PREVIOUS THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY June 2 2014 to June 8 2014 Monday June 2 In the Zone Hi Jonathan, You recently shared a letter from a reader who said she was born close to the changeover between two rising signs, and will never know which is hers. Shouldn't she be able to figure out which sign is correct, based on personality? When I first tried to find out my rising sign, the answer didn't seem right. It turns out I didn't adjust for location and time zone. Once that was taken into account, I got a different answer that fits me to a T. Crystal Hi Crystal, She should. Thank you for making that important point. Tuesday June 3 Rise and Sign Yesterday, a reader pointed out that, if a person knows their birth time only vaguely, it should be possible for an astrologer to get a more specific fix on it by calculating their most likely 'rising sign'. If, when you saw this, you wondered 'what's one of those then?' please accept my apologies. It is the sign that happened to be rising over the eastern horizon at the moment of your birth. Depending on where you were born, this sign tends to change once every couple of hours or so. Tomorrow, I'll say more about what it can mean. Wednesday June 4 Sun Sign vs Rising Sign My daily forecasts are for all born within a particular period of the year lasting about 30 days. Astrologers call these 'Sun Signs' because they are defined by the Sun's passage through the zodiac. The Sun apparently takes a year to circle the zodiac but as the earth turns, the zodiac itself seemingly rotates every 24 hours. The sign rising at dawn will always be whatever sign the Sun is in. Where our Sun sign describes our true personality type, the rising sign describes the kind of personality that others perceive when they first meet us. That's subtly different! Thursday June 5 Definitely Maybe Recently, a reader asked me if it is possible for an astrologer to work out what time of day a person was born if they didn't know this information. I replied with a clear, insistent 'maybe.' I then shared another letter explaining a technique by which time of birth can be established by calculating possible 'rising signs' and considering which seems to fit best. I supported this idea and explained more about rising signs and their meaning. It has been pointed out to me that I'm showing a degree of inconsistency here. But then, isn't that a mystic's prerogative? Friday June 6 Numbers Game Hi Jonathan, I've just had an email from a numerology website telling me that the effects of a 21-day Mercury retrograde phase begin 14 days before it starts and can continue for up to 88 days afterwards. I'm confused. If this happens three times a year, that's longer than all year! Colette Dear Colette, Mercury governs numbers. It changes direction this weekend so we should all be wary now of claims involving calculations. But my duty not to criticise fellow fortune-tellers means I must resist the temptation to chuckle at the numerologist who apparently can't add up. Saturday June 7 Your Week Ahead This week, as we approach the last Full Moon before the Solstice, Neptune changes direction and Venus completes an opposition to Saturn. This speaks of a need, for us all, to review old priorities and perhaps put some of our more far-fetched fantasies on the back burner while we deal with pressing practical matters. But it also says something about the unexpected pleasure to be found in dealing with what might have once looked like a regrettable chore or an unavoidable obligation. Real magic is now best found through accepting what you might once have felt tempted to reject. Sunday June 8 Your Week Ahead - Love Focus Remember, your Love Forecast today doesn't just cover romance. A love forecast may also have something to say about your family life, your closest friendships and even some of your most important working relationships. Back to Index   Click here for Jonathan Cainer's Daily Zodiac Forecasts