Planetary Remediation - The Sun
The Sun
The Sun represents your ability and willingness to be seen and to know and evaluate yourself. Likewise, the Sun signifies your ability to identify and acknowledge the qualities of others. The Sun is your personal truth. It is responsible for your ability to identify and select based on preference and move toward your chosen goals with steadiness and persistence.
If you haven’t done so already, you may want to read Building a Better Birth Chart - A Practical Guide to Planetary Remediation before diving into this material.
The Healthy Sun
When the Sun is healthy, you bring yourself to situations with authenticity and confidence. You have no need to hide anything because you know and accept yourself for both your strengths and shortcomings. When you perform, you bring your whole self to the task at hand and are open to receiving feedback - positive or negative. You share your opinions openly without the need for others to agree or to change their mind. You’re also able to make sound decisions and act on them with follow-through.
The Excessive Sun
When the Sun is excessive, there is an unwillingness to see anything other than the most positive qualities in yourself, and a denial of anything that contradicts that positive self-image. There can also be a need for others to recognize and verify your self-concept, which usually results in a lot of classic attention-seeking behavior. The ego can become hungry and grandiose leaving little room for attention to or recognition of the qualities of others.
Identifying an Excessive Sun
The Sun is very strong in fire signs, especially Leo and Aries, with Aries tending to offset some of the Sun’s natural sense of entitlement. But the Sun can become very strong and prone to excess when in usually more then one of the following conditions…
In one of its minor dignities such as Bound or Decan.
In mutual reception with another planet, especially with an applying aspect.
When received by an aspect with the planet ruling it’s sign, especially when the aspect is applying.
Ruling the first or tenth house (Leo or Scorpio rising).
On one of the four angles of the chart, especially the ASC or MC.
In the first or tenth house, sometimes the eleventh or (less often) the ninth, especially if in a degree based aspect with the ASC or MC. (In some cases the Sun can be quite strong in the twelfth or eighth house, especially when in aspect with the MC)
Rules over several planets in Leo.
Is conjunct, or sharing a sign with the north node.
Aspects with Mars, particularly soft aspects, conjunctions or when the Sun is in the superior position, will tend to encourage the Sun’s more excessive qualities. Jupiter will tend toward moderating the Sun, but can sometimes push it towards excess. Uranus will usually energize the Sun and contribute to more excessive and perhaps unusual Solar traits.
The Under-Strength Sun
When the Sun is more seriously weakened or afflicted in some way, there is typically a disinterest in, or reticence to be singled out and identified for your personal qualities. This is not always experienced as negative or difficult, but it can be rooted in a negative self-image, and a fear of being recognized for negative qualities or being rejected by others. There can be hesitation and uncertainty around making decisions, either due to being unable to identify what you want, or because you have low expectations of your ability to achieve your goals.
Identifying an Under-strength Sun
The Sun has a complicated relationship with air signs. While the Sun has some natural affinity with the warmer diurnal nature of the element of air, it is generally weakened when in the Saturn-ruled sign of Aquarius. Libra is the sign of the Sun’s fall, where it can experience a disorienting combination of excessive strength and weakness. Gemini is a fairly comfortable sign for the Sun, but there can be some issues around inconsistency and follow-through. Capricorn is not a sign where the Sun is likely to express in an especially solar way under most conditions. In most earth and water signs, with the exception of Cancer to some degree, the Sun will have a harder time expressing itself without the support of other conditions, but will tend more strongly toward being under-strength when in several of the following conditions…
Peregrine, or not in any of its major or minor dignities.
Lacking an aspect or other form of reception with its domicile lord.
Ruling the sixth or twelfth house (Virgo or Pisces rising).
In the sixth, twelfth or eighth house, especially when not in a degree based aspect with the MC, a planet in the tenth or to a somewhat lesser degree the fourth house.
Conjunct or sharing a sign with the south node.
Aspects with Saturn, especially hard aspects, tend to block or create obstructions and delays around Solar activities. Mars in hard aspect with the Sun, particularly when Mars is in the superior position (earlier in zodiacal order), stimulates and energizes the Sun but in a more agitating way and will often describe fear, anxiety or conflict that contributes to a negative self-image and/or ambivalence around self-expression. Venus and the Moon will tend to chill the Sun out, usually more favorably or at least in a not unpleasant way, but can sometimes exacerbate an already mellow Sun.
Remediating the Sun
Like most planets in a birth chart, you are going to want to pair some cleaning and tuning along with any strengthening or mellowing practices.
Boosting an Under-Strength Sun
Charity - Volunteering and donating to organizations or causes associated with the type of people the Sun is signifies is a great way to get started strengthening your Sun. This might include political campaigns, public figures, performers such as podcast hosts, local theater or vocational assistance programs.
Yellow - Wear yellow on Sunday. Orange can be good as well, but yellow is better. Wear at least one yellow article of clothing, but the more you wear, the stronger the effect. You may also consider painting a room in your home yellow or bringing some yellow decor into your living space. Sunflowers or other yellow flowers in your environment are helpful as well.
Gemstones - Wearing jewelry with stones or other materials that are associated with the Sun (especially on Sundays) is a reliable and relatively low input way to give your Sun a boost. These include amber, sunstone, gold, ruby and numerous other yellow/gold and sometimes red/orange colored stones. Usually the more consistent the color and structure of the stone the more of a clarifying effect the stone will have.
