Disposition
Words are the symbolic embodiment of an Idea. The old time astrologers were very careful in their choices of words – descriptors – used to portray the roles of planets in different functions, or of the different characteristics of signs and other astrological symbols. This is why I often use the dictionary as a primary astrological textbook.
By going outside astrology and then looking back in, we can gain new perspectives and understandings. The dictionary provides us with this opportunity because it is concerned with language rather than astrology. We might also keep in mind the fact that astrology is a language, a language that “works” through the use of analogy, which might be described as the translation of one fact into the terms of another set of facts. Astrology can be accurately defined as the translation of celestial facts into terms of human affairs. Therefore, a linguistic approach to understanding astrological significance is not only valid, but quite powerful.
If you want to understand the nature of the Fixed Signs, look up “fix” in your dictionary. If you have a preponderance of Fixed Signs in your personal horoscope, there is a list of seventeen definitions of the word in my little Funk & Wagnalls, most of which will describe you very nicely. Because I am a born diplomat I will refrain from calling you stubborn. Unalterable will do. The Fixed Signs do not welcome change that is not necessary or advantageous.
We are going to examine one word here: Disposition (and its cousins, dispose and dispositor).
The word disposition has two applications in astrology. The first of these is a strictly technical term that means that a planet, as lord of a sign, is the ruler of any planet found in that sign and of the house or houses which hold the ruled sign(s) on their cusp. The lord disposes those planets occupying his signs, and those houses he rules, toward whatever his condition may indicate. He is the dispositor, and the planets and houses under his rule are disposed to act in a certain way, or toward certain ends, dictated by the lord of the sign, again, according to his cosmic state or condition in the particular horoscope.
Morin tells us that while planets in a house, and even planets aspecting those planets or the cusp of the house, may be more directly influential in describing the affairs of that house or active in carrying them forward in actual practice, it is the dispositor who determines the final outcome.
What does this word dispose mean? What does a planetary dispositor do? Let’s see what Mssrs. Funk & Wagnall have to say. Here’s where it gets boring.
“Dispose: To put into a receptive frame of mind for. To condition toward something, especially to make susceptible. To put or set in a particular arrangement or position. To put into proper, definitive or final shape; settle. To control the course of events.
Disposition: One’s usual frame of mind; temperament. Acquired tendency or inclination. Natural organic tendency or inclination. A particular ordering, arrangement or distribution, as of troops. Management, as of business affairs. Transfer, as by gift or sale. Liberty to deal with or dispose of in any way.”
An astrological dispositor (lord, ruler) therefore – first and foremost – “controls the course of events.” First, the innate nature of the lord is imposed on the planets it disposes. For example, Mars as dispositor of other planets will impose on them a more aggressive, more energetic tendency than is their normal wont. They will be more inclined to take the initiative, and so on. Of course the condition of a dispositor in the particular horoscope must always be carefully examined. What sign is it in and what is the condition of its own lord? Once we determine the condition (cosmic state) of the planet that is lord of another planet or planets, we will see how this dispositor influences these others, what its tendencies are. The important thing is to understand that the dispositor, in accord with its conditioning, determines the course of events. It also “conditions toward something”; specifically, the dispositor inclines the planets it rules to act in a certain way and toward some goal determined by the dispositor. What that may be is described by the dispositor.
If one planet disposes another, it does so essentially. Rulership of a sign is an essential dignity. Essential means inherent, innate, inborn, inherited, immutable and not subject to change. So disposition is not dependent on life events; it is permanent, life-long. What is essential exists of necessity, is indispensable. An essential ingredient is of the very nature of a thing, making it what it is. Therefore, what is shown by the rulership of one planet over another is an indicator of what the dictionary calls “natural organic tendency or inclination.”
The more planets ruled or disposed by one planet, the more powerful and influential that one becomes in the horoscope. If Mars, for example, rules Jupiter, then it follows that because it influences, even dominates the behavior of Jupiter, Mars also indirectly influences the houses ruled by Jupiter. Where one planet rules several, this indirect influence may spread throughout the entire chart.
