In early medieval natal astrology, great importance was attached to identifying the key planets in each natal chart. The spirit of this practice survives today among some modern astrologers, who seek to identify a “chart ruler” to use in their work or otherwise accord special attention.
The medieval tradition pays particular attention to planets that represent important aspects of the native. This usually concerns their influence upon the native’s soul or personality, as distinct from their influence upon the objective circumstances of an individual’s life. Although there has been some confusion over these matters, the Lord of the Geniture and the Almuten Figuris are regarded as the same planet. The methods of calculation differ, but these appear to be alternative names for the same planet, whose identity is established through different calculations.
THE HELLENISTIC PERIOD: PROROGATORS, OIKODESPOTES AND KURIOS
The Hellenistic period introduces several important roles that planets may fulfil: the Prorogator, the Domicile Master and the Kurios. The Prorogator would later become the hyleg of medieval astrology, identified through very similar methods. The Domicile Master and the Kurios also play important roles. The Domicile Master (oikodespotes) is responsible for the native’s path through life, while the Kurios appears to concern how that path is lived out or otherwise manifested.
Porphyry used a fairly straightforward calculation to identify these: first the Prorogator is established, and the Oikodespotes is then the planet ruling the sign occupied by the Prorogator.[2] The Kurios is more difficult to identify, since it must be a planet that rules an important place in the nativity and is suitably placed to fulfil this role. This means that cadent or combust planets are unlikely to qualify.
Ptolemy’s method is quite different. He identifies the Sun or Moon as the Prorogator, but only if they occupy the first, eleventh, tenth, ninth or seventh house. If neither is so placed, he explains that the planet with the greatest dignity at the positions of the Sun, Moon, Ascendant and Fortune should be taken as the Prorogator. Ptolemy does not, however, explicitly mention a ruler of the nativity.
Finally, among the Hellenistic authors, Julius Firmicus Maternus describes several other methods of calculating the ruler of the nativity in his Mathesis:
“Some have said that the ruler of the chart is the planet placed in favourable houses of the chart, in its own domicile or bounds. Others, however, have calculated it from the positions of the Sun and Moon, arguing that the ruler of the chart is the planet in whose bounds the Sun or Moon is found: the Sun for diurnal births, and the Moon for nocturnal births. This theory has some merit. Others say that the ruler of the chart is the Moon’s dispositor by exaltation. Still others hold that the ruler is the planet into whose sign the Moon enters after leaving the sign it occupied at the moment of birth.” – Firmicus Maternus, Mathesis, Book 4, Chapter 19
Maternus does not explicitly name the sources from which he draws these calculations, but some of his examples can be understood as broader interpretations of the methods described by Ptolemy and Porphyry. Ultimately, Maternus settles upon the last method he gives, asserting that it is universally accepted.
THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD AND THE ALMUTEN FIGURIS
In the medieval period, we find particular importance attached to the planet known as the Almuten Figuris. As its name suggests, the Almuten Figuris is an almuten: the planet possessing the greatest zodiacal dignity at a particular degree of the zodiac. More specifically, the Almuten Figuris is the collective or overall almuten—the planet possessing the greatest dignity across several specified zodiacal degrees.
