Glossary - revised and updated

[KEishin]

I've reorganized the glossary for easier viewing. All entries are sorted into separate posts, by their first letter.

In the case of items such as "Celestial Longitude" or "Vernal Equinox", those are sorted by the noun first, so would be found under L and E respectively. (Listed as Longitude, Celestial and Equinox, Vernal)

Click on the links below to be taken to the appropriate post.
If you think something should be added or edited, please let me know!

**You may copy this post as long as you quote me as the source and make no changes to the contents. Copyright theft is bad karma.

A – Accidental Dignity, Affliction, Astrological Age . . .
B – Balsamic, Benefic, Beseiged, Biquintile. . .
C – Cadent, Campanus, Capricorn, Caput Draconis . . . .
D – Debility, Decanate, Declination . . . .
E – Earth signs, East Point, Easy Aspects . . . .
F – Face, Fall, Feminine, Finger of God . . . .
G – Gemini, Geniture, Gibbous, Grand Cross. . . .
H – Hades, Hard Aspects, Harmonics, Heliacal. . . .
I/J – Imum Coeli, Infortune, Jupiter . . . .
K – Kite, Koch, Kronos, Kuiper Belt . . . .
L – Latitude, Leo, Libra, Lilith . . . .
M – Mars, Mercury, Meridian, Midpoint . . . .
N – Nadir, Natal, Neptune, Nonile . . . .
O/P – Obliquity, Occidental, Paranatellonta, Perigee . . . .
Q/R – Quadrant, Quindecile, Reception, Retrograde . . . .
S – Sabian, Sagittarius, Saros, Syzygy. . . .
T – Terminal, Topocentric, Transit, Triseptile . . . .
U/V – Universal, Under the Sun, Via Combusta . . . .
W/Y/Z – Water Signs, Yod, Zenith . . . .

[KEishin]

Accidental Dignity: A planet placed in the house that is ruled by the sign of its dignity. For example, Mars in the 1st house is accidentally dignified, even if it’s not in the sign of Aries, because Aries is the natural ruler of the first house. See also Essential Dignity

Admetos: the sixth of the symbolic planets (also called the Transneptunian planets or TNPs) used in Uranian Astrology. Admetos is extremely intense and is associated with matters that get blocked and come to a standstill.

Affliction: an old term from traditional astrology to describe a really sucky aspect to a Malefic; this usually means a square, opposition or sometimes a conjunction. As in, “that damn Saturn opposition is afflicting my Venus.”

Age, Astrological (Great Month): a phase of about 2200 years, (give or take) It’s the amount of time necessary for the Vernal Equinox point (the imaginary spot in the sky which the Sun crosses to indicate the shift to spring) to go through one entire constellation. Often this is referred to by the name of the sign on the Equinox point - i.e. the Aquarian Age has Aquarius on the VE point. See also Great Year

Air Signs: The signs ruled by the element of Air - Gemini, Libra and Aquarius

Alcabitius (al-kuh-‘bai-tus): A house system that uses the arc (the “pie slice” shape) of the Ascendant to calculate the houses. It is time-based and was one of the major systems used in the Middle Ages.

Anareta (ae-nah-‘ret-uh): from the Greek word for ‘destroyer’. It’s an old term usually used to describe a malefic planet on an anaretic (or critical) degree.

Anaretic Degree: The area between 29 and 30º in every sign that is thought to indicate highly emphasized elements of the chart, usually something ‘fated’ like a fundamental problem with authority. The reason is because at 29° a planet has pretty much left behind the energy of its current sign but has not yet taken on the energy of its new sign. (This is sometimes called the Critical Degree – though that refers to other degrees than just 29.)

Angles: The four lines in the horoscope that separate the Cardinal signs from the Mutable signs. They are the same as the cardinal directions of east, south, west and north. Except in astrology we call them the Ascendant, Imum Coeli, Descendant and Midheaven/Medium Coeli respectively.

Angular Houses: Any house whose starting point is one of the Angles. Example: the 1st, 4th, 7th and 10th are angular houses. See also Cardinal Houses

Anti-Culminating: a term to describe the lowest elevation of a planet (i.e. on the Imum Coeli) because the rotation of the earth puts it below the local horizon.

Antiscia (ent-ai-'skai-uh): usually only used in Uranian astrology, it’s slowly being adopted elsewhere. It is the opposite position of any major point (i.e. the AC or Vernal Equinox). The word comes from the Greek word for ‘shadow’.

Aphelion (a-'fel-y&n): the point in a planet’s orbit farthest from the Sun. See also Perihelion

Apheta (a-‘fei-ta): The planet or point considered the strongest in the birth chart. (It is synonymous with hyleg) It was mostly used in traditional astrology, balanced with the Anareta to determine the length of life.

Apogee: the part of planet’s orbit that puts it farthest from the Earth. (Not to be confused with aphelion.) See also Perigee

Apollon: the fifth of the symbolic planets used in Uranian Astrology. Apollon has the quality of expansiveness. It symbolizes commerce, science, peace and success.

Apparent Motion: the motion of a planet as seen from the surface of the earth. Because of the way the Earth turns, it makes the planets and stars appear to move. This is why the Sun seems to “rise” at sunrise and planets appear to move retrograde, or backwards, even though both of those things don’t really happen.

Apparent Magnitude: This term is used to describe the apparent brightness of a star as it appears on earth. It’s listed as a number, like this: “Sirius +1.4”; the lower the number, the brighter the star.

Applying Aspect: an aspect approaching exact partile (a 0° orb). Applying aspects are generally considered stronger than separating ones because they refer to a situation that has not yet happened.

Arabic Parts: A mathematical construction originating in (guess where) the Middle East, that takes three planet positions in the horoscope and uses them to calculate a new point. For example, the Part of Fortune is an Arabic Part.

Arc: No not the one from Indiana Jones, but the math concept that tracks the elliptical path of a planet’s travel. When measuring, it looks like the curvy part of a slice of pie.

Aries: the first sign on the zodiac, associated with the Ram, Fire and ruled by Mars. This is a cardinal sign.

Ascendant: the easternmost point of the horoscope, which represents the horizon of the earth. Also called the rising sign – it is the sign that is on the horizon at the moment of birth (or chart cast time for non-natal charts).

Ascending Planet: a planet found between the AC and the MC (i.e. in the 12-10th houses), which is therefore moving up in the sky towards the MC.

