It’s hard to imagine someone not loving the roles that British actor Charlotte Rampling plays in films and television. I was pleased today to find out that she’s a double Aquarius, like me, with the Sun and rising both in the Water Bearer. Rampling is known for playing steely, powerful women who cut to the chase and show no mercy — but you always know there is a glimmer of kindness buried deep in her famously cold stare. And from early on in her career, she has specialized in roles that transgress societal norms around gender roles and relationship dynamics, even embodying these transcgressions in her private life.
Charlotte Rampling natal chart, whole-sign Houses
Rampling was born on February 5, 1946, in Haverhill, England, at 7:45AM (her birth time has an A-rating on Astrodienst).
Her first house Aquarius stellium describes her public image very well, but it was her Pisces Moon that first caught my attention. This moon in wise, watery Pisces is fitting given her famous eyes, stony and hooded, that look like they’ve seen everything, like they see right through whomever she’s looking at. Pisces can be very remote when it wants to be. Elusive is another good adjective. The self-preservation strategy of Pisces’ symbol, the fish, is above all evasive. It moves quickly, camoflages well, and is very hard to grasp. Just when you think you have it, it slips from your fingers. Rampling’s screen roles often exude this evasive quality — and, unsurprisingly, her characters often present extremely hard exteriors (Saturn ruling the rising sign) in order to hide or protect a core of compassion and understanding (Pisces moon). She says of herself, “I’m not only prickly, I’m distant. I only keep a distance so I can get as much understanding of the situation without being on top of it. And it works.”
In Rampling’s chart, the traditional ruler of her Aquarius rising/Sun, Saturn, is in Cancer, a sign that is in aversion to Aquarius (that is, Cancer makes no traditional aspect to Aquarius). Moreover, her Pisces Moon is also in aversion to her Aquarius planets, as well as to its own ruler, Jupiter, which is in Libra. These planets that are averse but linked by rulership make me think of Rampling’s complexity as a performer. She seems able to compartmentalize facets of her characters to an extraordinary extent.
Rampling’s rising sign is Aquarius. For people with Aquarius rising, relationships are especially important and formative because the Sun is the ruler Aquarius’ 7th house of partnerships and marriage. Sometimes they become known for their relationships. Rampling’s Sun is also in Aquarius in the first house. It also conjuncts a direct-motion Venus within a degree, meaning that she was born with Venus cazimi — a special condition of power and protection regarding the things Venus signifies.
Aquarius is a famously rebellious sign, and was considered so even before the planet of iconoclasts, Uranus, was assigned to Aquarius as its modern ruler. One traditional explanation for Aquarius’s rebelliousness is its opposition to Leo, the sign of kings and rulers. Rulers, of course, set the norms within society (or that’s the idea), and Aquarian individuals have always gone against the grain and have stood in opposition to the social strictures passed down from on high. They understand that the people, not the rulers, are the true and ultimate leaders, and they stand with the people. Another indication of Aquarian rebelliousness is that it follows after straight-laced Capricorn in zodiacal order. Aquarius coming after Capricorn represents a corrective to overly-strict Capricornian rules.
This is all to say that Rampling has long been an iconoclast when it comes to relationships — and this fits well with her Sun/Venus cazimi in Aquarius: Her Sun rules the house of relationships and Venus rules relationships in general.
In the late ‘60’s and early ‘70s Rampling became the focus of a minor scandal involving a rumor (that she started) that she was in a three-way affair with her future husband and a man they were living with. She denied it at the time, but then just two years ago, in 2022, she admitted that the rumors were true.
Rampling circa 1971 with her two lovers..
Aside from her sometimes-unorthodox relationship life, Rampling has enjoyed pushing up against gender norms in her artistic career. She started out as a sex symbol — a model turned actress — who eventually became known for European arthouse films. Her more mature roles from the 1970s and beyond embody emotional and social complexity. She seems to be exploring the connections between gender and power dynamics in many of her roles. This is fitting considering that Pluto, the planet of power struggles, opposes her Aquarius planets from Leo and her 7th house.
Reading through an aptly-titled article in the Guardian, “Charlotte Rampling: ‘I am prickly. People who are prickly can’t be hurt any more,” I learned of the actor’s early awkwardness and the experience that led her into acting. The awkwardness she describes fits with what I mentioned above about having so many personal planets in aversion to each other. Her awakening to life on the stage fits with something else in her chart: her 5th house Uranus. She describes herself as a “shy and withdrawn” 14-year-old self, saying of that first time on stage, “I knew I was good, because I was absolutely in tune with myself at that moment.” Uranus represents absolute freedom as well as an electrifying charisma. In the guardian profile she repeatedly uses the term “pinging” to describe how it feels to perform — “Pinging is when you’re at the right place at the right time, and you know you can just make magic happen everywhere.” This seems like a very apt expression for someone with Uranus, the planet of freedom, in the 5th house, the place of creative self expression.
At 14 years old Rampling was in a 3rd house/Aries profection year, which activated her Mars. The third house signifies siblings. That first performance was with her older sister, Sarah. Her natal Mars is conjunct her chart ruler, Saturn, in Cancer, and the activation of that conjunction apparently activated an instinctual sense of rightness in her. Also, Mars is the ruler of Rampling’s Scorpio 10th house of career, and at 14 she discovered what that career would be. She was such a natural on stage that her big sister would brag about her, saying, “Charlotte is going to be known worldwide.”
Seven years later, when Rampling was 21 years old and in a 10th house/Scorpio profection year (also Mars-ruled in her case), an event happened that would stamp both her emotional and professional lives: her sister, Sarah, died of suicide. At first, her father lied and told Rampling that her sister had died of a brain tumor. It was three years later, Rampling says, that her father told her the truth about her sister’s suicide. He also told her to keep it a secret from her mother. If her memory about three years is correct, she became burdened with this awful secret during her 12 house profection year (the 12th house is the “house of secrets”).
In the Guarian profile of Rampling (which is the source of most of most of my dates and quotes here), the reporter interviewing her, Simon Hattenstone, writes, that Sarah’s death pushed Rampling to turn away from fun and frivolity and to take a more serious, darker turn in her acting work. Rampling: “What I said to myself is, ‘Now I have to go underground. If I’m going to be in the film industry, it’s not about making 60s-type fun films, it’s about going inside.’” What an apt and powerful expression of an artist with Scorpio in the tenth whole-sign house.
Another tragic death would affect Rampling during her most recent 10th house/Scorpio profection year in 2015: her lover and partner of nearly 20 years would die of cancer. This experience sent Rampling into depression for about two years, but she has emerged to begin one of the most productive and successful phases of her career.
These are just a few highlights from Rampling’s chart and life, and there is a lot more connections to make. For now, given how well her annual profections seem to work, I’m convinced that her birth time is reasonably correct (you can never be too sure, even with A ratings). If anyone wants to go deeper into Rampling’s early life, she has written a memoir about her formative years titled Who Am I.
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I recently heard a novel astrological idea, and I decided to test it in writing because, for me, writing is the best way to assess the usefulness or truth of ideas. Astrologically, the idea is simple: Each sign has a special connection to the house that is ruled by the sun when that sign is taken as the rising sign. Take, for example, the sign Capricorn. The sign ruled by the sun, Leo, is in the eighth house when Capricorn is in the Ascendant, so astrologers say the sun rules Capricorn’s eighth house. This idea would then presuppose that Capricorn has a special connection, archetypally, to the eighth house. For another example, since the sun rules the second sign from Cancer, Cancer would have an archetypal connection to the second house and its meanings. And so on around the zodiac. I’m careful to say “archetypal” here because I’m talking about the meanings of the signs in general, no matter what planets or points fall in them in an individual’s chart. But I assume, if this idea is correct (and I think it makes at least some sense), that people with the sun in these signs might resonate most with what I have written below. Please let me know whether you think so by leaving a comment!
Since the first sign of springtime, Aries, seems to always go first, I’ll begin instead with the cardinal water sign, Cancer.
CANCER
For Cancer natives, the sun rules the second house. This is usually called the house of possessions, finances, income, and material possessions — but also values, self esteem, and the feeling of being worthy of one’s possessions. Think for a moment of the symbolic significance of Cancer’s animal symbol, the crab, an animal possessing claws. Cancer clings. We think of Cancer natives clinging to people, but I think it’s safe to say that they also cling to possessions — specifically those possessions that they invest emotion into, things they are sentimental about. And since the sun represents showiness, its rulership of Cancer’s second house would reflect a desire to be showy about one’s possessions. Let’s face it, Cancer, like Leo, is a regal sign. Its ruler, the moon, is the cosmic queen to the sun’s cosmic king. It is fitting then that Cancers would want to signal their status through their possessions somehow. With Cancer, the showy possessions and the regal sense of snobbery that is evidenced in many Cancer natives is akin to Leo’s sometimes-haughty nature, but it also (perhaps primarily) serves Cancer natives as a kind of armor (crabs are armored, afterall).
LEO
For Leo, the sign of the sun, the sun rules the first house. How fitting for the sign that likes to shine, to be seen and admired. But it is not purely selfish: Leo wants to shine its magnanimous light on others through encouragement and warm affection. However, their solar qualities are also shown in their open wrath, which can scorch the very earth. The sun is the center of the solar system, the lawgiver who determines the motions of every object in the solar system. There are few Leo natives who truly believe that the whole world revolves around them — but most of them indeed expect the regard and respect and consideration of those in their inner circle. I know enough Leos to know that they are not fundamentally selfish people, but they can certainly come across that way (especially Leo sun natives). Really this is just a manifestation of their recognition that they must take care of themselves first. Self-care is important work to a Leo because it ensures that they are able to be their best selves for those in their lives whom they love and care for.
VIRGO
For Virgo, the sun rules the twelfth house of self-undoing, bad spirit (as opposed to bad fortune, which is the 6th house), loss, and sacrifice. The twelfth house rules ghosts and secrets, and places like hospitals, libraries, attics and basements. In reading charts, the twelfth house often shows up as addictions. One of my first thoughts is a question: Is Virgo’s connection to the frightful twelfth house the reason that Virgos are so often maligned in popular imagination? I think they’re clearly scapegoated (scapegoats and fall guys are twelfth house figures). Virgo famously likes to look under the hood. They want to see how things work. They are famously critical and obsessed with efficiency and purity, but this, I’m sure, comes from a sincere desire to help and make things better for everyone. Virgos and twelfth house people often make great sacrifices to improve someone else’s condition. As for the twelfth house’s connections to ghosts, I have found Virgos to be consistently superstitious in some not-so-hidden way. Virgo is an earth sign ruled by Mercury, so they value their reason and practicality. But underlying that, Virgos often express belief in ghosts and spirits. An astrologer and writer whose pen name is Alice Sparkly Kat has written a great piece on the twelfth house that applies very well here. Here’s the link: https://www.alicesparklykat.com/articles/297/The_Twelfth_House/
LIBRA
For Libra, the eleventh house is ruled by the sun. This makes a lot of sense for the cardinal air sign, Libra, because the eleventh house is one of the most social houses. It is the house of friends and groups of like minded people. Jupiter, the greater benefic, rejoices in the eleventh house, which justifies this house being called the house of good spirit. These are the social connections we make as a result of our good works and good reputation (the eleventh house shows the fruits of the tenth house of work, actions and reputation). This is all fitting considering Libra’s famous social graces. The eleventh house is where high-minded ideas can be hashed out among peers — and while Libra might come across as airheads, they are not lightweights, intellectually. The eleventh house is opposite the fifth house of creative expression, so you can say that the eleventh house represents one’s audience. Not only does Libra, a Venus-ruled sign like to have an audience, it is, of all signs, is probably most equipped to understand and anticipate its audience. But a note of caution: because of this latter point, Libra artists can risk “audience capture” — losing their integrity and direction by catering to what their friends or fans expect of them.
