Abano quickly summarises the meanings of the planets in traditional Western astrology, so that the geomancer may better understand the meanings of the corresponding figures.
In order to make it even easier to make a judgment, we shall now consider the planet of every figure, and conveniently we shall list the virtue and meaning of every planet.1
Saturn is always evil, wherever it is, and it means sick or vile people, malady, poverty, blind or maimed people, laborers, problems and toil, prison and prisoners. Adversities and obstacles, loss of wealth. It is only good for building and in agriculture and in things that need to last. Its two figures are Tristitia and Carcer.
Jupiter is always good, wherever it is, and it means Church people, prelates, noblemen, rich people, merchants, captains, courtesans and friendly people. It is good and pleasurable, useful in every thing. It is only bad for the sick and the prisoner, whose trouble it prolongs. Its figures are Acquisitio and Laetitia. Acquisitio is the better one.
Mars is sometimes good and sometimes bad, depending on the question, but inclining to evil, and it means malicious people, wrongdoers, traitors, thieves, ruffians, harlots, murderers. It is only good in things of wars and when blood is concerned. Its figures are Puer and Rubeus, and Puer is the worse one.2
Venus is good, but its goodness is minor, for good or ill, depending on the question asked. It means people who are friendly, happy, young, with little troubles in life. But also harlots. Its figures are Puella and Amissio. Puella is the more noxious for travel and sickness and prison. Amissio is the better one.3
Mercury is a mixed planet in terms of good and evil. It means servants, messengers, letters, embassies, writers, scholars and painters, science and doctrine. Its figures are Albus and Conjunctio. Conjunctio is the worse one, as it always shows malicious intention or duplicity, and hexes.
The Sun and Moon are mixed planets in their good and evil import depending on the question, but the Sun is the better of the two,4 and it means nobles, kings, emperors and people of high station, who have dominion. Its figures are Fortuna Major and Fortuna Minor. Minor means more trouble than prosperity.
The Moon is also a mixed planet, but mostly bad, and its figures are Via and Populus. Via is only good for travel, Populus is good for dealing with people, and it means abundance and lots of water.
Caput and Cauda are associated with the planets Jupiter and Venus (Caput) and Mars and Saturn (Cauda).5
MQS
Footnotes
The elaborate psychological attributes that modern astrology assigns to the twelve zodiac signs are virtually unknown to premodern Astrology, having been invented relatively recently to make up for modern astrology’s inability to make verifiable predictions. Instead, traditional astrology relies much more heavily on the planets as celestial actors. ↩︎
This is not the first time Abano alludes to Puer being worse than Rubeus, although in other places he seems to contradict this statement. ↩︎
This statement is also odd, and it reeks of either mistake or blind. ↩︎
In Medieval Astrology the Sun was often considered a benefic when aspecting other planets, but a malefic in conjunction (planets conjunct to the Sun are said to be combust or burned up, except when they are very close, in which case they are said to be in the heart of the Sun and strengthened). The Moon’s evaluation, quite ironically, fluctuated depending on the author, but in general she was believed to be a benefic when waxing and a malefic when waning. ↩︎
The practice of assigning the two Nodes to the benefics and malefics seems to have started possibly with Medieval Muslim philosophers, or at least in the Latin West. In the original Western tradition, the Hellenistic one, there doesn’t seem to have been much talk of the Nodes except in negative terms. ↩︎
Here Abano explains the broad signification of the sixteen geomantic figuresand the seven traditional planets.
In order that one may more easily judge every question without much effort, what follows is the signification of the sixteen figures.1
Acquisitio is the figure of Jupiter in Aries, good, fortunate, mobile, entering, masculine, airy, eastern, hot and wet. Good in the first house and bad in the seventh. It signifies good fortune in what one seeks to obtain, and in things of friendship, weddings, merchandise, company, in traveling, in getting what you desire. It is bad for sick people and prisoners. It signifies blood loss, torments and a long time, and similarly it signifies pregnancy, and changing abode, and sailing, and for the sailor it announces storms. The absent party is delayed, and it is not good for changing from one lord to another, and it shows damage from enemies. In war against enemies it promises victory, and it’s good for obtaining honors and offices, but it doesn’t grant greater accumulation. In case of suspected pregnancy, or theft or other crime, or when one hears rumors, this figures confirms that they are true. The stolen goods are retrieved. The baby is a boy. In sending money or making down payments/deposits it is good. It is good for children and friends and relatives and indicates holiness, abundance, great harvest, but famine will soon follow.2
Amissio is a figure of Venus in Scorpio, unfortunate, mobile, exiting, masculine, fiery, hot and dry, southern, evil. Good in the eighth and bad in the second. Good for travel and selling, the sick person will heal soon, the prisoners comes out of prison soon, it is good for pregnant women, the baby is a boy, the medicine is good. It is bad for fights and enmities, it signifies unfaithfulness, end of friendship, theft, murder and similar things, and if an army marches against the other it will be victorious without effort. If one is in the right it solves matters quickly. It signifies droughts, dearth, flax, legumes. Sending money to make gain is fruitless, you will lose. The fugitive is not found, nor the stolen goods. One doesn’t obtain the pardon, nor anything one seeks. There is no marriage, and when there is, it is soon broken with great shame. It is the enemy of all pleasure and usefulness. Favors, honors, dignity and friendship are not lasting. It is good for asking about family and friends that one hasn’t seen: they are well. If one departs to go damage someone else, one doesn’t succeed, but still comes back safe and sound. One doesn’t acquire the besieged place, but it is good for taking medicines. Abundance of fruits, shortage of everything else.
