Which planet rules the day of the week on which you were born?

by Robert Wilkinson

At one time or another we've all heard the anonymous poem that goes, "Mondays child is fair of face, Tuesdays child is full of grace, Wednesdays child is full of woe, Thursdays child has far to go, Fridays child is loving and giving, Saturdays child works hard for a living, but the child that's born on the Sabbath day is bright, bonnie, good and gay."  While this sounds somewhat arbitrary, in fact it does bear an astrological correspondence. The rulerships of the different days of the week can also be discerned by the names of the days themselves.

Monday is taken from "Moon's day." Tuesday comes from "Tyr's day," the Norse god of war, and thus is associated with the planet we call Mars. Wednesday is derived from "Woden's day," another Nordic god with the attributes we associate with Mercury. Thursday is "Thor's day," Jupiter in our system, and Friday is "Frigga's day," Venus in our system. Saturday is of course "Saturn's day," and Sunday is the "Sun's day."

I have found that the day of the week we're born on does to some degree influence our disposition, but of course we have all the planets and signs in our charts, and thus have all the energies at our disposal for good or ill, depending on our awareness, self-control, and maturity. As for the poem, I find some of the associations interesting, but again, they do not tell the whole story. Though the Moon does seem to be associated with being full of face, it seems askew for Mars to be "full of grace," since grace is a Venusian trait, though perhaps warriors of antiquity did both need grace and need to show grace.

I suppose that Mercury (Wednesday) is often "full of woe," since Magicians often are known for their somewhat grumpy approach to life, and the arid quality of the mind associated with dispassionate experimentation does often lead to sorrow, since the mind alone cannot fulfill our need to be human, with all the feelings associated with being that. Thursday's connection to Jupiter fits the "far to go" part of our poem, and of course, Venus (Friday) is very much "loving and giving" when it is healthy. Saturn's children often do "work hard for a living," and the Sun does confer brightness, "sunniness," and goodness when functioning at its best.

Again, though, we have all the planets within us, and it's no more fair to say that Mercury is always woeful than it is to say the Sun is always good. Over the years I have observed the planetary correspondences to be spot on regarding individual birth charts, and very definitely has some accuracy in terms of what day your progressed chart is calculated for. Of course in terms of the work week, it's easy to see how the Mars quality of Tuesday shows itself as the need to be graceful as the work week gets cranked up and the "hump day" of Wednesday is easily associated with Mercury's need to coordinate the host of things that need to get done.

Venus ruling Friday is a no-brainer, but it seems like Saturn ruling Saturday may have applied when that was just another work day, but may need some re-evaluation in our modern times. As for Sunday, well, it may very well be that we can achieve a greater lightness of being on that day. In any case, find out what day you were born, and check it out. It may be more accurate in terms of your birth chart than you suspect.

(Originally posted 8 August 2005)

Comments

[Diane Scholten]

Robert - how fascinating - something I had never thought of, though I DID know of the planetary rulers for the days of the week. This simply underscores my strong Mars - Feb 15 1949 was, indeed a Tuesday. And so another indication for me of where my 'yang' energy comes from. Thanks for this!

[Robert]

Hi Diane - This poem seems to have been a way for children to remember which planet ruled which day of the week from long ago. As for this article, I had to make some slight edits from the original, since I realized I miscopied the poem. Also, there are some variations on it historically, as a reader of the original article pointed out. Still, I thought it would be fun to examine the chart in light of the day of the week one is born.

[Carson]

Robert,

And it would seem to be even more astrolonomically pronounced in languages like French...Lundi, Mardi, Mercredi, Jeudi, Vendredi, Samedi and Dimanche - although I guess Sunday still has the more obvious connotation. I really found this interesting and insightful as I looked at the days that some friends were born on - as well it was interesting and encouraging to find out I was born on a Sunday. Thank you yet again for the wisdom you share.

Blessings,

Carson

[Michelle]

Hi Robert,

I'm so grateful to you for the wonderful information you post. Thank you!

I have a correction for the daily planetary rulers: Monday is ruled by Moon (Lundi in French), whereas Tuesday is ruled by Mars (Mardi in French).

Peace,
Michelle

[Michelle]

Hi Robert,

I'm so grateful to you for the wonderful information you post. Thank you!

