 Unlike Western, or Tropical astrology, Jyotish, or the Sidereal approach to astrology, does not place the most importance on the Sun sign. The rising sign is actually considered the most important piece of the overall chart, as it organizes the placement of the all the planets, the karmas, and the intimate details of the chart as a whole. Jyotish is actually soli-lunar based, meaning that equal importance is given to the Sun and the Moon. I will share more about the Moon sign in my next article, but for now I will focus on the Sun sign and its role. In Jyotish, the Sun represents father and masculine energy. His attributes are likened to the king. He shares rank and position, power and authority, as well as respect and ruler-ship. The Sun will give us our dharma, the proper path to follow for our enlightenment. Traditionally, the father is supposed to help guide the child on their path of dharma. It is the father who is responsible for instilling self-esteem and ultimately gives the spark of life via his sperm. The Sun is also responsible for illuminating the Moon, as well as the other planets. The Moon directly reflects the Sun's light and shares this filtered light- which is nourishing, supportive and doesn't burn. In fact the glow of the Moon is said to offer soma, or divine, healing nectar. Together, Sun and Moon represent God and Goddess, who together create life and our experience of reality. Read more about the importance of the Sun. The Sun is our father energy, the part of our being and our karma that was given to us from our father and his lineage. This of course plays a vital role in our human experience as well as how we use our power in life. The masculine is the container that supports the expansiveness of the feminine. We need the power of the masculine to take action, to be seen for our gifts and to share our gifts with others. Our father energy plays a very important role in how we shine and share ourselves with the world. How do you shine? How do you show up for yourself and others? Do you allow yourself to be seen? In what ways? Your jyotish chart is a powerful resource for exploring your Sun energy, your masculine self, as well as uncovering the birth karma you acquired from your father. Use my previous step by step articles to explore the basics of your birth chart. Step one here and step two here. The Sun sign shares how your light is able to shine and what its purpose is for shining. Remember that the Sun sign shares the gifts of your father- for better or worse. Ultimately, the challenges we face are also resources, so thank the positives and negatives! Your Sun sign is a powerful resource for unlocking the mystery of your inner power. Let's take a deeper look at your father energy and the light of the soul shining within you. Step #1: Identify Your Sun. First, notice where the Sun is located in your chart. The abbreviation is likely SU. What sign is it in? Step #2: Who Rules Over Your Sun? The planetary influence upon the sign is a vital piece of information. What is the planetary ruler of your Sun sign? Mars acts very differently than Saturn. What can you determine about your Sun sign based on its planetary ruler? Step #3 Where Does Your Sun Light Shine? Next, determine what house (or bhava in Sanskrit) your Sun is placed in. The house of your Sun shows how it will share its solar energy- and in what capacity. Each house has very specific meanings, so use this to refine your understanding of how your light shines and what is important for you to share with the world in this lifetime. 1st House: Sense of self, worldly house, being seen, ego, appearance, intelligence. 2nd House: Nourishment, wealth, support, gems, speaking, voice. 3rd House: Communication, writing, courage, the arts, creativity, self expression, using the hands. 4th House: Home, land, mother, emotions, spirituality and moksha. 5th House: Children, creativity, romance, intuition, knowledge. 6th House: Enemies, bad habits, healing, disease, legal issues, competition, debt. 7th House: Relationships, others, partner, sexuality, desire, travel, trade. 8th House: Death, disease, transformation, transcendence, vulnerability, mysticism. 9th House: Dharma, guru, wisdom, education, foreign travels, fortune, religion. 10th House: Career, achievement, success, father, action, fame, social status. 11th House: Gains, wealth, income, friends, desires, fulfillment of desire. 