How Does Astrology Work?

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Astrology is an age-old topic that has fascinated humanity for centuries. Astrologists help us have a greater understanding of ourselves, and by extension our strengths and vulnerabilities. But how does astrology work?

Astrology is the study of how the positions of the sun and planets at our time of birth determine our personality and behavior. The location of the sun, when you were born, determines your “core” personality, and the other planets impact more specific areas of your life.

Here, I’ll outline how all the pieces fit together so you’ll have a general idea of what astrology is, and how it all works!

Table of Contents

Astrology Overview

In Astrology, there are twelve zodiac signs, one for each month of the year. Each one has unique characteristics, and each celestial body in the solar system is always located within one of these twelve signs.

12 Zodiac Signs:

Aquarius (January 20 – February 18)
Pisces (February 19 – March 20)
Aries (March 21 – April 19)
Taurus (April 20 – May 20)
Gemini (May 21 – June 20)
Cancer (June 21 – July 22)
Leo (July 23 – August 22)
Virgo (August 23 – September 22)
Libra (September 23 – October 22)
Scorpio (October 23 – November 21)
Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21)
Capricorn (December 22 – January 19)

The twelve signs are further divided into 4 “elements”, Fire, Earth, Air & Water, which are broader personality categories.

Elements and Associated Signs:

Fire signs: Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius
Earth signs: Virgo, Taurus, and Capricorn
Air signs: Libra, Gemini, and Aquarius
Water signs: Scorpio, Pisces, and Cancer

Each zodiac sign varies and has immense differences, but signs within the same element have many commonalities.

Fire signs tend to be spontaneous, adventurous, and creative but also can fall into becoming egotistical and blunt. They are fun to be around and are lively individuals who have big personalities.

Earth signs are practical, careful, hard workers who value security and material comfort. They are typically quite good with finances, but unfortunately can be very stubborn and resistant to change.

Air signs are intellectual, have a great sense of humor, and are emotionally detached. This gives air signs a tendency to view the world and society very differently but can also alienate them from others.

Finally, water signs are emotional, intuitive, and sympathetic. They heavily value family and supporting others, but can become hypersensitive and overbearing.

Of course, these are large generalizations. Each sign is more nuanced and sophisticated than it is made out to be above. Just as human beings are complex, multifaceted individuals, so are zodiac signs. Each sign has a rich and vivid lore that makes it unique.

Your personality is a compilation of zodiac signs since each of the planets in your synastry chart is ruled by one sign. But how is this divided? What significance does each planet have in determining your personality?

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I’ve also written a series of articles about how tarot relates to each of the zodiac signs. You can read these articles here:

Components of Your Astrological Chart

Your Sun Sign

Your core personality, the sun sign: When someone asks for your zodiac sign, this is undoubtedly what they are requesting. Just like the sun is the dominant force in the solar system, your sun sign is the governing force in your personality.

While it’s hard to place a definite number on matters involving astrology, it’s safe to say that the sun sign makes up at least half your character.

Your Moon Sign

Your Inner self, the moon sign: While your sun sign is out for the world to see, the moon sign is the part of you closed off from the rest of the world. The moon sign governs your moods, emotions, intuition, and is a part of you that is generally more concealed from the rest of the world.

In matters of the heart, you must never minimize this: Disagreeing moon signs may yield a couple that cannot emotionally connect!

The Venus and Mars Signs

Passion and Romance, The Venus and Mars signs: Venus and Mars are two planets naturally intertwined with each other. Venus is the planet of wealth, beauty, affection, and lust. Or more specifically what you lust for. Venus sign tells you what it is you love.

On the contrary, Mars is a sign of passion, energy, it is how you express yourself and play a big role in how you love. When a couple’s mars and Venus signs are compatible, it is a pointer of off-the-charts chemistry!

