ASTROLOGY ARTICLES BY JON

What's on your Horizon: A Look at the Ascendant/Descendant Axis in your Horoscope

We learned in the previous two articles that our Sun and Moon signs combine to form the core of our being. Our Sun sign describes our basic vital drive (our wants) and our Moon sign describes our basic instinctive nature (our needs). We have to package ourselves somehow and the sign rising in the east at the moment of our birth (our initial impression of the world) describes how we meet life; and therefore, how we approach the world today. Our Ascendant or Rising sign describes our unique personal style, the way in which we present ourselves to the world; and at least in part, it describes our actual physical appearance. Sometimes people's appearances can be accurately described by their Sun sign as well, it all depends on which sign is more dominant in the person's chart.

We use our Rising sign traits automatically when we venture out into the world so most of the time these are the traits that other people see in us. It's only after people get to know us better that our Sun and Moon sign traits become more apparent. Our Sun sign is our essence, if people observe us over a significant period of time they will come to associate us with our Sun sign traits. Our Moon sign describes how we are naturally: in the comfort of our own home or in the company of people we trust completely. Astrologer Steven Forrest simply calls the Ascendant, "the mask" we wear to greet the world. One simple way to look at it is our Moon sign describes our past (traits that are familiar to us), our Sun sign describes our present (traits we identify with now) and our Ascendant sign describes our future (traits we are trying to develop).

The Ascendant changes signs every two hours, so every sign rises during the course of the day. In order to determine your Rising sign you are going to need to know your exact time of birth. You can have your chart calculated for free at Astrodienst, or you can email me and I'll determine your Rising sign for you.

Rising Sign Elements (or Triplicities)

The element (fire, earth, air, or water) of our Rising sign describes our approach to the world; it describes the personal style we adopted at birth in order to survive in the world.

Fire signs (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) Rising have an action oriented style and approach the world with great enthusiasm and spontaneity.

Earth signs (Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn) Rising have a materially oriented style with a very methodical but steady and reliable approach to the world.

Air signs (Gemini, Libra and Aquarius) Rising have a socially oriented style and approach the world intellectually with a sense of wonder and great curiosity.

Water signs (Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces) Rising have an emotionally oriented style and approach the world with great feeling and sensitivity.

Rising Sign Keywords and Characteristics

Aries Rising style (Mars) — brash, quick tempered, impulsive, courageous, and self centered. Aries Rising people usually have a ruddy complexion and piercing eyes — Aries rules the head.

Taurus Rising style (Venus) — slow, steady, sensual, artistic and stubborn. Taurus Rising people usually have a sturdy build, thick neck, large round eyes and an attractive face (Venus) — Taurus rules the neck and throat.

Gemini Rising style (Mercury) — communicative, well informed, busy, curious and dual natured. Gemini Rising people usually keep a youthful look even when older, sometimes they have a cleft chin, hooked nose and busy hands — Gemini rules the hands, wrist, arms, shoulders and lungs.

Cancer Rising style (Moon) — the non-direct approach, self protective, imaginative, sympathetic and emotionally vulnerable. Cancer Rising people often have a pale Moon like face and a tendency to retain water — Cancer rules the breast and stomach.

Leo Rising style (Sun) — dramatic, flamboyant, dignified, proud and arrogant. Leo Rising people usually light up the room with their smile and proud and dignified manner, sometimes they actually resemble a lion — Leo rules the back, spine and heart.

Virgo Rising style (Mercury) — humble, perfectionist, service oriented, analytical and high strung. Virgo Rising people usually have a clean cut and delicate appearance but usually are quite strong (earth) and similar to Gemini Rising (Mercury) have to keep busy due to a lot of nervous energy — Virgo rules the nervous system and intestines.

Libra Rising style (Venus) — charming, diplomatic, social, attractive and indecisive. Libra Rising people are usually very graceful and attractive (Venus) with a very symmetrical bone structure — Libra rules the lower back, rear end and kidneys.

Scorpio Rising style (Pluto) — intense, penetrating, passionate, controls by knowing and secretive. Scorpio Rising people usually have large eyes with thick dark eye brows and hair and a strong sexual presence — Scorpio rules the pelvic area, including the reproductive organs, rectum and urinary system.

