Astrology for beginners starts with your sun, moon and rising signs. Then learn the four building blocks of a birth chart in this order: signs, planets, houses and aspects.
Where should a beginner start?
With three placements at birth: the Sun's sign, the Moon's sign and the sign rising on the eastern horizon. That last one is the rising sign, also called the ascendant.
They move at different speeds, so each needs different birth details. The Sun stays about a month in a sign. On 28 October 2026 it is in Scorpio, which it entered on 23 October at 09:38 UTC; your local date can differ. The Moon goes round the zodiac in about 27.3 days, so it changes sign about every 2.3 days on average. Between the polar circles, the rising sign changes about every two hours on average, so it needs your exact birth time and place. For the first and last of the three side by side, see rising sign vs sun sign.
What are the four building blocks of a chart?
| Block | What it is | How many |
|---|---|---|
| Signs | 30-degree slices of the Sun's yearly path, counted from the March equinox | 12 |
| Planets | The Sun, the Moon and eight other bodies, each placed in a sign | 10 |
| Houses | Divisions of the chart set by the birth time and place | Usually 12 |
| Aspects | Angles between two planets along the zodiac | 5 major ones |
The signs come first, because every other block is described with them. Each sign has one of four elements (fire, earth, air or water) and one of three modalities (cardinal, fixed or mutable).
Astrology's seven classical planets are the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Since the invention of the telescope, Western astrology has added Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.
The houses depend on the date, time and place of birth, so they need an exact birth time and place as well as the date. Astrologers use several house systems and differ on which to use.
What is an aspect?
An aspect is the angle between two planets along the zodiac. The five major aspects, sometimes called the Ptolemaic aspects, are the conjunction (0°), sextile (60°), square (90°), trine (120°) and opposition (180°). Astrologers allow a margin around each, called an orb, and traditions differ on its size.
- Sun215
- Plu303
303 − 215 = 88, so the two are 88° apart along the zodiac. A square is 90°, so the pair is 2° short of an exact square.
The Sun at about 5° Scorpio and Pluto at about 3° Aquarius are about 2° from an exact square.
Which part is astronomy, and which is tradition?
The positions are calculations: with the same zodiac and moment, anyone gets the same signs, degrees and angles. The meanings are interpretations from a tradition. Wikipedia's article on planets in astrology sums up the modern reading: the planets "can represent basic drives or urges in the subconscious". A concrete claim about personality or events is testable, and correct positions don't make it true.
What this means for your day
For your day
Do
Look up your sun, moon and rising signs before you open the rest of the chart.
Don't
Don't read a meaning from a book as a measured fact about you.
Questions people ask
Do I need my birth time to start astrology?
Not for your sun sign, unless you were born on a day the Sun changed sign. Your rising sign and houses need your exact birth time and place, and your moon sign often needs the time too.
Why do some astrologers give me a different sign?
Some astrologers use the sidereal zodiac, which keeps the signs lined up with the stars, instead of the tropical zodiac, which starts at the March equinox. This article uses the tropical zodiac.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Astrological sign. Twelve 30-degree sectors counted from the vernal (March) equinox; four elements in three modalities.
- Wikipedia: Planets in astrology. The seven classical planets, the outer planets added since the telescope, and the modern reading of planets as drives.
- Wikipedia: House (astrology). Houses are calculated from the date, time and location of birth; astrologers differ on house systems.
- Wikipedia: Astrological aspect. The five Ptolemaic aspects and the differing orbs.
- Wikipedia: Ascendant. The rising sign is the sign on the eastern horizon at birth.
- Wikipedia: Moon. The Moon's mean tropical orbital period of about 27.32 days.
- Wikipedia: Sidereal and tropical astrology. Tropical signs start at the March equinox; sidereal signs follow the stars.