Astro Coach Academy

Tag: Aspects

  • Love Thy Neighbour

    We talked about aspects in the past few posts. One more thing on that.

    You may wonder how do we know whether 2 (or more) planets are “in aspect” (or “aspecting each other”). What is the criteria to determine that they can communicate with each other? Is it because of their nature? Is it for some other reasons, based on time, or space?

    The truth is, this is an issue that has divided astrologers since… forever! So, I’ll tell you the theory, and you will have to experiment for yourself (after you have taken the course! 🙂 clever hint!) to see what works for you.

    OK, so here it is: you probably have not noticed yet on the charts I showed you on the previous posts, but next to the planets, you can see a small figure next to the glyph. It is the ‘degree’. In the example below, you can see a yellow colour crescent (it is… the Moon. Dah!) and next to it ’12°’. It means that the Moon is at 12 degrees of Pisces (the sign next to the figure 12).

    The Degrees

    So once you know the degree of a planet, you can look for planets that are on the same degree (either of the same or different signs) to establish the aspects. For example, a planet that is at 12 Pisces and a planet that is at 12 Gemini will be in ‘exact aspect’.

    It is very rare that 2 planets will be on EXACTLY the same degree, so you will need to allow for some variation on both sides of the degree when you consider that 2 planets aspect each other. The variation you allow is called an “orb”.

    Aspects & Orbs

    In the example above, you see that Moon at 12 Pisces and Mars at 5 Cancer (the turquoise colour glyph on the left hand side) at considered in aspect (there is a blue line connecting them) even though they are 7 degrees apart. The Sun (the dark blue circle with a dot in the middle) is at 3 Taurus and it is also in  aspect to Mars, they are only 2 degrees apart.

    The closer the orb, the more potent the aspect. So 2 planets which are on the same degree (although possibly in different signs) will have a strong connection.

    You may be wondering: Up to which orb are 2 planets still in aspect? Whats is the rule of thumb for me to know that, ye, those 2 planets ARE in fact talking to each other and influencing each other?

    Ah! Tough question. This is where astrologers have different views. Some people will consider that an acceptable orb is 5 degrees on both sides (so in the case of 12 Pisces, they will consider any degree between 7 and 17, i.e. 12-5 and 12+5 are valid aspects). Some will allow for a larger orb (usually up to 10 degrees on both sides), but some will have a stricter view. It depends.

    Valid orbs also differ depending on what branch of astrology you practice, for example Mundane astrology, the astrology used to determine world affairs and events, or Horary astrology, which casts charts to answer questions, tend to use very narrow orbs. Progressed charts use only exact aspects. But this is out of our subject.

    Want to know more and understand what’s behind all this? Sign up on the Astro Coach Academy Members List to get more in depth insights into how to interpret a chart and get members-only benefits when the eCourse comes online.

  • You’re Not The Boss Of Me

    Have you ever had the experience of meeting someone and communication just flows? You understand each other without efforts? The conversation brings you new insights, you feel supported, encouraged and, in turn, you support and encourage. Your ideas are valued and recognised.

    And have you ever had the exact opposite experience? No matter what you say or do, no matter how much efforts you make, you seem to be misunderstood, misread, belittled, denigrated, underestimated or even controlled, and very frustrated.

    Communication Between Planets

    Remember the theatre play: some characters have a natural empathy for each other, they inherently understand and support each other. And some characters just don’t. It’s the same for planets.

    How do you know whether 2 planets have smooth or challenging connection? Look at the aspects (the lines connecting the planets inside the inner circle).

    By the way, notice that we talk about “smooth” or “challenging” communication, not “good or bad”. Nothing in an astro chart is good or bad per se. Sometimes challenging communication leads to the deepest insights and achievements. So try to use a descriptive language rather than judge.

    Most astro charts will have some kind of ways to differentiate. In the example above (and many softwares will use this convention), blue means smooth and red means challenging.

    How do you determine whether the line is red or blue? It has to do with the elements of the signs the planets are in. Some elements just have an innate friendliness, some don’t.

    Want to know more? Join the Astro Coach Academy Member’s List. We’ll send you mini tutorials and you will get special benefits when the eCourse comes live.

  • Communication Is Key

    Following up on the post “Introduction to the astro chart”, there is one more thing you want to know about planets. They communicate with each other.

    Let’s have a look at the astro chart again.

    Planets Communicate

    You see the planets around the zodiac (represented by the circle). Then, you can see lines running within the inner limits of the circle from one planet to the other. Those are called ‘Aspects’ between planets, and essentially, it tells you:
    1. that 2 (or more) planets are having a conversation,
    2. and whether the conversation is flowing smoothly or not.

    Why is it important to understand?

    Well, just think about real people for a moment. Say you are faced with a dilemma or a problem, you have been thinking about it all by yourself for a moment, but you do not seem to see an answer. If you have no access to anyone, you’ll need to keep thinking about it all by yourself, maybe sleep over it and see whether an insight comes up the next morning. If you have a phone, you can call an expert you know will be able to assist you, or talk to a friend who may be able to give some insight because they know you well. If you have online access, you can connect and get a much wider range of information.

    It is the same for the planets.

    To go back to the theatre play analogy we used in a previous post, the actors either appear on-stage alone, or pairs, or in larger groups. Each actor has his or her own character, they behave in certain ways, but their behaviour may vary depending on who they interact with. Their environment will highlight different sides of their personality. Say a King will probably not behave the same way at a dinner party and on the battlefield.

    The relationship between planets, as indicated by the aspects, will therefore give many insights as to how the planets interact with each other, what sides of their ‘personalities’ come out more readily and the general environment they live in.

    More on aspects coming next.

    Sign up on the Astro Coach Academy Members List to get more in depth insights into how to interpret a chart and get members-only benefits when the eCourse comes online.