Western Astrology

Western Astrology, practiced for thousands of years in Arabia and Europe, is based upon a system, which uses the path of the sun through the heavens, as seen from planet Earth. It looks at the constellations, which used to lie along this path, now called the Zodiac. Western astrology is geocentric, that is, it considers the Earth as the centre around which the Sun revolves.

According to western astrology, the horoscope is made on the basis of the time of the birth of a person. The sun sign represents the sign of the Zodiac that the Sun passed through at the time of the birth of a person. The Sun rules the essential personality, ego and willpower of a person. It represents the core of the potential and distinctiveness of an individual.

The Origin

Modern astrology has as its roots the ancient celestial omen reading of Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamians lived in the area of modern-day Iraq betwen the Rivers of the Tigris and the Euphrates. They included the Sumerians, the Akkadians, the Babylonians and the Assyrians. The Babylonians (Chaldean Astrology) began to interpret the celestial cycles rather than random events, which developed into astrology proper.

But it wasn't until the Ancient Greeks that the ecliptic (Sun's path) was measured against the Earth and an exact solar calendar could be drawn up. Planets could now be fixed relative to the solstice and equinox points rather than simply relative to the four compass directions and the zenith and nadir points relative to the observer.

Sun Signs or Zodiac Signs

Zodiac signs, also called sun signs are determined by the date of birth of a person. Zodiac is made of 12 different sun signs, which are as follows:

Aries	March 21- April 20
Taurus	April 21 - May 21
Gemini	May 22 - June 21
Cancer	June 22 - July 22
Leo	July 23 - August 21
Virgo	August 22 - September 23
Libra	September 24 - October 23
Scorpio	October 24 - November 22
Sagittarius	November 23 - December 24
Capricorn	December 23 - January 20
Aquarius	January 21 - February 19
Pisces	February 19 - March 20

Planets

According to the Western Astrology, there are nine main planets that influence the life of an individual. They are as follows:

Sun - Self-expression, life force.

Moon - Emotions, intuition, cycles, home, parents.

Mercury - Thoughts, speech, communication, business matters, short journeys.

Venus - Love life, creativity, beauty, social life.

Mars - Action, energy, accidents, willpower, sexual expression.

Jupiter - Luck, expansion, opportunity, excess.

Saturn - Duties, responsibilities, burdens, lessons, ambitions.

Uranus - Sudden changes, stress, insights.

Neptune - Dreams, illusions, deceptions, arts.

Pluto - Elimination, death, birth, regeneration.

North Node - Past life, ingrained habits.

South Node - Your soul's purpose.