Baby! What’s Your Sign?
Perhaps the worst retro pickup line ever created, but it is also the source of a gross misconception within the general public and the amateur astrological community. That misconception is that your Sun Sign completely defines you, and if you know your Sun Sign, you somehow have a magical key to unlocking all the deepest, darkest secrets of yourself and the circumstances that you find yourself in.
The most common place that this misconception rears its head is in love and sexual relationships. For example, a Scorpio woman might want to know if she is a good match for an Aries man. The short answer is “NO!” (based exclusively on the Sun Sign). The sexual chemistry between these two lovers might rock both their worlds, but, on a deeper level, it could be a hotbed of issues. If you take only the Sun Signs into account, you might avoid someone potentially wonderful because your signs “aren’t compatible.”
However, other factors must be considered to answer our Scorpio woman’s question. You have to consider the placement of the planets in each person’s chart. You have to consider the angles at play between their planets (is her Venus Square his Moon or are they conjoined?). Also, you have to consider the houses that the planets find themselves in.
Key Elements
The truth is that your Sun Sign can only tell you so much about who you are. That said, what it can tell you is extremely valuable. The Sun in your chart expresses key elements of your identity. It talks about your leadership style, how strong your willpower is, and how confident you are as an individual. The Sun Sign also reveals your overall ambitions.
It may be the strongest representation of you who are, but it is not the only representation. I like to think of the Sun as the lens, which I read the rest of the chart through. It casts its light on every aspect, coloring the reading.
The Houses
Let’s look at one of those other factors that I mentioned earlier to show you what I mean. Take for example the Houses. These are the twelve pie-like sections that you always see dividing up the wheel of an astrological chart. Depending on where in the twelve houses an individual has his Sun will tell us a lot about that person.
Someone who has his Sun in the first house will have a strong sense of self and powerful leadership abilities. He will also need a lot of attention.
Someone with his Sun in the 2nd house will have a strong desire to become financially independent. At the very least, he will have a desire to earn money.
Consider a person with his sun in his third house. He will be focused on communicating ideas.
An individual with his Sun in the fourth house is deeply concerned with stability, setting down roots, and finding a home base.
A sun in the fifth house is energetic, creative, and loves a good time. This person is highly social and may spend money more freely than he should, but, on the flip side, he will be a loyal lover.
When the sun appears in the sixth house, it indicates someone highly organized and a hard worker. However, he will need a lot of appreciation if he is going to continue putting in effort.
The Sun in the Seventh House is all about relationships. This person will express himself through his social circle.
Self-Improvement
People born with the sun in the eighth house are all about self-improvement, which usually occurs by applying their considerable willpower.
The ninth house is about higher education, philosophy, religion, law, and travel. Someone born with his sun in the ninth house will be extremely philosophical, exploring theories, and different religions, and seeking the truth behind the realities we deal with on a day-to-day basis.
When the sun is in the tenth house, it indicates a strong sense of self and a drive towards success. This person will be extremely ambitious and deeply concerned with power (social, political, economic … all forms of power).
With a sun in the eleventh house, the individual will be extremely popular and highly active. This is a social person who has a strong desire to benefit others through humanitarian efforts. This person could be a strong leader with the ability to inspire others.
A twelfth-house sun just wants to be left alone in peace. They are the type of people who want to work behind the scenes instead of being in the spotlight themselves. Often they will have a deep and abiding interest in healing and helping professions.
Can you see what I mean? I just described twelve different placements of the sun without even addressing the sign that the sun was in, and look how much information we were able to gather!
Maybe the pickup line should have been: “Hey, Baby! What’s your sign, and what house is it in?”