Anne Shirley, the heroine of the delightful “Anne of Green Gables”, innately knew when she had met her soulmate, whom she endearingly referred to as a kindred spirit. It was not the person's age, sex, race, what they were wearing, their social status, income, physical appearance, charm or any other visible clue that gave her this sense of profound knowing. Nothing purposeful or intentional drew her to her soulmates. Her heart inexplicably knew that a divine grace brought them both together.

Such is the nature of the mysterious force that brings two soulmates into contact. Relationship is a sacred rite that brings us into a close encounter with the truth of our own heart and the elusiveness of our soul. True relationship cannot be arranged, figured out or fixed up. Any attempt to control a relationship flows against the current of our soul. The best that we can do is to enter into its mystery, engage in its paradoxes and know our selves intimately enough to be in relationship, whatever that might bring.

The term 'soul' has a long history and been used in various ways philosophically and non-philosophically, contributing to its confusing and ambiguous nature. In contemporary terms it often refers to an 'X' factor that brings a piece of music alive, renders a poem inspiring, animates a theatrical performance or makes work meaningful. When applied to a relationship it describes the mystery that unites two individuals and enchants and animates the quality of each one's life. It does not suggest that the pain of daily living subsides or that life is transformed. But it does bring a depth and resonance, allowing meaning, imagination and fantasy to re-animate life. We meet our kindred spirits throughout the course of our lives, first in the family then later as friends, colleagues, lovers, partners at work and play. Soul is not generally found in the lofty heights of idealisation and illusion but in the valleys of pain and despair.

Soul is also what gives life its value and is the lynch pin of our individuality. Our soulmates honour our individuality and allow us to become more of who we are. Paradoxically by nature the soul moves towards attachment, belonging and fusion with another; yet, it also strives for separation, individuality and freedom. Our relationships become a vessel where we submerge ourselves yet from which we also attempt to flee.

This report encourages you to reflect on what it means for you to love, to be a brother, a sister, a friend, a colleague, a partner and a lover. What does your soul need in these relationships? What patterns weave themselves into the nature of your intimate relationships? Astrology is a great ally of the soul, as the Horoscope has an abundance of rich images that help us reflect on and imagine our authentic self; imagination being the language of the soul. This report will strive to veer you towards reflection by illustrating images within your Horoscope, images that may reveal powerful patterns of relationship and bring you more closely aligned with your soul's intent. Astrology helps us focus on our personal view of the cosmos and soul. Therefore this report contains some standout astrological images that may help you reconsider your relationships in a different light.

The very first relationship begins within family. No matter what your individual fate may be, your family is where you forged your earliest relationships, took your beginning steps and first experienced an attachment to someone else. Your earliest experiences of forming an emotional bond have a decisive influence on your capacity to feel safe enough to explore relationships beyond the foundation stones of your family. If you experienced a secure attachment then mastery over your environment as you grow up is a lot easier. This is because you were more aware of feeling safe and knowing you were loved. Human beings gain a greater sense of self, distinct from the family, in the shelter of a safe nest and with adequate protection. We learn to develop our individuality when we have developed a sense of belonging. In a perfect world the family matrix supports and secures our sense of self. Ironically, the deeper the sense of safety and belonging, the more capacity there is for individuality and forging intimate adult attachments.

Without an early sense of acceptance and attachment, feeling secure enough to forge bonds outside the family is more complex. In this case, later relationships can become a test of our sense of safety and acceptance. Also our family is a training ground for the ways that we view relationship patterns. Father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter are all relationships that are illustrated in your Horoscope not only as literal figures, but depicting the patterns of relationships. A helpful way of thinking about your mother or father is not who they are, what they did, how they behaved but how this impacted on you and hence created patterns of behaviour in your life.

In astrology this early bonding process is depicted by the Moon. The Moon symbolises what you need to feel accepted and loved. It indicates the nature of your home and your quest to belong. As the symbol of your deepest emotional patterns, it reflects how you nest and protect yourself. Therefore, through the Moon, you can see indications of your living space, eating patterns, and habitual routines. It also represents 'mother love', your ability to feel loved and your experience of being loved. It symbolises not only your earliest associations but also your adolescent and then adult relationships.

If your earliest experiences have not been life-enhancing then you may need to change some of your innate relationship expectations and patterns. Modern psychologists would emphasise the need “to re-parent” this part of yourself in adult relationships. The Moon can help in this process by indicating the ways in which you can find solace and comfort in the depths of yourself. It is important to recognise your own needs, so you are not subconsciously expecting your friends and partners to fulfill them. Unmet needs can contribute to feeling dependent and hinder your ability to enjoy true intimacy. The idiosyncrasies, habits and routines you bring into relationships are a function of the Moon. Ironically destiny challenges you in your adult relationships to find healthy ways to nurture your personal needs. Therefore it is of prime importance to come to know your Moon as intimately and as respectfully as you can.

The Moon is in Gemini

Your Moon is in Gemini, an air sign. When you are born with your Moon in the Element of Air this suggests that you feel bonded to another when you feel that you have room to breathe. Space, whether that is physical, emotional or psychological is important to you and ironically you feel that you need to be separate to have a perspective on relationships. The Moon in Gemini, as with the other airy Moons, has a complex and difficult psychological task. This is because your need to bond with someone else is not necessarily linked to emotions, but rather to communication. Your emotional needs are met, not through warmth and comfort, but rather through stimulation. Some of your earliest feelings may include an innate need for variety, stimulation and interaction. If you did not have these needs met in your family then you may have experienced a sense of separateness, space and distance or a strange sense of dislocation: a feeling of being disconnected from where one is or where one settles. This gulf between your sense of closeness and separateness might propel you to swing back and forth between the extremes of wanting to be single but also want to be in relationship. Connection and closeness are bridged through conversation and communication.

