Planetary Rulership in Astrology

tags: rulership

Rulership describes an affinity between a planet and a sign. Every planet has a sign which seems to match it. The energy of Aries, for example, is very similar to the planet Mars. While Mars is in Aries, he is “at home” and able to more comfortably express his basic nature.

Committing rulerships to memory makes the task of reading charts much easier!

Table of Planetary Rulerships

Planet	Rules
Sun	Leo
Moon	Cancer
Mercury	Gemini and Virgo
Venus	Libra and Taurus
Mars	Aries (Traditionally* Scorpio)
Jupiter	Sagittarius (Traditionally* Pisces)
Saturn	Capricorn (Traditionally* Aquarius)
Uranus	Aquarius
Neptune	Pisces
Pluto	Scorpio

*Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are relatively new on the planetary “scene,” having been discovered only after the development of telescopes. Therefore, Aquarius, Pisces and Scorpio also have traditional rulers among the seven visible planets.

Some astrologers, such as Rob Hand, believe that Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are impersonal energies, and as such, they rule no signs. They exclusively use traditional rulerships.

I encourage you to learn both modern and traditional rulerships, and use the system with which you are more comfortable.

Comments:

1. So, someone with Saturn in Capricorn is also kinda Saturnian even if they have several planets in, say, Gemini?

   
   
   — Eme    31 March 2006    #

2. I found this site on Ptolemy’s theory on sidereal rulerships & how it changes with the great age, could this mean all signs have double rulers?

   
   
   — Mike    22 January 2007    #