June 30, 2025
Redefining the Angles Part 1: Understanding the Ascendant in Astrology
—
Jim Sher
This is the start of a new four-part series exploring the deeper meaning and function of the four angles in the birth chart. These articles will describe the specific nature of each angle but also show how they are connected to their movement in the entire chart. It is this approach that makes the descriptions holistic.
For the chart to be interpreted holistically every aspect of it must be connected to every other one. It also must be ‘non-dual,’ in that the Ascendant /Descendant and Midheaven/IC are axes representing two sides of the same set.
Further, nothing should be interpreted as merely good or bad. Why? Because every experience can be used to grow when we are willing to approach life in this way. We will also show how one ought to consciously develop each angle if we are to use our chart for our potential evolution. It is helpful to note that every angle is operating all of the time.
The rising sign (also known as the Ascendant) is commonly thought of as being the appearance or mask of one’s personality. It is how people see us, but not necessarily who we are. Often it is associated with the marquee of a theater which advertises whatever is showing at the time, but doesn’t tell us anything about the theater itself or the movie being shown inside. While this definition isn’t wrong, it is actually quite limited as there is more to it than this.
In Transpersonal Astrology the Ascendant is associated with the symbol of the rising Sun because it signifies the zodiac sign rising in the east at the moment of birth just as the sun also rises in the east.
Therefore, this is the rising sign in the chart. Imagine how you feel as you look to the east and watch the Sun come up in the sky announcing the dawn of a new day. There is a feeling of newness, hope and the sense that anything is possible. The coming day is full of potential and even mystery. This image symbolizes the deeper meaning of the Ascendant.
The Ascendant, or rising sign, signifies the emergence of the potential individual expression of the developing personality. It is the type of experience that leads one to discover themselves as a unique individual. It is how one ought to reach out into the world to release one’s set of potentialities so that one’s uniqueness can develop which separates them from all others. In other words, the natal chart is a model for how the human being is like clay that becomes molded by life into personhood and the Ascendant is how we ought to begin doing that.
When we begin to view the Ascendant not simply as a mask but as the starting point of becoming, something shifts. It is not a fixed trait. It is a process, a movement into life itself.
The Ascendant signals not just arrival but potential, inviting us to discover who we are through how we engage with the world.
But emergence alone is not enough. What we reveal outwardly must be rooted inwardly. Without a center, the self cannot grow in a grounded way.
In the next article we will turn our attention to the IC, the most private and foundational point of the chart. It is here, in the unseen ground of self, that our deeper sense of identity quietly takes shape.
The birth chart is not static. It is alive, and always in motion, just like us.
Jim Sher
Monday, June 30th, 2025
