Astrology, Mythology and Evolution
Mythology, the stories of ancient cultures that often sound like fables to us now are rooted in the factual fiber of our beginnings. As such we relate to them from a level of the unspoken within our awareness. In every god or goddess, forest dryad, sea naiad, cyclops, titan, constellation, there is recognition of an aspect of our human beingness. When we hear or read a myth, no matter the culture from which it originates there is an element of truth within it that we acknowledge as part of who we are. Mythology according to Joseph Campbell, "…puts us in touch with a plane of reference that goes past your mind and into your very being…" Mythology has shaped how we have perceived ourselves in relation to the mysteries of life. The connection between mythology and astrology presents us with an opportunity to ground the energies of the planets into a deeper place of awareness. It leads us to a primary awakeness—that we are so much more than what we may think!
Astrology gives us a map to understand the personal self while mythology assists us in relating the personal to the bigger picture—the self in relation to the cosmos. Each planet tells us that we are not just an individual but that we express ourselves also from an archetypal standpoint. We are everything and by studying the natal chart with this in mind the vision we have for ourselves in this lifetime becomes quite clear.
Astrology has served humankind for some five thousand years. It has evolved as we have evolved. And though we do use it now for more than knowing when to plant crops, to marry, to conceive, to move the tribe or increase our flocks, we still rely upon the planets to answer some of the basic questions of our existence here. In the West, we developed an interest in man’s psychological nature when the basic fact of our survival was assured. At this time, astrology developed into a way of observing the emotional/mental aspect of human nature. It has been used by therapists to gain a more thorough understanding of their clients’ state of being. Now, as we seek to explore our spiritual nature, astrology can be utilized as a blueprint of the soul, as a road map to what serves our highest good. Sometimes we see that the planets exist as neon signs that say, "Hey! I’m supposed to push your buttons. Or they can be subtly guiding you from a place beyond any major highway.
The Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars operate through the personal dynamics of human nature. The outer planets, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto express evolutionary aspects of the spiritual nature and the transformative process that assists us to transcend mundane existence. The outer planets also represent trends in global/communal experience while Jupiter and Saturn act as bridges between the personal and transpersonal aspects of our experience. Each one has its story based upon what the human mind created many centuries ago.
The Sun represents our conscious being, the creative force within each of us and the will to express it. When we rise with the physical Sun every day we leap out of bed knowing that we have the power to manifest what we want with confidence. The Sun is our potential and what defines how we negotiate our life's experience. The Sun is how we warm up to everything we do as it is our outer persona and our physical being. Wherever the Sun is in our natal chart by house shows where we will shine our light. Part of life's journey is coming to know that it is okay to be who we are and to be a beacon of light for ourselves and those around us.
In mythology the Titan Helios preceded Apollo in Greek myth as the Sun god, Ra, Egyptian Sun god, Saule the Baltic goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu, Japanese goddess of the Sun and Unalanuki the Cherokee Sun goddess. They were all worshipped as the primary deity, life giving and sustaining.
The Moon is our subconscious being, our emotional and instinctive nature. Patterns of behavior that are instinctive come into this life with us. We seek to fulfill our desires, wants and needs as soon as we are born through our mothers. In the astrology chart the Moon represents the mother and will describe what it is we desire on an emotional level. The moon has phases and affects us therefore on more than one level. We are born with a Moon sign and during a particular phase of the Moon of which there are eight by some accounts, new moon, crescent moon, first-quarter moon, gibbous moon, full moon, disseminating moon, last-quarter moon and balsamic moon. These further describe our emotional and instinctive self.
At one time, it is said, that the Sun and Moon shone equally. As the two orbs were too bright to look at it was decided they should conduct a battle to see who should be allowed to remain the primary light source--well, the Sun won and the Moon was obligated to shine only from the light of the Sun. In mythology, the Moon was often the partner of the Sun. We have Meness, husband of Saule presiding over the night sky, Artemis, twin sister of Apollo and goddess of the moon, Osiris in Egyptian myth and Isis had dominion over the Sun and Moon. Isis is often pictured with a crescent moon symbol just over her head.