In adult life, forming a separate identity to loved ones is a healthy task, yet for a child in the early developmental stages this task needs support and understanding. Even though disconnection may not have been apparent in your family atmosphere, powerful images of separation have none the less permeated your feeling life. Bonding may evoke a sense of anxiety, as emotional closeness is opposed to your Moon in Gemini's need for separateness. Conversely, you might feel connected when you are distanced from the object of your love. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder”, as they say. Through the loss of connection, you become conscious of the bond of love. Emotionally this is not easy as you have a tendency to rationalise or intellectualise your feeling life rather than just feel it. It is important to know that feelings are just feelings, and not always indications of something else.

As a youngster there could have been confusion between the roles of mother as caretaker and mother as friend, leaving you feeling responsible for your siblings, befriending your mother or being taken care of by others. However fate may have arranged this, your feelings of caring for others and friendship might get entangled. Therefore in adult relationships it is important to recognise the difference between when you need your partner to be your friend and when you need them to nurture you. It is also wise to recognise when you need your own space and not to push your partner away to get it, rather claim it honestly. You have numerous and various needs and it might be helpful to recognise that this means you need a variety of friends and close companions, not expecting one individual to carry all the needs. Swinging between the poles of needing space but also needing closeness is natural and when you recognise you are able to manage both you will feel less compelled to be coming and going so much. You feel nurtured when you are encouraged to talk about your feelings without feeling pressured to know what those feelings are!

Feeling Secure in an Insecure World

Planets that affect the Moon need to be honoured and acknowledged in each individual's style of attachment, as they reveal an authentic way of being in relationship. When aspecting the Moon, planets influence your early development and your ability to be intimate in adult relationships. Hence planets aspecting the Moon influence our capacity for closeness, comfort and trust in relationships.

Mercury is Opposite The Moon

When Mercury aspects the Moon, the need for communicating your feelings is highlighted. In the ancient way of thinking both the Moon and Mercury ruled the mind. Mercury was like the Magician who was logical, rational and communicative; the Moon was like the High Priestess who was imaginative, intuitive and silent. In contemporary terms Mercury rules the more rational side while the Moon rules the more conceptual and imaginative side. Astrologically the planets are aligned implying a lifelong learning curve of how to balance your emotional responses and your rational judgement.

In terms of early attachment and bonding communication is vital. You learn to feel safe and be bonded in the family system through expressing your feelings and being open to learning. Communicating your needs is imperative and hopefully your parents encouraged your individualistic expression of feelings and asking for what you needed. This support would encourage you to be open to learning new things and expressing your thoughts and ideas. Without this active encouragement to express your feelings you feel your own needs are submerged in the system, lost in translation. This might mean you were able to express the needs of the system, but not your own, being the translator, go-between and deliverer of messages. Therefore your curiosity and urge to learn were compromised.

When Mercury and the Moon are in such a powerful aspect, the patterns of learning, communication, listening and how you express your feelings and perceptions are brought into focus. Memory is vividly linked to emotional sensitivity; you learn best when you feel safe but also are deeply impacted by emotional trauma. You have an innate sensitivity to the inner world of images, dreams, feelings as well as an uncanny ability to read other's feelings and reactions, therefore need to know that this ability to know on other levels is validated in relationship. A child learns to feel safe and be bonded in the family system through expressing their feelings; therefore the ability to be open with one's feelings and inner experiences are grounded in the family system. In order that you could be open to learning new things and to expressing your thoughts and ideas you needed to feel protected and safe. Your perceptions and feelings needed special attention as you most probably developed in your own unique way, being more imaginative, perceptive, inner orientated and visual than most. Therefore an important question to ask is, 'did my family recognize my unique learning needs, my own way of expressing feelings and the difficulty I might have had with thinking linearly and logically'?

You may have instinctively voiced the unexpressed needs of the family system through being the translator, the go-between or the deliverer of messages. Your curiosity and urge to learn might have been compromised by a lack of support or being directed into a learning system that did not suit you. This aspect already suggests that expressing feelings in the family might be an issue and that you are probably the one who struggles to make sense of what is unexpressed. In later relationships it is necessary to recognise that your urge to interpret your partner's actions, feelings or responses may not be how they see it.

Other scenarios may be that the relationships between your mother and your siblings was confused; mother being more like a sister or you either mothered or were mothered by your sibs. This might also point to an important sibling issue in your mother's family that permeates the atmosphere of the home.

In later relationships it is important for you to recognise that it is not necessarily a difficulty you have in expressing feelings but rather a unique way of expressing them. Therefore it is important to pursue different ways of learning things. Through your different learning experiences and pursuits you will find the like-minded others who you can communicate with. Communication is a key to feeling you belong and you will find many a kindred spirit who shares your way of knowing things. And that way is a much more spherical, obtuse and imaginative way than most. Therefore in later relationship it is important to recognise that those you love do not always understand your feelings and perceptions.

Home is Where We Start From

In astrology the 4th House signifies the environmental atmosphere of the family home. It is also the terrain of our innermost life where basic needs for emotional security and nurturing are first experienced. It is in this section of the Horoscope where we first experience feelings of belonging, being at home, and being connected. These experiences lay the foundation for security levels in adult relationships. When considering relationships with others, the 4th House symbolises our most intimate ties with family and those who support and nurture us. As well-respected psychotherapist D.W. Winnicott said “home is where we start from”.

Planets in the 4th House describe the climate of your family home and the attitudes and influences of your family of origin. These attitudes shape your sense of inner security and the degree to which you feel safe enough to reach out to others. Because 4th House patterns are not always conscious, the planetary energies may not be fully known or understood until they surface in adult relationships as non-supportive habits and unclear behaviourial patterns. A planet or planets located in the 4th House are bedrock and foundation for the security, inner strength and self acceptance that you later bring into your adult relationships.

Without planets in this sphere, the conditions of the House can be described in other ways such as the Sign on the Cusp and its Ruler. Planets, however, personify archetypal images and without a planet in the 4th, the astrologer's focus would be on the Moon to describe the attachment style moulded through the family. Take a moment to reflect on how you feel the level of emotional safety in your family influenced your relationship blueprint.

