Mūlatrikoṇa · the root-trine portion

Mūlatrikoṇa, the root-trine, is a band of degrees inside a planet’s own sign. There the tradition reads the planet as nearly as strong as in exaltation, a step above ordinary rulership of the same sign. The word points to a place of rooting, a home ground where the planet draws on its own nature at close to full force.

Each of the seven classical grahas has one such range. The Sun’s is the first twenty degrees of Leo; Mars’s the first twelve of Aries; Jupiter’s the first ten of Sagittarius. Below the mūlatrikoṇa degrees the same sign is still the planet’s own, only held a little less high.

Exaltation is the peak; the root-trine is the home ground just under it.

Mūlatrikoṇa is one of the classical dignities, read together with exaltation and own sign to gauge how comfortably a planet sits. It is a matter of degree, literally, so a reader checks the exact position before assigning it.