"Wisdom begins in wonder"
Socrates
People for the most part know their Sun sign. That is easy to find out as it is just your birthday falling into one of 12 signs in a calendar year. We all know our birthdays and the Astrology columns in the newspaper or magazines remind us. They are fun to read but. have a small chance of actually being accurate as they only speak to generalities of Sun signs. There are thousands of variables that affect your Astrological chart.
To discover your Ascendant you will need to know your exact time of birth and location to have accurate chart drawn up. Some websites offer time tables that you may use to figure it out but it's best to simply have a real chart done. I can send you one for free just send me a request through my contact page.
If you took a snapshot of the sky at the moment and location of your birth, the Ascendant is the sign that was at the Eastern horizon. Regardless of whether it was in the day or night a particular sign was just moving up past the horizon. So rising or ascending in the East is your Ascendant.
The Ascendant is one of 4 very important ways person embodies their soul here on Earth.
The nature of a person's Spirit, Mind, Soul and Body are represented by the Sun, Mercury, Moon and Rising Signs.
Moon: Soul and Emotions. A desire to integrate the subconscious information from karmic paths and early present life training into personal relationships.
Mercury: Conscious expression and Communication. A desire to connect with others using the mind, thought and reason. This connects spirit to conscious awareness.
Ascendant/Rising Sign: Physical appearance, mannerisms and inherited traits from ancestors or past lives.
Imagine the facade design of building....it is the architects goal of what he or she wants to portray. It gives off a certain feeling when you look at it. Do you like it? Do you want to go in? Is it pleasant, etc.? You may get a sense of what sort of building it is as you you look at all the details.
That same idea can be applied to the Ascendant. What feeling do you display? What do you show the world about yourself and what energy do you give off? Do the details of your physical appearance match your inner being ? What sort of people are attracted to you and are there any that resist you? If you wear certain styles of clothing or hair how has that affected the perceived reactions from other people?
As with a building, when you enter it, there may be an entirely different vibe than the outside. In a person, your Sun sign is your inner "vibe" identity that drives your experience but is most likely not the same sign as your Ascendant. So as you exert their energy into the world your inner being may be completely different than how you come across to others.
Your appearance and energy may actually be in conflict with your inner desires which can obviously cause confusion. Knowing your Ascendant can help you understand how people are perceiving you. We put out the Ascendant's sign's energy subconsciously and may not be aware that it conflicts with our particular goals.
The Ascendant is the "ruler" of your chart. Each sign has an associated planet so that planet then rules your entire chart. If you follow that ruling planet's transit and aspects to it, it is very helpful in understanding cyclical patterns regarding your physical health. In addition, when the big(Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) transiting planets make contact with your Ascendant or the planet that rules it is an important period of growth and usually affects who you think you are.
For instance, I have an Aquarius Ascendant. Uranus is the planet that "rules" Aquarius and thus my chart. So as the planets move and orbit around my chart, I follow what aspects are affecting Uranus on a regular basis to know how they affect not only my physical body but my vitality and energetic footprint. Remember the Universe is in perpetual motion, planets are orbiting around the Sun changing their locations and affecting all of us in some way. If planets aspect my Ascendant directly then it is similar in flavor.
For instance, if Saturn the planet of responsibility, structure, commitment and restriction passes over my Ascendant than I should expect some lessons around eliminating things that are no longer serving me in regards to my physical body, any rigid beliefs about myself, image pretense, personal needs and vitality. It just so happens Saturn hits your Ascendant every 27-29.5 years and after it has pushed you to eliminate all those unnecessary things like cleaning out a closet, you can begin a fresh new cycle. This is just one of many possibilities, everyones chart is different and we are all on our own path of discovery.
Gaining knowledge about your Ascendant can help you gain awareness and alleviate confusion when life seems to be a bit crazy. You always have the ability to make changes once you know how it all works. Ask yourself, am I perceived by who I am on the inside? Or do I even want that? If disconnected, is that something you would like to change?
Please contact me to help you understand your chart more thoroughly. I am happy to help you and I can break it down in easy chunks for anyone. I can offer a unique perspective that serves your highest good.
Diane Fales, BFA, CcHt
When I paint, I seriously consider the public presence of a person - the surface facade. I am less concerned with how people look when they wake up or how they act at home. A person's public presence reflects his own efforts at image development.
LeRoy Neiman