INTRODUCTION

I began my first basic astrology class when I

was 20, having had an interest in it since very
young. I was fascinated by the mysterious
wheel that I was told held my potentials, and
development as a human being hidden in this
“map”. I was a “lay” person taking an interest in
self development, and astrology offered a
personal tool for more knowledge.

Over the next 30 or so years of study and

exams, I had a huge amount of people come to
me with their chart wheel, asking me how they
apply it to knowledge of themselves….
Therefore, this book is for the “lay” person
interested in learning how to read your own
chart wheel which is called your astrology natal
chart.

This is not a book of interpretation, but a GUIDE

how to read your own wheel or “MAP of the
SELF”. Your astrology Map is based on complex
mathematics, as is all of the universe, and this
guide will help you read your map easily. Have
fun in your search.
 Chapter 1

Simple Terms & Questions

What is Astrology?

Astrology is a science of the heavens. Astrology is

the study of human behaviour in correlation to the
movement of the planets in orbit around the Sun
and the earth’s rotation on its axis. Astrology is an
age-old learning tool for psychological, emotional,
spiritual, intellectual & physical human knowledge.

What is your Natal chart?

Your natal or birth chart is the mathematical

calculation of the planets’ positions in the heavens
at the time, date and location of birth, placed in the
zodiac. This is then put on a wheel or chart for
visual reference. The natal chart is also consisted
of the calculation of the rotation of the earth on its
axis – this calculates the eastern horizon at the time
and place of your birth and forms what is called the
Houses or cusps. These are also positioned on the
wheel.

The astrology chart is an objective picture, a graph

of one’s personality structure or individuality. It
depicts the structure within us that makes us
different – and separate - from everyone else on
the planet.

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 What is actual Birth Time?

There is always argument about actual birth-time;

however it is generally accepted as when breath is
first taken as or after emerging from the birth canal.

What is your birth data?

Birth data is your Birth TIME – DATE – PLACE.

This is usually noted on your chart form along with
Longitude & Latitude of birthplace and other
astrological notes relevant for calculations.

Is an accurate birth-time necessary?

In a word – YES!! But ….

A correct birth-time will always give accurate and

exact calculations, readings and interpretation of
the whole of the birth data. A birth-time that may be
up to one hour “out” may only change a few things;
however, in some charts 5 minutes can make a
difference to your chart in a major way.

Many people do not have access to accurate

information, or any information of their birth-time at
all! Shame! Astrology cannot “make up”
information without all the data, so if birth-time is
not available a calculation can be made for the time
of Noon on the date of birth; thereby the information
is at best, half way between any possible positions.
Mostly, this will not affect a large part of the chart,
however, it must be noted that the Moon and House

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positions are not at all reliable. HOWEVER, you
can still gain valuable information even if the birth-
time is not sure. You can still read a lot of good
information from just a birth-date and place. You
can still learn to read about the Planets and
Aspects and many other parts of the chart. In time,
with interest and observation (of yourself and family
charts) most people can work out their Moon &
Ascendant (houses) signs that can be included for
observation. Astrology does have a true way of
finding out - this is called Rectification; however, it
is very involved, very interesting & quite irrelevant
here!!

How will this work for me or help me?

By mathematical calculations & observations over

many eons of time, certain personality traits along
with past present and future life trends have been
studied. This study enhances your knowledge of
human behaviour thereby creating a happier and
more integrated experience during your life.

Astrology can be used as a personal guide to life –

learning about challenges & abilities you have to
deal with in this lifetime: how you do or do not relate
to others; your health condition, what occupations
you can follow and more: not to mention what you
learn about other people, helping yourself & others,
quite successfully. Learning about yourself can be
very confronting; so put your honest suit on. Mostly,
it is lots of fun, interesting and very rewarding.

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It works much the same as reading a roadmap; you
look at the legends & distances to find a certain
destination. Your natal chart is just like this – you
look at the legends & symbols to find your way to
self-knowledge. Many roads lead to a certain
destination on a roadmap; so your natal map shows
the many roads to self-integration – success and
happiness. Your map shows you the way, but you
still make the choices on the pathway to your
destination…. Astrologers call this a natal chart.

The charts look confusing…

There are many types of astrology charts. They

may all look quite different – some are hand drawn,
some are computerised but in short, they all
basically have the same information on them.

