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Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Geomancy

Robert Fludd’s Geomancy – Book II Pt. 3

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Fludd explains some of the meanings of Acquisitio, Amissio, Laetitia and Tristitia in the various houses.

Of the Nature and Meaning of the Sixteen Figures in Each of the Houses of the Shield

Acquisitio

In the First house, riches, prudence, profit, good end (or aim)1 luck, receiving what one wishes, but this figure is not good for selling;2 but it is truthful.
In the Second house, wealth, gain, profit, good luck in commerce, reception of something promised, recovery of lost property, increase of all good things.
In the Third house, good luck from relatives, good relatives, siblings, neighbors, good journey, good sense (or feeling).3

In the Fourth house, good inheritance, good and useful house, in which one will acquire riches, rich father, positive solution to all things connected with inheritance.
In the Fifth house, gain from one’s children,4 good children, good letters, good clothes, happiness in the heart, delighting in women, the fruits of the inheritance.5
In the Sixth house, long illness,6 which however will be cured, good animals, good servants.

In the Seventh house, a chaste and submissive woman,7 good company, good dealings, peace, reconciliation with enemies, whether it be in litigation or in war.
In the Eighth house, redress, natural death, gain in foreign land, freedom from fear of death, the enemy is happy and rich.8
In the Ninth house, gain from death, path or travel, fear of God, positive journey, benefit, good dreams, good sense in all actions, piety and religious devotion, good in things of church.

In the Tenth house, profit from (or for) the master or king, peaceful and happy masters, obtaining one’s wish, good sentence from the judge.
In the Eleventh house, good luck, good friends, gain from commerce, immediate reception of gain.
In the Twelfth house, poverty or incarceration due to debts, profit for (or from) servants and beasts,9 long prison sentence, good in case of illness and in being paid back a debt.

In the Thirteenth house, loss and change in profits,10 good journey, acquisition in everything, receipt, implementation of the wish of the absent person.11
In the Fourteenth house, gain in everything one wishes, long life, luck, usefulness, goodness.
In the Fifteenth house, good in everything, recovery of lost things, delay in one’s journey.

Note that this figure in the first house shows a man who is handsome, with yellow or beautiful hair, mediocre build, a red face, a merchant.12

Amissio

In the First house, a bold, unstable man, full of crime and deception, receiving nothing.
in the Second house loss of merchandise and goods, no profit, loss of all goods from robbers.
In the Third house enmity between relatives, parents, brothers, neighbors full of deception, fear on the way.

In the Fourth house falsity and loss of inheritance and patrimony, bad end of the city or house.13
In the fifth house loss of fruits of the inheritance,14 bad and unstable children, bad letters,15 no pleasure in the love of unserious women.
In the Sixth house escape from disease, loss of animals, flight of slaves, likewise injury and perversity.

In the Seventh house an evil woman, a quarrel with one’s master16 or partner, an unstable and lustful woman, loss of merchandise, fugitive robbers, inimical partners, changeable and deceitful, bad change (or removal).17
In the Eighth house loss from death, loss of sense, no profit in the place where one goes, poor enemies, loss a woman’s dowry.
In the Ninth house a long journey without pleasure, no knowledge, some evil for the querent from the Church.

In the Tenth house evil lords, loss of honour, dominion or office, unstable lords, troubles of kingdoms, obstacles to honour.
In the Eleventh house loss of friends, loss of merchandise, false hope, changeable and useless friends.
In the Twelfth house loss of animals, escape from debts, bad change, escape from prison, friends full of falsehood, changeable and derisive.

In the Thirteenth house loss and change in authority or government, bad luck.
In the Fourteenth house loss of friends, much toil in every matter.18
In the Fifteenth house a reception of nothing, a bad conclusion.

note, when this figure Loss is found in the first house, it signifies a pale man, a liar, a predator, a thief.

Laetitia

In the First house judges, wise men, a good and upright life, fullness of joy and exaltation, joy to the querent in all things.
In the Second house a multitude of honors, a life full of fidelity and joy.
In the Third house good fortune through one’s brothers, no fear of God,19 good love of brothers, neighbors, parents, much joy in everything.

