Many people who take an interest in astrology know what sign they have rising, and most of them are also aware that the term “Ascendant” means the same thing. To be precise, the rising sign is the sign of the zodiac that was coming up over the eastern horizon at a person's time of birth, while the Ascendant is the exact degree of that sign. Obviously this Ascendant will fall into a specific decan and a dwaad, and this will make the childhood experiences and some aspects of the person's nature quite unlike others who were born with the same sign rising.
There are many books on the market that deal with rising signs; therefore, if you treat yourself to a book or two on this subject, and then once you have worked out which sign, decan and dwaad you are dealing with on your own chart and on those of others, you can easily check these out by reading the story for each feature, treating each component part as a rising sign in its own right and then reading the relevant chapter.
For example, a person with Gemini rising could have a Gemini, Libra, or Aquarius decan and a dwaad from any one of the twelve zodiac signs on the actual ascendant degree. This person would need to read the chapter on Gemini as a rising sign, but also Libra or Aquarius, if those decans happen to sub-rule the sign, and then they could check out the situation for whatever dwaad sign is in operation.
Until you find the books you need, here is a summary that will give you something to work with.
One or even both parents may be domineering and unreasonable; confrontations are particularly likely to occur when the child reaches his teens, and then he or she may escape by leaving home when young, in order to get away from the parental pressure. Some Aries rising subjects will go into the armed forces to get away, while others marry and start a family while very young. Others will simply take off and establish a separate life from that of the parents. Choosing to leave or to stay and fight depends upon the person's basic nature and on many factors in his horoscope. Often this subject is the oldest child in the family, one who doesn't quite fit in at home, or the one who somehow seems to set off peevish or domineering behavior from the parent in question. This person may be naturally rather self-centered, or he may develop a level of selfishness out of sheer self-preservation. The Aries rising person is usually of medium height, with a pale skin and ordinary looks.
In theory this should be a pleasant sign to have around, but so often something is askew in the subject's childhood. The childhood experiences make financial security or financial independence an imperative. Sometimes the child learns from his parents that a large and well-appointed house, lots of possessions and status symbols, along with plenty of money in the bank are the keys to a happy life. This means that he chases after these things throughout adulthood either by working for them or perhaps as a result of marriage. However, Taurus around the ascendant adds a practical streak along with creative talent and sociability, which being allied to a good head for money matters endows this person a great opportunity for worldly success. This is all well and good, but some who have this sign rising don't make it, and that makes them bitter. For some inexplicable reason, there are some who have this sign rising who are selfish, argumentative and unpleasant to be around. The Taurus rising subject may be quite slim, but they have a slight look of a bulldog about their mouths.
I call this the sign of the orphan, because even if the child is not partially or wholly orphaned, they often feel like it. This rising sign denotes loneliness and difficulty in childhood; even if there are people around, the child will feel alone or misunderstood. Even if the home life was good, this person would have felt alienated at school or elsewhere. Gemini rising children are friendly relaters and they lack the kind of caution that distances them from hurtful people or situations. They blame themselves when others behave badly to them, being sure that it must be something that they are doing that causes them to deserve or attract the pain that they suffer.
This child is talkative, and while our adult world welcomes communicators, schoolteachers frequently try to shut them up. However, the parents do all they can to stimulate the child's intellect. Adults with Gemini rising can be cutting and far too quick to express an opinion, but usually only when they are being badly treated. Later in life, some of these subjects choose to marry partners who appear strong and confident because they think that the partner will look after them. In some cases this works, in others it doesn't. Unless they can find the right outlet for their intelligence and talents, they continue to feel like a square peg in a round hole at work as well as at home. The Gemini rising child may be an only child, an unwanted child or a late addition to parents who thought that they had completed their family and who are bored with the thought of bringing up yet another child. They may start out being wanted, only to become an encumbrance or embarrassment to their parent or parents later on. The Gemini rising person is very thin when young, slim during mid-life, but they can become quite plump later on, and they sometimes have rather fine hair.