Ascension (Long and Short): briefly, it describes how some signs rise faster over the horizon than others, seen most especially at the more extreme latitudes. Signs that require longer to rise are called the signs of long ascension, those that rise more quickly the signs of short ascension. In the northern hemisphere, Cancer through Sagittarius are signs of long ascension, Capricorn through Gemini the signs of short ascension. This condition is reversed in the Southern Hemisphere.

Aspect: Any way that two (or more) planets interact with each other via the angle of their distance. These include the conjunction, the sextile, the square, the semi-sextile and many others. (Note: parallels and contraparallels are based on declination so they aren’t usually referred to in most aspect listings . . . but they really are aspects!)

Aspect Pattern: A series of aspects that form a bigger, geometric design.

Asteroids: those little chucks of rocks that are too small to be planets but too large to be ignored. They are almost always found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, hence the name.

Astral/Astro-Twins: People born at different times or places that have nearly identical horoscopes.

Astrolabe: an old tool used to measure the positions of the planets before we had nifty things like computers or calculators to do the math. It looks like a globe surrounded by many concentric circles. (It’s also the name of Rob Hand’s astrology company).

Astrologer: Someone who finds reading the birth charts of perfect strangers to be fun (probably out of some sort of twisted sense of curiosity).

Astrology: the science and art of being an astrologer

Aquarius: the eleventh sign of the zodiac, ruled by Uranus and represented by the symbol of the water bearer and (oddly enough) the element of Air. This is a fixed sign.

Ayanamsa (ei-yaen-‘aem-suh): a Hindu word that describes the slippage between the Tropical and Sidereal zodiacs. Because one system adjusts to the change in constellation positions and the other doesn’t, they inevitably have a growing gap. This gap is the ayanamsa, of which there are several varieties. The most common is the Fagan-Bradley.

Azimuth: One of the measurements used to describe a planet’s or star’s position in the sky. It is the distance in angular degrees in a clockwise direction from the North Point in the Northern Hemisphere, and the South Point in the Southern Hemisphere.

[KEishin]

Balsamic (Moon): the moon phase less than 45º behind the Sun, associated with the ending of cycles, karma and inner balance. The balsamic phase is when the moon is waning and is very close to being a New Moon.

Benefic: a planet that is considered to be “nice”, or a helpful influence in your chart. The two traditional benefics are Jupiter and Venus.

Besieged: this refers to a planet unlucky enough to be placed between the two malefics that is said to be restricted or unable to express its positive side. (Oh no, it’s Saturn and Mars and they’re ganging up on us! Run!)

Biquintile: a minor, easy aspect at 144º, based on the 5th harmonic. Like the quintile, it indicates natural talents you may possess.

Birth time: the time you first drew breath, not what time the doctor thought you’d be born. It’s one of the most important pieces of data in astrology.

Biseptile: a minor, hard aspect at 103º (or so), based on the 7th Harmonic. Like the septile, the biseptile brings reserve and wisdom (or mysticism) to the planets and houses involved, and may involve teaching or learning.

Black Moon: The Black Moon is another name for the lunar apogee. See also Lilith.

Black Sun: a mathematical point that corresponds to the position of the Sun when it is at aphelion.

Bowl: one of seven horoscope patterns, which places all the planets in one hemisphere of the chart (north, south, east or west). This indicates focus in those houses and the empty half what the native needs to develop.

Bucket: another horoscope pattern, which is a bowl pattern with one planet nearly opposite the middle of the bowl, making it look like the handle of a bucket. (Sometimes also called a Fan) The planet at the “handle” of the bucket gets a lot of stress, as all the other planets are focused on that one lone singleton.

Bundle: yet another horoscope pattern where all the planets occupy about 120º of the chart, or 4 houses. This indicates extreme single-mindedness or concentration, which grants a lot of focus, but is an inherently unbalanced arrangement as the rest of the chart is very underdeveloped.

[KEishin]

Cadent Houses: the 3rd, 6th, 9th and 12th houses, which are ruled by mutable signs and considered to be sort of scattered in their energy. They can be liked to transition houses, as they are on the edge of the cusp between the quadrant they’re located in and the next one.

Campanus: an ancient astrologer who devised a house system using the eastern horizon as a starting point. (Geek speak: The prime vertical is cut at thirty degree intervals starting at the east point of the horizon, and these points are projected onto the ecliptic using house circles.)

Cancer: the fourth sign of the zodiac, represented by a crab and the element of Water and ruled by the Moon. This is a cardinal sign. (It has absolutely nothing to do with the disease, so please stop asking me to change the name.)

Capricorn: the tenth sign of the zodiac, represented by a goat, the element of Earth and ruled by Saturn. This is a cardinal sign.

Caput Draconis: an old term for the Moon’s North Node See also North Node.[/post]

Cardinal Signs: The signs located at the cardinal points (or angles) of the horoscope. They are considered active and dynamic in expression. (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn)

Cauda Draconis: an old term for the Moon’s South Node. [post=2932949]See also South Node.

Cazimi/Casimi: a planet that is within 30º of the Sun; being so close it is said to “burn up,” and be overwhelmed by the Sun’s energy.

Celestial Equator: a mathematical projection of the plane of the Earth’s equator infinitely placed into space. This is different from the ecliptic.

Celestial Sphere: another mathematical construction, this time of the sky as it appears to an observer, imagined as a sphere around the Earth on which the stars are projected, kind of like a planetarium, in effect.

Ceres: one of the four major asteroids, named for the Roman Goddess, and said to represent where and how we are best nurtured. It has a period of 5 years.

Chart: A horoscope

Chaldean, Order of: no, not a secret Astrology club, but an ancient Middle-Eastern system that ordered the planets by their apparent motion from the surface of the Earth. The order was: Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon. This can be seen in the methods of deriving planetary hours.

Chiron: a major asteroid (or possibly a dwarf planet), named for the Greek centaur. (Go read the myth.) It is said to represent the weakest or most wounded point of our character, but also where we are able to help others with the same problems. An example of Chiron in action is the successful relationship counselor who’s had three divorces. It has a period of 51 years.

Combust: a planet conjunct the Sun with an orb of less than 3º. It is said that the Sun therefore outshines this planet in the chart, like putting a dim bulb next to a really bright one. (This is true – not too many planets shine, unless you polish them really well.)

