Your Rising Sign Explained
The Rising sign is one of the most important (and misunderstood) components in the birth chart.
What determines a person's rising sign?
In astrology, the sky is divided into 12 sections, representing the 12 signs of the zodiac. At the moment you took your first breath, the Sun and Moon were in a particular part of the sky, resulting in your personal Sun and Moon placements. Your Rising sign, however, is whichever sign was coming over the eastern horizon at your time of birth. That being said, knowing the correct time of birth is incredibly important because the sign coming over the eastern horizon changes every hour and a half or so. The Rising sign is much more personal and unique to you than any of the other placements in your birth chart.
Why is it important?
The Rising sign determines which zodiac sign will occupy your first house and orients the rest of your chart from there. While the Sun represents our egoic self and Moon our emotional self, the Rising sign represents something a bit different. One of the first astrology books I ever read used the analogy of the Rising sign acting as your own personal receptionist that you put forward to meet unfamiliar people and situations.
When greeted by someone unfamiliar in the street, your receptionist could have a variety of responses based on your Rising sign. They could warmly say "hello! It's so nice to meet you", put on a front and say "what are you looking at?", or coldly ask "do you have an appointment?"
The Rising sign isn't something you turn on and off, it's simply one of the ways we engage with the world when we encounter something unfamiliar. To get a stronger understanding of how your Rising sign operates, you can take the traits associated with that Rising sign and think about how that sign would act in an unfamiliar situation.
How does this work?
One of my good friends is a Virgo Rising and a professional athlete - a sprinter to be exact. They once told me that if anyone ever threatened them or made them feel unsafe, their plan was to land one good punch and then run away. This made me laugh for two reasons: one, because if the instigator was chasing my friend there is absolutely no way they could catch them because they are crazy fast, and two, because this response to an unfamiliar situation is so classically Virgo Rising!
Virgo is known for being highly analytical, so the strategy of landing one good hit and then running away is pretty much bulletproof because doing so would stall the opponent, at least for a little while, and give them a head start that they honestly probably don't even need to run away.
How does my Rising sign impact what I'm encountering on a day to day basis?
Since the Rising sign orients the rest of your birth chart, it will determine what part of your life you are experiencing a certain planetary influence. If you are an Aries Rising, Aries occupies your 1st house. When the Moon (which influences your emotions) is in Virgo (also known as your 6th house), your emotions are likely to experience 6th house themes such as service, chores, routine, and daily habits. While the Moon moves through Virgo, you may feel overwhelmed by everything that is required of you and feel the weight of the world a bit more than you do normally. Whereas when the Moon is in your 4th house of Cancer, you may feel like staying in, getting cozy, and enjoying the company of friends and family.
Building on the previous example, Aries Risings are in for a change of scenery this year because Saturn and Neptune will be moving from their 12th house of solitude and mental health and into their first house of identity and self.
This same concept applies to all the planets - the Moon's influence is more fluid and transitory because it moves through the signs rather quickly (every 2-2 1/2 days), but when you understand what the planets are doing at any given time, you also understand the following things: the nature of the energy present (supportive, challenging, neutral), where you will experience this energy (represented by the houses of your birth chart), and how to best work with the energy (this is the part where you may need a seasoned astrologer to help you identify what to do to make the most of it.)
The song and dance of the planets is one that has been studied since ancient times to predict crop harvests and the rise and fall of kings, but in today's world it most often serves as "the missing piece of the puzzle." Most people turn to spirituality to explain the unexplainable and get answers for questions that seem too complex to even begin to unpack. I always say that the best time to get a reading is when you feel disoriented, confused, or like you don't know what's going on - the knowledge that comes from the Rising sign has facilitated many lightbulb moments between me and my clients when something clicks for them, puts things into perspective, and gives them insights that make them feel more in control of their lives instead of feeling like they're at the mercy of the world.
Want to learn more?
I created a 2025 Mini Reading that goes over what you can expect based on your Rising sign, and you can find those here. If you're wanting a more in depth reading with me, you can book time with me here.
With love,
Amparo <3
