Solunars by Aldebaran Sidereal Academy

GENERAL INTRODUCTION: Sidereal astrologers have rarely written at length about how to judge specific areas of life about which people may have recurring questions. Tropical astrologers dwell on this extensively, surely fortified by the idea (that may or may not be true) that different areas of life are "governed" by different houses.

Speaking for myself, I've not written about such topics extensively because my primary interest is exposing character and its unfolding. I disagree with the house-driven premise that we are drastically different in how we handle different parts of our lives. Instead, I find that, "How you are in one part of your life, so are you in all the parts of your life" - your inherent self ultimately shines through one way or the other. Therefore, my basic answer to any question of "How does this person act in the X part of his or her life?" or "Over the course of life, what is likely to happen to this person?" will always be: "Understand who this person is: That will tell you what you want to know."

Nonetheless, we do have ways of placing a magnifying glass over one or another area of life; we just haven't sharpened these tools. I propose to start a series of threads on different life areas. For each, I will post this introduction; then reserve the first reply space for me to post my primary answer (as I get around to it). The rest of the thread is wide open to discussion and contribution. (Over time, I will edit my premise-post with the idea of turning it into an instruction in the topic, fed by the discussion. You don't have to wait for my premise-post to post on the topic.)

Some will be tempted, based on the nature of these topics, to jump into the houses as a quick answer. As the thread is open to discussion, that's fine; but, as usual, my own opinion is that we should stick with techniques that we have proof work, which at this stage in astrology's unfolding would minimize or exclude the use of houses.

Everyone feel free to jump in!

Astrologers historically have sought to describe one’s parents from one’s own horoscope. This is beyond astrology except that our charts do describe our experience of our parents, our attitudes and actions toward what parents (in principle) represent in our lives, and our own actions that affect (or even create) our parents’ treatment of us or response to us.

Historically, parent descriptions and themes have been sought in the symbolism of Moon and Saturn, Cancer and Capricorn, and the MC-IC axis (or, more widely, the 10th and 4th Houses). These usual historic rules seem accurate.

Before diving into details, I need to clarify the use of “mother” and “father” in the discussion following and in astrology overall. These words are convenient labels referring to whoever fulfills the historic, traditional functions of mother and father in someone’s life. “Mother” refers especially to bearing, feeding, nurturing, embracing, connecting, loving, and broadly enwombing (containing) the child (reflected in the labial, containing primitive sound m). “Father” refers especially to functions of authority, control, discipline, shaping, and readying the child to grow up, survive, and function in the practical world – ultimately expelling the child (reflected in the projectile, plosive primitive sound p). “Mother” provides emotional security. “Father” provides material security.

These words always were too narrow and binary, since (for example) there always have been fathers who love and nurture their children and mothers who discipline them and prepare them to be adults. With time’s passage, these binary distinctions (based on historic two-parent heterosexual nuclear families) have become almost fictional and frequently overlap or fully swap. More single-parent homes, same-sex parents, and increasingly complex extended family structures and child-rearing communities have made the use of “mother” as the biologically female progenitor and “father” as the biologically male progenitor obsolete.

Except… in astrology the terms remain meaningful and useful, and this is a book on astrology. Used to describe functions rather than people, these words link to substantially separate, often polarized structures in a natal chart, and therefore within an individual’s psyche. Furthermore, even today the odds are that the conventional, historic use of “father” and “mother” will apply. We just have to be sensitive to the fact that the conventional meaning does not apply in every chart.

Using “mother” and “father” to mean complementary functions turns them into new terms no longer necessarily linked to specific people. These functions commonly are embodied by the biological parents, but sometimes shared or traded by the parents; sometimes filled by other relatives or people close, caretaking, and mentoring during childhood; and eventually handed off to society as a child begins to emerge from the original family household, and, of course, ultimately absorbed (by introjection and maturity) into the character of the child grown into an adult.