Composite Chart: a type of chart for comparing two horoscopes (synastry), which takes the average of all the times and locations in the two charts and plots everything for the middle point. So if you have two suns, one in Boston, Massachusetts at 19 Aquarius 47 and the other in San Francisco, California at 17 Libra 19, the composite Sun would be at 18 Sagittarius 8, somewhere around Chicago, Illinois.

Conjunction: two (or more) planets in aspect, with an orb of less than 8º.

Constellation: a bunch of stars that look like a connect-the-dot picture to observers. (What you see is based on your own psychology so if you see something weird . . .)

Contraparallel: the relationship/aspect between two planets at the same degree of declination, but on opposite sides of the Celestial Equator. Example: a planet at 23N would be contraparallel to a planet at 23S. If two planets are in contraparallel and another aspect the same time, consider it an extra emphasis on that aspect. See also Declination

Co-Ruler: a holdover from the days before the discovery of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Back then with 7 planets and 12 signs, most planets had to do double-duty. So while Neptune is said to rule Pisces these days, many astrologers still consider Jupiter the co-ruler of Pisces. The only ones still doing double-duty these days are Venus (Taurus and Libra) and Mercury (Gemini and Virgo).

Critical Degree: traditionally they are 0, 13, and 26 degrees of the Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn); 8-9 and 21-22 degrees of Fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius); and 4 and 17 degrees of Mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces). So what, you say? Any planets found at a critical degree is emphasized and often more important in the chart. See also Anaretic Degree.

Culmination: a term describing a planet at the Midheaven or highest point of the chart.

Cupido: the first of the symbolic planets used in Uranian astrology. Cupido stands for small groups like the family and the community. It also relates to art matters.

Cusp: an imaginary line that separates one sign or one house from another.

[KEishin]

Dark Moon Lilith: a hypothetical second Moon circling Earth, which is very rarely seen. Although unverified, astronomers who have viewed it say it is one-fourth the size of our familiar Moon and three times as far away. The normal Moon represents personal feelings, the Dark Moon represents a primal, impersonal, creative instinct that seeks identification apart from the physical and emotional realms.

Daylight Saving Time: An adaptation of Local Time to permit one extra hour of sunshine in the summer or winter. Similar to War Time

Debilitated, Debility: a planet in its sign of detriment See also Detriment.

Decan/Decanate: 1/10th of a zodiac sign, or 30° divided by three. It is used to further refine planetary positions by indicating a co-ruler of the sign’s decanate. The co-rulers rotate by element. Example: the first decanate (0°-10°) of Aries is Aries, the second (11°-20°) Leo and the third (21°-29°) Sagittarius. So a planet in the second decanate of Aries would act like Aries with a hint of Leo energy. Another example –the third decanate of Scorpio is Cancer. This is one primary reason why not all Sun signs are exactly the same.

Declination: the third dimension of astrology, which describes the position of a planet in relation to the celestial equator. (The “up and down” direction) Maximum and minimum declination is set by the path of the Sun’s apparent motion. The North boundary is the Tropic of Cancer and the South is the Tropic of Capricorn, which are thus named for the signs the Sun is in when it hits the two extremes of declination.

Decreasing In Light: an older term to describe the waning Moon

Derivative Houses: a way of looking at the houses that relates them to another based off an arbitrary point. Example: the 5th house represents your children. With derivative houses, the 5th house from the 5th house (the 9th) would represent your grandchildren. (Don’t think about it too much – it’ll just give you a headache.)

Descendant: the point opposite the Ascendant and the cusp of the 7th house that indicates where the sun sets.

Detriment: a planet in the opposite sign of its dignity, said to negatively affect its expression. So Venus is detrimented in Aries (remember it rules Libra, on the opposite side of the zodiac) and Mars is detrimented in Taurus.

Dignity: each planet rules at least one sign and when located there is said to be in dignity. It is where the planet feels “at home” and best able to express its energy.

Direct Motion: the normal (clockwise) orbit of a planet as seen from the earth.

Directions: See Progressions.

Dispositor: the planet that rules the sign another planet occupies. For example, Mercury disposes of Venus in Gemini because Mercury rules Gemini. The dispositor affects the energy of the disposed planet by adding a little of its own energy to the mix.

Dissociate Aspect: an aspect within orb, but out of the same sign. Example: a conjunction between the Sun in Libra and the Moon in Scorpio, or a trine between Venus in Gemini and Mars in Capricorn are dissociating aspects.

Diurnal Arc: the time it takes for a planet to move from its rising point on the horizon to its setting point.

Dragon's Head: See Caput Draconis

Dragon's Tail: See Cauda Draconis

Duplicate Signs: the replication of a set of signs on house cusps that happens when another sign is intercepted within a house. They therefore have more expression of their energies in a chart and are a pathway to express the intercepted signs. See also Interception.

Dwad/Dwadasama (duh’wad-a-sama.): A division of 1/12 of a sign (or about 2 1/2°) stolen from Hindu astrology. Each dwad is said to rule a different sign, with all 12 signs being a small part of each other. In some ways it’s similar to a decanate, with each dwad’s energy affecting a just a bit of the sign.

Dwarf Planet: small Kuiper belt objects that meet all the requirements to be planets, except for size. Pluto was recently downgraded to a dwarf planet from full planet status in 2006.

[KEishin]

Earth: Not usually used in western geocentric astrology, since it’s the center of the chart. It is said to be dignified in Taurus, but that really only applies for heliocentric astrology, where the Sun is the center.

Earth Signs: the signs ruled by the element of Earth, Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn

East Point: the sign and degree of the point rising over the Earth’s horizon at any given moment. (Also known as the Equatorial Ascendant)

Easy Aspect: See Harmonious Aspects.

Eclipse: a period when one planet blocks another from the view of the Earth. Most common are solar (where the Moon blocks the Sun from the Earth) or lunar (the Earth blocks the Sun from the Moon). They always occur in pairs over one lunar month, approximately two weeks apart and are always signaled by a conjunction to one of the Moon’s Nodes. See also Saros Series.

Ecliptic: the Earth’s orbit around the Sun, imagined as an invisible plane that the planets are resting on

Electional Astrology: a system of astrology that predicts the best time to do a specific action (i.e. get married, start a new job, buy a house).

Elements: the four basic building blocks of the universe as determined by the Greeks. They of course are Fire, Earth, Air and Water.

