and Venus were considered to be closer to the Earth and thus “below” the orbit of the
Sun. These two planets were thus referred to as the inferior planets. The current nega-
tive connotations of the term “inferior” have caused this expression to be dropped in
favor of the term “inner planets.”
INFLUENCE
Astrologers often speak of the correlation between planetary positions and earthly
events in terms of influence, as if the planets actually exert forces—analogous to grav-
ity or magnetism—that cause a particular incident. If pressed for an explanation, how-
ever, the majority of professional astrologers would probably offer a different type of
explanation, such as the Jungian notion of synchronicity.
INFORTUNES
Traditionally, the planets most likely to lead to difficulties in life—namely, Mars and
Saturn—were referred to as the infortunes (“unfortunates”). Mars was further desig-
nated as the infortune minor, and Saturn as the infortune major.
INGRESS
Ingress refers to the entry of a planet, one of the luminaries (the Sun or the Moon), or
some other celestial body such as an asteroid into a sign of the zodiac. Modern
ephemerides (tables of planetary positions) often include information on the exact
time one of the planets or one of the luminaries enters a new sign. The term has also
been used to refer to the entry of a transiting planet or luminary into a new house.
INTERCEPTED
With the exception of the equal house system, most systems of house division utilize
houses of varied sizes. One result of this variability is that sometimes a wide house will
begin in the latter part of one sign, encompass the next sign, and end in a third sign.
The middle sign is said to be intercepted. Because houses that are directly opposite
each other are the same size, the sign opposite the intercepted sign will also be inter-
cepted. For example, in a given natal chart, the second house begins at 25° Gemini
and ends at 3° Leo. The intervening sign, which is Cancer, is thus intercepted in the
second house. Correspondingly, the opposite house, which is the eighth house, will
begin at 25° Sagittarius and end at 3° Aquarius. Cancer’s opposite sign, Capricorn,
will be intercepted in the eighth house. Astrologers are divided as to the influence of
interception, some asserting that there is a weakening effect on planets placed in an
intercepted sign, others asserting just the opposite. At the very least, it is safe to say
that the affairs of an intercepted house are usually more complex than those of other
houses. When giving a general, introductory interpretation of a natal chart, the
majority of astrologers ignore interceptions.
THEASTROLOGYBOOK [359]
Intercepted