You have no planets in the Fourth House

The 3rd House significantly contributes to shaping relationship patterns, as this is where the first connection with peers is located. Initial experiences of these relationships make their impression on our attitudes towards companionship, partnership and friendship. Feelings, reactions, trauma, trust, freedom, love, fear, in effect the full spectrum of early relationships, lay the foundation for our adult attachments to friends and partners. This sector of the Horoscope is the storehouse where attitudes towards others that shared our early environment, mainly siblings, but also cousins, neighbourhood friends and primary schoolmates, are contained. Social interactions with partners, colleagues and acquaintances have their origins in these experiences, suggesting the 3rd House of the Horoscope reveals the template for relationship pattern.

The 3rd House is critical when analyzing relationships since it illustrates how we first experience peers and the impact they may have on future relationships. We first test the response from the world through the action or reaction of our siblings and early childhood playmates. The sibling relationship can extend to friends, classmates and others, particularly for only children. In many cases of an only child, fate arranges it so there is a replacement sibling: a cousin, a neighbour, a step-sibling or special friend.

When investigating the 3rd House it is important to recognise our position in the family. Our birth order, along with the number and gender of our siblings, has a considerable impact on personality. Birth order was often a theme in the myths, fairy tales, fables and biblical stories we grew up with.
It is often enlightening to consider your birth position and how that impacts on your relationships. Expectations, patterns we repeat with partners and even our choice of mate may be more influenced by our siblings than we realise.

Following are some illustrations of your 3rd House energies which may help you reflect on your earliest relationships, especially those with siblings, cousins, neighbourhood chums, schoolmates, sports buddies and friends.

Third House Cusp is in Pisces

The Water Sign Pisces on your 3rd House Cusp reflects the subtle qualities of relationship that you may have first become conscious of with your earliest partners. This suggests that compassion, sympathy, imagination, spirituality and oneness along with more difficult feelings of estrangement and sacrifice might have been primary qualities of relationship you experienced in some way with your siblings and early friends.

You bring the faculty of imagination and the quality of idealism to your earliest relationships. You might always feel that something is missing because your inner world conjures up the image of a perfect partner and you may unconsciously bring these expectations into relationship. Longing for a soulmate might begin early in your first relationships. Being idealistic you might be susceptible to forging symbiotic relationships with your sibs. You have an ability to easily identify with those around you absorbing the feelings in the atmosphere. This could also suggest that because of a particular sibling needs, attention may be directed away from the others. The task might be to learn to draw more distinct boundaries between yourself and your siblings to ensure that you are not drawn into imprisoning yourself in the role of rescuer. Even though you might be cast early in the role of helpmate, nurse or muse, your destiny is to separate this role from your self so you do not disappear or become invisible to others.

You may be vulnerable to other's unconscious life, in touch with some of their fantasies and wishes. There may be a deep-seated impulse to sacrifice yourself for others, giving up your sense of identity to liberate a brother, sister or friend. Or perhaps you might have felt invisible or not seen or acknowledged by the siblings and others in your early peer groups. You might have felt an otherworldly sense into your early relationships. Your facility to articulate another's feeling life or recognise the depth of another's pain begins early. The role of the listener, the messenger, the guide, the attendant may have been developed at the expense of your personal visibility. Later, you might recast yourself in these roles in relationship mistaking enmeshment for love. But your kindred spirits and soulmates recognise and support you in your creative pursuits and dreams helping you connect to the deeper and more meaningful aspects of life.

You have no planets in the Third House

Being Kind to our Kin

Another lens we can use to focus on early peer relationships is to look at planetary aspects to Mercury. Mythologically Mercury was a younger son determined to be noticed by his older brother and father and take his rightful place in the family. While he is a mascot for the younger sibling he also personifies the themes in sibling relationships. Rivalry, reconciliation, envy, companionship, separation, communication, support, loyalty and the bond of friendship are all elements of our first peer relationship with our siblings and early childhood sibling substitutes.

The Moon is Opposite Mercury

When the Moon and Mercury are opposite to one another, themes of caring and nurturing may have been an issue in your sibling relationships. How were the feelings of closeness and companionship communicated? There may be a confusion or lack of boundary between the parenting and sibling roles in your family of origin. Mother may have preferred to be a sister, vacating the role of mother to an elder sister or brother. Hence in adult relationship roles may get confused. On a positive note this suggests that roles are fluid and changeable and may move back and forth. Of course your acceptance of the fluidity of roles in your relationships depends upon how safe you feel. Either way it might be important to reflect on the two different ways of being in your relationships, either as a carer or as a companion. This aspect alerts us to the possibility that these ways of being are often split in yourself. This may leave you feeling ambivalent about relationship. Your task is to find functional ways of being both a friend and a parent in your relationships.

Communicating the way you feel is important. This stems back to your early experience with siblings and schoolmates. Your patterns of communication, sharing your ideas and learning were strongly influenced by these early relationships. You may still remember the emotional impact of your siblings' lying, name-calling and gossiping. And when it quieted down, you would interpret the silence between you and your sibling to try and comprehend the feelings trapped beneath their lack of communication. You learned to read and interpret emotional subtitles. This could have crystallised into an adult pattern of articulating your friend's or partner's feelings. The ability to express feelings is an important aspect of relationship, perhaps first learned in association with your siblings. You might feel you struggle with memory. Usually this is not the case as your memory is acute when there is feeling. An inability to remember may be a way of forgetting the emotional pain that comes with the memory. Therefore it is even more important in adult relationship to reverse the pattern by expressing your feelings, even if they feel negative.

