On Karmic Astrology and the Story of Your Past Life

Someone asked about karmic astrology:

Q: "Can you find out who you were immediately before this life by the natal chart? And where do you look for clues?"

A: Here I will share the common theory. Most astrologers use the Nodal axis to consider the past life information - they say South Node has to do with your past life: its condition, and the resources and challenges you bring from the past; and that North Node has to do with the future direction your soul needs to take in order to continue your spiritual development.

Take South Node conjunct Mars for example: In thinking of a past life metaphor, one way to say it is "you were involved in a war or violence of some kind in the past life (especially if the Mars is stressed) - you carry the sense of fighting spirit, which makes you a strong leader [a resource from the past.] But at the same time, you've forgotten how to relax and trust other people (if the chart also has 7th house tension), because you've been conditioned to fight, and are not used to peace."
That's a workable metaphor, and it may give another way to think about the relationship problem this person has. It could be potentially empowering, if the person is open to imagining such scenario.

Another example: I've heard astrologer Robert Blaschke say that his South Node is conjunct Uranus, and it meant that he was an astrologer (Uranus) in the past life - obviously that interpretation works for him, because of his vocation as an astrologer. For others with the same measurement, perhaps we can say "you were a maverick in your past life, who rebelled against tradition. You still carry that sense of independent thought and a tendency to be a loner (especially if other measurements support this.) We may want to see if this is getting you into trouble this time around."

Astrologers will want to make sure that the interpretation about the Nodal axis fits well with what the rest of the chart is suggesting - this way we won't be too far away from the truth, even if we can never really verify the actual experience of our past lives.

Man and His Environment - Insight from Hayao Miyazaki, a Master Storyteller

I don’t know if you’ve seen “Spirited Away” or “Princess Mononoke” - both masterpieces from Hayao Miyazaki. I’m reading a transcript of his interview, and it’s very good.

One of the key ideas Miyazaki kept coming back to in the interview is how we have stopped looking at nature and our environment altogether. To paraphrase, “This leaves only one thing for us to look at - humans. This is the cause of our obsession with human faults, and leads to subconscious hatred of man.”

Astrologically, a horoscope can never be interpreted without considering the natural, political and social environment that a person lives in. The energies of the planets are meant to be used to interact with the environment, and not “just for ourselves” (whatever that means.)

If we choose to live apart from the environment, and think of ourselves as independent from it, all of our energies will start to turn inward (toward ourselves), or toward other people, frequently in the form of criticism or hatred.

Some examples:

• Virgo is the power of observing the details of our environment - through this analytical faculty we learned how nature works, as well as how our body healed itself. Cut off from our environment, we start to analyze ourselves and other people, and start noticing the flaws.
• Scorpio is similarly the function to attain control through knowledge - through it we have accumulated the observations collected by the Virgo function to harness power over the environment. Apart from the environment, the control turns toward the people around us - which may be a little too much for others to handle.
  
• Pisces is the function to connect with the subtle or sublime aspects of nature. Without the connection to the environment this faculty will crave to experience it in one way or another - but most artificial experience will fall short of satisfaction.
  

Obsession with humans and human technology that are perpetuated by the media might be wrong for the non-Air (Gemini-Libra-Aquarius) part of us.

While we can definitely appreciate the benefits of the development of technology or psychology, we might end up missing a great deal of human experience if we continue to focus on people rather than our environment as a whole. Your horoscope might start singing an entirely different song when you start paying attention to your environment.

A Quick Tip for Motivation

A book by a Japanese brain researcher says there actually is a part of the brain that is responsible for making us feel motivated (nucleus accumbens - we'll call it NA). If we want to be motivated, all we have to do is to activate it.

"The problem is, it's not easy to activate the nerve cells for NA. The only way to activate the NA is to give it some stimulus...meaning, even if you don't feel like doing something, you need to start doing it. Once you begin doing it, the NA will be stimulated, and will start to go into self-excitation mode - which will heighten your concentration and motivation."

So the only way to start feeling motivated is to actually start doing the work. "Of course you don't feel like doing it...it's because you haven't begun it!" The author gives an example of cleaning your room - even though you don't feel like cleaning at first, once you begin, you start to really "get into it" and before you know it your room is totally clean.

While it's counterintuitive to think that motivation comes after beginning the work, it's easy to experience the truth of this when you clean your room, wash your car, or work on a big project at work.

The author said many cold-medicines suppress the function of NA along with the symptoms of cold, thus suppressing the person's ability to feel motivated (which is probably why some of the cold-medicines make you feel sleepy when you take them.)

Why is Leonardo Da Vinci a Taurus? - A Reader Question

Just got back from Japan last night and am catching up on work and emails - as promised I'll be posting replies to the questions I received. Here is the first one:

Q: "I have the same birthday as Leonardo DaVinci...My question is, recently another astrologer mentioned that DaVinci was a Taurus; however, I am an Aries. Is he a Taurus because of the progression of time, the centuries between us, or some other reason?"

(note: I'm presuming this person was born on April 15th.)

A: Da Vinci's birth date is April 15th of 1452, but in Florentine Time (which started the 'new day' at sunset.) By our reckoning he was born on the evening of April 14th ('three hours into the night' according to the biography).

Then we need to account for the difference between Julian Calendar (which was used at that time) and Gregorian Calendar which we use now. At 1452 the difference is 9 days, so this finally gives us April 23, 1452 as the birth data of Da Vinci that astrologers use - which is Taurus.

Technical, but interesting!

Going to Japan - Taking Reader Questions!

I'm in Washington D.C. Airport getting ready for my flight to Tokyo. I'll be in Japan for 2 weeks, during which time the blogging will be lighter than usual.

