Uncategorized – Astrology for the family

I recently read that the use of astrology in parenting has become popular among millennials. Young parents are seeking explanations for their child’s personality and behaviors. I find myself having a mixed reaction to this news. On the one hand I’m thrilled to hear that young people are turning to astrology and I admire, respect and applaud any parent that wants to learn more about who their children are and how to work with them more effectively. Astrology is a powerful source for that kind of empowerment as it can offer in depth, revelatory insight that otherwise might remain hidden.

On the other hand, there’s a part of me that cringes when I hear that something has become popularized. In my experience what that usually means is that whatever that thing is becomes dumbed down losing its greatest potential for significant meaning and value in the process. Astrology is an ancient science whose origin dates back thousands of years. It is an in depth study of the relationship between the cosmos and human life. Like any science or art, it takes time and serious study to master. Even well educated, seasoned astrologers would not say that there is always more to learn. One of my favorite astrologers, who has been around for a long time, and has a substantial following on the internet and YouTube, is now broadcasting his weekly forecasts from his home. Looming large in the background is a wall of astrology books that probably spans 12 feet from floor to ceiling. I’m sure he doesn’t own every volume that’s been written on the subject either.

It is my understanding that this popularized version of astrology for parenting focuses mainly on Sun sign astrology which has been part of the mainstream for quite some time. Can you get valuable, helpful information about the inner workings of a person, their personality and soul’s journey/purpose in this lifetime from looking at a person’s Sun sign? Yes, but you are certainly not getting the whole picture. Humans are complex, multidimensional creatures as are the astrological charts that reflect who they are, who they have been and who they are becoming. The Sun in the natal chart reflects a core function in a person’s consciousness. But unless we know what house the Sun is in and what aspects it makes to other planets, we miss out on a lot of pertinent information. When taken out of context and therefor out of relationship with the rest of the chart, a lot of meaning is lost. I’m reminded of the saying, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” In this case I would say that a little information is simply not enough to understand a person.

Many astrologers will say that the Sun represents our ego. In Evolutionary Astrology the Moon is seen to represent the ego. We will look at that in a minute. Both the Sun and Moon, otherwise known as the luminaries in a person’s chart, along with the Ascendant describe something of our core essence and core evolutionary lessons but, again, it is important to look at these very important elements within the context of the entire chart. Now, when we are looking at a child’s chart and if I had to choose one of the three to look at, it would be the Moon. Before looking more closely at the Moon, let’s first get a clearer understanding of the function of the Sun. Think about the Sun in purely physical terms. We wouldn’t survive without it. We need the Sun for life to exist and flourish, right? I have a nephew that lives in Alaska and I sometimes imagine what it would be like to live in a place where the Sun doesn’t come out from behind the clouds for weeks or even months at a time or what it would be like to experience short days and long nights or visa versa. Too much Sun can also be challenging. I don’t think I could do it. Personally, and maybe because my Sun is in the sign of its rulership, Leo, I depend on the Sun to boost my spirits, to not only warm and comfort my body but also my soul. The Sun gives me a sense of hope, well being and feeling of aliveness. It is a powerful source and generator of energy in our lives physically but also emotionally and spiritually. I’ve heard some astrologers say that the Sun is the integrating factor that ties the whole chart together and I believe that to be true but first we have to understand the rest of the chart before we can grasp how and why that is. No doubt, the Sun is central in our lives and as an astrological symbol it represents a core principle or function in our consciousness.

From an Evolutionary perspective the Sun in a person’s chart plays a key role in our soul’s ongoing development and evolution. Here’s why:

Through the Sun we find our sense of purpose and meaning in life.

The Sun describes (along with the Ascendant) our character and personality (not to be confused with the ego.)

The Sun shows us something about our goals, how we promote those goals and how we perform in order to achieve our goals.

The Sun is our source of inspiration and, in turn, how we can inspire others and because it is our source of inspiration it indicates to a large degree what motivates us to get out of bed in the morning and go about our day.

