We are closing the chapter of the last 18 months with the North Node in Taurus and South Node in Scorpio and we welcome in the Aries North Node, Ruled by Mars (the god of War) and Libra South Node (Ruled by Venus the goddess of Love and Money) on July 17, 2023 just before 4 pm EST; staying until January 11, 2025. The general overall theme with Aries/Libra would be The Self and our Relationships, Balance, and Honesty. This ingress is even more powerful due to the coinciding New Moon in Cancer and Venus in Leo Retrograde. Let’s explore our new lessons…
Hopefully, the lessons of Taurus/Scorpio were well incorporated and worked through… you can check out that blog here
expressionsoftheuniverse.com/north-node-taurus-south-node-scorpio/
When the North Node moves into Aries and the time it spends in the cosmos, there tends to be an adrenaline rush of the senses. The need to indulge the senses. During this Saros cycle, there have been lifetimes of power struggles, Globally, that seems to attract crisis, trauma, drama, living on the edge. People have become addicted to all of the crises in the world and locally, this is known as the crisis consciousness that has been escalating since the last cycle. Many people get a high from the trauma and the drama, the excitement of crisis. This breeds poor mental and physical health for all. This is one of the reasons I have turned off the News and have become very selective on Social Media because although it is helpful on one hand and in small doses; it has become a drug or a poison that is really throwing the world out of balance and further away from where we need to be…. in Nature. Over feeding the senses and our minds with so much external, artificial stimulation has caused many to become addicted to suffering, and also causes the adrenal system to flood itself with adrenaline and cortisol (Ruled by Libra). To balance out the Air of Libra and the fire of Aries one needs Earth and Water; again, reiterating the need for nature.
Attributes to develop for the North Node in Aries:
- Independence
- Self-Awareness
- Trusting One’s Impulses
- Courage
- Constructive Self-Interest
- Moderation in Giving
- Self-Nurturing
Tendencies to Leave Behind for the South Node in Libra:
- Seeing Oneself through Other’s Eyes
- Debilitating Selfnessness
- Being Too Nice
- Obsessive Attachments to Fairness and Justice
- Co-dependence and the attachment to external harmony
- Tit for Tat or Eye for an Eye Mentality
The Karmic lesson here is to find the balance between the Self and the Other. The sore spot is about giving away of the Self and our opinions, wants and desires as a means to keep the peace and balance or harmony in our relationships out of fear of rejection or abandonment. With that comes the indecisiveness of Libra trying to make the right choice that is harmonious to all, which often puts off or out the one making the decision. The Aries trap is a need and unending search for the “perfect” and ideal committed partnership (“If I can only find the perfect partner, I will feel complete within myself”) mentality. Basing our survival on keeping everything fair and just and thinking that everyone should be as fair with you as you are with them, which often leads to unreciprocated over-giving, walking on eggshells and disappointment. Another lesson will be learning to be honest and to give only what you can without expectation of any reciprocation. All anyone wants is to experience happiness and harmony, and we will find this once we rely on ourselves to provide our own happiness and harmony and not rely on a person, place or thing (relationship) to fulfil those needs.
Some healing affirmations for this Karmic transit include:
- When I trust myself and follow my own impulses, everyone wins
- Before I can support others, I have to learn how to nurture and support myself
- I can help others best by truly being myself
- It is ok NOT to be nice all the time
- True balance and strength comes from being fair with myself
For those born with their Sun, Moon, Ascendant, Nodes or other planets in Aries or Libra, this will have the deepest and most profound changes. Those holding the same in the other Cardinal planets (Cancer and Capricorn) will also feel the impact as these Nodes will be Squaring or in tension with those Signs. Squares often get a bad rap because yes, they are challenging, but those challenges push us to the possibility of great things in our lives if we don’t fall into a victim role or mode. In Harmony with these Nodes will be the Fire Signs of Leo and Sagittarius and the Air Signs of Gemini and Aquarius. Every Nodal Cycle brings Attributes to Develop and Tendencies to Leave Behind; this is where hidden gifts and talents can be found and make life easier. For ourselves personally, we can look back in 19 year cycles and discover how former transits in Aries/Libra have possibly played out in our lives. For me personally, I have loved deeply and lost deeply; ultimately choosing the partners that did not or could not reciprocate that love back to me and left me broken hearted. I wish to have learned this Karmic lesson so that I do not repeat this cycle this time around. Timeframes include 2004-2006, 1985-1987, 1966-1968, 1947-1949, 1928-1930, 1909-1911, and so on. Timeframes are rough approximates give or take a few months on each end. Also take into consideration the half-cycle by adding 9-10 years to these dates for a completion of the cycle.
