Sunrise
In June 1994, Disney premiered The Lion King. It achieved status as the second highest grossing film release at that time (after Jurassic Park), and in 1995 secured another record it would hold onto till the end of time: selling the most VHS copies of any movie.
The next year, in 1996, I turned 2 years old. And every single morning, my little toddler finger would press the power button on our TV, and my little toddler palm would grab that black tape and push it home into the player. After the trailers rolled, and a shooting star arched over a blue castle:
“NAAAAAAANTS INGONYAAAAAAAMA BAGITHI BABA”
A strong, radiant voice belts passionately as a bright, golden semi-circle lifts above a horizontal line near the bottom of the screen, transforming the black landscape with red, orange, then yellow-hues. This meant that the Sun rose multiple times per/day in the Hansen Household; as soon as the tape stopped rolling, I pressed rewind, and like magic, the Lion King began again!
On an Annulus, this moment can be displayed by placing the Sun and Earth on their respective Divots, and then moving the Sun to the Left.
Sunrise in Joshua Tree, CA
This moment has many names:
Sunrise: Exactly as it suggests, the Sun’s rise. This occurs at the Horizon, in the Eastern Direction.
~6:00 AM: About 6 Hours before (Ante) the Sun reaches its highest point (Meridian).
Daybreak: The Day’s Beginning.
Dawn: Technically, Dawn refers to the moment where the Sun’s light first begins to shine above the Eastern Horizon, about 45 minutes before Sunrise.
Cockcry: The time one might first hear a rooster cockadoodledoing.
Mourning: the saddest part of the day.
Im only joking! The “Morning” can describe all hours of the AM. And many people find the morning energizing and optimistic. I’m just a 7th House Taurus Sun, so I will cry if I have to get up when the Sun does.
The Waning Crescent Moon rises just a bit before Sunrise
Thus, two different parts of nature combine to give us this phenomenon:
The Eastern Horizon, aka Ascendant or Rising
In the distance, Earth and Sky meet one another at a line stretching from left to right, and all the way around you. This is called the Horizon, and it delivers the name for all other lines of any context which run left to right: “Horizontal”.
At one part of this line, the sky appears to perpetually lift upward, and things that were blocked from view under the ground of the Earth can emerge visibly above it. We call this direction “Eastern”, and these qualities of sky “Ascending” or “Rising” deliver two additional names to this location.
Being the place where things appear is what gives the Ascendant it’s meaning and prominence to an Astrologer. This natural occurrence gets developed through metaphor to reflect many parts of life:
Appearance: How something or someone appears is related to the ascendant. Consider how the physical body of a person can be seen visibly, while also hiding other qualities of the person below the surface. This is analogous to the Rising.
1st Impressions: Often, astrologers speak on the Rising as how you come off when people first meet you. This is, again, a metaphor for being previously unseen and unknown by someone, but suddenly emerging into their vision and consciousness, just as thing in the sky do at this point.
Birth: The moment of birth is, of course, a prime concern for astrologers, with Natal Astrology being by far the most commonly practiced branch. But while a full chart is looked at and interpreted, the event itself is closely tied to the Ascendant’s specific function; one minute, you were unseen within your mothers womb, and the next, you were seen for the first time by your loved ones and medical professionals out in the world.
Sun-Rise in Eden, Utah
The Sun
The Sun is, by far, the most massive object in it’s Solar-System, as well as its center of gravity. On the Gold Side of the Annulus, the Sun is the only producer of Light. The ability to see anything else placed on this Side is a result of the Sun’s light reflecting off their surfaces. This light is a byproduct of the intense energy being produced within it’s core, as its gravity crushes Hydrogen atoms together until they merge into Helium, “Nuclear Fusion”.
The Sun is the most consistent part of our reality. It always moves the same direction through the sky, and appears quite large in our sky at 0°30 across. These qualities are also true of the Moon. But unlike our satellite, the Sun shines with a full brightness at all times, and retains a similar speed no matter where it is in the sky (though it speeds up a bit around January, and slows in July).