Fortuna Maior is a figure of the Sun in Acquarius, fortunate, entering, fixed, well-meaning, feminine, earthy, western, nocturnal, cold and dry. Good in the eleventh, bad in the fifth. It denotes increment and accumulation and increases the wealth of one’s lords, friendship with people in high places, with noble people and women, good marriage, pleasure in writing and through messengers, good news, honors, dignity, friendship, the absent party and the pilgrim are well. It grants all that one wishes, except if one wants to gain it from an enemy or suspicious person, especially if it’s about money. Love and hate are firm and unshakable, positive for building and sowing. Rumors and suspicions of theft and pregnancy are true. It is good for coming out of a bad situation, but at the beginning it is hard. In traveling it will be hard at first and easy and with mirth afterward. One can flee from danger. There is no war. The baby is a boy, born without danger. Sickness and imprisonment are of long duration, and difficult to overcome, and it is hard to get back one’s dues. Fertile year. Lots of rain.
Fortuna Minor is a figure of the Sun in Taurus. Unfortunate, mobile, exiting, fiery, masculine, hot and dry, southern, evil, good in the second and bad in the eighth. It signifies company of noble people, traveling with noblemen and buying and selling on their account. It is good for the sick and the imprisoned, and for anyone who wants to flee dangers or problems. It helps pregnant women, and the baby is a girl. Sailing. Sentences can be appealed victoriously, good for entering in other people’s places and country, the besieged town is not captured. It is not good for starting something that is meant to last. The stolen goods are not found. The army will be defeated. Bad for marriage, and if the marriage is made soon there will be rumors. It doesn’t concede anything. Dignity and honor don’t last. Suspicions and rumors are false. The messenger and the absent party come back and bring gain. Damaged merchandise. Promises are not kept. Debts are not collected. Family and friends in good state. If one takes a medicine one heals soon, but it also signifies bleeding. A year of dearth, few fruits, lots of barley and spelt. Problems while traveling.
Laetitia is a figure of Jupiter in Taurus, eastern, airy, fortunate, hot and wet, masculine, sanguine, mobile, entering, positive, diurnal. It means honors, exaltation, dignity, good travel and good for returning. The messenger and the absent party come back bringing joy, good news, it is useful to travel, albeit belatedly, and the dignity one has obtained may falter. Good for buying and selling, the prisoner will be released, changing one’s lord or king or one’s place is positive, it is good to be at the service of a lord, to make down payments/deposits, taking medicines. Long life, increase of wealth. The sickness is long, even though one will heal eventually, bad for partnerships. Every suspicion is false. The stolen goods and runaway servant are not found, the debt won’t be paid back. Hatred and friendship are both steadfast, the servant or subject don’t love you. In questions of faith, of doubt about treason, and when asking about absent friends or family members, they are well. It helps pregnant women, the baby is a boy. Good for sailing, dreams are positive. A year of dearth, but it doesn’t last long, good rain. If you wonder about a friend’s death, it’s not true, and he’ll heal. Good in all houses, except the seventh, eighth, twelfth and the occupied place won’t be conquered.
Tristitia is a figure of Saturn in Scorpio, unfortunate, fixed, entering, malicious, earthy, melancholic, cold and dry, western, feminine. Good to be with noblemen and not bad for departing. Going up against an enemy won’t cause damage out of doubt,3 risk of death in conflict, you will stay in prison, good for partnerships, and the occupied place will be conquered unexpectedly. Good to buy animals, bad for selling them. Good for down payments/deposits, bad for sending money, lots of rain which is helpful, the shunned woman will go back to the friend, victory in a fight, one can keep one’s salaried office. It is bad for the sick and the prisoner, for it lasts long, bad for traveling, danger of death. It doesn’t give you anything that you may wish, except trifles. When there’s suspicion of someone’s death, or of robbery, or any other rumor of the sort, it is true. Accidents by water. The absent party is in trouble, sickness or poverty, the marriage will cause trouble, damage, enmity, moving to another region will cause ill, and wanting to conquer it will cause defeat, the debt is paid back but with great trouble and many issues. One’s life or that of those around you will be problematic or full of sickness, when one has an office, or some dignity, one will suffer through it. Little honor. Childbirth causes issues and comes late, and perhaps results in miscarriage. The baby will be a girl. Both love and hatred are steadfast. Whatever is damaged won’t be fixed. The year will be plentiful. Evil in all houses, except the eighth. Worst of all in the eleventh. When trying to hurt others one will cause even worse damage.