Your Mercury Sign

Intellect and Communication, the Mercury sign: Mercury is the planet of thinking, expressing ideas, you’re learning style, and most importantly, communication. It is a sign that doesn’t get much attention either, which is a shame considering it governs our important decision-making process!

Are you impatient? Blunt? Indecisive? The Mercury sign can reveal all those tidbits of your personality which may be forgotten or ignored by astrology enthusiasts.

Your Jupiter and Saturn Sign

The Social Planets: Jupiter and Saturn: Jupiter and Saturn are two sides of the same coin, they both deal with happiness.

The sign in Jupiter reveals to us how we expand our horizons and find joy in our lives. It tells us how we expand and handle personal growth and rules over-optimism, good fortune, and abundance.

Saturn is quite the opposite since it can be thought of as a planet whose sole purpose is to make life inconvenient. Saturn gives each of us an “Achilles Heel”, a defect that we have to surpass or become ruined by. The planet itself represents restrictions, limitations, and stagnation. So pay close attention to Saturn, you must know what you struggle with to advance as a person!

The Generational Signs

Ever wonder why different generations think, talk, and act so differently? The astrological explanation is that several planets transcend impacting individuals and impact entire generations and their worldviews instead.

While this isn’t talked about much by astrologists, it is still a topic worthy of knowing about. The planet Uranus stays in the same sign for 7 years, Neptune for roughly 14, and Pluto for a staggering 30!

Therefore, understanding those older or younger than yourself may require you to have an understanding of the zodiac signs their generational signs fall under.

Assembling Your Chart

When you put all of your astrological signs together to form your chart, you have created an in-depth report of yourself! From it, you can have insights on your strengths, but also your downfalls.

You can use the information to help you decide on pursuing education, career, hobby, or simply gain personal growth and development! Just keep in mind a few things when you go to analyze your chart.

All the information is meant to be put together to compile one whole personality. In other words, to understand your chart fully you need to understand how certain signs interact and that impact on you.

For example, if your sun sign is Libra, a generally laid back sign, but your moon is in possessive Scorpio, you may feel conflicted between maintaining balance and lashing out at someone who is bothering you.

Watching out for synergies and clashes between your planets can help you understand yourself and others better, so don’t view each planet by itself.

It must be viewed in the context of being one part of a whole person.

With that out of the way, here is the fun part. Comparing charts! Determining compatibility is a fantastic way to find potential partners, close friends, or just start some fun conversations to break the ice. But how does compatibility work?

Zodiac Sign Compatibility

When determining compatibility, there are a few rules of thumb to remember. The zodiac sort of “divides” itself into two major compatible groups. Earth and Water on one end, Fire and Air on the other. It is fairly uncommon to see Earth signs date Fire signs or Water signs dating Air signs.

Now if you’re panicking over the fact your spouse or partner isn’t compatible, don’t worry! There are plenty of exceptions to the rule. If the rest of the chart has a lot of strong compatibilities, it can make up for you two having incompatible sun signs.

So, what are the green flags to look for when comparing charts?

Jupiter

Your Jupiter signs compatibility with your partner’s Mars, Venus, and Moon signs can play a huge role in determining if you two feel positive energy with each other.

Venus and Mars

As a reminder from earlier, compatibility between the Venus and Mars signs is keys to extreme physical attraction.

The Element Ratio

Okay, that one may sound complicated, but it’s not. One partner’s overabundance of water signs in their chart can make up for another’s total lack of it in theirs.

Sun-Moon

Luckily, compatibility can be considerably intensified when one partner’s sun sign is the same as the other’s moon sign. This connection implies that there is a deep bond formed between the two, and there’s an internal harmony between them.

Summary

Astrology is fundamentally about discovering your energy and the shared energies between individuals. Hopefully, this guide will have helped you gain an understanding of how it all works, and you’ll be able to use astrology to create better business relations, friendships, marriages, and spiritual advancement.

If you’d like to find out your synastry chart, there are numerous free websites and apps that you can use!

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