The planets symbolically represent the universal dimensions of human experience, thus shared by all human beings, such as, for example, the love, sexuality, aggression and intelligence dimensions.
The planets we call personal are: SUN, MOON, MERCURY, VENUS and MARS and concern the personality of the person in question.
The planets we call social are: JUPITER and SATURN and concern the introduction and relationship between the individual and society.
The planets we call transpersonal are: URANUS, NEPTUNE and PLUTO. These planets move very slowly and thus characterise the individual's entire generation.
These planets must be analysed in the birth chart according to the individual's personal planets and read as powerful forces of change and transformation.
THE SUN
The position of the Sun in the birth chart defines our sign. If our Sun is, for example, 10 degrees in the sign of Cancer, our sign is Cancer. The sun that represents full self-awareness is rarely consciously experienced before the age of thirty, the age when we wee the first signs of true personal exploration and that coincides with the first return of Saturn upon itself. Knowing one's Sun means knowing who we are and is the task of a lifetime, a goal to be reached, a destiny to be fulfilled that can no longer be avoided or life will seem empty and insignificant. The sign where our Sun falls indicates the path we have to take to become what we intimately feel we are.
The Sun represents the male figure (father, husband, partner, employer) and the relationship we have with them. In a woman, the sun represents the masculine side of her personality which is initially experienced through the father figure and then through the husband or partner. This is why the position of the Sun for a women is more of an image of the ideal partner and tells us how the woman will relate with males.
THE MOON
The position of the Moon in the birth chart tells us which things we need emotionally, that make us feel good about ourselves, that give us that unique emotion we feel when we are in our protected and safe home. The moon symbolically represents the home as an extension of the womb and maternal embrace that welcomed and held us as youths. Thus, by extension, it represents the mother, infancy, the family, our home, our roots, our homeland. If the Sun represents our conscious ego, the Moon represents our unconscious emotions. The sign that holds the moon tells us how we instinctively react to situations, the energy we spend to spontaneously adapt to the flow of life.
The Moon also represents the female figure (mother, wife, partner) and our relationships with them. In a man, the moon represents the feminine side of his personality which is initially experienced through the mother figure and then through the wife or partner. This is why the position of the Moon for a man is more of an image of the ideal partner and tells us how the man will relate with women.
MERCURY
The position of Mercury in the birth chart indicates how we perceive reality and thus tells us how we think, how we learn, how we communicate but especially tells us the channel we use to come into contact with the outer world and on what wavelength we have to tune in to to better understand others. The sign that holds Mercury thus indicates the quality of our intelligence: in water signs, it is an emotional intelligence. In air signs it is abstract. In fire signs it is intuitive and in earth signs it is logical and practical.
VENUS
The position of Venus in the birth chart indicates how we express love and our affections and the way we want to be loved. When Venus is in a water sign, we need deep emotional involvement. In air signs, we want complicity and dialogue. In earth signs we feel more responsible and seek security while in fire signs we look for passionate and dynamic relationships. Venus also represents the type of experience that feeds our need for intimacy with others and that helps us to feel loved and appreciated. Venus shows us how hedonistic our attitude is, our desire for the good life, the pursuit of a harmonious and comfortable atmosphere, the sense of beauty and artistic sensitivity.
In a female chart, the position of Venus tells us how to express our femininity and erotic strength. It represents the need to be desirable and courted. In a male chart, instead, Venus indicates that type of woman that attracts us, that fuels our desires. The type of woman that satisfies our criteria of beauty from the aesthetic standpoint.
MARS
The position of Mars in the birth chart indicates how we each seek to assert ourselves, the type of experiences that stimulate our aggression and impulsiveness and our reaction to them. When it is in water signs, the person asserts himself using his innate sensitivity and precious perception. In air signs the individual is diplomatic exploiting his innate ability of persuasion. In fire signs, the individual asserts himself with force, initiative and courage while in earth signs, constancy, tenacity and determination are the weapons of assertion. In a male chart, the position of Mars tells us how to express our virility and erotic strength. It represents the need to be powerful and attractive to women. In a female chart, instead, Mars indicates that type of man that attracts us, that fuels our desires. The type of man that satisfies our criteria of beauty from the aesthetic standpoint.
