Astrological House Division & the Symbolism of the Celestial Circles Study how the major house division systems are calculated—in a way that does not require any math. Rather than advocate the use of one house system over another, we will simply compare them and look at the various celestial circles they are based on, reflecting upon the symbolic implications of each of them and how they might impact on chart interpretation.
Prerequisites: Fundamental knowledge planets, signs, houses and aspects.
Instructor: Rhys Chatham
To register, click here.
Understanding Astrological House Division at Kepler College
10 AM Pacific / 1 PM Eastern / 6 PM GMT / 7PM Central European
5 April 2025 – Zoom Room (codes TBA)
Have you ever wondered why astrologers can’t agree on a single house system? Why don’t all astrologers use the same house system? What distinguishes one system from another? And why were new house systems developed throughout history?
From ancient times to the modern era, astrologers selected
house division methods based on divergent celestial circles,
believing that each method aligned more closely with the
techniques they practiced. The symbolism inherent in these
celestial circles profoundly influenced their delineations, often
yielding more accurate and meaningful results.
In this talk, attendees will explore the reasoning behind the
major house systems in use today and uncover the deeper
symbolism of the celestial circles that shape house division in
astrology.
Understanding Astrological House Division at Kepler College
I’m doing a workshop on astrological house division at Kepler College this spring, and in April I’ll give a talk that focuses on the symbolism of house division. It will act as a teaser for the workshop.
It’s free and open to the public.
Reflection on the Second Consideration of Bonatti.
Painting: Jan Matejko, 1872
Consideration 2: How to Ask the Question
With the second consideration, Bonatti turns his attention to the querent and the proper way to ask one’s question. Bonatti recommends intense and heartfelt prayer to our higher power, whatever that may be, that we know the truth of the matter we are inquiring about.
He then recommends creating an area of focus around the question and concentrating on it for at least a day and a night before going to the astrologer, and in doing this, we increase the likelihood of the words of Master Jesus coming to pass, as stated in Matthew 7:7, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”
This in fact is the process used in hermetic magic. In traditional kabbalah, there is a process known as kavanah, which literally means “intention” or “sincere feeling, direction of the heart”. We create an area of focus on a specific thing and concentrate on it, and through doing so we bring the things concentrated on into manifestation.
To give a benign example, one could strongly visualize a coin of one euro, or a GB pound, or an American quarter. We visualize the coin strongly each day over a period of time, making kavanah with it, and voilà! One day we are walking in the street, and we happen on the coin while walking. The act of finding the coin seems completely natural and can be explained away as chance. But practitioners of magic would know that the coin appeared as a result of the Path of Creation, where an intense thought form that is concentrated on over a period of time gradually takes form on the physical plane.
Equally, Bonatti advises us to make, in effect, kavanah with our horary question, first praying to know the truth of the matter and doing this with intense emotion and feeling, because we have a strong NEED to know.
And only after doing this, do we go to the astrologer and pose the question.
Bonatti adds that of course there will be times where there is a sudden need to have an answer to the question. In this case the need is so strong and the emotions and feelings of the querent so high that the question, once posed, will be answered.
Bonatti then warns that there are many foolish people who will not make the necessary preparations for posing their question and phrase their query in such a way that it does not get at the truth of what the querent really wants to know. And then the querent blames the astrologer when the given answer is ambiguous.
In short, Bonatti’s advice for us is that for a clear and precise answer to our question, it is best that the question comes from a sincere and deeply felt need to know.
Upcoming workshop at Astrological Lodge of London
I’m giving a 3-part series of Zoom workshops on house division at the Astrological Lodge of London.
Each workshop is one hour in length, the first is next Monday 25 September at 8:30pm, London time. The subsequent two parts of the workshop are on the following Mondays at the same time, 2 Oct & 9 Oct.
In these workshops, we’ll look at the astronomy behind house division calculation. While there is no math involved, we will look at the celestial circles used in calculating the house cusps and learn to identify them, and then discuss their symbolic implications with respect to chart interpretation.