SCORPIO
For Scorpio, the sun rules the tenth house of career, works, and reputation. I say “works,” plural, because the tenth represents our actions, those big, life-defining decisions. Choosing a career or making a reputation-defining judgment call are examples of these kinds of “works.” The idea that the very public tenth house would be highlighted for Scorpio, a notoriously private sign, does not actually surprise me. Scorpios are an ambitious lot. They may hold their cards close to the chest, but they are vigorous and strategic actors in the world. They can also be world-class control freaks when it comes to curating their public images. A glance at the lists of Scorpio celebrities and politicians can convince you of this. (Katy Perry, Leo DiCaprio, Hillary Clinton, Bill Gates, Drake, Adam Driver, and John Adams — the cantankerous founding father who gave much serious thought to his reputation.)
SAGITTARIUS
For Sagittarius, the sun rules the ninth house of philosophy, religion, higher education, travel, and publishing. Having these areas of life highlighted in the archetype of Sagittarius will seem very natural for anyone who knows the traditional meanings of Sagittarius. They are typically opinionated and enjoy discussing points of ethical and moral philosophy. These leanings often push them towards religion, but not always. Whether religious or not, they will likely have opinions about it — and they will have a proselytizing streak when it comes to at least a couple of subjects, whether it’s Hegelian dialectic or their own take on raising children or the state of the Republican party in the U.S. The ninth house is said to be “the place of God,” and it’s the house where the sun rejoices. And there seems to be a connection between Sagittarians and God (or gods). Not just the abstract conception of a monotheistic god, but a lived experience of divinity. They might call it intuition. They might write it off as the occasional lucky guess — but Sagittarians have a prophetic streak. It’s like something or someone is whispering in their ear. They might not confess this, but it’s a real thing.
CAPRICORN
For Capricorn, the sun rules the eighth house. For starters, the eighth house is said to be in aversion to Capricorn, which means there are no traditional aspects between the first and the eighth house. This is one reason that the eighth house is considered an unfortunate house. But knowing Capricorn’s character and meanings, I find the highlighting of the eighth house fitting for a Saturn-ruled sign of northern-hemisphere winter. Some major eighth house significations are: other people’s money, insurance industry, inheritance, investments, taxes, procreative sex, and death. These are all areas of life that often force us to think far into the future — fitting for a sign known for long-term planning. And anecdotally, I seem to know a disproportionate number of Caps who work in either insurance or investment fields. And as far as sex is concerned, Capricorn’s animal symbol is, afterall, half goat. Saturn, Capricorn’s ruler, is dark. He is depicted as the Grim Reaper, afterall. Fitting, then, for the eighth house to be highlighted, and fitting for a sign with the grit to handle some of life’s more unpleasant areas.
AQUARIUS
For Aquarius, the sun rules the seventh house of partnerships and marriage. I like this one because it confirms something I’ve often thought about Aquarius, which is that Aquarius sun individuals typically become stable once they get married, or at least are involved in a committed relationship. Because Aquarius is opposite to Leo, the sun experiences a condition called detriment when it is in Aquarius. When a planet is in its own sign (e.g., the sun in Leo), it is at home, fully resourced, and functions very well. But when a planet is in a sign opposite to the one it rules, i.e., in detriment or exile, it has none of its usual resources. Instead, it depends on the ruler of that sign, whose nature is typically inimical to the planet in detriment. This explains Aquarius’ famous rebelliousness, its anti-establishment streak, because the sun and Leo represent the standard, the norm (the king sets the rules, remember). But in Aquarius, the sun feels little affinity with “the norms,” is at odds with standards, and finds its purpose in exploring alternatives to the norm, different rules. However, this can be very alienating and lead some Aquarians to become recluses and eccentrics. Partnerships are often the antidote for Aquarians who might otherwise seem to float above life with few permanent connections. Partnership is their ballast, their anchor, to the real world. And stable partnerships can create opportunities for Aquarians to experience life’s other joys, like children — and Aquarians can make excellent (and joyful) parents.
PISCES
For Pisces, Leo is six signs away and therefore rules its sixth house. The sixth house is the place where a lot of busy work is done — the unglamorous work of maintaining the working parts of one’s life. These duties include cooking and cleaning and taking care of pets and fixing the car when it breaks down. Sixth house activations often coincide with some crisis — usually small but sometimes large. It is traditionally called the “house of bad fortune” for this reason. Mars is said to rejoice in this house because Mars is active, and sixth house crises often require quick action. But what does the sun’s rulership of this house say about the Pisces archetype? Well, Pisces are famous for doing most of their work in the background. They can be remarkably selfless and aren’t famous for seeking the limelight. Also, I and other astrologers have noted how one often sees Pisces doing clerical or grunt work, which is characteristic of sixth house placements. So despite the reputation of Pisces being slackers and space cadets, this importance of the sixth house seems to suggest another, more practical side to Pisces. (I can now hear some future Pisces reader of this saying, Right?!)
ARIES
When the sun is in Aries, it rules the solar 5th house of children, love affairs, self-expression, play, games of chance, and just plain fun. In fact, the sun is exalted in Aries, so this is doubly fitting. The fifth house is not just about children but also childhood, and Aries are eternal children. This is the source of their innocence, wonder, and romanticism, and it can sometimes make the people close to them a little crazy. The sun is said to exalt in Aries, and this reflects Aries’ need to be seen. It is not enough that they are first or best, but they also want the ribbon for it. This can be a charming attribute of Aries, and can make them the life of the party. But it also underscores a deep desire in Aries to express themselves, to have romance in their lives. On this latter point, think of Capt. Kirk from Star Trek — the archetypal Aries man — hooking up with all those blue-skinned hotties. The sun’s rulership of Aries’ fifth house can also reflect a desire, even a need, to have children. So if you’re a young Aries who doesn’t believe in having children, just wait. You might find the desire for kids much deeping than you imagined. Also, because we identify with the qualities of the sun, Aries sun natives will strongly identify with their children — which can be very positive, or it can also be suffocating for the children.
TAURUS
For Taurus, the sun rules the 4th solar house of home, family, ancestors, roots, parents, and real estate. This fact underscores the importance of family and home to Taurus sun people. They may or may not have an easy relationship with parents (other chart factors will tell this), but they will sense the importance of putting down roots. Taurus is an earth sign with an emotional connection to physical location, so how fitting that the fourth house, which is directly under our feet, would be highlighted for Taurus in this way. But because the sun rules the fourth house (as opposed to the moon), this connection to place and the land will not just be emotional — it will be part of their conscious identity.
GEMINI
For Gemini, the sun rules the third house of siblings, communication, one’s near-home environment, neighbors, errands and short-distance travel, relatives (cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews), and other people’s children. The sun’s rulership of the 4th house underscores Gemini’s often-close relationship to siblings. And of course it reflects Gemini’s famous need to communicate and share ideas with others. They are often busy, running errands, talking with neighbors, talking on the phone, etc. They also love to talk to children, and are great teachers of small children. Also, you might know some Gemini natives with spiritual leanings who enjoy incorporating small devotional rituals into their daily routines. (Even secular-minded Geminis have their rituals!) If so, it is a reflection of the 3rd house as the “place of the goddess” in traditional astrology, which referred to responsibility to do devotional practices, such as maintain a shrine or make public offerings. Gemini’s spiritual side is less pronounced than its zodiacal partner, Sagittarius, but it exists nonetheless.
Please forgive the first two self-indulgent paragraphs. I’m simply amused by the synchronicity of it all!
I find myself thinking a lot about Venus lately. Maybe it’s because Venus has been traveling close to Mercury as they both emerge from the rays of the Sun and become visible as evening stars. Perhaps it’s because philosophical Jupiter is making an exact sextile to my natal Venus from the first degree of Aries. Maybe I’ve chosen this moment to write down these thoughts because the fast-moving Moon is moving into a trine with Jupiter and a stimulating sextile to my natal Venus at 29 degrees Capricorn. Could be. The Moon is, after all, a trigger that spurs longer-term transits out of their latency.
The electional chart for this blog post. (I didn’t notice until posting time that Pluto/Hades is on the MC. How fitting given the final paragraph of the post!)
And here a quick look shows me that by the time I’ll be posting this entry on my blog, a nice electional chart is waiting for me. The chart has Taurus rising, making Venus ruler of the chart. Chart-ruling Venus is high in the 9th house that signifies both astrology and publishing. The Moon in Scorpio in the seventh house is just perfecting an exact sextile to both transiting Jupiter and to my natal Venus.
Venus has to do with our desire to unite, our innate tastes, the types of experiences that we are attracted to and the ways that we naturally attract those experiences to ourselves.
A word that often comes to mind when I think of Venus is soulfulness. Soulfulness in the quality of loving and longing for love and beauty and pleasure. Venus is the capacity to experience all of those things, but Venus also symbolizes a special kind of suffering — the suffering we experience when we lack the things we love and desire. This is also a side of soulfulness — soulful longing.
Venus has two domiciles. Taurus, the fixed earth sign, is her nocturnal (nighttime) domicile, and Libra, the cardinal air sign, is her diurnal (daytime) domicile. Being the nocturnal benefic (Jupiter is the diurnal one) she is arguably more at home in her nocturnal sign, Taurus which expresses physical beauty, sense pleasures, growth and fecundity — all things that we most often associate with Venus. But she is also powerful in Libra, where she performs her social, diplomatic and artistic functions. The Greeks recognized these two different faces of Venus and gave us both Aphrodite Pandemos (the Taurean face) and Aphrodite Urania (the Libran face).
Venus’ sign of exaltation is Pisces, the mutable water sign. This shows how she exalts in the watery boundlessness of Pisces where, more than any other sign, there is a felt sense of oneness inherent in life. This oneness is what makes Pisces the archetypal mystic. Pisces Venus is a very high and exalted Venus: a Venus of universal love. However, Venus is not normally so universal in her expressions and indeed is more likely to manifest as jealousy and covetousness than in boundless compassion. This is because Venus is a personal planet expressive of personal needs and predilections. Her loves and tastes tend toward exclusivity rather than universality. The fact that she exalts in Pisces shows that exaltation is an exceptional state for any planet. For comparison, look at Jupiter, which exalts in nurturing Cancer —but how many stories of old Zeus depict the lightning bolt-hurling Olympian as a perfect nurturer?
Planets are said to be in exile or detriment in the signs that are opposite their domicile signs. Signs of exile show planets bereft of the resources they find in their domiciles, and they rely on a host (i.e., sign ruler) that is diametrically opposed to its nature. In Venus’ case, she is in exile in the two signs ruled by Mars: Aries and Scorpio. The independent, assertive, sometimes violent natures of these two signs are unnatural places for Venus to work her usual magic.
