The Astro Study Room
Learning the truth of the stars together. Astrology 101 with a few side quests.
The Astro Study Room
#1 - Orientation Day! Astrology Fundamentals with Ember and Jordan
Ever wondered what the stars were doing when you arrived on Earth? Welcome to the very first episode of the Astro Study Room, where we're exploring the fundamentals of birth charts in an accessible, conversational way. Think of this is just the first day of class where we are going over the syllabus together!
Your birth chart is the universe's unique blueprint for your life. Think of it as a cosmic screenshot taken the moment you took your first breath. Jordan, a practicing astrologer and eternal student, joins forces with Ember, a fire fairy witch diving deeper into astrological studies, to break down what makes each person's chart so distinctive.
We start by examining the current astro weather (Saturn in Aries creating boundary challenges while Jupiter shines favorably in Cancer), then dive into what a birth chart actually is. Using the metaphor of a theatrical production, we explain how planets act as performers, signs as their roles, and how these energies play out uniquely for each person. Discover why knowing your exact birth time matters, what planetary "dignities" mean, and get a clear introduction to all ten planets and twelve zodiac signs.
This episode is perfect for beginners wanting to understand astrology's language while offering a refreshing review for those further along in their studies. Whether you've been reading charts for years or just learned what a rising sign is, we're creating space for everyone to grow their cosmic understanding at their own pace.
We wrap up with practical suggestions: pull up your birth chart at Astro.com and notice which elements naturally draw your attention. Consider what you want to understand about yourself through astrology, then join our free Patreon community for study guides, journal prompts, and connection with fellow star students.
Ready to decode your personal star map? Subscribe now and maybe pull out some colored pencils. Class is out, but the study room is officially in session.
Hi, welcome to the Astro Study Room. This is an inclusive space where we can explore astrology together in a way that is slow and fun and intentional. I'm Jordan. I'm a practicing astrologer and forever student and your study buddy of the cosmos. I really enjoy getting into the philosophy and the history and the ongoing research that is coming from the astrology community.
Ember:Yes, I'm so excited. I'm Ember, your friendly neighborhood fire fairy witch, and I am so pumped to be here with Jordan and all of you. I've been casually studying astrology for about the past year and I am super excited to be taking my learning and studying to the next level, especially with this podcast, and I just love using astrology to help really understand different parts of myself, and I'm super excited to get into the more spiritual aspects of astrology.
Jordan:Yeah, we want this podcast to feel like it's close friends and classmates who decided to just grab coffee together after class and to go over our study notes. So these episodes are not meant to be lectures, but we are both university researchers and we will provide citations, receipts and credits where it is due.
Ember:Every other Tuesday, we will be exploring core astrology topics, breaking them down and just really chatting about how these concepts show up in our real lives and also reflect on the wisdom that the stars have to share with us. If you enjoyed this episode, I hope you will consider subscribing and leaving us a review to help grow our little cohort of astrology students.
Jordan:And we are really excited to share with you all that we have a completely free Patreon that anyone can join. We will be sharing things like behind the scenes, extra journal prompts, musings, ritual ideas and, hopefully, a growing cohort of astrology students.
Ember:Yes, our astro star students. Yeah, I'm so pumped for our Patreon, like so excited, like we've been working on study guides for you all so cute You're so cute.
Jordan:I'm so impressed with us.
Ember:We're like both on Canva, just like editing and like watching.
Jordan:Instead of doing our jobs.
Ember:Instead of doing our jobs. I'm sorry, boss, if you're listening to this. So, jordan, I really wanted to ask and kind of like have you share with our listeners? Obviously, I know a little bit about why you wanted to start this podcast, but what was, like, your main motivator for getting this going?
Jordan:start a podcast. It just felt like the natural next step that everybody does and it felt like a fun way to get involved in the community. But I didn't know what I was going to do to sort of set this podcast apart. I didn't really want to do just another Astroweather podcast those are great, but you don't, I don't need another one. And I felt like I'm not advanced enough yet to really like be a teacher. But I still wanted to be discussing these things. So I decided it just hit me one day, like the astro study room, and I was like this would be a great idea to like kind of like be like a diary, like a learning diary, and I thought it would be cool to kind of break down a lot of the astrology jargon and I love jargon and so does the astrology community but it does kind of make the space feel inaccessible.
Ember:And that is like my number one thing in everything I do is, you know, making kind of like those like basic witch comments like oh, my cancer, sun and like, but I really only knew about my sun sign and my moon sign and it wasn't until I really found community to learn. With that, things started clicking and I really like found that drive to understand what you're working with when you're talking about astrology. And so I started working with Tanae Stewart and her Starlight Coven. I'm in her inner circle through I think it was one of like Wendy Mata's workshop programs. You know how they like run those free programs which, oh my gosh, I highly recommend. If you ever see like free workshops and it's something you're interested in, do it like support your local witch community. Like there's so many amazing programs out there.
Ember:And that's how I found Tanay and that was about the end of last summer and just the way she spoke about astrology and incorporated seasons and elements into her explanations of the signs. The houses really just spoke to me. And then within her inner circle, we have like a little group and we always comment and talk about things. We have workshops and that's just been a really incredible space to talk about, not really even just astrology. We talk about like spiritual practices, goddess work, divine femininity and how that incorporates into our charts, which is super cool and things just started clicking for me and that was so helpful. So I'm really excited that we're trying to start our own little space here to have people to study with.
