Meditation Informs Healing Facilitation

Medical Astrology* in action (cont’d)

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We have been looking at Medical Astrology of late, and in particular I want to continue a theme that I have been touching on. That is the example of a single aspect – Saturn opposite Mars. Who knew that you could get so much information from one little aspect? Heh. Well let me tell you! Actually this particular aspect is very rich and juicy – any aspect involving the 2nd and / or 8th house will reveal a lot of material. And with that said, if you investigate deep enough, any aspect in the chart, in any house can reveal a treasure trove of information. But we are going to stick with Saturn and Mars for today.

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To review, we have discussed, at least in brief, the planets Saturn and Mars and what they can signify. We have touched on the signs they are tenanting (Virgo and Pisces respectively), and we briefly brushed on the houses involved – the 2nd and 8th in this case. So what you might ask is left? I would refer you, if you have seen the Star Wars movies, to the scene in episode VI I think where Luke Skywalker says, “So I am a Jedi…” And Yoda makes a very surprised noise – “OOEEwwwhhoohhhh!!!” Actually I would ask in retort, “what have we actually covered so far?!” Very little to be precise. We have just brushed the surface actually, so lets look a little deeper now. Let’s get into the health correlations of this aspect.

Oh, and for one related tangent, Mars in the 8th house CAN (but not always) indicate that the individual will have a premature death. Now before anyone freaks out, let me explain. Traditionally, the 8th house was associated with death. When 8th house energies are not confronted and remain fermenting under the surface as it were, then I happen to agree with this traditional dark fatalistic assessment. But when we do our psychological work, perhaps seeing a professional body-worker on a regular basis or receiving regular acupuncture, counseling or if we practice other forms of quality self-care, and we get clearer about our neuroses and our psychological predispositions, then we move beyond “being ruled by our stars” as it were and we move toward the greater understanding and wisdom which is represented by the 9th house. So, if we have Mars in the 8th house in our natal charts, there is very little reason to worry, provided we take responsibility for our incarnation and determine to make appropriate changes. For those of us out there who are still feeling like victims… Then some reflection would be in order.

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If the 8th house Mars makes a hard aspect to Pluto, Saturn or Uranus, then we may want to investigate further, especially if it is a close aspect. Then sudden, unexpected (Uranus) death becomes possible, or a violent (Pluto) death becomes slightly more of a reality or poor health conditions is more of a reality (Saturn). But in all of these cases, you must look at many factors: how strong are these planets (according to their sign and house placement), how close is the orb involved, are these the planetary rulers of the chart (ruling the Ascendant sign) or the Sun ruler? Which houses do these planets rule? And we must look at positive aspects which would offset the risks indicated by these hard aspects. So do not let one little prediction or aspect get you worked up – if you are reading this post, it means you are on the path toward self-understanding and you care enough to investigate your situation. Next, you may care enough to make the requisite changes which will soften the implied difficulty in the aspect.

With that long-winded explanation of Mars in the 8th, in Medical Astrology, what do Mars and Saturn represent?
And as I get into the Health side of astrological analysis, please remember that we cannot separate these things. I have found that often times, the psycho-emotional issues associated with an aspect contribute or at least go hand-in-hand with the physical manifestations of these aspects. What do I mean by this? Well I believe that before we have physical manifestation of dis-ease, long before really, there is often times an imbalanced emotional issue or psychological misunderstanding. For instance, if we repress our rage about an early trauma for too long, then eventually that rage will need an appropriate avenue of expression. If we do not provide it with one, if we have some masochistic tendencies, then I guarantee that there will be some health problems as a result. In Visceral Manipulation (bodywork), we learn that certain organs can get loaded up with emotional charge, and without an appropriate healthy way to unload that organ, it will spill over and discharge in bizarre ways – think unexplained rashes, inflammation or idiopathic diseases (unexplained).

And another note – we are not ruled by our stars. Rather, the astrology chart is a reflection of our gross karmas (mental, psychological, physical, emotional, etc) and the chart reflects the physical elements that make up our body, hence we get so much information from the time one takes their first breath, a.k.a. the natal horoscope (birth chart).

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With that said, in Medical Astrology, Mars is associated with the production of blood, blood in general and iron (red like the fiery God of War), the metabolism and physical energy, aspects of temperature regulation as you will see below (Mars challenges can indicate disease which result in fevers or chills), the left ear, the kidneys (see below for more), veins (although some would argue Venus has influence here as well) and along with Pluto, Mars shares rulership over the genitals and sex glands. Mars in the body is the fighter, and as a result I suspect it has something to do with both the red and white bloods cells as the white blood cells help to fight off infections and viruses. And these are just the basics! When we delve deeper, I wonder if Mars has some association with the spleen. And I believe it also “rules” the forehead and is associated with headaches in general (along with Aries).

Saturn, in Medical Astrology, is associated with the bones and in particular the knees and the teeth, the skin (along with the Moon and sometimes Venus), it is also associated with the kidneys (see below), the spleen, bladder, phlegm, and the gall bladder. Saturn also is associated with the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland, helping to regulate sex hormones, bone and muscle growth. Saturn (think structure) is associated with the skeleton and bony structures in general. Again though, these are the basics of Saturn’s associations in Medical Astrology, so we are seeing how complex this subject can get. Because of Saturn’s association with Calcium, I would venture a guess that the parathyroid glands also come under Saturn’s rulership.

