I refer to this article in my book where I list unaspected planets as one of the standout items to consider in the initial overview of any chart. I always try to identify unaspected planets in natal charts. Sometimes they are only unaspected in the Inner Chart, while they have aspects in the Outer Chart. An example is with the charts of Joseph Campbell as discussed in my upcoming book. I only consider a planet unaspected if it does not have any in or out of sign aspects that fall within the orbs that I am using. I only consider the 30 degree aspects.
Below you will find descriptions of each planet when unaspected as offered by two different astrologers. I have decided to offer the information on unaspected planets here instead of in the appendix of my book. Before providing that information, I would like to discuss the concept of “feral” planets. Some astrologers will consider planets unaspected by also not including any out of sign aspects. And some will only use the Ptolemaic aspects, which do not include the semi-sextile aspect. They call these “feral” planets. An example is Mars in Sigmund Freud’s Inner Chart which would be a feral unaspected planet because all three aspects to it, the trine to Mercury, the opposition to Saturn and the quincunx to Pluto are out of sign aspects. I do not consider it unaspected. There is a significant difference in explanation with Mars if, in one case it is considered essentially untethered or unbounded, while in the other case it has clear and specific aspectural relationships with three other planets. Here is that chart:
Another example is the Pluto in Anne Frank’s Inner Chart. I consider the semi-sextile aspects as being active so that Pluto is not unaspected in my work. I view Pluto as part of an EYE figure, which is part of a Magic Cap Figure in her Inner Chart. As the apex of the EYE, Pluto is the basic theme and focal point for all the information that is being gtathered by the EYE rim planets Sun/Mercury and Mars. I find this a much better description of what was going on in that 12th house attic she was living in than to try to explain it by describing the Pluto as unaspected. Here is that chart:
Here are the unaspected planets as described by two different astrologers:
UNASPECTED PLANETS
Unaspected planets act independently. The energies are not tempered or modified by aspects from other planets. In a sense the energy is pure and untainted.
UNASPECTED PLANETS – As described by Hiroki Niizato
NOTE: Although I consider the semi-sextile as an active aspect and do not completely agree with the some of the descriptions below, I am fine with offering them to others as generally effective.
Unaspected Planets in Your Birth Chart: Gifts and Challenges
Unaspected planets in your birth chart are like wild, untamed animals within your psyche. They can “run away with your horoscope,” becoming a defining trait within your personality whether you approve or not.
Unaspected Planets: Definition
Unaspected planets, referred to as peregrine planets by Noel Tyl, are those planets in your natal chart that lack any Ptolemaic aspect (i.e. conjunction, sextile, square, trine or opposition) with any other planet.
Guidelines for Interpreting Unaspected Planets
- Unaspected planets do not connect with the rest of the psyche – much like someone in a foreign land, it is disconnected from the surroundings, and integration becomes challenging.
- This can be mirrored as a feeling of disconnection in outer relationships, especially if a key body such as Sun or Moon is unaspected. With unaspected Sun or Moon, there may be a feeling that the world doesn’t quite understand you. You may “march to a different drummer.”
- Unaspected planets can function either as strong talents or excessive, overcompensatory habits: For example, unaspected Mercury could suggest someone whose emphasis on thoughts or speech is pronounced, like the writer Norman Vincent Peale, who wrote “The Power of Positive Thinking.” However, it could also suggest someone that talks incessantly out of nervous habit.
- Unaspected planets may be interpreted as strong and dominant, or excessive and vulnerable to isolation. Consider these multiple potentials when you interpret the unaspected planets within your own birth chart.
Unaspected Planets: Possible Meanings and Keywords
Here are some keywords you may want to consider when exploring the interpretation of unaspected planets in a horoscope.
Unaspected Sun: Intensified Ego Drive
A person with unaspected Sun tends to march to a different drumbeat. There can be strong emphasis on self expression and leadership, as well as a strong need for ego recognition.
Unaspected Moon: Possible Emotional Disconnection
Natal Moon with no major aspects tends to magnify the needs represented by Moon’s sign. A good example is Steve Jobs, who had unaspected Moon in Aries (“the need to be Number One”). Unaspected Moon possibly suggests emotional disconnection from the parents, and later from other people. There may also be a need to express a caring, nurturing or educational behavior in order to connect with the world.
Unaspected Mercury: Hyperactive Mind
Unaspected Mercury tends to emphasize an overactive mind, which could result in nonstop talking, thinking, or worrying. If the wild mental energy can be harnessed toward a productive direction, unaspected Mercury can become a strong asset providing you with impressive mental faculty and communication skills.
Unaspected Venus: Intensified Emotions and Social Needs
Unaspected Venus magnifies the emotional and social needs represented by your Venus’ sign.
For example, unaspected Venus in water signs (Cancer, Scorpio or Pisces) emphasizes emotional expression in relationships – either as emotional drama, or an ability to care deeply for others.
In contrast, unaspected Venus in earth signs (Capricorn, Taurus or Virgo) may emphasize the material aspect of Venus, perhaps generating more interest in becoming financially successful or secure.
In general, there may be an emphasis on being attractive, flirtatious, charming or understanding in order to be liked and appreciated (the archetypal expressions of Venus).
Unaspected Mars: Untamed Energy
Unaspected Mars is like a wild horse – powerful and potentially dangerous. You may need a special focus for directing your energy, especially your anger. With the right outlet for your energy, the fire of motivation will keep you going for a long time.
Unaspected Jupiter: Dominant Higher Mind
Unaspected Jupiter suggests emphasis on philosophy, education and international or spiritual dimension. This tends to suggest a mind hungry for higher learning.