In the Fourth house profit from inheritances and from all things on earth,20 a happy end, happiness through real estate, happiness of parents, peaceful inheritance.
In the Fifth house profitable children, long life, happiness in all things, happy and delightful letters and news, happiness from women and all good things.
In the Sixth house servants, animals cured from disease, joyful and cheerful servants.

In the Seventh house a good marriage, profitable partners or profit from partners, victory due to a cheerful and chaste woman, cheerful company, peace and harmony, good change (or removal).
In the Eighth house profits inherited from the dead, escape from fear, profit and profits in the place where one removes to.
In the Ninth house, journeys, fear of God, knowledge, faithfulness, cheerfulness, a holy man,21 business of the church, good news, fine arts, devotion and love of the church.

In the Tenth house exaltation to great honors, bishops and prelates, help from the lords, a happy and cheerful office, beautiful temples, a good judge, a just and good opinion, a warm place.22
In the Eleventh house good fortune from associates, profitable animals,23 joyous love, good hope from a good man, cheerful and good friends, a prudent man and of good knowledge, profit in trade.
In the Twelfth house profitable beasts and slaves, coming out of prison, deliverance from debt, and from all tribulation, peace and reconciliation with enemies.

In the Thirteenth house, profit from a journey, from the king, from the lord, positive change.
In the Fourteenth house good hope of fulfilling one’s will, happy hope, the fulfillment of one’s wishes, joy and exaltation.

When this figure is found in the first house, it signifies a bishop, a prelate of the church, religious and ecclesiastical, a long beard, some evil existing in the finger,24 remaining in high places.

Tristitia

In the First house, sad thoughts, debts, poverty, hidden loss, obligations, prison, roadblocks, bad change, unbelieving and without hope.25
In the Second house fortune and commerce,26 avarice, loss of property, an unfortunate usurer, dishonor.
In the Third house bitterness with relatives, silent hatred with neighbors and relatives, a secret obstacle on the way.27

In the Fourth house loss of inheritance and in battles, loss of house, trouble, bad house, bad luck, poverty of parents, loss.
In the Fifth house bad and poor children, false letters, sadness and anguish of heart, secrets in love of sad women, poor food and clothes.
In the Sixth house evil servants, fear of captivity and poverty, timid and useless animals, long illness or death, poverty, rejection without injury and confusion.28

In the Seventh house a bad woman, a victorious man,29 a thief in the night, poor condition, loss, bad change (or removal), a sad woman.
In the Eighth house being poor from the death of another, loss in a foreign nation, damage from the absent person.30

In the Ninth house the road is unprofitable, hindrances in the journey and loss, a man without wisdom and knowledge, a crude understanding, the downfall of the church and benefits.

In the Tenth house, loss and degradation of men, the exaltation of the wicked,31 loss of duties, sad lords, fear of kings and kingdoms, wrong judgment of judges, a fall from honor.
In the Eleventh house, contemptuous friends, bad luck which will last for a long time, but still with hope, a poor friend, no failure in business.32
In the Twelfth house, debts, enemies, loss, long imprisonment or death in prison, a timid and poor enemy, trouble, fear of obligations and debts, long or incurable illness.33

In the Thirteenth house evil on the road and sadness.
In the Fourteenth house, bad luck, small journeys, anxiety and trouble, despair and irreparable evil.

When this figure is found in the first house, it signifies a dark man,34 having torn clothes, and who deals in dark, foul, and vile things.

