Astrology for Babies: What makes your baby tick?

I've always been interested in the charts of babies, but having recently become a grandmother for the first time, I now have a personal interest in not only looking at my new grandchild's chart, but in looking at the charts of other babies and toddlers that I know.

One of the first things that people notice and comment on when looking at Huber style charts is the colours that are used for the aspects, and these colours offer information about the inner, unconscious motivation of the person:

• Red aspects have initiatory, "doing" energy
• Green aspects have sensitive, searching, questing, "thinking"qualities
• Blue aspects bring the need to maintain the status quo, preserve and simply "be"

It's comfortable and desirable to have these coloured aspects in a ratio of 4 red: 2 green: 6 blue, but it doesn't always work out this way! Some individuals will have an excess (by ratio) of one colour and a lack (by ratio) of another, creating an imbalance of the energies of that particular colour. When this happens, the person will draw on the surrounding environment - in the case of babies and young children, the family and significant others - to provide the qualities/energies of the "missing" colour. How might this be helpful for new parents?

5 red:4 green: 2 blue

This young baby born in 2009 has a high ratio of red/green in the chart, and a lack of blue. This baby could be energetic, busy, always wanting to do something, but this will be laced with a strong degree of sensitivity, perhaps leading to touchiness as the child grows older. There is a lack of blue aspects indicating less interest in sitting back and enjoying life. Parents here could help by ensuring enough emphasis is placed upon resting, "being" and enjoying the moment to offset the high activity.

2 red: 6 green: 4 blue

This baby, also born in 2009, has a high ratio of green and a lack of red. This baby could grow up asking many, many questions! There is potential for much searching, questioning, and a strong motivation to discover and explore ideas. With this comes a heightened sensitivity and the possibility of not always being able to be decisive as, by ratio, the lack of red could make it more challenging to find ways of expressing and acting on the ideas generated within. Parents here can help by encouraging the child to express the ideas, perhaps (drawing on the blue energy) in some tangible form.

4 red: 3 green: 8 blue

This is the chart of a young child who is well past the baby stage and was born in 2006. In terms of Age Point, this child is still in the 1st House of the chart and is gradually separating from the intense closeness of being a baby and is asserting more individuality. This is a very blue chart; by ratio the balance between red and blue aspects is reasonably balanced, but "blueness" may dominate this child's motivation. There is a natural motivation to enjoy and be able to rest and relax, not worry too much about things - the potential is there at an early age to be laid back. Parents could help here by being aware of this and could gently guide the child towards using this energy constructively rather than allow habits if laziness to become ingrained. This chart shows the capacity for developing a specialised talent (there is a Small Talent triangle) so encouraging this as the child grows up would be beneficial.

For more on colour in charts see The Cosmic Egg Timer and The Living Birth Chart, both available from the APA on-line Book Shop.

Canning by the Signs of the Zodiac

Ever since I wrote about the Signs of the Zodiac and the body parts they are associated with, I've been fascinated to see how many people read this post and I've found out why.

It seems that it's important to can/pickle/preserve food according to the agricultural calendar, which is closely associated with the 12 Signs of the Zodiac and the planting, harvesting and dormant/non-growing times of the year.

I've always been interested in the tasks or labours of the year associated with the different Zodiac Signs, and this approach to canning by the Signs (especially it seems, for sauerkraut) makes a lot of sense. You can read what I write about the Signs and some of the agricultural tasks associated with them in The Cosmic Egg Timer available from the APA on-line Book Shop.

You can also read up ideas on canning and preserving for yourself at Appalachian Voices where there is an item about Eula Vines, an elder and an experienced bottler/canner/pickler of vegetables. I quote here:

Eula believes in canning by the signs. It is a long-standing belief among food preservers that zodiac signs can affect the outcome of any batch of canned vegetables, especially those that are pickled.

