Many Happy Returns of the Day!

We usually wish this when it is someone's Birthday or in response to Happy New Year. A British expression that encapsulates the real meaning of celebration for getting one-year older. We all hope and wish to have a new better year and accomplish what we desire. But do we really know where we are heading to in this new coming year? Will we succeed in what we plan? Will we truly grow or will we regress? And when I say New Year, I don't refer to the calendaristic year, but to the New Year that truly matters to us: the year that follows after the celebration of our Birthday.

Indeed, there is a returning, the returning of the Sun over the same degree, minute and second of the Sign where it was when we were born. That return generates a new AstroChart that depicts the new coming year. It is just as if we were born again, each and every year. Of course, the originar chart of birth stands still. But these new charts called Solar Returns (SR), that come in action every year around our anniversary, are the maps of the events that we will experience throughout the new year until the next anniversary.

The Solar Return chart is a picture of the sky of the moment when the Sun returns over its originar position that it held when we were born. After it takes place, it owns the new coming year. Whether we like it or not, that picture shows if that year will be good or bad. The Solar Return moment doesn't always take place on the precise day of our birthday. It can fall also on the previous day or on the next day.

Apart from the Solar Return, there is also the Lunar Return (LR). This time, it is about the return of the Moon over the same degree, minute and second where it was at the moment when we were born. The rules of the SR apply also to the Lunar return, except that now we are following the Moon cycle over the AstroChart. The Lunar Return lasts approximately one month and it subordinates itself to the current Solar Return. If the Solar Return is bad, then a good Lunar Return can't work wonders. If the SR is good and the LR is bad, then the damage will be minimal and will affect only that precise month. If the SR is good and the LR is also good, then you've been kissed by God! If the SR is bad and the LR is also bad, then beware and pray to God! 

Irrespective of the Solar Return, generally, when we appreciate an event, the notion of good or bad could be relative. Why? Because an event that seems good to us at a given moment, could prove to be damaging on the long run. As well, a torturing situation could eventually lay the path towards emancipation. But don't get me wrong. This doesn't mean that a bad Solar Return can prove to be positive latter on. A bad SR will always be bad and damaging, even if the year that we spent with that Solar Return chart seemed to be wonderful. For instance, there are people that after a bad Solar Return claim that nothing bad happened during that year. Later on, they find out that they developed a tumor in that year, without knowing it. So, really, nothing bad happened?

Equally, there can be years with good Solar Return charts when we sweat and work harder than ever. But that will eventually lead us to success. Of course, we all want to always drink cocktails on our sunbed in Bahamas, either literally or figuratively. But the most important thing, in my opinion, is to be able to grow progressively each and every year and be sure that the attained growth will sediment and never be lost. We've all seen people that become successful, grow until a certain point in life and then, after being hit by a traumatising event, they succumb to depression and regression. I don't want to get into detail here, but I've seen many cases, also people that are close to me.

So, what can we do about it? What can we do to protect ourselves from regression and traumatising events? The Solar Return has the answer. The transits and the planetary positions can't be changed, but we can change exactly what counts most: the orientation of the Solar Return and the positions of the planets in it. As I said, the Solar Return owns the year and also prevails over the transits of the planets. Even if the transits are very bad, we can still protect ourselves with a good and bright Solar Return.

The Solar Return depends on the place where we spend the anniversay of our birthday. Whether we move to the east or to the west, the SR changes its orientation and the planets positions change as well accross the chart. That's what matters in fact, the position of the planets in the houses of the AstroChart. So, a birthday spent in Tokyo, for instance, will trigger a year with certain events, completely different from the events that would take place if we spent the birthday in Rome. The Solar Return chart created in Tokyo will be different from the Solar Return chart created in Rome. OK, understood. But how do we interpret it? It should be read together with our originar birth chart, because a SR will always depend on the sky under which we were actually born. So, the Ascendant of the SR will be interpreted in the houses of our birth/natal chart and that is a very important element that depicts the main events we will face in that year. The planets in the houses of the SR will be interpreted as they are positioned, in those houses. And also, it is very important to consider the tendencies given by the natal/birth chart. A person who has an evil position in the natal house of luck (say Mars-Saturn conjunction in 5th house), can't be encouraged to gamble, even with the most amazing SR chart that independently shows great win at the lottery!