Ephemeris (λh-‘fem-ae-ris): a book of planetary positions calculated for those of us who find the math to figure each planet by hand tedious. It also contains other astronomical data, such as eclipses and declinations. They are calculated for either midnight GMT or noon GMT.

Equal House: a system of house division which takes the AC degree and sets the next house exactly 30° away. So if you have an AC of 28° Gemini, the second house would start with 28° Cancer. This makes every house exactly the same size.

Equator: the plane perpendicular to the axis of the Earth’s orbit.

Equinox: from the Latin word ‘aequinoctium,’ or equal night; it occurs when the Sun is directly over Earth's equator. Thus the days and night have equal length and it sets the boundaries between spring (when the Sun is at 0°Aries) and fall (when the Sun is at 0°Libra).

Esoteric Astrology: a branch of astrology that covers such topics as reincarnation, karma and other forms of spiritual symbolism. In brief, this is soul-level astrology. It uses natal charts to find out things about the spiritual development and challenges of a person. It's very different from all the other types (the signs have different rulerships!) and may seem a bit off the deep end at first.

Essential Dignity: a system of classifying planets in signs to show their strength. Attributed to Ptolemy, this is the source of terms such as debilitated, detriment, face, term exalted and fall.

Event Chart: a chart cast for a particular event as opposed to a person.

Exalted: the word for a planet in the sign it expresses itself best in, other than its dignity. For example the Moon is exalted in Taurus and the Sun is exalted in Aries.

Exoteric Astrology: the branch of astrology that studies observable events, such natal or mundane astrology.

[KEishin]

Face: a traditional term to describe dividing each sign into section of 6° each.

Fall: the opposite of the sign of exaltation; the sign where a planet expresses most of its negative qualities. Example, Jupiter is in fall in Capricorn and Mars is in fall in Cancer.

Feminine Signs: the earth and water signs; Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces.

Finger of God: See also Yod. (And oddly enough that rhymes with ‘God.’ Go figure.)

Fire Signs: the signs ruled by the element of fire, namely Aries, Leo and Sagittarius

Fixed Signs: signs associated with a succedent house: Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius.

Fixed Stars: stars that appear not to move in the sky because of their distance from the Earth. (But of course they’re not really fixed in place. We just don’t have the attention span to see them noticeably move.)

Flat Chart: See Natural Chart.

Focal Point: any part of a chart that is emphasized by planetary placement, aspects or signs.

Fortuna: See Part of Fortune.

Free of the Sun’s Beams: A planet beyond 17° in longitude from the Sun, it doesn’t have any of the nasty effects of being combust or cazimi.

[KEishin]

Gemini: the third sign of the zodiac, symbolized by a pair of twins and the element of Air, and ruled by Mercury. This is a mutable sign.

Geniture: See Natal Astrology.

Geocentric: astrology based upon the Earth being the observation point (i.e. the center).

Gibbous Moon: when the Moon is waning and in a position 135° to 180° ahead of the Sun. It is said to be a time for motivation.

Grand Cross/Square: a configuration where at least four planets, in the same quadruplicity, form squares to each other; with two sets of oppositions. In the chart, this looks like a giant box with an ‘X’ in the middle. See also Aspect Patterns.

Grand Trine: a configuration where at last three planets in the same triplicity form trines to one another. This looks like a giant triangle in the chart. See also Aspect Patterns.

Great Year: an astrological “year” (12 months = 12 signs) based on the time it takes the equinox point to rotate through all the signs of the zodiac. Remember that the equinox moves through each sign in about 2200 years, so a Great Year is about 25,000 years give or take. (Not too many of us celebrate our Great Year birthday.)

Greater Benefic: another name for Jupiter, from traditional astrology, which viewed him as a bringer of luck, in a ‘jovial’ sort of way.

Greater Malefic: another name for Saturn, from traditional astrology, which viewed him as bringing misfortune in a really nasty way.

GMT/Greenwich Mean Time: the time at exactly 0° (the Prime Meridian) in Greenwich, England. Why start there? Because England was the world power at the time the maps were drafted. So there.

[KEishin]

Hades: the second of the symbolic planets used in Uranian astrology. Interpretations for Hades include: poverty, dirt, crime, sickness, garbage, the far distant past and secrets.

Hard Aspects: squares, oppositions, quincunxes (sometimes conjunctions – depends on the planets) that produce tension, which leads to change. If you didn’t have any hard aspects in your chart you’d be stagnant and that’s not ideal.

Harmonics: the system of creating aspects, derived from the division of a 360° circle into segments. For example, the 4th harmonic would be 360/4 or 90°, which is a square aspect.

Harmonious Aspects: trines, sextiles (sometimes conjunctions) that produce easy energy exchange.

Heliacal: based on distance from the Sun when rising or setting. Heliacal rising means a star or planet rises just before the Sun due to the rotation of the Earth. Heliacal setting means a star or planet sets just after the Sun due to the rotation of the Earth. The heliacal rising and setting of the Moon occurs when it is within 17 degrees of the Sun. The heliacal rising and setting of a star or planet occurs when it is within 30 degrees of the Sun.

Heliocentric: astrology based on a point of observation from the surface of the Sun (i.e. Sun-centered).

Horary Astrology: a system of astrology that answer questions based on the time a chart was drawn up. You can use it to find everything from your car keys to if you’re pregnant. It primarily answers yes/no questions.

Horizon: the boundary between Earth and sky, represented by the AC/DC axis

Horoscope Patterns: Arrangements of planets that make interesting shapes to the eye. They add an additional layer of interpretation to your chart.

House: one of the twelve mathematically derived segments of the chart. Their sizes and positions are determined by one of the many sets of house systems. (No one style is the only correct one.)

House Cusp: the boundary between one house and another

Houses, Table Of: a book that allows an astrologer to calculate the location of each house cusp by hand using trigonometry. (Back in the dark ages this is what we used instead of those new-fangled computers, you young whippersnappers.)

Humanistic Astrology: person-centered as opposed to event-centered astrology. Examples are natal, or synastry astrology

Hyleg: See See also Apheta.

[KEishin]

Imum Coeli (‘i-mum ‘kou-lai): the cusp of the fourth house and the southernmost point of the chart. The term is from a Latin phrase meaning ‘Bottom of the Heavens.’ It’s not exactly the same thing as the Nadir (semantically), but many people still call it the Nadir anyway. (Yes, I’m a grammar whore.)

Inconjunct: See Quincunx.

