The Hospitality Effect

I've been doing quite a bit of astrological compatibility work lately, and one aspect of chart comparison that has really grabbed my attention is the house overlay technique. The house overlay technique basically involves studying where Person A's planets fall within Person B's natal chart. For example, if Person A has the Moon at 5 degrees Gemini, and Person B has his 6th house cusp at 3 degrees Gemini, then we would say that Person A's Moon is in Person B's 6th house. There is a great deal of useful information that can be gained by comparing two complete charts in this way, but for the purposes of this particular posting, I want to focus on only one relatively small (yet oh so important) area of house overlay space - the Ascendant.

When Person A has a planet (or planets) falling in the 1st house of Person B's chart, we can expect the following phenomenon (which I've dubbed "The Hospitality Effect") to occur: Person B will make efforts to affirm and encourage certain traits or abilities belonging to Person A, abilities and traits which are described by the planet(s) occupying the Ascendant of Person B; this in turn makes Person A feel very welcome, supported, and accepted.

Here's a real life example. My Ascendant is in Pisces, and I have had occasion to notice that I seem to be playing the same specific role for all of my friends and associates who have their Suns in Pisces (falling within my 1st house) - I am forever encouraging them to be who they truly are, and I always seem to be building up their self-esteem in some way or another (usually by verbally praising their natural talents). In short, as the House person (Person B), I become the giver of a most special kind of hospitality. It never fails; I've noticed it happening with good friends and mere acquaintances alike.

This discovery was rather disturbing to me because the textbooks I've read on the subject of chart comparisons all seem to be stating the exact opposite result of what I'm describing here. They all state that it's the House person (Person B) who takes on the qualities of the planet belonging to the Planet person (Person A)...I have found this to be true as well, but to a much lesser extent than The Hospitality Effect.

The case of Person A's Sun in Person B's Ascendant has been given, but what about the other planets? Below, I will briefly describe The Hospitality Effect as it applies to a few of them:

If Person A's Moon falls in Person B's Ascendant, then Person B affirms the feelings and emotional needs of Person A, in turn creating a strong bond of affection based upon perceived commonalities in emotional expression.

If Person A's Mercury falls in Person B's Ascendant, then Person B affirms the intellectual and conversational needs of Person A, in turn creating a strong sense of mental compatibility.

If Person A's Venus falls in Person B's Ascendant, then Person B affirms the beauty and social desireability of Person A, in turn creating a strong romantic or social attraction. Person B may enjoy "showing off" the beauty or perceived popularity of Person A to others.

Fascinating stuff, isn't it?