How to Read Your Astrological Chart: Aspects of the Cosmic Puzzle - Softcover

Cunningham, Donna

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1578631149 ISBN 13: 9781578631148

Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser, 1999

Synopsis

Astrology has no dearth of information about the myriad facets of the astrological chart and bewildering array of techniques used to interpret them, but students saturated with details still struggle to put the pieces together. Backed by nearly 30 years of observing humanity through the lens of the horoscope, Donna Cunningham lays out a workable system for reading charts in this latest of her twelve published volumes. It isn't a cookbook, but more of a driver's manual, as she offers her unique spin on the favorite question asked of conference speakers: "How do you interpret a chart?" Here, Donna teaches the reader to zero in on the most important features of the chart and transits and to synthesize the apparent contradictions. The book offers fresh and often pungent insights into planetary types, missing or weak features, and other facets of the horoscope that shape our character and actions. Donna pays particular attention to the role of aspects, which she believes are the key to understanding not only the birth chart, but also transits and chart comparison.

About this title

About the Author

Donna Cunningham, MSW, was an internationally respected astrologer and author of 16 books on metaphysical topics. Listed in several Who's Who volumes, she has given seminars around the world and won the prestigious Regulus Award for her contributions to the field at the 1998 United Astrology Congress. She also had a Master's Degree in Social Work from Columbia University and over 30 years experience in counseling people. Donna's Red Wheel/Weiser title, How to Read Your Astrological Chart, is highly recommended for the intermediate student. She passed away in July of 2017.

From the Back Cover

How long have you been studying astrology? If you've been practicing for a year and don't feel comfortable reading an actual horoscope, then this is the book you need to read! You'll learn to "reason astrologically" and discover how to put the planets and the aspects together. You'll learn how to figure out the meaning of Venus aspects, or your fixed T-square, or that upcoming Mars transit to your Moon. Rather than encouraging you to learn by rote, Donna Cunningham gives you a structured approach so you can let the astrological symbolism flow through you and out to your client.

Cunningham teaches a minimalist style of reading a chart as the best way to start. You'll discover which technique you want to use, and how to let go of the many techniques you may want to play with later. This "unclutters" the chart so you can begin to really see what's there. You'll learn what you need to know to be able to talk for that first hour with your client. Remember, there is a lot that can be said about a horoscope -- so much material is hidden in the circle that you could spend hours and weeks discovering it all. While this may be a lifelong interest for you, you need to talk sensibly without overwhelming the client, and after you've read this book, you'll be able to just that!

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

How to Read Your ASTROLOGICAL CHART

Aspects of the Cosmic Puzzle

By Donna Cunningham

Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

Copyright © 1999 Donna Cunningham
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-57863-114-8

Contents

List of Charts
List of Tables
Acknowledgments
Introduction
CHAPTER ONE Looking a Chart in the Face
CHAPTER TWO The Sun, Moon, and Ascendant—Working Partners or Family 
Feud?
CHAPTER THREE Plugging in the Individual Planets
CHAPTER FOUR What Planet Are You From?
CHAPTER FIVE A Guided Tour of the Hard Aspects
CHAPTER SIX Soft Aspects—When the Living is Easy
CHAPTER SEVEN Piecing Together the Major Configurations
CHAPTER EIGHT Understanding Transits—Another Way to Use Aspects
CHAPTER NINE An Overview of Transits—Seeing the Whole Picture
CHAPTER TEN How Aspect Analysis Illuminates Chart Comparison
Bibliography
Index
About the Author

CHAPTER 1

Looking a Chart in the Face

After studying astrology for a while—ten months for some, ten years for others—youdecide it's time to stop reading books and start reading charts. You pickone up and wonder how to proceed. You recall dozens of rules and techniques,some of which contradict each other. You stare at the chart. Confronted by adizzying array of symbols, you try to figure out what's important. Over time,astrological sophisticates develop their own systems for reading horoscopes.This chapter, and the rest of this book, presents mine. This is not the onlymethod for reading charts. You may not choose to use it. But this is the way Ianalyze charts in my practice. It identifies the most significant features invery short order.

First, Check the Birth Time

Begin by speculating on the accuracy of the data. Times that have been roundedoff, like 7:00 or 7:30, are suspect. Times on the quarter-hour are likely to becloser to the truth, and a time like 7:06 may be exact. Be especially cautiouswhen the Ascendant is in the last few degrees of one sign or the first fewdegrees of the next, since a slight difference in birth time can change therising sign. In borderline cases, ask for the Sun sign of both parents, as oneof them may be the correct Ascendant.

