The Ascendant

The ascendant is the cusp of the first house. It is the point in the chart that was ascending on the eastern horizon at the moment of birth. It is also called the rising sign. The first house cusp in a chart is often marked by the letters "AC" or "ASC".

It is only possible to know your true ascendant if you have the exact time and location of your birth. If you only know the day of your birth, and not the time, an astrologer would probably do a sunrise chart for you. In a sunrise chart, the position of the ascendant is the same as the position of the Sun. This is OK. The chart still has validity. Knowing the actual ascendant just allows you to see another layer of your complex astrological blueprint. If you don't know the time of your birth, it is often possible to obtain it from hospital records or your birth certificate.

The ascendant is an indication of how you appear to others, and of your self image. It is common for a person to appear to be more like their ascendant than their sun sign. The ascendant also has a lot to do with physical appearance.