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Every year holds a special meaning and focus for your life.
By Kate Rose — Written on Jan 10, 2023
There are many distinct ways you can use astrology to help reveal ongoing themes within your life, an important one of these being your annual profection.
Annual profections are an ancient Hellenistic Astrology practice of identifying the major theme of your solar year based on your key planet or Time Lord.
Your Time Lord changes each year on your birthday and represents the governing energy for the entire next year.
This is quite literally the astrology of your own personal new year which can give you hints about upcoming themes or events within your life.
Annual profections are based on the astrological house system which is broken into twelve different houses that govern different areas of yourself and your life.
Your first year of birth you are in your first house profection year based on your Rising sign's house, and on your first birthday you enter your second profection year and so on, following the houses until you return every twelve years back to your first house where the cycle begins again.
Your Time Lord planet will help you gain clarity on what specific energy will be more activated throughout the coming profection year.
Knowing and understanding your annual profection year helps you make decisions more aligned with your growth and move through any challenges with greater ease.
How to calculate your annual profection
The easiest way to calculate your annual profection year is to enter your birth information into an annual profection calculator.
The calculator will then calcular your profection years based on your Ascendant sign's house and will give you the house for the year, the zodiac sign that rules it and your Time Lord planet.
If you're already familiar with your birth chart, you can also calculate your annual profection using an annual profection wheel.
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Once you have that pulled up, you can see what house hosts your current age.
For instance, if you are thirty-eight years old, then you would be in a third house profection year.
You would then want to look up which sign rules that house for you in your birth chart and the ruling planet of that sign would be your Time Lord.
You can also notice what other planets in your natal chart occupy your annual profection house to understand more of the themes that may be at play during the year.
An important thing to remember is that each new annual profection year begins on your birthday or solar return, not the beginning of the calendar year.
Annual profections in the houses
While the profection house will give you insight on which area of your life will be center stage throughout that particular year, the ruling planet of the sign occupying that house reveals the most influential energy of that year.
1st house profection year
Your first house profection year deals with all aspects of yourself because that is what this area of your chart rules. The year will bring up themes related to your personal beliefs, your identity, personality, self-image, and overall self.
During the year you may find yourself changing internally as well as externally, perhaps changing your viewpoint on what is most meaningful in life or going through a new phase of healthier living.
Because your first house year can relate to so many other matters such as career and love, it is an important reminder that when you change yourself, everything in your life also changes.
2nd house profection year
The second house concerns values, which means during a second house profection year all the themes represented here will arise for greater focus.
Value handles finances, so how you make money, how you spend it or even save it, will all come up during this time.
But it also carries within its important lessons about yourself and your relationships. During second house profection years, you also are more focused on your own internal value and the value that others bring to your life. This means that you often make decisions more from your heart rather than logic when it comes to relationships during this time.
3rd house profection year
Communication in all forms becomes key when you are in your third house profection year. During this time, the way you express yourself to others becomes highlighted. You are encouraged to tap into your own thoughts and feelings with greater depth and to explore communication, conversations and even the written word more deeply.
Third years are often a time for publishing or creating a greater social media presence through writing. Short-distance travel, familial relationships and learning also become important themes during this year.
In many ways being in a third house year means that you are improving that inner dialogue with yourself which ends up improving the relationships that you have with others.
4th house profection year
The fourth house is all about home and family, which means that these themes will be highlighted all year.
The fourth house is also the space that often deals with ancestral healing and processing of your own childhood so that you can begin to progress further within the dreams you have for your own life.
During this year, the physical house that you occupy also becomes a major focus. Fourth years are often those during which you move, build an addition, or expand your current home in some way, often because your own sense of family is expanding as well.
The fourth profection year represents a return to your roots which can also help you develop a better sense of who you truly are and help you formulate a path ahead in life that feels authentic for you.
5th house profection year
When you are in your fifth year profection, themes surrounding marriage, joy, children, pleasure, and creativity are heightened.
The fifth house often represents marriage and even a focus on pregnancy. If that is not something you are choosing, then it may be that children become more of a central focus for you in another way or even in rediscovering your own childlike joy for life.
The fifth house represents all things related to fun, happiness, and pleasure, so during these years, it is likely that many of the themes will take place in these areas.