Activities/Hobbies - activities involving public performance will tend to make for good Sun remediation. These might include activities such as improv classes, public speaking, starting a YouTube channel or podcast, coaching youth sports, starting a community organization or joining the local theater.
Diet - Eating foods associated with the Sun is always a reliable method for giving the Sun some juice. You can take it a step further by planing a Solar feast on Sunday and/or the hour of the Sun. Solar foods include citrus fruit, banana, yellow peppers, mustard, corn, heart meats, olives, sunflower seeds, honey, carrots, pineapple, white fish, nuts and spices including turmeric, cinnamon, sesame, saffron and ginger.
The Intuitive Approach
The overarching idea behind strengthening the Sun is to do activities the archetype of the Sun would do, or spend time with people like the Sun.
Put yourself out there - This is harder for some people then others, and the harder it is the more likely it is that your Sun needs a boost. You can start simple or take baby steps if necessary, the main goal is to put yourself in situations where you have to perform in some way and be seen by others. This can be as simple as starting a casual conversation with a stranger or joining a book club where you are expected to discuss the reading in a group situation. The key is to push just a little outside your usual comfort zone. As it is when building muscle, strengthening your Sun takes time. Ease into it.
Social Media - Believe it or not, social media is a very solar activity which can strengthen your Sun when engaged with appropriately. You can probably get some sense of the strength of your Sun and perhaps any issues around it based on your relationship with social media. Are you a social media addict, constantly checking your phone and scrolling your account? You might have some Solar excess that needs some clarification. Are you completely averse to social media or even actively dislike it? Well, there may be good reasons for that, and there are certainly other ways to use your time in a healthy Solar context. However, exploring your reactions may clue you into some Sun related issues that may need unpacking. There’s nothing wrong with not being interested in social media, but generally speaking it is a very accessible way to give your Sun some exercise.
Mentors/Mentorship - Have a Mentor? Get in touch with them or contemplate your experiences with them. Consider also becoming a mentor for someone else. Being a mentor is essentially about being a role-modal, which is fundamentally Solar in nature.
Father-type figures - Just as the Moon is not exclusive to mothers or female figures, the Sun is not exclusive to Fathers or male figures. The Sun in a person’s birth chart is not always relevant to a person’s experience with their actual Father or parental figures. But sometimes it is. What is more consistently relevant, however, is the person or people with whom you developed your patterning around the expectations of your role in the world and how to operate in it. Exploring your ideas around the Father archetype and what it means to you is a great way to tune into your Sun and begin unraveling issues around it.
Cooling Off an Excessive Sun
The best approach to toning-down your Sun is essentially not doing as much of the above things. This isn’t always realistic when your livelihood is dependent on Solar activities. Some things you can do however, is if possible, abstain from Solar activities on Sundays. Take a break from social media, and spend some time alone. Activities found in the Saturn section of this guide, and to a lesser degree Venus and the Moon, will be helpful as well. Fasting on the day of the Sun is a great way to cool the Sun off and gain clarity on the patterns you are trying to break.
Cleaning and Clarifying the Sun
In most cases, you will want to incorporate some clarifying practices into your Solar work. How much work you do with the Sun will depend on how big of a role the Sun plays in your life and how problematic your Solar issues are. Design a practice for yourself centered on the day of the Sun, and commit to it for anywhere from 2-3 weeks to 3-6 months. Try keeping a journal about what comes up for you, and reflect on it as you continue your practice.
Fasting - Fasting is both one of the more challenging and one of the most effective approaches to cleaning up your Sun. If you have more complicated Solar issues, make a practice of fasting on Sunday’s for a period of time. Fasting effectively clears the fog around the specific real-life issues related to the Sun so you can more clearly identify patterns that need to be adjusted.
Feasting - If you are trying to clean-up your Sun, you don’t want to starve it out with to much fasting. If you fast for 2-3 Sundays in a row and feel that the solar sphere of your life has settled to a degree that you have gained clarity on some of its issues, plan a Solar feast on Sunday along with your other Sunday practices.
Meditation - Meditating on the topics of the Sun is great general practice and should definitely be incorporated if you are doing a planetary fast. 10-15 minutes is enough, ideally on Sunday’s or during the hour of the Sun.
Propitiatory methods - Before meditating, create a small simple ritual around reciting a petition to the Sun. You can recite the Orphic Hymn to the Sun, or design your own petition if you prefer. It doesn’t have to be especially poetic, the idea is just to tell the Sun it rocks, acknowledge the things the Sun represents, why those things are so great and ask the Sun to bestow it’s gifts of clarity upon you. You don’t have to believe that the Sun is a literal entity with god-like powers for this to work. But humans have been building God figures around archetypes for tens-of-thousands of years for a reason. It does something for us, it is part of how the human brain creates meaning.
Professional Therapy - This one will appear in the clean-up section of all the Planets and not because I get a commission if you book with therapist through my link, but because I honestly can’t imagine what my life would be like without the years I spent therapy. You may need to try several therapists to find a good fit, but it is one of the best things you can do for yourself.
These practices are based on various Modern, Ancient and Vedic astrological source material as well as my own experience and observation. However, I must give credit to Austin Coppock and his course on planetary remediation which informs much of the remedial framework outlined in this series. If you would like to learn more about planetary remediation, I can not recommend this course highly enough.
