Shifting
Nodes Eclipsed
Juy
21, 2009
Come
August 21st, 2009 the Lunar Nodes will back out of Aquarius/Leo into Capricorn/Cancer.
Why is this of particular interest? Well, for several reasons. For one,
the Moon's nodes represent how our daily life and personal doings (the
Moon) intersect with society and thus affect the path to success through
the whole of one's life (the Sun).
Not enticing
enough? Well then, how about the fact that among all commonly used astrological
symbols, only the Nodes move backwards? Intriguing? Well, it should be
- if not because of the science as to why this is so (although that's
interesting too) but because as a result of this natural 'counting-down'
motion, as the Nodes change signs they enter the next (preceding) sign
is at its highest degree - at the end of the 3rd decanate
(degrees 20-29). Everything other than nodes (planets, asteroids, TNO's,
etcetera) starts at zero and proceeds toodling from there, starting with
the 1st decan (degrees 0 - 9) of a given sign - that area which is all
about doing. Starting. Initiating. Which feels logical, right?
Yes,
that's pretty much the way we people think life works - mostly because
as individuals, we live in what might be called 'planetary terms.' Our
whole life is built around this forward, direct motion. We start
things, we learn things, we try things (and try again). And as we go along
(i.e., as we move through a sign from degree 0 to degree 29) our efforts
and knowledge accumulates.
Yet apparently
that isn't the way the whole of life works. At least not how the
greater societal and worldly life presents itself to us… and
thus the pace and pattern at which we need to learn to interact with
it. That would be symbolically governed by the nodes, which rotate
backwards. And because they do, we experience this funny effect of their
moving from a clarified 'we're all in sync, we know what we're doing'
back over zero and directly into the highest and most worldly degrees
of the sign preceding. And because the first degree moving backwards is
degree number 29 (where the business of any sign either bears fullest
fruit or manifests with urgency) when life's functional tenor 'shifts
gears' (changes signs) we encounter an abrupt shift of focus and a confrontation
either with the need to capitalize on opportunity or fix something imme-diata-mente.
Either way the situation seems crucial. Sometimes even 'frenetic.'
And as
the nodes move on, counting down through the degrees, the situation either
'unravels' in total, or in terms of the business of the sign, it gets
analyzed, broken down - figured out. This is, if you think about it, pretty
much what companies and governments and economies do when facing big problems
- they pull situations apart (literally or figuratively) to see what's
going on, looking for the real source of the issue which needs fixing.
You'll hear this referred to in terms reflecting nodal movement: we're
going to get to the bottom of this.
Look
at it like this: every sign has three parts. As we've said, the first
decanate (degrees 0 -9) is about starting, doing, initiating. Then comes
the 2nd decan, degrees 10-19. Here all is emotional and emotionally considered
- and no, it doesn't matter whether the sign in question is a water sign
and therefore 'traditionally' emotional one or not. After all, air sign
ideas can be expressed passionately, right? And the desire for physical
gain is often felt as a tangible craving - how earth sign! And those ideals?
Ideals are famous for inspiring great zeal.
So every
sign has its emotional(ized) expression. And after that comes the 3rd
decanate (degrees 20-29) where symbols transiting or natal present as
energies/challenges which some call 'spiritual,' though a better term
might be 'worldly,' since anything 3rd decan has to be put into practice
before we find out whether it works. Maybe that means the 'spiritual'
essence here is the faith you have to have to live through the waiting
- one can't be sure. But 3rd decanate issues? They're all about results.
And seen
in nodal terms (where results lead to emotional reactions which leads
to doing something about it) this does explain why companies, societies
and governments seem to take such a long time to get anything done. It
also explains why when we as people try to get something done in the world
(intersecting with it in true nodal fashion) we go through such toe-tapping
and angst waiting for our results. How many of us have gone through
calling someone up at some bureau or office and saying Isn't it ready
YET? only to be told that the process is the process and it just takes
time. We say just get to it and they say we have a procedure
- that's them counting down and our running in direct mode.
