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An Introduction to Midpoints Part 1

Midpoint Background

Much more that can be gleaned from a natal chart by additional techniques, midpoints being one of the better techniques for gaining a deeper analysis. Midpoints provide a connection between planets, that otherwise may appear to be unconnected, by bringing the power of the planets together.

Alfred Witte a German astrologer was the first to get to grips with midpoints in the 20th century. His work was the basis from which Reinhold Ebertin further developed the studies of Midpoints and his book; The Combination Of Stellar Influences, 1 (often termed COSI) has become the reference book all astrologers use as the basis of their studies. In more recent times Michael Munkasey has produced a textbook called Midpoints: Unleashing the Power of the Planets. 2 Today with computers able to take the hard work out of the many calculations needed to study midpoints their use is becoming more prominent. One of the best books for learning the basics of midpoints is Working with Astrology by Mike Harding & Charles Harvey.3

So What Is A Midpoint?

Simply put, Midpoints are the point exactly half way between any 2 planets or points in a chart. The midpoint is usually on the shorter arc and is called the 'direct' midpoint. At this point the combined energies of the 2 planets concerned will come together.

a simple midpoint

The illustration above shows Mercury & Venus with the red point illustrating the midpoint between them. The usual way to note this astrologically is:Merc/Ven or

A midpoint combines the energies of the two planets involved and you would interpret them in the exact way you interpret any two chart factors coming together. According to COSI the principle of these two planets is "A sense and appreciation of beauty, thoughts of love." However it is easy to apply your own interpretation using basic astrological knowledge. As an example: Mercury is the planet of communication and thought, Venus is the planet of taste, charm, and artistic creativity, so a Mercury/Venus midpoint could also be a midpoint of creative ideas or charming speech.

Quite often you will find that more than two planets are involved in a midpoint, for instance what happens when we add a 3rd Planet on that halfway point?

midpoint with a 3rd planet

Here we see that Uranus is on the midpoint axis of Mercury and Venus, thus bringing a 3rd planet into the equation. In terms of interpretation we could say that this person has unusual inventive ideas or is maybe is 'creative' with speech.

Direct And Indirect Midpoints

As previously stated a midpoint is halfway between the shortest arc of any two planets, however this point will be activated by any point in opposition or square to it, (multiples of 90°) and further activated by any point in semi-square and sesi-quadrate (multiples of 45°). These points are termed indirect midpoints and are just as sensitive as the direct midpoint; any planet transiting these points will 'trigger' the midpoint, just as any natal planet will also trigger the same midpoint.

trigger points

So we have already noted that Uranus is on the the Mercury/Venus midpoint, now look closely at the 45° trigger points the illustration above and you will note that the Asc and the MC are also on a trigger point for the Mercury/Venus midpoint. Now we have Mercury/Venus = Uranus = Asc + MC
Uranus is sesi-quadrate both angles, otherwise there is nothing obvious linking all 3 planets with the angles. We’ve already noted that the combination of Mercury/Venus = Uranus can be creative with the truth, add MC and Asc into the equation and we have someone who is renowned for just such a thing – Richard Nixon!

Why not take a look at the midpoints in your own chart? For midpoint work always keep your orbs very small. Natal planets use orbs of just 1 degree, or 2 degrees if the Sun, Moon, Asc, or MC are involved. For transiting and progressed planets use orbs of between 5-15 minutes.