Different astrologers have different areas of focus and specialization. My focus is aimed at emotional growth and healing work. Every astrology chart reveals a balance of light and shadow, which correspond to the places in our personality which are harmonious, brilliant, and effective, and the places of confusion and difficulty. In my practice I seek to generate greater awareness of all the parts of our minds, so we can acknowledge and feel good about our strengths, and begin to heal our weaknesses. This isn’t always easy work, but every step forward is worth the effort; we begin to live more and more from our true brilliance, our external life goes better and better, and increasingly we experience our rich connection with all people, with the earth, and with spiritual dimensions.
(For more information on the philosophy behind my practice, see My Approach and Principles of My Practice.)
Below is an excerpt from the notes I made for a client’s chart consultation. He gave me permission to post them anonymously. This sample is typical of the depth of information I get for my clients, although the details vary widely from chart to chart, from person to person. After studying a chart prior to our session, I then present the information in a caring, gentle and light-hearted way, ever mindful of my client’s boundaries and needs.
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Notes for “natives” chart
Sun in Gemini
-curious about life, touches lightly from topic to topic. a light touch until decides to dive deep, then penetrating, but at first it is a light touch, like a bee going from flower to flower, sampling the honey. once it finds the right honey, it goes all the way. once native finds an object of interest, he looks very deeply into it to discover the structure and composition, seeks to see it in it’s entirety, and relate it to other things.
there is a certain detachment from earthly concerns, which gives this Gemini a kind of cheerfulness, playfulness. sees the humor in things, not taking things too seriously, because life is seen as a play of concepts rather than “real-life”.
positives: interested in life, seeks out new experiences and investigates them, enriching himself. offers friendship to all, gives a place to all things, respects all things, sees all things as necessary and having their place.
challenges: this sun placement is not naturally caring or warm, can be somewhat aloof of his own and others feelings and genuine human needs.
Remedy: this is not a major problem. however, native can investigate thoughts and feelings around the question “is it worth it getting close to others, or has it been easier to keep some distance?”
Sun in the 8th house
- facing death, pushed into troublesome waters very early. seeing the troublesome waters in the world, being disturbed by them. this is a tumultuous placement. nothing seems steady so native looks deeper than surface, to find the solid ground beneath the waves. there is trouble with the father. father comes and goes, the waters are disturbed. the masculine feels unstable, and so native relies heavily on the feminine. there is a love for the father, and a heart-break, and a decision was made that native cannot rely on father, and so must move on, leave father behind, move forward without father’s support. this attitude now strongly affects relationship with men in general. there is a lack of trust, which makes it hard for native to get close, and feel he can count on his relationships with men. relationships with men feel fragile and ephemeral. this is a real loss on native’s part, because that connection to the masculine is needed, it completes native, it IS the native in fact and inner conflict arise from him being the thing he does not trust in others… this creates difficulty for native in finding and pursuing his life’s work in the world. that work relies on internalizing the father image, the “man of the world”, which native has not internalized. there is some way that native is afraid to step into the world of men, as a man, because he was not supported there.
Remedy: suggest native build close relationships with men; learn to be a warm, caring man amongst men. This will bring healing and allow native to step out onto the world stage as a supported man.
Also suggest healing work around father; saying goodbye, grieving, forgiving, differentiating father from other men -putting into context and perspective.. this will heal, and help native claim his role as a warm, caring man with heart.
The deeper reason for this disturbance of the father experience, is that it breaks the ground around a lot of old, rigid concepts of masculinity which the native inherited from society and his family line. Native has broken up what it means to be male, and can therefore choose how to put that concept back together again in a way which is healthier than the societal norm. These problems with the father archetype have given the native a *choice* regarding his own masculinity, if he will take the opportunity. instead of passing on his entire inheritance, good and bad, he will break up the package and sort through it, so that he can choose what to pass on to his family line. He can also be a leader and representative of a new way of being a man, to other men. He can join with other strong, caring men, and bring healing to himself, his family and to society…
Positives: very steady in a crisis, deep inner resources, courage to face difficulty, gives an understanding of the inner workings of the mind, and can face the dark side of human nature, able to connect and be with others in a very deep way. a serious and deeply perceptive mind.
