written by Clarence Ewing
Part of the elegance of astrology is the sheer number of configurations of signs and planets that can make up someone’s birth chart.
The moment you were born, the planets were all set in a specific way that is very much unique to you based on the date, time, and location where you came into the world.
Part of the elegance of astrology is the sheer number of configurations of signs and planets that can make up someone’s birth chart.
The moment you were born, the planets were all set in a specific way that is very much unique to you based on the date, time, and location where you came into the world.
This goes far beyond the simple newspaper horoscope that divides humans into 12 categories and then provides advice based on that. If that was all that was needed to define a person’s nature, there would be a lot more people walking around who are just like you!
Since this is clearly not the case for anyone, we have to take into account the seemingly unlimited details provided by the limited number of planets, signs, and houses available to use.
This got me wondering just how many possible combinations of planets, signs, and houses are there? Let’s use math to construct a basic birth chart and find out.
For this exercise, we’ll use the most common house system in Western astrology with its 12 signs* and 12 houses equally distributed around the chart. This chart will focus on the major planets, the ones that appear prominently in any complete birth chart.
[*BTW, those signs are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.]
Let’s start with the Sun, one of the most important planets to consider when constructing any chart. The Sun represents identity and the main thing that makes you you.
The newspapers have it right in that at the moment of your birth, the Sun is located in one of the 12 different astrological signs. But, just as importantly, it is also positioned in one of the 12 astrological Houses, which represent different areas of your life. (Ex. Sun in Leo in the 9th House of philosophy)
Multiplying 12 possible signs times 12 possible houses gives a total of 144 different potential sign/house combinations for your Sun placement:
12 X 12 (or 122 [which is 12 squared])
= 144 unique charts
The next element we’ll add to the chart is the Moon, which moves independently from the sun and is considered to be a planet in Western astrology. The moon governs our emotional states.
Like the Sun, the Moon occupies a sign and a house at the moment of your birth, which gives a possible 144 combinations. Putting these two planets on the chart results in a possible 20, 736 possible sign and house position combinations:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon]
= 20, 736 unique charts
We only have two planets on the chart, but we’re already seeing a lot of different possible placements. Still, if we stopped here it would mean a lot of duplicate charts considering it could be used for the billions of people who have walked the Earth.
Next, let’s add the planet Mercury, the planet of communication and travel. Mercury’s orbit is a little different in that it is “tied” to the Sun; Wherever the Sun happens to be on a chart, Mercury is never more than one sign in front of or behind it. This gives Mercury at most a potential 3 sign radius of travel at any given time.
Also, unlike the Sun and Moon, there are times during the year that Mercury can move in a retrograde fashion where it appears to orbit backwards in the sky relative to an observer on Earth.
This results in a total of 6 possible sign positions (3 when it’s moving direct in its orbit and 3 when it's moving retrograde) and 3 possible house positions at any given time. Adding Mercury to the calculation gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury]
= 373, 248 unique charts
Next, we’ll add Mars, the planet of passion and aggression, to the chart. Unlike Mercury, Mars can be at any chart location at a given time no matter what the Sun is doing. Like Mercury, Mars moves retrograde from time to time. This results in a total of 24 possible sign positions (12 when it’s moving direct in its orbit and 12 when it's moving retrograde).and 12 possible house positions.
Adding in Mars gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars]
= 107, 495, 424 unique charts
Next up is Venus, the planet of beauty and harmony. Venus's potential movements are the same as Mars, as can move retrograde as well. Including Venus in the calculation gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus]
= 30, 958, 682, 112 unique charts
Up next is Jupiter, the planet of luck and generosity, which can also move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter]
= 8, 916, 100, 448, 256 unique charts
Next up is Saturn, the planet of discipline, structure, and karma, which can also move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn]
= 2, 567, 836, 929, 097, 728 unique charts
Next we’ll add Uranus, the planet of rebellion, individualism, and ingenuity, which is also capable of retrograde motion:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus]
= 739, 537, 035, 580, 145, 664 unique charts
We’ll also add in Neptune, the mystical planet that governs dreams, intuition and magic, and which can move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune]
= 212, 986, 666, 247, 081, 951, 232 unique charts
The last planet we’ll add to the chart is Pluto, which is no longer considered to be a planet in astronomy, but is still very much so in astrology as it governs fundamental change and the death/rebirth process.
Pluto is capable of moving retrograde as well. Factoring in Pluto gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune] X (12 X 24) [Pluto]
= 61, 340, 159, 879, 159, 601, 954, 816 unique charts
Another very important element of any birth chart is your rising sign, or Ascendant, which is the sign that was on the horizon the moment you were born and governs your outward appearance and the kind of impression you make to others. There are 12 possible rising signs.
Factoring in the Ascendant gives us our final total:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune] X (12 X 24) [Pluto] X 12 [Ascendant]
= 736, 081, 918, 549, 915, 223, 457, 792 unique charts
For a basic chart that calculates just the major planets and ascendant, there are over 736 SEXTILLION possible combined planetary sign and house combinations!
To give this gargantuan number some perspective, around 100 billion humans have ever existed on planet Earth at any time, according to estimates. That means there are enough unique chart possibilities to assign over a billion charts to every single person who has ever lived.
Since this is clearly not the case for anyone, we have to take into account the seemingly unlimited details provided by the limited number of planets, signs, and houses available to use.
This got me wondering just how many possible combinations of planets, signs, and houses are there? Let’s use math to construct a basic birth chart and find out.
