How to Read a Birth Chart Part One: Personality

by Bruce Scofield This article was first published in the Aug./Sept. 1999 issue of The Mountain Astrologer and is reprinted here with minor editorial changes and by permission of the author. Im a self-taught astrologer. From books by Evangeline Adams and Sepharial, I learned about the multifaceted symbolism of astrology and how to calculate a chart. One of Alan Leos books led me into the world of progressions and directions, while Charles Carters books opened up vistas in degree symbolism and political astrology. Dane Rudhyars many writings introduced me to some rather sophisticated concepts about the entire field of astrology and its relation to psychology, philosophy, and religion, an exposure that motivated me to get a graduate degree. Beginning in the late 1960s, I learned about spiritual astrology, the history of astrology, astro-meteorology, and metaphysical astrology. I learned how to calculate every kind of chart, from natal to composite. I even calculated the arcs necessary to do primary directions. All of this was from books I had no teachers. But throughout this period, nowhere did I learn very much about how to do a reading for another person. By the late 1970s, I had attended a few astrological conferences where I had heard the best and brightest in astrology speak on their specialized topics. I was armed to the teeth with astrological knowledge but was still very unsure of exactly how readings were done, so I boldly stepped into the reading ring with a method of my own making. My first readings were basically commentaries on each planet and each house in the chart, a method that was similar to readings that were done in ancient Greek and Roman times. After going through the planets and houses, I would then report on the transits and progressions affecting the clients chart. This was the strong point of my reading. My calculations were so good that I often timed events to the day. Clients were impressed with this accuracy and came back for more readings. Over the years, my

psychological readings improved and evolved. But only after I had perfected a style of reading charts did I come to learn how others tackled this problem. In this series of articles, I will attempt to lead readers of this magazine through the twists and turns of an astrology reading. I will outline a simple method of chart reading suitable for beginners and helpful to intermediate students of astrology. Please consider reading your own chart to be an absolute priority. What good is a reader of charts who cant read his or her own? Thats like going to a doctor who cant heal himself. Dont let the myth that one can always read others charts better than ones own keep you from facing your own truth. A Simple Astrological Model of Personality In this first installment, I will concentrate on reading the chart for personality and motivation. Later installments will cover the topics that seem to be of most interest to nearly everyone: relationships, career and money, and health. Before any delineation of personality from a chart is possible, the reader of the horoscope must have a model against which the information extracted can be placed. By personality I mean the overall composite of individual traits, the things that make each person unique. In the field of psychology, personality is a broad topic and has been traditionally approached from several directions. One approach identifies traits, another looks at needs, and others look at the development of personality. For most people, however, a discussion of traits is immediately useful and much easier to understand and process. For practical purposes, I recommend that first-time chart readers regard personality as a collection of traits that are organized by the Sun, Moon, Ascendant, and the inner planets. Heres the basic scheme: Sun: Primary motivations, leadership capacities, integrity style, available energy. Moon: Instinctive responses, emotional reaction patterns, sensitivities, interests. Ascendant: Social personality, personal identity, presentation of self in everyday life. Mercury: Cognition, communicative style, thinking. Venus: Sexual responses, social patterns, cultural and artistic interests. Mars: Assertiveness patterns, self-motivation, self-interest.

A simple model of the personality using these points would look like this: The Sun is the central integrating factor and is surrounded by four primary circuits, represented by the Moon, Mars, Mercury, and Venus. The Moon, which is triggered at birth, or even before, symbolizes a person's needs and instincts. Mars, triggered between the ages of two and five, represents the persons need to be independent and to run on their own power. Mercury, imprinted mostly between ages six and thirteen, is descriptive of how the mind works and how successful communications are. Venus, triggered at about age eight and imprinted during puberty, describes mating and social patterns. The Ascendant, which develops throughout this period of youth, is symbolic of the persona or social self, the way the person meets the world. These six primary astrological factors offer astrologers a powerful model of the personality. Of course, much more detailed information can be accessed from the natal chart, but the point of this exercise is to get beginning students of astrology started. Psychology, Astrology, and the Self The study of the Self is the province of both astrology and psychology. Psychologists have been trying for nearly a century now to piece together a map of the person. Though psychologists have contributed much to fleshing out a map of the human psyche, no one person has seen it all. With the possible exception of Jung, psychologists have refused to look at the oldest and most reliable map of the psyche available, the astrological chart. [1] Horoscope readings are an excellent way to self-knowledge. Any spiritual tradition worthy of being called such will place self-knowledge squarely on the pathway to enlightenment. How can one make spiritual progress if one doesnt really understand his or her inner motivations? Is there a better index into personality and character than astrology? The horoscope contains in symbolic form a wealth of information about who we are. It offers information on our motivations, our personal styles of action, how we solve problems, how we respond to situations, and how we think. It also offers information about the people and things around us. This last statement opens up the issue of what exactly the Self is. Does the Self end at our skin, or are we actually participating in the world around us? Are our projections, which are clearly reflected in the horoscope, really a form of us? These questions raise complex metaphysical and 3

