A lot of couples have strong Venus or 7th-house contacts yet never marry, never have children, or feel oddly mismatched in sexual chemistry. Arabic Parts — also called Lots — are one way traditional astrology tried to separate these themes out with more precision.

This piece focuses on three relationship-heavy Lots: - Lot of Marriage - Lot of Eros - Lot of Children

You already know how to read planets and aspects. The goal here is to show how these computed points refine that picture rather than replace it.

What Arabic Parts (Lots) Are

In Hellenistic and medieval astrology, Lots are calculated points derived from the distances between key planets and angles. They are not physical bodies; they are mathematical midpoints weighted toward specific topics.

Each Lot has a formula like:

> Point A ± Point B − Point C

The result is projected onto the zodiac, giving you a degree and sign. You then treat that degree somewhat like a sensitive point: planets aspecting or conjoining it highlight that topic.

Different sources list different formulas. Here we’ll use commonly referenced traditional-style versions that many modern practitioners adapt for relationship work.

You can calculate these by hand using your chart degrees, or have software do it. If you do not have a precise natal chart yet, start with our free natal chart calculator.

The Three Key Relationship Lots

1. Lot of Marriage

The Lot of Marriage is meant to describe how you approach formal, committed partnership and what kind of spouse or marriage narrative you draw in.

There are separate formulas for day and night births, based on your natal Sun:

- Day chart (Sun above the horizon; houses 7–12): Lot of Marriage = Ascendant + Venus − Saturn - Night chart (Sun below the horizon; houses 1–6): Lot of Marriage = Ascendant + Saturn − Venus

Venus symbolizes union and attraction; Saturn symbolizes binding, time, and obligation. Their distance, anchored to your Ascendant, becomes a point describing the *contract side* of intimacy.

2. Lot of Eros

The Lot of Eros is tied to erotic desire, chemistry, and the style of passionate connection that feels compelling, sometimes irrationally so.

A widely used set of formulas:

- Day chart: Lot of Eros = Ascendant + Venus − Sun - Night chart: Lot of Eros = Ascendant + Sun − Venus

Here Venus and the Sun combine love, vitality, and visibility. Eros often describes what turns you on energetically, not just physically.

3. Lot of Children

The Lot of Children has been used to speak to fertility themes, attitudes toward parenting, and your symbolic relationship to “offspring” broadly (creative or literal).

One traditional-style version:

- Day chart: Lot of Children = Ascendant + Jupiter − Saturn - Night chart: Lot of Children = Ascendant + Saturn − Jupiter

Jupiter represents growth and abundance; Saturn, limits and structure. Their relationship marked from your Ascendant gives a point that speaks to how you experience legacy, continuance, and responsibility toward the next generation.

These formulas are not universally standardized; different traditional authors used variants. The technique is a symbolic framework, not a set of astronomical facts.

Why Use Lots in Synastry at All?

Standard synastry looks at planets contacting planets and angles. It tells you: - Where you feel chemistry (Venus–Mars, Moon–Venus) - How compatible your basic styles are (Sun–Moon, Mercury–Mercury) - Life areas activated (planet overlays into houses)

Lots narrow this down to *storylines* around specific topics:

- You might have wonderful emotional compatibility, but a difficult Lot of Marriage connection showing trouble formalizing things. - A hot Mars–Venus overlay could exist with no contact to the Lot of Eros, giving attraction that never quite feels like “this is my ultimate desire pattern.” - Beautiful 5th-house synastry might be present alongside harsh contacts to the Lot of Children, symbolizing ambivalence or obstacles around parenting.

They do not override planet aspects. They add nuance about *how* and *where* relationship themes crystallize.

How to Calculate the Lots (Step by Step)

You can do this manually or via software; here is the manual method:

1. Confirm day vs night chart - Sun above the Asc–Desc axis (houses 7–12): day chart. - Sun below (houses 1–6): night chart.

2. Write down key degrees for each person Use 0–360° notation for ease (e.g., Aries 0° = 0°, Taurus 0° = 30°, etc.): - Ascendant - Sun - Venus - Jupiter - Saturn

3. Convert signs to absolute degrees Aries 0° = 0°, Taurus 0° = 30°, Gemini 0° = 60° … Pisces 0° = 330°. Add the degree in the sign to that sign’s base.

4. Apply the formula Example (day chart, Lot of Marriage): Lot = Asc + Venus − Saturn. Add/subtract using degrees; if result < 0°, add 360; if > 360°, subtract 360.

5. Convert back to sign + degree Place the resulting number back into the zodiac to get the sign and degree of your Lot.

Repeat for Lot of Eros and Lot of Children for each chart in the synastry.

If this sounds tedious, most professional software can calculate these; you can still follow the interpretive steps below.

Reading These Lots in Synastry

Once you have the Lots for each person, you compare:

1. Overlay each person’s planets onto the other’s Lots - Orbs: keep these tight. For conjunctions and oppositions, use up to 3°. For squares/trines/sextiles, 2° or less works best.