This brings us to a planet that, directly or indirectly, rules or disposes all the other planets – the Final Dispositor. Let’s assume Mars in Scorpio, his own sign. Sun, Mercury and Venus are all in Aries, also ruled by Mars. Saturn is in Gemini, ruled by Mercury...Uranus in Leo, ruled by Sun, Pluto and Jupiter in Libra under the dominion of Venus, and Neptune in Sagittarius under Jupiter, while Moon occupies Taurus. If we follow the chain of disposition, we find that ultimately Mars rules all the planets either directly or through a second planet. In such a case I call Mars the final dispositor. If a chart contains a final dispositor, that planet exercises exceptional power over the whole map, and influences the entire life.
Now some of my traditionalist friends will claim that what I just described above is not true final disposition. Disposition can only be effective directly, they say; the effects of disposition are not effective beyond the planet directly ruled. According to their rules, it is almost impossible for any planet to be a final dispositor. A planet such as Mars in the horoscope of Martin Luther, which I call final dispositor but the traditionalists do not allow that dignity, is said by them to be exceptionally dignified, but not final dispositor.
I answer that, whether we allow the term “final dispositor” or not, the functional role of Mars (in the horoscope of Luther) is that of predominant planet, and the tone of the life is determined by Mars’ conditioning. Mars is de facto dispositor of the chart, terminology notwithstanding. Common sense and everyday experience show us that the effects of a ruler do extend beyond what is directly ruled. In Luther’s life we see the indomitable warrior as well as the tormented soul whose life was given over to purification, both of the self and of the corrupted Church.
There is another situation commonly found in horoscopes, and that is where two planets share final disposition of a chart. Here’s an example: We’ll put Saturn and Mars in Taurus, Jupiter in Gemini, Moon in Libra, Sun, Mercury and Venus in Aquarius. We see that Venus rules Saturn, Mars and Moon directly. Mercury rules Jupiter. But Saturn rules the Aquarius planets, including Venus. So Venus rules Saturn, and Saturn rules Venus (mutual disposition) and between these two planets they dispose all the rest. This is mutual disposition of the chart.
This is a more complex sort of final disposition. Some astrologers do not allow it, considering it too weak; I hold that it is surely effective. The problem for the astrologer is that, unlike the straightforward single final dispositor, in most cases mutual disposition of a chart is inherently a sign of some sort of essential friction or conflict and is apt to be quite complex. To understand what is shown in such situations requires careful study of the two planets. But at least from the psychological perspective, it is worth the extra effort, because the friction or conflict is a governing force in the personality and character is destiny. Remember that disposition is essential in nature and is therefore descriptive of character; it portrays innate qualities.
The second application of the word disposition is useful in interpretation and comes to us via psychiatry. Disposition in this sense means a natural or acquired inclination or characteristic attitude. A person’s disposition can be determined in several different ways, that is, by several different and distinct indicators found in the astrological chart. Determination of a native’s disposition in this sense requires the synthesis of the various factors, careful evaluation of their strength and balance in the chart. Disposition in this sense is an element of interpretation – not a technical consideration –, and is fundamental in any attempt at character analysis.
Disposition in this sense is often indicated in a general way by the pattern of planetary distribution around the Earth. For example, all of the planets might be contained within a trine aspect, with the remaining two-thirds of the sky empty – what is known as a Bundle pattern. A person with this configuration in their chart is naturally (essentially) disposed or inclined to enclose themselves in a world of their own. The pattern is a reliable indicator of a basic introversion, or in-turning of personal focus, a highly subjective and personal view of life. The opposite condition, where the planets are more or less evenly scattered throughout the sky surrounding the Earth shows a natural disposition to scatter the energies, to lack focus or concentration, and an inclination to ride off in all directions at once. It shows a person with wide and varied interests and relationships, and is generally objective in outlook.
