Tag Archives: Natal analysis

Chiron Pt. 3

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Posted by in Aspect Delineation, aspects and placements, Astro Lessons, astrology, Chiron, Conjunctions, Natal Delineation

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Chiron–what a dandy! {{PD}}

This is part of a continuing series begun last year where I asked readers to send in their questions about aspects, specifically natal aspects, they wanted to know more about.

Hi Julie
I am going to take a step in to play!!
Aspect: Conjunctions..
“blind spots” not noticed in the past, yet now it seems I am aware of that aspects signature more
(Birth data removed)

Be safe!! Love and Blessings!!

Dear Reader,

First, a thank you for your lovely wishes–I hope you’re staying safe, and thriving, well-blessed, too!

A little bit about conjunctions: natally they tend to weld two energies together for a lifetime, particularly if the conjunction is close (say, at or less than 2.5 degrees). This can cause the individual with the aspect to find it particularly hard to deploy the energies separately. For instance, a Moon-Mars conjunction can mean that hurt, sensitivity, intuitive perceptions, or emotional reactions can all be answered with anger, assertiveness, or a hot-footed insistence on doing something in answer to the feeling. This duo may predispose one to a fear that emotional expression may bring only anger from others, or that anger itself is the only acceptable emotion. But, this same combo can also mean that the feeling nature and the action urge can work in well-synchronized harmony, since they (likely) sit in the same sign, and share the same sensibilities (we’ll skip thinking about conjunctions that straddle two signs, for now!) Working together, Moon-Mars could make the individual highly dependent on the feelings to get them moving, or on the intuition to know what to do, with the down side that this could short-cut past the mind, leaving reason ‘out in the cold’ when it comes to choices and actions.

One of the biggest impacts of a conjunction, though, is the way it can make matters of the two Houses they rule (when the conjoined are major bodies) work together. In a Whole Sign chart using the same Moon-Mars example, we would find cooperation between the House holding Cancer and the House holding Aries. It doesn’t matter what sign the conjunction itself falls in, those two Houses would still find their subjects enmeshed, sometimes for good, and sometimes in more difficult ways. By example, we can consider a situation with that Moon-Mars conjunction ruling Aries in the 7th, Cancer in the 10th. This might mean that the individual’s ‘I Am’ and initiative (Aries/ Mars), when triggered through partnership or the creation of Art (7th), will automatically strive to show the emotional palette publicly (10th), through career or in support of the reputation, or even in business. ‘I Care’ (Cancer) would always prompt ‘I Act’, and would likely focus through interaction, presented to an audience or even just the spouse (7th), with the result aimed at enhancing the reputation, furthering the Self’s public cause (also known as the career), or letting the world know what the Self cares about (10th). There are lots of possibilities; it’s the entwined nature of the expression of conjunction energies themselves, and through the Houses they rule, that’s important to keep in mind.

Now just a few observations; this isn’t definitive, by any means. You, dear Reader, have a number of conjunctions we could discuss that I think would be helpful to others, and today we’ll look briefly at two clusters; first, your Chiron-Venus conjunction in Aquarius in the 7th (note: Chiron is novile the Sun, while Venus is closer to a semi-square, though both are novile Pallas), square Mars, opposite the Ascendant, quincunx the South Node, square Neptune, widely opposed the Moon, and sextile Black Moon Lilith; Chiron is also sesquiquadrate Vesta, while Venus makes no contact. This weaves Chirotic energy directly into the personality, into the identity and the Soul’s purpose (all through the Sun contact) in a way that informs the way of Being in the world with a unique viewpoint and a bit of genius via skills, especially healing skills (the novile), playing up the innovative qualities (Aquarius) through the creative Piscean Soul (Sun) and fusing them with Love (Venus). But, Venus’ rougher aspect adds this: that relationships and/ or finances don’t come easily, that there may be lessons to learn to adequately answer the questions, What is Love? What is really an asset (i.e., worthy)? What can–and should I–own?

We get a clue about potential areas of Venusian difficulties via the Houses Venus rules, the 3rd and 10th, which could imply that ways of thinking or communicating may be a big part of the problem, with the ability to understand others (Libra in the 3rd, Venus in Aquarius, the sign of understanding) potentially the main issue. The sextile to Black Moon Lilith implies it may be easy to ignore what you find unpleasant–and that could complicate communication, as well. The 10th may suggest issues are with those in authority, with business practices, gum up the career, or are very visible to those with whom you interact, to the point that they are part of the reputation. Too, with Libra involved, you may be known for your gentle diplomacy–or for your passive-aggression, both Libra specialties! The square to Mars says action and choice always seem to either be forced or come rapped up with difficulties in executing the Will; it isn’t hard to see how mental processing or communication issues could set the stage for awkward reception of your actions and choices.