Most charts have the Ascendant at the left hand

side of the natal chart - this begins the house
system 1 – 12. The sign on the 1 st cusp is the
Rising Sign. Refer to chart wheels on following
pages.

However, some charts have the Ascendant

anywhere on the wheel because they may be using
a chart form with Aries as the beginning - at the left
hand side…. These both have the same meaning.
This probably due to personal preference, or
because an accurate birth-time was not available,

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not allowing a reliable house system to be used.
Refer to chart wheels on following pages.

Get familiar with the chart you have first and then
you can look at other types.

Some charts have more information on them than

others:

Some have different information:

ALL charts will have the planets, houses and

aspects at least and this is how you begin to read
your “personal map”.

There are 3 simple legends – you don’t even have

to remember them, they are usually always on the
chart form if you look at the whole chart form. They
will be in symbols and English. You just have to
learn how to use them to look up tons of great
reading & self-discovery.

Included is a legend of each of the categories just

in case your chart has no English interpretation for
symbols.

REMEMBER this is not a book of “What it means”

but a book of How to Use the information in that
strange circle with funny symbols. You are
surrounded in symbols in daily life, so you will find
learning them is easier than you thought, and most
people know some of them anyway – this is not a

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difficult thing to learn. Just learn to look at your
chart and become familiar with it. A brief
description in each chapter follows just to help you
understand it, but it is not necessary again to
KNOW it.

What is my Sun Sign or Star Sign?

Your sun sign is determined by the position of the

Sun within one of the 12 zodiacal signs on the day
of your birth. The degree of the Sun in that sign
and the placements of all the others planets have to
be calculated by your birth-time to place them in the
respective sign and degrees.

Looking at the Natal chart

First things first??

Start out with what most people firstly want to know

about - themselves!! - and how to read your own
Natal Chart. It is best to begin with how to find and
read your:

1. Signs - most people are familiar with the Zodiac

Signs
2. Houses - next most common thing people
notice in the chart
3. Planets - planets in signs & houses are general
& generational personality traits
4. Aspects - this is what makes an individual, and
is probably the fastest way to begin to read your
chart.

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All other legends, symbols and information on your
chart are also important and sometimes, more
important. (See the following chart forms.)These
are explained briefly in following chapters. The
methods for reference are the same for each and
every legend, angle, point, aspect, position etc, so
once you are familiar with looking at your chart you
can refer to all of the natal chart as your want or
what material is available to you.

You need not buy lots of reading material, although

you may want to. There are many wonderful
interpretive books that you can refer to always.
There are many levels of reading & some very good
books are in the libraries, local astrology clubs,
theosophical society, astrologer friend, Internet.

Begin with basic books & work up to the more in-

depth psychology/astrology books to gain a more
valuable understanding. If you begin with an
advanced interpretative book, you may find it
confusing, difficult or even upsetting and put it
aside.

Unless you are more used to reading psychology

type books start with general fun reading & move
onto other books, as you understand more.
Mythology is wonderfully interesting if you want to
know more about the legends (stories of mankind’s
psyche) behind the meaning of the symbols of
planets and signs used in astrology. This also helps

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understanding the human psyche more fully if you
want to study astrology in more depth.

1: This is a hand-drawn chart wheel with the

Ascendant drawn at the left of the wheel. The
Asc/MC cross is drawn across the whole wheel

2: This is another type of chart wheel with details

hand drawn. This chart has an unknown
Ascendant so NO HOUSES are drawn in.
Approximate birth-time results in unknown houses
And approximate moon.

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Page 10
Page 11
3: This is a chart wheel from an Astrological
Programme which calculates the chart & prints it.
Note the ascendant on the left.

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 Chapter 2
Signs
Air signs + Virgo are not represented by animals
Gemini is not the only dual sign – others are
Pisces/Aquarius/Cancer/Scorpio
Signs are not “made up” – the meanings are all
about us

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS? & WHERE ARE THEY?

The 12 Signs are the 12 sectors of the zodiac

represented by symbols and pictures. Each sign is
an equal 30 degrees, equally a total of 360 degrees
as in normal geometry. Generally, the symbols
only, are used on your chart.

