In astrology, every chart has a ruling planet. The ruling planet is the planet associated with the ascendant (your ascendant or rising sign is the constellation that was on the horizon the moment you were born).
So for a chart with Aries rising, the ruler is Mars.
Taurus rising :: Venus
Gemini rising :: Mercury
Cancer rising :: Moon
Leo rising :: Sun
Virgo rising :: Mercury
Libra rising :: Venus
Scorpio rising :: Pluto
Sagittarius rising :: Jupiter
Capricorn rising :: Saturn
Aquarius rising :: Uranus
Pisces rising :: Neptune
From there we look at where the ruling planet falls in the chart. What house and what sign is the ruling planet in? This gives us the deeper flavor of the ruler of your chart. This energy that leads your natal chart. This is important.
We often identify with our sun sign without understanding the influence and importance of the ruling planet (or the placement of the moon, Mercury, Venus and on and on). This is part of the reason why we don’t always resonate with the sun sign. We might be thinking ‘I’m a lot more serious than the typical Sagittarius.’ Well yeah! If you have Capricorn rising and your chart is ruled by Saturn you ARE a lot more serious than the typical Sagittarian!
If your chart is ruled by what we refer to as a personal planet (personal planets are closer to the earth and move faster and are more particular in a chart) including sun, moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars, then we could argue that you’re here to really develop more of a sense of self this lifetime. You’re learning how to be an individual and how to assert yourself and explore your own creative vision.
If your chart is ruled by an outer planet (Uranus, Neptune or Pluto) then you may be developing more collective consciousness. You’re here to learn more about collaboration, what it means to belong to a group or tribe and you may be very sensitive to the energies in your environment, leading to confusion about what’s yours and what’s not.
Jupiter and Saturn are bridges between the personal planets and the outer planets, so with these chart rulers, a person may be working on balancing personal needs and drives with the needs of the community. This is an over arching theme in the person’s life no matter what else might be happening in the natal chart.
Recently, we completed a Mercury retrograde, which impacted those with Gemini and Virgo rising. Venus moved into Capricorn, so people with Taurus and Libra rising are probably in the midst of a shift. Jupiter just went retrograde, which affects Sagittarius rising and Neptune went direct, which affects Pisces rising. These shifts are subtle and sometimes hard to pinpoint and that’s one of the many gifts of astrology! It helps us track these shifts, understand them and put the energies to good use.
Knowing the ruler of your chart can be so helpful in terms of understanding yourself and your life lessons as well as being able to work with changes in the energetic temperature all around. Give yourself the gift of knowledge by casting your chart for free here or break out the chart you have hidden somewhere in a pile of papers and give it a second look. If you need in depth guidance, consider a reading.
Endeavor to get to know your ruler. This planet is a friend, a guide and a teacher. Put it to work!
xo
-Julia