In addition, when we speak of both Mars and Saturn in hard aspect to one another, a competent astrologer should quickly notice that both of these planets are associated with the kidneys. And here is why: both are correlated with the adrenal glands. According to the late Isabel Hickey, she states with regard to the adrenal glands:

“the medulla hormone produces a secretion that can cause fear or flight [or sympathetic freeze]. This part of the adrenal gland is ruled by Saturn [and its hormones are the catecholamines – epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine]. The shell or cortex secretes another hormone giving pugnaciousness and combativeness [(Mars – it produces testosterone among other hormones)]. These are glands more directly connected to the impulse of self-preservation and the animal nature.” She goes on to state that the antidote to an afflicted Mars is lunar maternal nurturing and the antidote to an afflicted Saturn is the Venusian loving-kindness and generosity. (fromAstrology, A Cosmic Science, 1992)

With this connection of both planets to the kidneys, or in particular to the adrenal glands (which sit right on top of the kidneys), we see that Mars in hard aspect to Saturn almost always produces the possibilities of kidney issues. What are these? Headaches and lower lumbar back aches and pains (behind the kidneys) to start. And there might be a predisposition to other kidney issues as well.

So far, in this particular post, we have looked further at Mars in the 8th house, and we have begun to pick apart what Saturn and Mars mean in terms of physical health issues or associations. In the next post I will get into the medical astrology around the houses and signs involved.

Kirby Moore has been studying Western Astrology since 2003, having studied under several Western Astrologers with backgrounds in Karmic Astrology, Evolutionary Astrology and Hellenistic Astrology. He sees clients professionally for Spiritual Astrology interpretations both in person and over the phone. His private practice also includes Craniosacral bodywork and healing facilitation through healing touch. To schedule an appointment, you can reach Kirby at the following number in the U.S.: four three four, four six five, zero six zero three. Thank you for reading.

*This material is purely for educational purposes only. The author of this post does not claim to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any disease and if you believe you have a medical problem, you should speak with a licensed medical practitioner as soon as possible.

An example of Medical Astrology* in action (2011)

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So to continue the example from the previous post, (see Medical Astrology 2011) where we started looking at one aspect (which in an astrology chart would be one aspect of many) involving Saturn opposite Mars. So far we had touched on what Saturn means in a pithy nutshell, along with Mars. And then what it means for Saturn to be opposite Mars in the chart, at least from a brief personality perspective. Then we touched on the signs involved – Saturn in Virgo and Mars in Pisces. Now lets go a little further and see what the houses mean, along with touching on the actual Medical Astrology perspective of this particular aspect.

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By the way, for practitioners out there, if you see a close aspect involving Saturn (or Mars) it is generally a good idea to pay close attention to it. And for individuals out there who have a close Saturn aspect (nearly all of us have Saturn aspecting something in our charts), have no worries because there are remedies or recommendations to overcome each and every challenge in life. I’m not saying I have all the answers, but I certainly know who to refer people to for certain circumstances. Now, on with this example.

So Saturn opposite Mars, when the orb is close, and especially when Saturn is in a stronger position than Mars (generally according to the Zodiac signs involved), we know right off the bat that the individual’s energy levels might be lower than average. We saw that Saturn (contraction, hard work) puts a damper on, and restrains or limits just about any planet it touches, including Mars (energy, drive). Then we saw how Saturn in Virgo can indicate a serious, hard-working, organized individual and we noticed that Mars in Pisces is not strong – in fact, Mars in Pisces individuals often make great musicians, artists and actors (Pisces) but not the best athletes or ambitious competitors (executives) per se, although chart position would certainly provide an exception to that rule. What else can we infer from this particular configuration?

What do the houses mean (Saturn in the 2nd and Mars in the 8th)? Well here we get into a conundrum. It just so happens that, in my opinion, the 2nd and 8th houses are two of the most complex houses of all. The 2nd house has to do with deeper values, peace of mind, personal financial stability, the instinct to survive (which involves procreation) and the underlying foundation of these qualities. Depending on the individual’s consciousness, to begin with (at birth) Saturn in the 2nd house often indicates a self-oriented “me” and “mine” attitude, meaning Saturn in the house of values has to do with purifying a greedy or self-oriented attitude.

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Keep in mind that other aspects (namely Neptune’s) can radically change this interpretation. So we must be cognizant of the complexity involved with interpreting the chart. However, Saturn in the 2nd will generally indicate a careful investor of time, energy and money – someone who takes time to study and analyze the market, or who sticks with reliable sources like real estate, CDs or bonds. And because the 2nd house is all about establishing a stable foundation for ourselves, this placing of Saturn indicates that this individual will need to put forth time and effort into establishing her or his nest egg, or real estate (home owner), or income stream. But because it is Saturn talking, this idea of doing the work her / himself might not be easy. We must look at the positions of the Sun, Moon and Moon’s nodes to know more about a deeper drive of the person – Saturn tells us a lot, but not all.

Wherever Saturn is located, from an esoteric standpoint, is where we are tested. So here, Saturn represents a re-organization of one’s deeper values and peace of mind, here the individual is learning to share their resources (provided other parts of the chart agree with this). First and foremost though with the 2nd (earthy) house, is the necessity to establish themselves in the material world. People with strong 2nd house influences (or Taurus for that matter) must establish a strong, secure, safe foundation from which to work, and then their lives improve. This is the case here too with Saturn in the 2nd. And back to the keyword “service,” which is often reserved for the 6th / 12th houses, so after this individual establishes themselves in the material realm, then we can see if the individual is of service to their community, and if so, they will have more peace of mind. By SHARING (2nd house) their resources (time, energy, money) with others out of an authentic altruistic attitude, they will have a more secure and solid (2nd house) peace of mind (2nd as well). And actually, in this particular configuration with Mars in Pisces, there is an added dimension or need to be of service, so in this case, it is even more important.

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Then we have the 8th house. Traditionally the 8th house is not looked at favorably – however I want to provide a strong disclaimer to this, as I personally have a full and busy 8th house, and I have been working with these energies all my life. The 8th house represents that which we must regenerate and heal. It represents old, scary wounds and often times, these wounds are deep or unconscious, usually psycho-spiritual in nature. Therefore, we MUST know the consciousness of the individual before we start to interpret 8th house issues. This is because the energies can be distorted and repressed if the individual is lacking awareness and resists doing their personal growth work, OR these energies can indicate strong healing abilities and intense awareness of their own, and therefore others’ psychological processes. Or there is a combination of the two.