Based on what it is that inspires/motivates us and where then we find a sense of purpose and meaning, the Sun describes what it is that we can give back to life to make sure that life continues. It is our gift to life, to God, to the Divine, however you want to look at it. It reflects our potential to be generous and “pay it forward.”

The Sun shows our capacity to create and express ourselves creatively.

In medical astrology the Sun is our heart and on a spiritual level it is our heart center. It is through the heart that we feel and share love. The Sun is our love of life and the love we radiate out to others. When our hearts are open we experience generosity.

Because the Sun has to do with life, giving, creating, it naturally has to do with human reproduction, fertility, our children (prodigy) and our lineage as it unfolds and moves into the future.

The Sun describes the relationship between parent and child or even mentor/apprentice, leader and follower.

It reveals something about our leadership capacity, potential and qualities.

The Sun represents the father in our natal charts and the relationship with the father.

The Sun in a child’s chart will describe interactions with the family, particularly the parents.

The Sun in the parent’s chart describes the approach taken toward their child/children.

If you’re wanting to understand your child and how you can best serve and help them navigate their childhood so that they are prepared to embark on their journey to discover and manifest their Sun, look to the Moon.

In the most general sense the Moon represents our feeling nature, our vulnerable inner self, our emotional life and emotional needs. The Moon rules the sign of Cancer, a yin/feminine water sign, receptive and more passive in nature. The Moon also shows how we process our emotions. It shows how we personally connect to life, what we attach to and identify with. That is why the Moon represents the ego in Evolutionary Astrology. Most spiritual traditions, or at least those originating in the East, describe the ego as that part of our consciousness that is attached and identified with whatever it is that we are attached to. The ego tends to get a bad rap but the truth is that we all need strong, healthy egos in order to function, face challenges and access and express our innate strengths and talents in this life. We need our egos to serve us and our soul growth. What helps build a strong and healthy ego is having our fundamental emotional needs met in childhood. The Moon describes what it is that we need in order to feel safe, nurtured, and held in this life. The Moon helps us find our place in the Universe, to establish a solid foundation for ourselves through our attachments. The Moon represents the mother and we know that the relationship with the mother, her role and influence in childhood is vitally important in helping build a strong emotional foundation and ego. Difficult relationship dynamics with the mother lead to attachment disorders and a whole host of other psycho/spiritual problems. Hopefully, by now, you understand the importance of understanding a person’s Moon by sign house placement and aspects to other planetary bodies.

Understanding your child’s Moon is vital. But there’s something else to consider. Sometimes, we, as adults and parents, have unmet needs or other challenging issues reflected in our own natal charts that might get in the way of being able to address our child’s needs. Or we may simply have different emotional natures than our child that can cause tension and misunderstanding. That is why, in my practice, I focus on astrology for the family. If you want to understand your child and your relationship with your child, understand yourself first.

Let’s look at an example of what I’m talking about. Let’s say your child has their Moon in Cancer and you have your Moon in Aries. A Moon in Cancer child is going to need to be held, cuddled and nurtured more than most. The Moon and Cancer need intimate connections, warmth and a strong support system; a solid home base and sense of belonging. Family and family relationships are extremely important to the Cancer Moon child. They will also need lots of time to process and digest life experiences and therefore needs to be sheltered from stress and pressure. Their development may be slower than other children’s which will require greater patience and understanding. The Moon in Cancer child is very sensitive and has strong emotions but those emotions tend to be of a more vulnerable nature. That’s Moon in Cancer in a nutshell.

If you are the parent of a Moon in Cancer child and you have a Moon in Aries, the two of you will have very different emotional natures and needs. Aries is a fire sign. Fire is masculine, yang and outward focused. The Moon in Aries person, like the Moon in Cancer person also has strong emotions but unlike the Moon in Cancer person who holds on to their emotions and needs time to process them, The Moon in Aries person will not tolerate any thing that might inhibit the expression of emotion. Feelings are usually exhibited without any processing time. Aires’ emotions are raw, powerful and immediate. There is nothing warm and cuddly about Aries. Aries is all about action and expression. What they need is a lot of emotional and physical space and freedom; freedom to move, to express themselves and to change.