2. Prioritize conjunctions to the Lots Conjunctions make the topic concrete. Oppositions can show complementarity or tension around it. Squares can show friction, sometimes productive.

3. Note house placement in each natal chart - Where the Lot falls by house in your chart shows where that theme plays out for you. - Where your planet lands relative to their Lot shows how you activate their storyline.

4. Synthesize with standard synastry - Use Lots as refiners: “This is a marriage contact *that specifically touches your style of commitment*,” rather than “this single point means marriage.”

Quick interpretive cues

Lot of Marriage contacts - Partner’s Sun, Venus, or ruler of their 7th on your Lot of Marriage: They strongly embody your idea of “spouse” or formal partner. - Partner’s Saturn square or on your Lot of Marriage: Long-term binding potential, but with weight, delay, or duty. - Double-whammy (each person touching the other’s Lot of Marriage): High probability that the question of commitment, cohabitation, or legal partnership becomes central.

Lot of Eros contacts - Partner’s Mars or Venus on your Lot of Eros: Intense erotic magnetism; they feel like an embodiment of your private fantasy script. - Partner’s Neptune on your Lot of Eros: Romantic glamor, projection, sometimes confusion or addiction to the chemistry. - Saturn on the Lot of Eros: Sexual seriousness, potentially inhibition or long-term loyalty in desire.

Lot of Children contacts - Partner’s Moon or Jupiter on your Lot of Children: Strong pull toward parenting together or nurturing joint projects. - Saturn square or opposing: Delay, caution, or heavy responsibility coloring conversations about children. - Uranus or Pluto on the Lot: Radical or transformative experiences around children, co-parenting, or the decision *not* to have them.

A Worked Example

Imagine two people, A and B.

Person A - Day chart; Lot of Marriage: 15° Libra in the 7th house - Lot of Eros: 2° Sagittarius in the 8th house - Lot of Children: 10° Cancer in the 4th house

Person B - Night chart; Lot of Marriage: 18° Capricorn in the 4th house - Lot of Eros: 28° Scorpio in the 2nd house - Lot of Children: 5° Leo in the 5th house

Synastry: - B’s Sun at 14° Libra conjoins A’s Lot of Marriage (1° orb). A naturally sees B as “spouse material”; B’s identity lights up A’s marriage storyline.

- A’s Saturn at 18° Capricorn conjoins B’s Lot of Marriage exactly. A is the one who brings seriousness, structure, maybe pressure, to B’s concept of commitment. This could be stability or burden, depending on the rest of the synastry.

- B’s Mars at 1° Sagittarius conjoins A’s Lot of Eros (1° orb). A feels raw desire and excitement; B’s sexual energy fits A’s erotic template.

- A’s Venus at 27° Scorpio conjoins B’s Lot of Eros (1° orb). B experiences A as a living expression of their deeper passions and fantasies; mutual erotic resonance is strong.

- A’s Moon at 9° Cancer conjoins A’s own Lot of Children, and falls near B’s Lot of Children by sign. A has a very emotionally invested attitude toward children; with B, conversations about home, family, or creative legacy become central.

Notice how these Lots don’t *create* attraction or commitment on their own. But they show that, if a relationship exists, themes of marriage, sex, and children are likely to feel fated, highly charged, or central to the narrative.

Where This Technique Gets Shaky

Arabic Parts come from a heterogeneous tradition. Different authors gave different formulas, and not all modern software agrees on names or calculations. Specific cautions:

- Lack of modern empirical testing Unlike Sun–Moon synastry, which is easy to observe across many charts, Lots are harder to validate statistically. Their usefulness is largely based on accumulated practitioner experience rather than controlled studies.

- Formula disagreement Some Hellenistic sources use alternative Lots for marriage or children. If you switch formulas midstream, your results will be inconsistent.

- Not fate, not prophecy A harsh aspect to a Lot of Children does not doom you to childlessness, and a lovely aspect to the Lot of Marriage does not guarantee a wedding. They describe narrative tendencies, not outcomes.

Use them as subtle color and cross-check with concrete indicators: 7th/5th house rulers, Moon and Venus condition, Saturn aspects, and your overall synastry, which you can also survey using our synastry compatibility tool.

One-Sentence Takeaway

Arabic Parts for Marriage, Eros, and Children fine-tune synastry by highlighting *where* and *how* each person’s deeper stories around commitment, desire, and legacy get activated by the other.

A Necessary Caveat

Astrology in general — and Arabic Parts in particular — works best as an interpretive framework for reflecting on patterns and possibilities; it is not a substitute for medical advice, mental health care, fertility counseling, or legal guidance around marriage, divorce, or custody.

If you’re making major life decisions about marriage or children, use these insights alongside practical information, professional support, and honest conversations with your partner.

For more advanced topics like Lots, midpoints, and composite charts, browse our other essays in the Western astrology essays section or build out your learning path in the astrology learning hub.

Arabic Parts (Lots) in Relationship Astrology