Abraham ibn Ezra says of the Almuten Figuris:
“We know that there are five places of life: namely, the two places of the luminaries, by day and by night; the third is the place of the conjunction or opposition of the luminaries, whichever immediately precedes the native’s birth; the fourth is the rising degree; and the fifth is the Lot of Fortune…”
Ibn Ezra quickly explains that these places have particular importance because they are directly connected with the concept of life. In the Hellenistic and medieval traditions, it was necessary to find a planet serving as the hyleg (Arabic hilaj, “releaser”) to indicate that the native would live for some time. Not every planet is capable of fulfilling this function, and the candidates considered suitable are the Sun, Moon, Fortune, the syzygy—the New or Full Moon preceding birth—and the Ascendant. Ibn Ezra cites both Ptolemy and Dorotheus as sources, drawing upon their identification of the places of life in his calculation of the Almuten Figuris. He specifies that a weighted points system should be used. Having established the degrees of the Sun, Moon, Lot of Fortune, Ascendant and prenatal syzygy, one identifies the planets ruling those degrees by domicile, exaltation, triplicity, bound and face, assigning the appropriate number of points and adding them together. Domicile rulers receive 5 points, exaltation rulers 4, triplicity rulers 3, bound rulers 2 and face rulers 1. At this stage, Ibn Ezra takes a different approach, also considering the accidental dignity of every planet in the chart according to its house placement. Each house is assigned a score from 12 down to 1, in the following order, from highest to lowest: first, tenth, seventh, fourth, eleventh, fifth, second, ninth, eighth, third, twelfth and sixth. Planets in the first house receive 12 points, those in the tenth 11, those in the seventh 10, and so on through this sequence, down to those in the sixth, which receive 1 point. Additional points are awarded to the ruler of the day (7 points) and the ruler of the hour (6 points).
The planet with the highest total after all these considerations—dignities at the aforementioned places of life, house placements and rulership of the day and hour—is designated the Almuten Figuris.
THE ALMUTEN FIGURIS IN PRACTICE
Many astrologers consider the Almuten Figuris / Lord of the Geniture to have a profound psychological influence upon the native. This was the approach taken by astrologers such as William Lilly and Maternus. Maternus devotes the great majority of Chapter 19 of his fourth book to describing the ruling planet’s effects upon the native, both physically and psychologically.
Lilly agrees with much of Maternus’s account, summarised in this sentence:
“…the nature of that Planet shall more or less have participation in all the Native’s actions, so that his conditions, complexion, temperament and manners shall be much regulated according to the properties assigned to that Planet.” – Book 3, Chapter 105
Ptolemy uses this planet as a potential Prorogator—his version of the hyleg—concluding that primary directions of malefics to it indicate difficult periods for health.[13] It is only when we turn to sources within the magical tradition that we find more specialised and intriguing uses of this ruling planet.
Neoplatonic authors such as Porphyry and Iamblichus discuss the idea that the ruler of the birth chart assigns each individual a personal daemon.[14] Iamblichus states that the daemon is responsible for our thoughts and actions, in a passage strikingly reminiscent of the techniques of Maternus and Lilly:
“He [the daemon] alone governs the private life of the soul, and whatever conclusions we may reach through reasoning and reflection, it is he who implants their principles within us. We think and perform such things as he brings to us through thought. He guides human beings continually, until, through the sacred discipline of theurgy, we establish a god as the guardian and leader of the soul.”
Porphyry states that the native’s guardian spirit can be known through the ruler of the birth chart. Not only does this planet describe an individual’s psychological and physical characteristics, but it also tells us to which planetary chain that person’s spirit belongs. This has profound implications elsewhere, particularly within magical or religious contexts.
The Picatrix likewise discusses the almuten’s importance in assessing the native’s spiritual path and in magical techniques. It begins by describing the almuten’s effects upon the native’s aspirations, associating each planetary pair with a part of the Socratic/Platonic tripartite soul. The Moon and Venus are assigned to appetite, the Sun and Mars to the heart, and Jupiter and Mercury to the mind.
These pairs are further divided according to their specific focus. Although Venus and the Moon both influence the appetites, Venus seeks love and sexual pleasure, while the Moon seeks food and comfort. Similarly, those whose almuten is Mars seek competition and confrontation, whereas those with the Sun as chart ruler desire authority and command. Jupiter as ruler draws a person towards religion and philosophy, while Mercury draws the individual towards science and mathematics. Saturn stands apart in this scheme and is not naturally considered an aspect of the tripartite soul; nevertheless, those with Saturn as ruler will be drawn to solitude and contemplation, as well as occult studies.
Once the ruler and its focus have been established, the native should seek to balance their spiritual life by engaging in activities more appropriate to the mind.[18] Clearly, some people are born with a ruling planet that gives them an advantage in this undertaking, but it is not beyond the reach of others. Iamblichus would recommend theurgic rites employing appropriate sunthemata to establish contact with this spirit, which would then lead them towards a form of salvation that, in some sense, frees them from fate.