Ask where the person got the data. If it's from Mom's memory, she's 80, and shehad seven kids, the data may be faulty unless memorable circumstancesaccompanied the birth. A birth announcement or baby book may be given somecredence. If the time was noted on the birth certificate, it is at least asclose as the delivery-room staff could make it.

However, when difficult planets like Saturn, Pluto, or Neptune fall near theAscendant, inquire if any unusual circumstances accompanied the delivery. Often,there is quite a saga. If this was a chaotic (Neptune) or a particularlydifficult birth (Saturn or Pluto), the data could well be in question.Especially in life-threatening circumstances, delivery-room staff pay attentionto the baby and the mother, not the clock on the wall. Typically, when bothstabilize and cleanup begins, someone will ask when the baby was born. Theperson in charge looks at the clock and makes a guess, and that guess isrecorded for posterity.

Take the birthplace and year into account as well. Until 1967, observance ofDaylight Savings Time was notoriously changeable from town to town and even yearto year, especially in the Midwest. The best reference, at this writing, forchecking this is The American Atlas, but even that is amended as new informationcomes to light.

In some areas—and some eras—state law has mandated that Standard Time berecorded on the certificate, rather than Daylight Savings Time. Illinois wassuch a state until 1959, as was Pennsylvania between 1921 and 1970. Where thisrule was in effect, the birth certificate of someone born on May 25th at 9:00P.M. EDT would read 8:00 P.M. Not all hospitals paid attention to the law—andnot all delivery-room staff remembered it all the time. As a result, even thetime on a birth certificate may not be recorded correctly.

For Pennsylvania and Illinois natives, you should definitely ask for the sourceof the time. A baby book or birth announcement notation may be based on clocktime, and thus might be Daylight Savings Time. A parent's memory of the birthtime may be from the clock (and thus Daylight Savings Time) or may be from alater glance at the birth certificate (and thus possibly Standard Time). For DSTbirths, ask for a few key past events to double-check the Midheaven throughtransits or progressions. Despite precautions, errors may creep in, but at leastyou'll be forewarned.

That's bad enough, given that there are 186 timetables for Pennsylvania alone inThe American Atlas. At least, for six months of the year, we don't have to worryabout Daylight Savings Time—except for those born during World Wars I and II andthe oil crisis of 1974–5, that is. However, just when I thought it was safe tofire up the software, I discovered that, if Pennsylvanians find a town name theylike, they tend to use it more than once.

I surveyed one two-page spread—two of 26 pages of towns in Pennsylvania. Amongthe many redundancies were two Bethlehems, two Bryn Mawrs, three Bloomingdales,five Brooksides, and seven Bridgeports. (There may also be North and EastBridgeport and Old Bridgeport—they wouldn't be listed on that page.) You alsohave to watch for spelling variations—there were two Bridgetons and oneBridgetown.

These towns are often far enough apart to produce several degrees difference inAscendants and Midheavens. Between the two Bethlehems, there are three degreesdifference on the Midheaven and four on the Ascendant. That is enough to throwpredictions off seriously or change a rising sign. To avoid error, ask thecounty of birth or the name of the nearest goodsized city. (Pennsylvania isn'tthe only problem area—there are three Brooklyns in New York state. Two are inthe boonies a considerable distance from New York City, but the one where somany bright, funny, famous, and infamous folks were born is 73W56; 40N38.)

A Visual Survey of the Chart

Astrology is primarily a visual medium. Out of the five or six usual senses, weeach have one or two that we prefer. Some of us are visually inclined, some aretactile, and some learn best by hearing. If you're not particularly visual, youcan train yourself to see more acutely. You could accentuate color in drawing upa wheel, as some astrologers do. They may use red ink for planets in fire signs,green for earth, blue for water, and perhaps orange for air. Another visual aidis the European system of drawing houses their exact size rather than theillusory equal size (the pie chart) of most printed charts.

Whatever devices you adopt, keep the wheel uncluttered. As discussed in theintroduction, I focus on the basic, no-frills chart—the ten original planetsand outer-planet transits. In actual practice, I start with a one-ring chartwith just the natal placements. After analyzing them and drawing in the aspectsby hand, I use a bright color to plot in house positions of the transiting outerplanets and Jupiter. When a transiting planet shifts houses within the year, Idraw a double-headed arrow showing before and after house positions.

One advantage of eliminating clutter is that important features stand out morestarkly. Charts 1 and 2 give two renditions of the horoscope ofastrologer/seeress Jeane Dixon to illustrate this. Chart 1 confines itself tobare bones (see page 6). The inner ring is her natal wheel and the tentraditional planets. The outer ring shows outer-planet transits at the time ofher death on January 26, 1997. Chart 2 displays five asteroids, with transits inring two, and solar-arc progressions in ring three (see page 7). Do you tense upjust looking at the three-ringed version? If so, work with chart 1 until you arefluent enough not to get thrown by detail. Without getting into the meaning ofanything on the page, determine what stands out visually. Which houses orsectors are emphasized, and which are empty? Where do planets clump together?Are there planets that leap out at you in any way—for instance, by being aloneon one side of the chart while everything else is on the other side? Make a noteof your observations, for these "standout" factors are likely to be important.

