OF THE FOUR ANGLES\n\n\nThe angles are the four cardinal points of the horizon, whence\nare derived the general names of the winds. With respect to their\nqualities, it is to be observed that the eastern point, or angle of\nthe ascendant, is chiefly dry in its nature; because, on the Sun\u2019s\narrival therein, the damps occasioned by the night begin to be dried\nup: and all winds blowing from that quarter, under the common name of\neast winds, are arid and free from moisture.\n\nThe southern point, or angle of the mid-heaven, is the most hot;\nbecause the Sun\u2019s meridan position, which produces greater warmth and\nheat, declines (in this part of the earth) towards the south. The\nwinds, therefore, which blow from that quarter, and are commonly called\nsouth winds, are hot and rarefying.\n\nThe western point, or occidental angle, is moist; because, when the\nSun is there, the moisture, which had been overpowered during the day,\nrecommences its operation: and the winds proceeding from thence, and\ncommonly called west winds, are light and damp.\n\nThe northern point, or angle of the lower heaven, is the most cold; for\nthe Sun\u2019s meridian position in this part of the earth is far removed\nfrom it in declination: and all winds thence proceeding, under the\ncommon name of north winds, are cold and frosty.\n\nIt will, of course, be seen that a thorough acquaintance with the\nforegoing matters is essential in order to acquire the faculty of\ndistinguishing temperaments in every shape and variation: since it is\nsufficiently obvious that the effective influence of the stars must be\ngreatly diversified by the constitutions of the seasons, as well as\nthose of the ages of life, and of the angles; and also that the stars\nhave a much stronger influence on any constitution, when there may not\nbe in it any tendency contrary to their own, as the whole influence is\nthen entire and unalloyed. For example, stars effecting heat operate\nmore vigorously in constitutions of heat; and those effecting moisture\nin constitutions of moisture. On the other hand, should a tendency,\ncontrary to their own, exist in any constitution, the stars accordingly\nbecome less efficacious; in consequence of being attempered and mixed\nwith that contrary tendency: and this happens, for instance, when\nstars effecting heat are attempered by constitutions of cold, or stars\nproducing moisture by constitutions of dryness. The influence of every\nstar is thus modified by the proportionate admixture presented by\nconstitutions of a nature different from its own.\n\nIn succession to the previous instructions, the following description\nof the natural and peculiar properties of the signs of the zodiac is\nannexed: the general temperaments of the signs are analogous to those\nof the seasons, which are respectively established under each sign,\nbut they have, also, certain peculiar energies, arising from their\nfamiliarity with the Sun, the Moon, and the stars, which shall be\nhereafter specified;\u2014and the simple and unmixed influences existing in\nthe signs, as considered only in themselves and with regard to each\nother, will be first stated.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV\n\nTROPICAL, EQUINOCTIAL, FIXED, AND BICORPOREAL SIGNS\n\n\nAmong the twelve signs, some are termed tropical, others equinoctial,\nothers fixed, and others bicorporeal.\n\nThe tropical signs are two: viz. the first thirty degrees after the\nsummer solstice, which compose the sign of Cancer; and the first thirty\ndegrees after the winter solstice, composing the sign of Capricorn.\nThese are called _tropical_, because the Sun, after he has arrived at\ntheir first points, seems to _turn_, and to change his course towards a\ncontrary latitude;[43] causing summer by the _turn_ he makes in Cancer,\nand winter by that which he makes in Capricorn.\n\nThere are also two equinoctial signs: Aries, the first after the vernal\nequinox; and Libra, the first after the autumnal equinox: they are so\ncalled, because the Sun, when in the first point of either, makes the\nday and night equal.\n\nOf the remaining eight signs, four are fixed, and four bicorporeal.\nThose signs, which severally follow immediately after the two tropical\nand the two equinoctial signs, are termed fixed, because, during the\nSun\u2019s presence in them, the cold, heat, moisture or dryness, of the\nseason, which commenced on his arrival in the preceding tropical or\nequinoctial sign, is then more firmly established: not, however,\nthat the temperament of the season has in itself actually increased\nin vigour, but, having continued for some time in operation, it then\nrenders all things more strongly affected by its influence.\n\nThe bicorporeal signs severally follow the fixed signs; and, being thus\nintermediately placed between the fixed and the tropical signs, they\nparticipate in the constitutional properties of both, from their first\nto their last degrees.\n\n[43] In other words, the Sun then begins to diminish his declination,\nwhich, at the first points of the said signs, is at its greatest amount.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV\n\nMASCULINE AND FEMININE SIGNS\n\n\nAgain, among the twelve signs, six are called masculine and diurnal,\nand six feminine and nocturnal. They are arranged in alternate order,\none after the other, as the day is followed by the night, and as the\nmale is coupled with the female.\n\nThe commencement, it has been already said, belongs to Aries; since\nthe moisture of the spring forms an introduction for the other\nseasons. And, as the male sex governs, and the active principle\ntakes precedence of the passive, the signs of Aries and Libra are\nconsequently considered to be masculine and diurnal. These signs\ndescribe the equinoctial circle, and from them proceed the principal\nvariation, and most powerful agitation, of all things. The signs\nimmediately following them are feminine and nocturnal; and the rest are\nconsecutively arranged as masculine and feminine, by alternate order.\n\nMasculine or feminine qualities are, however, by some persons,\nattributed to the signs by means of a different arrangement, and by\nmaking the sign ascending (which is also called the horoscope) the\nfirst of the masculine signs. They also consider the first tropical\nsign to be that in which the Moon is posited, because she undergoes\nmore frequent and rapid changes and variations than any other heavenly\nbody; and it is by a similar mode of reasoning that they establish the\nhoroscope as the first masculine sign, on account of its being more\nimmediately under the Sun. Again, certain of these persons likewise\nallow the alternate arrangement of the signs; while there are, again,\nothers who do not admit it; but, instead thereof, divide the whole\nzodiac into quadrants, and denominate those between the ascendant and\nthe mid-heaven, and between the western angle and the lower haven,\noriental and masculine; and the other two quadrants, occidental and\nfeminine.\n\nThere have also been other additional appellations bestowed on the\nsigns, in consequence of their apparent formations and figures: they\nhave been called quadrupedal, terrestrial, imperial, fruitful, and have\nreceived various other distinguishing epithets of the same sort; but\nthese distinctions seem too unimportant to be even enumerated here,\nsince their origin is obvious, and since, should they ever be thought\nserviceable towards the inference of future effects, they may be easily\napplied without the aid of further instruction.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI\n\nMUTUAL CONFIGURATIONS OF THE SIGNS\n\n\nThere are certain familiarities or connections between different parts\nof the zodiac; and the chief of these is that which exists between such\nparts as are configurated with each other.\n\nThis mutual configuration attaches to all parts diametrically distant\nfrom each other, containing between them two right angles, or six\nsigns, or a hundred and eighty degrees: it also exists in all parts\nat the triangular distance from each other, containing between them\none right angle and a third, or four signs, or a hundred and twenty\ndegrees; also, in all parts at the quadrate distance from each other,\ncontaining between them exactly one right angle, or three signs, or\nninety degrees; and, also, in all parts at the hexagonal distance from\neach other, containing between them two-thirds of a right angle, or\ntwo signs, or sixty degrees.[44] These several distances are taken\nfor the following reasons: the distance by diameter, however, is in\nitself sufficiently clear, and requires no further explanation; but,\nas to the rest, after the diametrical points have been connected by\na straight line, AB; the space of the two right angles, contained on\nthe diameter, is then to be divided into aliquot parts of the two\ngreatest denominations; that is to say, into halves, AFC, CFB, and\ninto thirds, AFD, DFE, EFB: there will then be provided for the third\npart (AD) a super-proportion (DC), equal to its own half; and for\nthe half (AC) a super-proportion (CE), equal to its own third part;\nso that the division into two aliquot parts, AC, CB, will make the\nquartile distance AC; and the division into three aliquot parts, AD,\nDE, EB, will make the sextile distance AD, and the trinal distance AE.\nThe respective super-proportions (on either side of the intermediate\nquartile AC, formed by the one right angle AFC), will also again\nmake the quartile AC (if there be added to the sextile, AD, the\nsuper-proportion DC, equal to the half of the sextile), and the trine\nAE (if there be added to the quartile AC the super-proportion CE, equal\nto the third part of the quartile).\n\n[Illustration]\n\n[44] Whalley, in his note upon this chapter, seems to have been\nsurprised that no mention is made here by Ptolemy of the _conjunction_;\nbut he overlooked the fact that the chapter treats only of parts of the\nzodiac configurated _with each other_; and that it was not possible\nfor Ptolemy to conceive how any part could be configurated _with\nitself_. It is, therefore, by no means wonderful that the conjunction\nis not inserted here along with the rest of the aspects; although it\nis frequently adverted to in subsequent chapters, and its efficacy\nparticularly described.\n\nOf these configurations, the trine and the sextile are each called\nharmonious, because they are constituted between signs of the same\nkind; being formed between either all feminine or all masculine signs.\nThe opposition and quartile are considered to be discordant, because\nthey are configurations made between signs not of the same kind, but of\ndifferent natures and sexes.[45]\n\n[45] From the tenor of this chapter it was formerly doubted whether the\nauthor intended to admit in his theory only zodiacal aspects, and to\nreject those which are called mundane; but Placidus has referred to the\n4th Chapter of the 8th Book of the Almagest (which will be found in the\nAppendix to this translation) to prove that Ptolemy distinctly taught\ntwo kinds of aspect; one in the zodiac and one in the world. Whalley\nquotes the opinion of Placidus, which he says is farther confirmed by\nthe 12th Chapter of the 3rd Book of this very treatise, where it is\nstated that the ascendant and the eleventh house are in sextile to each\nother; the ascendant and the mid-heaven in quartile; the ascendant and\nthe ninth house in trine; and the ascendant and the occidental angle\nin opposition; all which certainly seems to be applicable to mundane\naspects in particular.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII\n\nSIGNS COMMANDING AND OBEYING\n\n\nAny two signs configurated with each other at an equal distance from\nthe same, or from either equinoctial point, are termed commanding and\nobeying, because the ascensional and descensional times of the one are\nequal to those of the other, and both describe equal parallels.\n\nThe signs in the summer semicircle are commanding; those in the winter\nsemicircle, obeying: for, when the Sun is present in the former, he\nmakes the day longer than the night; and, when in the latter, he\nproduces the contrary effect.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII\n\nSIGNS BEHOLDING EACH OTHER, AND OF EQUAL POWER\n\n\nAny two signs, equally distant from either tropical sign, are equal to\neach other in power; because the Sun, when present in one, makes day\nand night, and the divisions of time, respectively equal in duration\nto those which he produces when present in the other. Such signs are\nalso said to behold each other, as well for the foregoing reasons, as\nbecause each of them rises from one and the same part of the horizon,\nand sets in one and the same part.[46]\n\n[46] Whalley has a very lengthy note upon this and the preceding\nchapter, to show that Ptolemy here speaks of zodiacal parallels, or\nparallels of declination, and to point out the necessity of observing\na planet\u2019s latitude, in order to ascertain its true parallels. It is,\nhowever, to be recollected, that the parallels now alluded to are\ndistinct from the _mundane parallels_, which are equal distances from\nthe horizon or meridian, and are considered by Ptolemy in the 14th and\n15th Chapters of the 3rd Book of this work; although not under the\nexpress name of mundane parallels.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX\n\nSIGNS INCONJUNCT\n\n\nAll signs, between which there does not exist any familiarity in any of\nthe modes above specified, are inconjunct and separated.\n\nFor instance, all signs are inconjunct which are neither commanding\nnor obeying, and not beholding each other nor of equal power, as well\nas all signs which contain between them the space of one sign only,\nor the space of five signs, and which do not at all share in any of\nthe four prescribed configurations: viz. the opposition, the trine,\nthe quartile, and the sextile. All parts which are distant from each\nother in the space of one sign only are considered inconjunct, because\nthey are averted, as it were, from each other; and because, although\nthe said space between them may extend into two signs, the whole only\ncontains an angle equal to that of one sign: all parts distant from\neach other in the space of five signs are also considered inconjunct,\nbecause they divide the whole circle into unequal parts; whereas the\nspaces contained in the configurations above mentioned, viz. the\nopposition, trine, quartile, and sextile, produce aliquot divisions.[47]\n\n[47] It has never been very clearly shown how the followers of Ptolemy\nhave reconciled the new aspects (called the semiquadrate, quintile,\nsesquiquadrate, biquintile, &c.) with the _veto_ pronounced in this\nchapter. Kepler is said to have invented them, and they have been\nuniversally adopted; even Placidus, who has applied Ptolemy\u2019s doctrine\nto practice better than any other writer, has availed himself of them,\u2020\nand, if the nativities published by him are to be credited, he has\nfully established their importance.\n\nSalmon, in his \u201cHor\u00e6 Mathematic\u00e6,\u201d before-mentioned, gives a long\ndissertation (from p. 403 to p. 414) on the old Ptolemaic aspects,\nillustrative of their foundation in nature and in mathematics; and,\nalthough his conclusions are not quite satisfactorily drawn, some of\nhis arguments would seem appropriate, if he had but handled them more\nfully and expertly; particularly where he says that the aspects are\nderived \u201cfrom the aliquot parts of a circle, wherein observe that,\nalthough the zodiac may have many more aliquot parts than these four\n(the sextile, quartile, trine, and opposition), yet those other aliquot\nparts of the circle, or 360 degrees, will not make an aliquot division\nof the signs also, which in this design was sought to answer, as well\nin the number 12, as in the number 360.\u201d The passage in which he\nendeavours to show that they are authorized by their projection, also\ndeserves attention.\n\nAll Salmon\u2019s arguments, however, in support of the old Ptolemaic\naspects, militate against the new Keplerian ones; and so does the\nfollowing extract from the \u201cAstrological Discourse\u201d of Sir Christopher\nHeydon: \u201cFor thus, amongst all ordinate planes that may be inscribed,\nthere are two whose sides, joined together, have pre-eminence to take\nup a semicircle, but only the hexagon, quadrate, and equilateral\ntriangle, answering to the sextile, quartile, and trine irradiated.\nThe subtense, therefore, of a sextile aspect consisteth of two signs,\nwhich, joined to the subtense of a trine, composed of four, being\nregular and equilateral, take up six signs, which is a complete\nsemicircle. In like manner, the sides of a quadrate inscribed,\nsubtending three signs, twice reckoned, do occupy likewise the mediety\nof a circle. And what those figures are before said to perform\u201d (that\nis, to take up a semicircle) \u201ceither doubled or joined together, may\nalso be truly ascribed unto the opposite aspect by itself; for that\nthe diametral line, which passeth from the place of conjunction to\nthe opposite point, divideth a circle into two equal parts: the like\nwhereof cannot be found in any other inscripts; for example, the _side\nof a regular pentagon_\u201d (the quintile) \u201c_subtendeth 72 degrees, of\nan octagon_\u201d (the semiquadrate) \u201c_but 45; the remainders of which\narcs, viz. 108 and 135 degrees, are not subtended by the sides of any\nordinate figure_.\u201d\n\n\u2020Except the semiquadrate, which he has not at all noticed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX\n\nHOUSES OF THE PLANETS\n\n\nThose stars which are denominated planetary orbs have particular\nfamiliarity with certain places in the zodiac, by means of parts\ndesignated as their houses, and also by their triplicities,\nexaltations, terms, and so forth.\n\nThe nature of their familiarity by houses is as follows:\n\nCancer and Leo are the most northerly of all the twelve signs; they\napproach nearer than the other signs to the zenith of this part of\nthe earth, and thereby cause warmth and heat: they are consequently\nappropriated as houses for the two principal and greater luminaries;\nLeo for the Sun, as being masculine; and Cancer for the Moon, as being\nfeminine. It has hence resulted, that the semicircle from Leo to\nCapricorn has been ordained solar, and the semicircle from Aquarius\nto Cancer, lunar; in order that each planet might occupy one sign in\neach semicircle, and thus have one of its houses configurated with the\nSun and the other with the Moon, conformably to the motions of its own\nsphere, and the peculiar properties of its nature.\n\nSaturn, therefore, since he is cold and inimical to heat, moving also\nin a superior orbit most remote from the luminaries, occupies the signs\nopposite to Cancer and Leo: these are Aquarius and Capricorn; and they\nare assigned to him in consideration of their cold and wintry nature;\nand because the configuration by opposition does not co-operate towards\nthe production of good.[48]\n\n[48] Saturn being also malefic in his nature.\n\nJupiter has a favourable temperament, and is situated beneath\nthe sphere of Saturn; he therefore occupies the next two signs,\nSagittarius and Pisces. These signs are airy and fruitful, in\nconsequence of their trinal distance from the houses of the luminaries,\nwhich distance harmonises with the operation of good.\n\nMars is dry in nature, and beneath the sphere of Jupiter: he takes\nthe next two signs, of a nature similar to his own, viz. Aries and\nScorpio, whose relative distances from the houses of the luminaries are\ninjurious and discordant.\n\nVenus, possessing a favourable temperament, and placed beneath the\nsphere of Mars, takes the next two signs, Taurus and Libra. These are\nof a fruitful nature, and preserve harmony by the sextile distance; and\nthis planet is never more than two signs distant from the Sun.\n\nMercury never has greater distance from the Sun than the space of one\nsign, and is beneath all the other planets: hence he is placed nearest\nto both luminaries, and the remaining two signs, Gemini and Virgo, are\nallotted to him.[49]\n\n[49] The planets, having two houses, are said to be more powerful in\none by day and in the other by night: thus,\n\n Saturn\u2019s day house is Aquarius, his night house Capricorn\n Jupiter\u2019s Sagittarius Pisces\n Mars\u2019s Aries Scorpio\n Venus\u2019s Taurus Libra\n Mercury\u2019s Gemini Virgo\n\nThe above is from Whalley; but the same disposition is to be found in\nall modern astrological writers.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI\n\nTHE TRIPLICITIES\n\n\nThe familiarity existing by triplicity arises in the following mode:\n\nThe triplicity preserves accordance with an equilateral triangle, and\nthe whole zodiacal orbit is defined by three circles, viz. that of the\nequinox, and those of the two tropics; the twelve signs are, therefore,\ndistributed among four equilateral triangles.\n\nThe first triangle, or triplicity, is formed by three masculine signs,\nAries, Leo, and Sagittarius, having the Sun, Jupiter, and Mars as lords\nby house. Mars, however, being contrary in condition to the solar\ninfluence, this triplicity receives, as its lords, only Jupiter and\nthe Sun. By day, therefore, the Sun claims the principal co-regency of\nit, and Jupiter by night. Aries is on the equinoctial circle, Leo on\nthe summer, and Sagittarius on the winter circle. This triplicity is\nprincipally northern, owing to the concurrent dominion of Jupiter, who\nis fruitful and airy, and expressly connected with winds proceeding\nfrom the north; it is, however, also north-west, in consequence of\nbeing, in some degree, combined with the west by means of the house of\nMars, who introduces western breezes and the feminine qualities of that\nquarter, in consequence of his lunar condition.[50]\n\nThe second triplicity, formed by Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn, is\nallotted to the dominion of the Moon and Venus, since it consists of\nfeminine signs. The Moon rules it by night, and Venus by day. Taurus\nis on the summer circle, Virgo on the equinoctial, and Capricorn\non the winter. This triplicity is southern, in consequence of the\ndominion of Venus, whose warm and moist influence produces south\nwinds: it, however, additionally receives a mixture of the east, by\nmeans of Saturn; for, as Capricorn is the house of that planet, and\nan eastern sign, Saturn becomes effective of winds from that quarter,\nand furnishes this triplicity with a mixture of the east, with which\nquarter he is further connected by means of his solar condition.[51]\n\nThe third triplicity is composed of Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius,\nmasculine signs. It holds connection with Saturn and Mercury by\ncontaining their houses, and is therefore attributed to them, and not\nto Mars, to which planet it bears no relation. Saturn rules it by day,\nowing to his condition,[52] and Mercury by night. Gemini is on the\nsummer circle, Libra on the equinoctial, and Aquarius on the winter.\nThis triplicity is principally eastern, by the influence of Saturn; but\nit becomes north-east by receiving also a mixture of the north from the\ncondition of Jupiter, with which planet Saturn has, in this respect, a\ndiurnal familiarity.[53]\n\nThe fourth triplicity, formed by Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces, is left\nto the remaining planet, Mars, who has right in it by means of his\nhouse, Scorpio. But, as the signs which compose this triplicity are\nfeminine, the Moon by night and Venus by day, through their feminine\ncondition, govern it, together with Mars. Cancer is on the summer\ncircle, Scorpio on the winter, and Pisces on the equinoctial. This\ntriplicity is western, in consequence of the government of the Moon and\nMars; but it is also blended with the south by the joint dominion of\nVenus, and therefore becomes south-west.\n\n[50] The \u201clunar condition\u201d here spoken of refers to the position of\nAries (Mars\u2019s house) in the lunar semicircle.\n\n[51] Capricorn being in the solar semicircle.\n\n[52] The reason for making Saturn diurnal lord of this triplicity may\nbe found in Chap. vii.\n\n[53] This familiarity seems to arise from the sextile aspect between\nAquarius, the diurnal house of Saturn, and Sagittarius, the diurnal\nhouse of Jupiter.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXII\n\nEXALTATIONS\n\n\nThat which is termed the exaltation of the planets is considered by the\nfollowing rules:\n\nThe Sun on his entrance into Aries is then passing into the higher and\nmore northern semicircle; but, on his entrance into Libra, into the\nmore southern and lower one: his exaltation, therefore, is determined\nto be in Aries, as, when present in that sign, he begins to lengthen\nthe days, and the influence of his heating nature increases at the same\ntime. His fall is placed in Libra, for the converse reasons.\n\nSaturn on the contrary, in order to preserve his station opposite to\nthe Sun, in this respect, as well as in regard to their respective\nhouses, obtains his exaltation in Libra, and his fall in Aries: since,\nin all cases, the increase of heat must be attended by a diminution of\ncold, and the increase of cold by a diminution of heat.\n\nThe Moon, again, after conjunction with the Sun in Aries, the seat\nof his exaltation, makes her first appearance, and begins to augment\nher light in Taurus, the first sign of her own triplicity, which is\nconsequently ascribed to be her exaltation; while Scorpio, the opposite\nsign, is her fall.\n\nJupiter, since he is efficacious in exciting fruitful breezes from the\nnorth, and since he becomes most northerly, and augments his peculiar\ninfluence when in Cancer, accordingly obtains his exaltation in that\nsign, and his fall in Capricorn.\n\nMars possesses a fiery nature, which receives its greatest intensity\nin Capricorn, in which sign this planet becomes most southerly; his\nexaltation is therefore placed in Capricorn, in opposition to that of\nJupiter, and his fall in Cancer.\n\nVenus is of a moist nature, and becomes chiefly moist when in Pisces.\nUnder that sign a dampness begins to be perceptible in the atmosphere,\nand Venus, from being in that sign, derives an augmentation of her own\nproper influence: her exaltation is consequently placed therein, and\nher fall in Virgo.\n\nMercury is of a nature opposite to that of Venus, and is more dry: in\nopposition to her, therefore, he takes his exaltation in Virgo, in\nwhich sign the autumnal dryness makes its first appearance; and he\nreceives his fall in Pisces.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIII\n\nTHE DISPOSITION OF THE TERMS[54]\n\n\nThere are two methods of disposing the terms of the planets, in\nreference to the dominion of the triplicities; one is \u00c6gyptian, the\nother Chaldaic.\n\nBut the \u00c6gyptian method preserves no regular distribution, neither in\npoint of successive order nor in point of quantity.\n\n[54] In reference to the terms of the planets, Placidus has these words\n(according to Cooper\u2019s translation): \u201cThe dignity of the planets in the\nsigns and their parts, which are called the bounds and terminations\u201d\n(_quasi_, terms), \u201chave a real and natural foundation; to wit, the\npowerful aspect or proportional influxes to the movable points in which\nthe stars begin to produce the primary qualities. So that, according to\nthose things we have explained in the philosophy of the heavens, these\nare found to agree so well with the \u00c6gyptian boundaries\u201d (terms), \u201cthat\nthey are highly deserving of admiration.\u201d\n\nIn point of order it is defective, since it, in some instances, allots\nthe first degrees of a sign to the lord of the house, in others to\nthe lord of the triplicity, and in others again to the lord of the\nexaltation. By selecting examples this failure in order will easily be\nseen; for instance, if the order were regulated by the government of\nhouses, for what reason should Saturn take the first degrees in Libra,\nsince that sign is the house of Venus? or why should Jupiter take them\nin Aries, which is the house of Mars? If the government of triplicities\nwere followed, for what reason should Mercury take the first degrees in\nCapricorn, which is in the triplicity ruled by Venus? If the government\nby exaltations, why should Mars take the first degrees in Cancer? that\nsign being the exaltation of Jupiter. And if the order were regulated\neven by considering the planet which possesses most of these dignities\nin the sign, for what reason should Mercury take the first degrees\nin Aquarius, in which sign he rules only by triplicity, and why not\nSaturn, who has government in it by house, as well as by triplicity? or\nwhy in short should Mercury, who does not possess any kind of dominion\nin Capricorn, receive the first degrees in that sign also? The same\nwant of order is abundantly evident in the rest of the distribution.\n\nAn equal irregularity exists in the respective quantities of degrees\nallotted by the \u00c6gyptians to the several terms of the planets. For it\nis by no means a proper nor sufficient demonstration of accuracy that\nthe aggregate sum of all the numbers of every single planet amounts to\nthe precise total requiring to be divided into portions of time;[55]\nsince, even if it be admitted that this total, collected from every\nsingle star, is correctly asserted by the \u00c6gyptians, it may still be\nobjected that the same total, so collected by them, may be found in\nmany other ways by interchanging the numbers in a sign. There are\npersons also who contend that in every latitude the same space of time\nis occupied in ascension by every star; this, however, is manifestly\nwrong: for, in the first place, these persons are guided by the vulgar\nopinion of the plane heights of ascension, which is totally foreign\nto truth, and according to which, in the parallel of Lower \u00c6gypt, the\nsigns of Virgo and Libra would ascend each in thirty-eight degrees and\na third,[56] and Leo and Scorpio each in thirty-five degrees; when it\nis, on the contrary, shown by the Tables,[57] that the latter two signs\noccupy in their several ascensions more than thirty-five degrees each,\nbut Virgo and Libra less. It should further be observed, that those\nwho support this opinion seem (by so doing) not only to dispute the\nquantity of the terms most generally received, but to be driven also to\nthe necessity of falsifying many points; since (as it is indispensable\nto keep to the same total amount of all the terms together) they make\nuse of parts of degrees; but even that contrivance does not enable them\nto reach the true point.\n\n[55] This total is the 360 degrees of the zodiac, requiring to be\ndivided according to correspondent portions of the equator; by which\nall time is reckoned.\n\n[56] The degrees here mentioned are degrees of the equator.\n\n[57] See, in the Appendix, an extract from these tables; the whole of\nwhich are to be found in the Almagest.\n\nThe old terms, admitted by many persons on the authority of former\ntradition, are as follows:\n\nTHE TERMS ACCORDING TO THE \u00c6GYPTIANS\n\n -------------+----------+-----------+----------+----------+----------\n Aries | Taurus | Gemini | Cancer | Leo | Virgo\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Jupiter| 6| 6|Ven.| 8| 8|Mer.| 6 | 6|Mars| 7| 7|Jup.| 6| 6|Mer.| 7| 7\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Venus | 6|12|Mer.| 6|14|Jup.| 6 |12|Ven.| 6|13|Ven.| 5|11|Ven.|10|17\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Mercury| 8|20|Jup.| 8|22|Ven.| 5 |17|Mer.| 6|19|Sat.| 7|18|Jup.| 4|21\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Mars | 5|25|Sat.| 5|27|Mars| 7 |24|Jup.| 7|26|Mer.| 6|24|Mars| 7|28\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Saturn | 5|30|Mars| 3|30|Sat.| 6 |30|Sat.| 4|30|Mars| 6|30|Sat.| 2|30\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+---+--+---+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Libra | Scorpio |Sagittarius| Capricorn| Aquarius | Pisces\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Saturn | 6| 6|Mars| 7| 7|Jup.|12 |12|Mer.| 7| 7|Mer.| 7| 7|Ven.|12|12\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Mercury| 8|14|Ven.| 4|11|Ven.| 5 |17|Jup.| 7|14|Ven.| 6|13|Jup.| 4|16\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Jupiter| 7|21|Mer.| 8|19|Mer.| 4 |21|Ven.| 8|22|Jup.| 7|20|Mer.| 3|19\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Venus | 7|28|Jup.| 5|24|Sat.| 5 |26|Sat.| 4|26|Mars| 5|25|Mars| 9|28\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n Mars | 2|30|Sat.| 6|30|Mars| 4 |30|Mars| 4|30|Sat.| 5|30|Sat.| 2|30\n -------+--+--+----+--+--+----+---+--+----+--+--+----+--+--+----+--+--\n\nThus, by the \u00c6gyptian distribution, it appears that the total numbers\nof the degrees for each planet, added together, make 360:\u2014viz. for\nSaturn 57, Jupiter 79, Mars 66, Venus 82, and Mercury 76.\n\nThe method of the Chald\u00e6ans contains a certain simplicity of\narrangement as to quantity, and preserves an order of succession\nrather more comformable to the dominion of the triplicities. It is,\nnevertheless, highly imperfect, as may be easily discovered even\nwithout being pointed out: for in the first triplicity (which the\nChald\u00e6ans also attribute to the same signs; viz. Aries, Leo, and\nSagittarius), Jupiter, the lord of the triplicity, takes the first\ndegrees; Venus, who rules the next triplicity, follows him; after her,\nin succession, are Saturn and Mercury, the lords of the triplicity\nof Gemini; and lastly Mars, lord of the remaining triplicity. In the\nsecond triplicity (also allotted to the same signs, viz. Taurus, Virgo,\nand Capricorn), Venus stands first; next to her, Saturn and Mercury;\nafter them Mars, and Jupiter last. In the other two triplicities a\nsimilar order of succession is closely followed; and with respect to\nthe third triplicity, which is ascribed to two lords, viz. to Saturn\nand Mercury, Saturn is placed first in order by day and Mercury by\nnight.\n\nThe quantity of degrees allotted to each planet is also simply\nregulated in the Chaldaic method; it diminishes in graduation from the\nquantity given to the planet first in order, so that each successive\nplanet takes one degree less than that which preceded it. Thus the\nfirst planet takes eight degrees, the second seven, the third six, the\nfourth five, and the fifth four. By this arrangement the degrees of\nSaturn amount by day to 78, and by night to 66; the degrees of Jupiter\nto 72, of Mars to 69, of Venus to 75, and of Mercury by day to 66, and\nby night to 78\u2014the whole amounting to 360.\n\nOf these two distributions of the terms, that of the \u00c6gyptians seems\nmore to be relied on than the other; since it has been handed down and\nrecommended in the writings of the \u00c6gyptian authors, and also because\nthe degrees of the terms, in nativities rectified by them as examples,\nare universally in accordance with this distribution; while, on the\nother hand, neither the order nor the number of the Chaldaic method has\never been recorded or explained by any writer\u2014not even by the writers\nof that very nation: the accuracy of that method is consequently\ndoubtful, and its irregularity as to the order of placing the planets\nis widely open to censure.\n\nThere is, however, an ancient writing which has fallen into the\nauthor\u2019s possession, and which gives a rational and consistent account\nof the nature of the terms; of the order in which they are to be\ntaken, and of the quantity belonging to each. It will be found in the\nsubsequent chapter.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIV\n\nTHE TERMS ACCORDING TO PTOLEMY\n\n\nIn arranging the order in which the planets take their terms in each\nsign, their exaltations, triplicities, and houses, are taken into\nconsideration; and whatever planet, whether benefic or malefic, may\npossess two rights of dominion in one and the same sign, such planet\nis universally placed first in order in that sign. In other cases,\nhowever, where it does not happen that a malefic possesses two rights\nof dominion in the sign, it is always placed last.\n\nThe lord of the exaltation is placed first; then the lord of the\ntriplicity; and then the lord of the house; in regular succession,\naccording to the series of the signs; but it must again be remembered\nthat any planet, having two rights of dominion in the same sign, takes\nprecedence, as before mentioned, of those having only one. In Cancer\nand Leo, however, the malefics occupy the first degrees; as those signs\nare the houses of the Moon and the Sun, which take no terms; and the\nmalefics being found to have greater potency in those signs therefore\ntake precedence in them. Mars, consequently, receives the first degrees\nin Cancer, and Saturn in Leo, by which arrangement a proper order is\npreserved.[58]\n\n[58] The cause of this disposition is that Cancer, the house of the\nMoon, partakes of moisture, and counteracts Mars\u2019s dryness; while Leo,\nthe Sun\u2019s house, is hot, and counteracts Saturn\u2019s cold.\u2014Vide Chap. iv,\nand conclusion of Chap. vii of this book.\n\nIt may further be observed, that Jupiter\u2019s right, by triplicity, to\nthe first degrees in Leo, is of course surrendered to Saturn, on the\nprinciple that the malefics have greater potency in the houses of the\nluminaries.\n\nThe respective quantities of degrees for the several terms is thus\ndetermined: viz. when there is no planet found to be lord by two\nrights in the same sign, or in the two signs next following, each of\nthe benefics, Jupiter and Venus, takes seven degrees; the malefics,\nSaturn and Mars, take five degrees each; and Mercury, being of common\ninfluence, takes six degrees; thus completing the whole thirty. Since,\nhowever, there are some cases in which a planet has always a double\nright\u2014(for Venus obtains the sole government of Taurus and Pisces, as\nthe Moon does not share in the terms)\u2014it is to be observed that when\nsuch double right (whether it exist in the same sign or in the signs\nnext following as far as may complete a quadrant) may be possessed by\nany planet, that planet receives in addition one degree. The planets\nthus entitled were distinguished by points in the ancient writing above\nmentioned. And the degree, added to the quantity of the planet which\nexercises a double right, is subtracted from those of single right;\nmost generally from Saturn and Jupiter, in consequence of their slower\nmotion.\n\nThese terms are detailed in the following table:\u2014\n\n ------------+---------+-----------+---------+---------+----------\n Aries | Taurus | Gemini | Cancer | Leo | Virgo\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Jupiter|6| 6|Ven.|8| 8|Mer.|7| 7 |Mars|6| 6|Jup.|6| 6|Mer.|7| 7\n | | | | | | | | | | | |Sat.| | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Venus |8|14|Mer.|7|15|Jup.|6| 13 |Mer.|7|13|Mer.|7|13|Ven.|6|13\n | | | | | | | | |Jup.| | | | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Mercury|7|21|Jup.|7|22|Ven.|7| 20 |Jup.|7|20|Sat.|6|19|Jup.|5|18\n | | | | | | | | |Mer.| | |Ven.| | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Mars |5|26|Sat.|2|24|Mars|6| 26 |Ven.|7|27|Jup.|6|25|Sat.|6|24\n | | | |4|26| | | | | | | | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Saturn |4|30|Mars|6|30|Sat.|4| 30 |Sat.|3|30|Mars|5|30|Mars|6|30\n | | | |4| | | | | | | | | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Libra | Scorpio |Sagittarius|Capricorn| Aquarius| Pisces\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Saturn |6| 6|Mars|6| 6|Jup.|8| 8 |Ven.|6| 6|Sat.|6| 6|Ven.|8| 8\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Venus |5|11|Ven.|8|14|Ven.|6| 14 |Mer.|6|12|Mer.|6|12|Jup.|6|14\n | | |Jup.|7|13| | | | | | | | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Mercury|8|19|Jup.|7|21|Mer.|5| 19 |Jup.|7|19|Ven.|8|20|Mer.|6|20\n Jupiter|5|16|Ven.|8| | | | | | | | | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Jupiter|5|24|Mer.|6|27|Sat.|6| 25 |Sat.|6|25|Jup.|5|25|Mars|6|26\n Mercury|8| | | | | | | |Mars|5|25| | | | | |\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n Mars |6|30|Sat.|3|30|Mars|5| 30 |Mars|5|30|Mars|5|30|Sat.|4|30\n | | | | | | | | |Sat.| | | | | | |3|\n -------+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+----+----+-+--+----+-+--+----+-+---\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXV\n\nTHE PLACES AND DEGREES OF EVERY PLANET\n\n\nThe signs have been subdivided by some persons into parts still more\nminute, which have been named places and degrees of dominion. Thus the\ntwelfth part of a sign, or two degrees and a half, has been called\na place, and the dominion of it given to the signs next succeeding.\nOther persons again, pursuing various modes of arrangement, attribute\nto each planet certain degrees, as being aboriginally connected with\nit, in a manner somewhat similar to the Chaldaic arrangement of the\nterms. But all these imaginary attributes cannot be herein detailed,\nfor they receive no confirmation from nature, are not capable of being\nrationally demonstrated, and are, in fact, merely the offspring of\nscientific vanity.\n\nThe following observation, however, deserves attention, and must not be\nomitted.\n\nThe beginnings of the signs, and likewise those of the terms, are to\nbe taken from the equinoctial and tropical points. This rule is not\nonly clearly stated by writers on the subject, but is also especially\nevident by the demonstration constantly afforded, that their natures,\ninfluences and familiarities have no other origin than from the tropics\nand equinoxes, as has been already plainly shown.[59] And, if other\nbeginnings were allowed, it would either be necessary to exclude the\nnatures of the signs from the theory of prognostication, or impossible\nto avoid error in then retaining and making use of them; as the\nregularity of their spaces and distances, upon which their influence\ndepends, would then be invaded and broken in upon.\n\n[59] _Vide_ Chapters xii and xiv of this Book.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVI\n\nFACES, CHARIOTS, AND OTHER SIMILAR ATTRIBUTES OF THE PLANETS\n\n\nThe familiarities existing between the planets and the signs are such\nas have been already particularised.\n\nThere are also, however, further peculiarities ascribed to the planets.\nEach is said to be in its proper face, when the aspect it holds to the\nSun, or Moon, is similar to that which its own house bears to their\nhouses: for example, Venus is in her proper face when making a sextile\naspect to either luminary, provided she be occidental to the Sun, but\noriental to the Moon, agreeably to the primary arrangement of her\nhouses.[60]\n\n[60] _Vide_ Chapter xx. It of course follows that Saturn is in his\nproper face when he is five signs, or in quintile, after the Sun\nor before the Moon; that Jupiter is so when in trine; Mars when in\nquartile; Venus when in sextile; and Mercury when only one sign (or in\nmodern phrase, in semi-sextile), after the Sun or before the Moon.\n\nEach planet is also said to be in its proper chariot, or throne, or\notherwise triumphantly situated, when it holds familiarity with the\nplace which it actually occupies by two, or more, of the prescribed\nmodes of connection: for when it is so circumstanced, its influence and\nenergy are specially augmented by the familiarity it thus holds with\nthe sign which encompasses it, and which is similar in influence and\nco-operates with it.\n\nLastly, each planet (although it may possess no familiarity with\nthe sign encompassing it) is said to rejoice, when any connection\nsubsists between itself and other stars of the same condition; as,\nnotwithstanding the distance between them, a certain sympathy and\ncommunication of influence is derived from their mutual resemblance.\nIn the same manner, again, when a planet occupies a place adverse and\ndissimilar in condition to itself, much of its influence is dissipated\nand lost; in consequence of the interposition and admixture of the\nother different influence, arising out of the dissimilar temperament of\nthe sign by which it is encompassed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVII\n\nAPPLICATION, SEPARATION, AND OTHER FACULTIES\n\n\nIn all cases when the distances between planets or luminaries are\nbut trifling,[61] the planet which precedes is said to apply to that\nwhich follows; and that which follows to be separating from that\nwhich precedes.[62] The same rule obtains both in respect to bodily\nconjunction and to any other of the aspects before described; except\nthat, in the application and separation of the bodily conjunction, it\nis also essential to observe the actual latitudes of the bodies, in\norder to receive and consider only such a transit as may be made in the\nsame parts of the zodiac.[63] But in the application and separation of\naspects merely, the same attention is not requisite, since all the rays\nare uniformly converged into one focus, that is to say, into the angle\nof the earth,[64] and meet there alike from every quarter.\n\n[61] This has been understood to mean, when the planets or luminaries\nare within each other\u2019s orbs; Saturn\u2019s orb being 10 degrees, Jupiter\u2019s\n12, Mars\u2019s 7 degrees 30 minutes, the Sun\u2019s 17 degrees, Venus\u2019s 8,\nMercury\u2019s 7 degrees 30 minutes, and the Moon\u2019s 12 degrees 30 minutes.\n\n[62] Astrologers generally agree, that the inferior planets always\napply to the superior, but the superior never to the inferior, except\nwhen the inferior be retrograde. In the present instance it seems most\nprobable that the author means the planet which is more occidental, by\n\u201cthe planet which precedes.\u201d He often uses \u201cprecedent\u201d as equivalent\nto \u201coccidental\u201d in regard to the daily revolution of the heavens: and\nthus a planet in the first degree of Aries would precede, and be more\noccidental than one in the sixth degree of Aries, to which latter it\nwould, by the regular planetary motion, be applying.\n\n[63] On this, Whalley says that \u201cthe less the difference of latitude of\nthe planets in conjunction, the more powerful will be the influence:\nfor if two planets in conjunction have each considerable latitude of\ndifferent denomination, the influence of such conjunction will be much\nlessened.\u201d\n\n[64] \u03a4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c4 \u03b5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03b5\u03c0\u03b9 \u03c4\u03bf \u03ba\u03b5\u03bd\u03c4\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03b3\u03b7\u03c2. The precise meaning of the\nword \u03ba\u03b5\u03bd\u03c4\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd is \u201ccentre,\u201d rather than \u201cangle\u201d; but Ptolemy uses it\nthroughout this work, in speaking of the four angles of heaven, and I\nconceive he uses it here to signify an angle at, or on, the earth. The\nfollowing definition of an aspect, by Kepler, strengthens my opinion:\n\u201cAn aspect is an angle formed on the earth, by the luminous rays of two\nplanets; efficacious in stimulating sublunary nature.\u201d\n\nIt appears, therefore, by the whole of what has been already delivered,\nthat the effective influence of the stars must be considered as arising\nnot only from their own peculiar natures and properties, but also\nfrom the quality of the surrounding signs, and from configuration\nwith the Sun and the angles; all which has been pointed out. The\ninfluence of each planet, however, is strengthened chiefly when it\nmay be oriental, swift and direct in its proper course and motion\u2014for\nit has then its greatest power: but, on the other hand, it loses\nstrength when occidental and slow in motion or retrograde; as it then\nacts with smaller effect.[65] Its influence also receives accession\nor diminution, from its position with regard to the horizon; as, if\nit be situated in the mid-heaven, or succedent to the mid-heaven,\nit is especially strong; likewise, if it be on the actual horizon,\nor succedent to the horizon, it is also powerful\u2014particularly if in\nthe eastern quarter. Should it, however, be below the earth, and\nconfigurated with the ascendant, either from the lower heaven, or\nfrom any other part below the earth, its influence then becomes more\nlanguid; but if, when below the earth, it hold no such configuration,\nit is entirely deprived of efficacy.[66]\n\n[65] Placidus (Cooper\u2019s translation) says that \u201cthe three superiors\nare supposed to be stronger, if they are found to be matutine, or\neastern, from the Sun; the three inferiors, vespertine, or western;\nfor then they have a greater degree of light, in which consists their\nvirtual influence, and then they are called oriental; but occidental if\notherwise. Every one knows how largely, yet to no purpose, authors have\ntreated of the orientality of the planets.\u201d\n\nMoxon\u2019s Mathematical Dictionary has the following words on the same\nsubject: \u201cNow the three superior planets are strongest, being oriental\nand matutine; but the three inferior when they are occidental and\nvespertine. The reason is, because the first in the first case, but\nthe last in the second, do then descend to the lowest part of their\norbit, are increased in light, and approaching nearer the earth; and so\non the contrary, the inferiors matutine, the superiors vespertine are\nweakened.\u201d\n\n[66] In a note on the 6th Chapter of this Book, Whalley says that,\n\u201caccording to Ptolemy, such as are between the ascendant and mid-heaven\nobtain the first place of strength, and are said to be in their\noriental orientality: but, between the western horizon and the lower\nheaven, in their occidental orientality, which is the second place\nof strength: between the lower heaven and the ascendant, in their\noriental occidentality, the first degree of weakness; and between the\nmid-heaven and western horizon, in their occidental occidentality, the\nweakest place of all.\u201d This is all very pretty jargon, but certainly\nNOT \u201caccording to Ptolemy,\u201d who distinctly says, on the contrary, that\nif a planet \u201cis on the actual horizon, or succedent to the horizon, it\nis also _powerful, and particularly_ if in the eastern quarter.\u201d The\nlast member of this sentence, as well as the conclusion of this 27th\nChapter, shows that Ptolemy did not consider a situation between the\nmid-heaven and western horizon to be \u201cthe weakest place of all.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nBOOK THE SECOND\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nGENERAL DIVISION OF THE SUBJECT\n\n\nThe great and leading points, requiring to be attended to as a\nnecessary means of introduction to the consideration of particular\npredictions, having been succinctly defined, the further parts of\nthe subject, comprehending everything which may tend to facilitate\nprediction, and render it complete, shall now be duly proceeded in;\nand, at the same time, care shall be taken to confine the whole\ndoctrine within the limits of natural reason.\n\nThe foreknowledge to be acquired by means of Astrology is to be\nregarded in two great and principal divisions. The first, which may\nbe properly called General, or Universal, concerns entire nations,\ncountries, or cities; and the second, denominated Particular, or\nGenethliacal, relates to men individually.\n\nIn considering these respective divisions, it seems proper to give\npriority to that which has the more general application and influence:\nbecause, in the first place, general events are produced by causes\ngreater and more compulsatory than the causes of particular events;\nsecondly, because natures of more extended potency must invariably\ncontrol those which are more limited in action; and, thirdly, because\nparticular events, or individual affections, are comprehended in those\nof general influence.[67] It is therefore especially necessary, in\ndesiring to investigate particular events, to treat first of those\nwhich are general.\n\n[67] _Vide_ Chap. iii, Book I, pp. 13-14.\n\nAgain, general events are subdivided according to their operation\nupon entire countries, and upon certain cities or districts: one\nsub-division being regarded as affecting entire countries, and the\nother certain cities or districts only. They are also separately\nconsidered according to the causes by which they are produced; war,\npestilence, famine, earthquakes, inundations, and other similar\nvisitations being dependent on such greater and more important causes,\nas arise only after considerable periods; while slighter causes,\narising more frequently, have reference only to the revolution of the\nseasons; their greater or less variation in cold and heat; the severity\nor mildness of the weather; the occasional abundance or scarcity of\nprovisions; and other like occurrences.