Albus is a figure of Mercury in Cancer, fortunate, common, feminine, nocturnal, phlegmatic, watery, cold and wet, southern, mobile, benign. It means good profit, increase of wealth, honor, influence and being in the right, merchandise, useful partnership, excellent marriage, the stolen goods are retrieved, it concedes everything one asks, honors, servants, buying livestock, conquering a land, the debt is paid back, the rumors or suspicions are true. The runaway servant comes back. Good friendship and money or other possessions. Risk of losing something through oversight. Short life. In war it is bad for the querent, it implies flight and loss of blood, infirmity, long time in prison, problems in pregnancy, the baby is a girl, storms during the sailing, if one has doubts about traveling, the travel will cause harm, the absent party won’t come back, and it is bad for changing place. If one asks for friends or relatives, they are well, and he who is in the right will win the fight [or court case]. Good for agriculture, abundance, good and fruitful rains. Good in the fourth house, bad in the tenth.
Rubeus is a figure of Mars in Gemini, unfortunate, mobile, exiting, masculine, fiery, hot and dry, diurnal, malicious, southern, evil in everything, except in war, in which case it is the best. Good for writing and for marriage, in occult things, and he who seeks honors will obtain them. Good for bloodletting or bleeding, good for going up against the enemy, war will cause death and blood, good for not changing room [place?] or country, the pregnant woman will, after great trouble, be happy with the child, the suspicion of theft or other vice is true. Every good company (or partnership) is good, except in traveling, and the sick will heal after long trouble, and the prisoner will stay long in prison, will need to pay a bail, the down payment is secure, it grants everything one wants from a nobleman, the rumor coming from afar is false, love is steadfast, especially if adulterous, and war will be victorious. Good for buying animals, bad for selling them. The absent party won’t come back, debts are paid back but there will be controversies, and if one wants to speak to a lord one will find him occupied in many things. Very bad for the sick and for prisoners, it means damage, and burials. In travel there is damage and danger when changing place. The marriage is surrounded by suspicions and issues, sailing bad, winds against your way, bad for selling. The occupied place is conquered, the lost item is not found. Good fortune for the querent, and everyone he asks about is well except one.4 The year is dearthful at the beginning, abundant later, lots of rain. Wrath and hatred and danger, bad for taking medicine. Bad in the fourth, seventh and eleventh house, and also in the first except for war and conflict.
Puella is a figure of Venus in Gemini, fortunate, positive, temperate, fixed, entering, feminine, nocturnal, watery, cold and wet, phlegmatic, southern. Good for buying, it brings peace with problematic friends, it solves fights. The absent party comes back with profit, inheritance, increases wealth, confirms marriage, but it will be with suspicions, enemies are won, the journey is delayed but will bring profit. In war there will be loss, sickness and prison are of long duration, and one will pay a fine, sailing causes trouble but only at the beginning. One gets what one wants. Animals and servants will be lost. The pregnant woman will give birth with some problems, the baby is a girl. The suspicion of death, or that a woman is pregnant, is false, suspicion of theft and vice are true. Good for taking medicines, and even if the illness is serious one will heal. You will get your goods back. For obtaining honors, dignity and office it is positive. Good for getting back money, bad for sending money, what is lost is found. If you fear a lord or any other danger, you are not without danger, the down payment/deposit is not secure, as you will lose a good deal of it, changing place or lord is bad, better to stay where you are. If you are accused of something you will be punished, the occupied place won’t be conquered, good for one’s or other people’s health. Average year, at first abundant, then with dearth, lots of rain, which will endanger fruits and plants, good in all houses except the seventh.
Puer is a figure of Mars in Libra, unfortunate, airy, hot and wet, sanguine, masculine, eastern, exiting, malicious, good in war and in sickness, it means overcoming and vanquishing the enemy. Obtaining a favor from a lord will be hard at the beginning, but then you’ll succeed, good for sending money and traveling, the sick and the prisoner and the absent party are fine, and after trouble they’ll come out of it. Suspicion of theft and other wicked deeds is true, suspicion of pregnancy is true, and the woman is give birth with great trouble, and the baby will be a boy. Good for traveling to other countries, good for buying animals and servants. The suspicion of enmity is false. Death will be due to chance happenings and disasters. Good for serving a lord, but bad for gaining from other people; the absent party will come back with usefulness; reconciliation with enemies, the bandits will go back to their homeland, long life, one will die rich. Friendships won’t last, the journey is long and full of issues, problems with merchandise. Not getting back your dues without fighting harshly and with great controversy. Bad for relocating, risk of drowning, promises are not kept. Family and friends are fine, but some of them will fall sick soon. Good for agriculture. A year of dearth, with little rain. Only ryegrass will be abundant. Good in the second and seventh houses, not in the others.
