Improving Natal Chart Accuracy

This post tells you all about improving natal chart accuracy. The 12 signs of the Zodiac are a magnificent discovery that our ancestors left for us thousands of years ago. They were a way of determining the likelihood of certain types of events occurring. This is based on the alignment of the planets and arrangements of stars in the night sky.

One limitation of star sign readings is that they’re a generalization of everyone across each particular star sign. This type of reading is usually found in newspapers and magazines. Because they are general, they will not be accurate for everyone.

That’s where natal astrology comes in.

To really experience the benefits of astrology. One must understand natal astrology. Once you have understood the main concepts of natal astrology, you will then need to understand the variables which can dramatically effect the reading.

How Date of Births Affect Readings

Date of birth is the most important piece of data you need when creating a natal astrology reading for someone. Why I hear you ask? Well NASA have these very useful tables called an ephemeris, which lists the positions of the sun, moon and planets for any date. This means you can work out where these celestial bodies were at the date of anyone’s birth, past, present and future!

A change in date of birth will affect the whole natal chart. For example, the sun, moon and planets could easily change zodiac signs.

How Place/Time of Birth Affects Readings

I have decided to combine place and time of birth together. This is because your location of birth can actually affect the time. For example, the United Kingdom does not have different time zones. Whereas the United States does have different time zones. This means we need to know the time and location accurately to know the actual birth time of the person. Thankfully we live in a world where computers do these timezone calculations for us.

Acceptable Location Accuracy?

To the nearest town of birth = Perfect

To the nearest county or state of birth = OK

Acceptable Birth Time Accuracy?

To the nearest minute = Perfect

To the nearest half hour = Good

To the nearest hour = OK, but requires more interpretation skill

If you are unsure by 2 hours, then it will take much thought and skill to interpret the natal chart. Did you know that the moon changes sign every 2 hours! Another option is to only interpret planets in houses and aspects you are sure of, that fall within the possible birth time window.

How People can find their Time of Birth

Depending on where you were born, there are a number of ways to find out your birth time.

First, if you were born in a state or country that keeps “long form” or full birth certificates, such as the United States, you can request a copy. Be sure to ask for the long or full-length certificate, as the short, frame-sized ones may not display the time you were born.

Second, you can ask your birth mother what time you were born. To your surprise, she might even know the hour you were born, and maybe even the exact minute.

As an interesting side note, some astrologers believe that the true moment of birth is “first breath,” as that’s when the soul enters the body.

In any case, your birth mother should, at the very least, know whether you were born in the morning, afternoon, evening, or whatever the case may be.

If your birth mother is not available, you can ask others who may have been around when you were born, such as your relatives. If you were baptized at birth, perhaps the presiding church has records, or even the priest or clergy person may remember.

Even if you only have a rough idea, such as the afternoon or evening, that’s fine for most resourceful astrologers.

Birth Time Rectification

What happens when someone has no idea the time they were born? Well, there is something astrologers can do called birth time rectification.

To understand how you can still get an accurate reading without an approximate birth time, we have to consider one major reason you go to an astrologer: to get a natal chart made.

An accurate natal chart can tell an astrologer things about you that they otherwise wouldn’t know, with surprising accuracy. With an accurate chart, the astrologer will have insight into what you’re naturally good at, the type of career that may suit you, and will even tell you about the major events of your life.

Ideally, if you know the exact time and place of your birth, you’ll tell that to the astrologer, and they’ll be able to construct a good natal chart.

But, in cases where information is missing, such as your birth time, the astrologer may ask for approximations, such as whether you were born in the morning or afternoon.

For example, let’s say you believe you were born some time in the evening. You don’t know exactly when, but from your inquiries, it was during the evening. The astrologer might, hypothetically, cast a chart based on a birth time of 18:00.

The way to test the accuracy of this chart is to use rectification. To rectify a chart involves asking you about significant events in your life. Marriages, break-ups, significant career changes, and relocations are all examples of milestones in one’s life.

To the degree that the major events of your life correlate with the chart determines it’s accuracy.

If the first chart isn’t accurate, the astrologer may repeat the process, this time hypothetically casting a chart for the birth time of 19:00. Then perhaps 17:00 will be the next attempt.

And the process goes on and on, and with each attempt, your exact birth time continues to emerge.

Finally, the star chart that’s the most accurate depiction of your life’s events is the chart that’s based on the time (and place) you were born. As the astrologer gets closer and closer, you may find yourself saying, “Yes…yes, that’s exactly when that happened!”