Oh, how
annoying, right? But it is the nodal way. And maybe just knowing this
will help…
…then
again, maybe not. Waiting while procedures get processed and systems go
through their checks and counter points is simply irritating.
Then
again, these are the nodes of the Moon we're talking about - and
the Moon is the symbol of all emotions. So maybe this backward node movement
is all about getting us to back our irritation down. Or to reflect - look
back into ourselves - to see why we feel so entitled to be irritated to
begin with.
Anyway,
so here we are, people living a life based on direct and accumulated knowledge
in a world where that dog so don't hunt! Last December, just after the
US elections (if before the inauguration) the nodes backed into the 1st
decanate of Aquarius and Leo. Around the world, people looked up from
their economic woes and whether for reasons American or not saw people
beginning to do things. People on high were seeming to see things clearly
and get what needed to be done. And give or take debates and a bunch of
standardized international squabbling, from December through June we saw
a lot actually beginning to get done.
Then
someone threw on the brakes. Mid-June showed up and societies around the
world got a heaving case of 'hold on there, folks - this isn't going to
fix the problem.' Or totally fix the problem.
That
was the moment when the nodes hit zero Aquarius/Leo. And they've been
in a bit of an anxiety ridden holding pattern ever since. We've been hearing
a lot about 'new societies' (an Aquarian ideal) and yes, even seen people
fighting in various world regions for renewal, societal reinvention, modernization
and freedom - all Aquarian concepts. Meanwhile, increases projected for
job markets around the world (which would automatically result in increased
income - another Aquarian concept) stalled out.
And now…now
as the nodes are finally backing up over the zero point of Aquarius and
Leo they are hitting 29 Capricorn and Cancer…and we're having an
eclipse.
For those
'in the know' about eclipses, yes, we have them every year. But it's the
details which count here. Solar eclipses only occur when a New Moon occurs
within 15 degrees of the lunar nodes. Which makes the converse also
true - the New Moon can be as much as fifteen degrees away from
the nodes at the time of a solar eclipse which will occur on July 22nd
(or July 21st if you're in an American or Pacific Basin time zone).
But this
one is exact. AND it's in a critical degree. This sets up a great
deal of tension, suggesting events of this time are going to hit right
where we live - figuratively for many but for some, quite literally. With
the North Node in Capricorn the many things which 'govern' our lives need
taking on, but can also seem so overwhelming that all we want to do is
retreat. Or escape. Like the Cancerian crab we may be snippy and defensive-aggressive,
making giant flaws out of preferences and wanting everything to be the
fault of someone other than ourselves - individually, on a family basis,
on a choice basis or on a societal basis.
There's
a first 'phase' of events which arise now which is set in motion at the
eclipse and which then has a relatively short 'functional resolution/evolution'
cycle stretching from July 21st/22nd 2009 and February 2010. After that,
the nodes move into Capricorn/Cancer's emotional 2nd decanate degrees,
where comes the societal debate and the individual consideration and (hopefully)
determination. It's the next step in the process.
And don't
waste time waiting to get there! This is a highly critical time - and
a good one for making changes and starting out anew. Critical times drive
critical efforts, and it's those critical efforts which tend to make a
difference in our lives. So don't just point and discuss and critique…get
out there (or into yourself) and make something happen. Change. Evolve.
Grow. Utilize. Become more effective. Don't just retreat. Don't rely
on life as it has been, lest you become the 'has been'!
But are
things really all that critical - or do they just feel uber-important?
It depends. If in the great Karmic Scheme of Things you're meant to do
something and you just ain't doing it, how is life to get you to make
a move? Answer: by throwing you a curve ball. By shaking up your outdated
status quo. That, my friends, is the function of a solar eclipse. And
one at 29 degrees with the nodes exactly conjunct? That would spell the
importance of conscious attention on life right now and the value
of dealing with problems. Puzzles. Ineffective (Cancerian) habits which
really need breaking - or at least working against.