Populus is a figure of the Moon in Capricorn, temperate, of mixed fortune, mobile, common, watery, phlegmatic, cold and wet, bicorporeal, feminine and masculine, northern, nocturnal. Good in things done in company and with many people or animals, and for commerce, siblings, sailing and travel, in sailing positive powerful winds, good for selling and buying but with difficulty in marriage, childbirth will be easy, and there will be twins, in travel rain and lots of water, the sick person dies, the absent party and the pilgrim come back with gain: the prisoner will be released soon but with issues and money problems. The figure grants what one wants, good in things of fathers and mothers, and in occult things. In war and fights one can flee without causing rumors, the besieged place is not conquered. Bad for travels by land, and war and fights are long, and relocating will cost a lot of money. Suspicion of theft or other vice are true, as well as love and hate, if a lord waves war he’ll have a hard time winning. In things of faith and Church it means disunion and schism. Marriage is not easy, will cause debts and divorce with infamy. In making contracts and down payments and partnership, they won’t last. Long life, useful for the querent, but when asking for friends or family, it means infirmity and death, honor and dignity don’t last. The year will be in every way abundant, with much rain and water. It is middling in all houses.
Via is a figure of the Moon in leo. Temperate, mediocre for good or ill, though more bad than good, watery, cold, wet, phlegmatic, nocturnal, feminine, northern. Good in travel and things that are done soon and don’t last. Good for gardens and fields and for taking water from the river, for sowing small grains, in marriage in selling and in buying with little gain, for going from place to place, but not for staying a long time. The pregnant woman will give birth soon, the baby is a boy. The prisoner and the sick are soon free, the absent party and the pilgrim will come back soon. In things of war it causes quick resolution, and one must be cautious, because it threatens flight.5 And every thing is easy and good in the beginning, but doesn’t last. Buildings, marriage, contract, company, friendship, servants, honor, offices, commerce and in every thing it means some diminishment and loss, except in travel, and it is not very good in the eleventh.
Carcer is a figure of Saturn in Pisces, unfortunate, fixed, earthy, feminine, cold and dry, melancholic, western, bicorporeal, malicious for possessions, marriage, contracts, down payments/deposits. It means6 secret sciences, occult things, company. Good for travel by road, and in earthy things, suspicion of prison and news of death are true. Good in building, in inheritance, in entering a region or city or office. The besieged place won’t be conquered, the lord lasts in his dominion. In war and in other strifes, the enemy will flee, in planting trees and wineyards, it means great inner turmoil, grave sickness, possibly deadly, burial. The absent party doesn’t come back, long term in prison, lack of success, not good for asking for help, bad for travel by water, dangers in pregnancy, the baby is a boy. Faith is steadfast, in everything else it’s bad. A year of dearth. Good only in the second.
Conjunctio is a figure of Mercury in Virgo, bicorporeal, mediocre, fortunate, airy, hot and wet, sanguine, eastern, masculine, diurnal, common, benign. Good intellect, science, doctrine, scriptures, writings, company, partnership, commerce, but the partnership will be with ulterior motives, and with issues, and one will need to be cunning to take advantage of the partner, good for marriage. The lost good or stolen good are returned, betrayal and such things are found out, in office and dignity it is good, mediocre wealth and inheritance, easy and short travel, woman with child, but childbirth with issues, twins. The besieged place will be freed with cunning and betrayals. War with shrewdness and deceit, rumors, fights will lead to bleeding, discord and bad advice among fellow citizens. It promises death and burial to the sick, the prisoner will be condemned to death if he is a thief, one can be bailed out belatedly by paying, dangers in travel and problems through it, and storms on the sea, accidents and drowning. The absent party comes back with difficulties. Messengers and letters are false, sent by occult enemies, all kinds of machinations, duplicity, bad in the second house.
Caput is a figure of Jupiter and Venus in Virgo, entering, fortunate, earthy, cold and dry, fixed, melancholic, benign, late, feminine, western, nocturnal. Good for being at the court of the king or of a lord, and good for them, improvement of one’s status, lordship, noblemen, mirth, marriage, long travel and with honor. The absent party comes back belatedly, but with profit. The childbirth is easy, the baby is a boy, good children and siblings, obtaining help from noblemen, victory in war and conflict, the besieged place won’t be conquered, ecclesiastic honor, good for sailing and buying animals. Long trouble for the sick and the imprisoned. The lost or stolen goods are not found. Good in every other thing. Best in the sixth house, bad in the twelfth.
