“Am I a Scorpio?”

As we explore astrology, the answer to this question becomes more complex.

While your sun sign may be Scorpio, you are not defined by just one sign. In fact, we embody aspects of all 12 zodiac signs, much like a pie divided into 12 slices. The idea that we are just our sun sign comes from pop culture astrology, but there's so much more to explore beyond that. The sun sign is one of many planetary placements in a birth chart––it is not your whole birth chart.

You may very well be a Scorpio sun, but your unique birth chart includes 18 other planets and points, such as the moon, Mercury, and Venus, which each contribute to your narrative.

Think of it this way: the moment you were born, a screenshot was taken of all the celestial bodies in the sky. That screenshot can be translated into what’s known as your birth chart. Just like a screenshot, your birth chart was frozen in time when you entered the world, so each aspect is fixed in place, causing you to have placements like “Mars in Sagittarius,” the “Moon in Aquarius,” or “Venus in Gatoradius.” 

You get the picture.

Check out this example birth chart for reference:

How to Calculate Your Birth Chart

To calculate your birth chart, you must know your date of birth, time of birth, and geographical location. (If you don’t know what time you were born, text your mom or dad!) Once you have this, you can enter your details into a credible astrology website. 

(We suggest AstroCharts or AstroSeek to create a free, custom birth chart.)

What to Look For

Each birth chart contains 12 houses and 12 zodiac signs that go in sequential order around the wheel, and all the planets and celestial bodies sprinkled within them. As a general guide, this is how it works:

• Planets show us what is happening.
• Signs show us how it is happening.
• Houses show us where it is happening.

We’ll dive deeper into this later when we learn how to read a birth chart. 

The Four Elements: Fire, Earth, Air, & Water

The 12 zodiac signs each embody one of the four elements: fire, earth, air, or water. Each element carries a different quality of energy. Here is the breakdown:

• Fire: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius
• Earth: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn
• Air: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius
• Water: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces

Fire

The fire element is just how it sounds: fiery. Those with many planetary placements in fire signs are most likely to have strong personalities, lots of energy, and endless amounts of courage. Fire sign energy can be opinionated, creative, and adventurous too. People with heavy “fire energy” in their birth charts are almost always noticed right when they walk into a room. They are often warm, optimistic, and generous. Alternatively, fire signs can be impulsive, attention-seeking, and blunt. You’ll know you’re around fire energy when someone makes you feel audacious and empowered. 

Earth

The Earth element gives off a feeling of stability and steadiness. Those with many planetary placements in “earth signs” will likely be disciplined, hard-working, practical, and organized. On the flip side, they can be stubborn, overly critical, rigid, and aloof. You’ll know you’re talking to a developed person with many earth placements when their presence makes you feel centered, balanced, and supported.

Air

The Air element gives off a feeling of friendliness and stimulation. Picture “air” as traveling from mind to mind. Air is all about intellect, ideas, conversation, and cognition. Those with heavy air sign placements will likely be witty, curious, fair-minded, and independent. They love to think and analyze and love bouncing ideas off of people. Additionally, they can be superficial, indecisive, and detached. You’ll know you’re around “air energy” when someone makes you feel inspired, entertained, and full of new ideas and knowledge.

Water

The water element, in simplest terms, can be described as intuitive. This element carries an energy of healing, wisdom, nurturance, and protection. Those with many planetary placements in water signs are compassionate and excellent at listening. On the other hand, they can also be prone to jealousy, escapism, and secrecy. You’ll know you are around developed water energy when you feel yourself safely melting into conversation with someone. You will know based on their ability to be ultra-present, to truly put themselves “in your shoes,” and to exude compassion for beings all around them, humans and animals alike.

Tying it Together

Understanding the nature of each element is crucial to understanding astrology as a whole. The convenient thing about fire, earth, air, and water is that they are actually quite intuitive and straightforward to understand. 

Now that we understand that each of the 12 zodiac signs falls into one of four elemental groups, we can take a closer look at the signs themselves. More on this in Part Two!