Cosmic Influence

"Astrology is astronomy brought to earth and applied to the affairs of man."

-Emerson

Aside from indulging in the occasional newspaper horoscope, most people fail to recognize the extensive insight astrology has to offer. It is the erroneous belief of many that the utility of AstroAnalysis was outmoded by modern scientific thought. People tend to associate astrology with fate, dismissing it as a pseudoscience and nothing more. And to be fair, without all of the information, the concept of astrology is not entirely convincing. However, when provided with the details, the full picture begins to emerge, supported by both myth and scientific fact.

AstroAnalysis is not a belief that the planets rule our destinies. The planets exist merely as dynamic parts of the electromagnetic field in which all living things survive. Rather than determining our lives, the planets influence our psyches, each in specific ways. While the Sun is, inarguably, the center of our existence, the planets modify the Sun’s influence according to their own qualities and positions in the birth chart.

Sun - A constant, ever-shining source of light, the Sun indicates every individual’s complete potential. Acting as the ego, a person’s Sun Sign is the most important element of their birth chart.

Moon - Acting as the Earth’s satellite, the influence of the Moon (along with the sun) causes the tides. In mythology, the Moon is said to govern fertility, growth, and decay--an association which has been proven by science. It is now common knowledge that both the female menstrual cycle and plant growth correspond to the energy of the moon. Astrologically, the moon is feminine, ruling our moods, feelings, habits, and customs. Studies have shown that the full moon denotes a monthly peak in various forms of psychotically oriented disturbances.

Mercury - The smallest planet in our solar system, Mercury’s year is only 88 Earth days. The planet’s speed is amazingly quick, clocking in at 95,000 miles per hour compared with the Earth’s feeble 25,000 mph. Mercury’s dual aspect--one side in perpetual darkness and the other in perpetual light--is said to symbolically represent the necessary distinction between the conscious and unconscious in human beings. Astrologically, Mercury is the planet of the mind and the energy that fuels communication. It rules language, students, mathematics, travel, and speaking. When Mercury stations retrograde (an earthbound illusion that the planet is moving backwards when its actually just completing its orbit around the backside of the sun), communication becomes noticeably difficult, electronics chronically malfunction, and travel is frequently disrupted and delayed.

Venus - The brightest of all the planets, Venus is 6 times as bright as Jupiter and 15 times as bright as Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. Venus is the planet of love, associated with the goddess Aphrodite in times of lore. Venus indicates grace, sensitivity, and charm, ruling a person’s relationships, their pleasures, and artistic expression.

Mars - is the planet of aggression and masculinity, courage, and daring. It rules soldiers, surgeons, and butchers--any occupation that requires bold skill and refined techniques. When Mars is being poorly aspected by another planet, there is an increase in crime rate, drug trafficking, terrorism, and political uncertainty across the Earth.

Jupiter - The largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter is the planet of philosophy and wisdom. Better known as Zeus in Greek mythology, Jupiter was considered the greatest of the Olympian Gods. Jupiter rules luck, health, wealth, religion, and optimism.

Saturn - represents tradition, restriction, and time. It creates limitations and boundaries, potentially bringing depression, jealousy, and greed. In mythology, Saturn was a rebellious god who overthrew his father, Uranus, and was consequently overthrown by his own son, Jupiter (Zeus). As a result, Saturn became Father Time, an old man yearning bitterly for better days. Astrologically, Saturn’s influence on the rest of the Zodiac is powerful. It’s the last of the personal planets, spending a leisurely 2 1/2 years in each sign.

Uranus - is the last of the planets that can be seen with the naked eye. The 7th planet from the sun, Uranus spends 7 years in each sign. Uranus is said to be responsible for the generation gap, the differences in attitude, outlook, and taste that so clearly distinguish generations. Mythologically, Uranus was the first of the gods, son of Earth, who sprang into being from the original space known as chaos. Uranus rules upheaval and revolution, intellectual genius, inventiveness, and electronics. Uranus governs sudden change, of both the positive and negative variety.

Neptune - Known as the planet of illusion, Neptune is the ruler of dreams, emotional genius, music, and poetry. At its best, it inspires the arts, while at its worst, it encourages escapism, delusion, and fraud. Neptune was called Poseidon in myths, and was said to be the eldest son of Saturn. Astrologically, Neptune is the force behind the appearance of things, the undercurrent that drives humankind’s collective psyche to higher levels of spiritual evolution.