The fact that the conjunction falls not only in the 7th but so closely opposed the Ascendant may create a tricky dynamic: a kind of echo around choices and actions that asks, ‘Will this hurt?’ and ‘What will it cost me?’ with the added difficulty of either not being sure whether these potentials are coming from the actions of others or from yourself (the 7th, either seen as your own energies or projected as belonging to others)–and this could suggest that you see others as having communication or anger issues that are actually your own, as the Universe loves to confront us with others who show us in bold type our own failings.

The novile to the Sun suggests the Soul finds ingenious ways to express its healing nature and skills (these being the positives associated with Chiron), but also funnels this hesitancy surrounding a sense of vulnerability directly to the identity and may impinge on the Soul moving toward expressing its purpose. But, the Pisces Sun sits in the 8th, reinforcing that possibility of mistaking one’s own methods and motivations for those of others, but also steeped in the creative energies derived from interaction with and cooperation with others. One issue may be that you offer healing even when others don’t want it! perhaps creating the dissonance of the Venus semi-square, making relationship a bit tense at times.

This is it me or is it them? confusion may be central to the Chiron-Venus in 7th in Aquarius: anytime there’s hurt or a potential for healing (with the Self or in relationships), in the asset picture, or in your view of your own talents, you may either 1) intellectualize things, thinking you need to ‘figure it out’ or justify matters before you can accept that healing potential, or 2) see either the healing or the hurt as potentially coming only from others; that is, you may not recognize your part in things (i.e., that others can’t hurt you unless you agree to feel hurt, for instance). The sesquiquadrate between Chiron and Vesta could imply that only when wounded do you consider deviating from your highest values–but with Venus there, Love likely pulls you back from that precipice very quickly.

The approach to Love, Money, and injury, psychic, emotional, or otherwise, may also be intellectualized as a way of Being; that is, you may go deeply into these subjects theoretically, while in the real world you may feel either that thinking about how they operate is enough, or that others are more responsible/ have a more intimate relationship with these matters than you feel you do. This could also show as a tendency to think about things, especially relationships or assets, and feel that you’ve then dealt with them, without taking any action, with the square to Mars showing just how hard that can be for you.

One good potential with that Venus-Chiron/ Mars combo is that you likely work very hard to define and express yourself, and that your sensitivity levels, especially to others, are very high. There is probably a high degree of conscientiousness and a determination not to harm others. It may be vital for you to operate (that is, to act or choose) only when you are both intellectually and heart-centered in any matter–another meaning for the Mars square, then, may be you holding yourself back until you are sure of what you want to do, vetted against all that’s most important to you in life.

And a word or two on the Venus-Neptune square: this is an out-of-sign aspect, with both sitting in Air, Neptune in the 3rd in Libra, introducing the potential for creative, inspired, or completely delusional thinking, and the contact to Venus linking it to relationships again, once through Libra and once through Venus in the 7th. This unites the 3rd, 8th, and 10th Houses, suggesting that thinking and communication are heavily influenced by others and your interactions with them, especially what you share, and that this is part of the reputation, career, or expressed through interaction with authorities or publicly. Do you write? Are you an Artist? If not vocationally, you certainly are in your essence.

There is also the potential for you to associate yourself as a woman with carrying unique skills, with being fundamentally injured, and/ or with innately being a healer. I suspect with you it’s this latter, but any of those are possible, and may make up various facets of the identity specifically associated with womanhood as you see and express it, as well as likely pinpointing a specific feeling of vulnerability within your identity.

Ruler of Aquarius, Uranus, is sandwiched into another conjunction, this one uniting Moon, Jupiter, and Uranus within just over seven degrees of one another, in Cancer in the 12th. So, we have the Moon in its own sign (very strong!) connecting to the Venus-Chiron duo by opposition, bringing the emotions into, and perhaps having them drive, all that we’ve been discussing. In the 12th, the Moon may not make itself known directly, instead having a strong impetus to push out through those natal energies contacted, so that you may be less aware than you know of the influence of the emotions on other life areas (and this may be doubly so with Aquarius putting the stamp of intellectual understanding on so much, possibly unaware of how the feeling nature has a hand in things!) The feeling could be, ‘I’m very sensitive, but not emotional–I’m the most rational person I know!’

