Finding The Perfect Relationship

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What makes a “perfect” relationship? First and foremost there has to be love. What is love? It means caring more for another person than I do for myself. The “purer” or “truer” the love the more extreme that dynamic becomes.

Pure and true love is non-existent in the material world. How can I say that? Because all of us are “hardwired” with survival instincts on physical, practical and emotional levels. This hardwiring results from our attachments to the illusions of who we think we are and are not. Being hardwired with a certain unavoidable amount of selfish instinct, it is not possible to experience true and pure love in a material relationship.

Alright, then. What makes a perfect material relationship?

Again, love, but this time normal love; relative love. Relative to what? Relative to our compatibility.

When we meet a person who is extremely compatible with us, we “fall in love.” Why? Because we have complimentary desires, conceptions, feelings and practical situations. When we meet a person whose desires compliment our own we fall in love as a result of compatibility.

A “perfect” relationship in this world is one in which the two partners have a great deal of compatibility in all four areas: desires, conceptions, feelings and practical situations.

Astrology of Compatibility

Venus is the planet of desire. The Sun is the planet of conceptions. The Moon is the planet of feelings. The Ascendant is the point of practical situations. These are the four most important planets to asses for compatibility, particularly compatibility of a romantic flavor.

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When two people meet who have Venus, the Sun, the Moon, and the Ascendant in “compatible” astrological configurations they feel they have met “the one” for them, and fall deeply in love. When two people meet with significant incompatibility in these four areas they feel spontaneous repulsion and disgust for one another. Real problems happen in between these two extremes.

In between is where it gets really messy; when you meet a person who really is great for you on one level but terrible for you on another. For example compatible Venus may make you have undeniable mutual attraction, yet incompatible Moons will make that mutual attraction give rise mostly to emotional grief.

The value of astrologically figuring out a relationship before tying your heart-strings around someone else’s incompatibilities can not be underestimated.

Astrological Rules of Compatibility

To do compatibility astrology I first need “birth charts” for both people. A birth chart is a map of which planets were in which signs at the time a person was born. Then I evaluate the distance from an specific planet in chart of the first partner to the same planet in the chart of the second partner. For example. If both partners have Venus in Leo, I say that their Venus’s are in the same sign. If one partner has the Sun in Virgo while the other has the Sun in Leo, these Suns are one sign away from each other. If one partner has the Moon in Scorpio, and the other has the Moon in Capricorn, their Moons are 3 signs apart. If one has the Ascendant in Taurus and the other in Scorpio their Ascendants are “opposite.”

Based on these distances I then make basic, fundamental interpretations:

Opposite – When planets are in opposite signs, for example Virgo and Pisces, you have the strongest, most compelling type of compatibility. It is a compatibility brought on by each partner providing what the other lacks and needs. It is a volatile, passionate, strong compatibility.

Same – When planets are in the same sign, you get the is the next strongest compatibility, brought on be the partners sharing things in common. It is not as exciting and dynamic as opposites, but is still strong and good.

Trine - If the planets are four signs apart they can be called “trine.” For example, Leo is trine to Sagittarius and Aries. This is a compatible situation brought about by each partner having a balance of sameness and difference on a given topic. Couples with trine compatibility will quietly, mildly but confidently understand and compliment one another.

Sextile - If the planets are 2 signs apart they are basically “sextile.” This is the least dramatic or desirable of the compatible situations. Couples with sextile compatibility do understand and compliment each other, but do so very passively. For example, Aquarius is sextile to Aries and Sagittarius.

Now, the types of incompatibility:

Neighbors - If the planets you are examining are just 1 sign apart, they are “neighbors.” For example Gemini and Aries are neighbors of Taurus. This is the least dramatic or undesirable of the incompatible situations. It causes couples to passively and mildly misunderstand and interfere with one another on the given subject.

Distance - If the planets are 5 signs apart, they are “distant.” For example Libra and Sagittarius are distant from Taurus. This is an incompatible situation which causes the couple to cancel out their energies and interfere with one another.