One element of disposition is found in oppositions. Where a chart has but one opposition aspect, or where more than one of them fall in one Quality with the other two Qualities vacant, that Quality will dominate a person’s perception and response to the circumstances met in life. Where Cardinal signs are so emphasized, the native will be inclined to meet each circumstance by acting to change the circumstance or exploit it for his own benefit. They are disposed to action. With the Common signs, the native is primarily concerned with his place within the social group. He is people-oriented, and will quickly adapt himself to fit into the circumstances encountered. Generally, this orientation to life involves some sort of service to others as a means of securing a personal place in the social whole of the moment. They are disposed to adaptation. The Fixed signs are concerned neither with acting upon passing circumstances nor adapting the self to them. They are instead inclined to direct their focus to processing passing circumstance in accord with their own closely-held internal values, ideals and principles. They are basically unconcerned with passing circumstance per se, but instead tend to allow circumstance to flow around and by them – themselves remaining “unchanged” – much like a boulder in a stream allows the water to flow past it. They are disposed toward fixing what are fundamentally internal affairs, and they tend to judge life and its affairs according to strongly held personal values.
Preponderance of Quality has the same effect vis a vis the native’s natural inclination, or disposition. The Qualities predispose us to meet life in typical ways. If there is a preponderance of Quality (I use six planets in one Quality to show preponderance, although five is probably strong enough to allow it) then that Quality will predominate in the personality. The native will be disposed to meet life predominantly in the manner typical of the preponderant Quality.
All other types of preponderance (Element, retrogradation, hemispheric emphasis, type of aspect, house triads or crosses, etc.) will display the same sort of effect. The native will be predisposed to act according to the different “meanings” of the preponderances present in the chart. These factors show us the native’s natural or acquired inclinations or dominant tendencies in response to life.
These chart factors – the whole-chart pattern, an opposition aspect in a single Quality, or preponderance in its many forms – tend to dominate the character, to indicate predominant behavioral inclinations that condition how the native meets life. Because they are fundamental character traits – the inborn or acquired disposition of the person –, they tend to dictate how any specific position or aspect will operate. Suppose the chart has a prominent conjunction of Mars to Saturn. There are several ways this conjunction may tend to manifest. Which way is most likely in this particular chart (life)? By examining the predominant disposition of the native, we will have at hand some very good indicators of the most likely form of expression of that difficult conjunction, and of all the other more specific or particular positions or aspects.
Words are the symbolic embodiment of an Idea. The old time astrologers were very careful in their choices of words – descriptors – used to portray the roles of planets in different functions, or of the different characteristics of signs and other astrological symbols. This is why I often use the dictionary as a primary astrological textbook.
By going outside astrology and then looking back in, we can gain new perspectives and understandings. The dictionary provides us with this opportunity because it is concerned with language rather than astrology. We might also keep in mind the fact that astrology is a language, a language that “works” through the use of analogy, which might be described as the translation of one fact into the terms of another set of facts. Astrology can be accurately defined as the translation of celestial facts into terms of human affairs. Therefore, a linguistic approach to understanding astrological significance is not only valid, but quite powerful.
If you want to understand the nature of the Fixed Signs, look up “fix” in your dictionary. If you have a preponderance of Fixed Signs in your personal horoscope, there is a list of seventeen definitions of the word in my little Funk & Wagnalls, most of which will describe you very nicely. Because I am a born diplomat I will refrain from calling you stubborn. Unalterable will do. The Fixed Signs do not welcome change that is not necessary or advantageous.
We are going to examine one word here: Disposition (and its cousins, dispose and dispositor).
The word disposition has two applications in astrology. The first of these is a strictly technical term that means that a planet, as lord of a sign, is the ruler of any planet found in that sign and of the house or houses which hold the ruled sign(s) on their cusp. The lord disposes those planets occupying his signs, and those houses he rules, toward whatever his condition may indicate. He is the dispositor, and the planets and houses under his rule are disposed to act in a certain way, or toward certain ends, dictated by the lord of the sign, again, according to his cosmic state or condition in the particular horoscope.
Morin tells us that while planets in a house, and even planets aspecting those planets or the cusp of the house, may be more directly influential in describing the affairs of that house or active in carrying them forward in actual practice, it is the dispositor who determines the final outcome.
What does this word dispose mean? What does a planetary dispositor do? Let’s see what Mssrs. Funk & Wagnall have to say. Here’s where it gets boring.
“Dispose: To put into a receptive frame of mind for. To condition toward something, especially to make susceptible. To put or set in a particular arrangement or position. To put into proper, definitive or final shape; settle. To control the course of events.
