Personal view about astrology topics. What can you do and what can't you do with astrology. Part two is quick look of some elements for astrological analysis. In part three you can read more about astrology foundations an basic descriptions. If you are new to astrology this chapter is for you. You can upgrade this basic knowledge in later chapters. Part four are example steps for interpretation. This is just basics, you can develop your own techniques for interpretation
I have been enriched by persons I met along my path. Their relationships to me later became (and still are) an invaluable first sample for understanding life and astrologic relationships.
Many passionate encounters, friendships… served as immediate hints to and confirmation of day-to-day transiting influences. These encounters also provided evidence that heredity, environment, culture, upbringing, and circumstances represent variables that can overwhelm astrologic influences. This significant cognition points to the only gate through which the world of credible astrology can be reached.
I began to understand that astrological phenomena do influence people’s lives, sometimes in significant ways. But contrary to claims made by popular astrologers, these are not the only influences, nor even predominant ones. Many factors external to astrology can almost totally void astrologic predictions.
For example:
These examples confirm that astrology is a “ceteris paribus” (other things being equal) phenomenon. In many instances and in many parts of the world, higher order variables (environmental, economic, cultural ...) can severely restrict astrology. Other events, such as a war, can void astrology entirely by eliminating differences in astrologic patterns, for example, for the six million Jews who died in gas chambers. This would lead to a conclusion that while astrology is conceptually a universal phenomenon, in reality it is a “luxury” in which only persons in selected societies can indulge. Astrology can only describe potentials, tendencies, and inclinations. It can flourish only in societies in which individuals are “freer” to respond to astrologic oscillations. It is no surprise that in modern times most of the clamor about astrology originates in the West, especially the Europe and USA. But even in the Europe and USA, the majority of people can and do insulate themselves against astrology, although not entirely, through free will and personal effort. In need of a growing constituency, astrology presently is promoted more and more as a crutch, or a target for blame, by people who need an excuse for their shortcomings and failings: “I am this way, I did so, my marriage did not work ... only because my planets forced this outcome.” Such use and promotion of astrology is unfortunate, but it can provide substantial income to promoters.
Some people are unable to resist astrologic patterns and cycles and do succumb to their influences. Astrology can be utilized more meaningfully, for example by the Police, to flag patterns which induce a tendency to commit mass violence. A transiting pattern such as Mars in 8th House (death, violence) square Saturn in 5th (children) and square Pluto in 11th (groups) combined with a potentially so-inclined natal pattern and environmental variables could signal a source of mass violence against children, even by a person who does not necessarily have a prior history for violence. Yet the same transiting pattern combined with a slightly different natal configuration and environmental variables can signal the starting date of a major book by a talented writer. If the same transiting pattern were instead a natal pattern, it may be the mark a habitual serial killer. The manner in which planetary energies are utilized depends to some extent on non-astrologic variables, on the available options and alternatives to which the energy can be directed. These are frequently a function of one’s circumstances, level of education, and position in life.
Obviously there are almost limitless ways in which astrology can become useful: to study tendencies to violence (all abused children do not automatically become abusing parents); to investigate propensity for promiscuity, drugs, homosexual liaisons; to identify potential talents in children; to classify people best suited by personality for certain critical jobs; to decide on the timing of a career or job change; to estimate the cycles during which lottery purchases may yield results; to underline adverse cycles in relationships and in personal lives; to mark cycles during which sexuality is heightened ... While astrologic patterns are never absolute or definitive, the potentials and inclinations associated with many patterns are recognized. Astrology can contribute significantly to the understanding of some classes of social and psychological problems.
The universe of things that influence and are influenced by human beings is vast and diverse and is still for the most part mysterious. Scholars from each discipline tend to credit his or her particular discipline with having mastered at least some elements of it. Models of the human condition abound, each purporting in some way to enable forecasts of what might happen or what might happen if ... One major problem each model of interdependent phenomena has is that something that is independent must provide a driver for the rest of the interdependent parts to follow. It is here that astrology must be judged superior to any other. For any past or future time period, planetary positions vis a vis any particular place on earth is precisely known. Addressing events that have happened or will happen during any person’s lifetime therefore has a planetary map that can be precisely determined. Perhaps this is the greatest of many attractions of astrology. For while we might say that almost every other environmental, social, cultural, economic etc. influence on a person’s future will remain a mystery until it happens, the location of planets in a person’s future is known precisely today.
The steps leading to a natal chart, which may be also defined as the chart of Birth Potentials, begin with the Name of the Person for whom the chart is to be erected, his/her Date of Birth, the Time of Birth (if available), and the Location of Birth. It is the essential reference chart for predictive transits and relationships. The computations are simple enough to conceptualize. Let us assume a birth place is a small town at the eastern shore of the USA.
