My Process in Offering an Esoteric Astrology Course

Hello Readers,

I am offering an online Esoteric Astrology course entitled: Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation starting September 24th (Thursday evenings) – going for six weeks through October 29th. Let me know if this might interest you – and pass the word to anyone you think might be interested!

Cost: $450 (sliding scale options available to those who need it)

Thursday evenings from 7 – 8:30 pm Eastern Time (Washington DC time zone)

This class is Part One – we will go from Aries through Virgo, along with covering the elements and even going through the chakras briefly. Part Two will begin in November where we will cover Libra – Pisces.

Now on to my process in offering this course:

My first astrology teacher had been a student of Isabel Hickey. In 2003, I met an eccentric, independently wealthy woman when I was working as an apprentice at an Herb Shoppe. She had been attending astrology teachers and conferences for 40 years. She recommended that one of my first astrology books be Isabel Hickey’s Astrology: A Cosmic Science. I went out and got it quickly. It is a dense book – Hickey was a spiritual and karmic astrologer, well known for her wisdom and insights and for influencing thousands of astrologers and student.

If you haven’t read Hickey’s book, it is dense. Even the font is dense – it is like they were trying to pack as many words as they could onto each page. It gets into deep astrological technique and even deeper spiritual facets for each sign, each planet, each Ascendant, house and aspect. It is a great resource.

With that said, there were some sections that I couldn’t understand very well. Hickey would talk about Esoteric rulers of signs and I was like, “I have no idea what that means or even where to look it up.” Then life happened and I forgot about the esoteric rulers for a few years.

Around the time of the Covid pandemic, I got my hands on Alice Bailey’s Esoteric Astrology book. If you think Hickey’s book is hard to read, you should just skip Bailey’s book. It is full of rich, insightful and esoteric teachings – like you need a good teacher to help you unpack it. It is similar to (not exact analogy) Tibetan Buddhist tantric teachings where you must have an appropriate teacher (a Lama) interpret and unpack what each line means. Otherwise, you won’t understand the metaphors or what is happening in the body. This is similar to Bailey’s material. It is very full, very dense and very disorganized.

I spent some time sifting through the whole book. I tried to take notes. Which is pretty much a necessity because she has information about each sign and each planet scattered throughout the book. It really isn’t that bad – but she has different topics and chapters and includes info on the signs and planets under each chapter. So, I had to bounce around the book. Bailey was writing that book in the 1930’s and 40’s. A while back. And yet, some of her thoughts and wisdom still hold up today.

I thought about teaching something along the lines of an Esoteric Astrology class sooner, but I had big gaps in my understanding. Baily talks about the 7 Rays – spiritual energies that are coming through to our world. She talks about the three wheels – the Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable wheels. And two of these wheels are moving forward, and one is moving backward. Say what? This is all on top of the esoteric info about each sign and planet.

I needed some help unpacking Bailey’s material. Enter Alan Oken’s book: Soul-centered Astrology. When I found this, it helped. He simplifies Bailey’s material, and he doesn’t include much at all about the Hierarchical Level of Signs – just the Soul-level or Esoteric level. Which is enough! This book helped to fill in some of the gaps I had as I was attempting to sift through Bailey’s book on my own. I still had a few gaps remaining.

Enter Claude. Yes, the AI platform. I hesitate to mention this, but I figure, take advantage of resources if we have them, right? My wife got Claude to help with her business and gave me the password to her account. It turns out Claude is pretty good with esoteric astrology as well – not perfect, not able to produce much independently yet, but it is a great resource.

I ran some questions by Claude about a spiritual astrology course, mentioning Isabel Hickey and even mentioning Alice Bailey a bit. I was surprised by what it came back with. It knew a lot about Bailey’s esoteric rulers. It did pretty well with the 7 Rays. And it did pretty well with the three wheels and their movements. AI is not able to hold many layers of astrology just yet. It makes a lot of mistakes. I had to double check several things in the books each time I talked to Claude. But when I came back with the right answer it would correct itself saying, “Oh. Right. Thanks for correcting me on that.”