philosophical problems. For our purposes, we will view the horoscope as a map of the Self, however vast, but will concentrate on the observable traits of the personality. Some Key Concepts When reading a horoscope, one must be able to determine the relative strengths and weaknesses of each planet. Many methods have been proposed over the years to do this, and many work very well. Here are some simple and general ideas for evaluating a planets relative strength in the chart: 1. Is the planet in an angular house (1st, 4th, 7th, or 10th houses) or conjunct an angle (within ten degrees of the Ascendant, IC, Descendant, or Midheaven)? If yes, then that planet has a loud voice in the chart. (See diagram below.)

2. Is the planet in close aspect to the Sun, Moon, Midheaven, or Ascendant? Use an orb of up to 15 for conjunction or opposition, 7 for square and trine, and 3 for sextile, semi-square, and sesquiquadrate. For any other minor aspects, use a 1 orb. If the planet is in such an aspect, its qualities are deeply embedded in the personality. 3. Is the planet in a sign that resonates with its qualities, or not? The old tables of sign rulerships, exaltations, and detriments are a guide to this sort of judgment. If the 4

planet is in a resonant sign, it will tend to function in a more socially appropriate way. (See table below.)

Planet
Sun Moon Mercury Venus Mars Jupiter Saturn

Rulership
Leo Cancer Gemini Virgo Taurus Libra Aries Scorpio Pisces Sagittarius Capricorn Aquarius

Detriment
Aquarius Capricorn Sagittarius Pisces Scorpio Aries Libra Taurus Virgo Gemini Cancer Leo Leo Virgo Taurus

Exaltation
Aries Taurus Aquarius Pisces Capricorn Cancer Libra

Fall
Libra Scorpio Leo Virgo Cancer Capricorn Aries

Uranus Neptune Pluto

Aquarius Pisces Scorpio

Scorpio Cancer Aries

Taurus Capricorn Libra

The Sun: Key to Integrity and Vitality In my opinion, the Sun is the most important point in the chart, and a natal reading should begin with a discussion of its condition. Everyone has a Sun, but not all Suns are the same. Start your reading here, with the Sun, by describing a persons motivations, where in their lives they show leadership and energy, and how they can integrate everything else that they are. The Sun represents our conscious primary motivations, our urge to impress ourselves on the world, and how we are best able to do that. The sign and house position of the Sun will describe how and where our energies are best applied. For example, someone with the Sun in Aries in the 10th house should be motivated to be a 5

soloist of some sort in the public arena. Their conscious primary motivation is to realize themselves out in the world, and do it all by themselves. Only with this kind of accomplishment will they feel truly empowered. The Sun is also symbolic of the captain of our ship, our CEO, our leadership capabilities, and our deepest sense of an integrated self. If the Sun is in the 10th house, such people should be leaders in the outside world, the public arena. If they are not, ask them why. If the Sun is in the 8th house, they should be leaders in groups and in crisis situations. Many therapists and teachers have their Suns here. If the Sun is in the 3rd house, there is a strong potential for leadership in matters of mobility and communication. The important point is to show clients exactly where they should apply any leadership qualities they may have and where their energy will tend to be most effective. The position of the Sun also shows how individuals may best integrate their lives. Many people are all over the place and lack a central focus. Many of us look to others for clues as to who we should be. For millennia, women have been programmed to let men set their course through life. Frequently, a woman on the verge of making a choice that is truly her own will suddenly meet a man who wants her to go down his path. This is a crucial moment, a time when the woman must choose whether the Sun in her chart is her own or will be owned by the man. Our society has made the first choice a difficult one, while it rewards (in money and security) the second. Beyond this social dilemma, the Sun in the chart defines how we can best integrate our lives. If the Sun is in Cancer, then domestic security will bring a life into focus. If the Sun is in Libra, partnership is necessary for personal integrity. The Sun in Pisces suggests the need for a belief in, and a life of service to, higher ideals as the key to integrity. When we do our Sun, our life becomes stronger, we have more energy, and we feel integrated. The Sun in the chart also indicates the amount of energy available to us. It is symbolic of our life energy, our battery, and what keeps us going. A person with an angular Sun in Leo (conjunct one of the four angles) may have more energy than one with the Sun conjunct Saturn in the 12th house. But the former person may waste energy, while the latter may, through conservation of energy, accomplish ten times as much. When reading a chart, always show clients how to best use their energy; dont ever tell anyone they have a weak Sun. 6