Planet Earth rotates around its axis at a rate such that it completes a full rotation of 360 degrees in 24 hours. This translates to an arc of 30 degrees in two hours. A casual observer looking at the eastern horizon will see a different part of the sky two hours later, even though the sky may appear to be the same as two hours earlier. These 30-degree parts of the sky every two hours are labeled by the names of astrologic signs in the order in which they appear: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. So if the eastern horizon represents 29 degrees and 42 minutes Sagittarius at a moment in time, it will represent 29 degrees and 42 minutes Capricorn two hours later, 29 degrees and 42 minutes Aquarius four hours later, etc if the place of birth is right along the Equator at 0-degree latitude. The part of the sky rising on the eastern horizon at any given time is called the Rising Sign or the Ascendant in astrology: 29 Sagittarius 42 in this example.
The time of birth is measured on a regular clock. The time needed for astrologic computations is the Sidereal time of birth. Before the sidereal time can be computed, the clock time of birth must be adjusted to the true time of birth. The first adjustment takes into account artificial time changes. For example, one must know if the clock time used is the regular time or the artificial daylight saving time (DST), which shows the time one hour later than it really is.
The artificial time concepts such as DST, War Time (WT), Double Summer Time (DDST) are seen by astrologers as the greatest obstacle in astrology. The dates and times of time changes, from regular time to daylight saving time and back to regular time, are recorded neatly for most parts of the USA. Indiana, Michigan, and a few other states are exceptional cases. For example, in Indiana, some counties observe Eastern Standard Time while others adhere to Central Standard Time. Some counties in either group observe DST while others do not. Some of the counties which observe (or not) DST in a particular year do not (do) observe it in other years. Therefore, in these complicated instances, unless you yourself are aware of the circumstances, and specifically provide this information, the chart and “psychic” service you approach may not have a reliable source on hand to prepare an accurate chart for you - a situation that is usually not pointed out by the service. The chart that reaches your hands may not be your chart.
The situation with time is horrendously complicated in other countries around the world. Some countries do not observe time on a neat multiple of 15 degree longitude - Eastern Standard Time is on 5 * 15, or on 75th longitude. Time in Bombay is observed on 82.5 degree longitude. In many countries around the world data about DST, WT, or DDST are not available, or where available, not reliable. As it will be pointed out later in Section on “Time” in Part-II, I checked the data pertaining to Turkey, my native country, in The International Atlas, the most widely-used and profitable source of time, and found it to be almost entirely wrong.
If it is not certain whether daylight saving time was in effect on a given date, the only solution is to erect two charts: one with, and the other without the daylight saving time. If daylight saving time (or war time) was in effect, then one hour is subtracted from the clock time of birth. In countries which observed DDST or Double War Time in certain years one additional hour, two in toto, is subtracted from the clock time of birth.
The clock time is next adjusted to Local Mean Time (LMT). The 24 time zones around the world roughly represent 15-degree intervals of longitude. The 0-degree meridian through Greenwich, England is used as the reference. As one moves east from Greenwich, time increases by one hour for every 15-degree interval; it decreases by one hour as one moves west from Greenwich. Thus, the Eastern Standard Time (EST) in the USA, exact along the 75th longitude, is 75/15 or 5 hours earlier than the time in Greenwich. For this reason, the EST is also designated as Zone: -5 by some astrologers.
All localities in the USA with longitudes ranging (approximately) from 67.5 west to 82.5 west observe EST. However EST is the exact time only for localities positioned along the 75th longitude. The true time at a place on the 68th longitude is actually somewhat later; the true time at a place on the 81st longitude is somewhat earlier than the EST. So unless the place of birth is on a time-zone meridian, the observed clock time of birth must be adjusted to the true local time. The adjustment is derived from the information provided earlier. Since 15 degrees of longitude represent one hour, one degree of longitude represents 4 minutes of time.
For example, the time for a place on longitude 68 west 15 is later than the exact EST by 6 degrees and 45 minutes of longitude. The degree longitude difference translates to 6 degrees times 4 minutes per degree, or 24 minutes. Since there are 60 minutes to a degree, the fraction 45 minutes of longitude is 3/4th of a degree of longitude, or to 3 minutes of time. So the true local time at this place is 27 minutes later than the EST clock time. The true local time is the time used to compute the sidereal time of birth.
The computations for the sidereal time begin with the sidereal time at 0-hour of the date of birth. The 0-hour sidereal time is obtained from a Midnight Ephemeris. There is also a cumbersome “Noon” ephemeris. An ephemeris is a book that tabulates the sidereal time and the geocentric planetary positions at 0-hour of each day for a series of dates. The dates are arranged by months and years, usually for up to 50 years. Assuming a birth in northern hemisphere on 1/1/1970, the 0-hour sidereal time is shown as 6h 40m 55s in the ephemeris. We will use this value as the basis of computations in the next section.
The sidereal time of birth is the sum of 0-hour sidereal time and the true local time of birth expressed on a 24-hr basis. This sum is then adjusted for acceleration and longitudinal correction. Since clock time is somewhat slower than the time measured on a sidereal scale, approximately 10 seconds per each hour of time of birth are added to the sum. Thus, for birth at 8:12 a.m. LMT, this correction would be (8 * 10) + ((12/60) * 10) = +82 seconds or 1 minute and 22 seconds. The longitudinal correction is computed at a rate of about 10 seconds for each 15 degrees of longitude that the place of birth is from 0-degree longitude at Greenwich. This correction is added to the previous sum, if the place of birth is west of Greenwich, subtracted if it is east. Thus, for a place at 67 west 30, the correction is ((67.5/15) * 10) = +45 seconds. Using the 0-hour sidereal time on 1/1/1970 as the basis to the computations, the sidereal time of birth in this case is obtained as follows:
If the place of birth is in the southern hemisphere, 12 hours are added to the sum. If the sum so computed exceeds 24 hours, 24 hours are subtracted from the sum. In our example this would yield a sidereal time of birth of 2h 54m 2s.
