Leo Ascendant
The Leo Ascendant is the rising sign that describes your appearance, your manner and the first impression you make. Element: fire; modality: fixed; chart ruler: the Sun.
Appearance and manner
A Leo Ascendant gives a striking, "regal" appearance: an upright posture, a proud carriage of the head, thick hair and a warm smile. These people like to dress brightly and know how to wear clothes so that people look at them.
You step into anything new as if walking onto a stage: in high spirits, eager to show yourself and get a response. You need your contribution to be noticed. Without recognition your energy quickly fades.
How others see you
People see you as a leader and a star: generous, warm and confident. You naturally end up at the centre of attention, and it rarely irritates anyone — people have fun around you. Sometimes you are seen as vain or sensitive to criticism.
Strengths and traps
Your strength is generosity, creative fire and the ability to inspire. You are a born leader, host, performer or mentor. The trap is depending on applause and feeling hurt when there is none, and pride that keeps you from admitting a mistake.
Chart ruler
The ruler of the Ascendant is the Sun. Its sign and house are your Sun sign and the area where you want to shine. With a Leo Ascendant the Sun becomes doubly the main planet of the chart, so your Sun sign describes you especially accurately.
The house where the ruler sits is the area of life through which the Ascendant expresses itself: in the 2nd house it is money, in the 7th partnership, in the 10th career. The Ascendant calculator will show where yours is.
Descendant in Aquarius
Descendant in Aquarius: you need a partner who is also a friend — independent and a little detached, someone who will not admire you on demand. Relationships teach you to see the other person as an equal, not an audience.
How to make the most of your Ascendant
Making the most of a Leo Ascendant means finding your stage: creative work, performing, leadership, children. It helps to learn to praise yourself and not to measure your worth by the audience's reaction.
The Ascendant is not the whole person. It blends with your Sun sign and your Moon sign: a Leo Ascendant with the Sun in a water sign, for example, will be softer, and with the Sun in a fire sign, brighter. The description above is the base on which the other planets are layered.
Find your Ascendant
The Ascendant depends on your exact time and place of birth: on average it changes sign every two hours. You can check whether yours really is in Leo with the Ascendant calculator.