Calculate your astral theme
The astral theme is the keystone of astrology. Unlike horoscopes, it tells us about a person's character, qualities, strengths and weaknesses. Here's our guide to astral themes and how to calculate them.
The astral theme is a precise image of the sky on the day you were born. You need to know your date, exact time and place of birth to work it out. Two people born at the same time but in different cities will not have the same astral theme - everyone's astral theme is unique.
What makes up the astral theme?
The astral theme is made up of the 12 signs of the zodiac, 8 planets of the solar system, the moon, the angles that they form between themselves and the 12 houses.
By taking into account the interactions of all these elements, analysing and interpreting the map of the sky, an astrologer can define your personality, indicate key dates in your life, your potential, your skills for a particular job, your love life, and especially trends for this year, when they do your horoscope (monthly or annual).
To calculate your astral theme, an astrologer bases his calculation on the position of the planets on the day of your birth, referring to Ephemerides, which is a table of the position of the planets at a given time. This book is available in astrological departments in book shops. The astrologer will also use your astrological sign (the position of the sun at the time of your birth) to calculate your astral theme.
Astrology also considers the position of the planets (including a satellite, the Moon) at the time of your birth. These planets are the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.
The Moon - corresponds to imagination, creativity and also the anima (the inner self). For a man, it expresses a hidden feminine side, and for a woman it expresses how she lives out her femininity.
Mercury - lively and quick, it speaks of intelligence and quickness of mind.
Venus - the planet of love and of beauty.
Jupiter - opportunity, money and expansion.
Saturn - a slow planet which encourages us to build, to put different structures in place and think long term.
Uranus - an innovative planet which is challenging and disturbing; also the queen of scientific discovery which improves our lives.
Neptune - a planet of chimeras (a grotesque product of the imagination) and illusions, which upsets our love lives and often deceives us. It is primarily a spiritual planet, and isn't very effective in real life or concrete events.
Pluto - a planet that makes us indecisive and question everything. It is under Pluto's influence that we seek therapy, for example, or feel we need a break from the daily grind.
The astrological houses
All these calculations are today made easier by astrological software which helps to highlight the division of the celestial wheel into 12 areas called houses. These houses correspond to the 12 main areas of life that concern us most.
House I: personality and behaviour. These dictate our behaviour and how we react, and are essential. From the age of 40 onwards, the ascendant takes precedence over the star sign
House II: finance, investment
House III: brothers, sisters, relatives and short trips
House IV: the hearth, the home and how we feel
House V: emotional and sex life; also the sector of children
House VI: professional life
House VII: relationships with others and spouse
House VIII: inheritances, unresolved things from the past
House IX: spiritual life and long travels
House X: social success
House XI: friends and support network
House XII: the trials of life and health
To summarise, there are 12 star signs, 10 planets (including the Sun and the Moon), and 12 houses.
The Moon and the planets revolve around the Earth. The Moon has a cycle of 28 days; for women, it is at home in the sign of Cancer. Cancer is directly linked to the Moon, which is a sign of imagination, creativity and very close to children, but also quite whimsical, very changeable and higly influenced by the rapid cycle of the Moon. Astrologers draw a map of the sky on a particular day by taking into account the position of all the planets and the moon, as well as the house and theme concentrated on, to enlighten us about our personality and our life, just by looking at the sky!
An annual forecast is usually carried out on a person’s birthday. The astrologer produces what is called a solar revolution. This study gives you the major trends and events of your year. To give you a more detailed reading, the astrologer complements this with a study of planetary transits. He then compares the map of the sky on the day of your birth with the day to be studied. Interpretation can then be quite personalised, as the astrologer adds his personal touch and his intuition, his ability to see and read the sky.