Finally, if the Sun is positioned very strongly in the chart, for example, angular and in a fire sign, you can expect that such people will make their mark on the world, rather than letting the world make a mark on them. The Moon: Interests and Instinctive Responses After discussing the Sun, an astrology reading might next turn to the Moon. The Moon in a chart shows how a person naturally reacts to situations. A prominent Moon (conjunct an angle) will describe a person who is primarily reactive to the world, even if the Moon is in a fire sign. An example is my eleven-year-old son, who has the Moon in Aries just above the Ascendant. Hes the goalkeeper for his soccer team, a position that is very vital and even aggressive, but basically reactive. The Moon represents the organisms ability to adjust to situations, to change with the flow of events and shifts in the environment. If the Moon is in an active fire sign, then the reaction pattern is particularly quick. If in an air sign, there is some mental deliberation before a reaction takes place. In an earth sign, reactions are often muted or restrained, and in water signs, reactions are accompanied by an emotional charge. The Moon in the chart is the signature of our capacity to respond. If a chart has the Sun more prominent than the Moon, then such natives will probably do things that, essentially, act on the world. They may, unfortunately (from the perspective of most people), lack the ability to feel what is really going on around them. This is typical of many establishment doctors and scientists who are clueless when it comes to understanding the whole situation. Lunar types intuitively understand the emotional dynamics of a situation and are less inclined to act on the world. They react. The Moon tells us what a person is interested in. What we respond to is what draws our interest. Just bring a group of people with different Moon signs to a market and watch what happens. The Cancer Moon people go for collections of domestic items, or for lunch. The Gemini Moon people buy books and magazines. Pisces Moon types buy bath salts. Of course, this is generalizing, but you get my point. Our Moon signs say a lot about what we want and, consequently, about who we are. In the charts of men as well as women, the Moon sign is an indicator of the feminine. Since most men are programmed from birth to deny any feminine responsive qualities in themselves, they learn to experience their Moons qualities through a woman. This process begins with the mother and extends to the female mate and 7

female offspring. Men with their Moon in fire signs, or in aspect to Mars or the Sun, respond to females who are fiery and direct. Men with the Moon in water signs respond to emotional, soft, and sensitive women. The Moon shows what makes us feel at home. We take a primary lunar imprint during the first two years of our lives, a mostly preverbal time when our very survival depends on our caregivers. Difficulties during this stage of life are shown by difficult Moon aspects and are reflected in later life by restless feelings and unstable moods. The Ascendant: The Social Presentation of Self in Everyday Life The sociologist Erving Goffman has written several books on what appears to me to be the Ascendant, though I doubt he knew that was what he was doing. In his book Asylums, he talks about how institutions strip our identity from us. [2] By taking us away from our normal environment, around which we have built an identity, and giving us a number instead of our name, institutions can break a person down into a much simpler biological machine. In his book The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Goffman talks about how people define situations by assembling the world in a specific way. [3] Conflicts erupt when different definitions of the world conflict. The Ascendant is the astrological symbol of how we interface with the world and how we assemble it so that we can preserve an identity for ourselves. If this seems too sociological, think of it this way: The Ascendant is our face and our social act. If youre alone in a room, with no particular agenda, youre probably doing things you feel like doing (as symbolized by your Moon) and thinking about things that you need to think about (Mercury). Then, another person comes into the room. Immediately, your psyche springs into action and you assume a role that is familiar to you. If you happen to have been a firstborn child and have Leo rising (not an uncommon combination), you take a strong stance in regard to the visitor, perhaps even a dominant one. If you have Pisces rising and are a second or third child, you take a more submissive stance. As the visitor moves about the room, your body language shows where youre really coming from. Years of instinctive reactions and clashes with parents, siblings, and others have produced a set of characteristic responses to the world around you that is shown by your astrological Ascendant. Its sign and aspects to the other planets spell out its actions in detail. 8