\n\nHence the consideration of those events which concern whole countries,\nand are dependent on the greater causes (since it has a more extended\nscope than the other, which attaches only to certain cities, or\ndistricts, and is subject to slighter causes) takes precedence. And,\nfor its due investigation, two essential points are to be attended to:\nthe first is, the appropriate familiarity of the zodiacal signs and the\nfixed stars with the several regions which may be concerned; and the\nsecond comprises the indications occasionally arising in those parts of\nthe heavens where such familiarity is found: for instance, the eclipses\nof the Sun and Moon, and such transits as may be made by the planets,\nwhen matutine, and in their respective stations.\n\nThe nature of the sympathy between these things must, however, be\nexplained first; and a brief description will therefore be given of\nthe chief peculiarities observable in whole nations; in regard to\ntheir manners and customs, as well as to their bodily formation and\ntemperament; considered agreeably to their familiarity with those stars\nand signs whence the natural cause of their peculiarities duly proceeds.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nPECULIARITIES OBSERVABLE THROUGHOUT EVERY ENTIRE CLIMATE\n\n\nThe peculiarities of all nations are distinguished according to entire\nparallels and entire angles, and by their situation with regard to the\nSun and the Ecliptic.\n\nThe climate which we inhabit is situated in one of the Northern\nQuadrants: but other nations, which lie under more southern parallels,\nthat is to say, in the space between the equinoctial line and the\nsummer tropic, have the Sun in their zenith, and are continually\nscorched by it. They are consequently black in complexion, and\nhave thick and curled hair. They are, moreover, ugly in person, of\ncontracted stature, hot in disposition, and fierce in manners, in\nconsequence of the incessant heats to which they are exposed; and they\nare called by the common name of \u00c6thiopians. But the human race does\nnot alone afford evidence of the violent heat in these regions; it is\nshown also by all other animals and by the state of the surrounding\natmosphere.\n\nThe natives of those countries which lie under the more remote northern\nparallels (that is to say, under the Arctic circle and beyond it[68])\nhave their zenith far distant from the zodiac and the Sun\u2019s heat.\nTheir constitutions, therefore, abound in cold, and are also highly\nimbued with moisture, which is in itself a most nutritive quality,\nand, in these latitudes, is not exhausted by heat: hence they are fair\nin complexion, with straight hair, of large bodies and full stature.\nThey are cold in disposition, and wild in manners, owing to the\nconstant cold. The state of the surrounding atmosphere and of animals\nand plants, corresponds with that of men; who (as natives of these\ncountries) are designated by the general name of Scythians.\n\n[68] \u201cUnder the Bears,\u201d in the Greek.\n\nThe nations situated between the summer tropic and the Arctic circle,\nhaving the meridian Sun neither in their zenith nor yet far remote from\nit, enjoy a well-temperated atmosphere. This favourable temperature,\nhowever, still undergoes variation, and changes alternatively from heat\nto cold; but the variation is never vast nor violent. The people who\nenjoy this kindly atmosphere are consequently of proportionate stature\nand complexion, and of good natural disposition: they live not in a\nstate of dispersion, but dwell together in societies, and are civilised\nin their habits. Among the nations comprehended in this division, those\nverging towards the south are more industrious and ingenious than the\nothers, and more adapted to the sciences: and these qualifications are\nengendered in them by the vicinity of the zodiac to their zenith, and\nby the familiarity thus subsisting between them and the planets moving\nin the zodiac, which familiarly gives activity and an intellectual\nimpulse to their minds. Again, the natives of those countries which lie\ntowards the east excel in courage, acting boldly and openly under all\ncircumstances; for in all their characteristics they are principally\nconformed to the Sun\u2019s nature, which is oriental, diurnal, masculine\nand dexter\u2014(and it is plainly apparent that the dexter parts of all\nanimals are much stronger than others)\u2014hence results the greater\ncourage of the inhabitants of the East. And as the Moon, on her first\nappearance after conjunction, is always seen in the west, the western\nparts are therefore lunar, and consequently feminine and sinister;\nwhence it follows that the inhabitants of the west are milder, more\neffeminate and reserved.\n\nThus, in all countries, certain respective peculiarities exist in\nregard to manners, customs and laws; and in each it is found that\nsome portion of the inhabitants differs partially and individually\nfrom the usual habits and condition of their race. These variations\narise similarly to the variations perceptible in the condition of the\natmosphere; as, in all countries, the general state of whose atmosphere\nmay be either hot, or cold, or temperate, certain districts are found\nto possess a particular temperature of their own, and to be more or\nless hot, or cold, by being more or less elevated than the general face\nof the country. So, likewise, certain people become navigators owing\nto their proximity to the sea, while others are equestrian, because\ntheir country is a plain; and others, again, become domiciliated by the\nfertility of their soil.\n\nAnd thus, in each particular climate, certain peculiar qualities are to\nbe found, arising from the natural familiarity which it holds with the\nstars and the twelve signs. And although these qualities do not pervade\nit, in such a manner as to be necessarily exhibited by every individual\nnative, yet they are so far generally distributed as to be of much\nutility in investigating particular events; and it is highly important\nto take at least a brief notice of them.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nTHE FAMILIARITY OF THE REGIONS OF THE EARTH WITH THE TRIPLICITIES AND\nTHE PLANETS\n\n\nIt has been already stated that there are four triplicities\ndistinguishable in the zodiac. The first, composed of Aries, Leo,\nand Sagittarius, is the north-west triplicity; and Jupiter has chief\ndominion over it on behalf of its northern proportion; but Mars also\nrules with him in reference to the west. The second, consisting of\nTaurus, Virgo, and Capricorn, is the south-east; and in this triplicity\nVenus bears chief rule, in consequence of the southern proportion; but\nSaturn also governs with her in consideration of the east. The third,\ncomposed of Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius, is north-east; and Saturn is\nhere the principal lord, in consequence of the eastern proportion;\nJupiter, however, governs with him in reference to the north. The\nfourth triplicity is constituted of Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces, and\nis south-west; it owns Mars as its principal ruler, in consideration\nof its western proportion; and, on behalf of the south, it is also\ngoverned by Venus.\n\nThe four triplicities being thus established, the whole inhabited\nearth is accordingly divided into four parts, agreeing with the number\nof the triplicities. It is divided latitudinally by the line of the\nMediterranean Sea, from the Straits of Hercules to the Issican Gulf,\ncontinued onwards through the mountainous ridge extending towards the\neast; and by this latitudinal division its southern and northern parts\nare defined. Its longitudinal division is made by the line of the\nArabian Gulf, the \u00c6gean Sea, Pontus, and the lake M\u00e6otis; and by this\nline are separated its eastern and western parts.\n\nOf the four quadrants of the earth, thus agreeing in number with the\nfour triplicities, one is situated in the north-west of the entire\nearth, and contains Celto-galatia; or, as it is commonly called,\nEurope. Opposed to this quadrant lies that of the south-east, towards\nEastern \u00c6thiopia; it is called the southern part of Asia Magna. Another\nquadrant of the entire earth is in the north-east, about Scythia, and\nis called the northern part of Asia Magna. To this is opposed the\nquadrant of the south-west, which lies about Western \u00c6thiopia, and is\nknown by the general name of Libya.\n\nEach of these quadrants contains certain parts, which, in comparison\nwith its other parts, lie more contiguous to the middle of the earth;\nand these parts, in respect of the quadrant to which they belong,\nhave a situation opposite to the rest of that quadrant, in the same\nmanner as that quadrant itself is situated in regard to the rest of the\nearth. For instance, in the quadrant of Europe, which is situated on\nthe north-west of the whole earth, those parts of it which lie towards\nthe middle of the earth, and near the angles of the other quadrants,\nare manifestly situated in the south-east of that quadrant. The\nlike rule obtains in regard to the other quadrants. And hence it is\nevident that each quadrant is in familiarity with two oppositely-placed\ntriplicities, its whole extent being adapted to the one triplicity\nwhich governs it as an entire quadrant; but its particular parts,\nsituated about the middle of the earth, and lying, as regards the rest\nof the quadrant, in a direction contrary to that assigned to the whole\nquadrant altogether, being adapted to the other triplicity which rules\nthe particular quadrant lying opposite to it. The planets exercising\ndominion in both these triplicities also hold familiarity with these\nparticular parts; but, with the other more remote parts of any\nquadrant, only those planets hold familiarity which rule in the single\ntriplicity to which the whole quadrant is allotted. With the said\nparticular parts about the middle of the earth, Mercury also, as well\nas the other planets in dominion, bears familiarity, in consideration\nof his meditative condition and common nature.\n\nUnder this arrangement, it follows that the north-western parts of\nthe first quadrant, or that of Europe, are in familiarity with the\nnorth-west triplicity, composed of Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius;\nand they are accordingly governed by the lords of that triplicity,\nJupiter and Mars, vespertine. These parts, as distinguished by their\nappropriation to entire nations, are Britain, Galatia, Germany,\nBarsania,[69] Italy, Apulia, Sicily, Gaul, Tuscany, Celtica, and Spain.\nAnd, since the triplicity itself and the planets connected with it\nin dominion are adapted to command, the natives of these countries\nare consequently impatient of restraint, lovers of freedom, warlike,\nindustrious, imperious, cleanly, and high-minded. But, owing to the\nvespertine configuration of Jupiter and Mars, as well as the masculine\ncondition of the anterior parts of the triplicity, and the feminine\ncondition of its latter parts,[70] the said nations regard women with\nscorn and indifference.[71] They are, however, still careful of the\ncommunity, brave and faithful, affectionate in their families, and\nperform good and kind actions.\n\n[69] Or, perhaps, Bastarnia, a part of the ancient European Sarmatia.\n\n[70] This should probably be understood to mean in a mundane point of\nview, agreeably to Chaps. VI and XV, Book I. For when Aries is on the\nascendant, it is, of course, oriental and masculine; and Sagittarius\nmust consequently then be in the eighth house, occidental, and\ntherefore feminine.\n\n[71] The customs of nations have, in some degree, altered since Ptolemy\nmade this severe charge against us and our brethren in the north and\nwest of Europe. The following passage also occurs in this part of\nthe original text:\u2014\u03a0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b1\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03bd \u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03ba\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9\n\u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b6\u03b7\u03bb\u03bf\u03c5\u03bd\u03c4\u03b5\u03c2, \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03bc\u03b7\u03c4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03b9\u03c3\u03c7\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd \u03bc\u03b7\u03c4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03bb\u03b4\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf \u03bd\u03bf\u03bc\u03b9\u03b6\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b5\u03c2. \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\n\u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf \u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b5 \u03b5\u03ba\u03bb\u03c5\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9, \u03bf\u03c4\u03b9 \u03bf\u03c5\u03b4\u03b5 \u03c9\u03c2 \u03c0\u03b1\u03c3\u03c7\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b5\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03ba\u03b5\u03b9\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b5\u03c0\u03b9 \u03c4\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03c9, \u03b1\u03bb\u03bb\u03b1\n\u03c6\u03c5\u03bb\u03b1\u03c4\u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c8\u03c5\u03c7\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b4\u03c1\u03b5\u03b9\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2.\n\nAmong the countries before named, Britain, Galatia, Germany, and\nBarsania have a greater share of familiarity with Aries and Mars; and\ntheir inhabitants are accordingly wilder, bolder, and more ferocious.\nItaly, Apulia, Sicily, and Gaul are in familiarity with Leo and the\nSun; and the natives of these countries are more imperious, yet kind\nand benevolent, and careful of the commonwealth. Tuscany, Celtica,\nand Spain, are connected with Sagittarius and Jupiter; and their\ninhabitants are lovers of freedom, simplicity, and elegance.\n\nThe south-eastern parts of this quadrant, which are situated towards\nthe middle of the earth, viz. Thrace, Macedonia, Illyria, Hellas,\nAchaia, and Crete, as well as the Cyclad Isles and the shores of\nAsia Minor and of Cyprus, assume, in addition, a connection with\nthe south-east triplicity, which is composed of Taurus, Virgo, and\nCapricorn, and ruled by Venus and Saturn; and, in consequence of the\nvicinity of these regions to the middle of the earth, Mercury likewise\nhas a proportionate dominion over them. Hence their inhabitants, being\nsubjected to the rulers of both triplicities, enjoy a favourable\ntemperament of mind and of body. From Mars they imbibe their fitness\nfor command, their courage, and impatience of restraint; from Jupiter\ntheir love of freedom, their self-rule, their skill in guiding public\naffairs, and in legislation: through the influence of Venus they are\nalso lovers of the arts and sciences, as well as of music and poetry,\nof public shows, and all the refinements of life; and from Mercury they\ndeduce their hospitality, their fondness for society and communion,\ntheir love of equity and of literature, and their power of eloquence.\nThey are also in the highest degree conversant with sacred mysteries,\nowing to the vespertine figuration of Venus.\n\nIt is further to be observed of these last-named countries, that the\ninhabitants of the Cyclad Isles, and of the shores of Asia Minor and of\nCyprus, are more particularly under the influence of Taurus and Venus,\nand are therefore voluptuous, fond of elegance, and over-studious in\ntheir attention to the body. The people of Hellas, Achaia, and Crete,\nhave a stronger familiarity with Virgo and Mercury, and are therefore\nlearned and scientific, preferring the cultivation of the mind to the\ncare of the body. The people of Macedonia, Thrace, and Illyria, are\nchiefly influenced by Capricorn and Saturn; whence they are greedy\nof wealth, inferior in civilization, and have no ordinances of civil\npolity.\n\nThe second quadrant consists of the southern division of Asia Magna.\nSuch of its parts as are contained in India, Arriana, Gedrosia,\nParthia, Media, Persia, Babylonia, Mesopotamia, and Assyria, are\nsituated in the south-east of the whole earth, and have due familiarity\nwith the south-east triplicity (composed of Taurus, Virgo, and\nCapricorn), and consequently with Venus, Mercury, and Saturn, in\nmatutine figuration. The nature of the inhabitants of these countries\nis obedient to the dominion of these ruling influences; they worship\nVenus under the name of Isis; and they also pay devotion to Saturn,\ninvoking him by the name of Mithranhelios. Many of them likewise\nforetell future events; and they consecrate to the gods some of their\nbodily members, to which superstition they are induced by the nature\nof the figuration of the planets before mentioned.[72] They are,\nmoreover, hot in constitution, amorous and lustful, fond of acting,\nsinging, and dancing, gaudy in their dresses and ornaments; owing to\nthe influence of Venus. Saturn, however, inclines them to simplicity\nof conduct; and, in consequence of the matutine figuration, they\naddress their women publicly.[73] There are also many among them who\nbeget children by their own mothers.[74] The matutine figurations also\ninfluence their mode of worship, which is performed by prostration of\nthe breast; because the heart is the nobler part of the body, and, in\nits vivifying faculties, acts like the Sun. And, although the influence\nof Venus makes the people, generally speaking, finical and effeminate\nin their personal adornment and apparel, yet the connection which\nSaturn holds with them, by means of the east, still renders them great\nin mind, eminent in council, courageous and warlike.\n\n[72] The Greek is as follows: \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c4\u03b1 \u03bc\u03bf\u03c1\u03b9\u03b1 \u03b1\u03c5\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03c4\u03b1 \u03b3\u03b5\u03bd\u03bd\u03b7\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03b1\n\u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03c4\u03b9\u03b8\u03b5\u03b1\u03c3\u03b9 \u03c4\u03bf\u03b9\u03c2 \u03b8\u03b5\u03bf\u03b9\u03c2\u00b7 \u03b4\u03b9\u03bf\u03c4\u03b9 \u03bf \u03c3\u03c7\u03b7\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03b9\u03c3\u03bc\u03bf\u03c2 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b5\u03b9\u03c1\u03b7\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03c9\u03bd \u03b1\u03c2\u03b5\u03c1\u03c9\u03bd \u03c6\u03c5\u03c3\u03b5\u03b9\n\u03c3\u03c0\u03b5\u03c1\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b5\u03c3\u03b9\u03bd\u00b7 Follies, similar in their kind to these, are still\npractised by the Faquirs of Hindostan, and by other religious sects in\nAsia.\n\n[73] \u03a6\u03b1\u03bd\u03b5\u03c1\u03c9\u03c2 \u03c0\u03bf\u03b9\u03bf\u03c5\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9\u03ba\u03b1\u03c2 \u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2\u00b7\n\n[74] The author gives a singular reason for this incest: \u03bc\u03b9\u03c3\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03b1\u03c2\n(\u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2) \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2 \u03b1\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b1\u03c2. \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03bf\u03b9 \u03c0\u03bb\u03b5\u03b9\u03c2\u03bf\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c5\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b5\u03ba \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd\n\u03bc\u03b7\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03c9\u03bd \u03c4\u03b5\u03ba\u03bd\u03bf\u03c0\u03bf\u03b9\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9\u00b7\n\nIt is to be remarked, that Parthia, Media, and Persia, have a more\nparticular familiarity with Taurus and Venus; whence it follows that\nthe dwellers in those countries wear splendid garments, and clothe\nthe whole person entirely, except the breast; they are also fond of\nelegance and refinement. The countries about Babylon, Mesopotamia, and\nAssyria, are connected with Virgo and Mercury; their inhabitants are\nconsequently studious of the sciences, and, among other attainments,\nexcel in making observations on the five planets. India, Arriana, and\nGedrosia, are connected with Capricorn and Saturn; the natives of these\nregions are, therefore, ill-formed in person, of dirty habits, and\nbarbarous manners.\n\nThe remaining parts of this second quadrant, viz. Idum\u00e6a, C\u0153lesyria,\nJud\u00e6a, Ph\u0153nicia, Chald\u00e6a, Orchynia, and Arabia Felix, occupy a\nsituation in the vicinity of the middle of the earth, and in the\nnorth-west of the quadrant to which they actually belong: hence they\nare in familiarity with the north-west triplicity (which consists of\nAries, Leo, and Sagittarius), and they have for their rulers, Jupiter\nand Mars, together with Mercury. By means of the figuration of these\nplanets, the natives of the said countries are skilful in trade and all\nmercantile affairs, heedless of danger, yet treacherous, servile, and\nthoroughly fickle.\n\nThe inhabitants of C\u0153lesyria, Idum\u00e6a, and Jud\u00e6a, are principally\ninfluenced by Aries and Mars, and are generally audacious,\natheistical,[75] and treacherous. The Ph\u0153nicians, Chald\u00e6ans, and\nOrchynians, have familiarity with Leo and the Sun, and are therefore\nmore simple and humane in disposition; they are also studious of\nastrology, and pay greater reverence than all other nations to the Sun.\nThe people of Arabia Felix are connected with Sagittarius and Jupiter:\nthe country is fertile, and abundantly productive of spices, and its\ninhabitants are well-proportioned in person, free in all their habits\nof life, and liberal in all their contracts and dealings.\n\n[75] The epithet is remarkable, not only as being, in the opinion of\na Gentile, merited by the Jews, among other nations, but also at a\nperiod scarcely exceeding a century after their most heinous crime\nhad been committed, expressly under the cloak of religion. It seems,\nhowever, that the Jews were charged with atheism by other writers also,\nand on account of their neglect of the false gods of the heathens;\nviz. \u201c_falsorium deorum neglectus_: quam candem causam etiam Jud\u00e6is\nmaledicendi Tacitus habuit, et Plinius Major, cui Jud\u00e6i dicuntur _gens\ncontumeli\u00e2 numinum insignis_.\u201d See Clark\u2019s Notes on Grotius de Verit.\nRelig. Christ. Lib. 2, \u00a72.\n\nThe third quadrant occupies the northern division of Asia Magna.\nThose several parts of it which lie to the north-east of the whole\nearth, and comprise Hyrcania, Armenia, Mantiana, Bactriana, Casperia,\nSerica, Sauromatica, Oxiana, and Sogdiana, are in familiarity with\nthe north-east triplicity, composed of Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius,\nand have for their rulers Saturn and Jupiter, in matutine positions;\nhence the inhabitants worship Jupiter and the Sun.[76] They are\nabundantly rich in all things: they possess much gold, and are dainty\nand luxurious in their diet. They are also learned in theology, skilled\nin magic, just in all their dealings, free and noble-minded, holding\ndishonesty and wickedness in abhorrence, strongly imbued with the\nsofter affections of nature; and, in a worthy cause, they will even\nreadily embrace death to preserve their friends. They are, furthermore,\nchaste in marriage, elegant and splendid in their dress, charitable\nand beneficent, and of enlightened intellect. All these qualities are\nprincipally produced by the matutine positions of Saturn and Jupiter,\nwho influence the region.\n\n[76] Other editions say \u201cSaturn.\u201d\n\nAmong these nations, however, Hyrcania, Armenia, and Mantiana, have\na greater familiarity with Gemini and Mercury; and the inhabitants\nare consequently more acute in apprehension, but less tenacious of\ntheir probity. The countries about Bactriana, Casperia, and Serica,\nare connected with Libra and Venus; and the natives are endowed with\nmuch wealth and many luxuries, and take delight in poetry and songs.\nThe nations about Sauromatica, Oxiana and Sogdiana, are influenced by\nAquarius and Saturn; and are therefore less polished in manners, and\nmore austere and uncouth.\n\nThe other parts of this quadrant, lying near the middle of the entire\nearth, consist of Bithynia, Phrygia, Colchis, Laxica, Syria, Commagene,\nCappadocia, Lydia, Lycia, Cilicia, and Pamphylia. These, being situated\nin the south-west of their quadrant, have familiarity accordingly with\nthe south-west triplicity, composed of Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces,\nand are ruled by Mars and Venus, together with Mercury. In these\ncountries Venus is principally worshipped; she is invoked as the Mother\nof the Gods, and by various local and indigenous appellations; Mars\nlikewise receives adoration here, under the name of Adonis, as well\nas by other titles;[77] and some of the religious services to these\ndeities are performed by loud lamentations. The people are servile in\nmind, diligent in labour, yet fraudulent, knavish, and thievish; they\nenter into foreign armies for the sake of hire, and make prisoners and\nslaves of their own countrymen: besides which, they are continually\nsubject to intestine broils. These traits arise from the matutine\nfigurations of Mars and Venus. It is further to be observed, that,\nfrom the circumstance of Mars receiving his exaltation in Capricorn\n(one of the signs of the triplicity ruled by Venus), and Venus hers in\nPisces (a sign belonging to the triplicity of Mars), it thence follows\nthat the women have strong attachments and kindly affections to their\nhusbands, are vigilant and careful in domestic affairs, and highly\nindustrious: they also act as servants, and labour for the men, with\nall due obedience, in every thing.\n\nBithynia, Phrygia, and Colchis, must however be excepted from sharing\nin this general propriety of the female character; for, as these\nnations are chiefly connected with Cancer and the Moon, their male\npopulation is, generally speaking, slavish in its habits, timid and\nsuperstitious, while the greater part of the women, owing to the\nmatutine and masculine position of the Moon, are of masculine manners,\nambitious of command, and warlike. These females, like the Amazons,\nshun the addresses of men, and delight in the use of arms, and in\nmanly occupations: they also amputate the right breasts of their\nfemale children for the sake of adapting them to military service, and\nin order that, when in combat and exposing that part of their body,\nthey may appear to be of the male sex. Again, Syria, Commagene, and\nCappadocia, are principally influenced by Scorpio and Mars; and their\ninhabitants are accordingly bold, wicked, treacherous, and laborious.\nLydia, Cilicia, and Pamphylia, have a greater familiarity with Pisces\nand Jupiter; when their inhabitants are wealthy, of mercantile habits,\nliving in freedom and in community, faithful to their engagements, and\nhonest in their dealings.\n\nThe remaining quadrant is the vast tract known by the general name of\nLibya. Its several parts, distinguished by the particular names of\nNumidia, Carthage, Africa,[78] Phazania, Nasamonitis, Garamantica,\nMauritania, Getulia, and Metagonitis, are situated in the south-west\nof the entire earth, and have due familiarity with the south-west\ntriplicity, composed of Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces; their rulers\ntherefore are Mars and Venus, in vespertine position. From this\nfiguration of the planets it results that the dwellers in these regions\nare doubly governed by a man and a woman, who are both children of\nthe same mother; the man rules the males, and the woman the females.\nThey are extremely hot in constitution, and desirous of women; their\nmarriages are usually made by violence, and in many districts the local\nprinces first enjoy the brides of their subjects: in some places,\nhowever, the women are common to all. The influence of Venus causes the\nwhole people to delight in personal ornaments, and in being arrayed\nin female attire: nevertheless, that of Mars renders them courageous,\ncrafty, addicted to magic, and fearless of dangers.\n\n[77] It is usually understood that the male deity, coupled by the\nPhrygians with Cybele, \u201cthe mother of the Gods,\u201d was called by them\nAtys; and that Adonis was the name used by the Ph\u0153nicians in addressing\nthe associate of Venus. It has been said that these divinities were\nidentical with the Isis and Osiris of the \u00c6gyptians.\n\n[78] The name of Africa was, in Ptolemy\u2019s time, limited to those parts\nof the coast on the Mediterranean which contained the ancient Utica,\nand in which Tunis now stands. Josephus says the name is derived from\nAfer (one of the posterity of Abraham by Cethurah), who is stated to\nhave led an army into Libya, and to have established himself in the\ncountry. This Afer is, of course, the same with Epher, mentioned in the\nfourth verse of the 25th chapter of Genesis, as a son of Midian, one of\nthe sons of Abraham by his concubine Keturah.\n\nAgain, however, of the above-named countries, Numidia, Carthage, and\nAfrica, are more particularly in familiarity with Cancer and the\nMoon: their inhabitants, consequently, live in community, attend to\nmercantile pursuits, and enjoy abundantly all the blessings of nature.\nThe natives of Metagonitis, Mauritania, and Getulia, are influenced by\nScorpio and Mars, and are consequently ferocious and pugnacious in the\nhighest degree; eaters of human flesh, utterly indifferent to danger,\nand so regardless and prodigal of blood, as to slay each other without\nhesitation on the slightest cause. The people in Phazania, Nasamonitis,\nand Garamantica, are connected with Pisces and Jupiter, and are\naccordingly frank and simple in manners, fond of employment, well\ndisposed, fond of the decencies of life, and, for the most part, free\nand unrestrained in their actions: they worship Jupiter by the name of\nAmmon.\n\nThe other parts of this quadrant, which lies near the middle of\nthe entire earth, are Cyrenaica, Marmarica, \u00c6gypt, Thebais, Oasis,\nTroglodytica, Arabia, Azania, and Middle \u00c6thiopia. These countries,\nbeing situated in the north-east of their quadrant, have due\nfamiliarity with the north-east triplicity (consisting of Gemini,\nLibra, and Aquarius), and are governed by Saturn and Jupiter, and also\nby Mercury. Their inhabitants, therefore, participate in the influence\nof all the five planets in vespertine figuration, and consequently\ncherish due love and reverence for the gods, and dedicate themselves to\ntheir service. They are addicted to sepulchral ceremonies; and, owing\nto the said vespertine position, they bury their dead in the earth,[79]\nand remove them from the public eye. They use various laws and\ncustoms, and worship divers gods. In a state of subjection, they are\nsubmissive, cowardly, abject, and most patient; but when they command,\nthey are brave, generous, and high-minded. Polygamy is frequent among\nthem, and practised by the women as well as the men: they are most\nlicentious in sexual intercourse, and allow incestuous commerce between\nbrothers and sisters. Both men and women are extraordinarily prolific,\nand correspond in this respect with the fecundity of their soil. Many\nof the men are, however, effeminate and debased in mind; in consequence\nof the figuration of the malefics, together with the vespertine\nposition of Venus; and some of them mutilate their persons.[80]\n\n[79] It does not appear why this practice should have been remarked\nas a national peculiarity, unless in distinction from the custom of\nburning the dead among the Greeks and Romans. Interment is recorded as\nhaving been usual among the Jews, and it is known to have been common\namong many ancient barbarous nations.\n\nA conjecture may perhaps be allowed, that the author, when he wrote\nthis passage, had in his mind the magnificent subterranean palaces,\nconstructed for the dead, in parts of the region in question; some of\nwhich have been recently made known to the modern world by the sagacity\nand enterprise of the celebrated Belzoni.\n\n[80] \u03a4\u03b9\u03bd\u03b5\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03b1\u03c6\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b3\u03b5\u03bd\u03bd\u03b7\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03bd \u03bc\u03b5\u03bb\u03c9\u03bd.\u2014The \u201ccontempt\u201d\nhere expressed by \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03b1\u03c6\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9 has been taken by all translators\n(except Whalley) to signify \u201cmutilation.\u201d\n\nAmong these last-named countries, Cyrenaica, Marmarica, and\nparticularly Lower \u00c6gypt, are chiefly influenced by Gemini and Mercury:\nthe natives are therefore highly intellectual and sensible, and gifted\nwith capacity for every undertaking; above all, for the attainment of\nwisdom, and an insight into divine mysteries. They are also magicians,\nperforming secret rites and ceremonies, and are in every respect\ncalculated for the prosecution of all scientific inquiry.[81] The\ninhabitants of Thebais, Oasis, and Troglodytica, are connected with\nLibra and Venus; they are of warmer constitution, and more hasty\ndisposition, and enjoy life in all its plentitude and abundance. The\nnatives of Arabia, Azania, and Middle \u00c6thiopia, have familiarity\nwith Aquarius and Saturn; they consequently feed on flesh and fish\nindiscriminately, and live in a state of dispersion like wild beasts;\nthey never unite in society, but lead a wandering and savage life.\n\n\n[81] History warrants the high enconium here given to the natives of\nthese countries. \u00c6gypt was the acknowledged mother of the arts and\nsciences, and at one time the great depot of all the learning of the\nworld: her school of astronomy (a science which our author may be\nsupposed to have placed in the first rank), founded at Alexandria by\nPtol. Philadelphus, maintained its superior reputation for a thousand\nyears. Cyrenaica gave birth to many illustrious philosophers, and,\namong them, to Eratosthenes, who is said to have invented the armillary\nsphere. This great man measured the obliquity of the ecliptic, and,\nthough he erroneously reckoned it at only 20\u00bd degrees, it should be\nrecollected that he lived 200 years before the Christian \u00e6ra. He also\nmeasured a degree of the meridian, and determined the extent of the\nearth, by means similar to those adopted by the moderns.\n\nTABLE SHOWING ALL THE COUNTRIES BELONGING TO EACH SIGN RESPECTIVELY\n\n ===================================================================\n Signs. | Aries. | Taurus. | Gemini.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Triplicity. | North West. | South East.| North East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| North West. | South East.| North East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n | Britain | Parthia | Hyrcania\n Countries remote from the | Galatia | Media | Armenia\n middle of the earth. | Germany | Persia | Mantiana\n | Barsania | |\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| South East. | North West.| South West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries near the middle | C\u00e6lesyria | Cyclades | Cyrenaica\n of the earth. | Idum\u00e6a | Cyprus | Marmarica\n | Jud\u00e6a | Asia Minor | Lower \u00c6gypt\n ===================================================================\n Signs. | Libra. | Scorpio. | Sagittarius.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Triplicity. | North East. | South West.| North West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| North East. | South West.| North West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries remote from the | Bactriana | Metagonitis| Tuscany\n middle of the earth. | Casperia | Mauritania | Celtica\n | Serica | Getulia | Spain\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| South West. | North East.| South East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries near the middle| Thebais | Syria |\n of the earth. | Oasis | Commagene | Arabia Felix\n | Troglodytica| Cappadocia |\n | | |\n ===================================================================\n Signs. | Cancer. | Leo. | Virgo.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Triplicity. | South West. | North West.| South East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| South West. | North West.| South East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n | Numidia | Italy | Mesopotamia\n Countries remote from the | Carthage | Apulia | Babylonia\n middle of the earth. | Africa | Sicily | Assyria\n | | Gaul |\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| North East. | South East.| North West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries near the middle | Bithynia | Ph\u0153nicia | Hellas\n of the earth. | Phrygia | Chald\u00e6a | Achaia\n | Colchis | Orychnia | Crete\n ===================================================================\n Signs. | Capricorn. | Aquarius. | Pisces.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Triplicity. | South East. | North East.| South West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| South East. | North East.| South West.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries remote from the | India | Sauromatica| Phazania\n middle of the earth. | Arriana | Oxiana | Nasamonitis\n | Gedrosia | Sogdiana | Garamantica\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Quadrant of the Countries.| North West. | South West.| North East.\n --------------------------+-------------+------------+-------------\n Countries near the middle| Thrace | Arabia | Lydia\n of the earth. | Macedonia | Azania | Cilicia\n | Illyria | Middle | Pamphylia\n | | \u00c6thiopia |\n ===================================================================\n\nThe familiarities exercised by the Planets, and by the Signs of the\nZodiac, together with the manners, customs, and qualities, particular\nas well as general, which they produce, have now been concisely\ndescribed; but in order to facilitate the knowledge and use of them,\nthe subjoined table is inserted, to show, at one view, what countries\nare in connection with each sign, respectively, according to the mode\nabove detailed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nTHE FAMILIARITY OF THE REGIONS OF THE EARTH WITH THE FIXED STARS\n\n\nIn addition to the rules which have been already given, respecting the\nfamiliarity of the regions of the earth with the signs and planets,\nit must be observed, that all fixed stars which may be posited on any\nline, drawn from one zodiacal pole to the other, through such parts of\nthe zodiac as may be connected with any particular country, are also in\nfamiliarity with that particular country.\n\nAnd, with regard to metropolitan cities, it is necessary to state,\nthat those points or degrees of the zodiac, over which the Sun and\nMoon were in transit, at the time when the construction of any such\ncity was first undertaken and commenced, are to be considered as\nsympathizing with that city in an especial manner; and that, among the\nangles, the ascendant is principally in accordance with it. In certain\ncases, however, where the date of foundation of a metropolis cannot be\nascertained, the mid-heaven in the nativity of the reigning king, or\nother actual chief magistrate, is to be substituted, and considered as\nthat part of the zodiac with which it chiefly sympathizes.[82]\n\n[82] Whalley remarks on this passage, that the gradual progress of\nthe fixed stars \u201cfrom one sign to another, is in an especial manner\nto be regarded in considering the mutations, manners, customs, laws,\ngovernment, and fortune of a kingdom.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nMODE OF PARTICULAR PREDICTION IN ECLIPSES\n\n\nAfter having gone through the necessary preliminary topics, it is now\nproper to speak of the manner in which predictions are to be formed\nand considered; beginning with those which relate to general events,\naffecting either certain cities, or districts, or entire countries.\n\nThe strongest and principal cause of all these events exists in the\necliptical conjunctions of the Sun and Moon, and in the several\ntransits made by the planets during those conjunctions.\n\nOne part of the observations, required in forming predictions in cases\nof this nature, relates to the locality of the event, and points out\nthe cities or countries liable to be influenced by particular eclipses,\nor by occasional continued stations of certain planets, which at times\nremain for a certain period in one situation. These planets are Saturn,\nJupiter, and Mars; and they furnish portentous indications, when they\nare stationary.\n\nAnother branch relates to time, and gives pre-information of the period\nat which the event will occur, and how long it will continue to operate.\n\nThe third branch is generic; and points out the classes, or kinds,\nwhich the event will affect.\n\nThe last part is specific; and foreshows the actual quality and\ncharacter of the coming event.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nTHE REGIONS OR COUNTRIES TO BE CONSIDERED AS LIABLE TO BE COMPREHENDED\nIN THE EVENT\n\n\nThe first of the several branches of consideration just enumerated\nrelates to locality, and is to be exercised in the following manner:\u2014\n\nIn all eclipses of the Sun and Moon, and especially in such as are\nfully visible, the place in the zodiac, where the eclipse happens, is\nto be noted; and it must be seen what countries are in familiarity\nwith that place, according to the rules laid down regarding the\nquadrants and the triplicities; and in like manner it must be observed\nwhat cities are under the influence of the sign in which the eclipse\nhappens; either by means of the ascendant, and the situations of\nthe luminaries at the time of their foundation, or by means of the\nmid-heaven of their kings or governors, actually ruling at the time of\nthe eclipse; although such time may be subsequent to the building of\nthe said cities. Whatever countries or cities shall be thus found in\nfamiliarity with the ecliptical place, will all be comprehended in the\nevent; which will, however, principally attach to all those parts which\nmay be connected with the identical sign of the eclipse,[83] and in\nwhich it was visible while above the earth.[84]\n\n[83] As shown in the Table at page 51.\n\n[84] It does not appear that the text here warrants the conclusion\nwhich Whalley has drawn from it, viz. \u201cthat wherever eclipses are not\nvisible, they have no influence, and therefore subterranean eclipses\ncannot have any.\u201d Ptolemy declares, that _all_ countries in familiarity\nwith the ecliptical place will be comprehended in the event; and,\nwith regard to the visibility or invisibility of the eclipse, he says\nmerely that its effects will be _principally_ felt in such of the said\ncountries as might have obtained a view of the eclipse.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII\n\nTHE TIME AND PERIOD OF THE EVENT\n\n\nThe second point requiring attention relates to time, and indicates\nthe date when the event will take place, and the period during which\nits effect will continue: these are to be ascertained in the following\nmanner.\n\nIt must however be premised, that as an eclipse, occurring at any\nparticular season, cannot happen in all climates at the same temporal\nor solar hour,[85] so neither will the magnitude of the obscuration,\nnor the time of its continuance, be equal in all parts of the world.\nFirst, therefore (as is done in a nativity), the angles are to be\narranged, in every country connected with the eclipse, according to the\nhour at which the eclipse takes place and the elevation of the pole in\nthat country. The time, during which the obscuration of the eclipse may\ncontinue in each country, is then to be noted in equatorial hours.[86]\nAnd, after these particulars have been carefully observed, it is to be\nunderstood that the effect will endure as many years as the obscuration\nlasted hours, provided the eclipse was solar; but if lunar, a like\nnumber of months is to be reckoned instead of years.\n\nThe commencement of the effect, and the period of its general\nintensity, or strength, are to be inferred from the situation of\nthe place of the eclipse with respect to the angles. For, if the\necliptical place be near the eastern horizon, the effect will begin to\nbe manifested in the course of the first four months after the date of\nthe eclipse; and its general height, or intensity, will take place in,\nor about, the first third part of the whole extent of its duration.\nIf the ecliptical place happen to be in or near the mid-heaven, the\neffect will begin to appear in the second four months, and its general\nintensity will occur about the second third part; and, if the place\nshould fall near the western horizon, the effect will begin in the\nthird four months, and take its general intensity in the last third\npart of its whole duration.[87]\n\n[85] Temporal or solar hours are duodecimal parts of the Sun\u2019s diurnal\nor nocturnal arc, and are numbered by day from sunrise to sunset; by\nnight, from sunset to sunrise.\n\n[86] Equatorial hours are the twenty-four hours of the earth\u2019s\nrevolution on its axis. Each of them is equal in duration to the\npassage of 15 degrees of the Equator; and they are numbered from noon\nto noon. A particular explanation of the astronomical use, both of\ntemporal and equatorial hours, is to be found in the 9th Chapter of\nthe second Book of the Almagest; an extract from which is given in the\nAppendix.\n\n[87] The three periods of four months each, stated in this paragraph,\nare applicable to solar eclipses only; for lunar eclipses, these\nperiods may be reckoned at ten days each; that number of days bearing\nthe same proportion to a month, as four months to a year. On this\npoint, Whalley, with his usual inaccuracy, has asserted, that \u201cin\neclipses of the Moon, two days, or thereabouts, are equal to the four\nmonths\u201d here reckoned in eclipses of the Sun. He adds, however, what\nperhaps may be true, that \u201clunar eclipses are by no means so powerful\nas those of the Sun, although more so than any other lunation.\u201d\n\nPartial intensities, or relaxations of the effect, are, however, to be\ninferred from any combinations which may happen during the intermediate\nperiod,[88] either in the actual places where the primary cause was\npresented, or in other places configurated therewith. They are also to\nbe conjectured by the various courses, or transits, of such planets\nas co-operate in producing the effect, by being configurated with the\nsign in which the primary cause was situated; and, with this view, the\nmatutine, vespertine, or stationary position, or midnight culmination\nof those planets must be observed; for the effect will be strengthened\nand augmented by their matutine or stationary position; but weakened\nand diminished by their being vespertine, or situated under the\nsunbeams, or by their midnight culmination.\n\n[88] That is to say, from any combinations of the Sun and Moon which\nmay take place after the date of the eclipse, but before the close of\nits effect.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII\n\nTHE GENUS, CLASS, OR KIND, LIABLE TO BE AFFECTED\n\n\nThe third division of these observations relates to the mode of\ndistinguishing the genus, or species, of animals or things about to\nsustain the expected effect. This distinction is made by means of the\nconformation and peculiar properties of those signs in which the place\nof the eclipse, and the places of such fixed stars and planets, as are\nin dominion according to the actual sign of the eclipse, and that of\nthe angle before it, may be found. And a planet, or fixed star, is to\nbe considered as holding dominion when circumstanced as follows.\n\nIf there be found one planet having more numerous claims than any\nother to the place of the eclipse, as well as to that of the angle,\nbeing also in the immediate vicinity of those places, and visibly\napplying to, or receding from them, and having likewise more rights\nover other places connected with them by configuration; the said\nplanet being, at the same time, lord by house, triplicity, exaltation,\nand terms; in such a case, only that single planet is entitled to\ndominion. But, if the lord of the eclipse and the lord of the angle\nbe not identical, then those two planets which have most connections\nwith each place are to be noted; and, of these two, the lord of the\neclipse is to be preferred to the chief dominion, \u201calthough the other\nis to be considered as bearing rule conjointly.\u201d[89] And if more than\ntwo should be found, having equal preensions to each place, that\nparticular one among them which may be nearest to an angle, or most\nconcerned with the places in question, by the nature of its condition,\nis to be selected for dominion.[90]\n\n[89] The edition of Allatius does not contain the words here marked by\ninverted commas; but they are found in other editions of the text, and\nseem necessary to complete the sense of the passage.\n\n[90] \u201cWhen planets, in election for Lords of the eclipse, are found of\nequal strength and dignity, those which are direct are to be preferred\nbefore those which are retrograde; and the oriental before the\noccidental.\u201d\u2014_Whalley\u2019s \u201cAnnotations.\u201d_\n\nBut, among the fixed stars, the chief bright one (which, during the\ntime of the eclipse, may hold connection, in any of the nine modes\nof apparent configuration detailed in the First Syntaxis[91] with\nthe angles then actually in passage), is to be admitted to dominion;\nas also that one which, at the ecliptical hour, may be in an eminent\nsituation, either having risen, or having culminated with the angle\nfollowing the place of the eclipse.[92]\n\n[91] That is to say, in the Almagest, Book VIII, Chap. IV; which\nchapter is given, entire, in the Appendix.\n\n[92] \u201cIn electing fixed stars, Cardan directs to observe the angle\nwhich the eclipse follows, and that which it precedes: as, if the\neclipse be between the seventh house\u201d (or occidental angle) \u201cand the\nmid-heaven, the stars which are in the seventh shall be preferred; and\nnext, those in the mid-heaven; but, if between the mid-heaven and the\nascendant, those in the mid-heaven shall have the preference; and next,\nthose in the ascendant.\u201d\u2014_Whalley\u2019s \u201cAnnotations.\u201d_\n\nHaving considered, according to the foregoing rules, what stars\nco-operate in regulating the coming event, the conformation and figure\nof the signs, in which the eclipse takes place and the said ruling\nstars may be posited, are also to be observed; and, from the properties\nand characteristics of those signs, the genus or species, to be\ncomprehended in the event, is chiefly to be inferred.\n\nFor instance, should the zodiacal constellations, and those of the\nruling fixed stars out of the zodiac, be of human shape, the effect\nwill fall upon the human race. If the signs be not of human shape, but\nyet terrestrial, or quadrupedal, the event would be indicated to happen\nto animals of similar form: the signs shaped like reptiles signify that\nserpents and creatures of that description will be affected; those\nbearing the figure of ferocious beasts denote that the event will\naffect savage and destructive animals; and those figured like tame\nbeasts show that it will operate on animals serviceable to mankind,\nand of domestic character; as intimated by the shape and figure of the\nsigns, whether resembling horses, oxen, sheep, or any other useful\nanimals. In addition to this, the terrestrial signs situated in the\nnorth, about the Arctic circle, indicate sudden earthquakes; and those\nin the south, sudden deluges of rain. And, should the ruling places be\nsituated in signs shaped like winged animals, as in that of Aquila, or\nin others of similar form, the event will take effect on birds; and\nwill chiefly attach to those which afford food to man. If the said\nplaces should be in signs formed like creatures which swim, and in\nmarine signs, such as Delphinus, the effect will be felt by marine\nanimals, and in the navigation of fleets; if in river signs, such as\nAquarius and Pisces, it will attach to animals living in rivers and in\nfresh waters: and, if in Argo, both sea and fresh-water animals will be\naffected by it.