Unaspected Saturn: Disconnected Father, Intensified Ambition
Unaspected Saturn possibly suggests a lack of support from the father figure. Emphasis on work accomplishment or self-discipline may compensate for initial insecurity. Unaspected Saturn can also suggest intensified ambition, especially in terms of Saturn’s sign and house placement.
Unaspected Uranus: Heightened Individuality and Progress
Unaspected Uranus suggests intensified individuality, an eye for progress, and the need for achieving social significance. Inventor Thomas Edison’s horoscope has unaspected Uranus (using a tighter, 4 degree orb for sextile), Uranus being the planet of invention and scientific progress.
Unaspected Neptune: Vision and Ideals
Though somewhat rare, unaspected Neptune may manifest as heightened aesthetic sensitivity and strong ideals. it can signify an exceptionally vivid imagination, offering the potential to bring visionary ideas to life.
Unaspected Pluto: Power and Influence
Unaspected Pluto can suggest prominence, power and influence. John I. Kennedy’s horoscope has unaspected Pluto.
Summary: Integrating Unaspected Planets
Unaspected planets can be hard to tame. Integrating the unaspected planet into our psyche may feel like trying to have a tall Westerner blend in with a crowd of Japanese people – it can’t help but stand out.
Rather than trying to make unaspected planet conform to a social norm, you may want to find a challenging outlet for its energy – be it writing a book, learning a foreign language, forming a nonprofit organization, or practicing martial arts. With positive direction, unaspected planets can become your strongest asset.
UNASPECTED PLANETS – By Glenn Mitchell
Do you have any unaspected planets in your birth chart? The qualities of a planet are exposed in potentially constructive ways. There are two theories about unaspected planets (those that lack any Ptolemaic aspect [i.e. conjunction, sextile, square, trine, or opposition] with any other planet in the birth chart). One theory is that the unaspected planet has difficulty expressing some of its qualities. It sits in the chart without any major connection to other planets. The other line of thought is the interpretation preferred by noted astrologer Noel Tyl, which is the preferred interpretation these days. Being unaspected can make the planet a more powerful force, as it screams for attention among all of the other planetary aspects. The individual might not realize its expression in their behavior, but others recognize it unmistakably. Unaspected planets can function as strong talents. They can also express as excessive, over-compensatory habits.
Transits will make aspects to the unaspected planet at times, which can excite and stimulate it into action. The individual can have a hard time controlling the unaspected planet’s traits at those times.
Unaspected Sun
With an unaspected Sun in the natal chart, both its strengths and challenges can increase. The person’s charisma is strengthened and this can facilitate success. The Sun’s negative features can also prevail. These include social maladjustment, paralyzed willpower, unawareness of one’s rude behavior, self-centeredness, egoism, and vanity.
Unaspected Moon
With an unaspected Moon in the natal chart, more than any other unaspected planet, it endows the individual’s changing disposition with charismatic powers. The unaspected Moon can lead an individual to express themselves without restraint or to shut themselves away in their inner world. Hypersensitivity can leave the individual vulnerable to fleeting impressions or to stimuli barely perceptible to other people.
Unaspected Mercury
Mercury is seldom unaspected in a chart since it’s never very far from the Sun and Venus. With an unaspected Mercury in the natal chart, the individual’s nature can be quick, unstable, and changeable. The intellectualism and the nervousness that Mercury naturally bestows might blow up out of proportion. What can be beneficial about an unaspected Mercury is less inclination to become scattered and distracted, compared with a heavily-aspected Mercury.
Unaspected Venus
Venus is seldom unaspected in a chart since it’s never very far from the Sun and Mercury. With an unaspected Venus in the natal chart, there can be alternating outbursts of emotions and heightened material and sensual desires. Venus’ charm and kindness are less pronounced than with a well-aspected Venus.
Unaspected Mars
With an unaspected Mars in the natal chart, the effects are without doubt the most noticeable among the ten unaspected planets. Mars’ very nature is synonymous with action, aggression, and anger. Sexuality, too. Unaspected Mars sometimes activates the aggressive and quick-tempered side of the individual’s nature. When Mars is unaspected, there is always a concrete impact. The energy tends to be directed outward. It is usually direct, visible, and instant.
Unaspected Jupiter
With an unaspected Jupiter in the natal chart, there can be an emphasis on philosophy, education, and an international or spiritual dimension. This suggests a mind hungry for higher learning. Jupiter naturally seeks out social interaction. With unaspected Jupiter, there can be a tendency towards solitude.
Unaspected Saturn
With an unaspected Saturn in the natal chart, individuals might experience inhibition, inferiority complex, melancholy, and failures. On the positive side, unaspected Saturn can also suggest intensified ambition.
Unaspected Uranus
Most astrologers agree that when one of the trans-Saturn planets (Uranus, Neptune, or Pluto) is unaspected in a chart, its collective nature limits its scope. With an unaspected Uranus in the natal chart, there can be periods of compulsion for freedom and independence, with a strong taste for whatever is original, even fringe. Passions can prompt the individual to rebel. There can be an overwhelming urge for achieving social significance.
Unaspected Neptune
With an unaspected Neptune in the natal chart, it might express as heightened aesthetic sensitivity and strong ideals. It can also bring paranormal gifts and moments of mystical ecstasy. Neptune is the planet of mysticism, intuition, imagination, and faith. It is also the planet of depravity and addiction to forbidden substances. Unaspected Neptune can result in moments of doubt, confusion, and indefinable disturbances.
Unaspected Pluto
With an unaspected Pluto in the natal chart, it can suggest prominence, power, and influence. The individual sometimes feels very strong impulses that they cannot escape. As astrologer Bil Tierney notes, Pluto is the planet of the isolationist. Individuals with unaspected Pluto can be distant and remote. They can relish in standing apart from others. Unaspected Pluto is associated with periodic spurts of obsessive or compulsive behavior.