North Node

Next week’s Mars/Uranus/Node conjunction: How bad is it?

artist unknown?

TLDR*: Next week will be a challenge, but don’t expect the end of the world.

Several people have asked me about the upcoming dramatic conjunction of Mars, Uranus and the Nodes.  The exact date of this alignment is August 1st, and the Mars/Uranus conjunction will be exact at 7:42 EDT. One client sent me this article from Vedic astrologer Joni Patry who wrote: “this is a very pivotal month of enormous, sudden and explosive events that will trigger tremendous changes. The astrological-historical patterns strongly suggest this could culminate into a modern Civil War not just in America but around the whole world. I know I see much of this occurring in the United States, but it will be replicated all over the world.”

It’s somewhat difficult to comment on Ms. Patry’s article because she uses the Vedic Sidereal system in which the planets are considered in their actual place in the sky. I, and most other modern astrologers, use the Tropical system where the 0 degree point of the cardinal signs occurs at the Solstices and Equinoxes. In her system the triple conjunction is taking place in Aries, the fire sign which is ruled by Mars and therefore can be somewhat explosive. In the Tropical system, the conjunction is in Taurus which is much more placid and while less explosive, the changes that occur under a Mars/Uranus conjunction in Taurus can be slow to develop and long lasting.

The debate between the Sidereal and Tropical systems has been raging for hundreds of years and I have no interest in entering that particular fray today! It has been my experience that in personal readings the Tropical system is more accurate. But nevertheless, I’d like to […]

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By |2022-07-22T10:45:03-04:00July 22nd, 2022|Planetary cycles|19 Comments

Uranus square the lunar nodes: Change is inevitable, progress is optional

Over the past week, and throughout November, the planet Uranus and the lunar nodes will be locked in a square (90 degree) formation.  The nodes of the Moon are points where the journey of the Moon through the sky crosses the path of the Sun, and these points are associated with the soul’s journey from past to future.

I view the outer planets as transformational forces which inspire us, activating something in the personality in order to create change where change is necessary.  Uranus is the planet of change itself – under the influence of Uranus we tend to become restless with anything in our lives that feels stuck, and sometimes we find ourselves faced with shocking events that serve to knock us from our comfort zone.

Our lives are built on patterns of expectation.  We expect that we will wake up in the morning, and that we will follow our normal routines during the day.  Uranus tends to break apart those expectations, at best helping us to see our lives through new eyes.  At its most difficult, Uranus can bring about a drastic change that forces a change in perspective.

Planetary cycles occur on several planes at once.  The alignment of the planets in the sky (which I write about in my Planetary Illuminations newsletter) affect everyone on the planet on a macro level.  When these alignments interact with the planets in our own natal chart, they stimulate change or evolution on a much more personal level.  There are other layers of planetary influence as well: to our relationships, to our communities and countries, to our evolving selves.

The current square between Uranus and the lunar nodes could bring about surprising events in our lives that shake us […]

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By |2018-11-05T08:02:27-05:00November 4th, 2018|Planetary cycles|7 Comments

Psychological inheritance and the lunar nodes

I did a reading for a client the other day who had Saturn, the planet of discipline and challenging life experiences, in a square to the Nodes of the Moon.  The Nodes of the Moon represent the pathway of our soul’s evolutionary journey from the past (the South Node) to the future (the North Node).  When a planet is in a square (90 degree) aspect to the Nodes of the Moon it is sometimes called a “skipped step” (coined by astrologer Jeffrey Green), meaning that planet plays an important role in our evolution and reflects an energy that requires constant examination and perfection. I have found in client work that the skipped step often shows something that gets in the way of our evolution – a pattern or way of looking at the world that holds us back and keeps us from being able to move forward in our lives.  Like so many other ways in which astrological forces that are difficult also serve as the keys to personal growth, that same planet that holds us back is the portal to our own self-discovery. In the reading I mentioned this square of Saturn to the nodes, and the fact that often individuals with this placement come into this life with a sense that life is too hard – the force of Saturn which forces us to work hard and apply great discipline both stands in the way of our finding ease in life, but also represents a key to our progress.  After the reading she shared with me that her grandmother had always told her that she was a descendant of a notorious mass murderer, and informed her that she and her family were being punished for […]

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By |2012-08-09T13:07:41-04:00August 9th, 2012|Astrology|21 Comments

Do we need to work the north node?

This post may be somewhat advanced for some readers, for which I apologize in advance.

North Node South Node

I had an email from a client the other day lamenting the difficulty in working her north node.

The nodes of the Moon mark the passage of the Moon across the ecliptic, the Sun’s apparent path through the zodiac.  The North Node, also called the Dragon’s Head (Rahu in Vedic astrology), represents the direction in which we are heading, and the South Node, the tail of the dragon or Ketu in the Vedic tradition, represents the influences from the past – that which is familiar and comfortable, and to which we retreat when under stress.

In Western astrology we typically look at the South Node as being negative and something to move away from, and the North Node as being something to move towards.  Many astrologers advise us to “work the North Node” – to minimize the effects of the sign and house of the South Node, and maximize the influence of the North Node.

I talked about this in my radio show that I titled “The Why we are Here Show” and if you’re interested you can listen to it here.  As I perceive the human incarnation, we come as a soul with a divine purpose, but we are working through a human personality.  The birthchart describes the trappings of the personality, and the kinds of experiences we will have that will provide tests and challenges as well as gifts and good fortune.  I believe that before we can fully absorb our spiritual and evolutionary purpose, we must heal and become fully actualized at the personality level.

Let’s say you have the South Node in Libra […]

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By |2019-11-10T19:39:07-05:00June 9th, 2010|Astrology|4 Comments

New Moon in Gemini!

New MoonThe Gemini New Moon  which takes place at 8:10 am on Sunday morning EDT.  This New Moon is exactly trine the North Node of the Moon, revealing this as an event with the potential for real significance in our lives.  The North Node assists us in our quest to realize our soul’s purpose, and a new beginning is possible here, especially in the area of your chart where the New Moon falls.

The New Moon chart includes a challenging square from Mercury to the triple conjunction of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune, and a harmonious sextile from Mercury to Uranus.  This suggests that the mind will not be of great help now unless we let go of our old ways of thinking about our lives and allow ourselves to expand our thinking to allow for new possibilities.  This is an event for the heart and for the soul, linking the two in a completely new way.

A harmonious sextile from Mars to the triple conjunction helps to provide the fire and enthusiasm to keep us inspired so that we can take advantage of the powerful energy available now.

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