MQS

Footnotes
  1. It is unclear to me whether he means a good end to the matter at hand or a positive aim in mind. ↩︎
  2. Because it implies receiving rather than giving away. ↩︎
  3. Probably meaning clarity of mind. ↩︎
  4. This was written in preromantic times, when children were often seen as helping hands. ↩︎
  5. Because the Fifth house is the second from the Fourth. ↩︎
  6. Because it implies not getting rid of it. ↩︎
  7. Implying the querent is a man. However, in some old Astrology handbooks, the Seventh house is assigned specifically to women. ↩︎
  8. Because it is the second from the Seventh house, which is the house opposing the first. ↩︎
  9. The Twelfth house rules larger animals. ↩︎
  10. This sentence is not clear to me, nor why Acquisitio would imply loss. ↩︎
  11. “Implementum desiderii absentis.” This is obscure to me. ↩︎
  12. Fludd attributes, like many others, physical descriptions to the figures when they are in the First House. This is typical of traditional astrology, where the first house represents the querent. Note that these descriptions are rather limiting and conform to old stereotypes. Plus, they imply that the same querent would always be represented by the same figure whenever they come to the geomancer for a consultation, which is highly unlikely. They are still useful on occasion, but one must “mix discretion with art”. ↩︎
  13. In addition to one’s home, the Fourth house indicates the city. ↩︎
  14. Again because the Fifth is the second from the Fourth. However, the Fourth house also rules orchards and lands, so the Fifth can indicate literal fruits from the lands. ↩︎
  15. There is some confusion in traditional astrology on which house rules letters. Some say the Third house, some the Fifth, some the Ninth. As far as I can rationalize this matter, the Third house represents communication and private correspondence; the Fifth house represents messengers because it is the second from the Fourth, the Fourth house being the city, and the second house from any house indicates that thing’s representatives (for instance, my Second house would indicate my lawyer, who represents me in a court of law.) ↩︎
  16. It’s unclear why the Seventh would indicate the master. ↩︎
  17. The Seventh house represents “there”, while the Firsth house is “here”. ↩︎
  18. The Thirteenth and Fourteenth houses, i.e., the Witnesses, generally receive their signification (as we have seen in Abano’s case) from the two houses they derive from on the Shield: the Right Witness from the Ninth and Tenth, the Left Witness from the Eleventh and Twelfth. ↩︎
  19. It is unclear whether this is positive or negative, as fear of God was considered the beginning of wisdom. As for why it is attributed to the Third house instead of the Ninth, in some very old Astrological texts the Third House is the house of the Goddess, and in Christian times it possibly came to represent how one’s faith affected one’s everyday life. ↩︎
  20. The Fourth house, the Imum Coeli, is the earth. ↩︎
  21. All these positive religious connotations stem from Acquisitio’s attribution to Jupiter. ↩︎
  22. The Tenth house, the M.C., represents the sky and therefore the weather. ↩︎
  23. I don’t get why. ↩︎
  24. I don’t understand why. ↩︎
  25. Probably as character traits, since it is about the First House. ↩︎
  26. I do not understand why Tristitia in the second would bode well for commerce. ↩︎
  27. Fludd’s insistence on the idea of secrecy is due to Tristitia’s association with Saturn. ↩︎
  28. “abjectionem sine vulnere et confusione”. I do not understand this sentence. ↩︎
  29. I don’t understand why “a victorious man”. ↩︎
  30. The reference to absent people is due to how common it was to ask astrologers or geomancers about people who had simply gone away or vanished. This is understandable, considering astrology was probably the only tracking device available at the time. ↩︎
  31. Because the Tenth House is the highest place in the chart and Tristitia indicates downward movement and lowly things or people, it can show the elevation of someone unworthy or the downfall of someone who is in a high place. ↩︎
  32. This last part is unclear to me. Possibly because the failure announced by Tristitia is mitigated by the positivity of the house. ↩︎
  33. Typically we assign illness to the Sixth house. However, there are old handbooks that assign illness (especially serious illness) to the Twelfth house. Some distinguish between the Illness (Sixth House) and the confinement that derives from it (Twelfth House). ↩︎
  34. From Saturn’s influence ↩︎

Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Geomancy

The Geomancy of Peter of Abano – Book IV Pt. 1

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Here Abano begins a discussion of how the genesis of each of the figures from other two figures can modify their meaning.

