The Chiron Return

The Chiron Return is an astrological turning point that happens to each of us between the ages of 48-52. Women think of this transitional time as the time of menopause, but men also experience a significant and life-altering change at this time.


In my book: “North Node Astrology; Rediscovering Your Life Direction and Soul Purpose” I wrote not just about the Nodes but quite a few chapters about these other major “passages”—mainly the Saturn Returns, the Uranus Opposition, and dealing with the challenges of both Pluto and Neptune transits. But, except for the chapter on the astrology of menopause, I didn’t really address the Chiron Return, and so I want to share some of what I know about it here; and as always, I welcome your comments.


The symbol of Chiron in your birth chart looks like a key: a circle with a k on top of it. Chiron has a sign and a house position in your chart and should be considered a significant factor when having an astrological reading. Chiron was a mythological character: a centaur who was both physically wounded and a profound teacher and mentor to others. Classically he is thought of as the archetype of the “Wounded Healer.” Looking at the sign and house of Chiron in your chart will help you understand how this archetypal planet operates in your life.


The Chiron Return life passage, around the age of fifty, is a time when our world can expand or shut down. It’s not an easy passage. We all create “fictions” about our life story and those of others close to us, and it’s at this point that we are challenged to enlarge the story of our lives—the story we tell ourselves about “how we each are and how it all is.” Those of us who aren’t flexible enough to adjust our “story lines” at this point, might find that our lives can change radically—Michael Jackson for instance, died at his Chiron Return. He was preparing for a world tour, a great expansion, but his old habits didn’t change.


Most of us have an urge at this time to expand our lives in some way, and we may feel tested in our faith and in our belief systems. It’s a good time to ask ourselves: what do I turn my back to? And—what am I bringing into my relationships—how can I create more harmony and more relatedness in my life? Chiron was wounded and in pain, yet he chose to relate to others by teaching everything he knew.


It is said that the “Chi energy” in the body begins to diminish at this age, but it’s also a time of summoning up a new perspective. Essentially we are called to enlarge the story of our lives at this point. Carl Jung, at his Chiron Return, enlarged the story of how he felt about other cultures by going to Africa and New Mexico in these years. He stepped out of the cultural limitations of a European White Man and looked at the world through different eyes. He expanded his world, and enlarged his understanding.



No transits happen before their time. When we are in our Chiron Return transit, new opportunities tend to open for us—and it’s a good time to say “yes” to whatever we are being summoned towards. Like the mythological Chiron, we have the choice to carry our own wounds and gifts with dignity and generosity or to project our problems and confusion outward. And the Chironic opportunity at this age is to open up to new visions of who we are and how it can all be, without becoming cynical or complaining. It ‘s a time that calls for courage. Sounds good to me!
www.elizabethspring.com

Sub-personalities, the Self, and Transiting Planets

Dear Readers~

My sense is that most of you who come to this blog are looking to find out more about your North and South Nodes. Hopefully, you’ve been able to look below at the column on the right to find your North Node sign and house position. From your personal emails and comments it seems that you are getting what you need…and for those of you who want more, there is the new North Node Astrology book, and the possibility of a personal reading done by phone in the spring.


As many of you know, I don’t try to tackle your particular Nodal story in an email or comment, as it would be un-ethical to try to do that much without considerable time spent on your chart…and that is what I do in a reading. As helpful as the Nodes are in understanding the larger map of your psyche, they have to be taken in context with the whole natal chart. The Nodes are arguably the most important point in the astrological chart, yet I believe we make our way in life in good part by honoring the demands of our particular transits and progressions.


That said, I’m still open for any thoughts or questions that you have on the Nodes, or other astrological topics, and I welcome your suggestions. I’m not a believer in the “gloom and doom” theories of other astrologers in these times….despite the square between Saturn and Pluto in the heavens, I would ask you to look at what Jupiter and Neptune are doing in your transiting chart as well. In fact, every single planet has a divine purpose and our lives can so often be seen as the “best of times, and the worst of times.”


Which is to say, that no matter what planetary influence you’re operating under now, you have a choice on how to “play it out.” No aspect is either all good or bad; and I’d ask you to reconsider how you’re thinking about your Nodes and your transits now—can you re-imagine new possibilities and permutations? Can you envision the highest possible expression of these energies? What planet might you have overlooked?


Planets are like sub-personalities, and we all have times of dissociating with parts of ourselves. Carl Jung wrote about the core “Self” as the integrating center of our lives. I like to picture this as the center of a circular mandala, and this Self is like the committee chairperson, who gives equal time to all the planets/personalities/archetypes as they raise their hands to speak. The transits to these planets in the natal chart are the times when these “sub-selves” or planet/voices have raised their hand to speak. And when they do, it is the time to listen.