Sun opposition Mars
- hot, warrior, anger, conflict, war, life and death struggle, combat, quick temper, “fight or flight” — the impressions of these things are strong in the native, and there may have been a time when he actually experienced these things coming at him, so that now these impressions figure prominently, and native may be on guard for these things, almost expecting them to come at him again. this can be a scary experience which is dealt with by becoming scary and violent himself. this is the experience of violence and aggression being thrust at native, and the native responding in defense by stepping up to that energy, matching it in the hope of turning it away. this is a frightening affair and causes much tension, alertness, strategical awareness of violent potential in people and situations, placing over-importance on matters of survival, admiration for fighting and survival abilities, etc. this placement makes it difficult for the native to relax and feel safe.
native’s mars energy assertiveness/aggression feels imbalanced, unreasoning, too hot, too conflict-prone. it is hard for native to use this mars energy, without feeling burned and overwhelmed. so, rather than using it, native keeps some distance, tries to keep this energy at bay, at arm’s length, and feels tense about it. sometimes this energy overtakes ego and is acted out. this makes native feel deep remorse and guilt, for becoming “that horrible thing” which he usually sees as hurtful and problematic. sort of like a man who is resisting turning into the wolf man, but who succumbs periodically anyway, and then feels deep remorse.
Remedy: Suggest therapeutic work to release fear of violence, fear of being attacked… once this is done native will be able to recognize that there is no battle, there are no weapons, there is no violence happening, there is safety, the war is over, native can relax, feel safe, be warmed, enjoy life, take in the goodness of things. The battle is over. native has made it through. native has survived. these impressions of violence are just ghosts of the past, there is no longer anything to fear… He can let them go… once native can make friends with his mars energy, convince it that the war is over, lead it by hand off the battlefield, he will be able to give it a “civilian vocation” and utilize all the power and potential there.
Positive side: ability to act quickly and decisively. strength, athletic ability, drive, fire, will, can be like a sword in his abilities to pierce to the heart of the matter, can get the job done very quickly and efficiently, without much mess or slop. can act on only what is necessary, with surgical precision and great speed. also gives courage to act in accordance with truth and others truth. stands up for what is right, can exhibit great courage in protecting self and others from harm.
Sun sextile Chiron
- feeling of sadness due to the impermanence of life, of trivial pursuit to anything in earthly realm. angst. “what’s the point when it’s all impermanent?” there is an awareness of the deep sadness underlying humanity, and there is a positive ability to touch into that sadness, to create depth, and healing in self and others. gives an awareness that we are all the same people with that impermanence in common. compassion. There is a longing for the soul’s reunion with it’s true being. Sense of the underlying oneness of humanity.
Moon in Libra
- warm, connecting, balanced, fair, humane; native possesses these qualities, and seeks these things in reciprocation from others. can feel upset and/or unbalanced when these things are not reciprocated.
Warm, beautiful, peace-seeking, wanting balance between everyone, with everyone happy and everyone’s needs being met. “there is no inherent rational conflict of interest between people” is a dear concept to native. Wants to create beauty, acceptance, happiness, warmth for everyone. problem arises when attachment to these things occurs, then the good experience can feel ruined and much disappointment and sadness sets in. genuinely cares about others, and sees everyone’s welfare as interconnected. wants to mother everyone, and bring beauty, peace and love to everyone.
challenges: can seek pleasure as a way of avoiding difficult experiences. the problem is the pleasure gained this way is not really nurturing or full-filling to the native… seeks egalitarian means of working with others, but can also be domineering and inflexible when others do not cooperate. can feel unbalanced and disrespected when others are not perceived as egalitarian as native is trying to be.
native is very other-focused, and invests personal happiness in a consensus well-being, rather than it being possible as an individual affair. there is a sense lingering from childhood, that native must please others in order to be happy, must please and share in good feelings with others in order to claim them for self. what if native could be happy regardless of others happiness? what if native could continue in his own individual happiness, regardless of others feelings? Native has the belief (started with mother?) that he must make others happy, and that his survival and well-being depend on it. There is a constant monitoring of his inter-personal connections, and a feeling of having to sacrifice to it continually, keep adjusting to it throughout the day, to make sure it has an even keel, and nothing is disrupted, or else the native will be left alone. there was probably a fear of being rejected by the mother, and of being alone in the world without her. this rejection deeply frightening, and lingers in current relationships, especially with women.
Remedy: Suggest therapeutic work around how this relates to the experience of the mother. suggest emotional release work on the fear of being left alone.
Moon opp Venus
- sees a powerful, beautiful connection between self and others, and yet this connection appears fragile to the native. There is a deep experience of love, beauty, connection, pleasure, ecstasy, goodness, warmth, rightness, balance, fairness, justice, harmlessness, gentleness, acceptance. at the same time, native’s connection to these qualities feels tremulous, unstable, as if this beautiful bridge between self and other is easily snapped. This feeling of instability creates a striving, a yearning, a reaching for these qualities, and a deep fear of losing them once they are in hand. Native has a deep fear of disappointment, which comes from old hurts. The native has the ability to share these beautiful qualities with others, yet he has currently given up on them somewhat, with some hurt and bitterness, after being very disappointed in others behavior.
challenges: easily hurt and then withdraws from people, isolates. often feels alone and empty without a bridge to others. there is a deep inner pain and raw emptiness which can get triggered easily. feels alone, empty, loveless. these feelings make it hard to reach out to people with all the love and beauty which he is capable of. fear of being hurt, let down, not met and reciprocated.
