I've decided to look into profections...

My Experiences

One of my readers asked to write about profections. Before I get into the specifics, I'd like to tell you that I have a basic knowledge on this subject. In my daily practice I don't use this astrological technique, although many years ago I've researched it and tested its accuracy, with quite good results. Ultimately I left profections behind, because using them would require adjusting the style of my work, which I didn't want.

Please treat this text as an introduction to what the profections are and what they can offer!

What Are They?

Profections help identify the main trend in a given age of our life. With their help we learn which house(s) and planet(s) are energized, thus we know what potential (beneficial/stressful) of our natal chart we are dealing with. Profections give an outline of what to expect, but to precisely delineate future events one needs to use other techniques alongside them e.g. solar returns, progressions and transits.

Profections didn't come out of nowhere; they were present in astrology for a very long time. The oldest source of information about profections are the records of one of the prominent astrologers of the Hellenistic age - Vettius Valens, particularly his work titled "Anthologies". This means that profections are one of the tools of traditional astrology.

It's worth to note that you don't need to be a traditional astrologer to use them :-)

First Steps

Profections are a shift (direction) of the Ascendant sign by a full 30° with each birthday. So at birth we are in the "0" (zero) profection year, which corresponds to the 1st house of the natal chart. When we are one-year old, we go one sign further to where the 2nd house should be etc.

You can use the image below. Find your age and the natal house (areas of life) corresponding to it. This house will be emphasized throughout the year, from birthday to birthday.

And what if in our natal charts one sign does not equal one house, i.e. we have closed signs? Such a situation often occurs with modern charts.

Profections were originally used having the traditional approach to astrology in mind. A large part of people who use profections on a daily basis use the Equal or Whole Signs house systems , as opposed to Placidus, which is popular nowadays. Personally while experimenting with this technique, I quickly came to the most accurate conclusions using either of the traditional systems.

Fortunately profections provide a lot of room for experimentation. If you have closed signs, then just look at the house cusp and the zodiac sign you happen to find there. In some years you will have two Lords of the Year - but more on that in a moment!

The Planetary King

Let's say you happen to be 45 years old. You have profected to the 10th house. This means that over the next 12 months, issues related to e.g. prestige, work, long-term goals will be an important part of your life.

Now you go back to your natal chart and you find the ruler of the 10th house. This planet is called LOTY (Lord of the Year).

Who Really Rules?

Determining the Lord of the Year will often require additional steps, especially if you have profected into a natal house that has planets in it. 

Vettius Valens introduced the terms of for handing and taking over the rule (power). In practice this means that if you have planets in a house, the Lord of the Year handles the power to that planet, who takes over and is truly in charge.

The best comparison I have come across is that the original Lord of the Year is
the King who entrusts the fate of the kingdom to one of its trusted (or not) servants. And this servant can do his job with varied results. 

In the meantime, the King either passively watches everything or works in the background, unnoticed and subtle in action.

With multiple planets in your natal house, look for the one that has the most to say. Look for the one that stands out and is the strongest. Traditional astrology comes to our aid, giving the tools to define the quality of a planet e.g. by judging its sect. Here's how it goes:

• in the diurnal chart (the Sun in the upper half of the chart), the Sun, Jupiter and Saturn are strong.
• in the nocturnal chart (the Sun in the lower half of the horoscope), the Moon, Venus and Mars are strong.

There are also other tools e.g. whether the planet is in its correct sect (regardless of whether it is a diurnal/nocturnal chat), traditional dignity assessment, triplicity etc.

The Last Step

Let's get back to the example. If you have Sagittarius at the top of our hypothetical 10th house, then  the Lord of The Year is natal Jupiter. If there are no other planets in this house, you study the condition and quality of said Jupiter. If there is only one planet in the house, that planet becomes the new Lord of the Year and Jupiter is the passive King. When there are several planets in any given astro house, you choose the strongest one for the Lord of the Year title.

Once you've identified the single planet (let's stick with Jupiter), there are a few things you can do:

1. You can check the position of Jupiter in the solar return chart; you are looking for similarities between the natal and solar chart in order to pinpoint the theme.
2. You can note the movement of Jupiter across the sky e.g. when it enters and leaves its retrogradation period. You can feel those periods more than usually in a given profection year. Often times the important events of the year coincide with simultaneous transits of the LOTY and the King (if a planet handled over the rule). 
3. You can also check any transits/progressions towards natal Jupiter as well as the transits of Jupiter itself that are expected to be more potent than usually.

Interpretation On Example

Source: https://www.astro.com/astro-databank/Minogue,_Kylie

Kylie Minogue is a singer and dancer with a number of prestigious Australian music awards, including Brit Awards and Grammies. She started her career at the age of 11, playing minor roles in television series in order to seriously pursue the entertainment industry, music in particular. Kylie has already made history as Australia's best-selling artist (+70 million records).

Now I'll deliberately show you an interpretation of a chart that has closed signs in it.

Event #1 - Expansion

At the age of 10, Kylie accompanied her family to a TV-series casting, on which she landed a role. At the age of 11, for the first time in life, Kylie appeared in the Australian television series called The Sullivans (1979).

