← Encyclopedia of Astrology · lesson 177/235
Capella
Capella is the brightest star of Auriga, the Charioteer, and marks the she-goat he carries on his left shoulder; its name is Latin for "little she-goat". It is one of the half-dozen brightest stars in the sky, with a warm golden-yellow light, and from northern latitudes it stays above the horizon almost all year. In astrology it is read as a star of curiosity, learning and restless independence.
In the zodiac
Capella stands at about 22° Gemini today. Like every star it moves forward about one degree every 72 years through precession, so a chart from 1950 places it about a degree earlier, near 21° Gemini. It lies well north of the ecliptic, so its zodiac degree is a projection rather than a place the planets actually pass close to.
Its nature
Ptolemy gives the bright stars of Auriga the nature of Mars and Mercury. The tradition said Capella brought honour, wealth and positions of public trust, and also an inquisitive, eager mind — a love of learning and of new things.
Modern astrologers usually lean on that second strand: Capella tends to describe an insatiable curiosity, a quick and searching intelligence, and a need for freedom and variety. Mars gives the mind its edge and appetite, Mercury its range. It can be restless, but it is rarely dull.
In a chart
A planet within about a degree or a degree and a half of Capella tends to take on its inquisitiveness. With Mercury it can describe a lively, questioning mind; with the Moon, a need for novelty to feel at ease; on the Ascendant, a person who meets life as something to explore; on the Midheaven, work that depends on learning and communication. The star colours the point it touches rather than acting alone.