mars in scorpio in 9th house?

Arian Maverick

Well-known member
I took a quick look at your chart and noticed that Mars is really "plugged in" to your chart through Pluto and the tight aspects this planet makes with your Cancer Moon and Venus in Capricorn.

I've also noticed that because Mars is so strongly placed in Scorpio, it is the final dispositor of much of your chart, particularly the planets in Sagittarius and Capricorn. All of the planets in Sagittarius are disposited by Jupiter in Aries, which is directly disposited by Mars in Scorpio. The energy is very direct here; it doesn't move around the chart much to find its final dispositor. Similarly, your Neptune and Venus in Capricorn are disposited by Saturn in Sagittarius, which is disposited by Jupiter in Aries, which is disposited by Mars in Scorpio. Again, this is all fairly directly, and all roads seem to lead to Mars in Scorpio.

It is not surprising then that of all the planetary placements you could have inquired about, you asked for information about about your natal Mars. Mars is tightly conjunct the ninth house cusp to boot, so I imagine that its influence is stronger there than if it had been sort of floating in the middle of the house.

The ninth house is typically known as the house of religion, philosophy, and higher education; it has something of the influence of Jupiter if you use the astrological alphabet because Sagittarius is the sign typically associated with the ninth house. Using this system, I imagine that Mars would have been slightly more comfortable in the eighth house than the ninth, but Mars/Scorpio/eighth house would have been a lot to handle. The Martian energy here is still quite strong, yet it will focused in a different area of your life. Perhaps you are quite strong about your particular religious or philosophical beliefs; I don't know if Mars and Scorpio is the type of influence that would attempt to "convert" others to your own views, but the Martian/Scorpionic energy is quite forceful, so I imagine that this could be a possible mode of expression--but not the only one, of course.

Here's a slightly different interpretation of Scorpio on the ninth house cusp from Astrology-Numerology.com. Mars is the traditional ruler of Scorpio, so these energies are quite similar:

Scorpio
The influence of Scorpio in the ninth house shows a strong interest in abstract ideas and studying the many mysteries of life. There is great depth in your need to know and understand the purpose of living. It is probable that your studies and philosophy will be outside what is considered orthodox; it is likely that occult laws will hold a special interest for you. You are critical of formal academic disciplines, preferring to attune yourself to these questions through direct experience instead of through normal intellectual processes. There is a strong, almost compulsive urge to travel around the world. Although it is a bit out of style these days, traveling by sea should have a special appeal for you.

Here's the interpretation of ninth house Mars from this same site:

Ninth House
The Mars ninth house placement in your chart shows an active interest in travel, outdoor sports and religious or philosophical causes. You always have the courage of your convictions and a forceful approach to promoting your ideas. You can sway others to your beliefs with sheer enthusiasm, and you become very upset and impatient when you can't. When it comes to travel, you are adventurous, and if the means are available, you will spend a good deal of time traveling abroad. You are aggressive in your pursuit of education and personal development.

...and let's include ninth house Pluto while we're at it:

Ninth House
Pluto is positioned in the ninth house of higher thought suggests the need to understand the fundamental forces of man and nature. The higher mental powers are especially strong and inclined toward regeneration of legal, educational, moral, and philosophic systems. There is significant perception of the core causes of problems connected with the larger social order. The intuition regarding such matters is highly developed giving profound insight and understanding. You have little tolerance for hypocrisy and social injustice. There may be a tendency to impose views on others.

So all of these interpretations pretty much combine the symbolism of Mars/Scorpio with that of the ninth house, which as I mentioned before, is commonly associated with Jupiter/Sagittarius. I hope this helps somewhat...

I thought I'd include the Sabian symbols of your Mars and Pluto because they often provide deep insight into the meaning of the particular degree at which each planet is located:

Mars:

Scorpio 9:
A dentist is hard at work.

Pluto:

Scorpio 12:
A brilliant assembly of dignitaries at an official embassy ball.

The Sabian symbol for Mars in particular seems to emphasize the sheer focus and determination of Mars in Scorpio; Scorpio is a fixed sign and is not inclined to give up easily, nor will it waver in pursuit of its goals. Sheer tenacity!

There is also a strong element of discipline with this degree, as a dentist is sort of a Saturn-type figure that removes the plaque from teeth and attempts to instill good dental hygiene in his patients; after months of eating sugary candies and treats, he comes in to correct the damage.

