Casting Lots: The Lot of Spirit

Today we're going to talk about the Lot of Spirit, what it is, how to calculate it, and what it means. Which means we're also going to talk about the nature of the soul and all of existence. Sounds fun, right?

If you don't know what Lots are, you can check out my Intro to Casting Lots post here. oracularjake.com/post/introduction-to-casting-lots

So, starting from the assumption that you know what Lots are, let's get into it.

The Lot of Spirit: What it is

The Lot of Spirit is the Hermetic Lot of the sun. That means it signifies things relating to the sun. Well, what does that mean?

Most people typically think of the sun as the "ego" which is similar to the ancient idea but it gets thrown off by modern language. This idea of ego then branches off into things like Leo (ruled by the sun) placements being vain because we easily associate the word "ego" with an "inflated ego."

In ancient times however, the sun was thought of as Spirit. The sun rules the heart which is where consciousness was thought to reside before the role of the brain was understood.

The sun was also related to the Greek concept of thumos or thymos which refers to spirit as in a spirited horse or a spirited race. If something is "spirited" that generally means there's passion, vigor, and heart being put into it.

Let's think about all this for a minute. The sun is obviously the most important thing in the sky. It creates day and night, its warmth is the only reason we can live on the planet, real important shit. The sun therefore has a kingly or leader-y status.

Leo is the sign ruled by the sun. Leo is often associated with kings and leadership, all that jazz. What is it that's really needed to lead people? A strong Spirit.

When I think of the sun and Leo I think of a leader giving an inspiring speech. Almost like the fire of their Spirit is burning bright enough to stir the blood, the fire, and the passion in others.

So, now we know that the sun is related to this idea of Spirit through passion, vigor, and heart. Now let's talk about the calculation.

The Lot of Spirit: How to Calculate it

The Lot of Spirit by day is calculated by taking the distance from the degree of the moon to the degree of the sun, then projecting that distance from the Ascendant. For night charts, reverse the sun and moon.

So, the idea is that we're moving from the luminary contrary to sect (the moon during the day/the sun at night) to the luminary of sect (the sun during the day/the moon at night).

Generally speaking, the luminary of sect is the one that's illuminating the sky. The moon is usually out at night while the sun is down, the sun is up during the day while the moon is hidden. So, we start at the point of darkness and move to the point of light.

Easy Calculation of the Lot of Spirit

· go to astro.com

· extended chart selection

· chart drawing style

· "Hellenistic"

· generate the chart

· It's labeled Spirit

Symbolic Light & Symbolic Darkness

If you've already read my post on the Lot of Fortune (oracularjake.com/post/casting-lots-the-lot-of-fortune) then you will remember that there's a bunch of symbolism that goes into the idea of light and dark.

Basically, the sun, the sky, and light are related to matters of Spirit (the divine, ephemeral).

The moon, the earth, and darkness are related to matters of Fortune (the mundane, physical).

Remember, this is an ancient technique so we have to think about the context of the people who created it.

Plato's Theory of Forms

The earliest source we have for the Lots are references to a lost text called the Panaretos which was written by the mythical figure Hermes. The Panaretos is believed to have been written sometime around the 1st century BCE or slightly earlier. So, let's say around 150-100 BCE ish.

Plato, the widely renowned Greek philosopher, lived from around 428-348 BCE. Remember that we're counting backwards with BCE so that means Plato came before the Panaretos and therefore before the Lots. I'm not a historian or expert on ancient Greek philosophy but it's quite reasonable to say that his philosophy likely influenced them.

Plato's Theory of Forms in particular is a perfect example of how sect, different sections of the chart, and this idea of Spirit and Fortune come together.

The Theory of Forms basically states that there is another realm, one of the soul, where the perfect Form of everything exists. Heaven basically. Except here we even have perfect, abstract archetypes. Like the perfect love, the perfect brother, the perfect sister, the perfect dog, the perfect warrior, the perfect leader, the perfect rock, the perfect vase.

These are basically all archetypes. In fact, they're essentially what we see the gods or the planets as. Mars is the perfect warrior. Venus is the perfect lover. Jupiter is the perfect ally.

Plato's idea is that the Forms, these perfect versions, are like the divine essence of a thing. The Forms are the original artwork and the mortal realm is like a series of tracings or rubbings. We fall short of the ideal.

This realm of Forms is eternal and it's the place the soul comes from. Plato posited that when the soul incarnates and becomes trapped in flesh, it loses its memory of the Forms. Philosophy is therefore the pursuit of trying to remember the Forms.

Here's an example with me trying to freehand a circle in paint:

Plato uses a metaphor, The Allegory of The Cave, to explain this idea. The story goes that there were prisoners chained in a dark cave, facing the wall with a fire behind them, since birth. Their entire world was created by the shadows that were cast on the wall. They believed that the shadows were all of reality. One day one of the prisoners got out and left the cave. Once he stepped out into the light, he saw the world for what it was.

The idea is that the shadows on the cave wall are what we conceive of reality. That is, the physical realm. The world outside of the cave is the realm of Forms. Our bodies are the cave where our souls are chained, forced to see reality through the shadowy reflection of the material. Plato was kinda down on the physical realm tbh.

