It’s likely that you are familiar with your Sun, Moon, and Rising signs at this point in your astrological journey, but are you familiar with the planet that rules your chart? I, personally, have found my chart ruler to be just as validating and enlightening as my big three, so I wanted to spend some time today talking about it!
Each sign of the zodiac has a planet that is its "ruling" planet. This is a planet that has similar archetypes as that sign, a place where that planet feels "at home" and the most confident in doing what it wants to do. We can use this to understand the strength of a planet in that sign, but it’s also helpful to understand what planet rules our charts. We do this by establishing the sign of your ascendant, also known as your rising sign. It’s important to note here that knowing your rising sign is contingent on having an accurate birth time, so if you’re still unsure of your precise birth time, it will be difficult to know your rising sign and therefore your chart ruler.
Before we dive into what your chart ruler can tell you, let's establish the signs and their associated planets!
Rising signs
Aries: If you are an Aries rising, your ruling planet is Mars. Mars and Aries both tend to be passionate, action-oriented, hot-headed, and intense. Look at the sign and house that Mars is in. Does that sign doubly confirm these archetypes, or is it wildly different?
Taurus: If you are a Taurus rising, your ruling planet is Venus. Both Taurus and Venus are associated with relationships, resources, and comfort. Look at where Venus falls in your chart; does she fall in a sign or house that are in line with these Venusian themes?
Gemini: If you are a Gemini rising, your ruling planet is Mercury. Mercury and Gemini are both cerebral, talkative, and logical. Look to where Mercury falls in your chart—what house and sign are they in? Do they fall into a sign that operates very differently than Gemini?
Cancer: If you are a Cancer rising, you are ruled by the moon. The Moon and Cancer are both motherly, empathetic, and emotional. Look to where the Moon falls in your chart; is the Moon in a sign that carries the same nature as it?
Leo: If you are a Leo rising, you are ruled by the Sun. Leo and the Sun are both extroverted, joyful, and ego-oriented. Look at where the Sun falls in your chart; does it fall in a sign that feels similar to or wildly different from Leo?
Virgo: If you are a Virgo rising, you are ruled by Mercury. Mercury and Virgo are both detail-oriented, logical, and thoughtful. Where does Mercury fall in your chart? What is the nature of the sign it falls into?
Libra: If you are a Libra rising, you are ruled by Venus. Libra and Venus are both concerned with relationships, justice, and aesthetics. Where does Venus fall in your chart? What is the nature of the sign she is in?
Scorpio: If you are a Scorpio rising, you are ruled by Mars. Scorpio and Mars are both intense, competitive, and driven. It’s important to note here that I use transitional rulership. In modern astrology, Scorpio is associated with Pluto, which, as a Scorpio rising myself, I have a hard time connecting with. We will dig into this more later in the post! That said, look at where you have Mars in your chart. What is the nature of the sign it falls into?
Sagittarius: If you are a Sagittarius rising, you are ruled by Jupiter. Jupiter and Sagittarius are both expansive, curious, and philosophical. Where does Jupiter fall in your chart? How does the nature of the sign that Jupiter falls into change things?
Capricorn: If you are a Capricorn rising, you are ruled by Saturn. Capricorn and Saturn are both structured, rule-oriented, and hard-working. Where does Saturn fall in your chart? How does the nature of the sign that Saturn is in differ from the nature of Capricorn?
Aquarius: If you are an Aquarius rising, you are ruled by Saturn. Aquarius and Saturn are both fixed in nature, confident in their ways of doing things, and innovative. Where does Saturn fall in your chart? What is the nature of the sign it falls into? PS: In this instance, I am using traditional rulership again. Modern astrology associates Aquarius with Uranus. Again, we will touch on modern versus transitional rulership later in the post.
Pisces: If you are a Pisces rising, your ruling planet is Jupiter. Jupiter and Pisces are both expansive, interested in depth, and generous. Where does Jupiter fall in your chart? What is the nature of the sign that Jupiter falls into? PS: I am using traditional rulership here. Modern astrology associates Pisces with Neptune. We will talk more about modern versus traditional rulership later on in the post.
