Asteroids are a difficult topic to write about. There are 20,364 of them currently named, and aside from about 200 of them which have been mentioned by the (online) astrological community, most of them remain a mystery. Perhaps if asteroids (other than Ceres, Pallas, Vesta and Juno) had been considered more significant in the astrological community before 2003, we would be more asteroid-ly aware. But alas, no.
As a result, much of the meaning we apply to asteroids has to do with either guesswork or patterns observed in our individual astrological practices. Often this guesswork is intensely literal. No one knows why the hell the discoverers of the asteroids "Humptydumpty," "Beer," "Pecker," and "Radiocommunicata" named them what they did, but against the natural order of things, "Beer" has been known to predict alcoholism eerily well. (Don't ask me about the others.)
This means that, if an important first name (or a similarly spelled variation of it) exists as an asteroid, it can appear as an incredibly karmic entity in your chart. Asteroids with the names of family members, mentors, children, friends, and lovers who have heavily impacted you tend to closely conjunct significant places in a chart. Why? I have no idea. It sounds like a collective delusion of astrological researchers. I know. But I have seen it happen too many times to deny that it's true.
Asteroids on their own do not usually effect your personality to a large extent. They add only a minute degree of specificity to a chart. But in the case that an asteroid closely (within an orb of 1-3 degrees) conjuncts or opposes a personal planet or angle, large pieces of a person's life can be suddenly pulled into focus. This can be helpful in defining exactly how a turbulent chart plays out individually. We know a Pisces with a Pisces moon squaring Pluto has probably had it hard, but how exactly? Who is to blame? How have they dealt with this? And how will they evolve?
How:
To find asteroids in one's own chart, the most reliable algorithm so far available is astro.com's extended chart selection. Once you have, go to the "Additional objects" section and input the numbers of the asteroids you would like to use. There is a list available through the website, but I also use the International Astronomical Union's list of minor planets- which is the exact same thing but on a separate goddamn page. (The only way I can read a chart is having five different informational windows open on my desktop at once, all made incredibly small just so they can fit next to each other.)
Anyway, to become a Successful Asteroid Astrologer Who Knows How To Manipulate The Stars to Achieve Their Own Nefarious Ends you must first compile a list of valuable asteroids. Below are some of my personal favorites and their meanings and numbers grouped by theme. Keep in mind that astro.com only allows the visualization of 11 additional celestial bodies at once aside from Chiron (sigh,) so you typically have to create several charts with different groupings of asteroids. Next to my most reliable asteroids I'll put a little asterisk.
Product Disclaimer:
Let us keep in mind that astrology is an incredibly intrusive business and that asteroids can tell us information about another person that they may not necessarily want us to know. Unless we're talking about a family member, a celebrity, someone you'll never meet, an incredibly close best friend, or someone who's a generally active part of your life, you should probably ask for permission with complete astrological disclosure before you go about uprooting their psyche. Whether they know you have astrologically deduced them or not, it's more of a question of your own integrity than anything else. I am going to list asteroids which may indicate specific, debasing experiences that have occurred in a person's past, and possibly horrendous future happenings.
I think it is irresponsible, tyrannical and repressive not to document that these asteroids do, in fact, exist and can be healing/wise to understand and acknowledge. It is equally irresponsible, in my opinion, to make a black and white assumption ("I'm/They're an abuser! I/They have an eating disorder! My/Their father cheated with the maid! I'm/They're going to die in a boating accident!") based on the placements of these asteroids. Astrology is not specific predestination. It represents a neutral fate. It hands you a small lottery of materials, and it is your responsibility to use these positively. Personally, I have no patience for the irrational perspective that we are helpless to ourselves/our stars. We are not. There were millions of people born at the same time you were, and their lives will be drastically different from yours. So there.
That being said, I am not going to mince words here. Astrology is only subjective to a point, and skewing the truth to make it more digestible would be cowardly of me. It would seem like a very regressive thing to do that could reverse the possibility for a heightened state of self-awareness. If you find self-awareness to be something that is painful or uncomfortable, turn back now. Astrology is not for you. I say this with all of the kindness and understanding in my heart. But still, don't be scared of yourself. It's boring. Self awareness is apart of the process of making one's neutral fate positive.
What if Copernicus was too terrified to say the Earth revolved around the Sun? Where would we be now? Astrology, too, is a science, however personal or disputed, and deserves to be documented.
Also (lol,) it is likely my definitions for each asteroid will shorten as they go on. It is tiring to write these.
MOVING ON...
Family, Home and Childhood
- Child* (4580)
Like many asteroids, Child does what it says. This asteroid indicates a person's childhood and the inner layer of that childhood which they carry through life. Also like most asteroids, if it is not intensely aspected by another asteroid or planet, it is mostly negligible. If closely conjunct or opposed by an "explosive" asteroid like Pholus (5145,) it may indicate an extremely childish or sentimental person. A close (or even loose) connection to Dejanira, the asteroid of victimhood, may indicate an abusive childhood. A connection to Vesta may imply a fantastic memory of one's childhood, or a skilled usage of one's inner child.