Disposition: One’s usual frame of mind; temperament. Acquired tendency or inclination. Natural organic tendency or inclination. A particular ordering, arrangement or distribution, as of troops. Management, as of business affairs. Transfer, as by gift or sale. Liberty to deal with or dispose of in any way.”
An astrological dispositor (lord, ruler) therefore – first and foremost – “controls the course of events.” First, the innate nature of the lord is imposed on the planets it disposes. For example, Mars as dispositor of other planets will impose on them a more aggressive, more energetic tendency than is their normal wont. They will be more inclined to take the initiative, and so on. Of course the condition of a dispositor in the particular horoscope must always be carefully examined. What sign is it in and what is the condition of its own lord? Once we determine the condition (cosmic state) of the planet that is lord of another planet or planets, we will see how this dispositor influences these others, what its tendencies are. The important thing is to understand that the dispositor, in accord with its conditioning, determines the course of events. It also “conditions toward something”; specifically, the dispositor inclines the planets it rules to act in a certain way and toward some goal determined by the dispositor. What that may be is described by the dispositor.
If one planet disposes another, it does so essentially. Rulership of a sign is an essential dignity. Essential means inherent, innate, inborn, inherited, immutable and not subject to change. So disposition is not dependent on life events; it is permanent, life-long. What is essential exists of necessity, is indispensable. An essential ingredient is of the very nature of a thing, making it what it is. Therefore, what is shown by the rulership of one planet over another is an indicator of what the dictionary calls “natural organic tendency or inclination.”
The more planets ruled or disposed by one planet, the more powerful and influential that one becomes in the horoscope. If Mars, for example, rules Jupiter, then it follows that because it influences, even dominates the behavior of Jupiter, Mars also indirectly influences the houses ruled by Jupiter. Where one planet rules several, this indirect influence may spread throughout the entire chart.
This brings us to a planet that, directly or indirectly, rules or disposes all the other planets – the Final Dispositor. Let’s assume Mars in Scorpio, his own sign. Sun, Mercury and Venus are all in Aries, also ruled by Mars. Saturn is in Gemini, ruled by Mercury...Uranus in Leo, ruled by Sun, Pluto and Jupiter in Libra under the dominion of Venus, and Neptune in Sagittarius under Jupiter, while Moon occupies Taurus. If we follow the chain of disposition, we find that ultimately Mars rules all the planets either directly or through a second planet. In such a case I call Mars the final dispositor. If a chart contains a final dispositor, that planet exercises exceptional power over the whole map, and influences the entire life.
Now some of my traditionalist friends will claim that what I just described above is not true final disposition. Disposition can only be effective directly, they say; the effects of disposition are not effective beyond the planet directly ruled. According to their rules, it is almost impossible for any planet to be a final dispositor. A planet such as Mars in the horoscope of Martin Luther, which I call final dispositor but the traditionalists do not allow that dignity, is said by them to be exceptionally dignified, but not final dispositor.
I answer that, whether we allow the term “final dispositor” or not, the functional role of Mars (in the horoscope of Luther) is that of predominant planet, and the tone of the life is determined by Mars’ conditioning. Mars is de facto dispositor of the chart, terminology notwithstanding. Common sense and everyday experience show us that the effects of a ruler do extend beyond what is directly ruled. In Luther’s life we see the indomitable warrior as well as the tormented soul whose life was given over to purification, both of the self and of the corrupted Church.
There is another situation commonly found in horoscopes, and that is where two planets share final disposition of a chart. Here’s an example: We’ll put Saturn and Mars in Taurus, Jupiter in Gemini, Moon in Libra, Sun, Mercury and Venus in Aquarius. We see that Venus rules Saturn, Mars and Moon directly. Mercury rules Jupiter. But Saturn rules the Aquarius planets, including Venus. So Venus rules Saturn, and Saturn rules Venus (mutual disposition) and between these two planets they dispose all the rest. This is mutual disposition of the chart.
