A primary direction is a form of an applying spatial aspect (i.e., the angular distance between planets). The number of degrees in this aspect indicates the number of years from birth to the predicted event.
The technique of primary directions is one of the oldest forms of forecasting. It is mentioned in Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos in the section on predicting the duration of life.
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What is an exact spatial aspect?
Just as planets occasionally form exact angles of 60, 90, 120, and 180 degrees on the zodiacal circle, called zodiacal aspects, planets can also form spatial, i.e., mundane aspects on the celestial sphere.
In the first case, planets form exact aspects due to their movement along the zodiacal circle, called secondary motion. In the second case, they perform exact aspects because one of the planets moves together with a rotating celestial sphere while the other is fixed. The daily motion of a planet due to the rotation of the sky in 24 hours is called primary motion. Hence the name - primary directions, i.e., the aspect formed due to the rotation of the celestial sphere.
If the picture of aspect is quite evident with zodiacal aspects, it is not in the case of mundane aspects. The mutual arrangement of planets on the sphere is subject to the rules of three-dimensional geometry.
Spatial conjunction
Let's take the most straightforward configuration as an example - the conjunction of planets on the zodiac circle. For planets to be conjunct with each other, they need to have the same zodiacal degree. The situation becomes more complicated in the case of the position of two planets in the celestial sphere. In addition to the zodiacal degree, planets have celestial latitude, a slight deviation up or down from the zodiac circle plane. The point on a three-dimensional sphere, unlike the point in the plane of the Zodiac, has not one but two coordinates. In the article about types of spherical coordinates, we wrote about this in more detail.
Therefore, spatial (or mundane) conjunction depends on the astrological house system, a mathematical way of dividing the celestial sphere into 12 sectors, each corresponding to a particular area of life.
The most popular systems are:
Each system constructs the dividing lines differently. Usually, astrologers do not think about lines on the sphere when discussing houses; they think about house cusps. Cusps are points of intersection of the lines dividing the globe with the zodiac circle. The dividing lines of houses always pass through every 30 degrees of the celestial equator, starting from the East. The scheme for constructing these lines determines the astrological house system.
Read more about this in the following articles:
If we draw a dividing line through the first planet and place the second planet in another place on the same line, then such a mutual position is a spatial conjunction of planets on the sphere in a particular house system.
For example, in the Regiomontanus house system, the dividing lines are constructed according to the following scheme - we draw a circle passing through two points - any chosen point on the celestial sphere and the point of the South. By the way, such a dividing line is also called the circle of position of the planet.
Here is what the spatial conjunction of two planets will look like in this system - two planets are in the same circle of positions:
To express the degree of proximity of one planet to the circle of positions of another, astrologers introduced the concept of the mundane position of a planet. It is the point of intersection of the dividing line passed through the planet with the celestial equator. In the above figure, this point is marked in blue. Thus, one can express a mundane conjunction in the following way: two planets have the same degree of mundane position on the equator.
Read more about the calculation of the coordinates of mundane positions in the following articles:
Other spatial aspects
In the zodiacal circle, an aspect is an exact angle between the degrees of the planets. In the celestial sphere, it is the mundane conjunction of one planet with the aspect of the other. If the sextile of the second planet falls on the dividing line drawn through the first planet, then we speak of an exact sextile between the planets.
Astrologers of different years argued about which plane to use to cast the aspects of a planet on the sphere. Although, in the ancient world, they used the plane of the ecliptic, and some used regular aspects in the zodiacal circle, starting from the 15th century, they began using the plane of aspects calculated by Professor of Mathematics Giovanni Bianchini. This scheme was considered the most accurate until the mid-17th century when Professor of Mathematics at the University of Paris Jean-Baptiste Morin proposed his version of the plane of aspects. Read more about this in our article A Circle of mundane aspects.
What is an applying mundane aspect?
Similar to how an applying aspect in horary astrology indicates the time until a future event, an applying mundane aspect in natal astrology shows the number of years from birth to an important event in life. The precise aspect symbolizes the moment of the event promised by the planets.
One of the planets in the aspect is called the significator - it indicates the area of life in which the event will occur. The second planet is called the promittor - it indicates what will trigger the events in the specified area.
For example, the significator of wealth in the natal chart promises good income, and the promittor shows legal disputes. When such a promittor approaches the significator in direction, we expect the native to win money through a court in the appointed year of life. Another promittor will indicate enrichment through other means when it approaches the significator of wealth in the natal chart in another year. All these enrichment episodes confirm the significator's central idea - the native, in general, will be a wealthy person. But the specific episodes of this enrichment are revealed precisely by the technique of primary directions.
The technique of directions arranges the multitude of potential events packed in the horoscope into an orderly line of fate.
Read more about how to choose a promittor and a significator and which parts of the horoscope (besides the planets) can serve as a promittor and a significator in the article "How to distinguish a promittor from a significator."
Usually, the significator and the dividing line passing through it remain stationary, while the promittor is borne (or directed) towards the mundane conjunction with the significator by the rotation of the heavenly sphere.
The word "direction" in the applying aspect is at the heart of the term "primary direction."
For more information on calculating directions, please read our articles:
Accuracy of timing in primary directions
Primary directions usually indicate not an exact date but a period of several months when the expected event may occur. Astrologers use secondary forecasting techniques to clarify the particular circumstances of the predicted event and its exact timing (down to the day). These secondary forecasting techniques include but are not limited to transits and revolutions, like solar returns.
Therefore, if you hear the phrase "solar return for the year," remember that it is not so much a prognostic as a clarifying technique - it is based on the secondary movement of planets. On the other hand, the primary direction is a primary forecasting technique since it is based on a more explicit and influential form of heavenly motion.
Suppose a solar chart promises you a year full of events, but the direction, as a more priority forecasting technique, prohibits significant events this year. In that case, your solar chart for the year will not give you anything. Therefore, be skeptical of yearly forecasts based solely on solar return (solar chart).
An Example of Directions in Action
For example, we suggest looking at the article "Princess Diana: death prediction by primary directions." The Princess's chart is noteworthy in that dozens of contemporary astrologers could not find the time and circumstances of her death in it. But primary directions quickly solve this problem.
Unfortunately, the primary direction technique is almost unused nowadays because it is difficult for most astrologers to understand. Nevertheless, this technique traditionally served as a basis - any forecast for a natal chart began with it.
If you appreciate the mathematical logic of forecasting techniques, you can enroll in the free mini-course) to witness predictive astrology in action.
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