Plato is the oldest source that talks about the body and soul as being two separate entities. An idea known as dualism. Dualism being born a couple centuries before we get the concept of sect (also originated around 100 BCE) and Lots is quite telling.

An exercise I like to do with Fortune and Spirit is to think of them as being combined in the Ascendant. Your (sign of Fortune) body and your (sign of Spirit) spirit make up your (sign of ascendant) life. We don't really experience the mind and body as separate so it helps to contextualize them.

Significations of the Lot of Spirit

The Lot of Spirit signifies consciousness, intellect, the soul, rational thought, faith, spirituality, career, internal motivations, thought processes, you get the idea.

The Lot of Spirit signifies things that you admire and aspire to. The admiration is signified by your faith. The Lot of Spirit can signify what you think god would be like, whatever your conception of that is. Whether you think god is wrathful, merciful, all knowing, etc. The Lot of Spirit signifies an aspect of life that you find so important that you think god would be concerned about it.

The Lot of Spirit signifies things that you admire and aspire to.

This then ties in to career through what we aspire to. If I think god is all knowing and that there is an importance placed on learning and information then I'm probably someone who is curious. If I'm someone that's curious then I probably will pick a job that satisfies my curiosity.

The thing is, we have to separate spirituality from religion. Religious dogma often dictates people have uniform spiritual practices. I think faith is a personal journey that can look different for everyone. People from the same religion and the same denomination can still have different perspectives on what god is and values. Some have no religion at all and yet feel a deep spiritual connection.

The important part isn't the face of the deity, it's the aspect of existence that you hold sacred. It's where your spirit sings and your heart soars.

Practically, this becomes incredibly important for examining how people think.

Someone with a Venus ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more socially intelligent, graceful and prioritizes experiences and the senses.

Someone with a Mars ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more assertive and desire to enact change.

Someone with a Mercury ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more curious, crave intellectual stimulation, and play.

Someone with a Jupiter ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more generous, friendly, and magnanimous.

Someone with a Saturn ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more reserved, dignified, and contemplative.

Someone with a sun ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more spirited and passionate, someone with a vision.

Someone with a moon ruled Lot of Spirit is likely to be more reflective, more attentive to the needs of others, instinctual.

The Lot of Spirit signifies the essence of a person's mind and spirit. This is the foundation for how they think, function, and interact with the world.

If I want to appeal to someone with a Mercury ruled Lot of Spirit then I should offer them something mentally stimulating. Whether I'm offering them a job, whether I want to collaborate on a project, or even just to relate to one another.

Interpreting the Lot of Spirit

As with any other Lot, we have to examine the condition to make any determinations. You look at the condition of a Lot pretty much the same way you do anything else in astrology.

According to Masha'allah, if the Lot of Spirit is in a dark house, the 2nd, 6th, 8th, or 12th, then the person will be too open with their thoughts. This is an interesting consideration because another name for the Lot of Spirit was the Lot of the Absent. The idea being that the Lot of Spirit signifies things that aren't physically present or even things that are secret. You can never truly know the mind and soul of another person.

Therefore, to have your Lot of Spirit poorly placed in a dark house is to betray the secrets of your soul.

What about the quality of the soul that you're putting on blast? That depends on the condition of the Lord of Spirit. If the planet ruling the Lot of Spirit is afflicted then that means the nature of your soul is bad, according to Masha'allah.

Now, I'm not one to believe that you can just be doomed to being a trash person like that but malefics are gonna malefic. They can signify outside things that impact your Spirit, circumstances, people, or even just negative traits (which we all have). Still not good, but it doesn't guarantee that your soul is wicked.

The Lot of Spirit in other houses can generally put an emphasis or focus on that house in regards to topics of Spirit. For example, Masha'allah says the Lot of Spirit in the 5th house, in good condition, signifies a good Spirit and that your children will be pious.

Another specific consideration for the Lot of Spirit that I've seen repeatedly is that if the Lord of the Lot is retrograde then the person will convert from the religion they were raised in to another. Pretty straightforward. Reminder though, this can happen at any point in your life.

Basic rules for interpretation:

Good house, ruler well positioned, no hard aspects to malefics - the person will be faithful, have a good spirit, believe what is true, is able to keep secrets, career things go better, etc.

Bad house, ruler poorly positioned, hard aspects to malefics - the person will be unfaithful, believe what is not true, will have a bad spirit (attitude), can't keep secrets, is too open with their thoughts, career doesn't go as well, etc.

Final Thoughts

The Lot of Spirit is incredibly important for understanding what motivates people. Whether you're using it to better understand yourself or others. It's also incredibly important for career. To be satisfied in your work, you have to know what your needs are.

The Lot of Spirit is considered to be second in importance only to the Lot of Fortune.

In zodiacal releasing (which I don't do), the Lot of Fortune is used to calculate peak periods but the Lot of Spirit is the main Lot that people release from. It's more relevant to the things we can control.

This is one of the first things I look at in every chart. This definitely isn't a placement to be ignored so check yours out!