Osamenor
Staff member
I'm an astrology learner, just starting to familiarize myself with aspects. Right now, I'm stumbling over the meaning of squares and looking for clarification.
From what I've read (the main source I'm using right now is Steven Forrest's "The Inner Sky"), a square between two planets means they're at cross purposes and just can't see eye to eye, no matter what. Oppositions have room for compromise, but squares do not. A square requires a strong response to each bit to keep one from completely overshadowing the other.
So far, so good. But then I look at my own birth chart, and do all the squares in it completely disagree?
First off, I have an eighth house Virgo Venus square a twelfth house Sagittarian moon. So if Venus and the moon are square, they must be at cross purposes. But I would think the "what" of Venus and the "what" of the moon are quite compatible. Venus has to do with connections, harmony, beauty, and the moon has to do with emotions and with what speaks to your deepest soul. At least, that's how I understand it, or am I missing something? Both of them have a "what" related to emotions, so how can they be at completely cross purposes?
Furthermore, Venus is in stellium (though not conjunction) with my Leo sun, which trines the moon. So the sun's and moon's energies and purposes team up. Meanwhile, the sun's goal, development of personality, is in some way furthered by Venus, which lives in the same house... and yet Venus is at cross purposes with the moon? How does that work?
And then I have the sun square to the north nodes, which are in Scorpio. Yet my sun is in the eighth house, which is the house of Scorpio. So I would think there would be some affinity there. (Do squares to the north nodes follow the same rules as squares to planets, or are there some different meanings there? Perhaps that's a subject for another thread.)
I would love input from more experienced astrologers on this!
From what I've read (the main source I'm using right now is Steven Forrest's "The Inner Sky"), a square between two planets means they're at cross purposes and just can't see eye to eye, no matter what. Oppositions have room for compromise, but squares do not. A square requires a strong response to each bit to keep one from completely overshadowing the other.
So far, so good. But then I look at my own birth chart, and do all the squares in it completely disagree?
First off, I have an eighth house Virgo Venus square a twelfth house Sagittarian moon. So if Venus and the moon are square, they must be at cross purposes. But I would think the "what" of Venus and the "what" of the moon are quite compatible. Venus has to do with connections, harmony, beauty, and the moon has to do with emotions and with what speaks to your deepest soul. At least, that's how I understand it, or am I missing something? Both of them have a "what" related to emotions, so how can they be at completely cross purposes?
Furthermore, Venus is in stellium (though not conjunction) with my Leo sun, which trines the moon. So the sun's and moon's energies and purposes team up. Meanwhile, the sun's goal, development of personality, is in some way furthered by Venus, which lives in the same house... and yet Venus is at cross purposes with the moon? How does that work?
And then I have the sun square to the north nodes, which are in Scorpio. Yet my sun is in the eighth house, which is the house of Scorpio. So I would think there would be some affinity there. (Do squares to the north nodes follow the same rules as squares to planets, or are there some different meanings there? Perhaps that's a subject for another thread.)
I would love input from more experienced astrologers on this!