Now that you are familiar with your chart ruler and its significations, let's look at how the placement of that planet may change things. Take note of where your chart ruler falls in your chart—what sign is it in? What house is it in? Does it make any aspects to any other planets in the chart? If so, are they hard aspects or soft aspects? All of these things will give us more insight into how this planet has manifested for you. For example, if you are a Cancer rising and ruled by the Moon, you may normally hear that you are motherly, empathic, kind, patient, etc. BUT if the Moon, the planet that rules the chart, is placed in the fiery sign of Aries, this may manifest differently for you. You may notice that you are quick to anger or highly expressive when it comes to your emotions. Aries is a self-oriented sign, whereas Cancer is usually other-oriented, so you may notice you have more selfish tendencies than the normally overly empathic sign of Cancer. Beginning to dig into the significations of the planet that rules your chart as well as the significations of the sign it actually falls in can give us such insight into our complex layers. On the surface, we understand what our rising sign is and what it signifies, but how does adding in the interpretation of the chart ruler complicate things? We as humans are complex, and our chart reflects this! This is one of the ways that our chart can validate the complexities of who we are.
Traditional versus modern rulership
If you are a Scorpio, Aquarius, or Pisces rising, it’s important to consider whether you identify more with modern or traditional rulership. When the planets Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto were each discovered over the last few hundred years, some astrologers began to associate them with signs that already had associations for thousands of years. As a Scorpio rising myself I found it helpful to explore this on my own rather than listen to the rhetoric of other astrologers. As a Scorpio rising I am either ruled by Mars in Gemini in the eighth house or Pluto in Scorpio in my first house. At first I really wanted to be ruled by Pluto; it sounded more fun than Mars, and to be honest, Mars scared me. That said, the more honest I was with myself, the more I realized that my Mars carries a significant weight in my life. Banter and debates (Gemini) are both really important to me, but I don’t like small talk; I want to talk about the dark, deep depths of the world (eighth house). I also love true crime (eighth house) and anything taboo, radical, or provocative in nature (eighth house), but I can be impulsive and I have a hard time sticking with one thing (Gemini). I will be inspired (Mars) to start researching (Gemini) something, and I will want to know all that there is to know about it (eighth house), but because of the mutability of Gemini, I have a really hard time sticking with things. Mars also tends to be impulsive, so the two of them together really keep me bouncing around, which tends to be frustrating because my Scorpio rising really wants to stick with things and not get bored. When I consider all of these things about myself, it’s really hard for me to contribute any of this to Pluto, a planet that stays in a sign for several years and takes nearly 250 years to complete one lap around the zodiac. All of that said, it’s really important to do your own digging. It’s possible that modern rulership is something you connect to, and that’s totally ok, as long as you’ve done your own digging and it feels authentic to you!
Transits
Another way in which we can use the ruling planets is to follow their transits. It can be so helpful to pay attention to the way that your ruling planet moves through the sky and the interactions it makes along the way. If your ruling planet is making a hard aspect (opposition or square) to another planet, you may feel that more intensely than someone else. This can also be true if that other planet is one of your natal planets. For example, if you are ruled by the moon and a Full Moon conjunct Mars and opposite Saturn is coming up, that is likely going to be a much more intense lunation for you than it is for others. You will feel the movements of the moon much more deeply than others. The same would be true if you are a Pisces rising, ruled by Jupiter, and Jupiter is currently making a trine (soft, harmonious aspect) to your natal Venus. This could feel like a boost of confidence and a good time for love and relationships. The movements of our chart rulers are said to be something we feel more intensely than the movements of the other planets, so begin to take note of those transits and see how you feel under them.
I want to also mention that the speed with which your chart ruler moves can also give insight into how quickly you move. With a planet like Moon or Mercury, you may move on quickly from things. Thoughts and feelings may not last as long. Whereas if you are ruled by Saturn, it likely takes you more time to make decisions or act on things. It’s said that those ruled by Saturn don’t tend to "peak" in life until after their first Saturn return. The planets speeds are as follows (slowest to fastest): Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon.
I know this is quite a bit of information, but I hope it is helpful for you. Start to dig into your chart ruler and the chart rulers of your friends and family, and I believe you’ll begin to see just how validating it can be! I have gained such insight about myself from working with this planet and exploring its connections in my chart. Until next time!
Xoxo,
Lauren
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