The zodiac as a mirror, Midheaven and Lowest Heavens
To observe and consult heavenly bodies that are fixed inside the zodiac, as they are on a sky chart, is a bit like looking at oneself in a mirror. Indeed, the zodiac sends us back our own image or, more exactly, shows us the image of our double. It is not, therefore, because we were born under such a sign of the zodiac, or because our ascendant is in that other particular sign, that our self (revealed by the position of the Sun) and our appearance (revealed by the position of the ascendant) are the way they are. In other words, no heavenly body, no house or other element inscribed in our birth chart, exerts any influence over us: as we see them, they are what we are, not the reverse.
The zodiac as a mirror
The zodiac is a mirror. The birth chart belongs to the individual; it has been calculated for him alone. It is, therefore, because certain qualities or weaknesses are inherent to our behavior and to our birth chart that we shall find them revealed in certain astral configurations. Knowing that you understand that your reflection must not be distorted by the astrologer who draws up your chart or by you as you learn to draw and interpret charts. If the astrologer injects their own values into the interpretation then it cannot be accurate. You must be tolerant and supportive when interpreting a birth chart. Also, if possible, you should always give an objective dimension to the analysis of the elements inscribed in that chart, even if you know that they can only be subjective since we are all subjects and not objects.
In reality, when you study your birth chart laid out in front of you, it is, as we mentioned before, as though you see yourself standing, facing yourself, in a mirror. Except that, instead of the mirror sending back your exact reflection, it is in fact your double that is represented by the glyphs and symbols written in your birth chart. Your head is represented by the Medium Coeli, your right hand by the ascendant, your left hand by the descendant, and your feet by the Imum Coeli. In other words, in the mirror of your natal chart, your right eye, or your left eye, but, your right eye is actually gazing at your left eye whilst your left eye is facing your double’s right eye. This precision is of the utmost importance if we are to acknowledge that the universe as we see it, and as it is represented in the zodiac and in your birth chart, is a reversed universe, or some kind of double of the visible world.
The Midheaven
The Midheaven (Medium Coeli which you will sometimes see written as MC) – or cusp of the tenth house – is, therefore, the exact point of your birth chart where your head, the highest point of your body, is to be found. In astrological terms, it is the exact point of the zodiac that corresponds to the zenith of the Sun, that is to say, the position of the Sun at midday, on that day. It is therefore the highest point of the birth chart. Its situation is an individual’s birth chart, which allows us to evaluate and understand how that person will – either with ease or difficulty – become self-sufficient and independent.
Thus, the planets which are sometimes positioned in that area supply us with important information, and often highlight obvious qualities or weaknesses in someone’s behavior. The Midheaven can be regarded as the individual’s symbol of social destiny, just as the ascendant is a representation of the self and the appearance. Consequently, the link between self-assertion on the one hand, and social destiny, on the other hand, may seem, at first, paradoxical. However, you can see how an individual, by accomplishing his social destiny, will acquire a certain moral and material independence from the natural and family environment in which he grew up and evolved.
The lowest Heavens
This natural and family environment is revealed by the point of the zodiac and birth chart which is directly opposite the Midheaven (or cusp of the tenth house): it is the Lowest Heavens (Imum Coeli or IC) or cusp of the fourth house. The Midheaven is the zenith of the Sun, and, logically, the Lowest Heavens is its nadir, that is to say, the exact position of the Sun at midnight, on that day. When you look at yourself in the mirror of your birth chart, it is the point of the zodiac where your feet are standing, where your roots and origins are, where the beginning and the end of your social life are inscribed.
By extension, it is often said that the Lowest Heavens and the Midheaven reveal the family circle, the social context, the material and psychological conditions in which the individual lived his childhood and will live the rest of his life. They are the foundations of life. Effectively, the Midheaven-Lowest Heavens axis is as important in a birth chart, as the ascendant-descendant axis. And, to draw a conclusion to the above, one could define the ascendant-descendant axis as ‘myself and others’ and describe the Midheaven-Lowest Heavens axis as ‘my independence and my family. These two-axis form a cross inside the zodiac and birth charts.