Zodiac Compatibility Chart

Admittedly, this is a rather simplistic way of looking at the 12 zodiac signs and how they are compatible with one another.  To get a more accurate picture, the whole birth chart should be taken into consideration when looking at compatibility (synastry).  However, I noticed that too much information can be rather overwhelming, especially for beginners.  Therefore, I put this chart together with the intention of looking at each sign individually.  Start with the personal planets of one chart (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars) and match it to the personal planets of another chart.  Then extend to the social planets (Jupiter, Saturn) and outer planets (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto).  Finally, angles (ASC/DSC, MC/IC) and nodes can also be included.

Excellent match = conjunction/trine

Both signs are in the same zodiac sign (conjunction) or in the same element (trine), giving them a sense of familiarity (conjunction) or harmony (trine).

Amicable match = sextile

Both signs are in the same polarity: masculine (fire & air) or feminine (earth & water).  There's an understanding between them, despite being slightly different.

Spark - square/opposition

The tension (square) and conflict (opposition) between them can bring a spark to transformation, or the spark up a flame of destruction.

Uphill journey - quincunx/semi-sextile

The inability to see eye-to-eye (quincunx) and to recognise one another's values (semi-sextile) can feel like a pebble in the shoe, bringing irritations with every step.  Transformation can be achieved via joint effort and sheer determination from both parties.

Saturn in Capricorn - Timeline

Saturn has ingressed into Capricorn, the sign of its rulership, on 20th December 2017.  The Taskmaster will remain there for 2.5 years.

Saturn is about commitment, consolidation, discipline, stability, maturation, persistence, determination, concentration and endurance.

Where Saturn transits in your chart is the area of your life where you can expect some hard work, challenges, delay, restriction or extra responsibilities.  Check the aspects transiting Saturn will make to your natal planets, especially planets in cardinal signs:  Capricorn (conjunction), Cancer (opposition), Aries and Libra (square).  

Planets in earth signs (Taurus, Virgo) will receive a lovely trine from this transiting Wise Man, who is ready to provide a framework to turn your plans into reality.  

Planets in water signs (Pisces, Scorpio & Cancer) will also be conversing with Saturn amicably via sextiles.   The support is there from the Time Lord for those who would like to manifest their dreams into existence.

Where is transiting Saturn in your chart?  

Timeline

20th Dec 2017 - Saturn enters Capricorn

17th April 2018 - Saturn goes retrograde at 9 degrees

5 September 2018 - Saturn goes direct at 2 degrees

29th April 2019 - Saturn goes retrograde at 20 degrees

17th September 2019 - Saturn goes direct at 13 degrees

22 March 2020 - Saturn enters Aquarius

2nd July 2020 - Saturn re-enters Capricorn

17th December 2020 - Saturn leaves Capricorn

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Make the most of your chart

Many astrologers have discussed the concept of freewill in astrology.

In a natal chart, we are given many different routes of expression.  

We tend to side with one end of an opposition while disowning the other, or we could hop from one side to the other.  

Internal struggle can find its way to our system with a square, while the intensity in a conjunction can act like blindspots to aspects of our personality.

We can't rid ourselves of the oppositions and squares in our chart, but we do have freewill in how we can deal with them.  'Consciousness' is the key.  I can't even remember where I had read this but if you have a square or opposition, e.g. Venus square Saturn, frustrations may arise in love relationships where the native ultimately needs to learn to love him/herself.  The blockage can be ameliorated by becoming conscious of this psychological tendency.  With this awareness, the individual can learn from the expression of a trine and/or sextile between Saturn-Venus, e.g. to develop a realistic view of what to expect from others and to be cautious without being suspicious.

Currently, I'm grappling with my Moon-Uranus opposition.  I'm forever hopping from one end to the other:  craving intimacy one moment (Moon) and yearning for freedom the next (Uranus).  It's driving me nutty at the moment, though I know this is merely a learning opportunity - for me to learn to express it as if it is a Moon-Uranus sextile or trine.

