Rising Signs

The Ascendant is the degree of the zodiac that was climbing over the eastern horizon at the moment of birth. It changes roughly every two hours, which is why it needs a birth time.

Signs do not cross the horizon at the same speed. At forty degrees north, Leo takes about two and a half hours to rise and Pisces about seventy minutes, so some Ascendants are simply commoner than others.

• Aries rising. Chart ruler Mars, Libra on the descendant. A chart that opens with Aries puts the response before the deliberation. The first thing people meet is momentum.
• Taurus rising. Chart ruler Venus, Scorpio on the descendant. Taurus on the Ascendant slows the approach down. What arrives first is steadiness, and it is usually the thing people trust before they can say why.
• Gemini rising. Chart ruler Mercury, Sagittarius on the descendant. Gemini rising meets the world with a question. The first exchange is usually verbal, and usually faster than the room expected.
• Cancer rising. Chart ruler Moon, Capricorn on the descendant. Cancer on the Ascendant reads the room before it enters. What arrives first is care, and a good deal of information nobody said out loud.
• Leo rising. Chart ruler Sun, Aquarius on the descendant. Leo on the Ascendant makes an entrance whether or not one was intended. Warmth arrives first, and it is usually aimed at someone in particular.
• Virgo rising. Chart ruler Mercury, Pisces on the descendant. Virgo rising notices. The first thing this Ascendant does in a room is take an accurate reading, usually including the parts nobody wanted read.
• Libra rising. Chart ruler Venus, Aries on the descendant. Libra rising meets people halfway before deciding whether it wants to. The approach is graceful, and there is more deliberation behind it than it looks.
• Scorpio rising. Chart ruler Mars and Pluto, Taurus on the descendant. Scorpio rising gives very little away at the door. What people register first is that something is being held back, and that it is probably worth knowing.
• Sagittarius rising. Chart ruler Jupiter, Gemini on the descendant. Sagittarius rising arrives with a view already forming. The approach is open, direct, and usually larger than the situation called for.
• Capricorn rising. Chart ruler Saturn, Cancer on the descendant. Capricorn rising is taken seriously before it has done anything. The approach is contained, competent, and usually older than the person using it.
• Aquarius rising. Chart ruler Saturn and Uranus, Leo on the descendant. Aquarius rising watches from slightly outside the group, and is usually welcome in it. The approach is friendly and it keeps a measured distance.
• Pisces rising. Chart ruler Jupiter and Neptune, Virgo on the descendant. Pisces rising has the softest edges of the twelve. The approach adapts to whoever is standing there, which is a gift and makes the boundary hard to find.