NMR ISSUE 1

Astrological Forecast 1
Beltane
Closer Look at the Tarot: Aces
Earth's Coronation
Eastern Insights
Editorial
Evolutionary Astrology
Guardians of the Four Gateways
How to Eat Meat
Olivine
Solitary Beltane Ritual
Solitary Summer Rite
Stone Banishing Ritual
Summer Solstice
Tarot Images
The Kabalah in Everyday Use
The Oldest Magick
The Other Editorial
Witchcraft: Problems of Study

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Evolutionary Astrology,

Part I: The Moon's Nodes

By Connie S. Mizrachi

The astrological birth chart is a picture of the moment a newly incarnated soul draws its first breath. At that time the alignment of the planets shows a distinct path. This is not a "fate," but a course along which one makes many choices. The natal chart maps that course.

A chart has many parts, but it is most useful as a whole. To say,

"I'm a Pisces," reveals only a thread of the fabric of the natal chart. Our Sun sign is the main channel of our self-expression, but the layout of the chart can drastically modify this. Give a Sagittarius Moon and Aries rising to that watery Pisces sun and it will be barely recognizable as a fish. In the astrology of self-evolution, some important things to look at include the Moon's South node, the Moon's North node and the trans-Saturnian planets (Uranus, Neptune and Pluto).

The South node represents the past and has the qualities of Saturn. Saturn presents limits within which we work toward mastery. The saturnian influence of the South node can mean that our past conditioning and experiences limit us or that we use them positively, gaining maturity and understanding. The South node can become our easy way out and a block to growth if we fall back upon past patterns of behavior and thought. It can be a comfortable and familiar refuge from the discomfort and unfamiliarity of the untried and unexplored. Alternatively, we can use its foundation and accumulated talents to move toward our higher purpose.

The North node represents the goal of the present life and has the qualities of Jupiter. It is the urge to expand beyond the past and receive the bounty that comes to us through our willingness to open and grow. The North node is the feeling of aliveness and transcendence we experience as we reach away from past habits and conditioning towards the new and untried. This is not something that happens easily or quickly because human conditioning crystallizes over many lifetimes. In our birth chart, the North node's house position, sign and angles with the planets show us the qualities we need to develop in order to realize spiritual evolution.

Do not think of the South node as negative, it serves as the soul's memory bank. In a chart, the nodes are always in opposition. Thus, it is necessary is to use the blessings of both in a balanced way.