The Nodes
The Nodes are most known for their association with karma and past lives. The Nodes connection to life purpose has been a popular translation too. However for those who do not believe in past lives this presents them with an area in astrology that they may cast aside and ignore. While the Nodes do have plenty of spiritual and abstract connections they also have more practical associations that don’t have to fit into a metaphysical realm. Let’s take a look at all the different ways the Nodes can be looked at.
What Exactly are the Nodes?
“The North and South Nodes indicate points in the zodiac where the plane of the Moon’s orbit intersects the plane of the ecliptic (a great circle on the celestial sphere representing the sun's apparent path during the year, so called because lunar and solar eclipses can occur only when the moon crosses it).” - Deborah Houlding. Because of this the Nodes can seem very abstract. They aren’t planets like Venus, Sun, or in astrology, the Moon. The North and South Node are opposite points in space. The Nodes move slowly backwards through the zodiac signs, as the Moon makes its journey around the earth, crossing the annual path of the Sun. The intersection points are the nodes.
Karma and Past Lives
“The North Node, the life path. The North Node is what must be done to fulfil the soul’s purpose. It is the life path, destiny or dharma. The South Node is the gateway to the past. The South Node symbolizes all that has gone before.” - Judy Hall. When talking about Karma or past lives I can’t skip over “The Moon Dragon”, to read more about this myth and its connection to the Nodes visit astro.com. For those who do not prescribe to beliefs about karma or past lives I suggest taking in this same information and applying it to earlier life and later life or connecting it back to life purpose. Another way to look at this is within some definitions of “shadow work”. Take this first part of the article I linked to for example:
“The engagement with the dragon is an allegory for the times in the individuation process when we wrestle with unsavory sides of the self, parts that we deny or keep secret but that have an uncanny knack for showing up anyway. Jungians call it the shadow, the Freudians’ nickname is the id; no matter what we call it, we prefer it to be unnamed. Whatever its name, the dragon struggle is a psychological truth and one that the ancients continuously scripted into their mythic epics.”
The South Node can be viewed as bad habits and challenges to leave behind without having to dig into a past life puzzle. The North Node can be looked at as opportunities to expand, discover, improve, and learn within one’s life.
Comfort Zone and The Unknown
Beyond life purpose and karmic lessons are other associations with the Nodes. The North Node can be looked at as places within yourself and within your life that are unknown and outside your comfort zone. The South Node can be viewed as what you are used to, your comfort zone, your programming. The South Node can actually show initial strengths - positive or strengths that we are comfortable with. It can show survival and habits. BUT there are plenty of flaws and weaknesses that we can easily get stuck in and find hard to change or move beyond that are connected to the South Node. The South Node can be about stagnation and what does not serve us. In most metaphors whether highly abstract and spiritual or practical and tangible - the South Node is looked at as a place to move away from. But the South Node is not bad. And at some points in life we may retreat to the comforts of the South Node to heal or to learn.
The North Node can indicate potential, strengths that one must learn and practice, it represents a journey forward, evolving or enlightenment, growth but also fear, anxiety, and discomfort that must be faced to grow.
Decisions and Direction
“The Hubers describe the North Node as being rather like a compass needle in its ability to find the right way to improve our character. If we are going through periods of confusion in life, the Node and its House positioning give the direction of the way ahead. In a sense, the meaning of the occupied House is the meaning of the Node, and this House will usually provide the right source of the next step that is important for this individual.” - The Cosmic Egg Timer
While this ties back into life purpose, it is important to remember that “purpose” is all about what decisions we make and the direction we take. The Nodes can provide guidance on this and in a way fit into predictive astrology. The Nodes can also give clues to challenges one may face in life towards breaking out of their comfort zone and challenges about growth towards success and fulfillment. It shows what decisions you may make because of your initial reaction to things and decisions that might be hard for you to make because they are unfamiliar.
It’s About the Journey
I’ve noticed many people approach the North Node with grandioseness and many times forget about the South Node altogether. They work off each other and can only exist if the other does. While one’s life purpose should be grand to you personally whether it be to help others or maybe to learn how to deal with change, but I think many are looking for something very concrete and specific and sometimes I’ve noticed many people approach the North Node with their ego or as if it is meant to show an area of self importance in the world.
And YOU ARE IMPORTANT! But be careful of letting the ego take control because the Nodes ARE NOT where the ego hangs out, at least in terms of the negative side of our ego like selfishness and arrogance.
While the North Node can give you themes and clues about your “purpose” know that life is not always linear and even in older text or when many well-established astrologers talk about the Nodes it is referenced as a cycle or that it is all about the journey of growth rather than where that growth takes you.
