Sect in Astrology: Are You a Sun Person or a Moon Person?
One of the most important contributions of the traditional revival to the practice of astrology is the rediscovery of the ancient Hellenistic doctrine sect.
Modern astrology teaches that the sun is the most important planet in the sky. It represents you and your place in the world, and all of the other planets are happiest when they follow the lead of the sun. This interpretation works well enough that most astrology fans are surprised when they learn there is more to astrology than their sun sign, but many people who don’t feel like their sun sign describes them very well.
For decades, modern astrology didn’t have very much to say to people who didn’t identify with their sun sign, but astrologers translating ancient texts in the 1990s discovered that the sun wasn’t always treated as the most important planet in the chart.
According to the Hellenistic doctrine of sect, there are times when the other planets look to the moon for leadership and guidance.
For moon people, this discovery was a revolution because it gave them another planet to identify with. In my work with clients, I have found that moon people are usually profoundly relieved to learn that their sun sign doesn’t have to define them. Their moon sign feels much more like home.
Sect isn’t just important for knowing what sign to put in your astrological tattoos. Sun people and moon people need an entirely different instruction manual for going through life.
Finding Your Sect: Are You a Night Sect or Day Sect Person?
In order to know if you are a sun person or a moon person, you have to identify the sect of your chart.
If you were born during the day—between sunrise and sunset—you have a day chart, and the sun is the sect leader of your chart.
If you were born at night—between sunset and sunrise—you have a night chart, and the moon is the sect leader of your chart.
If you’re not sure when sunrise was on the day you were born, looking at your chart should make it fairly easy to tell.
Open your chart and look for the line with AC on the left and DC on the right:
If the sun is anywhere in the chart above the AC-DC line, you have a day chart.
If the sun is anywhere in the chart below the AC-DC line, you have a night chart.
The Difference Between Night Sect and Day Sect People
Understanding the sect of your chart is important for making important astrological calculations like Arabic lots, but there are also practical reasons for understanding sect.
Simply put, sun people and moon people move through life differently.
Sun people move through life like the sun. They need to shine and feel like they contribute something of value to the world. The sun is the most consistent planet in astrology, and sun people are happiest when their lives are regular and predictable. They need to feel like they have a plan—a path they’re following through life—and they get unhappy when fate nudges them off the path they’ve made for themselves.
Moon people moves through life like the moon. To the ancients, the moon was known as “the wanderer” because the moon changes shape, waxing and waning over the course of the month. Moon people are happiest when they are wandering, when they are able to listen to the needs of their bodies, and move through life by feel.
Knowing the sign that your sect leader is in can help you understand more about your personal life path, but just understanding the differences between sun and moon people can help you put together a life that feels most natural to you.
And it can help you understand people who move through life differently than you.
Using Sect to Outline the Story of Your Life
One of the coolest things you can do with sect is use it to outline the story of your life. A technique called Firdaria builds on sect, taking the qualities of sun people and moon people and explores the ways that the differences between sun people and moon people plays out over a person’s lifetime.
You can learn more about Firdaria in my article “Firdaria: Outline the Story of Your Life” or book a narrative astrology reading with me, and we’ll create that outline together.
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