Jordan:Yeah, especially with astrology being such a minority interest and such a minority study, like you really need community, or else one you're not going to grow without some kind of community. But also like you need that to feel like you're not alone, um, to bounce ideas off with each other, to learn from a more diverse community outside of just yourself. Um, and it's interesting too, because when I had this idea for the podcast, I totally wanted to do it by myself, because I we've talked about this, you and I, amber, but like I don't love to share control, I we've talked about this, you and I, amber, but like I don't love to share control, and I just felt like it would be easier for me to do this by myself. But I felt like intuitively, intuitively, that I had to ask you, but I didn't because I don't know, I'm stubborn. So I did a tarot reading with my mom, shout out to my mom Hi, mom. And it basically said that like the podcast was going to be like wildly unsuccessful, but that I was going to meet someone that would change my life. And I was like, okay, all right, I guess that's still fun.
Jordan:And then I was like what if it's Ember? Like what if she's the one who's going to change my life or something. And I just couldn't stop thinking. And the other thing too, I like, I guess, because, like, this was like my little, like we talked about this, like because this was kind of like my baby, I almost had this fear of like asking you and you not liking it, and I'd be like rejected my child.
Jordan:So I decided I was like I'm just going to ask her. It's going to be real casual. I'm just going to be like, hey, you like this, like it's totally fine if you don't, but like, if you do, do you want to? Like you want to join me? I don't know? So then I asked you and you were totally into it at first and I did another tarot reading and it went super well. So I think I think having you join this podcast, I mean it's literally exactly what it needed. It's the thing. I couldn't have enacted, the vision that I have for this podcast without you in it. So I'm very grateful that you joined me.
Ember:I'm like blushing so hard. Right now you can't see me in a podcast, but I'm blushing so hard. No, jordan and I just have like the best conversations we jumped on. Jordan was actually one of the first people to do a full chart reading for me which I'll totally go into another time but it was such an amazing conversation we had. We were probably on Zoom together for like three or four hours.
Jordan:It was a long time.
Ember:But what's like so crazy to me about your story is that sometime back in March I actually filmed a podcast for the first time with Matt Stein of Contemplating Resonance podcast. It's a great podcast. You should totally check it out. But I was talking more about burlesque and how I incorporate spirituality into my burlesque and the history of burlesque, and after recording that episode I was just so hooked, I was energized. I had such a good time.
Ember:We were like laughing so much and I don't know he just in that, after we were done, he kind of just expressed like hey, amber, you'd be like really fun on a podcast. You really seem to enjoy it. You have such great energy. I was like, oh my God, matt, stop you tell everyone that. But I just like got this bug. That was like maybe I need to do a podcast. And that was back in March and I was like no way, that's a lot of work to do on my own. There's no way I would. I don't even know what I would talk about. I don't know what I want to do. There's no way I'd get it off the ground. And then I like was talking about it with my partner for a while and then just fast forward to when you and I started talking. When you first told me about the podcast idea, I was like oh my gosh, that sounds so fun yeah.
Jordan:The interesting, too, is you were like one of the only people I told, because I was like you didn't know this at the time, but I was like putting out feelers. Cause, again, I had it in my head, I was like I need to ask her, but I just didn't. I just like was afraid of, like you know, commitment issues and all that, but like I just felt like I had to ask you and so I put out feelers. I was like, and you're like the only person I told about this, hi Editing Jordan here. I wrote this in my notes and I totally forgot to mention it here, but I wanted to pop in and also mention that there were two other people that I told about this podcast idea and they are my dear friends from the Mystical Mermaid Lounge podcast and I highly recommend that you go check out their podcast.
Jordan:They do a great job at interviewing different people and how they discover their spirituality and how they have grown into themselves and their their own self discovery and their personal growth. It's very spiritual. They focus on mediumship, different psychics, just different paths to finding yourself in different ways towards spirituality. So I highly recommend checking them out. I put out feelers. I was like what do you like, what do you think? And like, just yeah them out. I put out feelers and I was like what do you like, what do you think?
Ember:And like just yeah, just trying to get a vibe, I was so clueless. I was like, yeah, girl get it, like go, but no, when you were like hopping into my DMs and you were like, actually, hey, do you want to do this thing with me? And then I just love how like nervous we were at first.
Ember:They were like you were like but but like you don't have to if you're like would you really want me Like you think I'm qualified to do this, like I think it's cool, so amazing how it manifested Like I'm still honestly shocked to be here.
Jordan:No, I think and we've talked about this a lot as we're coming up to this first episode, but I think we have so quickly acknowledged, like the different things that you and I are going to bring to this podcast and how we're going to balance each other out so well. I don't think this podcast could exist without either of us.
Ember:Oh my gosh, we're just like both nonstop just buzzing with excitement. So get ready, because it's gonna be a super fun time. We're just so pumped.
Jordan:And yeah, we have just run into so many things that have, like, I feel like, proven that this is how it's supposed to be, and one of those things was again with that Tara reading that I did with my mom, where things were looking much better, by the way, I might share those on our Patreon. But the last card we did the Celtic cross spread and the last card for outcome future outcome for this podcast, I got 10 of pentacles. And then I know the next day, amber, you got yeah, I got the ace of pentacles.
Ember:I'm a very much like one and done girl. Like sometimes I'm just like I have a question, I'm going to like pull a card real fast, and so I asked about. I was like what are the vibes for this podcast? And just ace of pentacles came out. It was so beautiful, so all about like new opportunities, abundance, like I mean, you can't really ask for anything better. And I'm just like I keep saying excited. Excited is definitely the right word and I'm so sorry if I repeat that like a hundred times in this episode, but I am so excited about this podcast and for our Patreon.
