Killing Planet : Case Study

by John Timperman

This method indicates ( according to Bonatti and AbuMahar) which planet among many has the greatest force to kill or at least to harm the native’s health. The fact of the matter is that Bonatti mentions 17 destroyers

Alexandra Fedorovna

which determine towards death. Further, other planets are considered to be potential killers by virtue of being in the 8th or 4th houses, ruling these or being conjoined with such planets. It is in order to sort out which of these is the greatest threat , i.e. the most likely agent of death that we have to construct an Almuten table.

As example we take the horoscope of Alexandra Federovna, the wife of Nicholas the 2nd the last Tsar from Russia ( born in Darmstadt, Germany, June 6th 1872 at approx. 3.45 AM-Asc. 11 °34 Gemini – MC 8°40 Aquarius). The total eclipse right on the Ascendant seems to be very symbolic for the last Tsarina : the cancelling of the sunrays !

With this super strong Mars ruler of the 12th and the 6th on the Ascendant and a heavy laden 12th house we see a woman that was always sick , crashed by her own power , with that dreadful destiny waiting to befall here. Her life ended in that terrible massacre when she was brutally murdered together with her family during the night of the 16th and 17th July 1918.

In the example I use the method of Robert Zoller and combine the methods of Bonatti and Abu Mashar, which seems to be Bonatti’s source. I do as Bonatti suggests and look at the Ascendant and the Lord but do not look at the eighth house, but at the eight sign from the Sun and its Lord ( As AbuMashar is doing). Whatever the changes Bonatti makes in Abu Mashar’s criteria, the purpose is the same: by this method we are to ascertain the cause, manner and circumstances of the native’s death.

As we are no longer living in Mediaeval times, it is possible that this planet is an indicator of the weaknesses in our health. This I don’t know. In Bonatti’s time the Almuten of all these places was the ANARETA, the significator of the death of the native.

I would like to say here that I don’t want to prove anything but just want to make the method clear for those who are interested to see how the old method worked. I do this not to re-enter the past but rather re-enter the future and to do homage to those who went before us and made our efforts possible. Without the Bonatti’s and Abumashars we would be doing something else.

I set up an Almuten Table for the Significator of Death- the killing planet to determine which planet has the post dignities in the different following places :

– Ascendant
– Ruler of Ascendant
– Pars of death
– Ruler of the Pars of death
– 4th house
– Ruler of the 4th house
– Ruler of the triplicity of the 4th house ( depending on day or night birth)
– 8th Sign from the Sun
– Ruler of the 8th sign from the Sun
This gives us the following table :

For those not familiar with the way an Almutem should be calculated I will explain with a couple of examples: to find out which planet is the strongest ruler or almutem of a particular place we must remember that mediaeval astrologers used 5 levels of rulership : Sign ruler (to which they gave 5 points) Exaltation ruler (4 points) Triplicity rulers ( each of them 3 points) Term ruler ( 2 points) and Decan ruler (1 point).

The Table of Essential Dignities according to Dorotheus is as follows:

So if we want to know which planet has most dignities of the Ascendant of Alexandra Federenova ( 11°34 Gemini) we know that the ruler of Gemini is Mercury, so Mercury gets 5 points. We know that no planet is exalted in Gemini (When we don’t know we look at the table of dignities) so no planet gets 4 points. The triplicity rulers of air signs are Mercury , Jupiter and Saturn, so they each get 3 points ( Bonatti was very democratic !). Further we see that 12 degrees Gemini falls in the terms of Venus, so Venus gets 2 points and it is in the second decanate of Gemini ,which (we see from the table of dignities ) is the decanate belonging to Mars, so Mars gets 1 point. Now ,we go on with the ruler of the Ascendant which is Mercury and Mercury is placed at 26 degrees Taurus .

The ruler of Taurus is Venus, so Venus gets 5 points. Exaltation ruler of Taurus is the Moon, so the Moon gets 4 points. Triplicity rulers of Earth are Moon, Venus and Mars, so they get 3 points each. 26 degrees Taurus is in the Terms of Saturn ( 2 pts) and the decanate of Saturn as well (1 point more).

Now, we continue with the Pars of death , ruler of the Pars of death, 4th house, ruler of the 4th, Triplicity ruler of the 4th (depending whether it is a day or night birth- here night birth as the Sun is under the horizon) which is Jupiter placed at 28 degrees Cancer ( so Moon 5pts , Jupiter as exaltation ruler of the Moon 4 pts etc…).

Then we go to the 8th sign from the Sun which is 15 degrees Capricorn and for closing at the ruler of the 8th place from the Sun which is Saturn. When we have the patience to struggle through the calculation we see that the Almuten of all these places is Saturn. So, Saturn is the ANARETA or killing planet. Saturn is ruler of the eight (death ) and the ninth house (foreign countries ) and exaltation ruler of the Sixth ( hidden enemies, according to Greek tradition).

Once the Killing planet was found , the astrologer had to find what was called the arc of life. This is when we enter into the realm of Primary Directions as there was a serious chance that death or life threatening sickness or events might occur when the Primary Directed Killing planet touched the Ascendant or the Hyleg.

Now, when we change the birth time with 11 minutes and make it 3:34 instead of the approx 3:45 as stated and we work with the Primary direction method, we see that 3 hours after birth Saturn would touch the Descendant making an exact opposition with the Ascendant ( Life force) If we convert this time into years using Naibod’s key we see that this took place at the age of 46. This was exactly the time when she was murdered.
Astrologers do horoscopes to help the living and not for those that already died and serious astrologers are fully aware that the prediction of death is a very serious matter, not to be done promiscuously, although we all know that death is often present or not far off.

Further, I would point out that even if this method (as many old one’s) may have been valid in Middle Ages, it doesn’t mean that they are still valid today. Or they may work in some cases but prove absolutely invalid with another person. Especially as death is concerned, we should not forget that the planets and directions are the same as 1000 years ago but we all live much longer.

However, it is clear that when planets like Saturn or Mars touch the Angles by Primary Direction, ( even if they are not Anareta) we often see that something very unpleasant may happen. This means, and it is very significant, that some future events can be predicted by the mathematical movement of significators in the circle of the horoscope as it has been done for ages by our predecessors. This is why reinvestigating the older astrological methods is important as it reconnects with the perceptual ways of the ancients.

[John Timperman is a Classical astrologer from Belgium who studied under Robert Zoller.]