  Astrology
Index
WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT, ALFIE? This was written a back in 1991, edited again 1999 & again today 12-12-10. |
|
WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT, ALFIE? Briefly put, your NATAL CHART is a 360 degree, 12 pie piece circle representing the sky when you were born. Toss in the "PLANETS": Sun, Moon and all the planets in their order. These planets land into the SIGNS, corresponding to the stars in the sky; as well as the HOUSES, determined by the time you born. Measure the distance from one planet to another and find the energy that is created and that makes the ASPECTS. That's it in a nut shell. The signs we know from our Sun Sign, so it stands to reason the other heavenly bodies were in signs also when you were born. The houses can be viewed as the wagon wheel spokes. The signs as colored cellophane over the spokes. The areas where the color changes don't necessarily land on the spokes so we have the ability to put up to three colors in one area between spokes. This translates to up to three signs in one house. The style in which a planet is expressed is determined through the nature of the sign. What area of your life it effects is determined by the houses. Here is my chart for this time when I'm editing this page. The green symbols on the outside of the wheel are the transiting planets. Transiting planets are where the planets are in the sky. The symbols inside the wheel are where the planets were when I was born.
Astrologers ask for your time and location of birth. This is to be able to determine which sign was coming up over the eastern horizon then moment you were born. This gives us the RISING SIGN, also known as the ASCENDANT. As you can see mine ascendant is Capricorn. What the Ascendant also does do that is very important is to determine which sign fall into the first house. This will set the color cellophane overlays on the wagon wheel spokes. Houses are the 12 pie shaped sections in the chart and as I said before, they determine which area in your life is to be effected. All the houses are owned by landlords. The signs of Aries through Pisces are landlords of the houses one through twelve, which makes it easy to remember. So no matter what sign falls in the first house it will have attitudes like the sign Aries. Each of the signs have rulers and co-rulers and it would be favorable for a sign to fall in its own house. This only happens when Aries is in the first house, (Aries rising) placing all the rest of the signs in their own houses. Like the landlord living in the building. Also good if the planet that lands in the house was the ruler. Mars in Aries in the First house is a triple whammy. The planet Mars, which rules Aires will like to visit the First House because it "owns" that house. Aries likes to be in the First house position and loves having Mars come visit. These compound attitudes, potentials and predictability. When you were born the planets were given a backdrop of the constellations. Your birth time freeze frames the planets, silhouetting them with the sign and house behind it and then watch the planets act out their influences in the various areas of your life. Measure the distance between the planets and that will give you the ASPECTS, which is the energy that is created by the proximity of the planets to each other. Those are the lines you see in my chart wheel. Below on the stair step grid, under my chart wheel, you see the symbols for the aspects. The energy can be intense (conjunctions), opportunistic (sextile), energy building (square), lazy good luck (trine), and need for balance (opposition). Mix it all together and that is your natal chart. That is as simply put as I can muster. Know that your Natal Chart is a tally of the potentials you are born with. There are other types of charts: relocation, Transits, progressions, but the foundation is the birth chart, the Natal Chart. It is like the original blue print. If you are born with a talent you knew about but didn't exploit, then that was your choice. But if you didn't know you had a hidden talent, then your Natal Chart will point it out to you. If you desire to do something that you don't have a natural talent for you can still master the technical side of it. It would just be harder work and the innovation of the creative spark might be missing. If you wish to change something in your natal chart, it can be changed with your conscious will and vigilance. You don't change a problem with yourself by denying the existence of the problem, you change by being aware. You are not held hostage to your chart when you exercise free will to change. You are held hostage to your chart if you do nothing but ride the ebb and flow of your life and do nothing to effect matters. Knowing your chart will enable you to know which areas you might want to change, exploit, ignore, or exercise. The Big Burrito Chart: I begin with the Ascendant (your public face), followed with the planets in the sign, the planets in the house, and aspects to that planet, moving from the Sun through to Pluto, until we finish. FUTURE WATCH Once you have your natal chart completed what is there left to do but self-improvement? As if self-improvement is not enough. One can continue by comparing the natal chart with the planets as they TRANSIT (the green symbols on the outside of the chart wheel above) over head will give you the emotional and psychological landscape you will be walking through in the future. If you are interested in planning when to take advantage of good transits and when to hunker down during bad transits then get in touch with me. There is the ever so interesting COMPATIBILITY between people. That's called Synastry in the astrology community. Analyzing compatibilities increases success in relationships. But don't just take my word for it. Estimate the percentage of accuracy you give a natal chart reading. That can be the percentage of the benefit of a doubt you could give a reading about other people in your life: Spouse, children, parents, partners etc. One of the problems with learning about yourself is that discovery becomes addictive. You will find yourself curious about everyone, Mom, Dad, your boss, your lover, Napoleon, Charles Manson, Mae West, the Dentist etc. Then you will want to measure compatibility with people, past and present, fictive and actual. The possible combinations are endless: i.e. How would Mom have gotten along with Charlie Chaplin? How will I interface with this new Senior Partner? Is this snoring lover in my bed worth making breakfast for? It wouldn't be the first time I got a call in the middle of the night, "I've got his driver's licence, can you do a quick check for me while he is in the bathroom?" That is obviously too late for me to do a synastry chart. As a last reassurance, if you get wind chill from being peeled like a psychological onion, be of good cheer to know that I purge my memory from chart to chart. Unless I work on your chart every day I forget about your inner workings. I'm more concerned with my own self-improvement. Confidentiality is thereby insured through my being ego-centric. If you find yourself getting uncomfortable, or disoriented take a break and then reread what upset you. Discomfort usually comes from discovering information that might be painful, resisting painful information and wanting to find me, or the authors of the books I quote from, and punch some noses. I do not suggest you follow those impulses. Writing in a diary would be the best prescription for organizing thoughts so you can pin point what it is that actually bothered you. If you find things in your natal chart that aren't relevant, then ignore them. All things cannot be true 100% of the time. You may have out grown certain tendencies. Other perspectives may not have come into play as yet. You may have evolved to a higher form of the astrological expression and the negative form isn't applicable. OK, so forget it. But if there is something GOOD there that you didn't know about, like a hidden talent laying behind a sextile aspect, then pursue it. Know that there could be talents you could reach with some work, good luck in areas you may not have thought to tap, career niches you may have overlooked. This is when astrology is most useful. I am available for personal consultation if you feel the need for further explanation, delineation of the aspects, for transits or compatibilities. I do not suggest I replace your therapist, priest, best friend, spouse or lover, but rather I augment these relationships with a completely different point of view. My view is inside of you, your motivations, probable first choices, places you suspect exist and now I confirm. |