This can be an excellent rising sign or a surprisingly difficult one. The mother is a strong influence and is often a strong role model. In some cases, the child's mother is deeply loving, but in others she is a powerful and frightening figure. The Cancer rising child is often the older one who either takes or is given the responsibility for looking after the younger members of the family. This person may go on later to marry a younger partner or one who is, sick, insecure or who needs mothering or shoring up. The Cancer rising nature is cautious and sometimes quite suspicious of others. These people are deeply intuitive and they only deal with those whom they can trust. Most have good business heads on their shoulders and they are capable and responsible with money and with other aspects of their lives. One fault that seems to beset some of these people is that of penny-pinching stinginess or a talent for spending large sums on one thing and being far too thrifty on others. As children, they sit at the back of the classroom and try to keep out of everyone's way. Some endure school and get out as soon as they can; others do quite well at school. The Cancer rising person is usually nice looking with a rounded face and figure. They often have plenty of slightly wavy hair.
This suggests that the child was wanted, but he may turn out to be such a handful that the parents switch off from him or become tired of his company. In many cases, the child is extremely talented and also good-looking and the parents may push him to achieve great success, often in some artistic or show business field. There is no rule as to the child's position in a family, but he will certainly stand out in some way. He may be the only boy in a family of girls or vice versa, or the only one with artistic, musical or creative talent in a rather ordinary family. The adult with this rising sign may suffer from the feeling that he didn't quite make it, that he didn't somehow reach the standard that was expected of him. These people can be self-centered and they can go through life as though they are acting a part rather than living in the real world. They can go on the attack when faced with people whom they deem to be more successful than themselves, and they can be defensive and hurtful when there is nothing to defend and nobody setting out to hurt them. As school children, these subjects can do very well or very badly, but they usually have some kind of talent that marks them out as being “special.” Leo rising people are good-looking and sometimes rather vain.
This difficult sign suggests that there was something wrong during childhood. Even when he or she is wanted in the first place, somehow fate soon decrees that he gets in somebody's way. Sometimes the mother simply can't cope, is sickly or neurotic. The parents (especially the mother) are in some way detached or distanced from the child. This may be due to circumstances or due to the fact that the parents find something more interesting to do than to bring up a child. These children can be fussy and neurotic, especially over matters related to health or food and they can become hypochondriacs. The child is clever, but he may be shy or backward in coming forward in some way. Sometimes this child simply doesn't gel with the rest of the family. In other cases his loud voice and fondness for speaking out irritates schoolteachers, who spend years trying to shut him up. The adult world embraces communicators, but schoolteachers loathe them. Virgo rising people do better in later life when their ability to sort, analyze and investigate matters, and their habit of reading and studying deeply stand them in good stead. These subjects can be confrontational, argumentative and cutting when they feel the need to defend themselves. These people often have pale skins, a good bone structure and dark hair, and they keep their good looks throughout life as long as they don't gain too much weight.
In theory this is a pleasant feature sign to have, as the person is usually nice looking and easygoing. The reality is that the father may have been absent during childhood for much or all of the time, and the child doesn't receive the love and guidance that he needs. If the mother is angry with the father during his childhood, that gets taken on board as well. The child may be left to his own devices for much of the time or he may be spoiled with material things, toys and other goodies while missing out on true nurturing. His tendency to be lazy and to live in a dream world may make him something of a failure at school and his parents and teachers will not hesitate to point this out to him. In many cases, this type drifts easily through life. Some Libra rising subjects become bitter about the fact that society won't recognize their talents. These people are often charming, nice looking, charismatic and attractive.
