Re: Saturn woes.
Joseph Ledzion said:
While there is no historically valid reason for the creation of equal houses, they just sort of showed up all of sudden probably because they were easy to calculate, I use whole sign houses, which are the original house system.
Using this system, each sign has one topic. So aquarius is your first house, pisces is your second, etc. And the Ascendant, of course is just a horoscopic point. It was never intended to be the start of the houses, just a point of reference. It merely falls somewhere in the 1st house.
It takes the mess out of house systems. The ancients never had any of the problems with houses present today, and I find the interpretations to be more accurate -- by far.
the 2/8th axis is a security crisis, with a tug of war between your assets and another's.
Gotta run.
<3<3<3<3
Joseph
Early Forms of House Division
The earliest forms of house division were those that link with, or run parallel to, the signs of the zodiac along the ecliptic. Proponents of the equal house system claim that it is more accurate and less distorting in higher latitudes (especially above 60 degrees) than the Placidean and other quadrant house systems.
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Whole sign
In the whole sign house system, sometimes referred to as the 'Sign-House system', the houses are 30° each. The ascendant designates the rising sign, and the first house begins at zero degrees of the
zodiac sign in which the ascendant falls, regardless of how early or late in that sign the ascendant is. The next sign after the ascending sign then becomes the 2nd house, the sign after that the 3rd house, and so on. In other words, each house is wholly filled by one sign. This was the main system used in the Hellenistic tradition of astrology, and is also used in
Indian astrology, as well as in some early traditions of
Medieval astrology. It is thought to be the oldest system of house division.
[3]
The Whole Sign system was originally developed in the Hellenistic tradition of astrology sometime around the 1st or 2nd century BCE, and from there it was passed to the
Indian and early Medieval traditions of astrology. At some point in the Medieval period, probably around the 10th century, whole sign houses fell into disuse in the western tradition, and by the 20th century the system was completely unknown in the western astrological community, although was continually used in India all the way into the present time. Beginning in the 1980s and 1990's the system was rediscovered and reintroduced into western astrology. The distinction between equal houses and whole sign houses lies in the fact that in whole sign houses the cusp of the 1st house is the beginning of the sign that contains the ascendant, while in equal houses the degree of the ascendant is itself the cusp of the 1st house.
Equal House
In the equal house system the
ecliptic is also divided into twelve divisions of 30 degrees, although the houses are measured out in 30 degree increments starting from the degree of the ascendant. It begins with the ascendant, which acts as the 'cusp' or starting point of the 1st house, then the second house begins exactly 30 degrees later in zodiacal order, then the third house begins exactly 30 degrees later in zodiacal order from the 2nd house, and so on.
The MC in Whole Sign & Equal House Systems
In the whole sign and equal house systems the Medium Coeli (
Midheaven), the highest point in the chart, does not act as the cusp or starting point of the 10th house. Instead the MC moves around the top half of the chart, and can land anywhere in the 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, depending on the latitude.
The MC retains its commonly agreed significations, but it doesn't act as the starting point of the 10th house, therefore in Equal house it adds extra definition and meaning to MC and the cusps involved, but always MC is same in interpretations as other house systems.
This is also the more common criticism of the whole sign and equal house method as it concerns the location of the Medium Coeli (Midheaven), the highest point in the chart. In the equal house system, the ascendant/descendant and midheaven/nadir axes can vary from being perpendicular to each other (from approx. +-5 deg at most at equator to approx. +-15 degrees at Alexandria to +-90 degrees at polar circle). As a result, equal houses counted from the ascendant cannot in general place the midheaven on the tenth house cusp, where many feel it would be symbolically desirable. Since this point is associated with ambition, career, and public image, the argument is that the Midheaven, therefore, must be the cusp of the similar tenth house. It has also been linked by extension with Capricorn (the tenth sign of the zodiac). Because the Whole Sign and Equal House system do take the Midheaven into account, but relies on the location of the Ascendant, it can be found anywhere between the 8th and 11th houses.
[4]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_house_system#Equal_House
How then does an astrologer choose a house system? Well, the individual studying alone is more than likely to use Placidus Houses. The reason for this is simple - he has to consult an ephemeris in any case, and Raphael's Ephemeris is the most widely used, which gives the information needed for Placidus Houses.
Students who study with a recognised school are usually introduced to all of the house systems, but taught to use one far more than the others. This is usually the Equal House system, which incidentally is also the oldest one. In this house system, the twelve divisions are very much like spokes of a wheel, equally spaced at 30 degree intervals, with all houses being the same size. This is the easiest of the House systems to use, as it requires no further calculation. Once the Ascendant is known, one simply divides the rest of the chart using the Ascending degree as a starting point - so if the Ascendant is at 22 degrees Leo, this is take as the cusp of the first house, with the second house beginning at 22 degrees Virgo, the third at 22 degrees Libra and so forth.
The Equal House system is conceptually valid within today's astrological standpoint that every individual is free to become what their birth chart symbolises as their ultimate talent. The Ascendant has been shown to correspond to the way the person automatically approaches their environment - the 'persona' in Jungian terms. This person is therefore likely to approach every field of life in a specific way. A person with an Aquarius Ascendant, for example, will approach money-making and material values (2nd house) in a Pisces manner, will learn (3rd house) in an Aries manner, deal with family (4th house) in a Taurus manner and so forth.
The biggest criticism of the Equal House system concerns the position of the MC, which, using this system is more often than not the cusp of the tenth house (or any house) but rather is found within the 9th, 10th or 11th house.
The MC, being the highest point at birth, symbolises the aims and ambitions one works towards, and, by extension, one's career potential and public image. But these areas are also 10th house matters, devised, because of that house's association with Saturn, to show precisely these areas of life. It is therefore conceptually necessary (so goes the argument) that the MC be the cusp of the 10th house. For this reason, the Equal House system has a limited following outside the UK, although it is still the commonest House system within the UK.
http://www.astrolozy.com/article19.asp
http://www.aquamoonlight.co.uk/systems.html
http://www.skyviewzone.com/birthinfoforms2/housesexplained.htm
-The Equal House System avoids the problem with the Placidus which results in extremely uneven houses if the native should be born in extreme northern or southern latitudes.
-Each sign is fully represented on a house cusp.
-Debbie Kempton Smith the author of Secrets from an StarGazer's Notebook recommends either Equal House or Koch (unequal).
-Margaret Hone puts forth an excellent argument in favor of Equal House in her book, "Applied Astrology" which is why it is the default for SkyViewZone.
Jeff Mayo and the Faculty for Astrological Studies also favors this house system.