“I personally believe that the circumstances of our birth are not accidental, but are in some sense a consequence of our spiritual and karmic character. Like many others, I have come to believe that we choose the circumstances of our lives, we choose the family and culture and age into which we are born, and that this choice is somehow made from a higher level of our spiritual being than that of which we are usually conscious. From this point of view, the birth chart is not the randomly allotted prison structure of our inexorable fate, but can be seen rather as defining the basic structure of our potential unfolding--suggesting the personal gifts and trials that we have chosen for this lifetime to work with and evolve through. Astrology illuminates the fundamental archetypal dynamics that profoundly condition our lives, which is not to say they absolutely determine our lives. Because our personal response to life always contains an element of unpredictability and potential freedom, and because astrology gives a greater understanding of our basic archetypal complexes and their timing, then a knowledge of our birth chart and transits can significantly increase the range of options, flexibility, and intelligence with which we approach life. The study of astrology can be extraordinarily liberating.”
— Richard Tarnas
As I’m exploring this concept of Fate / Destiny / Free Will — I am naturally returned back to what I consider to be my cosmic bread and butter: the four angles.
There are a lot of complexities and nuances in astrology, but I think, like most areas of study, the simplest concepts — the things we can integrate and feel in our bones — are the most important. Priorities are everything. If we can prioritize embodying the bones of our chart — that’s alignment, baby.
Now — because I’m a space cadet, there are a couple of different skeletal structures I look at when we’re talking bones, today we are focusing on the concept of the four angles.
“In a birth chart considered from the point of view of a truly "person-centered" astrology, the cross formed by the natal horizon and the meridian should reveal the essential individuality of the person for whom it is cast.”
— Dane Rudhyar
You can see this ‘cross’ in the picture above. The Ascendant, to the left of the chart, represents the eastern horizon at the very moment of birth — an extremely important, arguably the most important part of the entire chart. This point is the most individualized part of your chart, and it represents your soul. It’s from this point that the cross is created.
If we can prioritize embodying the bones of our chart — that’s alignment, baby.
The Ascendant is who you are, the Midheaven at the top of the chart is why you are here. It’s a huge part of your purpose. It’s your outward obligation, your career, your ambition, your public image, your legacy. It’s what written in your obituary. It’s what you leave behind.
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