Arian Maverick
 
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Culpeper

Premium Member
Welcome to the forum. Not to confuse you, but I usually use equal houses and this adds additional information. This system puts Mars, Pluto, and Scorpio in the tenth house of career and status.

This could indeed indicate a career in dentistry. Also, Saturn rules your first house, and that can indicate an interest in teeth. The Moon in essential dignity in the sixth house in trine aspect to Pluto and Mars indicates that you could also be a surgeon. However, there are other possibilities.

This placement is also a very strong indication of a military career. Taking officers training would be helpful. With Saturn ruling your ascendant you may be interested in structural or mechanical engineering.

Finally, you have Mars, Venus, and the Sun in the essential dignity of triplicity. This is a very lucky placement and you should do well in your career and like your work.
 

nickd

Member
Thanks for your interpretations! Any idea where i could find more information about "
Finally, you have Mars, Venus, and the Sun in the essential dignity of triplicity. This is a very lucky placement and you should do well in your career and like your work."
 

Arian Maverick

Well-known member
Thanks for your interpretations! Any idea where i could find more information about "
Finally, you have Mars, Venus, and the Sun in the essential dignity of triplicity. This is a very lucky placement and you should do well in your career and like your work."

I'm not sure exactly which page Culpeper consulted or if s/he knew this information by memory, but you may wish to consult Ptolemy's Table of Essential Dignities; there's even a link at the bottom of the page that helps you understand planetary dignity and debility.

EDIT: It took me a moment, but I understand this now; if you look at the chart I provided a link to, you'll see that the day triplicity of Sagittarius is the Sun (you have the Sun in Sagittarius, so it has essential dignity of triplicity), the day triplicity of Capricorn is Venus (you have Venus in Capricorn, so it has essential dignity of triplicity), and the day (and night) triplicity of Scorpio is Mars (you have Mars in Scorpio, so it has essential dignity of triplicity).

We use the day triplicity instead of the night triplicty because you were born when the Sun was above the Ascendant-Descendant axis (i.e. in the seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, or twelfth house); as you may already know, the Sun is conjunct the Ascendant near the moment of sunrise, which marks the beginning of day, and the Sun is conjunct the Descendant near the moment of sunset, which marks the beginning of night.

Were your Sun below the Ascendant-Descendant axis (i.e. in the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth house), we would use the night triplicity. This is so even had you been born near sunrise at an hour you would normally consider to be "day."

EDIT: I've uploaded an image of Ptolemy's Table of Essential Dignities with the three planets circled.

Skyscript-TableofEssentialDignities.gif


Arian Maverick
 
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Moulin

Well-known member
WOW Arian, l so need that explanation page!
That chart is total gobbledy-gook to me :D
(in fact one look and my stellium is already in the other room LOL)
Thanks for info!
 

Arian Maverick

Well-known member
Yes, it's a little tricky until you get the hang of reading it; this thread probably isn't the place to discuss the chart, but it might not be a bad idea to create a new thread for this very important topic.

Arian Maverick
 

Arian Maverick

Well-known member
Thanks for the explanation Arian, So does this just mean that the power of those planets is amplified?

Yes it does, but you've got to remember there's a hierarchy of sorts; sign rulership, exaltation, triplicity, term, and face are not created equal, and having dignity by sign is a stronger influence than having dignity by triplicity.

If you look at this chart, you'll see that Sagittarius is the sign of Mercury's debility, since Mercury is the ruler of Gemini--the opposite sign of Sagittarius. However, this "weakness" is overcome somewhat by Mercury being in its own triplicity, so it is not as weakly placed as Mercury could be in this sign. Mercury also has accidental dignity because it is located in an angular* house--the tenth--conjunct the Midheaven to boot.

Mars, on the other hand, is already strongly placed in Scorpio, as I mentioned earlier; this planet is given an extra boost by being in its own triplicity and face. However, unlike Mercury, Mars does not have accidental dignity because it is located in the cadent** ninth house.

Your natal Sun doesn't have any extra essential dignity besides being in its own triplicity, but is has strong accidental dignity in the tenth house.

*Angular simply refers to a planet in the first, fourth, seventh, or tenth houses--the houses whose cusps form the major angles of a chart, which are the Ascendant, Nadir, Descendant, and Midheaven.

**Cadent refers to a planet in the third, sixth, ninth, or twelfth houses.

There's one more category you may wish to know about just for your own knowledge--the succedent houses, which are the second, fifth, eighth, and eleventh houses. They follow the angular houses but are before the cadent houses.

Arian Maverick
 
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