One of the many things the masses know nothing about but laugh at anyway is astrology. Admittedly, I am more sympathetic towards mockery of astrology; after all, astrology cannot be proven. Of course, just because it cannot be proven, does not mean it isn't true. For instance, you probably love your family and/or friends; in fact, that's probably the truest thing in the world for you. But try proving it. Astrology, like its sibling, psychology, is the same.

Anyway, the easiest way to illustrate how great astrology can be is through a sample chart analysis. It's worth noting that there are millions of ways to use astrology, and if you show the same chart to different astrologers, you will likely get two very different intrepretations. If you ever go to an astrologer and find the experience useless, you probably went to an astrologer that wasn't right for you (and/or you may have been completely un-cooperative).

So with all this in mind, I present to you my birth chart.


Here's an analysis of some of the key stuff. I'll leave some stuff out, for the sake of privacy, though astute astrologers will probably be able to come to insightful conclusions on their own anyway. Such is the power of astrology!

Stellium in the 11th. You'll notice there are a bunch of numbers and shapes densely concentrated in the upper left portion of the chart. To put it in astrospeak, I have a stellium in the 11th house. The 11th house is associated with, among other things, communities; as such, I have energy that is conducive towards building and shaping communities. Unsurprisingly, my career is about.....building online communities! Occassionally, as I assume many if not most entrepreneurs experience, I question whether or not I am correct in my entrepreneurial vision, or if I am as dumb and delusional as the haters would suggest. Then I look at my birth chart, and say, "hey, it makes sense!" And I feel okay. Of course, I'm sure that only reinforces the beliefs of those who view me as delusional.....

Also of note is that I have Saturn in the 11th house. In her classic book Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, Liz Greene describes Saturn in the 11th as "having difficulty in expressing one's ordinariness." LOL. I rest my case.

Of course, the challenge is to turn the problems and negatives into something positive -- the curse into the gift -- and as Saturn is also the planet of diligence and perseverance, Saturn in the 11th can also be expressed as diligence towards community building.

Aspects to the Sun and Moon. While there are many, many different ways an astrology chart can be read and how an astrologer can come to his/her conclusions, I think it is a safe bet that one of the most popular astrological techniques is to look at what planets aspect the Sun and Moon in the chart (meaning how they are positioned in relation to the Sun and Moon). In my chart, the Sun and Moon are square (approximately 90 degrees apart), the moon opposes Neptune in the 2nd and forms a wide square to much of the stellium in the 11th. This stuff, as well as the stellium in the 11th, would suggest environmental factors that hinder the development of a stable identity. Insecurity, to put it in more regular terms. The psychological principle of compensation is surely at play here, as is evidenced by creating a grandiose personality and calling myself Kid Mercury. Though I don't really think I'm insecure anymore; if anything I think I'm closer to the opposite, as I now have a cartoon-ish amount of confidence. In my younger days, however, I was certainly very insecure.

Uranus in the 1st. Shocking personality. Expresses identity through invention. Will be perceived as an awakener; often a bearer of bad news. LOL.

North Node in the 10th. I rely primarily on psychological and evolutionary astrology, and evolutionary astrology in particular places an emphasis on the nodes of the moon (non-physical points related to the position of the moon), and the north node is often viewed as being a key to understanding one's destiny in evolutionary astrology (though I'm sure you'll find those who disagree with that notion). North node in the 10th suggests that spiritual/evolutionary growth is found through one's career. I guess that makes sense, although all I do is work so it's sort of inevitable it would be that way.

There's much more I could write, I'm barely scratching the surface here. Though hopefully this post illustrates how astrology can serve as endlessly rich tool in self-understanding; it can serve as a map of your soul, and a tool in healing yourself when you feel lost or "off track." And that's only it's personal use; of course it has wider applications in everything ranging from forecasting financial markets, geopolitical changes, and pretty much everything you can think of. I'll blog more about geopolitical astrology in the near future.