It has been several months since I first started these conversations with Claude about esoteric astrology topics. I appreciate how it helped to fill in a few of the gaps I had. And I was able to give Claude my opinions about Bailey’s controversial rulership assignments. With my own experience of esoteric teachings, retreats, somatic practices and heart teachers, I bring quite a lot to this process. Claude agreed with me on most of my redone rulers when I explained the reasoning for them.

I have already begun to teach this course in-person. It is a great small group. I am learning a lot as I teach it and I am loving the process. It will help to deepen and enrich the online class (starting in September – see above).

Let me know if you want to schedule a 10-min Zoom call to see if the class might be a good fit for you.

Thanks for visiting my blog,

Kirby Moore

What is esoteric?

Dear Readers,

I am teaching a class called Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation. It starts in person in two weeks, and then in September, I’m teaching an online version. If you’re interested in joining either, you can reach me here: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

I’m excited to go through this material with students. I’m making it accessible to complete beginners to astrology, provided they’re willing to do a little homework to catch up on basic astrological vocabulary. Participants should have time to go through the study guides and sit with the material — I want us to have rich discussions and unpack it in new ways. The main prerequisite, for both the in-person and online versions, is that participants have done some real, honest personal growth work on themselves.

We’ll look at three layers of each sign: the shadow material (reacting from wounding, defended, guarded); the traditional personality traits; and what the soul yearns for — the higher-frequency, soul-level, esoteric material.

Several people have asked me: what does esoteric mean, in the context of this class? What is esoteric astrology?

I’ve sat with that question for weeks now. Here’s where I’ve landed:

Esoteric teachings aren’t hidden because they’re risky, or because they’re too complex for most minds to hold. They’re hidden in plain sight because they require something rarer than intelligence: a nervous system settled enough to rest in not-knowing. A willingness to stay a perpetual beginner. The deepest wisdom is usually the simplest — it’s not veiled by complexity, but by our own noise. The natural state is already here, always has been. What obscures it isn’t its subtlety, but our own entanglement — in past, in future, in the endless emotional projections we mistake for the present moment.

I’m a Tibetan Buddhist practitioner — you might say a bit of a yogi. I fumble and bumble in my practice, but I’ve been meditating since 2002, and I’ve learned a few things along the way. I’ve watched Tibetan Lamas embody joy, lightness, and spaciousness with real ease. What do they know that I don’t?

Mostly, they’ve made peace with impermanence. They’re not gripping onto good health or another ten or twenty years. Whatever conditions they meet, they bring onto the path — including illness, loss, and difficulty. They hold a quiet gratitude simply for having the chance to practice at all, knowing how rare that combination of causes and conditions is. And they understand cause and effect: that to arrive somewhere, you first have to put the causes in place. There’s no shortcut to the result — only the steps that lead to it.

Many of these teachers have likely walked this path for many lifetimes, by their own account. If we haven’t reached their depth of realization, that’s simply where we are — newer to the path, or slower to take the openings we’ve had. No need for guilt or shame in that. We start where we are, with what is, and take the next step from here.

What these teachers embody isn’t reserved for the advanced. It’s that most of us are too busy, wound too tight, too stretched thin by the demands of life to rest in the subtlety of what already is. We project our worries and stories onto the past and the future, making things more complicated than they need to be — and in that state, we’re rarely ready to receive what esoteric teachings actually offer. We want more, bigger, peak experiences. True wisdom asks something smaller: can I take three mindful breaths, and be as fully present as possible for them? That might be enough, for now.

If this kind of subtlety is what you’re looking for, let me know. This Esoteric Astrology course is for participants who want to grow, who are hungry to learn and who are curious to see how Western Astrology as a path of initiation actually looks.

Reach out with questions or to see if this is a good fit! https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

Thanks for visiting,

Kirby Moore

Online Esoteric Astrology Class

Hello Friends,

I am really looking forward to teaching this class online starting in September. Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation gets into juicy, succulent material.

