The
Chiron Return
The
Chiron Return is an astrological turning point that happens to each of us
between the ages of 48-52. Most people experience it at age 51. Women think of
this transitional time as the time of menopause, but men also experience a
significant and life-altering change at this time.
The symbol of Chiron in your birth chart
looks like a key: a circle with a k on top of it. 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.”
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 oneself: what do I turn my back to?
And—what am I bringing into my relationships—and 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. ~ (c) Elizabeth Spring excerpted from "Lifting the Veil; Becoming Your Own Best Astrologer"