Astrology
Why astrology?
My initial interest in astrology stems partly from curiosity of what it is, and partly because it has such a great historical and cultural impact. What I found was that it has much more expressivity than only the 12 signs, which is all I used to know. I found that it helped my explore my own personality as well as come to know personality types that are very different from my own. This post aims to give an overview of what I found to be the fundamentals of astrology.
4 Elements
The 12 signs can be divided into groups of four elements: fire, earth, air, and water. Fire signs are all about action. Earth signs are at home in the material world. Air signs live for ideas. Water signs are in tune with the psyche. The way that elements are expressed is through the planets placed in them, which is discussed later on.
Fire signs are restless and eager for action. They are associated with war or conflict. Positively expressed, fire signs are assertive; subverted, fire signs dominate and push out others. Fire also represents drive, desire and courage.
Earth signs are associated with the material world but not necessarily only in terms of being materialistic. They are associated with stability and security. That’s not necessarily only in having the means to survive, but a feeling of non-scarcity. One can have material comforts, but still be plagued with a fear that it might all disappear. Earth signs are the most easily upset by disturbances to daily routines. Earth signs are more predisposed to attaching sentimental meaning to physical objects.
Air signs are very intellectual. To air signs, ideas are things in and of themselves. There is a high appreciation for aesthetic and beauty, for elegance. Air signs can at times feel that the physical and social world are inconveniences that limit the potential for beauty to be realized.
Water signs are said to be emotional, but I believe intuitive is a better word. Water signs are more in tune with the psyche and more willing to entertain the subconscious. Scorpio, the most stubborn water sign is said to be associated with the occult. Cancer, the most leadership driven water sign, is found heavily in great social leaders.
The identity of the elements are embedded even in our language; we speak of the “fire that drives us”, being “down to earth”, having our “head in the clouds”. Although astrology is not as prevalent today, the meaning of the elements is preserved and these are very ancient ideas.
3 Cardinalities
The 12 signs can also be divided into the four seasons, with three signs per season. In each season, there is a beginning, middle, and end, corresponding to cardinal, fixed, and mutable.
Cardinal signs start the season. These signs push forward, starting something new. For this reason, they are associated with leadership and initiative. Although water signs are the more nuanced and adaptable Cancer, the cardinal water sign, is associated with leadership for the sake of helping others. While being in touch with others’ needs, Cancer is fully expressed by those who take action driven by the desire to help others.
As we move into the middle of the season, or fixed signs, everything is a little more rigid. The weather is decidedly seasonal. For example, Leo (Jul 21 - Aug 21) is in the peak of summer. Weather during this sign is typically exactly how we think of summer. These signs are associated with stubbornness. Just as the weather is exactly what you would think, the mutable sign is the epitome of its element. For example, Taurus, the fixed Earth sign, is as Earthy as it gets; Taurus is firmly grounded in the material world and steadfast in its resolve.
Finally, we move into the end of the season with mutable signs. Here, everything is a bit more malleable. Sagittarius, the mutable fire sign, is more open to change and less hot-headed than Aries or Leo. It reflects also the changing weather. Although we mark Sept 21 as the start of fall, the fall breeze can inevitably be felt throughout Virgo (Aug 21 - Sep 21).
4 Elements, 3 cardinalities
If we combine our analyses of elements and cardinalities, we can see that there is exactly one sign for each combination of element and cardinality.
What’s your sign?
It is commonly believed that everyone has a single sign, which is determined by the date of birth. This is not the case. The sign that most people are thinking of is the sun sign; that is to say, the sign that the sign was in at the time of one’s birth. Astrological signs are determined by considering the Earth in the middle and the planets arranged around the Earth, in various signs. Each planetary body (including the Sun and the Moon) have their own sign.
Another important sign is the rising sign, also known as the ascendant. This is the sign that was rising over the horizon at the time of birth. This sign colours your whole chart. One may feel a stronger connection to this sign than one’s sun sign. While the sun sign governs what you are likely to do, the rising sign governs how you go about doing them. It governs your general presence and attitude. It is the easiest sign to try to guess about someone.
After the sun, and the rising sign, the moon sign says the most. It governs the inner self, the self you are as you go to bed and are alone with your thoughts leaving behind the worries of the day. It governs how one forms personal relationships.
There are 5 more personal planets: Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn. The 3 outer planets: Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto move much more slowly than the inner planets. They will be in the same sign for a generations at a time and therefore are less relevant to individual analysis.
| Planet | Area |
|---|---|
| Mars | Ego assertion and sex drive |
| Venus | Romance and aesthetic |
| Mercury | Analysis and communication |
| Jupiter | Luck and public persona |
| Saturn | Responsibility |
| Uranus | Social justice and revolution |
| Neptune | Psyche |
| Pluto | Death and rebirth |
Traditionally, Aries is the first sign (not Aquarius which is the sign that comes first in calendar year). Each sign is associated with a planet; we say that the planet rules the sign, or that the sign is the planets domicile. The sign opposite the domicile is its detriment (opposite means across from on the wheel, i.e. Aries’s opposite is Libra). Whether a planet is in its domicile or detriment will affect how easily its energies can be expressed. In general, a planet in its domicile is more easily expressed and a planet in its detriment is expressed with more difficulty. For example, with Mars in Libra it is more difficult to express its charge ahead nature while being influenced by the subtle and fair aesthetic of Libra.
The planets are traditionally ordered: Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn, not as they are ordered in the solar system. This is also the reasoning behind Gustav Holsts’s composition The Planets. Starting from Leo and Cancer, which are ruled by the sun and the moon respectively, then going outwards the planets match the order in the solar system. The outer planets: Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto were added later and are considered to share rulership. Thus, now starting from Aries and going counter clock-wise we get the astrological order of the planets.
The structure of astrology
The art of interpretation is taking all the pieces of information together and making sense of it as a whole. Primarily, this entails looking at what planets are in which signs and houses, what aspects they make to each other, and to look at overall patterns and imbalances. For example, charts may be heavily biased to a particular element or lack a particular element. In my experience, it is important to address imbalances and somehow bring the energy of missing elements into ones life.
Together, the planets, signs, house positions, and aspects determine the natural tendencies in one’s life. I believe that astrology is a useful roadmap for self exploration and bringing to our awareness tendencies that we might take for granted. Things may be written in the stars, but they’re not set in stone.
This post gives only a cursory introduction to astrology, and I may very well have made errors in my understanding and explanation. I have made no discussion on aspects or houses, but the interested reader is encouraged to find more reading. My hope is that I may have expanded your view of astrology. Thank you for reading.
Sources
- Chart Interpretation Handbook by Stephen Arroyo
- The Only Astrology Book You’ll Ever Need by Joanna Martine Woolfolk
- cafeastrology.com
- Time Passages iOS app