Clashing Square - If the planets are 3 signs away from one another they are basically “square.” For example Aries and Libra are square to Capricorn. This is the most incompatible situation. It cause the couple to have mutually strong attitudes towards the given subject, but strong attitudes that clash.

So if we have a couple with opposite Ascendants (one in Taurus the other in Scorpio), we know they have a very dynamic and attractive compatibility in practical ways. That same couple has Venus in the same sign, so we know they understand one another’s desires and share similar wants and goals in life. These two people, however, have the Sun 1 sign away from each other – which means that when it comes to their conceptions about themselves, their ego, their identity, their authority – on those topics they will run into some mild misunderstandings and interference. Finally we see that their Moon’s are sextile, so we know that their emotions and emotional outlook are not incompatible with one another. Overall it appears to be a fundamentally good relationship to pursue.

Omitted Details

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Now you know the basics of how relationship astrology works. Let me stress that these are the basics by pointing to some of the missing details.

It’s not only important how my Venus interacts with your Venus, for example, it is also important how my Venus interacts with your Sun, Moon and Ascendant. The same basic rules of interpretation apply. If your Ascendant is opposite my Venus, for example, we will have compelling compatibility in practical desires. In this manner, an astrologer interprets all the primary nuances of a relationship.

Finally, degrees are crucial. I have a mathematical formula to work it all out, which I will kind of guard like a “trade secret.” But basically the closer the planets are together by degree, the stronger the effect of their particular type of compatibility or incompatibility. I will give one example to help you figure out exactly what I am talking about.

Lets say my Ascendant is about 2º Capricorn, and lets say yours is about 29º Cancer. Well it looks great in one sense because Capricorn and Cancer are “opposite” so we should have the best sort of compatibility in practical (ascendant) matters. But there are 27º of distance between 2º and 29º, right? That is really far, you know, since an entire sign is only 30º in length. That much distance reduces the positive effect of our opposite ascendants pretty near to nil. But if your ascendant was much closer to 2º Cancer you and I would get the full compatibility benefit of having opposite ascendants.

This works on negative alignments too. If Your Venus is at 2º Aries and my Venus at 2º Capricorn it is the worst possible “clash” alignment. But if your Venus is instead at 29º Aries they are not in a strong clash alignment, so the negativity of the clash is minimized almost to nil.

The Divine Couple

Lets get back to talking about the perfect relationship! I mentioned that it is not possible in the material world. It is possible in the spiritual world. The perfect relationship of absolutely pure love exists in the Divine Couple: the Goddess of Devotion, Sri Radha, and the God of Love, Sri Krishna.

Now and then the divine couple manifest their spiritual relationship in the material world so we can get our priorities straight and set our sights on attaining enlightenment. This happens on time scales of hundreds of thousands of years, mind you. So saying that it occurred roughly 5,000 years ago is really saying it was quite a recent event.

Horoscope of Sri Krishna, God of Love

The only authoritative description of Krishna’s full horoscope is cited from a book called kha manik by the enlightened author Sri Vishvanath Chakravarti Thakur in his medieval commentary on the ancient Bhagavat Purana. He gives the following positions.

The Moon rising in Rohini (a portion of Taurus). Jupiter in Pisces. Mars in Capricorn. Rahu in Scorpio. Saturn and Venus in Libra. Mercury in Virgo. Sun in Leo.

Horoscope of Sri Radha, Goddess of Devotion

We know from the same line of enlightened authority that Sri Radha appears exactly one “paksha” after Krishna. That is, she appears in exactly the same phase of the Moon, except Krishna appears when it is waning and she appears while it is waxing. We also know that Krishna’s chart results from a midnight birth, and Radha’s chart results from a midday birth.

