• Aspects that occur in the birth chart are natal aspects. Their influence is personal to us and reveal how well (or not) the planets work and play together in the horoscope. Taken as a whole, natal aspects describes the individual’s personality and potential, otherwise known as the natal promise.
• Aspects from transiting planets to each other in the heavens are transiting aspects. These aspects influence the energetic vibration of the day, and we experience them on a collective level.
• Aspects between the planets in the heavens and one’s natal horoscope are called transiting-to-natal aspects. These aspects represent energies that are specific to our birth chart, and we experience them on a personal level. These aspects indicate the timing of shifts, experiences and events in our lives.
• Aspects between progressed charts are called progressed-to-natal aspects. These aspects are also personal to us and shed light on our evolving identity and soul development. They're also used in predictive astrology to validate the likelihood of future events.
Major and Minor Aspects
There are major aspects and minor aspects. Although some astrologers do take minor aspects (e.g., the quincunx, semi-sextile, semi-square, quintile and sesquiquadrate) into consideration, most astrologers focus solely on the five major ones (i.e., conjunction, opposition, square, trine and sextile). However, in recent years, the quincunx has shown itself to be noteworthy, especially in connection with medical astrology, so I am including it below along with the major aspects.
A conjunction occurs between planets that are in the same sign and at the exact same degree.
An opposition occurs between planets that are 6 signs apart. The exact angle for an opposition is 180°. The following signs naturally oppose each other in the zodiac (but the math must be there as well to form the aspect!)
Aries opposes Libra
Taurus opposes Scorpio
Gemini opposes Sagittarius
Cancer opposes Capricorn
Leo opposes Aquarius
Virgo opposes Pisces
A square occurs between planets that are three signs apart. The exact angle for a square is 90°. The following signs naturally square each other in the zodiac (but the math must be there as well to form the aspect!)
Aries squares Cancer and Capricorn
Taurus squares Leo and Aquarius
Gemini squares Virgo and Pisces
Cancer squares Aries and Libra
Leo squares Taurus and Scorpio
Virgo squares Gemini and Sagittarius
Libra squares Cancer and Capricorn
Scorpio squares Leo and Aquarius
Sagittarius squares Virgo and Pisces
Capricorn squares Aries and Libra
Aquarius squares Taurus and Scorpio
Pisces squares Gemini and Sagittarius
A trine occusr between planets that are four signs apart. The exact angle for a trine is 120°.
The following signs trine each other in the zodiac (but the math must be there to form the aspect!)
Aries trines Leo and Sagittarius
Taurus trines Virgo and Capricorn
Gemini trines Libra and Aquarius
Cancer trines Pisces and Scorpio
Leo trines Aries and Sagittarius
Virgo trines Taurus and Capricorn
Libra trines Gemini and Aquarius
Scorpio trines Cancer and Pisces
Sagittarius trines Aries and Leo
Capricorn trines Taurus and Virgo
Aquarius trines Gemini and Libra
Pisces trines Cancer and Scorpio
A sextile occur between planets that are two signs apart. The exact angle for a sextile is 60°.
The following signs form a sextile to each other in the zodiac (but the math must be there to create the aspect!)
Aries sextiles Gemini and Aquarius
Taurus sextiles Cancer and Pisces
Gemini sextiles Aries and Leo
Cancer sextiles Taurus and Virgo
Leo sextiles Gemini and Libra
Virgo sextiles Cancer and Scorpio
Libra sextiles Leo and Sagittarius
Scorpio sextiles Virgo and Capricorn
Sagittarius sextiles Libra and Aquarius
Capricorn sextiles Scorpio and Pisces
Aquarius sextiles Aries and Sagittarius
Pisces sextiles Taurus and Capricorn
A quincunx occurs between planets that are five signs apart. The exact angle for a quincunx is 150°. The following signs form a quincunx to each other in the zodiac.
Aries quincunxes Virgo and Scorpio
Taurus quincunxes Libra and Sagittarius
Gemini quincunxes Scorpio and Capricorn
Cancer quincunxes Sagittarius and Aquarius
Leo quincunxes Capricorn and Pisces
Virgo quincunxes Aries and Aquarius
Libra quincunxes Taurus and Pisces
Scorpio quincunxes Aries and Gemini
Sagittarius quincunxes Taurus and Cancer
Capricorn quincunxes Gemini and Leo
Aquarius quincunxes Cancer and Virgo
Pisces quincunxes Libra and Leo
Orbs (Wiggle Room)
Each aspect has its own planetary angle that is defined by an exact amount of degrees that needs to form to create it, but of them have a little wiggle room known as the orb of influence, or orb for short.
The size of an orb varies according to the aspect, as well as whether it is approaching (in the process of moving forward to create the aspect) or separating (the aspect is over and the planets are moving always from it). Orbs for minor aspects are usually much tighter (3° or less).
There's actually quite a bit of disagreement among astrologers regarding the size of orbs, but generally speaking, they range from as little as 3° to as much as 10° for certain aspects if the Sun or Moon is involved.
Timing of Aspects
An applying aspect is one that's forming. Its energy is building.
Planet A is moving directly towards Planet B.
A partile aspect is one that's exact. The energy is at its peak.
Planet A & Planet B are at the exact degree.
A separating aspect is one that's disconnecting. Its energy is fading.
Planet A is moving away from Planet B.
A retrograding aspect is an aspect that's formed by a retrograding planet while moving backwards.
Planet A has moved beyond Planet B. Planet A turns retrograde (backwards), and as it retraces it steps, it moves towards Planet B while in reverse motion.
THE PRACTICAL
Aspects are categorized as "hard" or "soft". The "hard" aspects are the conjunction, the opposition, square and quincunx. The "soft" aspects are the trine and the sextile.
Below are the basic expressions of the aspects for the four major aspects plus the quincunx. These are general expressions, and with regard to the "many/abundance" comments, a lack (or abundance) of one aspect can be offset by the presence of other aspects.
Conjunction
Transiting Influence: Beginnings, Endings
Natal Meaning: Emphasis. Can be positive or negative depending upon the planets.
Many conjunctions can indicate some type of tunnel vision in life. A lack of conjunctions can indicate a lack focus.
Opposition
Natal Meaning: Balance or imbalance.
Transiting Influence: Need for awareness
Many oppositions indicate a relationship-oriented person who seeks validation from others. A lack of oppositions can indicate a a lack of awareness and challenges relating to other people.
Square
Natal Influence: Friction that ca be used as a stumbling block or as a building block.
Transiting Influence: Provocative, challenging, action-producing.
Many squares can indicate challenging life circumstances and/or an individual with great potential for achievement. No squares is often a lack of motivation and suggests difficulty standing up to authority.
Trine
Transiting Influence: Flowing, comfortable.
Natal Influence: Effortless.
A lack of trines indicates one has to work harder to accomplish goals. Too many trines and motivation can be lacking; talent is wasted.
Sextile
Natal and Transiting Influence: Opportunity (you need to recognize and develop it)
Many sextiles offer potential opportunities which amount to nothing if not recognized and developed. A lack of sextiles suggests less outlets for expressing one's talents.
Quincunx
Transiting Influence: Need for adjustment; an indicator of potential health issues.
Natal Meaning: Uncomfortable; an indicator of potential health issues.
Many quincunxes can speak to potential health issues and/or difficulty moving forward (interruptions require adjustments). Lack of quincunxes suggests difficult compromising.
One More Thing
There's considerable disagreement in the astrological community about out-of-sign aspects. In other words, the math is right but the signs are wrong. Some astrologers discount them; some consider them weak; some give them full credit.