Increasing Light: an older term for the waxing Moon

Infortune: See Malefic.

Ingress: the term for when a planet moves out of one sign and into another. The Sun makes ingress into the Cardinal Signs at the equinoxes and the solstices.

Inharmonious Aspects: See also Hard Aspects.

Inner Planets: the planets in their orbits outward from the Sun to Mars

Intercepted Sign: a sign that doesn’t have a house cusp to rule but hides within a house because of the ascension of the signs in the sky. The sign isn’t missing, but entirely between two house cusps instead of being placed on a cusp, unable to be expressed freely. Interceptions are more common the higher you move in latitude from the equator and always happen in pairs. In order to balance the chart there must be a pair of duplicated signs as well. See also Duplicated Signs.

Jupiter: The fifth planet from the Sun, it represents growth, expansion, higher education and religion. It has a period of approximately 12 years. It is dignified in Sagittarius, in detriment in Gemini, exalted in Cancer and in fall in Capricorn. Ancient rulerships have it also dignified in Pisces and in detriment in Virgo.

Juno: one of the five main asteroids, named for the Roman goddess and said to represent marriage needs and potentials. It has a period of 5 years.

Jyotish: a form of Hindu astrology, based on the sidereal zodiac

[KEishin]

Kite: A configuration similar to the Grand Trine, except that at the midpoint of two of the planets there is a fourth which sextiles those two others.

Koch: (kaw-ch) another house system, this one based on trisecting the diurnal arc.

Kronos: the fourth symbolic planet of Uranian astrology. Interpretations for Kronos include things that are tall, above average, placed high up, like mountains, planes, and governments.

Kuiper Belt: An area beyond the orbit of Neptune (about 3 billion miles away) where all sorts of unknown objects reside. Current astronomy suggests that Pluto and Eris are Kuiper Belt objects and not planets as originally supposed.

[KEishin]

Latitude, Celestial (Angular): the distance north or south of the celestial equator

Latitude, Geographic (Angular): the distance north or south on the Earth measured from the equator

Leo: the fifth sign of the zodiac, symbolized by a Lion, the element of fire and ruled by the Sun. This is a fixed sign.

Lesser Benefic: another name for Venus, from traditional astrology, which viewed her as bringing luck in smaller doses than her big brother, Jupiter.

Lesser Malefic: this is Mars, the smaller (but no less intense) version of the Greater Malefic, Saturn.

Libra: the seventh sign of the zodiac, symbolized by a set of scales, the element of Air and ruled by Venus. This is a cardinal sign.

Lights: older terms for the Sun and Moon (because they give off light, duh). The Sun was the Greater Light, the Moon the Lesser Light

Lilith: a point believed to be Earth’s second satellite. It’s not been formally discovered, but people claim to have seen its shadow on the earth during its orbit. It represents the mysterious and sinister side of femininity. (There are three objects considered to be Lilith, so it can be confusing.) See also Black Moon, Lilith, Asteroid (next entry), or Dark Moon.

Lilith, asteroid: listed as #1181, it’s the asteroid that orbits between Mars and Jupiter, but is often confused with the Black Moon, given the same name. Our personal Lilith placement shows where we struggle with social judgments that define how the feminine qualities should be expressed in order to "fit in."

Local Mean Time (LMT): LMT was commonly used prior to the adoption of standard time zones. It is the longitude of a place, converted to hours, minutes and seconds.

Locational Astrology: a system of astrology that interprets your chart to find the best place for you to live.

Locomotive: a chart pattern with all the planets in a 240° section of the chart. It’s given the name it is because the first planet rotating clockwise acts like a locomotive engine to pull the rest along.

Longitude, Celestial: the distance in arc degrees from 0° to any point of the ecliptic

Longitude, Geographical: the arc of distance on the Earth’s surface, east or west of the Prime Meridian

Longitude, Zodiacal: celestial longitude translated into zodiac terms. So instead of a planet being at 335 degrees of longitude it would be labeled as being at 5 degrees of Pisces.

Lord: older word for the ruler of a sign

Luminary: See Lights

Lunation: one period of the Moon’s orbit around the Earth. (New Moon to the next New Moon) The interval from one New Moon to the next is 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes and 2.8 seconds and is called the Synodic Month.

[KEishin]

Mars: the fourth planet from the Sun, it represents anger, passion, drive and willpower. It has a period of 687 days (just about 2 years). It is dignified in Aries, in detriment in Libra, exalted in Capricorn and in fall in Cancer. Ancient rulerships have it also dignified in Scorpio and in detriment in Taurus.

Masculine Signs: the signs ruled by either the Fire or Air elements: Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, and Aquarius

Mercury: the first planet from the Sun, it represents intellect and communications styles. It has a period of 88 days. It is dignified in Gemini and Virgo, in detriment in Sagittarius and Pisces, exalted in Aquarius and in fall in Leo.

Medical Astrology: a system of astrology that studies your health as expressed in your chart.

Medium Coeli (midi-um ‘kou-lai): the opposite point from the Imum Coeli, from the Latin for ‘Middle of the Heavens’ and the cusp of the tenth house. It’s also called the Midheaven or MC.

Meridian: a line of geographical longitude

Meridian, House system: system that uses the Aries point (0°) as the basis and places a house cusp every 30°.

Midpoint: the average of the zodiacal position for two planets. If you have Jupiter at 19 degrees Scorpio and Venus at 6 Libra, their midpoint would be 28 Libra.

Moiety: the basis for the orb of influence, and a synonymous term. There are no fixed opinions as to the size of the orbs around each planet, but typically they range from 5° to 10°. The moiety is half this orb and extends an equal distance before the planet and after it. If the moiety of one planet overlaps the moiety of another, by conjunction or Ptolemaic aspect, they are considered to be in aspect.

Moon: the satellite of Earth which represents women, the mother and emotions. It is dignified in Leo, in detriment in Aquarius, exalted in Aries and in fall in Libra.

Mundane Astrology: system of astrology that deals with world events. Often it uses horoscopes for larger entities such as countries, wars or other world events. You can then use that chart like any other natal chart and predict what will happen to them by transit and progression.

Mutable Signs: the signs that occupy the cadent houses: Gemini, Virgo and Pisces

Mutual Reception: two planets placed in the sign of the other’s dignity, i.e. Uranus in Pisces and Neptune in Aquarius. (No it’s not a play in American football.)