Uranus is Opposite Mercury

When the zany planet Uranus combines with the mischievous Mercury there is likely to be evidence that individuality and freedom took precedence in your early experiences with peers and friends. With siblings, and later friends and partners, you need avenues to express your freedom and unique character. With communication and learning you want to adventure and experiment. You have your way of thinking about things which might not always dovetail with the ways others think. The sibling may have been your first image of independence and individuality. Yes you are attracted to the freedom fighter and rebel because you too are self-determined in many ways. However, the other side of the coin may be that your experience of early peer encounters was distant, aloof or cold. In its negative manifestation Uranus-Mercury may feel disengaged, bored, non-committal, leaving you feeling cut off or outside the circle. This is your way of knowing no connection has been made. When connection exists you are lively, wired and expressive. These extremes are part of your early relating until you feel you find your place and your independent nature is accepted and valued. In adult relationships you have an eclectic circle of friends who encourage you to be free and independent enough to feel that you are well connected. Your kindred spirits know how you are wired and love your adventures into outer space, cyber space, and all spaces in between.

The 11th House is where we hope and wish for a better future, not only for our loved ones and ourselves but also for our wider family. While the 11th House suggests participation with others outside our household we are still prone to recreating unresolved family and relational patterns in the groups, social circles and professional associations we join. Underlying the social relationships of the 11th House represented by friends, colleagues and associates are the primitive patterns and expectations from our earlier peer relationships. Friendship is one of the keynotes of this House and while we feel we have more choice in creating our friendships, we may also discover left over sibling rivalries. The ideal scenario is that we become greater than who we are on our own and in this way friendship helps to expand our boundaries and encourages growth and exploration. The relationships of the 11th House refer to those forged outside the family circle.

This House of relationship is where we meet the kindred spirits who we encounter in the world. Roles and positions have already been forged in our sibling and other relationships and we instinctively take these into our relationships in the broader community. Our impact on society and society's impact upon us is interconnected with our primary experiences of relationship. In the 11th House we become citizens of a larger community and meet our soul friends.

Relationships feel familiar, as they are kin, allies who are kindred spirits. Hopefully, the spirit that inspires and infuses us is the common link in our friends and colleagues. We can find the sense of belonging to a larger family, being individuals in a larger collective. However, the groups of friends, the group of colleagues, and the organisations we join reawaken incomplete relationship experiences and rivalry once again is experienced. Our friends, close colleagues and kindred spirits can also be the healing agents that help us reconcile and heal the pain of our earlier relationships.

In ancient Greece the polis was not only a representation of the city but also the spirit of the city-state. Here was where democracy flourished, the rights of citizens were respected and the early experiments at sharing power and influence were attempted. The 11th House of the Zodiac is political in that it links the individual in a spirit of equal relationship to others in the collective. Your understanding of the 11th House will help you consider how you forge a democratic, equal and co-operative relationship with others. Impinging upon the success of this is your earlier experiences of relating, your trust in human relationships and your unconscious expectations that you still harbour in relationships. Here you meet your kindred spirits in the world, who share your passions, witness your successes and share your burdens. Both the Zodiac Sign on the Cusp of this House and the planets contained in this sphere will help you reflect on your friendships and group affiliations

Eleventh House Cusp is in Scorpio

The 11th House represents your community, the groups you encounter and belong to outside the family: groups that you belong to because of your interests, your passions and your professional affiliations. Eleventh House experiences include your first class photo, your circle of friends, Girl Guides and Boy Scout experiences, the school council; groups where you were part of the community without other family members. But this House also describes your friends and kindred spirits who share your hopes and wishes and contribute to making your world the ideal place to live in.

With Scorpio on the Cusp of the 11th House, it is natural for you to take your time forging friendships as you bring your deeply passionate and soulful side to your friendships. You want to be involved on a deep level, not superficially, and therefore you need friends to engage with your emotionality and power. You prefer intimate gatherings to large crowds and therefore are more prone to finding your kindred spirits within groups that are more serious and substantial.

Still waters run deep and you bring this depth, intensity and privacy to your friendships. This suggests your friends know you will be there when they need you, that you are trustworthy and will tell the truth when they ask you to be honest with them. Friendship is sacred territory and you respect the mystery and intimacy of your close companions. However the other side of the coin suggests that you might get caught up in triangles or intrigues with your friends. The intensity of feeling may be experienced through secrets and lies, which while uncomfortable, feeds your need for intensity. An intimate friend and a dangerous enemy could be the same. Therefore it is prudent to be aware that you unconsciously invest friendships with a power and potency that often ignites feelings and emotions amongst your circle of friends. It is also wise to use your faculties of discrimination when you give your trust to friends. Not all may honour that.

This combination is not as easy as you might wish, as you bring the power of emotion to the arena of equal friendship. Therefore it might be difficult for you to draw the line between intimacy and friendship. However you know when you stepped across the line. That's often why it is hard to be friends after you've been intimates. A friend and a lover are not the same, but you may have been prone to trying to bring them together. Hence you've learnt that emotional boundaries between friends and lovers are a necessity.

A handful of close friends is more appealing than a clique of acquaintances. You have a great capacity for deep and personal friendships that are enduring and supporting. Sharing personal crisis and tragedy as well as the successes and accomplishments with others binds you even closer to them. You urge to share your innermost feelings with your companions; hence your friendships are ultimately a very private affair. In your heart you hold them dear and you expect the same. Your kindred spirits are your therapists, confidants and your emotional barometers. With friends you have the opportunity to experience the depth of love.

The Sun is in the Eleventh House

With your Sun in the 11th House you identity strongly with either your friends or colleagues and feel compelled to be part of a group. Underlying this urge is the realisation that in a group you are able to accomplish more than you can on your own. You realize that you need the group to help actualise your creativity and self expression. You need assurance and acknowledgement, yet paradoxically this is accomplished through focus on the needs of the group and not on the self. Your personal identity is developed through group participation, through organisations and community; therefore your fate is to be recognised for group successes or organisational achievements. You must learn to cope with being one of the team, not lost in the crowd, but a vital, integral and necessary link in the creative process of the organism. Satisfaction is found in contributing whole heartily to the success of the group not through personal achievements facilitated by the group. The more you identify with the goals and aims of the group, the greater your sense of self.

