Marriage-Bringer

MAIR-ij BRING-er

greek: γαμοστόλος (gamostolos)

Definition

The Marriage-Bringer (Greek gamostolos, "the one who arranges the wedding") is Valens's planetary significator of marriage, chosen by the chart's sect and the person's sex. For men it is Venus, found by counting from the Sun to Venus and projecting that span from the Ascendant. For women it is Mars, counting from the Moon to Mars and projecting from the Ascendant. It is a significator — a planet given the office of marrying — not the calculated Marriage Lot.

In Tradition

Valens justifies the assignment through the exaltation-and-fall axis of the lights. Venus and Mars each "depress" a luminary: the Sun, exalted in Aries, falls in Libra, where the day shortens; the Moon, exalted in Taurus, falls in Scorpio, where its light vanishes. From this he draws his rule — Venus is the Marriage-Bringer for men, Mars for women, generally speaking. The ruler of the Marriage Lot brings on the first marriage. Benefics in harmony with the Marriage-Bringer or its ruler likewise prompt marriages, the more so when the signs involved are double-bodied.

In Practice

To find the Marriage-Bringer, work the sect-and-sex rule. For a man, measure from the Sun to Venus and cast that arc from the Ascendant. For a woman, measure from the Moon to Mars and cast from the Ascendant. The planet so singled out — Venus for men, Mars for women — is the significator you read for the marrying itself. Then watch how benefics aspect it and its ruler, and note any double-bodied signs in play, since Valens ties those to marriages coming about. Keep the Marriage-Bringer distinct from the Marriage Lot: the Lot is the computed point whose ruler brings the first union, while the Marriage-Bringer is the sex-conditioned planet that carries the office.

Historical Origin

The doctrine is given by Vettius Valens, Anthology Book II (in Mark Riley's translation, pp. 54-55). There he names Venus the Marriage-Bringer for men and Mars for women, grounding the choice in the exaltation/fall axis of the Sun and Moon. He ties the ruler of the Marriage Lot to the first marriage.

Etymology

Origin: Greek. Meaning: marriage-bringer; one who arranges the wedding.

Further Reading

  • Vettius Valens, Anthology
  • Chris Brennan, Hellenistic Astrology