CONCLUSION
Although it has been given many different names and calculated in various ways, the almuten of the chart (Almuten Figuris), or Lord of the Geniture (birth), is a concept found even in the earliest astrological literature. Its roots lie in Hellenistic texts, where it was associated with the life-giving places, retaining this vital connection for hundreds of years until it came to be casually equated with the ruler of the Ascendant in every case.
Although it is rarely used in contemporary astrological practice, the claims made in ancient texts concerning the power of this single planet, and the insights it offers, are astonishing. It holds out the possibility of looking into an individual’s soul, perhaps offering some insight into that eternal question: “Why am I here?”[19]
*Translation of an article originally published at:http://www.medievalastrologyguide.com/log-and-almuten.html
[1] Often attributed to the ruler of the Ascendant.
[2] In some cases there was also a co-ruler. The planet ruling the bound occupied by the Prorogator would assume this role.
[3] Tetrabiblos, Book 3, Chapter 13.
[4] This is probably the earliest mention of the Almuten Figuris, although it was not calculated using the weighted method generally employed in the medieval tradition. For Ptolemy, each ruler of a degree would receive one point for its participation, regardless of the level of dignity it possessed there.
[5] Maternus appears to leave no room for Ptolemy and Porphyry in his universe.
[6] Since both luminaries signify life and the vital spirit.
[7] The Lot of Fortune derives much of its symbolism from the Moon and is deeply connected with the material world through the body and its health. Hellenistic timing techniques such as aphesis identify activations of the Lot of Fortune as periods of significant developments concerning health.
[8] In medieval mundane techniques, every particular cause derives from a more general one, like a circle within a circle. This connects births with the lunations preceding them, emphasising the importance of the luminaries’ coming together.
[9] The Ascendant represents the native’s body and physical constitution.
[10] For a prenatal New Moon—a “conjunctional” chart—the degree of the conjunction is used. For a prenatal Full Moon—also termed a “preventional” chart—the Moon’s degree should be used (Ptolemy, Dorotheus and possibly al-Kindi), whereas Ibn Ezra suggests using the degree of whichever luminary was above the horizon at the moment of opposition.
[11] There is some dispute over whether participating triplicity rulers and those contrary to sect should receive points. Guido Bonatti does not assign them these strengths in his example in Treatise 2: Chapter 14.
[12] Two scoring schemes can be found in early medieval texts. The second, probably later scheme is the one presented here. The first, probably older or original scheme reverses the positions of triplicity and bound, assigning three points to the bound and two to triplicity. This probably reflects the importance attached in Hellenistic astrology to bound rulers in relation to the native’s body and the physical expression of various natal promises. By the time of al-Qabisi, in the early to mid-tenth century, awarding more points to triplicity had already become established practice.
[13] Ptolemy would use a different method to determine the qualities of the soul. His method involves examining the positions of, and relationships between, the Moon, for the animal spirit, and Mercury, for the rational spirit.
[14] Iamblichus firmly opposed this idea, arguing that the personal daemon is chosen by the soul before incarnation. This takes place above the planetary spheres.
[15] More on Marsilio Ficino’s planetary chains and Iamblichus’s sunthemata can be found in the article: Theurgy: Sunthemata and Divine Will.
[16] The Picatrix states that petitions to planets will be more effective for individuals who have that planet well placed or prominent in their nativity. One obvious candidate—and perhaps the only meaningful one—is the Lord of the Geniture. Being blessed by, or akin to, a planet makes it more likely that the magician’s requests will be answered.
[17] In the Republic, Plato says that human beings possess three kinds of soul: one situated in the belly (epithymetikon), one in the heart (thymoeides) and one in the mind (logistikon). This system then helps establish which soul the native is naturally more inclined to follow, allowing the astrologer to help place control in the hands of the mind.
[18] This is perhaps best understood as balancing the spiritual temperament.
[19] This is, of course, Iamblichus’s principal aim, in keeping with his Neoplatonic philosophy.