Do you know the basics of astrology? Astrology is one of those ancient “sciences” that many people are still fascinated with, and yet they don’t know much more about it than what page of the local newspaper their horoscope will appear on. So what are the basics of astrology?

In this article we are going to take a look at some of the things you should know about astrology. First, let’s see what it is and where it is believed to come from. Next we are going to take a look at what makes up the birth chart. Finally, we will look at astrology and the zodiac.

Basics of astrology: in the beginning…

Astrology is said to date back to the Babylonians in the 2nd millennium BC, making it one of the oldest “sciences” by far. The word “astrology” has the same Latin root (astrologia) as “astronomy”, although the two are now considered completely different in terms of their scientific validity. However, in the early days it would have been seen as very much the other way around, with astrology having a strong link to religion.

What makes up an astrological chart?

A birth chart is a way of tracking the planets and includes the Sun and Moon, but does not include the Earth as that is the point from which we see the other planets.

The chart is divided into twelve ‘houses’ and each house represents an aspect of life. The houses are (in Latin and with its translation): Vita (Life), Lucrum (Wealth), Fratres (Brothers), Genitor (Father), Nati (Children), Valetudo (Health), Uxor (Spouse), Mors (Death ), Iter (Travel), Regnum (Kingdom), Benefacta (Friendship), and Carcer (Prison).

Your eagle eye may have noticed that ten planets and twelve houses leave two houses empty, but fear not, the two empty houses are considered areas of your life that have been mastered, in a different lifetime.

The first thing that is studied in an astrological chart is the sun sign, which is determined by the position in which the Sun is located. The positions of the planets are studied based on the influence they have on the sun sign. The sign of the Moon is the last to be studied based on how it relates to the other planets in the astrological chart.

The most common birth chart (in the early days) was the natal chart. The natal chart was used to show how the personality of the person was going to be. A birth chart can be drawn for someone later in life, but it may not seem like the person; this is said to be due to the fact that other events will alter a person’s personality over time.

Where does the link between astrology and the horoscope come into all this?

To begin with, the twelve signs of the zodiac have been related to the twelve astrological houses: Aries (Vita), Taurus (Lucrum), Gemini (Fratres), Cancer (Genitor), Leo (Nati), Virgo (Valetudo), Libra (Uxor) , Scorpio (Mors), Sagittarius (Iter), Capricorn (Regnum), Aquarius (Benefacta) and Pisces (Carcer).

This mixture of astrology and horoscope (horoscope astrology) is believed to have begun in the Mediterranean in the late 2nd or early 1st century BC. The horoscope is a visual illustration of the heavens and is used to interpret the meaning of the alignment of the planets at that time.

What sets it apart from other forms of astrology is the fact that it is more complex and includes other factors such as ‘ascendant’, which is the degree of the eastern horizon as it rises against the background of the elliptical. However, that is taking this beyond the definition of ‘astrology basics’.

In a nutshell, a horoscope is more of an updated version of an astrological birth chart and allows for the current positions of the heavenly bodies, while the astrological birth chart is routed in the positions at the time of birth.

There we have it, the basics of astrology. Obviously we could have delved much deeper into the whole topic and started covering interpretations etc, but you need to know where you’re coming from to have a good understanding of where you’re going.

We saw that astrology is prior to the horoscope; we discover that astrology is mainly based on the birth of someone (or even something) and is used to show how it will develop in the future; however, a natal chart made on an older person may not match the person due to other influences on the person’s personality. Then, finally, we saw that a horoscope is essentially a way of adapting the natal chart, by incorporating other factors, to give an updated version of your birth chart.

That’s an overview of the slightly complicated basics of astrology.