Astrology App VS. Astrology Reading

Why should I pay an astrologer to read my birth chart if there are apps that tell me about my horoscope?

For anyone looking to finally take the plunge and explore their birth chart, it may seem like the easiest way would be to go to your phone’s app store, find one of the many astrology apps, and click “download.” They’ll ask you for some information, and out comes your list of signs and planets, perhaps even your house placements (if you’re lucky). You instantly call up your friends and share with joy that you finally know your Venus or Mars signs. The compare and contrast game begins. But what does this all even mean?

If you’re truly interested in understanding zodiac signs, planets, what they represent, and the type of knowledge about yourself they are supposed to convey, you may receive a generalized, stereotypical set of explanations, if they are even offered. Ask any astrologer about astrology apps, and they will shake their heads at this mainstream attempt to cash in on a trend that has gone viral.

The issue is this: the content is not personalized to how all of your planets interact with each other.

What does that have to do with anything?

Let’s take a look at the reasons why you should think again if you’ve only gone as far as downloading an astrology app.

1. House Placements

Most mainstream astrology apps only supply you with the bare minimum to satisfy your tastebuds. Perhaps you’ve only known about your sun sign, maybe even your moon and rising signs, but now you have a whole list of planets and their signs! While this is fantastic and can really set you on the path to understanding a little more about your energies, the true magic happens when you align your zodiac signs, planet placements and house placements together.

What is an astrology house? The birth chart is divided into 12 houses. Each one represents a part, or theme, of your life. Sometimes a house may not have a planetary placement, but each planet will reside in a house on your chart. Depending on what house the planet resides in, is what type of theme you can expect to show up in regards to that planet (part of your personality). Finally, you add in which zodiac sign the planet and house are in, and you then have how that part of your life and part of your personality are expressed energetically.

This is a huge piece of the puzzle! Without knowing your house placements, you can’t even begin to dissect how your energies intersect with your identity, family life, love life, career, friends, personal pains and enlightenment! Wouldn’t it be amazing to understand astrology and know what type of energy you present (fire, air, earth, water) in each phase of your life? It can provide so much relief and illumination once you start putting all the pieces of the puzzle together.

2. Planetary Aspects

Ever wonder why sometimes you feel bipolar? One moment you are rocking out, feeling great at work, and the next, you come home to your partner and have an argument because you were triggered. Sometimes, you may even feel your mood shift internally, being super extroverted at times, and then super introverted. What is going on here? Astrology has your answers!

An astrology app isn’t likely to go so deep as to explain how all of your planets interact with each other. If they do even, it may be a generalized approach to cover being able to supply millions of users “information”. A natal birth chart is the key to your uniqueness! There is no way an astrology app could possibly live chat you to ask “what’s been going on in your life lately?”

When an astrologer does a live reading, you are receiving information and feedback to your personal situation – right now. I can’t tell you how many times in a reading I have seen people flooded with relief as we connect the dots between their planetary aspects, and why they are experiencing so much frustration in certain parts of their lives! Once you understand how these universal forces are at play, you are much more equipped to go into a similar situation the next time around with the armor of knowledge to help you navigate tough waters. Again, an app is simply too simple when it comes to sharing and explaining the complexity of your birth chart.

3. Yin and Yang Energies

One of the most influential and beneficial parts of when I, as an astrologer, do a reading, is sharing the sub-chart of elements and zodiac modes. It’s a usually overlooked piece of really having a broader view of how you should feel, and behave, in a balanced way between feminine and masculine energies. Yin is feminine, and yang is masculine. Each element is represented by one. Each zodiac sign is also assigned to an element, which means it is also assigned as a yin or yang energy.

Your natal birth chart will have all of these labelled in their appropriate columns, giving you an instant view of where the dominant energies in your entire chart are! Perhaps you are a woman who feels more “masculine”. Maybe you simply have a lot of fire and air elements in your chart! It does not indicate a sexual preference, it simply shows that you prefer to express yourself with more masculine types of actions: doing, planning, executing, managing, being blunt, engaging, etc. If you are behaving and acting to please someone else, or your job is forcing you to be contrary to this natural state of expression, you may find yourself depressed, unmotivated, feeling out of sync with your goals in life.

Once you understand your dominant energetic signature based on all the planetary placements in your chart, you can then see if your relationships are a good match to balance your energies. All of that frustration can easily be explained and you can start making more conscious decisions about who you have around in your closest circle!

You’ll also see the mention of “Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable” signs. Similarly, this information can show you on average, where your dominant energies lie. Cardinal is Creative, Fixed is Rooted, and Mutable is Go With The Flow!

4. Future Astrology Forecasting

A gifted astrology reading doesn’t just set you up with the knowledge about who you have been. It is a tool when understood appropriately, can be used daily to help you navigate current universal energies. Some astrology apps may send you an alert stating what to look out for today, or what to expect. These are super generalized statements, that are usually so broad, there could be hundreds of different explanations or applications!

Typically, those alerts or forecasts are based on the general energetic placement of that day. It is telling you, and everyone else, what you should look out for, but anyone could be told the same thing. You really have to look at the deeper complexities of how all of your planets are aspecting all of the planetary positions for today! An astrologer will always be able to connect the dots for you.

TO CONCLUDE:

Spending some money to have an astrologer give you a birth chart reading is worth its weight in gold. You will start to truly understand how unique you are and have the education straight from the source that understands all the complexities. Your collaboration in the reading, giving personal insight into what is going on for you in this moment, gives you a shortcut to figuring out what is the next best step for your spiritual alignment. While astrology apps have given a push to the mainstream of viewing astrology as something to be taken seriously, it still pales in comparison to the real deal. If you’re interested in a birth chart reading, I can help you navigate what all of your energies mean specifically for you.

If you really love this holistic astrology perspective, check out the latest updates on the NOONLIT SAGE Blog. Let me know what you're curious to know more about your zodiac signs, how to use astrology and apply it to your daily life and your healing journey.

*This article has been written by Monica of NOONLIT SAGE. She has a Masters of Social Work, Masters of Child Development and Bachelors of Psychology. Once her passion for Astrology ignited in 2019, she began to host a monthly therapeutic Astrology Manifesting New Moon Circle in Phoenix, Arizona, and has done hundreds of birth chart readings. She continued her studies and completed an Astro-Herbalism Certification via the School of Evolutionary Herbalism to provide even more holistic wellness insights into those whom she meets on their healing journeys.