posted April 29, 2005 05:18 PM              

To me, mine seems very real and i think it affects me very deeply (in terms of my moods, emotions, behaviour, thoughts etc) - so how can that be a mask, when it is very real?

posted April 29, 2005 05:41 PM              

I don't see mine as being superficial, though I do have problems defining exactly what my Ascendant is doing for me. Most of my friends/family don't recognise any of the Ascendant characteristics in me. Is this true for anyone else?

I feel it myself, of course. It lends seriousness but deep down, not on the surface (Asc Capricorn). I also feel it at work because I don't mix well but that could be Saturn conjunct Moon coming out.

I read somewhere that the Ascendant is the very first imprint you get of what life is about, like a snapshot taken the moment you are born and that is how you will see/react to life from then on. It leaves an indelible mark on the psyche.

One think I have noticed in my family is that the Ascendant, more than anything else, governs physical appearance.

What do other peeps think?

posted April 29, 2005 06:32 PM            

So I see the ascendant as being everything you would conventionally say when someone asked you- what kind of person are you? On a dating show, for exmaple.

"I'm energetic, creative, impatient, stubborn and competitive."

You're not likely to say- I have an extreme emotional need for approval. I look for my father in everyone I date. My mind is quick and detail-oriented. I attract people by being aloof...etc, etc...the kind of things that other aspects of your chart would speak of.

So it's not really a mask. It's just the first layer. The most immediately visible one. Even to yourself, sometimes. Another good metaphor for the ascendant- imagine you're approaching a house. Before you enter it- you see the facade, the roof, the width. This is the house, and yet it's not. It's more than just the appearance- I mean you can get a sense of the size, condition, etc. But to really know it, you have to enter.

posted April 30, 2005 01:20 AM              

I am trying to bring out more of my sun sign qualities now. I think this is why so many people think astrology is bunk-they only here about sun signs. I think most people are far more recognizable by their rising sign traits initially. It is only when you really get to know the core of the person that you see more of the sun sign.

I think it is a mask in a way, in that it is comfortable behavior we can hide behind in new situations. But I like the thought of it as personality/snapshot more.

posted April 30, 2005 08:28 AM              

The reason that you may identify so strongly with it is because you are still in that phase of your growth.

It isn't a conscious mask, and by that I mean that you aren't faking who you are. Its more like a defense mechanism, that allows you to interact in the world, particularly when under stress. As you row older you mature and start to display more of your sun's characteristics and less of your ascendant.

Think of it like a skin that you shead as your mature skin becomes better able to withstand your environment.

Just some thoughts

posted April 30, 2005 01:07 PM              

Psychologically the Ascendant and first house tell much about what you were called, and/or what was said about you, during your formative years--up to age 7.

Some common Examples--Rising signs or planets:

Aries, Mars: all boy or tomboy

Taurus, Venus: good child, girly, feminine,effeminant

Gemini, Mercury: the self image is often as Tom's brother/sister, or Little brother, big sister

Cancer, Moon: may be "like mother" or it may be "baby"

Leo,Sun: Litttle prince/cess, family heir

Virgo,Chiron: the healthy one

Libra: the other child--the one who is not a boy/girl, or the one who does differently in school

Scorpio, Pluto: really an acknowledgement of power, but often comes out as the Bad Boy/Girl, the one who is to blame

Sagittarius, Jupiter: sometimes and "abandoned"--as by death. Sometimes the "foreigner"

Capricorn, Saturn: The responsible one....old for your age

Aquarius, Uranus: the "different" child, or the ignored or invisible child

Pisces, Neptune: often the "forgotten" child

posted May 01, 2005 12:38 PM              

Hope this helps

posted May 02, 2005 09:25 AM              

Lanny

posted May 03, 2005 06:40 PM              

I think maybe I feel my cancer asc more deeply becuase it is an emotional sign along with pisces (my moon) - more so than my sun, Virgo.

But I think my Sun dominates my appearance more than my ascendant. At work I tend to just get on with it and I do not find it easy to gossip and make friends. I definitely portray that "cancer shell" to people, but inside I can be quite emotional (which I HATE to show people)

But if somebody were to ask me if I am an emotional person, I wouldn't know how to answer... I cant explain my emotions at all

Becuase there is a deep, emotionless part of me I cannot touch. (Nor can anyone else, I think). I hate it , and I wish my emotions, although real, went deeper because it makes me feel like a 'fake'. I dont know what aspects could be responsible for this!

I dont know if Im making any sense. I suppose a way to descibe it is that from the top I have a hard shell (cancer asc), then there is a layer of 'emotional fluffiness' (cancer asc and pisces moon) and then deep inside there is a hard core (virgo sun?) I dunno— thats how i feel anyway!