[93]\n\nAgain, should the ruling places be situated in tropical or in\nequinoctial signs, in either case alike they presignify changes in the\nstate of the atmosphere, at the respective season to which each sign\nis appropriated. For example, with regard to the season of spring and\nthe productions of the earth, if the said places should be in the sign\nof the vernal equinox, they will produce an effect on the buds of the\nvine and fig, and of such other trees as sprout forth at that season.\nShould they be in the sign of the summer tropic, the event will affect\nthe gathering and depositing of fruits; and, with respect to \u00c6gypt in\nparticular, it will impede the rising of the Nile. If they should be in\nthe sign of the autumnal equinox, they foreshow that it will operate\non grain and on various sorts of herbs; if in the sign of the winter\ntropic, on potherbs, esculent vegetables, and such birds and fishes as\narrive in that season.\n\nThe equinoctial signs further indicate the circumstances liable to\nhappen in ecclesiastical concerns, and in religious matters: the\ntropical signs give warning of changes in the atmosphere and in\npolitical affairs; the fixed signs, of changes in institutions and in\nbuildings; and the bicorporeal signs show that the future event will\nfall alike on princes and their subjects.\n\nAgain, the ruling places situated in the east, during the time of\nthe eclipse, signify that fruits and seeds, incipient institutions,\nand the age of youth, will be affected; those, which may be in the\nmid-heaven above the earth announce that the coming event will relate\nto ecclesiastical affairs, to kings and princes, and to the middle\nage; those in the west, that it will influence the laws, old age, and\npersons about to die.\n\nThe proportion liable to be affected, of that genus or kind on which\nthe event will fall, is to be ascertained by the magnitude of the\nobscuration caused by the eclipse, and by the positions held by the\noperative stars in regard to the ecliptical place; as, in vespertine\nposition to a solar eclipse, or in matutine position to a lunar\neclipse, the said stars will most usually much diminish the effect; in\nopposition they render it moderate; but in matutine position to a solar\neclipse, or in vespertine to a lunar, they greatly augment and extend\nit.[94]\n\n[93] It is perhaps unnecessary to remark, that, in speaking of ruling\nplaces, as liable to be situated in Aquila, Delphinus or Argo, Ptolemy\nalludes only to the places of the fixed stars in dominion: since the\necliptical place and the planets must be confined to the zodiacal signs.\n\n[94] According to Whalley, Cardan, in reference to the nine modes of\nconfiguration, applicable to the fixed stars, says, \u201cWhen a fixed star\nis with any planet, or in any angle, consider whether it be by any of\nthese ways; if not, it is most weak; if it be, consider whether it be\nwith the Sun, and not to be seen; then it is very weak. Or if it is to\nbe seen, and is with the Sun occidental, it is indifferent. Or if it be\nseen, and is not with the Sun, it is stronger; or if it be seen, and is\noriental, then it is strongest.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX\n\nTHE QUALITY AND NATURE OF THE EFFECT\n\n\nThe discrimination of the peculiar properties and character of the\neffect about to be produced, and of its good or evil nature, occupies\nthe fourth and last division of this part of the subject.\n\nThese properties must be gathered from the power of the stars which\ncontrol the ruling places, and from the contemperament created by their\nrelative admixture with each other and with the places which they\ncontrol. For, although the Sun and Moon are the acknowledged sources\nof all the efficacy and dominion of the stars, and of their strength\nor weakness, and in a certain manner regulate and command them, still,\nit is by the theory of the contemperament, produced by the stars in\ndominion, that the effect is indicated.\n\nIn order to understand the indications thus made, it is necessary to\nbegin by attending to the following detail of the effective property of\neach planet\u2014previously observing, however, that, when any circumstance\nis said, for the sake of brevity, to come to pass by the general\ninfluence of the five planets, their temperament, and the power and\nassistance they may derive from natures similar to their own, the\nactual continuance of their own proper constitution, or the casual\ncombination of any analogous influence, arising from fixed stars or\nplaces in the zodiac, are all, at the same time, to be kept in view.\nConsequently, whenever any general remark is herein made relative\nto the five planets, it will likewise be necessary to bear in mind\nboth their temperament and quality; as fully, indeed, as if the stars\nthemselves had not been named, but only their effective quality and\nnature. And, it is further to be remembered, that, in every case of\ncompound temperament, not only the combination of the planets with each\nother requires to be considered, but also that of such fixed stars\nand zodiacal places as share in the natures of the planets, by being\nrespectively connected with them according to the familiarities already\ndescribed.\n\nHence, when Saturn may be sole governor, he will produce disasters\nconcomitant with cold. And, in as far as the event may apply to the\nhuman race in particular, it will induce among men lingering diseases,\nconsumptions, declines, rheumatisms, disorders from watery humours, and\nattacks of the quartan ague; as well as exile, poverty, and a general\nmass of evils, griefs, and alarms: deaths also will be frequent,\nbut chiefly among persons advanced in age. That part of the brute\ncreation which is most serviceable to man will likewise suffer, and be\ndestroyed by disease; and men who make use of the animals thus diseased\nwill be infected by them, and perish with them. The atmosphere will\nbecome dreadfully chilly and frosty, unwholesome, turbid and gloomy,\npresenting only clouds and pestilence. Copious and destructive storms\nof snow and hail will descend, generating and fostering insects and\nreptiles noxious to mankind. In rivers, and at sea, tempests will be\nfrequent and general, causing disastrous voyages and many shipwrecks;\nand even fish will be destroyed. The waters of the sea will retire for\na time, and again return and produce inundations; rivers will overflow\ntheir banks, and cause stagnant pools; and the fruits of the earth,\nespecially such as are necessary to sustain life, will be lost and cut\noff by blight, locusts, floods, rains, hail, or some similar agency;\nand the loss will be so extensive as to threaten even famine.\n\nJupiter, if he should be lord alone, will thoroughly improve and\nbenefit all things. Among mankind, in particular, this planet\npromotes honour, happiness, content, and peace, by augmenting all the\nnecessaries and comforts of life, and all mental and bodily advantages.\nIt induces also favours, benefits, and gifts emanating from royalty,\nand adds greater lustre to kings themselves, increasing their dignity\nand magnanimity: all men, in short, will share in the prosperity\ncreated by its influence. With regard to the operation of the event on\nbrutes, those which are domestic and adapted to man\u2019s service will be\nmultiplied and will thrive; while others, which are useless and hostile\nto man, will be destroyed. The constitution of the atmosphere will be\nhealthy and temperate, filled with gentle breezes and moisture, and\nfavourable to fruits. Navigation will be safe and successful; rivers\nwill rise to their just proportion; fruit and grain, and all other\nproductions of the earth conducive to the welfare and happiness of\nmankind, will be presented in abundance.\n\nMars, when governing alone, generally causes such mischief and\ndestruction as are concomitant with dryness. And, among mankind,\nforeign wars will be excited, accompanied with intestine divisions,\ncaptivity, slaughter, insurrections of the people, and wrath of\nprinces against their subjects; together with sudden and untimely\ndeath, the consequence of these disturbances. Feverish disorders,\ntertian agues, and h\u00e6morrhages will take place, and will be rapidly\nfollowed by painful death, carrying off chiefly youthful persons: and\nconflagration, murder, impiety, every infraction of the law, adultery,\nrape, robbery, and all kinds of violence will be practised. The\natmosphere will be parched by hot, pestilential, and blasting winds,\naccompanied by drought, lightnings, and fires emitted from the sky.\nAt sea, ships will be suddenly wrecked by the turbulence of the wind\nand strokes of lightning. Rivers will fail, springs will be dried up,\nand there will be a scarcity of water proper for food and sustenance.\nAll the creatures and productions of the earth adapted to the use of\nman, whether beasts, grain, or fruits, will be damaged or destroyed\nby excessive heat, by storms of thunder and lightning, or by violent\nwinds; and whatever has been deposited in store will be destroyed or\ninjured by fire, or by heat.\n\nVenus, alone in domination, generally produces the same effects as\nJupiter, yet with greater suavity and more agreeably. Glory, honour,\nand joy will attend mankind; happy marriages will be contracted,\nand the fortunate pairs will be blest with numerous children. Every\nundertaking will proceed prosperously, wealth will increase, and the\nconduct of human life will be altogether pure, simple and pious; due\nreverence being paid to all holy and sacred institutions, and harmony\nsubsisting between princes and their subjects. The weather also will\nbe of a favourable temperature, cooled by moistening breezes; the air\naltogether pure and salubrious, frequently refreshed by fertilising\nshowers. Voyages will be performed in safety, and be attended by\nsuccess and profit. Rivers will be improved, and receive their adequate\nsupply of waters; and all things valuable and useful to mankind,\nwhether animal or vegetable, will abundantly thrive and multiply.\n\nMercury, if possessing dominion, is usually conjoined with one or other\nof the planets before-mentioned, and is conformed and assimilated to\ntheir natures; yet as, in itself, it presents a certain addition to\ntheir power, this planet increases the respective impulses of them\nall. And, in regard to the operation of the event on mankind, it will\npromote industry and skill in business; but, at the same time, thievish\npropensities, robberies, and plots of treachery: if configurated with\nthe malefics, it will produce calamities in navigation, and will also\ncause dry and parching diseases, quotidian fever, cough, consumption,\nand h\u00e6morrhage. All parts of the ceremonies and services of religion,\nthe affairs of the executive government, as well as manners, customs,\nand laws, are disposed and regulated by this planet, conformably to its\nadmixture and familiarity with each of the others. And in consequence\nof the dryness of its nature, arising from its proximity to the Sun,\nand the rapidity of its motion, it will generate in the atmosphere\nturbulent, sharp and varied winds, together with thunders, meteors, and\nlightnings, accompanied by sudden chasms in the earth, and earthquakes:\nby these means it not unfrequently occasions the destruction of animals\nand plants assigned to the service of mankind. Besides the foregoing\neffects, it produces, when in vespertine position, a diminution of\nwaters, and, when matutine, an augmentation.\n\nEach of the planets, when fully exercising its own separate and\ndistinct influence, will properly produce the peculiar effects above\nascribed to it; but should it be combined with others, whether by\nconfiguration, by familiarity arising from the sign in which it may\nbe posited,[95] or by its position towards the Sun, the coming event\nwill then happen agreeably to the admixture and compound temperament\nwhich arise from the whole communion actually subsisting among the\ninfluencing powers. It would, however, be a business of infinite labour\nand innumerable combinations, quite beyond the limits of this treatise,\nto set forth fully every contemperament and all configurations, in\nevery mode in which they can possibly exist; and the knowledge of\nthem must therefore be acquired by particular discrimination in every\ninstance, under the guidance of the precepts of science. Yet the\nfollowing additional remark must not be here omitted.\n\n[95] That is to say (technically speaking), by reception, or by being\nposited in a sign in which another planet has a certain dignity or\nprerogative.\n\nThe nature of the familiarities, subsisting between the stars, lords\nof the coming event, and the countries or cities over which the\nevent will extend, requires to be observed; for, should the stars be\nbenefic, and their familiarity with the countries liable to sustain\nthe effect be unimpeded by any opposing influence, they will then\nexercise the favourable energies of their own nature in a greater\ndegree. And, on the other hand, when any obstacle may intervene to\nobstruct their familiarity, or when they themselves may be overpowered\nby some opposing influence, the advantages of their operation will be\ndiminished. Again, should the stars, lords of the coming event, not be\nbenefic, but injurious, their effect will be less severe, provided they\nmay either have familiarity with the countries on which the event will\nfall, or be restrained by some opposing influence. If, however, they\nshould have no such familiarity, and not be subjected to restraint by\nany others, endowed with a nature contrary to their own and possessing\na familiarity with the countries in question, the evils which they\nproduce will then be more violent and intense. And all these general\naffections, of whatever kind, whether good or evil, will be principally\nfelt by those persons in whose individual nativities there may be found\nthe same disposition of the luminaries (which are the most essential\nsignificators), or the same angles, as those existing during the\neclipse which operates the general affection. The same remark equally\napplies to other persons, in whose nativities the disposition of the\nluminaries and of the angles may be in opposition to that existing\nduring the eclipse. With respect to these coincidences, the partile\nagreement, or opposition, of the ecliptical place of the luminaries to\nthe place of either luminary in a nativity, produces an effect at least\ncapable of being guarded against.[96]\n\n[96] In conformity to the rule laid down in Chap. VI of this Book,\nthose individuals whose nativities may thus resemble the position of\nthe heavens at the time of an eclipse, and who are here stated to be\nchiefly liable to the effects of the eclipse, will be more affected by\nit, if it should be visible to them.\n\nTo the precepts contained in this chapter, Placidus makes the following\nallusion in his remarks on the nativity of Cardinal Pancirole. \u201cAny\nsignificator whatever, together with the other stars, whilst they are\nmoved by a converse universal motion, change the aspect alternately,\nand consequently the mundane rays, as it likewise happens when they\nacquire parallels: the rays thus acquired are of a long continuance,\nand denote a certain universal disposition of the things signified,\neither good or bad, according to the nature of the aspecting stars;\nas it happened to this Cardinal, who some years before his death\nwas always sickly: and this observation is wonderful in the changes\nof the times and weather; for this principle Ptolemy adhered to in\nthe Almagest, lib. VIII, cap. 4; and this doctrine he also mentions\nin the 2nd Book of Judgments, in the chapter on the Nature of\nEvents.\u201d\u2014(Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 272.)\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X\n\nCOLOURS IN ECLIPSES; COMETS, AND SIMILAR PHENOMENA\n\n\nIn investigating general events, it is necessary further to observe the\ncolours or hues displayed during an eclipse, either in the luminaries,\nor around them; in the shape of rods or rays, or in other similar\nforms. For, if these colours or hues should be black, or greenish, they\nportend effects similar to those produced by Saturn\u2019s nature; if white,\nto those operated by Jupiter; if reddish, to those by Mars; if yellow,\nto those by Venus; and if of various colours, to those by Mercury.\n\nAnd, if the entire bodies of the luminaries be thus coloured, or should\nthe hues extend over all the parts immediately circumjacent to the\nluminaries, it is an indication that the effects will attach to most\nparts of the region, or countries, with which the eclipse and its\nruling places may be in familiarity. If, however, the colouring should\nnot spread over the whole surface of the luminaries, nor over all the\nparts around them, but be limited to some particular quarter, then\nonly such a portion of the said countries, as may be indicated by the\nsituation of the visible hues, will be comprehended in the event.\n\nIt is also requisite to notice, with respect to general events, the\nrisings or first appearances of those celestial phenomena called\ncomets, whether presenting themselves at ecliptical times or at any\nother periods. They are displayed in the shape of beams, trumpets,\npipes, and in other similar figures, and operate effects like those\nof Mars and Mercury; exciting wars, heated and turbulent dispositions\nin the atmosphere, and in the constitutions of men, with all their\nevil consequences. The parts of the zodiac[97] in which they may be\nposited when they first appear, and the direction and inclination of\ntheir trains, point out the regions or places liable to be affected by\nthe events which they threaten; and the form of the signs indicates\nthe quality and nature of those events, as well as the genus, class,\nor kind, on which the effect will fall. The time of their continuance\nshows the duration of their effect; and their position, with regard to\nthe Sun, the period when it will commence; as, if they first appear\nmatutine, they denote an early commencement; but, if vespertine, that\nit will be late and tardy.\n\n[97] When a comet appears out of the zodiac, a line should be drawn\nfrom one zodiacal pole to the other, through the spot where it appears;\nand that spot is to be considered as being in familiarity with the\nsame countries as those parts of the zodiac which may be on the same\nline.\u2014_Vide_ Chap. IV of this Book, relative to the manner in which\nfixed stars out of the zodiac hold familiarity with certain regions and\ncountries.\n\nThe general and more comprehensive parts of the consideration\nregarding regions, countries, and cities, having now been explained,\nit becomes necessary to discuss certain particular points of the same\nconsideration; that is to say, the annual occurrences which take place\nat certain fixed seasons, and the chief of which is that called the New\nMoon of the Year.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI\n\nTHE NEW MOON OF THE YEAR\n\n\nIn every annual revolution made by the Sun, the first new Moon of\nthe year is to be considered as the point of the commencement of his\ncircuit; this is evident not only from its denomination, but from its\nvirtue also.[98]\n\nThe case stands thus: In the ecliptic, which, as circle, has in fact no\nactual or definite beginning, the two equinoctial and the two tropical\npoints, marked by the equator and the tropical circles, are reasonably\nassumed as beginnings. And to obviate any doubt as to which of these\nfour points should preferably be considered as the primary beginning\n(since in the regular simple motion of a circle no part of it has any\napparent precedence), the appropriate quality naturally belonging\nto each of these four points has been taken into consideration by\nthe writers on this subject. And the point of the vernal equinox has\nbeen consequently designated by them as the beginning of the year;\nbecause, from that time, the duration of the day begins to exceed that\nof the night, and because the season then produced partakes highly\nof moisture, which is always a predominant quality in all incipient\ngeneration and growth. After the vernal equinox comes the summer\nsolstice; when the day attains its greatest length, and in \u00c6gypt,\nat the same period, the rise of the Nile takes place and the Dog\nStar appears. Then follows the autumnal equinox, when all fruits are\ngathered in, and the sowing of seeds recommences anew; lastly, comes\nthe winter solstice, when the day proceeds from its shortest duration\ntowards its increase.\n\n[98] The Neomenia, or new Moon, was observed as a festival with much\nsolemnity in earlier ages and by the most ancient nations. It was\ncelebrated by the Israelites, as well as by Pagan; and it may perhaps\nbe gathered from the 5th and 6th verses of the 20th Chapter of the 1st\nBook of Samuel, that it was kept once in a year with greater ceremony\nthan at other times: this was done, probably, at the \u201cNew Moon of the\nYear,\u201d as Ptolemy calls it; or, in other words, at the new Moon nearest\nto the vernal equinox.\n\nAlthough the foregoing arrangement has been adopted by men of science\nto denote the commencement of the several seasons of the year, it\nyet seems to be more consonant to nature, and more consistent with\nthe facts, that the combined positions of the Sun, and the new, or\nfull, Moon, which happen when the Sun is nearest to the points above\nmentioned, should mark the four beginnings; and more especially if such\ncombined positions should produce eclipses: thus, from the new or full\nMoon, taking place when the Sun is nearest to the first point of Aries,\nthe spring should be dated; from that when the Sun is nearest to the\nfirst point of Cancer, the summer; from that when he is nearest to the\nfirst point of Libra, the autumn; and from that when he is nearest to\nthe first point of Capricorn, the winter. The Sun not only produces\nthe general qualities and constitutions of the seasons, by means of\nwhich very illiterate persons are enabled, in a certain degree, to\nform predictions, but he also regulates the proper significations\nof the signs with regard to the excitation of the winds, as well\nas other general occurrences, more or less subjected to occasional\nvariation. All these general effects are usually brought about by the\nnew or full Moon which takes place at the aforesaid points, and by the\nconfigurations then existing between the luminaries and the planets:\nbut there are certain particular consequences which result from the new\nand full Moon in every sign,[99] and from the transits of the planets;\n\u201cand which require monthly investigation.\u201d[100]\n\nIt therefore becomes necessary to explain, in the first instance, the\nparticular natures and attributes exercised by each sign in influencing\nthe several constitutions of the weather, as it exists at various times\nof the year; these natures and attributes shall now be immediately\ndetailed. It will be recollected, that the particular properties of the\nplanets and the fixed stars, as affecting the wind and the atmosphere,\nas well as the manner in which the entire signs hold familiarity with\nthe winds and the seasons, have been already set forth.\n\n[99] That is to say, at the new and full Moon taking place during the\nSun\u2019s progress through each sign.\n\n[100] The passage marked thus \u201c \u201d is not in the Greek, but is found in\ntwo Latin translations.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII\n\nTHE PARTICULAR NATURES OF THE SIGNS BY WHICH THE DIFFERENT\nCONSTITUTIONS OF THE ATMOSPHERE ARE PRODUCED[101]\n\n\nThe sign of Aries has a general tendency, arising from the presence\nof the Equinox, to promote thunder and hail. Certain of its parts,\nhowever, operate in a greater or less degree, according to the nature\nof the stars which compose the sign: for instance, the front parts\nexcite rain and wind; the middle are temperate; and those behind are\nheating and pestilential. The northern parts, also, are heating and\npernicious, but the southern cooling and frosty.\n\n[101] According to Wing, in his \u201cInstructions to the Ephemerides,\u201d\nprinted in 1652, the signs, as mentioned in this chapter by Ptolemy,\nare to be considered in their quality as constellations, and not\nas spaces of the heavens. This opinion, however, seems to me to be\nerroneous; for Ptolemy has already devoted a chapter in the 1st Book\nto the detail of the influences of the several stars in the respective\nconstellations of the zodiac; and he moreover speaks, in the present\nchapter, of the operation of Aries, as owing to the presence of the\nEquinox. This he could not have done, had he spoken of the signs as\nconstellations instead of spaces.\n\nThe sign of Taurus, in its general character, partakes of both\ntemperaments,[102] but is nevertheless chiefly warm. Its front parts,\nand especially those near the Pleiades, produce earthquakes, clouds\nand winds: the middle parts are moistening and cooling; those behind,\nand near the Hyades, are fiery, and cause meteors and lightnings. The\nnorthern parts are temperate; the southern turbulent and variable.\n\n[102] The temperaments here alluded to are, probably, heat and cold.\n\nGemini, in its general tendency, is temperate; but its leading parts\nproduce mischief by moisture; its middle parts are entirely temperate;\nits latter parts mixed and turbulent. The northern parts promote\nearthquakes and wind; and the southern are dry and heating.\n\nCancer is, in the whole, serene and warm, but its anterior part near\nthe Pr\u00e6sepe are oppressively hot and suffocating; the middle parts are\ntemperate, and the latter parts excite wind. And both its northern and\nsouthern parts are equally fiery and scorching.\n\nLeo has a general tendency operative of stifling heat. The anterior\nparts are oppressively and pestilentially hot; yet the middle parts are\ntemperate; and those behind are injurious by means of moisture. The\nnorthern parts produce variation and heat, and the southern moisture.\n\nVirgo, in its general tendency, excites moisture and thunder. The front\nparts, however, are chiefly warm and noxious; the middle temperate; and\nthe latter parts watery. The northern parts promote wind; the southern\nare temperate.\n\nLibra has a general tendency to produce change and variation. Its front\nand middle parts are temperate; its hinder parts watery. The northern\nparts cause variable winds, and the southern are moistening and\npestilential.\n\nScorpio, in its general character, is fiery and productive of thunder.\nThe front parts cause snow; the middle are temperate; the latter parts\nexcite earthquakes. Its northern parts are heating; its southern,\nmoistening.\n\nSagittarius, generally, is effective of wind. The front parts are\nmoistening; the middle temperate; and the hinder parts fiery. The\nnorthern parts promote wind, and the southern variation and moisture.\n\nCapricorn\u2019s general tendency is to operate moisture. But its anterior\nparts are pernicious by means of heat, its middle parts are temperate,\nand its latter parts promote rain. Both its northern and southern parts\nare injurious by means of moisture.\n\nAquarius, in its general character, is cold and watery. The front parts\nare moistening; the middle temperate; and the latter parts productive\nof wind. The northern parts are heating; the southern cause snow.\n\nPisces, in its general character, is cold and effective of wind. The\nfront parts are temperate; the middle moistening; the hinder parts\nhighly heating. The northern parts excite wind, and the southern are\nwatery.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII\n\nMODE OF CONSIDERATION FOR PARTICULAR CONSTITUTIONS OF THE ATMOSPHERE\n\n\nThe first part of the consideration, requisite to form an estimate of\nthe various constitutions liable to take effect in the atmosphere,\napplies to the general qualities pervading the several quarters of the\nyear, and has therefore the most extended scope. In order to learn\nthese qualities, it is necessary, in every quarter, to observe, as\nabove directed, the new or full Moon which may happen before[103] the\nperiod of the Sun\u2019s transit through either tropical or equinoctial\npoint, whichever it may be; and to arrange the angles (as in the\ncase of a nativity) according to the degree and hour at which the\nnew or full Moon may be found to happen, in every latitude for which\nthe consideration may be desired. Such planets and stars as may have\ndominion over the places where the said new or full Moon happens, and\nover the following angle, are then to be noted, in the same manner as\nthat stated with regard to eclipses. And after these preliminary steps\nhave been attended to, a general inference may be drawn as to the\nproper qualities of the whole quarter; and the intensity or relaxation\nof their operation is to be contemplated from the natures of the ruling\nplanets and stars, distinguished by the faculties they possess, and by\nthe mode in which they affect the atmosphere.\n\n[103] \u201c_Before._\u201d Although I have thus Englished the word, \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf, I\nthink it properly requires to be here rendered, by \u201c_at_\u201d or \u201c_near\nto_\u201d rather than \u201c_before_.\u201d Firstly, because my author (in speaking\nof the commencement of each quarter of the year, in the 11th Chapter,\np. 93), has expressly stated that \u201cthe spring is to be dated from the\nnew or full Moon taking place when the Sun is _nearest_ (\u03b5\u03b3\u03b3\u03b9\u03b6\u03b1) to\nthe first point of Aries; the summer from that, when he is _nearest_\nthe first point of Cancer,\u201d &c., &c.; and (in p. 94) he states that\ncertain general effects are brought about by the new or full Moon\noccurring _at_ (\u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03b1) the aforesaid points. Secondly, because, in a\nfew lines further on, in speaking of the monthly consideration, p. 98,\nhe again uses only \u03b5\u03b3\u03b3\u03b9\u03b6\u03b1, in reference to the present passage, in\nwhich, however, he has used only \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf. Thirdly, it is a proper inference\nthat he meant to point out here the new or full Moon which may happen\n_nearest_ to the tropical or equinoctial points, because he has\npreviously and explicitly taught that the principal variation of all\nthings depends upon those points. Lastly, Allatius has here rendered\nthe word by no other than _proxim\u00e9_, which is also the word given in\nthe Perugio Latin of 1646.\n\nOn the other hand, Whalley, in his note on the present chapter, says,\nthat \u201caccording to this Prince of Astrologers\u201d (meaning Ptolemy),\n\u201cwe are to observe the new or full Moon preceding the ingress, only,\nfor our judgment on the succeeding quarter, and not the lunation\nsucceeding: and the reason I conceive to be, because the lunation,\nwhich immediately precedes the ingress, carries its influence to the\nvery position of the ingress itself, but not so that which follows the\ningress.\u201d Wing, in his Introduction to the Ephemerides (London, 1652)\nalso says, that \u201cfor the knowledge of the weather, it is requisite\nto observe the conjunction or opposition of the luminaries next\n_preceding_ the Sun\u2019s ingress into the first point of Aries.\u201d\n\nNow, if a new or full Moon happen _immediately after_ the Sun\u2019s transit\nor ingress, the previous full or new Moon must have happened _a\nfortnight before_ the said transit or ingress; and, after considering\nthe other parts of Ptolemy\u2019s doctrine, I do not conceive, that he\nintended to teach, in this chapter, that a _previous_ lunation, when at\nso great a distance before the important ingress, would have a greater\ninfluence over the ensuing quarter of the year, than a _subsequent_\nlunation taking place so closely after the said ingress.\n\nThe second part of the consideration relates to each month, and\nrequires a similar observation of the new or full Moon first taking\nplace on the Sun\u2019s progress through each sign: and it must be\nremembered, that, if a new Moon should have happened at a period\nnearest to the Sun\u2019s transit over the past tropical or equinoctial\npoint, the new Moon also in each succeeding sign, until the\ncommencement of the next quarter, are to be observed; but, if a full\nMoon should have so happened, then similar observation is to be made\nof each subsequent full Moon. The angles, also, must be duly attended\nto, as well as the planets and stars ruling in both the places[104];\nand especially the nearest phases, applications, and separations of\nthe planets, and their properties. The peculiar qualities of the two\nplaces, and the winds, liable to be excited by the planets themselves\nand by those parts of the signs in which they may be situated, are\nlikewise to be considered; and also that particular wind, which is\nindicated by the direction of the Moon\u2019s ecliptical latitude. By the\naid of these observations, and by weighing and comparing the existing\nvigour of each of the several properties and qualities, the general\nconstitution of the atmosphere during each month may be predicted.\n\n[104] \u201c_Both the places._\u201d These are the places of the new or full\nMoon, and of the following angle; as before mentioned with regard to\nthe quarterly consideration.\n\nThe third part of this consideration appertains to significations\napplying more minutely, and points out their force or weakness. In\nthis case, the partile configurations of the Sun and Moon, at the\nintermediate quarters, as well as at the new or full Moon, are to\nbe attentively regarded; since there is a certain variation in the\nconstitution of the atmosphere, which usually commences about three\ndays before, and sometimes, also, about three days after the Moon has\nequated her course to the Sun. The configurations effected between\nthe Moon, at each quarterly equation, and the planets, whether by the\ntrine, sextile, or other authorized distances, are also to be observed;\nbecause the peculiar property of the change in the constitutions of\nthe atmosphere depends much upon such configurations, and may be\naccordingly perceived by considering the nature of the influence\nwhich the said configurated planets and the signs exercise over the\natmosphere and the winds.\n\nThe particular quality of the weather, thus produced, will be more\nfully established on certain days; especially when the brighter and\nmore efficacious fixed stars maybe near the Sun, either matutine\nor vespertine; as, when so posited, they most frequently convert\nthe constitution of the atmosphere to an agreement with their own\nnatures: and, when the Luminaries may transit any one of the angles, a\nsimilar effect is also produced. At all such positions the particular\nconstitutions of the atmosphere are subject to variation, and thus\nbecome alternately more intense or more relaxed in their respective\nqualities. In this manner, by certain positions of the Moon, the flux\nand reflux of the sea are caused: and, when the Luminaries may be in\nangles, a change of the wind is produced, according to the direction of\nthe Moon\u2019s ecliptical latitude.\n\nFinally, in all these considerations, it must be remembered that the\nmore general and first constituted cause takes precedence, and that\nthe particular cause comes subsequently and secondarily: and, that the\noperation is in the highest degree confirmed and strengthened, when the\nstars, which regulate the general effects, may be also configurated\ntowards the production of the particular effects.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV\n\nTHE SIGNIFICATION OF METEORS\n\n\nIn order to facilitate prognostication in minor and more limited\ninstances, it is important to make further observation of all\nremarkable appearances occasionally visible around or near the Sun,\nMoon, and stars. And, for the diurnal state of the atmosphere, the\nSun\u2019s rising should be remarked; for the nocturnal state, his setting;\nbut the probable duration of any such state must be considered by\nreference to the Sun\u2019s configuration with the Moon; for, in most cases,\neach aspect, made between them, indicates the continuance of a certain\nstate until another aspect shall take place.\n\nHence, the Sun, when rising or setting, if he shine clear and open,\nfree from mists, gloom, and clouds, promises serene weather. But, if\nhe have a wavering or fiery orb, or seem to emit or attract red rays,\nor if he be accompanied in any one part by the clouds called parhelia,\nor by other reddish clouds of extended figure, in the form of long\nrays, he then portends violent winds, chiefly liable to arise from\nthose parts in which the said phenomena may have shown themselves. If\nhe should be pale or lurid, and rise or set encumbered with clouds,\nor surrounded by halos, he indicates storms and winds coming from the\nquarter of his apparent situation: and, if he be also accompanied by\nparhelia, or by lurid or dark rays, similar effects are also threatened\nfrom the parts where those appearances may be situated.[105]\n\n[105] Similar precepts may be found finely illustrated in Virgil\u2019s 1st\nGeorgic, _vide_ I, 433 _et infra_:\n\n \u201cSol quoque et exoriens et cum se condit in undas\n Signa dabit:\u201d\u2014\u2014\n\n\nThe Moon\u2019s course is to be carefully observed, at the third day\nbefore or after her conjunction with the Sun, her opposition, and her\nintermediate quarters; for, if she then shine thin and clear, with no\nother phenomena about her, she indicates serenity; but, if she appear\nthin and red, and have her whole unilluminated part visible, and in a\nstate of vibration, she portends winds from the quarter of her latitude\nand declination[106]: and if she appear dark, or pale and thick, she\nthreatens storms and showers. All halos formed around the Moon should\nalso be observed; for, if there appear one only, bright and clear, and\ndecaying by degrees, it promises serene weather; but, if two or three\nappear, tempests are indicated: and, if they seem reddish and broken,\nthey threaten tempests, with violent and boisterous winds; if dark and\nthick, they foreshow storms and snow; if black and broken, tempests\nwith both winds and snow; and, whenever a greater number may appear,\nstorms of greater fury are portended.\n\n[106] Virgil has said almost the same thing in these beautiful lines:\n\n \u201cAt si virgineum suffuderit ore ruborem\n Ventus erit: vento semper rubet aurea Ph\u0153be.\u201d\u2014_Georg._ I, l. 430.\n\nSee also the whole passage, beginning at l. 424:\n\n \u201cSi vero Solem ad rapidum Lunasque sequentes\n Ordine respicies,\u201d &c.\n\n\nThe planets, also, and the brighter fixed stars, occasionally have\nhalos, which indicate certain effects appropriate to their tinctures,\nand to the nature of the stars around which they may be situated.\n\nThe apparent magnitudes of the fixed stars, and the colours of the\nluminous masses among them, are likewise to be remarked: for, when\nthe stars appear brighter and larger than usual, they indicate an\nexcitation of the wind from that quarter in which they may be situated.\nThe nebulous mass of the Pr\u00e6sepe in Cancer, and others similar to it,\nalso require observation; as, if in fine weather they appear gloomy\nand indistinct, or thick, they thereby threaten a fall of rain; but,\nif clear and in continual vibration, they announce rough gales of\nwind.[107]\n\nAppearances occasionally visible in the sky, resembling the trains\nof comets,[108] usually indicate wind and drought; in a degree\nproportionate to their multitude and continuance.\n\nAppearances, resembling shooting or falling stars, when presented in\none part only, threaten a movement of wind from that part;[109] when\nin various and opposite parts, they portend the approach of all kinds\nof tempestuous weather, together with thunder and lightning. Clouds\nresembling fleeces of wool will also sometimes presage tempests; and\nthe occasional appearance of the rainbow denotes, in stormy weather,\nthe approach of serenity; in fine weather, storms. And, in a word, all\nremarkable phenomena, visible in the sky, universally portend that\ncertain appropriate events will be produced, each harmonising with its\nproper cause, in the manner herein described.\n\nAfter the forgoing brief investigation of the more limited as well as\nmore extensive significations, regarding general events, it becomes\nproper to proceed to the doctrine of genethliacal prognostication, or\njudgments of individual nativities.\n\n[107] At this place, the following sentence, not found in the Greek, is\ninserted in a Latin translation:\n\n\u201cIf the northern of the two stars, situated one on each side of the\nPr\u00e6sepe, and called the Asini, should not appear, the north wind will\nblow: but, if the southern one be invisible, the south wind.\u201d\n\n[108] These coruscations are, perhaps, similar to those now known by\nthe name of the Aurora Borealis.\n\n[109] Virgil again:\n\n \u201cS\u00e6pe etiam stellas vento impendente videbis\n Pr\u00e6cipites c\u0153lo labi.\u201d\u2014&c. _Georg._ I, l. 365.\n\nA great part of the 1st Georgic consists of astrological rules for\npredicting the weather, closely resembling the precepts here given by\nPtolemy. Virgil is said to have adopted his doctrine from Aratus.\n\nEND OF BOOK II\n\n\n\n\nBOOK THE THIRD\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nPROEM\n\n\nIn the preceding pages, such events as effect the world generally\nhave been discussed in priority; because they are operated by\ncertain principal and paramount causes, which are, at the same time,\npredominant over particular and minor events applicable only to the\nseparate properties and natural peculiarities of individuals. The\nforeknowledge of these particular events is called Genethlialogy, or\nthe science of Nativities.\n\nIt must be remembered that the causation, by which all effects, whether\ngeneral or particular, are produced and foreknown, is essentially\none and the same; for the motions of the planets, and of the Sun\nand Moon, present the operative causation of events which happen to\nany individual, as well as of those which happen generally; and the\nforeknowledge of both may be obtained by the several creatures and\nsubstances, subjected to the influence of the heavenly bodies, and\nby due attention to the changes produced in those natures, by the\nconfigurations displayed in the Ambient by the planetary motion.\n\nStill, however, the causes of general events are greater and more\ncomplete than those of particular events; and, although it has been now\nstated, that one single identical power supplies both the causation\nand the foreknowledge of general as well as particular events, yet\nthere does not belong to the two sorts of events a similar origin or\nbeginning, at which observation of the celestial configurations must\nbe made, for prognostication. In regard to general events, the dates\nof origin and commencement are many and various; for all general\nevents cannot be traced to one origin, neither is their origin always\nconsidered by means of the matter subjected to their operation, for it\nmay be also established by circumstances occurring in the Ambient and\npresenting the causation. It may, in fact, almost be said that they\nall originate in eminent eclipses of the Luminaries, and in remarkable\ntransits made by the stars, at various times.\n\nParticular events, however, which concern men individually, may be\ntraced to one origin, single as well as manifold. Their origin is\nsingle, in respect to the primary composition of the nascent man; but\nit is also manifold, in respect to other circumstances subsequently\nindicated by dispositions in the Ambient, correlative to the primary\norigin. In all particular events, the origin, or birth, of the\nsubjected matter itself, must, of course, be the primary origin; and,\nin succession thereto, the various beginnings of other subsequent\ncircumstances are to be assumed. Hence, therefore, at the origin of\nthe subjected matter, all the properties and peculiarities of its\ncontemperament must be observed; and then the subsequent events, which\nwill happen at certain periods, sooner or later, are to be considered\nby means of the division of time, or the scale of the ensuing\nyears.[110]\n\n[110] The Division of Time is subsequently laid down by the author, in\nthe last Chapter of the fourth Book.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nTHE CONCEPTION AND THE PARTURITION, OR BIRTH; BY WHICH LATTER EVENT THE\nANIMAL QUITS THE WOMB, AND ASSUMES ANOTHER STATE OF EXISTENCE\n\n\nThe actual moment, in which human generation commences, is, in fact,\nby nature, the moment of the conception itself; but, in efficacy with\nregard to subsequent events, it is the parturition or birth.\n\nIn every case, however, where the actual time of conception may be\nascertained, either casually or by observation, it is useful to remark\nthe effective influence of the configuration of the stars as it existed\nat that time; and, from that influence, to infer the future personal\npeculiarities of mind and body. For the seed will, at the very first,\nand at once, receive its due quality, as then dispensed by the Ambient;\nand, although in subsequent periods its substance is varied by growth\nand conformation, it will still, by the laws of nature, congregate,\nduring its growth, only such matter as may be proper to itself, and\nwill become more and more imbued with the peculiar property of the\nfirst quality impressed on it at the time of conception. These precepts\nmust always be attended to, when that time can be ascertained.\n\nBut, if the time of conception cannot be precisely made out, that of\nthe birth must be received at the original date of generation; for\nit is virtually the most important, and is in no respect deficient,\non comparison with the primary origin by conception, except in one\nview only; viz. that the origin by conception affords the inference\nof occurrences which take effect previously to the birth, whereas the\norigin by birth can, of course, be available only for such as arise\nsubsequently. And, although the birth should in strictness be called\nthe secondary beginning, while the conception might be insisted on as\nthe primary beginning, it is still found to be equal to the conception\nin its efficacy, and much more complete, although later in time. For\nthe conception may, in fact, be said to be the generation of mere human\nseed, but the birth that of man himself; since the infant at its birth\nacquires numerous qualities which it would not possess while in the\nwomb, and which are proper to human nature alone; \u201csuch, for instance,\nas the particular action of the senses and the movement of the body and\nlimbs.\u201d[111] Besides, even if the position of the Ambient, actually\nexisting at the birth, cannot be considered to assist in forming and\nengendering the particular shape and qualities of the infant, it is\nnevertheless still auxiliary to the infant\u2019s entrance into the world:\nbecause nature, after completing the formation in the womb, always\neffects the birth in immediate obedience to some certain position of\nthe Ambient, corresponding and sympathising with the primary position\nwhich operated the incipient formation. It is therefore perfectly\nadmissible, and consistent with reason, that the configuration of the\nstars, as it exists at the time of birth, although it cannot be said\nto possess any share of the creative cause, should still be considered\nto act in signification, as fully as the configuration at the time of\nconception; because it has, of necessity, a power corresponding to that\nconfiguration which actually possessed the creative cause.\n\n[111] The words, thus marked \u201c \u201d, are not in the Greek, but in two\nLatin translations.\n\nIn speaking of the practicability of prognostication, in the\ncommencement of this treatise, the intention of setting forth this part\nof the subject, now under consideration, in a scientific manner, has\nbeen already notified. The ancient mode of prediction, founded on the\ncommixture of all the stars, and abounding in infinite complication and\ndiversity, will therefore be passed over; and, in fact, any attempt to\ndetail it, however accurately and minutely made, in conformity to the\nseveral precepts given in the traditions relating to it, would prove\nunserviceable and unintelligible: it is therefore entirely abandoned.\nAnd the doctrine, now presented, comprehending every species of event\nliable to happen, and explaining all the effective influences generally\nexercised by the stars, in their separate qualities, over every species\nof event, shall be delivered succinctly, and in agreement with the\ntheory of nature.\n\nWith this view, certain places in the Ambient, regulating the formation\nof all inferences of the events liable to affect mankind, are appointed\nas a kind of mark to which the whole theory of those inferences is\napplied, and to which the operative powers of the stars, when holding\nfamiliarity with the said places, are in a general manner directed: in\nthe same way as, in archery, the arrow is directed to the target. And\nany event, which depends on the compound temperament of many various\nnatures and influences together, must be left to the discretion of the\nartist, who, like the skilful archer, must himself judge of the best\nmode of hitting the mark.\n\nTo proceed methodically and in due order, it is proper to commence by\ninvestigating such general events as are open to consideration, and\nliable to have happened, or to happen, at the actual origin by birth;\nsince, from that origin, all things necessary to be investigated may\nbe gathered; as before stated. Yet, if a previous inquiry, by means\nof the primary origin by conception, should nevertheless be desired\nand undertaken, such an inquiry may still in some degree assist\nprognostication; although only in regard to properties and qualities\ndispensed and imbibed at the time of conception.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nTHE DEGREE ASCENDING\n\n\nThere frequently arises some uncertainty as to the precise time of\nbirth, and some apprehensions lest it should not be accurately noted.\nIn most cases, the actual minute of the hour, at which the birth\nhappens, can only be ascertained by making a scientific observation,\nat the time, with an horoscopical astrolabe[112]; for all other\ninstruments, employed in ascertaining the hour, are almost fallacious,\nalthough used by many persons with much care and attention. The\nclepsydra,[113] for instance, is subject to error, because the flow\nof the water will, from various causes, proceed irregularly: and the\nsundial is often incorrectly placed, and its gnomon often distorted\nfrom the true meridian line. To obviate the difficulty arising from the\ninaccuracy of these instruments, it seems highly necessary to present\nsome method by which the actually ascending degree of the zodiac may be\neasily ascertained, in a natural and consistent manner.\n\nAnd in order to attain this essential point, it is necessary first to\nset down the ordinary degree which, by the Doctrine of Ascensions,[114]\nis found near the ascendant at the presumed hour. After this has\nbeen done, the new or full Moon, whichever it may be, that may take\nplace next before the time of parturition, must be observed: and, if\na new Moon, it will be necessary to mark exactly the degree of the\nconjunction of the two luminaries; but, if a full Moon, the degree of\nluminary only which may be above the earth during the parturition.\nAfter this, it must be observed what planets have dominion over the\nsaid degree: and their dominion depends always on the five following\nprerogatives, viz. on triplicity, house, exaltation, terms, and phase\nor configuration[115]; that is to say, a planet, eligible to dominion,\nmust be connected with the degree in question either by one, or more,\nor all of these prerogatives.\n\n[112] It is, perhaps, needless to remark that modern improvements in\nscience have superseded the use of this and other ancient instruments\nhere mentioned.\n\n[113] Although the \u201cclepsydra,\u201d or water-clock, was commonly used among\nthe ancients for various purposes, it appears, from Martian (a Latin\nwriter, who lived about A. D. 490), that there was also a clepsydra in\nspecial use as an astrological engine.\n\n[114] \u201c_The Doctrine of Ascensions_,\u201d in allusion to the method of\ncalculating the actual position of the ecliptic.\n\n[115] \u201c_Phase or configuration._\u201d Or, holding some authorized aspect to\nthe degree in question.\n\nIf, therefore, there may be found any one planet properly qualified in\nall or most of these prerogatives, the exact degree, which it occupies\nin that sign in which it may be posited during the parturition, is to\nbe remarked; and it is then to be inferred that a degree of the same\nnumerical denomination was actually ascending, at the precise time of\nbirth, in that sign which appears, by the Doctrine of Ascensions, to be\nnearest to the ascendant.