Start by ignoring the outer ring. Survey the inner ring and note that theplanets are widely scattered, with only two empty houses. This is somewhatunusual—many people have four or five empty houses. Jot this down, as we'll lookat houses later. You may also remark that several planets cluster near theMidheaven—not surprising for someone in the public eye. Let's explore what theseobservations mean.

Planets on the Angles

Use a broad-tipped marker to highlight planets up to 10 degrees on either sideof the four angles—the Ascendant, Midheaven, Descendent, or IC (4th-house cusp).This includes planets in the 3rd, 6th, 9th, or 12th houses, as long as they arewithin 10 degrees of an angle. These crucial areas are the Gauquelin sectors,named for Françoise and Michel Gauquelin, the French psychologists whodiscovered them.

The Gauquelins made an invaluable contribution to our field by researching over60,000 timed birth charts. In their meticulously designed studies, theyconsistently found that planets in those sectors affect public perception of theindividual, to the extent that they are signatures. Their statistics showed thatthe strongest of the four regions are: within ten degrees of the Midheaven, butin the 9th house; and within 10 degrees of the Ascendant, but in the 12th house.The closer the planet is to the angle, the stronger its effect. The system, ofcourse, depends on an accurate birth time.

We can only touch on their work, but you should read about it for a morecomplete picture—or to sway that skeptic in your life. I have used this methodfor over 25 years and find the highlighted planets consistently emphasized inclient's lives. For instance, if Venus is highlighted, the person tends to benoticeably Venusian (e.g., concerned with relationships, appearances, andkeeping the peace).

In Jeane Dixon's inner wheel, you will find six planets highlighted, an unusualnumber that probably increased her public visibility. Three of these are within10 degrees of the Midheaven—Mercury and Saturn in the 9th house, and Mars in the10th. Pluto is in the 1st house, 10 degrees from her Ascendant, Venus is in the6th house, 9 degrees from the Descendant, and the Moon is in the 4th house, 9degrees from the IC. Chapter four discusses the significance of each angularplanet.

Another proof of the importance of angular placements is their effect inrelocation charts and Astro*Carto*Graphy® maps. Part of the impact of a majorgeographic move is due to the shifting of new planets onto angles. That's whysome folks thrive on Phoenix and hate Boston, or vice versa. Or why a recluseborn with Pluto on the Ascendant can, at least partially, emerge from her cocoonby moving 3000 miles from her birthplace. The accuracy of this technique dependson a precise birth time, but the shifting of planets to new angles has the sameresult as moving Gauquelin sectors. Planets on relocated angles operate askeynotes in that region.

Situations that arise in various locations can even be used to double check thebirth time's accuracy. Despite his respect for astrology—or possibly because ofit—U.S. President Ronald Reagan's birth time has remained a mystery. Astrologershave enthusiastically espoused as many as twelve different Ascendants. JimLewis, who created Astro*Carto*Graphy®, put forth an interesting argument forPisces. He pointed out that with Pisces Rising natally, Reagan's relocation toWashington, DC, put Mars in Capricorn near the Midheaven, the career and statusangle. Capricorn is the sign of executives. Mars represents leadership, but isalso connected with war, weapons (recall the Stealth Bomber), and, especially,guns (remember his near-assassination in Washington and the gun-control bill.)

The House-Cusp Controversy Revisited—Again

For at least twenty years, astrologers have disagreed about house divisions,often vociferously. The more scientifically-minded tend to espouse the Kochsystem, while diehards like myself stick with the traditional Placidus system.The knotty problem lies with the intermediate cusps, which may be in differentsigns in one or the other system. Moreover, some planets may change houses,depending on which system you use. Many people pick the system that puts theirown planets in the best light. If their Venus falls in the self-defeating 12thin one system and the friendly 11th in another, they'll swear by the one thatputs Venus in the 11th.

No one seems to disagree about the cusps of the 1st, 4th, 7th, and 10th houses.They are clearly demarcated and identical in all but the equal house system,which buries the true Midheaven and IC. They correspond with the four anglesthat showed up so sharply in the Gauquelin studies. A planet sitting on one ofthem carries extra power. They also correspond to four major reference points inspace—the two horizons, the Zenith, and the Nadir. Unlike other house cusps,they are given their own names—the Ascendant, IC, Descendant, and Midheaven.These four points in space are nearly as active as a planet. If the birth timeis exact, when a transiting or progressed planet forms an aspect to one of them,an event will usually occur. A progressed angle making an aspect to a natalposition may also coincide with an event.

