Basic Fundamentals of Astrological Compatibility

One of the best uses for the tool of Astrology is to

assess the compatibility between people in a relationship.

Such insights can be invaluable for families, social groups,

workplace dynamics, and all other types of situations where

groups of people must interact together. Often times,

difficulties may arise between people, but the cause is not

readily apparent. Astrological compatibility can shed light

on an area that may not have been considered. It also can be

useful when planning groups, for as they say “An ounce of

prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

When assessing the astrological compatibility of

people, there are three dimensions of compatibility that

need to be looked at. First, we’ll look at the strongest

dimension of compatibility: element. All of the

astrological signs are divided up amongst the four

traditional Greek elements, Earth, Air, Fire and Water,

three signs per element. The element of a sign defines the

way a person interacts with the world. Earth signs live

through sensory experience, air signs think about everything

the come in contact with, water signs feel out life through

their intuition and fire signs dictate their lives by their

passions and what drives them. People of the same element

are often naturally drawn to one another because at their

core they are similar without even understanding why. When

two signs of the same element meet each other for the first

time, it is common for them to say things like, “I liked

that person immediately” or “I felt a strong connection to

that person”. Also, certain elements are more likely to get

along with other elements. This is best explained if you

think of the elements in a circle with air at 12 o’clock,

water at 3 o’clock, earth at 6 o’clock and water at 9

o’clock. Elements directly opposite to one another (Air and

Earth, Fire and Water) may have a natural friction because

their behavior comes from very different places. Though,

elements that touch each other have a better chance of

getting along. There is some symbolism behind why, but that

is best left for another essay. It is worth noting that

groups of four are very stable and productive when one sign

of each element is present.

The next most powerful dimension of astrological

compatibility is direction. Each element has a sign of one

of the three directions: Fixed, Mutable and Cardinal.

Direction describes how a sign lives their life. Fixed signs

survive by remaining unchanged despite what goes on around

them. This trait makes them very stable, but often stubborn.

Mutable signs, also known as change signs, survive by going

with the flow. When a situation dictates a change, it is

easy for them to adapt. This gives them much flexibility,

but can cause some people to find them hard to trust.

Cardinal signs are the leadership signs, they take the

situations around them and channel them into what is needed.

This makes them very resourceful, but often pushy seeming or

like a know-it-all. People of the same direction often get

along because they can appreciate how one another gets

things done. When in pairs, a mutable and a fixed sign have

difficulty seeing eye to eye, for the ideas of someone who

changes often naturally seem odd to someone who craves

stability and vice-versa. In pairs it is best to put a the

same direction together or with a cardinal sign who will

know how to assemble different ideas into something useful.

In a group of three, one of each direction is optimal, for

the cardinal sign can help the mutable and fixed understand

the strengths of each other. In groups of four or more, it

is good to try not to have two cardinal signs, for two

leaders will butt heads. Also, one fixed among too many

mutables will feel like things move too fast, while a

mutable amongst too many fixed will feel stifled.

The last, and potentially weakest, point of

astrological compatibility is season. There are three signs

in each of the four traditional seasons and they represent

the point in life in which that sign has the most power.

Spring is childhood, summer is young adulthood, autumn is

middle age and winter is old age. It is also important to

note that the change signs represent the change of the

seasons, so they fit well in either season they straddle

(Pisces – winter/spring, Gemini – spring/summer, Virgo –

summer/autumn, Sagittarius – autumn/winter). When seasonal

signs get together they tend to revel in the things

associated with that age. They feel like they are with

people who find the same things important to them. These

ties are not as strong as elemental or direction

connections, but are useful none the less.

When at all possible, it is good to try to pair people

with someone who matches them on at least dimension. If two

people of opposite elements must be paired, try to get them

to be of the same direction. For example, it can be

difficult for Taurus (Fixed Earth) to see eye to eye with

Gemini (Mutable Air), even if they claim to ‘like’ one

another (often with these two), because not only is there

not much between Earth and Air to find in common, they also

go about things in different ways. It is also important to

know the function of the grouping. Certain signs will work

better at work than at play.