In traditional astrology, planets are either benefic or malefic, symbolizing life’s blessings and challenges. Jupiter and Venus nurture growth, while Saturn and Mars bring trials. Ptolemy’s insights reveal how their elemental nature shapes our experiences through balance and adversity.
Tag: planets
The Sun: The Diurnal Luminary
Sitting on its throne in the heavens, the Sun’s movement designates day and night, light and dark, winter and summer, truth and lies, carving the ecliptic, the basis of the zodiac and the art of astrology, across the sky.
The Moon: The Nocturnal Luminary
As the luminary that rules the night, the Moon represents change, travel, the emotional or irrational soul and feminine energy, but its significations depend on its condition in the sky and its proximity to the earthly sphere.
Venus: The Lesser Benefic
Beauty, pleasure, and love: the incarnation of the Greco-Roman goddess of love, Venus, the Lesser Benefic brings joy to the life of the native if well-placed, and over-indulgence if ill-aligned.
Mercury: The Messenger
Speedy and unpredictable, the twinkling planet Mercury has long represented reason, commerce, and the pursuit of knowledge, and is distinct in its openness to the influence of other heavenly bodies.
Mars: The Lesser Malefic
Mars, the blood-red warrior, blazes across the night sky, the harbinger of death, destruction, and strife. But the lesser malefic is not all bad: if dignified, the martial planet becomes the protector of the weak, the signifier of a courageous struggle, a victory against all odds that brings many rewards.
Saturn: The Greater Malefic
The cold, dry ruler of Aquarius and Capricorn, the furthest of the visible planets represents limits and strife, the march of time, and the inevitability of death. But, when faced with dignity, even the darkest saturnine theme has the potential to teach profound lessons.
Jupiter: The Greater Benefic
Magnanimous, expansive, kingly: the Greater Benefic takes many of its qualities from its namesake Jupiter, the Greco-Roman king of the gods. Abundance is key to this sanguine planet, as is power, representing the native’s fortune and success but signifying despotic attitudes or wastefulness when poorly placed.