They look insignificant, but
MINOR ASPECTS
might have major impact
More and more I see the impact of minor aspects in the charts. Minor aspects are the aspects that Ptolemy didn’t mention. Ptolemy named the conjunction, the sextile, the square, the trine and the opposition. Those are the major aspects. The minor aspects are semi square (45 degrees), sesquisquare (135), inconjunct or quincunx (150**), quintile (72), biquintile (144), semi quintile (36), septile (51.4285d), quindecile (165d), novile (40d), binovile (80), quatronovile (160d) and perhaps even more…They have specific meanings. The semisquare/sesquisquare is frustrating. The quindecile is for an obsession. The quintile is creative, the novile rejoyces…and the septile is dedicated.
The minor aspects refer to the less obvious, more hidden capacities and qualities. Major aspects are easy to see, minor aspects need more calculating. The major aspects reflect the visible character and talent; the minor aspects reflect what the others don’t see at first sight. It takes examination.
Take for example the chart of O.J. Simpson. The major aspects in the chart show us what was easy to see: a capable actor, somebody with success. The minor aspects however refer to the anger, aggression and criminal behavior that were not known to the public until he supposedly killed his wife and her friend. He didn’t look like a criminal, but now he is in jail. See the Astropost about ’the chart behind his chart’…
The chart of Susan Boyle has a strong pattern of talent that is not represented by major aspects. Instead, we see Venus connected to Moon and Neptune with quindeciles. The quindecile shows a strong focus, a fanatic objective, an obsession even. There is a quintile between Sun and Saturn and a biquintile between Sun and Pluto to indicate the creative die hard*). This combination of talent and perseverance is part of the road to her success. She didn’t look like being a successful artist, but she is. See the reading of her chart…on Astropost
Josef Fritzl, the man who abused his daughter and hid her and their children in the cellar, could do what he did for years, because nobody suspected him. He has Sun biquintile Neptune and Venus biquintile Mars for creative passion and a creative fantasy. He also has Mars quindecile Uranus. This aspect might – in the most evil sense – indicate an obsession with controversial sex. Those qualities and obsessions enabled him to create a double life, acting as a common father and grandfather. See the posts about the Fritzl case…
Inconjunctions show us where we need to let go, or where we find little balance, or what we simply need to accept in order to continue our life. It takes time to become aware of the impact of an unhealthy situation or attitude. The inconjunction is not a Ptolemaic aspect, but a minor aspect. The effect of the inconjunction is strong, however. See the article about the effect of the inconjunction in Astrology, aspects.
Semi squares and sesquisquare are hard aspects and the effect is hardly ‘minor’. Bernadette Brady explained the semi squares and sesqui squares in her book ‘Predictive astrology’. She says that semi squares refer to a ‘frustrating not’. Sesquisquares should bring advantages in a later state! A good example of the effect is in the article about meeting each other (Love and astrology/astrology of meeting): Camilla met Charles with progressed Venus conjunct Saturn and semi square Uranus (restricted freedom in love). Her progressed Ascendant was sesquisquare his progressed Jupiter. The impact of the meeting was not yet visible (for the public eye).
To find the minor aspects in our charts we need to do more calculating. To find the hidden personality behind the daily mask we need to dive deeper into a personality. It takes longer to express the qualities represented by the minor aspects, but one day they surface or erupt.
*) The combination with Saturn and Pluto refers to the ‘die hard’. See Astrology,aspects/Saturn in aspect with Pluto
**) Inconjunctions are mentioned by Ptolemey, in a separate chapter and related to signs. He said:
” ALL signs, between which there does not exist any familiarity in any of the modes above specified, are inconjunct and separated.
For instance, all signs are inconjunct which are neither commanding nor obeying, and not beholding each other nor of equal power, as well as all signs which contain between them the space of one sign only, or the space of five signs, and which do not at all share in any of the four prescribed configurations: viz. the opposition, the trine, the quartile, and the sextile. All parts which are distant from each other in the space of one sign only are considered inconjunct, because they are averted, as it were, from each other; and because, although the said space between them may extend into two signs, the whole only contains an angle equal to that of one sign: all parts distant from each other in the space of five signs are also considered inconjunct, because they divide the whole circle into unequal parts; whereas the spaces contained in the configurations above-mentioned, viz. the opposition, trine, quartile, and sextile, produce aliquot divisions.“