An astrological chart, or Horoscope, is a picture of the heavens, looking out from earth, based on the date,  time, and location of an event.  Most often this event is thought of as the birth of an individual, but it can be any event, such as a marriage or the start of a new job.  That moment in time and space represents the union of the material world with the spiritual world...the uniting of body and soul.  The chart is lan image of your own personal space, much like the house you live in.

 

The Ascendant

The Ascendant, also called the Rising Sign, is determined by the location of the event as well as the date and time.  This is an important calculation because the degree and sign of the Ascendant determine the placement of all of the other signs, and thus the placement of the Sun, Moon, Planets and other points within the chart.  It is the front door to your inner sanctum, through which all visitors must pass.  It determines how welcome these visitors to your life feel.

 

Houses

The chart is divided into twelve segments, each one representing a major facet of life.  These are the Houses of the horoscope.  Planets positioned within a house bring added emphasis, energy, and tone to the house. 

 

Signs

The Sign on the cusp, or edge, of a house determines how the affairs of the house and how the energies of the planets in them are expressed.  The cusp of the tenth house is referred to as the Midheaven.  It  is also called  the MC, or Medium Coeli, meaning the highest point.  It's opposite  point is the IC, or Imum Coeli, the lowest point.  

 

Hemispheres

The point opposite the Ascendant is called the Descendant. The line drawn from the Ascendant through to the Descendant divides the chart into the northern and southern halves.  The houses in the northern half, below this line, relate to things of a personal nature, while those above it in the southern half relate to your interaction with those outside of yourself.  Planets placed below this line will be expressed in a more introverted fashion, while those placed above it will have a more extroverted expression.

The line drawn from the MC  through  the  IC  divides  the chart  into  the eastern  and  western halves. Planets in the eastern half, houses 10 through 3, result in a more self-directed experience of life, while those in the western half, houses 4 through 9 result in energies that just go with the flow.

 

Aspects

The angles being formed by one planet to another are the Aspects.  The major aspects are measured in 30 degree increments.  They define the type of relationship that exists between the two planets.  Like family, lovers, friends, and siblings, the relationships between planets can range from highly stressful to exceedingly harmonic.