In Libra, Venus has the resources of diplomacy and grace. She is supremely sensitive to what others think and want. Libra’s opposite sign, Aries, is too quick, independent and self-centered for Venus to function at her best. In social Libra, she can be aloof and deliberative, knowing just how to engage and please her interlocutors. In Aries, she is reduced to showing off her prowess, and her attractions rely on shock value. In Aries, she doesn’t have the luxury or inclination to take her time getting to know those whom she might charm and woo. In Aries, what you see is what you get, and Venus here finds that others either love and appreciate her or don’t, and she doesn’t have the resources or desire to change their minds.
Libra in Taurus can be like heaven on earth. It is the height of northern spring when things grow and flower and thelivin’ is easy. Scorpio is more archetypally akin to mid-autumn’s atmosphere of somber decline and death, when life retreats into a dark state of dormancy, when thoughts tend more naturally toward endings and one’s ultimate mortality. In Scorpio, the fertile Taurean side of Venus is betrayed. The time of Scorpio is when she sees all the colorful life she helped to spawn in spring return to the soil or retreat into a cold invisibility. Mars, Scorpio’s rule, is a planet of cutting whereas Venus unites, and it is in Scorpio, Mars’ nocturnal domicile, that we see the necessary other side of the coin of life’s growth: decay and death. Here, Venus is at a loss, akin to Persephone when she was abducted and brought to the underworld by Zeus’ powerful brother, Hades. Her only resource was to accept her fate, renounce revenge, and take ownership of her place in the underworld and become Hades’ queen.
The concept of Astrological sect is very simple. If you were born during the day, your chart belongs to the day, or diurnal, sect. If you were born at night, your chart belongs to the night, or nocturnal, sect. Astrologers who use the concept of sect in their work read day charts and night charts in different ways. Working with sect adds some powerful tools to the astrologers’ toolkit.
Sect was a foundational concept in astrology until relatively recently. It has come back into broad use thanks to the traditional revival of the last couple of decades.
This post offers a short primer on sect, not an exhaustive treatment. It’s dedicated to one or two regular readers, along with anyone who hasn’t yet used sect in their readings.
Sect light
Determining the sect light is easy. There are two luminaries, or lights: the Sun and the Moon. If you were born in the daytime, your sect light is the Sun, and if you were born at night, your sect light is the Moon. The sect light is the primary luminary. It will have the biggest stamp on the personality by sign and aspects. That is, it will describe characteristics that you are known for, characteristics other people notice because they shine out to the world. Both luminaries are still important and retain their individual functions, but the sect light should be considered stronger than other luminary. A luminary or planet that is not in sect (e.g., the Sun in a night chart) is referred to as “contrary to sect.”
My first example chart below is for “Red,” a man born at night with a Gemini Sun and a Sagittarius Moon. He was intellectually curious like a Gemini but had difficulty with both spoken and written communication. He had a philosophical temperament, and his political views were based on well-reasoned moral convictions. He struggled with reading throughout his life. He loved the outdoors, and his favorite activity was deer hunting. He drove a semitruck for a living, and he loved barreling down a rural highway in his ten-foot-high perch with his arm hanging out the open window. He was, in short, more Sagittarian than Gemini.
In Red’s chart, Venus, his most beneficial planet, is in his fifth house of children. One could easily observe that Red was fortunate in few areas of his life, but he had two accomplished sons whom he loved very much and of whom he was very proud. An astrologer not working with sect might point out that malefic Mars is also in this house. But because Mars is contrary to sect, its harmful potential is mitigated, so it lacks the full harmful effects of a daytime Mars. And, indeed, whatever conflicts there were between Red and his sons, I think it’s safe to say that the house of children was the luckiest area of his life.
First example, Red, night chart
Most positive planet in the chart
This is also a simple idea, but like all simple ideas, it includes many little caveats and qualifications. Nonetheless, I find it always reveals important things about how much power certain planets have to cause ease or difficulty.
First the benefics, or good-doers. Venus and Jupiter are the two benifics of the zodiac. Other planets can act beneficially under the right conditions, but these two are always trying to bring out their goodness even when they are badly placed. Jupiter is the diurnal (i.e. daytime) benefic, and Venus is the nocturnal (i.e. nighttime) benefic. Hence Venus works best in night charts, and Jupiter works best in day charts.
My second example chart is for “MR,” who had a night chart, making Venus her most positive planet. Hers is a good example of how a positive benefic can have its most visible effects on the houses it rules. In her case, Venus is located in Pisces (where it exalts), and it rules the third house of communication and the eighth house of inheritance (this is because Venus rules Taurus and Libra, where MR’s 3rd and 8th houses are). She was a well-educated and talented communicator who found it easy to get high-paying office jobs in finance (Taurus and 8th house). She eventually came into a large inheritance (8th house) when her adopted mother died.
Second example, MR, night chart
I find it interesting to observe what happens to the benefic that is contrary to sect. Jupiter is contrary to sect in a night chart, and Venus is contrary to sect in a day chart. The benefic that is contrary to sect, while still acting in some beneficial ways, has the potential to bring some problems with it, and these problems usually fall into the category of “too much of a good thing.”
In MR’s and Red’s night charts, Jupiter is contrary to sect. Jupiter rules both of their first houses of the body and appearance, and both had difficulties keeping their weight down. This is something I’ve often noticed with people with night charts, especially when Jupiter is a signifier for the body. This is because, in night charts, Jupiter’s characteristic lack of temperance goes unchecked. Daytime helps to mitigate Jupiter’s excesses because the day is more conducive to drawing boundaries. At night, Jupiter tends to expand unchecked. Other Jupiterian excesses are being overly opinionated, being loose with finances (this was very true for MR), having an overblown sense of confidence, even to the point of having delusions of grandeur.
If Venus is contrary to sect (i.e., in a day chart), one sees some Venusian excesses like avarice, promiscuity, jealousy, and infidelity. These are all on display in the person belonging to my third example chart: Donald Trump.
The most difficult planet in the chart
There are two malefic, or harmful, planets, just like there are two benefic planets. Both malefics will be troublesome, but the malefic that is out of sect will show the areas of life where the person experiences the most difficulties.
Saturn is the daytime (diurnal) malefic, and Mars is the nighttime (nocturnal) malefic. This means that Saturn is out of sect at night and therefore is most difficult in nighttime charts, and Mars is most difficult in daytime charts.
Malefics are harmful in all charts because they are extreme. Saturn represents extremes of cold (both literal and metaphorical), and Mars represents extremes of heat. Saturn is thought to be less malefic in the day because of the daytime’s warming nature. Mars is said to be less malefic at night because the night cools Mars’ extreme heat.
Example 3, Donald Trump, day chart
In the example of Trump’s daytime chart, Mars is the most difficult planet. It sits on his Ascendant in his Leo first house of self. The first house and planets there strongly stamp the personality. There is often an innocent, almost infantile quality to the ways first house planets express themselves. This is true of Trump’s Mars. There is nothing to moderate his Mars expression. And, being Mars, those very visible Martian traits include self-centeredness, combativeness, impulsiveness, and a ruthless impulse to lash out at perceived enemies. Whether people love Trump or hate him, there is universal agreement that he is his own worst enemy. This is a clear manifestation of his most difficult planet sitting squarely in his house of self.
Trump’s Saturn is in sect so is the less-difficult of the two malefic planets. It is located in his twelfth house of secrets conjunct the lesser benefic, Venus. Venus in the twelfth house is often connected with secret love affairs. In Trump’s case, two extramarital affairs became very public. The second of these (with Stormy Daniels) almost sunk his political career — but didn’t. That is the key quality of the out-of-sect malefic: it can cause difficulties, but the difficulties can be overcome. This is less true with the in-sect malefic, which tends to create more long-lasting problems or even total destruction of what it touches.
My final example chart is for Amanda Knox, an American writer, activist and journalist. However, Knox will always be best-known for being wrongfully convicted of the murder of her college roommate.
Knox has a night chart, making Saturn the most difficult planet in her chart. Saturn is in Sagittarius in her seventh house. Saturn conjuncts her sect light, the Moon, which is important because the sect light shows what someone is known for — and in her case, what she is known for was also the most difficult episode in her life.
Fourth Example, Amanda Knox, night chart
Knox and the murder victim, Merideth Kercher, were both exchange students in Italy in 2007. In the wake of Kercher’s murder by a burglar, Knox and her boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were both arrested along with Knox’s boss. The fact that the incident happened with a boyfriend is indicative of a very malefic Saturn in the seventh house of relationships.
When one is looking at the most malefic or benefic planet in a chart, it’s always revealing to look at which houses in the chart these planets rule. These houses will show areas of life where a planet’s benefits or harms will also be seen. So, while Knox’s Saturn is in her 7th house of partnership, it also rules her 9th house, which is related to both foreign travel and university education.
Conclusion
This is just a quick sketch of how sect works, but I hope it’s enough to help you see charts differently. One of the weaknesses of modern astrology has been its lack of tools for determining how strong or weak a given planet’s influence will be in a person’s life. Sect is a simple and straightforward way to do that.
I’ve been on a science fiction binge lately. I tore through the first three books of Frank Herbert’s Dune series in the last month. I also recently read several of the Hainish Stories of Ursula K. Le Guin. What I appreciate most about these two writers is their “world building” talents, though each does this in different ways and with different preoccupations.
Frank Herbert’s Dune series was notably preoccupied with ecology and the ways that religion influences politics. In later books he weaves in more references to sociology and linguistics. But I think what makes his books so readable and popular is that they embed ideas about important topics into plot-driven stories.
Ursula K. Le Guin is best known for her work in science fiction, though she also wrote realistic fiction and young adult novels, published six volumes of poetry, and wrote the most readable translation of the Tao Te Ching I have read. Her most famous novel is the award-winning The Left Hand of Darkness, which is set in a world without gender as we think of it. The Left Hand of Darkness (1969) is also set in Le Guin’s fictional Hainish universe.
Frank Herbert, 08 October 1920, 7:18AM, Tacoma, Washington
Ursula K. Le Guin, 21 October, 1929, Berkeley, California
The birth charts that are available for Frank Herbert and Ursula K. Le Guin are as reliably timed as one could hope for. Le Guin’s birth time comes directly from her birth certificate “in hand.” Herbert’s birth time given on Astrodatabank is 7:30 AM, from a quoted birth certificate. However, I recently heard a correction of this time from astrologer Ray Grasse in a conversation with Chris Brennan. Grasse got the time 7:18 AM directly from Herbert, so that is the time I use here. Incidentally, according to Grasse, Herbert’s wife was an avid astrologer — another reason to trust the birth time given by Herbert.
Glancing at these two charts side-by-side, one is struck by the many similarities. There are so many, it’s worth making a list:
Both writers have Libra Suns
Both have Venus-ruled Ascendants (Herbert is Libra rising and Le Guin is Taurus rising)
Both have Mercury-Venus conjunctions
Both have Moon-Jupiter conjunctions in Mercury-ruled signs
Both have Neptune-Sun sextiles
Both have Uranus involved in aspects with their Moon-Jupiter conjunctions and their Mercury-Venus conjunctions (Herbert’s Uranus opposes his Moon-Jupiter and trines his Mercury-Venus; Le Guin’s Uranus also opposes her Moon-Jupiter, and it sextiles her Mercury-Venus)
The Ascendant ruler is always a strong place to begin when diving into charts. Both writers have Venus ruling the Ascendant, and both of their Venuses conjunct Mercury, the planet of writing and communication. As the ascendant rulers for both Herbert and Le Guin, Venus’ conjunctions with Mercury would give both these individuals a strong impetus to engage in communication, writing, teaching, etc. Venus-Mercury contacts in general can show a drive to create art with words, or to communicate ideas (Mercury) through beautiful forms (Venus).