Discussing with people that want to know more about Solar Returns, I've come accross a few frequent questions:

1. What location should we consider when calculating the Solar Return chart?

The place where you actually spend the Solar Return moment. No other place matters.

2. Can we travel to improve the Solar Return chart?

Of course, this is precisely the idea!

3. How long do we have to stay in the place where we choose to travel, so that the Solar Return will take effect?

One second is enough :) But we have to be sure that our birth hour is correct, so that we can capture exactly that important second in the place we choose. The Solar Return moment is exactly like the click of a photo.

4. How long lasts the Solar Return effect?

Exactly one year, until the next birthday/Solar Return. I know some traditional astrologers claim that the presence of the next Solar Return can be "felt" 2-3 months before it takes place and that the current one fades by the end of the year, but I can say that this is nonsense. Don't get misled by the effect of the transits (in fact) that switch positions. They can be "felt" as well. And how can you feel the effect of a chart that is not yet created and that you will change as you wish? Moreover, it is a fact that the most important and intense events take place around one's birthday (plus/minus 30 days around the birthday) or around the birthdays of the closest people in the family (mother, father, sister/brother). And these events are strictly connected to the SR chart that is in progress.

5. Should we interpret the position of the natal planets over the Solar Return chart?

No. It is of no importance if, for instance, natal Venus is over the cuspid of the 2nd house of the Solar Return or if natal Mars falls over the MC of the SR. The main element that matters in relation to the natal chart is the position of the Ascendant of the Solar Return in the houses of the natal chart. After we decide on the position of the SR Ascendant, we can interpret the SR chart on its own, but taking in consideration the natal predispositions.

6. Do we interpret the Solar Return as a natal chart?

No. There are certain rules that must be followed when interpreting and we should also pay lot of attention to the transits that will follow in that year of the Solar Return.

7. Do inter planetary aspects matter in a Solar Return chart?

They have little importance in the economy of the Solar Return interpretation. Of course, if we talk about conjunctions, let's say the Mars-Saturn conjunction, we will be careful where we place it. But aspects like trines, squares, oppositions, etc. have a faint effect, compared to the effect of the planets in the houses of the Solar Return.

8. What do retrograde planets mean in a Solar Return chart?

In my opinion, nothing! I follow Active Astrology, a Modern School of Astrology which proves to work for me and for other thousands of people. Retrograde planets interpretation belongs to Esoteric Astrology. This is a different branch of Astrology, whose followers believe that in this life we are paying for our past lives deeds which, of course, no one remembers.

9. Can I use asteroids, Arabic Parts, Sabian Symbols or the Black Moon for the Solar Return chart interpretation?

Why would we want to complicate ourselves and blur the Solar Return chart with minor elements? The 10 traditional celestial elements of Astrology are enough to lead us to a clear interpretation! These are the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.

10. The astronomers now claim that Pluto is no longer a planet. Shall we delete it from the chart?

Pluto certainly doesn't care about what astronomers think or say. He will continue to do his thing and impact people, either under the code name "planet" or "asteroid". So, don't delete Pluto!

I know there are many other questions to ask, so, from now on, you are all free to ask on this blog and we will discuss.

For those who didn't read it yet, I strongly recommend the book Transits and Solar Returns written by Ciro Discepolo, the father of Active Astrology. This book is the Bible of the Solar Return. Everything you need to know about Solar Returns is here.

You can purchase it on Amazon.com 


Wishing you all a great week ahead!

Georgiana Costescu
thesolarreturn@gmail.com