In the graphical representation the first house was started at the left side of the graph. The others were drawn in a counterclockwise manner. At the beginning of each house the sign and degree of the zodiac corresponding to that point would be written. The flow of the signs in the graph, however would be in a clockwise manner: from Aries to Pisces.

In order of hierarchy the planets were first, then the signs and finally the houses. The houses were considered ruled by the sign at the beginning of the house, and the signs were considered as ruled by certain planets. How were those signs rulerships established is not yet clear. It seems that the relationships were first established intuitively and then Ptolomy and others tried to develop a rational explanation for them. But without much succesws. Even today there is still no clear astronomical basis for these relerships.

They have, however, been easily understood in terms of the intrinsic astrological symbolisms of planets and signs. This way they have been used for the last 2,000 years. The basic rulerships are: Aries is ruled by Mars; Taurus is ruled by Venus; Geminis is ruled by Mercury; Cancer is ruled by the Moon; Leo is ruled by the Sun; Virgo is ruled by Mercury; Libra is ruled by Venus; Scorpio is ruled by Mars (and latter on by Pluto); Sagittarious is ruled by Jupiter; Capricorn is ruled by Saturn; Aquarius is ruled by Saturn (and later on by Uranus); and Pisces is ruled by Jupiter (and latter on Neptune).

In the signs opposite the signs they ruled the planets are considered to be in detriment. Thus, Mars would be in detriment in the signs opposite to Aries and Scorpio, which are Libra and Taurus. Likewise, the Sun would be in detriment in Aquarius and the Moon would be in detriment in Capricorn.

In the signs it rules a planet express its energy with the greatest easy; in the opposite sign with the greatest difficulty. Thus the sign Leo would easily express the characteristics of the Sun, while the sign Aquarius would find it very difficult to do so. A person, for example, with the Sun in Leo would find it easy and natural to express leadership, while a person with the Sun in Aquarius would not feel comfortable as a leader. A person with the Moon in Cancer would find it easy to express motherly, caring feelings, while a person with the Moon in Capricorn would find it very difficult to do the same.

Another astrological clasification list the signs of "exhaltations." These are the signs where the planets act with the greatest effectiveness. It is as if here their energy would be focus or harness in a more productive manner. Once again, opposite to the signs of "Exhaltations" are the signs of their "falls" where they would act with the least effectiveness.

Finally, in their efforts to explain and clasify the signs of the zodiac in a rational and geometric manner, the Greek apllied their theory of the four elements to the Horoscope. Thus Aries was classified as fire, Taurus as Earth, Gemini as Air, and Cancer as Water. Eventually these elements have come to represent the intrinsic nature of the sign. Thus fire represents animation, Earth practicality, Air intelectuality and Cancer Emotion.

Also, as each group of three signs (starting with Aries) covered one of the seasons of the year, each sign within each group was clasify as Cardinal, fixed and mutable, representing the beginning, middle and end of each season. Eventually this clasification came to represent the style or general mood of the sign. Thus Cardinal Signs, represents an inclination toward new beginnings, fixed signs represent a desire to continue in a predetermined path, and mutable signs represent an spirit of accomodation and compromise.

Having covered the basic rationale behind Signs, Houses, Planets, and Aspects, let's see their traditional astrological symbolism. This we'll do through the use of keywords. Keywords are short word descriptions of what a given concept or things represents. They are not to be interpreted in a restrictive or narrow way. Rather, each keyword should be seen as an arrow pointing toward a larger, more comprehensive meaning of the concept, name or object involve. The basic keywords for the planets in general and the Sun in particular are many; that is because the planets represents inner drives that may express themselves in many ways; thus, the words used to describe their multifaceted behavior are many.

The human consciousness as it expand into the cosmos will encounter the Moon, Sun and planets. Each planet will impress us in different ways. Their influence would be perceive as inner emotional drives. Around these drives our subconscious mind will cluster our experiences, effectively building our self-identity in harmony with the cosmos.

Until 1781 the only known planets were Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are not visible to the naked eye, thus they were unknown to the ancients. The visible planets along with the Sun and Moon are known as the Personal or traditional planets. Uranus Neptune and Pluto were only discovered after the development of the telescope: Uranus in 1781, Neptune in 1846 and Pluto in 1 930. They are known as the Transcendental or Impersonal Planets.

The system of rulerships that ties together Planets, Signs and Houses was develop before 1781; thus the problem have arisen of how to fit the newcomers into the rulership pattern. Eventually Uranus has come to be accepted as co-ruler of Aquarius, Neptune as co-ruler of Pisces and Pluto as co-ruler of Scorpio. Lately, (that is, in the 90's) the traditional rulers of these signs are being discarded. Thus Pluto is seeing as the sole ruler of Scorpio, Uranus the sole ruler of Aquarius and Neptune the sole ruler of Pisces.

Theologically, the Personal Planets represent the Seven Spirits of God described by the prophets. [Isaiah 11:2]. The outer planets likewise represent the three Transcendental manifestations of the GodHead: Father, Son and Holly Spirit. Neptune, or course, represent the Holly Spirit. Uranus the Ancient of Ages or heavenly father; and Pluto correspond to Jesus, for both deal with matters of life and death. You are either with them or against them. Both likewise represent power. As the hymn says: