First steps in Astrology

The Horoscope

by Liz Greene

Astrologers use a kind of chart or diagram called a horoscope to find out the very special relationship between a person and the Sun, Moon and planets. A horoscope is really a picture of exactly how the sky looked from the place where that particular person was born, at the time of day he or she was born, on the date and year of his or her birth. But instead of making an actual drawing of the sky showing the position of the Sun, Moon and planets at the time and place in question, astrologers use symbols which they place within the horoscope.

Here are the symbols which astrologers use for each of the twelve signs of the Zodiac:

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This is what Justin Bieber's Horoscope looks like:

The Sign of the Zodiac

The most important thing in your horoscope is your own birth sign. This is also called the Sun Sign or Sign of the Zodiac. During the time of year when you were born, the Sun was moving across a certain section of the sky. There are twelve sections of the sky in the study of astrology, and each of these is called a Sign of the Zodiac. The Zodiac is the path of the Sun through the heavens. It takes the Sun thirty days to move through one sign, and it takes one year for the Sun to go all the way round the entire circle of the Zodiac. Your Sign of the Zodiac is the particular section of the sky the Sun was in when you were born.

Zodiac is a Greek word meaning "circle of animals". The ancient astrologers observed that when the Sun moved into a new sign each month a new kind of energy seemed to be released which affected life on Earth. They described these twelve different kinds of energy by the names of different animals, types of people or objects. These animals, people or objects reminded them of how each kind of energy seemed to influence the personality and behaviour of human beings.

If you were born between 20 March and 20 April, your Sign of the Zodiac is Aries the Ram. Between 21 April and 21 May, the Sun is in the sign of Taurus the Bull. After this come Gemini the Twins, Cancer the Crab, Leo the Lion, Virgo the Maiden, Libra the Scales, Scorpio the Scorpion, Sagittarius the Centaur, Capricorn the Goat, Aquarius the Waterbearer, and last of all, between 20 February and 19 March, Pisces the Fishes. On 20 March of each year the Sun moves back into the sign of Aries again.