Introduction
Most people are introduced to astrology when they learn their Sun Sign, which correlates with the day of the year when you were born. Some people strongly identify with their Sun Sign, while others might read descriptions and feel like the information is off. It’s best to not analyze your Sun Sign in isolation, because there’s so much more going on in your birth chart.
Astrology is a symbolic and technical field; it can be confusing to understand the difference among the Planets, Signs, Houses and so on. I remember when I first started studying astrology,the charts looked like pizzas with too many toppings. Astrology is a language, and like any language it can take some time to gain fluency. If you don’t have a copy of your birth chart (also called a natal chart), you can easily calculate one for free online.
Identifying the symbols for the Planets, Signs, Houses and Aspects
To start, I’d like to introduce the four main elements in a birth chart: the Planets, Signs, Houses, and Aspects. I’ll use the chart of David Bowie to show you the difference among them on his birth chart.
Planets
There are 10 Planets in modern astrology and they’re represented by these sigils.
Signs
Then there are 12 Signs of the zodiac, which is the path that the planets move across the sky.
Houses
Then, they’re the 12 Houses, which show you the areas of life where the planets are active. They each span their own sign.
Aspects
Finally, there are the geometric relationships between the Planets, called Aspects.
Empty Houses in Your Birth Chart
Every chart will have all ten Planets in it, because you can’t be born on a day where one of the planets is missing from the sky. Not every House will have a planet in it. Since there are twelve houses and only ten planets, that would be impossible anyway.
If you have an empty House in your birth chart, don’t worry! That doesn’t mean that there’s an ’empty’ part of your life. With an empty House, we look to the House’s Sign to learn more about that area of your life. Every Sign has a special relationship to a Planet called a rulership. We analyze that House’s ruling Planet to learn more about what’s represented by that House.
The Difference Among Planets, Signs, Houses and Aspects
A common analogy for understanding the difference among the Planets, Signs, Houses, and Aspects is a theatrical production. The Planets are the actors, and they’re represented by archetypal characters. Venus, the planet of beauty, could be the pretty star. Mars, the planet of action, and desire, could play the hero.
Mars (left), the planet of action, is the Hero, while Venus (right), the planet of beauty, is the pretty starlet.
The Signs are costumes that the actors wear and some of these costumes fit better than others in expressing the Planet’s role. This is the special relationship I just mentioned called rulership. Mars, the hero, must fight and survive. He can play his role best in something like a suit of armor: that would Aries, the Warrior Sign. Mars might have a more challenging time if he were wearing a costume that didn’t fit his role. Let’s say Mars was in a tuxedo, that would be the stylish sign Libra. That tuxedo costume wouldn’t suit the hero so well because he needs the protection of armor to fight.
The Mars does better in a costume that fits properly, like the Sign of the Warrior, Aries. When Mars is in a costume with an irregular fit, like Libra, he has to find a way to make it work for him.
Understanding Weak or Debilitated Planets
Now, many charts, including my own, have Planets which are in Signs that don’t fit right. These are referred to as weak or debilitated. Sounds grim, right? The truth is that there are ways of making that irregular fit work for you. I’ll explain more about this below.
Continuing with our theater analogy, the Houses are sets on which the actors perform. For example, one set could be an office let’s say that’s the Tenth House, which represents career. Another set could be a casino, which is the Fifth House, since it represents entertainment.
The aspects are like scripts spoken between the actors. Let’s say there was an easy and harmonious Trine between Mars and Venus. Maybe that script would show these two falling in love. Let’s say there’s a challenging aspect between Mars and Venus, such as an Opposition. Then they may have a script that shows them arguing.
The Houses are like the sets on which the actors perform. The Aspects are like scripts between the actors.
The Aspects, or scripts between the actors, can be easy or challenging. An Opposition (pictured left) is a challenging aspect, so it could show discord between the actors (or planets). A Trine (pictured right) is an easy aspect, so it can show harmony between the Planets (or actors).
Challenging Versus Easy Aspects
I’d like to explain about what easy versus challenging Aspects mean on a practical level. Most charts have some easy aspects, like Sextiles and Trines, and some hard aspects, like Squares and Oppositions. A Conjunction, which means that two planets are right next to each other, can be easier hard depending on the planets involved.
Is it better to have more easy aspects than hard aspects, or Planets in their own sign versus debilitated planets? Not from my experience. Hard aspects and debilitations express themselves as challenges in our lives, but a challenge is not an inherently bad thing. In fact, the most successful people in the world can have lots of challenging aspects, and some debilitated planets in their charts. Sometimes, natal charts that have only easy aspects means there’s not enough motivation to accomplish anything significant. A challenging aspect is like the grit in an oyster. It may cause some stress and irritation, but you can’t make a pearl without it. So don’t be freaked out by the challenging aspects and planets in your chart! Be open to what they can reveal to you so that you can navigate your life more effectively.
Planetary Strength
I use traditional astrology to judge a planet’s strength in your chart. Planets that are in their own sign, like the costume that fits right, are naturally strong. However, there are other ways a planet can be strong. For example, planets which are close to angles will gain strength despite what sign there in. Think of strength like an easy aspect; it can be helpful to have in life, but it doesn’t mean that you’re going to use that planet effectively.