It is named for esoteric Gemini – esoterically, Gemini is seen as the Gateway to the Temple of Wisdom. However, how does Gemini open that Gate? How does Gemini start to settle and ground themselves to get on an efficacious spiritual path to go through that Gate, entering the sacred ground of the Temple of Wisdom?

We will get into these facets and more in this course!

Part One: Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation covers Aries – Virgo. We only have 6 sessions and they are 90-minutes each. We will go deep into the first half of the zodiac and still have time for rich, insightful discussions and sharing. You will get a lot out of this class!

Benefits of Attending this Class:

A three-tier reading of each sign — the shadow/wounded expression, the familiar personality-level traits, and the soul/esoteric expression, so they can locate all three in their own chart rather than just the “middling” trait-list version of astrology. A somatic map for the material — the five elements and chakra system used as body-based entry points into each sign, plus grounding/settling practices they can use before working with activating content. The zodiac as an initiatory cycle, not a static personality quiz — reading the wheel and seasons as a path of growth and testing (the “outer shell of an inner journey” framing), rather than sign-as-fixed-trait. Lineage and transmission — direct access to the Hickey / Bailey-D.K. esoteric lineage, clearly sourced, alongside your own synthesis and where you diverge from it. Practical self-application — by the end, the ability to actually locate their own natal placements through this shadow / personality / soul lens, not just absorb the framework abstractly.

Starting September 24th – Thursday evenings 7 – 8:30 pm Eastern Time on Zoom, going through October 29th.

Cost: $450 – let me know if you need to discuss a sliding scale option – there are several spots available.

Get In Touch: To register or ask questions use this link: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

Zoom link sent out after you register. There are more than 25 pages of study guides for this class – excellent material to go along with the lectures and discussion.

I hope to hear from you!

Kirby Moore

Upcoming Esoteric Astrology Course

Hello Friends,

I am excited to be leading a class entitled, “Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation.” There is an in-person class starting August 28th in Charlottesville, Va. Reach out here if you are interested: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

I will also start this course online in late September – also reach out if you are interested in that format. It will start Thursday evening, Sept 24th and go from 7 – 8:30 pm Eastern time.

We’ll go deep into the signs and the planets, with a brief exploration of the five elements — Ether/Space, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth — and how they map onto the chakras. Together we’ll move through shadow material and the layers of personality into the soul-level work that esoteric astrology makes possible.

Because of this depth, the course does have a prerequisite: participants should already have done real personal growth work. If something we discuss touches a nerve, I need you to be able to stay present with it — without reactively contracting or getting defensive.

The class is named for Gemini – seen esoterically as the Gateway to the Temple of Wisdom. We will discuss how to unlock that Gate, and how to enter the Temple of Wisdom itself (hint: it involves deeper embodiment and grounding in our innate wisdom of the body). There are surprises with every sign and the esoteric planetary rulers open up another layer of astrology rarely discussed!

In-person class: starts August 28th (Friday), from 2 – 5 pm at my office on Berkmar Drive in Charlottesville (commuters are welcome!). 6 Three-hour sessions going through October 2nd.

Cost of In-person class: $900 however, there are two sliding scale spots available at $600 and one 50% scholarship spot at $450. Reach out now to grab one of these spots!

Register or ask questions here: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

Online Class: Part One starts September 24th (Thursday) evening from 7 – 8:30 pm Eastern time. 6 90-minute sessions going through October 29th. 9 hours of material.

There will be a part two for the online class as Part One goes through Aries to Virgo. Libra to Pisces will be later this fall.

Cost of Online Course: $450. There are two $300 sliding scale spots available. Let me know if you are interested! Reach out at the link above.

I hope to hear from you.

Kirby Moore

A Teaser for my Upcoming Astrology Class

Hello Dear Readers,

You are getting a lot of content recently. Yes, there are a few spots remaining for my upcoming in-person Esoteric Astrology class: Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation. You are welcome 🙂 I am trying to fill these spots.