Accepting these facts from enlightened souls, to get Sri Radha’s chart all we have to do is progress Krishna’s chart about 2 weeks. However, take note that Krishna’s chart shows the two fast planets, Venus and Mercury placed near their absolute greatest distance from the Sun. Therefore they would be moving very slowly and perhaps not at all during the two weeks between Krishna’s birth and Radha’s. The Sun would have traveled 15 degrees between Krishna’s birth and Radha’s. The other planets would not have moved much at all. The Moon would be exactly opposite, in Anuradha nakshatra, which is a portion of Scorpio. Thus we can calculate Sri Radha’s chart.

Relationship Compatibility of Radha and Krishna

Their Ascendants are opposite. Their Moons are opposite. Their Venus are the Same and their Suns are the Same! Their fundamental compatibility is made of the best ingredients – sameness and opposites.

You might argue that it would be better if all four planets were opposite. But the alignment of opposites has a flaw in that it is too volatile at times. You might than argue that all four planets should be in the same signs. But the alignment of sameness has a flaw of familiarity and boredom. So the divine couple have the perfect balance of opposites and sames – getting the benefits of both and counteracting the flaws of either.

Not just the four basic relationship planets – everything in their chart is either opposite or the same, from perspective of signs or houses. Thus they have an absolute balance of the two best forms of compatibility – opposites attracting and sameness enduring.

If everything is too “perfect,” it detracts from the actual perfection because everything becomes too easy. Therefore you see some small “flaws” in the compatibility – particularly in that relationships of their Venus’ to their Ascendants. This means that a lot of practical considerations about their lives stood in the way of their being able to freely meet all the time and fulfill their mutual desires. This is the catalyst that keeps their relationship always relishable and exciting.

Relationships are best when they face obstacles that can be surmounted, small flaws. If a relationship is too easy it gets boring and flounders like an overwatered plant. If it is too difficult, it withers and dies like an unwatered plant. The small flaws of practical obstacles to their being able to meet and express their mutual love serve to make the flowering vine of their divine love an ever fresh, exciting, enjoyable, thrilling eternal relationship.

The mantra of the divine couple is:

hare krishna, hare krishna

krishna krishna, hare hare

hare rama, hare rama

rama rama, hare hare

Hare is the Goddess Radha. Krishna names her beloved as “all-attractive.” Rama names him “all-pleasing.”

Contemplating this mantra I am delighted to will find abundant beautiful symmetries which perfectly express the realities of the relationship of the Divine Couple, some of which I have just tried to express in evaluating their astrological compatibility. All the balance and symmetry in their relationship reflects in their mantra.

I particularly notice that sometimes “hare” is with “krishna” while sometimes they are separate. This overall astounding beauty and symmetry of the mantra reflects wondrously balanced beauty of their relationship compatibility – while the small balances of union and separation reflect the small apparent “flaws” which serve to heighten and excited the relationship, making it eternally new and enticing.

- Vic DiCara

www.vicdicara.com

© 2010 Vic DiCara, All Rights Reserved

Sidereal, Sagittarius, Cancer, Capricorns, Relationships, Ascendant Aspects, & Mars Transits

Tropical & Sidereal – Same Aspects?

I did a calculation for my sidereal natal chart, the houses & aspects are exactly the same in my tropical chart, the only difference is the signs in the planets. Is the Tropical & Sidereal such similar methods that the houses & aspects don’t change?

When you do a sidereal chart it is not very helpful unless you look at it from a sidereal perspective. There is a reason why both sidereal and tropical astrology can yeild accurate results: because they both have systems of interpretation developed around them which maximize their strengths. So to take your chart and set it to sidereal, but continue to look at it through a tropical system will just wind up being confusing. And really this is why many people walk away from sidereal astrology saying, “it doesn’t work.” or “It doesn’t make sense.” or “It doesn’t seem to apply to me.”

So when you want to see your sidereal astrology you should learn the sidereal system, or even go to a sidereal astrologer. Here are a few important fundamentals:

- Sidereal astrology relies on the whole sign house system

- The interrelationship of various house lords is very useful in interpreting sidereal charts. Much more than in tropical charts.