The parents (especially the mother), are usually pretty good and the child is loved, but there are often outside circumstances that make life difficult for these children or for their families. The problem may be poverty, sickness or something else that makes them feel out of step with their peers. This breeds a cautious attitude, secrecy and deep feelings that are kept inside. These subjects develop a good deal of intuition, and they learn early to watch others and to keep their mouths shut. It takes a lot for these people to trust others or to open up to them about their true thoughts and feelings. They feel that there is more to everything than meets the eye, which may account for the large numbers of them who find their way into astrology and psychic work. Many of these subjects are only children, a different gender to their siblings or in some other way a little different from others. Scorpio rising people can descend into dreadful moods, either becoming self-pitying or giving their partners the silent punishment treatment. Scorpio rising people may be good looking or really quite ordinary, but they have strong features and a direct gaze that is often described as “magnetic.”
Many astrologers and people who are interested in spiritual matters have this sign rising or in some important place on their charts. The childhood seems to be reasonable, but the child is keen to leave home early and to experiment with different ideas from those that his parents and schoolteachers had tried to force upon him. If the child is brought up in a strongly religious atmosphere, he will almost inevitably reject this and look for meaning in other philosophies. This rising sign often belongs to a quite favored younger child in the family who gets away with murder. Alternatively, this is the kind of child who makes friends with some other family and almost moves in on them or in some other way finds reasons to spend as little time at home as possible. These people are kind, humorous and sympathetic, but they can be tactless and extremely sarcastic, competitive and hurtful when they feel the need. These people are fairly tall and often quite plain in appearance with a long jaw or a horsy face. Their friendly, humorous and intelligent natures make them popular.
This signifies a hard childhood, but this is not necessarily due to bad parents or bad parenting. Sometimes there are many brothers and sisters in the family, and in other cases poverty is a factor. The child learns early that money in the bank, a fully paid-up house, security and a decent career are important. He may be hard working and serious at a time when other youngsters are having fun. He takes life seriously and he may feel that he lacks something that other children have. In some cases the Capricorn rising child is sickly, in others he misses out on schooling. One saving grace for these children is that they often form excellent relationships with their grandparents, and they therefore become more comfortable in the presence of older people than they do with those of their own age. Their lack of confidence and sometimes-painful shyness means that they find personal relationships difficult, although if they find the right partner later in life, they make excellent relationships with all members of their families. These people can be clannish, selfish and unable to acknowledge the needs and feelings of others. These people can look old when they are young and young when they are old and their looks improve with age.
Aquarius rising people may have an unusual character or an unusual way of looking at life. They learn to be independent early on, either because they have to stand on their own two feet or because their parents encourage them to do so. The childhood is usually pretty good, although there may be a level of instability that means that the child attends several different schools or lives in a variety of different places. The parents do all they can to ensure that the child receives a good education and plenty of mental stimulation. These subjects cannot swallow the opinions of others whole because they need to think things through and make up their own mind. They have a pleasant manner that endears them to others and they have no trouble making new friends. They usually get on well in family life, as long as they don't end up with a partner who seeks to control them. These subjects keep their thoughts and feelings to themselves, but they often feel contempt for those around them. If necessary, they will cut off completely from those who have hurt them. At school they are not particularly successful in academic subjects, but they do well with technical topics. Some take to computing, others to motor mechanics or engineering. Others are successful at sports. These people are taller than average and rather nice looking, and they remain pretty good to look at throughout life.
There is often an element of loneliness in this person's childhood, even if there are many brothers and sisters in the family. Sometimes this is due to spells in the hospital; sometimes it is the result of circumstances beyond anyone's control. The parents do their best, but they are often ineffective, so the child learns to cope by himself. Despite the fact that the sign of Pisces is not associated with career or business success, this person often does rather well in life. The problem is that he may waste the gains that he makes by propping up a needy partner later in life. Pisces rising subjects usually have a prickly and hostile manner that makes them uncomfortable to be with. Perhaps this is some kind of defense mechanism that grows out of having to keep others at a distance when they are young, or perhaps the roots are some kind of inferiority complex. These people are at their happiest when they develop their artistic, musical, creative or psychic talents, and once they achieve some success and their self-confidence develops, they become nicer to be with. These people tend to be pale skinned, fair haired and their looks are pleasantly ordinary.