Astrology

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Astrology is a way understanding how the movement of the planets affect our characteristics and feelings. Astrology is a vast subject that has been studied by the wise for millennia and through which secrets of the universe are revealed. For those wishing to truly understand themselves there are some astrological insights that can help people to understand the way that they feel; these have very little to do with looking at a ‘prediction’ in the daily newspaper and requires a little more work.

Your zodiac sign is usually taken as your Sun sign, but that is only a tiny speck of your story. Jonathan Cainer (www.bubble.com) is an astrologer whom I respect and he describes your Sun sign (the part of the zodiac that the Sun was in when you were born) as reflecting the ’the kind of person you like to see yourself as’. The position of every planet in the sky when you were born has an influence on the person that you are. For instance your Moon sign signifies deep feelings, your rising sign signifies how other people tend to see you, your Mercury sign signifies how your mind works and your Venus sign signifies how your love life works.

The Sun sign is of special significance since the Sun is at the centre of our solar system. A major influence in your life is the ruling planet of your Sun sign. Also of importance is the element that your Sun sign is associated with; there are three of each zodiac signs associated with earth, water, air and fire. Susan Miller (www.astrologyzone.com) says that earth signs impart form and structure, water signs bring emotional sensitivity and intuition, air signs bring intellect and communication and fire signs impart spirit and energy.

The base chakra is associated with the element of earth, the sacral chakra with water, the solar plexus chakra with air and the heart chakra with fire. These chakras and these elements are also linked with planes of consciousness; the base chakra with the physical plane, the sacral with the astral plane, the solar plexus with the mental plane and the heart with the spiritual plane. So the base chakra is linked with our physical selves, the sacral chakra with our emotions, passions and desires, the solar plexus chakra with thought and intellect and the heart chakra with love.

The Kabalah is the sacred text of mystical Judaism, said to be given to man by the Angels. The Kabalistic Tree of Life represents a path to enlightenment, a path to God, a view of the cosmos and a view of people. Here is shown a view of The Tree of Life which shows how the planets and chakras are related through it. I find this a useful correlation in understanding the chakras.

You can see that the base chakra is, unsurprisingly, ruled by the element of earth and by the planet Earth (no signs of the zodiac are ruled by the planet Earth).

Cancer is a water sign and the only sign that is ruled by the Moon and therefore by the sacral chakra.

Libra and Taurus are ruled by Venus; Gemini and Virgo are ruled by Mercury. Both Venus and Mercury rule the solar plexus chakra which is under the element of air. Leo is ruled by the Sun which is under the element of fire.

See how Mercury, Mars and Saturn are more related to the masculine principle since they are on the right hand side of the body and how the more feminine planets Venus, Jupiter and Uranus are on the left.

Mars and Jupiter are at the shoulders and rule the throat chakra. Just as Mars is the planet of power and is powerful and assertive, Jupiter is the planet of good fortune and benevolence. Mars is the planet of war, representing the masculine principle and Jupiter is the planet of mercy, representing the feminine principle. Their situation at the shoulders is apt; like the throat chakra they are about action and expression.

The third eye chakra is on the Tree of Life halfway between Jupiter and Saturn and the crown chakra is represented by Neptune.

There are many levels of significance to the connections between the elements, the chakras, the planets and astrology. I strongly suggest that anyone who is intent on understanding their self should undertake some study of these connections. Every astrologer has their own interpretation of the planets and the way in which they affect people but here are some of the general ideas that astrologers have of the planets along with how I feel they relate to our chakras:

The Earth

The Earth rules our base chakras and is about physical life. The Earth is covered all over with unstoppable life, from the densest physical life to the highest spiritual life. This planet is about life – from the most primitive organisms to the most elevated, divine consciousnesses. The Earth, to me represents diversity, freedom, evolution, progression and limitlessness. Our physical bodies are but vehicles for our consciousness to experience this wondrous freedom of thought and diversity of feelings.

The Sun

The Sun is at the centre of our solar system and is the source of our physical lives and all physical life on Earth. The Sun rules your ego, self-esteem, human spirit, determination, vitality and the genuine self but it also rules the heart chakra and unconditional love. The Sun represents Christ Consciousness and represents the very essence of our purpose on Earth - to learn absolute love and compassion of the heart. The unconditional love of Christ and our elevated and enlightened Teachers and Masters in spirit is like the light and heat of the Sun in that we cannot bear to even look upon it, let alone dwell upon it. The Sun and our heart chakras rule our ability to shine as people.

The Moon

The Moon is connected with the element of water and is feminine, like the sacral chakra that it governs.  The Moon rules our subconscious minds, deep feelings, passions, desires, instinct, reactions, creative self expression and emotions. Isn’t it strange how, from the Earth the Moon and the Sun look the same size? The Moon governs our relationships with females and emotional tides. The Moon heals the Earth and all things on it. As the Sun brings warmth and life, the Moon’s light is like a healing fluid on that life. The moon rules our sensitive, nurturing and sentimental sides and tides and has a powerful influence on all of our lives.

