This signifies the sign the sun was in when you were born, and it’s the one you typically refer to when reading your horoscope.

This is the sign the moon was in when you were born, and it represents the way you feel and process your inner life and emotions.

It’s the sign closest to the Eastern horizon at the exact time of your birth. Your rising, sometimes called your ascendant, represents how you appear to others; knowing your exact time of birth is important as the ascendant switches to a new house every two hours.

The dividing line between two different signs is known as the cusp. If you were born towards the end of a zodiac sign’s season, when the sun was hovering over that dividing line at the moment you were born, you’re a cusp sign and you’ll carry traits from each zodiac sign that you straddle between.

Also known as the natal chart, it tells you the placement and position of each planet at the time of your birth.

Along with the 12 signs, the zodiac wheel is also divided up into 12 houses. Each represents a different aspect of life. For example, the second house often represents money and material possessions, while the fifth house represents creativity. When a planet enters a certain house, it’s said to reflect the energy of that house; this adds another layer of interpretation to readings.

The ruler of the horoscope is the planet that rules the sign. To know your ruler, you’ll have to know your ascendant sign. For example, if your ascendant is Gemini, your ruler is Mercury.

When a planet is in retrograde, it means that the planet appears to be moving backwards based on their speed and distance from the earth. The illusion of a planet moving “backwards”, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), is due to the orbital movements of the planets (including Earth) around the sun.