Mercury, the smallest and most swiftly moving of the planets describes how we communicate and express ourselves intellectually. It is our thinking process, the mind and all the various thoughts that inform us and others. The sign and house Mercury is in will describe how you use your mental faculties and what areas you excel at when expressing yourself. Those with Mercury prominent in there charts are usually great communicators who choose utilize there talent here in their professional life. Mercury lends itself to verbal, written and graphic expression. Other planets aspecting Mercury will contribute to the way in which Mercury is expressed through you.
Hermes in mythology was the winged god who conveyed messages between heaven and earth for the rest of the gods. He had the ability to cross over into the land of the dead without harm. As such Mercury in the chart can represent abilities to channel information from other that gathered in the physical world. It can represent psychic and intuitive abilities that we all possess.
Venus, goddess of love, relationship, desire makes our hearts go pitter-pat. Venus is beauty and aesthetic appreciation, the arts. One might think that Venus is only these pleasant desirable qualities but desire can lead to jealousy and possessiveness, indulgence and a nasty disposition if denied those desires. In a man's chart Venus shows the type of woman he will be most attracted to. The house Venus is in will demonstrate how she may bring him fulfillment. Venus shows us how we may choose to express our creative abilities by sign and what areas of life that will apply to is shown by Venus's house position.
The goddess, emerging from the sea and standing upon a shell in Botticelli's famous painting, is a powerful physical reminder of the power of attraction and Venus in the astrology chart does indicate where our own power of attraction lies. That relates not only to a partner and other relationships we may be involved in, but also to our ability to attract money in our lives, its importance and how we may attain it.
Mars, god of war, gets a bad wrap with that age old branding but the act of destroying in order to build anew is sometimes a necessity that Mars is all too familiar with. Although in mythology Mars was indeed the god of war, that description does not give us a very positive picture in terms of what this planet signifies. And, the fact that the physical planet is sometimes identified by the words angry and red goes further to make us perhaps leery of wanting to examine its position in our astrology charts. But, everything has its place within human nature, anger included. Mars is also indicative of our physical strength, energy levels, our temperament, the aggressive nature that motivates us to act and the ambition to accomplish are all within the bounds of this mighty celestial sphere.
In a woman's chart Mars indicates the type of man she will be attracted to and the house Mars falls in will show in what ways she seeks to be fulfilled by that man. Though anger in excess can be destructive, violent and something to be feared, it also has a beneficial side in that we get to express ourselves in a positive way when something is not okay. There is power in anger that can prevent us from becoming victims.
Jupiter, the physical planet is enormous, even gigantic! To Jupiter, Jove, Zeus, Odin, the father gods, larger than life, was attributed wisdom, knowing, playfulness, joviality, beneficence. Jupiter in the chart points to our potential for growth and our tendency to excess. While Jupiter can expand our horizons so can it expand our girth, our notion of self importance, the thought that we may have all the answers. In other words out of control, Jupiter may become a bag of wind expelling gasses into the air. Jupiter in positive action prompts us to discover ourselves philosophically and spiritually, climbing to greater heights of understanding of the self within the big picture. Along this path of discovery, it is sometimes necessary to travel to foreign shores or to take risks, all initiated by Jupiter in the natal chart.
Jupiter as the ruler of the Gods represented authority and justice. At times he was a benevolent administrator and at other times he could be harsh. The harshness in the chart may signify judgment that one places on their own actions or thoughts. Jupiter as the largest planet and with many moons orbiting within its domain, is a giver. Energy flows outward and that is the nature of Jupiter in the chart, generous by nature and accustomed to the supportive role. Jupiter to an extent does describe the father figure in our charts and may influence a woman's choice of partners.