There’s a lot to unpack here, but we’ll look at only one thing, the Houses brought together through rulership by these bodies: 5th, 7th, and 12th. That suggests that creative acts (5th) are fueled by feedback from or cooperation with others (7th–as well as giving that creative urge and artistic bent–also 7th), and that this can be a channel for, or overwhelmingly influenced by, a connection to the Cosmic and/ or the unconscious (12th). With the conjunction located in the 12th, this is a powerful recipe to bring spirit as a living, breathing, creative thing into the everyday life–and goodness knows, the world definitely needs more of this right now–

Want to know more about Chiron in your chart? Get my Chiron workbook here–

Snapshot of a Life: Photographer Vivian Maier

25 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by in astrology, ECLIPSE magazine, Natal Delineation

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Taken at the "Finding Vivian Maier: Chicago Street Photographer" exhibition in Chicago 8 January 2011 http://www.flickr.com/photos/chicagogeek/5337419802/ Author ChicagoGeek Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic

Taken at the “Finding Vivian Maier: Chicago Street Photographer” exhibition in Chicago 8 January 2011
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chicagogeek/5337419802/
Author ChicagoGeek Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic

What follows is a brief look at the chart of Vivian Maier, subject of a recent documentary, taken from the pages of ECLIPSE.

I heard and saw mentions of her, bits and pieces: amazing photos. dead now. a nanny. walked around Chicago for years, taking photos. Nobody noticed. And then I caught ‘Finding Vivian Maier’, a documentary, on HBO. I was prepared to witness some great photos, and perhaps the sadness of a life not lived to as full an extent, or as widely celebrated, as it might‘ve been. What I saw instead was a portrait of a woman who had been seen as mysterious largely because she was both exceptionally private and thoroughly estranged from any family, who preferred the company of children (whom she often bullied) to that of adults, and with a background involving time spent in the village of her mother’s birth in France that had some acquaintances privately calling her accent phony.

I admit I’ve had a very difficult time writing about Maier, for as intriguing as it is to learn about a newly-revealed talent, Maier as an individual seems to have been difficult, and often unpleasant. By the last third of the documentary I found myself looking away at least as much as actually watching, not out of disinterest, but out of the sense that she was a human being who had inflicted pain on her charges, with the obvious inference that this was because she lacked the Self-awareness to separate her own behavior from the pain that had been inflicted on her—a nasty revelation about the doc’s subject, to be sure, and one I felt ambivalent about: did her faults as a human being detract from the body of work she left behind? Ideally, in my view, the work should speak for itself, but when the life seems to provide such a telling frame for the work, one that may be in stark contrast to what is produced while still holding the reflection of it, it may be unfair to look at one without the other, if only because one would not exist without the other.

With no birth time, we have no Houses, Ascendant, or Midheaven, and so Maier (1 February 1926 ntk New York NY USA) remains more mysterious than not; however, an Aquarius Sun sextile Sedna, trine Pallas, quincunx Pluto, and opposed Black Moon Lilith suggests an instinctive urge to hide from (and sometimes to battle) what may have felt like destructive, even vindictive, external forces. She may have seen confrontation (the opposition) as the only wise response to the anger or darkness or manipulative (to her) behavior of others (Black Moon Lilith, disowned, seen as ‘the Other’ through opposition), with the need to continually adjust the power expression/ situation (Pluto qnx) just the smart thing to do (Pallas trine).

The Sun is in an interesting spot: it sits more than 9 degrees from retrograde Venus, which suggests to me the potential rejection of the Venusian facets of Beingness; it’s like a statement, “I’m not beautiful, I don’t have money, relationships and Love are not ‘me’” (via the retro status) but if we had a birth time we would have Houses, and so see how the Art of photography was accepted as ‘hers’ when the other Venus qualities seem not to have been—and yet, we need to look no farther than the Ceres-Neptune opposition to Venus to find a possible explanation. This could imply that in rejecting (or in believing it wasn’t accessible to her in the first place) the usual Venusian expression she was able to embrace what opposed it—in this case, a connection to Nature and her ‘natural’ role as an authority (Ceres–which she may have lived as the ‘pseudo-mother’ to a couple generations of children) melded with her photography (Neptune, in Leo—and proportionally she seems to have taken a large number of Self-portraits—even when the lion hides, she doesn’t).