JUPITER
The position of Jupiter in the birth chart indicates the type of experiences that generate optimism, faith and profound self-confidence. Jupiter's optimism leads to extroversion, sociability, goodness that tends to simplify difficulties, driving us to find the best and most peaceful solution to all problems. Jupiter also drives us to overcome the daily trifles and to forget insignificant details that help us to gain a more ample and, especially more spiritual and morally significant perspective. This is why life seems more beautiful and more significant with a favourable Jupiter at our side. When Jupiter is in water signs generating trust and optimism, the person is emotionally involved, living in harmony with his inner needs. In earth signs, real results, security acquired through fatigue and hard work, dominate. In air signs, it is contact and exchanges with others, the possibility to freely express ideas and in fire signs it is the challenge, the risk, proving to ourselves that we are able to overcome any obstacle.
SATURN
The position of Saturn in the birth chart tells us the type of experiences that drive us to our limits, our fears, our insecurities and frustrations. With Saturn we learn to know ourselves by facing the hard truth of failure, of obstacles, of rejection, of delays that relentlessly generate a sense of inadequacy and inferiority in us. Nothing is given to us on a silver platter. Everything we gain is the result of rigour, discipline, fatigue, pain and perseverance. If Jupiter gives, Saturn takes away. If Jupiter represents grace, Saturn represents fatigue, opposite and complementary principles. Fatigue without grace does not allow us to enjoy the benefits of our efforts. Grace without fatigue does not help us to mature and grow. When Saturn is in water signs it generates a sense of deprivation, frustration and inadequacy in the emotional sphere. In earth signs, it touches the sphere of material security. In air signs it touches the social sphere and in fire signs it is personal identity that is threatened and frustrated.
URANUS
Uranus is a transpersonal planet representing the force of change and must be analysed in the chart according to the aspects that form with our personal planets. Uranus drives us to assert our individuality, to free us from restrictions and influences, to live our diversity and express our opinions even if they conflict with traditional ways of thinking. Uranus represents the force of newness that invades and breaks the previous order, that overturns old schemes. Uranus is the symbol of radical and, in some cases, painful change, especially when we do not accept the proposed indications and we are not able to abandon stable and obsolete attitudes in the difficult path of our personal evolution. Personal planets in aspect with Uranus tell us the dimensions of experience where this type of energy is found. When the aspect is harmonious, it shows us that the energy flows naturally and the individual harmoniously expresses the quality of the planet. When not in harmony, it indicates that the energy is blocked and the individual unevenly expresses the quality of the planet.
NEPTUNE
Neptune is a transpersonal planet representing the force of change and must be analysed in the chart according to the aspects that form with our personal planets. Neptune is the breath of transcendence that lives in each of our hearts. It is the will to break down barriers, to go beyond what is finite, determined and finished. Neptune drives us to break away from reality, to exalt our instincts, to yield to what we don't see, to leave ourselves to our destinies and merge and disappear in different and larger realities. Neptune, contrary to Uranus which radically transforms, subtlety changes, dissolving. What we thought was real suddenly becomes an illusion. The line that separates reality from dreams becomes thin and this is how Neptune opens the doors to higher realities. If Neptune is dominant and expresses itself with unbalanced aspects in the chart, the person is not really in touch with reality, tends to live in illusions, follow impossible dreams. Neptune is both genius and folly. Personal planets in aspect with Neptune tell us the dimensions of experience where this type of energy is found. When the aspect is harmonious, it shows us that the energy flows naturally and the individual harmoniously expresses the quality of the planet. When not in harmony, it indicates that the energy is blocked and the individual unevenly expresses the quality of the planet.
PLUTO
Pluto is the last transpersonal planet. It represents a powerful force of transformation and must be analysed in the birth chart according to the aspects that form with our personal planets. Pluto symbolically represents death and death scares us, makes us feel impotent, puts us before the bare and cruel reality that we have no power over events and that our attempt to keep reality under control is in vain. Plutonic death can be symbolic, like the end of a love story, a lost job we feared, worsened health, an illness, or real, the a death of a loved one. We react by freeing the most instinctive and primordial part of us, the most isolated, hidden and unknown part of ourselves, exploding feelings such as hate, passion, vengeance and we are forced to recognise them in ourselves. Our various identities, whether woman or man, wife or husband, mother or father or other, smashes into a million pieces and we discover ourselves increasingly more like furious and vindictive furies. If we learn to accept that death is an integral part of life and that thanks to death we are able to give significance to life, then we can exploit the infinite potential of this planet. Otherwise we will be its victims, forced to live in fear of what we cannot control and full of the unrelenting desire of an exhausting power. Personal planets in aspect with Pluto tell us the dimensions of experience where this type of energy is found. When the aspect is harmonious, it shows us that the energy flows naturally and the individual harmoniously expresses the quality of the planet. When not in harmony, it indicates that the energy is blocked and the individual unevenly expresses the quality of the planet.
