Gerson Pelafsky – Pre-Natal Predictive Astrology

Profection is a technique that was born in ancient Greece and is simple predictive method to calculate. If you attribute to house 1 the first year of life (0 to one year), at the age of 12, 24, 36, 48, 60 and so on, you “are” successively “ruled” by house one. At 13, 25, 37, etc., .you “are” in house two, and so on. The lord of the house is the lord of the year; therefore at 60 Mr. Aparecido was in his year of the ascendant, and at 64 he was in a house 5 year, ruled by Mars. This is the Greek method of profection but there are other methods. For instance, William Lilly (17th century) would give two lords for the 5th house, because both Scorpio and Sagittarius are in house 5 by the Placidus and other more modern houses systems. But the Greeks in ancient times used the “whole sign” system of houses, with zero degrees as the beginning of each house and ending at 30 degrees. In the whole sign system, house 5 of Mr. Aparecido’s pre-natal chart begins at 0 degree of Scorpio and ends at 30 degrees, because it’s the fifth sign after Cancer, the sign of the first house.

Pre-Natal Charts and “Turning Points” in Life

I have been looking in several pre-natal charts patterns that appear in a repeated manner One of these patterns happens when there are planets in angles or ruling angular houses in the pre-natal chart; sometimes when there are returns of these planets some kind of” turning point” occurs in life – especially when these planets are ruler of the year by profection, or by Firdaria. Firdaria is a medieval method of prediction that uses planetary periods that follow a fixed order. That planet is a “ruler” of time during its period, and there is a sub-period ruler too. I will not explain firdaria in detail here, and I advise the reader to read Robert Hand’s excellent paper about it at www.robhand.com/firdar2.htm. Another feature that shows “turning points” are transits of planets to the angular houses of pre-natal chart, specially when these planets are in evidence, by the profection or firdaria method. When the progressed pre-natal chart shows angular planets, there’s a possibility of a turning point too. Look for several of these features happening at the same time – it is a good hint. Also notice, as we saw in the first example of Mr. Aparecido, whether transits, progressions, solar or other planetary returns repeat signs or aspects of the pre-natal chart. If they do, these are important features to note. Again, I’m following a conception of Paulus Alexandrinus, when I speak about angular planets, for the reason that he spoke about the return of planets as a sign of “Crisis”( I would say: crisis or opportunity). I’m expanding this conception, taking into account the angular positions of planets in the pre-natal charts, not only transits; therefore, if Venus is in your pre-natal chart ascendent, and you are having a return of Venus, and Venus is the ruler of the year (by profection or by firdaria you are in a Venus period or sub-period. Also, if Venus is angular in the progressed pre- natal chart, you may have some kind of “turning point” related to Venus in your life. The pre-natal Return Venus chart would give indications too. It’s interesting, because a planet that seems to have less expression in your birth chart may be more important than you thought.

His progressed pre-natal chart (located on the previous page) shows moon in house 7, in 9 Libra 45, in separating aspect from the pre-natal progressed M.C. The date of progressions of pre-natal chart is April 10, 1960 at 23:35:13 UT. The moon is lord of the year, by profection. The moon is angular in the pre-natal chart as well as its progressed and solar return charts (calculated for São Paulo). If we use the natal chart, moon is in house 12, in detriment and in conjunction with Saturn, a very different picture. The transits to natal chart are apparently less significant than the pre-natal chart. This is a mystery: why in certain charts, in certain periods of life, pre-natal astrology works so well, almost as well as natal astrology?

Role of Dodekatemoria in Pre-Natal Charts

Dodekatemoria is an important concept that has been forgotten in modern astrology. It’s a “power point” calculated by the multiplication of the degrees and minutes of a planet by 13. It’s similar to harmonic 13 in modern astrology (“nothing new under the sun”). Let me give an example: your sun is in 12 Aries 30. Multiplying degrees and minutes by 13 = 156 degrees and 390 minutes, we get 162 degrees and 30 minutes. Beginning with 0 degrees of Aries, we need to count 5 whole signs (150 degrees) more (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo) and add 12 degrees and 30 minutes to find the sun’s dodekatemoria. Therefore 12 Virgo 30 is the dodekatemoria of the sun.

I found that when the sun, moon or Jupiter’s dodekatemoria falls on an angle, it has an important role in significant periods in life. According to Paulus Alexandrinus, “The dodekatemoria of benefics contributes much whenever it falls in the Zoidion where the sun, moon, or star of Hermes (Mercury) is, or on one of the four pivots (Angles), the lot of fortune, spirit or even necessity ( Asc+fortuna – Mercury), or on the prenatal conjunction of the Whole Moon.”(3)

I found that when Jupiter’s dodekatemoria is in a good position in thepre-natal charts and the Jupiter period or sub-period arrives by Firdaria, or Jupiter is the lord of the year in the pre- natal chart, the transit of Jupiter in the angles (especially in the sign where Jupiter’s dodekatemoria falls) it corresponds to turning points in life and great success follows it. Jupiter is usually associated with ideals, philosophy, luck, optimism, and abundance in astrology, and, in ancient times, with sects or political parties. As usual, it is necessary to look to all the transits, progressions etc, to confirm this.

I invite you to take a look into a very well-known political leader for the twentieth century: Margaret Thatcher was born on October 13, 1925 at 9:00 AM in Grantham, England (W39; 52N55) according to Reinhold Ebertin, in Meridian Journal, 02/1979. Her pre-natal chart (next page) is calculated for October 2, 1925 at 6:23 AM BST. The ascendant is 00 Libra 21; and the M.C. is 00 Cancer 28, with the pre-natal moon at 8 Aries 29.

The lord of the year by profection is Jupiter (here I’m using the Greek method. Therefore if at the age of 26, the 3rd house rules the year, and the third sign after Libra is Sagittarius, the lord is Jupiter).

She was married in December 13, 1951 in London. The dodekatemoria of Jupiter in the pre-natal chart is 25 Gemini, falling in conjunction with the M.C. It’s interesting that in Vedic astrology, transits of Jupiter and Saturn in aspect to the seventh house or the seventh house lord are reputedly signs of possible marriage (when the dasas or planetary periods point to it and there’s promisse of marriage in natal chart). As we know, the seventh house is related with relationships, marriage and associations. Jupiter and Saturn were active and in transit and have influence over the seventh house. In December 13, Jupiter was conjunct the seventh house cusp and the pre-natal moon. Saturn was in the ascendant in opposition to the moon. Mars had made his return (another sign of a turning point, because he is angular) and was in house 1. In the natal chart, transiting Jupiter makes an aspect to Venus, lord of seventh natal house. Another feature I’ve noticed in pre-natal astrology is a connection in important events linking both the lords of the year by profection, the lord of natal chart and the lord of pre- natal chart. It is possibly additional evidence that this method turns back to ancient Greece because profection is Greek in origin. An evident link between natal and pre-natal charts showed by transits probably was not disregarded by the ancients.

In December 1951, Jupiter, lord of the year of the pre-natal chart, and Saturn, lord of the year of natal chart by profection, are in aspect by transit. Even if we choose to use Mars as lord of the year (because he is lord of the cusp of third house), transiting Mars is conjunct Saturn in transit on the day of marriage.

The secondary progressions of Thatcher’s pre-natal chart(next page) are calculated for December 13, 1951, equivalent to October 28 at 10:04:49 UT. Progressed Venus and Mars are in partile sextile here and are lords of the pre –natal 1st and 7th houses as well as the natal 1st and 7th houses. Therefore if these two houses are linked (house 1 = myself and house 7 = my partner), a marriage occurs!