Friendships are important, as this is the arena where you can shine. Therefore it is important to acknowledge your need for friendship, the impact you have on your friends and the significant role you play in their lives. You need to feel recognised by your peers, acknowledged by your colleagues and favoured by your circle of friends, as it is in these areas where you will forge your identity and find your purpose. Innately this placement suggests your ability to father the group or be the leader, at least be the spokesperson for what needs to be accomplished. Therefore it is not surprising that prominent individuals within organisations have with this planetary placement.

Since friends become such a prime relationship it is important you to foster your intimate friendships. You experience your creativity and identity through friendship, therefore equality and reciprocity is necessary. As recognition by friends is revitalising it is important to recognise how you may unwittingly collude with eclipsing yourself or fostering others' creativity at the expense of your own in order to be acknowledged. You seek friendships where mutual support and admiration enhances your sense of self. You find your kindred spirits through mutual hobbies or similar goals, in group participation and community projects. Innately you have a great capacity for friendship and the more you love and cherish your friends, the more you feel loved and cherished.

As the poet describes, loving and committed relationships are forged by the alchemy of two individuals. Soul is expressed through individuality and when its unpredictable and mysterious nature is brought into intimate contact with another, a genuinely soulful relationship is possible. The 7th House is the astrological site where individuality and relationship converge. Astrologically, it is the quintessential House of relationship and its process embraces the experience of being with an equal other in a committed and intimate way. From the soul's viewpoint this is the arena where mutuality, reciprocity and respect for individuality can work to fashion a soulful relationship that embraces the unique character of each partner. Seventh House partners are not just marriage or life partners, but also close business partners and others engaged with you in a committed relationship.

Traditionally this sphere was known as the House of 'open enemies'. Whereas traditional astrology might literally ascribe qualities to a partner, contemporary astrology sees these qualities as mirror images of what is innate in us. In remaining unconscious of your 7th House energies, you proclaim them as belonging to someone else, generally your partner. We enter a mystery where we are drawn to what appears as opposite and different, yet is only a partial reflection of what is not yet conscious in us. What we sense is kin, congeniality, familiarity, yet not from the system we have known. Destiny hovers on the threshold of the 7th House; therefore the Sign on the Cusp is very often prominent in your partner's Horoscope.

We can draw an analogy between the arrival of the partner and the birth of a sibling. Powerfully conflicted feelings of love and rivalry, fascination and anger, closeness and separateness are ignited in new relationships. But this is the nature of intimate relationships as strands of each soul are woven together. Astronomically the 7th House is where the sun prepares to set. It is twilight, when the light elongates the shadows and we prepare to meet the dark. Therefore it is the partner who awakens an earlier stratum of psyche where unresolved or incomplete issues and patterns from other relationships may enter into our current relationship.

Our partners are companions, kindred spirits and intimate others. But human nature inclines towards moulding our partners with the clay of our own unresolved patterns and complexes. The material we use for this is often our own projections, fantasies and ideals. Following is a description of your 7th House energies which might help you recognise your own ideals or those you carry for your partners. In reflecting on these and becoming more conscious of underlying patterns, you can embrace these energies more fully in yourself allowing your relationships to be less focused on the past and more anchored in the present and, hopefully more soulful.

Seventh House Cusp is in Gemini

Astronomically your 7th House begins on the western point of the horizon. Astrologically this is the sector of the Zodiac that was setting when you were born. This Zodiacal location is exactly opposite your Ascendant or Rising Sign. Your Rising Sign depicts your personality and independent outreach into life. Your descending Sign or Descendant, as it is known, represents “others”. Therefore the Ascendant-Descendant axis becomes vital in any relationship analysis. It describes the intimate dance between yourself and your partner.

Your Ascendant is Sagittarius; therefore the Air Sign Gemini is on your Descendant or 7th House Cusp.

The Air trinity includes Gemini, Libra and Aquarius. This triumvirate of signs is compatible, at least theoretically, with relationship. It is natural for Air Sign people to want to share ideas and experiences. The Element of Air is constantly seeking its other half through the process of relating. However, Air seeks a multiplicity of experiences and may share its ideas and experiences in many differing relationships, being indiscriminate about privacy and containment. Relationships may be an arena of curiosity, and often at the beginning of the getting-to-know-you phase Air's inquiring and interactive manner is mistaken for a deeper emotional or more intimate interest.

Although you love to relate, you also need 'air', space between and enough breath to feel invigorated. You are comfortable with the idea of equality, sharing and the theory of relatedness but you may have difficulty in the sphere of intimacy and emotional constancy. It is natural for you to experiment with a range of possibilities in any relationship, because you like to satisfy your curiosity and inquisitive urges. You need a great amount of space, emotionally, physically and psychologically before you are comfortable enough 'settling down'. Changeability is natural, and without enough space, you feel stifled and unable to breathe, who may lead to restlessness, even anxiety within any key relationship. If the bond feels stifling, you are keen to escape. You really need to experiment within any relationship before an authentic commitment can be given. Also with you relationship with your siblings could be an indication of how you might explore ideas, relate, learn and adventure with another. A sibling is often experienced as the first partner you learned to relate to and gossip and experiment emotionally with. Communication on all levels within relationship is important, and if in the sibling system there was a lack of communication or sharing of ideas, this could adversely affect your outlook on adult relationships.

What you are first attracted to in others is their youthfulness, their versatility, the way they make you laugh when they mimic your friends or tell a joke and the way they make you think when they are telling you about their latest intellectual discovery. They're so adaptable and communicative and witty. However while you may attract these qualities in your quest for equal relationship, you will also attract the opposite of these qualities. The life of the party may now seem adolescent, the intellect doesn't have enough soul and you're not feeling as special as you want to be feeling. But any relationship can also help you to forge meaning and make sense of all your ideas. Your own intellectual and storytelling talents begin to emerge through the process of relating to someone significant. But most importantly you find the ability that ability to navigate duality and be both separate and together in your relationship.