Astro Junkie : my ascendant is at 08°47'36

aspects:
Sun Sextile Ascendant 3°46
Uranus Square Ascendant 3°12

posted May 04, 2005 03:31 AM              

good topic!

Touchstone:
i also have the same problem defining my Asc. sometimes i feel like it doesnt give me 'unique' qualities that i didnt already have. (Im a Libra Asc.) Maybe my interest in fashion, beauty and cosmetics? I have no desire for balance, in fact I have a pretty imbalanced life , im a workaholic and don't know when to stop etc. I am not cardinal, I have a hard time making decisions. How do I come across? This is one place that it may affect me more. Usually my Gem sun/merc/mars, makes me think that the air qualities I portray are because of my planetary and house placements, not the Libra Asc. But maybe not?

One thing is for sure. My Asc totally governs my physical appearance. Although I am into the Gem colors (yellow and green! my fav colors), yet I wear them occasionally--when I'm happy, or when its spring Usually I will go with the earthtones, and oceanic colors. I am nothing like ANY of the Gem descriptions I have read. I am not tall. I am not thin. I am not agile or athletic. I am not nervous. I do not have mousy hair. lol

I have vibrant dark golden hair which I dye jet black; really fair and rosy skin; big eyes that scare people, a very penetrating stare, but laugh very easily and have round everything: round face, round eyes, round cheeks, full lips, round curvy body. thats nothing like any of the Gem descriptions Ive ever read--more Libran really. If only I had dimples (darn, why did they have to get left out?)

Whiterabbit:

i love your house example, i TOTALLY visualized it and adopted it. from now on im using it forever! of all the posts somehow i was nodding constantly on urs! i think i see the ascendant as what you see it as.

Rev Alice:

those are really quite powerful and succint descriptions of the rising signs, really appreciate them!

yes, i am a libra rising and was always the 'other' child as if i was a genderless blob. my older brother and sister were the planned siblings, when i was born, first my parents had huge fights over whether to abort me or not as a fetus, then when i finally made it to planet earth, lol, they had fights over whether they were going to keep me or give me away. then my dad (who was against my birth etc.) wanted to hide me from his friends etc. I was a really weird, secret, mysterious baby. Some of my relatives didnt know i was born till i was like 2 yrs old because my father wanted to hide the fact. After that I was just 'the youngest one' / 'the child', i was never called by my name until my mom made it common in the house to call me by my name (now everyone calls me by my name).

However I read once that Scorpio risings often have name changes, aliases, and identity changes, kind of like rebirths/rediscoveries of self through changes and mystery. I have had my name changed about 3 times and have felt like ive 'shed my skin'; adopted a new personality and completely discarded the old one, many times in my life. when we moved from one country to the next, etc. i became a totally different person. i have never been able to hang on to old friends because i change so much...

any thots?

posted May 04, 2005 03:37 AM              

from what ive read, descendant is supposed to symbolize the ideal partner, or the qualities of our ideal partner. in conceptual terms, the qualities that make us 'complete' or complement our ascendant; thus the qualities of our ideal partner/significant other. also, looking at the house on the cusp always gives a clue into the cardinal points on the chart (AC, DC, MC, IC).

The Ascendant is the first house cusp; first house is assoc. with Aries (outward apperance, personality, aggressiveness, image to others).

The Midheaven is the fourth house cusp; fourth house is assoc. with Cancer (home life, cultural background, early childhood and family life, relationship with mother).

The Descendant is the seventh house cusp; seventh house is assoc. with Libra (marriage, partnerships, beauty, relationships, balance, harmony, art, music, love, justice and fairness).

The IC or Imum Coeli, if I remember correctly is the 10th house cusp; which is associated with Capricorn (material gains, ambition, career, job, job and monetary stability, father figure in life, misfortunes and restrictions, worries and bad luck).

I hope it explains things sufficiently and that I didn't make a mistake,

posted May 04, 2005 03:11 PM              

Seriously - my practicing amatuer astrological mind does get on point more and more as time goes on! Just as I suspected! You don't feel your Asc is your "mask" because you have Sun Sextile Ascendant - see?

Also, your Asc is in a "fresh" degree.

Just for practice, looking into myself and my experience with my Asc for comparison, I've never felt like any Asc's interpretation. I've always said probably cuz my mom was heavily drugged when I was born. BUT - I'm noticing something here :::

* I have no Aspects to my Sun

* If I go down the list of interpretations for Asc's, the only ones that even come close are Cancer & Scorpio. So happens, my Moon in Cancer is Sextile my Ascendant, and my Mars in Scorpio is Quincunx my Ascendant.

posted May 04, 2005 04:54 PM              

Midheaven is the 10th house cusp, and IC is the 4th house cusp

posted May 04, 2005 05:02 PM              

yes! thanks for correcting me. i had a feeling when writing something was going wrong, but it was at 1 am last night thanks for checking that for me daydreamer