Planets and the Zodiac

Important note: I am not an Astrologer

It is very important to take interest in, and learn about, the solar system and the Universe as a whole. Of course Astronomers and Astrologers have been saying this forever and a day, but it all seems so complex sometimes. I have decided to try and make it a bit easier for you to understand the planets movements in our Solar system through the twelve Zodiac signs.

The twelve signs of the Zodiac are pretty familiar to everyone, yet to be able to identify their formations in the sky is quite different from knowing their names. There are actually 88 constellations which can be divided into eight constellation families, ( See Menzel, “ a field Guide to the Stars and Planets”). The Ancient Greeks used to assign their Gods to certain figures in the sky. Because of their Northern location, they gave names only to those regions visible from their countries.

The current zodiac is based on twelve constellations in the sky mostly named by the Greeks. Stories of how these constellations were named are learned through Greek Mythology. The constellations of the zodiac we know nowadays reach back to the days of the Babylonians and Chaldeans, 2000 to 3000 years ago. Back then the sun passes through twelve constellations we still assign to the zodiac. But since those times, there have been several changes to the assignment of the stars.

Everything in Astrology and Astronomy is based on Arcs and Degrees. An Arc is a breakdown of minutes and seconds of Degrees that gives an Angular separation. As we look at the sky it appears to be round, just as do the Earth and the Planets therein. For this reason Arcs and Degrees are the main measurement used to assure proper Declination and Ascension.

When we have a planetary alignment it can occur in many different configurations but to simplify for you, many planets line up at close Degrees within the same sign or Constellation where they are importantly aspected to one another. These aspects are of particular importance because of the effects they present. When this occurs these existing planets affect the Natal chart of each individual as well as that of each planet and sphere. It is much like taking many different energetic frequencies and jamming them all together to see how they affect the whole. These planetary alignments wreak havoc on our civilization and planet as a whole because their resonation is like nails on the chalkboard whose energies create very intense frequencies making it harder to decipher or disseminate what we feel and think.

It is as if musicians in a symphony are all warming up at the same time and none is yet playing together to create harmony, searching to find a key to play in that will blend well with the other notes. This is how these planetary frequencies and energies affect us individually as well as collectively.

If you are a sensitive during these experiences you may feel totally out of sync. Depending of the placement of the Planets and their proximities in your Natal Chart, you could be affected by racing thoughts, emotional instability, physical illness and bouts of indecisiveness. Feeling ungrounded and out of body is common during such fluctuations and with the polarities currently shifting; it seems as if time has sped up immensely. Breathing correctly can be challenging as well.

To bring a bit more clarity I will share the number of years various planets in our Solar system take to make their revolution. This helps us understand how each planet moves as well as how often they each might be in the same sign together.
The Earth’s cycle around the sun is 365 days or one solar year. Our Moon revolves around the Earth approximately every 27 days.

A strange thing is that if we lived on the Moon and thought of days and years the same way we do on Earth, a day AND a year would be the same length! Since the rotation and revolution times are the same, the length of a day and the length of a year are identical.

All the other planets revolve around the Sun. Venus spends 225 days moving through the Zodiac, Mercury 65.6 days, Mars 687 Days, Jupiter 11.8 Years, Saturn 29.5 years, Uranus 84 years, Neptune 165 years, Pluto 247.7 years. This information helps you do the math to understand just how often these planets touch each other’s elliptical orbs.
Since I am not an Astrologer I can only share a variety of information to help you to see that some planets move around the Zodiac quickly and others take a great many years. The slower moving planets will remain in one sign long enough for the faster moving planets to catch up and move around again and again; causing a variety of elliptical orbs that create different frequencies.

What does all of this have to do with you? Well depending on where the placement of the planets and constellations were in the sky at the time of your birth, you can determine how each of these bodies and energies affects you, not only on your Solar Return or birthdate, but also every other day of life that they move through the Zodiac. Due to not just the Revolution of the planets but the Rotation as well, it is as if we are in the center of an awesome cycling process that has some energies moving clockwise, others semi clockwise, and still others appear to move counter clockwise.

Each Planet, each Constellation has a variety of frequencies that is emitted continually. In order to understand the energy of these things it is important to meditate upon them but also to read and study. Looking to discover how they receive the names that they have and understanding that each planet has its own Master Teacher to work with will help.

Tuning in and learning about the harmonics of the Universe is important. It helps to know what energies and frequencies are at play on a grand scale as well as individually. Why is, this or that, feeling this way currently and how is it affecting the planet, the masses and myself?

Of course we try to downplay the effects of the planets and Constellations because we want to believe that we have some kind of power to control the energies we experience daily. This is not helpful in the long run because, if we do not keep abreast of the planetary influences we do not know how to keep ourselves healthy physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. In all my years of learning and studying I have discovered that we must educate ourselves about all things that are a mystery to us in order to learn and grow. Too often we think instead of understand, we choose instead of discovering and we try to sidestep the most important elements of learning.

When you learn what sign you were born under, you begin to show an interest in the traits it represents. As you explore, you find many elements in one Sign and a variety of traits that actually make sense. It is not just your Sun sign that makes up the map of influences that is you but your entire Astrological Natal Chart.

Discovery is the element of life that keeps us exploring and searching. We are never “there” but always learning and advancing. Astrology and Astronomy never cease to bring in new insights and great revelation.

Source: The U.S. Geological Survey

Mercury
Named for the winged Roman God of Travel.

Venus
Roman name for the Goddess of Love

Mars
Named by the Romans for their God of was because of its red color

Jupiter
This large and Massive planet was named Zeus by the Greeks and Jupiter by the Romans.

The Moon
The name is of Anglo- Saxon derivation.

Earth
The name comes from the Indo-European bas ‘er’, which produced the Germanic noun ‘ertho’.

Saturn
Saturn was the Roman name for the Greek Cronos, god of farming and the father of Zeus/Jupiter.

Uranus
Named for the Greek god of sky.

Neptune
A blue planet, named for the Roman god of the sea.
Pluto
The outermost planet in our solar system was named after the Roman God of the underworld.