In this post, I will reveal the surface layer of the Esoteric planetary Ruler for each Zodiac Sign. This is just a teaser. Most of these Rulerships are surprising (at least some of them were to me) – but when you (take my class and) see the logic running behind each of them, it will all coalesce nicely into place.

The Esoteric level of astrology which I am analyzing in this class has to do with, “What does the soul want on a deeper level?” As I move toward alignment with universal love and group consciousness, what does each sign represent along that journey? This is soul-level work.

Aries Esoteric Ruler is Mercury. Getting the best out of Mars and Mercury. The fire of the mind coming literally into fruition.

Taurus’ Esoteric Ruler is Vulcan. Don’t worry, yes, I unpack “what is Vulcan?” in my class. “What does Vulcan represent?” Whether the hypothetical planet (of Vulcan) exists, metaphorically, it is a solid soul-level ruler for Taurus.

Gemini’s Esoteric Ruler is Venus. I originally named this course for the idea that Gemini is the Gateway to the Temple of Wisdom. We spend a surprising amount of time on Gemini in my class. Unpacking the “Threshold to the Temple,” why is Gemini so important for those of us living an Earthly existence and “What is the Temple itself,” we go deep with this often-mistaken-as-the-most-superficial of all the signs.

Cancer’s Soul-level Ruler is Neptune. Yes, you heard that right. The Lunar ruled sign of the emotional tides has the most nebulous planet as its Esoteric Ruler. Whoa! That is a lot of water to negotiate. It is fun to flesh out how we work best with this sign and its ruler of the undifferentiated ocean of consciousness.

Leo’s Esoteric Ruler is both surprising and not. If you are a competent astrologer, you already know it. It is the Sun. Yes, the Sun is the Exoteric (traditional) ruler, the Esoteric ruler and the Hierarchical ruler of Leo. It has all three levels of Rulership – the only sign where that happens.

Virgo might have the most interesting (set of) Esoteric Rulers. This is where things get both interesting and controversial. In my class, I will explain Alice Bailey’s thoughts, I will mention how many astrologers are torn over her assignments, and I will explain my own opinion of how I actually agree with most of what she wrote about it. I am leaving this blank for a reason (take my class to find out more!).

Virgo is the bridge sign between the personal ego (developing a self) and sharing my now-developed self with my community. There is a reason I think Virgo’s esoteric rulers are the most interesting of all. (Don’t worry – there is still plenty of juicy material to unpack from Libra to Pisces!)

Libra’s Esoteric Ruler is also surprising and not. If you are a decent astrologer, you might know that Saturn exalts in Libra. There is definitely alignment between Saturn and Venus’ diurnal sign. What you might not know is that Saturn is also the Esoteric Ruler. I appreciate Bailey’s logic for most of her rulerships and the same applies to Libra.

Scorpio’s Esoteric Ruler is where I have at least one disagreement with Bailey’s system. She assigns Mars to Scorpio for it’s Soul-level work. Personally, I think that is due to the fact that she was writing her material in the 1950’s (can you believe that?!). Which means that the planet Pluto was not well-known yet. Pluto was only discovered in 1910. So, by 1950 it had really only gone through two signs – definitely not enough time to assign traits and patterns to it. Hence Bailey’s reliance on Mars being a co-ruler of Scorpio and even its Esoteric Ruler.

IMHO – Pluto is a better Esoteric Ruler for Scorpio when you lift up the rocks and look in the dark corners and crevices, regarding what the sign is trying to do. When we think about Scorpio’s Soul-level work, I think Pluto is a better assignment. And I will fully unpack that in my class.

Sagittarius has another controversial Esoteric Ruler. However, I have to agree with Bailey again (like with Virgo above). This plays into the Temple of Wisdom analogy from its opposite sign of Gemini. I will leave this one blank as well (take my class for more). It is very interesting and I’m sure it will create a rich and rewarding discussion!

