Culpeper Medical Astrology
Culpeper Medical Astrology is a Hermetic / English astrological medicine — Culpeper body system as transmitted through the lineage Nicholas Culpeper combined Galenic medicine, astrological significators, and herbal correspondences in seventeenth-century English practice. This system renders seven planetary significators and the twelve-sign zodiacal body sequence while keeping that English herbal frame distinct from Vedic, Hellenistic, or modern psychological astrology.. This page lists every point in the system with sourced placements and links to cross-tradition correspondences curated for The Body Spiritual.
Open in interactive explorerPrimary sources
- Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physician Enlarged / Complete Herbal (1653 London edition; facsimile editions) — The herbal’s “Of the Planets” and plant entries give Culpeper’s planetary rulership frame; cited by the planetary-rulership section and individual herb entries.
- Nicholas Culpeper, Astrological Judgement of Diseases from the Decumbiture of the Sick (1655 edition) — Part I, “Of the Planets” and “Of the Twelve Signs,” sets out the medical astrology meanings used here; cited by those named sections.
- William Lilly, Christian Astrology (1647 edition) — The standard early-modern English astrological medical context for sign and planet significations; see Book III, chapters on sickness and body signification.
Known lineage variants
- Culpeper’s planet and sign attributions belong to an early-modern medical-astrology frame and differ from later occult or Vedic body maps.
- All body coordinates are an editorial front-view projection; they are not diagnostic anatomy or evidence of pharmacological efficacy.
Cross-tradition overlaps
- Saturn — spleen, bones, constraint ↔ Tav ת — Saturn / spleen (coincident)
- Aries — head ↔ He ה — Aries / head (coincident)
- Taurus — neck ↔ Vav ו — Taurus / neck (coincident)
- Cancer — chest ↔ Het ח — Cancer / chest (coincident)
- Leo — heart ↔ Tet ט — Leo / heart (coincident)
- Virgo — abdomen ↔ Yod י — Virgo / abdomen (coincident)
- Libra — kidneys ↔ Lamed ל — Libra / kidneys (coincident)
- Scorpio — pelvis ↔ Nun נ — Scorpio / pelvis (coincident)
- Sagittarius — thighs ↔ Samekh ס — Sagittarius / thighs (coincident)
- Capricorn — knees ↔ Ayin ע — Capricorn / knees (coincident)
- Aquarius — shins ↔ Tsadi צ — Aquarius / shins (coincident)
- Pisces — feet ↔ Qof ק — Pisces / feet (coincident)
- Venus — kidneys and generative balance ↔ ♀ Venus — kidneys (distance 0.005)
- Mercury — lungs, nerves, speech ↔ Pe פ — Mercury / lungs (distance 0.010)
- Aries — head ↔ Àṣẹ — head (distance 0.015)
Related systems
No other systems share this tradition label.
Points
- Sun — heart and vital heat — Planetary medical significator
- Moon — stomach and fluids — Planetary medical significator
- Mercury — lungs, nerves, speech — Planetary medical significator
- Venus — kidneys and generative balance — Planetary medical significator
- Mars — gall and inflammatory heat — Planetary medical significator
- Jupiter — liver and growth — Planetary medical significator
- Saturn — spleen, bones, constraint — Planetary medical significator
- Aries — head — Zodiacal body significator
- Taurus — neck — Zodiacal body significator
- Gemini — arms and shoulders — Zodiacal body significator
- Cancer — chest — Zodiacal body significator
- Leo — heart — Zodiacal body significator
- Virgo — abdomen — Zodiacal body significator
- Libra — kidneys — Zodiacal body significator
- Scorpio — pelvis — Zodiacal body significator
- Sagittarius — thighs — Zodiacal body significator
- Capricorn — knees — Zodiacal body significator
- Aquarius — shins — Zodiacal body significator
- Pisces — feet — Zodiacal body significator
Frequently asked
What is Sun — heart and vital heat?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Moon — stomach and fluids?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Mercury — lungs, nerves, speech?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Venus — kidneys and generative balance?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Mars — gall and inflammatory heat?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Jupiter — liver and growth?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Saturn — spleen, bones, constraint?
Culpeper uses planets as medical significators within an early-modern astrological and herbal frame. The organ placement is a compact body projection of that frame, not a physiological diagnosis or a claim that Culpeper used this exact silhouette.
What is Aries — head?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Taurus — neck?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Gemini — arms and shoulders?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Cancer — chest?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Leo — heart?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Virgo — abdomen?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Libra — kidneys?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Scorpio — pelvis?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Sagittarius — thighs?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Capricorn — knees?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Aquarius — shins?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.
What is Pisces — feet?
Culpeper inherits the zodiacal medical convention in which signs signify regions of the body. This point is a front-view rendering of that convention and should not be read as a clinical localisation.