Cauda is a figure of Mars and Saturn in Capricorn, unfortunate, exiting, malicious, choleric, fiery, hot and dry, southern, diurnal, masculine, mobile. Good in retrieving stolen goods and lost things, but with trouble, and in finding out occult things, and for betraying. Travel will happen soon, but with danger. It frees one from enemies and allows to sell animals, and it is good for asking help to one’s superiors. The sick person will heal after great trouble, and the prisoner will be freed after great danger. Suspicion of theft and other vice is true. The marriage is cause for suspicions, the pregnant woman will give birth soon with many issues, the baby is a boy. In water and sea there are storm and wind. The besieged place is conquered, it means rumors and controveries and what one doubts will happen, love is false, buying causes damange, and the lost honor won’t be won back, except with grave diffulties. And it is good for being soon freed from trouble. Good in the sixth, seventh, twelfth and tenth and fourth house, bad in the second, fourth, eleventh.
MQS
Footnotes
For the modern mind, this is one of the most maddening and frustrating sections of Abano’s book due to the seemingly unreconcilable descriptions of the figures. Still, I believe it is important to take this section seriously as it gives insight into the way of thinking of the old practicioners of Geomancy. In the original text, Abano sorts the meanings of each figure out into ‘Good’ or ‘Bad’ but because he often doesn’t keep to the classification (attributing good meanings to the ‘bad’ category and vice versa) I have eliminated the headings of ‘good’ and ‘bad’. It may be that I am wrong in doing so. ↩︎
Admittedly, the above is quite a mishmash of significations, some of which are hard to reconcile among themselves and with the general meaning of the figure. In the following figures similar discrepancies can be observed. We ought to bear in mind that, as it often happens with Medieval authorities on occult subjects, Abano is aiming at giving us extremely concrete examples so that the intelligent reader can extract a general signification from them. As for the seemingly nonsensical meanings (why would Acquisitio signify famine?) it may be that I am missing something, or it may mean we ought to keep an open mind in judging the figures. It may also be a blind placed deliberately to confound readers. This may explain such gross inconsistencies as Laetitia being given as entering instead of exiting (note that Abano said the opposite in the first section) and being given some of Tristitia’s ideas of stuckness. ↩︎
“Andando contra lo inimico per sola dubbitatione non patira alcun damno”. This sentence is not clear to me. Could it mean that the enemy will be assailed by doubts? ↩︎
This sentence is not clear, as it seems to imply everyone around the querent is fine, except one person. Also, this description of Rubeus has to be one of the most puzzling I have ever come across. ↩︎
it is not clear if this means the flight of the querent’s side or of the enemy’s side. ↩︎
I have added this “it means”, as otherwise it seems that Carcer would be bad for occult things as well. However, this addition also causes another problem, as it makes it seem as though Carcer means company, while usually it is seen as a figure of solitude. ↩︎
Here Abano teaches how to cast a reading and then explains the main meanings of the astrological houses.
The method of forming the above mentioned sixteen figures is to use a pen to mark sixteen rows of points on a piece of paper. These must then be paired two by two, until, at the end of each row, either two points are left or only one.
Abano’s illustration of how the four mothers are formed
Then one must take the geomantic figures that emerge, in the following way.
Abano illustrates how to add the Four Mothers to their place
Note, however, that the previous operation is not carried out by counting the points one makes, nor by following one’s fancy, but rather by virtue of the Primum Mobile and First Motor God the Eternal, who moves one’s hand, and is to be carried out with good intentions and by invoking God’s grace and help.1
From the first four figures, four other figures are derived by taking the first points of each of the first four figures, which go to form the fifth figure; then by taking the second points of each figure to form the sixth figure, and so on with the third row of points to form the seventh, and the fourth row to form the eighth, as shown below.
Abano’s illustration of the Geomantic Shield
Once the eighth figure has been drawn, take the first and second [figure] and, proceeding in the same way as at the beginning, form the ninth; then take the third and fourth to form the tenth; then the fifth and sixth to form the eleventh; then the seventh and eighth to form the twelfth.
Then, add the tenth and the eleventh to form the thirteenth, known as the First Witness, and the eleventh and the twelfth to form the fourteenth, known as the Second Witness. Add the witnesses to discover the Judge.
This completes the chart, with every figure in its necessary place according to the question asked, as will be explained. However, often one may take the Judge and the first figure and add them together to obtain the Judge of the Judge,2 which is the sixteenth figure, which we will discuss later.
It is to be noted that the main figures are the first twelve, of which four are strongest. The first and the tenth are the best, but the first is even better. The seventh and fourth are also good. These four figures are called the angles, noting which one may know the strength and virtue of the chart. Following them, the second and fifth figure, and the eighth and the eleventh are known as succedent. Finally the last four are the third, the sixth, the ninth and the twelfth, which are called cadent, as shown in the following figure.3
Abano’s illustration of the principle of angularity as it applies to geomancy
And the first figure is called the strongest and best of all, because it signifies the virtue of the Heavens on the querent, that is, he who asks the question.4 It is called the Ascendant. Following that, the tenth is in the middle of the heavens and has great power and influence. When it is good it bodes well, but when it is unfortunate it means great misfortune in terms of how the question is going to end.5
The seventh figure is opposite the Ascendant and is called the Western Angle, and it bodes well when good, ill when bad, especially in questions concerning the seventh house, as will be shown. The fourth figure or house, although categorized as an angle, is called the feeblest of them, because it is at the bottom of the skies in our hemisphere. Nonetheless it indicates the end of the matter and of the querent’s intention.
