posted December 19, 2002 11:05 AM              

Three aspects of man; Sun, Ascendant, Moon

The three most important points having to do with the development of personality in the birthchart are the Moon, Ascendant, and Sun. There has been a great deal written on Sun sign meanings, less on Ascendant, and even less on the Moon’s meaning. To my knowledge there has not been anything written on the three as a process of personality development.

The Moon by sign and house indicates the child’s emotional personality. How they normally react to their environment in a purely emotional way.

The Ascendant illustrates the methods most easily used by the child in dealing with their environment and emotions in order conform to parental or social norms or in order to survive a dangerous environment. This is often referred to as the mask that the child displays to the world in general. If you ask someone who is observing the child’s behavior, they would usually describe this as the child’s personality.

The Sun by sign and House indicates the child’s true nature, will power, or personality.

From the time a child is born his or her personality is determined by their Moon sign until their culturalization process starts. When you watch any small child, you will usually see them acting in a pure emotional manner, without regard to their environment or other factors. You hear comments about how wonderful it is that a child can so innocent, and pure. What is meant by innocent and pure is that the child has not been culturalized enough to know that they can’t react from a purely emotional personality perspective.

That in essence is what the culturalization process is all about. There are two parts to culturalization; conscious and unconscious. The conscious part allows us learn what is expected of us as a member of our family, ethnic group, religion, etc… The unconscious culturalization teaches the child how they have to behave in order to be accepted, loved or in worse case, survive in their environment. The child reacts by developing a mask to present to the world that gets them what they want. That mask will reflect their Ascendant, because that is their most natural method of adapting to the world. So the Capricorn ascendant child takes on an aloof mask that keeps others from seeing their Moon personality. Every child maintains one or more masks to get what they want from others. In some cases however, the mask becomes a defensive mechanism for survival, not just a way of achieving one’s needs. This is often seen in children who have been mentally or physically abused.

In most children, the mask allows them to successfully function in their environment. They may take on a mask to be able to receive affection and acceptance from members of the family, such as the “Daddy’s little Princess” mask, or “Daddy’s Jock Son”, or “Mommy and Daddy’s perfect child”. Usually as the child matures, he or she learns to accept who they are as a person, represented by their Sun Sign and house location, and feels safe to express that to the rest of the world. An example of that is the male child who wares the masculine Jock mask in High School, to please their parents, and then comes out of the closet as an adult, in effect telling the world “this is who I am”, take it or leave it. Another example is the child that is taught that financial or social status is what life is about, who joins all the right organizations and belongs to all of the right clubs, suddenly emerging as someone who works for the welfare of the downtrodden in the world, and is no longer interested in his or her social status, or how others will see them.

You all can relate various stories from your own life or from friends’ lives that illustrate this process. A friend of mine makes the analogy of the Walnut, with the outer shell being the emotional personality shell, the Ascendant personality being the hard inner shell, and the Sun personality being the sweet meat inside. We just like the walnut at birth are the combination of all three personalities. As we mature intellectually and spiritually, we learn to discard unneeded masks and sign forth in our true beauty.

Just some of my thoughts.

Lanny

posted December 19, 2002 12:48 PM            

I would suggest that you include the Fourth Dimension in that analysis and add the MidHeaven to the mix.

I belive that the MC is the least understood aspect of the nativity and probably one of the most meaningful. At least from an Esoteric point of view.

The 10th/4th axis represents the influx of Divine Soul or Spirit into Physical form. The Above to the Below. The 1st/7th axis is more of the physicalization of that Spirit. It's actual projection into the 3rd dimensional world.

Just a thought...

Bright Blessings..

Aselzion

posted December 20, 2002 01:03 AM            

What I mean in practice is that the MidHeaven represents the heights to which we can soar in a given incarnation. It gives a clue to the inner nature, of feelings and emotions; it suggests the outlook or aspirations as well as ambitions and desires that stem from the Soul's purpose for incarnating into the physical realm. A sense of mission, perhaps. In an outward level this would have a strong influence on the choice of profession.

Make any sense?

Pax et bonum...

A

posted December 20, 2002 07:13 AM              

For example, the Moon is displayed by the childs emotional personality, the mask projected to the word by the ascendant, and the true personality by the Sun. What part of the person's personality is determined by their MC?

posted December 20, 2002 12:27 PM            

Well, The MidHeaven shows what you are striving to be like. The Ascendant shows how others perceive you or the face that you put on for the world to see.

I'd have to say that the MidHeaven is active in our Adulthood, when we seek to make a mark on the world at large. When we reach for the ultimate goal be it material or spiritual. It's innate always, and seems in most cases to be MORE active in Transits, Progressions and Directions, in a correctly timed nativity than the Ascendant in determining timing of significant events. But this is only my observation.

Peace and Light...

A

posted March 16, 2004 11:44 PM              

1st of all-you are awesome, I've really enjoyed your posts and all that you contribute here. There are quite a few of you that totally amaze me.

Anyways, in reading a prev. post, wherein you talk about Sun, Moon & Asc. signs, you referenced have a double.......I am trying to learn astrology...WOW...will I ever get it? I recently read in two different places that if your moon is less than 8 degrees in the first house, you also need to reference the Cancer sun sign because Cancer rules the moon.
I am Virgo Sun 7th house 10.28'20 deg. Aqua. Moon 1st 6.46'16 deg. and
Aqua. Asc. 6.12'47

posted March 17, 2004 06:33 AM              

noreenz, in my opinion you shouldn't consider yourself a Cancer Moon.

stella polaris, the natal chart is such a complex structure of energies, that usually no one thing domenates. In my experience, my ascendant provided protection and cover for my Cancer Moon and introverted Virgo sun.