For this exercise, we’ll use the most common house system in Western astrology with its 12 signs* and 12 houses equally distributed around the chart. This chart will focus on the major planets, the ones that appear prominently in any complete birth chart.
[*BTW, those signs are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.]
Let’s start with the Sun, one of the most important planets to consider when constructing any chart. The Sun represents identity and the main thing that makes you you.
The newspapers have it right in that at the moment of your birth, the Sun is located in one of the 12 different astrological signs. But, just as importantly, it is also positioned in one of the 12 astrological Houses, which represent different areas of your life. (Ex. Sun in Leo in the 9th House of philosophy)
Multiplying 12 possible signs times 12 possible houses gives a total of 144 different potential sign/house combinations for your Sun placement:
12 X 12 (or 122 [which is 12 squared])
= 144 unique charts
The next element we’ll add to the chart is the Moon, which moves independently from the sun and is considered to be a planet in Western astrology. The moon governs our emotional states.
Like the Sun, the Moon occupies a sign and a house at the moment of your birth, which gives a possible 144 combinations. Putting these two planets on the chart results in a possible 20, 736 possible sign and house position combinations:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon]
= 20, 736 unique charts
We only have two planets on the chart, but we’re already seeing a lot of different possible placements. Still, if we stopped here it would mean a lot of duplicate charts considering it could be used for the billions of people who have walked the Earth.
Next, let’s add the planet Mercury, the planet of communication and travel. Mercury’s orbit is a little different in that it is “tied” to the Sun; Wherever the Sun happens to be on a chart, Mercury is never more than one sign in front of or behind it. This gives Mercury at most a potential 3 sign radius of travel at any given time.
Also, unlike the Sun and Moon, there are times during the year that Mercury can move in a retrograde fashion where it appears to orbit backwards in the sky relative to an observer on Earth.
This results in a total of 6 possible sign positions (3 when it’s moving direct in its orbit and 3 when it's moving retrograde) and 3 possible house positions at any given time. Adding Mercury to the calculation gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury]
= 373, 248 unique charts
Next, we’ll add Mars, the planet of passion and aggression, to the chart. Unlike Mercury, Mars can be at any chart location at a given time no matter what the Sun is doing. Like Mercury, Mars moves retrograde from time to time. This results in a total of 24 possible sign positions (12 when it’s moving direct in its orbit and 12 when it's moving retrograde).and 12 possible house positions.
Adding in Mars gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars]
= 107, 495, 424 unique charts
Next up is Venus, the planet of beauty and harmony. Venus's potential movements are the same as Mars, as can move retrograde as well. Including Venus in the calculation gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus]
= 30, 958, 682, 112 unique charts
Up next is Jupiter, the planet of luck and generosity, which can also move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter]
= 8, 916, 100, 448, 256 unique charts
Next up is Saturn, the planet of discipline, structure, and karma, which can also move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn]
= 2, 567, 836, 929, 097, 728 unique charts
Next we’ll add Uranus, the planet of rebellion, individualism, and ingenuity, which is also capable of retrograde motion:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus]
= 739, 537, 035, 580, 145, 664 unique charts
We’ll also add in Neptune, the mystical planet that governs dreams, intuition and magic, and which can move retrograde:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune]
= 212, 986, 666, 247, 081, 951, 232 unique charts
The last planet we’ll add to the chart is Pluto, which is no longer considered to be a planet in astronomy, but is still very much so in astrology as it governs fundamental change and the death/rebirth process.
Pluto is capable of moving retrograde as well. Factoring in Pluto gives us:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune] X (12 X 24) [Pluto]
= 61, 340, 159, 879, 159, 601, 954, 816 unique charts
Another very important element of any birth chart is your rising sign, or Ascendant, which is the sign that was on the horizon the moment you were born and governs your outward appearance and the kind of impression you make to others. There are 12 possible rising signs.
Factoring in the Ascendant gives us our final total:
122 [Sun] X 122 [Moon] X ( 6 X 3) [Mercury] X (12 X 24) [Mars] X (12 X 24) [Venus] X (12 X 24) [Jupiter] X (12 X 24) [Saturn] X (12 X 24) [Uranus] X (12 X 24) [Neptune] X (12 X 24) [Pluto] X 12 [Ascendant]
= 736, 081, 918, 549, 915, 223, 457, 792 unique charts
For a basic chart that calculates just the major planets and ascendant, there are over 736 SEXTILLION possible combined planetary sign and house combinations!
To give this gargantuan number some perspective, around 100 billion humans have ever existed on planet Earth at any time, according to estimates. That means there are enough unique chart possibilities to assign over a billion charts to every single person who has ever lived.
And keep in mind that this is just a basic chart. If we wanted to, we could have added several other astrological factors such as the True Node (indicator of your cosmic destiny) and moons or asteroids that are considered to be smaller “planets” such as Ceres, Vesta, and Pallas. If we added those to our chart, the number of potential unique charts gets that much massively bigger.
Considering the way-beyond-long odds that a given person would have the same birth chart as anyone else in history, it’s safe to say that your birth chart is as unique to you as your fingerprint, maybe even moreso.
Even if you are firmly of the option that astrological calculations are meaningless, the fact remains that there are a LOT from which to choose. If you’re looking for some kind of uniqueness in the universe, look to your birth chart.
Considering the way-beyond-long odds that a given person would have the same birth chart as anyone else in history, it’s safe to say that your birth chart is as unique to you as your fingerprint, maybe even moreso.
Even if you are firmly of the option that astrological calculations are meaningless, the fact remains that there are a LOT from which to choose. If you’re looking for some kind of uniqueness in the universe, look to your birth chart.
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