Where to find love & romance in the natal chart

I’ve been a fan of Astrology for more years than I have fingers but it wasn’t until I moved countries, changed careers and met a lovely guy – who later turned out to be more Kermit than Prince Darling – that I got the bug good and proper. But I also have to confess that it was my relationship with J that first had me reading astrology texts looking for signs that we were meant to be…looking particularly at my chart for signs romance, his chart for signs of fate and passion and, finally, our charts meshed together for the cosmic indicators that it was all destiny….

Sigh. I now realise that this was short-sighted and after J went Kermit on me, I was surprised that I was still interested in Relationship Astrology but I’ve always been a die-hard romantic (Libra on 5th house cusp) so I continued to read and learn more and more about love indicators in the birth chart. That was only a few years ago so I’m not an expert but I would like to share what I have discovered through reading good texts on the subject of Synastry and Composite charts and through talking to friends and looking at their charts.

It’s easiest of me if I use my own chart to explain so here goes…

 

Romance & Romantic Partners

1. To find out how you like to give and experience romance, you must look to the sign on the 5th house cusp. (Libra)
2. Are there any planets (or asteroids) in this house? (Pluto and Juno)
3. Who is the ruler of the 5th house and where are they in the chart? (Venus in the 10th house)

So I like my romances (and romantic partners) to be attractive, intelligent, socially graceful with charm by the bucket load (Libra) but it cannot be only superficial, it must have passionate intensity and emotional connection (Pluto). Finally, I will likely meet a lot of my romantic partners through my career or reputation (Venus in the 10th)

More details can be added if you look closely at the major aspects that any of the planets connected to any of the ‘love’ houses. This will generally add context and more descriptive details about the people you’ll be attracted to, where you’ll meet and how you approach the relationship.  

Partnerships & Marriage

1. For marriage or any long-term relationship look to the sign on the cusp of the 7th house (Sagittarius)
2. Any planets/asteroids in the 7th house? (Neptune and Vertex)
3. Where is the ruler of the 7th positioned in the chart? (Jupiter in the 4th house)

So…in a long-term relationship I’m after freedom, adventure and independence and I would be highly likely to marry someone who is teacher, foreign or a big traveller/explorer type (Sagittarius – Indiana Jones, please stand up!) but I’m also looking for a spiritual connection and unconditional love (Neptune). He’ll also most likely be musical, creative or gifted (or flakey) in some way with Neptune in the 7th. He will be very generous, successful and will have a lot of support and encouragement from his family to share and I will benefit from him through our marriage…or, at least, that’s the plan!  (Jupiter in the 4th)

As mentioned above, once you’ve got these factors you can then look to the aspects for more details to add to your descriptions…for instance with Jupiter in the 7th this can sometimes mean luck, good fortune and many marriages but with Saturn very closely conjunct in the 4th, I have a more considered and cautious approach which means I take the responsible and pragmatic approach to committment….

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What goes around, comes around – Saturn

Often called the Lord of Karma for his fearsome ability to keep the timing of our lives and levels maturity with his pivitol transits over our chart, Saturn is often painted in a terribly negative light. But does he really deserve all the bad press or is it a case of don’t believe the hype?

My diplomatic side wants to say that Saturn is good. He brings structure and learnings that everything worth doing does not come without hard work, effort and sheer will but that would be being less than honest and far too superficial for the real meanings of when Saturn touches important points in the natal chart whether by transit, natal or progression.

When dealing with Saturn I always go back to the idea that my parents taught me: if it’s worth having you’re going to have to work for it  or, more succintly voiced so beautifully by Mick Jagger translates to You Can’t Always Get What You Want. That sentiment, in all it’s frustrating, unfair and sad-making glory is the true essence of what Saturn shows you.

This is the major reason he is often referred to as the ‘Greater Malefic’ or the planet of LIMITATION. And going back to the idea that Saturn brings structure, limitation is the word you have to remember because it is not neccessarily bad.  But it is just restrictive and you are going to have to work very, very hard to get beyond the limitation that Saturn is trying to show you without learning a few *cringe* life lessons. I’ve yet to see or hear of anyone who did not change after a Saturn transit.

Uranus and Saturn are similiar in that they bring changes but Saturn brings changes that are like building blocks. One challenge here and another lesson learnt there; Saturn makes you change in small steps but often you will want to fight him at every step because it often uncomfortable, the things he’s asking of you are uninteresting, unimportant or unrecognisable. But it’s okay because he can bide his time.