12th House: Endings, loss, liberation, marriage, retreat, foreign lands, alone time. Step #4 Putting it all together. It's time to combine all the layers now and derive some meaning from it all. What can you determine about your Sun sign based on the previous steps? How does your light shine? What parts of your father support this self expression? What power are you here to share? Where do you need more power and strength? Use the resources below to further explore these questions in relation to your Sun sign. Aries: Mesha in Sanskrit, translates as its symbol, the ram. Qualities are leadership, pioneering. Need to work on flexibility, anger issues, “hitting one’s head against the wall”. Body parts are head, brain and nerves. Odd, Male, ruled by Mars. Pitta. Correlates to the number 1 in the chart. Taurus: Vrshabha in Sanskrit, translates as its symbol, the bull. Qualities are strength and stability. Need to work on issues with being “bull headed”, stubborn and going beyond the material realms. Body part is neck, face and parts therein. Even, Female, ruled by Venus. Kapha. Correlates to the number 2 in the chart. Gemini: Mithuna in Sanskrit, symbolized by a couple holding a mace and a lute. Translates as couple (male and female) or copulation, companion. Qualities are extremely creativity, communication and artistry. Need to work on issues of mental body and taking effective action steps. Body parts are arms and hands. Odd, Male, ruled by Mercury. Vata. Correlates to the number 3 in a chart. Cancer: Karka translates as female crab in Sanskrit which is its symbol as well. Qualities are sensing and feeling, with depth and compassion, heart centered. Need to work directly with emotional body awareness, co-dependency issues, mother issues. Body parts are heart, breasts, chest. Even, Female, ruled by Moon. Kapha-vata. Correlates to the number 4 in a chart. Leo: Simha translates as lion in Sanskrit, the symbol of Leo. Qualities are leadership, dominance, authority and power. Need to work on ego issues, needing authority and power, as well as father issues and ancestral issues. Body parts are stomach and abdomen. Odd, Male, ruled by the Sun. Pitta. Correlates to the number 5 in a chart. Virgo: Kanya means a girl, a virgin or daughter in Sanskrit. It is symbolized by a woman in a boat holding grains and fire in her hands. Qualities are purity, cleanliness and perfection, creative, entrepreneurial. Need to work on the critic and inner judge, overly puritanical beliefs. Body parts are hips, loins, buttocks. Even, female, ruled by Mercury. Vata-kapha. Correlates to the number 6 in a chart. Libra: Tula means the balancing scales in Sanskrit which is its symbol as well. Qualities are ability to see both sides of situations, good business skills, able to weigh and measure options, able to work with equality issues. Need to work with decisiveness, clarity and not swinging to extremes, going beyond the surface, as well as finding one’s own beliefs and ideals. Body parts are lower abdomen. Odd, Male, ruled by Venus. Vata-Kapha. Correlates to the number 7 in a chart. Scorpio: Vrschika means Scorpion in Sanskrit which is also its symbol. Qualities are depth, going beyond the surface, occult and mystical knowledge, passion. Need to work with emotional body awareness, polarities and extremes, mother issues, one’s darkness and shadows. Body parts are genitals and anus. Even, Female, ruled by Mars and Ketu. Kapha-pitta. Correlates to the number 8 in a chart. Sagittarius: Dhanu means bow in Sanskrit. The symbol of Sagittarius is a man holding a bow and arrow, the lower part of his body being that of a horse. Qualities are oriented towards seeking knowledge, wisdom and growth as well as spirituality. Need to work with being overly dogmatic, taking effective action steps, working with depth on the mental/emotional levels. Body part is thighs. Odd, Male, ruled by Jupiter. Pitta- Kapha. Correlates to the number 9 in a chart. Capricorn: Makara translates as sea monster in Sanskrit which has a head of a deer or goat and the body of a crocodile, which is also its symbol. Qualities are hardworking, persevering, steady. Need to work with “doing less accomplishing more”, self care, not pushing so hard to get an outcome. Body part is knees. Even, Female, ruled by Saturn. Vata-kapha. Correlates to the number 10 in a chart. Aquarius: Kumbha translates from Sanskrit as a vessel that holds water, a water pot. The symbol here is a man holding a pot. Qualities are ingenuity, out of the box approach to life, oriented towards gaining and acquiring. Need to work with balancing both shadow and light, working with shadow parts, finding the silver lining and excessive drive to acquire. Body part is calves. Odd, Male, Saturn and Rahu. Vata. Correlates to the number 11 in a chart. Pisces: Mina translates from Sanskrit as relating to the ocean and large expanses of water. The symbol here is two fish tied together with their heads and tails in opposite directions. Qualities are expansiveness, universality and deep compassion for others with strong spiritual inclinations. Need to work on emotional body issues, grounding expansiveness into clear goals and action steps, actualizing dreams. Body part is feet. Even, Female, ruled by Jupiter. Kapha. Correlates to the number 12 in a chart. Ready to learn more? Join me for my August Jyotish Basics Classes!
Don't have a copy of your chart? Get one here. * This Article is relevant for reading a North Indian Style chart only.
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