Looking
at this globally - at the node level - this period is likely to manifest
as fractious situations. But since the nodes will be out of 29 Capricorn/Cancer
by mid-September, the pressing and 'critical' moment doesn't last all
that long. The world will survive. Evolve. Continue going through its
paces. It always does. And what you've begun while the nodes were backing
down through the 1st decan of Aquarius/Leo, what you started while they
were hanging around zero - what was set in motion then, that evolves too.
And what
about the things you didn't do? That you didn't own, didn't deal with,
didn't try, didn't work through - that will also evolve: either it proves
to really not be your problem or it becomes your absolute problem!
Yes,
thus do humans learn!
Want
an example? Great - let's take a moment to look back. The last shift of
this type we went through was when the Lunar Nodes backed out of Pisces/Virgo
(into Aquarius/Leo) back in mid-December, 2007. And the two years since
have fit and tested Aquarian/Leo precepts more than a little. After all,
when Aquarius works well, it's innovative and constructive. It spreads
freedom and raises income, it gets people out into society instead of
causing them to isolate and balkanize by nationality, interest, income,
heritage, religion, proclivity or anything else. With the North Node in
Aquarius, we should have been doing things in new ways during this last
couple of years and to the extent we have, to the extent that we've gotten
out there and into the thick of things, finding ways to use our unique
qualities in fitting into societal system in ways which improve the whole
and thus our individual situation… that would have been the
whole 'up side.' Aquarius embraces groups, society, social functionality
and the marketplace commercial and intellectual, with the challenge of
fitting new into old and finding ways to upgrade and improve. Aquarius
is the precept of the 'wider audience.' It's about how things work - or
don't work, at which point they need improving, fixing or scrapping.
But most
of all, Aquarius is about the idea which is worked through carefully
then put into action. Societies which theorize only, never get anything
done. Societies which act in haste, waste. Between these lie the Aquarian
challenge - the bridging of the space between its twin rulers: Saturn
(the known) and Uranus (the innovative ideal or ideal innovation). Astrologically,
the bridge between these symbols is Chiron - that we don't know how
to do but need to do anyway. Where Chiron is concerned we tend to love
telling others they should fix the problem in their lives
without being so good at walking the walk in our own.
Bottom
line, the Chiron process is about acknowledging the 'should's of life
which have to do with our greatest weakness. It is in the process of walking
that most difficult walk that we learn perspective and thus a path to
personal acceptance and achievement personal, social and societal. But
in practical terms? Heck - the North Node and Chiron are everybody's most
despised chart points. Major dentistry without anesthesia is more popular
than the North Node or Chiron. By far!
So back
to Aquarius. In negative mode, Aquarius is fearful. It clings to the old,
refusing to learn anything new. It acts elitist or separatist, stand-offish,
escapist, arrogant, snide, presumptive, derogatory or just plain mean
because to do otherwise would require experiencing some form of terrifying
vulnerability related to inequality. Not theirs, yours. For many (read:
most), being self-centered is really a defense mechanism reflecting their
fear of rejection or lack of quality. The Aquarian perspective says the
only real use for 'me' is how that 'me' fits into the greater whole, enhancing
the lot of all - which is why Aquarius supports hierarchical structures,
but only for functionality, not for individual gain. To some, all the
above seems scary - like some loss of personal value or uniqueness. It
isn't. It's just equal, free and fair…which tells you what some human
beings aren't.
So where
are you now? To the extent that you've fallen on hard times or hard feelings,
that's likely a result of how you've dealt with this Aquarian/Leo nodal
thing - and chances are you've 'sat' in South Node in Leo, which is a
bit of a karmic, cosmic trap.