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Full Moon in Scorpio 2012

The Full Moon in Scorpio at 16 degrees 1 minute is exact on 6th May at 4:35am GMT.  The Sun in Taurus fully illuminates the Moon, bringing hidden information to light.  Look out for any messages presenting themselves to you a few days before or after this full moon.  

With Taurus and Scorpio, a balance is called for between simplicity and complexity.  This may not be easy to achieve, especially with expansive Jupiter conjunct the Sun in Taurus, magnifying one's optimism and blowing emotions out of proportion.  Luckily, the Mercury in Aries and Saturn in Libra opposition acts as a brake, making us think twice before we voice our thoughts, and with Venus in Gemini sending a trine to Saturn, take it easy and don't take seemingly negative comments to heart, the intention may not be as bad as you think.  Having said that, be discerning when it comes to dishing out your compassion with Mars continuing to oppose the Neptune-Chiron conjunction.  The solution could be very simple indeed, but over-analysis of the situation may bring distrust and suspicion into the picture, clouding your ultimate judgement.  

With retrograding Pluto trine Mars and the Sun, the undercurrent of the world's turmoil can be distressing, but it can also act as a driving force, encouraging us to dig deep within and extract our hidden potential - how can we survive in our present society with job cuts and inflation?  What more can we offer our clients/customers/company/family/community?  In addition, Pluto in Capricorn is tightening its square to Uranus in Aries - how can we deal with our frustration and anger towards those in authority, who appear to have the power and control to affect our everyday lives?  

This Full Moon trine and sextile my North Node in the 2nd house, bringing me opportunities to move out of my comfort zone and achieve what I've signed up for in this lifetime.  Just as long as I'm willing to take the first step, it won't be as insurmountable as I think...

Where is this Full Moon illuminating in your chart?

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Mercury in Aries 2012

Maybe I'm biased, but I'm looking forward to having Mercury transiting in Aries from Friday 2nd March (11.40 GMT).  Natally, I have Mercury in Aries, but in the 8th, so the Arian energy rarely gets unleashed without having lots of strings attached.  Luckily, with transiting Uranus in Aries, which conjunct my Mercury, I'm beginning to feel those 'strings' loosening under the pressure of that Arian energy.

In Aries, Mercury is ruled by Mars, which is currently retrograding in Virgo, so the two planets are in mutual reception.  We have a theme of communicating fearlessly - but not bluntly, because let's not forget we have Saturn and Mars in retrograde (Mercury will join the 'Retrograde Party' on 12th March).  Uranus in Aries, though, is likely to inject unconventionality wherever possible, balancing out the 'retrograde quality'.  It is interesting to note that during this period, retrograding Mars will physically be the closest to Earth on 3rd March, as if to say, 'Look at me!  Look at me!  Be assertive, not aggressive!'

Astrologically, there are 2 grand trines on the day when Mercury enters bold Aries.  Both of which contain a retrograde planet: an air/water grand trine with Saturn in Libra, Moon in Gemini, and Neptune-Chiron in Pisces (out-of-sign aspect) and an earth grand trine with Mars in Virgo, Pluto in Capricorn and Jupiter in Taurus.  Each grand trine is like a circuit of positive, enclosed energy.  In the air/water 'circuit', we have Saturn retrograding in Libra linking up to the Moon (the past) and Neptune-Chiron (healing) so the past may be catching-up with us,  either as a fleeting thought or an physical re-encounter, urging us to let something go. In the other earth closed circuit, we have Mars retrograding in Virgo (repeating the 'thoughts and ideas' theme from the other grand trine with the Mercury-ruled Moon).  With Pluto and Jupiter,  again, we have the theme of bringing up something from the past, this time, from the depths of our psyche (Pluto, ruled by Saturn - the other retrograding planet from the air/water grand trine), but instead of being forced to come out into the light, we have Jupiter, gently coaxing the junk out.

Then, moving away from the grand trines, we have Mars (in retrograde) oppose the Sun and Saturn (in retrograde) oppose Venus.  Are you ready to face up to your life mission and re-set your belief system?  External stimuli, in the forms of male authority figures, may challenge your present beliefs and if you have been sitting around, feeling confused, it's time to get up and get moving - even if only mentally, don't let procrastination get the better of you.