The signs are symbolic of the basic human urges,

the path to fulfilling these urges is different for
everyone. Any sign containing a planet shows a
particular challenge or experience denoted by that
planet in sign and house positions. The sign
modifies the planet by filtering its (the sign)
characteristics through the qualities of the planet or
planets.
Pictures & Elements of Zodiac signs:
Aries Ram: fire
Taurus Bull earth
Gemini Twins Air
Cancer Crab Water
Leo Lion Fire
Virgo Virgin Earth

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Libra Scales Air
Scorpio Scorpion Water
Sagittarius Centaur Fire
Capricorn Goat Earth
Aquarius Water-bearer Air
Pisces Two Fish Water

Symbols of Zodiac signs:

Aries  Libra 
Taurus  Scorpio 
Gemini  Sagittarius 
Cancer  Capricorn 
Leo  Aquarius 
Virgo  Pisces 

A legend of the signs is usually listed on your natal

chart in symbols and English as above. Many
people are already familiar with these however; it
will not take long to memorize them, without even
trying.

Signs are HOW you express your self (sun) or

emotions (moon) & other planets. Eg: If your Sun is
in Aquarius you will express your basic self through
Aquarian type personality traits. Similarly, if your
Moon is in Cancer you express your emotions in a
Cancerian way. There are lots of books on these
interpretations and it is often worth reading most of
them, as they will have different views and
interpretations. A different interpretation from book

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to book does not make either correct or incorrect.
All or any of the material may be relevant, so
reading different authors is very valuable.

Finding the Signs

The symbols of the Signs are always on your chart.

They can be on the outer of the circle or on the
inner circle and are usually determined once the
calculations of the houses are complete. Any one
of the signs is usually found at the left hand side of
the chart – as in previous chapter – the Ascendant
sign. Each one of the signs will be on the chart
wheel.

NB: There is exception to this. This is called

Intercepted Signs. Do not worry if there seems to
be 2 signs “missing”. Your planets are still placed
within a sign degree, but not always the houses
cusps. You can obtain reading material on this
subject for a fuller understanding and self-
evaluation/knowledge.

There are many reference books on the Zodiac

Signs. The most important to begin with are the
signs of your Sun, Moon and Ascendant. These
are the basics of your personality.

Look at the pictures, especially if you have a book

with full illustrations. The pictures of the signs are
extremely deep and meaningful and you might find

Page 15
you “relate” by looking at the visual of the relevant
signs in your wheel.

Some signs are more important in your chart than

others. As you read more, you will begin to see
“patterns” of the same sort of reading material,
possibly over and over again…. Of course, this
means you need to take more notice of these
areas. Observe your friends as you read about
their signs and before you know it, you will be able
to “predict” how they will behave!!

Of course, you are not predicting anything really,

but your new knowledge gives you insight into
yourself & others: situations, choices, goals,
abilities, difficulties: so that you can “predict” – or
rather make decisions & choices etc with
information that will never let you down!!!

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 Chapter 3
Houses

WHAT ARE THE HOUSES?

& WHERE ARE THEY?

The houses are the sections around the wheel that

are not the zodiac signs. Some charts will have
them more prominent than others. Some will be
numbered 1-12 toward the centre, or in the outer
circle. Some may be simply coloured in and not
numbered at all. Some charts may have another
line or cusp near or inside a sign sector (see visual)
which can be confusing at first.

In interpretation the Houses represent the areas or

environments of life: houses show WHERE you will
find expression through any planet, angle or aspect
in the chart. *NB: to find out more about
interpretation see back page notes

Finding your Ascendant or 1st House cusp

The 1st House is always the beginning of the
Houses or House system used. There are various
types of house systems used. I use the Placidus
system. However, the guidelines in this book allow
you to read any sort of astrology chart. Diagrams
with houses are all Placidus examples.

This is called the Ascendant and is USUALLY at

the left-hand side of the wheel. It can be drawn as
a line completely across to the right side of the

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wheel. This side is called the Descendant.
Sometimes the houses are all drawn in sections to
an inner circle in the centre of the chart and
numbered…. (see visual ) inside that is the aspects.

If the Ascendant is NOT on the left side, then you

can look around the wheel to find where the
Ascendant has been put on your chart, either with
the 3 letters P or by the number 1. Either is
common. Wherever you DO find the Ascendant on
your wheel, this is the cusp of the 1 st House.
Houses are not always equal in degrees like the
signs.

When you have found the (angles of) Ascendant,

Descendant, Q & IC you will be able to see signs of
the zodiac on the wheel. You can then observe
that you have Aquarius Ascendant, Virgo
Ascendant or whatever Sign it happens to be. The
Descendant is always in the opposite sign from the
Ascendant.

