The quality of our minds, combined with our emotional natures, determines our outlook on life and our interaction with others. We are all predisposed to certain moods and conditions, be they upbeat or depressant, and using knowledge gleaned from the nativity, we can enhance the positive elements while securing assistance for the negative ones.

“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; [...] a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance [...]” Ecclesiastes 3.

The assessment of wit and manner

In traditional astrology we commence the nativity assessment with the calculation of the temperament which provides the “how” of somebody's existence. This fundamental texture provided by the chart displays the predisposition of the person to specific ways in which they not only perceive the world around them, but also how they engage with it. After that we turn our attention to the assessment of wit and manner, as the ancient authorities called it, in our terminology we would say the quality of someone's mind and the manner in which they manifest this. This assessment has no relation to IQ, that being an external assessment, the astrological delineation being an internal one based on sound philosophical and spiritual principles. The three planets involved in this assessment are Mercury (the executive suite of the central nervous system), the Sun (the overall natural ruler of the brain) and the Moon (our subconscious, creative faculties and our emotional nature).

The signs in which these planets are posited and their interaction with each other, will predispose the person to certain ways of thinking and problem solving methodologies. For example if two, or even all three of these planets are posited in earth signs, we can see that this person is going to ponder and contemplate matters, and possibly, if any of these earth signs are of a fixed nature, the potential to hang onto thoughts and emotions will prevail. If this is then filtered through a melancholic temperament the potential to hold grudges and to allow the (negative) thoughts to become all-consuming, could be detrimental to the emotional and mental well being of the individual, resulting in blockages on all levels. Constipation is a key word relating to melancholic or earth planets and signs, and when we have blockages we become “stuck”, there is no means by which new and invigorating thoughts or even nutrients can enter the body.

The Moon and the female menstrual cycle

The Moon has no light of her own, an astronomical fact, and she can therefore only reflect the light of the Sun. As the Sun is viewed as the Lord of Light, the Moon as the secondary luminary is seen as his handmaid. She plays an extremely important role in our lives as she determines our calendar months, produce and vegetation planting calendars and even the menstrual cycles of women. Most women become depressed and overly emotional when menstruating, we are all familiar with the PMS jokes that abound, but the level of depression will be determined by the condition of the Moon in the nativity. We can blame this on the physiological cause, which is the hormonal system, but astrology provides a more profound and “human” explanation: the menstruation cycles of women are in accordance with the Moon's travels in relation to the Sun.

When women menstruate the Moon, who rules fertility and children, is depicted as being in opposition to the Sun in the sky. This is the phase of Full Moon and opposition to the Sun is the second worst place for any planet to be in, so she is afflicted. The symbolism of this is that when menstruating, a woman cannot conceive and the Moon (the female) is opposing the Sun (the male) as they are at opposite ends on the ecliptic. An opposition brings things together with regret – what is the regret – that even if we do copulate, we cannot conceive – the true essence or purpose of copulation. It is also interesting to note that a woman is deemed infertile roughly 7 days before her menstruation and 7 days afterwards. This has to do with the ovulation cycle, but it is again timed in accordance with the Moon's cycle – the opposition to the Sun begins around 7 degrees before the exact opposition and lasts 7 degrees afterwards. There is also a 30 degree portion in the zodiacal belt where the Moon is deemed as being in the Via Combusta, between 15 degrees Libra and 15 degrees Scorpio; this is only applicable to the Moon and it is related to blood and menstruation. It is called the “burned up road” and when the Moon traverses through this belt, the emotional nature is viewed as being distraught.

The Moon as the emotional nature

The Moon reflects our sensibilities or emotions, and as a species we do not enter into any activity without engaging our emotional nature. Assessing the quality of the Moon in a nativity can shed profound light on the emotional nature of the person and assist them in managing their emotional states. As we have seen, the temperament and sign placement of the planets can predispose a person to certain emotional states. Forewarned is forearmed, and if we know that the person is likely to dissolve into tears at the drop of a hat, other tools can be incorporated into the life to balance the excess humour of cold and moist. It is therefore imperative when assessing a nativity to determine what the ancient authorities called the “ratio”. This is the grip that the person has on their own reality which will determine the potential for them to become actively engaged in their life, or they may choose to sit on the couch with the remote, simply watching life pass them by.

Astrology and its tools, namely the planets, cannot make us do anything; it simply reflects the potential with which we were born and the individual has to actively engage in life in order to maximise this potential. On an emotional level we may decide that we do not wish to engage, or to actively incorporate internal or external lifestyle disciplines to balance out the excess of humours. We may prefer to simply remain the person who sheds tears every time there is a confrontation – possibly we learnt from young that the tears worked and we now use them to manipulate others? In order for the Moon as the emotional nature to manifest the potential, she has to reflect the light of the Sun. The quality of the Sun in the nativity will determine, to a degree, the quality of the Moon as well, so we see the link between the individual truths that we hold to be true and the subsequent manifestation of the emotions in our lives.

Mercury and the Sun

Mercury as our reasoning faculty and communication skills is the part of us that gathers the data which is then transferred to the luminaries, the Sun and Moon. His essential condition in the chart will determine what type of data is collected, its quality and then the manner in which it is distributed. Many of Mercury's functions have incorrectly been transferred to Uranus in modern astrology, and he most certainly repays close study. A common and universal cause of misery and friction, both internal and external, is the lack of, or misinterpretation, of communication. A thorough analysis of Mercury can yield profound results as it can provide the reasons why some people are better at communication than others, why some battle to study when others don't (inability to be able to study causes tremendous frustration in school-going children, thus altering their mental and emotional states), and it provides the best methods of how to address these issues in order to improve on them.

Mercury also rules the memory and especially when we age, loss of memory can cause depression resulting in the loneliness of the aged which seems to be on the increase. As the Lord of Light and therefore our individual truth, the Sun wields tremendous power in relation to the Moon and Mercury. We can only gather, assimilate and reflect what we hold to be true, and this truth is derived from the Sun. His sign, house placement and the connection he has with the other planets will reveal the world-view and belief systems held by that individual. It is obvious that the one planet cannot operate without the others, and again we see that the sum of the parts equals the whole, that the holistic approach is an ancient underlying thread that needs to be acknowledged when assessing these three planets in relation to mental and emotional states of the individual.

Conclusion

The quality of our minds combined with our emotional natures determines our outlook on life and our interaction with it. We are all predisposed to certain moods and conditions, be they upbeat or depressant, and using knowledge gleaned from the nativity we can enhance the positive elements while securing assistance for the negative ones. We are not victims of our own nativities, we can use the free will that we were given to maximise the potential contained therein, for better or for worse. Our moods and states of mind can pave the way for life-changing experiences where we maximise the bountiful gifts that we were given, or we can lay the foundation for disease and destruction, the choice is ours alone to make. We also need to acknowledge that our emotional and mental states have a profound effect on those around us; we therefore have a responsibility to our loved ones as well as to society as a whole, to keep our bodies functioning optimally on all levels. An assessment of your nativity, in the hands of a qualified professional, can provide you with insight into this intangible realm which cannot be examined under a laboratory microscope.