These workshops do not take a position on a “best” house system. We simply look at the major ones used in ancient, medieval and modern times and consider how they are calculated, we’ll look at their respective differences, and how those differences might affect astrological symbolism.
There is a good deal of information to assimilate and discuss, so rather than try to do it in one go, we’ve split the workshop into three parts:
On 25 September, we’ll do Part 1, where we will look in detail at how the ecliptic based house systems are calculated (WSH, equal and Porphyry), and the symbolic implications of using the ecliptic as the primary celestial circle used in calculating a house system.
Part 2 (held on 2 Oct.) will cover space-based house systems such as Meridian, Regiomontanus and Campanus, and Part 3 (9 Oct.) will cover the time-based systems such as Alcabitius semi-arc, Placidus and Koch.
I’ll post details of how to register for the workshops shortly.
The fees per lecture are as follows:
Lodge Members £8, Concessions £6 – Non-Members £12, Concessions £8.
Astrologer Mary English interviews Rhys.
British astrologer Mary English interviews Rhys for her podcast.
Many astrologers have side gigs that they do in addition to astrology. Some of us are also psychologists, we have some homeopaths, stock analysts, also psychiatrists; I know of at least one astrologer who, when no one is looking, is a lawyer!
Astrologer Mary English outed me in my other line of work in this talk that we had recently on her podcast. Learn the shocking truth here…
In this interview, I speak about my background as an astrologer and stay away from overly technical topics. Mary and I speak about astrology in its broad strokes.
Here is the link to the podcast.
And here is a video version of the podcast:
—ooOoo—
Interview with Rhys by Ana Isabel at LifeAstrologer
Why are there so many astrological house systems and why should they create so much controversy?
In this conversation with Ana Isabel of LifeAstrologer, Rhys Chatham discusses how the various house systems evolved and the different ways in which they have been used.
Rhys Chatham Replay: House Division and Celestial Spheres
The replay link is below for this month’s AFAN Community Workshop with Rhys Chatham on ‘Astrological House Division and the Symbolism of the Celestial Circles.’ Rhys explained how the major house division systems are calculated in a way that does not require any math.
Rather than advocate the use of one house system over another, Rhys compared them and looked at the various celestial circles they are based on. He guided us through the symbolic implications of each of house system and how they might impact your chart interpretation.
In the workshop Rhys taught what distinguishes one house system from another, allowing you to make informed choices on which ones to use, for what, and when.
The house systems covered in the workshop included the ecliptic-based (whole sign, equal and Porphyry), space-based (Meridian, Regiomontanus, Campanus), and time-based houses (Alcabitius, Koch and Placidus).
New Article by Rhys in The Evolving Astrologer.
I have a piece on Astrological House Division in the current issue of The Evolving Astrologer (formerly known as the Career Astrologer). This magazine is published by the Organization for Professional Astrology (OPA). It is directed at all those interested in Astrology, newcomers and professionals alike.
Click here to download a PDF version of the magazine. My article appears on page 48-55.
Rhys gives a Zoom talk at AFAN on Saturday, 1 April
For your ticket and Zoom codes, click here.
Saturday, 1 April at:
- 10AM EDT (East coast-USA),
- -3PM (Ireland, UK, Portugal),
- 4PM (Amsterdam, Berlin, Oslo, Paris, Rome).
Rhys Chatham explains how the major house division systems are calculated in a way that does not require any math.
Rather than advocate the use of one house system over another, we will simply compare them and look at the various celestial circles they are based on, reflecting upon the symbolic implications of each of them and how they might impact on chart interpretation. We’ll discuss what distinguishes one house system from another, allowing you to make informed choices on which ones to use, for what, and when.
In this talk we will cover the ecliptic-based (whole sign, equal and Porphyry), space-based (Meridian, Regiomontanus, Campanus), and time-based houses (Alcabitius, Koch and Placidus).
It’s free! If you would like to attend, click on the site (below) to register and get your ticket and Zoom codes.
House division systems are based on different celestial circles. After a quick review of the astronomy, we’ll discuss those differences and look at how they might affect chart delineation on both symbolic and practical levels.