[116]\n\nBut when two planets, or more, may be equally qualified in the manner\nprescribed, it must be seen which of them may transit, during the\nparturition, a degree nearest in number to the ordinary degree shown\nby the Doctrine of Ascensions to be then ascending; and that said\ndegree, nearest in number, is to be considered as pointing out the\nnumerical denomination of the degree actually ascending. And when the\ndegrees of two planets, or more, may closely and equally approximate in\nnumerical denomination to the ordinary degree found by the Doctrine of\nAscensions, the degree of that planet which possesses further claims,\nby connection with the angles and by its own condition, is to regulate\nthe number of the actually ascending degree.\n\nIt must however be observed, that if the actual distance of the degree,\nin which the ruling planet may be posited, from the ordinary degree\nascending, be found to exceed its distance from the ordinary degree\nof the mid-heaven; the numerical denomination, found in the way above\nmentioned, is then to be considered as applicable to the actual degree\nin culmination; and the other angles are to be arranged in conformity\ntherewith.[117]\n\n[116] Or, on the ascendant.\n\n[117] The precepts delivered in this Chapter have obtained the name\nof Ptolemy\u2019s Animodar: the term is probably Arabic, if it be not a\ncorruption of the Latin words _animum_, or _animam_, _dare_, \u201cgiving\nanimation or life\u201d; yet this meaning seems scarcely close enough.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nDISTRIBUTION OF THE DOCTRINE OF NATIVITIES\n\n\nAfter due attention to the preceding instructions, the doctrine of\ngenethliacal prognostication should be separately and distinctly\nconsidered, for the sake of order and perspicuity, in its first, second\nand successive divisions or heads of inquiry. It will thus be found to\npresent a mode of investigation, at once practicable, competent and\nagreeable to nature.\n\nOne division is applicable only to certain circumstances established\npreviously to the birth; as, for instance, to those which concern the\nparents; another to circumstances, which may be established both before\nand after the birth; as those respecting brothers and sisters; another\nto circumstances actually occurring at the very time of birth, and\nimmediately consequent thereupon: and this head of inquiry embraces\nvarious points, and is by no means simple: and the last division\nrelates to events liable to take place after the birth, at various\nperiods, earlier or later; and it involves a still more diversified\ntheory.\n\nThus, the questions to be solved, in regard to the actual circumstances\nof the birth itself, are, whether the production will be male or\nfemale; twins, or even more; whether it will be monstrous; and whether\nit will be reared.\n\nThe questions of the periods subsequent to the birth relate first to\nthe duration of life (which is distinct from the question of rearing),\nthen to the shape and figure of the body, to the bodily affections, and\nto injuries or defects in the members. After these, further inquiry is\ninstituted as to the quality of the mind, and the mental affections;\nthen, as to fortune, in regard to rank and honours as well as wealth.\nIn succession to these, the character of the employment or profession\nis sought out; then, the questions relative to marriage and offspring,\nand to consentaneous friendship, are to be considered; then, that\nconcerning travel; and, lastly, that concerning the kind of death which\nawaits the native. The question of death, although depending, in fact,\nupon the same influence as the question of the duration of life, seems\nyet to find its proper situation in being placed last in the series.\n\nOn each of the foregoing points of inquiry, the doctrine and precepts\nto be followed shall be thoroughly and succinctly detailed; but all\nidle conceits, promulgated by many persons without any foundation\ncapable of sustaining the test of reason, shall be utterly avoided,\nin deference to the only true agency, which is derived from primal\nNature herself. It is only upon clearly effective influences that\nthis treatise is established: and all matters, which are open to an\nauthorized mode of inquiry by means of the theory of the stars, and\ntheir positions and aspects with regard to appropriate places, shall\nbe fully discussed here; but the divination by lots and numbers,\nunregulated by any systematic causation, must remain unnoticed.\n\nThe brief remarks, immediately following, are applicable to all cases,\ngenerally, and are now at once stated, to avoid the repetition of them\nunder each particular division or head of inquiry.\n\nFirstly, notice must be taken of that place in the zodiac which\ncorresponds, according to the scheme of the nativity with the\nparticular division of inquiry; for example, the place of the\nmid-heaven is adapted to questions comprised under the head of\nemployment or profession; and the Sun\u2019s place to those relative to the\nconcerns of the father.\n\nSecondly, after the proper place has thus been duly ascertained,\nthe planets holding right of dominion there, by any of the five\nprerogatives hereinbefore mentioned, are to be observed; and, if any\none planet be found to be lord by all these prerogatives, that planet\nmust be admitted as the ruler of the event liable to happen under that\nparticular head of inquiry. If, however, two or three planets hold\ndominion, that one among them, which may have most claims to the place\nin question, must be selected as the ruler.\n\nThirdly, the natures of the ruling planet and of the signs, in which\nitself and the place which it thus controls may severally be situated,\nare to be considered as indicating the quality of the event.\n\nFourthly, the proportionate vigour and strength, or weakness, with\nwhich the dominion is exercised, as exhibited either by the actual\ncosmical position of the ruling planet, or by its position in the\nscheme of the nativity, will point out to what extent and with what\nforce the event will operate. And a planet is found to be cosmically\npowerful when in one of its own places,[118] or when oriental, or\nswift in course; and it is strong in the scheme of the nativity,\nwhen transiting an angle or succedent house; especially those of the\nascendant, or of the mid-heaven. But it is cosmically weaker, when\nnot in one of its own places; or when occidental, or retarded in its\ncourse; and in respect to the scheme of the nativity, it is weak when\ncadent from the angles.\n\nLastly; the general time, about which the event will take place, is to\nbe inferred from the ruling planet\u2019s matutine or vespertine position,\nin regard to the Sun and the ascendant, and from the circumstance of\nits being situated in an angle, or a succedent house. As, if it be\nmatutine, or in an angle, its influence operates earlier and more\npromptly; but, if vespertine or in a succedent house, later and more\ntardily. And, in reference to this point, the quadrant which precedes\nthe Sun, and that which precedes the ascendant, together with the\nquadrants opposite to these, are oriental and matutine; and the other\nquadrants, following the former, are occidental and vespertine.\n\n[118] In House, Triplicity, Exaltation, Term or Face.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nTHE PARENTS\n\n\nUnder each head of inquiry, the proposed investigation must be entered\nupon in the manner mentioned in the preceding chapter: and, to proceed\nin due order, the circumstances relating to the parents require to be\nfirst disposed of.\n\nIn conformity with nature, the Sun and Saturn are allotted to the\nperson of the father; and the Moon and Venus to that of the mother: and\nthe mode in which these luminaries and planets may be found posited,\nwith reference to each other, as well as to other planets and stars,\nwill intimate the situation of affairs affecting the parents.\n\nThus, for example, the degree of their fortune and wealth will be\nindicated by the doryphory,[119] or attendants of the luminaries.\nIf the luminaries be accompanied (either in the same signs in which\nthemselves are placed, or in the signs next following), by the\nbenefics, and by such stars or planets as are of the same tendency\nas themselves, a conspicuous and brilliant fortune is presaged:\nespecially, should the Sun be attended by matutine stars, and the\nMoon by vespertine,[120] and these stars be also well established in\nthe prerogatives before mentioned. Likewise, if Saturn or Venus be\nmatutine, and in proper face,[121] or in an angle, it foreshows the\nprosperity of either parent respectively, according to the scheme.[122]\nIf, however, the luminaries hold no connection with the planets, and be\nunattended by any doryphory, the adverse fortunes of the parents, their\nhumble state and obscurity, and then denoted; especially, if Saturn and\nVenus may not be favourably constituted. The parents are also subjected\nto a state of vicissitude, never rising above mediocrity, when the\nluminaries may have a doryphory of a condition or tendency foreign to\ntheir own: as, for instance, when Mars may ascend near in succession to\nthe Sun, or Saturn to the Moon; or if the benefics be found constituted\nunfavourably, and not in conformity with their own natural condition\nand tendency. But should the part of fortune, as shown by the scheme of\nthe nativity, be found in a favourable position, and in consonance with\nthe doryphory of the Sun and Moon, the estate of the parents will then\nremain steady and secure. If, however, the position be discordant and\nadverse, or if the malefics compose the doryphory, the parents\u2019 estate\nwill be unproductive and even burthensome.\n\nThe probable duration of the lives of the parents is to be inferred\nby means of other configurations. And, in the case of the father, a\nlong life is presaged, if Jupiter, or Venus, be in any mode whatever\nconfigurated with either the Sun, or Saturn; or, also, if Saturn\nhimself make an harmonious configuration with the Sun; (that is to say,\neither by the conjunction, the sextile, or the trine); provided such\nconfiguration be fully and strongly established and confirmed:[123]\nand, when not so established and confirmed, although it does not\nactually denote a short life, yet it will not then equally presage a\nlong life.\n\n[119] \u0394\u03bf\u03c1\u03c5\u03c6\u03bf\u03c1\u03b9\u03b1\u00b7 This word has been heretofore rendered \u201c_satellitium_\u201d\nand \u201csatellites,\u201d but, as these terms do not seem sufficiently precise\nin their meaning, and are already in use to signify the minor orbs\nwhich revolve round a principal planet, I have ventured to anglicize\nthe Greek word; the usual signification of which is a \u201cbodyguard.\u201d\n\n[120] Or, in other words, \u201cshould the stars, which attend the Sun, be\nsuch as rise _before him_; and those, which attend the Moon, such as\nrise _after_ her.\u201d\n\n[121] As described in Chap. XXVI, Book I.\n\n[122] Saturn being applicable to the father, and Venus to the mother.\n\n[123] The Perugio Latin translation, of 1646, inserts here, \u201cand\nprovided Saturn and the Sun are not impeded by being posited in\nunfortunate or unsuitable places.\u201d\n\nIf however the planets be not posited in the manner just described; and\nif Mars be elevated above,[124] or ascend in succession to the Sun, or\nto Saturn; or, even, should Saturn himself not be in consonance with\nthe Sun, but configurated with it by the quartile or opposition, and\nif, when thus circumstanced, both he and the Sun should be posited\nin cadent houses, it is then indicated that the father is liable to\ninfirmities; but, if in angles or succedent houses, the father will\nlive only a short life, and suffer from various bodily injuries and\ndiseases. The shortness of his life is particularly intimated by the\nposition of the Sun and Saturn in the first two angles, viz. the\nascendant and the mid-heaven, or in their succedent houses; and his\naffliction by diseases and injuries, when they may be posited in the\ntwo other angles, the western and the lower heaven, or in the houses\nsuccedent thereto. And, if Mars be aspected to the Sun in the way\nbefore-mentioned, the father will die suddenly, or receive injury in\nhis face or eyes; but, should Mars be so aspected to Saturn, he will be\nafflicted with contractions of the muscles or limbs, and with fevers\nand disorders proceeding from inflammation and wounds; or even death\nmay be the consequence. And even Saturn himself, if badly configurated\nwith the Sun, will also inflict disease and death on the father, by\ninducing such particular disorders as are incidental from watery humour.\n\n[124] \u201c_Elevated._\u201d Moxon\u2019s Mathematical Dictionary gives the\nfollowing definition of this astrological term. \u201c_Elevated._ A certain\npre-eminence of one planet above another; or, a concurrence of two to a\ncertain act, wherein one being stronger, is carried above the weaker,\nand does alter and depress its nature and influence: But wherein this\nbeing _elevated_ consists, there are several opinions; some say when\na planet is nearest the zenith, or meridian; others will have it only\nthat planet is highest; or nearest to the Apog\u00e6on of his eccentric or\nepicycle. And Argol admits of all these, and several other advantages,\nand thence advises to collect the several testimonies, and that that\nplanet, who has most, shall be said to be elevated above the other.\u201d\nAccording to Whalley, Cardan\u2019s opinion was that \u201cthat planet is most\nelevated which is more occidental and ponderous.\u201d For myself, I\nconceive this opinion to be inaccurate, because, if Ptolemy meant to\nsignify only the greater occidentality of the planet, he would (as in\nother instances) have used the word \u201c_preceding_\u201d instead of \u201c_elevated\nabove_\u201d; and I incline to think, that _greater proximity to the zenith_\nis the truer, as well as more simple, meaning of the term \u201celevated.\u201d\n\nThe foregoing observations are applicable to the father, and those\nwhich follow must be attended to in the case of the mother.\n\nShould the Sun be configurated, in any mode whatever, with the Moon or\nVenus, or, should Venus herself be harmoniously configurated with the\nMoon, either by the sextile, the trine, or the conjunction, the mother\nwill live long.\n\nIf, however, Mars be succedent to the Moon and Venus, or in quartile\nor opposition to them, or, if Saturn be similarly aspected to the Moon\nonly, and both of them be void of course or retrograde, or cadent,\nadverse accidents and disease will attend the mother; should they, on\nthe other hand, be swift in motion and placed in angles, they portend\nthat her life will be short, or grievously afflicted. Their position\nin the oriental angles, or succedent houses, particularly denotes\nthe shortness of her life; and, in those which are occidental, her\naffliction. In the same manner, should Mars be thus aspected to the\nMoon (and should that luminary at the same time be oriental), the\nmother\u2019s sudden death, or some injury in her face or eyes, will be\nproduced: and, if the Moon be then occidental, death will be occasioned\nby miscarriage in parturition, by inflammation, or by wounds. Such are\nthe effects which ensue from these aspects made by Mars to the Moon;\nbut, should he make them to Venus, death will then take place from\nfever, some latent disease, or sudden sickness. Saturn\u2019s aspect[125]\nto the Moon, when she is oriental, inflicts on the mother disease\nand death from extreme colds, or fevers; but, should the Moon be\noccidental, the danger arises from affections of the womb, or from\nconsumption.\n\nIn the investigation of all these circumstances, it is highly essential\nthat the properties of the signs, in which are situated the stars\nactuating the influence, should be also taken into consideration; and\nthat, by day, the Sun and Venus should be principally observed; and by\nnight, Saturn and the Moon.\n\nIf, however, after due attention has been paid to the foregoing\npoints, a more specific inquiry still be demanded, it will then become\nnecessary to assume the place allotted to the naternal or maternal\ncondition, as the case may be, for an horoscope or ascendant, in order\nto pursue the investigation.[126] And by this means, which in this\nrespect will answer the purpose of a nativity, all other particulars\nconcerning the parents may be viewed succinctly; according to the\ngeneral forms hereinafter given, as adapted for practice and applicable\nto all events.\n\n[125] By the quartile or opposition, as before mentioned.\n\n[126] On this passage, Whalley remarks that \u201cPtolemy teacheth, from\nthe child\u2019s nativity, to erect schemes for the father and mother, and\nthence to give judgment, as if it were their proper nativities; the\nrule is this: If the nativity be diurnal, for the father, observe the\ndegree the Sun is in, in the child\u2019s nativity; and make that the degree\nascending for the father; and conformable to that, order the cusps of\nall the other houses. If for the mother, use Venus. But if the nativity\nbe nocturnal, for the father, take the place of Saturn; and for the\nmother, that of the Moon.\u201d Whalley adds, that what in this chapter\nhath relation to the parents, is what shall happen to them _after_ the\nnativity, and not _before_.\n\nIn these and in all other cases, the mode, in which the influences\nare commixed, must be carefully kept in view; and it must be observed\nwhether any particular stars possess, in themselves alone, the\noperative cause, or whether others share dominion with them; and it is\nthen to be seen which among them all are more powerful, and which of\nthem take the lead in establishing the event: so that due inference may\nbe drawn agreeably to their several natures. And should the several\nstars, which may happen to be combined in dominion, be also equal in\npower, the diversity of their several natures, and the admixture of\nqualities thence arising, must then be taken into consideration; and,\nby fairly weighing this various admixture, the nature and quality of\nthe future event may be apprehended.\n\nStars, posited separately or at a distance from each other, distribute,\nat their appropriate times and periods, the events operated by each:\nthus the earlier events are brought about by stars which are more\noriental than others, and the latter events by those which are more\noccidental. For it is indispensably requisite that the star, under the\ninfluence of which some particular event is expected to happen, should\nbe originally[127] connected with the place to which the inquiry,\nconcerning that event, is allotted; and, if such connection should not\nhave existed, no effect of any importance can possibly be produced;\nbecause a star does not exercise a vigorous influence, unless it was\nfully in communication at the beginning. But, however, the time, at\nwhich the effect will take place, is further regulated by the relative\ndistance of the star, governing the effect, from the Sun and the angles\nof the world, as well as by its primary position of dominion.\n\n[127] Or, at the actual time of nativity.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nBROTHERS AND SISTERS\n\n\nUnder this head of inquiry, a general and cursory investigation, only,\ncan be performed; and an attempt to dive into minute particulars would\nbe fruitless, and would prove to be merely a vain search after things\nnot open to discovery.[128]\n\nThe place, whence inferences are drawn respecting brothers and sisters,\nis to be considered as being applicable only to children of the same\nmother, and it is consequently, agreeably to nature, presumed to be the\nsame as the maternal place; viz. the sign occupying the mid-heaven; or,\nby day, that which contains Venus, and, by night, the Moon. This sign\nand its succedent are considered as indicative of the mother and her\nchildren, and the same place is therefore properly allotted to brothers\nand sisters.\n\n[128] In spite of this declaration of the author, it seems, by\nWhalley\u2019s note on this chapter, that Cardan maintained that the\nparticular circumstances, liable to affect the brothers and sisters,\nmight be inferred by adopting, as an ascendant, the degree of the\nplanet holding chief dominion over the place of brethren, and erecting\na scheme thereby; in a mode similar to that allowed by Ptolemy in the\ncase of the parents.\n\nHence, provided this place be configurated with the benefics, there\nwill be several brothers and sisters: the number of them depending upon\nthe number and positions of such benefic stars, whether in bicorporeal\nsigns, or in signs of single form.\n\nIf, however, the malefics should be in elevation over this place, or\nbe hostilely situated in opposition thereto, the brothers and sisters\nwill then be few in number; and this fewness especially follows when\nthe malefics may surround the Sun. Should the hostile configuration\nbe presented from the other angles,[129] and, particularly, if from\nthe ascendant, Saturn will then represent the elder born; and Mars,\nby inflicting death, will diminish the total number of brothers and\nsisters.[130]\n\nAgain, should the stars, which promise brethren, be favourably\ncircumstanced as to their cosmical position, the brethren will be\neminent and illustrious; but humble and obscure, if the cosmical\nposition be of an adverse nature. If, also, the malefic stars should be\nin elevation over those which give brethren, the life of the brethren\nwill then be only of short duration.\n\nStars, constituted masculinely, represent brothers; those femininely,\nsisters. The more oriental stars likewise represent the elder born; and\nthose which are more occidental, the younger.\n\nMoreover, should the stars, which give brethren, be harmoniously\nconfigurated with that one which has dominion of the sign allotted to\nbrethren, the brethren will be mutually friendly and affectionate; and,\nif an harmonious configuration be also extended, by the same planets,\nto the part of fortune, the brethren will live together in communion.\nBut, if the stars, which give brethren, should, on the contrary, be\nin situations unconnected with each other, or be in opposition, the\nbrethren will then live at variance, mutually practising enmity and\nfraud.\n\n[129] That is to say, from the angles in quartile (and therefore\nhostile also) to the mid-heaven.\n\n[130] The text does not show whether it be necessary that Saturn and\nMars should _both_ be in the ascendant, in order to produce the effect\ndescribed; nor whether the same effect would not follow, if one of them\nshould be in the ascendant, and the other in the occidental angle, or\neven in some other position.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII\n\nMALE OR FEMALE\n\n\nAfter the indications which regard brothers and sisters have been\ninvestigated by the foregoing rules, consonant with nature and reason,\nthe actual native, or the person to whom the scheme of nativity is\nspecially appropriated, demands attention; and the first and most\nobvious inquiry is whether the said native will be male or female.\n\nThe consideration of this question rests not on a single basis, nor\ncan it be pursued in one sole direction only: it depends, on the\ncontrary, upon the several situations of the two luminaries and the\nascendant, and upon such planets as possess any prerogatives in the\nplaces of those situations; and all these circumstances should be\nspecially observed at the time of conception, and, in a general manner\nalso, at that of birth.\n\nObservation of the said three places, and of the mode in which the\nplanets ruling them may be constituted, is wholly indispensable:\nit must be seen whether all, or most of them, may be constituted\nmasculinely or femininely; and prediction must, of course, be regulated\nin conformity with their disposition, so observed; as tending to\nproduce a male or female birth.\n\nThe masculine or feminine nature of the stars is to be distinguished\nin the manner already pointed out in the commencement of this\ntreatise.[131] For instance, by the nature of the signs in which they\nare situated, by their relative position to each other, and also\nby their position towards the earth; as when in the east, they are\nmasculinely disposed, and, when in the west, femininely. Their relative\nposition to the Sun also affords guidance in distinguishing them;\nsince, if they should be matutine, they are considered to signify the\nmale gender; and if vespertine, the female. Thus, from the sex chiefly\nprevalent, as observed by these rules, that of the native may be\nrationally inferred.\n\n[131] _Vide_ Chapter VI, Book I.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII\n\nTWINS\n\n\nWith respect to the probability of the birth of twins, or a greater\nnumber at once, the same places must be observed, as those mentioned in\nthe preceding chapter; that is to say, the places of both luminaries\nand the ascendant.\n\nWhen two, or all three, of the said places may be situated in\nbicorporeal signs, births of this kind will occur, in consequence\nof the combination which then arises; especially, provided all\nthe planets, which control those places, should also be similarly\ncircumstanced: or although only some of them be posited in bicorporeal\nsigns, while the rest may be placed by two or more together. Because\neven more than twins will be born, in a case wherein all the ruling\nplaces may be in bicorporeal signs, most of the planets being, at the\nsame time, posited in the same way, and configurated with them. The\nnumber of children, however, to be produced at the birth, is to be\ninferred from the planet which exercises the right of determining the\nnumber[132]: and the sex or sexes are to be predicted by means of the\nplanets in configuration with the Sun, Moon, and ascendant.\n\n[132] The planet here alluded to, seems to be that which may be\nconnected with most of the ruling places.\n\nAnd, should the position of the heavens be arranged so that the angle\nof the mid-heaven, and not that of the ascendant, may be connected with\nthe luminaries, there will, in that case, be produced, almost always,\ntwins; and sometimes even more.\n\nTo speak, however, more particularly, three males will be born, as in\nthe nativity of the Anactores,[133] when Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars may\nbe configurated with the places before appointed, in bicorporeal signs;\nand three females, as in the nativity of the Graces, when Venus and the\nMoon, with Mercury femininely constituted, may be configurated in like\nmanner. When Saturn, Jupiter, and Venus may be configurated, two males\nand one female will be born; as in the nativity of the Dioscuri[134];\nand, when Venus, the Moon, and Mars may be so configurated, two females\nand one male; as in the nativity of Ceres, Core, and Liber.[135]\n\nIn cases of this kind, however, it most usually happens that the\nconception has not been complete, and that the children are born with\nsome remarkable imperfections or deformities. And, in some instances,\nowing to a certain concurrence of events, these numerous productions\nare quite extraordinary and amazing.\n\n[133] I have looked in many other books for this word \u201c_Anactores_\u201d\n(plural of \u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03ba\u03c4\u03c9\u03c1), as designating three particular individuals born\nat the same birth; for which signification it is here used by Ptolemy;\nbut my search has been in vain. Cicero has, however, written a passage,\nin which a word, very nearly resembling it, occurs, and which would\nseem to relate to the very persons alluded to by Ptolemy: viz. \u201cThe\ngodship of the Dioscuri was established in various modes among the\nGreeks, and applied to various persons. One set consisted of three\npersons, who were styled at Athens the _Anactes_, and were the sons of\nJupiter, the most ancient king, and Proserpine; their several names\nwere Tritopatreus, Eubuleus and Dionysius.\u201d _De Nat. Deor._, lib. 3,\ncap. 21.\n\n[134] This is the second set of the Dioscuri, as stated by Cicero: they\nwere the children of the third, or Cretan Jupiter (the son of Saturn)\nand Leda; their names were Castor, Pollux, and Helena. Helena, however,\nis not mentioned by Cicero.\n\n[135] Core is a name of Proserpine; Liber, of Bacchus. And, although\nthe mention here made of Ceres, Proserpine and Bacchus, as being the\noffspring of one and the same birth, does not accord with the usual\nnotion of the genealogy of these divinities, it seems that Ptolemy did\nnot so represent them without some reason. For, in cap. 24, lib. 2, _De\nNat. Deor._, Cicero speaks of Liber as having been deified conjointly\nwith Ceres and Libera (another name of Proserpine); and adds, that \u201cit\nmay be understood, from the rites and mysteries of the worship, how the\ndeification took place.\u201d It appears also, by Davies\u2019s notes on Cicero,\nthat Livy and Tacitus both speak of the copartnership in divinity\nexercised by Liber, Libera and Ceres. There is not, however, any\noccasion at present to dive deeper into the question of the generation\nof these deities; for our author has advertised to them only to point\nout that so many males or females will be produced at one birth, under\ncertain configurations of the stars.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX\n\nMONSTROUS OR DEFECTIVE BIRTHS\n\n\nThe same places, as those pointed out in the two chapters last\npreceding, are again to be considered, in inquiring into the\nprobability of a monstrous or defective birth. For it will be found\nthat, at a birth of this description, the luminaries are either cadent\nfrom the ascendant, or else not in any manner configurated with it;\nwhile, at the same time, the angles[136] are occupied by the malefics.\n\nIt therefore becomes necessary, when such a position of the heavens may\noccur at the time of birth, to observe forthwith the preceding new or\nfull Moon[137] and its ruler; as well as the rulers of the luminaries\nat the said time of birth. For, if all the places, in which the rulers\nof the luminaries, and in which the Moon herself and Mercury may be\nsituated, at the birth, or, if most of those places should be totally\ninconjunct and unconnected with the places of the said preceding new\nor full Moon and its ruler, the birth will then be monstrous. And if\nit should be further found, in addition to this absence of connection,\nthat the luminaries may be also posited in quadrupedal or bestial\nsigns, and the two malefics in angles, the birth will in that case not\nbe human. And should the luminaries, when so circumstanced, be not at\nall supported by any benefic planet, but only by malefics, the creature\nborn will be wholly indocile, wild, and of evil nature: if, however,\nthey should receive support from Jupiter or Venus, the offspring\nwill then be like that of dogs or cats, or other creatures held in\nreligious veneration and used in worship[138]: but, if Mercury support\nthe luminaries, it will resemble that of fowls, oxen, or swine, or, of\nother animals adapted to the service of mankind.\n\n[136] Whalley says here, \u201cchiefly the ascendant and mid-heaven.\u201d\n\n[137] Whichever might have been nearer in time.\n\n[138] It is perhaps superfluous to mention that the two kinds of\nanimals here named (as well as many others) were venerated by the\n\u00c6gyptians.\n\nWhen the luminaries may be in signs of human shape, while other\ncircumstances in the scheme of the nativity may exist as before\ndescribed, the creature born will then be human, or will partake of\nhuman nature, although it will still be defective in some peculiar\nquality. And, in order to ascertain the nature of that defect, the\nshape and form of the signs found on the angles occupied by the\nmalefics, as well as of those wherein the luminaries are situated,\nmust be taken into consideration: and, if in this instance also,\nno benefic planet should lend support to any one of the prescribed\nplaces, the offspring produced will be utterly void of reason, and\nindeed indefinable.[139] If, however, it should happen, that Jupiter or\nVenus give support, the defect will be veiled by a specious outward\nappearance, similar to that of hermaphrodites, and of those persons\ncalled Harpocratiaci,[140] or others of like imperfections. And should\nMercury also give support, in addition to that of Jupiter or Venus, the\noffspring will then become an interpreter of oracles and divinations;\nbut, if Mercury support alone, it will be deaf and dumb,[141] although\nclever and ingenious in its intellect.\n\n[139] The Greek says \u201cenigmatical.\u201d\n\n[140] One Latin translation has rendered this word \u201cstammerers\u201d; and,\nas Harpocrates was the god of silence, Ptolemy has probably used the\nepithet to signify defect of speech.\n\n[141] \u201cDumb.\u201d The Greek is \u03bf\u03b4\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b5\u03c2\u03b5\u03c1\u03b7\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd, \u201c_deprived of teeth_,\u201d\nand Allatius has so translated it: but other translations render these\nwords by _dumb_, which, considering the nature of Mercury, seems their\npreferable signification.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X\n\nCHILDREN NOT REARED\n\n\nThe question which now remains to be considered, in order to complete\nthe investigation of circumstances taking place simultaneously with the\nnativity, or immediately consequent thereon, is, whether the child,\nthen born, will or will not be reared.\n\nThis inquiry is to be handled distinctly from that regarding the\nduration of life, although there is an apparent connection between\nthem. The questions themselves are, indeed, similar; for it is much\nthe same thing to inquire whether the child will be nurtured, or\nhow long it will live; and the only distinction, between these two\nquestions, arises from the different modes in which they are treated.\nFor instance, the inquiry into the duration of life is to be pursued\nonly in cases wherein there is allotted to the native some space of\ntime, not less in duration than a solar period; that is to say, a year.\nTherefore, since time is also measured by smaller portions, such as\nmonths, days, and hours, and since the question, whether the native\nwill or will not be reared, belongs to cases wherein some exuberance\nof evil influence threatens speedy destruction, and where life is not\nlikely to endure throughout a whole year, the inquiry into the duration\nof life must consequently involve a more multifarious consideration,\nthan that which relates to rearing; which may be at once disposed of,\nin a more general and summary manner.\n\nThus, if either of the two luminaries be in an angle, and one of the\nmalefics be either in conjunction with that luminary, or else distant\nin longitude from each luminary, in an exactly equal space; so as to\nform the point of junction of two equal sides of a triangle, of which\nsides the two luminaries form the extremities, while, at the same\ntime, no benefic star may partake in the configuration, and while the\nrulers of the luminaries may be also posited in places belonging to,\nor controlled by, the malefics; the child, then born, will not be\nsusceptible of nurture, but will immediately perish.\n\nShould the configuration, made between the malefic planet and the\nluminaries, not exist precisely in the mode just mentioned; that\nis to say, should the said planet not be equally distant from both\nluminaries, so as to form the point of junction of two equal sides of a\ntriangle; yet should it then happen that the rays of two malefics may\nnearly approach the places of the two luminaries, casting an injurious\ninfluence either on both, or only one of them, and if both the said\nmalefics be together succedent, or in opposition, to the luminaries,\nor if one of them be succedent, and the other in opposition, or even\nif only one may particularly afflict one of the luminaries, then, in\nany such case, no duration of life will be allotted to the child: for\nthe supremacy of the power of the malefics extinguishes the influence\nfavourable to human nature, and tending to prolong existence.\n\nMars is exceedingly pernicious when succedent to the Sun, and Saturn\nwhen succedent to the Moon. But a converse effect takes place when\neither of these planets may be in opposition to the Sun or Moon, or in\nelevation above them; for the Sun will then be afflicted by Saturn, and\nthe Moon by Mars; and especially so, provided the said planets should\nhave local prerogatives in the signs containing the luminaries, or\nin the sign on the ascendant. And, should a double opposition exist,\nby the circumstance of the luminaries being placed in two opposite\nangles, and by the two malefics being each so posited as to be equally\ndistant from each luminary, the child will be born almost, if not\nquite, dead. Nevertheless, if the luminaries should be separating from,\nor be otherwise configurated with benefic planets, whose rays may be\nprojected to parts preceding the said luminaries, the child will then\nlive as many days, or hours, as there are degrees, numbered between the\nprorogator[142] and the nearest malefic.\n\n[142] A prorogator is either a luminary, planet, or a certain degree\nof the zodiac, which determines the duration of life, or the time of\nthe accomplishment of any event: it is hereafter fully treated of in\nthe 13th Chapter of this Book; which shows that, in the instance now\nmentioned, it would be a luminary, either in the ascendant, or in the\nmid-heaven.\n\nIf malefics should cast their rays to parts preceding the luminaries,\nand benefics to parts following them, the child will be abandoned at\nits birth; but will afterwards meet with adoption, and will live. Yet,\nif the malefics should be in elevation above those benefics which\nare thus configurated, the child, so adopted, will lead a life of\nmisery and servitude: if, on the contrary, the benefics should be in\nelevation, then whoever may adopt the deserted child will supply the\nplace of its parents. And, provided a benefic planet should either\nascend with, or near in succession to the Moon, or be applying to her,\nand one of the malefics be occidental, the child\u2019s own parents will, in\nthat case, take it again under their protection.\n\nRules similar to the foregoing are to be observed, when more than\none child is born; for, if any one of those planets, which may be\nconfigurated towards the production of two, or even more children,\nshould be under the west, the children will be born half dead, or\ndeformed, and imperfect in body. And, if the planet so situated should\nalso be beneath the malefics, the children will not be susceptible of\nnurture, or their life will be of the shortest span.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI\n\nTHE DURATION OF LIFE\n\n\nOf all events whatsoever, which take place after birth, the most\nessential is the continuance of life: and as it is, of course, useless\nto consider, in cases wherein the life of a child does not extend to\nthe period of one year, what other events contingent on its birth might\notherwise have subsequently happened, the inquiry into the duration of\nlife consequently takes precedence of all other questions, as to the\nevents subsequent to the birth.\n\nThe discussion of this inquiry is by no means simple, nor easy of\nexecution; it is conducted in a diversified process, by means of the\ngovernance of the ruling places. And the method now about to be laid\ndown seems, of all others, the most consonant with reason, and with\nnature: because the influence of the prorogatory places, as well as\nof the rulers of those places, and the disposal of the an\u00e6retic[143]\nplaces or stars, perform the whole operation of regulating the duration\nof life. Each of these influences is to be distinguished in the mode\npointed out in the chapters immediately ensuing.\n\n[143] The epithet _an\u00e6retic_ is a term of art, adopted from the Greek,\nsignifying fatal, or destructive.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII\n\nTHE PROROGATORY PLACES\n\n\nFirstly, those places, only, are to be deemed prorogatory, to which the\nfuture assumption of the dominion of prorogation exclusively belongs.\nThese several places are the sign on the angle of the ascendant,\nfrom the fifth degree above the horizon, to the twenty-fifth degree\nbelow it; the thirty degrees in dexter sextile thereto, constituting\nthe eleventh house, called the Good D\u00e6mon; also the thirty degrees\nin dexter quartile, forming the mid-heaven above the earth; those in\ndexter trine making the ninth house, called God; and lastly, those in\nopposition, belonging to the angle of the west.\n\nSecondly, among these places, the degrees which constitute the\nmid-heaven are entitled to preference, as being of a more potent and\nparamount influence: the degrees in the ascendant are next in virtue;\nthen the degrees in the eleventh house succedent to the mid-heaven;\nthen those in the angle of the west; and, lastly, those in the ninth\nhouse, which precedes the mid-heaven.\n\nNo degrees under the earth are, in any manner, eligible to the dominion\nnow in question; except such only as enter into light actually above\nthe succedent, or, in other words, with the ascendant. And any sign,\nalthough it may be above the earth, is still incompetent to partake in\nthis dominion, if it be inconjunct with the ascendant: hence the sign\nwhich precedes the ascendant, and constitutes the twelfth house (called\nthat of the Evil D\u00e6mon), is incompetent; and not only for the above\nreason, but also because it is cadent, and because the beams cast by\nthe stars posited therein, towards the earth, are impaired by the thick\nand dark exhalations arising from the earth\u2019s vapours, which produce an\nunnatural colour and magnitude in the appearance of stars so posited,\nconfusing, and in some measure annihilating, their beams.\n\nThus far with regard to the places of prorogation.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII\n\nTHE NUMBER OF PROROGATORS, AND ALSO THE PART OF FORTUNE\n\n\nAfter due attention has been given to the instructions in the preceding\nchapter, the Sun, the Moon, the Ascendant, and the part of Fortune, are\nto be considered as the four principally liable to be elected to the\noffice of prorogator; and their positions, together with those of such\nplanets as rule in the places of their positions, are to be observed.\n\nThe part of Fortune is ascertained by computing the number of degrees\nbetween the Sun and the Moon; and it is placed at an equal number of\ndegrees distant from the ascendant, in the order of the signs. It is\nin all cases, both by night and day, to be so computed and set down,\nthat the Moon may hold with it the same relation as that which the Sun\nmay hold with the ascendant; and it thus becomes, as it were, a lunar\nhoroscope or ascendant.[144]\n\n[144] The Latin translation, printed at Perugio in 1646, has here the\nfollowing passage in addition: \u201cBut it must be seen which luminary may\nfollow the other in the succession of the signs; for if the Moon should\nso follow the Sun, the part of Fortune is also to be numbered from the\nhoroscope or ascendant, _according_ to the succession of the signs. But\nif the Moon precede the Sun, the part of Fortune must be numbered from\nthe ascendant, _contrary_ to the succession of the signs.\u201d\n\nThere is a long dissertation on the part of Fortune, in Cooper\u2019s\nPlacidus, from pp. 308 to 318; and, among the directions there given\nfor computing its situation, the following seem the most accurate and\nsimple: viz. \u201cIn the diurnal geniture, the Sun\u2019s true distance from\nthe east is to be added to the Moon\u2019s right ascension, and in the\nnocturnal, subtracted; for the number thence arising will be the place\nand right ascension of the part of Fortune: and it always has the same\ndeclination with the Moon, both in number and name, wherever it is\nfound. Again, let the Sun\u2019s oblique ascension, taken in the ascendant,\nbe subtracted always from the oblique ascendant of the ascendant, as\nwell in the day as in the night, and the remaining difference be added\nto the Moon\u2019s right ascension; the sum will be the right ascension\nof the part of Fortune, which will have the Moon\u2019s declination.\u201d It\nis shown also by this dissertation, that the situation of the part\nof Fortune must be necessarily confined to the lunar parallels;\nthat it can but rarely be in the ecliptic; and that its latitude is\never varying. Cooper also adds, from Cardan\u2019s Commentaries on the\nTetrabiblos, that \u201cif the Moon is going from the conjunction to the\nopposition of the Sun, then the Moon follows the Sun, and the part\nof Fortune is always under the Earth, from the ascendant; but if the\nMoon has passed the opposition, she goes before the Sun, and the part\nof Fortune is before the ascendant, and always above the earth.\u201d This\nremark of Cardan\u2019s is, in effect, exactly equivalent to what is stated\nin the additional passage inserted in the Perugio Latin translation,\nand given above.\n\nIn the Primum Mobile of Placidus (Cooper\u2019s translation, p. 45), the\nfollowing remark and example are given: \u201cThe part of Fortune is placed\naccording to the Moon\u2019s distance from the Sun; and you must observe\nwhat rays the Moon has to the Sun, for the latter ought to have the\nsame, and with the same excess or deficiency, as the part of Fortune to\nthe horoscope. As the Moon is to the Sun, so is the part of Fortune to\nthe horoscope; and as the Sun is to the horoscope, so is the Moon to\nthe part of Fortune. So, in the nativity of Charles V, the Moon applies\nto the ultimate sextile of the Sun, but with a deficiency of 7\u00b0 45\u2032:\nI subtract the 7\u00b0 45\u2032 from 5\u00b0 34\u2032 of Scorpio, the ultimate sextile to\nthe horoscope, and the part of Fortune is placed in 28\u00b0 9\u2032 of Libra.\u201d\nN.B.\u2014In this nativity, according to Placidus, the Sun is in the second\nhouse, in 14\u00b0 30\u2032 of Pisces: the Moon in the ascendant, in 6\u00b0 45\u2032 of\nCapricorn; the ascendant is 5\u00b0 34\u2032 of Capricorn; and the part Fortune\nis in the ninth house, in 28\u00b0 9\u2032 of Libra.\n\nAmong the candidates for prorogation, as before-mentioned, by day\nthe Sun is to be preferred, provided he be situated in a prorogatory\nplace; and, if not, the Moon; but if the Moon, also, should not be so\nsituated, then that planet is to be elected which may have most claims\nto dominion, in reference to the Sun, the antecedent new Moon, and\nthe ascendant; that is to say, when such planet may be found to have\ndominion over any one of the places where these are situated, by at\nleast three prorogatives, if not more; the whole number being five. If,\nhowever, no planet should be found so circumstanced, the Ascendant is\nthen to be taken.\n\nBy night, the Moon is to be elected as prorogator, provided, in like\nmanner, she should be in some prorogatory place; and if she be not, the\nSun: if he also be not in any prorogatory place, then that planet which\nmay have most rights of dominion in reference to the Moon,[145] and\nthe antecedent full Moon and the part of Fortune. But, if there be no\nplanet claiming dominion in the mode prescribed, the Ascendant must be\ntaken, in case a new Moon had last preceded the birth; but, if a full\nMoon, the part of Fortune.\n\nIf the two luminaries, and also some ruling planet of appropriate\ncondition, should be each posited in a prorogatory place, then,\nprovided one luminary may be found to occupy some place more important\nand influential than the others, that luminary must be chosen;\nbut should the ruling planet occupy the stronger place, and have\nprorogatives of dominion suitable to the conditions of both luminaries,\nthe planet must then be preferred to either of them.[146]\n\n[145] According to her position in the scheme of the nativity.\n\n[146] Placidus, in remarking on the nativity of John di Colonna, after\nstating his opinion that it is an error to suppose that a malign\ninfluence to the horoscope, when the horoscope has _not_ the primary\nsignification of life is an\u00e6retic, says, that \u201cthe order and method\nwhich Ptolemy lays down for the election of a prorogator are quite\nabsurd, unless life be at the disposal of a sole prime significator\nonly.\u201d He proves by other arguments also, and by instances of the\nfact, that \u201c_one only_ signifies life, elected according to Ptolemy\u2019s\nmethod.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s translation, p. 184.)\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV\n\nNUMBER OF THE MODES OF PROROGATION\n\n\nWhen the prorogator has been determined as above directed, it is also\nnecessary to take into consideration the two modes of prorogation;\none into succeeding signs, under the projection of rays, as it is\ncalled; and, when the prorogator may be in an oriental place, that is\nto say, in any place between the mid-heaven and the ascendant, this\nmode only is to be used. The other mode extends into signs preceding\nthe prorogator, according to what is called horary proportion[147];\nand, in cases when the prorogator may be situated in any place receding\nfrom the mid-heaven, or, in other words, between the mid-heaven and the\nangle of the west, both modes of prorogation are to be adopted.\n\n[147] \u201c_Horary proportion._\u201d So the Perugio Latin of 1646; the Greek\nword, however, is \u03c9\u03c1\u03b9\u03bc\u03b1\u03b9\u03b1\u03bd, which seems to be compounded of \u03c9\u03c1\u03b1 and\n\u03b9\u03bc\u03b1\u03c9; and, if so, the literal signification would be \u201cextraction of\nhours.\u201d\n\nIt is next to be observed, that certain degrees are an\u00e6retic; though,\nin the prorogation made into signs preceding, the only degree which\nis strictly an\u00e6retic is that of the western horizon; and it becomes\nso because it obscures the lord of life; while other degrees, of\nstars meeting with or testifying to the prorogator, both take away\nfrom and add to the aggregate amount of the prorogation, which would\notherwise continue until the descension or setting of the prorogator.\nOf these last-mentioned degrees, however, there are none properly\nan\u00e6retic; since they are not borne to the prorogatory place, but, on\nthe contrary, that place is carried to their positions.[148] In this\nmanner the benefics increase the prorogation, but the malefics diminish\nit; and Mercury assists the influence of either party with which he may\nbe configurated. The amount of the increase or diminution is indicated\nby the degree, in which each star, so operating, is exactly situated;\nfor the number of years will depend upon, and correspond with, the\nhorary times[149] proper to each degree; and if the birth be by day,\ncare must be taken to calculate the diurnal horary times; if by night,\nthe nocturnal. These directions are to be understood as applicable to\ninstances wherein the degrees in question may be in the ascendant; if\nfarther advanced, a deduction proportionate to the distance is to be\nmade, unless they should be on the occidental horizon, in which case\nthere can be no remainder.\n\n[148] By the apparent motion of the planetary system. On this\npassage, Placidus has the following observations: \u201cIn directing the\nsignificator to the west, you must consider what stars or mundane rays\nare intercepted between the significator and the west; if fortunate,\nadd their arc to the significator\u2019s arc of direction to the west;\nif unfortunate, subtract it from the same, and it will give the arc\nof direction, augmented or diminished according to Ptolemy. How\nlargely and differently authors have spoken of this direction of the\nsignificator to the west, putting various constructions on the words of\nPtolemy, is known to every one. See Cardan in his Commentaries, Maginus\nin Prim. Mob. and the Use of Legal Astrology in Physic, c. viii, where\nhe delivers the sentiments of Naibod. Argol censures wholly this\ndoctrine of Ptolemy\u2019s, of directing the moderator of life to the west,\nas vain and useless; but I say it is worthy of remark, and altogether\ncomformable to truth; because then the rays and intermediate stars of\nthe malign only lessen the arc of direction to the west, and do not\ndestroy life, when, by a right direction, the moderator or life does\nnot remain at the same time with the malignant planet: for, should this\nhappen, they kill, without any manner of doubt.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s translation,\npp. 106 and 108.)