The sidereal time of birth and the latitude of the place of birth are used to compute the Ascendant or the Rising Sign or the Rising Star. The traditional tool used for this purpose is the Table of Houses. The latitude measure, to which the tabulated values pertain, is usually displayed on the upper right corner of the page. A series of sidereal times, increasing by increments from 0-hour to 24-hours, on the left column are accompanied by the corresponding ascendants on the right column. If the sidereal time of birth is listed in the table, the ascendant is read as shown: for example, 29 Sagittarius 42. However, if the sidereal time of birth falls between two sidereal times in the table, then the correct ascendant is the interpolated value between the two ascendants listed. In addition, if the latitude of the place of birth differs from the one shown on a page heading, then these computations are done separately for the two latitudes enveloping the latitude of the place of birth and the correct ascendant is interpolated from the resulting two ascendants.
The Ascendant is always the first element computed. It is used in astrology mechanically as a reference point on the astrologic circle, before the planetary positions are computed and plotted on the circle. It also represents in astrology the mask of personality the native projects to the world. This is more or less the personality indicated by “what others think you are,” in contrast to the individuality represented by the Sun’s position and defined by “what you really are.”
Once the ascendant is determined, a circle is drawn. The center of the circle represents planet Earth. The circle is a schematic diagram of the sky around planet Earth: the Zodiac.
Since planets revolve around the Sun, astronomers view the Solar system from a heliocentric (Sun-at-the-center) perspective. (Heliocentric Astrology is discussed later.) In contrast, astrologers are interested on the effects of planetary patterns on people on earth. To them the geocentric perspective is the more relevant. Astrologic depiction of the sky as seen from planet Earth also differs from astronomic depiction. The astronomic circle shows east to the right of the circle (thus, north on top), whereas on the astrologic circle east (Ascendant) is to the left (thus, south on top).
The space between the large and small circles is divided like a pie into 12 equal 30-degree parts. The first House is marked as the first 30-degree section on the left below the horizontal line representing the horizon. The rest of the houses, 2 through 12, are marked counter-clockwise, where the 12th house is above the 1st house on the left.
The houses represent Affairs of Life in astrology. Briefly, the first house in a natal chart represents the manner in which one projects on the immediate environment; the 2nd house: finances, assets, and possessions; the 3rd: mental and speech faculties; the 4th: home, domestic life, private fears, mother; 5th: creative talent, romance, children, speculation; 6th: health, responsibilities, attention for detail, jobs, personal projects; 7th: marriage, intimate relationships, partnerships; 8th: sex, passion, intensity, enforced changes; 9th: philosophy, higher education, interaction with foreigners, travel to distant lands; 10th: career, direction in life, ambitions, interaction with authorities, government, father; 11th: hopes and wishes, ideals, inventions, interaction with groups; 12th: karma, destiny, the past, the metaphysical mind, limitations, hospitalization ...
Astrology attributes to the houses many additional characteristics. Some authors go to ridiculous lengths of assigning plastic bottles to such and such house, glass bottles to another. Astrology is more an art than a precise tool of inventory. Our understanding of the phenomenon is also much too limited. It serves no practical purpose to waste time with such nebulous differentiations.
Angular houses are the 1st, 4th, 7th, and the 10th. Traditional astrology views planets in angular houses as more powerful. (I assign significance to any house in which there is at least one planet. The houses occupied with more planets assume a more important role in life.) For example, the Sun in 10th House is a major indicator of a career in the government or a corporation. The planets in these houses, especially in the 10th, are also attributed with the mark one is likely to make on the world. The 10th house is considered to be one of the best positions for the Sun and Saturn. Succedent houses are the 2nd, 5th, 8th, and 11th. According to traditional astrology, planets in these houses highlight the outcome of actions taken by the planets in angular houses, whatever this means, underlining the direction of one’s energy and resources. They are said to bring a stabilizing influence to the person. Cadent houses are the 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 12th. They signify human relationships and transitional stages of being, also highlighting adaptability to situations and circumstances.
The cusps are the points at which the 12 lines intersect the circumference of the larger circle. Thus, the cusp of the first house, the Ascendant, is the point where the horizontal line intersects the circle on the left. The intersection point on the right is the cusp of the 7th house, or the Descendant. The rest of the cusps are designated, as houses, counter-clockwise, where for example the cusp of the 4th and 10th houses is the point where the vertical line intersects the circle at the bottom and top. A point on the 10th house cusp is designated as the Midheaven or Medium Coeli (MC). According to traditional interpretations, this point signifies the direction and culmination of one’s aspirations and progress in life.
