The Sun enters Capricorn III The Throne, on January 9, 2025 at 7:18 pm EST. The Sun will travel through the four dodeks of Capricorn III, recapitulating Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius as he does so, arriving at 0° Aquarius on January 19, 2025 at 3:00 pm EST — making nine days, nineteen hours, and 42 minutes.

The Throne, though in a sign ruled by Saturn, is a decan administered by the Sun — and these ten degrees can be compared to the maze of tiny offices and cubicles tucked away in the back offices at Buckingham Palace or the White House or the Forbidden City. Out in the State Apartments, before an audience of courtiers and journalists, the King or the President or the Emperor is making large-scale policy pronouncements and announcing their intentions for the coming year. But it’s in these back rooms that those grand statements get turned into the memorandas and emails and official decrees that send department ministers scurrying… or keep them laid back and contemplative. All too many Popes have found it easy to make compassionate and universalizing statements of hope — only to be stymied by the deliberate legalistic pace of the Vatican’s Curia. There’s many a US President who’s found the American bureaucracy to be a similarly ponderous beast to prod into action… or to slow down. Including military personnel, the US government employs about 5.25 million people, but the US president only appoints about 4,200 persons to directly supervise their operations, mostly the Cabinet Secretaries and Agency Directors who lead the 3 million or so civilians. Four thousand people, to move a subordinate staff that’s about the same size as thirteen US states? A tall order.

All the same, it’s translating grand plans in policy, and turning policy into objectives and activities. Chances are you set yourself some goals for 2025 on January 1. Maybe you told a boyfriend or spouse about your resolution to eat healthy, to exercise, to write a novel, to dance with the devil in the pale moonlight. Whatever your grand plans, it’s time to put those plans into policy, and bullet-point those policies into daily routines.

And it’s for this reason that this decan is administered by the Sun under Saturn. Saturn’s rulership over Capricorn is in part about storing up wealth and property in vaults and cellars, attics and filing rooms, warehouses and garages. The Throne is in part about storing policy directives and providing written instructions. Which, when you think about it, sounds a lot like covering your ass.

The Alexandrian calendar that Cosmas of Jerusalem complained of, dedicated this decan to Tolma, the goddess of daring or bravery. Modern Greeks apparently use this word tolmé in the context of audacity, and it occupies a place in an idiomatic expression in Greek that’s very similar to the phrase, “How dare you??” in English — what gives you the nerve? How outrageous are you going to be, anyway? I’m not aware of any depictions of her in ancient or Hellenistic art, unfortunately. But the quality of daring or audaciousness or bravery was, in this context, attributed to public officials — people who had not only been elected to office in their city-states, but were then zealous in carrying out their public duties: not simply hemming and hawing and working through focus groups and surveys to delay taking action, but choosing to act with bravery and deliberateness in carrying out their responsibilities and civil functions.

It’s easy to contrast, or confuse, this virtue — Daring — with a vice or moral failure, too: that of Hubris, punished by Nemesis (and acknowledged at Libra III). Today we tend to regard hubris as “overweening pride” or heightened arrogance that is out of touch with our abilities; we might also be dimly aware of one of its ancient meanings, to set your own will against the Gods or against Fate and believe you would prevail. However, the Greeks who first experimented with democracy (and continued to use it in local affairs for another thousand years) had still another meaning in mind, which has been watered down over the ages. To them, Hubris was the criminal act of self-dealing while in public office: stealing from the public purse, or delivering rewards or favors to your friends at the expense of both your fellow citizens and the state as a whole. Today we characterize this sort of thing under the general heading of “conflict of interest laws” — but there’s something to the idea of defining it as “outrageous personal arrogance at the expense of the whole land” and punishing it accordingly. It’s a definition worth keeping in mind these next ten days.

House Delineations

The First House of self and self-presentation is Leo, ruled by the inconjunct Sun. Of the triplicity rulers, Jupiter retrograde approaches from the sextile. You are defined in part by your friends: be generous in your outreach and support of both the men and women in your life, and be especially kind to any transgender persons you know. To the degree possible, advance the causes you believe in rather than your own personal brand.

The Second House of wealth and possessions is Virgo, ruled by trining Mercury in Capricorn. Take stock of your your income and net worth with spreadsheets and graphs, and put your credit card in a vault. Enjoy what you have on a day to day basis, but be cautious about acquiring more for the moment.

The Third House of extended family and primary school is Libra, ruled by inconjunct Venus in Pisces, and hosting the South Node (for just a few more days). Family matters are troubled, and the schools for young children are turbulent and roiled by challenges (which are really the cries of kids for fairness where they see none). Make beauty out of familial chores like dishwashing and cleaning up after the holidays: find holiness in a return to ordinary routines.

The Fourth House of household and home is Scorpio, ruled by trining Mars retrograde in Cancer, and hosting the Lunar Apogee and the Imum Coeli. Long-respected norms and traditions may be broken in word, if not actual deed. But there’s transformative possibilities if you allow yourselves to see the hurt and seek to heal it. The opposing Moon recommends seeking outside counsel and spiritual mentoring if “work” seems more important than “family.”