Then we have the second, fifth, eighth and eleventh, which are succedent houses because they come after the angles, and are good or bad according to the figure [that falls in them] and the question asked, and they indicate the present and what is yet to come for the question asked. The third, sixth, ninth and twelfth figure are called cadent, meaning what runs against the question, and the worst are the sixth are twelfth. The eighth is also among the evil houses.
The above is especially to be noted because every figure has two virtues, one according to its nature and an accidental virtue depending on where it falls in the chart.6 As such, if a good figure falls in the first house, its goodness is amplified, and similarly in any other angle. When it falls in a succedent house, it has less power, and when it is cadent it has even less. And this point holds true for evil figures as well in their ability to cause bad fortune. An evil figure in an angle, therefore, will mean a great bad fortune, especially in the fourth.
Nonetheless, among the bad houses, the sixth and eighth and twelfth are the worst, and every figure falling therein is dangerous in any question.7 And they are especially dangerous if they are evil by their own nature. Said figures are considered not just according to their virtue and the places where they fall, but also according to the question, that is, according that they are appropriate or inappropriate concerning the thing asked.8 As such, what follows is the signification and the property of each of the houses.
The first house signifies the life and body, the being and soul and intention of the querent or the one for whom the question is asked. It also means the beginning of all things. It sits opposite the seventh, and signifies the goods and money of the prisoner. It is the joy of Mercury.9
The second house is wealth,10 gain and loss, and all that the querent owns. It is opposite the eighth, and it signifies the gain of the querent’s family.
The third house indicates siblings, blood relatives, short journeys and enemies of faith and of the Roman Church,11 neighbors, etc. This house is opposite the ninth. It also signifies rumors, and travel companions. It is the joy of the Moon.
The fourth house indicates buildings, buried things, the end of every question. Also, the father, the wealth of a brother or sister.12 It is opposite the tenth.
The fifth house indicates mirth and happiness, children, messengers and letters, music, food, clothes, mid-range travel, the father’s wealth. It is opposite the eleventh and it is the joy of Venus.
The sixth house indicates wrath and an evil mind, toil, malady, servants, people who are subjected to the querent, small animals. This house is the joy of Mars.
The seventh signifies the wife,13 the lover, an opponent, public enemies, games of chance, thieves, bandits, partners. The place the querent goes to, medicine, the wealth of one’s servants. It is opposite the fist house, and is absent.14
The eighth house indicates death, fear, danger, the wealth of the enemy, inheritance from the dead, the wife’s dowry, gain from the land one moves to,15 debts, Necromancy, evil spells. It is opposite the second.
The ninth house signifies religion, Ecclesiastics, the Pope, preferment, priests, the Christian faith, burials, fame or infamy, long travels, the wealth of the absent party.16 It is opposite the third, and is the joy of the Sun.
The tenth signifies the Emperor, the King, the lord,17 great honor, a doctor, a master, art, profession, sea, ship, towers, the thing stolen, famine, fertility, the church’s wealth, and advantages gained from the church. It is opposite the second.18
The eleventh signifies friends, hopes, fortune, courtesans, a lord’s wealth, common goods, the mother’s dowry. It is opposite the fifth, and is the joy of Jupiter.
The twelfth house signifies prison, prisoners, pilgrims and endless wandering, long violence,19 adversities, traitors, occult enemies, great beasts, the friend’s wealth. It is opposite the sixth. It is the joy of Saturn.
Whenever a question is asked, the issue always involves the first house, and in the second place the figure found in the house that is appropriate for the question, and depending on whether it is fortunate or not, together with the four angles, thus does one judge the issue. And especially [it is to be considered] whether the Witnesses and Judge are good.
