Daily Horoscope > Language and Interpretation

1. The different language versions are not identical. Why is this the case and which is the original?
   
   The basis for the daily horoscope is Robert Hand's book 'Planets in Transit', which exists also in German, Dutch and Italian book editions.
   Astrodienst holds the world-wide exclusive rights to use Robert Hand's text for computer horoscopes. In the early 1990s, we created the Personal Horoscope Calendar, a printed calendar with one column of transit readings for each day. To fit into the available space of the text column, the original text was shortened by astrological editors in each language. Different languages have different space requirements, German for example runs about 15% longer than English for the same text - this means more sentences need to be cut in the German version than in the English. Different editors also made different decisions how to shorten the text. The text from this printed edition is now used online for the Daily Horoscope.
   
   The various language editions have come into existence in complicated ways. This explains the differences in wording. There are many ways to illuminate a particular transit - it is not that one way of describing it is fundamentally more valid than another. This is not how astrology works. Therefore all the different versions are valid in their own way.
   
   Chiron was not yet discovered when Robert Hand wrote 'Planets in Transit'. The Chiron readings for the daily horoscope have been added by Astrodienst staff writers.
   
   
2. The tone of the interpretations is sometimes quite negative. Can't you write more cheerful things?
   
   We do not sugarcoat everything. In most cases only part of the text describes the challenging aspects. If you read all paragraphs, you will often find that it is not at all that negative, even when it indeed starts off that way.
   There might be a few texts which do not have a brighter tone at all. These are either aspects which are challenging by nature, or - if not - they will be revised by and by.
   
   
3. The interpretation of the transit should take signs and houses into account.
   
   There is a limit to what a human author can possibly produce. Robert Hand wrote already more than 600 pages, just to cover the aspects of the planetary pairs in transit. To extend that material by taking into account the natal house position and/or the transiting planet's house position, could have easily multiplied the text amount by a factor of 5 - 10, i.e. gone to 3000 - 6000 pages. No astrological author can possibly cover that amount of material without running dry and stale, and no publisher could afford to translate such a volume of text into another language - or find buyers for a boring 6000 page 'cookbook'.
   These are some of the limitations of our trade. I think the synthesis must often happen in the heads of the readers - learn something about houses, and combine that knowledge with the transit readings you find here.
   
   Please run a natal chart separately, if you are not already aware in which houses the transits happen. There is plenty to choose from in our 'Extended Chart Selection'.
   
   
4. The Daily Horoscope often refers to work and career. But I am a pensioner and these references don't apply to me. Can't you offer different versions for different age groups?
   
   Such a request is rather difficult, because people can be professionally active or interested in their work to a high age. We don't know which type our customers belong to.
   
   Nevertheless, we have edited the references to career issues, so that from the age of 60 an adjusted text appears. Hopefully, this will satisfy those who have stopped working at that age.