This use of “mother” and “father” to mean psychological functions is truer to how astrology works. Our natal charts do not show other people at all – at all! – so we should have no expectation that parent symbols show two actual other people even if this happens to be the case more often than not. Like everything else in the horoscope, these symbols show our relationships to and experience of dynamic concepts initially embodied in our parents or their surrogates, and then whatever we carry forward into later life attached to the idea of “parent.”

Moon and Saturn are the primary planets reflecting our childhood experiences of our parents. Venus and Sun back them up somewhat, though primarily have other, related meanings. Other planets also have a part to play in the narrative.

Saturn and Moon are the primary planetary descriptors of one’s experience of and relationship to father and mother, respectively. These should be obvious from the earlier linking of “father” (Saturn) to authority, control, discipline, and readying a child to grow up, survive, and function in the practical world and “mother” (Moon) to bearing, feeding, nurturing, embracing, connecting, loving, and containing.

Aspects to Moon and Saturn describe the experience of the corresponding parent figures. The relative angularity (and, more broadly, relative strength) of the two planets shows how present or potent each parent function is in someone’s psyche. In a limited way, aspects show circumstances.

With these few principles, we usually can quickly assess the role parents have played in the patterning of a person’s subconsciousness. The hold they still have later in life depends on overall psychological health and maturity. Additionally, these planetary and psychological patterns reflect the person’s attitudes toward such things as authority and self-sufficiency (Saturn) or nurturing and empathy (Moon) as an adult.

Venus and Sun sometimes serve as secondary significators of mother and father, respectively, though usually not so directly as Moon and Saturn.

Sun, while an archetypal male symbol and direct complement of Moon, more specifically represents our relationship to authority. In the young, this usually is parental authority, though easily handed off to other “authorities” (such as a school principal, teacher, or coach). While Moon symbols especially reflect infancy and childhood experiences concurrent with the period of strongest parental presence and impact, Sun better describes the emerging individual distinguishing itself from the original nest and preparing itself to launch into the world. Mythically, this is the process of the Hero leaving “his” mother to begin the heroic quest. Until the ego is mature, it is easier to understand our solar energies through whoever is at the center of our circumstances, a hub about which we orbit.

Similarly, Venus reflects the need for and experience of love. In our early years, this usually anchors in a mother figure’s caretaking, though nothing excludes fathers from the equation.

Jupiter rarely attaches to one parent more than the other. It represents “parentage” more broadly as those who are one’s superiors; in a larger sense of family, clan, or community; and especially as reflecting heritage, which is not necessarily familial but may be cultural or involve other sorts of legacies.

We must, of course, consider the entire horoscope, as in any other matter. Our most dominant characteristics define the parent connection the same way they define all elements of our lives. Most planet themes will be obvious: Strong Neptune suggests more dependency, resembling Moon in important ways due to its association with the intrauterine experience and an unconscious desire to return to it. Uranus, in contrast, signifies independence and greater need to differentiate oneself and feel free or unrestrained. Uranus and Pluto (and, in a “terrible twos” way, Mars) show rebellion and often an early breaking away. Parents experience Venus types as sweet children and Mars types as uncooperative and cranky. Mercury children, of course, never tire of asking “why.”

One last point regarding relationships with parents: Actual parents are actual people with their own birth charts. While our responses to the idea of the mother and father show in our horoscopes, events occurring to our actual human parents – and objective facts about them – show in their charts, not ours. Also, our relationships to them are described partly by how we are wired to react to lunar and saturnian experiences, but even more by aspects connections between our chart and that of each parent. The study of aspects between two charts and the impact of this on the relationship between two people, called synastry, is elaborated in Volume II of this book.

Similar to the focus on Moon and Saturn, Cancer and Capricorn luminaries intensify the importance of parent themes in the psyche.