- The system of aspects is different, because sidereal planets influence signs themselves, not just planets within orb. In general every planet influences the 7th sign from it, but the outer planets also influence/aspect two additional houses.

There’s a bunch to learn about, but it is extremely well worth it, and I encourage you to devote some effort to it.

As for the aspects of the tropical system… these measure the number of degrees between one planet and the other. It pertains to the distance from one planet to the other, not to the placement of those planets in the zodiac. So changing the method of calculating the zodiac will not affect it. If your Jupiter is 90º away from your Moon, it will ALWAYS be 90º away from your Moon regardless if you are using a zodiac system that is Tropical, Sidereal, Draconic, etc. etc.

A simple way to understand the difference between the Sidereal and Tropical zodiac is that the Tropical zodiac has currently slipped just about 24º *ahead* of where the real constellation-based zodiac borders are. So subtracting 24º from every point in your tropical chart (including Ascendant, and Midheaven, they are no exception) will give you the real / sidereal location of the bodies in your chart. As I said, though, to make SENSE out of those locations you need to view them through a sidereal astrological perspective. I highly suggest Vedic astrology for that perspective, though I admit it is quite frustrating sometimes finding a reasonable and somewhat engaging explanation of how to do Vedic astrology.

I am currently writing a book on Vedic / Universal Astrology! =)

Is Sagittarius a good sign?

Every sign is both good and bad. Every sign has strengths and weaknesses. Sagittarius has inherent strength towards moral experimentation, growth and learning, but has some weaknesses as well. For example Venus is the closest Sagittarius has to an outright enemy. She owns the 11th and 6th Houses from Sagittarius and therefore tends to present challenges and blessings concerning the mixing of friends and enemies. Sagittarius is a place in which friends can act like enemies and be argumentative, but where enemies can be made peace with and turned into friends. Often this is a cyclic experience.

Why dont Cancer men say what they feel when it comes to love?

Always beating around the bush. I just want to shake the **** out of them!