Since one is not only supposed to consider the springing of the figures from one place to the other, but also their origin and generation one from the other,1 an esposition of of the meanings of each of the figure depending on the figures it is born from is in order, without forgetting the inherent meaning of the figure, as well as that of the querent’s and quesited’s, and those figures in the angles, and those conjoined to them.

Acquisitio

From Populus and Acquisitio: recovering one’s losses or recovery from damage; gain, profitable journey.
From Amissio and Via: dishonorable journey, but useful, recovering something lost.
From Fortuna Major and Conjunctio: good luck, mediocre gain, and [it is positive for] the thing asked.
From Fortuna Minor and Carcer: love between husband and wife,2 and [it is good for] the thing asked.
From Puella and Cauda Draconis: gain, usefulness in things of merchandise, and gain from difficulties.

From Puer and Laetitia: gain from minerals, gain from merchandise.
From Tristitia and Rubeus: fortitude, stability in everything, good outcome, victory, loss of merchandise.
From Conjunctio and Fortuna Major: good luck, mediocre gain.
From Carcer and Fortuna Minor: usefulness; kings and lords, noble people.
From Albus and Caput Draconis: good luck in material things, loss of objects.

Amissio

From Populus and Amissio: loss, trouble, good luck for the ill and the imprisoned, good for traveling.
From Acquisitio and Via: damage, trouble, loss, the lost or stolen thing is not found, vain friends or servants.
From Carcer and Fortuna Major: trouble, problems, little gain.
From Caput Draconis and Puer: good luck in things connected with women; in other questions, gaining what one wants results in damage.
From Rubeus and Cauda Draconis: misfortune [or accident], injury, fear, fighting, trouble, damage, illness.

From Conjunctio and Fortuna Minor: loss of animals, lots of trouble, desperation for the thing lost.
From Albus and Laetitia: freedom from illness or prison, the absent party will come back, white clothes, mobile things, quick ending.
From Puella and Tristitia: poverty, vile things, trouble due to secrets, desperation, mirth, luck in debauched things.
From Fortuna Major and Carcer: recovering the lost or stolen thing.3

Fortuna Maior

From Populus and Fortuna Maior: luck in everything, getting what one wishes to get, but with delay.
From Carcer and Amissio: being very lucky and obtaining what one wants, but with difficulties.
From Albus and Tristitia: it means good news, messenger, usefulness, dignity, good salary [remuneration].
From Caput Draconis and Rubeus: great accident or misfortune, hanging, health problems, violent death.

From Amissio and Carcer: accident, problems, prison, good ending but with difficulties.
From Fortuna Minor and Via: fighting, good news, quick dispatch, honorable journeys.
From Acquisitio and Conjunctio: good fortune, prosperity, getting one’s wish.
From Puer and Cauda: good fortune, tranquillity after much trouble, getting one’s wish with much delay.
From Puella and Laetitia: mediocrity in everything, good things.

Fortuna Minor

From Populus and Fortuna Minor: its meaning has more virtue in good as in bad depending on the question.
From Acquisitio and Carcer: stability, certainty, mediocre fortune.
From Amissio and Conjunctio: good but mediocre fortune, especially in mobile things, less in stable things.
From Fortuna Major and Via: great virtue, great good fortune.

From Caput and Puella: good luck, especially in friendship and marriage.
From Albus and Cauda Draconi: mediocre good luck, especially in feminine things.
From Laetitia and Rubeus: very noble things, luck in mobile, outgoing things.
From Puer and Tristitia: mediocrity, but more bad and mutable than otherwise.

MQS

Footnotes
  1. This seems to imply that we must consider how the figures are generated on the shield. Whether this applies only to the Judge is not clear, though Abano seems to hint at the need to consider all figures, since he also considers those that cannot be Judge. ↩︎
  2. Admittedly, some of these explanations are hard to follow. I do not know, for instance, why this combination should indicate positive things between husband and wife. ↩︎
  3. Abano does not present all possible combinations. It is not clear whether he forgot or he thought it was enough to give some examples. Note also that some explanation almost seem contrary to reason. ↩︎
Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Geomancy

The Geomancy of Peter of Abano – Book III Pt. 2

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Abano starts a discussion on the meaning of the various figures in each of the houses, beginning with Acquisitio and Amissio.