Ember:We, as I've already mentioned, have been working on these resources. For you, we'll continue to share our class notes, so definitely get on over there. And for you, we'll continue to share our class notes, so definitely get on over there and sign up. We'll put the link in this first podcast episode. And speaking of our first episode, let's introduce what we're going to talk about today. So we're going to talk about what a birth chart even is an introduction to the planets and the astrological signs.
Ember:So this is very like intro stuff. We're going to go pretty superficial here, but you know, if you haven't been familiar with astrology before, this will be a really good opportunity to kind of just like start to hear some of the lingo, some of the things we'll be talking about, and if you are deep in your studies, this will be a good like kind of review for you. So buckle up, star students. Class is officially out and the study room is in session. Okay, we are going to jump into something I am super excited for. So in every episode, jordan is going to share the current major transits with us, and so when I first started learning astrology, I definitely didn't know what a transit was. So we were talking about having this section hoping to kind of include the breakdown of the planetary movements, how they're impacting us, you, the collective, whatever and Jordan does an amazing job sharing this in a super accessible and easy to digest way. So let's go.
Jordan:Oh well, thank you, Amber, that's so sweet. So when this podcast publishes on June 10th of 2025, Saturn will be two weeks into its Aries transit, which means I have officially started my first Saturn return.
Jordan:So, pray for me. But in general, saturn shows us limitations, boundaries, challenges, authority and responsibility. So Saturn is the greater malefic. Saturn is seen as the tough planet, the challenging planet. Saturn is in its fall in Aries, meaning Aries is Saturn's absolute least favorite place to be. They do not get along super well together. Aries is a very impulsive and a high energy go-getter type of feel. Aries is aggressive but also confident. Mixed with Saturn's cold, focused and more stable nature, these two energies just don't know how to get along and work together most of the time. And in more traditional astrology, saturn also rules aging and death and Aries is very much a sign of youth and new life. So you can see how these two kind of contrast each other in a way that makes it hard to make the magic happen. Well, with Saturn being in a weakened state, this can weaken structures and boundaries.
Jordan:Right now I'm definitely interested in learning more about Saturn and Aries throughout history to be able to compare what might happen today for the collective. I know these days people are talking a lot about the Saturn-Neptune conjunction in Aries or the great sextile coming up, where Pluto will be trining Uranus and Gemini, while Neptune and Saturn are in Aries, sextiling them both, and that is a lot of words and you don't need to know them all right now. First, we're just going to focus on the Saturn Neptune conjunction happening right now. A conjunction is when two planets are within 10 degrees of each other and their energies mix together to create like a new flavor. So this is considered a neutral aspect on its own. A conjunction is not positive or negative. It just depends on which planets are talking to each other With this particular placement the Saturn-Neptune conjunction.
Jordan:This can indicate disillusionment maybe, especially with one's spirituality. It can be a confusing time to understand boundaries either your own or understanding someone else's boundaries that they have up. It can be a difficult time to understand expectations or laying out your expectations. It can bring about feelings of to understand expectations or laying out your expectations. It can bring about feelings of depression or a sense of feeling lost, and it can also mean holding your spiritual beliefs to a higher standard. It could mean questioning what you thought you believed, questioning what you thought you knew. It can also mean holding yourself to a higher standard. But in more exciting news, jupiter has just ingressed into Cancer. The day this podcast comes out, I mentioned that Aries is Saturn's least favorite place to be, while Cancer is Jupiter's absolute favorite place to be. Jupiter is the planet of growth, fortune, opportunities, expansion, travel, education and just all the good things. So, like I said, saturn is the greater malefic. It's kind of like the big bad planet. Jupiter is the greater benefic. It's the big good planet.
Ember:Saturn is just misunderstood.
Jordan:You esoteric astrologers. I think and I hope that this is really going to have the potential to mitigate some of the challenging things coming with Saturn and Aries. Jupiter and Saturn will be squaring each other, which is typically a challenging aspect, but some people say that there's no such thing as a bad aspect, jupiter, I think Jupiter in Cancer is also asking us to create safe spaces, or maybe to rely on the safe havens we've already established, and while Neptune conjunct Saturn can make themes of faith more challenging, jupiter in Cancer may be asking you to really nurture your spiritual growth right now. It's okay to question your faith and your beliefs, but do so in a way that is safe for your mental health. Don't throw everything away because of upcoming disenchanting feelings. Find what feels good for you and go with it.
Ember:Yeah, I think that's pretty potent, especially now. I don't know, I feel like summertime for me is always a time to kind of just like sit. I don't know, I just don't really have energy in the summertime, I just want to like be by myself and be outside, and it's a really good time for me to reflect on spirituality. To reflect on spirituality and just I think, even just starting this podcast right now the whole growth aspect to this. There's a lot of, like you know, uncomfortable things that come up, like imposter syndrome and all of that. So this will be a really good reminder to kind of make sure I stay in like that positive space and try to not let those like back feelings really get in the way. But I was curious, jordan, so you mentioned like a Saturn return. It is your Saturn return and can you explain like what that means? What's a return, or when like any planet returns to your chart?