What we know about Mars in the 8th house (from birth) is that the individual is most likely purifying sexual energy because they will have a lot of it (Mars in the 8th), there might be an interest in psychic or occult subjects (8th) and there might be strife around the partners or shared finances (Mars). Again though, we MUST compare this information with other areas of the chart to see if it corroborates or weakens these tendencies. So Mars in the 8th can be a blessing or a burden, depending on our frequency – do we have a solid, authentic spiritual practice or are we still pursuing that idyllic heiress (for her money)? Do we seek to correct our personal beliefs that are out of alignment? Are we content to suffer and say, “why me??”

Huh!?! Are you keeping up? As one will notice, interpreting the astrology chart, at least in a clear and understandable manner is a hefty task! In my next post, I will get into how Saturn and Mars are approached from a Medical (Health) Astrology perspective.

Medical Astrology* 2011

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This is a post intending to inform readers about medical astrology. This is for educational purposes only, by all means, go see a licensed medical practitioner if you have questions or concerns about your health.

Did you know, there was a time when doctors in the United States would tell you that to practice medicine without looking at the patient’s astrology chart was akin to doing malpractice? Well, believe it or not, it is true. Nowadays, disappointingly, I speculate that there are merely a small percentage of doctors who value the information that one can glean from an accurate natal horoscope (birth chart).

Due to my interest in and practice of Craniosacral Therapy, I have been interested in Medical Astrology for seven years. So when I started studying Western Astrology, whenever I came across a juicy tidbit about Medical Astrology I would always read it with joy and vigor. And I would often go back and look at charts of clients and family members to see if what it professed was true, and sure enough, it was usually right on.

What is Medical Astrology?
Medical Astrology is a branch of traditional Astrology. Just as various planets (energies) and houses (areas of life) of the birth chart correlate with different emotions, personality dynamics and different facets of life, so too do they correlate with different parts of the body and with differing systems in the body. For instance, Aries is associated with the head. Taurus is associated with the tongue and the throat (and the thyroid). Gemini, the sign of the twins, is associated with the shoulders, arms, lungs and oftentimes hands. And these associations with the body go on and on, covering all the signs of the zodiac, as well as the planets, and the houses of the chart.

What are the benefits of Medical Astrology?
A quality psychologist can give therapy for a number of psychological disorders right? We all know this to be true – authentic scientific research has proven this to be the case. But can a good psychologist determine WHEN those psychological disorders will come about? Probably not. And certainly not with their traditional training. Well this is one benefit of astrology. When an accurate chart is in the hands of a competent astrologer, then it is obvious that certain energies ebb and flow, expand and contract at differing times. And those times can be seen through the Transits and Progressions (of Timing Astrology). In fact, a competent astrologer can look at a Natal Horoscope and see the various possibilities which that individual has for their incarnation on many different levels, including physical manifestations.

Medical Astrology is not perfect. The critics of Astrology in general, and Medical Astrology in particular certainly have an argument when they say that Medical Astrology is not a precise science. Well this is true and I will be the first to say it! However, imagine that the body has, just to name an arbitrary number, 5,000 systems, organs and individual parts. That is a lot, right? What if Medical Astrology can help someone narrow down where an illness might appear from 5,000 to 20? And then, if we look at the client’s inherited health predispositions, that number might drop down to 5. So we have narrowed down the potential weak areas of the body from 5,000 to 5. Is that not a huge step in the right direction? And then, if we look at aspects which are stacking up in their chart, then we can be more precise. To continue the example from above, if we see Saturn issues, plus Venus issues, plus a hard aspect to the Moon, what area of the body do all of these planets share in common? The skin! So we could very easily predict that there would at the very least be skin sensitivities during a certain time period.

How does one get started studying Medical Astrology?
Honestly, the best astrology books are more on the comprehensive side. Here is an example: when we look at an astrology chart, all we see are strange glyphs (planetary symbols), 12 sections a.k.a. astrological houses, and colorful symbols which represent the signs of the zodiac. Of course most people will recognize the crescent shaped Moon, or the female symbol of Venus and the male symbol of Mars. But beyond that, an astrology chart is VERY complicated, or it just looks like a flat piece of paper.

How does that flat chart translate to so much information about an individual? Two things – first we need to spend time studying and practicing astrology with a competent teacher to see how the same aspect will have various manifestations across different people. If we start out by reading books that say, “Pluto trine Saturn will lead to blah blah blah.” Then if we go around stating, as equivocally as we can muster, “Oh you have Pluto trine Saturn, that means you will experience blah blah blah!” Then we need to spend time weeding out the astrological-cook-book-recipes from our belief systems. We need to spend time opening our hearts, that way we can approach everyone we see as a blank slate. For instance, because His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a Sun sign Cancer. Does that mean he will experience the same reality as most of the other Sun sign Cancer’s on the planet? Doubt it.

As to my example, take the following aspect, Saturn in Virgo opposite Mars in Pisces with Saturn residing in the 2nd house and Mars tenanting the 8th. How much information can we glean from this? Of course we must take other aspects of the chart into consideration, but here are some personality traits we can infer from this planetary aspect: Saturn, representing contraction, limitation, boundaries, caution and discipline, can put a damper on Mars (the opposition aspect) where Mars rules aggression, assertion, competition, and the initial drive to get what we desire. Mars is often known as the gas (think gas pedal in a car) and Saturn is known as the brakes – this combination of gas plus brakes is rarely ever easy to deal with. This much we know simply from the planets involved.

But how do the signs come into play? How do those houses affect this particular aspect? And how close is this aspect – is the orb of opposition 2 degrees (very close) or is it 8 degrees (a wider orb). This information is important! This is why it is imperative to discuss your astrology chart with someone competent. Unless we are looking to be entertained, why would we seriously consider the words of an amateur green practitioner, who might not be aware of their personal neuroses, let alone ours???