I have already discussed how every figure has two properties, one by virtue of its essence, and one by virtue of its accidental placement in the chart. What follows is the meaning of each figure in each of the fifteen houses.1

Acquisitio

Acquisitio in the first house means gain through partnerships,2 obtaining what one wishes, acquisition, gain, honor, good life, health, property.
In the second house it means gain, merchandise, money, good outcome, usefulness.
In the third house it means good luck for one’s siblings and relatives or neighbors, and in science, and the dream is true,3 good outcome through journey.

In the fourth house it means inheritance, goods from the deceased, increase of wealth and of stable things, abundance.
In the fifth house it means good luck with children, or through them, recognition, happiness, what one wishes to gain, following one’s lords.
In the sixth house it means sickness, falling ill, relapsing,4 gain through animals and servants and subjects.

In the seventh it means good change of place, good friendship, good partnership, usefulness, properties.
In the eighth it means gaining back the money you loaned, gain through dead people, mediocre outcome in all things, except for sickness, where it lengthens the process.
In the ninth it means gain through travel, honorable travel, especially if of elevated people and people who have fear of God.

In the tenth it means exaltation, lordship, lords, honor, dignity, gaining through one’s masters, kings, emperors.
In the eleventh it means good luck in every question, gain, good friends, happiness and friendship and offspring.
In the twelfth it means prison, loss, toil, problems, fear, gain through serfs, subjects, animals.

In the thirteenth it means honorable journey or journeying with great people or in their stead, or with one’s mother. Gain.5
In the fourteenth it means obtaining what one wishes but with trouble, problems, difficulties.6
In the fifteenth it means good outcome in everything, good brother, good things from brothers and relatives.7

Amissio

Amissio means damage, loss, especially in movable things, coins, in wealth, theft, gossip, evil in everything, except for sickness or prison or travel.8
In the second it means loss of wealth, damage through merchandise, and in everything where gain is hoped for.
In the third it means enmity with siblings and relatives or through them, wrath, discord, malice, good outcome for journeys.

In the fourth it means damage, loss, misfortune in secret things, loss of inheritance, destruction of the city, of the home, of the land, of the fortress.
In the fifth it means problems and misfortune with children, loss of wealth, famine.9
In the sixth it means healing of sickness, liberation of the fled servant, loss due to animals, and when one is sick, depending on the other houses, there might still be doubts [about his health].10

In the seventh it means fraud, treachery from women and enemies, loss through marriage and partnership and friendship.
In the eighth it means loss of inheritance, loss of money and wealth, death of the sick person.
In the ninth it means long but good journey. Late journey in a distant land, problems on the road, with changes, harlots.11

In the tenth it means loss and problems in all you wish to gain, and if Rubeus is born from it it means being harmed, if Tristitia it means prison.12
In the eleventh it means misfortune in everything you wish to get, discord, enmity with friends, bad for prisoners.
In the twelfth it means bad journey, loss through animals and loss of wealth, toil, loss of merchanidse, and you’ll collect a debt at a loss, freedom from prison and sickness.

In the thirteenth it means loss of wealth, damage through one’s lords, change of country, misfortune.
In the fourteenth it means loss of friends, toil, great problems.
In the fifteenth it means bad outcome, flight, not retreiveing what you wish to retrieve, misfortune in all.