Pluto - rules all the powerful forces of creation and destruction. It symbolizes change, sex, power, and darkness. Discovered less than 50 years ago, Pluto is only about half the size of the Earth. Mythologically, Pluto was known was Hades, the ruler of the underworld. However, unlike the Christian devil, Hades was not known to be a tempter of men, but rather a custodian of the dead. Pluto is the sign of death, redemption, secrecy, suspicion, intensity, penetration, and transformation.

Ascendant - The Ascendant is the Zodiac sign in line with the Earth on the eastern horizon at the exact time and place of an individual’s birth. This sign regulates the personality, the persona or mask that you present to the world. While the Sun represents a person’s ego, the Ascendant could be likened to the superego, with the South Node (see below) acting as the id.

Lunar Nodes - Rather than planetary bodies, the Lunar Nodes are points opposite each other in space where the orbit of the Moon intersects the Earth’s orbital plane. The South Node consists of ingrained behavioral patterns while the North Node suggests character potential. The South Node is thought to indicate an area of the personality that is overdeveloped from past lifetimes. Meanwhile, the North Node represents the part of the personality that is most underdeveloped, an area which, if cultivated, will fulfill the individual’s soul path, completing their evolution for this lifetime.

The birth chart is a reference map that shows the positions of the planets at the exact time of a person’s birth. These positions indicate character urges and inclinations, the potentiality for major events, and sometimes even physical attributes. There are 10 planets (the Sun and Moon are considered planets) distributed around the 12 signs of the Zodiac, each ruling their own separate House. Each sign has distinct properties and qualities while each planet resonates differently with every sign. The sign a planet occupies acts like a filter through which the planet’s energy is directed toward a person’s psyche. A planet’s energy in its own sign is strongest, while a planet in an opposing sign can indicate difficulty or conflict. It’s important to understand that there is no such thing as a “perfect” birth chart. Every person’s chart contains both positive and negative aspects, without which there would be no energy driving that person’s evolution.

When reading a birth chart, one begins with the Ascendant, or Rising Sign. The Ascendant is the social mask that dictates how your appear to other people. In the astrological scheme of things, the Ascendant represents the Earth. It is the point at which the Earth meets space at a person’s place of birth. Basically, the Ascendant is the Zodiac sign located on the horizon at the exact moment an individual is born. Thus, you will need your exact time of birth in order to properly create your chart--without the Ascendant, a large piece of your cosmic reference map will be missing.

Once you have your birth time, along with your date and location of birth, you are ready to begin your chart wheel. Using an ephemeris or the free birth chart calculator on http://astro.cafeastrology.com or http://alabe.com/freechart/, look up your planetary placements. Then copy the name of the sign each planet is located in into the table provided beneath the chart wheel. With this information in front of you, you are now ready to fill out the chart wheel. Using the abbreviations from the table, mark each planetary placement in the appropriate zodiacal House (i.e. if your Moon is in Aries, write MOO in the section of the wheel reserved for Aries. If you are unfamiliar with the Zodiac glyphs, refer to the table on the previous page).

Upon completing your chart, read the descriptions of each placement offered on either website. Though there is much more to a birth chart besides the positions of the planets themselves, such limited information provides a much needed glimpse into the often misconstrued world of Astrology. To learn about your House placements and planetary Aspects, as well as your Synastry (compatibility) with other people, peruse the free charts on CafeAstrology.com or refer to one of the many insightful books recommended at the end of this article. Professional Astrology readings are also available locally at Paradise Found on 17 E. Anapamu Street, Santa Barbara, CA.

According to popular opinion, Astrology is nothing more than an entertaining exercise in gullibility. However, proponents of AstroAnalysis often live their lives by the wisdom of the Cosmos. Where do they find such faith in abstraction? After learning enough about the art of Astrology, quite simply, it just makes sense. If you’ve started reading about your birth chart, perhaps you’re already beginning to understand.

AstroAnalysis series by American AstroAnalysts Institute

The Instant Astrologer by Lyn Birkbeck

Do It Yourself Relationship Astrology by Lyn Birkbeck

The Astrologer’s Handbook by Frances Sakoian and Louis S. Acker

Cosmic Coupling: The Sextrology of Relationships by Starsky and Cox

Soulmate Astrology: How to Find and Keep Your Ideal Mate Through the Wisdom of the Stars by Trish MacGregor

AstroAnalysis series by American AstroAnalysts Institute

“The Scientific Evidence Suggestive of Astrology” by Kevin Williams