MQS
Footnotes
Here again, as in Part 1, Abano insists on the role of the divine (and again, he does it in a typical Christian Aristotelean fashion). He is doing more than just paying lip service to the religious ideas and institutions of the time, in so much as he asserts a central point common to all forms of divination: that it is divine nature that shines through the divination process. This explains his assertion that the points must not be counted nor be created following one’s fancy: the diviner’s ego must be switched off in order for the divine to act through it. ↩︎
‘Sopragiudice’ in Italian, which literally means Superjudge or Overjudge. ↩︎
Abano follows the relatively standard (by that time) association of the astrological houses with varying degrees of strength. ↩︎
The first house is given to the querent, so a good figure in it would indicate something positive for them or that they are positive. ↩︎
This seems intended more to emphasize the importance of the angles than to link the tenth house with the ‘end of the matter’, which is a meaning typical of the fourth house. ↩︎
This is meant to reflect the notions, common in Medieval astrology, of accidental and essential dignity of the planets, though the concept must be modified a little in order for it to apply to geomancy. ↩︎
There is a certain digree of ambiguity concerning this issue, as it is not always clear if a figure in a weak house will see its power decreased or its evil import amplified. This ambiguity is present in astrology as well. ↩︎
This is an important concept. A good figure becomes bad if its meaning is opposite to the querent’s intention, and vice versa. ↩︎
Joy is an astrological term. The joys of the planets are houses where the planets are supposed to perform their heavenly duty better. A typical attribution is: the first to Mercury, the third to the Moon, the fifth to Venus, the sixth to Mars, the ninth to the Sun, the eleventh to Jupiter, the twelfth to Saturn. Abano follows this scheme. ↩︎
The term used by Abano is ‘robba’ or, in current Italian, roba. This literally means ‘stuff’. Keep in mind that in the Middle Ages, for many people, stuff was more important than money, and that the moneyed economy we have today was barely in its infancy back then. The second house indicates stuff, and therefore all moveable possessions. ↩︎
Because the third house sits opposite the ninth, which is the house of God. Obviously, Abano wrote at a time when Catholicism was the dominant and (for the most part) only allowed creed. ↩︎
This is by the principle of turned houses. The second house from every house indicates the wealth of the thing or person signified by that house. ↩︎
or husband, if the querent is a woman or a man interested in men. ↩︎
It’s unclear to me what Abano means by this. The seventh house is sometimes given to ‘the absent party’ to know if the person will come back, but the wording Abano uses is strange. ↩︎
The land one moves to is ‘there’, which is the opposite of ‘here’, signified by the first house. ↩︎
I don’t understand why the ninth should indicate the absent party’s wealth. ↩︎
‘Signore’ i.e., the ruler of a Signoria, a small Italian monarchy typical of the time. ↩︎
My translation and comments on Pietro d’Abano’s Geomanzia. Please note that I am no professional translator of older texts and sometimes I had to paraphrase. Feel free to leave comments on how this project could be improved. Note that the translation and commentaries are copyrighted to me, so please ask for my permission before using it.
Book I Part I – The Figures Part II – The Chart Part III – Meanings of the Figures Part IV – Meanings of the Planets Part V – The Witnesses, Judge and Sixteenth Figure Part VI – Judging the Figures in the Houses
Book II Part I – The First House and Second House Part II – The Third and Fourth House Part III – The Fifth House and Sixth House Part IV – The Seventh House and Eighth House Part V – The Ninth House and Tenth House Part VI – The Eleventh House and Twelfth House Part VII – Example of Various Dynamics Part VIII – Geomantic Perfection
Book III Part I – Geomantic Mutation Part II – Acquisitio and Amissio in the various houses Part III – Fortuna Major and Fortuna Minor in the various houses Part IV – Laetitia and Tristitia in the various houses Part V – Albus and Rubeus in the various houses Part VI – Puella and Puer in the various houses Part VII – Populus and Via in the various houses Part VIII – Carcer and Conjunctio in the various houses Part IX – Caput Draconis and Cauda Draconis in the vatious houses
Book IV Part I – Acquisitio, Amissio, Major and Minor as they derive from other figures. Part II – Via, Populus, Caput and Cauda as they derive from other figures. Part III – Albus, Rubeus, Conjunctio and Carcer as they derive from other figures. Part IV – Laetitia, Tristitia, Puella and Puer as they derive from other figures.
Here Abano introduces the subject matter and the names and main qualities of the sixteen figures.
Geomancy is a simple science to master. It employs the same methods of astrology to answer any question the person might have—whether what one wants to undertake will meet with success or not, according to natural virtue and celestial influence.1
This method of judging [questions] and receiving information avails itself of four figures made of ink points on a piece of paper by the Geomancer’s hand, which is moved by the heavenly influence of God’s eternal grace.2 As such, one must ask one’s question with sincerity and a pure soul.
From the initial four figures, sixteen are derived (and no more than sixteen) to answer any question the person might desire to know [the answer to]. However, not all the figures are necessary in answering a specific question. Only fifteen are, and they are enough to answer any question.3 These fifteen figures don’t always come up in the same way, but only as Heaven influences them to come up.4
These are the sixteen figures and their names:
Abano’s illustration of the sixteen figures with their latin name
Four figures are assigned to each quadrant of the Heaven (North, South, East, West) and to the four elements (Fire, Air, Water, Earth) as will become clear shortly. They are called fortunate or unfortunate.
Rubeus, Amissio, Fortuna Minor and Cauda are Fiery, that is, hot and dry, and of choleric complexion,5 southern, diurnal, masculine, strongly malicious, haughty and furious.6
Acquisitio, Laetitia, Conjunctio and Puer are airy, that is, hot and wet, of sanguine complexion, eastern, masculine and diurnal, very good and temperate, and good wherever they fall in the chart.7
Puella, Populus, Via and Albus are cold and wet, of phlegmatic complexion, northern, feminine and nocturnal. Generally fortunate and good where they fall in the chart.