Capricorn has an interesting assignment for its Soul-level Work ruler. When I sat with Bailey’s assignment, at first I thought I could find something that might fit better. But then, over time, I realized she has a point. Especially for structured, organized, strategizing, building Capricorn! Saturn is both Capricorn’s traditional Ruler and Esoteric Ruler. Yet, there is still much to examine about this in my course.

While Aquarius’ Hierarchical Ruler is quite controversial, its Esoteric Ruler is not. I am fully on board with Bailey’s assignment of Jupiter as Aquarius’ Soul-level work Ruler. I have my thoughts on clarifying her Hierarchical Ruler – from a certain perspective, I agree with her logic. But we are only looking at Esoteric Rulers in this particular class [with just 18 hours – in-person; or just 9 hours for the online version (Aries – Virgo in part one)]. There is some juicy material to unpack about Jupiter’s Esoteric Rulership nonetheless.

Pisces. The Cosmic Dustpan. The sign of Completion and Preparing for a New Cycle. What might its Esoteric Ruler be?

Take your time with this one…

Would you be surprised to know that Pluto has this job? There is SO much to discuss and elaborate on about Pluto’s placement for Pisces’ soul-level work.

Let me know if you have questions about my upcoming course. Go back a couple of posts to see more details about it!

In-person class starting in Charlottesville, Va August 28th (Friday) afternoon from 2 – 5 pm and going through October 2nd (6 Fridays – three hour sessions with breaks).

Online version of the class is broken into two parts: Part One covers Aries – Virgo. It will be six 90-min sessions from September 24th – October 29th, Thursday evenings 7 – 8:30 pm (Eastern time). Part two will probably start in November – again running for six weeks (with breaks for holidays) and being six 90-min sessions.

Reach out with comments or questions here: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

Wishing you all the best,

Kirby Moore

Podcast Episode: Astrology And Embodied Initiation

Pip: Astrology, somatics, chakras, and the soul’s descent into embodiment — and somehow Kirby Moore has turned all of that into a class with a registration form.

Mara: That’s the territory we’re covering today — a new astrology course built at the intersection of esoteric Western astrology and somatic healing, and the lineage of teachers and traditions behind it.

Pip: Let’s start with the course itself and what it’s actually asking of people.

Astrology Course and the Path of Initiation

Mara: The course is called Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation, and the central claim is that the Western astrology chart contains hidden wisdom that requires an informed guide to unlock.

Pip: The post Preparing for Upcoming Astrology Class puts it plainly. The setup is a friend’s question about what esoteric means — and the answer is: “a level of wisdom which must be revealed by someone who knows. Yes, it is hidden, possibly occult.”

Mara: So the prerequisite isn’t just knowing your sun sign. It’s having done real personal growth work — enough to stay present when the material gets uncomfortable. Discomfort, as the online course post puts it, is not a detour from the work; it’s part of it.

Pip: That’s a genuinely unusual bar for an astrology class. Most courses ask you to know what a rising sign is. This one schedules a ten-minute intake call.

Mara: The structure reflects that seriousness. The post What Does My Through the Gate Course Look Like breaks down a four-layer examination of each zodiac sign: shadow material, personality traits, higher-frequency manifestations, and — where most of the time goes — the esoteric rulers of each sign.

Pip: Eighteen hours for all twelve signs, with a somatic settling exercise built into every session. The math is tight.

Mara: Which is why the online version, detailed in Online Astrology Course, covers only Aries through Virgo across six ninety-minute Zoom sessions, with a Part Two planned to complete the zodiac. Cost is four hundred fifty dollars online, nine hundred for the in-person version in Charlottesville starting August twenty-eighth.

Mara: The goal running through all three posts is the same: the more we learn about each sign’s layers, the more compassion we can develop — for ourselves and for others.

Pip: That lands the course somewhere between astrology education and contemplative practice. Which makes more sense once you know whose shoulders it stands on.