Both of these constellation types are strongly impacted by their parents in ways that (positively or negatively, but always strongly) affect their adult lives. Cancer luminaries are easier to link to mother themes, with strong mother-related events marking their lives, powerfully effecting the adults they become. Capricorn luminaries feel strong impact by the father, with familiar patterns (Freudian but true) such as reacting strongly to father figures, seeking paternal approval as an adult, while (usually symbolically) wanting to be Dad, be better than Dad, or kill Dad. Capricorn Moon is strongly impacted by either parent (having both Saturn and Moon themes) and (like other Moon-Saturn) usually centers on loss or other absence of the mother or other loss of nourishment or nurturing.

These patterns are nearly identical (and often more dramatic) when Sun or Moon aspects Saturn. People with Sun-Saturn aspects commonly have authority issues rooted in father history. They commonly experience childhood hardships and early struggles that accelerate the pace of maturing. Moon-Saturn typically holds onto accumulated resentments from early life and needs to work through parent-themed issues such as nourishment-deprivation or excessive control and restriction, especially stemming from difficulties in the experience of a mother figure.

Other planets in Cancer and Capricorn rarely affect the relationship with the parents per se. Commonly, they carry parent themes into adulthood, especially mingling them with adult love and sex. For example, Venus in Cancer in an intimate relationship usually needs either to be (play the part of) a mother or have a mother. Venus in Capricorn needs either to be a father or have a father role in the relationship. Both placements bring incomplete early parent-child dynamics into their adult relationships. Mars in Capricorn commonly has strong parental (especially paternal) themed conflicts over authority and control, creating unnecessary struggles fighting their way out of early resentments. Mars in Cancer is less likely to fight its way out because the placement holds tightly to old wounds, nourishing long-held private demons, and holding grudges.

Venus-Saturn and Mars-Saturn aspects have their own distinctive profiles already detailed in the Interpretations section (Appendix A).

Parents are traditionally associated with the 5th and 10th Houses, especially with Midheaven and Lower Heaven. This can be expanded to include Zenith and Nadir interchangeably with MC and IC.

Of course, all angular planets – on any angle – are important to the question of parents relationships and early childhood because all angular planets strongly shape someone’s character. However, in this case, it does seem that we have strong differentiation of the meridian – both upper (MC) and lower (IC) – having a special connection to our relationships with and experience of the parent functions.

Classically, the father was associated especially with the 4th House and IC, and mother with the 10th House and MC. This differentiation occurred during the classical period when the prevailing house model associated 4H with Capricorn and 10H with Cancer. In recent centuries when astrologers began to favor the opposite correspondence – thinking 4H akin to Cancer and 10H akin to Capricorn – textbooks often swapped these parent correspondences.

Yet astrologers favoring the swap also emphasized that the house correspondences could reverse in any given case.

For example, Llewellyn George, in the 1935 edition of A to Z Horoscope Maker and Delineator, wrote:

References to twelve of the leading astrological textbooks, published during the past three hundred years, shows the tenth house ruling the mother, fourth house, the father. Only one of the early writers reverses this indication… My own experience confirms the teachings of the twelve older writers…

He went on to discuss theoretical considerations, insist that empirical evidence of “that which is shown by actual horoscopes” should prevail, and allow that “times are changing” (in 1935, remember!) and parental roles were being redefined in America and England that could affect this question in the future.

Based on abundant anecdotal experience, I agree with George’s conclusion. Regrettably, no statistical analysis has given the degree of confidence I would like to convey; in fact, it is hard to think how a researcher might construct an objective study since the matter is quite subjective.

As explained in an earlier chapter, the meridian as a whole – MC and IC – links to themes of identity and authority. Early in life, all authority vests in the parents (or parent surrogates) and bifurcates between the upper and lower angles. Later in life, this changes, spreading into public (MC) vs. private (IC) matters; but that later stage is not relevant in childhood.

I agree that, in a given case, either end of this axis could most closely signify father and the other end mother. In most cases, the 4th House (especially IC) links to father and the 10th House (especially MC) links to mother.

Once we settle into adulthood, 10H has little to do with parent themes: They concentrate in 4H and IC. Even there, parent associations primarily arise as incomplete formative conditions working their way to the surface or themes of roots and heritage. As an adult, MC and IC usually express through other associations linked to the adult life, though the consequences of the original childhood impact remain.