Remedy: understand that the experience of these qualities comes from sharing them with others, not seeking them in others. learn to internalize these wonderful qualities, and share them judiciously with others. the native has the qualities inside him. they are qualities of his own being, and are permanent. this understanding will help native establish relationships with people based on where they’re actually at, not where native wishes they could be at. Suggest therapeutic work to grieve the loss of big love and connection in early family life.
Also recommend that it is important not to give up connection, withdraw, isolate from people when feeling hurt. example: if native feels hurt by something someone has done, he can decide to stay connected to that person even with the feelings of hurt and fear still throbbing in his chest. by staying connected to that person he can move through the feelings of fear and hurt without withdrawing from his own heart. by doing this native will cease abandoning a part of his own heart. he will stay with his own heart even when it is hurting. this will be transformative. as he does this it will become more and more apparent that the wonderful qualities he seeks are at home in the native, and he can share them with goodwill and generosity with others, filling the cups of others to the extent of their capacity to receive.
Positives: VERY loving. Big, wise heart. Humor, forbearance, love, patience. acceptance of earthly limitations, acceptance of humanness, deeply accepting, bringing humor and gracious acceptance to the foibles, complexities and petty indignities of being human.
Moon conjunct Ascendant
- native leads with an emotional connection, enters new experiences with an intimate, tender part of self, seeking connection. Can feel easily rejected if this part is not met by others, although others will often respond by quickly opening that part of themselves up to native. Often other people are not leading with as personal a part of themselves, and would rather wait a bit to get to know the other before revealing this part. Important for native to understand that it is not a rejection if people are not always able to respond as intimately and warmly in the beginning.
It is hard for native to separate his subjective, personal experience from his interactions with the environment. He tends to have a strong emotional reaction to everything. He is experiencing the world through his lunar nature, which makes him very sensitive to irritation and disturbance in the environment. His feeling/perceptual body quickly feels into and fills any room he enters, sensing the attitudes and energy of everyone present.
Positives: native has a blood-hound’s ability to sniff out even minor disturbances in the energy fields of the immediate environment and in other people. Has the ability to connect readily with other people on many levels, even levels others are not aware of consciously. He can fill in others empty spots with his presence, and bring deep and complete emotional healing to people. there is a mystical connection to spirituality, especially the Goddess. Can blend into the ocean of consciousness, and other, higher realities. Has support and connections in higher planes working with him.
Challenges: has a hard time separating himself from his environment. There is no felt separation; it is a fusion. So disturbances in the environment are experienced as happening under the skin.
Remedy: suggest that native can learn to adjust and limit his automatic fusion with the environment.. native can imagine connection with environment as an aperture which he can open and close at will. When he needs to he can close aperture to 15%, rather than leaving it open at 95% all the time. can open and close as needed. can learn to master this just like training a muscle to respond.
also, there is a pregnancy, a fertility, a fullness to this placement which tends to expand, which can lead to native picking up weight rather easily. suggest that native does not have to embody this lunar quality of increasing. can choose not to embody that quality of the moon. Does not have to embody the pregnant goddess archetype. can bow to mother goddess, offer respects, and still not merge with her. Can maintain separate masculine status without disrespecting the mother. It is not disrespectful to not be merged with the mother!
Jupiter/Pluto/S.N./Uranus stellium in 12th
- awareness of master plan for humanity. Awareness of higher consciousnesses working with a higher vision for the development of humankind. Embodying a part of that vision, being a part of that mission. being a force in that movement. knowing secret things. this planetary grouping represents the powerful, enlightened sage archetype.
challenges: not easily integrated into the human life of the rest of the personality. transcendent and impersonal. acts independently of rest of personality, does not take human emotions or suffering into much account. tends to see the much bigger picture from a much higher perspective. acts from an altruistic perspective, even when the situation requires flexibility and compromise due to the human nature of those around him. can have a deep and brilliant understanding, but be impractical in application. Could “let Paris burn” rather than compromise on principle. There is a reliance on spirituality and a “high understanding” in order to avoid human pain. There is a fear of the human experience here, a fear of “falling” down to the level of human. there is a striving to achieve spiritual enlightenment. a straining to “rise above”, which is motivated by a desire to get away from the pain of human vulnerability.
remedies: Growth comes from the acceptance of his human shortcomings, failings, and imperfections. Once these human failings are accepted, a new stage is reached. the high spiritual understanding becomes full and broad. Love is added to knowledge. The serious sage is now smiling. When this healing occurs, then the spiritual wisdom can be applied for the benefit of humanity.
positives: sage-like wisdom and experience of the heart of reality. awareness of higher realities. Mind is loosened from the body identity and can move between worlds. The ability to soar high. Experience of Thatness. No-mind. Zero-point identity.