The Lineages Behind the Teaching

Mara: The post titled Wisdom Teachings from the West from July twenty-first traces the web of teachers and traditions informing this work — Craniosacral Therapy, Isabel Hickey’s Spiritual Astrology, Alice Bailey’s Esoteric Astrology, and somatic experiencing lineages among them.

Pip: The personal chart reading in that post is striking: “an exact Hades Moon in Libra, Sun in the 8th house, along with my south node and Mars, Chiron conjunct my Midheaven.”

Mara: What that means in practice is a chart oriented toward depth — toward uncovering what’s hidden. It’s offered not as credential-dropping but as context for why this particular teacher keeps going deeper.

Pip: The soul’s journey into embodiment, mapped through the zodiac — that’s where we’ll pick this up next time.

Mara: The thread across all of this is embodiment — the idea that understanding a chart and understanding yourself are the same motion.

Pip: More of that next episode. Stay present with what arises.

Wisdom Teachings from the West

Hello Readers,

I have been very blessed to be able to learn from realized masters, Tibetan Lamas, embodied-wisdom trauma resolution teachers (senior somatic experiencing faculty), bodyworker / heart teachers and somatic embodiment coaches. Not to boast – I am thankful for my karma, and I have chosen not to have children in this particular lifetime, so I have more time to study and put their teachings into practice. And it has been an up and down journey.

My own astrology chart reveals my desire to go deep – an exact Hades Moon in Libra (Moon conjunct Pluto), Sun in the 8th house, along with my south node and Mars, Chiron conjunct my Midheaven. I can mix it up socially with people and talk about superficial topics just fine, but my preference is to go deeper. To look under the surface, to invite the revealing of secrets, to get to the root of the matter. This is true in most things I do – somatic-process-oriented bodywork, astrological interpretations, classes I teach, etc.

My first astrology teacher had studied extensively with Isabel Hickey. Hickey was a great Spiritual Astrologer out of the Boston, Ma area. She was born and raised in the U.S. which is interesting how she brought together such dynamic spiritual and psychological (archetypal and karmic) lineages in her work. Hickey died in 1980, so of course I didn’t get to meet her (I would have been one year old when she died).

As I prepare for this Through the Gate astrology course, I am loving the transformational process of insight and expansion happening in my system. I am working with Alice Bailey’s source text of Esoteric Astrology (which is a challenge to say the least as it is not well-organized) along with Alan Oken’s Soul Centered Astrology (which is better organized and helps to explain several of Bailey’s key concepts). Hickey worked in the same theosophical-adjacent space as Alice Bailey, with Alan Oken as one of Hickey’s senior students.

Discovering that there is a unique, evolutionary, initiatory esoteric path in Western Astrology which came almost exclusively from Westerners (even if Bailey did “download” a lot of her wisdom) is great. Even here in the States, we have had incredibly wise heart teachers.

In my bodywork journey, I have been studying and practicing Craniosacral Therapy the longest (since 2005). It is fascinating that Cranial Osteopathy developed exclusively in the United States (yes, there is archeological evidence of similar methods or techniques in ancient cultures, but these techniques were lost when those cultures disappeared). So, I have also learned solid Western techniques for healing and embodied wisdom without having to travel far (from my home in Virginia, USA).

I appreciate the opportunity to share a lot of these healing and insightful lineages in my class. Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation will go deep. But it is primarily looking at signs and planets (only). That is how we can go deeper. There will not be much time to talk about individual charts. Rather, we are looking at the soul’s journey into deeper embodiment, uplifting wisdom and group consciousness through the lens of the zodiac. It will be a rich and rewarding journey.

See my previous posts about this class. There is an in-person version starting in Charlottesville, Va in late August (pretty soon!) and an online version starting in late September.

You can always get more information or ask me questions here: https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

Thanks for reading,

Kirby Moore

Online Astrology Course – Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation

Hello Dear Readers,

I am excited to be offering this material online (as well as in-person). See my previous post for the In-person details (that course starts in late August).

