Degree rulers

Meaning

Every degree of the zodiac has several rulers at once. The sign has its domicile lord and, sometimes, an exaltation lord. The element of the sign has triplicity lords. And the exact degree falls within one term and one face, each with its own lord. On this site, a planet's degree rulers are the three rulers that depend on where exactly it stands and on the time of the chart:

• the triplicity ruler of its sign's element (the day ruler in a day chart, the night ruler in a night chart);
• the term ruler of its degree;
• the face ruler of its degree.

They answer a simple question: whose territory is this planet standing in? The domicile lord is the landlord of the whole sign; the degree rulers are the more local authorities of the particular spot. If the planet is itself one of them, it has that dignity. If not, it is a guest of each, and their condition in the chart affects how well it is received.

This is a descriptive name used on this site rather than a single technical term of the tradition. Older authors speak of the "lords" of a place, or of the planets that have "dignity" or "testimony" in a degree [3][4].

Origin and history

The idea that each part of a sign has its own lord is as old as the individual dignities.

• Triplicity lords were central to Dorotheus, who says that everything decided or indicated comes from the lords of the triplicities [2].
• Term lords colour the degrees they rule. Ptolemy discusses three rival sets of terms [1], and al-Biruni tabulates two [3].
• Face lords follow the Chaldean order through the 36 decans [3].

Ptolemy already finds the ruler of a degree by counting in how many ways (triplicity, house, exaltation, term, and phase or aspect) each planet is related to it [1]. Medieval astrologers turned this into a weighted count. Al-Biruni gives a scale of points for the lord of each kind of dignity, adds up the testimonies of every planet in a place, and calls the planet with the greatest total the mubtazz (Latinised as almuten), the "victor" or strongest lord of that place [3]. Lilly presents his Table of Essential Dignities for a similar purpose: by casting one's eye over it, one can see what essential dignity or debility any planet has in any degree [4].

How it is used

Finding the degree rulers. Take a planet's sign, degree and the chart's sect, then read three tables:

1. Triplicity: which planet rules the element by day or by night.
2. Term: which planet rules the segment containing the degree (this site uses the Egyptian terms).
3. Face: which planet rules the ten-degree third containing the degree (Chaldean order).

What they tell you.

• Dignity. If the planet itself appears among its degree rulers, it has triplicity (+3), term (+2) or face (+1) there. If it appears nowhere, and has no domicile or exaltation either, it is peregrine.
• Dependence. A planet in someone else's term or face is under that planet's influence at that degree. Traditional astrologers look at the condition of these lords: a planet in the term of a benefic that is itself well placed is better supported than one in the term of a struggling malefic. Dorotheus, for instance, judges the Sun in the terms of the benefics as better for the native's father, and the Sun in the terms of the malefics as a sign that the father lacks splendour [2].
• Reception. When a degree ruler aspects the planet standing in its territory, some authors count this as a form of reception, though weaker than reception by domicile or exaltation.
• Almuten. Combined with the domicile and exaltation lords, the degree rulers are the candidates for the almuten of a degree. The almuten is the planet with the most points there on a 5/4/3/2/1 scale.

Why the domicile and exaltation lords are listed separately. They depend only on the sign, and they are already shown by the planet's domicile or exaltation status and by its dispositor. The degree rulers add the finer, degree-specific layer.

Disagreements. The degree rulers inherit every disagreement in the tables behind them: Egyptian or Ptolemaic terms, Dorotheus's or Ptolemy's triplicity rulers, and whether to include the participating triplicity ruler [1][3]. Al-Biruni also notes that the weighting of the minor lords varied, with term once placed above triplicity and face often ignored [3]. Any two astrologers may therefore list slightly different degree rulers for the same planet.

A separate and much rarer ancient scheme assigned a ruler to every single degree (the Greek monomoiriai, "single-degree" rulers). Paulus Alexandrinus gives two versions, one running through the planets in their Chaldean order from the lord of the sign and one based on the triplicity lords [5]; Ptolemy mentions such schemes only to dismiss them [1]. That scheme is not what this site means by degree rulers.

Examples

• The Moon at 13° Scorpio, day chart. Triplicity (water, by day): Venus. Term (11°–19° Scorpio): Mercury. Face (10°–20° Scorpio): the Sun. The Moon is in her fall and rules none of these (she is only the participating ruler of water, which the site does not score), so she is also peregrine. Her fortunes here depend on Mars (lord of Scorpio) and on Venus, Mercury and the Sun.
• Venus at 10° Pisces, day chart. Triplicity: Venus. Term (0°–12° Pisces): Venus. Face (10°–20° Pisces): Jupiter. Venus is two of her own degree rulers, adding +5 to her exaltation's +4.
• Mercury at 25° Gemini, night chart. Triplicity (air, by night): Mercury. Term (24°–30° Gemini): Saturn. Face (20°–30° Gemini): the Sun. Mercury is in domicile and night triplicity ruler; Saturn and the Sun have the local claims on this degree.
• The Sun at 5° Leo, night chart. Triplicity (fire, by night): Jupiter. Term (0°–6° Leo): Jupiter. Face (0°–10° Leo): Saturn. The Sun is in domicile, but locally it is Jupiter's and Saturn's ground.