I had a question about horary significators and figured this thread would suffice. Hopefully, Minderwiz spots it.
How do you deal with a chart where the querent and the quested are the same significator? Is there any particular meaning to them being same?
The only time that there's a particular meaning is if it's a question about yourself - for example a question on general health, or where should I live or if it's a question about someone who is absent, and is unrelated to the querent. In all such cases the first House is used and the condition of the Ascendant ruler is judged together with any planets in the first or in aspect to the Ascendant.
The most usual cases that I come across are where, for example, Gemini is rising but the quesited's house cusp is in Virgo. That is we are dealing with two separate signs (and houses) but both are ruled by the same planet. or it's a second House question and the same sign is on the cusp of both the Ascendant and the second (the same will apply to twelfth House questions but I can't remember having one LOL).
There are several strategies that you can use:
I almost always give the planet that rules both Ascendant and the questited's house to the querent. There are some circumstances where I might not do that and I'll mention those at the end.
For the quesited I will use:
A planet in the house, providing it's in the same sign as the cusp and it's of an appropriate nature (In these circumstances I wouldn't use Saturn to signifiy a young girl, for example)
No or inappropriate planets, then I would use the exaltation ruler.
No exaltation ruler (Gemini, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Aquarius) I would use the Triplicity ruler.
This will always produce a significator for the questited and I've rarely had to use the triplicity ruler in these circumstances.
Some readers will take a natural significator for the quesited, for example Venus for jewellery or fashionable clothing, Mercury for a book or pen or computer, rather than falling back on the triplicity ruler or even the exaltation ruler. I rarelly do that, but it's always amn option.
The circumstances in which I won't use the Ascendant ruler for the querent is usually where Capricorn, Pisces or Aries is rising. Then I'll use either the exaltation ruler, (Mars, Venus and the Sun respectively) for the querent and use Saturn, Jupiter and Mars for the quesited.
The only troublesome situation that arises is when Mercury is involved. In this case Mercury is both ruler and exaltation ruler for Virgo, so there's no second choice easiily available. I will usually assign Virgo to the querant if there's a planet in the Gemini house (same sign) or use a natural significator.
If neither are available for some reason (usually multiple houses involved) I'll look if there's a planet in the first (in Virgo) or a natural significator for the querent (for example Venus if it's a young woman) and give Mercury to the quesited.
If this were to fail (and it hasn't up to now) I'd use the Earth Triplicity ruler for the querent (Venus by Day, Moon by Night).
This actually only takes a moment or two to do. It's a matter of ensuring that there's a logical choice available. The main times I run into this problem is if there's multiple houses involved, foir example a house purchase, where the first (querent) fourth (property), Seventh (other party to the transaction), second (querent's money), eighth (other party's money) and even the sixth (estate agent) may be involved. In those questions it's almost certain that I will go to exaltation rulers, planets in houses, etc.