Jordan:Yeah, so a return is when the planet comes back to the point that it was at when you were born. So, for example, I have my Saturn at 28 degrees in Aries, and so when Saturn is at 28 degrees in Aries again, that will be like the exact day of my Saturn return. And I wouldn't say in my experience so far that astrologers really focus on the return of every planet In general. A return is also kind of like it's signifying the end of a cycle and then the beginning of another. One Saturn cycle takes 28 to 29 and a half years to cycle through all 12 zodiac signs, and the moon does the same thing with days. The moon cycle takes 28 to 29 and a half days. So it's really cool to see how they kind of sync up there I'm super in tune with the moon.
Ember:I love it Again. Cancer of sun, I guess. But I always follow my lunar return.
Jordan:I'm always like, oh, yay, yeah and the lunar return can show you emotionally what might be coming up in the month ahead for you and it can also show you what you need that month to feel good and to feel safe. And then a lot of people will also pay attention to their solar return, which comes once every year on your birthday, and this can show you what key themes are coming up for you in your head. People do pay attention to their Saturn return and this is kind of a moment of this the return. From what I've heard is that it's a very challenging, difficult thing to get through, but once you get to the other side you come out of it with like, so much more wisdom and so much more growth and so much more maturity.
Ember:So with the Saturn return, I'm curious, like what are some of your concerns coming up with? Like a return with the big bad Saturn?
Jordan:So I think like my biggest concern is that I have my Saturn in Aries, in Saturn's fall, in Saturn's least favorite place to be. So Saturn is so unsupported here and therefore it makes it more difficult to work with Saturn, so I'm concerned with that. I do have Saturn conjunct Venus, which can kind of help a little bit. However, aries is also Venus's detriment, which is also not a great thing, so it's a very unfortunate part of my chart.
Ember:So I'm just a little bit nervous that everything will crash and burn, but hopefully- no, we're going to support and love, and then Jupiter in Cancer is going to like help us.
Jordan:Oh yeah, I got a whole year with Jupiter in Cancer and that's in my ninth house, which, when we get to houses, you'll understand how good that is. So yeah, amber, with these themes of either disillusionment, disenchantment, questioning your faith or holding yourself to a higher standard, or finding or needing to create a safe haven, or even looking to Jupiter in Cancer for support, how are you feeling with all these transits?
Ember:You know, that's such an interesting question because sometimes I can spiral if I know that like, oh, these feelings might come up. I'm going to just be like, oh my gosh, these feelings are coming, what am I going to do about them? And so I try to. I am definitely more of like on the vibes of okay, so these are things that might come up. So I think the awareness of them really helps me kind of battle them in a way, to kind of come up on top and not let them sort of overtake me. I mean, I'm a very emotional person 10,000% and so I think I'm always constantly questioning a lot of things about myself. I mean I'm interested, questioning a lot of things about myself. I mean I'm interested, I guess I'm interested to see if these sort of themes and emotions will come up for me and where, just because I I don't know, I don't know like where I would be feeling like disillusioned and kind of I don't know, maybe it's with my job.
Jordan:I was just about to say I have an idea, maybe it's with my job.
Ember:I was just about to say I have an idea. Maybe it's with my job. If you guys don't know, I'm a veterinarian by day and I love my career very much. I love where I work. Where I work is amazing, but you know it's hard, it's got, it's hard sometimes.
Jordan:Yeah, and you, you have Aries in your fifth house. I believe right, yeah, yes or no, you have aries and seven house, never mind seven, seven uh areas yeah, and then two you have cancer in your 10th house right.
Ember:I do have okay, that's why I was like oh, my job yeah so that that would be a good indication for your career too.
Jordan:With the square to saturn in your seventh house, I would actually see that that could be taking up a new business partner. Seventh house rules, business partners, sat, saturn, rules, work, responsibility and the long-term effort it takes to make something happen, so that could actually that could be this podcast. And then Jupiter transiting your 10th house would make me think that this is a very positive change for you.
Ember:Yes, I love this. It gets to that, yeah. So, jordan, what are your vibes for Jupiter in Cancer this year?
Jordan:I'm really excited. So, like I said, I have Cancer in my ninth house and that's where Jupiter will be. And ninth house is about higher education, spirituality, religion, long distance travel. And next year, while Jupiter is still in Cancer, I will be graduating with my master's in library and information science, which is a very Jupiter exalted in ninth house thing. And then, in July of 2026, jupiter will be moving into my 10th house of career, where it is for you now, amber, and I'm hopeful that I will see some good luck with the job search post-graduation.
Ember:Jordan, I am so excited for you about that, about graduating. That's going to be so awesome and I love like, yeah, job search, like 10th house good, 10th house vibes is what we really all need right now.
Ember:But, yeah, I mean, I think this would be great and like for our listeners, for our star students, if anybody wants to really think about and notice some of these similar themes in your life. So themes of wanting to challenge authority, themes of struggling with boundaries whether you're having trouble figuring out what your own boundaries are or maybe trying to understand someone else's boundaries themes of disillusionment or a pull to nurture your spirituality, themes of safety and security. So really just starting to notice those things, these boundaries. It's a really hard thing to do but, you know, journaling or maybe like hopping on our Patreon could help you sort some of those out.
Jordan:Yeah, Again, just to plug it because it's really we want it to be an awesome resource. We have our free Patreon linked in the show notes, and everyone is welcome to come to this Patreon and discuss how we're all feeling with these transits together.