Cancer is the 4th house of the zodiac… the 4th sign. Therefore it is quite shy and private. Why are you asking Cancer influenced people to rip off their emotional clothes in front of you? It’s not fair to them. What you can learn from Cancer is to calm down, take your time, and let the “clothes” come off gradually, with trust, and in time.

~~~

As for those who report “Cancers” not acting like this. Remember that you are only talking about their Sun sign. A person who is strongly influenced by Cancer will act like this (unless their planets are very unusually positioned). The strongest influence is to have the Ascendant in Cancer, the Next is the Moon in Cancer. The next is the ascendant lord in Cancer. Then comes the Sun in Cancer…

Why are Capricorns and Leos attracted to each other?

They are NOT attracted to one another.

What you are probably doing, though, is referring to two people with **Sun** signs of Capricorn and Leo. These individuals may be attracted to one another **in spite of** their incompatible Sun signs, because their Moons & Ascendants are in compatible alignments.

When you look at a natal chart do you make an interpretation Of how the person may be?

Say you were to meet someone (a stranger and only know their gender and age), and were given their natal chart to possibly make an interpretation of how they would be, would you? Do you believe that you would be right? If they were an Gemini, for example, known to be talkative, would you suddenly become talkative yourself? Take on extroverted characteristics to accommodate them, yourself to them? If there were Square aspects from Mercury to other placements, how would you interpret that? A slow mind? Would you feel superior to them thinking that those aspects may make them have trouble communicating, learning, etc? Just as an example, again.

It really doesn’t matter if you do or don’t because whether you know what’s happening between you or not, it’s going to happen. In general I think it is an EXCELLENT idea to look into the chart and interpret it as you outlined in your question, so that you can be proactive and productive about the destinies that will unfold in your relationship. Although in practical reality, you would probably only want to do this with relationships you consider very important unless you have a lot of extra money to pay an astrologer, a lot of free time to spend developing trustworthy interpretations on your own, or a lot of naivety to put your trust in some free website.

Planets aspect Ascendant?

Since the Ascendant is about someone’s appearance, how would people view me based on the planets that aspect my Asc?

Sun trine Ascendant – orb +0.18

Mars trine Ascendant – orb +2.35

Pluto trine Ascendant – orb +2:53

Midheaven square Ascendant – orb -2.56

Mercury square Ascendant – orb -7.50

The Ascendant is not merely about the physical appearance. It is the tangible self. Part of that is physical appearance, but it is not everything.

Midheaven is quite often square to the ascendant. I would ignore that.

I would ignore pluto, because I am a traditionalist. =)

The Sun, Mars and Mercury will operate differently depending on how they are related to the planet who owns your rising sign. But to get a very rough starting point idea, the Sun will contribute some authority/confidence/ and interest in self-realization. Sun and Mars together will allow you to be commanding, self-determining, and a leader not a follower. Mercury squaring your ascendant will make you have some childlike faults and can cause you to have a somewhat impractical intellectual process. (Mercury’s orb is quite large, so it won’t be too strong an influence).

These are just starting points, but they should make some initial sense to you and ring some bells. To go further with this you need to read the whole chart as an integrated unit. You can’t really do more than make educated guesses without that.

Duration of Mars Transits

Do Mars transits to natal planets or points in chart usually last for 5 days within 1 degree? And is this when Mars energy is really felt? how this differs when Mars is in “retrograde”? is Mars usually slower in motion when in “retrograde”? why and how for this?

Mars moves at different speeds all the time, almost all the planets do. The Sun and Moon are the most constant. Therefore the duration of a Mars transit will always be different. If for example Mars pulls to Station and then retrograde over your chart point, the duration of that transit will be far greater than if he is just whipping by it in the middle of one retrograde to the next at full speed.

Mars travels at various speeds while in Retrograde. But a planet’s fastest speed is when moving forward. This is simply do to the ruberbanding effect of relative orbits. You could look it up in an astronomy textbook or website.

Transits are felt to build up and intensify as they “apply” which means as they come together / move closer in degree.

Planets are STRONGER when they move just a little under their top speed in either direction (forward or retrograde). This is an elaborate topic, you could start by looking up “Cesta Bala” (Strength of Motion) under the heading of “Shad Bala” (The Six Strengths of a Planet), but you will need a stiff black coffee, because it is extremely technical and arithmetical stuff.

Practically speaking Stations and slow motion are very important in transits – for exactly the reason you hint at in your question – it causes the planet to influence the particular points in chart for longer durations of time.