Health Aspects of the North Node in Aries include ailments or accidents to the Head, Face, Brain, Left Eye, Hair and the Blood.
Health Aspects of the South Node in Libra include the Kidneys and Adrenals, co- rules the Bladder, Lower Back and Insulin Regulation.
For those with the Aries/Libra Nodal Axis, the above health issues could be apparent at birth or develop over the lifetime due to one’s experiences and lifestyle. There is a predisposition to issues in these areas. For the rest of us, these issues could arise or crop up during the next 18 months of this transit. Planets in our own charts will also show us the added energy in these areas of all our lives.
On a Global level the Aries North Node and Libra South Node symbolize War and Peace; the historic cycles of this transit always occur preceding and or during War Time and the seeking of Peace in the World. The North Node shows us Karmically what we are aiming for or proficient at; War. The South Node shows us where we are weak and have failed in past lives; Peace. War Time can include acts of violence, unfairness or unjustness. Some impactful historical events during the Aries North Node include:
- 2004-2006 2nd Iraqi Invasion
- 1985-1987 – 1st Iraqi Invasion
- 1966-1968 – Assassinations of MLK, RJK, JFK, Race Riots, Kent State Massacres, Civil Liberties, Vietnam War
- 1949-1950 – Korean War
- 1928-1930 – Poverty & Building tensions that lead to WWII
- 1909-1911 – The Buildup to WWI
- American Civil War and American and French Revolutions
The Nodes are like the Shadows of the relationship between the Sun and the Moon. It is within those Shadows that occurs the 18 -19 year cycle of Eclipses that are created when those Shadows draw closest to the Sun and the Moon. New Moons occur when the Sun is conjunct or right next to the Moon blocking out any light upon her surface and creating what we know as a Dark Moon. The Full Moon occurs when the Sun is exactly opposite of the Moon, therefore its light shines bright upon the surface. The Nodes are at equal distance opposite to each other at all times, when the Sun and the Moon align with the Shadows, Eclipses occur (in the most basic of explanations). The Nodes spend roughly 18 months in a given polarity and generate a theme historically and energetically; their cycle runs roughly on an 18-19 year Saros cycle which totals exactly 223 synodic months or 6585.321 days. Sounds complicated, I know, but as an Astrologer, I can look back at these cycles throughout history and gather that information, look for patterns in order to predict what the next cycle may look like, especially combined with the current Astrology. It fascinates me that I can count on historic or natural events, even personal events, to show me what may come. We think of time as linear, but when we look at the Astronomical Cycles and the events that connect them, we can clearly see how time is circular in many ways, coming back around again and again in cycles to throw lessons at us for humanity to learn, however, we do not or have not thus far and the cycles or chances to correct history continues through the Saros and synodic cycles.
In Eastern culture and Astrology, these Nodes are known as Rahu and Ketu – the Head and Tail of the Dragon, Here in the West, we also refer to them as the Head and Tail, but we think of them differently. Here in the West we liken the Head to the one we feed and the Tail is what we excrete, thus, we do not want to be feeding where we “shit” so to speak. However, in the East they feel that the Ego is the Head of the Dragon and that the Tail is the Wisdom and so they look to the South Node or the Tail for the wisdom to live by and they shun the Ego of the Head or the North Node. Conversely, in Western belief, the Tail is where we have come from and have learned our bad habits and that our fortune is where the Head is. Eastern philosophy believes similarly that we have come from the Tail (Past Life) and that is why we have that wisdom to grab from. Either way, the Tail is often looked at as a Past Life that we have previously lived and the Head or North Node is our future ahead of us and they both symbolize the Karma and Destiny in which we have lived and are yet to live.
Perfect timing for this shift with the New Moon in Cancer occurring the same day and official Venus Retrograde, giving us the opportunity to go within and truly discover how to give our hearts what it truly desires and deserves!
Be sure to check out the companion video and previous Node blogs and the Venus Retrograde blog