Ember:Yeah, and Jordan and I will be so excited to interact with you as well. And for those of us who maybe like live, breathe and follow the moon cycle, we did just want to mention that we do have a Sag full moon occurring on June 11. So tomorrow, or I guess technically, you know, if you're in Eastern Standard Time it'll be tonight, 344am on June 11. It's also known as the strawberry moon, and Sag is just a sign that encourages exploration and stepping outside of your comfort zone, and so this full moon could be a really good time to travel, maybe delve deeper into some higher learning like maybe this podcast and just overall embrace the good vibes. Diving into something new could be so much fun for you, and so we'll put a blurb up about this full moon in our Patreon as well, and we'd love to know how it's vibing with you.
Jordan:Yeah, so that concludes this little astro weather segment. Let us know what you all thought of this. We weren't sure how deep we wanted to go into this or how brief we wanted to keep this section. So let us know how you're all feeling and definitely let us know in the Patreon how you all are feeling with these transits or if you have any interesting placements in Aries or Cancer. Okay, so let's talk about what a birth chart even is. Your birth chart is a snapshot of the sky the moment you were born, like an energetic starting point.
Ember:Exactly so. Imagine for a moment the sky is frozen in time and we just took a screenshot of it just like that. So it's like your soul's cosmic blueprint and really just shows where all the planets were in the sky the minute you arrived earth side, but from the perspective of your exact location where you were born.
Jordan:If you have ever had a birth chart reading before you know, the information you provide is typically your birth date, the time you were born and the location you were born. Many times, people may not know their birth time, so you know how much does the actual birth time really matter? And, to be honest, it matters a lot. Without the birth time, we can still see how the planets are expressing themselves through different energies, but we won't be able to see the houses without your birth time, which leaves out the ability to predict anything using your chart, and we won't be able to see where energies are taking place in your life without being able to set up the houses If you do not know your birth time.
Jordan:There is a process in astrology called, like, birth time rectification. If you decide to do this, basically, what I understand is that they will pull up a bunch of different charts that could potentially be you and they're going to ask you a lot of deep personal questions about your life and they're going to use your answers to determine which chart is yours. If you do decide to do this, I highly recommend Candice Marie from Beyond the Veil Tarot and Astrology.
Ember:I've also heard, jordan and I'm curious what you think about this that some people like if you really can't, or maybe they can't afford a reading like that, um, to use the exact time that the sun rose on the day you were born as your chart and see how that vibes with you, to kind of just like represent, like oh, this is like the beginning of the day, this was like the beginning of my life, kind of situation and I think, like you know, take it, you can kind of pick and choose like what resonates with you. But I've also heard that as an option for people who may not be able to like explore so much yet into say it like I don't think there can be much.
Jordan:I don't know. I don't want to like say validity, but I feel like the birth time is so specific that if you are just guessing I don't know, it's gonna be hard to really know if you're getting anything out of it. But like you kind of said Ember, like take what resonates and like leave the rest. I support anybody doing that in any way that they want to. So if you just want to play around and you could even cause the sign changes about every the rising sign, the rising sign changes about every two hours. So if you just want to like literally pull up every birth chart of that day, have fun with it and just figure out which one you like the best and you know, live your life to its fullest.
Ember:No, I think this is really why I love astrology, because, like you said, the birth chart can absolutely shift the birth time, not the birth chart. The birth time can absolutely shift your entire chart, and so it's so cute because it's like a little cosmic fingerprint and it's like what you you know, what you have won't. Really there won't be that many people who have like an exact chart like yours.
Jordan:One day we're going to have to talk about twin charts. Oh, I don't know what those are, but I'm very no like twins who are born at, like you know, one minute apart, like they basically have the same charts. Oh, like twins. Yeah, literally twins.
Ember:Yeah, what's a twin chart? So, oh my gosh. Yes, yeah, that's so interesting because I was going to say that, like it's, it is cute. I was like what scenarios would have similar charts? Yes, I would love to know. We do need to do an episode on that. But, yeah, I, it's even my husband. He didn't know his birth time at all, so I kind of like did not want to do, I didn't want to pull up a chart. I didn't know how, I didn't, I don't know. I was like I'm not going to waste my time with this. But, um, we spent two months trying to find his birth certificate and eventually, like his mom, randomly one day, just like, dropped off a box and in that box happened to be his birth certificate. We didn't ask for it, it just was there, which was super cool, uh, and I immediately dragged him back in the house and then we spent the next 20 minutes talking about his chart.
Jordan:Yeah, I completely remember that. I remember you texted me and you were like Jordan, I have it, and we started comparing the two like immediately, and actually since then I've taken a whole relationship and synastry astrology course, so we should take another look.
Ember:Yes, I love that. Yeah, I'm so interested in that. Okay, so we've talked a little bit about, like, the birth times and, if that matters, let's talk about the different parts of the birth chart here. So when I first started learning astrology, I had a really difficult time understanding how the planets and the houses and the signs actually came together and influence each other and how you could really read that. So, jordan, like how could you go about explaining?
Jordan:Yeah, so a popular metaphor that you might hear in astrology is that the birth chart is like stage play.
Ember:Which, as a theater geek, I absolutely love and that resonates with me so much. I saw Beetlejuice this week on stage. Yes, I love Beetlejuice. Yeah, it was so good.
Jordan:Wait, what do you think Beetlejuice yeah, it was so good. Wait, what do you think Beetlejuice's sun sign is? Ooh, okay, I would have to say that I think Beetlejuice hear me out is a Leo moon and maybe an Aquarius sun, with an Aquarius rising. I almost wanted to say Capricorn sun, because I love the idea of his sun being in 12th house, but I don't think that matches. So I'm going to say Aquarius sun and aquarius rising, and we'll go more into this in future episodes.
