What is a First Quarter Square?

Osamenor

Staff member
A first quarter square is a waxing square. That's when the faster moving planet in the square has moved 90 degrees ahead of the slower moving planet. If the faster moving planet is 90 degrees behind the slower moving planet, it's a waning square, or last quarter square.

Think of the sun and moon. The moon moves faster than the sun. It's waxing when it's later in the zodiac than the sun, and waning when it's earlier in the zodiac than the sun. A waxing moon is moving away from the sun, towards the opposition, when it will be full. A waning moon is coming up behind the sun. When it reaches the sun, it will be new. The waxing moon's square to the sun is the first quarter. The waning moon's square to the sun is the last quarter.

All planets make first and last quarter squares with all other planets (except that Mercury and Venus cannot make any aspect to the sun other than a conjunction and cannot get any farther than 86 degrees from each other). The faster moving planet determines which phase it is. For example, suppose the planets we're looking at are Mars and Jupiter. Mars moves faster than Jupiter, so a square between Mars in Aries and Jupiter in Capricorn (which is happening currently) is a first quarter square. If it were Mars in Capricorn and Jupiter in Aries, it would be a last quarter square.

The examples you gave would be first quarter squares if the faster moving planet is in Virgo, in the first example, or in Scorpio, in the second example. If the faster moving planet is in Gemini in the first example or Leo in the second example, it's not a first quarter square, it's a last quarter square.
 
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