The house cusps are one of the most cumbersome elements of astrology. There is continuing controversy about how they should be computed. The controversy is severe and frustrating enough that some astrologers suggest eliminating the houses from astrologic analysis. (I vehemently disagree with such suggestions.) For centuries the Traditional Astrology has relied on the Placidus house system for determining the cusps. The Placidus cusps are generally obtained with the ascendant from the Table of Houses. However, some astrologers began noticing a discrepancy between the timing of major events in life, as predicted by astrology, and as these events actually occurred. They put the blame on the cusps.
Dissatisfied with the timing of events and other real and imagined reasons, a few astrologers, who were comfortable with celestial algebra, began devising their “personalized” house systems to compute the cusps: Koch, Campanus, Regiomontanus ... to name a few. As a consequence, astrology is inundated with about a dozen house systems. This is analogous to using a dozen different clock systems to measure time.
Although each system still has its followers, finally it was decided that it did not serve a practical purpose for astrology to remain seated on the sidelines while these systems arm-wrestled with one another. The Equal House system came into being. Accordingly, once the Ascendant is determined, at 29 Sagittarius 42 for the example, the remaining houses are marked sequentially with the next sign, maintaining the same degrees and minutes: 2nd: 29 Capricorn 42, 3rd: 29 Aquarius 42 ... This system also eliminates the Intercepted Signs, thus the controversy about how they should be interpreted.
The word “planet” is derived from Greek. It means “traveler”. Unlike the stars, which are more distant and viewed as fixed, planets are closer, and they travel. The planetary positions are also determined from the ephemeris. The positions are tabulated by geocentric longitude and latitude for 0-hour leading to the day of birth. Traditional astrology uses the following planetary entities: the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto (since the late 1930s). The Moon’s North Node, referred to as the Dragon’s Head (South Node, Dragon’s Tail) in traditional astrology, is also included. The planetary positions shown for the 0-hour must be adjusted for the exact time of birth. This is done through linear interpolation, which is close enough for hand computations. For example, if the Moon is listed at 0 degree Leo on Day-1 and 15 degree Leo on Day-2, and birth took place at 8 a.m. on Day-1, then interpolation would yield for the Moon 5 degrees of Leo. That is, 8 a.m. is 1/3rd of the day during which the Moon advances by 15 degrees: 15/3, or 5 degrees.
Geocentric positions refer to planetary positions with reference to the center of planet earth. As if there were no other confusion in astrology, some astrologers suggest that topocentric positions are more meaningful. Topocentric positions are determined with reference to the surface of planet Earth. While the suggestion seems to make sense, the two sets of positions are almost exactly the same, except for a minor (i.e., usually less than a degree) parallax difference in the Moon’s position. In view of the huge distances involved, there is really no substance to this argument. As seen from Pluto, planet Earth is a mere dot in the sky. It does not really matter if the person receiving energies from Pluto was born in the dot or on the dot.
Astrology assigns certain characteristics and personalities to the planets. Briefly, the Sun stands for the individuality; the Moon for feelings, sensitivity, perception, mood; Mercury for speech and mental capacity; Venus for the female in every person; artistic and creative talent, romantic and sexually receptive nature; Mars for the male person; drive, ambition, courage, sexually aggressive nature; Jupiter for fortune, finances, expansion; Saturn for limitations, constraints, lessons in life, and effort; Uranus for stimulation, inventiveness, originality; Neptune for imagination, illusion, deception, artistic conceptualization, psychic and telephatic nature, and other nebulous qualities; Pluto for regeneration, endings and new beginnings, enforced changes, intensity.
A planet is said to be Retrograde when it appears to be moving backward (eg, Aries to Pisces). It turns Direct when its apparent retrograde motion is reversed and the planet moves in its normal direction. Except for the Sun and the Moon, all planets are retrograde during some periods. For example, Saturn is retrograde about 139 days every year. The Moon’s North Node, which is treated as a planetary entity that explains the potential for interaction with groups, is almost always retrograde. According to traditional interpretation, when a planet is retrograde, its positive qualities are diminished and its less desirable qualities enhanced. I do not subscribe to this view in a natal chart, especially since it is a type of supposition that can never be proved or disproved. On a predictive chart of Transits, I view retrograde periods as transitional phases affecting the affairs associated with the house being transited and the characteristics of the planet. For example, Jupiter, the planet of expansion, transiting the 4th house of “home”, among others, may coincide with a relocation or a major addition to an existing home. The retrograde period, in turn, may underline the transitional inner effort preparing for the relocation.
The 12 signs are each assigned with certain characteristics. The Triplicity of signs includes the Fire signs: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius; Earth signs: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn; Air signs: Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius, and Water signs: Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces. The fire and air signs are considered as Masculine or extrovert. They display dynamic creativity and are generally stimulating and action-oriented. The earth signs possess depth, practicality, and stability. The air signs are interacting, channeling, and communicating, whereas the water signs are considered as emotional, sensitive, intuitive, inspired, and inspirational.