Saturn, whatever you have heard about Saturn may be true but it isn't the whole truth! Saturn has a 'heavy' role in the astrological line up as this planet, surrounded by rings, represents lessons we need to learn. Saturn in mythology is also associated with the Greek god Cronus, Time, and as such brings to us the experience of a three dimensional existence and all that we must learn to be here in a way that truly serves us. Saturn is responsibility, focus, determination. Saturn asks that we use our gifts in a practical manner. At times it may seem that Saturn is a stern taskmaster but only so that we may strife for the attainment of what we want. Saturn gives us nothing that we do not ask for--even when it may seem like we are being issued a difficult pill to swallow. Saturn in the astrology chart represents an aspect of the disciplinary father that may appear to be restrictive and limiting. With careful examination though it would be hard not to see the valuable lesson that lies beneath Saturn's seemingly cold strictness.
The 'Golden Age' of mankind is attributed to Saturn. When he was expelled from Olympus by his sons Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto, Saturn came to earth and instructed men in the way of laws and society that they might begin to build a world without chaos. Thus Saturn is identified with creating structures that are useful for our physical experience.
Saturn is the last of the planets considered to affect us in the earthly plane. The outer planets and the asteroid, Chiron from a psychological perspective aid us in journeying to higher planes of existence. They all have an affect on us here in the physical dimension but they have energies that would promote moving beyond just the reality we know in this three dimensional world.
Chiron is often referred to as the bridge between the earth plane and the spiritual plane. It guides us from the structured existence of Saturn and physical reality to the spiritual domain that includes Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. In mythology Chiron is the centaur, half man half horse, who was wounded in the leg by one of his students. As Chiron is immortal, he did not die from the wound nor did the wound ever heel. Chiron is known therefore as the 'wounded healer'. In the astrology chart Chiron represents the place where lies our deepest wound. When we heal this wound, we go on to heal others so that Chiron is the 'healer' in all of us. Aspects to Chiron and its sign and house position will describe how we best channel our healing energies. Chiron in myth was a teacher and a philosopher also and is associated with deep levels of wisdom and knowing. Chiron does not rule a sign like the other planets although there are a few hypotheses for its rulership.
One of these is presented by Barbara Hand Clow in her book on Chiron. She puts forward a case for Chiron's rulership of Virgo. You'll have to read her book to see if you agree or not. Others have stated that there is a thirteenth sign that will be added to the present Zodiac during the Age of Aquarius and that is Ophiucus. This constellation is one of thirteen that contains the Sun during the course of the year. The other twelve are the signs of the zodiac. Ophiucus, also known as the serpent-bearer, lies between Scorpio and Sagittarius. Mercury also 'bears the serpent' upon his caduceus, the staff with intertwining serpents that has been used by the medical profession for decades.
Uranus, the ancient god of the sky/heavens deposed by Saturn, holds a lofty position within the realm of human evolution. And that is what Uranus stands for--the unique nature that we each possess that requires us to seek change, to question the status quo and to think outside the box. The role of Uranus is to instigate change for the highest good of course. It is revolution that leads to evolution. It is the inner drive to perpetually move to 'higher ground'. Uranus is not related to our emotional nature as it encourages us to move toward a place of freedom. The emotional attachments we have to this plane are what prevent us from ultimately attaining higher spiritual ground. There is a fear often associated with these attachments--what happens if I let go. Well, Uranus says, "Just do it. Let go and see what happens!" Wherever Uranus is by sign and house position will be where you most seek the freedom to express yourself. It may also be the place where you fear being different or where that difference brings you attention that you think you don't want. It will inevitably show how you deal with authority and how you choose to utilize your unique gifts.
