There are Sun sign devotees, and I have known a few, who can intuit birthdays and personality characteristics with astonishing accuracy. If astrology were that simple, life would be easier for the aspiring astrologer who instead of focusing on one shining star is forced to juggle with the effect of Rising signs and Moon signs, and is then deluged by a good deal more.
A well-known astrologer once told me he spent the first two years under an enlightened teacher understanding nothing at all until one day it suddenly clicked into place. Dismantling the astrology chart into its multifarious separate components and doing the hard grind of learning what-means-what in isolation is a bore. But at the end of it there is an intuitive process that takes over which is able to ‘grasp’ the complexity of the information on offer and form a picture of a multi-faceted and often contradictory personality.
At a simple level the Sun relates to identity, father, the yang. The Moon relates to mother, childhood, what nurtures. The rising sign which was on the horizon at the moment of birth is the persona, the face that is first shown to others, the outer image and appearance, behind which the Sun and indeed Moon can sometimes hide.
Most obviously a Scorpio Ascendant puts up a secretive, determined front, usually wearing dark clothes, which may well sit at odds with the ‘real’ personality who emerges on longer acquaintance. Clint Eastwood with a Scorpio Ascendant has a restless Gemini Sun and an entertaining Leo Moon = appears forbidding but is communicative and attention-seeking. He is all three.
Tony Blair with a bright, chatty Gemini Ascendant comes across as flexible and light-hearted which belies his hidden stubborn 12th house Taurus Sun and his determined, provocative, equally stubborn Aquarius Moon in his career 10th. Sorry to bring houses into the equation but it is the way my mind works. That is another layer of building blocks.
Brigitte Macron has a prissy Virgo Ascendant which puts up a sedate, tidily organized front, behind which lie the hidden volcanic depths of an 8th house fiery Aries Sun and Moon.
Emmeline Pankhurst, the militant suffragette had a provocative, rebellious Aquarius Ascendant behind which façade there was a hard-working 6th house Cancer Sun and a 7th house practical Virgo Moon.
Every astrologer has their own way of working which may differ but reach the right conclusions by a different route. Or shine a light on a different facet of the personality. I am rooted to houses amongst other things. And would tend to pay more heed to the house position of the Sun which is dependent on the Ascendant/Rising sign than looking directly at the Rising sign itself in the first instance.
A Leo Sun is entertaining and attention-seeking but will function differently if it is in the hidden 12th house with a Virgo Ascendant; or in an even more hidden 8th house with a Capricorn Ascendant. Its fiery, outgoing temperament will be more subdued. Whereas a 5th house Leo Sun with an Aries Ascendant will be out there and make its presence felt.
Giorgia Meloni, the Italian PM, has a showy Leo Ascendant behind which sits a hard-working, earthy 6th house Capricorn Sun and a home-loving 4th house Sagittarius Moon.
The Dalai Lama has a Cancer Ascendant and Sun – so what you see is what you get.
Queen Elizabeth 11 had a conservative, austere Capricorn Ascendant behind which sat a quick-witted 3rd house Taurus Sun which always surprised people who met her at close quarters.
Then just to add complexity to complexity take Benjamin Netanyahu – a lively Sagittarius Ascendant with an 11th house New Moon in Libra. Taken in isolation that could sound upbeat, morale-boosting and charmingly fair-minded. But his chart is dominated by a can-be-ruthless (brutal) Mars Pluto conjunct in Leo.
I always reckoned learning astrology initially was as much fun as studying chemistry and latin grammar. It needs persistence and hope which will be fulfilled since the end of the journey is a good deal more exciting and insightful than the slog that went before.
“My course is set for an uncharted sea.” Dante Alighieri
“In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself within a dark wood where the straight way was lost.” Dante Alighieri
Maybe a cop-out, but some Kabbalah teachers speak od decrees from Heaven we do not know why they happen. That’s probably why some people have so much troubles and never seem to be able to get out of them. It is so mysterious and thought-provoking, to say nothing of how tragic and sad it can be, and devastating.
Disheartening.
Does anyone know if the rising sign & moon sign are the same is that rare? Is it good if the rising & moon A are the same? For example if the rising sign & moon sign are in both in Capricorn.