Sagittarius Rising style (Jupiter) — buoyant, expansive, philosophical, broad minded and reckless. Sagittarius Rising people often have a big horsy grin and make big (Jupiter) sweeping jesters with their body — Sagittarius rules the hips, thighs and liver.

Capricorn Rising style (Saturn) — serious, ambitious, responsible, reserved and miserly. Capricorn Rising people usually have dark hair, they often like to dress in dark colors and have a very dry sense of humor — Capricorn rules the bones, joints and knees.

Aquarius Rising style (Uranus) — rebellious, unconventional, original, friendly and eccentric. Aquarius Rising people are usually taller than average with an eccentric style and look — Aquarius rules the ankles and circulatory system.

Pisces Rising styles (Neptune) — dreamy, compassionate, empathetic, otherworldly and oversensitive. Pisces Rising people usually have large dreamy eyes and soft lips — Pisces rules the feet and lymphatic system.

In parenthesis, I listed the planet that rules each Rising sign. This "Ascendant ruler" as it's called, is especially important, and its sign modifies the traits of the Ascendant sign. For example I have Sagittarius Rising, but my natal Jupiter (ruler of Sagittarius) is in Pisces, so we would mix some of the Pisces Rising keywords in with the Sagittarius Rising keywords when interpreting my Ascendant.

I also included the parts of the body each sign rules. The Ascendant is also the "health center" of the horoscope along with the Sun so the part of your body that your Ascendant (and Sun) sign rules is emphasized in your life and could potentially become a health concern at some point in time.

Rising Planets

Your Rising sign traits will be further modified by the characteristics of any planet close to (conjunct) your Ascendant. If you have a planet conjunct your Ascendant you can just take the keywords for the sign that planet rules and mix them in with your interpretation.

Venus and Mercury each rule two signs of different elements. Libra emphasizes the relationship and social qualities of Venus and Taurus emphasizes the more sensual and material qualities of Venus. If you have Venus Rising you can assign the traits of both of those signs to your personal style.

Gemini emphasizes the more communicative qualities of Mercury and Virgo emphasizes the more analytical qualities so again you can just combine the two to help describe the personal style of someone with Mercury Rising.

Often times there will be another sign or signs in the first house following the Rising sign you need to mix these in as well to get a complete picture of a person's outward style and appearance. I would suggest thoroughly absorbing the Rising sign's meaning before mixing in the other factors though.

Rising Degree

Like your Sun and Moon, your Ascendant also has its own degree. The Ascendant degree changes about every four minutes so this distinguishes you from everybody else born on the same day; it's an extremely important and sensitive degree in your chart. When a planet transits that degree it affects your outward style and appearance dramatically. If the planet is Jupiter, buoyancy, enthusiasm and expansiveness are going to mark your style while this transit is in effect; if the planet is Saturn you will appear much more serious, much like you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders while he passes over your Ascendant.

The same thing applies if a planet in somebody else's chart falls on your Rising degree. If another person's Venus falls on your Rising degree you will feel more charming and attractive in that person's presence and express yourself accordingly. If another person's Uranus falls on your Rising degree you will feel electrified by that person and your personal style will be markedly more liberated and probably more than a bit zany when that person is with you.

The Descendant

The sign opposite your Ascendant sign is your Descendant sign. The Ascendant and Descendent combine to form the horizontal axis in the horoscope. Your Descendant sign was the sign setting in the west at the exact moment of your birth. The Descendant degree is the degree exactly opposite your Ascendant or Rising degree. If you have 4 degrees of Capricorn Rising then 4 degrees of Cancer would be setting in your chart. Each sign has it's polar opposite, for example Aries is always opposite Libra, and Taurus is always opposite Scorpio. Opposite signs have a lot in common (same Mode) with one another, but they also provide each other with what the other lacks, they balance each other.

Signs can also be divided into three sub-groups according to Mode (or quadruplicity).

• Cardinal (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) — Cardinal signs take action and initiate new projects.
• Fixed (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) — Fixed signs maintain and continue to build on what the Cardinal signs started.
• Mutable (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) — Mutable signs end what the Cardinal signs started, change, and adapt to the new.