In general, planets positioned in Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) are viewed as the source of activity and energy. The influence they bestow is self-motivating and ambitious. The Fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius) indicate concentration of energy. Their influence is fixed, consistent, predictable, stable, and accumulating. The Mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces) are interpreted as translators of energy. Their influence is changeable, versatile, adaptable, and resourceful. The term Polarities refers to opposing signs: Aries/Libra, Taurus/Scorpio, Gemini/Sagittarius, Cancer/Capricorn, Leo/Aquarius, and Virgo/Pisces. All signs are also individually attributed with positive and negative characteristics.
Some planets blend well with some of the signs, they do not with others. If a planet is positioned in a sign with which it blends well, the planet is said to be in Dignity, Exalted, or Ruler of the sign. In contrast, if a planet is positioned in a sign with which it does not blend well, it is said to be in Detriment or in Fall. Although these characterizations are used by many modern astrologers, in view of all the other characterizations and variables used in a natal chart, their practical value may be marginal. The following table summarizes the planets, signs, and houses by this criterion. For example, the Sun is in Dignity in Leo and/or in 5th House.
Dignity Detriment Exaltation Fall Sun Leo/5 Aquarius/11 Aries/1 Libra/7 Moon Cancer/4 Capricorn/10 Taurus/2 Scorpio/8 Mercury Gemini/3 Sagittarius/9 Aquarius/11 Leo/5 Virgo/6 Pisces/12 Venus Taurus/2 Scorpio/8 Pisces/12 Virgo/6 Libra/7 Aries/1 Mars Aries/1 Libra/7 Capricorn/10 Cancer/4 Scorpio/8 Taurus/2 Jupiter Sagittarius/9 Gemini/3 Cancer/4 Capricorn/10 Pisces/12 Virgo/6 Saturn Capricorn/10 Cancer/4 Libra/7 Aries/1 Aquarius/11 Leo/5 Uranus Aquarius/11 Leo/5 Scorpio/8 Taurus/2 Neptune Pisces/12 Virgo/6 Cancer/4 Capricorn/10 Pluto Scorpio/8 Taurus/2 Aquarius/11 Leo/5Aspects are the angles by which the planets are separated. The most important and widely-used aspects are the Major Aspects: Conjunction, when two or more planets are near one another; Opposition, when two planets are 180 degrees or six signs apart; Trine, when two planets are 120 degrees or four signs apart; Square, when two planets are 90 degrees or three signs apart, and Sextile, when two planets are 60 degrees or two signs apart. Of these, some conjunctions, trine, and sextile are considered harmonious, while other conjunctions, square, and opposition are designated as adverse.
There are three major aspect patterns of particular significance: The Cross, which occurs when four planets are 90 degrees apart from one another. The T-Square is formed when two planets in opposition to one another are square to a third planet. The Grand Trine designates a pattern of three planets that are separated by 120 degrees from one another. As the names imply, one or more Cross and/or T-square pattern in a chart can indicate either a person who experiences many problems, or if the non-astrologic circumstances have helped, a strong person. In contrast, a chart that is characterized by an excessive number of Grand-Trines and flowing aspects can signify a shallow person. These people seldom experience the impetus to grow.
The major aspects are seldom exact at 0, 180, 120, 90, and 60 degrees. These aspects are considered formed if they fall within a range of plus or minus X degrees of 0, 180, 120, 90, and 60 degrees. The X range is referred to as the Orbs. The orbs normally used are: 10 degrees for the conjunction, 8 degrees for the rest but the sextile, and 5 degrees for the sextile. The more strict the orbs, the more “concentrated” the resulting chart. The Aspectarian interpretations are complicated, especially for the conjunction, and there are many gray areas and unknowns about the aspects.
Many astrologers also view an aspect from an Approaching, Exact, and Separating perspectives. For example, if the Moon is positioned at 0-degree Cancer while the Sun is at 6-degrees of Cancer, it is implied that the faster-moving Moon would reach the Sun in about 12 hours: the Moon “approaching” an exact aspect with the Sun. In view of the large orbs used in a natal chart, I do not use these concepts on a natal chart that is essentially also a fixed chart (see below). The approaching and separating aspects are very important in predictive transits where they signify a cycle of activity during which the probability of “something” happening is very high, especially in the “approaching” stage.
Traditional astrologers compute the aspects as the linear difference between the geocentric longitudes of two planets. This is the approximate horizontal difference between the planets and is still widely used, especially by astrologers who do the computations by hand. The hand computations almost always ignore the latitude - vertical distance - of the planets. The true aspect between two planets is the celestial - curvature - difference that also includes the differences in latitude. For example, suppose the Sun is positioned at 0-degree (longitude) Cancer and at 0-degree (always) latitude. Also suppose that Pluto is at 3-degree Cancer and 4-degrees north latitude. The difference in the longitudes is 3 degrees. However, the true liner difference is SQR [(3 * 3) + (4 * 4)] = SQR [25] = 5 degrees. While both the 3 degree and 5 degree signal a conjunction, frequently the latitude measure will disqualify an aspect measured in terms of the longitude alone. This is especially true when the aspect involves Pluto. Due to its eccentric orbit, Pluto’s latitude sometimes reaches 16 degrees or more.