Back to my example, what else can we infer from that aspect, with those positions involved? Saturn in Virgo (an Earth sign) often means a strong Saturn, indicating a serious, detail-oriented, efficiently-working, clear and mentally-organized individual. This is a person who needs to cultivate a sense of humor and lightening up. And then this info must be blended with Mars in Pisces – Mars, a fiery, fierce energy to start with is heavily watered down and weakened by being in Pisces (while this is true traditionally, chart position and other aspects might change this fact). Pisces is a laid back, mystical, patient, emotional energy – and Mars is not really comfortable in any of these arenas. Therefore, Mars in Pisces drowns out the typical drive for power and ambition, it dampens the typical Martian energy, possibly indicating a lowered constitution and possibly a slower metabolism (again though, look to the rest of the chart to confirm or deny these traits). Mars gets confused easily in Pisces, indicating a restless type of individual, and Pisces sensitizes whatever it contacts, so drugs and alcohol are dangerous for individuals with this placing. So far, we have only touched the surface on Mars being opposite Saturn.

In the following post, I will go more in depth on this particular aspect.

Spiritual Astrology: How to know if you have the “wrong” birth time

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This title sounds a bit presumptuous does it not? Well forgive me, but I intend to back up my assertions below. This is a post based on a comment a reader made on the last post, which has to do with Rectifying the Astrology Chart, or finding the correct birth time when either it is A) unknown or B) so far off, some information is not making sense when doing the interpretation on the given time.

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When rectifying the birth time, below are some aspects which we (astrologers) use to know when there should (read nearly always is) be a significant event in the person’s life; therefore, if you have one, or better yet, more than one of these aspects come to pass and you barely blink, then there is the chance your birth time is off. Or, if the interpreted area of life is affected, but it always seems to be about say, six months off (late), then a discrepancy might exist. Also, when I say significant event, it usually means a physical event (a marriage, a move across the country, becoming a monk or nun, getting a really bad flu which requires hospital treatment, car accident, other freak incident, etc). Here are the aspects:

When major planets cross the Ascendant or MidHeaven: Pluto, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter

When the Progressed MidHeaven makes a hard aspect to any personal planet: the Chart Ruler (the planet that rules the Rising sign), the Sun Ruler (the planet which rules the Sun sign), the Sun, the Moon, Mercury or Mars (when it makes a hard aspect to Venus, usually a relationship is arising, affected or otherwise “up” at that time).

When the Solar Arc Ascendant makes a hard aspect to any of the personal planets mentioned above.

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This list above, with about fifteen or more potential aspects in it, is a good start for Timing Events which come about based on an accurate birth time. Note, not included in this list are when Transiting planets cross Natal planets – this is because this will happen regardless of whether your birth time is five minutes off or twenty-four hours off. Transiting Saturn is going to cross Natal Mars about the same time for someone born 6/24/81 versus someone born 6/25/81. So conversely, if one or more of the listed-above Timing Aspects happen, comes exact and nothing happens for several months or more, then it might be worth looking at your birth time again.

If you happen to be younger, say born after 1980, then your birth time is more than likely accurate. More parents nowadays are making an effort to get the right moment of time recorded when their baby takes its first breath. But in the past, especially when major interventions were used to deliver the baby (general anesthesia or it was a breach birth and the baby needed to be resuscitated, etc), the doctors and nurses are much more focused on making sure the baby and mother are alive and surviving than being concerned about getting the first-breath-moment accurate, and for good reason! Therefore hospital birth certificates can be off by as much as 45 minutes, although they tend to be closer than that.

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When someone gives me the birth certificate time or especially if they tell me what their mother told them, and they give me a nice round number, “Oh, I was born at 5 PM.” Or, “my birth time, right, my Mom said it was 6:30 AM.” When I see either of these round endings, I am curious about and open to the birth time being a bit off when I do the interpretation. Usually I will get some major life events from the person just to confirm that 5 pm is the right number. No use doing a lot of prep work when it might need to be adjusted anyway… Generally though, you can back track using the above list (or other aspects which I did not mention) and get two or three major life events to corroborate their birth time and once it looks close (within a couple degrees, which translates to within ten minutes) I proceed with the full interpretation.

And, as I hope I mentioned previously, not knowing your birth time is okay. We can cast what is called the Solar Chart with the Sun as the Ascendant which puts a major focus on the solar element of the chart, but it still yields decent results. So don’t fret if you don’t know you birth time. You can still glean a lot of information from the Transiting and Progressed planets in aspect to your Natal planets.

Why does it matter how accurate the birth time is? Every four minutes, a new degree of the Ascending (Rising) sign changes. So at 1:00 pm, 19 degrees of Aquarius is rising on the Eastern horizon. At 1:04, it will be 20 degrees and so on. Therefore, if the birth time is off by 30 minutes – that is seven or eight degrees difference between a given Ascendant and the actual one, at 45 minutes it gets to 11 degrees plus. As you can probably tell, if you care to do the math, a new sign rises on average of every two hours (4 minutes per degree, 30 degrees in a sign, 120 minutes = two hours). Therefore, if you only know, “well my mother said I was born after dark.” This is a great starting point, but this is almost like being told, “go find my car, I parked it somewhere in this small city.” Uhh… Yes, of course you would find it given enough time… 🙂

Actually, being told that there is a four to six degree window in which someone is born is MUCH better than trying to get someone’s birth information when you don’t even know what day they were born on. I maintain a Tibetan Buddhist practice, so I have a number of friends who are apart of the exiled Tibetan diaspora. And when it comes to their birth info, it seems they are concerned with two things: 1) which season they were born in and 2) the year in which they were born. The Tibetan calendar always has an element mixed with the animal of that year, for instance, they might say, “I was born in the year of the fire-horse,” or the earth-tiger, iron-rabbit, etc. Did I mention the word birth day anywhere in that commentary? Nope. At that point, you’ve got to forget the birth time! Also, when Tibetans migrate to the US, there is usually a discrepancy between their calendar system and ours, so their driver’s license might be close to the correct birth date, or it might be weeks off! Yeah, so if you know your birth date AND your birth time is close, then that is a blessing indeed!

