Why Do Sun Sign Dates Vary?

Dear Mystic,

Why Does Your Sun Sign Change? I was born at 4.30am in England, on Feb 18th.1947  Although not normally too thick, I  still cannot understand why, after some fifty-odd years being quite happy as an Aquarian, I am now – sometimes, but not always – listed as a Piscean.  Not that I have anything against Pisceans, but it has left me puzzled.  Do you have the time to explain, please?

The Now Extinct Aquarian.

This is such a cool and useful question that, when I found it in the archives, I added an extra answer from the epic Clarissa Dolphin – hers is the top response and my original one is below!

Dear Now Extinct Aquarian,

Sun Sign switch-ups have two main origins: cusp nativity blunders and zodiacal solar calendar preferences.

To be clear, Sun Sign variance via cusp nascency is NEVER a thing. With “edge births” – entering the corporal world right at the end of one zodiac sign before the Sun ingresses into another – solar flair is anchored in one sign only: always. No one is ever really born on a cusp, inhabiting two signs at once, period, it’s one or the other.

There are general zodiac sign windows, like Pisces begins February 18 and ends March 20, but the actual date the Sun ingresses into Pisces every year changes, these periods are approximate.

If you get astrology reports generated online and find that one puts you as a Pisces and another as an Aquarian, the cusp quandary most likely has to do with faulty calculation. Unfortunately, like every other professional in any field, some astrologers are sloppy, or the ingress timing is off for oafish mathematical reasons. In these cases, Sun Sign shifts are simple computational errors. 

The only thing that could mind-f**k a “dual sign” situation is if the astrologer decides to use a Sidereal versus Tropical solar year charting system. In this case, you CAN both be a Pisces AND an Aquarius, regardless of whether you were born on the cusp, due to the calculatory parameters of each respective system. A Tropical Pisces Sun IS a Sidereal Aquarius Sun.

So, what’s a Sidereal versus Tropical solar year? They’re both zodiacal timing methodologies steeped in personal ideology, thousands of years of astrological debate, and ultimately, choice. 

The Sidereal Zodiac, a Vedic astrology staple, adopts the purview that the zodiac “begins” (0° Aries) based on the placement of the fixed stars in relation to the Sun’s apparent motion from the perspective of earth (the ecliptic). 

The Tropical zodiacal perspective is more seasonal in that the beginning of the chart (0° Aries) ALWAYS starts at the vernal equinox (when the Sun appears to enter the Northern hemisphere on the celestial equator), regardless of how the fixed stars / constellations move. 

There was once only one zodiacal system (Sidereal), until precession of the equinoxes (Earth axis rotation / polar shifts) made the Sun move out of direct alignment with constellations.

The implementation of these systems, Sidereal versus Zodiac, really does boil down to individual inclination. We’re using the astrology chart as an apparatus to commune with infinity, it really doesn’t f**king matter what you choose – personal proclivity is key.

If you’re still wondering what Tropical Sun Sign you are, Mystic’s Astral DNA report will clear that up! And if you’re interested in Sidereal Solar analysis, check out the Sidereal Astral DNA report. You can explore both worlds.

AND, would love to hear your thoughts on cusping… should it be canceled or is it a relevant thing?

~Clarissa

Dear Now Extinct Aquarian,

You are born on the cusp of a sign. ie; right near the very end or beginning. Your Sun is in Aquarius but the reason some scopes list you as Pisces is thus.

Every year the Sun changes signs at slightly different times. eg; people born on March 20 one year are a Pisces but the same birthday the next year would render them an Aries.

Horoscopes can’t work off the individual dates of everyone so they go for the most likely day or use the dates current that particular year.

It is a hot-button issue for some. Once I got an email from a Scorpio furious that she had “become a Sagittarius without my consent.”

She loathed Saggos, found them feckless and unsubtle and could not bear their apparent refusal to face up to their responsibilities. Yes, a particular Sagittarius gentleman had inspired her wrath.

So you are the Sun Sign that you were at birth. The position of the Sun in the Zodiac at the moment you draw your first breath determines your so-called Sun Sign and that does not alter.

And, b.t.w, the word cusp refers to the border between two signs. It’s incorrect to say you were “born on the cusp” – the Sun was either in one sign or another when you were born.

xxMystic