Degrees in Astrology

Ever wonder what those numbers next to your zodiac placements mean?

If you’ve ever looked at your birth chart, you’ve probably noticed a set of numbers on the right of your zodiac placements. Degrees measure the progress a planet has made in its transit through a zodiac sign. The numbers beside the degrees are minutes. As the minutes increase in number, the proximity to the next degree, or ingression into a subsequent zodiac sign, draws closer in time.

Degrees serve numerous purpose in astrological study. For example, it helps us “tell time.” Consider how the Moon moves through each of the zodiac within two days. So, if we observe the moon at 28 degrees, we can safely estimate it will ingress into the next zodiac sign within a set time period, specifically half a degree per hour.

Degrees also mark the exactitude of aspects and alignments or even transits. When a Full Moon is exact, the Sun and Moon will be opposite not only by sign, but also by degree (I.e., A Full Moon in Libra at 15° will oppose the Sun in Aries at 15°). When a New Moon is exact, the Sun and Moon will be aligned at the same sign and same degree (I.e., Sun and Moon in Taurus at 20°).

The beginning and end of a Retrograde is always stationed at a particular degree. A “Retro-shade” begins when a planet that soon stations Retrograde crosses over degrees it will “revisit” as the planet moves backward. A shady period begins again once the Retrograde ends and forward progress resumes. At that point, several degrees will be “revisited” once more, continuing a “Retro-shade” until said planet moves beyond those twice or thrice crossed degrees.

Those who consider themselves on the “cusp” of two signs will find that the degree of their placement can provide significant context, as it accurately marks the mathematical position of a planet as well as the decided zodiac sign.

This birth chart was created on astro-charts.com.

Looking at my placements, most of my degrees are between 12 and 29. There’s a sense that I am picking up on previously started soul projects, and completing cycles passed on to me. Interestingly, I have the same Moon sign and placement (Aquarius in the third house) and Rising sign as my mother. Though at different degrees (mine later than hers), we enjoy exploring these “cosmic inheritances” when discussing our birth charts.

You may notice I have two placements at the 29th degree, aka the Anaretic degree. This marks the end or completion of a cycle; I personally like to reflect on endings simultaneously presenting beginnings.

After 29 degrees, a planet or position ingresses into a new zodiac sign. The start of a new cycle begins at 0° of the following sign. For example, after 29° of Scorpio is 0° of Sagittarius.

I have heard several Astrologers say the “further in” to a zodiac sign the planet travels, meaning the higher the number of the degree, the more influence that placement may have in someone’s celestial biography. I have seen this myself with clients, who say they “don’t feel” like a typical zodiac sign, only to find that placement is at 0 or 1° of a sign.

Esoteric degree theory

Modern astrologers have sought to apply esoteric meanings to degrees for nearly a century, developing various degree theories that express undercurrents of character, influence, and energy.

In 1925, American astrologer Marc Edmund Jones teamed up with spiritualist and medium Elsie Wheeler to psychically download meanings for each degree of the zodiac. Their work would later be published in 1953, in a book titled The Sabian Symbols in Astrology.

But nearly two decades earlier in the early 1930s, French astrologer Jeanne Duzéa published Les 360 degrés du Zodiaque, for which she produced her own interpretations for 360 degrees of the zodiac.

As a theoretical practice, interpretations of degree meanings find their way into many but not all astrological practices. I personally find degree theory particularly curious and complementary to horoscopes, especially annual horoscopes in which rare transits occur for my clients. For example, if a client of mine were to have a once-in-a-lifetime transit occur between Pluto and Neptune, I may consider to what degree this transit is exact. I also find the degrees of my big three valuable in my personal readings, particularly because they are all critical degrees (my Sun at 13 degrees, my Moon at 17 degrees, and my Ascendant at 29 degrees).

Degree theories of all sorts tend to follow the order of the Zodiac, with the first degree associated with Aries and its ruling planet Mars. The first twelve degrees continue this archetypal pattern until we reach the thirteenth degree. There, the idea of critical or Anaretic degrees comes into play. What you may notice is that the critical degrees are either associated with Aries (Cardinal energy), Leo (Fixed energy), Sagittarius (Mutable), Capricorn (Cardinal Energy), or Taurus (Fixed Energy).

Below I have provided a list of each degree and a (very simplified) meaning of that degree.

0° - Marks the beginning of a new cycle, starting “all over” with relation to planetary energies and meanings, critical degree.

1° - Aries / Mars: car engines, abuse, sports/athlete, military, weapon, anger, business person, speed/quickness, the color red, coming first, “in front” arguments, war.

2° - Taurus / Venus: containment/small spaces, wealth, forest, trees, food, luxuries, voice, singing, the color green, earth.

3° Gemini / Mercury: two of something, siblings, hands, double, local, small town, neighborhood, groups, birds, tea, friends, the color yellow.

4° Cancer / Moon: mother, home, public, crowd, water, in the home, the color white, critical degree.

5° Leo / Sun: strong, royal, leader, high school, fun, athletics, gym/working out, outdoors, top of a hill, family, mountain, view, hair, ego, children.

6° Virgo / Mercury: health, “ex”, sickness/illness, work, routine, pets, hospitals, doctors, manual service.

7° Libra / Venus: beauty, luxury items, earrings/jewelry, fashion, couples, music, art, marriage, justice, associates, legalities, courtrooms.

8° Scorpio / Pluto: secrets, death, sex, insurance, taxes, jealousy, pregnancy/womb, someone else’s “things”.

9° Sagittarius / Jupiter: college, borders, professors, foreign, travel, archery, having a plan.

10° Capricorn / Saturn: public office, public official, public-facing, coal, slow, delay, the color black, shadow side, depression.

11° Aquarius / Uranus: interruptions, divorce, high places, flying, airports, high tech, engineers, helping others, friends, networks, organizations, electricity.

12° Pisces / Neptune: swimming, near water, disguises, illusions, missing, rain, flood, out of focus, misplaced, unclear, “foggy”.

13° Aries: critical degree.

14° Taurus

15° Gemini: assassinations or killings.

16° Cancer

17° Leo: critical degree.

18° Virgo

19° Libra

20° Scorpio: jealousy or revenge.

21° Sagittarius: large road, new places, critical degree.

22° Capricorn: destruction, critical degree.

23° Aquarius: “to cut”.

24° Pisces

25° Aries

26° Taurus: critical degree.

27° Gemini

28° Cancer

29° Leo: kingdoms, critical degree.