I have a correction for the daily planetary rulers: Monday is ruled by Moon (Lundi in French), whereas Tuesday is ruled by Mars (Mardi in French).

Peace,
Michelle

[anu]

hey that is not true at all
i am sunday born, highly melancholic by default mode;
ever since i was born ;am a historysheeter as far as sadness goes

sat square merc;merc sq nept, sun opp sat all rain on my 'SUNDAY"

[Robert]

Hi Carson - Yes, there are close similarities in every language to the universal symbols of the days of the week. Glad you could find some insights by examining friends' birthdays. You may even be able to blow their mind by drawing some conclusions for them, using generic planetary keywords. I have found interesting correlations over the years between the day someone was born on and their astrological biases, and it's kind of fun.

Hi Michelle - Yes, there are interesting associations that can help us engage our friends and loved ones in "light" conversations that will help them think that there may just be something to all of this. I mean really, who would think the day of the week we were born might actually have meaning? ;-)

Hi anu - Well, perhaps it's your life challenge to become "sunny." I was born on a Sunday with a Sun opposition Saturn and Moon opposition Pluto, and while I dressed in a lot of black when a teenager, and had a fairly gloomy attitude that persisted in several periods of my life as a result of difficult experiences, I do find that after quitting almost all kinds of sugars I don't get the blues as much as I used to, and by generating a habit of chronic positivity and going into deep meditation when unsettled that it's easier to overcome the earlier depressive and melancholic tendencies. Mercury square Saturn challenges you to cultivate your spiritual rapport with others and not default to a narrow view. I'm sure with practice you'll start generating your specific brand of positivity. As for sadness, well, since we who are on a path of Self-realization must learn how to operate in all kinds of feeling circumstances, it's only through learning how to transmute our sorrow that we know how to maintain equipoise and positivity when in sorrowful situations. Then we know how to become "sunny" in the midst of life's storms.

[anu]

hi ROBERT

strange that you mention it-- I used to also dress in black through teenage till the last few years.
Andyes thanx for reminding me abt the sugars; I am diabetic and when I was on a strict diet felt great felt svelte ,no yoyoing moods and yes, I will get back to it.Why do I need reminding?It truly works.
My sat square nept and merc sq sat are difficult still
I stay away reclusively tho my leo sun makes me seek company with gusto making me oh so schizophrenic, In fact people think I am two different people --- cool andexuberant ad then preoccupied and dul , thanx to my contrasting impulses
Right now I am much cooler but also more passive.Does being a pisces rising make for passive python like periods?
In which case what does one do to reconcile so many itty bitty scattering impulses. How does one make it all come together in one massive sweep of synchronized partices?

Pardonnez moi, but meditation, hindu budhist anything doesn't work for me;I get even more restless and run out of the house.I can perform rituals like an ordained priest but it brings nothing for productivity.

[Don]

Robert-

Your writing has improved. I like "effectiveness."

Don

[Robert]

Hi anu - Glad I could remind you that the "sugar blues" are not a fantasy! We all need reminding of some things from time to time - that's the benefit of community. You are two different people - maybe even three! Pisces rising might just be an entire ocean of people, and yes, you do tend to submerge from time to time to process the whole of your experience, most of which is beyond words. You are the particles, you are the fish, you are the waves, and you're the entire world.

As for meditation, perhaps you're trying too hard to "do" meditation. It ALWAYS works, regardless of who we are or where we live, though different meditations work at different times for different people. If we cannot "go into the silence" deeply while we're here on Earth, then we will probably get disoriented when we drop our bodies and minds and have no sensory frames of reference to navigate the Bardo. Rituals have little to do with meditation. BEING in touch with SOURCE has everything to do with it. And though we can do this in many ways, again, if we have a hard time going into "the silence" then it's a hinderance that needs to be corrected. Just start focusing entirely on your inbreathing and outbreathing and learn to ignore outer sensory imputs and you'll be meditating just fine. It's also helpful to remember that praying is speaking to God, whereas meditation is listening to God. And if thou art THAT, and God is ALL there is, well... Enjoy the ride!

Hi Don - Thanks. I'd like to think I'm learning with every breath I take.