Sun, Moon, Rising...and Tarot

Our charts are really individualized things, and one of the simplest ways to really get to know yours is to explore what is often called the Big Three. And because I like to weave everything back to tarot, we’ll also look at what the cards can add to this understanding. To begin, you will want to determine what your big three are - your Sun, Moon and Rising sign. To do this, you can find an online resource to create your chart, but you will need your time of birth in order to get an accurate read on the Rising sign in particular. I use Cafe Astrology though you can find other sites that offer similar services.

Knowing what your signs are for each aspect, we’ll explore what those aspects mean to the whole of our personality below.

Sun Sign (I AM): This is the aspect of our chart that we tend to talk about the most. It's probably how we mostly identify and the thing looked at when consulting a daily horoscope and for many, it starts and stops there. At a high level, our sun sign is who we are at our core. Perhaps a part of us that feels comfortable or natural, regardless of what we’re projecting to the world. It is a bit like your essence, or centre.

Moon Sign (I FEEL): Our moon sign is associated with our inner selves, our emotional lives, our reactions and how we process and filter through our feelings. It could represent aspects of our subconscious, intuition and spirituality. Our moon signs may be less obvious to the observer than our Sun and Rising sign. It is a more elusive aspect of self that may only fully evident to ourselves and/or those closest.

Rising Sign (I PROJECT): This is the sign that was on the horizon (not in a planet) at our date and time of birth, also known as the ascendant sign. It is believed that the Rising Sign is how we project and reflect to the world; in other words, how others may perceive us. While the Sun sign is what you know to be true about yourself, the Rising Sign is often how you appear to others and the outside world. It’s not unusual for those who are well versed in astrology to incorrectly guess someone’s sun sign as their rising sign - because this is what is often first presented.

So now that you have the long and short of it, I'll share with you that I only just figured out what my Rising sign was a few years ago. For a long time I thought I was born at 6:19pm, which would make my Rising sign Cancer. I have never resonated with that, but because I couldn't confirm my actual time of birth, it was all I had to go on. But, one day I located my baby book and discovered I am not a Cancer Rising! My ascendant is actually Leo and that sits far more comfortably with myself. The moral of the story here is, because the Rising sign shifts position every two hours, knowing your time of birth is critical to unlocking this piece.

So now that we have an overview of what the big three are, let’s explore tarot card correspondences. Below is a list of all of the signs and their tarot counterpart for reference. I’ve also included a possible theme for each so you can understand how its influence may be impacting that placement. For each your Sun, Moon and Rising have a look at what tarot card is associated. With this information, what else can be said about each of your placements? For example, I am a Capricorn Sun, Pisces Moon and Leo rising. Translated into tarot that makes me Devil, Moon & Strength.

Aries - The Emperor - Embracing balanced leadership
Taurus - The Hierophant - Mentorship (finding or becoming)
Gemini - The Lovers - Following your bliss/passion
Cancer - The Chariot - Maintaining control over emotion/circumstance to achieve goals
Leo - Strength - Finding inner resolve to maintain outer control
Virgo - The Hermit - Taking time to retreat, recharge and find one’s own voice
Libra - Justice - Maintaining balance and equity in all areas
Scorpio - Death - Embracing change and transformation
Sagittarius - Temperance - Finding a harmonious approach as opposed to living in extremes
Capricorn - The Devil - Security vs. personal freedom
Aquarius - The Star - Maintaining faith and looking at the positive
Pisces - The Moon - Listening to and trusting one’s intuitive voice

Now considering the possible themes from the tarot card component, let’s see what that could mean for my big three.

My Capricorn Sun with The Devil suggests I may have to pay attention to where I place security over freedom in my day to day life and not be afraid to liberate myself from any bondage I find myself in.

My Pisces Moon with The Moon suggests that my emotions play a big part in my intuitive and spiritual practice. I should listen to all feelings as if they are actual bits of information.

My Leo Rising with Strength suggests that outwardly, I may look like I have control and a great deal of influence over my surroundings whether or not this is actually the case.

What does your big three say about you? What does the extra tarot component add to this understanding? You can take it a step further and isolate your cards from your favourite deck and notice the imagery. Does this provide any additional insight? There are always ore and more layers to uncover as we delve further into correspondences. This is just one more piece of a never ending the puzzle!

Julia