Mercury begins its retrograde motion from 12th March.  Mercury retrograde is not just about miscommunications and computers going haywire.  It's a time for us to wake-up from our groggy states and introspect the goings-on in our lives - slow down and look carefully at where you are going.  What needs to stay, what needs to go?  In Aries, the focus is on ourselves.  It is not about being selfish, but about being proud of who we are, being honest with who we are and what we want to achieve in life.  It is about getting in touch with the warrior inside of us.  Be bold.  Be brave.  A turning point will be reached on 21st March, when we have a tight Sun-Mercury conjunction in Aries.  Look out for any messages/insights we may receive around this date.  I'm particularly fond of the work of an intuitive archetypal astrologer, Robert Ohotto, whose interpretation on retrograde cycles are rather insightful and pioneering.  You can find out more about his work and listen to his radio shows on www.ohotto.com.

Timeline of transiting Mercury in Aries:

2nd March - Mercury enters Aries

12th March - Mercury retrograde begins

23rd-24th March - Mercury re-enters Pisces

4th April - Mercury goes direct

17th April - Mercury re-enters Aries

8th May - Mercury leaves Aries

Transiting Mercury in Aries will traverse my 8th and 9th houses, conjunct my Mercury for most of March due to its retrograde motion and will conjunct my Mercury for a second time in the latter half of April, so I will get plenty of opportunities to unleash my thoughts and ideas and not be afraid to speak my mind,  but without being impulsive and hurting others with my words.

Happy Mercury tracking!

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Out-of-sign aspects - don't judge a book by its cover

As if astrology is not complex enough, we have the added complication of out-of-sign aspects to deal with.  This is when 2 planets are in aspect with one another but the signs involved do not match that aspect.

When I first began studying astrology, I read that these out-of-sign aspects function by switching between the two aspects involved.  For example, I have a Mercury-Jupiter trine but between Aries and Cancer, therefore, sign-wise, it's a square.  The planets relate to one another in a trine but the signs are in a square.  According to those sources, this aspect flips between functioning like a trine and a square, so sometimes it's great, sometimes it's not. 

Besides this out-of sign aspect, I also have 4 more:

- Ascendant in Leo conjunct Jupiter in Cancer in 12th (semi-square sign-wise)

- Venus in Aquarius in 6th oppose Jupiter in Cancer in 12th (quincunx sign-wise)

- Moon in Taurus 10th sextile Mercury in Aries in 8th (semi-square sign wise)

- Moon in Taurus in 10th square Mars in Pisces in 8th (sextile sign-wise)

The way I see it, these out-of-sign aspects are like being teased by the Universe.  On the surface, it might be a trine or sextile, but deep down, it's actually a square or semi-square.  Trines are natural talents, often go undetected by the native.  In the case of my Jupiter-Mercury trine, I spent the first 2 decades living it as a square.  I felt highly uncomfortable with sharing my thoughts and ideas and talking in general.  I knew this had to be overcome, so bit by bit, I took the necessary steps to push myself to develop more confidence.  Luckily, I was blessed with beneficial transits which gave me massive support (in the name of Jupiter!).  Then, in my 20s, I began to receive positive feedback on my Mercury (e.g. presentation skills, public speaking), which I found difficult to accept at first.  But having put in a lot of effort to release that trine, I can honestly say that I can finally 'feel' it and beginning to own it.  Same for the Moon-Mercury sextile and Ascendant-Jupiter conjunction.  

On the other hand, for the Jupiter-Venus opposition and Moon-Mars square, I don't feel the harshness as much.  It's the opposite - they are not as bad as they look.

Overall, I would say that from my personal experience, these out-of-sign aspects are like cross-stitch kits or DIY kits, i.e. a 'trine kit' or a 'sextile kit'.  You need to 'make' the aspect yourself.  All the necessary components are provided for.  All you need to do is have the motivation to transform them into the final product, which matches the picture on the original package (i.e. work through the differences between the signs involved to claim or own that aspect).  

Do you have any out-of-sign aspects?  How are they turning out in your life?

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