For all the above reasons, these four cusps are real. I am not entirelyconvinced of the reality of the remaining cusps. There is no such cleardemarcation of the intermediate house cusps—2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 11th,and 12th. Their degree, and even their sign, may vary with the house system. Aplanet that sits on one of these cusps does not gain in power. Events onlyoccasionally occur when a planet crosses them by transit or progression. Whenthey do, there is usually a natal planet in that numerical range that accountsfor it (e.g., the house cusp is at 8 Libra, but there are planets at 8 Cancerand 8 Leo). Unlike the progressed angles, when a progressed intermediate housecusp forms an angle to a natal planet, it may not correspond to events.

If the intermediate cusps were real divisions rather than artificial ones, therewouldn't be such controversy about them. The truth would be self-evident.Instead of crisp dividing lines, there may be gray areas shading gradually fromone house into another. I hold as suspect any planet within 5 degrees of anintermediate cusp.

I then question the person to determine which house seems to be the focus ofthat planet's energy. What these interviews clarify, more often than not, isthat the planet on the cusp affects, and is affected by, the matters of bothhouses. Moreover, it appears to draw the two together. For instance, Venus onthe 11th-12th cusp often shows up as a tendency to have secret, unrequitedcrushes on friends or even—until the person learns better—to engage in unhappy,illicit affairs within their circle of friends.

Full House, Empty House

When you scan a chart, some houses may appear empty, while others are relativelyfull. Here, I pay attention only to the basic ten planets, not to nodes,asteroids, or parts, because those basic planets represent major focuses andexpenditures of energy. Given twelve houses and only ten planets, at least twohouses will be vacant. However, when several planets clump together in a singlehouse—as often happens with the Sun, Mercury, and Venus—even more houses will beunoccupied.

This is as it should be. We can only scatter our energies in so many directionsbefore we become as fragmented as the asteroid belt. The person whose planetsare deployed in many different houses tends to have many interests and to try tojuggle many responsibilities and connections. Whether they are successful at it,or whether they become ineffectual dilettantes, depends on other factors in thechart. We can't know that from just looking at the house pattern. Jeane Dixon'snatal planets are dispersed into nine different houses, and yet she didaccomplish many things.

Full houses depict highly significant areas of life, not unlike putting lots ofeggs in a single basket. The area in which we expend our energy is where we tendto get results. A full house is therefore, an area in which meaningful people,situations, and events are clustered. If you have several good planets in the11th house, but nothing in the 4th, friends will be major supports and mayoutweigh family in importance in adulthood. Likewise, club officers often havesignificant 11th-house placements.

The matters governed by a house with a stellium, or containing the Sun and oneor two other planets, can even be a career indicator. For instance, a friendwith a stellium in the 3rd house started a very successful answering service. Atravel agent had several planets in the 9th house. Many academics or spiritualteachers also have a 9th-house emphasis. The 8th house, when strong, can showmediumistic tendencies, and may also be an indicator of the potential forwealth. Jeane Dixon's Sun is in the 8th house.

Empty houses or sectors indicate that major planetary energy isn't beingdeployed toward matters of that house, but instead is focused elsewhere.Therefore, matters of that house are apt to take a back seat to matters ofhouses where planets are massed. A woman with no planets in the 4th or 5thhouse, but with the Moon in the 10th, is likely to be more fulfilled as a careerwoman than as a traditional homemaker.

Just don't conclude that an empty house means nothing will ever happen in theareas of life that house governs. One of Jeane Dixon's empty houses is the 3rd,signifying communication, and yet her columns and books have been the foundationof her success. In this case, Mercury and Gemini, both related to the 3rd house,more than compensate for the empty house, because she has Gemini rising andMercury conjunct the Midheaven.

Many novices become upset if their 7th house is vacant, thinking it means theywill never marry. Consider, however, what else in the chart may compensate. Howstrong is Venus? Are there major placements in Libra, especially the Sun, Moon,or Ascendant? Librans tend to marry, whether their choices are sound or not.Where is the ruler of the 7th house? If the ruler of the 7th is in the 4th, andthe 4th is strongly tenanted, then forming a family and maintaining a homelifeis a stronger drive than marriage itself. The marriage may be a means to thatend.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from How to Read Your ASTROLOGICAL CHART by Donna Cunningham. Copyright © 1999 Donna Cunningham. Excerpted by permission of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Edition details

• Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1578631149
• ISBN 13: 9781578631148
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224