For a child, though, it is typical for any astrological activity on these angles to adhere to one parent, with the other parent linked to the opposing angle.

While the primary effect is on the angles themselves, in this area the houses commonly have a strong voice. Primarily, our concern is with planets in these locations, conditioned by their aspects. I reject the popular idea that signs on MC and IC help determine which angle or house attaches to which parent.

On this last point, my own chart provides a ready example. I have Gemini on Midheaven and Sagittarius on IC. My father had a Gemini Moon and my mother a close Sun-Jupiter conjunction, so it would seem logical to relate my father to MC and 10th House and my mother to IC and 4th House. Yet, I have Mars in 4H and my prolonged, severe conflict was with Dad. It makes no sense to associate Mars in the 4th with Mom.

Similarly, consider the example chart of a woman I will call Liz [not shown in this post, but described]. In addition to some beautiful, kind, happy aspects and placements, the chart has Saturn rising in ecliptical square to Pluto on Zenith and mundane square to Mars on IC. Parent issues run all over the chart, starting, of course, with that closely rising, harshly aspected Saturn. Moon is also severely aspected, its one major aspect being to Mars. Looking at octiles, we find Moon also aspects Saturn and Pluto.

Early in her life, Liz’s parents divorced bitterly, though they remained in the same town and she had ongoing relations with both. Her relationship with her mother (with whom she lived) was especially harsh – emotionally violent in every way, and sometimes physically violent. Her father was an eminent academic with whom she had a kinder, more respectful relationship that brought her pleasure and advantage.

If we were to link one end of MC to one parent and IC to the other by signs, the choice would seem simple: Her mother had a Leo Sun (like Liz’s MC) and her father an Aquarius Moon (like Liz’s IC). Yet… this linkage would not match the facts at all. While the worst indictment of her relationship with her mother is the afflicted Moon – allowing us to bypass the angle and house issue altogether if we chose – the houses are entirely clear: Her violent relationship with her mother is described by Mars on IC and her admiring, respectful, kinder relationship with her father by the exact Venus-Jupiter conjunction approaching MC in the 10th House.

This is one of many charts I could line up. Of course, all single-case examples are weak evidence. Nonetheless, I find this outcome typical and encourage you to look at real charts on your own.

One further points needs explanation. It concerns aspects from a planet on MC or IC to a planet on another angle. These are, of course, especially important because (if both are closely angular) they form an especially strong mundane aspect, often the strongest aspect in the chart. However, there is also a further matter of interpretation.

One place house meanings (or at least differentiated meaning of the angles) seems important is when one angular planet aspects another angular planet. In this case, the individual angle meanings seem more strongly involved. Regrettably, as with most matters connected to houses, objectively confirming this is difficult as the angle differentiation (or house theme) is primarily subjective.

Having hoisted that caveat: Primary meanings of the four angular houses (and the four major angles) involve life areas that obviously and necessarily affect each other. For example, Ascendant (sense of self and self-expression) has a necessary, natural connection to Descendant (intimate relationship): Each of these life areas affects the other.

Similarly, what we experience in our formative relationship with our parents, and what we carry from that into our adult lives, also strongly affects our sense of ourselves and willingness to be self-expressive and our adult intimate relationships.

When interpreting a planet on MC (or in 10H) or IC (or in 4H), interpret aspects it makes to planets on other major angles (or in other angular houses) according to their distinctive themes.

This is not complicated. The corresponding life areas so tightly intertwine that the connection seems common sense. When counseling someone, the added interpretation is not elaborate or outrageous; it is simple. For example, taking Liz’s chart above, after noting Mars on IC and linking it to the emotionally violent relationship with her mother, seeing the mundane square to Saturn on Ascendant one can simply say: “And all of this had a severe effect on your sense of who you are and your self-expression, didn’t it? Saturn on Ascendant often shows a critical, negative self-image. Is this true?”

Relationships between the themes all of the major angles work this easily.