For writers with Mercury-Venus conjunctions, the zodiac signs where they are found will give information about the nature, tone, or subject matter of their written work.
Herbert’s conjunction falls in Mars’ nocturnal (nighttime) domicile, Scorpio, whereas Le Guin’s falls in Venus’ diurnal (daytime) domicile. Herbert’s Scorpio Venus-Mercury conjunction clearly moved him toward subject matter related to conflict, war, spies, strategy, betrayal and power politics. He was also good at writing scenes depicting deep emotional relationships that hinged on life and death issues — and in the Dune series, at least, these are relationships primarily between the male characters — between fathers and sons or mentors and mentees — which perhaps reflect Scorpio’s traditional ruler, Mars, which also rules men in general.
Le Guin, on the other hand, famously focused much of her writing on gender and the possible variations of gender and relationship dynamics within human societies. Novels like Left Hand of Darkness, and stories like “Unchosen Love,” were Le Guin’s thought experiments imagining relational and mating scenarios drastically different from anything on Earth. Her greater emphasis in her writing on the topics of gender and relationships reflect the placement of her Mercury-Venus conjunction in Venus-ruled Libra, which would naturally focus more on the social implications of relationships. And indeed, at the heart of Le Guin’s world building is her ability to depict complex webs of relationships.
It’s also interesting to think of the contrast between Le Guin’s Venus-Mercury in diurnal Libra and Herbert’s Venus-Mercury in nocturnal Scorpio. Anyone who knows their work well might agree that Le Guin’s fiction is more “sunny” when compared with Herbert’s darker, more violent stories. I would even go so far as to call aspects of Herbert’s fiction “horror” or horror-adjacent.
Next comes the Moon-Jupiter conjunctions. Whereas Mercury rules the rational mind, Venus’s domain is attraction and taste, Mars is desire and action, and the Sun is the light of individuality and intelligence, the Moon is probably the best symbol for one’s imagination. It is the nocturnal luminary, the one connected to one’s emotions and subjective reality, as opposed to one’s objective sense of reality, which is shown by the Sun. Throughout human existence, people have gathered in the evening under the light of the Moon to share stories — often fantastical stories filled with myth, monsters and magic. Other writers with Mercury-Venus conjunctions, such as T.S. Eliot, are eloquent writers and deep thinkers about aesthetics, but I think it is the artist’s Moon which dictates the quality of imagination.
Perhaps more than anything a Jupiter-Moon person would have an appetite for knowledge about their world. But they would not be content with the scientific facts — they would also want to engage with the big philosophical issues and questions that really drive people. They would want to see where the worlds of knowledge, religion and myth intersect with their own and others’ emotional and bodily lives.
Seeing the charts of these two creative artists together makes me want to dub this aspect the “world-building” aspect. And the fact that each of their Jupiter-Moon conjunctions are in Mercury-ruled signs fit with how each channeled their world-building talents into their writing. Herbert’s conjunction is in Virgo and Le Guin’s is in Gemini. I especially like to connect Herbert’s Virgo Moon-Jupiter with his intense focus (in his fiction and activism) on ecology.
That’s about all I have time for here. I’ll let readers muse on their own about their other shared aspects. If you haven’t read their work yet, I highly recommend it. And if you have more thoughts about how their charts relate to their writing, let me know by sending me a message or leaving a comment!
Some recent chart readings I’ve done for people in their mid-twenties have made me appreciate the astrological timing technique of annual profections in new ways. I want to focus here on what annual profections have to say, in general, about this important time in life. I think that the 20’s are a time when astrology can be a helpful framing device for thinking about the big decisions most of us are faced with during these years.
Annual profections is an ancient timing technique that dates back to the Hellenistic period in astrology, about 2,000 years ago. I learned the basics of this technique many years ago, but I thought it seemed gimmicky, perhaps because of its simplicity. But more recently I’ve found that annual profections can help pinpoint when we should pay special attention to important areas of life.
How do I determine which house is active in a given year?
The basic idea is simple. For each year of life, beginning at birth, one house will be active beginning with the first house during the first year of life, the second house for the second year of life, and so on around the wheel of houses. The annual profected years return to the first house every 12 years. That is, 0-1, 12-13, 24-25, 36-37, etc., will all be first house profection years. And 1-2, 13-14, 25-26, etc., will be 2nd house profection years.
It’s helpful to have a graphic to quickly pinpoint which houses are active in a given year, but it can easily be calculated in your head. For example, because my current age (48) is a multiple of 12, I know that I am in a first-house profection year.
What does it mean when a house is activated by annual profection?
This gets a little complicated here, but don’t worry. What I write below does not require this level of knowledge about natal charts. If you are a beginner or non-astrologer, you can skip ahead.
When a house is activated by annual profection, the themes of that house will play a prominent role during that year. The general themes will be similar for everyone. For example, someone in a 2nd house profection year will experience themes and/or changes related to possessions, income, and personal values. But that, of course, can mean a lot of things.
To get more details about the kinds of experiences an individual can expect during a 2nd house profection year, you can look at any planets in that natal house, the condition of those planets by essential dignity, and their aspects to other planets in the natal chart. For example, someone with Jupiter in their 2nd house will experience their 2nd house profection years differently than someone with Saturn in their 2nd house.
Next, you look at the sign that’s in that house (I use whole-sign houses) and find where the ruler of that sign is located in the chart. This is the “lord” or ruler of that house, and it will show you another area in the chart that is related to the house that it rules. For example, someone with a Scorpio rising will have Sagittarius in the 2nd house. And because Jupiter is the ruler of Sagittarius, that person’s Jupiter will be the lord/ruler of their 2nd house. Now, if Jupiter falls in the persons’ natal 4th house, they probably find that their finances are tied up with family members, or they earn income through a family-related business. And in a 2nd house profection year, these themes connecting income with family will be activated in some way.
It’s also important to look at where the ruler of the profected house is currently transiting. The chart is extra sensitive to transits to and from the rulers of profected houses. So if someone’s 2nd-house ruler is Jupiter, and Jupiter is transiting through the 10th house of career, a person can expect some development in their career to result in some increase in income (one of Jupiter’s meanings is increase). If, instead, the second house ruler is transiting the 8th house, perhaps some money or possession come to the person through an inheritance, or through some money coming back to them that they loaned to someone in the past.
That should be enough complexity for now, and it should be enough to see that the same profection years will not yield the same experiences for everyone — or even for the same person when they happen twelve years apart.
Here is a brief breakdown of annual profection themes from ages 24 through 29
Again, it’s important to remember that these themes are very general, and they will be different for each individual. Nonetheless, I find it can be helpful to see the profection years as a developmental process that happens over a several-year period of time. So as you read through these, try to imagine the changes from year to year as part of a longer-term developmental process.
AGE 24 (1st house profection year)
The 1st house is about the self, and a 1st house profection year is a good time to take stock of the person you’ve become so far. It’s a good time also to think about the kind of person you want to be going forward. In some ways, a first house profection year can be disorienting. There is a “clean slate” feeling, like many things are possible. It can feel on the one hand like we have a lot of decisions to make, and on the other hand we can feel swept along by circumstances. It’s important to use this time to turn your mind’s eye upon yourself, your behaviors, and your desires. If you do this well, you can emerge from this year with a clearer sense of who you are and what you want out of life.
AGE 25 (2nd house profection year)
The 2nd house has to do with money, possessions, resources and values. And indeed this can be a year when money becomes a major theme. Many of us at 25 are working and making our own money for the first time, and it becomes important to think about what we will do with that money. In order to decide, we need to reflect on the things we value. Do you want to spend your money on things or experiences? Do you want to save for the future or look for projects to sink your money into with the promise of future returns. The second house has some traditional connections to marriage, so this might be a year when the possibility of marriage arises.
AGE 26 (3rd house profection year)
The 3rd house is a busy place, but experiences here are not typically significant in a formative way like we see in 4th or 10th house years. The third house is the place of neighbors, acquaintences, routine short-distance travel, and siblings. It’s also related to communication and learning. Unless someone has major natal placements in the 3rd house, this year might feel less significant or eventful than other years in one’s 20s. But it can be a very useful year in terms of learning new skills, networking with people in your environment, and generally preparing for the important couple of years ahead.
AGE 27 (4th house profection year)
The fourth house is one’s symbolic foundation. For most of us this means home and family, and this can indeed be a year when many experiences revolve around family. It can be a time when we move house for some reason. The 4th house is another angular house, which means that, like the 10th and 1st house profection years, experiences during this year have a more formative influence on life going forward. Age 27 in particular is when many of us feel drawn to certain places. For some of us, that will mean returning to our ancestral hometown in order to be closer to family. Other people might feel drawn to places far away from the places where they grew up. If you are feeling a strong pull toward a certain area at this time, you should follow those feelings and go there — even if you don’t end up staying, you will find that some important experience awaits you there. The 4th house has a lot to do with how we feel happy and satisfied with life. 27 is also a good age to begin thinking about the kind of home life you want to make for yourself. It will be most productive to think about the quality of life that you want more than simply where you want to live. Work-life balance is another important concept to think about at this time.
AGE 28 (5th house profection year)
The 5th house’s best-known signification is children, and this 5th house year indeed often coincides with issues related to childbearing and child rearing. But of course not everyone will be having children during these years. So what are other 5th house experiences that might come up during this year? To name a few: Leisure activities, games, pleasure activities, gambling, courtship and dating, and creative activities such as making art. With this list, one can see how the topic of happiness continues into this house from the 4th house. But I’d say that the 4th house is more about contentment, roots, and security, whereas the 5th house is how we actively enjoy ourselves. So in this year it’s important to put some time and energy into doing things you enjoy. And if you have been spending the last few years doing little except work, it’s time to start looking for a pastime where you can get some pleasure and satisfaction.
AGE 29 (6th house profection year)
The 6th house is related to daily routines related to health, diety, exericize and the little duties and chores that help us maintain our lives and lifestyles. Many of us go through life ignoring these things as much as possible. If you’re one of those people, this will be an important year for making peace with the fact that living a good life requires many boring, routine activities. This is a great year to take stock of your health and begin doing things to improve it. This is also the house of pets and domestic animals, so you might think of getting a dog to help motivate you to take walks a couple of times a day! This would also be a good year to look at things in your life that you need to get rid of. This might mean purging possessions you no longer need, but more likely you have some bad habits that you could also do away with. For most of us, this is the final year of our first Saturn return, which is a time when we are looking forward to the middle 30 years of life. And it’s in those middle 30 years that some of us will encounter our first major health problems — and for many of us, the late 20s and early 30s are when those potential health problems begin in the form of bad habits. Therefore, it’s a good time now to adjust your health routines and make adjustments that your future self will thank you for!
Conclusion
Ages 24 through 29 are annual profection years related to the first 6 houses of the chart. These are the houses that are under the horizon. That is, they are related to our private lives. The “outer” seven houses, houses 7-12, have to do with our public lives. Annual profections give us a way to look at the ways that experiences of our inner and outer lives ebb and flow like tides over a 12-year period of time. The profection years during one’s mid- to late-20’s show that much of our attention is focused on ourselves during these years — and that’s as it should be. It is a time for figuring out who we are, what we value, the things we need to know, where we want to be, what makes us happy and gives us pleasure, and what our bodies and minds require to stay healthy in the long-term. So the quality of attention we give to ourselves during these years will help to create a good foundation for the years ahead. So when we do meet the world, we meet it with our best selves.