I hope this helps to clear up a little more about what it means to Rectify an astrology chart. As you can tell, it takes a bit of practice and skill. You can’t just sit down with a book and start asking someone questions and then voila, ten minutes later say, “I got it!” No, there are times when it might take me an hour if I start with an intuitive hit and investigate that, or it can take upwards of two hours when the process is all empirically derived and explored.

Rectyifying a Birth Chart (Discovering the Birth Time when it is unknown)

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This is a brief post about Rectifying the Birth Time

About Rectification – when we work backwards using events in a person’s life to find the birth time (which is unknown at first), this is called Rectifying the Birth Chart. This is yet another example of how, in the hands of skilled astrologers, astrology definitely “works!!” Using information we have explored and discussed with the client about their personality, we might have a strong suspicion about the Rising Sign (which is the sign on the Eastern horizon at the time of birth – it creates the framework of the chart and it is vital to get events accurate in Timing Astrology) but we might not know which degree it is on.

For instance, say someone is a natural leader, they are fiery yet refined and they have a strong sense of inner confidence and self-worth, and if this influence does not show up in many other areas of their chart, there is a chance this person is a Leo Rising. But were they born with an early (e.g., 2 degrees) Leo Ascendant (Rising) or a later one (29 degrees)? In general I find the traits of early degrees to be strengthened, meaning the Leo Rising at 2 degrees would be more fiery and less refined whereas the 29 degree person would have had more time to “figure out the Leo Rising energy.” To find out, at least to within 10 minutes of the accurate birth time, we work backwards using major events from that individual’s life – these could be the birth of children, marriage, divorce, significant accidents, illnesses or surgeries, major promotions, etc. If I can get my hands on five or six accurate dates of major events, I can usually rectify a chart to within 5-10 minutes of the accurate birth time, within an hour or two. And this is not an easy accomplishment, if I may brashly say so myself! :~)

Sometimes I find that I had the right Rising sign in mind, other times not. There are indicators that can throw you off – say the individual has Neptune on their actual Rising sign, this can really fog and cloud the process of finding it! That is until you realize this possibility, ask the right questions and then it becomes clearer! Similarly having Uranus rising (near or just below the Ascendant) can fool one to think that individual has an Aquarius Rising sign, when they actually have another sign there. As the reader can discern, there is much to keep in mind when interpreting a chart, and this comes into play when rectifying the birth time.

Kirby Moore has been studying Western Astrology since 2003, having studied under numerous Western Astrologers with backgrounds in Karmic Astrology, Evolutionary Astrology and Hellenistic Astrology. He sees clients professionally for Spiritual Astrology interpretations both in person and over the phone. His private practice also includes Craniosacral bodywork and healing facilitation through healing touch. To schedule an appointment, you can reach Kirby at the following number in the U.S.: four three four, four six five, zero six zero three. Thank you for reading.

Spiritual Astrology and the Secret of Self-Knowledge (Natal Horoscopes)

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. See the above page “Astrology” for more info and for Kirby’s current rates. Thanks for reading!

In this post I will describe the benefits of having your Natal Chart or Horoscope interpreted by a competent Astrologer.

Kirby Moore specializes in working with individuals and Natal Astrology – which is the basis for Timing Astrology and for Relationship Astrology if you want to go on and look at those areas. Natal Astrology, when interpreted with the individual’s consciousness in mind, reveals a beautiful, mytho-poetic account of the individual’s personality strengths, challenges, gifts and more. And coming from an Evolutionary Astrology background, Kirby’s interpretations include more of a Soul Reading, where you have been in the karmic past and which directions it would be good to move forward in. These interpretations make great gifts for newborns and parents alike!

Unfortunately I think there are some well-meaning people out there who read a few books about Astrology and then they speak about it as experts. Or, even more disappointingly, perhaps some astrologers see the $$ involved in publishing quantity books versus quality. There are many, many astrological resources available which should actually be called what they are: “We will tell your fortune according to your birth day!” or “This is an astrological cook book – all the recipes are prepared ahead of time, if you are looking to grow psychologically or if you want to evolve spiritually, then you won’t get much from reading this!” Of course, these titles would not really sell per se, so we are where we are. 🙂 Those are strong words yes, but someone has got to put a stop to the fatalistic trends in astrology. Saturn is NOT bad! But nearly every astrological cook book will at least hint at the challenges and speak abut Saturn’s aspects with negative connotation. Not good. See some of my previous posts about Saturn for more on this fascinating subject.

These resources add to Astrology’s implausibility and allow people to be correct when they say that Astrology “does not work.” Because it is true – if you do not take the client’s consciousness into account when doing the interpretation, you will probably do very little to benefit them. You must have an open, flexible mind which is supplemented by some years of living experience and observing astrology’s possibilities around you. And this is just a start – you must be able to meet your clients where they are, which also means either dissolving your prejudices completely or suspending them and seeing clients with an unconditionally open heart. Not easy, and unfortunately it doesn’t occur very often. And I can’t say I do this every day, but I’m coming close. 🙂

Well, if the Natal Chart is interpreted by someone (note – NOT a machine, not a computer program or an astrological website recipe maker) competent, the Astrology Chart can transform into a dynamic mytho-poetic portrayal. What most people see when they look at an astrology chart is a large circular ring divided into 12 segments, with strange foreign glyphs in little clumps around the ring. It looks complicated and flat. This is normal, do not fret. To a well-trained astrologer however, seeing an Astrology Chart is like reading the Matrix code. There is Pluto square Mars and with what you have told me up to this point, that means… Oh here we have Jupiter conjunct Uranus and in your case that implies…