The Fifth House of children and pastimes is Sagittarius ruled by opposing Jupiter retrograde, in detriment in Gemini. Your friends and acquaintances can help you create hybrid experiences that entertain both you and your kids if you have them. Invite yourself into the spheres of others, and be game to try new things that match their enthusiasm (or their freak).

The Sixth House of workday, illness, and subordinates is Capricorn, ruled by sextiling Saturn in Pisces; and hosting Mercury and the Sun. Opposing Mars retrograde in Cancer warns that injuries from doing stupid stuff alone is really easy to do this week. Communicate clearly that you’ll be using the table saw to build storage shelves in the garage or that you’ve invited the neighbors over for stew and bread. Tell other people your plans and your intended travel routes in winter weather.

The Seventh House of relationships is Aquarius, ruled by inconjunct Saturn and hosting Pluto. It’s easy to be a forceful critic of your partner right now, especially about being too wasteful of money and resources, or too miserly about holding the credit card and the bank accounts too tightly. Both perspectives are real, and important, but it takes compassion and kindness to untangle the financial picture with love and acceptance. The financial constraints are real, but so is a hope for a more dreamy and lovely future; make space for both.

The Eighth House of obligations and duties is Pisces, ruled by squaring Jupiter retrograde in Gemini and hosting exalted Venus, as well as Saturn and Neptune. Mid-January is a season when our sense of resolution starts to break down — or else we find beauty in maintaining the disciplines we began on January 1. Take delight in the slow and winding road to an unwelcome appointment in your life; accept that your workplace can be both a source of entertainment and tedium; hold up a vision of the life you lead now as a source of contentment.

The Ninth House of travel and learning is Aries, ruled by squaring Mars retrograde in Cancer and hosting the North Node and the Lot of Fortune. You want to travel, go places, see exciting things, and take classes on cool and exciting subjects. It’s still necessary to divide and separate out the things you want to do some day from the things you can afford to do now. Pick and choose, be discriminating, and choose to lead the effort rather than be dragged in the undertow of someone else’s plan.

The Tenth House of career and profession is Taurus, ruled by exalted Venus in Pisces who guides from the sextile; and hosting exalted Moon and Uranus retrograde. January is often a season in which your professional life takes on the steady norms of working a set of prayer beads or a mantra — do the thing, file the evidence that it’s done, run the report, enter the data in the spreadsheet. Rinse, repeat, renew. Life your hand up to heaven, and set your annual goals with prayer in mind, and you’re likely to achieve your aims.

The Eleventh House of colleagues and acquaintances is Gemini ruled by inconjunct Mercury in Capricorn, and hosting detrimented Jupiter retrograde. Your social life may feel disjointed and divided: lunch with colleagues in business attire, and a late-night show in crust-punk battle vest that lasts til the early morning hours; or early morning brunch with a friend followed by late-afternoon sex and early to bed. Savor the incongruities, and hang out with any or all of your friends. Recognize that your intellectual life is well-served by engaging with your colleagues and friends in intellectual conversation where people say what they really think.

The Twelfth House of obstacles, challenges, and side-hustles is Cancer, ruled by the sextile and waxing Moon in the Third Mansion who is exalted in Taurus, and hosting Mars retrograde. Injuries and accidents are a real risk this week, but your efforts to grow self employment are likely to take off. Be cautious about illness, drink water, be wary of too much dryness or too little warmth in your life. Try not to grow weary of emotional displays.

Horoscopes by Rising Sign

Decan I of any sign (usually covering the 21st of the month to the first of the following month) is free to all visitors; Decan II is only available to Patreon and Ko-Fi.com subscribers; and Decan III is available to Patreon, Ko-Fi, and MailChimp subscribers.

I recommend reading your Sun sign, Moon sign, and Rising sign for best results. I write them with rising sign in mind, but several people have told me they find that they do better with all three.

Leo:

Virgo:

Libra:

Scorpio:

Sagittarius:

Capricorn:

Aquarius:

Pisces:

Aries:

Taurus:

Gemini:

Cancer:

Colophon

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If you want to read some of my astrologically-oriented poetry, the largest collection is called A Full Volume of Splendor and Starlight, available through my Etsy shop, and containing poems and hymns to the planets, constellations, decan deities, and Moon Mansion angels. While not astrological, Festae contains hymns to some of the older Roman gods and spirits from the calendar created by Numa Pompilius, the second ancient King of Rome.

I use iPhemeris for my charting software, and screenshot it to make charts. I want to thank the team that develops iPhemeris for the addition of Terms and Decans to their charts. I also use Hugh Tran‘s Physis typeface to craft logos for this blog, as well.

I use Christopher Warnock‘s The Mansions of the Moon as the basis of my Moon placement delineations, and Austin Coppock‘s 36 Faces for much of my planetary delineations. Neither gentleman endorses me.