Anna May Wong in 1937, promotional photo for her film Daughter of Shanghai
“I see Wong as a versatile artist, game enough to produce bad performances of the oriental that undercut any notions of authenticity while vitally engaged with self-fashioning and presentations of self.” — Shirley Jennifer Lim, author of the recent study of Wong’s career, Anna May Wong: Performing the Modern.
Below is the birth chart for Anna May Wong, one of the most important American actresses of the 20th Century. Her career spanned decades, continents and cultures, and her work was rich in contradictions as she evolved from a young, ambitious talent to one of the top artists in her field.
Anna May Wong, January 3, 1905, 8:56AM, Los Angeles, CA. Whole sign houses.
Anna May Wong was a major Hollywood actress in the years between the two world wars. Many of her best-known movie roles, beginning in the silent movie era, would rightly be seen today as perpetuating negative stereotypes of “exotic,” non-western women. Yet her vast body of work — not only lesser-known American films, but including European, British and Australian film and theater work — is only recently becoming widely appreciated.
For decades after her death, Wong was mostly remembered for her early film roles portraying vampy Asian women alongside white actors (who were often in yellowface), but her other works show a rare and versatile talent.
According to recent scholarship, the ways that Wong took control of her image and roles, beginning in the late 1930s, shaped American culture in significant ways by portraying more positive images of Chinese and Chinese Americans. Her work, on and off-screen, is credited with helping to change the tide of American public opinion towards the plight of the Chinese during the Second Sino-Japanese War and towards immigrant Chinese in the US.
I was pleased to find a timed chart for Wong on Astrodatabank. The Rodden rating for the birth time is C, but my experience in chart rectification from approximate times makes me trust it. Moreover, reading about her work and character and comparing biographical details with the chart’s transits, progressions and zodiacal releasing peak periods gives me confidence that she had an Aquarius rising chart.
SOME FEATURES OF WONG’S CHART
The prominent Saturn-Venus conjunction in Aquarius in Wong’s first house reflects her tall, slender frame, beautiful appearance, and her often-cited formality and personal aloofness in public appearances. It can also be seen in her never having married, and her claim to be wedded to her art. I also see it in some of her later screen characters — independent, hard-working, authoritative women — including a now-lost prime-time crime drama series that aired in the US in the early 1950s where Wong plays a detective.
Her Aquarius rising also reflects her strong social and political consciousness. She used her work and celebrity status to raise support and awareness for the plight of Chinese during the Second Sino-Japanese War and Chinese refugees in the US. She donated her income and time to political causes, including being active in party politics in support of the Democratic party in the 1950s.
I’m burying the lead if I don’t address her obvious glamor. This is well-reflected by her Sun-Neptune opposition, as well as her Libra Mars. Sun-Neptune aspects invite projections of mystery, exoticism and glamor from others. Mars in Libra people can do well in arts and fashion due to their sensitivity to beautiful forms — and Wong was one of the greatest fashion icons of her time.
Anna May Wong in Piccadilly
Her Libra Mars reflects someone who moves with purpose and grace. Libra Mars people often seem to move on a higher plane than the rest of us, and she certainly seemed aware of that, and used it to its fullest effect in her career as a glamorous Hollywood actress.
That Libra Mars is also involved in a kite configuration. A kite occurs when two legs of a grand trine each make sextiles to a fourth planet. In my experience, kites show remarkable talents. When those talents are cultivated rather than neglected, these people can achieve great things. Wong’s kite involves the grand trine of Mars in Libra, Saturn/Venus in Aquarius, and Pluto in Gemini. Saturn/Venus and Pluto then sextile Jupiter in Aries. With Jupiter at the point of the kite, her talents would have most clearly been seen in her courage, vision, intelligence, and sense of justice. And with Jupiter in the 3rd whole-sign house, talents would be related to communication and language. In Mars-ruled Aries, that communication would be expressed physically. And with Mars in Libra, that physical expression would happen in ways that involve art and the intellect. All of this fits Wong’s biography quite well. She also performed parts in European theater and film that required her to speak German and French, and she studied received pronunciation in England.
With Wong’s day chart, Jupiter would be the most positive planet in the chart. So not only did she gain great benefit from the aforementioned communication and language talents; she also was very close with her siblings throughout her life (the 3rd rules one’s siblings).
Because of her daytime chart, Mars would be the most challenging planet in her chart. Mars falls in Wong’s 9th house of long-distance travel. In the late 1930s, she visited China for the first and only time in her life. It was a famously difficult trip for her, about which she said, “It’s a pretty sad situation to be rejected by Chinese because I’m ‘too American’ and by American producers, because they prefer other races to act Chinese parts.”
Mars rules Wong’s 10th whole-sign house of career, so it’s natural that the difficulties would relate so directly to her reputation and public image. Mars ruling her 10th house through Scorpio is fitting in another obvious way: Anna May Wong was a great sex symbol of the era, one who portayed taboo, sexualized figures on screen, and who was eroticized and exoticized throughout her life by fans and detractors alike.
Wong’s Sagittarius Moon shows an indomitable spirit. She suffered from depression and addiction to alcohol and tobacco for most of her life, and the latter would contribute to her early death (more on that below). But she overcame those difficulties for the most part and had a very active and productive career. Sagittarius Moon is like a cork: its optimistic nature helps to keep its natives emotionally afloat.
Wong’s Capricorn Sun lent ambition and focus and drive (Mars is exalted in Capricorn), but it is also in the “bad” 12th house, which shows themes of loss, sacrifice and “self-undoing.” Among these themes are often addiction to alcohol and/or drugs, and other psychological issues like depression. 12th house people can also show great compassion for others who suffer because 12th house natives have suffered themselves. And recalling Wong’s never having married or having children—her 12th house Sun rules her 7th house of partnership, and her 12th house Mercury rules her 5th house of children. This is fitting, as 12th house planets can indicate some sacrifice or loss involving the house or houses that they rule. In Wong’s case, she sacrificed marriage and children for the sake of her career as an artist.
There are many more interesting connections to be made between Wong’s chart and her life. I think a deeper analysis of her fourth house, her Sagittarius Moon, and her Moon-Pluto opposition say a lot about her early life circumstances and her family’s status as immigrants in the US. An evolutionary reading of her 5th house Gemini Pluto also holds potential for explaining her immense magnetic power as a bi-cultural performer and persona. And as the 11th house can be read as an artist’s audience (it’s the 7th house from the 5th house of self-expression), Wong’s 11th house Sagittarius Moon also helps to understand the devoted worldwide following she enjoyed during her life and in the decades since her death—not to mention her many close friendships with notable women of her time.
Finally, I want to mention the upcoming project to produce a biopic film about Wong starring Gemma Chan. This project was announced in March of this year, not long after Saturn had returned to the degree in Aquarius of Wong’s natal Saturn. Also, not long after that announcement, Jupiter ingressed into Aries. So while this film project is beginning to take shape, Saturn and Jupiter are returning to the positions they held at Wong’s birth. This repeating of an aspect or phase between two planets is another timing technique that astrologers use to pinpoint significant trends in a life — or, in this case, trends having to do with someone’s legacy.
I hope you enjoyed this post. Please leave a comment, especially if you happen to know Gemma Chan’s birth time!
I forget exactly when I first discovered the German writer, W. G. Sebald. It was in the few years after his death from a heart attack in 2001, at age 57. He had been publishing books in German since the late 1980s, and it was only with the English publication of his book The Emigrants in 1996 that he gained recognition in the anglophone literary world. He only achieved (not to say enjoyed) widespread international fame in the year of his death with the publication of his book Austerlitz. That book put him on track to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which he might have done had he lived longer.
I have yet to read that most famous book, but I’ve read most of the others, starting with The Emigrants, which remains my favorite so far, and the one I recommend to anyone as an introduction to his work. Its four separate narratives each display his genre-defying storytelling style that combines fiction, memoir and historical non-fiction.
Although Sebald is now considered one of the world’s best and most original writers since the Second World War, he remains controversial in his native Germany, and it was only with the publication of his translated works that he gained widespread recognition. Some of the controversy stems from his stories in The Emigrants and, later, in Austerlitz — narratives about Jews who had survived the holocaust. That is controvertial in itself, given the problematic situation of a German narrating supposed Jewish experiences in the aftermath of WWII. But he has also been criticized for certain uses of source materials, and for the ways that his fictions strike many readers as accurate depictions of historical events and persons when they are demonstrably not.
He has also written poetry and non-fiction. His book, On the Natural History of Destruction, is one of the most heart-stopping descriptions of the aftermath of WWII within Germany. I don’t think any other writer, until its publication in 1999 (2003 in English), had managed to put into book form the indescribable collective trauma that played out within Germany’s borders in the post-war years. In fact, much of the book deals with the literary descriptions of that aftermath and their inevitable inadequacy. The book, though it reads as non-fiction, is quintessentially Sebaldian in its mix of first-person narration, painstaking research, descriptive writing, and un-captioned photographs — the latter being one of his most striking and characteristic innovations.
THE VIRGO RISING CHART
W. G. (Max) Sebald was born on May 18, 1944, in the Bavarian town of Wertach. To my knowledge, no timed birth chart exists for him. But recently, when I was re-reading his poem series from 1988, Nach Der Natur (published in English as After Nature), I came across this passage in the final poem in the series. Here is the passage from the Michael Hamburger’s English translation (2002):
At the moment on Ascension Day
of the year ’forty-four when I was born,
the procession for the blessing of the fields
was just passing our house to the sounds
of the fire brigade band, on its way out
to the flowering May meadows. Mother
at first took this as a happy sign, unaware
that the cold planet Saturn ruled this hour’s
constellation and that above the mountains
already the storm was hanging which soon thereafter
dispersed the supplicants and killed
one of the four canopy bearers.
The astrological concept that I assume he is referring to here is planetary hours. I personally don’t work with planetary hours, but I know the concept, and I know how to look it up. So that’s what I did. It turns out that Saturn was the planetary ruler on the day of his birth in Wertach, Germany, from 1:15PM until 2:30PM. Conveniently, only one sign was coming over the eastern horizon during that time: Virgo. To be more precise, during that 75 minute period the Ascendant went from 4 to 18 degrees of Virgo.
The above passage can’t be taken as definitive proof of a birth time given Sebald’s reputation as a fictionalizer of his own life. But it is also well-within reason to think that Sebald would have been versed in astrology and acquainted with the idea of planetary hours. He had clearly given enough thought to the meaning of astrological Saturn to include it in his autobiographical poem. And, indeed, this reference to Saturn accurately reflects what would become known as his main themes as a writer: memory, loss, depression, history, collective trauma, etc.
Virgo rising chart for W. G. Sebald, born May 18, 1944, in Wertach, Bavaria, Germany
I have drawn this chart for 1:52PM, which gives him an 11-degree Virgo rising, halfway between 4 and 18 degrees.