You can get a good feel for a sign by combining its element and mode together. For example Aries is Cardinal Fire so Aries is doubly action oriented and the most aggressive sign in the zodiac.

Setting Sign Keywords and Characteristics

The Descendant is the cusp of the seventh house, traditionally called the "house of marriage," and it describes the qualities we look for in another person in order to feel complete. The Descendant sign and any planets close to (conjunct) it, describe not only our partners but also how we act in our relationships and what we need to be happy in a relationship.

Aries Rising — Libra Setting (Venus) — partners need to be equals, charming and socially graceful — needs beauty, peace and harmony to be happy in a relationship. This balances Aries's tendency to be too independent and rugged.

Taurus Rising — Scorpio Setting (Pluto) — partners need to be intense, passionate and highly sexual — needs depth, passion and emotional intensity to be happy in a relationship. This balances Taurus's tendency to be too materialistic and emotionally grounded.

Gemini Rising — Sagittarius Setting (Jupiter) — partners need to be expansive, cultured and philosophical — needs adventure, freedom and to have their horizons broadened to be happy in a relationship. This balances Gemini's tendency to be too concerned with small every day details.

Cancer Rising — Capricorn Setting (Saturn) — partners need to be mature, responsible and successful in the world — needs stability, material success and social status to be happy in a relationship. This balances Cancer's tendency to be overly domestic and emotional.

Leo Rising — Aquarius Setting (Uranus) — partners need to be unconventional, unique, humanitarian and friendly — needs freedom and unconventionality to be happy in a relationship. This balances Leo's tendency to be egocentric and arrogant.

Virgo Rising — Pisces Setting (Neptune) — partners need to be sensitive, compassionate and romantic, needs a strong spiritual bond and a sense of self sacrifice to be happy in a relationship. This balances Virgo's tendency to be overly critical and uptight.

Libra Rising — Aries Setting (Mars) — partners need to be decisive, aggressive and courageous — needs lots of action, adventure and healthy competition to be happy in a relationship. This balances Libra's tendency to be too passive and indecisive.

Scorpio Rising — Taurus Setting (Venus) — partners need to be steady, dependable and sensual — needs sensuality, dependability and material security to be happy in a relationship. This balances Scorpio's tendency to be too deep and emotionally intense.

Sagittarius Rising — Gemini Setting (Mercury) — partners need to be communicative, witty, informed and good with the everyday details — needs communication, variety and to have those mundane details looked after to be happy in a relationship. This balances Sagittarius's tendency to be too idealistic, farsighted and too concerned with the big picture.

Capricorn Rising — Cancer Setting (Moon) — partners need to be nurturing, supportive and to provide a comfortable home base — needs shared emotions, strong support and a comfortable home life to be happy in a relationship. This balances Capricorn's tendency to be too worldly, ambitious and emotionally hard.

Aquarius Rising — Leo Setting (Sun) — partners need to be self expressive, warm hearted and dignified — needs enthusiasm, creativity and drama to be happy in a relationship. This balances Aquarius's tendency to be overly detached and impersonal.

Pisces Rising — Virgo Setting (Mercury) — partners need to be service oriented, practical and neat — needs practicality and order to be happy in a relationship. This balances Pisces's tendency to be too impractical and out of this world.

In parenthesis, I have noted the planet that rules the Descendant. The Descendant ruler's position by sign (house and aspect) modifies the way you approach relationships, what you need in a relationship and the qualities you seek in partners. You can mix the keywords to come up with a composite that describes the traits you look for in a relationship.

Often times there will be another sign (or even two signs) that follow the Descendant sign in the seventh house; you will also need to include this sign (s) as well as any planets that lie in the seventh house in your interpretation. You need to weigh each of these factors carefully but I would recommend starting with the sign on the Descendant first, get a good feel for it's meaning and then gradually mix in the other factors.

It is ideal for your mate to have personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus or Mars) or Ascendant in your Rising or Setting sign especially if the other person's planet(s) or Ascendant is close to your exact Ascendant/Descendant degree. It is rare (but not unheard of) to see a marriage or close relationship last for a significant period of time without seeing at least one of these contacts. The Ascendant/Descendant axis is your "relationship" axis so ideally you would want your mate(s) to embody at least some of the qualities symbolized by those two signs in your chart.