Horary Astrology: Where’s My Passport?

The other night, I was packing for a trip to Canada, where my sister lives — but I couldn’t find my passport. That’s not a problem for traveling into the great white north, but it can be an issue if you want to get back into the U.S.

I didn’t want to stay up all night looking for it, so I decided to try my hand at horary astrology — an ancient branch of the art that focuses on finding lost objects. The result was kind of astounding.

Now, I only know the simplest of rules for horary astrology, so those are the ones I practiced.

The lost item has to be important, and finding it should be somewhat urgent. Check and double-check. My passport is an important document, and I didn’t have time to wait for it to turn up on its own, or waste on a fruitless search — especially if it wasn’t in my house.
A horary chart should be cast for the moment the astrologer hears and understands the question. No problem. I asked myself, “Where is my passport?” and pressed the instant-chart button on my computer.
At that point, an astrologer simply studies the chart for relevant clues. In horary, the Moon typically symbolizes the lost object. In this case, the Moon was in the second house of values and possessions. At first, that just reaffirmed the fact that my passport was an important possession, but it didn’t exactly tell me where to look.
A horary astrologer also looks at the rising sign — which was Aquarius — as well as that sign’s ruler. Because horary astrology is ancient, it uses traditional planetary rulerships. That meant I needed to find Saturn. Ah, there it was, in the eighth house of shared resources.
Horary also relies on the symbolism of the other planets. Mercury, the travelling messenger of the gods, flew around the world with important dispatches and communications, so I knew that Mercury’s position in the chart would be an important symbol of my passport. I found the ‘lil guy in the sixth house of work and service.

I was still kind of stumped. The Moon and Saturn were on opposite sides of the chart, but they were both pointing at Mercury. I knew that was probably a good thing, but I had already searched my home office, where I manage most of my routine duties that revolve around work, service, and responsibility.

Both the Moon and Mercury were in fire signs, which made me think that the passport might be in a “hot” place — but it wasn’t in the fire safe where I usually keep all of our important papers.

I started rifling through my briefcases and purses all around our house — and even my husband’s briefcase — since I still thought I would find it with our work papers.

When that didn’t turn up my passport, I shifted my attention to another place of business … and there it was.

My passport was buried in the basket we use to collect our important mail. In our house, that means bills and bank statements. I must have stashed my passport there last month, after an earlier trip that took me close to the Canadian border.

But how perfect was this chart?

The second house of values and possessions, where I found the Moon, usually relates to one’s own money and income. My bank statements are a record of my personal finances. As an added bonus, the Moon was in Aries, a sign that’s often linked to business and administration.
The eighth house of shared resources, where I found Saturn, describes joint finances, which also describes the bills and bank statements we keep in our important mail basket. Did you notice, too, that Saturn was in Libra, the sign of partnership? As it happens, Saturn is exalted in Libra. In hindsight, that was a good clue that I’d be able to find my passport readily, because the ruler of the chart was positioned so well.
And my Mercurian passport was buried, literally and figuratively, between those two significators, the Moon and Saturn — just like it was buried in all that paperwork. Of course Mercury, as a messenger, is closely linked with mail, and the fact that Mercury was in the sixth house was telling. Ask any astrologer, and you’ll learn that paying bills and reconciling bank statements is a textbook example of sixth-house duty and responsibility. What’s more, Mercury rules the sixth house, so he and my passport were right at home.

I just hope my husband cleans out the rest of that basket while I’m away.