[KEishin]

Nadir: the point directly opposite the zenith; the lowest point of the celestial sphere. Not to be confused with the IC. The Nadir is the lowest point directly below the Earth, and is the South Pole of the Horizon System.

Native: Another way of saying ‘the person for whom I’m doing this chart.’

Natal Astrology: the system of astrology that casts a chart for an individual person, based on their birth details.

Natural Chart: a chart with 0°Aries on the AC and the rest of the signs placed likewise around it.

Neptune: The eight planet from the Sun, it represents the collective consciousness, dreams, mystery, creative inspiration and myth. It has a period of approximately 164 years. It is dignified in Pisces, in detriment in Virgo, with no currently accepted exaltation or fall positions.

Nocturnal Arc: the time it takes a planet to move from its setting point to its rising point at the Ascendant.

North Node: the mathematical point where the Moon’s orbit intersects with the ecliptic in the north. See also Caput Draconis

Nonile: a 40° aspect, based on the 9th harmonic (Not quite the opposite of Denial.)

[KEishin]

Obliquity Of The Ecliptic: the angle between the plane of the ecliptic and that of the equator. This value is currently around 23 degrees 26 minutes and varies slowly over the centuries.

Occidental: An older word for ‘western’, which refers to planets that rise and set after the Sun.

Occidental Houses: houses 4 through 9

Opposition: a 180° aspect of the 2nd harmonic. It’s often a difficult one to deal with as acts like two planets have a tug-o-war battle, usually managing to come to a cease-fire, but never friendly.

Orb: the range in which an aspect is considered valid – the commonly accepted range is 7°.

Orbit: the imaginary hula-hoop path that a planet makes as it moves around another planet/star.

Oriental: An older word for ‘eastern’, which refers to planets that rise and set before the Sun. (And if used around an Asian person, most likely to get your butt kicked).

Oriental Houses: houses 10 through 3

Out of Bounds: Refers to a planet that has exceeded the maximum declination of the Sun (about 23º30 or so). An OOB planet is like a maverick who does unexpected things.

Pallas Athena: one of the five asteroids, named for the Greek goddess, representing pattern recognition and intelligence. Sometimes the name is just shortened to Pallas. It has a period of 5 years.

Parallel: the relationship between two planets at the same degree and hemisphere of the celestial sphere. See also Declination

Paran: (short for Paranatellonta) is a term used to describe two planets being on any of the angles (within orb) at the same time due solely to the rotation of the Earth. When a planet is on one of the angles, and another planet is also on one of the angles at the same time, then an aspect is made between the two planets, called a paran. So a planet is on the AC, it would be in paran with a planet or star on the MC (culminating), DC (setting) or IC (anti-culminating).

Partile: another name for an exact aspect, meaning it has less than a 1 degree orb. Saturn at 12 Aries and the Moon at 12 Sagittarius would be in partile by trine.

Part of Fortune: the most common Arabic part used in the West, which symbolizes joy and good fortune potentials. It is derived from the positions of the Sun, Moon and AC.

Peregrine: a “lost” sort of planet that isn’t in a sign of one of its essential dignities, dignity, detriment, exaltation, term, fall, or face. Being thus wandering like a vagabond, it can act as a troublemaker or just a lost soul in the chart.

Perigee: the point of planet’s orbit that brings it closest to the Earth. See also Apogee.

Perihelion (paer-‘hli-on): the point in a planet’s orbit that brings it closest to the Sun. See also Aphelion.

Pisces: the twelfth sign of the zodiac, symbolized by a pair of fishes, the element of Water and ruled by Neptune. This is a mutable sign.

Phase: the various stages of the Moon’s orbit as seen from Earth (or what my parents thought astrology was for me).

Placidus: the most common house system, which is really difficult to calculate as it’s based on the nocturnal and diurnal semi-arcs. The system is named for the Spanish monk who thought it up and obviously had the time to do trigonometry without a calculator all day.

Planet: a large chunk of rock/gas in orbit around the Sun, that appears to move from the vantage point of the Earth.

Pluto: A dwarf planet (larger than an asteroid, smaller than a regular planet) it represents inevitable change, deep healing, psychology, death, and all the other dark corners of life. It has a period of approximately 245 years. It is dignified in Scorpio, in detriment in Taurus, with no currently accepted exaltation or fall positions.

Porphyry (pour-‘foi-ri): another house system best described as based off of the angle of the ecliptic. (Geek speak: The trisected arc between the MC and the AC, with the ecliptic locations becoming the eleventh and twelfth houses, etc and so forth.)

Poseidon: the eighth symbolic planet of Uranian astrology. In interpretation, Poseidon represents the mind, spirit and ideas.

Precession (of the Equinoxes): the movement of the Earth’s axis around the ecliptic, in backwards motion through the zodiac signs. The equinoxes drift backwards a little bit each year and are said to precess, or move backward.

Primary Directions: a term for progressing house cusps based on the rotation of the Earth (and really, really mathematically complex). The system is based on the principle that a single degree of movement in Right Ascension over the Meridian (due to the rotation of the Earth on its axis) is equivalent to one year of life. These days it’s a catch-all phrase for any method of advancing house cusps for prediction.

Psychological Astrology: taking the positions of the planets at your birth and developing a picture of your personality. This type is very symbolic and intuitive and uses many Jungian concepts and is espoused by authors such as Liz Greene and Howard Sasportas.

Prime Vertical: the great circle passing through the East Point of the horizon, the Zenith (the point directly overhead), the West Point of the horizon and the Nadir (the point directly below).

Profection: from the Latin, profectio, it is a predictive method of 'turning', 'moving', 'spinning', or 'advancing' the chart to see how the nature of the chart changes from year to year, month to month, etc.

Progressions: an encompassing term referring to advancing the house cusps and planets in the horoscope. It’s a way of recalculating your natal chart to predict events that will likely happen to you in the future. Progressions are more internal and developmental, and use the method "a year for a day" where one day in the sky equals what will happen in one year of your life. So where the planets are in day after you are born are said to reflect what is going on in your life at your first birthday; the second day your second birthday, etc.

[KEishin]

Quadrant: one of the four sections of a horoscope composed of one angular, one succedent and one cadent house.

Quadruplicity: one of the three groups (Cardinal, Fixed or Mutable) that all signs are assigned to.

Quincunx: a 150° aspect of the twelfth harmonic that makes little irritating adjustments in your life.

