Understanding the Lots of Fortune & Spirit
The 2nd century CE Hellenistic astrologer, Vettius Valens, wrote that we must look at BOTH the Lot of Fortune and the Lot of Spirit to understand the nature of an individual's actions in life.
Poiesis is action done with a goal in mind. It involves making/producing/creating something with an end result in mind. It will speak to the qualities of the soul.
Poiesis is going to the gym to be fit/build muscle/get toned.
Poiesis is related to the Lot of Fortune. Poietic actions relate to a final outcome that has value (or not) to the person doing the action. In this way, the LoF can speak to health matters, wealth, eminence, reputation, profession, and the material things accumulated through actions that are ultimately shaped through circumstances/environment.
Praxis, on the other hand, is going to the gym because it makes me feel good. Praxis is action done for its own sake--it's something the native does due to an innate propensity for that action, but without a specific end-goal as such.
Praxis is related to the Lot of Spirit, but can be said to describe the actualisations of the soul. It speaks to those choices the native makes due to an inner compass that impels/propels/compels the native to act. When the value of the act transcends its worth to the individual to the greater whole, we can discern through that act the native's character and intellect, as that is where the act originates.
In this way, we can see how the Lot of Fortune (being the Lot of the Moon) is describing something more passive as the native is working from the "lot" they were assigned or given. The Lot of Spirit then is describing something more akin to "will" as it indicates the choices and actions the native will pursue.
The astrologer, Steven Birchfield, writes, "In both types of action, choice is the starting point. But the inherent difference is that praxis includes such motivational distinctions as character, human conduct, social awareness and that the end of the action is for some good greater than the individual. With poiesis, choice and the motivation for choice do not require any particular conviction, moral or otherwise – only necessity and desire. Praxis on the other hand requires these other convictions to set it in motion. Following Aristotle, Valens saw this type action as the most important action!" ( https://internationsocietyofclassicalastrologers.wordpress.com/2018/02/18/spirit-and-fortune-whats-the-difference-part-3/#_ftn18 )
Actions derived from the Lot of Spirit are thus also actions that can indicate wealth and honour for the native.
However, Valens goes on to distinguish between how we might look at these two lots astrologically: to "seek times for bodily matters, such as crises or weaknesses or bloodshed, falls, injuries, sufferings and whatever appertains to the body, for strength, enjoyment, pleasure, beauty, and loveliness, then it is necessary to project zodiacally from the Lot of Fortune… If we are inquiring about action or reputation, then we will make the beginning of the releasing zodiacally from the Lot of Spirit…" (Book IV, Section 4 of The Anthology, translated by Robert Schmidt, 1996)
In this way, we can understand how Zodaical Releasing from both Fortune and Spirit can be imagined almost like the double-helix/twisting ladder of a strand of DNA. The two are intertwined and cannot ultimately be viewed separately. Rather, we need to examine releasing from both lots in tandem to receive a holistic understanding of the native's 'passions' as well as 'moral/ethical/philosophical inclinations'.