The observational eye of Maier’s camera seems attuned to those who don’t normally receive that much attention; she finds and frames the ordinary, the every day, and appears to make a specialty of informal portraits of those who aren’t used to being noticed. The Venus-Neptune connection could bestow the ability to see and appreciate what’s usually invisible, the beauty that’s typically obscured. Mercury and Jupiter are conjunct in Aquarius=choosing a modern means of communicating, and in contacting the social sphere; with the camera always between herself and her subjects, Vivian may have made an overarching statement about what she truly found worthy by what she chose to photograph—that was her statement, loud and clear. She takes an intellectual approach to society, communicating and recording with something of a cool, dispassionate gaze, through the camera. With Merc-Jupiter opposed Zeus, there’s no doubt that she saw her photos as an expression of ambitions and talent as even on the surface she appeared to deny she had any ambition at all.

Many ask why Vivian didn’t share her work. We see Juno (empowerment) and the South Node (the past) conjunct in Capricorn, and these hook by aspect into ruler Saturn, Uranus, Chiron, Mars, and Ceres-Neptune=this may speak of when Vivian and her mother lived for a time in New York City around 1930 with photographer Jeanne Bertrand, who likely taught Vivian the ‘rules’ of photography, and acted as an example of how taking pictures could empower, by giving the photographer a god-like ability to literally choose what will be seen, to frame, to crop real life to one’s liking. These contacts link empowerment and the past to the ego and action urge, material reality, originality and innovation, the wound/ healing or the Chirotic gift (in this case, in Aries, suggesting a need to heal so that she could do ‘me first’, and so act as an example), and that natural expression and creative energy—and yet the presence of Saturn may have muted the urge to take any action to share the work. The idea could’ve been that empowerment comes from a contained, modest life, where originality and urges toward independence were kept small, offering little encouragement to the Artist within her, who may have been hungry for more, and on a bigger scale (that wide conjunction of the Sun to Jupiter).

In fact, that Ceres-Neptune, so instrumental in her creative stance, is part of a Fire Grand Trine involving Mars and Chiron. This implies that, had she found healing and felt support in this life, she would’ve expressed her personal power (that the Soul required she make adjustments for—Sun quincunx Pluto) through creative action, as a ‘creative authority’ (Neptune-Ceres); but she clearly wasn’t able to heal, and so the creative output was toned down—not exactly hidden, but likely seeming untenable as a lifestyle and means of earning, despite the example of Bertrand.

And what of the clearly implied violations or abuse both suffered and administered by Vivian? There’s a point in the documentary when a portion of the will of Vivian’s aunt is read, (and I paraphrase), ‘I exclude all living relatives, and they know exactly why’. Whatever injury occurred in this family, it spanned generations. Vivian definitely had a Virgo Moon, with ruler Mercury planet of earliest degree, and conjunct Jupiter=does this represent exaggerated critical emotions, something even the strongest motivations would be hard pressed to overcome? It could, and with Jupiter representing society as a whole (and so possibly the children she cared for) conjunct the Sun in stressful relationship to Pluto, Vivian may have related to the children, seeing them as very similar to, even a part of, her (Sun-Jupiter) but have been in constant Plutonian turmoil that expressed through her treatment of them rising from her own past experiences—for if she sees herself in them, then the pain is alive and present, all the time, and she shares it as she experienced it.

Venus opposed Ceres and trine Vesta suggests that, though she at least theoretically valued beauty and relationships (along with all things that would be designated by the two Houses Venus rules, if we knew her birth time), there was a never-ending struggle going on, one where authority figures, particularly maternal ones (Ceres) always won over ‘the girl’ (Venus), with Vivian casting herself as the weaker player, even when she cared for children—that would’ve brought out the Soul-pain (Sun-Pluto), as Vivian would then play the powerful Ceres figure to her ‘spoiled’ and privileged (Venus) charges. The Venus situation becomes a loop of longing and denial, fed over and over through the mechanism of adjustments to the power scenario—with no reasonable resolution in sight.

I thought I’d provide links so that you can see how really crisp and gorgeous her photos are: http://www.vivianmaier.com/ about her life: http://www.vivianmaier.com/about-vivian-maier/ http://vivianmaier.blogspot.com/ http://www.motherjones.com/media/2011/04/vivian-maier-john-maloof http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/03/31/candid-camera-2 (the latter link addresses the film on Maier mentioned earlier) and for info on the very unusual copyright conditions in this case, see this: http://gapersblock.com/ac/2013/08/13/the-curious-case-of-vivian-maiers-copyright/

Discussion of the Mystery Charts from ECLIPSE’s Article on Career and Talent Markers, Pt. 1

10 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, Astrology and Communication, Astrology of Careers Vocations and Callings, Natal Delineation