In this course, we will deeply unpack the signs of Aries – Virgo. Due to being on Zoom, I plan to have each class session be 90-minutes long. Therefore, with six 90-min sessions, we have a total of 9 hours of class. Therefore, I will also come out with a Part Two version for the online community, where we complete the Zodiac.

In the first 90-min block, we will go through the basic ingredients of the Elements and the Chakras. Starting with Source (Crown Chakra) and coming down to Earth Element in the Root Chakra. That means we have 7.5 hours to go through several layers of each of the first 6 signs. Doable for sure, and considering I will lead a somatic settling exercise in each class, I have to be discerning in what material I share. It can be included in Part Two or future levels where we dive deeper.

When we go through each of the first 6 signs, we are examining (sometimes briefly) four layers. We will cover lower frequency: shadow material, middling frequency personality traits (typical of each zodiac sign – most astrologers know this already so we won’t dwell on them), higher frequency, you might say secure-attachment-based manifestations / traits of each sign, and finally getting into (and spending the most time on) the esoteric rulers of each sign.

This is rich, insightful and very important material. We all have all 12 signs in our chart and in our personality. The more we learn about ourselves and others, the more we can have compassion for ourselves and for others. The more we learn about suffering – our own and others’, the more skillful we can be in staying present in the face of discomfort.

Therefore, you will get a lot out of this course! This course is open to anyone who is hungry to learn, who has done some honest personal growth work – astrologers of all levels will get something out of this course. Even beginners who are passionate and willing to do pre-class homework are welcome. The main prerequisite is that participants have done some work already to come down out of their heads and into their bodies. I need you to be able to stay present with any potential discomfort that might arise with this deep material.

Class Details:

When: Thursday evenings from 7 – 8:30 pm Eastern time, Starting September 24th going through October 29th

Where: On Zoom, the link will be sent when you register

Cost: $450. This class will go deep, it will cover profound new material (with somatic tools, chakra work, and astrological insight). I guarantee that you will see astrology through a new lens.

If you need a sliding scale, there are a few of those spots available. We can discuss meeting both of our financial needs.

Participant Dynamics: In the online version of this class, we will meet on Zoom. If more than 10 register, I will have an assistant (someone holding space and doing the Zoom logistics). This format will be open to a maximum of 20 people. Minimum of 6.

Prerequisites: The main prerequisite is that you have done some real personal growth work. You can stay present with uncomfortable material, you can compare and contrast perspectives even if you don’t fully agree with them. If I don’t know you very well, I will schedule a free 10-min Zoom call to make sure this is a good fit for you. Think of it as a brief application process.

I want this to be a compassionate group — people willing to sit with profound esoteric concepts without rushing to explain them away, and willing to come down into the body when the material asks it of us. Discomfort will show up. That’s not a detour from the work; it’s part of it. I’m looking for people who can stay present with what arises, rather than bypassing around it.

To register or with questions: Reach out to https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

I look forward to hearing from you!

Kirby Moore

What does my Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation course look like?

Hello Dear Readers,

As I prepare for this upcoming Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation course, I am learning SO much. And yes, I expected this to be the case. With my background in somatic process work, trauma resolution, and grounded embodiment, I am teaching this course through a somatic lens. We want to come down into the body – the more we individuate, the more we can truly connect with universal consciousness. The better we know ourselves psychologically, the more we can show up for others.

I have a lot of the embodiment tools under my belt – having studied and practiced Zapchen Somatics since 2005, working with incredible bodywork and heart teachers (Tibetan lamas and birth process work teachers). My biggest learning at the moment is coming from the many ways that astrology maps onto the process of incarnating, of coming down into the body, onto the subtle energy centers known as Chakras, and of course unpacking the many layers of the (planetary) esoteric rulers mapping onto the 12 signs of the zodiac.

Even with an “embodied and grounded” agenda in looking at the esoteric levels of astrology, there are many angles to pursue. Therefore, I am having to refine and keep out some material (my class is only 18 hours long). This class is open to relative beginners to astrology – provided you have done some real, honest personal growth work, you are hungry to learn (and willing to do some homework to catch up a bit). I want people to question the material, the spark rich discussions and comments. I want to unpack many layers of metaphor and insight.