Mercury

Mercury is the planet nearest to the Sun and is the winged messenger that rules rational, objective thought. Mercury is on the masculine side of the solar plexus chakra and the solar plexus chakra is about our personal power, higher emotions, thought and intellect. Mercury is the fastest moving planet and rules mental perception, interpretation, responsiveness, flexibility and adaptability. Mercury also rules most things to do with communication and transport.

Venus

Venus is on the feminine side of the solar plexus chakra and rules affection, pleasure, intellectual attachment, sensuality, beauty. Many people say that Venus rules your love life but remember that this is not the love of the heart chakra, but as the next chakra down the solar plexus so is more to do with mental and emotional feelings of attachment. Venus is the Earth’s closest neighbour towards the Sun and can represent our ability for reflection, evaluation and balance. Venus is about things that are sumptuous, enjoyable and lovely and its effect on us can be a bit hedonistic, causing us to indulge in sensual pleasure. The symbol for Venus (♀) has been adopted to represent the female.

Mars

Mars is on the Tree of Life at the right shoulder, co-governing the throat chakra and is about energy, strength, force and courage. Mars is adventurous, enthusiastic and enterprising and is about endeavour, determination and endurance. Mars may be the planet of war but it is tempered on the other side of the throat chakra by the mercy of Jupiter. Mars gives us the courage, strength and power to fight a just battle and the strength to keep going despite adversity. The symbol for Mars (♂) has been adopted to represent the male.

Jupiter

Jupiter co-governs the throat chakra with Mars and Jupiter is the largest planet of our solar system and the fastest spinning planet. In fact Jupiter is larger than all of the other planets of our solar system put together. Jupiter rules optimism, expansion, speculation, wealth, abundance, prosperity and good fortune. Jupiter is benevolent and bestows principles, honesty, sincerity, generosity, wisdom, prophecy and justice.

Saturn

Saturn is on the right side at the top of the head but in the Tree of Life and the third eye chakra is halfway between Jupiter and Saturn. Saturn is the planet of limitation, restriction, conservatism and realism. Saturn is the hard task master that makes us learn lessons properly; it teaches responsibility, discipline and control and gives us structure, standards and maturity.

Uranus

While Saturn gives us sensible and mature progression Uranus gives us surprises and is innovative, unpredictable, resourceful and imaginative. Uranus rules creativity and scientific genius. While Saturn is about conventional authority, Uranus is rebellious and breaks the rules, bringing reform, freedom and liberty. Uranus is the planet of sudden revelation, awakening and enlightenment and destroys that which has outlived its usefulness, without emotion.

Neptune

Neptune sits at the crown chakra and is about the higher, more spiritual level of us. It rules dreams, illusions, and fantasies and tells us about sacrifice for the greater good. Neptune brings purity, sensitivity and compassion and has mystical, delicate and subtle qualities. Neptune pulls us away from the mundane towards the spiritual and teaches us of equality and kindness and of humanitarian values in society.

Pluto

Pluto is the outermost planet of our solar system and is not represented on the Tree of Life. Pluto is the planet of transformation by death and rebirth; it destroys to rebuild and signifies metamorphosis and the fact that there is no absolute death, only change. Pluto rules aspects of the personality that have outgrown their usefulness and should be killed off, it rules obsessions and compulsions and shows which areas of a life will undergo transformation, possibly as a result of crisis. I feel that Pluto rules the human soul that reincarnates in different bodies in order for the spirit to grow.

How the planets affect you

The position of each planet in their orbits and their positions relative to each other and relative to their positions at the time of your birth have effects on you that are constantly changing. The Moon has a very strong influence upon your feelings and emotions and is stronger for women and cancerians and it can be useful to find out on a daily basis which sign it is in and what the implications for you are. By doing this you may find that you can understand why you feel a certain way at certain times. This does not mean that the planets absolutely rule you and there are always many influences upon you at any one time. You have free will that is strong enough to overcome some of these influences but these cosmic tides can be very useful and very powerful and if you know which one is going your way you can use it to your advantage. Conversely trying to go against a strong cosmic tide can be like swimming in treacle.

I strongly advise people to choose an astrologically auspicious date when choosing to start major projects since these can have an enormous effect on the outcome and likely ultimate relative success or failure of it. Although you can argue that nothing is a failure since wisdom can be learned from all failures and that if your project fails it may mean that someone else's succeeds, if it is something that you really want to make work then its start date and even time can be important.

A wise astrologer can look at the complexity of astrological aspects at any time, for any person and can produce likely scenarios. A wise person seeking a wise astrologer's advice will be able to see likely outcomes and get them in proportion in their lives.

Meditating on the planets

If you study the planets and their positions on the Tree of Life you will understand how they relate to the chakras and you can meditate, visualising the planets at those positions and see whether you are comfortable with them there. If a planet doesn’t feel comfortable in its position it says something about how you relate to it. Try to gain a rapport with each planet and know that it is all of the planets together that bring balance and harmony to our personalities and our lives.

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Copyright © 2007 Mark Stallabrass