Planetary Days and Planetary Hours: Astrology Meaning Explained

So you want to power-up your manifestation techniques? Step right up, because I've got a guide right here. I’m going to let you in a little secret that I’ve been using for a very long time. It can take your manifestations, intentions, spells, energy work, and even everyday actions to the next level.

See, the universe is categorized into "correspondences," which means that everything is aligned with different energetic frequencies. Stay with me: By looking at the correspondences of each planet in our solar system, we can better work with their energetic frequencies and tap into their flow. Most often, we see correspondences when it comes to physical things like candles, herbs, crystals, colors, and beyond. But actions and intentions can also be amplified and empowered by tapping into an ancient system of astrology known as planetary days and planetary hours.

What are planetary days?

Since ancient times, astrologers aligned specific days with a different planet in a concept called planetary days. In the classical astrology system, only the two luminaries (that's the Sun and Moon) and five viewable planets were included, leading us to correlate them directly with the seven days of the week.

The Moon = Monday
Mars = Tuesday
Mercury = Wednesday
Jupiter = Thursday
Venus = Friday
Saturn = Saturday
Sun = Sunday

Astrologers believed that the energies of each planet were amplified and more potent on their particular day. When planning certain actions, you can automatically tap into the energy of a planet by using its planetary day, regardless if you are also timing your intentions and spells to a New Moon or Full Moon. For instance, let’s say you want to manifest new love in your life or do a beauty spell. Just use any Friday to automatically align with these cosmic vibes and you'll get some extra help from Venus, the planet of love and beauty.

What are the planetary hours?

Beyond the planetary days, ancient mystics and astrologers decided to further break it down even more. Each planetary day is broken into 24 planetary hours. You may initially think that it means an hour is equal to a normal hour in our day—but in truth, this isn’t accurate.

A planetary day begins at sunrise at any given location on Earth and lasts from sunrise until sunset—and those hours are then equally divided into twelve planetary hours. Likewise, a planetary night begins at sunset and lasts until sunrise the following morning. Those hours are then split equally into twelve hours. This means that during most periods of the year, a planetary hour during the day will not equal the same amount of time as a planetary hour at night. During the summer, planetary hours during the day are significantly longer, and during the winter, planetary hours are longer. Only at the equinox are planetary hours equal between day and night.

How do you determine planetary hours?

Can you calculate planetary hours on your own? Yes, of course. But also you can simply download an app or look them up online each day to figure out when they’re taking place! (My fav app is “Planetary Hours” on iOS).

When it comes to the order of the planetary hours, they always begin with the planet that rules that day and then follows the order of something called the Star of the Magic. That order goes: the Sun, Venus, Mercury, the Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, and then repeats again. So if you're looking at the planetary hours for Wednesday, you start with Mercury, and then the Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, and Venus.

How do you use the planetary hours?

You can use planetary hours in a few different ways. Let’s say you simply want to tap into the energy of one planet but don’t want to wait for that planet's official day. Because there are many options of planetary hours throughout the week, you can do a Venus manifestation on any day of the week, as long as it’s the Venus hour. You don't have to save up all your love and beauty rituals for Friday to take advantage of Venus's vibes. And if you want to make it extra strong, you can time it for the hour of Venus on day of Venus (Friday).

Want to get some help from two planets? Yup, you can do that, too! Let’s say you want to blend Jupiter energy (luck) with Venus energy for that love manifestation. You could do it on a Thursday (Jupiter) in the hour of Venus, or do it on a Friday (Venus) in the hour of Jupiter. My favorite thing about planetary hours is that they can bring more flexibility to your manifestation rituals and plans. And a ton more power, too.

However, the cool thing about using planetary hours is that they aren’t strictly applicable to just energy work, intention, or magick. You can use them in a practical sense, too. For instance, let’s say you want to go on a first date? Plan it to start at the hour of Venus on any day of the week. Or you want to pitch an idea to your boss? Use the hour of Mercury for some extra communication help.

Now buckle up for your ultimate 101 guide on what to do during each planetary hour! Remember: This is just a launch pad, so feel free to be creative and try different plans and actions!

The Planetary Hours

The Planetary Hour of the Sun

Keywords: Creativity, ego, self-expression, pride, glory, success, recognition, ambition, leadership, devotion, awareness, vitality, health

Manifest: Success, victory, awards, inspiration

Actions: Launch projects and plans that you want an impact within

The Planetary Hour of Venus

Keywords: Romance, love, self-love, beauty, art, pleasure, harmony, artists, attraction

Manifest: Love, beauty, peace

Actions: Dating, a make0ver, or anything artistic

The Planetary Hour of Mercury

Keywords: Intellect, mental capacity, thoughts, ideas, judgments, communication, travel, strategy, friends, business, writers and the media

Manifest: Building your mind, communicating your ideas, brainstorming, safe travel

Actions: Planning anything, learning something new, trying new activities, writing a paper, building social media

The Planetary Hour of the Moon

Keywords: The soul, spirit, reflection, emotions and feelings, moods, family, traditions, change

Manifest: Building a family, looking for an apartment, emotional healing

Actions: Journaling, meditating, cooking, meeting with a counselor or therapist

The Planetary Hour of Saturn

Keywords: Structure, karma, order, discipline, government, authority figures, patience

Manifest: Banishing, releasing, letting go, building something new

Actions: Working on long-term projects and plans, letting go of a toxic habit

The Planetary Hour of Jupiter

Keywords: Luck, hope, miracles, expansion, wisdom, wealth and abundance, growth

Manifest: Opportunities, prosperity, good luck

Actions: Signing contracts, asking for favors

The Planetary Hour of Mars

Keywords: Action, strength, victory, fuel, competition, sex and passion, energy, fighting, conflict

Manifest: Winning a game, amping up your sex appeal, increasing passion in a relationship

Actions: Fitness, exercise, sex

But what about planetary hours for Uranus, Neptune, or Pluto?

What about the other planets in our solar system? Do they have planetary hours, too? Because the three outer planets weren't discovered until 18th, 19th, and even 20th centuries, they weren't included in the ancient concept of planetary hours. But some astrologers consider the modern planets to be like higher octaves of certain inner planets.