- Vic DiCara

www.vicdicara.com

Random Q&A

Perfume and astrology?

Is it possible to select a perfume based on a person’s Natal Chart? What placement would you use? The Venus? Maybe Vesta?

In Vedic astrology each planet is associated with specific aromas. Therefore you can apply aromatherapy according to a chart. In a simplified format, just like you have birthstones, you have birth-fragrances. In other words, according to a person’s vedic rising sign a different set of aromas will be more helpful and positive for that person.

The Sun – hot, spicy aromas (gingers, cinnamons, sage, etc.)
The Moon – cooling, calm aromas (jasmine, lotus, gardenia, sandalwood, etc.)
Mars – stimulating fragrances (musk, camphor, others similar to sun)
Mercury – clear, clarifying aromas (mint, basil, wintergreen, etc.)
Jupiter – healthy, rich aromas (frankincense for example – others similar to the moon)
Venus – sweet fragrance (rose, saffron, nag champa, plumeria, etc.)
Saturn – healing smells (cedar, for example, also Myrrh)

PS -

Moon and Sun rule Cancer and Leo, respectively
Mercury owns the signs on either side, Gemini and Virgo
Venus owns the signs outside those, Taurus and Libra
Mars owns the signs outside those, Aries and Scorpio
Jupiter owns the signs bordering those, Pisces and Sagittarius
Saturn owns the signs bordering Jupiters, Aquarius and Capricorn.

If the Southern Hemisphere has a totally different view of the stars , did they develop their own Horoscopes?

The vast majority of human beings live on land , and therefore in the Northern hemisphere. But the real crux of the matter is that astrology is concerned with the movement of the planets. The planets only move through a narrow band of the sky, which is more or less in the center of it. That band we have named “The Zodiac.” This middle portion of the sky is visible from both the northern and southern hemispheres. Therefore there is no need for a different system of astrology in the south.

I do find it interesting that astrological calculations get REALLY weird when you get very close to the north or south poles. It reflects the fact that it is very extreme and difficult for human beings to live in those areas.

Planets in astrology–what about earth?

every planet, and even objects that are not planets such as the sun, moon, and asteroids are represented astrologically. but, how is the earth represented and does it fit into astrology?

The 12 houses refer to the Earth’s sky. The Ascendant is the Eastern horizon of the Earth projected into the zodiac.

The entire focal point of the chart is the Earth. Astrology is a SUBJECTIVE view of the heavens. Therefore from our subjective standpoint here on Earth, the Earth itself is NOT in the sky.

What aspects in synastry causes that feeling of instant dislike between people?

That feeling when two people meet and just have an immediate creepy feeling between them?

On top of having some strong squares in the synastry overlay of the two charts (especially ascendant), 9 times out of 10 I would expect to see a very significant CONJUNCTION along the lines of the creep having a creepy planet tightly conjoining your Moon, Ascendant, Sun or Venus. A “creepy planet” could be Saturn, Rahu, Ketu (the two nodes)… or the person’s (or your) 8th or 3rd lord.

Why is a Yod called “The Finger of God”?

Due to the way it looks: like a “finger” pointing at something. And also due to the nature of the quincunx aspects involved. These aspects create lessons that need to be learned. When two of these aspects focus on a single point, it is like god telling us we really need to learn something specific.

In astrology what element do you think would have a hard time being a team earth, water, air, or fire?

Fire and Air are less suited to teamwork. Fire is too self-motivated and air is too impatient.

Water and earth are good for teams. Water is flexible and cooperates, and earth is patient and supportive.

Nonetheless, every team needs a LEADER, if you get a team of all water and earth it will lack some direction and inventiveness. A team should primarily be made of earth and water, but needs a few fire and air people to give it leadership and innovative ideas.

What would you think about a person that has NO WATER in their chart?

i have no water, just tons of capricorn and sagittarius. & a lot of gemini lol. only my moon is in scorpio, what can you tell me about a person with no water in their chart?

You would need to define what you mean by “No Water”. I suppose you mean they have no planets in water signs? Bear in mind the following truths….

First of all the Moon is more important than any other planet, by A LOT. A water-Moon is very important.

Next, all 12 signs are in EVERY chart. Therefore the water is somewhere in everyone’s chart. The real question is not “if” water is in your chart, but “how” it is active in your chart. You will find it active by looking at the water planets – Moon, Jupiter and Venus. Also…

The houses are earth, water, fire and air in the same way as the signs are. The 4th, 8th and 12th houses are water houses. Planets in these houses create watery affects and the rulers of these houses bring watery effects wherever they go.

What in the natal chart would indicate long term issues with their parents?

You see people complaining about their parents all the time…. Where do you see that in the chart?

First, identify the factors pertaining to parents.

MOM: The 4th House. The Moon, and (if the person was born during the day), Venus also represents the Mother (subordinately to the Moon and 4th House, though).