By reading this on your chart you can now obtain

reading material to find out what this means to you.
The Midheaven or more commonly Q is read on the
chart and referred to in books in the same way. All
reference/interpretative material is compiled in
order of the signs Aries around to Pisces, so just
refer to the respective pages.

By reading this on your chart, you can now obtain

reading material to find out what this means to you.

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The Midheaven or Q is read on the chart and
referred to in books in the same way. All
reference/interpretative material is compiled in
order of the signs Aries around to Pisces, so just
refer to the respective pages.
NB: There is exception to this. This is called
Intercepted Signs and do not worry if there seems
to be 2 signs missing in the house system. You can
find good reading material on Intercepted Signs
which may be valuable in understand certain
difficulties or challenges in areas of your life,
represented by the house sign missing. Planets are
always placed within a sign, whether it is “missing”
on the house system or not - as is the Asc/Mc
cross, but not always each house cusp.

These guidelines never change for any chart.

When the Ascendant is calculated and drawn on

the wheel, the Midheaven and Immum Coeli or IC
are simultaneously calculated along with all other
houses. This Midheaven is usually at the very top
of the chart, or at the 10th house cusp & the IC is
the 4th house cusp; thus forming an essential
foundation of your chart. This is often drawn across
the wheel (as is the Ascendant), or marked in some
noticeable way by number 4 or IC or even colour
coded. It is always around a 90 deg. angle to the
descendant – creating a large CROSS (of matter)
on the chart.

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From this cusp the houses are counted in an anti-
clockwise direction around the wheel from 1 –12.
Just as there are 12 zodiac signs, there are 12
houses. If they are not numbered on your wheel,
you might want to pencil the numbers in yourself for
easy visual reference.

Each house has an opposite house across the

wheel eg: 1st house is opposite 7th, or Descendant.
2nd house is opposite 8th. 3rd house is opposite 9th
house and so on. (You will notice the signs
opposite each other also)

THESE RULES NEVER CHANGE IN ANY CHART.

If you see a chart with the signs or houses NOT in
order, then it is wrong wrong wrong – without doubt!
This is another reason why it is important to check
your birth data on the chart form, before you
proceed to interpret.

A zodiac sign rules each house - always in order 1-

12

The 1st zodiac sign rules the 1 st house eg. Aries

rules 1st house, Taurus rules 2nd house, Gemini
rules 3rd house etc - around the whole house
system. You might also want to pencil in the signs
inside the houses but take care not to mix them up
with the symbols for the signs.

It is not necessary to know all this to get on with

reading about yourself – If you are not interested in

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knowing about “the order” of things…then you can
get on with reading the relevant references in
books…however it may prove to be valuable
reference so you can confirm that you are
observing all the information correctly.

Most books also have the English and symbols so if

you want to Keep It Simple, then just compare the
symbols, signs etc and where they are - then refer
to the relevant books. Most books will also have
reading about the Signs, Houses and planetary
positions in one book. Some will also have
interpretation of the aspects also, which you will
need to read.

Interpretative books on Aspects are often a subject

of their own because it is the planetary aspects
within each chart that makes us all so individual.
There are not two natal charts alike, not even
twins!! There are many good books to refer to.
They will have titles like, Planets in Aspect: Aspect
in the Chart: or similar….

Remember, to begin with reading that you can

make sense out of and in this way it WILL prove to
be valuable to you. The human personality is like
the onion. As you peel away the layers (of self,
ego) you just keep finding more and more.

Some reading may make you feel uncomfortable;

however, if you remain in contemplation of the
issue that has brought about this “experience” you

Page 21
will come to evaluate whether it is an issue you
need to be honest about; deal with or choose to
ignore. None of this makes the reading incorrect or
invalid but you must determine what it is for you!
Do not believe everything you read!!! But read
everything and assimilate it for what feels right for
you.

In time, and over referring to your chart many times,

you will find you open up to more and more of what
the books say and in time you will find their
guidance is very practical, valuable and non-
judgemental.

The interpretations you read are not directed AT

YOU.

Remember, the interpretations are the observation

of mankind and all people have certain qualities, at
different degrees and at different times. Always
keep these things in mind when you discover any
new and exciting things in life – always practise
moderation until you gain more experience and
understanding in what it is you are undertaking.

Page 22
 Chapter 4
Planets
Planets shine and Stars (suns) twinkle
The Moon only reflects the light of the Sun
The Sun is eclipsed by the Moon

WHAT ARE THE PLANETS?