Although formative environment was discussed earlier in connection with parental relationships and general delineation principles, I have more to say concerning infancy and childhood experiences, the psychologically formative environment.

At times, the birth chart details the formative environment so clearly that it seems objectively described. In any case, it is described subjectively, in terms of one’s experience. We carry the impact of this experience into adulthood.

Two factors most portray the early years: Moon’s cosmic state and foreground planets.

Foreground planets provide the easiest assessment, especially the relative weight of malefic vs. benefic planets. Planets on angles for infants and toddlers especially describe the way they experience the world, since they have not yet formulated enough of an ego-center to have independent experience of themselves. At this early age, foreground planets feel more like “powers” impacting us from our surroundings. (In Volume II we will associate this perception of “outside” planets with a technique called transits. Angular planets in early childhood feel like transits.)

For example, Saturn on an angle tends to coincide with early experience that life is narrow, restrictive, demanding, and hard (like being under a permanent Saturn transit). Jupiter on an angle tends to experience the opposite. While these are generalizations subject to modification by other chart details, everyone experiences the world through the filter of their horoscopic “window” within the actual context of their real-world life.

I explained most important points on angularity filters in the “Benefics and Malefics” section in the Planets chapter, including its sub-section, “Good Life? Bad Life?” Please review that section.

Perhaps the most important way that these “good life or bad life” differences show is in distinguishing where a child feels supported and encouraged – or the opposite. Jupiter and Saturn aspects tend to reflect this. When Jupiter aspects a planet, it instills confidence in that planet’s themes, meeting its needs: It flourishes as a source of self-value and pride. One feels supported. In contrast, a Saturn aspect commonly brings a sense of inadequacy, perhaps triggering overcompensation. The other planet’s needs feel frustrated. One feels discouraged and unsupported.

Moon’s cosmic state is the other primary factor describing the formative years, as described in the Synthesis chapter and earlier in this present chapter. Moon’s strength, constellation, and aspects commonly describe infancy and early childhood conditions, including early nurturing.

The lunar mind (subconsciousness) is active from birth, while the solar mind (self-conscious reason and egocentricity) takes longer to develop. Though the lunar function also matures over time, it operates from the start, which is why we say that Moon represents the infantile part of our psyches. We relate to the world around us through Moon’s sign and aspects through our earliest years.

By the time we start elementary school around age five or six, the Mercury function becomes primary as the receptor of much of our experience until puberty terminates our pre-gendered years.

Planet functions evolve and shift as we mature. For example, a strong Saturn means, from birth, an unusually strong need for autonomy; but a newborn cannot fully sustain itself (survive) and initially must surrender autonomy. Often, this creates ambivalent reactions of dependency and resentment that may persist later in life (among other possibilities).

A natural, healthy development path is that authority for and control of one’s choices and well-being are first placed in the hands of competent, caring others, such as parents; then transfer from parents to society near puberty (when “coming of age” rites worldwide welcome a child as a junior member of the adult culture); and, finally, are wholly owned by the individual by about age 30. In effect, control moves from, “Don’t cross the street without me holding your hand,” to, “Only cross on a green light, never a red; and look both ways,” and finally to, “Traffic lights are a good guide, but use your own good sense.”

Sun follows a similar development since the path of ego-maturity (Sun) commonly parallels the path toward full self-governance (Saturn). Though Sun operates in childhood and expresses in behaviors and interests from very early, mostly Sun is secondary to lunar influences since dependency and herd (family) connection are stronger in childhood than distinguished individuality and pursuit of personal destiny. Puberty is a “sunrise” in the psyche, a new light breaking loose from subconsciousness, with adolescence being our initially eye-blinking reorientation within this new daylight. As we become comfortable and sure within this psychological “daylight,” we stabilize into adulthood reaching our “noon” peak about the time Saturn finishes its first orbit, about age 30.