The South
Node is always what we want to do. It's the fun and comfy parts
of life. And since Leo is all about what we want to make of ourselves,
this has doubled up on this 'me' thing, giving rise to a lot of self-centeredness,
feelings of entitlement and general selfishness and greed. Those who have
done well in these past couple of years (which is to say 'well' in a sense
which is likely to continue flourishing) they've capitalized on their
special abilities, point of view or creative talents, putting that out
into the world in a manner which was fair. Being that this was
Leo-to-Aquarius nodal work, the real task has been risking our
opinions while taking on responsibilities to contribute, interact and
develop further without demanding more than our fair share.
And don't
be fooled: short term gains, no matter how large, are inevitably lost
when not founded on long-term societal principles. These past few years
have been all about learning how to work things out with and through others.
In the greater Aquarian whole, the community is in charge - not
the community. Those who have fallen prey to the temptation to try and
control things have been shut out - or will be in relative brief time.
The object was to learn where 'I'm right' really means 'I'm right for
me'; anything less is a corruption of the freedom and need
to excel and fall which is part of human existence.
With
all that in mind, we now face the eclipse at 29 Cancer. All of us are
going to feel it, but some will feel it more than others.
And who's
on this 'hit list'? First are those with any cusp, planet, point, node
or whatnot between 24 and 29 of Cancer, Libra, Capricorn or Aries…OR…between
0 and 4 of Leo, Aquarius, Taurus or Scorpio.
If you
don't have your chart that limits what we can say, but how about your
birthday? Does it fall within five (5) days (before or after) the eclipse?
Is it between April 14 and April 24? December 16 and 26? October 17 and
27? If the answer is yes, you've also probably begun to feel the shift
of life.
One last
group who should pay special attention are those who have a 'special date'
which falls between August 21st/22nd (depending on where you are) and
September 9th. What kind of 'special date'? A birthday. Or an anniversary.
Even product release dates, corporate founding dates and inauguration
dates of new administrations is pertinent. Point being, because this period
will have the nodes in the critical degree flow of 29 Capricorn-Cancer
for the whole of this time, whatever 'term' is implied by said 'special
day' (a year for anniversaries/birthdays, the life of a product, the run
of an administration) will be marked by a heightened nodal emphasis and
focal eclipse change.
On the
eclipse side of this is a shift of status quo. Often beginning a month
or more before the actual event (July 21st in the Americas/eastern Pacific
and July 22nd in Europe/points east) the metaphysical picture here is
of some transient event (the Moon) coming along and blocking out some
portion of known life (the Sun). In doing so however, it reveals the Sun's
corona - special qualities we often don't focus on.
This
manifests in life as something disappearing. Or ending. Or getting blocked
in such a way you have no access to it. And though that problem is what
we all tend to focus on, the eclipse is really about getting you to draw
on those special abilities symbolized by the corona. You haven't really
focused on them because you were getting along fine without them. But
the eclipse changes that. It's a life process which forces us to change
- and we humans hate change, at least change thrust upon us! Yet
along comes something which provokes us.
The change
will be Cancerian (foundational) and the solution, structural, growth
and achievement-goal oriented (Capricorn). From buildings to infrastructure
(personal or societal) to matters of heritage, family, childhood, citizenry,
populations and identity - these are things which will need coping with.
The childhood which forms our adult psyche or the life of a child, or
how life affects children (or the growth of) - these are all Cancerian,
as are real estate, housing and basic survival. All upon which we stand
- literal and figurative, and our standing in life, even our understanding
of life and where we come from (family heritage, evolution)…
…It's
now all in motion.
And what
starts here continues unfolding. For how long? For a full three years.
And though this isn't about disasters, it is about challenge - to ourselves
as individuals most of all. To our conception of who we are and who we
should be, not in the eyes of anyone else, not even with the support
of anyone else - but in our own heart. And in our own life. The stronger
the effect of this eclipse and its nodal effects in your life the more
poignantly real will be the facing of the assumptions you've built your
life on. Your foundation. Some call this 'fate,' but our lives
are not set in glue. Fated may be the cards we are dealt yes, but being
human is all about how we play those cards. Life isn't about what we are
handed - it's about our response. That's the hallmark of being human,
and why eclipses periodically come along to prove to us that we're more
than we've suspected. Or acknowledged. Or allowed ourselves to be.