\n\n[149] \u201c_Horary times._\u201d These are the number of equatorial degrees\nwhich any degree of the zodiac may appear, in a certain latitude on the\nearth, to transit in an equatorial hour.\n\n\nBut, in the prorogation made into succeeding signs, the places of the\nmalefics, Saturn and Mars, are an\u00e6retic, whether meeting the prorogator\nbodily, or by emission of rays in quartile, from either side, or in\nopposition: they are also sometimes an\u00e6retic, by a sextile ray, if in a\nsign of equal power, obeying or beholding the sign of the prorogator.\nAnd even the mere degree, in signs following, in quartile with the\nprorogatory place, as also the degree in sextile, if badly afflicted,\nwhich is sometimes the case in signs of long ascension, and, still\nfurther, the degree in trine, if in signs of short ascension, are all\nan\u00e6retic: so also is the Sun\u2019s place, should the Moon be prorogatory.\nBut, although the meetings, which occur in the course of prorogation\nthus made, have, respectively, some of them an an\u00e6retic, and other a\npreservative, power, in consequence of their occurring by means of an\nactual transmission to the prorogatory place[150]; yet their an\u00e6retic\ntendency is not always effectual, but only in cases where the places,\nso brought to the prorogatory place, may be badly afflicted. For should\nthose places be situated within the terms of a benefic, the operation\nof their an\u00e6retic degree becomes impeded; and it will likewise be\nimpeded, if either of the benefics should cast a ray in quartile,\ntrine, or opposition,[151] to the said an\u00e6retic degree itself, or to\nsome other degree near in succession, and not farther distant from it\nthan twelve degrees, if the benefic be Jupiter; nor than eight, if\nVenus: the like impediment will also subsist, if both the prorogator\nand its opponent[152] should be bodies,[153] and not have the same\nlatitude.\n\n[150] By the apparent motion of the planetary system.\n\n[151] In reference to this passage, Placidus, in speaking of the death\nof Octavian Vestrius of Rome, has these words: \u201cthe Moon is found in a\nparallel declination of Mars, and Saturn with the opposition of Mars;\nthe sextile of Jupiter to the Sun could give no assistance, because\nJupiter is cadent, and the ray sextile is very weak, especially when\nit is the principal ray: for which reason, Ptolemy, in the chapter of\nLife, when he mentions the planets that are able to save in the courses\nof the infortunes, does not name the sextile, but the quartile, trine,\nand opposition; because the sextile ray is feeble, particularly when\nit is less than 60\u00b0: neither could Venus assist, as she was cadent\nfrom the house, and in a sign inimical to the Sun,\u201d &c. (Cooper\u2019s\nTranslation, p. 286.)\n\n[152] Literally, and perhaps more properly, \u201cits meeter.\u201d\n\n[153] That is to say, orbs, in contradistinction to prorogations made\nby aspects or degrees merely.\n\nTherefore, whenever there may be found two or more conflicting\nconfigurations, auxiliary on the one hand, and hostile on the other,\ndue observation must be made to ascertain which party surpasses the\nother, in power as well as in number. The pre-eminence in number will\nbe, of course, obvious, from the greater number[154] on one side than\non the other; but, for pre-eminence in power, it must be seen whether\nthe stars, auxiliary or hostile as the case may be, are, on the one\nside, in places appropriate to themselves, while they are not so on the\nother; and especially whether those on the one side may be oriental,\nand those on the other occidental. It is also to be observed, in all\ncases, that not any one of such stars, whether hostile or auxiliary,\nis to be left out of the present calculation, on account of its casual\nposition under the sunbeams.[155] This rule must be particularly\nattended to, because, even though the Moon be not prorogatory, the\nsolar place itself becomes an\u00e6retic, if shackled by the simultaneous\npresence of a malefic, and not restored to freedom of operation by any\nbenefic.\n\n\n[154] Of the stars and places brought into configuration.\n\n[155] Whalley\u2019s translation of this passage is in direct contradiction\nto the sense: and even that of Allatius, as well as other Latin ones,\nare (if strictly correct) confused in their meaning.\n\nThe number of years, depending on the distances between the prorogatory\nand an\u00e6retic places, cannot be always gathered simply and at once\nfrom the ascensional times[156] of each respective degree; but only\nin cases when the ascendant itself, or some other specific degree or\nbody, actually ascending in the oriental horizon, may possess the\nprorogation. For, if it be desired to calculate agreeably to nature,\nevery process of calculation that can be adopted must be directed\nto the attainment of one object; that is to say, to ascertain after\nhow many equatorial times[157] the place of the succeeding body, or\ndegree, will arrive at the position preoccupied at the birth by the\npreceding body, or degree: and, as equatorial time transits equally\nboth the horizon and the meridian, the places in question[158] must\nbe considered, in respect of their proportionate distances from both\nthese; each equatorial degree[159] being taken to signify one solar\nyear.\n\nIn conformity with the foregoing remarks, when it may happen that\nthe prorogatory and preceding place may be actually on the oriental\nhorizon, it will be proper to reckon, at once, the ascensional times\nwhich may intervene until the meeting of the degrees; because, after\nthe same number of equatorial times, the an\u00e6reta will arrive at the\nprorogatory place; that is to say, at the oriental horizon. Should the\nprorogatory place be found on the meridian, the whole number of degrees\nby right ascension, in which the whole intercepted arc will transit the\nmeridian, must then be taken. And if the prorogatory place be on the\noccidental horizon, the number of descensions, in which every degree of\nthe distance will be carried down (or, in other words, the number of\nascensions, in which their opposite degrees will ascend), is in that\ncase to be reckoned.[160]\n\n[156] \u201c_Ascensional times._\u201d These are, in other words, the number of\ndegrees of the equator, equivalent to a certain number of zodiacal\ndegrees, ascending in any particular latitude. They are also otherwise\ncalled the _oblique ascension_ of such zodiacal degrees.\n\n[157] \u201c_Equatorial times_\u201d here signify degrees of the equator, by\nwhich all time is measured.\n\n[158] That is to say, of the preceding and of the succeeding body of\ndegree.\n\n[159] Which may be intercepted in the arc between them.\n\n[160] This number is that of the oblique descensional times of the\nintercepted arc, or of the oblique ascensional times of the arc\nopposite to it. The whole of the instructions in this paragraph are\nfully exemplified in the following chapter.\n\nWhen, however, a prorogatory and preceding place may not be situated\non any one of the three aforesaid points, but in some intermediate\nstation, it must be observed that _other_ times[161] will then bring\nthe succeeding place to the preceding one; and _not_ the times of\nascension or descension, or transit of the mid-heaven, as above spoken\nof. For any places whatever, which have one particular position, on\nthe same degree, in regard to the horizon and meridian, are alike and\nidentical. This is the case, for instance, with all places lying on\nany one of those semicircles which are drawn through the arcs of the\nmeridian and horizon; and each of these semicircles (all of which\nhave position at the same equal distance from each other) marks one\ntemporal hour[162]; and, as the time occupied in proceeding through the\nplaces[163] above described, and arriving at the same position of the\nhorizon and meridian, is rendered unequal to and different from the\ntime of transits in the zodiac; so, also, the transits of other spaces\nare made, agreeably to their position, in time again distinct from this.\n\n[161] Or, times to be reckoned in another manner.\n\n[162] On this passage, there has been founded (to use Whalley\u2019s words)\n\u201cwhat we call Mundane Parallels, or parallels in the world. And, as\nzodiacal parallels are equal distances from the tropical or equinoctial\ncircles, so mundane parallels are a like equal distance from the\nhorizontal or meridianal points or circles. And as zodiacal parallels\nare measured by the zodiacal circle, so those mundane parallels\nare measured by the diurnal or nocturnal arcs: and just so long as\nthe Sun or any other planet is, in proceeding from the cusp of the\ntwelfth House to the cusp of the tenth, the same Sun or other planet\nwill be in proceeding from the cusp of the tenth to the cusp of the\neighth House. And the distance between Sun-rising and setting, is the\ndiurnal arc which the meridian cuts in two equal parts. In directions,\nthese mundane parallels have a twofold consideration: first, simple;\nsecondly, according to the rapt motion of the earth, or the _primum\nmobile_: all which have been largely explained by the learned Monk,\nPlacidus,\u201d &c. That Author has certainly stated, in one of his Theses,\nthat \u201cthose seats, or parts of the circle, are to be received, in\nwhich the stars, having a different declination, effect equal temporal\nhours\u201d (p. 22, Cooper\u2019s Translation), and he has fully exemplified\nthis principle in other parts of his \u201cPrimum Mobile\u201d; but Ptolemy here\nspeaks only of _one_ of the _semi_circles between the horizon and\nmeridian, without reference to any other semicircle, corresponding in\ndistance from the horizon and mid-heaven; and all that he has said on\nthe subject amounts only to this, that the prorogation is completed\nwhen the succeeding place arrives at the same semicircle on which the\npreceding place had been posited.\n\n[163] The ascendant, mid-heaven, and western horizon; as mentioned in\nthe preceding paragraph.\n\nThere is, however, a method by which the proportion of time, occupied\nin the progress of a succeeding place to a prorogatory and preceding\nplace, in whatever position, whether oriental, meridianal, or\noccidental, or any other, may be easily calculated. It is as follows:\u2014\n\nWhen it has been ascertained what degree of the zodiac is on the\nmid-heaven, as also which are the preceding and succeeding degrees,\nthe period of whose meeting is to be calculated, the position of the\npreceding degree, and its distance in temporal hours from the meridian,\nare next to be noted; because any part of the zodiac, on becoming\ndistant from the meridian in the same temporal hours, must fall on the\nsame individual semicircle.[164] For ascertaining this distance, the\nnumber of ascensions, in a right sphere, found in the intermediate\nspace between the said preceding degree and the mid-heaven, either\nabove or under the earth, is to be divided by the number of the diurnal\nor nocturnal horary times of the said preceding degree: for instance,\nif that degree be above the earth, by its diurnal horary times; and, by\nits nocturnal, if it be under the earth. It is then to be discovered in\nwhat number of equatorial times the succeeding degree will be distant\nfrom the same meridian, by as many similar temporal hours as those by\nwhich the preceding degree is distant from it. And, to effect this,\nthe hours in question must be noted, and it must first be observed, by\nthe right ascensions again, how many equatorial times the succeeding\ndegree, at its original position, is distant from the degree on the\nmid-heaven; and then it must be seen how many equatorial times it will\nbe distant, on coming to the preceding degree\u2019s distance in temporal\nhours from the said mid-heaven: this will be found, by multiplying\nthose hours by the succeeding degree\u2019s horary times; diurnal, if the\nfuture position be above the earth, and nocturnal if under; and the\ndifference in amount, of these two distances, in equatorial times, will\npresent the number of years inquired for.\n\n[164] _Vide_ Note \u00b2, p. 95.\n\n\nCHAPTER XV\n\nEXEMPLIFICATION\n\n\nIn order to exemplify the foregoing instructions, let the first point\nof Aries be supposed as the preceding place, and the first point in\nGemini the succeeding; and let the latitude of the country, to which\nthe operation relates, be such as will cause the longest day to consist\nof fourteen hours[165]; and where the horary magnitude of the beginning\nof Gemini will be about seventeen equatorial times.[166]\n\n[165] This, in the Northern Hemisphere, would be the latitude of\nAlexandria (where Ptolemy flourished), or, in his own words, that of\nthe 3rd Climate, passing through Lower Egypt, numbered 30\u00b0 22\u2032.\u2014_Vide_\nextracts from the Tables of the Almagest, inserted in the Appendix.\n\n[166] This is the magnitude of the diurnal temporal hour of the first\npoint of Gemini in the latitude prescribed.\n\nLet the first point of Aries be first placed on the ascendant, so that\nthe beginning of Capricorn may be on the mid-heaven above the earth,\nand the first point of Gemini be distant from the said mid-heaven\n140 equatorial times.[167] Now, since the first point of Aries is\ndistant six temporal hours from the mid-heaven above the earth, the\ntimes of that distance will be found, by multiplying the said six\nhours by the seventeen equatorial times of the horary magnitude of the\nfirst point of Gemini, to be 102.[168] The whole sum of the distance\nto the mid-heaven above the earth, is 148 times; and as 148 times\nexceed 102 by 46, the succeeding place will consequently devolve into\nthe preceding place after 46 times (being the amount of the times of\nascension of Aries and Taurus[169]); since, in this instance, the\nprorogatory place is established in the ascendant.\n\nIn like manner, let the first point of Aries be next placed on the\nmid-heaven, culminating; so that the first point of Gemini, in its\nfirst position, may be distant from the said mid-heaven 58 equatorial\ntimes.[170] Now, as it is required to bring the first point of Gemini,\nin its second position, to the mid-heaven, the whole distance is to be\nreckoned, viz. 58 times, in which Aries and Taurus pass the mid-heaven;\nbecause, again, the prorogatory place was culminating.[171]\n\nIn the same way, let the first point of Aries be descending[172]; so\nthat the beginning of Cancer may occupy the mid-heaven, and the first\npoint of Gemini precede the mid-heaven at the distance of 32 equatorial\ntimes.[173] Therefore, as the first point of Aries is on the west,\nand again distant six temporal hours from the meridian, let these six\nhours be multiplied by the seventeen times; which will produce 102,\nmaking the sum of the distance[174] of the first point of Gemini, at\nits future descension, from the meridian.[175] But, as the first point\nof Gemini, at its first position, was already distant from the meridian\n32 times; which number 102 exceed by 70; it will consequently arrive\nat its descension after 70 times, the amount of the excess; in which\nspace Aries and Taurus will have descended, and their opposite signs\nLibra and Scorpio arisen.[176]\n\n[167] By right ascension, as shown by the Extract, inserted in the\nAppendix, from the Tables of Ascensions in the Almagest. The exact\ndistance, however, according to that Table, is 147\u00b0 44\u2032.\n\n[168] Or rather, according to the Table, 102\u00b0 39\u2032.\n\n[169] That is to say, of the oblique ascension, which is here required\nto be reckoned; because the prorogatory and preceding place is in the\nascendant. _Vide_ p. 95, and Note \u00b2 in p. 94. And the first point\nof Gemini, on arriving at the ascendant, will be distant from the\nmid-heaven 102\u00b0 39\u2032 by right ascension; the 13th degree of Aquarius\nbeing then in culmination in the prescribed latitude. The oblique\nascensions in the latitude 30\u00b0 22\u2032 N. are also shown in the extract\nreferred to in the preceding note: and it thereby appears, that Aries\nand Taurus ascend in 45\u00b0 5\u2032, instead of 46\u00b0.\n\n[170] Or, rather, 57\u00b0 44\u2032\u2014by right ascension.\u2014_Vide_ extract above\nreferred to.\n\n[171] _Vide_ p. 95.\n\n[172] Or on the cusp of the 7th House.\n\n[173] Or, rather, 32\u00b0 16\u2032\u2014by right ascension again.\u2014_Vide_ extract as\nbefore.\n\n[174] By right ascension. The amount according to the Table is,\nhowever, 102\u00b0 39\u2032, as before stated.\n\n[175] On which the 10th degree of Virgo will then be posited.\n\n[176] By oblique descension and ascension: _Vide_ p. 95.\u2014The Table\nshows the amount to be 70\u00b0 23\u2032.\n\nAgain, let the first point of Aries have another position, not in\nany angle,[177] but, for instance, at the distance of three temporal\nhours past the meridian; so that the 18th degree of Taurus may be\non the mid-heaven, and the first point of Gemini be approaching the\nmid-heaven, at the distance of thirteen equatorial times. The seventeen\ntimes must, therefore, be again multiplied by the three hours, and the\nfirst point of Gemini, at its second position, will be found to be\npast the meridian, at the distance of 51 times.[178] The distance of\n13 times of the first position and 51 times of the second position are\nthen both to be taken; and they will produce 64 times. In the former\ninstances the prorogatory place performed in the same succession; viz.\noccupying 46 times in coming to the ascendant, 58 in coming to the\nmid-heaven, and 70 in coming to the west; so that the present number of\ntimes, depending on the intermediate position between the mid-heaven\nand the west, and being 64, also differs from each of the other\nnumbers, in proportion to the three hours\u2019 difference of position. For,\nin the other cases which proceeded by quadrants,[179] according to the\nangles, the times progressively differed by twelve, but, in the present\ncase of a minor distance of three hours, they differ by six.[180]\n\n[177] In reference to p. 95, and Note \u00b9 in the same page.\n\n[178] The 18th degree of Cancer being then in culmination.\n\n[179] Or semi-diurnal arcs, each equal to six temporal hours.\n\n[180] The amount of the progressive difference of the times of\nprorogation, as here mentioned, is of course only applicable to the\nparallel of declination of the first point of Gemini, in the latitude\nbefore quoted. It must necessarily vary in all other parallels of\ndeclination, and also in all other latitudes.\n\nThere is, however, another method which may be used, and which is\nstill more simple; for instance, should the preceding degree be on\nthe ascendant, the following intermediate times of ascension,[181]\nbetween it and the succeeding degree, may be reckoned; should it be\non the mid-heaven, the times of ascension must be reckoned on a right\nsphere; and, if it be on the west, descending, the intermediate times\nof descension[182] are to be reckoned. But, should the preceding degree\nbe between any two of these angles, as, for instance, at the distance\nof Aries, just spoken of, the proper times for each angle must first\nbe considered. And, since the first point of Aries was assigned a\nposition between the two angles of the mid-heaven and the west, the\nproper times of the distances from these angles to the first point of\nGemini[183] would be found to be 58 from the mid-heaven, and 70 from\nthe west. The distances, in temporal hours, of the preceding degree\nfrom each of these angles, are then to be ascertained; and whatever\nproportion these same temporal hours, contained in such distances\nbetween the said preceding degree and each angle, may bear to the\ntemporal hours of the whole quadrant, the same proportion, out of the\nexcess of the times of distance of one angle over those of the other,\nis either to be added to, or deducted from, the actual number of times\nof the respective angles. For instance, in the example before set\nforth, 70 times exceed 58 times by 12; and the preceding place was\ndistant from the angles three equal temporal hours, which are the half\nof six, the number belonging to the whole quadrant. Now, three being\nthe half of six, and 12 being the amount of the excess, the half of 12\nis therefore to be taken, giving 6 to be either added to the 58 times,\nor subtracted from the 70: thus, in either way, producing 64, the\nrequired number of times.\n\n[181] Oblique ascension.\n\n[182] The times of oblique descension of any arc of the zodiac are\nequal to the times of oblique ascension of its opposite arc; as before\nexplained.\n\n[183] That is to say, at the time of the 1st point of Aries transiting\nthe cusp of each angle respectively.\n\nIf, however, the preceding place should be distant from either angle\ntwo temporal hours, which are the third part of 6, then, in that case,\nthe third part of 12, the amount of the excess, must be taken, viz.\n4: and, if the said two hours be the distance, as calculated from the\nmid-heaven, the said 4 times are to be added to the 58 times; but, if\nit be the distance from the occidental angle, the 4 times are to be\nsubtracted from the 70.\n\nIn conformity with these rules now laid down, the amount of the times\nmust necessarily be obtained.[184]\n\n[184] The calculation of time may be greatly facilitated by the use of\na zodiacal planisphere, said to have been invented about thirty years\nago by Mr. Ranger, who died without making his invention public. The\ninvention consists of a set of instruments perfectly adapted, as far\nas relates to the zodiac, for astronomical, as well as astrological,\npurposes; and the completeness with which it solves, in the most\nintelligible and expeditious manner, all the astronomical problems of\nthe zodiac, deserves attention. Whether a similar planisphere was known\nin the days of Placidus, I am not aware; but it is worthy of remark\nthat the following words occur in his \u201cPrimum Mobile,\u201d and seem almost\nto have been predicted of Mr. Ranger\u2019s planisphere:\u2014\u201cIf any one would\nprovide himself with a Ptolemaic planisphere, with the horary circles,\ncrepuscules, the zodiac\u2019s latitude, and all other things requisite,\nit would be of very great service towards foreseeing the aspects.\u201d\n(Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 87.) In the Appendix will be found a plate,\ncontaining diagrams drawn by the instruments in question, which, though\nnot completely filled up, will show how easily, and, at the same time,\nhow accurately, the measure of time in directions may be ascertained.\nThe said diagrams have been adapted to the \u201cexemplification\u201d here given\nby Ptolemy; one of them being laid down for the latitude of Alexandria,\nand the other for the latitude of southern Britain (51\u00b0 30\u2032 N.), with\nsimilar positions of the preceding and succeeding places adverted to in\nthe text.\n\nThe an\u00e6retic and critical influences of all meetings or descensions\nof prorogators[185] remain to be determined; beginning, in due order,\nwith such as are accomplished in the shortest time. And whatever else\nmay happen, by means of any affliction or assistance offered (in the\nmanner heretofore prescribed) during the actual transit of the meeting,\nis also to be decided on, as well as whatever may occur through other\ncircumstances, arising out of the ingresses taking place at the time:\nbecause, should the places of both the significators be afflicted, and\nshould the transit of the stars, at the then existing ingress, operate\ninjuriously on the chief ruling places, it is then altogether probable\nthat death will ensue;[186] and, even though one of the places[187]\nmay be disposed favourably to human nature, the crisis will still\nbe important and perilous; but, if both the places be so disposed\nfavourably, some debility only, or transient malady, or hurt, will then\nhappen. It is, however, necessary in these cases, to consider also what\nfamiliarity, or analogy, the peculiar properties of the places, thus\nmeeting, may bear to the circumstances of the nativity.\n\nIn order to obviate the doubts which frequently arise, as to the\nparticular star or place to which the an\u00e6retic dominion ought to be\nassigned, all the meetings should be duly contemplated and considered,\neach by each; and thus, after considering those chiefly corresponding\nwith the events already past, and with the future events about to\nfollow, or with the whole altogether, it will be practicable to found\nan observation on the equality or inequality of their influence.\n\n[185] These meetings and descensions are technically termed\n\u201cdirections.\u201d\n\n[186] On these words Placidus has the following remark: \u201cThe\nrevolutions may possess some virtue, but only according to the\nconstitution of the stars to the places of the prorogators of the\nnativity, and their places of direction, but no farther; as Ptolemy\nwas of opinion, and briefly expresses himself in his Chapter of Life.\n\u2018Those who are afflicted, both in the places and conclusions of the\nyears, by the revolution of the stars infecting the principal places,\nhave reason to expect certain death.\u2019\u201d (Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 127.)\n\n[187] Of the significators before mentioned.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI\n\nTHE FORM AND TEMPERAMENT OF THE BODY\n\n\nThe matters affecting and regulating the duration of life have now been\ndisposed of; and it becomes proper to enter into further particulars,\ncommencing, in due order, with the figure and conformation of the body;\nbecause Nature forms and moulds the body before she inspires it with a\nsoul. In fact, the body, in its materiality, is endowed with suitable\nconstitutional properties begotten with it, and almost apparent from\nits very birth; but the soul afterwards, and by degrees, develops the\nappropriate qualities which it derives from the primary cause, and\nwhich become known much later than external attributes, and in process\nof time only.\n\nIn regard to the body, therefore, it is in all cases requisite to\nobserve the oriental horizon, and to ascertain what planets may preside\nor have dominion over it, and also to pay particular attention to the\nMoon. For, from both these places,[188] and from their rulers, as\nwell as from the natural formation and contemperament appertaining to\nevery species of the human race, and also from the figure ascribed\nto those fixed stars which may be co-ascending, the conformation of\nthe body is to be inferred. The planets possessing dominion have the\nchief influence, and the proper qualities of their places co-operate\nwith them. And, in order to simplify these instructions, and as the\nplanets are first to be treated of, each planet is individually to be\nconsidered as follows, viz.:\n\n[188] That of the ascendant, and that of the Moon.\n\nSaturn, when oriental, acts on the personal figure by producing a\nyellowish complexion and a good constitution; with black and curled\nhair, a broad and stout chest, eyes of ordinary quality, and a\nproportionate size of body, the temperament of which is compounded\nprincipally of moisture and cold. Should he be occidental, he makes the\npersonal figure black or dark, thin and small, with scanty hair on the\nhead; the body without hair, but well shaped; the eyes black or dark;\nand the bodily temperament consisting chiefly of dryness and cold.\n\nJupiter ruling, when oriental, makes the person white or fair, with\na clear complexion, moderate growth of hair, and large eyes, and of\ngood and dignified stature; the temperament being chiefly of heat and\nmoisture. When occidental, he still causes a fair complexion, but not\nof equal clearness; and he produces long straight hair, with baldness\non the forehead or on the crown of the head; and he then also gives a\nmiddle stature to the body, with a temperament of more moisture.\n\nMars, ascending, gives a fair ruddiness to the person, with large\nsize, a healthy constitution, blue or grey eyes, a sturdy figure, and\na moderate growth of hair, with a temperament principally of heat and\ndryness. When occidental, he makes the complexion simply ruddy, and the\npersonal figure of moderate stature, with small eyes; the body without\nhair, and the hair of the head light or red, and straight; the bodily\ntemperament being chiefly dry.\n\nVenus operates in a manner similar to that of Jupiter, but, at the same\ntime, more becomingly and more gracefully; producing qualities of a\nnature more applicable to women and female beauty, such as softness,\njuiciness, and greater delicacy. She also peculiarly makes the eyes\nbeautiful, and renders them of an azure tint.\n\nMercury, when oriental, makes the personal figure of a yellowish\ncomplexion, and of stature proportionate and well shaped, with small\neyes and a moderate growth of hair; and the bodily temperament is\nchiefly hot. If occidental, he gives a complexion white or fair, but\nnot altogether clear; straight, dark hair, a thin and slight figure,\nsome squint or defect in the eyes, and a long visage[189] faintly red;\nthe temperament being chiefly dry.\n\nThe Sun and Moon, when configurated with any one of the planets,\nalso co-operate: the Sun adds a greater nobleness to the figure, and\nincreases the healthiness of the constitution; and the Moon, especially\nwhen holding or delaying her separation,[190] generally contributes\nbetter proportion and greater delicacy of figure, and greater moisture\nof temperament; but, at the same time, her influence in this latter\nparticular is adapted to the proper ratio of her illumination; as\nreferred to in the modes of temperament mentioned in the beginning of\nthis treatise.[191]\n\nAgain, should the planets be matutine, and fully conspicuous,[192]\nthey will cause the body to be large; if in their first station, they\nwill make it strong and vigorous; if they should precede or be in\nadvance, it will be disproportionate; if in their second station, it\nwill be weaker, and, if vespertine, altogether mean and subservient\nto evil treatment and oppression. At the same time, the places of\nthe planets,[193] as has been already said, co-operate especially in\nproducing the shape of the personal figure, and contribute also towards\nthe temperament.\n\n[189] The original word is (in the accusative plural) \u03b1\u03b9\u03b3\u03bf\u03b7\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2, which\nAllatius has rendered, by \u201c_pedibus caprinis_,\u201d _goat-footed_, as if\nit were compounded of \u03b1\u03b9\u03be capra and \u03c0\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2 _pes_; but the preferable\nderivation seems to be from \u03b1\u03b9\u03be and \u03c9\u03c8 _vultus_; meaning \u201c_goat-faced_.\u201d\n\n[190] From any one of the said planets.\n\n[191] _Vide_ Chap. VIII, Book I.\n\n[192] The Greek is \u03c0\u03bf\u03b9\u03bf\u03c5\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c6\u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03b9\u03c2; literally \u201c_making apparition_\u201d;\nbut the subsequent context seems to require the meaning I have adopted.\n\n[193] The parts of the signs in which the planets are posited.\n\nAnd further, it is the general tendency of the quadrant comprised\nbetween the vernal equinox and the summer tropic to produce good\ncomplexions, advantageous stature, fine constitutions, and fine eyes;\nwith a temperament abounding in heat and moisture. The quadrant from\nthe summer tropic to the autumnal equinox tends to produce an ordinary\ncomplexion, proportionate stature, a healthy constitution, large eyes,\na stout person, with curled hair, and a temperament abounding in heat\nand dryness. The quadrant from the autumnal equinox to the winter\ntropic causes yellowish complexions, slender, thin, and sickly persons,\nwith a moderate growth of hair, fine eyes, and a temperament abundantly\ndry and cold. The other quadrant, from the winter tropic to the vernal\nequinox, gives a dark complexion, proper stature, straight hair on the\nhead and none on the body, a goodly figure, and a temperament abounding\nin cold and moisture.\n\nTo speak, however, more particularly, all constellations of human\nform, both those within and those without the zodiac, act in favour of\ngiving a handsome shape to the body, and due proportion to the figure;\nwhile those not of human form vary its due proportions, and incline it\ntowards their own shape; assimilating it, in some measure, to their\nown peculiarities, either by enlarging or diminishing its size, by\ngiving it additional strength or weakness, or by otherwise improving\nor disfiguring it. Thus, for example, Leo, Virgo, and Sagittarius\nenlarge the person; and Pisces, Cancer, and Capricorn tend to make it\ndiminutive; and thus, again, the upper and anterior parts of Aries,\nTaurus, and Leo increase its strength and their lower and posterior\nparts render it weaker: while, on the other hand, Sagittarius, Scorpio,\nand Gemini act conversely; for their anterior parts produce greater\ndebility, and their posterior parts greater vigour. In like manner,\nVirgo, Libra, and Sagittarius contribute to render the person handsome\nand well-proportioned; and Scorpio, Pisces, and Taurus incline it to be\nmisshapen and disfigured.\n\nThe other constellations[194] also operate on similar principles; and\nall these influences it is necessary to bear in mind, in order that the\npeculiar properties, observed in their joint temperament, may be so\ncompounded as to authorize an inference therefrom, concerning the form\nand temperament of the body.\n\n[194] For the operative qualities of the other constellations, _vide_\nChapters X and XI, Book I.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII\n\nTHE HURTS, INJURIES, AND DISEASES OF THE BODY\n\n\nNext in succession to the foregoing chapter, the circumstances relating\nto bodily hurts, injuries, and diseases, claim to be discussed; and\nthey require to be considered in the following mode.\n\nFor the investigation of these circumstances, the two angles on the\nhorizon, both the ascendant and the western, must in all cases be\nremarked; but more especially the western angle and its preceding\nhouse,[195] which is inconjunct with the ascendant. After these angles\nhave been noted, it must be observed in what manner the malefic planets\nmay be configurated with them: for, if both the malefics, or even\nif one of them, should be stationed bodily on any of the successive\ndegrees composing the said angles, or be configurated with such degrees\nin quartile or in opposition, some bodily disorders or injuries will\nattach to the native or person then born: and this will especially\nhappen if, also, both the luminaries, either together or in opposition,\nor even if one of them, should be angularly posited in the manner\ndescribed. Because, in such a case, not only a malefic which may have\nascended in succession to the luminaries, but also any one which\nmay have pre-ascended, if placed in an angle, has power to inflict\ncertain diseases and injuries, such as may be indicated by the places\nof the horizon and of the signs, as well as by the natures of the\nplanets themselves; whether malefics, or others evilly afflicted and\nconfigurated with them.\n\n[195] The sixth house.\n\nSuch parts of the signs, as contain the afflicted part of the horizon,\nwill show in what part of the body the misfortune will exist, whether\nit be a hurt, or disease, or both: and the natures of the planets, in\noperating the misfortune, also regulate its particular form or species.\nFor, among the chief parts of the human body, Saturn rules the right\near, the spleen, the bladder, the phlegm, and the bones; Jupiter\ngoverns the hand, the lungs, the arteries, and the seed; Mars, the left\near, the kidneys, the veins, and the privities; the Sun rules the eyes,\nthe brain, the heart, the sinews or nerves, and all the right side;\nVenus, the nostrils, the liver, and the flesh; Mercury, the speech, the\nunderstanding, the bile, the tongue, and the fundament; and the Moon\ngoverns the palate, the throat, the stomach, the belly, the womb, and\nall the left parts.\n\nIt generally happens that some casual hurt, or injurious affection of\nthe body, is the utmost that takes effect when the malefics may be\noriental, and that considerable diseases occur only when the malefics\nmay be occidental. And a hurt is distinct from a disease, inasmuch as\nthe pain, which it induces at the time, is not afterwards continued;\nwhile a disease is, on the other hand, imposed on the sufferer either\nconstantly or at repeated intervals. These remarks are applicable to\nall cases; but, in order to inquire particularly into the nature of\nthe hurt or disease, a further attention must be paid to the figures,\nor schemes, with which the effects, about to be produced, will for the\nmost part correspond in character.\n\nFor instance, blindness of one eye will ensue, when the Moon may be\nin the before-mentioned angles, either operating her conjunction, or\nbeing at the full: it will also happen should she be configurated\nwith the Sun in any other proportional aspect, and be at the same\ntime connected with any one of the nebulous collections in the\nzodiac; such as the cloudy spot of Cancer, the Pleiades of Taurus,\nthe arrow-head of Sagittarius, the sting of Scorpio, the parts about\nthe mane of Leo, or the urn of Aquarius. Moreover, both eyes will be\ninjured should the Moon be in an angle, and in her decrease, and Mars\nor Saturn, being matutine, ascend in succession to her; or, again,\nif the Sun be in an angle, and these planets pre-ascend before him,\nand be configurated with both luminaries, whether the luminaries be\nin one and the same sign, or in opposition; provided also the said\nplanets, although oriental of the Sun, be occidental of the Moon. Under\nthese circumstances, therefore, Mars will cause blindness by a stroke\nor blow, or by the sword or by burning; and, if he be configurated\nwith Mercury, it will be effected either in a place of exercise or\nsport, or by the assault of robbers. Saturn, however, under the same\ncircumstances, produces blindness by cataract, or cold, by a white\nfilm, or by other similar disorders.\n\nVenus, if in one of the angles before-mentioned, and especially\nif she be in that of the west, and Saturn be in conjunction or in\nconfiguration with her, or be changing place with her,[196] while\nMars, at the same time, is in elevation above her, or in opposition\nto her, will produce impotence in the native, if a male; and, if a\nfemale, will render her liable to abortion, or to produce children\nstillborn, or not capable of being extracted except in mangled parts.\nSuch misfortunes especially happen under Cancer, Virgo, and Capricorn;\neven though the Moon may be in the ascendant, in conjunction with\nMars. And if, under the same circumstances, Venus be also configurated\nwith Mercury, as well as Saturn, Mars again being in elevation above\nher, or in opposition to her, the native will be either an eunuch\nor hermaphrodite, or devoid of the natural channels and vents.\nAnd, when these positions occur, should the Sun also partake in\nthe configuration, the luminaries and Venus being all masculinely\nconstituted, the Moon in her decrease, and the malefics brought up in\nthe degrees next successively ascending, the males will be born maimed\nor crippled, or injured in their private members (particularly under\nAries, Leo, Scorpio, Capricorn, and Aquarius); and the females will\nremain childless and unprolific. And it also occasionally happens that\nthe natives, under such a configuration, are likewise injured in the\nface or eyes.\n\nIf Saturn and Mercury, in conjunction with the Sun, be in the\nbefore-mentioned angles, the native will have some defect in the\ntongue, and stammer or speak with difficulty: especially if Mercury be\noccidental, and both he and Saturn configurated with the Moon. Should\nMars, however, be found together with them, he will for the most part\nremove the defect in the tongue, after the Moon shall have completed\nher approach to him.\n\nFurther, should the malefics be in angles, and the luminaries, either\ntogether or in opposition, be brought up to them; or, if the malefics\nbe brought up to the luminaries, especially when the Moon may be in\nher nodes, or in her bend,[197] or in obnoxious signs, such as Aries,\nTaurus, Cancer, Scorpio, and Capricorn, the body will then be afflicted\nwith excrescences, distortions, lameness or paralysis.\n\n[196] This seems to imply, if Saturn be in one of Venus\u2019s places of\ndignity, and Venus in one of Saturn\u2019s. Such a counterposition is\ntechnically termed \u201cmutual reception.\u201d\n\n[197] In her extreme latitude, whether north or south.\n\nIf the malefics be in conjunction with the luminaries, the calamity\nwill take effect from the very moment of birth: but should they be in\nthe mid-heaven, in elevation above the luminaries, or in opposition\nto each other, it will then arise out of some great and dangerous\naccident; such as a fall from some height or precipice, an attack of\nrobbers, or of quadrupeds. And thus, if Mars hold dominion, he will\nproduce the misfortune by means of fire or wounds, through quarrels, or\nby robbers; and if Saturn, it will be caused by a fall, by shipwreck,\nor by convulsive fits or spasms.\n\nThe minor bodily disorders mostly occur on the Moon\u2019s being posited\nin a tropical or equinoctial sign; and, if in that of the vernal\nequinox, these disorders usually arise from the white leprosy; in that\nof the summer tropic, from tetters; in that of the autumnal equinox,\nfrom leprosy; and in that of the winter tropic, from the eruption of\npimples, and similar inconveniences.\n\nConsiderable diseases, however, take effect when the malefics may be\nconfigurated in the same situations as those before prescribed, yet\ndiffering in one respect; that is to say, being occidental of the\nSun and oriental of the Moon. In such cases, Saturn will generally\nproduce cold in the bowels, excessive phlegm, rheumatism, emaciation,\nsickliness, jaundice, dysentery, cough, obstruction, colic, or scurvy;\nand, in women, besides these diseases, he produces complaints of the\nwomb. Mars will cause expectoration of blood, atrabilarious attacks,\npulmonary complaints, sores, and diseases in the private parts (which\nwill be rendered still more painful by surgical burning or incision),\nsuch as fistula, h\u00e6morrhoids, or knots in the fundament, and also\ninflamed and putrifying ulcers. In women, to these calamities, he adds\nabortion, excision of the f\u0153tus or its mortification.\n\nAnd, even though these planets should not be properly configurated\ntowards the particular parts of the body, their qualities will still\noperate. Mercury also will act with them, and contribute to the\nincrease of the evil: thus, if he be in familiarity with Saturn,\nhe will much augment the coldness, and promote the continuance of\nrheumatism, and the disturbance of the fluids; especially in the\nchest, throat, and stomach. If in familiarity with Mars, he will tend\nto produce greater dryness, and will increase ulcers, abscesses, loss\nof hair, scarified sores, erysipelas, tetters, blackness of bile,\ninsanity, epilepsy,[198] and similar disorders.\n\n[198] \u03a4\u03b7\u03c2 \u03b9\u03b5\u03c1\u03b1\u03c2 \u03bd\u03bf\u03c3\u03bf\u03c5; literally, \u201cthe holy disease,\u201d which authors\nhave explained to mean epilepsy. Perhaps the disease was anciently\ncalled holy, because the patient, when possessed by the fit, seemed to\nbe under the influence of some supernatural agency.\n\nSome of the properties, peculiar to disease, arise out of the\nvarious character of the signs which may contain the above mentioned\nconfigurations in the two angles. Thus Cancer, Capricorn, and Pisces,\nand, in short, all signs ascribed to terrestrial animals and fishes,\nappropriately cause diseases of putridity, tetters, excoriation,\nscrofula, fistula, leprosy, and the like; while Sagittarius and Gemini\nproduce disease by falling fits and epilepsy. And if the planets happen\nto be posited in the latter degrees of the signs containing them, the\nextremities of the body will then be chiefly affected by the disease or\nhurt; which will arise from humours or accidents, producing leprosy,\ngout, or other infirmities, in the hands and feet.\n\nUnder the circumstances above detailed, the disease or hurt will\nbe incurable, provided there shall be not one of the benefics in\nconfiguration with the malefics which effect the evil, nor with the\nluminaries posited in angles; and even though the benefics may be so\nconfigurated, the misfortune will still be incapable of remedy, if the\nmalefics be well fortified, and in elevation above them.\n\nShould the benefics, however, hold principal situations, and be in\nelevation above the obnoxious malefics, the disease or hurt will then\nbe moderate, and have neither deformity nor disgrace attached to it;\nand it will sometimes be altogether prevented and set aside, if the\nbenefics be oriental. Jupiter, for instance, by means of human aid,\nsuch as wealth or rank can command, will conceal and soothe hurts\nand diseases; and, if Mercury be joined with him, the assistance\nwill be further improved by the addition of skilful physicians and\ngood medicine. Venus, likewise, through the mediation of deities and\noracles, will cause hurts to appear in a manner neither ungraceful nor\nunbecoming, and will ameliorate diseases by medicines granted by the\ngods.\n\nLastly, should Saturn be present in the configuration, the afflicted\npersons will move abroad to show their maladies, and to complain; and\nif Mercury also be present, they will do so for the sake of deriving\nsupport and profit from the exhibition.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII\n\nTHE QUALITY OF THE MIND\n\n\nThe consideration of circumstances applicable to the body is practised\nunder the foregoing rules.\n\nOf the spiritual qualities, however, all those which are national and\nintellectual are contemplated by the situation of Mercury; while all\nothers, which regard the mere sensitive faculties, and are independent\nof reason, are considered rather by other luminaries of a less subtle\nconstitution and more ponderous body; for instance, by the Moon and\nsuch stars as she may be configurated with, as well by separation,[199]\nas by application.\n\n[199] That is to say, in the commencement of her separation from the\naspect or conjunction of such stars.\n\nNow the mind is liable to impulse in a multiplicity of directions, and\nthe investigation of them cannot be summarily nor hastily performed,\nbut must be conducted by means of many various observations: for the\ndifferent qualities of the signs, containing Mercury and the Moon, or\nsuch stars as hold any influence over those two, are well competent\nto contribute towards the properties of the mind; so likewise are the\nconfigurations made with the Sun and the angles, by stars bearing any\nrelation to the point in question; besides, also, the peculiar nature\nexercised by each star in operating upon the mental movements.\n\nThus, the tropical signs generally dispose the mind to enter much into\npolitical matters, rendering it eager to engage in public and turbulent\naffairs, fond of distinction, and busy in theology; at the same time,\ningenious, acute, inquisitive, inventive, speculative, and studious of\nastronomy and divination.\n\nBicorporeal signs render the mind variable, versatile, not easy to be\nunderstood, volatile, and unsteady; inclined to duplicity, amorous,\nwily, fond of music, careless, full of expedients, and regretful.[200]\n\nFixed signs make the mind just, uncompromising, constant, firm of\npurpose, prudent, patient, industrious, strict, chaste, mindful of\ninjuries, steady in pursuing its object, contentious, desirous of\nhonour, seditious, avaricious, and pertinacious.\n\nOriental positions, and those in the ascendant, especially if made\nby planets in their proper faces,[201] make men liberal, frank,\nself-confident, brave, ingenious, unreserved, yet acute. Oriental\nstations, and positions on the mid-heaven, or culminations, make men\nreflective, constant, of good memory, firm, prudent, magnanimous,\nsuccessful in pursuing their desires, inflexible, powerful in\nintellect, strict, not easily imposed upon, judicious, active, hostile\nto crime, and skilful in science.\n\n[200] The Greek is \u03bc\u03b5\u03c4\u03b1\u03bc\u03b5\u03bb\u03b7\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2, which means \u201cpenitent,\u201d or \u201cprone to\nrepentance,\u201d or \u201cto subsequent regret.\u201d It is difficult to convey its\nprecise meaning in the text.\n\n[201] _Vide_ Chapter XXVI, Book I.\n\nPrecedent and occidental positions make men unsteady, irreverent,\nimbecile, impatient of labour, easily impressed, humble, doubting,\nwavering, boastful, and cowardly, slothful, lazy, and hard to rouse.\nOccidental stations, and positions on the lower heaven (as well as\nMercury and Venus, when making vespertine descension by day, and rising\nin the night), will render the mind ingenious and sagacious, but not\ncapable of great recollection, nor very industrious; yet inquisitive\nin occult matters, such as magic and sacred mysteries; also studious\nof mechanics, and mechanical instruments: addicted to the observation\nof meteors, to philosophy, to augury by means of birds, and to the\njudgment of dreams.\n\nFurther, should the planets having dominion be in places of their\nown, and in conditions suitable to their own qualities, the mental\nproperties will be rendered exquisite, unimpeded, and successful: and\nespecially if these planets rule at the same time over both places;\nthat is to say, be by some mode configurated with Mercury, and\nholds separation from, or application to the Moon. Should the said\nplanets, however, not be thus constituted, but be posited in places\nnot particularly appropriate to themselves, they will yet, even then,\ninfuse into the composition of the mental energy the properties of\ntheir own nature; but obscurely and imperfectly, and not with such\nforce and strong evidence as in the other case.\n\nThe peculiar qualities of planets in dominion, or in elevation, are\npowerfully impressed upon the mental energy: for instance, persons,\nwho, in consequence of the familiarity of the malefics, become\nwicked and dishonest, have their impulse to commit evil, free and\nunrestrained, when the said familiarity is not governed by any contrary\ninfluence. But, should a contrary condition impede and govern that\nfamiliarity, the impulse will be frustrated, and the culprits will\nbe easily overtaken, and undergo punishment. In like manner, persons\nendowed with goodness and virtue, by the familiarity between the\nbenefics and the before-mentioned places,[202] and when no contrary\ninfluence in elevation may interpose, will exert themselves with\ncheerfulness and alacrity in performing good actions, will be subject\nto no injustice, but enjoy the advantages of their honesty and virtue.\nIf, however, this familiarity should be superseded by some contrary\ncondition, the very mildness and humanity of these persons will operate\nto their disadvantage, exposing them to contempt and accusation, and\nrendering them liable to be wronged by the multitude.\n\n[202] That of Mercury, and that of the Moon.\n\nThe foregoing observations, relative to the moral habit, apply\ngenerally; and the particular properties, created in the mental\nenergies by the actual nature of the planets, according to the\nrespective dominion of each, remain to be treated of.\n\nThe planet Saturn, therefore, when alone possessing dominion of the\nmind, and governing Mercury and the Moon, and if posited in glory,\nboth cosmically and with respect to the angles,[203] will make men\ncareful of their bodies,[204] strong and profound in opinion, austere,\nsingular in their modes of thinking, laborious, imperious, hostile to\ncrime, avaricious, parsimonious, accumulators of wealth, violent, and\nenvious: but, if he be not in glory, cosmically, and as regards the\nangles, he will debase the mind, making it penurious, pusillanimous,\nill-disposed, indiscriminating, malignant, timorous, slanderous, fond\nof solitude, repining, incapable of shame, bigoted, fond of labour,\nvoid of natural affection, treacherous in friendship and in family\nconnections, incapable of enjoyment, and regardless of the body.