If you have questions or requests about certain astrological topic, please feel free to write or comment, and I'll try to think on it during my travels, and respond with a post when I return.

Thanks so much for reading the blog and sending me encouraging comments and emails!

Relationship Astrology (3) Venus, 11th House and the "Agreement Principle"

In one of Rilke's letters, there is a profound insight about what we crave in time of loneliness: to come in agreement with another person, never mind who. This gives us another way to look at Venus and the 11th house of "friends."

The book "Social Animal" points out that one of our core need is to be right. In a Venusian sense, this need is fulfilled through coming into agreement with others around us: it feels great to be with a large number of people, cheering for the same team, band, or political party. Everyone around you is confirming and agreeing with your view, so you feel affirmed and right.

To describe a likable or pleasing person, we say he/she is an "agreeable" person. We can see from this that one of the key quality of Venus or Libra is to come into agreement with the other person. This subconsciously lets the other person know that he/she is okay, right, and therefore lovable.

Now this does not mean you need be a "yes-man (woman)" in order to be liked. To agree and align yourself to others does not mean you become phony and unauthentic. Rather, you cultivate a skill to assert your perspective while maintaining the feeling of agreement and approval of the other person.

The "friends" or groups, which is represented by the 11th house, come together according to some shared purpose - so there is an implicit agreement about the purpose of the gathering. This gives everyone in the group the feeling of "being in agreement", which positively reinforces the self image (11th house is sextile to the 1st house.)

When the 11th House is Under Tension
There are many ways that the 11th house expression can be challenged: having an assertive, individualistic planet such as Mars or Uranus signifying (i.e. occupying or ruling) the 11th house suggests that you aren't a follower. You need to assert your own views in a group, which necessitates that you either become a leader or a misfit.

Same with Saturn in/ruling the 11th house: there is a lack of ease in relating (to come in agreement with) the group in a emotional way. Here you need to earn authority, or the right to lead people, through your work and wisdom.

Pluto associated with the 11th house suggests great need to connect with the group, for empowerment. Neptune here suggests sharing of the ideals and grand vision with others.

Conclusion

When thinking about how to activate your Venus or 11th house, it may help to think in terms of "coming into agreement" with others. If your Venus, 7th or 11th house is under tension, you might want to check to see where you tend to create unnecessary conflict or disagreement with others in a relationship.

I notice that some people do this out of habit - they can't help arguing or mentioning negative things, which inevitably turns others off. There are ways to be authentic , assertive and still be accepting of others. Accepting yourself is a good start.

Ascendant and Identity (9) Scorpio Rising

Element - WATER: self image is nourished through awareness and management of one's inner feelings and emotions.
Mode - Fixed: self image is strengthened through being reliable and consistent with regard to one's work and relationships.

The need for Scorpio Ascendant is to be in control, and to be considered as deep, reliable, and right. If Ascendant points out the way for us to strengthen our core self image, Scorpio rising suggests that the key to power lies in the gathering and harnessing of scattered emotional energies, so that there will be a focused, intense ego awareness - in a word, soulfulness.

The power for those with this Ascendant comes from being able to be in touch with their deepest emotions - fear, hatred, despair, or faith, love, ecstasy and bliss. Fully feeling, rather than repressing, the difficult emotions will lead to the development of a very strong psychic energy.

The challenge is not to be controlled by one's deep emotions - here it is easy to get lost in the current of negative emotions, and totally identify oneself with one's destructive fears, anger or despair. Peace and stability must be found, one way or the other - but how?

Peace and Purpose - Ways for Scorpio to Find Stability

1) Power: Accumulation of external power - be it wealth, physical strength, social status or political influence. Outer control can translate to a sense of inner control. On the other hand, there are other kinds of power, such as intellectual, psychic or even occult power that also serves the purpose of inner control (see the famous astrologers listed below.)

2) Security: Not many people can deny the calming effect that money in the bank brings. Same goes with job security or relationship stability. External security can contribute to inner security. Scorpio rising has Taurus on the Descendant, suggesting a great need for a stable partner and relationships.

3) Pursuit of ecstasy: through music, art, spirituality, or any other calling in life that fills you with a sense of purpose. Here the aim is not so much for peace, but to touch the highest emotions that we can experience in life. Because Scorpio can touch the lowest human emotions known to man, it can also touch the highest passion and joy as well ("to plumb depth and reach heights" is Noel Tyl's phrase.)

Conclusion and some examples:
For many, Scorpio Ascendant represents an adventure into the realms of deep emotions - the end result of the journey is a "soulful" ego that can be courageous and compassionate in the face of life's toughest moments. The luckiest ones step into the mansion of gods through their pursuit of vocational, spiritual or artistic passion.

Some examples:

• Astrologers Jeff Green and Liz Greene.
• Napoleon Bonaparte I
  
• Stock market guru Peter Lynch
  
• Musical wonder Bobby McFerrin
  
• Actor Clint Eastwood
  

Letters to a Young Poet by R.M. Rilke - Recommended for Creative People

In response to the 12th house post, someone suggested that Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet" should be a required reading for everyone with the 12th house emphasis - I just started reading it and thought it would be great for anybody creative with a 12th or Neptune emphasis. Here is the web version. Enjoy!



PS: According to Astro Databank's data, Rilke had Uranus in 12th house - suggesting he found his unique voice through the 12th house solitude...

Holistic Astrology Class - Slides from Aug 30th

We had a good class this past Saturday - 15 people attended; we jammed on different measurements, and talked about how the Moon sign or certain aspects relate to relationship, work and health. I'm sharing the slides here.

In honor of the Virgo New Moon, we talked for some time about mind-body connection and health issues - shown on last few slides. Thanks for everyone that came!