Supposedly at the Oracle of Delphi in ancient Greece, one of the phrases engraved above the entrance was “Know Thyself.” This important phrase is still applicable today (even more so now perhaps with all the distracting technology we have to play with), and in Western Astrology, we have a great tool to help us discern our hidden vices and virtues, to know ourselves better. We start with the Natal Horoscope – this is the chart that is cast at the moment we take our first breath as a newborn. This chart marks the location of the planets as they appear from the place of birth. So to cast a Natal Horoscope, one needs the birth date, place and if possible the birth time. Without the birth time, there can be a lot of information gleaned from the chart, but with the time, it becomes more precise. See the next post for a method to Rectify or determine the time of birth using life events, a technique known as Rectification.

The Natal Horoscope tells us what energy (planet) is manifesting in which area(s) of life (astrological house) and it shows us how these energies are interacting with each other. Is there graceful easy flow between Saturn and Venus for instance? Or are there obstacles? What does this mean to that particular individual? The area of life that this aspect affects would show itself through the astrological houses involved. And remember, to conduct an professional and personal interpretation, we must take the frequency or consciousness of that particular client into account. For example, if someone comes to us and the first thing they say is, “Yeah, I’m wondering when I’m going to earn my first million so I can afford that Porsche I have had my eye on…” We have to approach them where they are. Conversely, if someone comes to us and says that they have been to see numerous astrologers and psychics about a spiritual or psychological issue, this probably means they are seriously looking for quality answers and they don’t want to be treated like a bunch of mere planets and aspects. No pun intended! 🙂 We are all unique individuals on different paths – whether emotionally, physically, spiritually, psychologically, etc. And we should do our best to tailor the interpretation to the client.

Spiritual Astrology and Relationships: Who am I really dating?

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. See the page Astrology to see Kirby’s current rates.

My housemate recommended that I do a post on this subject, after he received an impromptu interpretation from me. He was blown away by all the information that could be gleaned from his birth chart (and subsequent timing charts), so I was pleased to have been of benefit to him.

Having experience with peace-building work and Compassionate Communication, I work with couples and partners (of any sort) with Relationship Astrology. The Synnastry and Composite Charts provide a fascinating window into the dynamics of any relationship – whether intimate, professional, familial or otherwise. You can also look at the relationship of two or more organizations: whether corporations, non-profits, nations and more. These charts can show which direction a group is headed as well, allowing every individual’s Astrological offering to be taken into account.

So for all of you out there who just recently started dating someone, or for anyone who wants to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of their partner, do you really know who you are dating? Do you want to know? And this goes both ways! Yes ladies, there are guys out there who track astrology, present company excluded.

Relationship Astrology is an interesting facet of Western Astrology. Of course it all starts with the Natal Chart – the birth chart is an integral part of astrology, so knowing your birth time is important, but not always vital. In Relationship Astrology, you compare your birth chart with your partner’s. This is called Chart Synnastry. A Synnastry Chart is simply one chart with two rings of planets – one is your planets and the others are your partner’s. However, this chart can reveal many fascinating details. Why are you attracted to your partner? Who desires a more physical relationship? What does your partner want from you? What do you need from your partner? You can also receive an interpretation to find out who would be good for you (and why). These insights and many more can be gleaned from a Synnastry Chart. But there is more!

Another intriguing side of Relationship Astrology is when you create a new chart for a relationship. You might wonder, “how do you go about doing that, and how could it possibly work?” These are great questions! This new chart which is generated from two people’s charts blended into one is called a Composite Chart. Composite Charts can be created for any kind of relationship – husband / wife, employer / manager, father / daughter and of course potential boyfriend / girlfriend. You can even create functional Composite Charts for two or more Corporations, two or more Nations and for groups of people. Say you want to see how well a Board of Directors would work together – you could have a Composite Chart made and interpreted for as many as six or eight people (after that it might get a little funky, but it would still be fun to analyze).

Composite Charts are primarily purchased however, because someone wants to see how or why their relationship is or is not working out. Composite Charts are very fascinating as I mentioned – this is because you can see the overall direction of the relationship – why did the two of you come together? In which area of life do you work together the best? Are you sexually compatible (if appropriate)? Is this a good partner to have children with? Are there stabilizing aspects in your Composite Chart which will keep you together even after the initial glamor has worn off? Will there be smooth sailing or rough patches ahead? All of these questions and more can be answered from analyzing the Composite Chart.

Included within my Composite Chart interpretations are the Timing Aspects of the Relationship – often times we can see when and why the two of you came together, you can see beautiful times of compatibility and ease, along with times of challenging self-grasping and stubborn resistance. Armed with the insights of what to expect however, you can avoid many impulsive (emotional-reaction-based) decisions which might disrupt a dynamic growth-oriented, co-creating relationship!

So schedule an appointment today to discuss your Relationship Astrology!

The Many Benefits of Spiritual Astrology: What is possible?

This material is copyrighted by Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. To support my business and blogging efforts, please visit my website. More recently, I have begun teaching Astrology classes on Trauma-Informed Astrology, see http://www.traumainformedastrology.com for more! Thank you for visiting!

To begin with, Spiritual Astrology is more than “cook-book astrology,” where someone finds out your astrological planets and signs and determines what that means without really getting to know where you are on your [emotional / psycho-spiritual / life-experience-maturity-level] path. Spiritual Astrology is frequency-based astrology which means that it takes the client’s frequency or consciousness into account. When you look at the birth chart, you see a two-dimensional circle that is divided up into twelve sections known as houses. Within these houses are tenanted all the planets of the solar system, including the two lights (the Sun and Moon, which in Western Astrology are basically considered planets too). Therefore we have the Sun, Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars and all the way out to Pluto, which is still considered a planet by astrologers. So we take this two dimensional circle, along with its unique aspects and houses and we add the client’s consciousness into the mix. This adds another dimension that no astrology software or astrology website can provide. When major asteroids are added to the mix, the range of possibilities in a birth chart is infinite.

