Is the chart radical?
For a chart to be 'valid', or radical, means that we take it to be symbolically rooted in a real question whose time has come, rather than in an artificial or casual one. The tradition too (the aphorisms of Bonatti that Lilly passes on) recommends sincere matters that have genuinely occupied a person for some time, not trivial whims. Below you will see, in turn, the criterion that makes a chart radical and the classical checks.
What is radicality?
Radicality is the check of whether a chart is fit (rooted) to be judged. According to Lilly, when the ruler of the hour of the question and the ruler of the Ascendant are of the same triplicity (the same group of three signs sharing an element), are the same planet, or share the same nature, the chart is regarded as radical. This planetary-hour test is Lilly's own and is less frequently used in modern practice — the central practical issue of validity is whether the question is real and whether its time has come. The classical checks below do not discard the chart; they say 'pause and think'.
Very early Ascendant (0-2°)
If the Ascendant is in the first three degrees of a sign (0°, 1° or 2°), the matter may not yet be mature and the question has been asked too early. Lilly allows one exception: if the querent is very young and their appearance agrees with the rising sign, the chart may still be judged. Usually, rather than forcing an answer, it is better to wait a while.
Very late Ascendant (27-29°)
If the Ascendant is in the final degrees of a sign (27-29°), Lilly says it is 'no ways safe to give judgment': the matter may already have advanced too far, or the querent may be too late. Exception: the chart may still be judged when the querent's age corresponds with the rising degree, or when the chart is set for a definite moment of an event.
Void of course Moon
If the Moon is void of course (making no exact aspect to another planet before she leaves the sign she is in), matters are difficult to bring forward; most often it says that nothing will come of it and the situation will not progress. Only when she is in Taurus, Cancer, Sagittarius or Pisces does she still perform something, even while void.
Via Combusta (the burning way)
The Via Combusta, or 'burning way', is the region extending from the last 15 degrees of Libra to the first 15 degrees of Scorpio. When the Moon is here, judgment is not considered safe; the chart is read as volatile or dangerous and judgment is given cautiously.
Sample question: 'Will I get this job?' But the person asking (the querent) has not even applied yet. The matter is not yet born; if the Ascendant is at a very early degree, the chart gives a sign of prematurity, of a matter not yet mature — rather than forcing an answer, it is better to wait a while.
Topic Test6 questions · test yourselfSign in to pick up where you left off in the Academy.