When astrology speaks of planets and signs, it refers to the blending of energies associated with the planets and characteristics attributed to the signs. The house positions underline the primary focus of these energies throughout one’s life. The aspects define the quality of the energy in terms of positive, flowing, and helpful, or adverse, conflicting, and challenging differentiations. Astrologic definitions are sweeping, qualitative, and elusive until one gradually develops a feel for astrology, when one learns to differentiate between, for example, a Capricorn and a Libra. The pieces begin to fit the puzzle and one can no longer remain a skeptic.
The Natal chart is a fixed (in some sense) chart. That is, once the baby is born, the date, time, and place of birth are set. This also sets the natal chart. The baby, the adult person, and the old person this baby will eventually become will use the same natal chart throughout life. The natal or birth-potentials chart may be the simplest of astrologic charts to analyze in terms of the number of variables involved. Actually, it is perhaps the most difficult one to pinpoint. The analysis of a natal chart must take into account the combined influences of 13 energy sources (including the Ascendant, Midheaven, and North Node) in 12 signs and 12 houses, forming among themselves 5 major aspects. Many qualitative variables are also involved. The combination of possible influences is enormous. This is why there are, and will always be, large ambiguities in astrology.
The planetary influences at birth are positive and testing potentials with which one is born. Some of these influences, particularly those involving the ponderous planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto), are likely to surface after a person reaches adulthood, their effect generally recognized after the fact. Other influences will remain dormant for a long time, until they are triggered by the Transiting planets later in life. The natal influences are variables with which one interacts throughout one’s life, nurturing them and being nurtured by them. The sign and house positions of the slow-moving planets, and the aspects formed among them, are not as important as the positions of the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars, and the aspects they form among themselves and to the ponderous planets.
A natal chart is always full of contradicting influences. The contradictions are inherent in all persons. While some aspects may be positively or adversely reinforced by others, other aspects, particularly the adverse ones, may be mellowed, indeed neutralized on the surface. No aspect is totally canceled by another aspect.
The positive influences at birth are free gifts that assist the native to achieve his/her ambitions. They will make things easier and serve as a cushion during difficult cycles. However, too many free gifts can diminish the incentive for improvement. In turn, many adverse influences are also not desirable, as they make life difficult and the native a hard person. The adverse and testing influences may be the more important ones in the long run, for the way one deals with them throughout life may ultimately determine one’s destiny. If allowed, they can lead one on a path of self-defeat, becoming permanent excuses as to why one could not realize one’s ambitions. In contrast, if one learns to overcome and rule them, they can become the more reliable assets, for by conquering them the native will have learned to conquer self.
The term “Traditional” astrology refers to the techniques of the tested and “proven” astrology. It does not imply old or obsolete astrology. In turn, many of the modern techniques are more in the realm of superstition, in some cases in the realm of “Quick-Buck” astrology.
The scenario begins on the maternity floor of a large hospital in a city. Three babies are delivered in three different rooms by three different doctors, but all at the same time. The babies are named as baby Rich (a girl), baby Poor (a girl), and baby Ill (a boy). An astrologer standing on the sidelines is asked to prepare a chart for each baby. Since the three babies have the same birth data, all the astrologer has to do is to prepare a chart for one baby, make two copies of it, and he is finished.
The fact that the three babies share the same natal chart challenges one’s credulity. This shared chart will serve as the reference chart for the babies throughout their lives. It will be used to map their evolutions, to project their relationships, to predict events affecting them. If Baby Rich is the only daughter of well-to-do parents, Baby Poor the daughter of an unwed mother of five who is on welfare, and Baby Ill the son of a middle-class couple and a dwarf, their shared natal chart is not concerned with these externalities.
The real differences are underlined better ten years later. At age six Baby Rich demonstrated interest for the piano in her home. She has been taking piano lessons for four years. Baby Poor’s life has not fared well. Her mother is on drugs and she has been taking care of two baby brothers who arrived after her. Baby Ill is a cranky child who has difficulty making friends. He generally sits at home and watches TV.
The natal chart, to the extend a chart service can interpret it without knowing the external circumstances, will reflect identical potentials and opportunities for the three children. However, the external variables are so decisive that the “money back guarantee” the service may be advertising becomes a meaningless promise.
The implications are already clear from the perspective of potentials in a natal chart. A natal chart by a chart service, that is already limited due to many unknowns and gray areas in astrology, is further limited by the fact that it cannot account for circumstances surrounding a person. It also cannot pinpoint the sex of the baby, a variable that can become important in interpreting and predicting events in adult life. But this is still not all.
The question as to why there are so many unknowns and gray areas in astrology should be addressed.
This brings up one of the most frustrating problems in astrology. While a natal chart does display general characteristics which may account, for example, why a person eventually becomes a high government official, a CEO of a large corporation, an artist ... it can never provide a specific promise that a chart with these patterns will necessarily lead to a specific profession or talent in adult life.
The fact that a natal chart cannot promise a specific outcome is of critical importance and deserves additional scrutiny. For example, a person may possess the genetic dexterity, coordination, short eye-to-hand connection, and whatever else it takes, to become a pianist. Suppose that some of these requirements are also indicated on the natal chart of that person. However, circumstances may mold this person’s life so that he/she becomes instead an excellent typist and eventually a capable executive secretary.