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Chart of Mystery Man #1  26 January 1955  1:05 AM  Amsterdam, Netherlands

What grabs your eye right away? That often ends up being something key to understanding the chart, and here it’s no exception; if you’re like me, Neptune in the 12th only one minute from the Ascendant is what caught your attention. This suggests to me a Neptunian quality to this individual’s essence, one that hooks the personality to the Collective, almost in tandem–this man was meant to express something ideal or creative through his individuality that is right in line with a statement of the Collective spirit–and this suggests a timeliness to the expression, where the individual is instrumental in bringing something ‘of the moment’ into being. Neptune is opposed Sedna, though, and that suggests that, though the individual takes to his Neptunian role like a duck to water, he’s really unaware of the true extent of his ability! Neptune rules his 5th, suggesting his role is both creative and a labor of love.

The 2nd, seat of his assets. is ruled by Pluto, which sits in the 10th of career–this suggests both the ability to be known specifically for one’s talent, and to make a lot of money at it (Pluto can be connected to serious money wherever we find it). Pluto is conjunct Zeus–in someone with fewer positive attributes, this could read as ‘naked ambition’, but in this man it manifested in career focus that took him to the top. The 2nd also holds Pallas, Venus, and Ceres–again, money, wisdom (perhaps in the guise of a smart woman at his side), and access to nature, this latter a connection that can give someone a ‘primal’ edge, and so make them very appealing.

The article also noted Chiron as indicating abilities, and his is at 29 Capricorn 51, conjunct the Sun in the 3rd, opposed the Jupiter/ Uranus conjunction of the 9th and quincunx 10th House Zeus; Chiron in Cappy suggests a practical or ‘applied’ bent to the talents, with conjunction to the Sun making it integral to identity (indeed, the 29 degree placement says Chiron expression is a must, and so lends some urgency and feeling to what might’ve otherwise been a too-cool Aquarian Sun). Tucked near the IC, though, Chiron/ Sun says he doesn’t need the spotlight–bringing the talent forward is really about communicating who he is. Jupiter/ Uranus conveys luck in a lightning-strike kind of way–Jupiter rules the 3rd, Uranus rules the 4th, reiterating the communication/ identity focus, and ruler of both these, the Moon, sits in the 4th in Aquarius, conjunct Mercury–again, deepest Self and communication as a focus, and with the 3rd/ 4th so much involved, we might expect that family, specifically the father or a sibling, has something to do with this–and they do.

The unconscious influences are creative (Neptune in 12th), influenced by the Self-worth picture and the assets/ talents (12th ruler Venus in the 2nd), with a need to communicate at a ‘higher order’ level, and/ or the need to be original, surprising, and inventive. Partnership is a big part of this (Libra on the 12th) Of all the Neptunian Arts, music might be the one we would call ‘highest level’, with its correspondence to mathematics, and if you guessed music is this man’s field, you are correct. He is capable of putting the brakes on, and of Self-discipline when need be (Saturn in the 1st, which has a lot of contacts to other energies).

What about his audience–what do they want from him? The 7th says energy, drive, ‘manly’ performance, while the 10th says that power and desire are visible to all, as is his essence, with the Sun ruling the 10th–people see him, and approve his efforts toward ambition fulfillment, fame and fortune. Nice if you can get it, right?

After a period of big and relatively long-lasting success, this man’s band went through some difficulties and some decline–and once they’d retreated somewhat from their more prominent status this man suffered cancer of the tongue–are we surprised, considering the emphasis on Merc and communication, the conjunction of Mercury with the Moon, and Pluto’s opposition to these? No, we’re not; illness in a part of the body representative of something critical to life expression is not uncommon with a sensitive individual when the road gets rough–and we can’t overlook the influence of the father here, as when this musician early on complained of extreme pre-performance nerves (a perfect expression of an anxious Aquarian Sun) the father (remember the family/ 3rd/ 4th emphasis) told him to just have a drink to calm his nerves–thus precipitating a serious substance abuse habit, again, not surprising with Neptune right there in everything he does. And there’s more family involvement, as this man formed his band with his brother.

Commenter Dunyazade got the power in his field part very right, along with the way his Art got this man into (substance abuse) trouble, and Aphelionex was right top to bottom–impressive!–kudos to both of you! And Donna Davidson didn’t waste time; she went straight to the answer, correctly naming this the chart of Eddie Van Halen.

Will discuss the 2nd chart tomorrow. Many thanks to those who participated! And don’t miss the subscription specials, listed below–

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