Quindecile: 24° aspect of the 15th harmonic. The common pronunciation is quin-deh-chee'-leh, though some say 'quin-dehss-aisle'. In charts, it represents obsession (with a capital ‘O’) It speaks to a point of focus, often a place of extreme concern and effort in life, even to the point of turmoil and disturbance.

Quintile: 72° aspect of the 5th harmonic that indicates extreme creativity in the areas indicated by the planets, signs and houses.

Radix/Radical: another term for natal

Reception: See also Mutual Reception

Rectification: any of the various systems to calculate the chart when one of the key birth data values is missing (most commonly birth time). It’s a very time-intensive and complex process, where the astrologer links important events in the native’s life to parts of their potential chart.

Regiomontanus: a similar house system to Placidus but without the awfully complex trigonometry. It is the preferred system when casting horary charts.

Retrograde: the apparent backwards motion of planet, as observed from the Earth, even though it really doesn’t go backwards. See also Apparent Motion

Right Ascension: the measurement, eastward from 0°Aries, along the celestial equator. (As opposed to, of course, the Wrong Ascension)

Rising Planet: any planet on or near the Ascendant

Rising Sign: See Ascendant

Ruling Planet: the planet that disposes of the Ascendant, or rules the sign it’s located in. If you have Virgo rising, Mercury is your chart ruler. See also Dispositor

[KEishin]

Sabian Symbols: an occult division of the zodiac by degree, used for divination.

Sagittarius: the ninth sign of the zodiac, symbolized by an archer, the element of Fire and ruled by Jupiter. This is a mutable sign.

Saros Cycle: the 18-year cycle of eclipses, which is 223 lunations or 6585 days in which the Sun, Moon and Moon's Node return to almost the same relative places. Eclipses in one cycle follow the same sequence in the next cycle. There are 38 Saros Cycles, and each contains between 70 and 74 individual eclipses. Each Saros series begins at the North or South Pole as a small partial eclipse, and each successive eclipse in the series moves a little closer to the equator and is of a slight larger magnitude. Each eclipse in the Saros series gains in magnitude until they become total eclipses. When eclipses in the series reach the equator they are at their strongest. The following eclipses in the series progressively move away from the equator and become weaker until they finally reach the opposite pole from where they started about 1280 years later.

Saturn: The sixth planet form the Sun, it represents, rules, authorities, restrictions and where we feel weakest. It has a period of approximately 28 years. It is dignified in Capricorn, in detriment in Cancer, exalted in Libra and in fall in Aries. Ancient rulerships have it also dignified in Aquarius and in detriment in Leo.

Scorpio: the eighth sign of the zodiac, symbolized by either an Eagle (old) or a Scorpion (new), the element of Water and ruled by Pluto. This is a fixed sign.

Secondary Progressions: a method of progressions that uses a “year for a day” symbolism. Each day after birth is considered to represent a year in the native’s life.

Seesaw: a chart pattern that equally distributes all the planets in two hemispheres, where most oppose each other, like on the ends of a seesaw. See also Chart Patterns

Semi-Sextile: a 30° aspect of the 12th harmonic. It indicates a little bit of friction, but also where you can capitalize on struggle.

Semi-Square: a 45° aspect of the 8th harmonic and it acts much like a weak square.

Separating Aspect: an aspect that has reached partile and the planets involved are now moving apart.

Septile: a little used 51 3/7° aspect, based off the 7th harmonic. It brings reserve and wisdom and may be connected with receiving knowledge or teaching. Planets in septile never share the same element or quality. The effect could feel harmonious or it could be slightly disruptive, depending on the signs and planets.

Sesquiquadrate/Sesquisquare (‘seas-kwi-‘kwa-draite): 135° minor aspects from the 5th harmonic which acts much like a semi-square.

Sextile: a 60° aspect from the 6th harmonic, which is an agreeable connection between two planets. They are either in feminine or masculine signs together.

Sidereal Time: this refers to the actual movement of the stars as distinguished from the standard clock time of the Earth. Sidereal Time is linked to the rotation of the Earth on its axis relative to the fixed stars (unlike Solar Time or normal clock time which is linked to the rotation of the Earth relative to the position of the Sun).

Sidereal Zodiac/Astrology: this system is most commonly used in Eastern astrology. The equinoxes and solstice points move slowly back through the zodiac from year to year, due to precession which occurs at the current rate of about one degree every 71.85 years. So the signs match the actual constellations.

Significator: the fast moving planet in an aspect. So in an aspect between the Moon and Mars, the Moon is faster, but an aspect between Neptune and Mars would have Mars as the significator. It’s also used interchangeably with Planetary Ruler.

Singleton: a planet that is the only inhabitant of the hemisphere, element or quality in which it is found.

Signs: the twelve divisions of the zodiac

Solar Chart: a chart used to guesstimate the Ascendant, by putting the Sun on the rising degree.

Solar Arc: a method of progression that takes the Sun’s daily motion and advances each planet by the same amount.

Solar Eclipse: See Eclipse

Solar Return: a chart for the exact time the Sun returns to its position in your natal chart

Solstice: the two points of the ecliptic where the Sun reaches its highest (0° Cancer) or lowest (0° Capricorn) points, signaling the change of seasons. At the time of the two solstices, the Sun reaches its most northern and southern degrees from the equator. The moment of the Solstice corresponds with the longest and shortest days in summer and winter respectively.

South Node: the mathematical point where the Moon’s orbit intersects with the ecliptic in the south. See also Cauda Draconis

Splash: a chart pattern where the planets are evenly distributed around the zodiac.

Splay: a chart pattern for planets scattered randomly around the zodiac with no discernable pattern.

Square: a 90° aspect from the 4th harmonic. Occasionally (but rarely) called a Quadrate, Quartile or Tetragon

Station, Stationary: the point where a planet appears motionless, as it’s either about to turn retrograde or direct

Stellium: a conjunction of three or more planets, where each planet is conjunct all the others. See also Aspect Patterns

Succedent: the houses that “follow” the angular ones. They corresponded to the fixed signs.

Sun: the center of the solar system and represents the ego of a person. It is dignified in Leo, in detriment in Aquarius, exalted in Aries and in fall in Libra.

Superior Planets: planets whose orbits are larger than Earth's. The term is sometimes restricted to the three outermost planets: Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.