MQS

Footnotes
  1. This way of proceeding is rather typical of medieval handbooks of geomancy and even of astrology. It generally aims at allowing the reader to form an idea of the abstract properties of each figure by showing its concrete manifestation. ↩︎
  2. It is unclear why Acquisitio in the First House should indicate gain through partnerships. In most medieval handbooks of astrology, for instance, a planet showing gain in the First House usually indicates the querent’s industriousness. ↩︎
  3. Dreams and science are usually Ninth House matters, although the distinction is not as rigid as some modern traditional astrologers make it out to be. ↩︎
  4. This is a typical example of a broadly positive figure having a negative meaning: people usually don’t want to ‘gain’ an illness. ↩︎
  5. Why Abano characterizes the Thirteenth Figure, i.e., the Right Witness, as meaning all these things is obscure, until we remember that, for Abano, the Right Witness is in connection with the Ninth and Tenth houses, from which it is formed. ↩︎
  6. Probably from the mixing of Eleventh and Twelfth House meanings. ↩︎
  7. The connection to relatives and brothers escapes me. ↩︎
  8. Abano does not say “Amissio in the first house means…” but “Amissio means…” I suspect though that it is just a mistake. ↩︎
  9. Because it shows loss of the products (second from) of the earth (Fourth House) ↩︎
  10. Amissio is generally favorable in case of illness, but what Abano is saying is that we should always look at the picture as a whole, without focusing on a single testimony. ↩︎
  11. This escapes me. ↩︎
  12. That is, if Rubeus or Tristitia are the Right Witness, which is the one born from the Tenth House. ↩︎

Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Geomancy

Amissio / Loss (Geomancy Figures)

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Name of the Figure: Amissio (Loss)
Element: Fire
Planet: Venus (retrograde)
Sign: Libra
Quality: Exiting
Fortune: Bad

Amissio is another rather straightforward figure, with a caveat that I will address at the end. It is the opposite of Acquisitio, and its symbol shows it, as it seems to depict a bag with its mouth held downward, signifying loss. Tradition assigns this figure to Venus retrograde, meaning that while it is bad in most things, some see it as good in love affairs.

Illustration for the geomantic figure Amissio, Loss

Mainly, Amissio is a figure of loss, especially financial or material loss. It is also often associated with losing items or having them stolen from you. Needless to say, it is bad in any situations where we hope for increase, gain and the like. It is good in situations where you want to lose something, such as weight, illness, prison sentences, etc. Some say that Amissio is good for love because in love you “lose yourself” in the other.

Frankly, I believe we need to be very cautious with this line of reasoning, as it can be played with and made to say whatever we want. “Will I find a job?” “Why, yes! Here it says you will lose your lack of employment!” Furthermore, even in matters of love I have personally found that there are better figures to represent love (Puella) elation (Laetitia), ardor (Puer) or commitment (Conjunctio). I have the sneaking suspiscion that the only reason the Medievals assigned Amissio to Venus was that Saturn already had two figures to its name and nothing else was available, so always take the attributions with a grain of salt. The main meaning is loss, plain and simple.

Common Keywords: Loss, Difficulties, Hardships, Theft, Healing, Liberation, Letting go, Falling in love

Amissio in the Geomantic Houses (these are only examples. Use context to guide your interpretation)

HousePossible Meanings
FirstLoss, Depression, In love, Lost, Needy, In need
SecondLoss of money or valuables, Loss of an object, Hardhips, Sacrifices
ThirdThieves in the neighborhood, Bad relationship with siblings, rumors, gossip
FourthLoss of inheritance, Loss from real estate or from the father
FifthLosing yourself in pleasures, Loss of pregnancy, Sadness
SixthHealing, Loss from servants and subordinates or from small animals, losing your pet
SeventhFalling in love, Losing your partner, Thieves
EighthBereavement, Loss, Loss of partner’s money
NinthLoss during journey, Losing your way, Bad skill or bad science
TenthLoss of employment, Inability to find a job
EleventhLoss of friendship, loss of hope, Loss of government support
TwelfthBeing freed from prison or a curse, Loss through large cattle
ThirteenthPast expenses, Past sacrifices
FourteenthFuture loss, Expenses, If the Judge is positive, there may be bad consequences in the future
FifteenthNot getting what you want (may be good in “Venusian” pursuits)
Possible meanings of Acquisitio in the various Geomantic Houses. Note that this is not meant to be exhaustive, and it only serves to jog your interpretive muscles

MQS