I believe an Astrological birth chart is a reflection of an individual’s gross karmas. What the heck does this mean? What I mean is that we all have energetic bodies, we have psychological habits, mental attitudes and dispositions, but without being born in a human body, we would never be aware of these characteristics in the way we are able to perceive them as humans. So what the heck does that mean? What I am trying to say is that we are actually spiritual beings having a human experience, and being born human creates a unique opportunity to experience a world through the five (or more) senses and to interact with other sentient beings in this world. In Buddhism, there is the belief that the only part of someone which goes from rebirth to rebirth when we die is the subtle consciousness. This subtle consciousness comes into a womb around or shortly after the time of conception and stays with the new body until its elements dissolve and the subtle consciousness must move on to the next one. This is why I suggest that we are spiritual beings having human experiences.

Unfortunately, not many of us recall that we are spiritual beings. Rather, we get caught up in the duality of this world – this is MY body (and it HURTS!), that is YOUR car (and doesn’t it look great?!), this is THEIR money (oh! now I’m jealous). I am apart of the 99 % or the 1 % and they aren’t. We easily get tangled in the web of sensed objects and beings and then we get further entangled in our reactions to these perceived objects. And by getting tangled up in life as it were, we are experiencing manifestation of gross karmas – inner or outer events of a perceivable nature, where more than one individual can affirm to have witnessed or experienced it. However, if we are able to realize that this world is more of a playful dance of vast energy and awareness and less a tangled web of dense, solid objects and / or stick emotions, then we can start to take that soothing deep breath and disengage just a little bit more. When we disengage and move toward equanimity and non-attachment, then we move toward subtler karmas; this disengaging is a step toward spiritual awakening and away from the gross karmas indicated in one’s birth chart.

Therefore, whether you are someone who is pursuing spiritual fulfillment, or someone who is after that dream inheritance (or car, or babe, or stud, or retirement, etc), Spiritual Astrology can meet you where you are and proceed from there.

In future posts, I am going to cover Spiritual Astrology and: Relationships – Who am I really dating?, the Secret of Self-Knowledge and Natal Horoscopes, the Benefits of AstroCartography and Relocation Astrology, All the Intricate Components of Timing Astrology – Transits, Progressions, Solar Arc Directions and More!

Kirby Moore has been studying Western Astrology since 2003, having studied under several Western Astrologers with backgrounds in Karmic Astrology, Evolutionary Astrology and Hellenistic Astrology. He sees clients for Astrology interpretations both in person and over the phone. His private practice also includes Craniosacral bodywork and healing facilitation through healing touch. To schedule an appointment, you can reach Kirby at the following number in America: four three four, four six five, zero six zero three. Thank you for reading.

Identifying an authentic meditation teacher

Hello! This is a post about finding, investigating and discovering an authentic meditation teacher.

How many of us here in the West even know where to start on this journey? Finding a qualified teacher is important – especially if you consider your spiritual practice and progress to be important. It’s like going to a properly trained surgeon to have your appendix removed. You wouldn’t go to a lawyer for that job, would you? Here is an example of merely going to someone who claims to know what they are doing, but when you get there the conversation goes like this:

“Hello, I just wanted to be sure before we started, you are a doctor right? Because my appendix is having problems man!”

“Yes, I got my doctorate in Herpetology from Whahoopitz College.”

“Wait, what?! I thought you were a surgeon.”

“No I study reptiles, but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night. I learned that some reptiles have appendixes.”

“Oh, well in that case, this is hurting pretty bad so we might as well get started…”

Seriously!?! Big problem. We want to be sure we are getting quality training from a qualified teacher. If nothing else, we certainly don’t want to back-slide down the ever-so-treacherous and steep spiritual path. Yes, unfortunately there are frauds out there, plus there are well-meaning people who might have learned a couple things from an authentic teacher and then decided they were ready to teach (which translates to: they are ready to inflate their egos and make claims they really can’t back up). So get it right the first time!

Here is some pithy advice:

If you meet someone who claims to be an advanced meditation teacher, run! Get the hell out of there as fast as you can! The strongest, highest quality anyone can have is loving-kindness and the second most coveted spiritual quality is humility [and modesty].

If you find out that someone wears certain clothing on the days they are teaching, but then they put on a completely different outfit the other six days of the week… you might want to skedaddle. Take the words “clothing” and “outfit” here to also mean personality, behavioral standards, ethical conduct, etc.

If a “teacher” says one thing but overtly goes against their advice, this might be a bad sign. It is definitely a bad sign if you question them about this and instead of patiently discussing why they went against their advice, they get defensive and suddenly you feel victimized. Run! Fast! This is not an authentic teacher! Get the hell out of Dodge!

If someone’s name is Master Whoseewhatee, be extra skeptical. What makes them a master? Who says they are a master? Where did they study? Are their students truly benefiting and growing? Remember the humility comment above – and with that in mind, who would call themselves Master So-and-so? AND can they answer the questions in this next paragraph in the affirmative?:

A qualified meditation teacher can and will answer the following questions in a way that is clear, unequivocal and in a parsimonious fashion. Oh and they will be open and honest about the answers: Who did you train under (who are your teachers)? What makes you qualified to teach meditation? Do you have the blessing of a qualified teacher? Do you have a title? Who gave it to you? Are you a part of an authentic (living) lineage of teachings? Do you know the root texts on meditation? Do you speak / read the root languages of those root texts?