Neptune, lord of the watery deep, the unconscious element of the human psyche is endlessly fascinating as the ruler of the last sign of the Zodiac where matter dissolves into 'spirit'. As the ocean erodes even time, Neptune has the power to obliterate everything so that we may once again experience unity, all that is. There is a nebulous quality about Neptune that goes beyond the phrase 'something I can't quite put my finger on'. In the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment, I believe it is said that if we can define it, it is not 'it', the truth. Therefore an attempt to define Neptune and its meaning to us becomes somewhat challenging until we can let go of the need to define it at all! By sign and house Neptune shows us where we have the ability to 'be'. This is a place of peace, joy, love, bliss however you define the state of absolute surrender. For this reason Neptune is idyllic, seeking a state of perfection that sometimes has us hunting for something external to ourselves. Neptune is also associated with illusion, fantasy and confusion because sometimes we don't know what we are searching for or we think we know but "no, that isn't it either--Oh, what is it I am looking for?"
"In the stillness of the deep, says Neptune, "is where you find everything and nothing and that is all." Neptune is great charisma. When we are in that place of 'being', it has a powerful effect on others, like a magnet it will attract others. Neptune is imagination, psychic abilities and all the qualities associated with reaching deep within to express oneself in this reality. The reality Neptune creates however will be something absolutely one of a kind!
Pluto was not discovered until 1938 and is the subject of much controversy. Recently it was relabeled by the Astronomical Society as a dwarf planet. Personally I was alarmed (I have Pluto on my ascendant or rising and heavily aspected in my chart) until I realized it really doesn't make any difference. Pluto does have an affect on the world (fission was discovered Dec. 1938, that allowed for the creation of the atomic bomb-Carl Jung went to India in 1938. This experience led him to integrate notions of spirituality and daily life and to exploration of the unconscious) no matter what label they give it. As ruler of the Underworld, Pluto has dominion over some of the deepest, darkest areas of human nature. There is an immense power within thi.s realm of the psyche as it represents the edge between life and the death that transforms us allowing us to transcend. Pluto in the execution of this process will eliminate anything and everything that stands in the way. With Pluto there can be absolute destruction in order to find the treasure that may be hidden at the core of our being. Whereas Uranus will instigate change, Pluto will enforce transformation. When all has been said and done, then there is Pluto like a cosmic stick of TNT just to make sure there isn't anything left that delude us from 'seeing' the truth.
Pluto in the chart will show by sign and house where your power lies and how you will or will not utilize that power depending upon aspects to Pluto from other planets. In the underworld, Pluto or Hades' word was law. Those you entered the netherworld regions did not return unless the circumstances were very special as with Persephone, daughter of Demeter an earth goddess who presided over agriculture. When Persephone was abducted by Pluto Demeter went into mourning. Crops did not grow, the land grew bleak and cold and winter began. The other gods intervened with Pluto to have Persephone returned to her mother so that the land could again flourish. He agreed that she might visit the upper world for six months of the year but the other six she must spend with him. Not only did this provide seasons for mankind but it also gave humanity the ability to dwell in all aspects of consciousness, subconsciousness and unconsciousness. It expanded and transformed a hitherto limited perspective of the nature of man.
Where You've Been and Where You're Going
The south and north node I mention briefly as they are an important symbolic representation of where we have been in other lifetimes and where we are going in this life. They are points rather than planets and are said not to have an energy of their own. Rather they are indicative of issues that we have been working on and within which we seek to explore our greatest potential. The south node is where we have been and by sign and house will show that which we have collected in terms of knowledge and gifts to impel us in the direction of its opposite, the north node. We have usually had enough of what the south node offers. It is not here that we are meant to linger where life is comfortable because we have done it over and over again. We are meant to strike out courageously toward the north north the area that represents waters we are not so familiar with. Venturing toward the north node can create resistance caused of course by fear. What are we afraid of? That which we do not know. However! If we just look around the chart we will find plenty of assistance in the way of planets to help us get to where we want to go. Admittedly it may be a challenge at first, to let go of that blanket we've been hanging onto forever. And you may stand there feeling pretty naked for a short time but, you're resourceful, talented and you've learned a lot over that great length of time. Trust yourself! It is a beautiful world out there waiting to be discovered on the other side of that south node.
If you have astrology questions e-mail me !