The Earth makes one full orbit around the Sun in about 365 Days. This has a huge influence on the choice of humans to describe a circle with 360°, and thus the Sun moves nearly 1° every single Day, so this relationship is integral to our construction of mathematics and geometry. It also serves as the foundation for human measurements of time, being the basis for time-of-day on a sundial or a wristwatch, as well as the basis for time-of-year in the many solar-calendars.
The Sun casts very long shadows just after Rising
As a metaphor, the Sun can represent many different parts of the human experience:
Identity: Being the center of mass and gravity in the Solar System, the Sun represents the core of a thing, that which the rest of its parts surround. In a person, this says something about the Identity, a part of the Self which is consistent and dominant. It also has a sense of extraversion, having a noticeable affect on those around to be influenced.
Insight: Being the emanator of light, the Sun becomes a symbol for knowledge and discovery, or more abstractly Truth, as light allows us to see things with more clarity and detail. In an esoteric sense, this can also be associated with consciousness, with the Sun’s light being the force that assists us in waking up, kickstarting ancient Circadian Rhythms within us.
Authority: Combining the two themes above, the Sun can represent Leaders, those who have strong gravitational influence, as well as bright vision. Following these impulses can cause others to organize around you, so Authority figures like the President of a country or company, or the presiding Parent in a family are like Suns to their groups. Additionally, this can apply to Actors, those who take center-stage, within the spotlight, as other characters react to them, and an audience watches (and hopefully applauds!)
The Waning Gibbous Moon sets a bit after Sunrise
Sun-Rise
You might hear an astrologer refer to this in a few different ways:
Sun conjunct Ascendant
Sun in the 1st House
A “Double” (with 2 of the Big 3 being the same Sign)
Now that we have learned the Qualities of both the Sun and the Ascendant, let’s combine them together to see what further descriptions we may generate:
Visibility: Because the Sun has the property of Light, and the Ascendant has a property of Appearance, these two things resonate strongly to create a Brightness of Countenance. They are Radiant, even Dazzling. This can translate to attractiveness, though the Sun is so bright, it’s difficult to look at directly. Depending on the Sign this takes place in, and the further context of the chart, the native might enjoy and take advantage of this glamour, or lament that they cannot go unnoticed.
Vitality: Because the Sun has the property of Energy, and the Ascendant has the signification of the Body, these two things resonate strongly to create Fuel. The morning is when people wake up, and activity increases. The person lives vigorously, with a storehouse of energy to draw from, increasing their capacity to work hard and achieve. Longevity is increased, and there is much time for skills to be refined, and latter of power to be climbed.
Daybreak: Because the Sun starts the Day, and the Ascendant is where the Day starts, we might imagine that when this person walks into a room, they can change the atmosphere from Night into Day. All other points of light humble themselves, and recede from view in respect for the Sun’s Entrance. It is impossible not to notice or be affected by the change that takes place in such an hour.
The Morning Star Venus shinning just before Sunrise
Conclusion
It’s dawned on me that I’ve stretched out one small moment into what feels like an eternity. The phenomenon of Sunrise is so ubiquitous to the Earthly experience that waxing this long about its effect might seem over-the-top. But that is precisely the reason to delve so deeply into it’s significance.
As I was writing this, the song “Get out of this Town” by Carrie Underwood came up on my playlist, a song about leaving with her lover under the cover of night. In the Chorus, she exclaims they’ll be “gone by morning light”, and by Sunrise, be somewhere they won’t ever be found, on a brand new adventure. A million songs could have come on that reference
I hope that dwelling on this daily event has given you a brand new perspective on something you’ve known internally for your whole life. Sunrise is the start of something new, and is used as a metaphor for this is all kinds of art, songs, movies… and astrology! Recognizing that Sunrise is displayed with the Sun to the Left is the very first step in learning to use an Annulus, so you’ve now taken your first steps on the path toward reading one! ⭕️
The Waning Crescent Moon ascends as the stars recede in the Sunrise