Today, we’ll talk about a technique in horary astrology known as the “default option.” What is it? Sometimes there are situations where an event is virtually inevitable, and only something truly extraordinary could prevent it.
In such cases, standard predictive techniques don’t work well. For example, the absence of aspects—that is, contacts between significators—usually indicates that the event will not occur. In about half the cases, aspects do not perfect. And this also applies to events that are clearly approaching.
But if an event is just about to happen, denying it solely on the basis of the absence of applying aspects leads to absurd conclusions: it would mean that half of all obvious events should suddenly be cancelled at the last minute. But in reality, such constant miracles don’t occur. If an event is inevitable, it almost always happens simply because it cannot be avoided.
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Example of the Default Option
Imagine that five minutes before a wedding, a nervous bride bursts into an astrologer’s office and asks, “Will the wedding happen? What if something goes wrong?” The astrologer casts a chart and sees that there is no aspect between the bride’s planet and the groom’s.
Does that mean the wedding is off? Of course not. Everything is ready: the guests are gathered, the groom is present, and there’s no sign of cancellation.
The absence of aspects is quite a common phenomenon. A wedding being cancelled five minutes before it starts—that’s extremely rare. Therefore, in order to predict the cancellation of such an event, there must be something truly striking and unusual in the chart.
For example:
- Refranation: the groom’s planet suddenly turns retrograde just before perfecting an aspect with the bride’s;
- At the same time, the significator of marriage conjuncts the South Node;
- Simultaneously, the bride’s significator lands on the divorce star Vindemiatrix.
The simultaneous presence of several such strong indicators is just as rare as a sudden last-minute cancellation of a wedding. But if nothing like that is present—we assume the wedding will go ahead. That is the “default option.”
It can be established either by context (as in the wedding example) or by the chart itself, when it clearly shows that the event is practically unavoidable.
Practical Example
Here is a horary chart that was discussed in a student group chat. Many students were unsure which technique to use, precisely because the chart establishes a default option.
The situation: the querent is planning to apply for a government loan of 350,000 rubles to start a business. He asks two questions:
- Will they grant the full amount?
- Will they grant anything at all?
Radicality Assessment
First, let’s check the chart for radicality. If a process is not developing spontaneously but under the influence of the planets, we can observe a correlation between the current circumstances and the planetary positions in the horary chart. In this case, we say the process will continue to unfold under the influence of the celestial figure we observe.
We say the chart is radical (from Latin radix—root), meaning it serves as a valid (root) base for forecasting the development of the situation.
What is the quesited, the subject of the question? Government money. This corresponds to the second house (money) from the tenth (government)—that is, the 11th house of the chart. We expect the chart to highlight this house as the main one. And it does: the “Olga” program we use in our courses automatically analyzes radicality and identifies the 11th house (the loan) as the primary subject of the question. We see a correlation between the circumstances and the chart. This confirms that the chart is radical. We can use it to make a prediction.
Condition of the House Ruler
The ruler of the 11th house is Jupiter. It represents the loan. Will the loan be large or small? The condition of the planet reveals the state of the object it signifies.
Jupiter is in its detriment—meaning the loan will be significantly less than the requested 350,000 rubles. Not just a little less, but noticeably so, since Jupiter (the loan) is in a position of maximum debility.
Condition of the House Itself
The 11th house itself shows the surrounding circumstances of the loan issuance. Usually, this is of less interest to us than whether the money will be given at all. But look at what’s in the 11th house of our chart: the North Lunar Node is there.
In my recent article on lunar nodes, I wrote that the nodes have little significance in natal astrology, but play an important role in horary.
When the Moon—the universal significator of the flow of events in horary astrology—crosses the plane of the ecliptic, it intensifies the flow of events. When it touches the South Node, the flow of obstructive events increases; when it touches the North Node, the flow of favorable events is strengthened.
Even though the Moon is not yet on its North Node in this chart, in its progressive movement, it will soon reach it. The Node will remain in the 11th house throughout this period. This means that in the near future, we will witness a moment when the Moon is both in the 11th house and on the North Node. This points to a moment when the flow of favorable events intensifies. We expect the loan to be granted easily and without delay.
The North and South Nodes also have another meaning: they can indicate an increase or decrease in the quantity or volume of the relevant object. Since we are talking about the 11th house—money—one possible interpretation of the North Node is that the loan will be granted in full.
However, we cannot draw that conclusion because it contradicts the debilitated condition of Jupiter. We already know that only a small portion of the requested amount will be granted. Therefore, we cannot interpret the Node in this sense.
By the process of elimination, one logically consistent interpretation remains for the presence of the North Node in the 11th house: the entire flow of events will soon align in such a way that the loan will be granted easily and without delay.
The Default Option
Now we can move on to the second question: will the loan be granted at all?
The first instinct, of course, is to look at aspects—the contacts between the significator of the loan and the young man himself. Perhaps also consider the government’s significator, and examine receptions: does it want to give the loan, will it approve it, and so on.
But we already know something important: everything is aligning toward the loan being granted smoothly and without obstacles. So now let’s ask: what if we started looking for an aspect—and there wasn’t one? Would that mean the government wouldn’t give the money, even though we already know that the flow of events points to an effortless outcome? Of course not.
This is like the situation with the woman asking about an inevitably approaching wedding, where there are no aspects between her and her future husband. The context itself sets the default option.
In our case, the future context—“everything will go as smoothly as possible”—is established by the North Node in the 11th house. That is the default option set by the chart. Therefore, we must read everything else based on that premise.
Instead of looking for signs that support the granting of the loan—such as the government's approval or aspects (i.e., contact with the money)—we need to search for strong indicators that the already clearly approaching positive outcome might be canceled.
What could such indicators be? For example, Jupiter becomes stationary or combust, while simultaneously conjoining the South Node. But there are no such combinations in the chart. By default, everything will go as smoothly as possible, according to the North Node in the 11th house.
Conclusion
Thus, the answer to this horary question is very simple: the loan will be granted, but it will be very small. And that’s exactly what happened: the loan was granted, but not the full 350,000—only 110,000.