& WHERE ARE THEY?

Most people know the planets’ names, even if they

don’t know the order, which is not important at this
level. Astrology in the west is generally Geocentric,
meaning the earth is in the middle of the
observation, not the Sun. The Sun in the centre
Heliocentric astrology – or the “Soul” reading for the
natal chart. The planets are Sun Moon (we call
them planets but they are luminaries) Mercury
Venus Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune
Pluto. A new planet discovered in 1977 is Chiron
and these are all read in the same way.

Symbols of the Planets

Sun Moon Mercury

Venus Mars Jupiter

Saturn Uranus Neptune

Pluto Chiron

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The planets are the physical heavenly bodies
moving in their own orbit around the Sun in our
Solar System.

The planets represent WHAT you express

eg: the Sun represents our basic ego, personality,
self expression etc and when it is in a particular
zodiac sign, your personality will have those
particular traits – each planet represents a part of
human experience (according to which house, what
angle, and aspects are signified). The Moon
represents the expression of our basic emotional
responses & needs so this will be expressed
through your particular sign, house and aspects.

Finding your Planets

The same method as before is applied to finding

the sign and position of your planets in your chart.
On most blank chart forms are the symbols and
English for the planets. Commonly found at the left
bottom of the page, not the wheel. It will look like
the list above.

It is best to begin by locating the symbol for the Sun

on the legend. Then locate it on the wheel of the
chart. It will be placed somewhere around the dial
in a zodiac sign. It will be placed inside a 30-
degree section or sign, usually marked with a small
line – with the symbol of that planet next to it.

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There may also be some numbers next to the
planetary symbol. These are the
mathematical/astrological readings for your planet/s
in degrees (or hours) and minutes. If these readings
are NOT next to the symbols on the inner wheel,
then they will be in a separate legend on your chart
form. It is common to find both.

If you only have a legend to look at, then use this

instead.

Look at both the English and the symbol for the

planet in question, in this case the Sun on your
legend. You will notice a zodiac sign next to it.
This tells you that your Sun is in that Sign. The
sign symbol might appear between the 1 st & 2nd
numbers. Eg: Sun - 10 degrees Aries 55 minutes.
At this point, the degrees are not important, but you
may need to be aware of this so you can read the
legend correctly.

For the following references, look at Chart No 3 in

Chapter 1. In this case, the Sun is in Aquarius.
Look up this/or your Sun sign reference in astrology
books.

Next, you need to look at what House the planet is

in. Again, look at the wheel and find the symbol for
the Sun. It will also be in a section or house, which
is not always equal like the signs. Locate your Sun
symbol and refer to the house number (as in
previous chapter); or count from the 1 st cusp

Page 25
around. Your Sun can be in any of the houses from
1 – 12; it depends upon your birth-time & latitude.
In this case, the Sun is in the 4 th House. (See
chart 3)

When you have determined which house YOUR

Sun is in, you can refer to your astrology books
again for a more in-depth look at yourself.

In this case, we have determined that this person

has a Sun in Aquarius/4 th House. The 4th house is
ruled by Cancer, a Water sign, and this person will
have qualities of an Aquarian personality,
represented by the planet the Sun in that Sign.
However, they express it through Cancerian type
areas, represented by the house position. A person
with the same Sun in Aquarius but with a different
house position of the Sun will express their
personality through that area of life represented
again by the house position. The same method
applies for all readings.

Once you have satisfactorily determined your Sign

and House position of your Sun you can now move
on and determine all other readings. Write in your
own positions on a list for convenience.

You will need to look up all planets. Examples

below are from chart wheel 3. You might like to use
this to compare if you are looking at the chart
correctly.

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Sun in (sign) in (house) Sun in Aquarius/4th house

Moon in (sign) in (house) Moon in Virgo/10th house

Ascendant sign (1st house) Scorpio Ascendant

Mercury in (sign) in (house) Mercury in Aquarius/4th

Venus in (sign) in (house) Venus in Pisces/5th

Mars in (sign) in (house) Mars in Pisces/5th house

Jupiter in (sign) in (house) Jupiter in Taurus/6th house

Saturn in (sign) in (house) Saturn in Libra/12th house

Uranus in (sign) in (house) Uranus in Cancer/9th house

Neptune in (sign) in (house) Neptune in Libra/12th house

Pluto in (sign) in (house) Pluto in Leo/10th house

Chiron in (sign) in (house) Chiron in Capricorn/3rd

Midheaven Sign (IC, 10th house) Leo

Page 27
 Chapter 5
Aspects

WHAT ARE THE ASPECTS?