Once
the eclipse occurs, we get a good long time to work things out. And curiously,
most of us won't know what the real purpose of the eclipse is going to
be until basically the whole of the transit runs its course. That gives
us a good long time to work through our 'stuff' - and knowing that the
scrambled or unsettling beginning is just the process of clearing the
deck so as to free yourself to grow, evolve and formulate a finer, more
fitting life?
That's
the bonny pot of gold at the end of the rainbow - give or take the leprechaun,
of course!
And because
there is a full three years to run on this clock, that implies the ultimate
lesson of this moment isn't even really about Cancer. Or the nodal
shift into Capricorn and Cancer. And why is that, you ask? It's
because when this eclipse transit ends (in 2012), the nodes will not only
be long gone out of Capricorn and Cancer but also just be finishing their
transit of Sagittarius and Gemini.
That
means the ultimate lesson of today will be shaped by Scorpio and Taurus.
And that points to our values - and our capacity to invest. Invest
what? Time, money, vulnerability, honesty… anything which is emotion
or involves emotional risk. The emotions which go along with money, sex…the
bumps and scrapes involved in being honest and making our way in the world,
getting along with others, making something of ourselves…the fears
and challenges which come with cravings for power, dislike of effort…and
not just our responsibilities to others but that involved in being
a human/humane being, how our childhood psyches play out and how our early
family experiences (or lacks thereof) predispose us to doing some things
and not others…
…such
is the stuff of our not-so-distant future. And believe it or not, by the
time you get there, life will have prepared you to understand what seems
mysterious and may be incomprehensible now.
Come
August, we get the first step in this process. And that first step will
be expressed by the North Node moving into Capricorn and South Node into
Cancer. Where the past couple of years have been colored by South Node
in Leo temptations to indulge in what I want and what I like
and it's all about me, the South Node in Cancer is as likely to
emphasize me and mine and the way I like living. Or doing.
There's going to be a lot of instinctive blaming going around and a bunch
of refusing to identify (or even consider) anything other than what we're
used to - that being the thin line dividing stagnation and growth. After
all, if we blame and refuse to consider we can deny our ability and project
all the 'control' onto others, perpetuating abdication of responsibility.
And the
North Node news? Well, North Node in Aquarius asked us to be involved.
Were we? Or did we simply try to skate by doing the South Node I want
what I like Leo stuff? Those who really invested themselves in the
world - many of them did just fine. Those who skated by? Not so much.
Aquarius is income, social systems, corporations - get the drift? Those
who took the easy way out got shut out. Annoying, but true - and a very
good North Node tackle the challenge; be involved sort of lesson.
But it's
never too late. North Node in Capricorn is about owning the responsibility
for building the future. It's about structures and how things run. It
requires that you get out there and work hard. That you defer gratification
and think things through, planning, building and making things work.
Seen
another way, it's about maturation - which figures, since Capricorn is
opposite Cancer, sign of childhood and family.
So this
summer's 29 Cancer Solar Eclipse speaks to a crucial need to grow
up - literally and figuratively. And that there's much to do - in our
own world and in the world.
Lots
of people are going to cling to 'old ways' and refuse to get real. And
they may not be nice about it. In North Node mode Capricorn is courageous,
patient, reasonable and determined while in South Node mode Cancer can
be petulant, fretful, nagging and excuse-filled. This combination can
carry us all through tough times or be the embodiment of limitations.
The polarity
between Capricorn and Cancer is often touchy. Those in power and things
we have already empowered, situations we've given in to - these
all tend to obey the law of inertia, requiring incredible amounts of effort
to overcome. But overcome we should, even though it's going to take time.
And work.
And dedication
- most of all, dedication.