This time has his MC at 6 degrees Gemini, within two degrees of a conjunction with Uranus. Uranus on the MC (or in the tenth house generally) fits a writer (Gemini) known for his uniqueness (he is often called “sui generis” by critics) and his innovations. He described how he developed his literary style as a rebellion against the confining restrictions of academic publishing.
His Sun and Venus and his ASC and MC ruler, Mercury, are all in Taurus in the 9th house. This fits someone who would be a lifelong academic. He traveled widely, often on foot, to do research for his writing. He lived most of his adult life in a foreign country: England.
Saturn is at 25 Gemini in his tenth whole-sign house (less than 3 degrees from my own natal Saturn), and Saturn makes no aspects to the other traditional planets. Saturn’s one aspect, traditional or modern, is an out-of-sign square to Neptune. Saturn placed prominently in the tenth house fits his reputation as reserved and deeply pessimistic. He was not without humor, which was generally sardonic and self-deprecating. The fact that his Saturn is largely without aspects to or from other planets reflects his feeling of being out of step with the rest of life. It was said that part of his originality as a writer stemmed from a ghostly quality to his writing, as if his narrators were speaking to the present day from a previous century.
Sebald’s Aries Moon makes aspects to only the three outer planets: It is opposite Neptune in Libra, trine to Pluto in Leo, and sextile his tenth-house Uranus. Otherwise, the Moon makes no close traditional aspect to any of the traditional planets. However, it does make a mutual reception with Mars in Cancer, which some would consider to be similar to an aspect. His Moon is also in the “bad” eighth house, which deals with inheritance, among other things. To me, this Moon reflects his preoccupation with the the issues of collective history and trauma, especially of war (of which Aries’ ruler, Mars, is the patron god). It has been suggested that his focus on WWII was partly related to his own father’s involvement. His father had been a soldier for the Nazis during the invasion of Poland. The elder Sebald became a prisoner of war until the 1950s, and Sebald’s main male role model as a child was his maternal grandfather. Whereas most of the post-war and baby boomer generations in Germany simply moved on and chose not to think about the past, Sebald seems to have thought of little else.
I want to mention one more thing that some students of Hellenistic Astrology can confirm for themselves, and that is the zodiacal releasing technique. Using this birth time, I found that the times in Sebald’s career when he received the most recognition and fame coincided with peak periods in terms of zodiacal releasing from the Lot of Spirit. He was having a Level 1 peak period from 1978 until the end of his life. A Level 2 “loosing of the bond” occurred in 1996, when his book, The Emigrants, was published in English. The next Level 2 peak period began in 2001, when his best-known work, Austerlitz, was published. The year 2001 was also a 10th house profection year as well as his second Saturn return. And as many astrologers will recall, 2001 was the year of the Saturn/Pluto opposition in Gemini/Sagittarius. All of these factors would have affected his public and private lives for both good and ill within that single year, as his sudden fame and then untimely untimely death in December of that year proved.
This post is by no means meant to be the final word on rectifying Sebald’s chart. I hope that other Sebald fans might find this and do their own research into the life of this fascinating writer. If this is interesting or helpful, or you’d like more information, please let me know!
What began unassumingly at the lunar eclipse on April 30, 2022 will inaugurate a new phase in life activity that will shape the next year and half in important ways. What areas of life where those changes happen will happen will depend on each person’s individual chart. This post is my attempt to describe those changes for each of the twelve zodiac signs.
It’s safe to say that the people most affected will be those with heavy fixed-sign placements in their charts, especially the Sun, Moon and Rising signs. The fixed signs are Taurus, Scorpio, Leo and Aquarius. The important thing to keep in mind, as you read your forecast below, is that the changes related to these eclipse cycles represent both big new beginnings as well as endings.
In general, this recent eclipse has likely brought with it some very hopeful visions of the future for most of us, as well as some practical steps in those directions. The groundwork is in the process of being laid. This is only the beginning of something that, again, will take the next year and a half to fully unfold.
This recent solar eclipse was in Taurus. This points to the things set in motion being physical and growth-oriented. There is likely money and income on the line, but that’s not the most important thing for most of us. This is a major new beginning, and even if money is on the line you should assume that there are bigger fish to fry than simply chasing a paycheck.
Venus in Pisces rules this new Moon, and she is conjoined with Jupiter nearly to the minute at 27 degrees Pisces. This represents great potential for things good and lofty. But it’s worth noting that Pisces is a nocturnal, feminine sign, and as such is more likely to bring riches of possibility and wisdom rather than concrete fortune, such as more money (though the latter isn’t out of the question).
Venus and Jupiter are still conjunct Neptune, which is just 5 and a half degrees away at 24 Pisces. This injects some unpredictability, unsureness, and a tendency to be unrealistic or overly-dreamy. Neptune can be an undermining influence, and the antidote to this is some good old hard-headed realism. So whatever you’re doing or planning, try not to get out over your skis. One step at a time. Always consider that you might not be seeing things clearly.
For this lunation, Mars is also in Pisces, but farther back at 11 degrees. His co-presence with Venus/Jupiter/Neptune nonetheless brings an energy that orients one toward action — for better or worse. So remember, Mars-inspired action can be a double-edged sword, and we still need to think carefully about the right times to take action.
This is a North Node eclipse, so the new beginning represents a promise of increase. But when the full Scorpio Moon occurs near the south node on May 16th, we get a chance to see what we need to give up, or sacrifice, in order to go forward. But don’t fret, because the supportive trine to the eclipsed Moon from Mars/Neptune will be sweeping us along in that direction, making the necessary letting go a little easier.
Mars’ ingress into Aries on May 24th-25th (depending on time zone) conjuncts the Moon at 0 degrees Aries, as well as Jupiter at 2 degrees Aries. This really speeds things up! Mars in Aries is now free to move and he has the resources to be his fiery self.
However, I get the sense that for many of us this burst of action will feel less like moving forward and more like scrambling to do the things we forgot to do, or procrastinate about, over the previous month or two. Some of the things that began in April and early May are in full swing now, and it’s time to play catch-up. So if you’re procrastinating about certain things now, starting to work on them early can save you some stress later on.
Mercury retrograding back into Taurus at the end of May reinforces this idea. And with the usual Mercury retrograde fashion, we could find ourselves rethinking and recalibrating plans that seemed airtight back in April (when we had the benefit of Jupiter in Pisces’ vision and optimism).
By the new Moon of May 30th at 9 degrees Gemini, after a short period of doubt, we should be ready to shift focus to the new stage of activity that the earlier eclipses inaugurated, and which will form the basis of some important changes for the next 18 or so months.
Below is a quick rundown of the areas of life where each sign can expect to see big beginnings and endings over the course of the next year and a half during the Taurus-Scorpio eclipses. You can assume I’m referring to Ascendant or Rising signs, but Sun and Moon signs work too. If you were born in the daytime, the Sun sign will be more important, and if you were born at night, the Moon sign will be more important.
ARIES
This eclipse cycle begins by putting focus on your personal finances. Ideally, you’ll be putting more focus into increasing your income, and there’s a good likelihood that you’ll succeed. However, some bills are coming due at the same time. So, as you’re making money, be sure that you are using that new stream of income to pay down any debts that you have.
When the next eclipses in this series begin to happen in November, your focus will shift to money you share with others. This includes debts, but also money that other’s owe to you. And as money is one of the most emotional areas of life, this can bring up some issues in your relationships, especially with those people you share money with (or owe money to). These can be partners, friends, family members, or other parties — anyone with whom you share resources. You should start thinking about sacrifices that you’re willing to make to put yourself on a better and more sustainable financial footing. You’ll thank yourself later.
TAURUS
Since these eclipses are happening along the Scorpio-Taurus axis, this will have quite a global influence on your life. Taurus is your self, your body, your mind— basically the focal point that all of your energies must be focused through. So eclipses here can begin a process of personal changes that are thorough and far-reaching.
To get an idea what this might mean, think back to 9 years ago, and to 18.5 years ago. These were the last two times that eclipse cycles happened in your houses of self and partnership. (If you want, you can keep going back in 9.3-year increments from there.) What big things began or ended during those times? Thinking back might give you hints about the personal and social changes you expect to see coming up. An astrologer who can examine your chart more closely can be helpful in pinpointing areas most impacted. (Hint: it will have a lot to do with where Venus falls in your chart.)
GEMINI
Not all Geminis will be feeling this eclipse so obviously, but there are a few things to watch for. The eclipses begin in your 12th house, which is quite a hidden place in most people’s charts. So whatever is beginning might be rather shadowy and out of your view. One way to access this area for hints is through analyzing your dreams. Another way I’ve found helpful is engaging in creative practices that somehow get your logical mind out of the way. This can take many many forms depending on your background: painting, drawing, writing, etc.
I would be remiss if I didn’t address the possibility of being undermined by someone during this time. This is because enemies, especially secret enemies, is another meaning of the 12th house. The best advice here is to avoid doing anything that might inadvertently piss someone off.
The 12th house is also the house of self-undoing, and eclipses there can make you more susceptible to self-destructive tendencies such as self-defeating thought patterns or, in extreme cases, addictive behaviors. So if this is a danger for you, be extra careful, and if you think you may need help, don’t hesitate to seek it.
For most of you, this will simply be a good time to spend some quality time by yourself, as the north-node quality of these eclipses can show increases related to your inner life. This doesn’t mean you need to go off to a meditation retreat or stop answering your messages. You’re likely too busy for that. But carving a few minutes out of your day for meditation, reflection, or just for spacing out can offer unusually strong benefits for you now.
One place this eclipse cycle can be more noticeable is in your health and in your daily work environment. You might see ways that you can change some habits of eating or exercise that improve your health. The theme here will be cutting back, eliminating things, and cleansing. So rather than adding new things to your workout, what can you do to streamline or simplify your workout? Same thing with your work. What changes can you make that bring more efficiency to your work?
CANCER
Cancers can expect some new beginnings having to do with long-term plans, friendships, and social groups you’re involved with. Starting things that enlarge your social circle are likely now. This doesn’t need to happen overnight, but rather a process is beginning that will see your social circles change.
The other side of this coin (the Scorpio side) has to do with concrete expressions of your individuality. This sounds abstract on purpose, because it can mean many things on a practical level. On a very tangible level, it can mean children. But Scorpio is the South Node end of this eclipse cycle, so you might be making decisions now related to delaying children rather than having them. You might be getting pressured to have kids, but you would rather prioritize other plans. You might be saying, “I’m not ready.” And no one knows this better than you, so, in this, follow your instincts.
If having children is off the table, you might instead be faced with the choice between putting energy into social concerns and friends, on the one hand, or in more personal, creative concerns, on the other hand. For now, many of you may find it more important to put energy into social networking and to let the creative projects take a back seat.
Another way this can go is that a new friendship interferes with your romantic life, or vice-versa, a new romance forces you to take time away from your best friends.
Or new visions that you have for your future will force you to reassess the things you do for fun. You might realize that you need to sacrifice your play time in order to achieve your long-term goals.
LEO
The next year and a half will keep you busy, mostly in work- and career-related pursuits. You might also begin a transformation in how you present yourself to the world. You might be thrust into new arenas of activity where you are noticed more by others, and this causes you to take steps toward building or maintaining your reputation.
The activities you begin can set up a tension between your work and family lives. A move is possible, and will likely be one that takes you farther away from immediate family. These changes could result in changes in how much you see your family. Work might even take you away from your partner, and this is likely periodic and temporary — it has more to do with your responsibilities than with the health of the relationship. If your relationship is in good health, it won’t be a problem. If there are questions looming about your partnership, then the next year will be a test of the strength of that union.