My son has ascendant, Sun and Moon in Capricorn.
I also have a friend, someone I originally dated first, who has her Sun, Moon, Ascendant, Mercury, and Neptune all in Sagittarius.
Here are the interpretations oc Clind Eastwood’s terms for Asc, Sun and Moon.
Ascendant in Scorpio in the term of Mercury….”Military, competitive, prizewinning, and,
where words are concerned, bitter, contentious, not to be despised.”
Sun in Gemini in the term of Jupiter…..”Competitive, temperate, prolific, luxuriant,
beneficent.
Moon in Leo in the term of Jupiter….”Experienced, masculine, experienced, and in
general, having leadership qualities, active, eminent, and having no mean qualities.”
Here’s Clint Eastwood’s chart showing the terms or bounds that his Asc, Sun and Moon are in. He has a Scorpio Asc in the bounds of Mercury….he talks Mercury in a tough Scorpo way. His Sun and Moon are in the bound of Jupiter. Mix the meaning of Jupiter with
the Signs of his Sun and Moon when you interpret their meaning.
https://ibb.co/x8S5Fjx0
Hi- I was born same date, same year as the Rotenburg Cannibal. This really surprised me (not in a good way), especially as I’m not a violent person- I’m a vegan even. We have practically the same astrology, but I think we’re very different. He was born in Germany and I was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, but don’t know if that makes much of a difference.
I’m fascinated by the ‘quincunx’ difference between the Ascendant and 8th house. For example, you take someone with a Scorpio Ascendant who appears to have depth to their personality and, if they’re interested in you, is desperate to connect. Then when you get to their 8th it’s got Gemini on the cusp which probably doesn’t want to go to the 8th house depths.
Leo sun and Virgo ascendant is like having a roaring lion holding a bright lamp in the depths of a basement with the door closed
Hardly! Roger Federer is a Leo sun/Virgo ascendant. One of the most successful and well loved athletes of all time.
Astrology is a fascinating topic since it doesn’t have obvious answers. I have learned this over the years, it depends on aspects, that is conjunctions, opposition’s and squares and many more. Some of the questions we get as Astrologers, people always ask about career, love life, money and others like about lottery winnings. While Astrology doesn’t have all the answers to all questions, but in a person’s bath chart you look at different planets and their aspects. For example if someone asks about career direction, often the Moon and Venus, as well as the 10th sector will give you answers of what kind of a career that person will excel, the one they can follow. A lottery win for example will be shown by Uranus/Jupiter in second house. But it depends on a lot of things too, like aspects with other planets too. I was looking at Benjamin Netanyahu chart, though he is a Prime Minister, a politician. His chart shows him more as an academic, he would been even more successful career wise as an academic than a politician.
I’ve got Jupiter in my natal second House. Never won a lottery in my life, but I had read that it can also mean family lineage (which is also wealth in a way).
And that’s true. My father’s family can trace its history back generations (though that hasn’t meant any family wealth. When I was younger, he held down three jobs simultaneously to support not only my mother and me, but also his sisters).
So it is wealth, in a way, even if not monetary.
Houses play a major role. Sun placement in the house brings out the happiness part of the person. For family which deals with moon sign and even there if it is placed in non family houses then the moon is revealed in inhabitants of that house as in workplace or travel and same with sun and the ascendant can completely hide a jolly sun sign and moon sign from friends and family. I check moon as in where the person cries as moon sign is emotional revealing and at times it’s not even in house where humans or living beings inhabit..it can be journal writing or music and therein comes rhe sign. Just my observations.
Hi Marjorie
What is the physical appearance of a Sagittarius rising & physical appearance of a Capricorn rising?
Marjorie, thank you for answering my questions!
Post Clint Eastwood’s chart. Now go to Janus program and chooe WHEEL then SINGLE WHEEL, then Terms and Decans.
You get a biwheel with the Term area for Clint’s Asc, Sun and Moon. His Asc is in the Term
of Mercury in Scorpio….he talks in a Scorpionic was, tough. His Sun and Moon are in the
Term of Jupiter so he’s very funny in a Leo way and in an emotional way.
https://postimg.cc/QVDb92hYW
You could also do a DWAD wheel for Clint where each sign is divided into 21/2 degrees and
the 7 planets are in Chaldean order. Find what Dwad planet represents his Asc, Sun, Moon, then analyze similar to above.
