The Ascendant
God’s creative processes are constantly at work and life on all levels is at all times evolving, moving forwards and upwards in vast spirals onto ever higher ones. Nothing in the whole of Creation ever stands still, not even for the briefest moment. The Sun in the sky above us reflects this down to us on the Earth; it too never stops moving in its orbit. The same is true for all parts of God’s Creation where everything is wheels within wheels, and cycles within cycles. Bearing this in mind, the concepts behind astrology are basically very simple and can easily be understood by anyone. Astrology allows us glimpses into how everything is moving and why things and conditions on the Earth plane too must always change.
The cusp that marks the end of the twelfth house and the beginning of the first is called the Ascendant. Neither planet nor house, this part nonetheless is a vital one of every birthchart. Every two hours a new sign rises over the horizon and the sign that appears at the moment we draw our first breath is known as the rising sign or the Ascendant. The study of this sign reveals the colouring of our outer personality and gives valuable insights into the temperament, disposition, physical appearance and personality of us as an individual. The ascendant is one of the main reasons why several people, who could all have been born on the same day but at different times and places, show marked variations in their character and behaviour patterns. Knowing the time of our birth, as exactly as possible, is important. Without this it is impossible to tell in which houses the planets are operating and which aspect of our lives the transiting planets are influencing at any given time.
It could be said that in some way the Ascendant is the most important part of the birth chart, because it represents our outer personality and the mask we show to the world. One might think of it as a window through which we view the outside world and the way this world sees us. It is the filter through which all learning experiences of our present lifetime have to pass, to enable the inner self to assimilate and digest them. Through the daily experiences of the earthly self the psyche restlessly searches for enlightenment that can only be found in a better understanding of its own nature through the people and situations that are coming its way.
The Ascendant is the part of our being where the earthly self meets life head-on and sometimes collides with it. When this happens, it is helpful to bear in mind that this part of our being is but a mask and as such should at all times be worn lightly. The earthly self that identifies too much with its mask, i.e. its outer personality, runs the risk of forgetting who they truly are and what, one fine day are sure to be again. This true spirit and higher self, however, cannot be found by any earthlings who are as yet unaware of the existence of such a part. As ever, awareness is the key for unlocking this particular door to another aspect of human consciousness.
We are in this life to integrate the higher evolved aspects of all the signs that are accentuated in our birthchart, especially our Sun sign. However, the Ascendant is almost of equal importance, because if we insist on wearing the mask it represents too heavily – or worse still –act out too many of its negative aspects, the outer self can be in danger of suffocating the inner spirit and soul, and that makes any kind of spiritual progress almost impossible.
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The above is a chapter from ‘The Astro Files – Technical Aspects’.
If it has whetted your appetite to read more, please follow the link below:
‘The Astro Files – Technical Aspects’
