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Astrology
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Excerpt from Donna's e-book:
An Astrological Guide to Self-Awareness: 2005 Edition
© Moon Maven Publications
Spotting Themes in a Birth Chart:
The Rule of Three
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by Donna Cunningham, MSW |
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©2004 by Donna Cunningham
An old rule says that for an astrological interpretation to be true, you must be able to see it expressed three ways in the chart. If you see it once, it is only a possibility; if you see it twice, it becomes more likely; but if you can see the same theme a third time, that interpretation then becomes a probability. In all my years of working with charts and passing along my interpretations, I am more and more convinced of the wisdom of that teaching. These repeated and related chart features, in fact, often point to major themes in a person’s life.
What constitutes a theme? When analyzing a chart, you would look for sign and house placements and aspects that are similar in nature to one another. One starting point is the astrological alphabet popularized by Dr. Zipporah Dobyns, which held Aries, Mars, and the 1st house as equivalents, Taurus, Venus and the 2nd house as equivalents, and so on.
Then look for repetitions in the chart. A concentration of Pisces planets, plus the Sun or Moon in the 12th house and several aspects to Neptune would make a person highly Neptunian. The themes of Neptune, Pisces, and the 12th would, therefore, be a strong dynamic in this individual’s life, whether expressed primarily in a positive way (such as spiritual study, creativity, and service) or in more problematic ones like addiction, rescuing, self-deception, or even delusion. With any such concentration, the life path of the individual may be strongly colored by attempts to master the issues and drives connected with that sign, house, and planet.
Another person might have Cancer rising, the Moon as the focus of a grand trine, and the Sun, Mercury, and Venus in the 4th house. Lunar issues — home, security, family, the mother, nurturing, and food — would strongly motivate this individual and be a major focus of effort. However, such a person will not necessarily deal with these issues in a typically Cancerian way, for the sign and aspects of the Moon become important modifiers of the pattern. Also, when the Sun and other planets are located in the 4th, the individual places great emphasis on home life and family but may not be as moody and emotional as the typical Cancerian, depending on the Sun’s sign and element. A person with a stellium in air in the 4th may not be particularly emotional but would still tend to be deeply invested in the home.
One conceivable interpretation of someone with Mercury on the Midheaven could be that a brother or sister functioned in a parental role, since Mercury, like the 3rd house or Gemini, often indicates the role of siblings. Suppose you also note that Saturn, one indicator of parental authority, falls in the 3rd house — a repetition of the sibling/authority connection. Then, you find that the Moon, which describes the Mother, is in the Mercury-ruled sign of Gemini. This is another clue that a sibling may have taken on a substantial share of the parenting functions. You are then fairly safe in venturing that interpretation — and smiling modestly when the client gasps, “How on earth did you know that?” (A second level of interpretation of these same placements, given Mercury on the Midheaven, would focus on the career. We might infer that this individual is very much a communicator and will pursue a career in a related field.)
Astrology students often worry about a particular facet of a chart, but they need not become alarmed unless this factor is confirmed in other ways. For instance, many people born without planets in the water signs have sworn that they are not especially emotional. Yet, some of them have Neptune on the Ascendant and Pluto conjunct the Moon; these people are, on the contrary, extremely emotional. Their challenge, instead, is to manage those emotions.
Other people worry excessively about some feature of their chart that is shared by most of the people born around the same time. For instance, almost everyone born in the winter months of the early 1940s had Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto all retrograde. This astrological event is no doubt deeply meaningful in the psychology and sociology of the entire generation born on Earth in that era — though I couldn’t articulate it in less than a volume. However, when individuals assume that a single retrograde planet in that collection (say, a retrograde Saturn) pertains to their life alone, rather than to the challenges held in common by their entire generation, they are personalizing a generational influence.
Others congratulate themselves prematurely on some facet of their chart without balancing it by considering aspects or house placements. For instance, people with Jupiter on the Midheaven might conclude that they would enjoy good luck and fabulous success in their career. Before lying back and waiting for fortune to find them, however, they’d best take a look at the aspects to Jupiter, Saturn, and any 10th-house planets. Early in my career, I taught astrology as a volunteer at an alcohol treatment center in a slum, and I was chastened to find that some of these patients who had lived on the streets for years had Jupiter on the Midheaven.
