Main Axis
Ascendant to Descendant (Horizontal Axis), Medium Coeli to Imum Coeli (Vertical Axis). They are usually simply called the axes. The term axis is often used to refer to the axis connecting the Ascendant and the Descendant or the one connecting the Medium Coeli and the Imum Coeli.
Taken together, the axes Ascendant/Descendant and Medium Coeli/Imum Coeli form a cross within the horoscope which divides it into four segments (quadrants). This axial cross (also referred to as the celtic cross) is clearly defined in the horoscope and remains the same irrespective of the house System used.
The Celtic cross places the person within a temporal and spatial perspective. The owner of the horoscope stands symbolically at the point where the two axes intersect, i.e. in the middle of the horoscope. The horizontal axis forms the spatial framework: The Ascendant indicates how we present ourselves to the world and the Descendant how we react to others. The vertical axis shows a temporal perspective: The Imum Coeli equates with the past and describes where we come from and what our roots are, while the Medium Coeli points towards the future and indicates the direction we should take, what our destination is.
Weblinks
- Poetry in Motion: The MC-IC (Polly Wallace, Astrological Journal 2014/Astrodienst)