This is a more complex sort of final disposition. Some astrologers do not allow it, considering it too weak; I hold that it is surely effective. The problem for the astrologer is that, unlike the straightforward single final dispositor, in most cases mutual disposition of a chart is inherently a sign of some sort of essential friction or conflict and is apt to be quite complex. To understand what is shown in such situations requires careful study of the two planets. But at least from the psychological perspective, it is worth the extra effort, because the friction or conflict is a governing force in the personality and character is destiny. Remember that disposition is essential in nature and is therefore descriptive of character; it portrays innate qualities.
The second application of the word disposition is useful in interpretation and comes to us via psychiatry. Disposition in this sense means a natural or acquired inclination or characteristic attitude. A person’s disposition can be determined in several different ways, that is, by several different and distinct indicators found in the astrological chart. Determination of a native’s disposition in this sense requires the synthesis of the various factors, careful evaluation of their strength and balance in the chart. Disposition in this sense is an element of interpretation – not a technical consideration –, and is fundamental in any attempt at character analysis.
Disposition in this sense is often indicated in a general way by the pattern of planetary distribution around the Earth. For example, all of the planets might be contained within a trine aspect, with the remaining two-thirds of the sky empty – what is known as a Bundle pattern. A person with this configuration in their chart is naturally (essentially) disposed or inclined to enclose themselves in a world of their own. The pattern is a reliable indicator of a basic introversion, or in-turning of personal focus, a highly subjective and personal view of life. The opposite condition, where the planets are more or less evenly scattered throughout the sky surrounding the Earth shows a natural disposition to scatter the energies, to lack focus or concentration, and an inclination to ride off in all directions at once. It shows a person with wide and varied interests and relationships, and is generally objective in outlook.
One element of disposition is found in oppositions. Where a chart has but one opposition aspect, or where more than one of them fall in one Quality with the other two Qualities vacant, that Quality will dominate a person’s perception and response to the circumstances met in life. Where Cardinal signs are so emphasized, the native will be inclined to meet each circumstance by acting to change the circumstance or exploit it for his own benefit. They are disposed to action. With the Common signs, the native is primarily concerned with his place within the social group. He is people-oriented, and will quickly adapt himself to fit into the circumstances encountered. Generally, this orientation to life involves some sort of service to others as a means of securing a personal place in the social whole of the moment. They are disposed to adaptation. The Fixed signs are concerned neither with acting upon passing circumstances nor adapting the self to them. They are instead inclined to direct their focus to processing passing circumstance in accord with their own closely-held internal values, ideals and principles. They are basically unconcerned with passing circumstance per se, but instead tend to allow circumstance to flow around and by them – themselves remaining “unchanged” – much like a boulder in a stream allows the water to flow past it. They are disposed toward fixing what are fundamentally internal affairs, and they tend to judge life and its affairs according to strongly held personal values.
Preponderance of Quality has the same effect vis a vis the native’s natural inclination, or disposition. The Qualities predispose us to meet life in typical ways. If there is a preponderance of Quality (I use six planets in one Quality to show preponderance, although five is probably strong enough to allow it) then that Quality will predominate in the personality. The native will be disposed to meet life predominantly in the manner typical of the preponderant Quality.
All other types of preponderance (Element, retrogradation, hemispheric emphasis, type of aspect, house triads or crosses, etc.) will display the same sort of effect. The native will be predisposed to act according to the different “meanings” of the preponderances present in the chart. These factors show us the native’s natural or acquired inclinations or dominant tendencies in response to life.
These chart factors – the whole-chart pattern, an opposition aspect in a single Quality, or preponderance in its many forms – tend to dominate the character, to indicate predominant behavioral inclinations that condition how the native meets life. Because they are fundamental character traits – the inborn or acquired disposition of the person –, they tend to dictate how any specific position or aspect will operate. Suppose the chart has a prominent conjunction of Mars to Saturn. There are several ways this conjunction may tend to manifest. Which way is most likely in this particular chart (life)? By examining the predominant disposition of the native, we will have at hand some very good indicators of the most likely form of expression of that difficult conjunction, and of all the other more specific or particular positions or aspects.
, just passing on some insights which have proven valuable to me.
I know it's a loaded question but it was designed for newbie awareness. Some software programs will generate dispositor diagrams. It's a great idea, except they seem to default to modern rulership without any indication. They should be more clearly labeled with the option to switch rulership criteria. 