VIRGO
It is safe to say that this 1.5-year eclipse cycle will be a time of intellectual growth and development for Virgo people. The archetypal experience here would be entering into a program of higher education, like university or graduate school, but obviously not all Virgos will be in that stage of their lives.
Intellectual development can have to do with gaining new theoretical knowledge related to your work, or with learning a new language, or even some new interest in religion or metaphysics. All of these areas are highlighted for the next 18 months.
In the process, you will simultaneously need to let go of some of what you previously knew, information or views which have become outdated or obsolete. This is not always the easiest process for most people, but you Virgos are a flexible tribe. The best-case scenario will see you develop a synthesis between the old and the new.
If overseas, long-term travel is a possibility at this time, the astrology supports it. Just be careful that you have all of your vaccinations and insurance policies in order before you leave, as there are still some looming health issues related to a different area of your chart. And I don’t say this to make you worry: if there have been health problems, you already know about them, and can expect them to be in the background for the rest of this year. If you’re one of the lucky Virgos who haven’t manifested health issues in the last two years, then no worries.
LIBRA
Like their opposite sign, Aries, Libra people can expect this 16 month eclipse cycle to be about finances. The eclipses begin in your 8th house, which relates to shared money and resources. This translates for most people as taxes and debts, as well as inherited money.
These areas of life are often things we don’t enjoy thinking about unless we have very good planetary placements in the 8th house (in which case you might work in finance). But this eclipse cycle will make it so you don’t have the luxury to ignore your finances any longer. Paying off debts can be a good manifestation of this transit. Going into some amount of debt is more likely — but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since we often borrow money in order to make investments in our futures. Just make sure that you have a clear plan and that you’re able to pay back what you borrow.
It is easy to imagine this era of eclipses in your money houses being related to your relationship in some ways. For example, getting married usually means that you and your new spouse share your resources — and are jointly responsible for them.
Be cautious now, and you shouldn’t have to worry. Your financial mantra should be, “Be realistic.” If you have children, they might be draining your bank account now for some reason. If that’s the case, try to reign in that spending. It’s a great opportunity to teach your kids about frugality and responsible spending — and a great time for you to model it.
SCORPIO
This upcoming 18-month-long era of eclipses is lighting up your seventh house of partnership and your first house of self. Partnership can mean your marriage partner, your business partners, very close friends, or your clients if you are in a business that works in close, one-on-one situations. New beginnings can be affecting any of these types of 7th house relationships.
The lunar eclipse this mid-May will be a rare opportunity to glimpse the nature of any upcoming relationship issues. And this is important since there will be some 4 or 5 more of these eclipses in these houses. For Scorpios, the houses of partnership and children will be linked, so changes or new developments in partnership can affect children, and vice versa. If you’re not married, it could be a time when a dating relationship becomes more committed and permanent, either through marriage or some other type of commitment to each other. If you want to take a relationship to the next level, this is a good time to do it. If so, it’s important for you to make your desires clear.
If you’ve been avoiding home and family for a while (for whatever reasons), this is a good time to begin putting that part of your life back into greater focus. Putting energy into your home and close family members now will pay off in the long run in terms of stability and happiness.
SAGITTARIUS
The Taurus solar eclipse on April 30th just kicked off an 18-month eclipse cycle in your house of health and work, but also your house of secrets, enemies and self-undoing. These houses, when activated, can take up a lot of your energy, often without much to show for it. This can be frustrating for you Sagittarians who are always living over the next horizon.
The sixth house involves doing maintenance on things that need repairing. This can mean maintaining your car or your body, so it’s a good time to check that the practical necessities of your life are in good working order. It’s likely that something will break down — something minor — as a little wake-up call. Heed the call now, because later on it might not be so minor.
Traditionally the 12th house is the house of enemies, so do what you can to avoid making enemies. But there’s another side of the 12th house, which is more spiritual and mental in nature. Whereas the 6th house is related to those minor bad fortunes of accidents and manageable illnesses, the 12th house are afflictions of a more psychic kind. It is highly recommended now that you begin thinking about your mental health in tandem with your physical health. How’s your stress level? Have you forgotten how to relax? Are you getting enough time with friends and loved ones? Are you partying too much? When’s the last time you went out in nature?
One other thing about the 6th house. For two thousand years it’s been associated with animals and pets. If you’re one of those animal-loving Sagittarians, but you don’t have a little lovable doggie or kitten or whatever, you might think about getting one. They can do wonders for one’s emotional as well as physical health. Just make sure you can afford the time and money that pets require and deserve.
CAPRICORN
If you’re single, this one and a half-year eclipse cycle can present some opportunities to bring some romance and pleasure into your often-overworked life. I never met a Capricorn who didn’t love to indulge the simple pleasures of romance and sensuality but who also made enough time for these things in their busy schedules. Now’s the time.
A new lover is not the only way to take advantage of these eclipses. If you’re married or have a romantic partner, there are many ways you can inject more romance into your lives. And if it’s been a while and you feel out of practice, remember that love is its own engine: the more you do it, the easier and better it goes. Love is a verb, Baby!
Taurus is in your fifth house, the house of pleasures, sex, creativity and children. And this eclipse cycle can mean new beginnings in any of these areas. Yes, having children might be on the table, but this might not happen right away — but it’s a good time to get the ball rolling if children have been part of your long-term plans.
Your opposite sign is Cancer, whom I told to expect some conflicts between friends and lovers, social life and pleasures, future plans and leisure time. Same goes for you, but the inverse. Instead of prioritizing friends and social obligations, you should prioritize lovers, pleasure and children. Rather than keeping yourself needlessly busy with your needy friends, stay home more with your honey. Less “Of course I will” and more “Netflix and chill.”
AQUARIUS
Aquarius is one of those signs that’s being most affected by these eclipses, and the place this will show up most is in the home environment. There are both big beginnings and big endings afoot on the home front.
Because this is the start of a 1.5-year eclipse cycle in your home and career houses, you can expect changes in both areas, but it’s the home side of this axis where the interesting action is. In fact, you might see some decrease in work responsibilities, or at least a pulling back from the more public aspects of your work. You may find the need to sacrifice some of your work responsibilities in order to tend to family obligations and duties. This might be just what you need, even if a decrease in work goes against other long-term plans.
You currently have a strong impulse for change at home. Things are too solid, too routine, but changes are coming. You have probably already sensed these changes coming — or you have some plans for enacting those changes. But this is going to be tricky, because this is not an area where you should act unilaterally (which is probably your custom). These are changes you can’t really control or predict. And they might not be things you like or find pleasant, but if you can learn to adapt to the new circumstances you’ll likely look back and find that they were just the changes you needed. The more you can surrender to the change, the more happiness you reap. The more you resist and go your own way, the more the opposite is true.
I leave you with a statement to ponder: “We are responsible for our own unhappiness, whereas our happiness is given to us by others.”
PISCES
The line that often comes to mind when I do these forecasts and get to Pisces is “Last but not least.” You’re probably used to this, my friend.
This eclipse cycle, dear Pisces, begins a 1.5-year cycle of learning. The first solar eclipse of the cycle happened on April 30th/May 1st (depending on your time zone) in your 3rd house in Taurus. Taurus’ ruler, Venus, just happens to be in your sign (her favorite sign, by the way) along with the ruler of your sign, Jupiter. So if anyone is being smiled on by that eclipse, it is you.
What this means on a practical level is that the things you’re learning, the people you meet, the perspective you gain, will all give you an expanded sense of yourself, your worth, and your abilities — all things you can use more of.
The third house is a busy place. Along with learning, it signifies short-distance travel, communication, siblings and other relatives, and other people’s children. All of these areas might be areas where you see both beginnings and endings. The connections to education and youngsters often combine, and the person finds themselves in a situation where they become a teacher of young people.
Whether you just moved or you’ve been in your home for 20 years, it’s a good time to explore your neighborhood more, meet some people you don’t know, become involved in a local organization by volunteering time, or simply get to know your neighbors better. Summer’s coming: organize a block party!
An ancient meaning of the third house had to do with daily ritual practice, and this is something that might interest the more spiritual-minded Pisces people. This doesn’t have to take a particular form, or even be overtly religious, but some simple way or ways that you can remind yourself of the Mystery and your connection to the universe and the other beings in it. One form this might take is a new commitment to get out in nature a little bit each day, or as often as you can manage. You might tell yourself it’s for exercise, but the real motivation should be curiosity — curiosity about your environment and its inhabitants.
Because Taurus is the earth sign where the Moon is exalted, and because the third house is where the Moon finds its joy, you might find much satisfaction in incorporating more lunar experiences into your daily life. This means more time with family and children, more time cooking, taking long baths, losing yourself in novels or TV shows, moon gazing, walks in nature, or setting time aside to write in a journal or to just daydream.
In this post I will continue my thumbnail summary of the astrological houses, this time houses 7-12. These are the houses that we find above the horizon, which, in traditional thought, symbolize the realm of Spirit and the mind as opposed to the realm of Fortune and the body, which are symbolized by houses 1-6. To read my entry on the first six houses, go to the previous post.
The Seventh House
The seventh house straddles the western horizon (in whole-sign houses). Astronomically, it is the place where the sky disappears into the horizon. For this reason, the ancients connected it with death, though modern astrologers associate the eighth house more with death. The seventh house is opposite the first house of self, which gives us the meaning of the “house of the other.” And indeed, this is the house in both ancient and modern astrology that we look at to get information about one’s partners, especially the spouse. What kinds of partners do we seek out? What are our partners like? What are the qualities of our partnerships? What kinds of experiences are we likely to encounter in our committed partnerships? For answers to these questions, we first look to the seventh house.
This is arguably the most social house in the chart. It is one of the four angular houses, which are the most powerful and foundational houses in the chart. They are the chart’s anchors, and they help to answer the basic questions of “What are you like?” (1st house), “Who are you with?” (7th house), “Where are you from?” (4th house), and “What do you do?” (10th house).
People with significant seventh house placement usually have very significant dealings with a few individuals in the course of their lives. While two other houses, 3rd and 11th, are also explicitly social houses, it’s the seventh house where we see relationships that have the most impact on our lives. This is reflected in the opposition aspect that the seventh house makes to the first house of self.
The seventh-house relationships with partners, spouses, clients, and close friends also have an obvious impact on our home lives and career lives, so it’s important to look at planets in and associate with the seventh house in order to assess the nature of relationships in our lives. Mars in the seventh can show the importance of taking action within relationships, and indicate a competitive or combative approach to relationships in general. Saturn in the seventh is the classic indication of delayed marriage or marriage with a partner of a much older or younger age. Jupiter in the seventh can show a partner who is prominent or honored, who has religious leanings, or is involved with law or government. Mercury shows that constant communication will be a big part of how the person experiences relationships.
The Eighth House
The eighth house is the succedent house that follows the seventh-house angle. As the second house from the seventh, it is the reflection of the chart’s second house (which is second from the first). Just as the second house is one’s personal possessions, the eighth house is the possessions of the partner, or, more broadly speaking, the possessions of others.
One of the most useful keywords for the eighth house is debt. This is the money we owe to others, but also other kinds of debts as well. You’ll see issues with debt and taxes in the eighth house, but you also get psychological indications having to do with feelings of guilt or shame for what we owe to others (or what we think we owe).
