The Aspects
Aspects describe the relationships between planets in an astrological chart. They are based on the angular distance separating two planets and show how their different functions interact.
Through aspects, planets can combine their meanings, support one another, create pressure, produce conflict, or establish an ongoing exchange.
A birth chart is therefore not simply a collection of individual planetary placements. The aspects reveal how those placements operate together as an interconnected system.
The Five Major Aspects
The five principal aspects are the conjunction, sextile, square, trine, and opposition.
The Conjunction — 0°
A conjunction occurs when two planets occupy approximately the same degree of the zodiac.
Their functions become closely joined. The planets act together, although the result depends upon the nature and condition of the planets involved.
A conjunction between Venus and Jupiter will operate very differently from a conjunction between Mars and Saturn.
The conjunction is therefore best understood as concentration and combination rather than automatically harmonious or difficult.
The Sextile — 60°
The sextile connects planets approximately sixty degrees apart.
It traditionally joins signs of compatible polarity and creates an opportunity for cooperation or exchange.
Sextiles can indicate resources, possibilities, or circumstances that can be developed, particularly when the planets involved are otherwise in good condition.
The Square — 90°
The square connects planets approximately ninety degrees apart.
Squares create tension between planetary functions and often require action, adjustment, effort, or decision.
Because squares generate pressure, they can become highly productive aspects. They frequently describe circumstances that cannot simply remain static and therefore compel something to happen.
The Trine — 120°
The trine connects planets approximately one hundred twenty degrees apart.
Signs connected by trine generally share the same element, allowing their planetary functions to communicate naturally.
Trines are traditionally associated with ease, support, continuity, and circumstances that can develop with relatively little resistance.
Ease does not necessarily mean importance. A powerful trine involving significant planets or house rulers can become one of the defining structures of a chart.
The Opposition — 180°
The opposition occurs when planets stand approximately one hundred eighty degrees apart.
They occupy opposite sides of the zodiac and create a polarity between two planetary functions.
Oppositions can manifest through confrontation, awareness, negotiation, projection, relationship, or the need to reconcile competing demands.
Because each planet directly faces the other, the opposition can make both sides of an issue particularly visible.
Whole Sign Aspects
In traditional astrology, aspects exist not only between individual degrees but also between entire zodiac signs.
Signs separated by sixty degrees are in sextile. Signs separated by ninety degrees are in square. Signs separated by one hundred twenty degrees are in trine. Opposite signs form an opposition.
This means two planets can be configured by sign even when they are not close enough by degree to form a tight modern aspect.
The exact degree relationship adds intensity and precision to the underlying sign-based configuration.
Aversion
Not every pair of signs forms a major aspect.
Signs that do not form a conjunction, sextile, square, trine, or opposition are traditionally described as being in aversion.
Planets in aversion cannot directly witness one another through the standard aspect relationships.
This can describe difficulty coordinating the matters represented by those planets or an inability for one planet to directly manage what the other is doing.
Other relationships, including rulership and reception, may sometimes provide a connection between planets that would otherwise be in aversion.
Applying and Separating Aspects
An aspect can also be applying or separating.
An applying aspect occurs when the faster planet is moving toward exact contact with the slower planet. The relationship is developing and gathering force.
A separating aspect occurs after the exact contact has already taken place. It can describe something already established, experienced, or set into motion.
This distinction becomes especially important in traditional judgment and predictive astrology because it introduces time and sequence into the interpretation.
Orb and Exactness
The orb describes how far an aspect is from mathematical exactness.
An exact square occurs at ninety degrees. An exact trine occurs at one hundred twenty degrees. In an actual horoscope, planets rarely occupy perfectly exact distances.
Astrologers therefore allow a certain number of degrees on either side of exactness.
The closer an aspect becomes to exact, the more concentrated and immediate its interaction generally becomes.
Different planets, techniques, and schools of astrology use different allowable orbs, so the astrologer must apply them consistently rather than treating every possible angular relationship as equally significant.
Aspects as Relationships
An aspect cannot be interpreted from geometry alone.
The planets involved must always be considered.
A square from Jupiter does not mean the same thing as a square from Saturn. A trine from Mars operates differently from a trine from Venus.
The houses ruled by the planets tell us which areas of life are being connected. Their signs describe their condition. Sect and dignity reveal the resources available to them. Reception can show whether one planet supports or accepts another.
The aspect tells us that two planetary functions are in relationship.
The rest of the chart tells us what that relationship means.