We can be thankful that no transit ever comes before its time! The Nodes point to the long range directional journey, but the transits point to the particular curve in the road at the moment. They are the specific challenges and opportunities that we are meant to engage with at the moment. So read your “maps” well, and don’t overlook the hidden blessings in the moment that are quietly asking to be attended to…..some of them have had there hands raised for a very long time.
http://www.elizabethspring.com/

Mountain Astrologer Book Review: "North Node Astrology"

"Mountain Astrologer" Magazine
Book Review, Feb/March, 2010
www.mountainastrologer.com
Mary Plumb

"Elizabeth Spring is a graceful writer. Her counseling voice is evident as she gently guides readers into a deeper inquiry into themselves. The book was completed from the vantage point of Spring's second Saturn Return. She writes: "My sense is that the call to reconnect with a guiding vision, or deep wellspring grows more subtly intense as we age." Her book is a sweet companion to that endeavor.


Her book: "North Node Astrology" may be of particular use for therapists who are curious about astrology, since Spring has a relaxed way of drawing readers into the magic of astrology. She writes: "Good astrology seeks to confirm, to comfort, and to subtly guide....in this book, you are the astrologer and the client. You are the mystery and the problem to be explored."


More in this month's issue, Mountain Astrologer. Thank you, Mary!
www.elizabethspring.com

The Reluctant Astrologer

The Reluctant Astrologer

"The prediction was coming true—of course, astrologers don’t like to call it a prediction, but it was a prediction nevertheless. And it was worse in this case because Kendra herself was the astrologer; the predictor. She certainly wasn’t a fortune teller, and she certainly believed that free will could overcome any karmic challenge that might arise, but it was shocking to see how her life seemed to be dissolving in front of her.

She had to admit that it was a liability of her profession to sometimes see too much. Signs and synchronicities had a way of seeping into her psyche like water slowly rising in the basement. She didn’t use the words like good or bad, but instead she believed in “fierce grace.” Anything could be turned around, and often what felt like a terrible fate could turn into grace. Sometimes the change occurred because of what we did, sometimes it was because of what we didn’t do; our patience. At this point, all she knew was that she desperately needed some of that “fierce grace.”

Kendra had been an astrological counselor for over twenty years, and it felt good to be on the helping side of things, to be on the “knowing” side, of this profession. How easy it had been to encourage her clients in “foul weather or fair” or suggest ideas as to how to handle the moment of crisis or opportunity. But no matter how many ways she looked at her chart now, she saw only the slipping away of certainty and the call of an unknown summons –a prediction that she could not evade or barely understand.

Kendra liked to muse on possibility and probability. But her rambling thoughts now were a liability rather than an asset. Her hands clenched and gripped the steering wheel in an effort to keep the car from careening out of control. The windshield wipers fought fast against the icy rain, as her eyes tried to adjust to the kaleidoscopic white swirls of snow coming at her. She kept her frozen foot on the accelerator at a steady 50 MPH. She was going to make it to the city before dark; she was going to make it to Boston before she lost her courage.

Courage. People would call Kendra when they needed to summon their courage. She loved that word, because in French it meant to “take heart” and she was good at helping others do this. She believed in the power of a generous heart and a beginners mind. But before this, she had always been on the giving end of the encouragement and the receiving end of the numbers—the birth dates, times, and credit card numbers. It had been an honor to be invited into the private lives of others, and to get paid for it.

Kendra needed to concentrate on the road, but the wipers were mesmerizing as they thrashed across the windshield. Kendra turned off the old “Enya” CD and turned on the car radio station. Country music, static, hard rock and roll, or the oldies station playing the Eagles version of “Desperado”. She switched it all off. Maybe she should think about this plan to defuse the energies of Saturn, Pluto and Uranus. It was an old story for sure, of death, reinvention and rebirth. But if astrology was about anything, it was about trusting what she had always called “Divine Right Timing.”

***

This is the beginning of a new book I'm working on right now--a novel about 2 women--one in her first Saturn Return at age 29, and one in her second Saturn Return at age 59. It's a novel about reinventing one's life, and is interwoven with astrological lore/wisdom.

I imagine that YOU might be a reader-- although I must admit I don't know how it would get published. If any of you readers have ideas about birthing a book like this, or if you'd like me to post the book while writing, I'd be willing...maybe I need to hear from YOU....are you there?