The outcome is completely up to you.
The way I personally practice sees every placement as having a higher and lower manifestation, and that includes both the hard and easy ones. Even if you have a good fitting placement, or lots of trines in your chart, doesn’t mean that you’re going to make the best use of them. And, of course, there are ways of making an irregular fitting placement or a hard aspect work well for you.
Oftentimes, when I’m consulting older clients, they’ll tell me that they expressed the lower manifestation of their chart more when they were younger than they do now. That’s because we evolve over time, and people naturally learn more about themselves when they’ve worked through life’s challenges.
The Four Elements
Every Sign belongs to one of four elements and these categories can be helpful to understand the Signs’ essence. The four elements are:
Fire
Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius – Planets in the Fire Signs express themselves in the realm of spirit. In their higher manifestation, the fire signs can be inspirational, warm, energetic, enthusiastic, and assertive; though in their lower manifestation, they can also be angry, impulsive, and self-centered planets.
Air
Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius – The Air Signs express themselves in the realm of intellect. They are social, conversational, fair-minded, and humanitarian, but they can also be cold, indecisive, and detached.
Water
Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces – The Water Signs live in the realm of emotions. They can be intuitive, sensitive, supportive, and compassionate; though they can also be weepy, subjective, clingy, and bad with boundaries.
Earth
Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn – Planets in the Earth Signs express themselves in the material realm. They can be realistic, practical, sensual, and reliable; but they can also be cautious, rigid, and greedy.
Here’s a trick: if you tally up all the elements in your chart you’ll have an overall concentration of a certain element. When you discover the element you have highest concentration of, you can get a general impression of your personality before diving deeper with more astrology.
I want to reiterate how complex the birth chart is, because not everyone identifies with their Sun Sign. Let’s say you have an Aquarius Sun, which is an Air Sign, which is detached because it emphasizes intellect over feelings. However, if the rest your planets are in Water Signs, which is the emotional element, then your personal astrological arrangement would add an interesting contrast to the standard Aquarian aloofness. That’s why you don’t entirely relate to your generic Sun Sign description because you are more emotional than what they say.
Planetary Sect
This is the horizon line of the chart.
Everything above it was up in the sky when you were born and everything below it was underneath the Earth’s surface so, it was below your feet.
This is a geographic representation of a natal chart. Everything above the horizon sign is visible in the sky when you were born. Everything below the horizon was underneath the Earth’s surface when you were born – it would have only been visible in the sky in the opposite hemisphere. The East is to the left where the Ascendant is, and the West is to the right. This is flipped from how we are used to reading maps.
If the Sun is above the horizon in your chart, then you were born in the Day. Traditionally, Day charts emphasize the planets Sun, Saturn, and Jupiter. If the Sun is below the horizon, then you were born at night, and the planets Moon, Mars and Venus will be more influential in your chart. This is why knowing the Planetary Sect, or whether you were born during the day or at night, is important to see which planets are more influential. The planets ‘in sect’ will be the more prominent ones in your life.
The Rising (Ascendant), Sun and Moon
Astrology can be a rather complex inventory for understanding our personality because astrology is the most cosmically externalized reflection of what’s going on inside of you. When first reading an astrology chart, I like to analyze the Sun, Moon, and Rising (or Ascendant), which are the foundational trifecta of the personality.
The Rising(Ascendant)
The Rising, also known as the Ascendant, is the constellation to the east of the horizon. In astrology, the East is to the left of the chart and the West is to the right.
This is the Rising/Ascendant.
The Rising describes how you immediately come off to other people, like a mask that you wear for the rest of the world. If we use the metaphor of a building to understand the birth chart, then the Rising would be like the facade of the building. It’s what others can easily see about you, though it doesn’t reveal the entire story of who you are, just as the façade of a building doesn’t show you everything that is going on inside.
The Sun
The Sun represents how you identify. It’s an external and outward expression of who you are. The Sun is the king or queen of our solar system because it determines the orbits of all the other planets through its gravitational pull. In astrology, the Sun is like the king or queen of your chart because it explains why and how you make decision, and what your personal purpose is.
The Moon
The Moon, by contrast, is your emotional, personal, and inner world. It’s the less conscious side of our personality because it’s associated with our habits and reactions. Understanding your Moon placement can help you understand what you need to feel emotionally well-balanced. The Moon can also tell us about what type of homelife suits you best, and what your family is like.
Astrology and Prediction
Many astrologers use so-called predictive techniques like transits and progressions. Transits describe how the current planetary positions interact with your fixed birth chart, thereby activating certain areas of your life. Progressions describe how your birth chart has cosmically unfolded in the days and weeks after you were born, where a day after you were born correlates with one year of your life. I don’t think of transits and progressions as predictions, but more like collaborations among you, your relationships, and your evolving circumstances.
My personal view is that the human experience is a dynamic interplay among freewill, destiny, and chaos. I use these so-called predictive techniques to give us insights into the deeper meaning of a particular experience or phase of development in your life. Transits and progressions help us explore what is emerging in yourself through a current issue you’re facing, as well as the potential next step in your self-actualization. Astrology can’t account for every random event that enters your life, though if you’re dealing with an issue, these techniques can give us insights into how you’re affected by your current challenges, so that we can make better decisions for dealing with them.