Obviously there is a significant apparent and real difference between a typist and a pianist. Moreover, the life-style and motivations of an executive secretary are much different than that of a concert pianist. These are essentially two totally different individuals living totally different life-styles. Yet, the two versions of this same person began their lives with the same set of potentials, except that perhaps one had also a separate set potentials for music and the other did not. In turn, this suggests that what becomes of a person is the result of an interaction between different sets of potentials and the environment and opportunities in which they evolve. Since this interaction is almost entirely chaotic, astrology’s ability to promise a definitive outcome may be blocked forever.
A natal chart is also the reference chart for predicting events and changes in behavior. Continuing the example with the babies, suppose they are now 25-year old adults. Baby Rich is the guest pianist at a concert scheduled in ten days. Baby Poor is pregnant by one of the three men she has been dating and is expected to deliver in ten days. Baby Ill has developed into a depressed person. He has not been able to make friends, date women, or hold on to a job. He is still living with his parents and has a job interview scheduled in ten days. All three are concerned about the opportunities awaiting them in the immediate future. They decide to send for transit charts the next 15 days as the cycle of interest.
The individual area of concern is totally different in the three cases. Baby Rich is concerned about her performance on the piano and the outcome of the concert. These involve affairs in specific houses: 5th (creative work), 7th (performance), 1st (the way a person projects on the immediate environment), possibly the 11th (hopes and wishes and interaction with groups), and other factors. Baby Poor’s concern about the delivery is reflected in the 5th (children), 6th (health and complications), 12th (hospitalization), and 8th (outcome) houses. Baby Ill is concerned with affairs in the 3rd (communication and interview), 1st (self-projection), 6th (jobs), and possibly the 10th house (direction in life). In all three cases positive activity in the 5th house, or lucky aspects involving Venus, would provide a helping hand.
The reports may contain all the information about the activities in these houses. However, there are problems of which the lay person is not likely to be aware. There are many of the techniques used in astrology to provide predictions. Transits, Progressions, Directions, Cartography (maps), and Solar (and other) Return charts are among them.
If the technique used is the transits, transit reports contain overwhelming detail: 13 day-to-day transiting energy sources, in 12 signs and 12 solar, 12 natal, and 12 location houses, forming among themselves 5 major aspects, and interacting with 13 natal entities by forming five major aspects (or none) to them.
There is a larger question left unanswered. How would it help Baby Rich, Baby Poor, and Baby Ill to attempt to know whether or not the respective events scheduled for them in ten days will turn out to be successful? The fact that they want to know is understandable. The more pertinent question is “should they want to know” when it is obvious that the answer astrology can provide is never absolute. These types of questions and situations are addressed in the Section about the “Axioms.”
A natal chart is a “fixed” chart that accompanies a person until death. The only valid adjustments are those made to accommodate changes in the location. The natal chart is the necessary reference chart for relationship and predictive transits.
Any adult who has read his/her natal report, regardless of how the report was prepared, will find passages that “ring a bell,” statements that seem in the ball park. But a natal report can never offer a satisfactory “this is me” picture of the person. There are too many unknowns in astrology, and too many external disturbances which astrology cannot address. Because of these limitations, by itself a natal chart is also a relatively useless chart. A chart service that is totally unfamiliar with the person and his/her circumstances obviously cannot perform the miraculous interpretations they claim.
In spite of the limitations pointed out, one should have at least his/her natal chart, the charts of the persons in the immediate family, especially the children. Ideally, these should be erected by the person himself or herself, or a close astrologer friend who knows them and their circumstances. The point is that only the individual, or a close astrologer, is familiar with one’s circumstances. In this fashion the interpretations are more likely to be personalized.
An astrology chart should not be read as if it is a profound biblical passage. It should be studied. The relative significance of the aspects in a chart should be understood. For example, Sun Square Mars can become a source of volatile temper tantrums if the aspect is an exact 90 degrees. It is a mellowed influence if instead the aspect is a marginal 82 or 98 degrees.
The Sun sign represents one’s individuality. The individuality - the way a person is inside with guards down - is at best known only to the person and a few others who are close. When two strangers interact, the Sun sign remains veiled under several layers of other entities: culture, upbringing, current mood, the Ascendant (mask), Mercury (communication), the Moon (perception, feelings, mood), Mars (the dynamism with which a person projects), etc... A Cancer, generally a docile and nurturing Sun sign, may come across as a bullet-spitting debater if he or she has, for example, Mercury conjunct Mars in Virgo - excellent for a trial lawyer. Any astrologer worth his salt would be aware of these possibilities.
True psychics are a rare breed. It is true astrologically that when, for example, Neptune (sometimes Uranus too) is conjunct, square, or in opposition to the Moon, primarily, but also to the Sun or Mercury in a natal chart, the psychic and telephatic senses are heightened. They are further enhanced if the planets are also in Pisces, Cancer, or Aquarius, and even more so if they are also in the 9th or 12th houses. The trine and sextile may also bring this about, but not as strongly as the conjunction, square, or the opposition.
