Daughter figure
One of four geomantic figures read from corresponding lines of the four Mothers.
Reference · Glossary
Glossary
A guide to the words used across this site and in the texts behind it. Definitions describe historical usage, not proven supernatural effects. A term may mean different things in different traditions; the tradition label tells you which sense is meant here.
Looking for a sign rather than a word? Symbols draws the signs of astrology, alchemy and geomancy and links each to what this study says about it.
11 terms · page 1 of 1
Decan
A ten-degree subdivision of a zodiac sign; historical schemes attach different figures or rulers to the decans.
Demiurge
A maker of the material cosmos. In some Gnostic myths the maker is ignorant of a higher divine realm; Plato's demiurge is not the same figure.
Descendant
The point opposite the Ascendant, at the western horizon; it is associated with the seventh-house cusp in many chart systems.
Digestion
Keeping materials under gentle, sustained heat for an extended period in a laboratory process.
Dignity
A traditional scheme for assessing a planet's condition by sign or degree. Different schools have their own rules and rankings.
Dissolution
Breaking down or dissolving a material in a liquid. Alchemical writers could describe this materially or figuratively.
Distillation
Heating a mixture and collecting its condensed vapor to separate or concentrate materials, a central operation in early chemical work.
Divination
A practice of seeking guidance or knowledge through signs, lots, charts or other interpretive methods. The specific rules belong to the method being used.
Divine name
A sacred name used in prayer or ritual writing; its spelling, language and role must be read from the particular text rather than reconstructed from a generic list.
Dualism
An account that sharply distinguishes two principles or realms. The word can describe parts of Gnostic thought, but it can flatten important differences between ancient texts.