DAD: 10th House (Dad as a rule-maker), 9th House (Dad/Parents as a role-models), Sun, and (if born at night) Saturn (subordinately to Sun, etc.)

So, look at these factors. Are they in wicked conditions? Prosperous conditions? Etc. What you REALLY want to look for is how these factors pertain to the FIRST HOUSE LORD. Because that Lord Represents the Person. So by seeing how the points pertaining to Mom and Dad relate to the point(s) representing the person you can get a great understanding of the parent-child relationship.

Also, if you use harmonic divisional chart (as Vedic sidereal astrology does) the 7th division pertains to children and the 12th pertains to parents.

I’ll give you an illustration to clarify, from my own chart – pertaining to my relationship with my Mom.

My Moon is very happy… being exalted in Taurus and very influential in the 5th house of my chart. Throughout all of my divisionals my Moon is in quite positive signs as well. Therefore you can understand that the Moon is contributing a REALLY WONDERFUL relationship between me and my mother.

On top of that, if you use Vedic planetary cycles you can time WHEN the relationships will have ups and downs. I was born with about 8 years of my Moon cycle remaining. So between my birth and 8 years my relationship with my mother was really outstandingly close and deep.

My 1st Lord resides IN my 4th House. This is another factor indicating great closeness between me (1st Lord) and my mother (4th House). But my first lord is debilitated in that house, and this is the first sign that there will be some difficult issues to face in the relationship, despite the extreme closeness created by the Moon.

Indeed, not only does the fourth house hold a debilitated planet, but it’s ruler is also debilitated – though in the prominent 7th House. That ruler is Mars. The Mars cycle comes after the Moon cycle and lasts for 7 years. During this time I remained very close to my mother, because Mars rules my 4th House, which holds my 1st Lord, and my Mars is extremely close to my Sun (another indicator of the self). Also an indication that my parents would not divorce, btw (4th lord closely conjunct the Sun in the 7th House indicates that mother and father are close in marriage).

The cycle after Mars belongs to Rahu – the North Node. It was at this time that the very good karma my chart shows in my relationship to my mom (the Moon, the 1st lord in the 4th and the 4th lord aspecting the 1st) would take a back seat to the more difficult karma shown (1st lord debilitated in 4th, 4th lord debilitated in 7th and combust). Indeed at this time I joined a group of people commonly considered a cult, the Hare Krishna, and really had very little contact with my lovely mother for a very long time. This seriously damaged the relationship.

I hope this has helped you and other readers understand how to read a chart to understand how a person will relate to his or her parents. And also I hope it may have given some hints as to how apparently contradictory indications in a chart will take their turns at different chronological points in that person’s life

What is significant about a chart where Mutual Reception is present?

It depends entirely on the houses involved. Mutual reception is where the rulers of two houses swap their houses. For example if Mars is in Cancer while the Moon is in Scorpio this is a case of Mutual reception, because Mars owns Scorpio and the Moon owns Cancer. This is a particularly fascinating case because the mutual reception causes mutual debilitation, but that’s another topic!

In any case, it depends upon which house Cancer and Scorpio constitute. If Cancer Rises there will be a reception linking the 1st and 5th houses. If Gemini rises the same reception would be between the 2nd and 6th, etc.

When mutual reception occurs, the affairs of both the houses become intermixed. It is good when the reception occurs either between two “good” houses or two “bad” houses (6,8 and 12, and sometimes 3). But when the reception is between a good and a bad house we consider it to cause some challenges.

Would it be much easier to have planets in the 12th house if they were easy aspected …..?

than if they have many difficult aspects, or it doesn’t matter?

Every house has positive and negative results to offer. If the planet in the 12th House is in a sign that it operates well in, you will get more positive results. If it get’s positive aspects that planet will get help from other areas of your life in manifesting those positive results.

It helps to do Vedic analysis on the sign, because you can split it into 10 sub-signs by the exact degree, and thereby get a very good idea of how positive or negative the planet in that sign is feeling.

Do the signs planets are in make a difference when looking at aspects (in a natal chart) ?

like would venus conjunct saturn in scorpio be different from venus conjunct saturn in gemini

Yes, very much so of course!

The sign a planet is in determines how much of it’s positive or negative side is active. Venus conjunct Saturn in scorpio – they are both in the sign of an enemy planet (Mars) they will have more negativity than if they are in Gemini with belongs to mercury who is a friend to the both of them and thus brings out their positivity.

Be aware that this is best done with the real signs (sideREAL zodiac) and much better if you account for the 10 divisions of signs within each sign. For more info on that, please see my blog.

- Vic DiCara

www.vicdicara.com