- House (4950)
Yes, House represents one's place of residence. Shocking. House in a cart is where you most commonly find yourself existing. Not necessarily the ideal place- but a place nonetheless. If closely conjunct Pluto in the 9th house, for example, the individual may frequently find themselves in institutions of education, either under other's power or exercising power over others. If conjunct Uranus, one could have a frequently disquieting home life or move often. House speaks first to your childhood home.
- Antigone (129)
The actual meaning of the name "Antigone" is vaguely along the lines of; "instead of one's parents."
I see Antigone as the asteroid of controlling, militaristic parents. Often these people have come from difficult backgrounds and use their children to feel more personally secure. They, like Creon, act according to what they are told they are supposed to do. Only the straightest As, the best manners, the most prestigious college, the highest paying career, the most outwardly acceptable life, will do. The child's self is rejected in place of their parents'.
To a darker degree, it can symbolize parental abuse in the same vein as corporal punishment. Antigone can also be where one's parents refused support when support was most needed, leading to depression. A man with Antigone conjunct his moon may have been thrown out of the house when his parents discovered he was gay- their reasoning being that his sexuality was against religious principles.
- Sedna (90377)
In my own astrological studies, I find Sedna to be a very vague asteroid. Different astrologers claim it has different definitions. At most, I can say it indicates a distrust of men. The myth is complicated with many variations, but the gist remains the same: Sedna's father throws her out, she marries a liar, then descends into the depths of the sea to become a sea-Goddess of a type.
- DNA (55555)
DNA, if anything, is an asteroid which represents what is innate to who you were born as- something that was not passed down from one's immediate family. Where DNA touches in the chart often indicates a specific trait that one had to develop in opposition to one's family. It could also be something unchangeable about oneself- something written into the actual DNA, or something that makes you unique to the wider world. In synastry, DNA can be a very romantic element to a shared chart.
- Anchises (1173)
Anchises was a mortal man seduced by Aphrodite. After boasting about sleeping with her to his bros, Aphrodite proceeded to permanently blind him. Oops. In his old age, Anchises was carried from the burning city of Troy on the back of their son Aeneas.
I find Anchises to symbolize burdens in general, but often these burdens have a familial origin. Possibilities include the burden of a collective family identity/reputation, the burden of one's literal inherited genes, the burden of the parentified child, or the burden of physically/mentally ill parents. Anchises represents a long-lasting claustrophobia or trauma surrounding the family, usually towards one parent in specific (often the father.) The parent(s) creates a burden due to their unhealthiness, childishness, or codependency. It can be the carrier of great personal guilt.
- Circe (34)
In The Odyssey, Circe is an enchantress exiled to a remote island for murdering her husband. When Odysseus arrives with his men, she turns them all to swine with poisoned food. Only Odysseus was able to escape the horror of nonconsensual shapeshifting, and threatened her with a sword, thereby saving himself. Eventually all the men were given back their human forms, and everyone had a grand old time on Circe's island: drinking, laughing, dancing, eating, etc. Circe turned out to be pretty nice, just lonely and bitter, and was Odysseus' bedmate for about a year. Oddly, the Circe asteroid seems to be related to providing assistance.
- Minos (6239)
Minos is most famously known as the tyrannical King of Crete
- Hera, Juno (103, 3)
Hera's main legacy is as the jealous wife of Zeus. (This jealousy tends to be demonized in Greek myth, but really, who wouldn't be jealous. Zeus slept with anything that walked. )
I have heard conflicting definitions of Hera's actual meaning, but her relevance seems to be less literal. Hera represents fairness in relationships and parental models. I see it as an indicator of the relationship between one's parents in childhood.
- Juvenalis (2818)
- Freud (4342)
- Acacia (8652)
- Ceres, Demeter
Ceres/Demeter was the mother of Proserpina/Persephone; the beautiful mortal woman abducted by Hades and taken into the underworld. As an asteroid, she signifies motherhood and nurturance, and sometimes the loss of a child. Ceres/Demeter can be used to deduce one's relationship to their mother and/or how their own will to take care of/be taken care of plays out in their life. For example, if an Ascendant is conjunct Ceres and I tend to mother the people I am close to. Generally
- Nanna
Nanna seems to be the asteroid of familial legacy, usually inherited through a mother or a maternal/paternal grandmother. People with Nanna placed significantly within their chart often have a deep personal identification with this legacy, either good or bad. I find this asteroid to have a certain feeling of false "predestination" to it, as if one must follow in the footsteps of their ancestors. This, of course, is not necessarily true. It can be a good asteroid, of course, if positively aspected, and can indicate a feeling of personal purpose- as if one's life path has already been safely tread and mapped. There is a sense with this asteroid that one must live either to correct the wrongs of their ancestry or to repeat an unfortunate cycle, passed down through the family line.
