Sun signs, Rising signs, and Moon signs by Julia Parker The three most important elements in the fully-calculated birth-chart are the Rising-sign, Sun-sign and Moon-sign — in that order.  We all know our Sun-sign, because we know the date on which we were born. The Sun-sign is, in the opinion of many astrologers, second in importance to our Rising-sign, which relies implicitly on the precise time and geographical location of our birth. Generally speaking, it is necessary for the layman either to learn how to calculate the Rising-sign by mathematical calculation (not too difficult), or to ask a competent astrologer to calculate it. If you were born at or near sunrise, your Sun- and Rising-sign will be the same. This will double the emphasis of the characteristics of that sign on your personality, but do not forget that those characteristics will still work on two distinct levels of your personality.  Similarly, if you were born at the time of the new Moon, your Sun- and Moon-signs will be the same, but again working on two levels. In both cases you will be known as a "double" Aries, Aquarius, or whatever. The Sun-sign denotes our self-expression, and its characteristics relate to the way in which we present ourselves to the world. It can also have a very strong bearing on the way we look — our overall image.  The sign the Moon was in when we were born is also very individual to us, and like the Rising-sign it is not easy to discover unless one has an ephemeris (a book of tables showing the planets' positions for every day of the year). Once more, however, we have been able to surmount this difficulty. This is a beginning. But there are some very important things to remember when building up an interpretation of these three factors. For instance, if your Sun-sign is Gemini, your Rising-sign Capricorn, and you have the Moon in Cancer, you are not just an amorphous combination of the characteristics of these three signs. Certain elements of their characteristics will be present in your personality, but it is vitally important that you learn how the three signs work for you as an individual. The Sun-sign represents the "you" people experience when they first meet you. Your Rising-sign works at a different level, and represents the "real" you — the "you" known to your lover, or your closest friend. When he or she hears other people talking about you, the chances are they will be describing your Sun-sign characteristics, but your lover will be able to add, "Yes, that is true, but ..." and go on to describe your Rising-sign characteristics. Put this to the test yourself: read the section on image which relates to your Sun-sign. You will probably agree with a great deal that is said there. Then read the relevant piece on your Rising-sign, and note the difference. Soon the various levels will be clear to you. To the Sun- and Rising-signs we can now add the Moon sign, and its group of characteristics. Traditional astrology asserts that the characteristics of the Moon-sign are those we inherit from our parents, and in many ways modern astrologers agree; but equally, your Moon-sign will show the way in which you instinctively respond to situations in life — your reactions to them.  For instance, there is a possessive tendency in all Sun and Rising-sign Taureans. If you have the Moon in Taurus, you will probably respond to certain situations in a possessive way, but because of other elements in your birth-chart you may loathe that reaction, and do everything you can to fight it.  You could be very intuitive indeed if Cancer or Scorpio was a prominent sign in your birth-chart — and if one of those is your Moon-sign, your immediate response to situations will be entirely intuitive and instinctive; logic and reason may play a part later, and this will relate to the prominence of other signs. These points are crucial as you discover more about your birth-chart and the way to interpret it. It is a subtle business to get all the planetary positions into a coherent perspective, but with care you can certainly learn a great deal about yourself and your motivations, and hopefully this article will start you on a trail which will prove to be an unendingly fascinating study.  This article was excerpted from: The Astrologer's Handbook" by Julia Parker. Info/Order this book About The Author A:hover {color: red; font-weight: bold} Julia Parker is internationally known and respected in the field of astrology, not only because she has been President of the British Faculty of Astrological Studies, but even more so because she is the author of the international super-seller "The Compleat Astrologer" which was on the bestseller charts in the U.S., England, Brazil, and Japan. This article is excerpted with permission from "The Astrologer's Handbook" by Julia Parker, ©1995, published by CRCS Publications, PO Box 1460, Sebastopol, CA 95473. Tel: 707-829-0735; Fax: 707-793-9434. Comments (15) >> Davonne said:   I was born August 1st 1981, I checked my moon sign at astrology.com, by entering my city of birth Detroit, MI ( I was raised and currrently live in St. Louis, Mo) and entering my time of birth which was 7:59 p.m to be exact and was told Virgo to be my moon sign. I can see how I have many virgorian ways. However I have been completely unlucky in finding my rising sign. Where can I go and how do I find out this? March 19, 2008 Sarah said:   http://www.horoscopeswithin.com/calculate.php There you can calculate your rising sign. =) April 15, 2008 corii said:   astro.com amazingly accurate and fun. look in the free horoscope section. u can get your entire birth chart June 08, 2008 TLS said:   I just realized my mistake. I realize now that my sun & moon are the same, I read the iformation wrong. Please delete my response. August 21, 2008 Brad Eddy said:   Hi, My name is Brad Eddy. I looked up my birth chart.. and I have very interesting cominations.. I was born August 25,1988 in Dallas, TX, U.S.A at 10:14 P.M My sun is in Virgo (5th house), Moon in Aquarius (11th house), and my rising sign in Aries. Sum me up... explain to me how my characteristics would be said to be on this. December 02, 2008 Brad Eddy said:   that is just about my sun, moon, and rising.. December 02, 2008 danny said:   Scorpio rising 2nd decan 1/5/70 3am phila,pa Moon,neptune sag in 1st house. March 10, 2009 fred said:   'found your website accidentally while browsing. thanks for allowing me to learn my Ascendant which is in Virgo. i appreciate the things it said - it tallies with how i know my self. maybe i'll study astrology to learn more of myself, my families and friends. March 12, 2009 Alex said:   I was born in December 18 1991 in 10:45 Sun-Sagittarius Moon-Taurus ASC-Aquarius...does is good combination for a person? June 29, 2009 snehal parikh said:   why my moon sign and sun sign are different???? for horoscope wht i should prefer... which field is better for me civil engineering or computer engineering? July 09, 2009 tandy said:   Snehal, if you are looking up your horoscope in the newspaper go with your sun sign. The sun and moon signs are different because the moon and sun are not in the sky at the same time when you're born and the moon goes through phases. Alex, You can't change the time you were born so for you yes it's a good combination. LOL! You are a very cerebral person. You think a lot, have good ideas and have drive when wanting to do things in your life. You also love food. Food makes you happy, but be careful. Try to eat healthy or that tummy will get away from you. When looking at all three together it should be sun, ascent (or rising) and then the moon. those are the layers to yourself. Sun is on top, rising a little below and then the moon sign is instinctual. Brad, You are a homebody who is picky and very aware of yourself and can be critical of yourself more so than others. You're passionate when it comes to things you love, but things you don't want to do get passed by. You have a tendency to be lazy, but have a drive and a need to know. Your instincts are to jump in feet first and ask questions later. If you're lucky you'll use your instincts to make money. Just remember your sun sign is just the top layer, there are so many more variables to what makes you.... you August 13, 2009 fedsa said:   I was born in India on 12-Sep-1981 at 5:45am. My sun sign is Virgo & moon is in Aquarius. can you sum me up? October 07, 2009 Sasha said:   My signs have quite an interesting combination... Sun: Virgo Ascendant: Aquarius Moon: Sagittarius According to this signs, I could never find how my personality should be. Please, could you sum me up? November 22, 2009 CFCP said:   I was born May 31 1987 in Buffalo, NY at 4:34pm Sun: Gemini Moon: Pisces Rising: Libra Sum me up please. December 29, 2009 Julia Holland said:   Hi I was born on 18.09.1970. Time 11.22am Sun: virgo Moon: tauras Rising: scorpio Please could you tell me who i am most compatible with. Thank You January 31, 2010 Write comment Name Email Title Comment Add Comment

 

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