One of the most long standing significations of the eighth house is inheritance. This signification combines the associations of death and possessions, and in traditional language this was specifically the gains we accrue through the death of someone else.
Even some astrologers find the eighth house difficult to talk about, but knowing some of these mundane significations can be helpful. And then when you begin applying more advanced techniques like analyzing house rulerships, eighth house significations can give you clear and helpful things to say about finances, investments and even work.
Some general examples might be seeing benefic planets in the eighth house of someone who gets financial support from others, or who inherits something of value. Someone with career significations related to the eighth house can show someone whose work is somehow related to death. Astrologer Chris Brennan frequently uses an example chart of a client with the ruler of the eighth house in the tenth house who is a mortician. My own brother, who is currently an ER nurse, has Saturn in the eighth house in close aspect to the ruler of his career house. He has spent most of his adult life working closely with death, first as an EMT and then as a cardiac and now an ER nurse. His example illustrates something that many astrologers have attended to: having malefic planets (e.g., Mars or Saturn) in the “bad” houses often equips the person with personal qualities to deal with those matters on a day-to-day basis. More on this when we get to the twelfth house.
The Ninth House
The ninth house is one of the four cadent houses. Except for the ninth house, the cadent houses get a bad rap — deservedly, in my opinion. The cadent houses each carry some aspect of the idea of “falling away.” This is because they are literally falling away from the prominence of the angular houses. They show places in the chart where we expend energy (often a lot of energy) just to maintain, or get back to, a normal level of functioning. Such activity is usually necessary, but we don’t usually derive much satisfaction or meaning from it. For instance, in the third house, we stay busy with the many little errands and the communications that’s required to keep us supplied with the food and resources to maintain our standard of living, but few people derive much satisfaction from these errands. In the sixth house, we are often doing the annoying work of repairing things, tending to the needs of other people or of animals, or we are recuperating from some accident, injury or illness. In the twelfth house, usually considered the worst of the bad houses, we are dealing with psychological or spiritual malaise, often anxiety or depression; or we are being hounded by worries stemming from secret or hidden activities in our lives (more on the 12th below).
However, the ninth house, despite being cadent, is one of the really good houses — in the top four or five. It is in the realm of spirit, and it makes a superior trine to the first house of self, and a supportive inferior sextile to the seventh house of partners.
The 9th house is where we work out our philosophy of life and our cosmological understanding, where we can put our existence in some context, which explains its bearing on the first house of self. This is how we can derive both religion and higher education from the 9th house. (We moderns mostly forget that universities grew out of monasteries in the Middle Ages.)
The idea of angular triads describes how the three houses at each angle can be seen in relationship to each other. That is, in numerical order the cadent house before the angular house, then the angular house itself, and finally the succeeding house after the angle. Here, it is the cadent 9th house giving the philosophical foundation that paves the way for the work one does in the tenth house of career and vocation. And indeed, we sometimes see important transits connected to the ninth house when a person is doing the work of learning that prepares them for some important phase in their careers.
The Tenth House
When working with whole-sign houses, as I do, the tenth house and the midheaven are not synonymous the way they are in quadrant house systems. In whole-sign houses, the MC can fall outside of the tenth house — either in the ninth or eleventh, usually. This simply means that tenth-house matters like career and reputation will be imported into the house where the MC falls. For example, MC in the eleventh house shows that one’s work is related in some important ways to one’s friends or with work in associations of like-minded people. The MC in the ninth can relate to careers that relate in some ways with higher education, travel, foreigners, or religious matters.
The tenth house is the first house astrologers look at when we want to know about the person’s career. As with the matters of any house, the first things to notice are the sign in that house, the planet that rules that sign, and whether there are planets there. Planets in the tenth house are very strong, and will give a lot of information about what kinds of energies one encounters in their interactions with the world at large. Planets there will show how the world sees the individual in terms of their talents, abilities, temperament, and, of course, reputation.
For example, someone with Mars in the tenth house will be perceived as being assertive and pioneering in their work. They probably tend to act quickly, and in short bursts of activity. Of course, the sign and the planet’s relationship with that sign will modify its expression. Someone with Neptune in the tenth house might carry an air of glamor around them, and other people might find them hard to define. They might also be instinctively drawn to artistic careers or activities that require idealism and unusual levels of refinement. Venus in the tenth house might show art and beauty factoring into the person’s work, while Mercury involves them with communications. The Sun might thrust them into authority positions, and Saturn might delay the career and show someone who shoulders great burdens of responsibilities at work or in life. Jupiter is also leaderly, but someone respected more for their wise judgment and counsel than their accummen with facts and figures.
This gets a little advanced, but looking at the planetary rulers of houses is especially fruitful when dealing with the angular houses. First, identify the planetary ruler of the sign in the tenth house. Then look at that planet’s position in the chart by house and then sign. Assessing the condition of that planet will tell you the relative ease that someone approaches their work life. Aspects that the planet makes to the MC and to personal planets can also give a lot of information. A tenth house ruling planet that falls in its own sign means the person finds the resources they need to carry out what they want to accomplish in their careers. A ruler in its detriment might feel like they are swimming upstream, or that they have to go about things in roundabout ways. (Detriment planets also have some interesting advantages, but that’s a discussion for another time.) A tenth house ruler in the sign of its fall can symbolize that the person experiences a literal public fall from grace at some point in their lives.
The topics of the house occupied by the planetary ruler of the tenth house will connect somehow to the person’s career. The ruler of the tenth in the fourth house of home, for example, shows that home and/or family factor into one’s career. The ruler in the fifth house brings the topic of children (probably but not necessarily one’s own) into one’s career. Ruler of the tenth house in the 6th house likely shows a career related to health, nutrition, or service.
Likewise, the topics of houses ruled by any planets that occupy the tenth house will bring those topics to bear in one’s career. The topics of the houses that 10th-house planets rule often show one’s motivation for working. For example, the ruler of the second house in the tenth house shows that one of the person’s primary motivations for working is to generate income. The third house ruler in the tenth house brings in the topics of communication, sharing information and short-distance travel into career matters, and can also connect to career with one’s sibling or relative.
The Eleventh House
The eleventh house is one of the most positive houses, and its traditional title is “the house of good spirit,” and Jupiter is said to have its joy here. Appropriately, this is the house of friends and like-minded people, as well as the house of future plans and hopes. Like the other so-called “good” houses, planets placed in the eleventh house are benefited in a similar way that they are benefited by aspects with Jupiter. For example, if the planetary ruler of the second house of income is placed in the eleventh house, your income will likely benefit because of certain people in the native’s close social circle.
The eleventh is a succedent house, which means that one of its functions is to consolidate energies into tangible forms. In the system of derived houses, it is the second house from the tenth house. This means that it relates to what we gain through our reputation: in other words, our good reputation brings us friends and allies as well as future opportunities.
Astronomically, planets in the eleventh house are moving up in the sky and are about to move into the angular position of the 10th house. In other words, they are in line for the most prominent position in the chart. This is what gives the meaning of optimism and future orientation to the eleventh house — rather than any association with the 11th sign, Aquarius. In fact, I am increasingly convinced that equating or even correlating signs with houses was and is a mistaken practice (known as the “astrological alphabet” approach), and I’m happy to see it falling out of favor. While there are some inviting parallels between some signs and houses (e.g. Cancer and the 4th house), the astrological alphabet approach has led mostly to confusion and bad delineations, and when the astrologer can unlearn it they’ll find that their astrology becomes more clear and accurate.
People for whom much of their work takes place on a stage or platform, the eleventh house can show the qualities of one’s audience. This is fitting as it is the opposite of the fifth house of creative expression. You can also derive this meaning by considering it the second from the tenth: i.e., the resources one gains through one’s actions — the people who value what you do enough to pay for it. Kurt Cobain had an exalted Jupiter conjunct the Moon in Cancer in his eleventh house, and he famously had and has one of the most loyal bases of fans some 28 years after his death. If I were doing an electional chart for a restaurant, I would want to see a strong eleventh house to help increase their chances of having a loyal customer base.
The Twelfth House
If there is one house that illustrates the fallacy of the astrological alphabet idea, it is the twelfth house. To connect the sign of Pisces, which is ruled by Jupiter and finds Venus exalted, with this house of “bad spirit” is to invite a slew of misinterpretations. I am perhaps more comfortable connecting the planet Neptune, said to be Pisces’ modern ruler, with the 12th house and its realm of delusions and secrets, though Saturn is much more fitting. And indeed, Saturn is traditionally said to have its joy in the 12th house.
The planetary joys system is a very old and very useful tool for understanding the meanings of the houses. Venus’s joy clearly gives us the fifth house’s connections with pleasures and sex. Jupiter’s joy in the eleventh shows the importance of groups to learning, and the fact that we get our more reliable counsel from our friends. The “lesser malefic,” Mars, finds his joy in the sixth house of bad fortune because that’s where things break down and are in need of some quick, remedial action. In other words, malefic Mars finds its joy in the sixth house because it can put its penchant for quick action to productive use rather than mere destruction, which is kind of Mars’ forte. Likewise with Saturn in the 12th house. Its opposite is the 6th house, the house associated with acute crises such as injuries or breakdowns of some practical nature. In terms of health, the 12th house is associated with long-term and chronic ailments, and it is Saturn’s ability to go slowly, to stoically withstand unpleasantness, to patiently work towards a distant future with consistency, that make the 12th house its place of joy. Yes, Saturn symbolizes malefic, or unpleasant, experiences, but it also shows one’s ability to withstand those same experiences with patience and even grace.
The 12th house, like other “bad” houses, makes no traditional aspect to the Ascendant, the place of self. This is why one of its titles is the “house of self-undoing.” And indeed when we see planets in the 12th house, they often have clear connections with self-defeating behaviors. In a way, we are blind to things in the 12th house, yet when a planet is there it is still driven to express itself. The 12th house shows secrets we keep, often from ourselves. Denial and addiction are classic 12th house manifestations.
Perhaps the most dire manifestation of difficult 12th house indications is severe mental illness. Addiction is just one example. It should be said here that astrologers should never diagnose clients with mental illnesses without the required medical qualifications. It can also be said that not every person with 12th house emphasis has mental illness or addiction issues. In fact, one often sees extraordinary people with strong placements in the “bad” houses, including the 12th hosue. This is because those placements often equip a person to help others going through difficulties.
I have a 12th house Venus, and I can give an example of a close friend from my adolescence who suffered from severe OCD and drug addiction in adulthood. There were a few years, later in our lives, when I was the only person he would call when he was going through relapses or psychotic episodes. It was emotionally very hard for me, and I can’t claim to be the saint in those situations (far from it), but I know I helped him to stay off of drugs and out of jail more than once.
In modern times the 12th house has become associated with spirituality, and I think there is good reason to agree. Many spiritual practices explicitly aim for “self transcendence” or “self-forgetting.” Even modern day secular teachers of mindfulness meditation use Buddhist concepts such as “piercing the illusion of self” in their instruction. These are the positive manifestations of the 12th house. But meditation teachers also warn their students of the disruptive and dissociative experiences that intensive meditation practices can induce. So even in its most positive manifestations we can still look to Saturn for support: patience, realism, persistence, and the long view can go a long way in tempering the most unpleasant 12th house experiences.
Chadwalk's Astrology 