I’m not going to go into all of the issues that might arise from the meeting of these two signs. It is obvious that the emotional nature and needs are not compatible but does that mean that the relationship would be doomed to failure? No, not at all. There is a creative tension between the two signs that can actually lead to growth for both parent and child. By understanding your own emotional needs better you could find ways to get your needs met and still meet your child’s needs at the same time. For instance, making sure you get breaks and that you have a good back up support system that the child feels comfortable with from an early age. Aries needs to move their energy through the body. It helps them to feel more balanced, satisfied and able to cope emotionally. Scheduling exercise every day would be very important. The Cancer Moon child will need to learn to toughen up a little and learn to be less dependent. With awareness and sensitivity positive change is possible for both parent and child as long as they are getting their needs met. For relationships of any kind to succeed awareness is needed and with awareness adjustments can be made, balance can be struck, change can occur. It is also important to understand that there is a reason we are born with the charts that we are born with. Our birth charts reflect lessons to be learned in order to grow and evolve our consciousness.

In my next post I will be writing about the Nodes of the Moon in the birth chart and particularly the South Node of the Moon. Without going into much detail about what the nodes are I will just say that the nodes of the Moon are a very important part of chart analysis in Evolutionary Astrology. The South Node describes past life experiences that are brought into the current life. A young child will often express traits of the South Node of the Moon because they are still close to that past life experience. Understanding the South Node can help a parent understand certain unexplained behaviors, reactions and memories. Tune in to find out more…

Meanwhile, if you are a parent seeking better understanding of your child through the insights that astrology has to offer, my hope is that you will look beyond what is popular and either seek the services of a reputable astrologer or at least educate yourself by reading quality books on the fundamentals of astrology written by seasoned astrologers. One recommendation is, “Astrology and the Evolution of Consciousness” by Maurice Fernandez or “The Inner Sky” by Steven Forrest. Both authors are well known masters of Evolutionary Astrology.

Let’s explore how astrology can can assist you in becoming a more effective, understanding, patient, supportive and loving parent.

Take a minute to think back in time to your earliest memories. Recall the relationship you had with the key adults in your life. Did you feel seen, heard and understood? Did you feel supported and truly cared for on a deep soul level? Did you grow up feeling safe and and secure with a sense of belonging? Did you feel valued for who you were?

Experience tells me that most people tend to have a mixture of both positive memories and ones that are more challenging, perhaps even traumatic in nature. In my own life the positive childhood memories I have center mostly around my relationship with nature and not the adults in my life. But then, I grew up in the 50s and 60s during a time when the prevailing attitude was that children were to be seen and not heard. The family system was hierarchical with the adults holding positions of greater importance and the father in the top dog position as the all important bread winner. The focus was on creating an economically secure life that looked good on the surface. Of course there were exceptions. There are always going to be those that are more enlightened or ahead of their time in every generation.

Attitudes towards children and parenting have changed a lot over the years and the world is a very different place than it was when I was growing up. Assuming that you are currently a parent, you are likely a member of the Millennial generation or otherwise known in astrological terms as the Pluto in Scorpio generation.

Briefly, the characteristic hallmarks of your generation are the need for radical change on both inner and outer levels which is born out of a profound awareness of your limitations, the need to overcome those limitations manifesting in an insatiable desire to learn, grow and empower yourselves and the impetus to heal all underlying trauma incurred in this lifetime and even in past lives. You are willing to look into the shadows, to shine the light on, root out and eliminate all that is holding you back in any way. The status quo holds no interest for you because you see with deep, piercing insight that the status quo and the values held by the status quo are not a true reflection of real empowerment nor do they reflect the kind of relationship you want to have with society, the environment and especially the people in your life. You recognize old, stale ways of being and doing in the world that do harm and that are in need of overhauling and transformation. In short, the Scorpio archetype that motivates and animates your generation demands nothing less than deep transformation, empowerment and evolution. As a generation you have what it takes to bring about real change.