Violence, Depression, Emotional Wounds, Abuse and Anxiety
- Dejanira*
Dejanira (or Deianira,) companion to Nessus, is one of the more famous asteroids. Defined simply, it is the asteroid of victimization. Often this victimization is of a sexual nature. Dejanira herself was raped by Heracles, her later husband, and raped once again by the centaur ferryman Nessus as she crossed the river Euenos. Heracles was able to save her by shooting Nessus with a poisoned arrow from the riverbank. As Nessus died, he told Dejanira to take his bloody tunic, promising her that if Heracles was ever unfaithful, the blood on his tunic would make him once again loyal to her. Instead of making Heracles faithful, however, it gave him horrifying burns that caused him to jump into a funeral pyre. In consequence, Dejanira commits suicide. (It is a deeply painful asteroid.)
- Nessus
Nessus, equally famed as Dejanira, is the asteroid of the abuser. His crimes are described in the previous paragraph.
- Swindle*
Swindle is the asteroid of exactly what its name implies: swindling. In relationship charts, it can often be an indication of manipulation, disloyalty, or blatant lying on the part of one or both partners. The way Swindle works is more complicated than this, however, and not necessarily a harbinger of ill-will. Where Swindle sits in the natal chart indicates where you were robbed of some part of your identity. It is a personal vacancy. Therefore, like Chiron, Swindle can only be "felt" by the people around you. Whether you are aware of your swindle void or not, you cannot feel it in an empathetic manner.
Ted Bundy, prolific serial killer, had Swindle exactly conjunct Venus. An unsupported Swindle is often retributive- it manipulates, subconsciously or consciously, those who have stolen from it. Bundy began his killing spree shortly after his girlfriend (Venus) broke his heart. A supported Swindle, one that contacts more positive asteroids, can indicate more constructive swindling. I.E.; person A's Swindle conjunct person B's Venus in a synastric chart can mean person A has "stolen Person B's heart." It does not necessarily imply negative or cruel coercion. The pursuit of possession is not always ill-intentioned.
- Nemesis
Like many other asteroids, the meaning of Nemesis is said to be extremely direct: a Nemesis. Personally, I have found this asteroid to have a similar vagueness to Sedna. The question is: is Nemesis an indicator of a part of one's chart in which you are your own Nemesis? Or a part of one's chart in which someone else has acted as your Nemesis? Or both? I don't know, folks. Nemesis is not prominent in my chart or anyone I know. Nemesis transits, however, seem to be significant. They often are the impetus for surprising negative discoveries about people close to you, or represent a period of time in which you feel particularly attacked.
- Persephone
Journeys to the underworld, the loss of innocence, coercion, abduction, possession, etc. Not fun.
- Achilles
One's "achilles heal;" a deep wound, a place within you where you are rendered weak.
- Adrastaeia
Loss, abuse, trappedndess, general depression and negativity.
- Lameia
- Tantalus*
- Amaterasu
- Grieve
- Toro
Violence, aggression.
- Eurydice
- Angrilli
- Orpheus
- Dante
- Slaven
- Odysseus
Journeys away from home, exile.
- Bambi
- Telephus*
Of all asteroids listed in this post, Telephus is the one I use most religiously. It is the asteroid of telepathy, and shows a heightened level of intuition in whatever area of one's chart it resides. Telephus in water signs, or conjunct the MC, Sun, or AC, is an indication of potent psychic power. Telephus transits are often disorienting, but seem to come with important revelations about the largest focus of one's current life. It is an extremely slow moving asteroid, and will linger for long periods of time around the same area. Telephus is a helpful asteroid for those who suffer from type of anxiety–check where Telephus is transiting in your chart, and what else it aspect
- Vesta
- Talent
- Wisdom
- Castalia
- Urania
- Nietzsche
- Sapientia*
- Eureka
- Pavlov*
- Cleobulus
- Assesse
- Chimaera
Things that are "chimaeric;" difficult to escape
- Maniac
- Polydoros
- Hekate
- Minerva
- Biblialexa
Karma, Fate, Past-Lives, Secrets, Illusion and Memory
- Mnemosyne, Memoria*
- Quaoar
- Karma, Moira
- Sphinx*
- Saga*
- Anagolay
- Morpheus
- Earhart
- Aeternitas
- Psyche
- Eros
- Casanova
- Arabella
- Lust
Duh.
- Anteros*
One of my favorite asteroids: deep, equal, requited love.
- Eratos
- Constantia
- Phaedra*
- Agapenor
- Syrinx
- Union and Unitas
Coming together.
- Boda
"Marriage" in Spanish.
- Christa
Self sacrifice, a christlike quality, a savior complex. A place where one tends to overlook their own needs for the needs of others.
- Fama
Fame and infamy. A lack of privacy, the broadcasting of personal information, intrusion.
- Fides
- Hidalgo
- Memnon
- Fama
- Lucifer
- Metis
- Desiderata
- Cheshirecat
- Dali*
- Abstracta
- Church
- Humptydumpty
Permanent change. A loss of innocence, a fall from grace, something that transforms you irreparably, often to the sadness of those around you ("all the kings horses and all the kings men couldn't put humpty together again...")
- Whiterabbit
- Alona*
Aloneness.
- Pandora
- Protogeneia*
Firsts. Protogeneia in person A's chart conjunct person B's Venus would indicate, for example, that person B had perhaps a revolutionary love influence that was new to person A.
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