[205]\nConnected with Jupiter in the mode before-mentioned, being also\nsituated in glory, Saturn will render the mind virtuous, respectful,\nwell-intentioned, ready to assist, judicious, frugal, magnanimous,\nobliging, solicitous of good, affectionate in all domestic ties, mild,\nprudent, patient, and philosophical: but, if thus connected and posited\ningloriously, he makes men outrageous, incapable of learning, timorous,\nhighly superstitious, yet regardless of religion, suspicious, averse\nto children, incapable of friendship, cunning, misjudging, faithless,\nfoolishly wicked, irascible, hypocritical, idle and useless, without\nambition, yet regretful, morose, highly reserved, over-cautious, and\ndull. Conciliated with Mars, and posited in glory, Saturn renders men\nreckless, over-diligent, free in speech, turbulent, boastful, austere\nin their dealings, pitiless, contemptuous, fierce, warlike, bold,\nfond of tumults, insidious, deceitful, and implacable; promoters of\nfaction, tyrannical, rapacious, hostile to the commonwealth, delighting\nin strife, vindictive, profound in guilt, strenuous, impatient,\ninsolent, mischievous, overbearing, evil, unjust, obstinate, inhuman,\ninflexible, immutable in opinion, busy, able in office, active,\nsubmitting to no opposition, and on the whole successful in their\nundertakings; but, if thus connected, and not placed in glory, he\nwill make men plunderers, robbers, adulterers, submissive to evil,\nseeking gain by their turpitude, infidels in religion, void of the\ncommon affections, mischievous, treacherous, thievish, perjurers, and\nsanguinary; eaters of unlawful food, familiar with guilt, assassins,\nsorcerers, sacrilegious, impious, violators of the tomb, and, in short,\nthoroughly depraved. Conciliated with Venus, and being again in glory,\nSaturn makes men averse to women, and renders them fond of governing,\nprone to solitude, highly reserved, regardless of rank, indifferent to\nbeauty, envious, austere, unsociable, singular in opinion, addicted\nto divination and to religious services and mysteries; solicitous\nof the priesthood, fanatical, and subservient to religion; solemn,\nreverential, sedate, studious of wisdom, faithful in friendship,\ncontinent, reflective, circumspect, and scrupulous in regard to female\nvirtue: but, if he be thus conciliated, and not posited in glory, he\nmakes men licentious and libidinous, practisers of lewdness, careless,\nand impure in sexual intercourse; obscene, treacherous to women,\nespecially to those of their own families; wanton, quarrelsome, sordid,\nhating elegance; slanderous, drunken, superstitious, adulterous,\nand impious; blasphemers of the gods, and scoffers at holy rites;\ncalumniators, sorcerers, hesitating at nothing. If conciliated with\nMercury, and if in a glorious position, Saturn makes men inquisitive,\nloquacious, studious of law and of medicine, mystical, confederate in\nsecrecy, fabricators of miracles, impostors, improvident, cunning,\nfamiliar with business, quick in perception, petulant, accurate,\nvigilant, meditative, fond of employment, and tractable: but, if\nconnected with Mercury, and not posited gloriously, he causes men to\nbe frivolous, vindictive, laborious, alienated from their families,\nfond of tormenting, and void of enjoyment; night-wanderers, insidious,\ntreacherous, pitiless, and thievish; magicians, sorcerers, forgers\nof writings, cheats, unsuccessful in their undertakings, and quickly\nreduced to adversity. Such are the effects of Saturn.\n\n[203] This seems to imply, if well placed in elevation; as, in the\nmid-heaven, for instance, or in a conspicuous situation; and in\npossession of dignities.\n\n[204] Or, persons: the Greek is \u03c6\u03b9\u03bb\u03bf\u03c3\u03c9\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2.\n\n[205] Or, persons: \u03bc\u03b9\u03c3\u03bf\u03c3\u03c9\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03bf\u03bd\u03c2.\n\nWhen Jupiter alone has dominion of the mind, and is gloriously\nsituated, he renders it generous, gracious, pious, reverent, joyous,\ncourteous, lofty, liberal, just, magnanimous, noble, self-acting,\ncompassionate, fond of learning, beneficent, benevolent, and calculated\nfor government: and, if posited ingloriously, he will endow the mind\nwith qualities apparently similar to these, but not of such virtue\nand lustre: as, instead, of generosity, he will then cause profusion;\ninstead of piety, bigotry; for modesty, timidity; for nobleness,\narrogance; for courteousness, folly; for elegance, voluptuousness;\nfor magnanimity, carelessness; and for liberality, indifference.\nConciliated with Mars, and being in glory, Jupiter will make men\nrough, warlike, skilful in military affairs, dictatorial, refractory,\nimpetuous, daring, free in speech, able in action, fond of disputation,\ncontentious, imperious, generous, ambitious, irascible, judicious, and\nfortunate: but, if thus connected, and not placed in glory, he makes\nmen mischievous, reckless, cruel, pitiless, seditious, quarrelsome,\nperverse, calumnious, arrogant, avaricious, rapacious, inconstant,\nvain and empty, unsteady, precipitate, faithless, injudicious,\ninconsiderate, senseless, and officious; inculpators, prodigals,\ntriflers, altogether without conduct, and giving way to every impulse.\nWhen conciliated with Venus, and in a glorious position, Jupiter\nwill render the mind pure, joyous, delighting in elegance, in the\narts and sciences, and in poetry and music; valuable in friendship,\nsincere, beneficent, compassionate, inoffensive, religious, fond of\nsports and exercises, prudent, amiable, and affectionate, gracious,\nnoble, brilliant, candid, liberal, discreet, temperate, modest, pious,\njust, fond of glory, and in all respects honourable and worthy; but,\nif posited ingloriously, when so connected, he makes men luxurious,\nsoft, effeminate, fond of dancing, indulgent in expenses, incapable\nof managing women, yet amorous and lascivious; mean, slanderous,\nadulterous, fond of dress, dissolute, dull, wasteful, without energy,\nenervated, fond of personal adornment, womanish in mind, yet observant\nof holy rites and ceremonies, faithful, harmless, pleasant, affable,\ncheerful, and liberal to misfortune. If connected with Mercury, and\nposited in glory, Jupiter will render men fit for much business, fond\nof learning, and of geometry and the mathematics; poetical, public\norators, acute, temperate, well-disposed, skilful in counsel, politic,\nbeneficent, able in government, pious, religious, valuable in all\nuseful professions, benevolent, affectionate in their families, ready\nin acquiring knowledge, philosophical, and dignified: but when so\nconnected, and placed ingloriously, he will produce contrary effects,\nrendering men frivolous, empty, contemptible, credulous of falsehood,\nsenseless, fanatical, trifling, petulant, affectors of wisdom, stupid,\narrogant, pretenders in art, magicians, and vacillating: Yet he will\nalso produce men skilled in various learning, and of strong memory,\ncapable of imparting instruction, and pure in their enjoyments.\n\nMars alone having dominion of the mind, and placed with glory, makes\nmen noble, imperious, irascible, warlike, versatile, powerful in\nintellect, daring, bold, refractory, careless, obstinate, acute,\nself-confident, contemptuous, tyrannical, strenuous, stern and able in\ngovernment: but, posited ingloriously, he makes men cruel, mischievous,\nsanguinary, tumultuous, extravagant in expense, boisterous,\nruffian-like, precipitate, drunken, rapacious, pitiless, familiar with\ncrime, restless, outrageous, hostile to their families, and infidels in\nreligion. Should he be conciliated with Venus, and posited in glory,\nhe renders the mind cheerful, docile, friendly, complacent, joyous,\nplayful, frank, delighting in songs and dancing, amorous, fond of\nthe arts, and of dramatic personation, voluptuous, brave, libidinous\nin desire, sensible, cautious, and discreet; disposed to free sexual\nintercourse,[206] quick in anger, extravagant in expense, and jealous:\nbut, if he have an inglorious position when thus conciliated, he\nmakes men overbearing, lascivious, sordid, opprobrious, adulterous,\nmischievous, liars, fabricators of deceit, cheats of their own families\nas well as others, eager in desire, and at the same time soon satiated,\ndebauchers of wives and virgins, daring, impetuous, ungovernable,\ntreacherous, faithless, dangerous, fickle and weak in mind; and\noccasionally also wasteful, fond of dress, audacious, and shameless.\nConnected with Mercury, and placed in glory, Mars renders men skilful\nin command, cautious, strenuous, active, obstinate, yet versatile,\ninventive, sophistical, laborious, busy in all things, eloquent,\nimposing, deceitful, inconstant, overknowing, maliciously artful, quick\nwitted, seductive, hypocritical, treacherous, habituated to evil,\ninquisitive, fond of strife, and successful; fair dealers with persons\nof habits similar to their own, and, in short, altogether mischievous\nto their enemies, though beneficial to their friends: but, if Mars be\nposited ingloriously, and thus connected, he makes men prodigal, yet\navaricious, cruel, daring, bold, regretful and vacillating; liars,\nthieves, infidels in religion, perjurers, and impostors; seditious,\nincendiaries, frequenters of theatres, covered with infamy, robbers,\nhousebreakers, sanguinary, forgers of writings, familiar with crime,\njugglers, magicians, sorcerers, and assassins.\n\n[206] \u03a0\u03c1\u03c3\u03c2 \u03bc\u03b9\u03be\u03b9\u03bd \u03b8\u03b7\u03bb\u03b5\u03b9\u03c9\u03bd \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c1\u03c1\u03b5\u03bd\u03c9\u03bd \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03ba\u03b5\u03b9\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03c3\u03c5\u03c2.\n\nWhen Venus rules alone in a position of glory, she renders the mind\nbenignant, good, voluptuous, copious in wit, pure, gay, fond of\ndancing, jealous, abhorring wickedness, delighting in the arts, pious,\nmodest, well-disposed, happy in dreams, affectionate, beneficent,\ncompassionate, refined in taste, easily reconciled, tractable, and\nentirely amiable: but, if contrarily posited, she renders the mind\ndull, amorous, effeminate, timorous, indiscriminating, sordid, faulty,\nobscure, and ignominious. Conciliated with Mercury, and posited\nwith glory, Venus makes men lovers of the arts, philosophical, of\nscientific mind and good genius, poetical, delighting in learning\nand elegance, polite, voluptuous, luxurious in their habits of life,\njoyous, friendly, pious, prudent, fitted for various arts, intelligent,\nnot misled by error, quick in learning, self-teaching, emulous of\nworth, followers of virtue, copious and agreeable in speech, serene\nand sincere in manner, delighting in exercise, honest, judicious,\nhigh-minded, and continent in desire as regards women[207]; but, when\nso conciliated and posited adversely, she will make men oppressive,\nfit for various arts, evil-tongued, unsteady, malevolent, fraudulent,\nturbulent, liars, calumniators, faithless, crafty, insidious, practised\nin evil, uncourteous, debauchers of women, corrupters of youth,[208]\nfond of personal adornment, dissolute, infamous, notoriously offensive\nand publicly complained of, yet striving after all things.\n\nMercury, alone, having dominion of the mind, and being in a glorious\nposition, renders it prudent, clever, sensible, capable of great\nlearning, inventive, expert, logical, studious of nature, speculative,\nof good genius, emulous, benevolent, skilful in argument, accurate in\nconjecture, adapted to sciences and mysteries, and tractable: but,\nwhen placed contrarily, he makes men busy in all things, precipitate,\nforgetful, impetuous, frivolous, variable, regretful, foolish,\ninconsiderate, void of truth, careless, inconstant, insatiable,\navaricious, unjust; and altogether of slippery intellect, and\npredisposed to error.\n\nTo these influences and their effects, as above detailed, the Moon\nalso contributes: for, should she be in the bends of her southern or\nnorthern boundary,[209] she will render the properties of the mind more\nvarious, more versatile in art, and more susceptible of change: if she\nbe in her nodes, she will make them more acute, more practical, and\nmore active. Also, when in the ascendant, and during the increase of\nher illumination, she augments their ingenuity, perspicuity, firmness\nand expansion; but, when found in her decrease, or in occultation, she\nrenders them more heavy, more obtuse, more variable of purpose, more\ntimid, and more obscure.\n\nThe Sun likewise co-operates, when conciliated with the lord of the\nmental temperament; contributing, if he be in a glorious position, to\nincrease probity, industry, honour, and all laudable qualities; but,\nif adversely situated, he increases debasement, depravity, obscurity,\ncruelty, obstinacy, moroseness, and all other evil qualities.\n\n[207] \u03a0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b1\u03c1\u03c1\u03b5\u03bd\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03ba\u03b5\u03ba\u03b9\u03bd\u03bd\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2 \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b6\u03b7\u03bb\u03bf\u03c4\u03c5\u03c0\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2.\n\n[208] \u03a0\u03b1\u03b9\u03b4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03c6\u03b8\u03bf\u03c1\u03b5\u03b1\u03c2.\n\n[209] That is to say, in her extreme latitude, whether south or north.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX\n\nTHE DISEASES OF THE MIND\n\n\nIn connection with the foregoing discussion on the properties of the\nmind, the circumstances relating to eminent mental disorders, such as\nmadness, epilepsy,[210] and others of the like formidable nature, duly\nclaim attention.\n\nNow, with reference to these, it is always essential to consider the\nplanet Mercury and the Moon, and to observe in what mode they may\nbe disposed towards each other, and towards the angles, and also\ntowards the malefics: for, if the Moon and Mercury be unconnected\nwith each other, or with the oriental horizon, and provided such\nplanets as may be adversely and noxiously configurated should be in\nelevation above them, or overrule them, or be in opposition to them,\nthe mental properties will then consequently become impregnated with\nvarious disorders: the characters of which may be clearly known by the\nqualities of the stars thus controlling the places.[211]\n\n[210] Epilepsy is defined to be \u201ca conclusive motion of the whole body,\nor some parts of its parts, accompanied with a loss of sense.\u201d The\nknowledge of this latter effect probably induced the author to rank it\namong diseases of the mind.\n\n[211] Of Mercury, the Moon, and the ascendant.\n\nIt is true that there are many disorders of a moderate nature, capable\nof being distinguished by what has been already stated, in the\npreceding chapter, regarding the mental qualities: for it is by the\nincrease and growth of certain of those qualities, that an injurious\nexcess is produced; and every irregularity of the moral habit, whether\nby deficiency or superabundance, may be fitly termed a moral disorder,\nBut, at the same time, there are other disorders of so vast and\nmanifold a disproportion, that they quite, as it were, overpower the\nnatural course of the intellect and passions of the mind. And of these\ngreater disorders it is now proposed to treat.\n\nFor example, epilepsy generally attaches to all persons born when\nMercury and the Moon may be unconnected either with each other, or\nwith the oriental horizon, while Saturn and Mars may be in angles and\nsuperintend the scheme; that is to say, provided Saturn be so posited\nby day, and Mars by night: otherwise, when the converse may happen in\nthese schemes, viz. when Saturn may have dominion by night, but Mars\nby day (especially if in Cancer, Virgo or Pisces), the persons born\nwill become insane. And they will become demoniac, and afflicted with\nmoisture of the brain, if the Moon, being in face to the Sun, should\nbe governed by Saturn when operating her conjunction, but by Mars\nwhen effecting her opposition; and particularly when it may happen in\nSagittarius and in Pisces.\n\nIf the malefics, only, should have ruled the scheme, in the manner\ndescribed, the said disorders of the mind will become irremediable,\nalthough at the same time not eminent, but doubtful, and not openly\ndisplayed; but, should the benefics, Jupiter and Venus, be conciliated,\nand be posited in eastern parts and in angles, while the malefics may\nbe in western parts, the disorders, although highly conspicuous, will\nthen be susceptible to cure. For instance, under Jupiter\u2019s influence,\nthey will be healed by means of medical or surgical aid, and by diet\nand medicine; under Venus, by the guidance of oracles and by divine\ninterposition.\n\nShould the benefics, however, be occidental, and the malefics be found\nin eastern parts and in angles, the disorders will then become not\nonly incurable, but most conspicuous: the epileptic persons will then\nbe subjected to constant fits, and to danger of death; the insane will\nbecome outrageous and unmanageable, breaking away from their families,\nraving and wandering in nakedness: the demoniacs and those afflicted\nwith moisture of the brain will become furious, uttering mysterious\nsayings, and wounding themselves.\n\nThe several places of position in the scheme also afford co-operation:\nfor instance, those of the Sun and Mars contribute to insanity; those\nof Jupiter and Mercury, to epilepsy; those of Venus, to the fury of\nenthusiasm; and those of Saturn and the Moon, to demoniac affections\nand moisture of the brain.\n\nIt is by such configurations, as those just described, that any morbid\ndeviation, occurring in the active or reasoning faculties of the mind,\nis produced; but a deviation of the passive, or merely sensitive\nfaculties, is discernible chiefly in the excess and deficiency (as the\ncase may be) of the masculine and feminine genders; that is to say,\nin the superabundance, or deficiency, of the power of either gender,\nto produce a conformation agreeable to its own proper nature: and a\nknowledge of this latter deviation is to be acquired by means of the\nfollowing rules.\n\nWhen the Sun, instead of Mercury, may be with the Moon, and if Mars,\ntogether with Venus, be then in familiarity with them, in that case,\nprovided the luminaries only be found in masculine signs, men will\nexcel in their nature, or, in other words, will possess in full\nplenitude the properties becoming their sex; while the properties of\nwomen, who are thus constituted more masculinely and more actively,\nwill deviate from the usual limits of nature. But, if both Mars and\nVenus, or if only one of them, be likewise masculinely situated,\nmen will be freely and promptly inclined to natural intercourse\nand connexion; and women will be, in like manner, licentious and\nintemperate in intercourse beyond nature. Their desires will be\npractised in privacy, and not openly, should only Venus be situated\nmasculinely; but shamelessly and publicly, if Mars also masculinely\nplaced, together with Venus.\n\nBut, if the luminaries only be in feminine signs, women will then\npossess their natural functions in greater plenitude, and men will\ndeviate from the limits of nature towards effeminacy and wantonness.\nAnd, if Venus be femininely posited, women will be lustful and\nlicentious, and men wanton and soft; seeking connexion contrary\nto nature; yet in privacy and not openly: but, if Mars be posited\nfemininely, they will then put their desires in practice shamelessly\nand publicly.\n\nThe oriental and diurnal positions of Mars and Venus also contribute to\nmore masculine and more reputable qualities; and their occidental and\nvespertine[212] positions to qualities more feminine, and more sordid.\n\nLastly, if Saturn be in familiarity with them, he will likewise\nco-operate, by tending to produce greater impurity and obscenity, and\ngreater evil altogether; but Jupiter, if in familiarity, tends to\ngreater decency and modesty, and altogether to better conduct; and\nMercury to greater mobility, diversity, activity, and notoriety of the\npassions.\n\n[212] \u0395\u03c3\u03c0\u03b5\u03c1\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9; perhaps, more properly, _nocturnal_; the word being\nused in contrast to \u03b7\u03bc\u03b5\u03c1\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9, _diurnal_.\n\nEND OF THE THIRD BOOK\n\n\n\n\nBOOK THE FOURTH\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nPROEM\n\n\nAll those circumstances have now been set forth, which occur previously\nto the birth, as well as at the actual birth, and after it, and which\nit seemed necessary to mention, as conducing to a knowledge of the\ngeneral quality of the contemperament produced. And of the other\npoints, now remaining, by which extrinsic events[213] are contemplated,\nthose regarding the several fortunes of wealth and of rank claim to be\ntaken first into consideration. Each of these fortunes has a distinct\nrelationship; for instance, that of wealth relates to the body, and\nthat of rank to the mind.\n\n[213] That is to say, such events as are independent of the will, and\nnot necessarily consequent on any peculiar conformation of the mind or\nbody.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nTHE FORTUNE OF WEALTH\n\n\nThe circumstances regulating the fortune of wealth are to be judged\nof from that part alone, which is expressly denominated the Part of\nFortune; the position of which is, in all cases, whether arising in the\nday or in the night, always as far removed from the ascendant as the\nSun is distant from the Moon.[214]\n\n[214] _Vide_ Chapter XIII of the 3rd Book.\n\nWhen the Part of Fortune has been determined, it must be ascertained to\nwhat planets the dominion of it belongs; and their power and connexion,\nas also the power and connexion of others configurated with them, or in\nelevation above them, whether of the same or of an adverse condition,\nare then to be observed: for, if the planets which assume dominion of\nthe Part of Fortune be in full force, they will create much wealth, and\nespecially should the luminaries also give them suitable testimony in\naddition.\n\nIn this manner, Saturn will effect the acquirement of wealth by means\nof buildings, agriculture, or navigation; Jupiter, by holding some\ngovernment, or office of trust, or by the priesthood; Mars, by the\narmy and military command; Venus by means of friends, by the dowry of\nwives, or by other gifts proceeding from women[215]; and Mercury by the\nsciences and by trade.\n\nShould Saturn, however, when thus in influence over the fortune of\nwealth, be also configurated with Jupiter, he particularly provides\nwealth through inheritance; especially, if the configuration should\nexist in the superior angles, Jupiter being also in a bicorporeal sign\nand receiving the application of the Moon; for, in such a case, the\nnative will also be adopted by persons unallied to him, and will become\nheir to their property.\n\nAnd, further, if other stars, of the same condition as those which rule\nthe Part of Fortune, should likewise exhibit testimonies of dominion,\nthe wealth will be permanent: but, on the other hand, if stars of\nan adverse condition should either be in elevation above the ruling\nplaces, or ascend in succession to them, the wealth will not continue.\nThe general period of its duration is, however, to be calculated by\nmeans of the declination of the stars, which operate the loss, in\nrespect of the angles and succedent houses.[216]\n\n[215] I have considered the words, \u03b3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9\u03ba\u03b5\u03b9\u03c9\u03bd \u03b4\u03c9\u03c1\u03b5\u03c1\u03b5\u03c9\u03bd, as comprising\n\u201c_the dowry of wives_,\u201d as well as other \u201c_gifts from women_.\u201d\n\n[216] That is to say, its duration will depend on the time requisite\nto complete the arc of direction or prorogation between the stars,\noperating the loss, and the places which give the wealth. And the\ncalculation is to be made as pointed out in the 14th and 15th Chapters\nof the 3rd Book.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nTHE FORTUNE OF RANK\n\n\nThe disposition of the luminaries and the respective familiarities,\nexercised by the stars attending them, are to be considered as\nindicative of the degree of rank or dignity.[217]\n\nFor example, should the two luminaries be found in masculine signs and\nin angles, or even if only one of them be in an angle,[218] they being\nat the same time specially attended by a doryphory[219] composed of\nall the five planets; the Sun by such as are oriental, but the Moon by\noccidental, the persons then about to be born will consequently become\nkings or princes. And, if the attendant stars themselves should also\nbe in angles, or configurated with the angle above the earth,[220] the\nsaid persons will become great, powerful, and mighty in the world: and\neven yet more abundantly so, provided the configurations, made by the\nattendant stars with the angles above the earth, be dexter. But, when\nboth luminaries may not be found in masculine signs as aforesaid, but\nthe Sun only in a masculine and the Moon in a feminine sign, and only\none of them posited in an angle, the other concomitant circumstances\nstill existing in the mode above described, the persons about to be\nborn will then become merely chieftains, invested with the sovereignty\nof life and death.\n\n[217] It seems that there have been different opinions on this point.\nPlacidus makes the following remark on the subject: \u201cI do not take\nthe dignities from the horoscope, but from the Sun and Medium C\u0153li,\naccording to Ptolemy and others.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 121.)\n\n[218] The Perugio Latin, of 1646, says, \u201cIf either both luminaries, or\nonly that one of the _chief quality_\u201d (which Whalley defines to be the\nSun by day, and the Moon by night) \u201cbe in an angle,\u201d &c.\n\n[219] _Doryphory._ _Vide_ Chapter V of the 3rd Book. On the present\npassage, Placidus has the following words: \u201cYou are not to observe\nwhat is generally alleged by professors, respecting the satellites\u201d\n(_quasi_ doryphory) \u201cof the luminaries, for dignities; viz. that the\nsatellites are those planets which are found within 30\u00b0, on either side\nof the luminaries; but that a satellite is (also) any kind of aspect\nof the stars to the luminaries of what kind soever: which, if it be\nmade by application, its power extends inwardly over the whole orb of\nlight of the aspecting planet, and the more so, as the proximity is\ngreater; but, by separation, it is not so. This doctrine may be seen\nin several chapters of Ptolemy; for, an aspecting star influences the\nsignificator, and disposes him to produce effects co-natural to him,\nby a subsequent direction. But a star of no aspect does not predispose\nthe significator, and produces very little or no effect of its nature,\nby a subsequent direction; this is the true doctrine of the stars.\u201d\n(Cooper\u2019s Translation, pp. 124, 125.)\n\n[220] The angle of the mid-heaven; see the first note to this Chapter.\n\nAnd if the attendant stars, while the luminaries may be situated in\nthe manner last-mentioned, should be neither actually in angles, nor\nbear any testimony to the angles, the persons then born, although they\nwill still enjoy eminence, will attain only some limited dignity or\ndistinction; such as that of a delegated governor, or commander of an\narmy, or dignitary of the priesthood; and they will not be invested\nwith sovereignty.\n\nIf, however, neither of the luminaries be in an angle, and it happen\nthat most of the attendant stars be either themselves in angles, or\nconfigurated with the angles, the persons then born will not attain to\nany very eminent rank; yet they will take a leading part in ordinary\ncivil and municipal affairs: but, should the attendant stars have\nno configuration with the angles, they will then remain altogether\nundistinguished and without advancement; and provided, further, that\nneither of the luminaries be found situated in a masculine sign, nor\nin an angle, nor be attended by any benefics, they will be born to\ncomplete obscurity and adversity.\n\nThe general appearance of exaltation or debasement of rank is to\nbe contemplated as before stated, but there are many gradations\nintermediate to those already specified, and requiring observation\nof the particular interchanges and variations, incidental to the\nluminaries themselves and their doryphory, and also to the dominion of\nthe planets which compose their doryphory. For instance, should the\nbenefics, or stars of the same condition, exercise the chief dominion,\nthe dignities to be acquired will be not only important, but also more\nsecurely established; and, on the other hand, if the chief dominion\nbe claimed by the malefics, or by stars of an adverse condition, the\ndignities will be more subordinate, and more dangerous and evanescent.\n\nThe species of dignity may be inferred by observing the peculiar\nqualities of the attendant stars. And, if Saturn have chief dominion\nof the doryphory, the power and authority derived therefrom will lead\nto wealth and profit: authority proceeding from Jupiter and Venus will\nbe pleasurable, and attended by presents and honours: that proceeding\nfrom Mars will consist in commanding armies, in obtaining victories,\nand in overawing the vanquished: and that proceeding from Mercury will\nbe intellectual, superintending education and study, and directing the\nmanagement of business.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nTHE QUALITY OF EMPLOYMENT\n\n\nThe dominion of the employment, or profession, is claimed in two\nquarters; viz. by the Sun, and by the sign on the mid-heaven.\n\nIt is, therefore, necessary to observe whether any planet may be\nmaking its oriental appearance nearest to the Sun,[221] and whether\nany be posited in the mid-heaven; especially, when also receiving the\napplication of the Moon. And if one and the same planet possess both\nthese qualifications, that is to say, make its nearest appearance to\nthe Sun, and be also in the mid-heaven, that one alone must be elected\nto determine the present inquiry: and, likewise, though the planet\nshould not be thus doubly qualified, but only singly, in whichever\nrespect, even then that planet alone must still be elected provided\nitself alone should possess such single qualification. If, however,\nthere should be one planet presenting its nearest appearance, and\nanother in the mid-heaven conciliating the Moon, both must then be\nnoticed; and whichever of two may have greater sway, and possess\ngreater rights of dominion, that one must be preferred. But where not\nany planet may be found so situated, neither making its appearance as\nabove described, nor being in the mid-heaven, then that one, possessing\nthe dominion of the mid-heaven,[222] is to be considered as lord of\nthe employment: it is, however, only some occasional occupation which\ncan be thus denoted; because persons, born under such a configuration,\nmost commonly remain at leisure and unemployed.\n\n[221] See the 4th Chapter of the 8th Book of the Almagest inserted in\nthe Appendix.\n\n[222] The Greek says merely \u201cthat one having the dominion,\u201d without\nspecifying the place of dominion: the Latin printed at Perugio, is,\nhowever, \u201c_dominum accipe medii c\u0153li_,\u201d which is certainly the sense\nrequired by the tenor of the previous instructions. Whalley also has\nsimilarly rendered it.\n\nWhat has now been said, relates to the election of the lord of the\nemployment or profession; but the species of the employment will be\ndistinguished by means of the respective properties of the three\nplanets, Mars, Venus, and Mercury, and of the signs in which they may\nbe posited.\n\nMercury, for instance, produces writers, superintendents of business,\naccountants, teachers in the sciences, merchants and bankers: also,\nsoothsayers, astrologers, and attendants on sacrifices, and, in\nshort, all who live by the exercise of literature, and by furnishing\nexplanation or interpretation; as well as by stipend and salary, or\nallowance. If Saturn bear testimony jointly with Mercury, persons then\nborn will become managers of the affairs of others, or interpreters of\ndreams, or will be engaged in temples for the purpose of divination,\nand for the sake of their fanaticism. But, if Jupiter join testimony,\nthey will be painters, orators, or pleaders in argument, and occupied\nwith eminent personages.\n\nShould Venus have dominion of the employment, she will cause persons to\nbe engaged in the various perfumes of flowers, in unguents and wines,\nand also in colours, dyes, and in spices: thus she will produce vendors\nof unguents, garland-makers,[223] wine-merchants, dealers in medical\ndrugs, weavers, dealers in spices, painters, dyers, and vendors of\napparel. If Saturn add his testimony to hers, he will cause persons\nto be employed in matters belonging to amusement and decoration; and\nwill also produce jugglers, sorcerers and charlatans, and all such as\npractise similarly. But, if Jupiter join testimony with Venus, persons\nwill become prize-wrestlers, and garland-wearers,[224] and will be\nadvanced in honour through female interest.\n\n[223] Among the ancients, a garland was an indispensable decoration\nat all public ceremonies, whether civil or religious, and at private\nbanquets. The making of garlands was, therefore, a considerable\nemployment.\n\n[224] It would seem, from \u201cgarland-wearers\u201d being placed here in\nconnection with \u201cprize-wrestlers\u201d (\u03b1\u03b8\u03bb\u03b7\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9), that the author intended\nto point out persons competent to obtain the victors\u2019 wreath in\npublic exhibitions. But it appears that the word \u03c3\u03b5\u03c6\u03b1\u03bd\u03b7\u03c6\u03bf\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2,\n_garland-wearer_, also signifies a person who was annually chosen by\nthe priests to superintend religious ceremonies, an office similar\nto that of high priest. According to Athen\u00e6us, the Stephanephorus of\nTarsos was invested with a purple tunic, edged or striped with white,\nand wore the laurel chaplet, which Plato, in the treatise _de Legibus_,\ndescribes as being constantly worn by these officers, although the\nother priests wore it only during the performance of the ceremonies.\n\nMars, ruling the employment, and being configurated with the Sun, will\nproduce persons who operate by means of fire; for instance, cooks,\nas well as those who work in copper, brass, and other metals, by\nmelting, burning, and casting: if Mars be separated from the Sun, he\nwill make shipwrights, smiths, agriculturists, stonemasons, carpenters,\nand subordinate labourers. If Saturn bear testimony, in addition\nto Mars, persons will become mariners, workers in wells, vaults or\nmines, painters, keepers of beasts or cattle, cooks or butchers,\nand attendants on baths or on exhibitions. And, if Jupiter join\ntestimony, they will be soldiers, or mechanics, collectors of revenue,\ninn-keepers, toll-gatherers, or attendants on sacrifices.\n\nFurther, should it happen that two arbiters of employment may be found\ntogether, and provided they should be Mercury and Venus, they will then\nproduce musicians, melodists, and persons engaged in music, poetry,\nand songs: they will also produce (especially if changed in their\nplaces)[225], mimics, actors, dealers in slaves, makers of musical\ninstruments, choristers and musical performers, dancers, weavers,\nmodellers in wax, and painters. And if Saturn join testimony with\nMercury and Venus, the preparation and sale of female ornaments will\nbe added to the aforesaid occupations. But, if Jupiter give testimony,\nthe persons will become administrators of justice, guardians of public\naffairs, instructors of youth, and magistrates of the people.\n\nShould Mercury and Mars together be lords of the employment, persons\nwill become statuaries, armour-makers, sculptors,[226] modellers of\nanimals, wrestlers, surgeons, spies or informers, adulterers, busy in\ncrime, and forgers. And, if Saturn also bear testimony in addition\nto Mercury and Mars, he will produce assassins, highwaymen, thieves,\nrobbers lurking in ambush, marauders on cattle, and swindlers. But, if\nJupiter afford testimony, he will engage persons in honourable warfare,\nand in industry; making them cautious and diligent in business, curious\nin foreign matters, and deriving profit from their pursuits.\n\n[225] Meaning probably \u201cif in mutual reception,\u201d which position has\nbeen before explained.\n\n[226] Or makers of hieroglyphics\u2014\u03b9\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03b3\u03bb\u03c5\u03c6\u03bf\u03b9.\n\nWhen Venus and Mars exercise the dominion together, persons will become\ndyers, dealers in unguents and perfumes, workers in tin, lead, gold,\nand silver, mock combatants or dancers in armour, dealers in medical\ndrugs, agriculturists, and physicians, healing by means of medicine.\nAnd if Saturn add testimony to Venus and Mars, he will produce persons\nattendant on animals consecrated to religion; also grave-diggers and\nundertakers, mourners and musicians at funerals, and fanatics occupied\nin religious ceremonies, lamentations, and blood. But, if Jupiter\nadd testimony, the persons will become regulators of sacrifices,\naugurs, holders of sacred offices, governors placed over women, and\ninterpreters; and they will derive support from such occupations.\n\nThe properties of the signs, in which the lords of the employment\nmay be posited, are also influential in varying the employment. For\nexample, the signs of human shape promote all scientific pursuits, and\nsuch as are of utility to mankind; the quadrupedal signs contribute\nto produce employment among metals, in business and trade, in\nhouse-building, and in the work of smiths and mechanics: the tropical\nand equinoctial signs tend to give employment in translation or\ninterpretation, in matters of exchange, in mensuration and agriculture,\nand in religious duties: the terrestrial and watery signs tend to\nemployment in water, and in connection with water, as well in regard to\nthe nurture of plants, as to ship-building; they likewise contribute to\nemployment in funerals, in embalming and preserving, and also in salt.\n\nMoreover, should the Moon herself actually occupy the place regulating\nthe employment,[227] and, after her conjunction, continue in course\nwith Mercury, being at the same time in Taurus, Capricorn, or Cancer,\nshe will then produce soothsayers, attendants on sacrifices, and\ndiviners by the basin.[228] If she be in Sagittarius or Pisces,\nshe will make necromancers, and evokers of d\u00e6mons: if in Virgo or\nScorpio, magicians, astrologers, and oracular persons, possessing\nprescience: and, if in Libra, Aries, or Leo, she will produce fanatics,\ninterpreters of dreams, and makers of false vows and adjurations.\n\nFrom the foregoing rules, the various forms of employment are to\nbe inferred; and its magnitude or importance will be manifested by\nthe existing power of the ruling planets. For instance, if the said\nplanets be oriental, or in angles, they will give the person eminence\nand authority in his employment; but, if occidental or cadent, they\nwill render him subordinate. And should the benefics be in elevation,\nthe employment will be important, lucrative, secure, honourable, and\nagreeable; but, on the other hand, if the malefics be in elevation\nabove the lords of the employment, it will then be mean, disreputable,\nunprofitable, and insecure: thus, Saturn brings an adverse influence\nin coldness or tardiness, and in the composition or mixture of\ncolours[229]; and Mars produces opposition by audacity and publicity\nin enterprise: and both planets are alike hostile to proficiency and\nprosperity.\n\nThe general period, at which any increase or diminution of the\nemployment may take place, must, again in this case also, be determined\nby the disposition of the stars, which operate the effect towards the\noriental and occidental angles.\n\n[227] That is to say, the mid-heaven; as stated in the 4th Chapter of\nthe 3rd Book, and in the commencement of the present Chapter.\n\n[228] This mode of divination, as practised by the Greeks, is mentioned\nby Potter. It is likewise described by a learned Doctor of Medicine,\nGeo. Pictorius Vigillanus (in his Treatise \u201cde Speciebus Magi\u00e6\nCeremonialis,\u201d printed at Strasburgh, 1531), as being used \u201cwhen the\nfraudulent vanity of a d\u00e6mon renders things more like each other than\neggs are to eggs.\u201d And, according to this writer, it is practised by\nexorcising water, and pouring it into a basin, wherein the vain and\nrefractory d\u00e6mon is immersed: the said d\u00e6mon will sometimes remain at\nthe bottom, and sometimes raise himself to the surface, sending forth a\nslender hissing; out of which the desired responses are to be formed.\n\n[229] \u039a\u03c1\u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03c3\u03b9 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03c7\u03c1\u03c9\u03bc\u03b1\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd.\u2014These words have been rendered literally,\nbut they seem to contain some figurative meaning, rather than a literal\none. Perhaps the preferable sense of them is, \u201c_by a mixture of\nviews_,\u201d or \u201c_from various pursuits being blended together_.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nMARRIAGE\n\n\nThe consideration of circumstances relating to marriage, or the\ncohabitation of husband and wife, as sanctioned by law, succeeds to the\nforegoing details, and must be pursued in the following method.\n\nWith regard to men, it is to be observed in what manner the Moon may\nbe disposed; for, in the first place, if she be found in the oriental\nquadrants, she will cause men either to marry early in life, or, after\nhaving over-passed their prime, to marry young women; \u201cbut, should she\nbe situated in either of the occidental quadrants, men will then marry\neither late in life, or to women advanced in age[230]\u201d: and if she be\nfound under the Sun\u2019s beams, and configurated with Saturn, she then\nentirely denies marriage. Secondly, should she be in a sign of single\nform, and in application to only one of the planets, she will cause\nmen to marry only once; but, if she be in a bicorporeal or multiform\nsign, or in application to several planets, she will cause them to be\nmarried several times; and, provided also that the planets, which thus,\neither by adjacency or by testimony,[231] receive her application, be\nbenefic, men will then obtain good wives; but if, on the contrary,\nthe said planets be malefic, bad. For example, if Saturn receive the\nMoon\u2019s application, the wives whom he will provide will be troublesome\nand morose; but, if Jupiter receive it, they will be decorous and\neconomical; if Mars, bold and refractory; if Venus, cheerful, handsome,\nand agreeable; and, if Mercury, sensible, prudent, and clever.\nMoreover, should Venus be found connected with Jupiter, Saturn,[232]\nor Mercury, she will render wives provident, and attached to their\nhusbands and children; but, if she be found connected with Mars, they\nwill be irascible, unsteady, and indiscreet. Thus far in reference to\nthe marriage of men.\n\n[230] The words marked with inverted commas are not in the Greek; they\nare found, however, in two Latin translations; that of Basle, 1541, and\nthat of Perugio, 1646.\n\n[231] In other Editions, \u201cwhether by conjunction or aspect.\u201d\n\n[232] \u201c_Saturn._\u201d Not found in the Elzevir edition, but in others.\n\nBut, in the case of women, the Sun must be observed, instead of the\nMoon: and, should he be posited in the oriental quadrants, women\nwill be married either in their own youth, or to men younger than\nthemselves; but, if he be in the occidental quadrants, they will either\nbe married late in life, or to men who have passed their prime, and are\nadvanced in years. And should the Sun be in a sign of single form, or\nconfigurated with only one oriental planet, he will cause them to enter\ninto matrimony only once; but, if in a bicorporeal or multiform sign,\nor configurated with several oriental planets, he will then cause them\nto be often married. And Saturn, being configurated with the Sun, will\nprovide husbands steadfast, advantageous, and industrious; Jupiter,\nsuch as are honourable and noble-minded; Mars, severe husbands void of\naffection and intractable; Venus, amiable and handsome husbands; and\nMercury, such as are provident and expert in business. But, if Venus be\nfound connected with Saturn, she will indicate dull and timid husbands;\n\u201cif with Jupiter, the husbands will be good, just, and modest[233];\u201d if\nwith Mars, hasty, lustful, and adulterous; and if with Mercury, they\nwill be extravagantly desirous of young persons.[234]\n\nIn regard to the Sun, those quadrants which precede the ascending and\ndescending points of the zodiac, and, in respect of the Moon, those\nwhich are measured from her conjunction and opposition[235] to her\nintermediate quarters, are called oriental quadrants: the occidental\nquadrants are, of course, those lying opposite to the oriental.\n\nWhenever both nativities, viz. that of the husband and that of the\nwife, may exhibit the luminaries configurated together in concord,\nthat is to say, either in trine or in sextile to each other, the\ncohabitation will most usually be lasting; especially if the said\nconcord exist by means of interchange[236]; but its duration will be\nalso much more securely established, provided the Moon in the husband\u2019s\nnativity should correspond or agree with the Sun in the wife\u2019s\nnativity.[237] If, however, the relative positions of the luminaries be\nin signs inconjunct, or in opposition, or in quartile, the cohabitation\nwill be speedily dissolved upon slight causes, and the total separation\nof the parties will ensue.\n\n[233] The words thus marked \u201c \u201d are not found in the Elzevir edition,\nbut appear in the Latin one of Basle, 1541.\n\n[234] \u03a0\u03b5pi \u03c0\u03b1\u03b9\u03b4\u03b1\u03c2 \u03b5\u03c0\u03b9\u03b8\u03c5\u03bc\u03b7\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03c5\u03c2.\n\n[235] That is to say, from the new and the full Moon.\n\n[236] By mutual reception; according to Whalley, and also according to\nthe Latin copy of Perugio, 1646.\n\n[237] Meaning, probably, if the Moon in the husband\u2019s nativity\nshould be in the same position as the Sun in the wife\u2019s nativity, or\nharmoniously configurated with that position.\n\nAnd should the configuration of the luminaries, when made in concord,\nbe aspected by the benefics, the cohabitation will continue in\nrespectability, comfort, and advantage; but, on the other hand, it will\nabound in strife, contention, and misfortune, if the malefics be in\naspect to the said configuration.\n\nIn like manner, even though the luminaries may not be favourably\nconfigurated in concord, should the benefics still offer testimony\nto them, the cohabitation will then not be entirely broken off,\nnor totally destroyed for ever, but will be again renewed, and\nre-established as before. But if, on the contrary, the malefics\nbear testimony to such discordant disposition of the luminaries, a\ndissolution of the cohabitation will take place, accompanied by scorn\nand injury. Should Mercury alone be conjoined with the malefics, it\nwill be effected by means of some public inculpation; and if Venus also\nbe found with them, it will be on the ground of adultery, or sorcery,\nor some similar offence.\n\nThere are, however, other varieties in the married state, which are to\nbe contemplated by means of Venus, Mars, and Saturn. And should these\nplanets act in familiarity with the luminaries, the cohabitation will\nbe appropriate and domestic, and authorised by law; because Venus holds\na certain affinity both to Mars and Saturn: her affinity to Mars, for\ninstance, consists in each having exaltation in a sign belonging to\nthe other\u2019s triplicity,[238] and it operates in the cases of youthful\nand vigorous persons: while her affinity to Saturn arises from their\nrespective houses being in the signs, again also, belonging to each\nother\u2019s triplicity,[239] and relates to persons of more advanced age.\n\nHence, if Venus be in concurrence with Mars, she will produce entire\nlove and affection in the cohabiting parties; and if Mercury also\ncoincide with the said planets, such affection will become publicly\nnotorious. Should Venus be found in a sign mutually common and\nfamiliar, such as Capricorn, or Pisces,[240] she will effect marriages\nbetween brothers and sisters and kindred by blood: and, provided she be\nalso in the presence of the Moon, when the native may be male, she will\ncause him to connect himself with two sisters, or other near relatives;\nbut, if the native be a female, a similar contract on her part, with\ntwo brothers or near relatives, will be indicated, when Venus may be\nalso with Jupiter.[241]\n\n[238] The exaltation of Venus being in Pisces, and that of Mars in\nCapricorn. _Vide_ Chapters XXI and XXII, Book I.\n\n[239] Libra being Venus\u2019s house, and in Saturn\u2019s triplicity; and\nCapricorn being Saturn\u2019s house, and in Venus\u2019s triplicity. _Vide_\nChapters XX and XXI, Book I.\n\n[240] _Vide_ Note \u00b9 in p. 126.\n\n[241] Instead of the Moon.\n\nAgain, if Venus be with Saturn, the cohabitation will be established\nentirely in happiness and constancy; and if Mercury be present with\nthem, it will be profitable; but, should Mars be present, it will\nbe unsettled, calamitous, and afflicted by jealousy. And if Mars be\nconfigurated on equal terms with Venus, Saturn, and Mercury, he will\neffect marriage between persons of equal age; but, on the other hand,\nshould he be more oriental, marriage will take place with a younger\nman or woman; and, if more occidental, with an older person. Should\nVenus and Saturn be found in signs common to each other, that is to\nsay, in Capricorn and Libra,[242] marriage will be contracted between\npersons kindred by blood: and, when the said position may happen in\nthe ascendant, or in the mid-heaven, provided the Moon also should\npresent herself there, men will become connected with their mothers, or\nmaternal aunts, or with their mothers-in-law; and women with their own\nsons, or the sons of their brothers, or with their daughters\u2019 husbands.\nBut if, instead of the Moon, the Sun should be in concurrence with the\nsaid position, and especially should it happen that the planets in\nquestion may be occidental, men will then connect themselves with their\ndaughters, or the wives of their sons; and women with their fathers, or\npaternal uncles, or the husbands of their daughters.\n\nWhen the aforesaid configurations,[243] although not existing in signs\nof affinity to each other,[244] should be found in feminine places,\nthey will render the parties obscene, lustful and shameless; for\ninstance, when found in the anterior and hinder parts of Aries, and\nnear the Hyades of Taurus, about the urn of Aquarius, in the hinder\nparts of Leo, and in the face of Capricorn. And should the last-named\nplanets, Venus and Saturn, be posited in angles, they will then, if\nposited in the first two angles, the eastern and southern, produce\na total exposure of the passions, and cause them to be publicly\ncanvassed; but, if in the last two angles, the western and northern,\nthey will produce eunuchs, or persons unprolific, and not possessing\nthe proper channels of nature.\n\n[242] _Vide_ Note \u00b2 in p. 126.\n\n[243] Of the planets before specified.\n\n[244] These are such signs as are connected with each other in any\nmanner similar to that before described, as connecting Capricorn with\nPisces, and with Libra; or, in other words, signs common to the planets\nconfigurated.\n\nThe passions, liable to operate in males, are to be considered by\nobservation of Mars: for should he be separated from Venus and Saturn,\nbut yet, at the same time, be supported by the testimony of Jupiter,\nhe will make men pure and decorous in sexual intercourse, and incline\nthem to natural usages only: and, if he attach himself to Saturn only,\nhe will render them cold in blood and dull in appetite; if, however,\nwhen Saturn and Mars may be thus connected together, Venus and Jupiter\nshould also be configurated with them, men will then become easily\nexcited and eager in desire, although they will still be continent,\nand restrain themselves in order to avoid reproach. But should Saturn\nbe absent, and Mars be with Venus alone, or even although Jupiter\nalso be with her, men will become highly licentious, and attempt to\ngratify their desires in every mode.[245] And further, if Venus be\nfound more occidental, men will connect themselves with low women,\nfemale servants, and aliens or vagabonds; but, should Mars be found\noccidental, with women of rank, and gentlewomen; or with women living\nwith their husbands, or under the protection of men. Thus far with\nregard to males.