Naturally, as a member of the Millennial generation, parenting in the most empowered way possible is more important than in any other generation so far. You are hungry for new information that can help you achieve your goal. You don’t want to do it the way your parents did and you are willing to take risks, open yourself to new experiences and passionately pursue your relationship with your child/children in more meaningful ways. You want to understand your children’s needs and what it is that motivates them and makes them tick. Just the fact that you want to know and understand your children, increases your chance of being a more effective parent. No doubt, you will make mistakes along the way, as every generation has their blind spots.

Before we explore ways in which astrology can help you understand your children better, I want to acknowledge anyone else that might be reading this who is not a member of the millennial generation or not a biological parent but perhaps a foster parent or grandparent. All are welcome.

Let’s start with an explanation of what a birth chart is.

I have heard many astrologers describe the birth chart otherwise known as the natal chart or personal horoscope, as a snapshot or still image of the sky at the moment that a child takes their first breath. That snapshot captures the placement of the planets in the sky from the vantage point of the person’s birthplace on earth. The placement of the planets forms a unique pattern of relationship to one another and that placement and pattern describes something about the person and their life. This is based on the idea that human experience is inextricably linked to the larger universe and that one reflects the other.

What can that snapshot reveal about a person? It can reveal a person’s inner qualities, nature and temperament. It can describe a person’s physical and psychological makeup, what motivates them, what they value, how they see and react to the world around them. The birth chart is a reflection of a person’s unique character, deep feelings, concerns and desires. It can reveal innate gifts and talents and, at the same time, that which could be challenging to the person. Evolutionary Astrology takes things a step further.

Evolutionary Astrology recognizes that human consciousness is evolving and that the process of evolution can be identified in the birth chart.

It places importance on an individual’s emotional and spiritual growth as being paramount to the evolutionary process and it recognizes that emotional and spiritual growth takes a very long time; longer than just one short lifetime. Therefore, one of the main tenets of Evolutionary Astrology is reincarnation. From this perspective the emphasis shifts from the personality to the soul and the soul’s evolutionary journey through lifetimes. The birth chart is seen to reflect what the soul’s purpose and intentions have been in the past that led them to the current life circumstances and experiences, what the soul’s purpose and intentions are in this lifetime and what lessons the soul is likely to face in this lifetime that can help further their evolution.

Evolutionary Astrology offers the kind of insight and awareness that empowers and creates opportunity for you to be more objective and understanding at the same time compassionate and loving in any relationship whether it is with yourself, your significant other or your child.

The following is a short list of questions that can be answered with Evolutionary Astrology:

What is your soul’s purpose/intent in this lifetime?
What has been your experience in past lifetimes and how might that be effecting you in this lifetime?
What life lessons is your soul focusing on in this lifetime?
What are your gifts/strengths and challenges?

These are some of the most important questions that can be looked at in a reading but more specific questions regarding relationships, career, health, etc. can also be addressed.

To help you better understand your child in addition to the questions above, the following questions can be addressed:

What kind of foundation does your child need?
What are your child’s emotional needs in order to feel safe and secure?
What can be expected with regards to your child’s development?
What kind of learner is your child and what kind of educational setting would best serve their learning style?
What are your child’s strengths and challenges in relationship with others?

Now take a minute to imagine what it might have been like if the adults in your life had consulted with an Evolutionary Astrologer. I believe that my early life would have looked a lot different had the adults in my life been equipped with such precious information. At the least I believe I would have felt seen and heard. Who knows how that might have made a difference but I’m pretty sure it would have been a positive one. How about you?

Category: Uncategorized

Look to the Moon