The Grand Trine

Is there a Grand Trine Chart Aspect Figure in your Birth Chart?  Also called a Large Talent Triangle – Basically the Grand Trine is a triangle of equal sides comprising three trines (120 deg), shown in blue. The figure points to a wonderful finished quality or inborn talent, which is capable of encompassing a wide range of experience, and which permeates and dominates the personality. However, the reaping of this talent is not automatic. Grand Trines need conscious working at, otherwise they will become the ‘ruined crop’, or the negative, or even a ‘criminal’ personality. The risk is (as Trines are lazy aspects) that you may lazily see no need to develop new qualities and approaches, putting too much reliance on your conditioning or illusory life slogans or the obvious, superficial talents which you already possess.

The planets at the three corners usually all fall into one particular element (i.e. Earth, Air, Fire or Water), suggesting that the talent partakes of the nature of that element. As only one element is involved: beware the risk of imbalance in the life. Your tendency might always be to seek refuge in the easy blue aspects.

Although such a figure can be enjoyed, blue aspects (in general) are there to be used, and you must NOT squander such a talent or keep it exclusively to yourself. Use it to give something to others, otherwise those fruits will simply rot and go to waste. If given freely, allows the talent to grow and develop to even greater depths, continually attracting new substance and experience. A challenge is that the figure seeks to hold onto what already is, thus preventing new levels of experience from growing into the figure. ‘To give and not to count the cost’ is a particularly relevant motto for this figure because the more it gives, the more it receives, and so it has even more to grow. Inertia and stagnation are the fruits of a mismanaged Grand Trine. Reliance on luck is present: and it’s a double-edged sword. Grand Trine People might be easily defeated by life and turn to addictions or anti-social life-styles. At its worst, the mismanaged Grand Trine is the chronic criminal with an unrealistic childish view of the world, expecting the world to give into their personal needs or someone will have to be punished. Obviously a lot depends on the planets involved, and on the rest of the chart. The more planets are tied in, the greater the danger of imbalance or character weakness. The Grand Trine individual may expect others to carry him/her through life. ‘Something for nothing’. The ‘charmed life’. Multiple Grand Trines can be even more debilitating. But at its best, the Grand Trine is a specialized configuration promoting high idealism, insight and vision, as well as creative self-expression and well-being. The Grand Trine can potentially indicate confidence and self-assurance, optimistic expectation, a sense of pleasure, easy flowingness, inspiration, expansion of creative power and a general sense of protection due to inner Faith and Hope.

Grand Trine in Fire

A Grand Trine in Fire Signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) is a rare chart shape, indicative of a special gift that can be developed with the right sort of understanding and work, but which notoriously can produce a wasted crop or even a criminal outcome. The creative, inspirational power of the Grand Trine is more evident where it is the trine in fire, since the element of fire is itself vital, self-expressive and spontaneous in action, seeking to manifest through direct expression of its potential. Vision is strongly emphasized, but so also is egotism, selfishness, an unconscious assumption of special individual privilege and heightened pride in self. This individual will exhibit courage, adventurousness, risk-taking and even gambling, combined with an innocence that might ultimately rather prove to amount to naivety, lack of forethought or even culpable carelessness, and will be all the more dangerous because this individual has an unshakeable faith in self as eerily invincible, strangely protected from harm and taking on impossible odds. These gambles will indeed produce amazing results but will ultimately prove to be hubris and turn to ashes. They could well have the seeds of their own destruction. There will be impulsiveness – and acting out of unacknowledged psychological material could lead to undoing. These qualities need spiritual understanding otherwise there will be a growing sense of the emptiness and impermanence of such ego-striving and social climbing and a gathering horror at the harm and stress caused from striving so persistently and so long.

A Grand Trine in Water

A Grand Trine in the water signs has the constituent planets in Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces. The passive, receptive and protective power of the trine is emphasized. Water, like the Trine, seeks tranquility and a soothing sense of peaceful exchange. Powers of detection are above-average. There’s a degree of psychic sensitivity. The flowing expression of the feeling nature permits him to withdraw easily into his inner private world where he often experiences contentment on deeply subjective levels. Unless there are adequate dynamic principles operating in the chart (i.e. Fire Planets in angular houses, or even a fixed T – square) this particular Grand Trine can foster an escapist temperament too vulnerable to effectively channel its emotional overload in a constructive manner. There tends to be an exaggerated need for mothering, dependency, safety from threat, over-caution, dithering. And the more subtly these needs express themselves, the more insidious their effect. This is potentially the most problematic of the Grand Trines. The native is potential hard to get to know, he may feel disconnected from his outer world and out of tune with his surroundings. Yet there is potential for well-developed empathy and sympathy and supportive nurturing: the hidden comforter, the healer of the sick, supportive and nurturing. It’s an asset for psychiatric work, medical fields or psychic counselling. In a weak chart, however, there could be the tendency to feel easily defeated, dejected, insecure: the gentle dreamer who retreats into fantasy, illusion and imagination. This is the figure, par excellence, for probing into the hidden mysteries of Life.

The Earth Grand Trine

The Earth Grand Trine seeks to preserve the status quo of existing conditions it feels securely supported by. Both element and aspect do not respond well to drastic, critical changes in life affairs. The capacity to attract, accumulate, and skillfully manage resources is usually powerfully developed. Yet the drive to venture out into the world and make an aggressive effort to obtain such resources is often lacking. In the chart of a less ambitious individual, this Grand Trine is apt to express as a very self-indulgent, materialistic influence or one that keeps the individual firmly rooted and centered in the limited world of matter (which may not be desirable for inner growth in the long run). One of the constructive features of a well-handled Earth Grand Trine is that it has remarkable endurance and persistence, allowing the individual to steadily concentrate his attention upon concrete objectives without being distracted or thrown off course. Once committed to a goal, he is able to work long and hard towards valued accomplishment. He succeeds because he can skillfully consolidate his vast energy reserves and contently plod on until he achieves the solid results he desires. However, unlike mere earth emphasis alone, the dynamics of the Grand Trine suggests an extra measure of inspiration, insight, and vision. The individual may possess tremendous organizational ability and practical know-how, since earth trines enable one to visualize perfect or ideal structure and form. There can be an uncommon amount of common sense shown. Creative resourcefulness is one of this Grand Trine’s special assets.

The Grand Trine in Air

With the Air Grand Trine, the individual can feel satisfied living in his head without having to express himself overtly in the external world. Both element and aspect share as a common denominator the natural inclination to conceptualize and create on an abstract level. Thus, the impractical side of the trine can be more evident with this configuration if the individual is unable to ground his idealistic insights. This individual is likely to be very socially curious, broad-minded, and tolerant (trines are benevolent and easy-going). But he may not necessarily find himself deeply or passionately involved with others on a more one-to-one basis. The natural inclination here is to remain detached, observant, non-committal, and basically free to explore whatever attracts the attention of the mind. Great inner satisfaction occurs when he is able to have a variety of relationships that put few demands upon him. This suggests that one with an Air Grand Trine may find it quite a challenge to remain emotionally constant with another without interpreting this as a stifling entanglement. Nevertheless, this Grand Trine confers above-average educational ability, an eager intellect, and an ability to have a wide perspective of life. He can take pleasure in learning new information about the world he lives in, and thus tends to be the “eternal student” type.

Contact Michael for astrology readings: birth chart, prediction and relationship, and to enrol on Michael’s courses at http://www.starwheel.co.uk, email Michael@starwheel.co.uk or  phone: 07799296821.