Astrology is more than Sun signs, weekly horoscope columns, or TikTok memes. That said, these are all legitimate entry points into this very complex ancient system.
Hopefully, these entry points into astrology have piqued your interest enough to keep learning more. With just your birth date, time, and location, you can unlock a map of who you are.
This unlocking process is where the fun begins. Yet, you can easily get overwhelmed by the breadth and depth of astrological knowledge. So, where do you start?
When you’re just getting started with astrology
If you’re ready to explore who you are using astrology, a few first steps can help you prevent overwhelm. First, know that there isn’t just one type of astrology. Astrology developed in many different regions, cultures, and periods. They all work well. And it’s okay to try out different systems before settling on the one that works best for you. Here is a pretty good list of the various astrological traditions and approaches.
Now that we’ve got that piece of critical information out of the way. Below are a few tips for getting started:
- Use one of the many apps or websites available to get your free natal chart or horoscope. I recommend astro.com, and I will walk you through how to do that here.
- Once you have your natal chart, you can locate your “big three”: your Ascendant, Sun, and Moon signs. These are the top three astrological placements, in my opinion, every person should know. For extra credit, note which House each sits in.
- Check out some books for beginners that provide some basic interpretation of what it means to have your big three placed where they are in your chart. I know a lot of people will start with online content. This is okay, but the long format of books allows for more nuance. Additionally, many of the great teachers of astrology pre-date the internet.
- Work with a professional astrologer to interpret your entire natal chart. Many people wait too long to engage a professional in understanding their horoscope. This is a missed opportunity. An astrologer can utilize their training and years of consultative experience to interpret your birth chart more effectively. As a practitioner, I regularly consult with other astrologers on my chart. I value the objectivity and diversity of application that a consultation brings to my understanding.
The “Big Three” Astrological Placements To Know
Doing a deep dive on your “Big Three” astrological placements is one of the best ways to get started with astrology. These three, Ascendant, Sun, and Moon, together represent the core of who you are. Briefly, the Ascendant describes your physical self, the Sun your egoic self, and the Moon your emotional self.
Another way to think about how the Big Three work together is a saying from Astrologer Steven Forrest (I’m paraphrasing here):
“When we meet someone for the first time, they show us their Ascendant, when we get to know them a bit better, they show us their Sun, and when we truly know someone, they show us their heart/their Moon.”
The Big Three are the most personal placements of a chart and the hardest placements to understand objectively, yet it’s super empowering once you do.
The other planetary placements are also significant, especially if they interact with the Big Three by aspect, but because astrology is so vast, we do have to prioritize. Whether you are having difficulty with your relationships, money, or family, the big three will always play a role in understanding who you are and what you need in these situations.
Let’s look closer at the Big Three in astrology.
Ascendant Sign
The Ascendant sign describes where you begin and the world ends. The aspect of self that interfaces with new people and things. Your physical looks and how you “dawn on” others. Also, the energetic flavor of how you get started.
Unlike the other two important placements, the Ascendant is not a celestial body. It is a point on the elliptic that interacts with the eastern horizon at the moment of birth. For this reason, the Ascendant is also known as the Rising Sign.
In my practice, the Ascendant Sign also describes your role in your family of origin. Were you the smart one, the athletic one, or the creative one? In a family unit, there is a tendency for members to sort out into a specific role. These may be simplified characteristics of who we truly are, but it allows the family to function, though it may be dysfunctional in certain situations.
Like everything in astrology, the Ascendant Sign has a broad spectrum of expression. Though it remains with you throughout your life, it goes through an evolutionary process that is personal to you.
Even when you grow out of childhood and have more agency over the expression of the Ascendant, you can easily fall back into “the role” during stressful times. The workplace, for instance, is an environment where the Ascendant thrives. Typically the workplace does not support being your whole self, and workplace politics can require the over-reliance on the Ascendant to cope.
Why it’s one of the big three
One of the vital things about self-awareness is understanding how others may perceive you. We are often judged on first impressions, and knowing what that looks like can work to your advantage. There are supportive and unsupportive aspects to your Ascendant, depending on the situation. An Aries Ascendant will dive right in and ask questions later, while a Libra Ascendant will want to make friends, opting for a more diplomatic approach. Neither is good or bad just may require adjustment based on the situation, and having this awareness is powerful. This awareness also allows empathy for all the diverse ways of approaching something new.
Explore more about the Ascendant:
Sun Sign
Newcomers to astrology are first aware of their Sun Sign. Knowledge of this sign and an eagerness for more is typically what draws people in. When you think about the essential position of the Sun in our everyday lives, it makes sense that this is where most people start.
The movement of the Sun is responsible for our seasons and provides the vital energy required for life to exist. The Sun is also responsible for the Moon’s light.
In astrology, the Sun describes the ego or essential self. It’s what animates the entire natal chart and provides an avenue for self-expression. So when we talk about Sun Signs, we talk about twelve different ways to orient the personality. Within those twelve signs, we have a spectrum of expression that adds to the diversity we see within groups of people with the same Sun sign.
In my practice, the Sun also represents a path to personal development. The sign occupied by the Sun at your birth determines what the path will look like for you. For example, a Cancer Sun will have a developmental journey focused on emotional growth, while a Taurus Sun will have a developmental journey focused on calming down the senses. Each sign inherently holds constructive and deconstructive aspects that one will navigate through—light and shadow. Just like we have the day and night, both are needed.
The Sun Sign also speaks to us about our ability to manage energy and the mode of creative expression. The Sun sign will indicate what you need to sustain your natural vitality. If your life does not provide regular doses of activities indicated by the Sun sign, burn-out is possible. The creative force of the Sun needs to shine. If you’re afraid to express yourself in whatever you love, it also decreases your sense of self and vitality.
Why it’s one of the big three
In our solar system, all planets revolve around the Sun. This makes it an essential organizing body. All self-expression moves through the Sun. Without it, a person lacks a defined sense of self needed to carry out one’s personal mission and developmental goals.
Explore More about the Sun:
- Your Sun Sign And Your Personal Development Journey
- Authenticity, how the Sun functions in astrology
Moon Sign
Our final top astrological placement to know is the Moon. Like the Sun, it’s highly visible in the sky, moving through eight phases over the month.
Your Moon sign represents how you emotionally process life. Your emotional patterns, needs, fears, and inner child, are also symbolized by the Moon. It’s a vulnerable aspect of self that gets expressed during our most intimate moments. Time at home with close family and friends is a situation in which the Moon thrives.
The Moon drives our unconscious emotional needs set up in childhood. The Moon sign can interpret the kind of nurturing provided by your primary caregiver. When you understand the emotional needs of your Moon sign, you can meet those needs and help others meet them too.
If you want to know what self-care looks and feels like for you, look to your Moon. It holds all the wisdom of what you need to rebalance emotionally.
Why it’s one of the big three
The Moon holds the past. It’s a subjective version of the past that is typically highly emotionally charged. A lot of our Moon stuff requires healing. When you understand the emotional side of self through learning about your Moon sign, you gain knowledge and wisdom of how to heal hurt from the past and how you need to be nurtured to be happy and healthy.
Explore more about the Moon:
- Healing Powers of the Moon and How to Align with It
- Embrace your emotional self— how the Moon functions in astrology
This is just the beginning
Astrology is a deep and complicated system. As you can see, it’s worth taking your time getting to know the Big Three before moving on to the other planets and significant points. When you have a good sense of the role of the Ascendant, Sun, and Moon in your life, it’ll be easier to approach your other natal placements. All of the ten visible planets work together to make you uniquely who you are. You are worth the investment in finding out how.