Musings on Aspects

There are a number of “cookbook” astrological texts available which delineate planets through houses, signs and aspects. I find the latter most lacking.Some are too brief. Others are quite wordy, but say little. Many are excessively negative. But the majorities share the failing of seeing only one side of certain aspects. (I assume that such authors have met a limited clientele or only deal with certain issues from one perspective.)Consider, for example, a Sun-Pluto conjunction. Many books will discuss only the power-hungry, overbearing potential of this combination. A few will acknowledge the danger of repression and blocked self-esteem when individuals project their personal power into other people. Hardly any writers recognize that both possibilities are inherent within the Sun-Pluto mix. Some people, at some times in their lives, will be master manipulators, maneuvering everything for their ego aggrandizement. At other times, they will feel held in, suppressed and unable to find joy and self-expression in life. They may seek power through love or creativity. They may love power and control. They may focus on material possessions or on sensual indulgence, or on self-knowledge and self-mastery.

A major key to aspects is provided by comparing and contrasting the basic issues of each planet. In what ways are they similar? In which respects do they differ? The Sun and Pluto share a drive for power, authority and control. Thus, any aspects between them highlight the issues of competition, ambition, potency and mastery.The Sun and Pluto, however, are fire and water planets. The Sun (fire) represents an urge to express outwardly, to be joyful, to create, to do more than one has done before. Pluto (water) represents an urge to go within, to delve more deeply, to understand fully, to organize details. Depending on the time and place and on the drives symbolized by the rest of one’s chart, inward power or outward power may have more appeal. And the emphasis can and does change at different times in one’s life. We may seek to control others or ourselves, and could overdo the desire for dominance in either case.

Both the Sun and Pluto have a core focus on sensual and sexual issues. The joyous orgasmic release of the Sun, however, contrasts with the intense, compulsive focus of Pluto. Issues of letting go, of feeling safe (power eschews vulnerability) may arise, particularly in arenas of sexuality. Increasingly, as I work with aspects in natal charts, I believe that the nature of the aspects matters little and the nature of the planets involved matters a great deal. It seems worthwhile to consider the conjunction as the most basic aspect and as the underlying model for all others. In my delineations, I suggest that you read the conjunction section regardless of the aspect involved. Harmony and conflict aspects indicate tendencies toward inner agreement or inner contention, but they should not be given too much weight.

And there is always the problem of dealing with one factor or combination at a time, isolating it and taking it out of the context of the whole chart. I always feel that when I am describing the potentials of a single fragment in a chart, I should keep saying “provided the balance of the chart supports this,” or “other things being equal, whom they never are.” Of course, one cannot do that in every sentence, but please consider that the thought is implicitly included in the following material. I am currently working on a new book: Astro Essentials; planets in signs, houses and aspects. ACS Publications hopes to release it in late 1990. The following excerpt is taken from the section on aspects. Because the outer planets take many years to circle the zodiac; they can hold aspects to one another for long periods of time. Thus, millions of people may share the same aspect involving Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and/or Pluto. Such aspects point to generational themes and are less individually significant than aspects involving the faster moving bodies, Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars. A Saturn-Uranus conjunction, for example, highlights a large number of people dealing with the polarization between old and new, conservative and radical, caution and risk, stability and change, etc.