Keep in mind that here in the West, there are many, pardon the turn of speech, white people who have never spent significant time in the East, who are becoming authentically qualified to teach. Or at least they have their teacher’s blessings to teach. Therefore, these qualifications that I set forth in the above paragraph are strict – who besides a well-educated religious studies scholar would know those root languages? Or who other than a Buddhist monk (or nun) who has gone through their rigorous Shedra – or monastic colleges? Well sincere monks are typically authentic meditation teachers but sometimes it is difficult to find a Buddhist monk or nun to teach you. What then? Sometimes an authentic meditation teacher will not know those root languages and that is okay, just not ideal. They should at least know a little about the root texts.

Here’s the thing – if someone has studied the root languages of the root texts, and if they can teach meditation, then there is a chance that they are able to do two important things: think critically (from diligent, systematic study) and have decent emotional intelligence. It is one thing to be able to think rationally and be a linear type of person, but it is quite another to be able to do that when it suits the situation; and when we enter the watery psychological realm of emotions, rationality and linear processes often fly out the window, and an authentic teacher ideally should be able to understand both of these processes.

To wrap up, we want to find a teacher who is approachable, down-to-earth and who knows the subject matter. Someone who is arrogant is not an authentic teacher. Someone who seems like they are too humble to be anyone special is often just that – many Tibetan lamas seem to be content little bumbling monks, who claim not to know or do anything special in the least. And then when they die, the world discovers that they were secretly keeping rainbows and spiritual realizations in their hearts… So stick with humility, modesty and balance and you won’t go wrong in your search.

For an example of an authentic teacher, I would like to share my experience of living above a Zen Buddhist temple, and therefore, having the Zen Priest as my landlord and teacher. Also, if you have not already, you can visit the “Dharma” page on my blog – there you will find my experience with another secret yogi who passed away in 2008. That was a unique connection for me. But back to the Zen Priest.

This man was retired, having been an engineer and occasional adjunct professor at UVa. He did all the manual labor around the Zendo, which I was happy to pitch in to help with. So I would come home from school sometimes and find him mowing the lawn, or weeding, or even putting stain on the new fence. This was despite the fact that he was in his 70’s. Also, he never claimed to have any special qualities and he would always change the subject or minimize your perceptions of him if asked. He was great at practicing self-deprecation, but in a humorous almost respectful sort of way. No one was better at pointing out his own flaws than himself.

However, I would always feel really, really good if I was lucky enough to sit next to him in the Zendo. (By the way, see my first few posts on here to see pictures of that Zendo.) Also, if I was fortunate enough to be the last out the door, meaning that I would have a few minutes alone with him, I would also feel very good upon leaving. It was never anything he said. It was never anything noticeable that he did. But the sensations of joy and happiness would almost always linger for a few hours after meditating with him. The only indication of his qualities came through if you asked him who his teachers were. Unfortunately, being more a student of Tibetan Buddhism, I did not know much about Zen or its teachers, but later, when I looked them up, he had studied with some true masters indeed.

He never called himself more than he was. He said in Zen that a teacher’s teacher was called the Roshi. As a Zen Priest, he was capable of doing the ceremony for others to become Priests, and he was the leader of all the Zen practices and ceremonies. But that was it. For him, it is literally a life of chop wood, carry water. And it has done something marvelous for him.

In closing, may all beings be blessed to know and spend time with an authentic teacher!

The humorous subtleties of studying the Tibetan language

As some readers may or may not know, I studied the Tibetan language for 2.5 years, primarily focusing on Colloquial Tibetan (Literary or Classical Tibetan is an almost entirely different animal). At present, I am living with a Western Buddhist monk whose family of origin comes from India, so I am being introduced to new ways of thinking and being every day. However, today I heard a funny story about his trial and error as he now studies Tibetan language.

In Tibet, there are three main language and cultural regions – Central Tibet or the U Tsang region, Amdo in the northeast and Kham in the southeast. Plus there are multiple smaller regions to the west and north (not knowing much about these, I will stick with the “big three”). In each of these regions, there is a central dialect and dozens if not hundreds of tiny sub-regional dialects. This is due to the fact that in these regions, there are many remote areas, valleys and mountain villages which have their own unique accents and different pronunciations.

With that introduction, my friend the monk is in a class whose goal is to teach the central dialect of the Central U Tsang region. This is known as Lhasa Kae or spoken language. Now there just so happens to be a new student from Amdo, who does not know how to speak Lhasa Kae. And guess who my friend was partnered with? Yep! The new student from Amdo of course!

So this is how some of their conversation went, with imagined mental commentary provided:

Monk: How are you?
Tibetan from China: I am good. And blah blah (something about) cheese.
Monk: (what??!! what does cheese have to do with anything?) Well… I like cheese. Yes, I like cheese.
TfC: oh…? that is good…

later… Monk: So what do you do?
TfC: I am a lawyer who studied Chinese law.
Monk: Oh that is so great!
TfC: No, Chinese law is confusing and different from American law.
Monk: Oh. What do you do as a lawyer?
TfC: I put Tibetans in prison.
Monk: (OH MY GOD!!! Are you serious!! Why am I talking to you??!! I hope I’m not getting anyone in trouble!) Oh I see…

later… Monk: Are you married? Do you have a wife?
TfC: (Jesus Christ!! I thought you were a monk!) You have a wife?
Monk: No! No, I am asking if you have a wife. Are you married?
TfC: Then why do you have a wife? Monks do not have wives.
Monk: Right. I am a monk. I am not married.
TfC: Oh, okay…

Luckily, the monk said he started to draw pictures, use body language and finally spell out what he was trying to say, and he got most of these confusions cleared up! It turns out the Tibetan guy was not talking about cheese for five minutes, rather there was a difference in pronunciation that sounded like chu ra – the word for cheese… and instead of imprisoning anyone, he actually works with Tibetan entrepreneurs, trying to help start businesses. The word for prison can sound very similar to the word for business. Ahh… The joys of mis-communication!