While we have all planetary energies at birth, each unfolds, matures, strengthens, and changes over time (just like everything else that we have from birth). With planetary energies, the most important part of this development is our fully owning and incorporating them, accepting them into ourselves as our own “organs” of consciousness. Until we complete this ownership as adults, we are more likely to experience the planets as external elements of our world, objects and happenings around us. Thus, certain planets seem more descriptive of our parents early in life and less expressive of them once we have started a life of our own independent of them.

Similarly, astrology in centuries past commonly interpreted Moon as referring to the female sex and Sun to the male. For example, astrologers said that Moon in an adult man’s horoscope referred to his wife (and women in general), while in a woman’s chart it referred to her personally. Sun in a woman’s chart was said to describe her husband (and men in general), but in a man’s chart described the man himself. This is entirely a consequence of the automatic suppression of certain traits according to cultural standards of the time. If a man was discouraged from having a lunar side and lunar expression (as he was), then the lunar part of him would have to appear outside of him, in some object in his environment such as women and, particularly, a wife. Similarly, in a woman discouraged from having a solar side and solar expression (as she was), her Sun would naturally show itself in some center of authority around her.

Today, we know it is essential that everybody develop and express everything about themselves – all the energies of their psyche. Aspects to Moon or Sun still sometimes express as matters pertaining to women or men about us, respectively, though they are more likely to express through the behavior of the individual in whose chart they appear.

I have just replaced the original posts from April 2021 with a new series of posts. This is the more complete development I wrote for a chapter in CSA Vol I. It represents my current best statement on the matter, and the platform I think we should work from for the next stage of developing it.

Within the larger context of the entire horoscope, these points most strongly speak to questions of parents and early environment:

1. Moon and Saturn show childhood experiences of mother and father functions, respectively. Strength of each: How potent the parent function is in the psyche. Aspects: The experience of the parent function.
2. Venus and Sun are secondary significators. However, more specifically Sun shows relationship to authority and Venus the need for and experience of love.
3. Cancer and Capricorn luminaries intensify importance of parent themes, including strong impact on even adult life. Cancer and Capricorn usually emphasize mother and father themes, respectively. Capricorn Moon (blending both) may center on either parent, often with loss or other absence of mother or other loss of nourishment or nurturing.
4. Sun-Saturn: Authority issues rooted in father history. Childhood hardships and early struggles accelerate pace of maturing.
5. Moon-Saturn: Tenacious early life resentments. Strong parent-themed issues, e.g., nourishment-deprivation or excessive control or restriction, especially by a mother figure.
6. Venus in Cancer or Capricorn: Needs to be or have a mother or father in adult relationships.
7. Mars in Capricorn: Strong parental (especially paternal) themed conflicts over authority and control. Struggles with fighting their way out of early resentments.
8. Mars in Cancer: Tenacious with old wounds. Nourishes long-held private demons.
9. MC-IC, Zenith-Nadir, 4th and 10th Houses: For a child, the 4/10 poles differentiate the two parents. Describes the experience of one parent or the other: Planets are the dynamic factors (not the signs on the angles).
10. Aspects of planets on MC-IC, Zenith, Nadir, or 4th/10th to planets in other angular houses show connection of planet dynamics to other primary life areas, e.g., self-image and ex-pression or intimate relationship.
11. Aspects of one’s planets to a parent’s planets (synastry) describe the parent-child relation-ship better than abstract parent symbols in the child’s horoscope.
12. Formative environment: Foreground planets describe how one first experiences the world, especially the relative malefic-benefic weight. Moon’s sign and aspects describe infancy and childhood in a general way. Jupiter and Saturn aspects distinguish where a child feels encouraged or discouraged.

Thank you Jim. There is a lot to learn from this valuable information still. You have written about this before in bits and pieces but to have such an overview is really good.
Regards, Flo

Thanks, Flo. Yes, the Siderealists that have looked into this sort of thing (few) haven't written about it before. I'm doing this partly to document in the new book and partly to give a base line - a "current platform" of theory and practice - against which we can work, test, improve. Hopefully, I'm very close or mostly right on all of this, but otherwise it is surely close enough for better protocols have to be developed.