Qualities you admire and are attracted to in others include versatility, intellect, communication, adaptability and the constant curiosity about life and the way it works. And it is these very qualities that a partner helps you find in yourself. So don't be surprised when your friends and constant companions are very Geminian or change their minds day to day.

Mars is in the Seventh House

The feisty planet Mars feels rather awkward in your 7th House of relationships. This is because the planet Mars' nature is competitive. Being here it is on a steep learning curve about co-operating, sharing and compromising. Hence you might attract competitive, independent, fiery, and potentially quarrelsome individuals who remind you of your Martian needs. Mars is edgy in relationship and its manifestation of anger or aggression often sits uneasily in partnering. If this energy has been deeply repressed, your projection may be exaggerated in attracting aggressive behaviour from others.

You might find yourself reacting in a variety of ways when confronted by belligerent or offensive behaviour. For instance you might give up, believing that the other person has all the power. But by relinquishing the fight, your power and self assertion is in the other's camp, rendering you submissive and powerless. Another reaction might be that you are quick to realize the competition within any relationship, and you then make sure you get in first. You could become overtly 'trigger-happy', when reacting to any real or imagined threat to your territory. Finally you could retreat so others are not able to threaten you, leaving you numb and disengaged in the relationship. All these scenarios are reactive and ultimately keep you feeling isolated within your primary relationships. You need to learn that anger and competition are a natural art of relationship and the expression of your own desires will not kill off the relationship.

Allowing other people to express themselves without you having a say leaves you feeling unassertive and dependent. When your fiery passions are used to fuel your partner's goals, endowing them with courage and an entrepreneurial spirit, you might collapse into a black hole, becoming lethargic and lacking direction. A relationship can vitalise and stimulate you; therefore if you are in a partnership that renders you immobile, you need to reflect on what you are doing.

While you are only able to see your partner as angry, not yourself, you fail to see how you may have provoked them or colluded with them to express you anger. This leaves you feeling powerless with no will to redirect the situation. When you overlook your own drive and determination, eventually you become red with anger and hostility. The best way to start integrating your energy back into your relationship is to co-operate - you both have the power, so take turns sharing it. Your relationship needs to create a space where each one can do their thing within the safety and structure of your relationship. You can also be integrated through healthy competition, where you and your partner can compete together, win sometimes, lose sometimes, so the winning and the losing is not unbalanced, yet the competitive streak is kept alive. You need to express your power and anger within the relationship without the fear of being chastised or criticised like you may have been in the past. Your partner is your rival but he or she is also your best friend. You may also have unresolved conflict with a brother, especially aggression and rivalry that could affect your current relationship. However your partner (either gender) can also be like a supportive brother to you. Your kindred spirit is on your team. They want to help you go for whatever it is you want, so let them know what that is and how they can help.

Saturn is in the Seventh House

When it comes to your primary relationship you need security, stability, organisation and control. While not always so, in our culture, the planet Saturn has come to represent the patriarch, the conditional parent and the rules of the system. But psychologically the task of Saturn is to become self regulatory, in control of our destiny, autonomous and the author of our own life script, developing the authentic self in the stern face of external authority, tradition and rules. You may feel vulnerable to others, seek their approval and try to please to feel acceptable. You might feel equality is earned by following someone else's agenda, rather than you own.

When you encounter others you feel that they are more worldly, more competent or more successful than you, triggering a 'father - child' pattern. Your partners may often be described as authoritative, limiting, cold, too responsible, controlling, which they often are when you are trying to live up to their standards and not your own. If you feel restricted by your partner and blame them for being so rigid, ask yourself what it is that you react to so strongly in your partner. Is there unfinished business with your father, other authority figures and rules? Do you seek approval from your partner and other equals? Are you still seeking direction and a meaningful occupation? Do you apologise for being in the world? If you lack structure and boundary in your life, you may unconsciously ask your partner to live this out for you, leaving you feel dissatisfied and unfulfilled.


Power and control may also be issues here, as well as work. All can be overdone. Your partner's control may seem to threaten or limit you. You might feel that their controlling behaviour inhibits you or does not allow you to be as free as we would want to be. You may feel confined and imprisoned in your relationship. But the answer is not to work on the relationship as you might feel but to work on yourself to find your position in the world. Ultimately your feelings of lack of control or knowing what is right for you are exaggerating the restrictive behaviour of the partner. You might be attracted to the worldly wisdom, the success and authority of your partner. But if you deny your innate needs for control and mastery, the supportive father you once saw in your partner turns rigid and patronising.

At this point it is important to reflect on your ambitions and need for acknowledgement through work. If you only see the accomplishment, status and success through your partner, your divine gifts of wisdom, stature and your role in the world feels diminished. You may unconsciously be giving your own power and ambition to your partner to live out for us. Then you find yourself blaming them for being a workaholic. You need to be aware of your own needs for accomplishment, authority and autonomy. You also need to challenge yourself to find a place in the world that acknowledges you. Ironically the most accomplished role you could play is that of a business partner, but first you need to be sure it is an equal playing field. You are astute at helping your partner become successful but it important that you are acknowledged as the equal partner. As the silent partner you may feel that your work is being undervalued and unacknowledged.

You might feel anxious meeting others, expecting them to criticise, control or dominate you. This might delay the process of relating and establishing a secure relationship. But ultimately, your partner mirrors the older and wiser aspects of your soul. Time allows you to honour and respect our own authority and soul wisdom. And when you do, you find accomplished others to share your life. Your kindred spirits are well respected for their integrity, focus and triumphs and they recognise and admire your contribution and support in their lives.

