The point opposite the Ascendant: it concerns others and relationships.
It marks the start of the seventh house. If the Ascendant is how you present yourself, the Descendant is what you look for in others — and it often describes qualities you do not recognise as your own, and are drawn to in the people you bond with.
Always facing the Ascendant
The Descendant lies exactly 180 degrees from the Ascendant, on the western horizon: it is the point where the signs were setting at the moment of birth. That makes its sign easy to find, as it is always the opposite of the rising sign. A Leo Ascendant means an Aquarius Descendant; Virgo rising means a Pisces Descendant.
The two points form an axis and are read together. On one side sits the self that steps forward, on the other the person you meet. A Leo Ascendant, happy at the centre of things, faces an Aquarius Descendant drawn to independent, slightly detached people who will not be swallowed up. Like the Ascendant, the Descendant depends on the exact time of birth.
Reading it in your chart
The sign on the Descendant describes the style of relationship that draws you and the qualities you tend to seek in a partner, a business associate or a close collaborator. The seventh house, which begins there, fills in the detail: any planets in it show what you bring to one-to-one bonds and what you take from them.
A planet within a few degrees of the Descendant is read as very present in your relationships. Mars there is traditionally linked with lively partnerships, frank exchanges and the odd clash; Venus with a strong need for harmony.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Descendant show my ideal partner?
Not quite. It describes what attracts you and how you handle close relationships, not a portrait of a specific person. A real partner has a chart of their own, and how two charts meet is studied through synastry, which compares them point by point. The Descendant speaks to what you seek, not to whom you will find.
Is the Descendant only about love and marriage?
No. Traditionally the seventh house covers every relationship between equals: marriage and long-term partnership, but also business partners, contracts and close collaborations. Older texts even included "open enemies", meaning those who oppose you face to face. It is the point of the other person in general, not only of the one you love.
How do I find my Descendant?
You need your date, time and place of birth, because it follows from the Ascendant. Once you know the Ascendant, the Descendant is the opposite sign at the same degree: 15 degrees Gemini rising gives 15 degrees Sagittarius on the Descendant. On the chart wheel it sits at the right-hand end of the horizontal line, marked DC.
See it in your own chart
Calculating your birth chart is free: wheel, planets, houses, aspects and a first reading. All you need is your date, time and place of birth.