Jordan:But just to briefly touch on the moon is our inner, private world. It's what we need to feel safe and secure and deep down. We know beetlejuice loves the drama and the attention, whether good or bad, and I think he thrives on it. I think he needs it to feel safe and just feel secure. I feel like he is an Aquarius rising because he shows up in the world in an obviously eccentric way and has this attitude of like I don't care what anyone thinks and this would put his moon and sun opposing each other, which means he was born under a full moon and I love that for him. Plus, I think it can really exemplify the push and pull he feels between the Leo and the Aquariusarius energies. What do you think, amber?
Ember:I'm just laughing because I I think like the attention's deep down, but also beetlejuice is very like outwardly loving the attention too, just like lots of firesides, I don't know. But also how much thought you put into that like.
Jordan:If, like you could have been real serious about this craft if you could have seen jordan's face thinking through this um so we're gonna go over a brief introduction of the planet.
Ember:So get your flashcards or whatever you like to do to study, get ready your colored pencils and let's do this.
Jordan:All right. So the first thing I always recommend people start with is the planets. The planets are the what in the chart, it is what is happening. And, to bring it back to the stage play metaphor, the planets are the actors, they are the ones doing the action, they are what is happening. So we will dive much deeper into the planets in future episodes, but I do just want to introduce you to each one very quickly so that you kind of have a base point. So the sun would be like your lead role. It is your life force and your identity. The moon is your inner, private world, your emotions, your intuition, your body, your instincts. Mercury is intelligence and how you communicate. Venus is your love language, how you show love, how you receive love. Mars is your passions, your motivations and also your battle wounds. Jupiter is opportunities and expansion. Saturn is limitations and boundaries. Uranus is progressivism, unconventional, shocking and surprising energies. Neptune is spirituality, art, rose-colored glasses, confusion, escapism.
Ember:pluto is transformation and rebirth ah, okay, so I can't wait to get into these that was a lot yeah. I can't wait to get into them more in later episodes and we also will have a study guide for you on our Patreon, because we know it can kind of be a lot. But we have personal planets and generational planets and, like I don't know, I like to play with the asteroids too.
Jordan:Yeah, honestly, there are so many different ways to practice astrology. There's different health systems, there's Vedic astrology, western astrology, evolutionary, and all this can go on and on and on. So I really look forward to talking about all this different stuff and working through our own thoughts and opinions and questions in future episodes. But before we get like totally carried away because again there are hundreds of ways to do this, let's just talk about the zodiac signs, using our theater metaphor again. So, like I said, the planets are the actors in the play. The signs are how the planet expresses itself. So the signs add style and flavor and either support or no support and this goes a bit into essential dignity, where the roles that the actors have been given can essentially be advantageous to them or not.
Ember:Yeah, so can we go a little bit more into the dignities, jordan? Because honestly, like the way I've studied astrology, I haven't really touched on this, and so when you explained it, this was really helpful to help understand it a little bit better.
Jordan:Yeah, so each planet has one or two signs that they are at home in. This is their domicile, this is where they are well-supported and comfortable.
Ember:So what's the difference then between, like a domicile, is it domicile, domicile, domicile?
Jordan:Yep Like home. So you'll also hear people say their home sign. Their home sign is their domicile. Those two words can be a little interchangeable, so it's like it's dom.
Ember:Oh, oh, okay. So what's the difference between domicile and exalted, because I'm more familiar with the exalted term.
Jordan:Oh, interesting. So, as I'm going to keep doing, let's bring it back to that play metaphor. When a planet is in their domicile, this is like the actor being typecasted, so you know that they're going to do a good job in this role. It's not exciting You've seen them do it before but it's dependable. You know what you're getting. Whereas exalted is the planet's favorite sign to be in. They are the most supported here, they have the best cast that they're working with, the best director, the best budget for makeup and hair, and this planet can really function at their complete best in this role and in this sign. When an actor gets that exalted role, this is like the award-winning career defining role everything falls into place and the actor simply just gets to shine here okay.
Ember:So all right, let me, let me see if this track so if I took the sun and plopped it into leo it's confident because, like you know, we know the sun loves leo it's like it's a little home, home studio place, but we sort of expect it to be there.
Jordan:Um, but I guess if you took it and put it in aries, which is like where it's exalted, right, it's like that's, it's like award-winning oscar nominee level yeah, exactly, because when the sun is in its exalted sign, which is aries, it has all the support and opportunity and, essentially, the privilege it needs to live to its fullest potential. I love that for the sun, heck, yeah. So then each planet has one or two signs that are considered their detriment. These are the signs where the planet is less supported and a bit less comfortable, and each planet has one sign that is their fall. This is where they are very unsupported and just don't know how to act.
Jordan:Here, being in their detriment is like taking on a role that they have been afraid to try. It's uncomfortable, but there's a lot of opportunity still to sink or swim here. It doesn't feel like a lost cause here. When an actor gets a fall role, this is like being miscast. They got a role that does not play to their strengths, the director is unsupportive, the cast doesn't get along, there's no hair and makeup team, there's no budget for wardrobe and really it is up to the actor alone to figure this out. So it's not. I wouldn't want to call it a hopeless case, but it can really be challenging to do well in this role so is it fair to say that I'm, in my detriment, taking on a podcast role?