To give a more complete example of how the Rule of Three works, suppose that a client had Neptune and Saturn conjunct in the 4th house, which shows conditions in the home life and often in the family of origin. I might speculate that there was some mystery, hardship, and maybe a loss in the family of origin, but I would look further to see what it might be. Suppose I then noticed that the Moon was in Pisces in the 8th house. The suspicion of a painful loss involving the mother and the family of origin would grow stronger. If the Moon also formed a difficult t-square, that would pretty much clinch it for me. I would inquire about the early loss of a female authority figure — maybe even go out on a limb and ask if the client was adopted, since natal or transiting Neptune aspects in the 4th or 10th have shown up numerous times in my practice, in cases of adoption.
Seeing a difficult placement in the chart — like that 8th-house Pisces Moon, for instance — would you automatically conclude that the mother will die? All mothers die ultimately, but when and how they die are not written in stone. You would never make a fixed prediction, especially one so negative in tone, based on a single aspect in a chart, whether natal or transiting. You'd need to look for confirmation in several ways, according to this principle we've been discussing.
I’d say that fully a third of the people who write to my “Dear Abby”–type advice column in Dell Horoscope magazine are distressed about some dire interpretation they have read — or concocted for themselves — about a single transit or natal aspect. You need to look for confirmation in repetitious chart patterns and for mitigating forces, such as supportive natal or transiting aspects. You also need to ask questions about how that placement has worked in the person’s life, especially during important past transits to that point, and what the native has learned in the course of living about how to express the higher potential of that placement. In the case of a transiting aspect, you must have a clear grasp of the natal condition of the planet in question and also look at all the other transits currently going on in the chart, for balancing factors.
If you are still concerned about a natal or transiting pattern in your chart, consult a seasoned professional astrologer with a well-balanced approach. Find one who can admit the realistic drawbacks of a given placement but can also help you to work toward its positive expressions. Just as we are advised when dealing with health issues, ask for a second opinion about any astrological diagnosis or prognosis that worries you — especially if that first opinion was one of your own!
This article appeared in the December 2004-January 2005 issue of The Mountain Astrologer and is reprinted with their permission.
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Donna Cunningham,
Astrologer
& Healer |
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Donna Cunningham is an internationally respected astrologer and the author of 13 books on metaphysical topics.
Donna Cunningham has a dual background in astrology and psychotherapy, with a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University and over 30 years experience as a professional astrologer. She considers doing the astrology charts of children to be a sacred trust. It is a way of knowing who these Indigo children are on their own terms rather than as their families, teachers, and society expect them to be.
In these sessions, she focuses on typical childhood concerns such as family and peer relationships, the best educational approaches, and the child's special gifts and abilities. She can be reached for consultations at (503)291-7891, by email, or at her web page. Ask about her special rate for children's charts.
Donna is also co-editor of Vibration and a frequent contributor. She has written fourteen books on astrology and other metaphysical topics, including her Flower Remedies Handbook. Astrologers who want to know the special considerations involved in doing children's charts can read the chapter on this topic in Donna's text, The Consulting Astrologer's Guidebook.
Listed in several Who’s Who volumes, she has given seminars on astrology around the world and won the prestigious Regulus Award at the 1998 UAC.
She teaches astrology classes online at: astrocollege.com
You may reach her for long-distance astrology consultations at her web site:
DonnaCunningham
MSW.com
by email:
moonmaven @spiritone.com
or by calling:
(503)291-7891.
For the past 20 years, she has worked with the flower remedies, and she is co-editor of Vibration Magazine, a free online educational quarterly at:
essences.com/
vibration/
For information on Donna's online classes about flower essences, visit her website:
DonnaCunningham
MSW.com
"Donna's first astrology ebook will be available in March.
For more
information go to her web page:
http://www.donna
cunninghammsw.com
This series is reprinted with gracious permission from Donna Cunningham.
©2002 Vibration Magazine/The World Wide Essence Society
PO Box 285
Concord, MA 01742
978 369-8454
If you are interested in ordering a copy of Donna's new ebook:
"Flower Remedies--How Plant's Energies Can Heal Us,"
It is $15, available at Moon Maven Publications:
www.moonmaven
publications.com
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