To the ancient mythmakers, Venus and Mars were consistently paired together as companions, either lovers or close sibling allies. In Roman mythology they are the deities who preside over the Empire. To the Greeks Aphrodite and Ares were deeply attached passionate lovers or siblings. In the story of “The Odyssey” they are caught in a golden web woven by Hephaestus who wove the fine filament in order to entrap Aphrodite in bed with Ares. Their relationship is an erotic one. In Homer's earlier epic “The Iliad” their relationship is depicted as less magnetic, yet just as close. Aphrodite refers to him in this epic as 'dear brother'. Their relationship is devoted and warm-hearted. When we imagine these gods we think of them as eternal lovers, sometimes married, other times not. They represent two layers of soulmates: erotic and emotional intimacy as well as companionship. In psychological terms they represent our inner orientation to pleasure and passion, while in astrological terms they help identify what qualities attract us to others, what we value and desire. Physiologically they are our scent and libido, the innate attractive and active forces that draw us towards companionship.

In term of compatibility and conflict in relationship, Venus and Mars play a leading role. The complete picture of their placement in your horoscope can be fully assessed by a professional astrologer. For this report we are only analysing the planetary sign which signifies qualities and essences important in your intimate relationships.

Venus is pleasure and beauty. Both in body and in spirit, Venus symbolises what you find attractive and the values you place upon your relationships, what you need to feel partnered and your own inner sense of worth and value that wants to be appreciated, honoured and respected. Your Venus sign is a metaphor for those qualities you need in relationship to feel complete.

Mars is passion and desire. Whether spiritual, physical, intellectual or emotional Mars symbolises how you express your desires, frustrations and energy. In terms of relationship it suggests how you assert yourself, deal with conflict and make your desires transparent. Your Mars sign describes how you might express yourself, go after what you want and how you may deal with anger in relationship. In essence it is a symbol of how your life force naturally seeks expression.

Being opposite in nature, Venus and Mars are naturally attracted to one another and often a highlight of your soul mate's astrological constitution. Therefore take note of the sign placements of both Venus and Mars and how they are reflected in the horoscopes of intimate others. Use these descriptions to reflect on your values and desires. Venus themes in relationship focus on shared values, feeling loved and appreciated, money and pleasure, affection and sensuality while Mars brings themes of sex and desire, independence and individuality, dealing with conflict and the sharing of goals out into the open. By nature Venus is feminine and Mars is masculine; therefore gender wise Venus might be more integrated into the personality for women while Mars might be more accessible for men. That ”Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus thing again. Hence a man's Venus might be a fair description of women he is attracted to while a woman's Mars often describes the men she attracts.

Venus is in Scorpio

Therapist seeking Therapist
Imagine this advertisement in the personal column of your local paper. Well you probably do have to imagine it, as I doubt you would announce publicly that you are seeking companionship. You are more inclined to conceal your feelings, but privately you long for the depth of connection that intimacy offers. You value the passion and intensity that closeness brings. However you may mistake emotional crisis and pain for connection or passion and emotion for love. You come alive in emergencies. In dangerous situations or at critical junctures you are fully present. Personally it is wise not to confuse love and crisis as you may end up being the therapist in an ongoing pattern of “therapy love”.

While you may not necessarily be a strong feeling type, when you enter a close personal relationship you are confronted with in-depth feelings, either in yourself or in your partner. Because you have the tendency to connect at the most vulnerable level of your being, trust is always an issue. Or perhaps it is betrayal. Therefore emotional control, jealousy and possessiveness are aspects of relating. Whether you encounter these in yourself or others they are there. Why? Well you have the capacity to love deeply and this sensitivity needs armouring. Secrecy is another way to defend your vulnerability. Money and sex are also intimate pathways but can also be used as a defence against personal disclosure. So is power. Power and love are interwoven. You either open to the power of love or defend yourself with the love of power. Reflect on how you might unconsciously build defences against feeling vulnerable; probably you are still nursing a relationship wound or memories of betrayal. It's hard for you to let go and open up again, but incredibly therapeutic when you do.

Hopefully it is evident that you have the capacity for deep and abiding relationships. However you also fear the possible loss of the beloved if you were to become intimate. Well the truth is you always lose the ones you love. It might not be tomorrow, even in 20 years, but it will happen. Therefore you are challenged to love in the emotional present which is filled with the paradox of feelings. You value your ability to be emotionally available, unafraid yet respectful of the dark and non-judgemental about other's feelings. Your integrity and sincerity in relationships does render you vulnerable, but your soulmates meet you, value and love you for your emotional honesty.

Mars is in Leo

How you assert yourself in your relationships and take the courage to be your own person is the domain of the Planet Mars. In fiery Sign of Leo it suggests that you are masterful at putting your self our there, backed up by a ton of charm and charisma. You might not realise it, but you have a powerful persuasion and sex appeal that can disarm the most difficult opponent. Therefore you might be fast tracked into prominence or positions of power. Some crushes and a few broken hearts have even occurred without you knowing. However this also feeds an arrogant and stubborn streak that can create conflict in personal relationships.

Your Mars sign is ruled by the Sun, so with this brilliant light in the background it's sometimes hard for you to see your own shadows. Sometimes a comment is taken as a criticism or a suggestion is seen as a shortcoming. You desire to be desired but sometimes you also need to reassure yourself that it's not the end because someone hasn't noticed you. It helps lessen the drama and the heartbreak.

When you desire someone you produce an incredible stage on which you are the hero or heroine. It is quite irresistible, but how are you going to manage later when the lights fade and the curtain falls. What you will find is that the fires of the heart can also be contained, not just burn ferociously. Your desire and passion is constant. Even though you may like to play with others, you are loyal to those you love. You bring a great deal of fun, flair and warmth to your relationships and what you receive in return is fidelity and applause.

The Nodes

You won't meet your kindred spirits accidentally. In the chronicles of the soul, there are no accidents, only meaningful coincidences; therefore your soulmates are already familiar to you. Whether you come across them in the sacred circle of your family, the playgrounds of your childhood, in your adult establishments or your elderly neighbourhoods, they are already part of you. Whether these relationships last a minute or a lifetime, are filled with happiness or conflict, they are destiny's design woven into your life's intricate tapestry. Therefore it is inevitable that at some time your path will intersect the paths of your soulmates.