& WHERE ARE THEY?

The aspects are the relationship/s of planets &

angles to other planets or angles in the natal wheel.
The aspects form geometrical angles as in a normal
circle. Remember – Conjunction, Opposition,
Square? The same principles of geometry are used
to find the “aspects” in a chart.

The aspects are what make each one of us

individuals. Many people will share the same
aspect eg: Sun conjunction Mercury – a very
common aspect. However, the sign & house
position will change this for each person and so it is
with each and every planet and angle in your chart!!

Each aspect has a different degree of “strength” or

“intensity”. This is determined by “chopping up” a
circle – whole, half, quarters, thirds etc, so the
further down this scale an aspect is, the less
intense or important it may be. Your chart may
have many conjunctions or squares for example.
Several of many aspects are common in charts.
Strong individuals have many “strong” aspects in
the chart and visa versa.

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 Order of aspect intensity:
Conjunction (0deg) – strong
Opposition (180) - very difficult
Trine (120) – very easy
Square (90) - difficult
Sextile (60) – easy
Inconjunct (150deg) or Quincunx - frustration

There are other aspects that are usually

considered, however these 6 major aspects are
what are most important to you. On most charts
there is a small legend with the aspect names,
symbols and degrees.

Finding your Aspects

At first, looking up your aspects might seem

confusing – but you will quickly see it is basic
geometry. Again, you do not have to learn these,
only learn to look at them and how to refer to
reading material. All the working out is done for
you on your chart wheel. There are usually TWO
ways of looking at the aspects. Either is correct and
in time you will refer to both. Sometimes, only one
is on your chart and most generally this is the most
obvious form, i.e. drawing of lines in the centre.
1. Aspects drawn as lines in the centre of the
circle
2. Aspects as symbols in a grid

Aspects drawn as lines – these are easy to find.

Look at the centre of the wheel and there will be

Page 29
lines drawn with symbols on them, or drawn in
different colours. They will be different in every
chart, although similarities occur all the time.

To read the aspect, look to where to lines go.

There will be a planet (or angle) at each end of the
line. The line can be long or short. If the lines in
your chart have symbols on them then you refer to
these symbols.
Eg. Visual – choose each aspect and refer
to it
One planet will be in aspect to another according to
the symbol on the line. The symbol will look like one
in the above list.

It would be read Sun conjunct Mercury or Venus

square Uranus and so on. This is the “reading of
the aspect” that you would refer for interpretation.

Look at each of your planets in turn and their

aspects…As you go through each planet from Sun
– Pluto the readings will become less and less.

Interpretations have many different sides to them,

as before mentioned - all can be relevant. As you
look at the wheel you will visually see things are
opposite, next to, right angles to…. And so on,
these are the aspects you will refer to for
interpretation.

Aspects as symbols in the grid – the grid for

aspects is not as confusing as it seems. There may

Page 30
not be a grid on your chart form, but it is generally
on most charts. It is one of the larger legends on
the chart. It will have planet symbols only for
reference and they will appear on 2 sides of the
grid.

On one side of the grid the Moon symbol may be

missing, as it is not necessary to refer the Moon to
itself… you will understand this more as you look
at it. This is because the grid is set out in “cross
referencing”.

The grid has exactly the same meanings as the

drawn aspects in the wheel; it is just a different
method of referring to them.

Referring to the grid can be valuable if the centre of

the wheel has too many lines for you to understand;
however, other people find the centre of the wheel
easier to read. Learn to look at both.

Within the grid are squares with the symbols of the

aspects inside them.

Your symbol legend for aspects is usually nearby

this grid, so you can refer to them both easily.

Refer to the first symbol at the left of the grid,

usually the Sun, sometimes the Moon. Refer, next
to the first column of squares and see the symbols
next to other planet symbols. This means the Sun

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is aspected to the planets with symbols next to
them in each column, according to that symbol.

There may or may not be aspects to every planet.

Most people, DO NOT have aspects to all planets.
Many people have around 1 or more aspects to
planets on the grid. Do not concern yourself if you
do not. You will only need to refer to the aspects
you have in your chart.

