The Astrology Book

Friday by Venus, Saturday by Saturn (“saturnday”), and Sunday by the Sun (“sun-

day”). These days were regarded as lucky for people ruled by the corresponding planets

(e.g., Monday was regarded as lucky for Cancer, the sign ruled by the Moon), and an

activity ruled by a particular planet was said to be enhanced when carried out on a day

ruled by the same planet (e.g., Mercury-ruled Wednesday was good for writing and

sending letters—activities ruled by the planet Mercury). Weeks, unlike months and

years, appear to be unnatural periods not correlated with any natural phenomenon;

but, in fact, weeks are based on subdivisions of the lunar cycle in quarters: new moon,

first quarter, full moon, and last quarter. While modern astrologers are aware of these

rulerships, they are rarely utilized for practical astrological purposes.

Sources:

Hall, Manly P. Astrological Keywords.New York: Philosophical Library, 1958. Reprint, Totowa,

NJ: Littlefield, Adams, 1975.

Rasmussen, Steven C. “Secrets of the Seven-Day Week.” The Mountain Astrologer292 (Febru-

ary/March 1992): 3–6.

DEATHCHART

A death chart is, as the name indicates, a horoscope calculated for the time of death.

DEBILITY

A debility is a weakening of a planet through its placement in certain signs and hous-

es. Planets in the sign of their detriment or fall, or in the house opposed to the natural

house ruled by the planet, are said to be debilitated. The basic idea informing the

notion of debility is that there are certain signs or houses whose energies are incom-

patible with the characteristics of certain planets, and that this inharmonious blend-

ing of energies serves to lessen the strength of a planet’s influence. For various reasons,

but principally because the influence of planets so placed does not actually seem to be

weakened, contemporary astrologers have largely abandoned the use of this term.

DECAN(DECANATE)

Each sign of the zodiac occupies an arc of 30° (the 360° of a circle divided by 12 signs

equals 30° per sign). Every sign is subdivided into 3 decans or decanates of 10°, each

of which is associated with three signs of the same element. Thus, for example, Scor-

pio, a water sign, is subdivided into a Scorpio decan (from 0° Scorpio to 10° Scorpio),

a Pisces decan (from 10° Scorpio to 20° Scorpio), and a Cancer decan (from 20° Scor-

pio to 30° Scorpio). The uniform pattern of decans is for the first 10° of every sign to

be associated with the same sign. In other words, the first decan of Aries is the Aries

decan, the first decan of Taurus is the Taurus decan, and so forth.

The second decan is associated with the next sign of the same element in the

natural order of the zodiac. Thus, for instance, the second decan of Aries is the Leo

Death Chart

[194] THEASTROLOGYBOOK