People endowed with these patterns in their natal charts are able to experience a premonition of sorts of events to come. However, premonitions are not automatically a psychic window to everyone’s life. It is one thing to experience, through a dream or a passing feeling, premonitions about situations affecting one’s own environment, another to experience these feelings about a total stranger, and automatically when the telephone rings.
It would appear that the psychic potentials in the natal chart must be triggered, for otherwise, depending on the positions of the day-to-day transiting planets, this ability is sometimes dormant, sometime active. For example, when the transiting Moon or Mercury is conjunct, square, or in opposition to transiting Uranus or Neptune, a trigger pattern is in the making. If this transiting combination is also conjunct, square, and in opposition to a similar pattern in the natal chart, the natal potentials will be triggered.
If the natal chart of the native does not display such a potential, the transiting combination may be experienced in a milder form, perhaps as a dream, or it may be felt as a moment of inspiration, fantasy, or a tendency to daydream. Artists, actors, musicians, poets, and people with creative minds usually have a combination of these types of patterns in their charts.
These patterns serve a purpose in such people. However they can be damaging in professions that demand quick and pragmatic action. For example, some conscientious objectors and deserters from the military are people who are put into an arena in which they can truly not fit. These patterns are part of the reason. Astrologically there is a difference between a conscientious objector and a deserter. The former is likely to have these patterns in natal chart, thus be permanently against a structured and black-and-white environment. In the case of a deserter, the affect is likely to be a passing influence from a transiting pattern, signalling a situation of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
The trigger mechanism may also appear in the form of a conjunction, square, or opposition between the Moon and Mercury, which occurs more frequently than aspects involving planets which move more slowly. If one or both of these planets is in Pisces and/or 9th or 12 houses, the combination is more potent. If either the Moon or Mercury is also conjunct, square, or in opposition, for example, to natal Neptune, then the potency is even more enhanced. This is especially true if the natal chart also displays a similar configuration. The interesting characteristic of patterns is in that more and more patterns, natal as well as transiting, can combine to bring about a truly unique individual. The result may be an Einstein, Picasso, Mohammed Ali, or Ted Bundy. All secrets of personality may not be hidden in the planets, but many are.
A similar situation also arises in a “Fatal Attraction” relationships where her Moon is square his Neptune, and more so, if his Moon is also square her Neptune. Similarly, if one person’s Uranus or Neptune is conjunct, square, or in opposition to the other person’s Venus, there can be addictive stimulation, where the Venus-Uranus combination is the more potent. While none of these patterns necessarily promise durability in situations of cohabitation, when two persons with such joint patterns meet and begin to interact, they sense a stimulating “we are fated to one another” bond between them, especially if they are also in the 8th house in one or both charts. It is a nice experience, unless the parties have spouses and steady companions, for this type of romance can lead to infidelity in marriage or break up existing relationships.
Adverse aspects can interfere with the outcome in several ways.
Some examples:
Mercury adverse Saturn - may be experienced as a mental block during the examination. These are instances when a person cannot remember a formula, or feeling unsure about something, spends excessive time on a detail and does not have time left to finish the test. Sometimes the situation is exacerbated by insecurity, frustration, or depression which accompany the problem.
Mercury adverse Uranus - signifies a mentally hyper cycle when “stupid” mistakes are made. These are the occasions when one adds two and two as five and carries five to the next step. The thought process is usually several steps ahead of what the hand is doing. Although the mind is sharp, concentration and discipline are difficult to achieve. In a football game this aspect may project similarly, for example, when the pass catcher takes his eyes off the ball and starts running toward the goal line without first securing the ball.
Mercury adverse Neptune - is an aspect that heightens one’s imagination. However, depending on the severity of the aspect, it can also mark an occasion of illusion, deception, self-deception, fantasy, an urge to roam in the clouds ... If the examination is about art appreciation, or involves writing an essay, this aspect may indeed help. However, if it is a subject matter that demands an analytical, meticulous, methodical, detailed, and pragmatic approach, it can be one of the worst handicaps. Unless the person is by nature self-disciplined, the mind is likely to refuse any such involvement. Energy that could have been used to answer problems is partly directed to achieving self-discipline and concentration.
These aspects are tolerable if the performance allows a margin of error. 2 is still a passing grade. A concert pianist may hit a few wrong notes, but otherwise the performance proceeds without a major mishap. Exceptions do occur. In what must have been a particularly severe case, a concert pianist, attempting to reach the extreme right of the key board with both hands, actually slid off the stool and fell to the floor. This type of accident can be brought about by adverse Mercury-Mars, Mercury-Uranus, or Mars-Uranus combinations, although other patterns involving, for example, the Sun or the Moon, rather than Mercury, are also possible.
Some performances do not allow a margin for error. For example, olympic trials for ice skaters. An ice skater experiencing a combination of “Mercury conjunct natal Mars in 3rd house and square to transiting Uranus,” for example, is accident-prone. He/she may indeed land with the wrong parts on the ice. These are the occasions when years of practice end in a heartbreak. It is interesting to note that the same skater may have completed a wonderful performance, had the contest taken place just a few days later.
