A transit chart shows a particular moment. To examine how a contact approaches that moment and separates afterwards, you need a time interval. In Hermes, the chart, planet card and exact-contact timeline provide different parts of that investigation.
The first distinction is the source: a relationship between two transiting points is different from a transiting point’s contact with a natal point. When reading a timeline, keep track of the selected sources as well as the time window.
1. Distinguish natal and transit layers
Open the natal chart you want to examine and select the transit layer for the target moment. Nested or side-by-side wheels let you compare the natal data with that moment. Check which source each ring represents rather than naming it only by its position on screen.
A sky timeline follows events in the transiting sky. A Transit–Natal investigation follows a contact between a transiting point and a natal point. Seeing the same planet names does not mean the sources are the same.
2. Start with the selected planet’s card
Read the selected point’s position, house and aspects on its card. First confirm that the point selected on the wheel matches the card’s identity. Then choose the relationship you want to follow through time.
When investigating several contacts, follow each row by the identities of its two points. Different points forming contacts around similar dates do not necessarily share the same calculation record or astrological context.
3. Compare year, month and week windows
Year view helps you scan a broad period. Month view supports a closer look at a period, and week view provides a narrower time context. Note the selected sources and contact when changing windows.
Reading a narrower window does not make the calculated contact stronger. It changes the interval you are examining. Before focusing on a date, check again which two points and which relationship the record describes.
4. Read applying, exact and separating contacts
Examine the applying, exact-contact and separating times together on the exact-contact timeline. Seeing the surrounding interval, rather than a single date, helps you understand where your selected chart moment sits in that process.
The exact-contact time belongs to the calculated geometric relationship. It does not establish that a life event will happen at that moment. Preserve the context of your selected indicators, and record observations separately from calculation times.
5. Explore the workflow with the working web example
Open the working sample timeline on the Preview page to explore time windows and contact details. It is not your personal calculation and does not imply that the web example includes every feature of the full desktop workspace.
When returning to your own work in the desktop application, check the natal source, transit target moment and selected contact pair again. Move from the wider period to the narrower interval while following the same relationship at each step.
Questions about this workflow
Are sky and Transit–Natal timelines the same?
They use different sources. A sky investigation follows relationships in the transiting sky; a Transit–Natal investigation follows a transiting point’s contact with a natal point.
Is an exact-contact date the time a life event will occur?
No. It is the time of the calculated aspect contact, not a guaranteed outcome or time for a particular life event.
Does the web example use my birth chart?
No. The Preview timeline is a working example and is not presented as your personal calculation.