How are Horoscope Signs different ?

Asteroids, Nodes, Fixed Stars, etc.

ARABIC PARTS

There are hundreds of Arabic Parts. The most popular one is the Part of Fortune.

The formula for calculating the Part of Fortune is: Ascendant+Moon-Sun. To perform this calculation manually, you must first convert the zodiac position of the the planet to 360 degree form. The zodiac sign Taurus begins at 30 degrees so therefore 10 degrees of Taurus equals 40 degrees. Similarly 10 degrees of Gemini = 70 degrees (60 degrees + 10) and 10 degrees of Cancer = 100 degrees (90+10). If the Ascendant is 5 degrees of Cancer, the Moon is 20 degrees of Gemini, and then Sun is 8 degrees of Leo then the position of the Part of Fortune is 95 (5 degrees of Cancer) + 80 (20 degrees of Gemini) – 128 (8 degrees of Leo) which equals 47 degrees, or in other words 17 degrees of Taurus.

Recent research into ancient astrological texts indicates that the formula used for the Part of Fortune depended on whether the Moon was above or below the horizon, but most astrologers use the formula as described in the previous paragraph for all charts.

The sign, house, and aspects to an Arabic Part are believed by many astrologers to be important.

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ASTEROIDS AND CHIRON

Between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter are thousands of pieces of rock which

orbit around the Sun in similar fashion to planets. These small bodies are called asteroids. Four of them are significantly larger than the others and these 4 major asteroids are named Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta. Interest in the 4 major asteroids appears to be growing among astrologers.

Some commonly believed meanings of the 4 major asteroids are:

Ceres: Nurturing, caring, supportive, protective, maternal, helpful, unprejudiced.

Pallas: Creative, talented, creative blending of creative and technical skills.

Juno: Bonding very closely to loved ones, marriage, loyalty, commitment, jealousy, possessiveness.

Vesta: Self-controlled, disciplined effort. Modest, simple, plain, creative.

The smaller asteroids have also been given names, and a few astrologers have experimented with using them in the chart interpretation as well. Because there are thousands of these very small asteroids, it is not unusual for their to be an asteroid with a name identical, or similar to, a person, place, or situation that you are interested in. A few astrologers who have worked extensively with these asteroids believe, for example, that an asteroid with a name similar to the first name of your spouse is likely to be prominent in your chart, perhaps conjunct the Ascendant, seventh house cusp, or an inner planet. Only a very few astrologers have experimented with the thousands of very small asteroids, and many astrologers are highly skeptical that they can be of any importance.

Chiron is another body used by some astrologers. It was originally believed to be similar to a planet, but astronomers now classify it as a comet. Many astrologers believe that Chiron gives talent in healing arts and gives wisdom. Some believe it gives ability in working with one’s hands.

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DEGREE MEANINGS, DECANATES, NAVAMSA CHARTS, ETC.

The great majority of astrologers interpret the zodiac sign that a planet is in, and perhaps most of them do not put a great emphasis on what degree of the sign the planet is in. In other words, the astrologer may not be concerned with whether the planet is in 1 degree or 10 degrees or 20 degrees of the sign. However, some astrologers distinguish different shades of meaning throughout the zodiac sign.

One commonly used division of zodiac signs is the decanate. Each zodiac sign is divided into three 10 degree sections. One theory holds that the first 10 degrees has the “pure” influence of the zodiac sign, while the second 10 degrees is toned by the next sign of that element and the last 10 degrees is toned by the last sign with that element. For example, the first 10 degrees of Leo is a pure Leo influence, 10 to 20 degrees of Leo has a Sagittarius influence (Sagittarius is the next fire sign after Leo), and 20 to 30 degrees of Leo has an Aries influence. One more example: the first 10 degrees of Capricorn is a pure Capricorn influence, 10 to 20 degrees of Capricorn is toned by a Taurus influence, and 20 to 30 degrees of Capricorn has a Virgo influence.

Another division used by some astrologers is the dwadasamsa, a section of 2 1/2 degrees in length.

There are other divisions of the zodiac that are used by some astrologers. For example, some astrologers divide each zodiac sign into 9 equal divisions of 3 degrees 20 minutes each. This division is used in Vedic astrology, and is referred to as the navamsa zodiac sign. The navamsa chart used in Vedic astrology is identical to what harmonic astrologers call the 9th harmonic chart.

