I always find it interesting when psychologists try to explain people’s personalities and patterns without recourse to astrology.
Most of them would agree that much of our behaviour is inherited and/or caused by our early experience with our parents.
But we all know that brothers and sisters are often very different personalities. The psychologists’ attempts to explain these differences generally refer “to the unique environmental experiences that individuals face within their families, schools, and peer groups. These experiences are not shared with siblings or other family members, making them distinct and individualized. Non-shared environment encompasses factors such as peer relationships, school experiences, and personal interests, all of which contribute to shaping an individual’s behaviour and development”.
This seems to be a get out clause, when their genetic causal stuff doesn’t seem to work.
It doesn’t take into account that marked differences in personality become clear at a very young age, long before the child is exposed to school or peer group pressures.
And little attempt is made to characterise what those actual differences are, beyond vague generalisations like middle child syndrome.
Astrology will identify the differences between siblings and the way they interact with each other far more intelligently and accurately than any other method.
But we always have to ask the question, which of the patterns that we experience are inherited from our parents and shared by other family members, and which ones do we bring into the mix ourselves.
One of the first responders to my Facebook request for family pattern data was T.
T has a very Mutable chart. A Pisces Sun, Virgo Moon and Ascendant is joined by Mercury, Mars and Jupiter.
There are two very distinct patterns. The first is the exact Sun/Moon opposition from 7th to 1sthouse.
The second is the T square between Mars in Sagittarius in the 4th opposite Jupiter in the 10thfocusing on the apex Virgo Ascendant.
Given that Mars is in the 4th, it’s likely that this will be the inherited pattern.
There is a crossover between these two anyway as together they form a wide Mutable Grand Cross.
As T’s Sun is in the 7th, marriage would be an important theme.
T’s ex husband also has a Mutable T square more or less in the same degrees focused on an apex Mars at 12 Virgo, exactly on T’s Ascendant.
However this means that both T Squares are aiming in opposition to each other, which would inevitably require a lot of juggling and was always likely to put a strain on the relationship at some point.
The chart for when they first met also had a strong Mutable flavour.
Both Sun and Moon are in Mutables. The Sun falls exactly on her Descendant.
Transit Jupiter is conjunct T’s own 7th house Sun.
Venus is in the same degree as T’s own natal placement.
However, that Venus is opposite Pluto and forms a T square of its own to an apex Saturn.
They married three years later.
Again, the Sun is in a Mutable sign, right on both T Squares, but is tightly opposed by Neptune.
The Moon and Venus in close conjunction in Cancer on the Midheaven is nice, but a Mars/Saturn conjunction, together with Pluto exactly on the Ascendant doesn’t bode well for the long term.
Interestingly, they married during a year they spent living in the US, which is reflected by the fact that the Sun is in the 9th house, conjunct T’s Jupiter and opposite her husband’s 9th house Moon in Sagittarius.
Are any of these patterns inherited?
The Mutable emphasis is there again with Sun in Sagittarius and Pisces rising.
T’s Ascendant is 13.13 Virgo, her mother’s Descendant is 12.45 of the same sign (which is also closely conjunct T’s husband’s Descendant).
T has a tight opposition between Mars and Jupiter, her mother has the two in exact conjunction.
Mom has Mars conjunct Saturn as well.
T’s father has a stellium around these same degrees of Virgo, including a Moon/Mars/Saturn conjunction.
They married in September 1946, with a tight Mars/Jupiter conjunction right on father’s Sun.
Some of these elements are present in the chart of T’s father’s sister.
T’s Aunt, like her younger brother has a Moon/Saturn conjunction in Mutable signs. It is also in the 9th house, in opposition with Jupiter. Her aunt ran away from Poland with transit Saturn forming a Tsquare to this opposition.
T also has an older sister.
At first glance T and her sister are quite different characters. T has Sun, Moon, Ascendant, Mercury, Mars and Jupiter in Mutable signs.
Her sister has 7 planets in Fixed signs including the Sun and Moon.
But they do share a 7th house Sun.
They also share a Mars/Jupiter/Ascendant T Square.
T’s sister has probably inherited more of her father’s character and patterns. They both have a Moon/Saturn conjunction.
Sister has a Leo Moon, father has it rising.
Sister’s Ascendant is late Libra, closely conjunct her father’s Sun.
We don’t have a birthtime for T’s sister’s husband but we do know that his Sun was exactly opposite her Saturn.
T and her sister didn’t realise it because they were on opposite continents at the time but they both married within 10 days of each other.
The sister married on her Saturn Return, with the ringed planet conjunct her Moon but also opposite her husband’s Sun.
When transit Neptune reached these degrees (26 Aquarius) 30 years later she was widowed.
Neptune was conjunct her husband’s Sun and opposite her Moon/Saturn.
Saturn played a role in the death of both of T’s parents.
Remember that T has the Sun/Moon opposition. Her father died in March 1974 with transit Saturn forming a T Square with the two lights.
Her mother died 26 years later (March 2010) with transit Saturn conjunct T’s Moon and opposite her Sun.
Do any of these patterns get passed on to the next generation?
T’s eldest son has the Mutable theme, with a Virgo Sun and Gemini Moon.
The other two don’t have the Mutable signatures, but her youngest son has the 7th house signature.
There are no Mars/Jupiter connections although the younger two both have Venus/Jupiter oppositions, and these do occur in Mutable signs.
It is interesting that the eldest son and daughter are the ones in long term relationships and both have married Pisceans with very similar charts.
A strong Jupiter, either by aspect, angularity or in its own sign does seem to be an important family feature and these two partners have it in Sagittarius in the 5th house in trine to both Venus and Mars.
Looking at any family, you will see astrological patterns occurring way beyond the expectations of chance.
There will be shared characteristics but also major family events that would be triggered by transits hitting each member simultaneously.
And this may be the chief reason why they have similar placements.
That being the case, these patterns can easily be very powerful but limited to a couple of generations, because the next group might not have the same shared themes to deal with.
So the T Square in the middle of Mutable signs that T shared with her husband that was triggered when they met and married is also there in her mother’s chart. It also connects very strongly with her father’s Virgo stellium.
Are these shared patterns part of our genetic inheritance or are they there because of our shared experience?
Who can say, but one thing we know for sure is that identifying them astrologically will give far greater insight into all their lives than anything a psychologist can come up with.
Posted 2 Jul 2024
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