Synastry: a group term for any of the methods used to compare two horoscopes at the same time. In other words, it’s relationship astrology, for both romantic persons and non in your life. You can do a chart to find out if you and your current sweetie are compatible or if you and your boss will get along. See also Composite Chart

Synodic: See Lunation

Synthesis: the art of combining the various factors revealed in a horoscope and building a balanced judgment of the chart as a whole.

Syzygy (siz-i-jee): the point where a planet is opposite the Sun; usually in reference to the Moon during an eclipse. (Plus it’s a killer word in Scrabble.)

[KEishin]

Taurus: the second sign of the zodiac, symbolized by a Bull, the element of Earth and ruled by Venus. This is a fixed sign.

T-Cross: See T-Square

Terminal Houses: those houses ruled naturally by water signs: four, eight and twelve. They pertain to endings and results and symbolize occult interests. See also Cadent Houses

Topocentric: another variation of the Placidus house system, supposedly more accurate.

Traditional Astrology: basically, the way it used to be done, before the "Modern Age". It has very clear, black and white interpretations of each planet and sign. There are very firm rules about what each planet means and how it should be applied. This is what is thought of when people talk about the 'court astrologer' predicting the success of a battle based on a comet or eclipse. It is a very complex system and the progenitor of the "pop" astrology of today. There is really very little intuition used in this form of astrology.

Transit: the comparison of the planets in their current positions to those in your natal chart, used in predictions. So you can have Saturn in Virgo in your natal chart but Saturn in Leo (its current location) affecting your chart too. How it affects it depends on what you might have aspecting Saturn in Leo.

Translation of Light: a term used in horary astrology to describe a planet that applies in aspect, in turn, to two other planets that are separating from a mutual aspect, thereby translating "light" or energy and symbolically reuniting the planets and the matters they represent.

Tredecile, trecile: a minor easy aspect belonging to the 10th harmonic (decile) group; separating distance 108°. Also called a sesquiquintile

Trine: a 120° aspect from the 3rd harmonic

Triplicity: the group of three sign belonging to the same element (i.e. Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces are the water triplicity).

Tri-septile: a seldom-used inharmonious minor aspect, belonging to the septile (seventh harmonic) family; separating distance, 154°17'.

Tropic of Cancer: The Earth rotates on its axis at an inclination of about 23 degrees to the ecliptic (called the obliquity of the ecliptic). When the summer solstice occurs in the Northern Hemisphere (Sun at 0° Cancer) the Sun's declination reaches a maximum of about 23° north and is referred to as the Tropic of Cancer.

Tropic of Capricorn: The Earth rotates on its axis at an inclination of about 23° to the ecliptic (called the obliquity of the ecliptic). When the winter solstice occurs in the Northern Hemisphere (Sun at 0° Capricorn) the Sun's declination reaches a maximum of about 23° south and is referred to as the Tropic of Capricorn.

Tropical Signs/Zodiac: the positions of the signs/constellations as they were in the sky approximately 2000 years when western astrology was being developed and the common system in the West.

T-Square: an aspect pattern involving two planets in opposition, with a third square both of them. Surprisingly enough (like you couldn’t guess from the name) it looks like a ‘T’ in the horoscope.

[KEishin]

Under the Sun’s Beams: a term used in Traditional, Electional and Horary astrology where a planet is between 8.5 degrees and 17 degrees from the Sun. Such a planet is said to be outshone by the Sun.

Universal Time: See Greenwich Mean Time

Uranian Astrology: a school of astrology founded in Germany. It believes in several conceptual planets beyond the orbit of Neptune. As well they developed the system of midpoints, which figures what the exact middle point between two planets would be and uses that to make predictions.

Uranus: The seventh planet from the Sun, it represents, rebellion, sudden change, electronics and originality. It has a period of approximately 84 years. It is dignified in Aquarius, in detriment in Leo, with no currently accepted exaltation or fall positions.

Velocity: the speed of a planet or point along the path of the ecliptic as expressed in degrees per day. A planet in direct motion will have a positive velocity while a retrograde planet will have a negative velocity.

Venus: the second planet from the Sun, it represents love, lust, personal values and the arts. It has a period of 225 days (about 7 1/2 months). It is dignified in Taurus and Libra, in detriment in Scorpio and Aries, exalted in Pisces and in fall in Virgo.

Vernal: Another word for spring – the vernal equinox

Vertex: the intersection of the ecliptic and the prime vertical, found in the western half of the horoscope. It’s often considered a ‘third’ angle and a very sensitive point

Vesta: one of the five asteroids, named for the Roman goddess and indicative of where we give 150% in our lives. It has a period of 5 years.

Via Combusta: literally ‘fiery way’; refers to the section of the zodiac that falls between 15° Libra and 15° Scorpio. Used primarily in horary astrology as an indication of unfortunate or ineffectual situations

Virgo: the sixth sign of the zodiac, which is symbolized by a virginal woman, the element of Earth and ruled by Mercury. This is a mutable sign.

Vocational Astrology: astrological career counseling

Void-Of-Course: the period when a planet is separating from its last major aspect (conjunction, sextile, square, trine, quincunx, or opposition) before it changes signs. Traditionally this is a time of confusion in the area of life ruled by the planet. Like the 29th degree, it refers to a planet changing signs. It can be thought of as a cosmic “gone fishing” sign from that planet. A v/c can last anywhere from minutes to days. Consult your local astrologer for details.

Vulkanus: the seventh symbolic planet used in Uranian astrology. Vulkanus stands for great energy, power and force. (No relation to the place Star Trek’s Mr. Spock is from.)

[KEishin]

Waning: this is the Moon phase where the light decreases. This is a time to turn inward, harvest and work on more introverted tasks.

Water Signs: the signs ruled by the element of Water: Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces

Waxing: the phase of the moon where the light is increasing on the Moon’s surface (moving anti-clockwise across the face). A time for growth, new beginnings and fertility.

Yod: an aspect pattern composed of one planet quincunx two other planets that are also sextile each other. It looks much like an isosceles triangle and represents an area where the native has to make a lot of adjustments. It’s often viewed as coming from events larger than life, hence the ‘Finger of God’ appellation.

Zaminium: See Cazimi

Zenith: the point opposite the nadir in the celestial horizon. (The ‘up’ direction)

Zeus: the third symbolic planet used in Uranian astrology. In interpretation, it represents leadership and creativity.

Zodiac: the common name for the twelve signs that are used in Western astrology, from a Greek word meaning, ‘Circle of Animals.’