The Ascendant is crucial in understanding personality. It is the lens through which everything else, including the Sun and Moon, is channeled. You could have the most dominant Sun position possible, but with a service-oriented Ascendant, you would politely ask others if you could dominate them, or you might go through a lengthy mental process that would validate your deep inner sense of superiority. A dominant Sun and a loud Ascendant can be something to behold, preferably from a distance. A desperate used-car salesman with a powerful Leo Ascendant makes more noise than a multimillionaire investor with Virgo rising. This is how the Ascendant works. To read the Ascendant in the chart, first look at the sign it is in. Then look at the planets to see if they make any aspects to it. If it is squared by Mars or Pluto, there will be power issues between the person and the environment. People with Pluto square their Ascendants love to tear things up and transform their environments. If they dont express this need in some legitimate way, such as in a demolition job or interior decorating, others may find them to be pushy and overwhelming. With Neptune square the Ascendant, the boundaries between Self and others are blurred. People with Venus aspecting the Ascendant express themselves through the magic of beauty and appearances. Those with Mercury in aspect to the Ascendant relate to the world through talk. The Ascendant is our portal to the outside world and planets will express themselves powerfully when they aspect this point. The Ascendant is the rising sign, the point on the eastern horizon where all the zodiac signs rise. Every day, planets also rise in the east, so its possible to have Mars rising and Taurus rising. Whats rising is whats coming into being. The Ascendant is the identity that is always in the process of becoming. As we grow older, we gain more control over this part of our life and begin to show our Sun and Moon signs more clearly. The Ascendant, however, is where we really begin as a social self. If there are no planets in the sign of the Ascendant, in conjunction with it in the 1st house, look to what has traditionally been called the ruling planet. The ruling planet is the planet that rules the sign on the Ascendant. If Capricorn is rising, then Saturn rules; if Aries, Mar rules, etc. The house where the ruling planet is located will be quite descriptive of the area of life in which the person best displays his or her identity. Also, the planet making the closest aspect (especially a conjunction) to the ruling planet might be considered very important. Remember, in this instance, the ruling planet is the 9

carrier, and it carries the energy of this other planet right to the Ascendant. This other planet thus gains power in the chart via the ruling planet. Mercury: Mind and Language Mercury is an important symbol in understanding personality. It is descriptive of how we put together the information presented to us by the environment, how we process it, and how we pass this information on to others. Bees and ants seem to do this well, and I suspect that, in the overall scheme of things, they might be creatures of Mercury. On the physical level, Mercury is our nervous system, the network that transmits information throughout the body. It includes the brain, which directs the show. Mercury in the chart is a symbol of our own personal style of informationprocessing. It shows how we think and what subjects or themes we are best suited for, mentally, that is. For example, Mercury in Virgo is probably better suited to process details than Mercury in Sagittarius, a placement better for dealing with generalities. How we think about things varies considerably from individual to individual. Everyone sees things from a different vantage point. If we have a Mercury that operates within a tight framework, for example, Mercury conjunct Saturn in Virgo, we will thrive on details. People with this combination will find success in scientific or other precise, focused work. What we dont need are these kinds of people making big decisions that affect many people. On the other hand, people with Mercury conjunct Jupiter in Gemini may see too much. Their heads may be full of ideas gleaned from every possible perspective. They shouldnt be asked to handle details and are far better qualified to serve as go-betweens, people who function as connectors between those with fixed positions. These extreme examples are given to make the point that we all think differently, and an astrology reading can help draw our attention to what our style is and where we should use it. How we learn, what we want to learn, and how well we communicate, are shown by Mercury in the chart. Venus: Whom and How Do We Love? Venus is a most biological planet. Its the force behind the drive to mix our genetic material with that of another, but not with just anyone it must be someone we believe will make our descendants better off. We are attracted to those who have complementary immune systems, which, when combined with ours, create descendants 10

who can better handle the world. Venus is the symbol of how we handle the impulse to mate and what we favor in our choices. Like the Moon, Venus is reactive. It shows how and what we respond to. Venus in Gemini responds to words and ideas. Venus in Capricorn responds to concrete evidence of security, like money in the bank. Venus shows our taste. It shows what we seek to add to our genetic data bank or what we seek to add to our art or CD collection. Art collections, and specifically good taste in art, are a way for us to show others how valuable our genetic material is. And all of this operates on many different social levels. But dont be fooled. Venus is the force that moves us to mate for success, and whatever cultural tricks may be necessary for this to occur (a new hairdo, a new car, or an electric guitar) will somehow be employed. Read Venus in a chart as the need to socialize and mate, and also to improve oneself and to be more attractive to others. If Venus is angular or in close aspect to the Sun, Moon, or Ascendant, it is a powerful influence in the chart. People with a strong VenusAscendant link are good-looking, artistic, and very sociable. With a strong MoonVenus connection, they are more passive, reactive, and feminine. With a strong SunVenus connection, they tend to project attraction energies, like a tractor beam in Star Trek. If Venus is ahead of the Sun in the zodiac, in an earlier degree or sign, it is a morning-star Venus. This indicates a tendency to feel first and think later in social matters. If Venus is behind the Sun, in a later degree or sign of the zodiac, it is an evening-star Venus and indicates a tendency to think first and feel later in social matters. If Venus is conjunct the Sun, note whether it is direct or retrograde. Many people are born with a direct Venus conjunct the Sun. These people are highly social but also very conscious of their social life and how people accept them. Those born with Venus retrograde, and there are far fewer of these, can be very impulsive and not particularly clear about social boundaries. Venus and the Sun run together at eight-year intervals. At the solar returns for ages eight and 16, the SunVenus relationship at birth will be repeated. These are crucial periods for taking social imprints. A persons social skills and, consequently, mating success are formed around these years and, for better or for worse, will be reflected in the position of Venus in the chart.

