by Melinda Lim
Last week I saw someone on the internet break down Kim, Kanye, and North West’s birth charts when the news came out that Kim had filed for divorce. They went into the details of their birth charts to talk about the demise of their marriage and their individual family dynamics. And then they examined North West’s birth chart to talk about the struggles she may face.
And I have to admit, it made me feel WEIRD.
This isn’t new. We’ve all seen “celebrity astrologers” break down the “compatibility” of people like Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Or astrologers who do a deep dive into celebrity charts to explain their fame and success.
But this is even more common in our everyday lives. People look up the birth chart of the person they went on one Bumble date with. People look up the birth charts of their friends to help explain why they don’t see eye to eye on something. People say “ugh well he’s a Scorpio” when their boyfriend does something they don’t like (spoiler alert - Scorpio sun signs are not bad people).
There are a few issues with this I think we need to highlight. First, astrology is not a toy. It is a tool. And it can be dangerous if you do not know what you are doing. Anyone can plug in a birthday and time into a chart generator, but that does not mean you have the knowledge to interpret a chart. Aspects in a chart work together and cherry picking something from someone’s chart (i.e. “they have a moon in Leo, they must love attention”) without understanding the entire chart is dangerous.
Why? Because you can fall into a trap of making assumptions about a person based on this tiny piece of their birth chart. And now you’re set up to make choices about how to interact with them and you’ve set up expectations for their behavior. When you say “oh he’s a Gemini, so he’s two-faced” it’s like saying “oh her parents are divorced, so she must always have relationship issues.” It is ultimately an unfair judgment.
You’ve made a conclusion based on a tiny piece of a person, when what you should be doing is allowing that person to show you who they are without any preconceived notions. Yes, birth charts contain a lot of information about a person. But free will is also very much at play here. Just because someone has a lot of fire in their chart, does not mean they love to fight. Aspects of their chart may not come across as strong because their lived experience carries more significance for them. You do not need a chart to figure someone out. Just let them show you who they are.
The other issue with using astrology to understand other people is that you’re walking a very fine ethical line. If you pull up a chart of someone who didn’t ask you to look into their birth chart, you now have access to a ton of information about that person (which again is a double issue if you do not know how to read a chart). You’re looking at a type of roadmap about them and a lot of really sensitive information can be revealed.
Like with my earlier example about Kim and Kanye. You can analyze people’s past traumas, their family dynamics, their shame, and even their future pregnancies (you just need to google Meghan Markle and her birth chart to see astrologers who claim to have predicted her second child with Prince Harry) with that one chart. And quite honestly, if someone didn’t ask you to do that, you shouldn’t do it. Think about it this way - would you want someone else to have your birth chart and therefore have that kind of information about you? Would you want someone to have expectations about you based on that information? For me, it’s a hard no.
Lastly, but the most important point about all of this, is that astrology is a tool that can help you understand yourself better. It is there to help you in your personal growth. Knowing the details of your birth chart can help explain your thought patterns and behaviors. And through that it can give you insight in how you operate in the world, which can help you navigate relationships, jobs, and family dynamics.
For example, I have a five planet stellium in the Third House and my moon is in Gemini. In a nutshell, this means that communication is deeply important to me in every aspect of my life. I feel most connected when I can talk to people, I’m endlessly curious about people and their stories, and I am a CHATTERBOX. I also need clear and consistent communication from the people in my life. And since I know that is a very big need for me, that is amplified and underscored by my birth chart, I know that it is something I need to communicate to those around me. I’m responsible for letting them know my needs and I’m also responsible for understanding if they cannot meet them.
So the next time you’re tempted to look at someone’s birth chart, ask yourself if you would be ok with that person doing the same for you. Would you want that person to get a chance to know you on your own terms without knowing everything the stars have to say about you? For me, it’s a hell yes.