You can determine the navamsa zodiac sign of any planet simply by multiplying the planet’s position by 9. For example, a planet at 20 degrees of Taurus in the navamsa chart is at 50 (20 degrees Taurus equals 50 degrees) times 9, or 450 degrees. Subtracting 360 from 450 = 90, or 0 degrees Cancer. Therefore, a planet at 20 degrees of Taurus is in the navamsa sign of Cancer, and specifically at 0 degrees Cancer in the navamsa chart. Vedic astrologers believe that the 9th harmonic chart shows a great deal about a person’s marriage. According to this theory, the planet at 20 degrees Taurus has a strong Cancerian quality, especially as regarding issues of love and marriage.

Another interesting division of the zodiac signs is the theory that each degree of the zodiac has a different influence. According to this theory, the first degree of Aries is different from the 2nd degree, which is different from the third degree, and so on so there are 360 different influences. Many astrologers have worked with the concept of degree meanings. American astrologers Marc Edmund Jones and Dane Rudhyar wrote extensively on degree meanings and popularized the concept. Jones and Rudhyar associated symbolic images with each degree of the zodiac.

Astrologer David Cochrane pointed out that the 30th harmonic chart has zodiac signs of a length of exactly one degree and perhaps the degree meanings are a result of these 30th harmonic signs, in the same way that 9th harmonic signs have been used for hundreds of years in Vedic astrology. Interestingly, the 30th harmonic chart has 30 zodiacs of 12 degrees in length while the regular birth chart has 1 zodiac of 12 signs each of a length of 30 degrees, so interestingly the numbers 12 and 30 are prominent in both the regular chart (or first harmonic chart) and the 30th harmonic chart, which may be indicative of an especially important significance of the 30th harmonic signs. It may also be that the degree meanings are a composite of various harmonic signs such as the 30th, 7th, and 9th. Many astrologers feel, however, that each degree has a unique symbolic meaning that can not be explained by harmonic signs such as the 7th, 9th, and 30th harmonic signs.

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FIXED STARS

Most astrologers emphasize the influence of the Sun, Moon, and planets in their chart interpretations. Some astrologers also use the positions of stars in their interpretation. The stars are usually referred to as “fixed stars” by astrologers. When looking up at the night sky, the planets look like stars, except that they move through the constellations. The fixed stars do not appear to move significantly relative to each other, so consequently the constellations (such as Orion, the Big Dipper, etc.) do not change shape over time.

Fixed stars were used in ancient times and each star has a specific influence. Some astrologers incorporate the influence of a fixed star in their interpretation when the star is conjunct a planet. Some stars, for example, have a de-stabilizing, energizing influence so Mars conjunct one of these fixed stars would incline a person to be aggressive and accident prone.

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NODES

If you were to observe the positions of the planets in the night sky every night for many years, you would discover that the planets move approximately through the same path; each planet moves through the same constellations, and each planet moves almost precisely over the same fixed stars. However there is a slight variation. The path of the Sun through the fixed stars is referred to in astronomy as the ecliptic plane. The variation of any planet’s position above or below the ecliptic plane is the planet’s latitude. Most astrologers ignore latitude in their chart interpretations. The path of any planet will cross the ecliptic plane at two points and these two points are opposite to each other. Although the latitude of a planet is typically not used, the points at which the planet crosses the ecliptic plane (or, in other words, the longitudinal position where the planet has a latitude of 0) is important. These 2 points which are opposite to each other are known as the planet’s nodes. The point where the planet crosses the ecliptic plane moving from south to north is the planet’s north node and the opposite point is its south node.

The Moon’s nodes are very commonly used in astrology, while the nodes of the other planets are rarely used. The Moon’s nodes are generally believed to be points where relationships with other people are made. Some astrologers feel that the North Node is a point of destiny while the South Node is a point of karmic obstacles.

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RELOCATION CHARTS

A relocation chart is calculated for the time of birth but for the place of residence. For example, suppose a person is born on March 12, 1970 at 8:30 AM in Burlington, Vermont, and now lives in Seattle, Washington. To calculate a relocation chart for Seattle, Washington, a chart is calculated for the time of birth in Seattle, Washington. Note that when it is 8:30 AM in Burlington, Vermont, it is 5:30 AM in Seattle, Washington so you must adjust the time for the new time zone. Another alternative procedure that some astrologers use is to leave the time zone and observance of daylight savings time the same as the birth place, and then the time does not need to be changed.

Analyzing the relocation chart enables you to see how a person will function in that location. Of particular interest is when a planet moves into conjunction with the relocated Asc., 4th house cusp, Descendant (7th house cusp) or MC (10th house cusp). For example, a single person who wants to be married would do well to move to a location where Venus in the natal chart is on the relocated 7th house cusp.