Planetary Aspects

The angles formed by the planets and the Earth are measured at the birthplace in degrees. These angles are found on the astrogram by positioning the planet in the particular zodiac sign (for instance the Sun at 12° in Aries, the Moon at 17° in Gemini).

Definition of Planetary Aspects:

When the heavenly bodies are in a specific angular relationship, they are said to be in a specific “aspect”.

These aspects specify and differentiate the motivations and potential (for both good or bad) of the person to a large extent. The planetary aspects in fact indicate:

• The individual capacity to resonate with the planet”s energies;


• The ability to select a characteristic mode of interaction between the planets that form the aspects.

We will discover that the sign, house and planetary aspect define the characterics of a person at an emotional and psycho-mental level; namely all that distinguishes him from others.

Notes:

To analyse an astrogram (natal theme), discussion of the following planetary aspects is required:

• the aspect in itself; what characteristics it has and how it manifests;


• the planets” position in the signs; namely how the astral energy corresponding to the aspect is received. The manner will be known by the way the planets are positioned;


• the planets” position in the houses.

Thus we can learn how we manifest these energies, and precisely the fields of activity in which they will be experienced. Once the celestial houses” position on the horoscope has been established, the exact position of the planets need to be plotted. This requires using the Ephemeris table which lists the planetary positions corresponding to the sidereal times for each day, which is the manual method. Alternatively, one may use an accurate computational program like the one available on this site. In the manual method, an interpolation procedure is used, where the exact position of the planets at the birth time and place is established. This will be completely explained when the natal chart is calculated. Each planet therefore is assigned a number representing the degrees (on the zodiac) at which it is situated. This number ranges between 0° and 360° (the whole circle) and the placement of a planet in a sign and in a house is determined by the fact that each sign occupies 30° on the circle. Each sign”s cusp is situated as follows: 30° in Aries = 0° in Taurus (a sign cusp is identical with the 30° position of the preceding sign). For example in a natal horoscope if the Sun is at 110°, it means it is placed at 20° in Gemini (as the Gemini”s cusp is at 90°, plus another 20°); or if the Moon is at 188°, it is in fact placed at 8° in Libra.

The planets” position can also be given directly, for instance “the Sun at 23° in Taurus”. In this context, the planets are at a specific distance from each other, and these distances are calculated as angular differences between the planets” positions on the zodiac. Using the previous example, the Sun at 110° and Moon at 188°, the angular distance between the Sun – Moon will be 78°. The specific values of these distances are very significant. An aspect or planetary relationship represents a certain value of an angular distance between two planets. This places them into a particular relationship. Within these aspects some are stronger than others; this means some relationships between the planets will be more influential upon the individual than others.

Also available in: Română