Interpretative books will have all aspects for

reference (&more!) therefore; it is best not to read
what is not relevant to begin with. Later when you
understand it easily – and you will – you can look at
other charts (people).

Read each planet the same throughout the grid.

The symbols and English for aspects are on your
chart form.

– What! you say!!???

Remember, these aspects are each an individual
part of you and will give you so much information –
all about YOU.

The Ascendant and Midheaven aspects are also on

the grid. They are usually at the bottom of the grid
as Asc & MC, respectively. Refer to and interpret
them in the same way.

There may also be another 2 symbols on the grid.

They are usually the North Node and the Part of

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Fortune – Cross of Matter (inside) Circle of Spirit.
These 2 symbols are mentioned briefly under a
separate chapter and are referred to and
interpreted in the same way as planets and angles.
However, some books do not have these
interpretations in them. There are books with
reading material on these also.

Again, once you are familiar with this method, it is

the same for each and every astrology chart you
will look at. Also, you do not have to learn the
symbols and rules, just know how to look for the
information you need and then refer to your reading
material.

It is up to you if you look further, however, it may be

best to stick with the basic things first so you
understand and value the meanings as you
discover more. There is literally tons of information
on just the Planets in Signs, Planets in Houses and
Planets in Aspect.

These are the main body of reading your natal

chart.

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 Chapter 6
What are the other things on my natal chart?

There are other symbols, grids, notes etc on your

chart form and this is mostly used for the astrologer
or person wanting to look much more in depth. The
natal chart is like the onion, the more layers you
peel away the more you find to peel but you get the
bonus of getting to know yourself well and have a
lot of fun with it. This is a brief description of what
some of “those other things” on your chart might
mean.

North Node/South Node - LM There are

interpretative books that cover this subject alone
and it is very interesting.

Part of Fortune – calculation: the position of this

gives a “fortunate” energy to the planets involved.

Cardinal-Fixed-Mutable – the houses around the

wheel are determined in this way and have
independent meanings. Another reason why a
planetary position will be influenced in the individual
(or chart).

Fire-earth-air-water - signs around the zodiac are

in these elements. Another reason why
planets/aspects are affected to make an individual
personality.

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Positive & Negative: each sign/house is positive or
negative. This more accurately represents male &
female. Each 2nd sign is male/female around the
zodiac beginning always with Aries as the 1 st male
sign.

Dignities: This is when a planet is in it’s Own Sign

(the sign it rules), in it’s Exaltation or in it’s Fall.
Most books will have meanings for these and it is
valuable to look into this if you want a more in-
depth look at your individual planetary meanings.

Any other information would be your name and birth

data. Also the type of Astrology used and the
House system used should always be noted. This
is so you can always refer to an astrologer who
uses the relevant systems to calculate any future
transits or calculations you might need.

If you have a natal chart compiled upon one set of

systems, then it is not advised to get further work
done from an astrologer who uses a completely
different set of systems for calculation.

If you cannot find someone who does what you

need then the best advice is to have them re-
calculate your natal chart and then they can
prepare for other work you may request.

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WILL THIS CHANGE MY ORIGINAL CHART?
– NO, not really.

Although there are many different systems of

calculations, they SHOULD all come up with the
same (or very close to) information. The House
system is the only thing that really may be slightly
different, but in interpretation this doesn’t seem to
alter the reading. Your new chart may simply look
at little different but it is always read it in the same
way.

The most common systems used in the west seem

to be Geocentric/Tropical with Placidus houses.
Most commonly it is the House system that varies
from chart to chart rather than other calculations.

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 IN CONCLUSION

I have covered BASIC information you will need to

begin to read about your own personal chart. It is
always fun to read and learn about your family and
friends too, but it is always good to remember to
ask for their permission to “look into” their personal
information. Begin with yourself and enjoy a new a
unique new perspective of yourself.

There may be some of you who want to understand

a lot more about this subject and others want to
learn how to read what events and circumstances
are in the future. This is called TRANSITS, and is
not really predicting your future, but comparing the
positions of the planets in the heavens at a given
point in time (NOW for instance, or the next year) to
your natal positions. These calculations can be
made either by purchasing a reference book and
learning how to refer to this, or have an astrologer
print you out your transit list and you can, again
read the appropriate books. You can learn to read
your own Transits. If you really want to know HOW
all this happens then a basic astrology course is
recommended. In understanding how the
calculations are in astrology, you get a wonderful
new look at the universal mathematics and those
cycles that affect us all.

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