In Janus program go to Wheel then to single wheel then choose Wheel with terms.
You get the following wheel. For Asc find the term….it’s Mercury…Clint is very
conversant in a Scorpio way. For Sun find that the term here is Jupiter, Clint is
funny in a showy Leo. Now go to his Moon….the term here is also Jupiter so
he shows his emotions also in a comic, showy way.
For the Houses where his Terms are displayed find the rulers of his Sun and Moon
https://postimg.cc/QVDb92hW
We could do the same type of analysi of Asc, Sun and Moon by posting a biwheel
showing the division of each sign into 21/2 degrees and ordering each of the 7 planets
in a Chaldean order. His resuting chart would be a DWAD chart with Sun, Moon and
Asc pointing to the dwad equivalent planet there.
If I have a birth time I also like to look at the traditional rulers, their condition and house placement for Sun, Moon and rising. For example, my stepdad is triple Saturn, my mum Mars, Mars, Saturn, so although they are both Cap rising she is impossibly impatient and he is slow slow slow (but never gives up), but then they butt heads and dig their respective Saturn heels in.
Saturn overpowers mars but when two saturnians clash it’s the older one who wins as saturn becomes benefic in old age while it’s opposite in leo and in scorpio, it’s gender thing so is in mars..
I am a Leo with Leo as my rising sign. I also have Mercury in Leo when I was born. Surprisingly, I have the moon and two planets in Libra in my birth chart. I’m still a beginner on alot of this, but I notice I have had many Leo and Libra characteristics. I even became a lawyer, which balances my theatrical tendencies with a fierce desire to resolve conflicts. It’s weird how these things work.
i also look at the TERM or BOUND that the Sun, Asc and Moon are in for more detail.
A good source is any translation of Vettius Valens Book 1 which contains 50
terms and bounds for all 12 signs and a description of the person with Sun, Moon
Asc in that bound.
If you own JANUS program you can change the person’s chart to show the Bounds
in the outer rim. For all planets plus Asc and MC.
Hello, dear Marjorie, dear reader of this article. Astrology is like a language. The more you read and the more you study it, the more it will give you a good feeling of understanding the other person. My first teacher told me that astrology is like a microbe… once you are infected, it will never go away. And now, after more than 20 years of study, I can confirm it. It’s a wonderful instrument. And of course, there are several ways to interpret astrology. I visit this website since many years and I learn still every day new interpretations. Thank you very much, dear Marjorie. Many warm, great astrology greetings, Ronnie
Hi Ronnie, I’m not so fond of microbes and infections…so I prefer to think I was inspired by astrology rather than infected by it. True, it’s never gone away and I agree wholeheartedly that it’s a wonderful instrument. 🙂
I agree that intuition plays a large part in astrology but it can also lead you astray if it is not based solidly on the data. I am not technically proficient so my preferences sometimes cloud my judgment. On the other hand, intuition on good days can provide surprising results. Also, Uranus and Aquarius placements favor astrological analysis. I have Mercury at 0 Aquarius and a Jupiter-Uranus conjunciton in a water grand trine with Saturn in the 12th in Scorpio and Mars in the 3rd turned into a kite by a Jupiter-Uranus opposition to the Sun and Chiron. My Sagittarius rising sign and Moon in Leo tend to hide the fact that my Sun is in Capricorn and certainly is tied to my identity. The Sun is sextile Saturn square Moon-Pluto as well as sextile Mars in Pisces. I am aware my Moon in Leo enjoys writing about myself while my rising sign conjunct Venus and sextile Mercury and the MC loves to teach and share knowledge.
Hi Andre, thanks for sharing here. Your Capricorn Sun ruling your Leo Moon caught my eye, as did your comment that other factors, including your Leo Moon, may ‘hide’ your Sun. For a different take, perhaps there’s a working relationship in this Sun-Moon blend, with your Capricorn Sun in charge and directing (ruling) the Leo Moon display.
Reminded me that astrologer Noel Tyl had this same Sun-Moon blend and ‘earned’ quite a bit of attention, respect, and admiration for his work.