His transit of one house in the chart will normally last between 2 and 2.5 years, depending on the size of the house and how healthy it was to start with. If you have a house that you are very comfortable operating in then a Saturn transit can be an added value of extra effort, more determination or being happy to get down to work at it. But for those houses where you are less confident or trying to hide from the issues springing from this area of the chart I’m sorry to tell you that Saturn will arrive and you will have no choice but to shut up and take notice, to face the music and cough up to those parts of yourself or the areas of your life that have been neglected.

Because Saturn will not take no for an answer…

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The meaning of the Planets in the birth chart

I realised that before I write a series of articles on the meaning of each planet and what they can bring to your birth chart I thought I’d better do a quick run through of the different groups and how they operate.

The Luminaries – The Sun & The Moon

These two are the giant lights in your birth chart with the Sun shining a spotlight on whatever part in falls and by sign, how that spotlight is used. And the Moon is your sanctuary part of the chart and shows by house and by sign how we emote and refuel from interactions with the outside world.

The Personal Planets – Mercury, Venus & Mars

These three planets show how you think (Mercury), value (Venus) and act (Mars) with yourself and to others. All three of these planets motivations should be fairly well known and make up much of what you say you are to others. i.e. ‘I’m really shy’, ‘I like to think things over’, ‘It takes me two seconds to fall in love’.  

The Outer Planets – Chiron, Jupiter & Saturn

These two are the bridge between what we know about ourselves and the other, more unconscious drives and actions.

Saturn has a lot to do with how you use and view authority and structure. Its also where you will find the limitation in your chart. Saturn restricts and delays.

Jupiter is the total opposite – wherever it sits in the chart that is where good things happen, where things are always growing, expanding. Jupiter is much about how we learn, teach and give ourselves to others.

Chiron is the psychic wound. It is where we can be hurt the most. It shows the hang-up that you have and will try to cover up as much as possible. But it can also show our healing powers and how we can help others to help ourselves.   

The Transcendental Planets – Uranus, Neptune & Pluto

These three planets function the chart but we won’t really understand them or consciously acknowledge it. They rule those bits of ourselves that are unpredictable, confusing and largely out of our control.

Uranus is where we like things to be constantly changing. Depending on sign and house placements it will show how we rebel, how we react to changes and what is unconventional about us.  

Neptune is our ability to fool ourselves. It is all about confusion, illusion and delusion. It is one of the most difficult planets to really understand in the chart. Where Neptune falls is where we see only what we want to and can blithely ignore the real facts even if they right in front of us. But it is also about how and where we express selfless, unconditional love.

Pluto, where it falls in the chart, shows what parts of our lives we will find in phoenix cycles of death and rebirth. Pluto brings transformation so depending  on the house in the chart you will find that part of yourself or your life will end and start again periodically. It is difficult not to see it as negative but actually most of what is killed off or destroyed was unnecessary and detrimental to your well being, even if you can’t appreciate it at the time. Pluto was made for the maxim ‘what does not kill us only makes us stronger’.

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Mad, bad and unpredictible – Uranus

Uranus, wherever he falls in your natal chart, is a bit like that slightly mad, suspect Unkle who turns up unexpectedly for a holiday in your calm peacful family home. He will be exciting – sharing his crazy plans and far-out ideas and tell you wild stories of the adventures he’s had! What fun. He’s so charming, so exciting, so interesting.  

But…he will also stir things up so much that nobody staying with him will ever feel entirely safe or comfortable. He will insult, inspire, upset and innovative all of the things that you didn’t know were wrong around the house and in your relationships. He will want to change everthing around, even if it was all working ok.

Many Astrologers will tell you that Pluto is the planet with the most destructiveness and I agree, to a point, but Pluto moves soooo slowly that he is very easy to see and you can kind of plan for things to be destroyed and get ready to re-build even before he actually arrives. So that’s manageable.

But Uranus? He’s an entirely different kettle of fish. He also moves quite slowly but for some reason very little happens then suddenly BOOM! He will bring rapid, momumental changes. I think of Uranus coming across any part of your natal chart is a bit like starting work with a mad scientist. You will be asked to do crazy things, you will not know why you are doing these things and its only after you’ve quit or left (or gone on the lamb) that you will actually appreciate that the new skills and tricks you have had to learn to survive were for a reason!

Mad, bad and unpreditable – that’s Uranus – and don’t even get me started on his current lock horns opposite with the Lord of Karma, Saturn. 2009 – 2010 the years where these heavyweights play ‘Who’s really in charge here?’ is bound to change things in ways we can’t even see right now. But you can bet with Uranus in the mix it will be anything but predictable…

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