What are the parts of a natal chart and what does each one represent? 

We talked about what astrology is a bit in a previous post. Feel free to reference our What is Astrology? post if you do not remember. But more than likely, if you are here, you have a basic idea of what astrology is and want to dig into its meat and potatoes. Brief recap though… 

Astrology looks at a snapshot of the celestial bodies in the sky at your birth and how that affects who you are and how you interact with/view the world around you. This snapshot is called your natal chart. 

To find your natal chart you need: 

1. Your time of birth (because every couple of minutes everything is shifting as the earth turns) 

2. Location of birth (because the sky looks different depending on where you are on the planet) 

3. Patience and research (or a free website- see a couple good ones listed in our What is Astrology? post)

Basic astrology takes into consideration 4 main things to give you your natal chart: 

• The planets (including the sun, moon, and Pluto) 
• The Zodiac signs which the plants are located in  
• The Houses 
• Aspects 

So back in the day (note I am saying this in an exaggerated old timer voice), astrologers would divide the heavens around us into 12 sections or archetypes. These are the 12 signs of the zodiac. Now we know (hopefully) that we are traveling around the sun, but from our perspective on Earth, it appears that the sun, moon, planets etc travel through the sky around us and as our observant ancestors noticed, it takes a certain amount of time for them to travel in set patterns “around” us. As astrologists tracked the path and patterns of celestial objects around the zodiac, they started noticing things like the fact that it takes the sun a year to make it through all 12 zodiacs and the moon a single month.  

Because the planets visual path across the sky is basically straight and “flat”, we can draw a 2D drawing to represent where everything is at a given time in the sky from our perspective at any given moment. We draw this as a circle and split that into 12 pieces like the ancient astronomers. Now imagine you lay down on the ground, look up at the sky and mark off exactly where all the planets are on that circle at the exact moment and location of your birth. Each one of those planets is in one of the 12 houses (will get into that in a later post). Because all the planets are in a circle, we can also look at the degrees of separation and the relationships between the planets on the chart (which is what we call aspects). Now if I look at the sky and chart this at 10pm in Seattle vs 10pm in Tokyo vs 4am in Tokyo, what I will see in the sky will be different each time which is why the time and location is key.  

Once all of this is drawn out, I now present to you…. your natal chart. 

It is still most likely a bit confusing which is I will be further diving into how that chart looks, the symbols, the houses, the aspects, elements, how to read the chart, etc in upcoming posts but for now let’s just talk about the 3 big pillars of the chart. The 3 big kahuna’s that most people have at least heard of even if they aren’t particularly interested in astrology or horoscopes.  

What is our sun, moon, and ascendant signs? What do they mean?  

Sun Sign 

When someone asks what your sign is, this is usually what they are referencing. Your sun sign is your core self, your basic identity, and who you are to the outside world. It can show us how we see ourselves. It is a very generic overview of ourselves, our path, purpose, personality, and ego. This is also the easiest sign for anyone to know since it can be determined just by knowing your date of birth. It takes the sun 12 months to move through all the astrological signs and so it is in each sign for a month.  

Moon Sign 

Your moon sign gives a much more in-depth look at your inner self and hidden potential. It is who we are in private and indicates what your comfort zones are. It will tell you about your subconscious side, your emotions, and your instinctive responses. To get your moon sign you need your birth date, birth time, and birthplace. Because the moon goes through a cycle much quicker than the sun, it only stays in a sign for 2 and a half days at a time making it a much more accurate sign.  

Ascendant/Rising Sign 

Even more narrowed down is your ascendant. Determined by your time of birth, it changes much more frequently than even your moon sign (think 30minutes to a couple of hours depending on how far away from the equator you are- remember the stars are different in Arizona vs Alaska!!!). This sign shows how we adapt to the environment around us, true inner nature, our outermost layers (like how we look which cracks me up still), and what first impression we leave on people. 

I can tell you that my sun sign is Pisces, my moon sign is Gemini, and I am an ascendant Leo. I am not going to get into my interpretation of what those mean to me yet BUT I will in the next couple posts as I further break out the zodiacs, planets, and houses and what their meanings are. I can tell you that astro café though does a FANTASTIC job of breaking out the meaning of your chart. I honestly felt a bit attacked with how accurate it was about parts of my personality, what makes me tick, and even how I act at my day job.  

Until next time,  

Taylor 

CHECK OUT THE FULL ASTROLOGY 101 SERIES:

• What is Astrology? Where Does One Start?
• Astrology Symbol Reference Page
• Astrology 101: What Is In Your Natal Chart?
• Astrology 101: Natal Chart Organization and Terminology
• Astrology 101: The 12 houses & Their Symbolism
• Astrology 101: The Energy of Planets and Other Celestial Bodies