But when? Well this is the riddle of relationship. Whatever arrangement or timing brings you into alignment with your kindred spirits is the inexplicable mystery of the soul. Astrology is a great aid in this regard as it can bypass layers of rational minds to explore timing in relationships. Astrology's timing techniques are invaluable in helping to focus on major and meaningful passages in relationship. Consulting a professional astrologer to explore these questions can be highly revealing and rewarding. Within the limits of this report we can draw on an aspect of your horoscope that will help you reflect on your encounters with kindred spirits. This is the House position of the North Node, a signpost that points to where soul may be encountered in relationship.

The House positions of the Nodes illustrate environmental factors that shape and influence your fate, including relationship. This is where the inner and outer worlds lead us to a rendezvous with soul. North Node experiences are out of the ordinary, since its nature is both subjective and participatory with the spiritual world. Therefore the House position of the North Node locates one of the settings where engagement with the spiritual self occurs. The South Node is in the opposite House and describes a familiar place, an area of safety, and a comfort zone that supplies an anchor for our relationships. However it is also a place where we can become fixed, caught in the safety zone of our complacency and neglect the invitation of the North Node. That would be a shame as it is at this pole where you might cross paths with a kindred spirit.

Considering this one image in your Horoscope invites you to feel more masterful in participating with your soul's journey and more receptive to close encounters with kindred spirits.

The North Node is in the Seventh House

Close encounters with kindred spirits are an important feature of destiny's design for you. They are on the horizon of your life but you need to become more aware of them. One of your spiritual tasks is to shift the spotlight away from self towards others. As you begin to feel less self conscious and more expressive you will begin to see a different horizon filled with the possibility of relationships. You are innately adventurous but the adventure is now in the unexplored terrain of relationship. This is where you need to take a risk and be a warrior.

With your North Node in the 7th House of your birth chart and your South Node in the 1st House, the arena of personal relationships is highlighted, as the polarity of these houses is the axis of self and other. While you may feel more inclined to do your own thing rather than follow others, compromise and co-operation are your life lessons. Your path leads in the direction of others. Whether you are aware of this or not, your life focus is on being fulfilled and complete in relationships, whether they are intimate others, closes friends or business partnerships. What a task to navigate this complexity of needs, desires and expectations.

To feel that you are an independent soul, free of the need to be involved with others, is an unhappy deception and encourages a false sense of security. Naturally you have a strong spirit and a well-developed independent streak, but your task is to place effort and conscious will into forging relationships. Interestingly your time invested in others will be rewarded with realisations into your self. The pathway in front of you naturally veers towards close encounters with others, which will bring out more of your own authentic self. Don't worry - you won't become co-dependent or lose yourself completely.

Independence, freedom and adventure are innately aspects of your character; therefore you will never lose these traits, unless of course you do not value them. The task is to recognise that rewarding and fulfilling relationship encourage your individuality and champion your visions. Through relating and the interchange with others you discover the missing link to your sense of selfhood. Interpersonal relationships are the key to your expression of individuality and through your associations you are able to make an impact on the wider community. You love a contest, and the challenge now is to master relationship.

Interactions and close personal relationships help you to develop and recognise your leadership and entrepreneurial skills. With your kindred spirits you may take on a managerial or leadership role, as you have an innate sense of being able to take risks and confront difficulties. However managing others is not necessarily relating to others and effort is needed to remain involved personally. When you find the path that feels right for you, be assured that your soulmates will also journey along that same track. One thing consistent with this nodal axis is that you will recognise your kindred spirits when they cross your path, as there will be something so familiar and accessible about them that you feel you have known them forever. Just remember kindred spirits come in all shapes and sizes with both endearing and annoying traits! Perfection comes later.

Songwriter John Denver's lyrics capture the paradoxical nature of love for each individual. Every relationship whether it is familial or formal, professional or personal, intimate or casual is an invitation to self-discovery. We bring our hopes, secrets, expectations, resources and desires to our relationships and through the alchemy of interaction come to better know ourselves and others. Soul does not strive to work out or control relationship but inspires us to consider what is being asked of us; what is the fate of this relationship? In this way astrology is a unique tool in helping us reflect on the purpose and patterns of our relationships, not to fix or control them, but to understand their complexity and place in our lives.

Kindred spirits are relationships in which a deep bond is present, not inspired by the teachings of a self-help manual but through the soul's grace. And that is a mystery which astrology helps us to consider. I have written this report to promote a spirit of inquiry into the patterns and purposes of soul in your relationships. Like soul there may be contradiction and confusion, as it seeks understanding not clarity. Also the report is limited in its nature to explore the more detailed and intricate patterns of your horoscope. However it is the author's sincere hope that it provides an initial step to your reflection on relationships. Perhaps love in the end is what we are willing to bring to it, like the poet Ovid implied in “The Art of Love”: “If you'd be loved, be worthy to be loved”.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brian Clark is one of the main tutors of a four-year program in applied astrology, Astro*Synthesis which also offers a comprehensive course through distance learning. He has been teaching astrology for the past 30 years and lectured extensively to metaphysical, astrological and psychological groups in Australia, New Zealand, United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe. Previously in the Solar Writer series, Brian has written Vocation and co-authored Goddess available through Esoteric Technologies www.esotech.com.au. He is the author of The Sibling Constellation (Penguin Arkana: 1999), Celestial Tarot (US Games: 2007) and a contributing author to Intimate Relationships (Llewellyn, 1991), books that have also been translated into French and Japanese. As well Brian has written numerous articles for leading astrological publications which have been translated into Spanish, Italian, French and German, and is the author of numerous students booklets on astrology available through AstroSynthesis www.AstroSynthesis.com.au. Brian also lectures on mythology and conducts tours to sacred sites in Greece through Odyssey Tours to Ancient Greece. Brian has a BA from Sir George Williams University in Montreal as well as his Graduate Diploma, Post Graduate Diploma and MA in Classics and Archaeology from Melbourne University.

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