While the fifth house sounds quite literally like all fun and games, it usually also challenges your inner self-expression, stepping into your personal power in a new way also becomes a vital component for the year as well.
6th house profection year
Sixth house profection year’s focus on your health and daily habits that make up the entirety of your life. It is said the future is created one step at a time and that is what the sixth house represents in that what you choose to do daily is what goes into creating your overall life.
During sixth profection years there is a focus on your health, routines, and daily habits. It is a year that encourages you to work for what it is that you want.
Sometimes these years can feel like nothing but work, yet it is also a reminder that there is always joy available if you create the space for it. Sixth years are a time for greater wellness routines, a return to your physical, mental, and emotional health and to lay the foundation for the life that you want to enjoy for years to come.
7th house profection year
The seventh house is one that rules your intimate relationships and romantic endeavors. During seventh profection years, a focus on these themes is strong, which often leads to a committed relationship or marriage.
However, it can also simply deal with the aspects of partnership more generally within your life. This may be focusing or giving more energy to a business partnership or simply partnering with another in any capacity to help remove some of your workload.
The seventh house tends to be important in your romantic relationships, but it is also a chance to lean into the benefits that others bring to your life, seeing that together is always better.
8th house profection year
The eighth house represents birth, death, and transformation. It does not always denote a physical death but is representative of the symbolism of the Phoenix.
Eighth profection years represent a time to allow the parts of yourself and your life that are no longer in alignment with your truth to die off. It is a period that allows you to change various aspects of your life for the better and to allow yourself to be reborn from the ashes of whatever you had to burn down.
During eighth profection years there can be a focus on money, whether that turns out to mean inheritances, a loan or greater abundance in the sharing of resources with a romantic partner.
The eighth house also rules intimacy, so during this time you can crave a deeper connection with someone you are in a relationship with.
On the other hand, boundaries, both physical, emotional, and financial, become important to protect what you are trying to build during this time.
9th house profection year
The ninth house profection year’s theme is simple: just buy that plane ticket!
It is the house of international travel, higher learning, adventure and even luck. When you move into the ninth profection year you are going to be asked to explore outside of your comfort zone and take new risks to open yourself up to life in a new and interesting way.
Themes like spirituality and astrology can also figure heavily into your year as you begin to search for greater meaning in life.
Ninth house profection years help open you up to a new way of living that can help expand your life for the better by showing you that there is no better way to learn than through experience itself.
10th house profection year
The tenth house is all about your career and public image, so these years tend to have a more professional focus on them.
Your tenth profection year could bring a new career position or a change in what type of work you do altogether. It is also about finally receiving recognition for past efforts, so during these years you also tend to gain greater fame or even fortune from past career moves.
During tenth profection years, you can have a greater focus on your purpose as well. This is the path in life that has a higher calling than just career but truly feels connected to what your soul is meant to experience in this life.
Tenth years are all about finding accomplishment through what you put out into the world.
11th house profection year
During 11th profection years, influenced by the 11th house of friendship, you tend to step outside of your shell more and embrace your friendships and social circles.
Eleventh profection years are all about investing more in the people that surround you. You may actively seek out those who are more like-minded or even decide to take your friendships to a deeper level of feeling more likely family.
Socializing will take precedence during this time often with many gatherings or holidays taken together.
This is also the part of your life that rules your hopes and dreams, so during this time, you will feel a reconnection with this part of you allowing you to think big and lean on those around you for the support to make it a reality.
12th house profection year
Solitude often becomes more important during 12th profection years. This house governs the hidden, the subconscious and even unconscious, so it is a year that draws you more inward into quiet contemplation, reflection and eventually renewal.
This is where you can take stock of your life and adjust accordingly. You also tend to do deeper-level healing here as you can connect many of the dots and make important connections that allow you to see the different patterns and cycles present in your life.
During 12th profection years it is important to put your own self as a priority through rest, rejuvenation and even specifically setting time aside to participate in a retreat or even focused relaxed time on your own. This is where you get to catch your breath for a brand-new twelve-year cycle that is just ahead.
Kate Rose is an artist, writer, mother, spiritual astrologist, relationship and life coach, and motivational speaker. For more of her work, visit her visit her website.