You can find the signs -marked as tiny fish (Pisces) and lions (Leo) among others- on certain calendars and in many almanacs, often with a corresponding graph of the human body. Each date has a designated zodiac sign, and each sign indicates a relationship to a specific body part.

“I never pickle when the sign is in the feet,” Eula said, flipping through her wall calendar. “I pickle when the sign is in Aries or Leo. One of them’s in the head; one’s in the heart.”

She explained, “I know the signs work. Yesterday was an Aries day, but I’ll pickle through next week because the sign will still be in the neck. I’ve pickled when the signs are in the legs, but I won’t pickle when they get into the feet. I’ve had kraut smell bad and be soft when it’s in the feet.”

That makes a lot of sense. Pickling or preserving when the Sun is moving through the Sign of Pisces, which rules the feet, is the time of year, in the northern hemisphere, when it's still winter and stocks of produce are running low. Freshness and suitability would be doubtful; the produce to be preserved could have been touched and ruined by frosts.

Right now the Sun is in Virgo, the Sign associated with harvest and the bounty of the Earth. This image is of one of the roundels in the Zodiac window in the cathedral of Chartres, France. All 12 Zodiac Signs are depicted in the window, along with the 12 labours for each Sign, which follow the agricultural cycle of the year. Virgo rules the intestines and as a Sign is associated with health, well-being and healing. It would follow, then, that if canning or preserving at this time of year it's important to do so with really fresh produce which has just been harvested and is at its best.

I know that right now I'm picking berries, apples and other soft fruits from my garden and am either eating them right away when their at their best, or am freezing or preparing them for storage on the same day.

Leo time of year

Summer time. . . .

. . . is holiday time. . .

. . . and Leo time of year

In my co-authored book, The Cosmic Egg Timer, I say of Leo, a Fire Sign:



"Leo simply wants to shine and exude warmth to all. As a Fixed Sign, it is happiest when others are drawn to its warmth and dazzling light. Then all it needs to do is stay put and shine. Like the Lion with which it is associated, it enjoys the regal status of being like king or queen of all it surveys. Leo has a certain air of dignity; the words "majestic" and "distinguished" come to mind, together with a love of the limelight."

Leo rules the heart and spine, and Leo makes a good, steadfast and loyal friend, bringing the warmth of the heart and feelings to their relationships.

There are many manifestations of the Leo personality, and here are just a few of the possible ways in which people with Sun in Leo may express themselves. They could come across as

the star * the playful child * the hero/heroine * the king/queen * the actor * the entertainer
the lover of life * the show- off * "Heart of Gold" * "Miss Bubbly" * the egotist *
"Cowardly Lion" * the romantic* "Queen Bee" * "Centre Stage" * Mr/Ms Confidence

Amongst well-known Leo's are Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Alfred Hitchcock, Mick Jagger, Madonna and Napoleon.

A final thought - with some, not all (!) Leo's in mind - is Joe Cooper's astro-poem

All Hail!

All Hail!

Golden Leo male
Your vast vanity
Is set upon a suspect spine.

Bold is your gaze
The power and the glory
You need as much as praise.

But they
Come from a long way
To warm themselves at your fire.

All hail!
Golden Leo male.


Photo's 2 and 3 are courtesy of Maylis Curie.
http://maylisphotography.my-expressions.com/

The language of astrology

I wrote this post 7 years ago in 2009, a few days after I'd completed my one hour on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, London, as part of artist Antony Gormley's "One and Other" project. I'd been randomly selected from those who applied to stand on the plinth (my dear daughter entered my name without me knowing!) and on reflection it was one of the most memorable things I've ever done, although it was pretty scary and challenging at the time. My granddaughter - first grandchild - was born while I was on the plinth, making the event even more significant, but looking at the words of the different qualities I read out while I was up there, it seems fitting to be reminded of them at these times of upheaval and change.