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Mars: Punching through Life Mars symbolizes how we assert ourselves. Without Mars, we would be lifeless blobs of protoplasm. With Mars, we propel ourselves through life, meeting challenges and promoting our own agendas. People who have an accentuated Mars can be disturbing to other people. Those with a less prominent Mars may find themselves ineffective in some life situations and will need to choose their playing field carefully. Heres how Mars works: With Mars angular, in aspect to the Sun, Moon, or Ascendant, or in a fire sign, personal assertiveness comes naturally. The sign Mars occupies will show the style of assertion; the house will show the area in which assertion is best directed. For example, Mars in the 9th house suggests that ones opinions are strong and there is a need to assert ones beliefs. It will be very important for such an individual to have a good education. With education, these people can be intellectual pioneers, the first to enter dangerous areas of thought. The same idea can be applied to the other houses. Mars in the 2nd house is the mark of the self-employed. Mars in the 6th means taking charge of ones daily schedule and healing oneself. The main points are that Mars needs to project itself and that it wants to do it by itself. In its essence, Mars is a very simple planet. Its all about fighting to be an individual, a somebody. Mars kicks in at about two years of age, after completing one cycle through the zodiac. At that time, children learn to stand up for themselves (by saying No!) and to control their muscles in toilet training. The condition of Mars symbolizes the relative success or failure of this critical period of life, roughly from age two to age five. Putting It Together After reporting on the six points of our chart-reading model, it might be good to wrap up the reading with a discussion of the four primary orientations. The four orientations correspond to the four directions. East is the Ascendant, west is the Descendant, north is the IC, and south is the Midheaven. (These four orientations are often described in textbooks as the hemispheres.) If a majority of planets are grouped around one of these points, the general thrust of the personality will be described by that point. Heres the scheme:

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Ascendant/East: The personal orientation is about self. The goal of life is to realize ones potential, possibly through self-employment or works that are a reflection of the personality. Descendant/West: The personal orientation is about relating. Interactions with others determine the path of life. Relationships establish destiny patterns. IC/North: The personal orientation is subjective. The inner life and deep feelings dictate actions. The inner self does not feel a need to conform to the status quo. Midheaven/South: The personal orientation is objective. What is going on in the world counts; it shapes the personality. There is a strong need to conform to the status quo. If the planets are scattered around the chart with no particular emphasis, the person may be regarded as having the potential to be well-rounded. By reporting on the six points and commenting on the orientations, a beginning student of astrology can get off to a good start in doing readings. By offering clients information about how best to express their energies and character traits, astrologers will certainly increase self-knowledge, which is the goal. Astrologers should emphasize that people have a choice in where they put the energy of their planets. This is not a world of fatality and unchangeable destiny, at least not for people who strive to be conscious and rise above the limitation of family and culture. Always give people a sense of how they can do the best with what they have. The next installments of this series will describe methods of extracting more practical information from a birth chart. References and Notes 1. A complex model of the Self is offered in my book, The Circuitry of the Self: Astrology and the Developmental Model, One Reed Publications, 2001. 2. Erving Goffman, Asylums, Anchor Books, 1961. 3. Erving Goffman, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Anchor Books, 1959. 1999, 2010 Bruce Scofield all rights reserved Bruce Scofield has maintained a private practice as an astrological consultant, writer, and conference speaker for more than 40 years. He is the author of seven books and hundreds of articles on astrology. He has been active in the National Council for Geocosmic Research since 13

1979 and was Education Director between 1998 and 2003. He holds an M.A. in History and a Ph.D. in Geosciences and currently teaches at Kepler College and the University of Massachusetts. Bruce Scofield and Barry Orr maintain a Web site (www.onereed.com) containing a variety of astrology articles and a calculation program on Mesoamerican (Maya and Aztec) astrology.

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