How planets get along: the major aspects

When two planets sit at certain angles to each other, astrologers say they're in aspect — they're "talking." We've already met the conjunction (two planets in the same spot, fused together). Here are the other four big ones, and they range from "easy" to "challenging."

The soft ones: ease and flow

• Sextile (60°) — opportunity. A friendly, helpful angle. The two planets get on well, but you usually have to make a little effort to cash in the good luck. A door held open — you still have to walk through it.
• Trine (120°) — flow. The easiest aspect of all. The planets blend so naturally it feels like a built-in talent. The only catch: things that come too easily can get taken for granted, or go a bit lazy.

The hard ones: tension and growth

• Square (90°) — friction. The two planets pull against each other; it's the classic "this is hard work" aspect. But squares aren't bad — they're the engine of growth, the grit that makes the pearl. A lot of people's drive comes straight from their squares.
• Opposition (180°) — balance. Two planets directly across the chart from each other, like a see-saw or a tug-of-war. You feel pulled between two needs, and often meet the tension through other people (who seem to embody the "other end"). The work is learning to hold both sides at once.

"Hard" doesn't mean "bad"

It's tempting to want a chart full of trines and sextiles. But a life with no friction has nothing to push against — and the squares and oppositions are usually where the interesting, hard-won strengths come from. The soft aspects give you gifts; the hard ones give you character.

A note on closeness

Like all aspects, these only really count when the angle is close to exact — within a margin called the orb (a few degrees). The tighter it is, the louder it speaks. (And whether it's still building or already fading is the applying-vs-separating idea from another guide.)

One last thought

I think of the aspects as the relationships inside you — the bits of your nature that help each other along, and the bits that argue. A chart isn't a list of separate traits; it's a little society of them, getting on and clashing. Knowing which is which is like a kind hand on your own shoulder: ah — so that's why those two parts of me are always at it.