Astrology Basics: Reading a Chart
Because birth chart readings are expensive. Today we talk about how to actually read your chart as a whole!
The moment you’ve likely been waiting for, HOW TO READ YOUR BIRTH CHART! We’re going to look at some key aspects in a chart as well as important points within a chart. Today we’re using Traditional Rulerships. I’m gonna use my own chart and pull from the last post to keep things consistent.
There are many ways to read your chart and many more reasons to. Maybe you’re looking to understand why you communicate with others the way you do, how to present yourself better and more authentically to other, matters of the heart and relationships, and many many more. All are super helpful but useless if you dont understand the core elements of your chart and what makes you who you are. So today we start with a general natal chart reading. I have a lot of aspects to outer planets so I’ve included them but you may not and you may choose to omit them for now. To start things off I want to make sure I’m only looking at things that directly impact me as mentioned above in addition to Chiron and Lilith, and aspects to those objects. We want to take it one thing at a time then we’ll put it together.
It’s really up to you where you start and how you go about it. You can go one house at a time, quadrant by quadrant, or you can lump in all the modalities or elements but I will be starting with my chart ruler which as a Leo Rising is the sun and then working farther and farther out according to aspects and what I feel is important.
*deep inhale and big sip of water* here we goooooo!
My Sun is conjunct Venus in Cancer which is my 12th house. When anything is conjunct the energy is blended together which can make it hard to separate one from the other.Venus is where we find comfort, what we enjoy, and what is naturally drawn to us and our Sun is our sense of self and where we find energy. In the 12th house these things are hidden from us or may be really difficult for us to access and understand. My Sun is trine Pluto in Scorpio in the 4th house. The 4th house is our emotional foundations, how we feel nurtured, and often our family dynamics be it of blood or found. Pluto is a generational planet that is domicile in Scorpio and is the planted that is like a phoenix and creates new from chaos and destruction. Since this planet is trine my Sun which sits in the 12th house there is a certain ease I find from detaching myself from these dynamics and shifts. My Sun is opposite Uranus conjunct Neptune in Capricorn in the 6th house. The 6th house is where we find order in our day to day routines, and its also our health and wellness tendencies. Uranus is breaking something just to know how to put it back together again and Neptune is how we dissolve boundaries or escapism. Opposite my Sun and Venus I go back and forth between knowing how I need to help myself and entirely ignoring it to take care of others instead. My Sun is ruled by the Moon in Libra which is squaring it and 3rd house. My Sun wants to nurture others and my Moon in the 3rd house of interpersonal communication where the moon rejoices. I can easily show others I care when I choose to but have a hard time showing up the same way for myself.
My Moon in Libra is sextile my Leo Mercury in the 1st house. I have a very easy time understanding my emotions through writing, art, creative expression in general. However fire and are are fickle things and I can overthink creative outlets or burn out quickly.
In my 1st house which is my identity and peoples first impression of me is Leo Mercury is conjunct Leo Chiron. Chiron is a deep wounding, not necessarily traumatic but something deeply impactful to us that shapes the things it interacts with. Where Leo Mercury is constantly touted as loud an bold, I often think a lot before I speak and second guess anything that puts my heart out there or anything that reveals anything about myself. Mercury is opposite Aquarius Saturn that is conjunct Aquarius Lilith which is our primitive impulse. Unlike the moon this instinct is often more raw and animalistic but still a part of us. Saturn is domicile in Aquarius but is the rebellious aspects of Saturn. Aquarius holds there emotions and those of others in a chalice away from itself to get a clear view or to try and forget them entirely. These together make me very aware of my words and actions and their consequences and opposite mercury conjunct chiron i’m aware of how harsh or helpful my words can come across. All of these square Taurus Mars in my 10th house of legacy and public perception. Mars is at fall in Taurus due to its slow moving energy but is accidentally exalted in the 10th house since Capricorn traditionally rules that house and Mars exalts in Capricorn. I am known for my work ethic and dedication. I’m also know to be slow to anger but once I’m angered I have little restraint left when speaking (square Leo Mercury) and make a point to never forget or let go of those things(Taurus characteristics) in the future as a long term consequence (Aquarius characteristics and the square to Aquarius Saturn).
10th house Taurus Mars is opposite 4th house Pluto in Scorpio. I understand the cycles from my family that I have to balance out to move up in the world however to make the most of a placement in detriment you often have to look at the sister sign which in this case is Scorpio. So I constantly need to balance who I am and sacrifice by leaning into the Scorpio energy but not so far that I repeat cycles. Pluto is trine Venus in Cancer. Both of these planets are associated with earthly comforts. Mine are heavily tied to both my family dynamics (4th house) and my sense of self (sun conjunct venus) Venus in Cancer loops me all the way back around to the Moon.
To put it all together:
I have most of my placements in Fixed angular houses with many squares and oppositions. I have a lot to learn about balance and sacrifice. Power struggle, whether it be taking it or relinquishing it, will be a common theme throughout my life. To feel most like myself I must learn to let myself come second without resentment but also learn which things I need for myself that can’t be compromised. No mater what I do in life I must learn diligence without whole consumption, consequences without revenge, and self care that isn’t self sabotage. Most of these lessons will be from my family/home dynamics and relationships. I need to practice mindfulness to ensure I’m not repeating cycles I’m meant to dissolve. The best way for me to process things is from a birds eye view or through creative expression. I will likely be helping others instead of myself for most of my life through deep spirituality, occultism, esoteric things all through creative expression such as tarot or astrology services. I will have to learn to let others do what they may without interference.
Fret not. I didn’t forget the empty houses. My 5th, 8th, 9th and 11th houses are empty. They are ruled by Sagittarius, Pisces, Aries, and Gemini respectively. Technically my 5th and 11th contain my nodes but those are big life path things which I will constantly deal with so I kinda just set them to the side. Most of these are mutable so I won’t be willing much into the physical world. The topics of these houses have never really called out to me. A lot of them have to do with surface level things or bringing stuff out to the surface to transmute and show the world. Absolutely not. The 8th house goes along with the 4th and 12th and I feel it’s just divine mercy that it’s empty but also rapid change just doesn’t tie into the rest of my chart. What i take away most from the empty houses is I didn’t start it but I’m here to finish it.
You empty houses may feel like something to help you fill in the blanks. If you do want to work with these look for the planetary ruler in your chart. For example, Jupiter rules Sagittarius and Pisces and obviously we all have Jupiter in our charts. So I will look at my 2nd house which contains Jupiter about these topics. Mine is in Virgo. So when it comes to outside world understanding (11th house) and things to do with quick transformations (8th house) I may just see this topics in a really zoomed out lens, I may choose more Mercurial ways to deal with these things like this newsletter, or may go too in depth with them because of Jupiters influence. There’s a way to work with everything in your chart so never get discouraged.
I personally have always wanted just a cliff notes for things but you can obviously read the chart in whatever manner you feel most called for. I hope this was helpful and made sense. Until next time friends. Please reach out with questions if you have any!