'.........also wouldn't working to work have to do with the 6th house?'

I should think that dealing with bosses, colleaugues and the routine of work is prety much to do withhe 6th House, whilst the MC ismore to do with the development of reputation. And I do wonder how much the MC has to do with 'vocation' in the innermost sense I do suspct that the MC may be more to do with he professional role we have to play and that might mean having to adopt the kind of persona that might be associated with that and meeting the expectations of this role halfway, as it were. What I do hear a lot too is that planets squaring or opposing the MC can indicate conflict with a parent over what the profession might be. It might be intereating to hear a few more views on that.

I have a 6th Hpuse Mars, which probably is as better suited to fieldwork and being self-employed as some of the canned interpretations Ihave come across tactfully suggest, not having a lot of patience with office politics and and beng smooth and bland at all imes, the Mercury-Saturn square to the MC - well, there was the promising beginning of graduating at a time of maximum unemployment.

Sandra - If there is no sense that there is a any conflict between wanting to be able to shine as the Special Person You Are and Choosing a Profession, then maybe there might not be a square from the Sun to the Midheaven and you have said you are not totally sure about your birth time.

Natalie - regarding Venus on the IC squaring the Ascendant...I have come across similar interpretations in more than one area about this placement suggesting a certain amount of shyness in the public domain. Venus square Ascendant as much as Venus on the IC. Perhaps his may be because any planet on he IC may be less happy about having o perform in more 'public' areas of life?

Again, there could be the sense that a particualr career path was chosen because there might have been a parent that valued investment in things to do with finance - that over other things, maybe. I can quite understand your not wanting to feel stereotyped with this money conection though, nevertheless with Mercury, Jupiter and the North Node as well as Venus at the most private point in your chart in Caprocorn, there does seem to be a story of feeling a strong connection to skills that have some kind of relaionship to long-term investments - this may or may not involve resources such as homes..

However, whatever seems most important to you has to make sense for you alone. A Leo Moon as ruler of the MC might have a talent for recognising potential in what may seem at first sight to be the most unpromising of people and it makes an easy opposition to a tough Mars-Saturn configuration. So maybe the Libra Ascendant also could mean a talent for getting even difficult people to co-operate in their own development soemwhere?

That is just a few I thought I would throw out at you, but they are just ideas.

(david)

so,what if I have Moon,Mars and Jupiter in the 9th house,and Gemini on the cusp of the 10th?

when i first got into astrology a few months ago. i was told first the planet closest to the MC represents your ideal career, then i was told the sign the MC enters represents it, then i had read that the duties of the house in which the lord of the sign in which the MC enters (ie: MC in gemini, with mercury in 3rd house you should get into communications, etc) represents it. Personally, looking at my own chart, i feel like it might be the sum of the clues in each placement, in each aspect and in karmic representations. kinda like, the sum is greater than it's parts. not that I negate 6th house or 10th or MC, but is it possible they are just puzzle pieces, not the whole puzzle solved?

i have that aspect as well, i think that is the dream i am trying to go after the most

The MC in my own chart has always been a bit of a puzzle for me because it is in Scorpio. It kinda scares me because my whole life has had a theme of transformation via building up and tearing down, especially personal relationships, with long periods of slow rumbling undercurrents followed by the volcanic crisis and purging. I'm not too "excited" about my MC! LOL! My sun is in Virgo in the 8th with Pluto in Virgo in the 7th conj the 8th house cusp. I guess there is some more of that Scorpionic influence going on with my sun by being in the 8th.

As I've gotten older I can look back and see that things have been torn down that needed to be, with or without my consent, and that I 've emerged a saner, wiser, and more stable person as a result of the "meltdown." I just wonder if the volcano will ever become "extinct" in my lifetime, or just lay "dormant" until I need to purge some other unwanted trait or lifestyle that I've become too attached to and that has ceased to benefit my well-being and personal, psychological, emotional, and/or spiritual growth.

No planets in the 10th.

My 6th house is in Cancer with the moon and Mars in Cancer trine the MC from the 6th, (Mars is exact). These both square Mercury which rules both the 5th and 8th houses, (more Scorpio theme!) My emotions are ever active, both good and bad feelings are felt with equal passion, and it is a real challenge to "calm the seas" when they churn, especially at work.

My 2nd house is in Pisces with Neptune conj Venus in Scorpio in the 9th, widely conjunct the MC. Insecurity has plagued me my whole life and shows itself primarily in personal relationships which always becomes a cauldron waiting to burn me down to the bare bones whenever I dip into it. Additionally, my "path" has never been clear to me. I've always wanted to be a professional artist but haven't ever seen any opportunity to make a living at it. I wonder if Nepune aspecting the MC is to blame for this foggy "blindspot" regarding what my true "calling" is or should be.

Saturn is ruling the Capricorn ascendant and in the 1st house in Aquarius, widely conjunct the ascendant but making no aspects to the MC.
Saturn is widely trine my 8th house sun, and widely square Neptune. I guess the challenge Saturn is representing here is to rise above my extremely emotional perspective to see "the big picture" and channel all of this subjective experience into an objective, compassionate response to those I encounter, offering practical solutions to improve their lives and relieve their suffering. I don't know, I'm still putting the puzzle together. God knows I try to help anyone I can anyway I can.

I guess I'm not meant to leave this world the same person I was when I came in! LOL! But who is?