Jordan:see, I know you're expecting me to either laugh or simply defend you, but me being who I am, I'm actually going to bring this to your chart member.
Jordan:Oh gosh so you have your chart ruler in gemini, and gemini is a sign of the communicator, the small talker and the one who charms every single person in the room. Oh gosh, your chart ruler happens to be Venus. So, aside from Venus being your chart ruler, venus is also how we connect to other people, and Venus in Gemini tells me that you are a charmer, that you can attract a wide range of people, and this is a great indication for a podcaster. On top of that, my lovely friend, you have your South node here. So your North node is in Sagittarius and your third house. And the North node can be where you feel stretched and outside of your comfort zone, but where your soul and your spirit is pushing you to go. And also, third house is about communication. So another little dip in the communication talk. So I can see that podcasting may feel like it's out of your comfort zone, but you have no indications of this being a detriment for you.
Ember:Jordan, oh my gosh. Okay, you're so good at this and I'm blushing. I've been blushing on this podcast. No, that is okay. I guess I have nothing to say to that besides Thanks, okay, so people may be a little bit more familiar with our next topic and these are like the representations of the signs, but we really did want to go through them all, just so we're kind of on the same page for future episodes Again. So it's like a little bit of a review with plans to really dive deeper into some of these in the future. So we're going to go through them in order from the beginning of the Zodiac Wheel. So our first sign is Aries. So Aries are bold and confident and instinct driven and just blaze ahead fearlessly, but can definitely struggle with an overactive ego. I know some of these people impatience and impulsiveness. So Taurus Taurus is our next sign. They're very grounded and steady and like to make things very beautiful, but can also be very stubbornordan and over I do have taurus moon and overindulgent.
Ember:I love your stubbornness, though gemini, so I'm also a gemini. Yes, I gemini moon maybe. Gemini is curious and quick-witted, thrives on connection ideas. We're also gorgeous people and information can also just really become like super scattered and inconsistent and insincere, and I realized as I'm talking and just like mentioning stuff, that that's kind of how I sound right now. So cancer, so cancer is actually my sun sign, as I've mentioned probably 10,000 times in this podcast, actually my sun sign, as I've mentioned probably 10,000 times in this podcast. Cancers are deeply nurturing, they're very protective and emotionally attuned, but they can be overly defensive and a bit clingy, which is also me. Leos are creative and dramatic, romantic. Leos really inspire the authentic self-expression, but can also come off as a bit prideful, vain and definitely requires external validation. So words of affirmation is their love language. And then Virgo's thoughtful, detail-oriented, refined. But Virgo's can really get lost in their perfectionist standards and start to over criticize everyone and everything as including themselves.
Jordan:So next we have Libra, and Libra is graceful and diplomatic. Libra is beautiful. Libra seeks balance and beauty in everything, but can oftentimes get lost in needing to people please and being too indecisive. Scorpio is intense, transformative, investigative, hungry for control, truth-seeking, but also jealous, controlling, untrusting and sometimes a bit too intense for most people.
Ember:A lot of my really really close friends are Scorpio suns and I feel like I'm a. Scorpio rising. Yeah, oh, my God, I feel like I vibe with Scorpios. That I think-.
Jordan:You know, I actually vibe with oh, I just shook my camera I vibe with Libras. I know you're a Libra rising and, like all of my close friends, a lot of them are Libras. Well, I know you're a Libra rising and like all of my close friends, a lot of them are Libras. That's so interesting, your sons specifically. So it's interesting.
Ember:Oh my gosh, yeah, no, the Scorpios. I think I just want to like take them in and hug and hold them.
Jordan:Yeah. So then next is Sagittarius. Sagittarius is the adventurer and the explorer. They are optimistic. Sag loves to broaden their horizons and expand their mind, and a big thing for Sag is always chasing freedom. You cannot hold a Sag down. But that all leaves Sag to be a bit overly blunt. They exaggerate a lot and they're definitely non-committal.
Jordan:Capricorn is disciplined, ambitious, patient and strategic, but can also be quite the late bloomer. They're known to be cold and rigid and fatalistic and too concerned with status. Aquarius is an innovative, progressive genius. Aquarius loves to come in and change everything and strive for a better future. Yet Aquarius is also oftentimes detached from emotion. They're also cold like Capricorns and they can be seen as overly eccentric. They're also called like Capricorns and they can be seen as overly eccentric. Pisces, our last sign in the zodiac, is compassionate, imaginative, spiritual, charitable and artistic, and Pisces is also known to overindulge in escapist habits or fall into depression when engaging with the real world, and they are very vulnerable to manipulation as well. Poor little Pisces babies.
Jordan:So let's go back to that sun example that Ember was using. As we said, the sun is at home in Leo. The sun is unchallenged in this role. It's comfortable. You know exactly what you're getting. The sun is flashy and romantic and loves to be center stage, just like Leo. The sun is in its detriment. In Aquarius the sun really wants to be liked and Aquarius just isn't really concerned about being liked. So the sun is uncomfortable here. The sun is uncomfortable with how eccentric Aquarius is because, again, the sun doesn't want to put people off. The sun wants you to like the sun. So the sun is uncomfortable here at first, but can still make it work.
Jordan:The sun is exalted in Aries. Here the sun really gets to focus on itself. It gets to be bold and in charge and courageous and action oriented. So it gets to be itself but also have that push and that energy to just to get done everything the sun wants to do. The sun is in its fall in Libra. Libra really cares about the other person. Sometimes Libra focuses too much on other people, but the sun wants to focus on the sun. The sun wants to focus on its own glory, its own identity, building its own life story. So it can be difficult to blend the energy of the sun with Libra.