\n\nIn the case of females, Venus requires attention: for, if she be\nconfigurated with Jupiter, or with Mercury, she will cause women to be\ntemperate and pure in sexual intercourse; still, however, when she may\nbe thus connected with Mercury, if Saturn be not present also, she will\ncause them to be easily excited to desire; although they will control\ntheir desires, and avoid reproach. But, should Venus be conjoined\nor configurated with Mars alone, she will render women licentious\nand lustful; and if, to both these planets, when thus conjoined or\nconfigurated, Jupiter also present himself, Mars being at the same\ntime under the rays of the Sun, women will then mingle in intercourse\nwith servants, and persons meaner than themselves, or with aliens,\nor vagabonds: but, should it happen that Venus may be under the rays\nof the Sun, they will then connect themselves with their superiors\nor masters. And, further, should the planets be in feminine places,\nor configurated femininely, they will be content with their passive\nfaculties only.[246]\n\nSaturn, in being conciliated with such positions as those now\ndescribed, tends to produce greater obscenity; Jupiter, greater\ndecency; and Mercury, greater publicity, and greater fickleness, or\ninstability.\n\n[245] The following also occurs here: \u201c\u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b5\u03b9 \u03bc\u03b5\u03bd o \u03b5\u03b9\u03c2 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd\u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03c1\u03c9\u03bd\n\u03b4\u03c5\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03c2, o \u03b4\u03b5 \u03b5\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03c4\u03bf\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b5\u03c3\u03b9, \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b4\u03c1\u03b1\u03c2 \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b1\u03b9\u03ba\u03b1\u03c2\n\u03b5\u03c3\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03ba\u03b5\u03b9\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9, \u03bf\u03c5\u03c7\u2019 \u03c5\u03c0\u03b5\u03c1\u03b2\u03bf\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03c2 \u03b4\u03b5, \u03b5\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03bc\u03c6\u03bf\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03b9 \u03bf\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03c1\u03b5\u03c2\n\u03b4\u03c5\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03b9 \u03b5\u03c5\u03c1\u03b5\u03b8\u03c9\u03c3\u03b9, \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03bc\u03bf\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf \u03b8\u03b7\u03bb\u03c5 \u03b5\u03c3\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03b1\u03c6\u03b5\u03c1\u03b5\u03b9\u03c2. \u03b8\u03b7\u03bb\u03c5\u03ba\u03c9\u03bd \u03b4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd\n\u03b6\u03c9\u03b4\u03b9\u03c9\u03bd \u03c5\u03c0\u03b1\u03c1\u03c7\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b5\u03bd \u03bf\u03b9\u03c2 \u03bf\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03c1\u03b5\u03c2, \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c5\u03c4\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c0\u03b1\u03bf\u03c7\u03b5\u03b9\u03bd \u03b1\u03bd\u03b5\u03be\u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c4\u03b1 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5\n\u03b8\u03b7\u03bb\u03c5\u03bf\u03c2. \u03b5\u03b9 \u03b4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03bc\u03c6\u03bf\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03b9 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b1\u03c4\u03bf\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c9\u03c3\u03b9, \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03bc\u03bf\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd \u03c4\u03bf \u03b1\u03c1\u03c1\u03b5\u03bd \u03b5\u03c1\u03bc\u03b7\u03c4\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03c2\n\u03b5\u03be\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b9. \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03b4\u03b5 \u03b6\u03c9\u03b4\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd \u03b1\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03bd \u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd, \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03c0\u03b1\u03c3\u03b1\u03bd \u03b1\u03c1\u03c3\u03b5\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03b7\u03bd \u03b7\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03b9\u03b1\u03bd.\u201d\n\n[246] To this the following sentence succeeds: \u03b5\u03b1\u03bd \u03b4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03c1\u03c1\u03b5\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03c9\u03c2\n\u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03ba\u03b5\u03b9\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9 \u03c9\u03c3\u03b9\u03bd \u03bf\u03b9 \u03b1\u03c3\u03b5\u03c1\u03b5\u03c2, \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9 \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 \u03c4\u03bf \u03c0\u03bf\u03b9\u03b5\u03b9\u03c5.\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nCHILDREN\n\n\nThe next point to be investigated is that concerning children: and, to\naccomplish this, observation must be made of the planets posited in,\nor configurated with the place on the zenith,[247] or its succedent\nhouse, which latter is called the place of the good d\u00e6mon. And should\nit happen that not any planets may be present in the said places,\nnor configurated with them, it will then be necessary to take into\nconsideration such as may be in opposition thereto.\n\n[247] The angle of the mid-heaven.\n\nNow the Moon, Jupiter, and Venus are esteemed as givers of offspring;\nbut the Sun, Mars, and Saturn are considered as denying children\naltogether, or as allowing but few: while Mercury, being in quality\ncommon to both parties, lends co-operation to that with which he may be\nconfigurated, and gives offspring, when oriental, but withholds, when\noccidental.\n\nTo speak briefly, if the planets, which grant progeny, be so posited as\ndescribed,[248] and placed singly, the gift of progeny will be single\nonly[249]; but should they be in bicorporeal or in feminine signs,\nthey will grant double offsprings[250]: so likewise if they should be\nin prolific or seminal signs, such as Pisces, Cancer, and Scorpio,\nthey will grant twins, or even more. And provided they should also be\nmasculinely constituted, as well by configuration with the Sun, as by\nbeing in masculine signs, they will grant male children; but otherwise,\nif femininely constituted, female.\n\nBut, although the said planets, even if beneath the malefics in\nelevation, or, even if found in barren places, or in signs such as\nthose of Leo and Virgo, will still grant children; yet such children,\nthus indicated, will neither be healthy, nor continue in life. Should\nit happen, however, that the Sun and the malefics may be in entire\npossession of the places above mentioned, viz. that on the zenith,\nor the succedent house allotted to the good d\u00e6mon; and provided they\nbe, at the same time, in masculine or barren signs, and the benefics\nbe not in elevation above them, a total privation of offspring is\nthereby indicated; but, should they be in feminine or prolific signs,\nor supported by the testimony of the benefics, children will then be\ngranted; yet they will be liable to disease, and short-lived.\n\nIf, however, planets of each condition should be configurated with, and\nhave prerogative in prolific signs, there will then ensue a loss of\neither all the children, or only few, or else the major part of them;\nin the same proportion as that in which the planets, bearing testimony\nto either condition, may preponderate on one side rather than the\nother; by excelling in number, or in influence, in consequence of being\nposited more orientally, more genuinely in angles, higher in elevation,\nor successively ascending.\n\nWhen the lords of the aforesaid signs[251] may be such as are givers of\noffspring, and be either oriental, or in places proper to themselves,\nthe children thus granted will become eminent and illustrious: but,\nif occidental, or in places not proper to themselves, the children\nwill then become undistinguished and abject. Should the said lords\nalso be in concord with the part of fortune, and with the ascendant,\nthey will render the children amiable, and cause them to be beloved by\ntheir parents, and to inherit their parents\u2019 substance: but, if found\ninconjunct, and not in concord with the said parts, the children will\nthen become odious and mischievous to their parents, and will forfeit\nthe inheritance of their substance.\n\n[248] The meaning, apparent from the commencement of the chapter, is\nthis: \u201cShould such planets be in the mid-heaven or its succedent house,\nor configurated with either.\u201d\n\n[249] \u039c\u03bf\u03bd\u03b1\u03b4\u03b9\u03ba\u03b7\u03bd, single, or one at a birth.\n\n[250] \u0394\u03b9\u03b4\u03c5\u03bc\u03bf\u03b3\u03c9\u03bd\u03b9\u03b1\u03bd, double, or two at a birth.\n\n[251] That on the mid-heaven, and that on the eleventh house.\n\nFurther, should the planets which grant progeny be appropriately\nconfigurated with each other, they will promote brotherly love, and\nmutual regard and affection among the children; but, if inconjunct,\nor in opposition, they will excite in them mutual hatred, deceit, and\ntreachery.\n\nThe general investigation regarding children is to be conducted\nin the foregoing method: but, in order to enquire into particular\ncircumstances consequent on the above, it will be necessary to assume,\nas an ascendant, the position of each planet which gives offspring, and\nto observe the separate schemes; drawing inferences therefrom as in the\ncase of a nativity.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII\n\nFRIENDS AND ENEMIES\n\n\nWith respect to friendship and enmity, it may be observed that great\nand lasting familiarities, or disagreements, are respectively called\nsympathies and enmities; while the smaller, such as arise occasionally,\nand subsist for a short time only, are denominated casual intimacies\nand strifes: the whole are to be contemplated according to the\nfollowing rules.\n\nIndications of great and lasting friendships, or enmities, may be\nperceived by observation of the ruling places, exhibited in the\nrespective nativities of both the persons, between whom the friendship\nor enmity may subsist. It is consequently essential to observe the\nplaces of the Sun, the Moon, the ascendant, and the part of fortune;\nfor, should all these in both nativities be in the same signs, or\nshould either all or most of them be counterchanged in position in\neach nativity, and especially should the two ascendants be within the\ndistance of seventeen degrees from each other,[252] they will create\nfixed and indissoluble friendship. On the other hand, should they be\nin signs inconjunct, or in opposition, they will produce great and\nlasting enmity. If, however, they be not constituted in either of the\nmodes above mentioned, but merely configurated in signs,[253] they\nwill then produce minor friendship; provided such configuration exist\nby trine or sextile; but, if by quartile, they will excite minor\nenmity, so as to take effect at certain particular times, in which\nthe friendship remains, as it were, inactive and subdued, while the\nmalefics transit the configuration: and, in a similar manner, enmity\nalso will be softened and abated, when the benefics may enter upon the\nconfiguration.[254]\n\n[252] Or, regard each other within the distance of seventeen degrees.\n\n[253] That is to say; if the places of the Sun, &c., in one nativity be\nconfigurated with such parts of the zodiac as are occupied by the Sun,\n&c., in the other nativity.\n\n[254] Of any of the four places above described.\n\nThe friendship and enmity, which men bear towards each other, may be\nclassed under three general heads. One kind is suggested by spontaneous\nwilfulness; another, by the idea of profit; and another, by pain and\npleasure mutually excited.\n\nAnd, therefore, should either all or most of the aforesaid places\nbe in familiarity with each other, friendship of all the three\nkinds will be established: so, also, should the places be entirely\nwithout familiarity, similar enmity will be established. If, however,\nfamiliarity, or absence of familiarity (as the case may be), exist\nonly as regards the places of the luminaries, friendship or enmity\nwill then be established by spontaneous will; and friendship thus\nproduced is the best and most secure; while, on the other hand, enmity\nso arising is, in like manner, the worst and most dangerous. The\nfriendship, or enmity, consequent on the familiarity or non-familiarity\nof the respective parts of Fortune, will be established on the idea of\nprofit; and that, consequent on a similar disposition of the respective\nascendants, will arise from pain or pleasure mutually excited between\nthe parties.\n\nIt will, however, be necessary to pay still further attention to the\nplaces in question, in order to observe whether any and what planets\nmay be in elevation above them, or in aspect to them; because, among\nall the said places, that particular one, to which any planet in\nelevation, or in succession, may be adjacent, whether in the same\nsign, or in the next, will possess the more powerful influence over\nfriendship or enmity: and whichever place may have its aspecting\nplanets more powerfully benefic, will operate in a greater degree[255]\nto advantage in friendship, and to the relaxation of enmity. The\nforegoing instructions are applicable to such friendships or enmities\nas are great and lasting.\n\n[255] Than the rest of the places.\n\nBut, in the case of others, which subsist only occasionally, and which\nhave been defined as casual intimacies and strifes, it is essential\nto make observation of the motions of the planets, as exhibited by\neach nativity; that is to say, the times are to be calculated, on the\ncompletion of which the motions of the planets of one nativity will\ncause them to enter on certain places of the other nativity; for it is\nat such periods that certain particular friendships and enmities occur,\ncontinuing for a short time, until the said ingress of the planets\nshall have passed over.\n\nFor instance, Saturn and Jupiter, when making ingress upon each other\u2019s\nplaces, produce friendship by certain agreements, or engagements,\nrelating either to agriculture or to inheritance: Saturn and Mars\ncreate contention and treachery spontaneously entertained: Saturn and\nVenus, friendship between kindred; liable, however, soon to grow cool:\nSaturn and Mercury, friendship on account of business, or profit, or\nsome secret art or mystery.\n\nJupiter and Mars create friendship in the direction of affairs, and\nby means of dignities; Jupiter and Venus also create friendship by\nmeans of female persons, or attendants on religion, or on oracles:\nJupiter and Mercury, friendship by means of eloquence and science, and\nphilosophical inclinations.\n\nMars and Venus cause friendship in the course of amours, adultery, and\nfornication: Mars and Mercury excite hatred and strife by offences\ncommitted in business and trade, or by sorcery.\n\nAnd Venus and Mercury produce communion by means of the arts and\nsciences, by a mutual interest in literature, or by female persons.\n\nIt is in this manner that the planets operate in producing friendship\nor enmity. And their comparative intensity or relaxation of vigour is\nto be distinguished by the situation of the places, which they occupy,\nwith regard to the four principal and ruling places[256]: for, should\nthey be posited in angles, at the places of the respective parts of\nFortune, or at those of the luminaries, they will render the casual\nintimacies or strifes more eminent and remarkable; but, if they be\nremote from these places, their effects will not be highly conspicuous.\nThe comparative degree of injury or advantage, liable to be received,\nis to be discerned by means of the good or evil properties of such\nplanets as may be thus in aspect to the aforesaid places.\n\nWith respect to servants,[257] the sign of the evil d\u00e6mon[258] is\nconsidered as the place to which the disposition ruling over them must\nbe referred; and it is to be observed what planets are in aspect to\nthat place, both at the actual time of nativity, and at that of any\ningresses made upon it, or oppositions to it; and also, especially,\nwhether the lords of the said sign may be configurated in familiarity\nwith the ruling places of the nativity, or not in familiarity.\n\n[256] Those of the Sun, Moon, Ascendant, and part of Fortune, as before\nmentioned.\n\n[257] \u201c\u2014and the attachment, or disagreement, subsisting between them\nand their masters\u201d;\u2014so Allatius, and the Latin translation printed at\nPerugio.\n\n[258] The twelfth house.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII\n\nTRAVELLING\n\n\nThe circumstances indicative of travel are to be considered by means of\nthe situation held by both the luminaries, in respect to the angles,\nand especially, by means of that held by the Moon. For, should she be\ndescending, or cadent from the angles, she will cause journeys and\nchanges of residence: Mars, also, if descending, or cadent from the\nzenith, will sometimes do the same, provided he may occupy a situation\nin quartile, or in opposition to the luminaries. And, if the part\nof Fortune, also, should happen to be placed in signs which produce\ntravelling, the course and practice of the whole life will be engaged\nin foreign lands. And further, provided the benefics superintend the\naforesaid places, or ascend in succession to them, the engagements\nabroad will be honourable and lucrative, and the return home speedy\nand unobstructed: but if, on the contrary, the malefics superintend or\nascend in succession to those places, the journey outward will then\nlead to peril and misfortune, and the return will be replete with\ndifficulty. But it is, at the same time, necessary in all cases to\nconsider the contemperament also, and to observe such of the existing\nconfigurations as are more predominant.\n\nIt most usually happens, that, if the luminaries be posited in the\ncadent houses of the oriental quadrants, the travel will take place in\nthe eastern or southern quarters of the world; and that, if placed in\nwestern situations, or in an occidental quadrant, travel will be then\nprosecuted in the northern or western parts. And, should the signs,\nwhich operate travel, be themselves single in form, or should the\nplanets, having dominion of them, be singly posited, the journeys will\nthen take place after long intervals, and occasionally only: but, if\nthe said signs be bicorporeal, or double in form or figure, travel will\nbe constantly repeated and continued.\n\nThus, when Jupiter and Venus may be in dominion over the luminaries,\nand over the places producing travel, they will render the journeys\nagreeable, as well as free from danger: for the traveller will be\njoyfully forwarded on his way by the magistrates of the country, and\nby the concurrent assistance of friendly persons; the state of the\natmosphere will also be favourable, and he will meet with abundance of\naccommodation. And, provided Mercury also be present with the planets\nabove specified, utility, profit, presents and honours will likewise be\nderived from the journey.\n\nSaturn and Mars, if controlling the luminaries, and, especially, if\nplaced distant from each other,[259] will produce great dangers, and\nat the same time render the journey fruitless and unavailing. Should\nthey be in watery signs, the dangers will arise by shipwreck, or among\ndeserts and wilderness[260]; if in fixed signs, by precipices, and\nadverse blasts of wind; in tropical and equinoctial signs, by want\nof food and other necessaries, and by some unwholesome state of the\natmosphere; in signs of human form, by robbery, treachery, and various\ndepredations; and, if in terrestrial signs, by the attack of wild\nbeasts, or from earthquakes. And, should Mercury also lend concurrence,\nthe traveller will incur further danger from accusations made against\nhim, as well as from reptiles and venomous stings or bites.\n\nThe question, whether the events will be advantageous or injurious in\nquality, must, however, be further considered by observation (made in\nthe forms already detailed), of the peculiar properties of the places,\nin which the lords of employment, of wealth, of the body, or of rank,\nmay be posited. And the periods, at which travelling will take place,\nare to be considered by the occasional ingress of the five planets.[261]\n\n[259] The probable meaning is, \u201cif not acting in concert\u201d: but the\nLatin of Perugio says, \u201c_si sint oppositi secundum longitudinem_.\u201d\n\n[260] There seems a misprint here in the original: \u03b4\u03c5\u03c3\u03c9\u03b4\u03b9\u03c9\u03bd, \u201cfoul\nvapours,\u201d instead of \u03b4\u03c5\u03c3\u03bf\u03b4\u03c9\u03bd, \u201cwildernesses.\u201d\n\n[261] On the places indicative of travelling.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX\n\nTHE KIND OF DEATH\n\n\nIt now remains to treat of the kind and species of death. It is,\nhowever, first to be determined, by the rules already delivered\nregarding the duration of life,[262] whether death will ensue from an\noriental or occidental position of the predominating influence. And, if\ndeath ensue from some oriental position, or meeting of rays, the place\nof such meeting must be observed, and by means of that place the kind\nof death is to be distinguished; if from the descension, or setting,\nof the significator, or prorogator, the place of descension[263]\nmust be considered: because death is to be expected conformable in\ncharacter to the influences, whatever they may be, which preside over\nthe said places; or, if not any influences should directly preside, it\nwill then be conformable to the influences, of whatever kind, which\nmay be brought first in succession to the places in question: the\nconfiguration of the stars, the property of the aforesaid an\u00e6retic\nplaces, and the nature of the signs and of the terms,[264] are, also,\nall of them co-operative.\n\n[262] _Vide_ the 14th Chapter of the 3rd Book; on the number of the\nmodes of prorogation.\n\n[263] That is to say, the sign and degree on the occidental horizon.\n\n[264] See a subsequent note, p. 135, which gives an instance of the\nmode in which Placidus applied the power of the terms, in an an\u00e6retic\ndirection.\n\nThus, for example, if the dominion of death be vested in Saturn, he\nwill produce death by means of lingering diseases; cough, rheumatism,\nflux, ague, disorder of the spleen, dropsy, colic, and complaints in\nthe womb; and, in short, by all such diseases as proceed from the\nsuperabundance of cold.\n\nJupiter effects death by quinsey, inflammation of the lungs, apoplexy,\nspasm, pains in the head, morbid performance of the heart, and by all\ndiseases arising from the superabundance of air, and from immoderate\nand impure respiration.\n\nMars causes death by constant fevers, semitertians, sudden and\nspontaneous wounds, diseases of the kidneys, expectoration of blood,\nand h\u00e6morrhages of various kinds; by miscarriage, or abortion, and by\nchildbirth, by erysipelas, and, in short, by such diseases as proceed\nfrom abundant and immediate heat.\n\nVenus produces death by disorders of the stomach, and of the liver, by\nscurvy and dysentry: also by consumption or wasting away,[265] and by\nfistula and poison, and by all diseases incident on the superabundance\nor poverty of moisture, and its corruption.\n\nLastly, Mercury causes death to proceed from fury, madness, melancholy,\nepilepsy, falling fits, coughs, and obstructions, and by such diseases\nas arise from superabundant or disproportionate dryness.\n\nWhen the lords of death may fully possess their own peculiar and\nnatural properties, and when neither of the malefics may be in\nelevation above them, death will ensue in the modes above detailed,\nand in the ordinary course of nature. But a violent and remarkable\ndeath will occur when both the malefics, either in conjunction, or in\nquartile or opposition to each other, may be lords of the an\u00e6retic\nplaces; or if both, or only one of the two, should attack either both\nthe luminaries, or even only the Sun or the Moon. In such a case, the\nevil character of the death will proceed from the concurrence of the\nmalefic influence, and its magnitude or remarkable nature from the\nadditional testimony of the luminaries: its quality, also, will be\nknown by means of the rest of the planets and stars in configuration,\nand by the signs which contain the malefic influence.[266]\n\n[265] \u0394\u03b9\u03b1 \u03c3\u03b7\u03c8\u03b5\u03c9\u03bd. Perhaps more properly, putridity or rottenness. The\nPerugio Latin translation renders it by \u201ccancer.\u201d\n\n[266] Placidus, in treating of the nativity of Lewis, Cardinal Zachia,\nuses these words: \u201cThis example also teaches us what the sentiments\nof Ptolemy were concerning a violent death; when, in a peremptory\nplace, both the enemies meet together, it is to be understood, that\nin the nativity the violence is sometimes first pre-ordained from the\nunfortunate position of the Apheta; at other times quite the contrary.\nBut, because the direct direction happened to be in the terms of\nMercury, the sickness was attended with a delirium and lethargy, so\nthat you may perceive this to have been the true cause of the native\u2019s\ndeath.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s Translation, pp. 198, 199.)\n\nHence, if it happen that Saturn be in fixed signs, and in quartile\nor opposition to the Sun, and contrary in condition, he will produce\ndeath by suffocation, occasioned either by multitudes of people, or\nby hanging or strangulation: so, likewise, should he be occidental,\nand the Moon be succedent to him, he will operate the same effects. If\nhe be posited in places or signs of bestial form, the native will be\ndestroyed by wild beasts: and, if Jupiter also offer testimony, being\nat the same time badly afflicted, the death will then occur in public,\nand by day; for example, by being exposed to combats with wild beasts.\nIf Saturn be posited in opposition to either of the luminaries in the\nascendant,[267] he will cause death in prison: if he be configurated\nwith Mercury, and especially if near the constellation of the Serpent\nin the sphere, and in terrestrial signs of the zodiac, he will produce\ndeath by venomous wounds or bites, and by reptiles and wild beasts.\nAnd, should Venus also attach herself to Saturn and Mercury thus\ncombined, death will then ensue by poison or female treachery. If\nSaturn be in Virgo or Pisces, or watery signs, and configurated with\nthe Moon, he will operate death by means of water, by drowning and\nsuffocation; and, if found near Argo, by shipwreck. Should he be in\ntropical or quadrupedal signs, and the Sun be either in conjunction\nwith him, or in opposition; or if, instead of the Sun, Mars should\nso present himself, death will be caused by the fall of houses or\nbuildings; and, if posited in the mid-heaven, death will happen by\nfalls from heights or precipices. These are the various effects of\nSaturn, when configurated as described.\n\n[267] \u0395\u03b9\u03b4\u03b5 \u03b1\u03bd\u03b8\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03ba\u03bf\u03c0\u03b7\u03c3\u03b5\u03b9 \u03c0\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03bf\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd \u03b4\u03b7\u03c0\u03bf\u03c4\u03b5 \u03c4\u03c9\u03bd \u03c6\u03c9\u03c4\u03c9\u03bd: which Allatius has\ntranslated, \u201cif he should be in the ascendant opposed to either of the\nluminaries\u201d (_si in horoscopo alteri luminum opponatur_); but the Latin\ncopy of Basle, 1541, as well as that of Perugio, 1646, give the passage\nas now rendered. And it appears in a subsequent place, p. 201 (where\nthe word \u03b1\u03bd\u03b8\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03ba\u03bf\u03c0\u03c9\u03bd occurs), that it can only be properly translated\n\u201c_in opposition to the ascendant_.\u201d\n\nMars, if in signs of human form, and posited in quartile or in\nopposition to the Sun or Moon, and contrary in condition, will operate\ndeath by slaughter, either in civil or foreign war, or by suicide:\nif Venus add her testimony, death will be inflicted by women, or by\nassassins in the employment of women: and, should Mercury also be\nconfigurated with them, death will happen from robbers, thieves, or\nhighwaymen. If Mars be in mutilated or imperfect signs, or near the\nGorgon[268] of Perseus, he will produce death by decapitation, or\nby mutilation of limb. If found in Scorpio or Taurus, he will cause\ndeath by surgical amputation, burning or searing, or also by spasms\nor convulsions. Should he be found in the mid-heaven, either above or\nbelow the earth, death will be inflicted by crucifixion or impalement,\nand especially if he be in the vicinity of Cepheus or Andromeda. If\ndescending, or in opposition to the ascendant,[269] he will produce\ndeath by fire: and, if in quadrupedal signs, by falls and fractures.\nShould Jupiter, however, bear testimony to Mars, and be at the same\ntime afflicted, death will ensue from the wrath of princes and kings,\nand from judicial condemnation.\n\nIf it happen that the malefics be in concurrence with each other in\nthe first instance, and afterwards in mutual opposition, in any of\nthe aforesaid situations, the evil character of the death will be yet\nfurther augmented; but its species or quality, and its dominion, will\ndepend upon that one which may be in occupation of the an\u00e6retic place.\nAnd, if both the malefics claim prerogative in the an\u00e6retic places, the\nbodies of persons who thus die will be cast abroad without interment,\nand will be devoured by beasts and birds: these circumstances will\nespecially ensue, when the malefics may be found in signs similar in\nform to beasts and birds; and provided not any one of the benefics\nshould offer testimony to the place below the earth,[270] nor to the\nan\u00e6retic places.\n\n[268] Caput Medus\u00e6.\n\n[269] \u0391\u03bd\u03b8\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c3\u03ba\u03bf\u03c0\u03c9\u03bd. _Vide_ note \u00b3 in p. 135.\n\n[270] That is to say, the lower heaven, or imum-c\u0153li. Whalley has\ntranslated it, \u201c_above_ the earth,\u201d instead of \u201c_below_\u201d; mistaking \u03bd\u03c0\u03bf\nfor \u03bd\u03c0\u03b5\u03c1.\n\nLastly, death will occur in foreign lands, when it may happen that\nthe planets controlling the an\u00e6retic places may be posited in cadent\nhouses; especially if the Moon be present in the said places also, or\nif she be found in quartile or in opposition.[271]\n\n[271] On this chapter Whalley makes the following annotations:\n\u201cOne direction, how malevolent soever, rarely kills; and, in most\nnativities, there is required a train of malevolent directions to\nconcur to death: where several malevolent directions concur so\ntogether, without the aid of intervenings of the benevolents, they fail\nnot to destroy life.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn such trains of directions, the author here distinguisheth between\nthe killing planet and the causer of the quality of death; for one\nplanet doth not give both. The foremost of the malevolent train is\nthe killing place, and shows the time of death; but the following\ndirections, though benevolent, show the quality. If the train fall\naltogether, and none follow, for the quality observe those which\nprecede, though at a distance and benevolent also; for, though the\nbenevolent contribute to the preservation of life, yet they frequently\nspecify the disease which is the cause of death. And with these, our\nauthor tells us, concur the configurating stars, the quality of the\nstars and signs, and the terms in which the lords happen. In violent\ndeaths, the genethliacal positions of the lights are to be observed,\nand how the malefics affect them, and (_how they_) are also concerned\nby directions in the quality or death.\u201d See also Chap. XIV, Book II.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X\n\nTHE PERIODICAL DIVISIONS OF TIME\n\n\nIn addition to the foregoing brief observations, applicable to the\nvarious forms of death, further attention is demanded with respect to\nthe division of time, which requires to be contemplated in its natural\norder and succession.\n\nNow as, in all genethlialogical cases, a certain common and general\narrangement, affecting the region or country and the race or\ngeneration, is pre-supposed to be in operation, to which arrangement\nparticular inferences, relating to the form of the body, the properties\nof the mind, and national habits and variations, must each be\nsubservient; and as, in these respects, certain causes more general and\npredominating are pre-supposed in existence before particular causes,\ndue care must consequently be taken, in order to make an inference\nconsistent with the course of nature, to observe always the original\nand predominating cause, and never to lose sight of it; lest some\nsimilarity in nativities (if any such should exist) might induce an\nassertion when the original predominating cause proceeding from the\nregion itself has been overlooked, that the native of \u00c6thiopia will\nbe born of white complexion, and with long and straight hair; or, on\nthe other hand, that the native of Germany or of Gaul will be black\nin complexion, and have curled hair; or, that the said nations are\npolished in manners, and cultivate learning, but that the people of\nGreece are barbarous and illiterate: and so, in short, of any other\ncountries; without duly considering the national differences and\nvariations in their several courses of life. So also, with regard\nto the division of time, it is in the same manner essential to\nconsider the different qualities of the several ages of life, and to\npre-determine the appropriate fitness of every age to such events as\nmay be expected: in order to avoid the gross error which might arise\nfrom a merely vague consideration of the subject, by attributing\nto infancy some deed or circumstance of too complete a nature and\nbelonging rather to manhood, or by ascribing to extreme old age the\nprocreation of children, or some other action belonging to youth; and\nto adapt, on the contrary, to each separate age such circumstances as\nseem, by due observation of the periods, to be suitable and appropriate\nthereto.\n\nThe mode of consideration[272] applicable to human nature is\nuniversally one and the same; and it is analogous to the arrangement\nof the seven planetary orbs.[273] It, therefore, duly commences with\nthe first age of human life, and the first sphere next above the earth,\nthat of the Moon; and it terminates with the final age of man, and the\nlast of the planetary spheres, which is that of Saturn; and, in fact,\nit accordingly happens that the appropriate qualities of each sphere\ntake effect in a corresponding age of life, each age being subjected to\none particular sphere. These observations are necessary, because the\ngeneral divisions of time must be considered by means of the spheres,\nas a primary arrangement; although minor distinctions are to be made by\nmeans of the existing peculiarities found in nativities.\n\n[272] With respect to the periodical divisions of time.\n\n[273] It will, of course, be remembered, that the Sun, in the Ptolemaic\nastronomy, is counted as a planetary orb.\n\nHence, the first age of infancy, which endures for four years, agreeing\nin number with the quadrennial period of the Moon, is consequently\nadapted to her; being in its nature moist and incompact, presenting\nrapidity of growth, being nourished by moist things, and possessing\na highly variable habit. Its mental incompleteness is likewise in\naccordance with its familiar relation to the Moon, and her operative\ninfluence.\n\nThe age after this continues for ten years, and accommodates itself to\nthe second sphere, that of Mercury. In this period, the intellectual\nand reasoning faculties of the mind begin to take their character,\nimbibing the seeds of learning, and developing, as it were, the\nelements and germs of the genius and abilities, and their peculiar\nquality. The mind is also roused to discipline and instruction, and to\nits first exercises.\n\nVenus corresponds with the next and third age, which lasts throughout\nthe following eight years, the number of her own period: from her, the\nmovement of the seminal vessels originates, as well as an unrestrained\nimpetuosity and precipitancy in amours.\n\nThe fourth and adult age next succeeds, and is subject to the fourth\nsphere, that of the Sun: it endures for nineteen years, according to\nthe Sun\u2019s number. Authority of action now commences in the mind, the\ncareer of life is entered upon, distinction and glory are desired, and\npuerile irregularities are relinquished for more orderly conduct, and\nthe pursuit of honour.\n\nMars, next after the Sun, claims the fifth age, that of manhood,\nagreeing in duration with his own period, viz. fifteen years. He\ninduces greater austerity of life, together with vexation, care, and\ntrouble.\n\nJupiter occupies the sixth sphere, and influences the maturer age,\nduring the twelve years corresponding to his own period. He operates\nthe relinquishment of labour, of hazardous employment and tumult, and\nproduces greater gravity, foresight, prudence, and sagacity, favouring\nthe claim to honour, respect, and privilege.\n\nSaturn, moving in the last sphere, regulates the final old age, as\nagreeing with its chilliness. He obstructs the mental movements,\nthe appetites and enjoyments; rendering them imbecile and dull, in\nconformity with the dullness of his own motion.\n\nThe common properties attributable to the various times of life are\nsubject, in a general manner, to this previous adaptation; but there\nare particular periods, arising from the respective peculiarities of\nnativities, which also require determination, and must be ascertained\nfrom the ruling prorogations; that is to say, from the whole of them,\nand not from any single one only, as in the case of the duration\nof life. For example, prorogation made from the ascendant is to be\napplied to events affecting the body, and to travelling, or change\nof residence; that from the part of Fortune, to incidents affecting\nthe substance or wealth; that from the Moon, to actions of the\nmind, and to communion[274] and cohabitation; that from the Sun, to\ndignities and glory; and that from the mid-heaven, to other particular\ncircumstances of life, such as employment, friendship, and the\npossession of children. So that thus, at one and the same time any\nsingle planet, whether benefic or malefic, will not possess the sole\ndominion; for many conflicting events frequently occur at the same\nperiod, and a person may, at one and the same time, lose a kinsman,\nyet inherit his substance; or be at once ill in health, yet prosperous\nand advantageously established in regard to fortune; or be struggling\nwith adversity and in want, yet, notwithstanding, be also a father\nand beget children; or he may experience other similar contrarieties:\nbecause individuals are subject to occurrences which may affect either\nthe body, the mind, the rank, or the condition of wealth, and which are\nnot altogether fortunate or unfortunate at the same period. Something\nof the kind will, however, frequently happen in cases of perfect good\nfortune or distress, when meetings of all the benefics or malefics may\nconcur in all or most of the prorogations. Still such cases are but\nrare, because human nature in general is not subjected to the extremity\neither of good or evil, but rather to their moderate alteration and\ncounter-change.\n\n[274] The Latin copy of Basle, 1541, says, \u201cto marriages.\u201d\n\nThe prorogatory places must, therefore, be separately distinguished in\nthe mode before pointed out; and the planets meeting the prorogations\nmust again be all taken into consideration: not only those which may be\nan\u00e6retic (as in the case of the duration of life), nor those only which\nmay be configurated bodily,[275] or in opposition or quartile, but also\nthose in trine or sextile. And, first, the times in each prorogation\nwill be governed by the planet occupying or configurated with the\nactual prorogatory degree itself: if, however, there be found no planet\nthus constituted, the nearest preceding planet will govern the times\nuntil another, which may be in aspect to the degree following in the\norder of the signs, shall take them; and this one, again, will do the\nsame until the next in succession shall take them.[276] The like rule\nobtains with respect to any other planets received into dominion, and\nwith respect to those in occupation of the terms.\n\nFurther, in prorogations of the ascendant, the degrees of distances\nwill be equal in number to the ascensional times of the particular\nlatitude; but, in prorogation, from the mid-heaven, to the times of\nculmination; and, in other prorogations, they will be in proportion to\nthe ascensions, or descensions, or culminations, and will depend on\ntheir proximity to the angles; as has been already said in treating of\nthe duration of life.[277]\n\n[275] \u201c_Bodily_,\u201d or in conjunction.\n\n[276] On this passage, Whalley remarks, \u201cwe are to observe in\ndirection, that the star in exact ray with the prorogator shall be\nruler until the prorogator meets another ray; that then the planet\nwhose ray it is shall take the dominion, and so on. But if no planet\naspect the hyleg (prorogator) exactly, that which casts its rays before\nthe prorogator is to be taken for ruler of the time, till another\nplanet\u2019s ray comes in by direction. And the lord of the term, in\nwhich the direction falls, must be considered as a co-partner in this\ndominion.\u201d\n\n[277] _Vide_ Chap. XIV, Book 3.\n\nThe arbiters of general times are to be determined by the foregoing\nmethod; but arbiters of annual periods as follows: viz. after\nthe number of years which have elapsed since the birth has been\nascertained, the amount is to be projected from each place of\nprorogation, in the succession of the signs, at the rate of one sign\nfor a year,[278] and the lord of the last sign[279] is to be assumed\nas arbiter. And, with regard to periods reckoned by months, the same\nrule is to be observed: for in this case also, the number of the month,\nas counted from the month of the nativity, is to be projected from\nsuch places as possess the dominion of the year, in the proportion\nof twenty-eight days per sign. So, likewise, in the case of periods\nreckoned by days, the number of the day, counted from the day of birth,\nmust be projected from the monthly places of dominion, allowing for\neach sign two days and a third.[280]\n\n[278] The Greek is simply \u03b5\u03b9\u03c2 \u03c4\u03b1 \u03b5\u03c0\u03bf\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03b1 \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03b1 \u03be\u03c9\u03b4\u03b9\u03bf\u03bd; but the context\nproves that the entire meaning must be as now given, although the Latin\ntranslation of Perugio renders it \u201cone year to each degree.\u201d Whalley\nexplains that by annual periods \u201cthe author intends profections: for\nthe taking of which, for every year from the birth, add one sign to\nthe sign in which the aphetics are at birth, and the sign which ends\nat the year desired is the sign profectional for that year, and the\nlord of that sign is chronocrator (arbitor) for that year; so far as\nthe degrees of that sign reach.\u201d For example, if a prorogator at birth\nbe in 15\u00b0 of Gemini, to 15\u00b0 of Cancer serves the first year; but the\nfirst six months are ruled by Mercury, and the last six by the Moon and\nJupiter; and so on.\n\n[279] The Latin translation of Basle, 1541, says, \u201cthe lord of that\nsign in which the number shall terminate.\u201d\n\n[280] Whalley says here, \u201clet a sign be added for each month to the\nsign of the year. So, in the example before proposed, the last 15\u00b0 of\nGemini, and the first 15\u00b0 of Cancer, shall serve for the first month:\nthe last 15\u00b0 of Cancer and the first 15\u00b0 of Leo, for the second month;\nand so on. And for days, from 15\u00b0 of Gemini to 15\u00b0 of Cancer, rules two\ndays and eight hours after birth, &c.\u201d\n\nPlacidus is of opinion, \u201cthat Ptolemy, speaking of annual places, is\nto be understood of the places of secondary directions; and that when\nhe speaks of the menstrual, he hints at the places of progressions.\u201d\n(Cooper\u2019s Translation, pp. 25 and 57.)\n\nIt is, however, necessary to notice the ingresses made on places\nallotted to different periods; for they take effect in no small degree\non the events of the period. Thus, the ingresses made by Saturn, on\nplaces of general periods, require special observation; those made by\nJupiter, on places of annual periods; those made by the Sun, Mars,\nVenus, and Mercury, on monthly places; and the Moon\u2019s transit over\ndaily places. It must also be remembered, that arbiters of general\nperiods are chiefly paramount over the events; and that, to their\ninfluence, the arbiters of particular periods (each of whom acting by\nits own proper nature) present either co-operation or obstruction; and\nthat the ingresses also operate on events, by increasing or diminishing\ntheir force and extent.[281]\n\n[281] Placidus says, that \u201cactive ingresses, if they be similar, to\nthe pre-ordained effects, cause them to influence; if dissimilar, they\neither diminish or retard; as Ptolemy has it in the last Chapter of\nBook IV.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 27.)\n\nThe general characteristic property, and the duration of the period,\nwill be indicated by the place of prorogation, as also by the lord of\nthe general times, and by the planet in possession of the terms; by\nmeans of the familiarity subsisting, from the actual birth, between\neach planet, and the places of which they may have respectively\nand originally taken dominion. The arbiters of time will also give\nindication whether the event will be good or evil, by means of their\nown naturally benefic or malefic property and temperament, and by their\noriginal familiarity or variance with the place of which they have\nbecome lords. But the period, at which the event will become more\nstrongly evident, is shown by the relative positions of the annual and\nmonthly signs towards the places wherein the causes exist, and also by\nthe ingresses of the planets.[282]\n\nThe mode in which the Sun and Moon may be disposed, in reference to\nthe signs relating to annual and monthly periods, is also indicative.\nFor example, should they, from the date of the nativity, be posited in\nconcord with the operative places, and keep a position of concord at\nthe ingresses, they will produce good; but, if adversely posited, evil.\nAnd also, if they be not in concord with the said places, and provided\nthey be contrary in condition, and in opposition or in quartile, to\nthe transits, they will cause evil: should they, however, not be\nin quartile, nor in opposition, but otherwise configurated, their\ninfluence then will not be equally malefic.\n\nShould it happen that the same planets may be lords of the times,[283]\nas well as of the ingresses, the effect will be extreme and unalloyed,\nif of a favourable nature; and more particularly unmitigated, if\nevil. And should the said planets be not only lords of the times, but\nlikewise hold dominion from the date of the nativity, and provided\nalso that all the prorogations, or most of them, should tend to, or\ndepend on, one and the same place, or, should the prorogations not be\nso constituted, yet notwithstanding, if the meetings occurring at the\nperiods be found to be either all, or most of them, benefic or malefic,\nthey will wholly produce, in all respects, good or evil fortune,\nrespectively.\n\nIt is in this method, which preserves a natural order and succession,\nthat times and seasons require to be contemplated.\n\n[282] Placidus observes, that \u201cthe primary directions of the\nsignificators to their promittors, and the lords of the terms, Ptolemy\ncalls the General Arbiters of Times, because they pre-ordain the\ngeneral times of their effects; which, as its motion is slow and its\nperseverance long, discovers its effects after a very long time; that\nis, after months and years. In order that we may know, in this extent\nof time, on what particular month and day the effects appear, Ptolemy\nproposes these motions for observation, wherein, when the majority of\nthe causes agree together, then doubtless the effect is accomplished,\nor most clearly manifests itself.\u201d (Cooper\u2019s Translation, p. 109.) And\nhe says afterwards, in speaking of secondary directions, progressions,\ningresses, &c., \u201cthese subsequent motions of the causes demand our\ngreatest attention.\u201d (_Ibid._, p. 110.) In the Appendix to the same\nbook, at p. 438, the proper equation of time, or measurement of the\narcs of direction, is also treated of, in reference to the 16th canon\nof Placidus, which is as follows:\u2014\n\n\u201c_To equate the Arc of Direction._ Add the arc of direction to the\nright ascension of the natal Sun; look for this sum in the table\nof right ascensions under the ecliptic, and take the degree and\nminute of longitude corresponding with that sum; then, in the best\nephemeris, reckon in how many days and hours the Sun, from the day and\nhour of birth, has arrived at that degree and minute. The number of\ndays indicate as many years; every two hours over, reckon a month.\u201d\n(_Ibid._, p. 55.)\n\n[283] Whether general or annual.\n\nAnd now, in adverting to the scope allotted to this work in its\ncommencement, all further adaptation of the forms of events liable to\ntake effect at particular times will here be relinquished; because the\noperative influences which the stars exercise in all events, whether\ngeneral or particular, may be arranged in proper order, if care be\ntaken that the causes set forth by the Rules of Science, and the causes\narising from any existing commixture, be duly combined and blended\ntogether.\n\nTHE END\n\n\n\n\nAPPENDIX\n\n\nNO. I\n\nALMAGEST; BOOK VIII, CHAP. IV\n\n\nThe various constellations of the fixed stars having now been duly\ndescribed, their aspects remain to be investigated.\n\nIndependently of the steadfast and immutable aspects which the said\nstars preserve among themselves, either rectilinearly, or triangularly,\nor by other similar forms,[284] they have also certain aspects\nconsidered as referring exclusively to the planets and the Sun and\nMoon, or parts of the zodiac; certain others to the earth only; and\nothers, again, to the earth, the planets and the Sun and Moon, or parts\nof the zodiac, combined.\n\n[284] That is to say, by the opposition, trine, &c.\n\nWith regard to the planets only, and parts of the zodiac, aspects are\nproperly considered as made to them by the fixed stars, when the said\nplanets and fixed stars may be posited on one and the same of those\ncircles which are drawn through the poles of the zodiac; or, also, if\nthey be posited on different circles, provided a trinal or sextile\ndistance between them may be preserved; that is to say, a distance\nequal to a right angle and a third part more, or a distance equal to\ntwo-thirds of a right angle; and provided, also, that the fixed stars\nbe on such parts of the circle as are liable to be transited by any one\nof the planets. These parts are situated within the latitude of the\nzodiac, which circumscribes the planetary motions. And as far as the\nfive planets are concerned, the aspects of the fixed stars depend upon\nthe visible mutual conjunctions, or configurations, made in the forms\nabove prescribed; but, with respect to the Sun and Moon, they depend\non occultations, conjunctions, and succedent risings of the stars.\nOccultation is when a star becomes invisible by being carried under\nthe rays of the luminary; conjunction, when it is placed under the\nluminary\u2019s centre; and succedent rising, when it begins to reappear on\nissuing out beyond the rays.\n\nIn regard to the earth only, the aspects of the fixed stars are four in\nnumber, and are known by the common term of angles: to speak, however,\nmore particularly, they are the oriental horizon, the meridian or\nmid-heaven above the earth, the occidental horizon, and the meridian\nor mid-heaven below the earth. And in that part of the earth where\nthe equator is in the zenith, the whole of the fixed stars are found\nto rise and set, and to be above as well as below the earth, once in\neach revolution; because the situation of the poles of the equator,\nbeing in this manner on the plane of the horizon, thereby prevents the\nconstant visibility or invisibility of any one of the parallel circles.