All of
which starts and ends - ultimately - in the mirror. So…will you surrender
to your own emotional wishes? Will you own the responsibility for the
power you cede, project and utilize? What does accountability mean in
worldly and personal senses - and where do these concepts meet?
Such
is, and will be life - literally.
Read
More from Boots:
The
Blessings of the Sun in this season of Passover, Good Friday and
Easter (posted April 6, 2009)
2012: The End Of The World?
(posted March 26, 2009)
Ages Patriarchal, Matriarchal, and Religious (posted February 24,
2009)
Madoff: Web of Need and
Greed (posted January 27, 2009)
MetaphysicYear End Musings
(posted
December 27, 2008)
Election
vs Inauguration
World
Economics and the Federal Reserve
The Astrological State of
the Union
Pluto in Capricorn
The Fixed Signs
All
articles by Boots are ©Boots Hart - All rights reserved. No
reproduction or use without written permission. For copies of prior
articles, questions, suggestions or requests regarding other types
of astrological information, please feel free to email Boots at
.
Information on readings by Boots:
Payment
accepted by check, money order and credit card (via PayPal). Email
Boots with inquires or to
arrange your reading.
- Natal
Chart Consultation $350
The classic metaphysical example of Knowledge as Empowerment, a
natal chart consultation is an in-depth exploration which, in illuminating
talents, challenges and potentials, helps you take control, opening
the doors to creating a life befitting your personal definition
of success. Includes: natal text; simplified solar return examination;
12-months of astrological events/dates (transits); 2 hours ‘question
time’; three (3) questions to be answered in specific detail
(optional). Length: 35 pages (approx.). All original text - No
report writers used.
Information Required: Date of birth, Time of birth, Place of birth,
city/state where native was on the date of last birthday, three
questions (optional).
- Consultations
for Recessionary Times: A "Focus Report" is now available
for $145
In helping people through these difficult times, I am committed
to providing critical information at affordable prices. To this
end, I am offering a concise report, structured to answer specific
questions of either a personal or business nature, the Focus Report
examines trends, offers specific times and dates (for events like
a marriage or career move) and provides the information you need
in considering how to turn today's challenges into tomorrow's profitable
growth.
Length:
15-18 pages
- Solar
Return (or) Solar Return Relocation Report $350
By examining a chart cast for the moment when the Sun returns to
the degree and minute of birth, a picture of the incoming chapter
in your ‘book of life’ is revealed. For those who live
somewhere other than their birthplace, a second chart cast for the
place of current residence adds detail, ‘modifying’ natal
Solar Return data. Should you want to maximize particular aspects
of life in the coming year, finding the right place to travel to
for the Return offers the opportunity to join with the Universal
Process, allowing life to respond by supporting your aims through
cosmic law of action/reaction. Includes: solar return text; 12-months
of astrological events/dates (transits); three (3) questions to
be answered in specific detail (optional). Length: 35 pages (approx.).
Available only to previous Natal Chart Consultation clients. All
original text – No report writers used.
Information Required:
Solar Return: location where the native will be on their next birthday,
three questions (optional)
Solar Return Relocation: specific aims for the coming year; three
questions (optional)
- Davison
Relationship Consultation $350
The expression “Honey, we need to go away for the sake of the
relationship” says it all – there are three charts in
any relationship. Two belong to the people and one describes the
relationship itself, a living dynamic thing which responds to its
own timing, strengths and challenges. By examining the Davison chart,
we grow to understand its potentials as something totally apart
from yet complimentary to our own life. A must for those serious
about making the most out of any friendship, business relationship
or love match. Includes: Davison relationship text; current Davison
solar return; 12-months of astrological events/dates (transits);
basics as to what the client will get out of the relationship. Length:
35 pages (approx.) Note: to protect privacy, information pertaining
to any party in the relationship but absent from the consultation
is never given. Available only when one (or both) participants in
the relationship are requesting the consultation. All original text
– No report writers used.
Information Required:Date of birth, Time of birth, Place of birth