Ember:Yeah, I think it's really fun when we start to connect these pieces because of the nuances of things like how you communicate sacred gifts. Challenges, relationship dynamics, like literally looking at your chart can shed light on so much of your inner and outer world, and that's what I love about astrology it just helps me make sense of myself and situations I'm in. That's kind of why I just wanted to dive so deep into this.
Jordan:Yeah, I'd actually love to hear if you have like an example of a gift or something astrology has made you realize in yourself.
Ember:Oh, that's a good question. So, okay, let me think about this. Okay, so I've like super honed in on priestess energy in my chart. So with Pisces in my sixth house of daily ritual, I always you know like we talked about Pisces is that like dreamy spiritual out there vibe, and I've always really been like drawn to the spell and ritual aspect of witchcraft. I've incorporated it into my like day to day. And then with Pisces I also have Vesta, which to me is like the asteroid of devotion and sacred spirituality, and just also more priestess vibes.
Ember:And so, knowing that, I kind of gave myself it kind of like put together these reasons for me of like, oh, this is why having daily rituals, whether it's like pulling an Oracle card or doing meditation, really creating those daily routines around my spirituality, has become very second nature to me and I love just understanding that about myself. And I think claiming the title priestess wasn't really something I was comfortable or ever even thought about doing. But once these pieces started falling into place, the term priestess felt so natural and I know we talked about this a lot. So Jordan and I, both of um, we just did a program with Elise Wells from seeking Numina, uh, the red thread. It was absolutely incredible.
Jordan:Totally follow Elise, like we had, she's got another one coming up this summer.
Ember:Yeah, sacred wild priestess actually is what it's called wild priestess, absolutely, um, but that's how actually Jordan and I met. Yeah, but yeah, and and I think, going through that and then also being able to take it back to my chart, I was like, oh hell, yeah, I'm a priestess like I am a priestess of the land, I'm a priestess of a nana like. I am so much more comfortable with this term and it feels so validating for me. I love that. That's awesome. Yeah, well, thank you. So, okay, jordan, and I know this is a lot of information, especially if you're new to astrology. So we're going to kind of like stop there for today, for our first episode, and really encourage you to just maybe start with the planets, get to know them. You know, when I first started studying, I made some really cute flashcards with some glyphs and some info about the planets and signs. I still have them in, like my little astrology book that I have, and like get creative, have fun with it, get colored pencils. I studied them sometimes when I was pooping.
Jordan:You know, I did the same thing the making flashcards part.
Jordan:I was. I was like, let me clarify, I also made flashcards. It ended there. But you know, yeah, if you've been studying astrology for a while and you're like, hey guys, I know this stuff, hopefully this was still like a good refresher for you. But we are going to dive a lot deeper in future episodes, while also trying to keep accessibility at the forefront of what we're talking about. So we're going to dive into heavier topics as we go on, but we still want to make sure that there's something that everybody can follow along with. But for our first few episodes, you can still look forward to learning more about the planets, the houses, signs and aspects, and then still look forward to when we dive deeper. So we are reaching the end of our first episode in the Astro Study Room.
Ember:We want to finish off each episode by leaving you all with something to do and something to reflect on. Yeah, so if you're open to it, sometime in the next two weeks, set yourself up a private space to just be with yourself. If you have an altar and you're into that, go outside, like even if it's just 15 minutes. If you're able to just take that time and really think about what you want to understand about yourself and how you think astrology can help with that, and so you can write your answers down, you can speak them out loud, you can talk about them in your head, whatever works for you, but we can also talk about this as well over in the Astro Study Rooms free Patreon.
Jordan:So for something to do or practice in the near future, actually pull up your birth chart, if you haven't already. If you're already familiar somewhat with your chart, spend some time just looking at it and you know what parts of your chart do you feel most drawn to looking at. I kind of see this as like what part of your chart are you feeling intuitively pulled to to study? For me, I would. I would. Would. I would literally look at my chart and I'd be like which part is attracting me right now?
Jordan:So why do you think you're being attracted there? What do you think is going on here? If you are totally new to birth charts, you can go to astrocom and put in your birth information. It's totally free and you can see your chart. And I would ask you the same thing without knowing anything about astrology or birth charts what part of your chart looks the most interesting to you? And then look up the planetary glyphs to learn more about what planets you're looking at, and also check out our free Patreon, where we will be releasing a cute little study guide to get to know the planets and their dignities.
Ember:Thank you all so much for being here for this episode.
Jordan:I know birth charts can feel super overwhelming at first, like I've been there not that long ago, but we're gonna take it slow and we're gonna do it together and if you'd like to go a little bit deeper, we'll be posting a few more journal prompts behind the scenes and study guides to what we talked about today, as well as building a community of astrology students over on our free Patreon. It is, of course, linked in the show notes.
Ember:Next time we'll be diving more into the planets themselves and really getting to know each one and going over how the planets may express themselves in different signs in the charts.
Jordan:This podcast is my practice of asking big questions, uncovering the hidden truths and creating an accessible space for others to do the same.
Ember:And I'm so grateful to be here with Jordan and all of you, getting to practice and work on my own skills as a budding astrologer and learning a little bit more about myself and all of us in the process.
Jordan:I'm so glad you joined us, Amber. Thank you all so much for being a part of this, and we'll see you back in the study room every other Tuesday.