ASTROLOGY FOR BEGINNERS

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

We’ve identified a natal chart and its main ingredients. Now we need to put it all together in a cohesive manner; but first, what’s the point of reading a natal chart? If you never had your natal chart read, life would still go on, right?

Why I got interested in astrology was because I thought there was more to life than racing around day in and day out. I was tired and stressed. I decided to try yoga classes. That helped greatly.  Besides helping me learn to stretch properly, I learned to meditate and connect with my inner self. In those quiet moments, I began to wonder: Where was I going? What was my purpose in being here?

That led me to seeking guidance from God, because who else would know my purpose? So I prayed.

During my time of yoga classes and prayer, I picked back up the habit of reading my horoscope. I found a website that provided a copy of my natal chart. I took an astrology course back in the 80s with my mom and I sort of remembered parts of it. I reconnected with an acquaintance who knew much more about astrology than me. I began to reacquaint myself with astrology and learn more. What I initially got from studying my chart was that the planets’ placement at the time of my birth reflected personality traits that I recognized in myself and helped me understand why I did some of the things I did in the past. I felt less guilt about them; after all, those placements were already there on the day I was born and yet, told a story that I had not yet experienced. All the things I had done up to this point in my life were meant to be.

Then, during COVID, someone very, very close to me passed away suddenly. I was heartbroken; I wanted to die too – and I prayed. And you know what happened? A spiritual voice told me it was not my time to go, that I was meant to be here to help others. At that point, I had worked in education for 25+ years and guided many children and was still in education. Surely, that’s what the spirit was referring to.

I continued to study astrology and learned from those orbiting planetary placements the time had come for me to make a drastic changes in my life and career. Now, we all have free will. I certainly could have ignored what my chart was showing and my life would have gone on. I may even have decided without the benefit of knowing my chart to quit the career I had been in for 30 years now. Who knows?

What I can say, knowing these planetary aspects and what they meant, gave me the confidence to leave a profession that was causing too much stress, and to take a risk, knowing that God will see me through. I know that because my chart has been right about my life up to now; why would it change?

We always have choices; there are no mistakes.

Understanding your chart and its continual planetary aspects gives awareness of potential strengths, gifts/talents, and potential areas of challenge, obstacles/roadblocks.

Now, to very basically put together everything we’ve talked about the last few weeks, look at your natal chart. What zodiac sign is your Sun in; what traits are associated with that sign? What zodiac sign is your Moon in; what traits are associated with that sign? What is your Ascendant sign; what traits are associated with that sign?

If you’re really adventurous, find what house each of those are in and look at the general traits associated with those houses. [Your ascendant will always be your 1^st House.]

For example, here is my chart:

My Sun sign is in Virgo in my 3^rd House. I am very analytical and a perfectionist – something I am trying to let go of. Being in my 3^rd House, part of my key communication skills is that I analyze everything, sometimes overdoing it.

My Moon sign is in Capricorn in my 7^th House.  I am disciplined and responsible to the point that it sometimes affects my relationships. [I have a hard time being spontaneous.]

My Ascendant is in Cancer in my 1^st House. [Your Ascendant is always the cusp of your 1^st House.] I am nurturing, and like the Crab, tend to sidestep confrontation.

From here, there are so many other areas to look at. Look at what house and sign each planet is in. As you get more adept, you may even want to consider the planet ruler of each Zodiac sign and how it affects you; or start to look at the movement of the planets. The moon moves very quickly; whereas Mars takes 2 years to go through all the signs; Jupiter, 12 years; and Pluto, 248 years. Then, there are planetary returns. You have a solar return every birthday, and a Saturn return about every 28-29 years.

I love teaching people to read their charts, but if this seems to be getting more confusing for you, I am offering until the end of July 2025 a 50% discount on a natal reading. Just put in the promotion code OFF50.

If you are interested in my continuing this series, please email me. astrologywithann@gmail.com Otherwise, this will be the last in this series. Thanks for reading!