Famous birth charts · Charles Bukowski
Charles Bukowski’s chart in full
Born August 16, 1920, Andernach, Germany. The chart is cast for noon on the day, and everything shown here held all day long.
Point at a body or a sign to see its connections.
The chart, fact by fact
Planets
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The ten bodies astrology reads: the Sun, the Moon and eight planets. The planet says which part of a person it speaks for, the sign says how that part behaves, and the house says where in life it shows.
Sun in Leo
The Bright One. Warm, proud and generous.
23°15′
Moon in Virgo
The Moon moved from Virgo into Libra at 10:28 p.m. that day, local time: in Virgo for a birth before then, in Libra for one after.
24°00′
Mercury in Leo
The Storyteller. A voice that carries.
4°38′
Venus in Virgo
The Quiet Romantic. Love in small attentions.
5°16′
Mars in Scorpio
The Strategist. Will under a still surface.
18°12′
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Jupiter in Leo
The Big Heart. A generous heart, on display.
27°39′
Saturn in Virgo
The Perfectionist. Mastery by the hour.
12°13′
Uranus in Piscesretrograde
4°07′
Neptune in Leo
11°44′
Pluto in Cancer
8°23′
Beyond the planets
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Points read beside the planets. The rising sign, or Ascendant, is the sign coming up over the eastern horizon at the minute of birth: the first impression. The Midheaven is the highest point of the sky: career and public life. The North Node is where the Moon’s path crosses the Sun’s: the direction a life grows in. Chiron, a small body between Saturn and Uranus, is a lifelong sore spot and the gift it leaves for others. Black Moon Lilith, where the Moon’s orbit swings farthest from Earth, is what a person keeps untamed.
North Node in Scorpio
The direction his life grows in: Scorpio, intense and private.
9°36′
Chiron in Aries
In Aries, Chiron is a doubt about the right to go first, and with it a talent for giving others their nerve.
10°00′
Black Moon Lilith in Capricorn
In Capricorn, Lilith is an ambition that has stopped waiting its turn.
3°25′
The rising sign and the Midheaven need the birth time to the minute, so they are left out.
Patterns
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When several aspects lock into one shape, such as a triangle or a cross, the planets in it act together, and the shape says how: easily, under strain, or with one planet as the focus.
Stellium
Three or more planets gathered in one sign or one house, so that part of the chart speaks loudest.
In his chart, his identity, his mind, his optimism and his imagination (the Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune) gather in Leo, and that part of life drew his attention first.
Aspects by strength
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An aspect is a set angle between two bodies in the sky at birth. Some angles flow, some rub, and some fuse two bodies into one. The number is how far the angle is from exact: the smaller it is, the stronger the link.
Only the aspects that held from the first minute of the day to the last are shown; each figure is for noon.
Mercury quincunx Uranus almost exact at 0.5°
Ordinary logic and sudden insight needed constant translating, and he spent time explaining how he got there.
Venus opposition Uranus close at 1.1°
Love came in sudden starts and stops: he fell for people quickly and needed room just as quickly.
Pluto trine North Node close at 1.2°
Deep change helped him forward: each time he started over, he went further.
Neptune square North Node close at 2.1°
Dreams and the way forward clashed, and growing meant trading some illusions for clear sight.
Saturn sextile North Node close at 2.6°
Discipline helped him grow: patience and hard work kept him on course.
Venus sextile Pluto wide at 3.1°
He loved with depth and loyalty, and the bonds he formed changed both people.
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Saturn sextile Pluto wide at 3.8°
Endurance: he could work through hard times, and what he built survived pressure.
Uranus trine Pluto wide at 4.3°
He could help change things at the root, and upheaval suited him.
The Sun conjunction Jupiter wide at 4.4°
Optimism at the centre of him: he expected things to go well, and that confidence won people over.
Mercury square North Node wide at 5.0°
Old ideas and the way forward were at odds, and he learned new ways of thinking to move on.
The Sun square Mars wide at 5.0°
He fought hard for what he wanted, and his temper was part of his courage.
Uranus trine North Node wide at 5.5°
Change helped him forward: he grew by trying the new.
Mars square Neptune wide at 6.5°
Drive and dreams mixed uneasily: the goal was clear to him, and the way to it harder to see.
Jupiter opposition Uranus wide at 6.5°
Restless hope: he wanted more freedom than any situation gave, and big changes came suddenly.
Venus conjunction Saturn wide at 6.9°
Serious about love: he gave affection slowly, and once given, it stayed given.
Mercury conjunction Neptune wide at 7.1°
A poet’s mind: he heard what went unsaid, and his best ideas came from somewhere hard to explain.
Chart signature
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The chart’s balance at a glance: which of the four elements and three modes it leans on, which body is most connected, and any body standing alone.
Elements
Modes
The Moon changed sign that day; it is counted where it stood at noon.
No air at all, so stepping back to talk a thing through took deliberate effort.
You and Charles Bukowski
See where your chart meets Charles Bukowski’s, and the signs you share.