1: Malefic and Benefic = Bad and Good

This mistake is very old (Latin terms). It is a mutation of the original concept that various planets communicated information from various gods. Some gods represented pleasant things. Others, not so pleasant.

Original idea that mutated into the benefic / malefic paradigm still survives in the Sanskrit terms: krūra and saumya – which means “hard & soft”, “rough & gentle”, “unpleasant & pleasant.”

So-called “malefic” planets are described as “hard” – tough, strict, and unforgiving. So-called “benefic” planets are “soft” – sympathetic, generous, and forgiving.

“Hard & soft” is not the same as “good & bad.” 

Hard qualities like strength and toughness can be great in certain situations, and awful in others. They are great when you are dealing with attacks rivals and enemies, but awful when you are dealing with delicate affections from friends and family. 

Soft qualities like generosity and sympathy are the same. They are great when you are dealing with delicate affections from friends and family, but awful when you are dealing with attacks from rivals and enemies.

In conclusion, the Latin terms “benefic” and “malefic” reinforce a serious misconception: that some planets are good and others bad, while in reality any planet can be good or bad, depending on the situation.  

Benefic planets represent soft and pleasant qualities – like generosity and optimism – but pleasant qualities in the wrong setting cause problems – like gullibility, and low anxiety tolerance. Similarly, malefic planets represent hard and unpleasant qualities – like harshness and relentlessness – but unpleasant qualities in the right setting become assets like pragmatism, courage, and strength.

So, lets try to transition our terminology from “benefic & malefic” to  “soft & hard,” or “pleasant & unpleasant.” 

2: All Planets Fit Into These Two Categories

Mars & Saturn are clearly strict, tough malefics.

Venus & Jupiter are clearly generous, forgiving benefics.

But where do the rest of the planets fit? They don’t, exactly. And it’s a big mistake to try and force to be one or the other.

3: The Sun is Malefic

The Sun seems malefic, but seeing it this way leads to serious misconceptions what the it symbolizes.

The Sun is strict and strong, like a malefic, but also symbolizes several benefic qualities: like  patience, morality and maturity.

Since it has qualities of malefics and benefics, the Sun doesn’t really fit well in either basket.

Some suggest that the Sun is more malefic the closer it is to the winter solstice, but it is more accurate to say that it gets colder and weaker towards winter, hotter and stronger towards summer. 

The weaker the sun, the less direct and more covert its symbolism. The strong, the more direct and overt.

In conclusion, forcing the Sun into the malefic basket only obscures its true character as a mixture of both.

4: Mercury is Benefic

Mercury seems benefic, but seeing it that way leads us to misunderstand the fundamentals of what it symbolizes.

Mercury is friendly, like a benefic, but this friendliness is not the same as a benefics.

The friendliness of a benefic results from its fundamental qualities of generosity, optimism, and forgiveness. Mercury’s friendliness, however, results from its impartiality, openness, and curiosity.

In fact, Mercury lacks the positive prejudice of a benefic. Its key, fundamental characteristic is to be without any prejudice – positive or negative : an absolute, true neutral. 

Some suggest that Mercury is malefic when influenced by a malefic, and benefic when influenced by a benefic. This isn’t really “wrong” but it’s messy and still obscures Mercury’s true neutral nature. It is better to say that Mercury influenced by a malefic represents hard-intellect: more pragmatic, rational, logical intellect – which often demands proof of things; while Mercury influenced by a benefic represents soft-intellect:  optimism in evaluating proposals and ideas, and fanciful creativity in problem solving.

In conclusion, forcing Mercury into either basket obscures its most important quality: true neutrality.

5: The Moon is… uhm.

In the Moon we find our most obvious illustration of the failure of trying to apply malefic/benefic binary model to every single planet.  It is practically impossible to fit the Moon squarely into either category, even superficially.

“It is the lord of the night,” some say, “so it must be malefic.” 

“It is the mother,” others say, “so it must be benefic.”

The truth is, like the Sun, the Moon has a mixture of benefic and malefic qualities.

Some suggest that the Moon is more benefic the brighter it is. This still obscures the fact that the Moon is really a mixture of benefic and malefic qualities.  It is better to interpret waxing and waning in its own right.

The darker and more hidden the Moon is in the sky the more covertly we frame its symbolisms. The brighter and more visible, the more overtly.

A covert interpretive frame casts the Moon’s symbolisms into subliminal and mysterious settings. This is neither inherently good nor bad. Covert emotions, for example, don’t express themselves easily, but can motivate action strongly without interfering in rational performance. 

An overt interpretive frame casts the Moon’s symbolisms into extroversive and obvious settings. Again, this is neither inherently good nor bad. Overt emotions express themselves marvelously, but can easily reveal too much and interfere with our rational activity.

In conclusion, considering the Moon either a benefic or malefic obscures the fact that it is a little bit of both with its own unique, soft twist on all of it.

6: The Nodes are Malefic

The lunar nodes, known as Rāhu and Ketu in Sanskrit, are usually cast into the malefic basket. Malefics are skeptical and pragmatic, and the Nodes seem to fit that description. However, they take these qualities to an extreme the malefics do not. The skepticism of the nodes is excessive to the point of blasphemous heterodoxy, which makes them a destabilizing, revolutionary force.

This excessiveness is a key, fundamental, essential symbolism of the Nodes, but excessiveness is not a malefic quality. Malefics have the opposite quality: they are spartan minimalists. In fact, excessiveness is a benefic quality gone bad. It is generosity and prosperity out of balance and proportion.

Another way that the nodes defy classification as true malefics:  malefics are pragmatic and realistic, the nodes are fantastic and idealistic. 

In conclusion the nodes are neither benefic nor malefic, they are something unique. Forcing them into the malefic box obscures their uniqueness.

Conclusion

1: The Malefic / Benefic binary is misunderstood as good/bad. The truth is that all planets have potential to be good or bad, but malefics deliver good things in  masculine, fatherly, strong, practical, and tough ways; while benefics do it in a feminine, motherly, abundant and gentle way.

2: The malefic / benefic binary applies well to four planets. Leave the other guys out of it, please. Forcing them into either category obscures and confuses both their characteristics and the characteristics of the hard/soft archetype.