While I was up there I read out most of the 94 words sent to me by family and friends saying what they would like to see more of in the world. Everyone involved offered words which have qualities and meanings that are universally understood and go beyond the personal. These words can be applied to the qualities and energies we refer to as astrologers when explaining the symbolic meaning of the planets, especially when they are operating at the highest level. Here are just a few of the words I read out:


How do some of these relate to planetary qualities? Cardinal ( go ahead, initiatory) planets are shown in red, Fixed ( stable, maintaining) planets in blue, and Mutable ( changeable, fluid) planets in green.


The Sun embodies Goodwill, Understanding, Integrity and Respect. The Sun represents the mind and the will, our ability to think and make decisions in our lives.



Through the Moon we gain a sense of ourselves through our feelings, emotions and how we interact on a feeling level with the world around us, so the words Caring, Empathy and Consideration could all be associated with this planet.

Saturn can give us a sense of the physical manifestation of ourselves through the body, because we are grounded, real and tangible, so Health - one of the words that cropped up - would go here. Saturn is also associated with Commonsense and Responsibility.

Venus embodies qualities such as Harmony, Discernment and Friendship. We use this planet to form relationships and maintain a balance in our lives as well as it being the planet associated with taste and discrimination.

We look to Mars for energy and drive, leadership qualities and also Courage and Enthusiasm, two words which were sent to me by family and friends.


Jupiter embodies qualities such as Generosity, Truth and Justice, and Equality - remember we're looking at each planet operating at its highest level, so forget "luck" being a Jupiterian thing. Luck doesn't happen on its own; we often have to take risks and seize opportunities in order to get lucky.


Neptune, one of the transpersonal (beyond the personal) planets, embodies qualities like Love, Compassion, Selflessness, Inclusiveness and Peace. You can read more about planetary qualities in my books "The Cosmic Egg Timer" and "The Living Birth Chart".


Addendum: While I was up on the Plinth reading out these words, I heard news that I'd become a grandmother for the first time. Here's what the One and Other blog had to say about this, together with a link to the article about this event which appeared in my local newspaper that week:

The stories behind the plinthers

by Holly, one of the orgainsers: 22:11 GMT, Saturday, 8 August 2009

There's been a lot of debate and discussion about what our plinthers do with their hour, but not much about what goes on in their lives outside that hour. Happily, one plinther's hour coincided with her private life, when she discovered that her grandchild had been born while she was 22 feet high! You can read the full story here.

One&Other

On Monday 3rd August at 3 p.m. UK local time, I will be standing on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, London for one hour, as part of artist Antony Gormley's One&Other project.

This is the chart for that moment in time, and here are just a few observations on it:

* there is a feeling or reaching upwards and forwards in the overall image - a kind of stretching upwards - and the image reminds me of someone on tiptoe with arms raised towards the upper half of the chart (apt for me standing on the Plinth!)

* the colour balance is 2 red: 6 green: 4 blue aspects - a whole lot of awareness/sensitivity there with such a high ratio of green ( yes, it feels a bit like that - I'm putting myself on the line here)

* overall shaping/motivation is triangular, indicating the flexible, mutability of the moment and the need and ability to adapt to changes

* the Sun is in Leo at the top of the chart, but is intercepted. That's OK - I'm not doing this for myself or to massage my own ego - I'm taking the opportunity to be a voice for lots of other people ( see below!)

* I like the Jupiter/Neptune conjunction in this chart as I also have a Jupiter/Neptune conjunction in my own chart - this feels comfortable and welcoming

A Voice for Others
For my hour on the Plinth, I've asked family and friends to send me one word in response to the question "What would you like to see more of in the world?"

To date I've received no less than 94 words, and am busy making cards to write these on and take up on the Plinth with me to read out and display.

If you would like to add your own word to this fast-growing list, log on to "In 1 Word"

This thing is exciting, is gathering momentum and to be part of it, on or off the Plinth, you can have your say by adding your own word now! And you can watch me live on the Plinth on Monday at 3 p.m. by clicking on this link to "One& Other". I hope you'll join me there!