Neptune

What is Neptune in the birth chart?: This is where the planet Neptune is located, including which sign of the Zodiac and in which of the twelve houses.

How can I find out where Neptune is in my chart, and in which sign?: Any birth chart program will include Neptune, and you can find it by looking for the Neptune symbol on the wheel.

Has Neptune always been important in astrology?: It is a fairly recent discovery and therefore referred to as one of the "modern planets." Neptune was discovered in 1848 when astronomers solved the mystery of why Uranus was being pulled off its orbit. They had suspected that another planet was exerting a gravitational pull, and were proven right when they discovered Neptune.

Why is Neptune known as a "generational planet?":

It takes about 14 years for Neptune to pass through a sign, so those born in a particular period have this in common. It influences a generation and the lens through which that group handles Neptunian concerns.

The long view of history reveals the impact a generation made on the culture via Neptune. One example is the 1960s when Neptune was in Scorpio, and there was heavy experimentation in drugs, and the music veered toward the trance-like, shadowy, dark, mysterious and subterranean. Neptune shapes the collective myths, and the memory of that era is colored by Scorpionic undertones of emotional intensity.

Keywords: spirituality, dreams, illusions, imagination, idealism

Neptune was named for the Roman god of the sea, and its province is the oceanic depth of the imagination, dreams and spiritual visions. Our nightly dreams can be a portal through which we find meaning in life. And dreams, as well as the visions of waking life, can be expressed through art, dance, movies, music, etc, reflecting back to us a vision of that inner world.

Neptune is a bridge to the mysterious and that knowing many of us have that we’re all somehow linked. It's like the other slow moving planets. guiding each generation toward its collective spiritual destiny. Because of this, it’s often easier to see how it colored a particular period in retrospect.

Beyond the sign shared by an entire generation, the house position of Neptune is important in the individual birth chart. It shows areas of life that could bring up confusion because it’s hard to discern reality from illusions. But it also points to how you'll express the vast landscape of the imagination through creativity. It might show what areas of life you find spiritual meaning, as well.

If Neptune is prominent in your chart – if there are many favorable aspects, for example – you could be naturally drawn toward the spiritual path and mysticism. Neptune also holds sway, if you have a heavy Pisces influence in your chart. But everyone has a personal dream world and the potential for creativity, and the house and sign position shows how this part of life will be expressed.