Profections indicate which exact potential of your personality (as reflected in the natal chart) is activated. Kylie's potential for being noticeable is huge - just look at her planets in house 1 and 10. And these are not just any planets. We have the 1st house Jupiter in the charismatic sign of Leo; MC ruler Venus at its  home, 10th house. This is the natal chart for standing out from the crowd. 

Being 10 years old corresponds to the 11th house, which is in Gemini, thus natal Mercury is the LOTY. This alone suggests a year full of new experiences, learning stuff (be it knowledge, skills). This house holds three planets in total, including Mercury itself (dignified), which makes it an undisputed King. There is no need for handling over the rule. 

The 11th house suggests that the theme of the year will concern social environments, a chance to fulfill one's ambitions in the social arena.

Now we study LOTY's condition. Mercury in Gemini is domicile, being within the

house it rules. It's a marvelous position. One can say the King exercises its powers directly and powerfully; we don't have to expect any difficulties or delays resulting from there being any servants/intermediaries. Now LOTY's aspects. Mercury is sextile Jupiter (a benefic, ruler of the 5th house), Mercury has no contact with malefics, although a square to Uranus suggests sudden twists in life that are troublesome (I mean, a 10 year old entering the big world is a strong experience). 

This is a natal potential that promises success, milestones. This is not a year of losses...

The Interpretation Continues

... unless other factors in the charts state otherwise. Profections identified a trend that will repeat itself every 12 years. The obtained information still needs to be confronted with the solar return chart, progressions and transits in order to accurately define the what's and how's. In case of difficult/challenging life periods, a strong Lord of the Year gives hope of finding support, a soft landing, etc.

Unfortunately, I have not found information about the exact time the TV casting took place. Let's quickly look at the transits of the more slowly moving planets when Kylie was 10 years old.

Source: An example of a date

Important facts to notice:

• transiting Jupiter stays in the proximity of the Ascendant.
• tr. Saturn squares the planets in Gemini.
• tr. Uranus is in the vicinity of the IC.

One cannot complain there's nothing going on. In fact, such simultaneous planetary activity can be a sign of a year of breakthroughs. Jupiter symbolizes an entrance to a better life stage and is an additional conformation she will be noticed (1 house). It's time to open up to new chapters. After all, acting is the entertainment industry, the art that are so precious to Kylie.

The Saturn and Uranus transits paint a picture of difficulties, including the prospect of aquiring new responsibilities that will have long-term effects. On a side-tone, I would like to add that many years later Kylie Minogue was heavily criticized by the acting community for forgetting her lines in the script (Gemini and focus are a difficult couple) and was experiencing disappointment and loss when her character in the series was made redundant.

Event #2 - Health Issues

At the age of 36, doctors diagnosed Kylie Minogue with breast cancer. A few weeks before her next birthday, Kylie underwent surgery (without complications) and began chemotherapy soon after. Years later, Kylie disclosed that a few months before the actual diagnosis she underwent a checkup but the doctors found nothing i.e. doctors misdiagnosed her.

Being 36 years old corresponds to 1 house, which is in Cancer, thus the LOTY is the Moon. At this stage we can identify that the trend of that particular year concerned vitality (1st house), the physical body and appearance in general.

Let's check what kind of King the Moon is. 

Moon is in Gemini, neither in dignity nor in detriment (peregrine); now it is
conjuncting Mars (the malefic) and squares Pluto. Our King will struggle and be nervous as it has to deal with sudden problems (Mars), compulsive yearnings, fears and possibly losses (Pluto).

A traditional astrologer would say that in the diurnal chart neither the Moon nor Mars are strong i.e. we can expect problems from them. Both planets are also in the diurnal section of the chart (they like to be in the bottom half of the chart), which further makes them problematic.

The Coronation of the Proper Ruler

Fortunately the Moon hands over to Jupiter. It is in good shape, not weakened by anything but only strengthened by being in a cardinal house.

Gathering all the information together, we see that the LOTY (King) is the Moon. This potential bears difficulties and losses - the King itself attracts trouble. It's a fact. A negative cancer test seemed to be good news, but nervousness and emotional anxiety continued as Kylie clearly didn't feel like everything's fine.

The King hands over the authority to its servant Jupiter, who, as it turned out, saves the situation with its skills. In early May 2005, Kylie decided to get a second medical opinion and within 1-3 weeks she had surgery (Mars symbolism). Her prosperity (Jupiter) made it possible to act quickly and decisively.

Kylie's situation is a perfect example that the rule can be transferred to even the best planets, although the King's weak position will always be perceptible (for better or worse).

The Interpretation Continues

So far the only small amount of information suggested a health problem; there was also no direct reference to the 6th house, which would certainly put the interpretation on the right track. And that is why it is worth looking at solar returns, progressions and transits. Let's take a quick look at them...

Source: Approximate date based on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kylie_Minogue#Health

There is no public information on the exact date and place (Australia or England) of the misdiagnosis. And the right diagnosis. But even without those charts, we can notice:

• transiting Saturn in the vicinity of the Ascendant.
• tr. Jupiter (LOTY) trine Sun.
• tr. Mars (close to the King, original LOTY) squaring planets in Gemini.
• tr. Uranus square natal Mars.