\nBut in other parts of the earth, where the pole of the equator is in\nthe zenith, the fixed stars can never set nor rise; because the equator\nitself is then on the plane of the horizon, and circumscribes the two\nhemispheres (which it thus creates, one above and the other below the\nearth) in such a manner, that in one revolution every star must twice\ntransit the meridian, some of them above, others below the earth. In\nother declinations, however, between these extreme positions of the\nequator, as just mentioned, there are certain of the circles always\nvisible, and others never visible; consequently, the stars intercepted\nbetween the first of such circles and the poles can neither rise not\nset, but must, in the course of one revolution, twice transit the\nmeridian; above the earth, if the said stars be on a circle always\nvisible; but below the earth, if on a circle never visible. The other\nstars, however, situated on the greater parallels, both rise and\nset, and are found in each revolution once on the meridian above the\nearth, and once on that below the earth. In all these cases, the time\noccupied in proceeding round from any angle to the same again, must\nbe everywhere equal in its duration, for it is marked by one sensible\nrevolution; and the time occupied in passing from either meridianal\nangle to the angle diametrically opposite, is also everywhere equal;\nbecause it is marked by the half of one revolution. So, also, the\npassage from either horizontal angle to its opposite angle is again\neffected in the same equal portion of time, wherever the equator may\nbe in the zenith, for it is then likewise marked by the half of an\nentire revolution; because on such a position of the equator, all the\nparallels are then divided, as well by the horizon as by the meridian,\ninto two equal parts. But in all other declinations, the time of\npassage of a semicircle above the earth is not equal to that of its\npassage below the earth, except only in the case of the equinoctial\ncircle itself, which, in an oblique sphere, is the only one divided\nby the horizon into two equal parts, all others (its parallels) being\nbisected into dissimilar and unequal arcs. It follows, accordingly,\nthat the time contained in the space between rising or setting, and\neither meridian, must be equal to the time between the _same_ meridian\nand rising and setting; because the meridian divides equally such\nportions of the parallels as are above or under the earth. But in\nproceeding in an _oblique_ sphere, from rising or setting to _either_\nmeridian, the time occupied must be unequal; and in a right sphere,\nequal, because the entire portions above the earth are, in a _right_\nsphere only, equal to those below the earth; whence, for instance, in a\nright sphere, whatever stars may be together on the meridian must also\nall rise and set together, until their progress becomes perceptible\nby the poles of the zodiac; while, on the other hand, in an oblique\nsphere, whatever stars may be together on the meridian can neither all\nrise together nor set together; for the more southern stars must always\nrise later than those which are more northern, and set earlier.[285]\n\n[285] On this side of the equator.\n\nThe aspects made by the fixed stars, in regard to the planets or parts\nof the zodiac, and the earth combined, are considered, in a general\nmanner, by the rising, or meridianal position, or setting of the same\nfixed stars in conjunction with any planet or part of the zodiac; but\ntheir aspects are properly distinguishable, by means of the Sun, in the\nnine following modes:\u2014\n\n1. The first is called matutine subsolar, when the star is found\ntogether with the Sun in the oriental horizon. Of this aspect, one\nspecies is called the oriental, invisible, and succedent rising; when\nthe star, at the commencement of its occultation, rises immediately\nafter the Sun: another is called the precise oriental co-rising; when\nthe star is found in partile conjunction with the Sun in the oriental\nhorizon: another is the oriental, precedent, and visible rising; when\nthe star, beginning to appear, rises before the Sun.\n\n2. The second aspect is termed matutine location in the mid-heaven;\nwhen the star is found on the meridian, either above or below the\nearth, while the Sun is on the oriental horizon. And of this aspect,\none species is called a succedent and oriental location in the\nmid-heaven, invisible; when, immediately after the Sun\u2019s rising, the\nstar shall be found on the meridian: another is the precise oriental\nlocation in the mid-heaven; when, exactly as the Sun rises, the star\nis at the same time on the meridian; another is the oriental precedent\nlocation in the mid-heaven; when the star first shall come to the\nmeridian above the earth, and the Sun may then immediately rise.\n\n3. The third, called matutine setting, is when the Sun may be actually\nin the oriental horizon, but the star in the occidental. One of the\nforms of this aspect is called the oriental, succedent setting,\ninvisible; when the star sets immediately after the Sun\u2019s rising:\nanother is the precise oriental co-setting, when the star sets at the\nmoment of the Sun\u2019s rising: another is the oriental, precedent, and\nvisible setting, when the Sun does not rise until immediately after the\nsetting of the star.\n\n4. The fourth aspect is named meridianal subsolar, and takes place\nwhen the Sun is actually on the meridian, but the star on the oriental\nhorizon. Of this, one is diurnal and invisible; when the star rises\nwhile the Sun is posited on the meridian above the earth: another is\nnocturnal and visible; when the star rises while the Sun is placed on\nthe meridian below the earth.\n\n5. The fifth is called meridianal location in the mid-heaven; when the\nSun, as well as the star, may be at the same time on the meridian. Of\nthis aspect, two sorts are diurnal and invisible; when the star is on\nthe meridian above the earth, together with the Sun, or on that below\nthe earth, diametrically opposite to the Sun. Two also are nocturnal,\nand of these, one is invisible; when the star is on the meridian under\nthe earth, together with the Sun: the other, however, is visible; when\nthe star is on the meridian above the earth, diametrically opposite to\nthe Sun.\n\n6. The sixth is meridianal setting; when the star is found on the\noccidental horizon, while the Sun is on the meridian. Of this, one\nspecies is diurnal and invisible; when the star sets while the Sun is\nabove the earth on the meridian: the other is nocturnal and visible;\nwhen the star sets while the Sun is on the meridian below the earth.\n\n7. The seventh aspect is called vespertine subsolar; when the star\nis found on the oriental horizon, while the Sun is posited on the\noccidental horizon. One form of this aspect is the vespertine succedent\nrising, visible; when the star rises immediately after sunset: another\nis the precise vespertine co-rising; when the star rises and the Sun\nsets at one and the same time: another is the precedent, vespertine\nrising, invisible; when the star rises immediately before the Sun sets.\n\n8. The eighth is named vespertine location in the mid-heaven; when\nthe star is on the meridian, either above or below the earth, while\nthe Sun is placed on the occidental horizon. Of this aspect, one kind\nis called a visible vespertine location in the mid-heaven; when the\nstar is found there immediately after sunset: another is the precise\nvespertine location in the mid-heaven; when the star is found there\nat the moment of sunset; another is the vespertine precedent location\nin the mid-heaven, invisible; when the star arrives there immediately\nbefore sunset.\n\n9. The ninth aspect is called vespertine setting; when the star,\ntogether with the Sun, is on the occidental horizon. One form of this\naspect is the vespertine, succedent and visible setting; when the star,\nat the commencement of its occultation, sets immediately after the Sun:\nanother is the precise vespertine setting; when the star sets at the\nsame moment with the Sun: another is the precedent, invisible setting;\nwhen the star, before it emerges from its occultation, sets before the\nSun.\n\n\nNO. II\n\nALMAGEST; BOOK II. EXTRACT FROM CHAP. IX\n\n_Of Circumstances regulated by Ascensions_\n\nIn any climate whatever, the magnitude of a given day or night is to be\ncomputed by the number of ascensional times proper to that particular\nclimate. For example, the magnitude of the day will be ascertained by\nnumbering the times between the Sun\u2019s zodiacal degree and the degree\ndiametrically opposite, in the succession of the signs; and that of the\nnight, by numbering the times, from the degree diametrically opposite\nto the Sun, onwards, in the order of the signs, to be the degree\nactually occupied by the Sun: because, by dividing the respective\namounts of these times so obtained, by fifteen, the number of\nequatorial hours belonging to each space will be exhibited; and if the\ndivision be made by twelve, instead of fifteen, the result will show\nthe numbers of degrees equivalent to one temporal hour of either of the\nsaid spaces respectively.[286]\n\nThe magnitude of any temporal hour may be, however, more easily found\nby referring to the annexed Table of Ascensions, and taking the\ndifference between the respective aggregate numbers, inserted therein\nunder the heads of the equinoctial parallel or right sphere, and of\nany particular climate for which the magnitude of the temporal hour is\nrequired; and, if the said hour be a diurnal hour, the aggregate times\nas stated against the zodiacal degree occupied by the Sun; but, if\nnocturnal, those stated against the degree diametrically opposite, are\nto be compared; and the sixth part of the difference between them is to\nbe added, if the said degree be in the northern signs, to the fifteen\ntimes of an equatorial hour; but subtracted therefrom, if in the\nsouthern signs. The amount thus obtained will be the required number of\ndegrees of the temporal hour in question.[287]\n\n[286] Thus (according to the Table inserted at p. 152), in the climate\nor latitude of Lower \u00c6gypt, the times of ascension between the first\npoint of Gemini and the first point of Sagittarius, diametrically\nopposite, are 205\u00b0 18\u2032, which, being divided by 15, give 13 hours 41\nminutes and a fraction of equatorial time, as the length of the day of\nthe first point of Gemini. And the same number of times of ascension,\ndivided by 12, give 17\u00b0 6\u2032 and a fraction of the equator, as the length\nof the diurnal temporal hour. In the latitude of Southern Britain, the\ntimes of ascension between the same points as above mentioned are 236\u00b0\n2\u2032, which, divided by 15, give 15 hours 44 minutes and a fraction of\nequatorial time, as the length of the day of the first point of Gemini;\nand, if divided by 12, they produce 19\u00b0 40\u2032 and a fraction of the\nequator, as the length of the diurnal temporal hour.\n\n[287] Thus, the aggregate times of ascension, in a right sphere, of\nthe first point of Gemini are 57\u00b0 44\u2032; and, in the climate of Lower\n\u00c6gypt, 45\u00b0 5\u2032: the sixth part of the difference between them is 2\u00b0 6\u2032\nand a fraction, which, added to 15\u00b0, again makes the diurnal temporal\nhour of the first point of Gemini equal to 17\u00b0 6\u2032 and a fraction of\nthe equator. In the climate of Southern Britain, the aggregate times\nof ascension of the first point of Gemini are 29\u00b0 43\u2032: the sixth part\nof the difference between that sum and 57\u00b0 44\u2032 of right ascension is\n4\u00b0 40\u2032 and a fraction, which, added to 15\u00b0, makes the diurnal temporal\nhour of the first point of Gemini, in South Britain, equal to 19\u00b0 40\u2032\nand a fraction of the equator, as before shown.\n\nAnd if it be required to reduce the temporal hours of any given day\nor night, in a certain climate, into equatorial hours, they must be\nmultiplied by their proper horary times, whether diurnal or nocturnal,\nas the case may be; the product is then to be divided by fifteen, and\nthe quotient will necessarily be the number of equatorial hours in the\nclimate in question, on the given day or night.[288] On the other hand,\nequatorial hours are also to be reduced into temporal hours by being\nmultiplied by fifteen, the product of which is to be divided by the\nhorary times proper to the given day or night in the said climate.\n\n[288] For example,\n\n Diurnal horary times of the first point of\n Gemini in the latitude of Alexandria 17\u00b0 6\u2032 30\u2033\n Number of temporal hours 12\n --------------\n 15)205 18 0\n --------------\n Diurnal equatorial hours of the first point of\n Gemini in the latitude of Alexandria 13 41 12\n ==============\n Diurnal horary times of the first point of\n Gemini in the latitude of Southern Britain 19\u00b0 40\u2032 10\u2033\n Number of temporal hours 12\n --------------\n 15)236 2 0\n --------------\n Diurnal equatorial hours of the first point of\n Gemini in the latitude of Southern Britain 15 44 8\n ==============\n\n\nThe degree ascending in the ecliptic, at any given temporal hour, may\nalso be ascertained by multiplying the number of temporal hours since\nsunrise, if the given hour be diurnal, but if nocturnal, since sunset,\nby their proper horary times; and the product is to be added, in the\nsuccession of the signs, to the aggregate number (as shown by the\nascensions proper to the climate) of the Sun\u2019s degree, if the given\nhour be diurnal, but, if nocturnal, to that of the degree diametrically\nopposite, and that particular degree of the ecliptic which shall\ncorrespond with the total number thus found in the ascensions of the\nclimate will be the degree then ascending.[289]\n\n[289] Let the first point of Gemini be on the meridian above the earth;\nthe number of temporal hours since sunrise will then be 6, by which 17\u00b0\n6\u2032 30\u2033 are to multiplied. The product will be 102\u00b0 39\u2032: this, added\nto 45\u00b0 5\u2032, the aggregate number of the first point of Gemini in the\nlatitude of Alexandria, will give 147\u00b0 44\u2032, which, in the ascensions\nof the climate in question, will correspond to the 3d degree of Virgo,\nand show that to be the degree ascending. In the latitude of Southern\nBritain the total number would still amount to the same, viz. 147\u00b0 44\u2032,\nbut it would show 7\u00b0 and about 30\u2032 of Virgo to be ascending.\n\nBut, in order to ascertain the degree on the meridian above the earth,\nthe number of temporal hours since the preceding noon are also to be\nmultiplied by their proper horary times, and the product is to be added\nto the aggregate number of the Sun\u2019s right ascension; and that degree\nof the ecliptic, with which the total number as found in the aggregate\ntimes of right ascension shall correspond, will then be on the\nmeridian.[290] The degree on the oriental horizon will, however, also\nshow what degrees occupy the meridian; for, by subtracting 90 times\n(the amount of the quadrant) from the aggregate number ascribed to the\nsaid ascending degree in the Table proper to the climate, the number\nso reduced will be found, in the aggregate times of the Table of Right\nAscension, to correspond with the degree on the meridian. And again, on\nthe other hand, by adding 90 to the aggregate times ascribed by right\nof ascension to the degree on the meridian above the earth, the degree\nascending may be obtained, for it will be that degree which corresponds\nto that total number, as stated in the Table proper to the climate.[291]\n\nThe Sun always preserves an equal distance in equatorial hours from all\nparts of the same meridian; but his distance in equatorial hours from\ndifferent meridians varies according to the degrees of distance between\nmeridian and meridian.\n\nThe foregoing extracts have been made to show the entire agreement\nbetween the astronomy of the Tetrabiblos and that of the Almagest. The\nTables herein given from the latter work are, of course, now, in some\ndegree, superseded by others of modern calculation, infinitely more\ncomplete.\n\n[290] Let the first point of Gemini be three temporal hours past\nthe meridian; these hours reduced to degrees, in the latitude of\nAlexandria, will give 51\u00b0 19\u2032, which, added to the right ascension of\nthe first point of Gemini, make 109\u00b0 3\u2032, showing the 18th degree of\nCancer on the meridian. In the latitude of Southern Britain, these\nhours would produce 59\u00b0, which, added to the right ascension, would\nmake 116\u00b0 44\u2032, and show the 25th degree of Cancer on the meridian.\n\n[291] Thus, in the latitude of Alexandria, when the first point of\nGemini is three temporal hours past the meridian, the 16th degree of\nLibra will be on the ascendant, and the aggregate times of ascension of\nthat degree in the said latitude are 109\u00b0 3\u2032: by subtracting 90 from\nthis sum, the remainder will be 19\u00b0 3\u2032, the right ascension of the\nmid-heaven answering to the 18th degree of Cancer. In the latitude of\nSouthern Britain, the 18th degree of Libra would be on the ascendant,\nof which degree the aggregate times of ascension in that latitude are\n206\u00b0 44\u2032, from which, if 90 be subtracted, the remainder will be 116\u00b0\n44\u2032, the right ascension of the mid-heaven answering to the 25th degree\nof Cancer. The converse of these operations seems too obvious to need\nexplanation.\n\nTABLE OF LATITUDES, AS SHOWN BY THE DURATION OF THE LONGEST DAY\n\n[From the Almagest.]\n\n ------------+--------------\n LONGEST DAY.| LATITUDE.\n ------------+--------------\n H. M. | D. M.\n ------------+--------------\n 12 0 | 0 0\n ------------+--------------\n 12 15 | 4 15\n ------------+--------------\n 12 30 | 8 25\n ------------+--------------\n 12 45 | 12 30\n ------------+--------------\n 13 0 | 16 27\n ------------+--------------\n 13 15 | 20 14\n ------------+--------------\n 13 30 | 23 51\n ------------+--------------\n 13 45 | 27 40\n ------------+--------------\n 14 0 |[292]30 22\n ------------+--------------\n 14 15 | 33 18\n ------------+--------------\n 14 30 | 36 0\n ------------+--------------\n 14 45 | 38 35\n ------------+--------------\n 15 0 | 40 56\n ------------+--------------\n 15 15 | 43 5\n ------------+--------------\n 15 30 | 45 1\n ------------+--------------\n 15 45 | 46 51\n ------------+--------------\n 16 0 | 48 32\n ------------+--------------\n 16 15 | 50 15\n ------------+--------------\n 16 30 |[293]51 35\n ------------+--------------\n 16 45 | 52 50\n ------------+--------------\n 17 0 | 54 1\n ------------+--------------\n 17 15 | 55 0\n ------------+--------------\n 17 30 | 56 0\n ------------+--------------\n 17 45 | 57 0\n ------------+--------------\n 18 0 | 58 0\n ------------+--------------\n 18 30 | 59 30\n ------------+--------------\n 19 0 | 61 0\n ------------+--------------\n 19 30 | 62 0\n ------------+--------------\n 20 0 | 63 0\n ------------+--------------\n 21 0 | 64 30\n ------------+--------------\n 22 0 | 65 30\n ------------+--------------\n 23 0 | 66 0\n ------------+--------------\n 24 0 | 66 10\n ------------+--------------\n\n [292] Alexandria.\n\n Footnote 293: Southern Britain.]\n\nEXTRACT FROM THE TABLE OF ASCENSION (CONTAINED IN THE ALMAGEST),\nCALCULATED FOR EVERY TENTH DEGREE OF THE ZODIAC.\n\n -----------+-----+----------------+----------------+----------------\n | | In a Right | 3rd Climate, | 8th Climate\n | |Sphere under the| thro\u2019 Lower | thro\u2019 Southern\n | | Equator, | \u00c6gypt, Lat. | Britain, Lat.\n | | Diurnal Arc | 30\u00b0 22\u2032 N. | 51\u00b0 30\u2032 N.\n SIGNS. |Tenth| 12 Hours. | Diurnal Arc | Diurnal Arc\n | Deg.| | 14 Hours. | 16 Hs. 20 Mts.\n | +------+---------+------+---------+------+---------\n | |Times |Aggregate|Times |Aggregate|Times |Aggregate\n | | of | Times. | of | Times. | of | Times.\n | |Ascen.| |Ascen.| |Ascen.|\n -----------+-----+------+---------+------+---------+------+---------\n | | D. M.| D. M. | D. M.| D. M. | D. M.| D. M.\n | | | | | | |\n Aries | 10 | 9.10| 9.10 | 6.48| 6.48 | 4.05| 4.05\n | 20 | 9.15| 18.25 | 6.55| 13.43 | 4.12| 8.17\n | 30 | 9.25| 27.50 | 7.10| 20.53 | 4.31| 12.48\n Taurus | 10 | 9.40| 37.30 | 7.33| 28.26 | 4.56| 17.44\n | 20 | 9.58| 47.28 | 8.02| 36.28 | 5.34| 23.18\n | 30 | 10.16| 57.44 | 8.37| 45.05 | 6.25| 29.43\n Gemini | 10 | 10.34| 68.18 | 9.17| 54.22 | 7.29| 37.12\n | 20 | 10.47| 79.05 | 10.00| 64.22 | 8.49| 46.01\n | 30 | 10.55| 90.00 | 10.38| 75.00 | 10.14| 56.15\n Cancer | 10 | 10.55| 100.55 | 11.12| 86.12 | 11.36| 67.51\n | 20 | 10.47| 111.42 | 11.34| 97.46 | 12.45| 80.36\n | 30 | 10.34| 122.16 | 11.51| 109.37 | 13.39| 94.15\n Leo | 10 | 10.16| 132.32 | 11.55| 121.32 | 14.07| 108.22\n | 20 | 9.58| 142.30 | 11.54| 133.26 | 14.22| 122.44\n | 30 | 9.40| 152.10 | 11.47| 145.13 | 14.24| 137.08\n Virgo | 10 | 9.25| 161.35 | 11.40| 156.53 | 14.19| 151.27\n | 20 | 9.15| 170.50 | 11.35| 168.28 | 14.18| 165.45\n | 30 | 9.10| 180.00 | 11.32| 180.00 | 14.15| 180.00\n Libra | 10 | 9.10| 189.10 | 11.32| 191.32 | 14.15| 194.15\n | 20 | 9.15| 198.25 | 11.35| 203.07 | 14.18| 208.33\n | 30 | 9.25| 207.50 | 11.40| 214.47 | 14.19| 222.52\n Scorpio | 10 | 9.40| 217.30 | 11.47| 226.34 | 14.24| 237.16\n | 20 | 9.58| 227.28 | 11.54| 238.28 | 14.22| 251.38\n | 30 | 10.16| 237.44 | 11.55| 250.23 | 14.07| 265.45\n Sagittarius| 10 | 10.34| 248.18 | 11.51| 262.14 | 13.39| 279.24\n | 20 | 10.47| 269.05 | 11.34| 273.48 | 12.45| 292.09\n | 30 | 10.55| 270.00 | 11.12| 285.00 | 11.36| 303.45\n Capricornus| 10 | 10.55| 280.55 | 10.38| 295.38 | 10.14| 313.59\n | 20 | 10.47| 291.42 | 10.00| 305.38 | 8.49| 322.48\n | 30 | 10.34| 302.16 | 9.17| 314.55 | 7.29| 330.17\n Aquarius | 10 | 10.16| 312.32 | 8.37| 323.32 | 6.25| 336.42\n | 20 | 9.58| 322.30 | 8.02| 331.34 | 5.34| 342.16\n | 30 | 9.40| 332.10 | 7.33| 339.07 | 4.56| 347.12\n Pisces | 10 | 9.25| 341.35 | 7.10| 346.17 | 4.31| 351.43\n | 20 | 9.15| 350.50 | 6.55| 353.12 | 4.12| 355.55\n | 30 | 9.10| 360.00 | 6.48| 360.00 | 4.05| 360.00\n -----------+-----+------+---------+------+---------+------+---------\n\n\nNO. III.\n\nTHE CENTILOQUY, OR HUNDRED APHORISMS OF CLAUDIUS PTOLEMY[294];\nOTHERWISE CALLED, THE FRUIT OF HIS FOUR BOOKS\n\n[294] Moxon\u2019s Mathematical Dictionary says, that the \u201cCentiloquium is a\nbook containing one hundred astrological aphorisms, commonly ascribed\nto Ptolemy, as its author, but by some to Hermes Trismegistus.\u201d This\naccount, however, seems to be inaccurate; for the Centiloquy attributed\nto Osiris\u2019s contemporary and counsellor (eulogized by Lilly as having\nbeen \u201cone of the wisest of all mortal men, and as ancient as Moses\u201d),\nis very different from that known by the name of the \u039a\u03b1\u03c1\u03c0\u03bf\u03c2, or \u201cFruit\nof the Tetrabiblos.\u201d Whether this latter Centiloquy be really the work\nof Ptolemy is another question: it has been usually edited as his, but\nsome of the aphorisms seem to relate to horary questions only, which\nare not adverted to in the Tetrabiblos, and there are others also which\ndo not appear to result from the doctrine of that book.\n\nI. Judgment must be regulated by thyself, as well as by the science;\nfor it is not possible that particular forms of events should be\ndeclared by any person, however scientific; since the understanding\nconceives only a certain general idea of some sensible event, and not\nits particular form. It is, therefore, necessary for him who practices\nherein to adopt inference. They only who are inspired by the deity can\npredict particulars.\n\nII. When an enquirer shall make mature search into an expected event,\nthere will be found no material difference between the event itself and\nhis idea of it.\n\nIII. Whosoever may be adapted to any particular event or pursuit, will\nassuredly have the star indicative thereof very potent in his nativity.\n\nIV. A mind apt in knowledge will discover truth more readily than one\npractised in the highest branches of science.\n\nV. A skilful person, acquainted with the nature of the stars, is\nenabled to avert many of their effects, and to prepare himself for\nthose effects before they arrive.\n\nVI. It is advantageous to make choice of days and hours at a time well\nconstituted by the nativity. Should the time be adverse, the choice\nwill in no respect avail, however favourable an issue it may chance to\npromise.\n\nVII. The mingled influences of the stars can be understood by no one\nwho has not previously acquired knowledge of the combinations and\nvarieties existing in nature.\n\nVIII. A sagacious mind improves the operation of the heavens, as a\nskilful farmer, by cultivation, improves nature.\n\nIX. In their generation and corruption forms are influenced by the\ncelestial forms, of which the framers of talismans consequently avail\nthemselves, by observing the ingresses of the stars thereupon.\n\nX. In the election of days and hours, make use of the malefics, to the\nsame moderate extent as the skilful physician would use poisons in\norder to perform cures.\n\nXI. A day and hour are not to be elected until the quality of the\nobject proposed shall be known.\n\nXII. Love and hatred prohibit the true accomplishment of judgments;\nand, inasmuch as they lessen the most important, so likewise they\nmagnify the most trivial things.\n\nXIII. In every indication made by the constitution of the heavens,\nsecondary stars, whether auxiliary or injurious thereto, are also to be\nused.\n\nXIV. The astrologer will be entangled in a labyrinth of error, when the\nseventh house and its lord shall be afflicted.\n\nXV. Signs cadent from the ascendant of any kingdom are the ascendants\nof that kingdom\u2019s enemies. But the angles and succedent houses are\nthe ascendants of its friends. It is the same in all doctrines and\ninstitutions.\n\nXVI. When the benefics may be controlled in the eighth house, they\nbring mischief by means of good men: if, on the other hand, they be\nwell affected, they will prevent mischief.\n\nXVII. Give no judgment as to the future life of an aged person, until\nthe number of years he may live shall have been reckoned.\n\nXVIII. If, while a benefic may ascend, both the luminaries should be in\nthe same minute,[295] the native will be equally and highly prosperous\nin all things which can befall him. So, likewise, if the luminaries be\nmutually opposed by the east and west. But the contrary effect will be\nproduced, should a malefic be on the ascendant.\n\n[295] Of the same degree and sign.\n\nXIX. The efficacy of purgation is impeded by the Moon\u2019s conjunction\nwith Jupiter.\n\nXX. Pierce not with iron that part of the body which may be governed by\nthe sign actually occupied by the Moon.\n\nXXI. When the Moon may be in Scorpio or Pisces, purgation may be\nadvantageously used, provided the lord of the ascendant be coupled with\nsome star posited below the earth. If he be coupled with a star placed\nabove the earth, the potion swallowed will be vomited up.\n\nXXII. Neither put on nor lay aside any garment for the first time, when\nthe Moon may be located in Leo. And it will be still worse to do so,\nshould she be badly affected.\n\nXXIII. Aspects between the Moon and stars give the native much\nactivity; and, if the stars be in power, they indicate an efficient,\nbut if weak an inert, excitation to action.\n\nXXIV. An eclipse of the luminaries, if in the angles of the nativity,\nor of an annual revolution, is noxious; and the effects take place\naccording to the space between the ascendant and the place of eclipse.\nAnd as, in a solar eclipse, a year is reckoned for an hour, so\nlikewise, in a lunar eclipse, a month is reckoned for an hour.\n\nXXV. The progression of a significator, posited in the mid-heaven, is\nto be made by right ascension; of another posited in the ascendant, by\nthe oblique ascension of the particular latitude.\n\nXXVI. There is obvious concealment in the case, if the star\nsignificative of any particular affair be in conjunction with the Sun,\neither under the earth or in a place foreign to its own nature. On\nthe other hand, there is manifestation, should the star be raised to\nelevation out of its depression, and be located in its own place.\n\nXXVII. Venus gives pleasure to the native in that part of the body\nwhich may be ruled by the sign she occupies. It is the same with other\nstars.\n\nXXVIII. When the Moon may not hold a familiarity with two planets, as\nis desirable, care should be taken to connect her, if possible, with\nsome fixed star combining their qualities.\n\nXXIX. The fixed stars grant extremely good fortune, unconnected with\nthe understanding; but it is most commonly marked by calamities, unless\nthe planets also agree in the felicity.\n\nXXX. Observe the creation of the first king of any dynasty; for if\nthe ascendant at that creation should agree with the ascendant of the\nnativity of the king\u2019s son, he will succeed his father.\n\nXXXI. When the star ruling over any kingdom shall enter into a\nclimacterical place, either the king, or some one of the chief men of\nhis kingdom, will die.\n\nXXXII. Concord between two persons is produced by an harmonious\nfiguration of the stars, indicative of the matter whereby good will is\nconstituted, in the nativity of either person.\n\nXXXIII. Love and hatred are discernible, as well from the concord and\ndiscord of the luminaries, as from the ascendants of both nativities:\nbut obeying signs increase good will.\n\nXXXIV. If the lord of the place of the new Moon be in an angle, he is\nindicative of the events liable to happen in that month.\n\nXXXV. When the Sun arrives at the place of any star, he excites the\ninfluence of that star in the atmosphere.\n\nXXXVI. In the foundation of cities, consider the fixed stars which may\nseem to contribute thereto; but in the erection of houses, observe the\nplanets. The kings of every city which has Mars in culmination will\nmost commonly perish by the sword.\n\nXXXVII. If Virgo or Pisces be on the ascendant, the native will create\nhis own dignity; but if Aries or Libra is on the ascendant, he will\ncause his own death. The other signs are to be contemplated in the same\nway.\n\nXXXVIII. Mercury, if established in either house of Saturn, and in\npower, gives the native a speculative and inquisitive intellect: if in\na house of Mars, and especially if in Aries, he gives eloquence.\n\nXXXIX. Affliction of the eleventh house, in the creation of a king,\nindicates damage in his household and his treasury: affliction of the\nsecond house denotes the detriment of his subject\u2019s wealth.\n\nXL. When the ascendant is oppressed by the malefics, the native will\ndelight in sordid things, and approve ill-favoured odours.\n\nXLI. Beware the affliction of the eighth house and its lord, at a time\nof departure; and that of the second house and its lord, at a time of\nreturn.\n\nXLII. Should a disease begin when the Moon may be in a sign occupied\nat the birth by some malefic, or in quartile or opposition to any such\nsign, such disease will be most severe; and if the malefic also behold\nthe said sign, it will be dangerous. On the other hand, there will be\nno danger if the Moon be in a place held at the time of birth by some\nbenefic.\n\nXLIII. The malefic figures of a nation are strengthened by adverse\nfigurations of existing times.\n\nXLIV. It is an evil case if the ascendant of a sick person resist the\nfiguration of his own nativity; and if the time should not bring up any\nbenefic.\n\nXLV. If the ascendant, or principal significators, be not in human\nsigns, the native himself will be also estranged from human nature.\n\nXLVI. In nativities much happiness is conferred by the fixed stars; and\nalso by the angles of the new Moon, and by the place of a kingdom\u2019s\nPart of Fortune, should the ascendant be found in any of them.\n\nXLVII. If a malefic in one nativity fall on the place of a benefic in\nanother nativity, he who has the benefic will suffer damage from him\nwho has the malefic.\n\nXLVIII. If the mid-heaven of a prince be the ascendant of his subject,\nor if their respective significators be configurated in a benevolent\nform, they will continue long inseparable. It will be the same, also,\nshould the sixth house of a subject or servant be the ascendant of his\nprince or master.\n\nXLIX. If the ascendant of a servant be the mid-heaven in his master\u2019s\nnativity, the master will place so much confidence in that servant as\nto be ruled by him.\n\nL. Overlook none of the hundred and nineteen conjunctions; for on them\ndepends the knowledge of worldly operations, whether of generation or\nof corruption.\n\nLI. Make the sign occupied by the Moon at the time of birth the sign\nascending at the conception; and consider that in which she may be\nposited at the conception, or the opposite one, as the sign ascending\nat the birth.\n\nLII. Men of tall stature have their lords of nativity in elevation, and\ntheir ascendants in the beginnings of signs; but the lords of men of\nshort stature will be found in declination.[296] It must also be seen\nwhether the signs be right or oblique.\n\n[296] Or in obscure situations.\n\nLIII. The lords of nativity of slight or thin men have no latitude,\nbut those of stout or fat men have; and, if the latitude be south, the\nnative will be active; if north, inactive.\n\nLIV. In the construction of a building, the principal rulers, if\ncoupled with a star below the earth, will impede the erection.\n\nLV. Mars\u2019 evil influence over ships is diminished if he be neither in\nthe mid-heaven nor in the eleventh house; but if in either of those\nplaces, he renders the ship liable to be captured by pirates. And if\nthe ascendant be afflicted by any fixed star of the nature of Mars, the\nship will be burned.\n\nLVI. While the Moon is in her first quarter, withdrawing from her\nconjunction with the Sun, the bodily humours expand until her second\nquarter: in her other quarters they decrease.\n\nLVII. If, during a sickness, the seventh house and its lord be\nafflicted, change the physician.\n\nLVIII. Observe the place of an aspect, and its distance from the\nascendant of the year; for the event will happen when the profection\nmay arrive thither.\n\nLIX. Before pronouncing that an absent person shall die, observe\nwhether he may not become intoxicated; before declaring that he shall\nreceive a wound, see whether he may not be let blood; and before saying\nthat he shall find treasure, examine whether he may not receive his own\ndeposit; for the figures of all these things may be similar.\n\nLX. In cases of sickness, observe the critical days, and the Moon\u2019s\nprogress in the angles of a figure of sixteen sides. If those angles be\nwell affected, it is favourable for the invalid; if they be afflicted,\nunfavourable.\n\nLXI. The Moon is significative of bodily matters, which, in respect of\nmotion, resemble her.\n\nLXII. By marking exactly the beginning of a conjunction,[297] judgment\nmay be made of the variation of the weather in the ensuing month. It\nwill depend upon the lord of the angle of every figure, for he controls\nthe nature of the atmosphere; assuming also at these times the quality\nof the existing weather.\n\n[297] Of the Sun and Moon.\n\nLXIII. In the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter, pronounce according\nto the nature of that one which may be higher in elevation. Follow the\nsame rule with other stars.\n\nLXIV. After ascertaining the lord of the inquiry, see what power he may\nhave in the annual revolution, or in the ascendant of the new Moon; and\npronounce accordingly.\n\nLXV. In the least conjunction, the difference of the mean conjunction,\nand in the mean conjunction the difference of the greatest\nconjunction.[298]\n\n[298] On this aphorism Partridge has said, \u201chow Ptolemy meant it to be\nunderstood, I know not; and so I leave it.\u201d\n\nLXVI. Consider no profection by itself alone, but make reference also\nto the qualifications and impediments of the stars.\n\nLXVII. Years are diminished by the imbecility of the receiver.\n\nLXVIII. A malefic, when matutine, signifies an accident; when\nvespertine, a disease.\n\nLXIX. The native\u2019s sight will be impaired if the Moon be opposed to the\nSun, and joined with nebulous stars; and if the Moon be in the western\nangle, and both the malefic stars in the eastern angle, the Sun being\nin an angle also, the native will become blind.\n\nLXX. Insanity is produced if the Moon have no connection with Mercury;\nand, if neither of them be connected with the ascendant, Saturn being\nin occupation of the angle by night, but Mars by day, especially if in\nCancer, Virgo, or Pisces, a d\u00e6moniac affection will be produced.\n\nLXXI. If both luminaries may be in masculine signs, in the nativities\nof males, their actions will be consonant with nature; but if so placed\nin the nativities of females, they increase their action. And Mars and\nVenus, if matutine, incline to the masculine gender; if vespertine, to\nthe feminine.\n\nLXXII. Matters of education are to be considered by the ascending\nlords of triplicity; matters of life, by the lords of the conditionary\nluminary\u2019s triplicity.\n\nLXXIII. If the Sun be found with the Gorgon\u2019s head (_Caput Medus\u00e6_),\nand not aspected by any benefic star, and if there be no benefic\npresent in the eighth house, and the lord of the conditionary luminary\nbe opposed to Mars, or in quartile to him, the native will be beheaded.\nIf the luminary culminate, his body will be maimed or mangled; and if\nthe aspect in quartile be from Gemini or Pisces, his hands and feet\nwill be amputated.\n\nLXXIV. Mars, if ascending, uniformly gives a scar in the face.\n\nLXXV. If the Sun be in conjunction with the lord of the ascendant, in\nLeo, and Mars has no prerogative in the ascendant, and if there be no\nbenefic in the eighth house, the native will be burned.\n\nLXXVI. If Saturn hold the mid-heaven, and the conditionary luminary\nbe opposed to him, the native will perish in the ruins of buildings,\nprovided the sign on the lower heaven be an earthly sign; if it be a\nwatery sign, he will be drowned or suffocated by water: if a human\nsign, he will be strangled by men, or will perish by the halter or the\nscourge. Should there, however, be a benefic in the eighth house, he\nwill not suffer death, although he will be brought near it.\n\nLXXVII. Profection of the ascendant is to be made for matters affecting\nthe body; of the Part of Fortune, for extrinsic circumstances; of the\nMoon, for the connection between the body and the spirit; and of the\nmid-heaven, for the employment or profession.\n\nLXXVIII. A star often dispenses influence in a place in which it has no\nprerogative, thus bringing unexpected advantage to the native.\n\nLXXIX. Whoever has Mars in the eleventh house, does not govern his\nmaster.\n\nLXXX. If Venus be in conjunction with Saturn, and have any lord of\nhouse in the seventh house, the native will be of spurious origin.\n\nLXXXI. Times are reckoned in seven ways; viz. by the space between\ntwo significators; by the space between their mutual aspects; by the\napproach of one to the other; by the space between either of them\nand the place appropriated to the proposed event; by the descension\nof a star, with its addition or diminution; by the changing of a\nsignificator; and by the approach of a planet to its place.\n\nLXXXII. When a figure may be equipoised, observe the horoscope (or\nfigure) at the new or full moon, and, if that also be equipoised, be\nnot hasty in giving judgment.\n\nLXXXIII. The time of obtaining a grant indicates the affection between\nthe applicant and his prince; but the seat[299] shows the nature of the\noffice;\u2014\n\n[299] Or part of heaven indicating the grant.\n\nLXXXIV. And if Mars be lord of the ascendant at the time of entering on\npossession, and posited in the second house, or coupled with the lord\nof the second, he brings much mischief.\n\nLXXXV. Should the lord of the ascendant be configurated with the lord\nof the second house, the prince will spontaneously create many charges.\n\nLXXXVI. The Sun is the source of the vital power; the Moon, of the\nnatural power.\n\nLXXXVII. Monthly revolutions are made in twenty-eight days, two hours\nand about eighteen minutes. Judgment is also made by some persons by\nmeans of the Sun\u2019s progress; that is to say, by his partial equations\nto that degree and minute which he might hold at the beginning.\n\nLXXXVIII. In making profection of the part of Fortune for a whole\nannual revolution, a space equal to that between the Sun and Moon is to\nbe reckoned from the ascendant.\n\nLXXXIX. Consider the grandfather\u2019s affairs from the seventh house and\nthe uncle\u2019s from the sixth.\n\nXC. Should the significator be in aspect to the ascendant, the hidden\nevent or object will correspond in its nature with the ascendant; but\nif the ascendant be not so aspected, the nature of the event will\naccord with that of the place in which the significator is posited. The\nlord of the hour shows its colour; the place of the Moon its time; and,\nif above the earth, it will be a novel thing; if below, old. The part\nof Fortune indicates its quantity, whether long or short. The lords of\nthe terms, and of the lower heaven and mid-heaven, and of the Moon,\nshows its substance or value.\n\nXCI. Should the ruler of a sick person be combust, it is an evil\nportent; and especially if the part of Fortune be afflicted.\n\nXCII. Saturn, if oriental, is not so highly noxious to a sick person;\nnor Mars, if occidental.\n\nXCIII. Judgment is not to be drawn from any figure until the next\nconjunction shall have been considered: for principles are varied by\nevery conjunction; and therefore, to avoid error, both the last and the\nnext should be combined.\n\nXCIV. The place of the more potent significator indicates the thoughts\nof the inquirer.\n\nXCV. The stars rising with the tenth house prove how far the native may\nbe fitted to the occupation which he follows.\n\nXCVI. In an eclipse, such significations as are made nearest the\nangles, show the events decreed. The nature of the stars in accordance\nwith the eclipse, plants as well as fixed stars, and also the\nappearances co-ascending, are likewise to be considered, and judgment\nis to be given accordingly.\n\nXCVII. The event inquired about will be speedily accomplished, should\nthe lord of the new or full Moon be in an angle.\n\nXCVIII. Shooting stars, and meteors like flowing hair, bear a secondary\npart in judgments.\n\nXCIX. Shooting stars denote the dryness of the air; and, if they are\nprojected to one part only, they indicate wind therefrom: if to various\nparts, they indicate diminution of waters, a turbulent atmosphere, and\nincursions of armies.\n\nC. If comets, whose distance is eleven signs behind the Sun, appear\nin angles, the king of some kingdom, or one of the princes or chief\nmen of a kingdom, will die. If in a succedent house, the affairs of\nthe kingdom\u2019s treasury will prosper, but the governor or ruler will\nbe changed. If in a cadent house, there will be diseases and sudden\ndeaths. And if comets be in motion from the west towards the east, a\nforeign foe will invade the country: if not in motion, the foe will be\nprovincial, or domestic.\n\nEND OF THE CENTILOQUY\n\n\nNO. IV\n\nTHE ZODIACAL PLANISPHERE\n\nThe Reader is desired to refer to the Plate at end of book containing\ndiagrams of the Zodiacal Planisphere, which has been spoken of in the\nNote in p. 99.\n\nFig. 1 is the Planisphere adjusted for the northern latitude of 30\u00b0\n22\u2032 (where the longest day consists of fourteen equatorial hours),\nagreeably to the \u201cExemplification\u201d given by Ptolemy in Chapter XV,\nBook 3. It represents that portion of the celestial sphere which is\ncontained between the tropics: the central horizontal line is the\nequator; the curved line extending longitudinally from east to west\nis the ecliptic; the central perpendicular line is the meridian, or\ncusp of the 10th house; the other short lines, cutting the equator\ntransversely, are the cusps of the other houses; that of the 1st house\nbeing the eastern horizon; that of the 7th, the western horizon.\nHence, the distance from the 1st house to the meridian, or from the\nmeridian to the 7th house, shows the semi-diurnal arc of any parallel\nof declination in the ecliptic; and the distance of the 7th house to\nthe 4th, or from the 4th to the 1st, shows the semi-nocturnal arc. The\ndistance from the cusp of one house to that of the next, taken on the\nsame parallel, is also equal to two temporal hours; thus, for instance,\nin the latitude above quoted, the semi-diurnal arc of 0\u00b0 \u264a is 6 h. 50\nm., or 102\u00b0 39\u2032 of the equator; consequently the diurnal temporal hour\nis equal to one equatorial hour and eight minutes, or to 17\u00b0 6\u2032 of the\nequator.\n\nIn his first example, Ptolemy directs 0\u00b0 \u2649 to be placed on the\nascendant, so that the beginning of \u2651 may be on the mid-heaven; 0\u00b0 \u264a\nmust, therefore, fall on the point A, distant from the mid-heaven 147\u00b0\n44\u2032 of the equator, as measured by the line AB; because every point in\nthe sphere always preserves one and the same parallel with the equator;\nand 0\u00b0 \u264a, in passing to the mid-heaven, must proceed along the line\nAB. In the present case, however, it is required to know how long 0\u00b0 \u264a\nwill be in coming to the ascendant, the given position of 0\u00b0 \u2649. Now 0\u00b0\n\u264a will be on the ascendant when it arrives at the point G; therefore\nthe distance from A to C is the amount of the prorogation between 0\u00b0 \u2649\n(when posited on the ascendant) and 0\u00b0 \u264a, and it is equal to 45\u00b0 5\u2032 of\nthe equator. In the second example, 0\u00b0 \u2649 is placed on the mid-heaven,\nwhich position must be at D, so that 0\u00b0 \u264a must necessarily be at E;\nand the distance from E to B, equal to 57\u00b0 44\u2032 of the equator, is the\nprorogation between 0\u00b0 \u2649 and 0\u00b0 \u264a, when 0\u2074 \u2649 is on the mid-heaven. In\nthe third example, 0\u00b0 \u2649 is supposed to be on the 7th house, descending,\nat F, so that \u2653 is on the mid-heaven, and 0\u00b0 \u264a at the point G, in\nadvance of the mid-heaven 32\u00b0 16\u2032 of the equator, as shown by the\ndistance BG. Now it is required to bring 0\u00b0 \u264a to the 7th house (the\nplace of 0\u00b0 \u2649), and it will be there on arriving at H, distant from\nB 102\u00b0 39\u2032 of the equator; but as 0\u00b0 \u264a is already at G, the distance\nfrom G to H, equal to 70\u00b0 23\u2032 of the equator, is the amount of the\nprorogation between 0\u00b0 \u2649 and 0\u00b0 \u264a, when 0\u00b0 \u2649 is on the 7th house.\nThe fourth example places 0\u00b0 \u2649 at I, three temporal hours past the\nmeridian; 0\u00b0 \u264a therefore falls on the point K, at the distance of 13\nequatorial degrees before the meridian or mid-heaven, and will be three\ntemporal hours past the meridian (the position of 0\u00b0 \u2649) on arriving\nat L, distant 51 equatorial degrees from the mid-heaven: the whole\ndistance from K (the first position of 0\u00b0 \u264a) to L, its second position,\nequal to 64 degrees of the equator, is therefore the prorogation\nbetween 0\u00b0 \u2649 and 0\u00b0 \u264a, when 0\u00b0 \u2649 is past the meridian at the distance\nof three temporal hours. Ptolemy has also instanced two other positions\nfor 0\u00b0 \u2649; viz. at two temporal hours past the meridian, and at two\ntemporal hours before the occidental angle; or, in other words, on the\ncusp of the 9th house, and on that of the 8th. Now, if 0\u00b0 \u2649 be on the\ncusp of the 9th house, it must be at M, and 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at N, distant\n62 equatorial degrees from Q, which is also on the cusp of the 9th. If\n0\u00b0 \u2649 be on the cusp of the 8th, it must be at O, and 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at\nP, distant 66 equatorial degrees from R, which is also on the cusp of\nthe 8th: these two several numbers of degrees will be the respective\nprorogations between 0\u00b0 \u2649 and 0\u00b0 \u264a, when 0\u00b0 \u2649 is placed on the 9th and\n8th houses.\n\nPtolemy\u2019s \u201cExemplification\u201d has been followed thus minutely in order to\nshow how perfectly Mr. Ranger\u2019s invention is adapted to assist (if not\nto supersede) arithmetical calculation; for, after the Planisphere has\nonce been accurately laid down, a line drawn parallel to the equator,\nfrom the significator to the promittor, or to the promittor\u2019s pole of\nposition, and measured by degrees of the equator, will accomplish the\nwhole operation of ascertaining the amount of prorogation.\n\nFig. 2 is the Equator extended, _in plano_, on a scale proportionate\nto the planispheres in Figs. 1 and 3: it is divided into 360 degrees,\nand into equal time, as measured by the 24 hours of the earth\u2019s daily\nrotation on its axis, and by smaller portions of four minutes each,\ncorresponding with degrees of the equator.\n\nFig. 3 is the Planisphere set for the latitude of Southern Britain,\n51\u00b0 30\u2032 N., where the longest day is 16 h. 30 m., the semi-diurnal arc\nof 0\u00b0 \u264a being consequently 7 h. 52 m., or 118\u00b0 of the equator, and its\ndiurnal temporal hour equal to one hour and nearly nineteen minutes of\nequatorial time, or to 19\u00b0 40\u2032 of the equator. In applying Ptolemy\u2019s\nexamples, given in Chapter XV, Book 3, to this latitude, it will follow\nthat, when 0\u00b0 \u2649 may be on the ascendant, 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at A, and will\nsubsequently arrive at the ascendant at C, after the passage of 29\u00b0\n43\u2032 of the equator. When 0\u00b0 \u2649 may be on the mid-heaven at D, 0\u00b0 \u264a will\nbe at E, and will arrive at B, on the mid-heaven, after the passage\nof 57\u00b0 44\u2032 of the equator, as in Fig. 1. When 0\u00b0 \u2649 may be on the 7th\nhouse, at F, 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at G, and will come to the 7th house, at H,\nafter the passage of 85\u00b0 45\u2032 of the equator. If 0\u00b0 \u2649 be three temporal\nhours past the meridian, at I, 0\u00b0 \u264a would be at K, again 13 equatorial\ndegrees before the meridian, as in Fig. 1, and will be three temporal\nhours past the meridian, a position similar to that assumed for 0\u00b0 \u2649,\non arriving at L, distant from the mid-heaven 59 equatorial degrees;\nthus making the whole distance, from K to L, 17 equatorial degrees. If\n0\u00b0 \u2649 be on the 9th house, at M, 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at N, distant from Q (also\non the 9th house) about 67 equatorial degrees. If 0\u00b0 \u2649 be on the 8th\nhouse, at O, 0\u00b0 \u264a will be at P, distant from R (also on the 8th house)\nabout 76 equatorial degrees.\n\nBy taking the trouble to calculate the distances between the several\npositions given by Ptolemy, the Reader may satisfy himself of the\nsufficiency of this Planisphere for the purpose for which it was first\nprojected; viz. for the more expeditious measurement of the arcs of\ndirection. The Tables of Ascensions, extracted from the Almagest,\nin p. 152, will show that the arcs, as measured in Figs. 1 and 2 of\nthe plate, exactly tally with the amounts of distance obtained by\ncalculating arithmetically, according to the respective latitudes, as\nquoted in the Tables.\n\nThe slight view which has been here given of the Zodiacal Planisphere\ninvented by Mr. Ranger, must not be considered as pretending to offer\na complete idea of its powers: they are so manifold and various,\nthat another volume would be required to detail them fully; and it\nhas now been used only in order to give a better illustration of\nPtolemy\u2019s examples of the spaces of prorogation than mere words can\ndo. To persons conversant with the mathematical part of astronomy, the\nfacility with which a complete representation of zodiacal latitude,\ndeclination, the poles of position, crepusculine circles, and other\nphenomena, may be made by this Planisphere, will be sufficiently\nobvious from the accompanying Figures.\n\nFINIS\n\n[Illustration: _Fig. 1._]\n\n[Illustration: _Fig. 2._]\n\n[Illustration: _Fig. 3._]","title":"Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos : $b or Quadripartite, being four books of the influence of the stars ... with a preface, explanatory notes, and an appendix containing extracts from the Almagest of Ptolemy and the whole of his Centiloquy, together with a short notice of Mr. Ranger's zodiacal planisphere and an explanatory plate","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":84166}