Caput, Fortuna Maior, Tristitia and Carcer are earthy, that is, cold and dry, and of melancholic complexion, western, feminine, nocturnal. Two are good, Caput and Fortuna Maior, while two are bad, Tristitia and Carcer. They are slow and slothful in their meanings, but they cause what they promise nonetheless.
All the above is to be noted when a figure represents a person and another figure a different person, that we may know their character and how well they may get along.
The sixteen figures have yet another cycle of attributes that renders them positive or negative. Depending on whether they are mobile or fixed, we may know how soon or how late the effect will manifest, and how the situation shall be resolved according that they are entering or exiting or mixed.
Acquisitio, Fortuna Maior, Albus, Caput, Puella and Tristitia are entering, fixed, good and fortunate, except Tristitia, which is always bad.
Amissio, Fortuna Minor, Rubeus, Cauda, Puer and Laetitia are exiting, mobile, bad and malicious, except Letitia, which is always good.
Populus, Via, Conjunctio and Carcer are said to be common, that is, neither very quick nor very slow, and they are also neither too good nor too bad, though they tend to err on the side of goodness, except for Carcer, which is always evil.8
And yet another meaning must be added, which shows whether the people signified by the figures conform to one another in terms of will and soul, according that the figures are mobile, quick or slow, and according that they are single-bodied or accompanied [double-bodied].9
Acquisitio, Fortuna Maior, Puella, Caput, Tristitia and Albus are fixed, single-bodied and regular.
Amissio, Puer, Cauda, Letitia and Rubeus are mobile, half-bodied and diminished.10
Fortuna Minor, Carcer, Conjunctio, Via and Populus are common, that is, between mobile and fixed, and they are neither too quick nor too slow, and are double-bodied and accompanied, except for Via.
And in order that one may easily know the virtue and influence of the Heavens through the sixteen figures, we must also note their correlation with the twelve zodiac signs. Similarly, they are attributed to the seven heavenly planets, according to their influence on the twelve signs.
Abano’s illustration of the astrological attributes of the geomantic figures
However, each figure does not mean the same as the other [assigned to the same planet]. Each has a separate meaning. As such, Carcer is Saturn direct, Tristitia is Saturn retrograde; Acquisitio is Jupiter direct; Letitia is Jupiter retrograde; Rubeus is Mars direct, Puer is Mars retrograde;11 Fortuna Maior is the Sun when elevated, Fortuna Minor is the Sun when depressed and obscured; Puella is Venus direct, Amissio is Venus retrograde; Albus is Mercury direct, Conjunctio is Mercury retrograde; Populus is the waxing Moon, Via the waning Moon. Consequently, the direct signs are better than the retrograde. Furthermore, Caput is attributed to Jupiter and Venus, Cauda to Saturn and Mars.12 But this is not always the case, but rather depends on the question asked.
MQS
Footnotes
The concept of natural virtue underpins the Western magical worldview. The word ‘virtue’ must not be understood in a moral sense, but rather in the sense of ‘property’ or ‘power’. It forms part of the Hermetic doctrine of Signatures. The virtues of the things under the Heavens are generally seen as corresponding to certain celestial factors. ↩︎
This is a rather typical phrasing found in various premodern handbooks. It is connected with the Christian Aristotelean worldview prevalent at the time, whereby God, the unmoved mover, ruled the world not directly, but through a series of concentric spheres, each one corresponding to a planet, except the sphere of the fixed stars and that of the primum mobile. ↩︎
The sixteenth figure is what is commonly referred to as the Judge of the Judge, formed by the Judge plus the first Mother. ↩︎
The word ‘complexion’ is used in a slightly different way from today. It refers to the theory of the four humors (black bile, yellow bile, blood and phlegm). These humors influenced not just the character, but also, up to a point, the appearance of the subject as well as their being prone to this or that illness. ↩︎
Abano seems to include Fortuna Minor among the malicious figures, though later in the text he treats it as generally positive. ↩︎
Abano however does not always treat Puer as a positive figure. ↩︎
In all this section Abano seems to be painting with a very broad brush, talking of the figures as “always good” or “always bad”. Of course things get more complicated. ↩︎
This is borrowed, as so much in geomancy, from astrological practice, where the mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Pisces and Sagittarius) are also called double-bodied. Double-bodied signs, and therefore geomantic figures, can indicate the involvement of more than one person. ↩︎
The concept of half-bodied does not, to the best of my current knowledge, come from astrology, but I may be wrong. ↩︎
This seems prima facie counterintuitive, as a retrograde planet is generally considered worse than a direct one, and Puer is generally not considered worse than Rubeus. ↩︎
This is in accordance with the relatively standard Medieval practice of attributing the North Node of the Moon to the two benefics, Jupiter and Venus, and the South Node to the two malefics, Saturn and Mars. This practice developed over time and does not seem to originate in older astrology of the Hellenistic period, when both nodes appear to have been considered more or less malefic, when considered at all. ↩︎