In the first 3-hour block, we will go through the basic ingredients of the Elements and the Chakras. Starting with Source (Crown Chakra) and coming down to Earth Element in the Root Chakra. That means we have 15 hours to go through several layers of each of the 12 signs. Doable for sure, and considering I will lead a somatic settling exercise in each class, I have to skip some material. It can be included in part two – when we look at the hierarchical rulers of the 12 signs.

When we go through each of the 12 signs, we are examining (sometimes briefly) four layers. We will cover lower frequency: shadow material, middling frequency personality traits (typical of each zodiac sign – most astrologers know this already so we won’t dwell on them), higher frequency, you might say secure-attachment-based manifestations / traits of each sign, and finally getting into (and spending the most time on) the esoteric rulers of each sign.

This is rich, insightful and very important material. We all have all 12 signs in our chart and in our personality. The more we learn about ourselves and others, the more we can have compassion for ourselves and for others. The more we learn about suffering – our own and others’, the more skillful we can be in staying present in the face of discomfort.

Online Class: The details below are for the In-person class starting in late August. However, I plan to offer this class online as well, starting in late September. Let me know if you interested in this format!

In-person Class: In Charlottesville Va (anyone who wants to commute is welcome). At my large office near Rio Rd & 29 North – address provided on registration.

When: Starting Friday afternoon August 28th – 2 – 5 pm; going through October 2nd – 6 three-hour sessions on Fridays

Cost: $900 – this is rich material that is difficult to find, especially with my somatic background. If you need a sliding scale, there are a couple of those spots still available and we can discuss a number that meets both of our needs.

Participant Dynamics: I want a minimum of 6 participants (there are a couple spots still available to get there) – so it will be a smaller, more intimate class. You will get your questions answered. We don’t have a lot of time to look at individual charts. There is a maximum of 12 participants – if we have more than 9 people sign up, I will pay an assistant to hold space for the depth of this material.

As I mentioned, this course is open to relative beginners of astrology. The primary prerequisite is that you have done some real, honest personal growth work so that you can be present with any activation that might arise from the depth of this material. As a result, I am scheduling a 10-min Zoom chat with people I don’t know to make sure this class is a good fit for you at this time.

If you are going through an acute crisis, if you are new to self-reflective work, then this might not be a good fit for you at this time.

To Register or With Questions: please reach out to https://www.traumainformedastrology.com/contact

I look forward to hearing from you.

Preparing for Upcoming Astrology Class

Hello Readers,

I am excited as I prepare the material for my upcoming class: Through the Gate: An Astrology of Initiation. In this course, I am going to take participants deep into the raw ingredients of the astrology chart – the elements themselves, the signs and the planets, with a somatic / body-oriented perspective. It will be a rich and rewarding experience.

A friend recently asked me, “What does esoteric mean to you?” To me, it means a level of wisdom which must be reveal by someone who knows. Yes, it is hidden, possibly occult. I have been very blessed to study with teachers in many incredible lineages, including Isabel Hickey’s Spiritual Astrology, Raja Selvam in Peter Levine’s Somatic Experience trauma resolution lineage, Julie Henderson in her Zapchen Somatics, Myrna Martin in her birth process work and Pre- and Perinatal Psychology work, and many other heart teachers in Tibetan Buddhism and trauma resolution. As a result 20+ years of study, I can lead students through these hidden mysteries of the Western Astrology chart.

This course starts in person in late August – Friday afternoons, 2 – 5 pm in Charlottesville, Virginia from August 28th – Oct 2nd. However, I will be starting a Thursday evening 7 – 8:30 pm online Zoom class in late September. Let me know if this might interest you!

https://www.mkirbymoore.com/contact

Also let me know if you have questions. We can schedule a 10-min call to see if this is a good fit for you at this time.