FREE ANATOMY OF A BIRTH CHART GUIDE
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What is a Natal Chart in Astrology?
An astrological chart (natal chart, birth chart) offers anyone who is interested in personal development or wants to better understand life circumstances a wealth of tools for self-understanding and self-empowerment.
How?
Astrology is a method of reading the placement of the stars and planets, and your natal chart offers a snapshot of the planetary alignment at the moment of your birth. This “chart” is like a “blueprint of possibilities for your life”, and analyzing it opens doors to understanding your past, your present, and future directions aligned with your personal chart.
Once you have access to your natal chart, and the interpretation from a seasoned astrologer, it’s like owning your very own Universal GPS -- you now have guidance to find and stay on your life’s intended path, highlighting your greatest gifts, your highest potential, as well as areas of possible challenge. Your chart also has the ability to reveal answers to many of life’s greatest questions, including likely outcomes in relationships, career, health, love, and more.
Let’s start at the beginning with the 5 things you need to know about your chart…
5 Things You Should Know About Your Natal Chart
SUN SIGN ☀️
If you have ever read your horoscope, then you probably know your astrological “Sun” sign.
I’m a Sagittarius, you’re a _______.
The horoscope articles found in a newspaper or magazine, usually only focus on your Sun sign. The placement of your sun DOES offer you great insight into who you are, but it barely scratches the surface of who you are!
Why?
Your Sun sign is just one piece of the great astrological mystery! There is more than just the Sun flying around our solar system, right? There are planets too. Therefore, just as the planets of our solar system revolve around the Sun, they also impact the story of our astrological charts.
Bottom line? Your Sun Sign is paramount - it represents your identity and how you direct and express your will outwardly to the world. Our SUN sign shines a light on who we outwardly appear to be.
What is your Sun Sign and what does it say about you?
MOON SIGN🌙
Another important sign in your chart is your Moon sign. The moon represents our emotional interior, our feelings, and how we interpret and digest stimulus on the deepest level.
Only when we are truly at ease are we able to show our “Moon” and relate to others with it. We share our Moon, our true feelings, with those we love and trust, such as family members and dear friends. The moon also rules our mother, family, how we parent or nurture, food, cooking, home, our house/dwelling, biological inheritance (genetic and shared resources), and psychological roots.
Do you know what your Moon Sign is?
RISING SIGN (ASCENDANT) (AC)
The Rising Sign is important because it is the starting point of your entire chart. It is the eastern-most point at the moment of our birth. Thus, the Rising Sign determines where every single planet falls in our chart.
The Rising Sign is the metaphorical “mask” we wear. It’s the first impression we give to others, and how they perceive us.
Our Rising Sign is also the lens through which we see the world. It filters our initial reactions to life because It serves as the filter for our perception of life. That is amazing to contemplate. This sign can offer us great insight into why we perceive life and the people around us as we do.
The Moon and the Rising Sign (Ascendant) are vital components of your natal chart and are necessary to analyze, along with your Sun sign, to get a clear picture of who you are from an astrological perspective.
RETROGRADE PLANETS IN CHART (℞)
With the exception of the Sun and Moon, all planets turn retrograde.
What does it mean when a planet is considered in retrograde? A planet that “appears” to be moving backward in space, is considered retrograde. However, this is actually an illusion. Planets orbit at different speeds around the Sun. When a planet slows down, which it does in cyclical patterns, it reaches a point in the cycle where it seemingly appears to be moving backward.
When a planet is retrograde in your birth chart, this offers even more insight into who you are.
Why? A retrograde planet at the time of your birth, causes individuals to have varying responses to the energies from that planet and its placement in your chart.
Retrograde planet effects are varied, but for some, they may naturally cause you to relate inwardly to the traits of a certain planet and chart combination versus others, who may outwardly relate to that energy.
In other scenarios, when a planet is reversed in your natal chart, the characteristics of this planet and its placement may be felt more strongly, or indicate an area of your life where you will need to do some inner work to express these traits outwardly.
Basically, you will express a retrograde planet and its energy differently than those who have the same placement in their chart, but not in a retrograde motion. It is common for people to have 2-3 planets in retrograde in a given natal chart.
☊NORTH & SOUTH NODES ☋
What is your life purpose?
Where are you coming from?
Where are you headed?
The lunar nodes - the North & South Nodes - unlock the answers to these questions in your birth chart. These nodes are invisible points, exactly 180 degrees apart, and fall in opposite zodiac signs in your natal chart.
The South Node is where we are “coming from”. This node represents our comfort zone, what we have already mastered. It indicates the habits and patterns we are ready to release, the qualities and characteristics we are leaving behind, and the challenges and gifts we carry from early parts of life, including energies, challenges, and characteristics we bring in from previous lifetimes.
The North Node is where we are “heading”, our True North. The placement of the North Node in our chart, by astrological sign and house, shows qualities that are developing for us, and the direction we are moving toward in this lifetime. The North Node represents our path of future growth, the Karmic paths/lessons we came here to learn, new characteristics and patterns we will develop, and our personal journey to fulfillment. In other words, our North Node describes our life purpose. We cannot “do” our North Node enough.
If you look at the symbol of the North Node, you’ll notice that It resembles a headphone set. This is a good reminder for us to put that North Node headset on and to listen to the directions our astrological chart clearly presents us.
Follow its lead...and find what you came here to be, do, and learn.
GET YOUR PERSONAL NATAL CHART READING HERE!
Liberate yourself through the timeless and miraculous art of astrology. Your chart is a life-coaching tool that will provide you with a wealth of self-understanding, allowing you to move towards a place of self-love and acceptance. With increased personal awareness, you will have the necessary direction to take control of choices and opportunities leading to a more joyful and fulfilling life.
Hilary Harley is our Master Astrologer and will walk you through the map of your soul.