1. Planetary combinations Astrology for Beginners: Part 3 All text © copyright Charles Jameson 2015 astrologyschool.net

2. Planetary combinations In a horoscope, the planets don’t ‘work’ in isolation. They interact with each other. For instance, from what you’ve learnt so far today, if you combined the energies of Sun and Mars, what might the result be, in terms of a person? How about these combinations: –Neptune and Moon? –Venus and Uranus? –Mars and Pluto? In a horoscope, we look at what zodiac sign a particular planet is in at the time of birth … and what other planet/s are ‘connecting’ or combining with it.

3. Planetary combinations The connections between planets in the 360 degree circle of a horoscope are called ‘aspects.’ There are only a few aspects you need to know about: –Conjunction (two planets close together) HARD-ISH –Sextile (two planets about 60 degrees apart) SOFT –Square (two planets about 90 degrees apart) HARD –Trine (two planets about 120 degrees apart) SOFT –Opposition (two planets about 180 degrees apart) HARD The above aspects are called the ‘classic’, ‘major’ or ‘Ptolemaic’ aspects. There are other aspects – but these are major ones.

4. Planetary combinations SQUARE OPPOSITION TRINE CONJUNCTION

5. Planetary combinations The closer the the two planets are to being exactly 0, 60, 90, 120 or 180 degrees apart, the stronger the effect of the aspect/combination. This is called the aspects’ ‘orb.’ Soft aspects (trine, sextile) are less active, can be ‘dormant’ in a horoscope. They are about opportunity. They are switched off unless you activate them by conscious activity. Hard aspects (conjunction, square, opposition) are always on! Just ask someone with a Mars-Pluto square! Hard aspects are active, whether you like it or not. The planetary energies involved are awake.

6. Planetary combinations OPPOSITIONS TRINE CONJUNCTION