DRACONIC ASTROLOGY - A legacy from an ancient past -- Patrizia Trotta
Tracing the origins of Draconic Astrology would be a very difficult task; all we really know about it is that it was used in ancient Babylonian astrology and that it seems to have a "spiritual flavour", so much so that Edgar Cayce himself used it in his readings, in the sense that when given people's birth details, he very often described (under hypnosis as usual) their characteristics as seen from the draconic level of their astrological charts, rather than the more commonly used tropical. Somehow, Draconic Astrology seems to describe the "soul personality", bypassing the more usual physical and psychological levels of reading a chart. This does not mean that Draconic Astrology is not suitable for practical purposes - astrologers using it will soon find that it adds a lot to consultations, as it describes people's inner nature so well. How do we interpret draconic charts? Is this nodal zodiac different? Not really. In fact, because it seems to describe motivation from the soul level, it tends to express the higher principles of signs/aspects/houses, which, being purer, are easier to interpret.
This interesting and increasingly popular branch of astrology uses a zodiac beginning at the Moon's North Node (Nodal Zodiac), which is treated as 0° Aries. The meanings of signs, aspects and houses do not really change - as stated above, their principles are simply expressed in a clearer way. Just to get to the point, what is the meaning of a draconic chart? There are various theories, but to name a few:
1) Some people say that the draconic level of an individual's chart shows what he/she has done in previous incarnations
2) According to some theories, it is supposed to show people's soul qualities
3) Some astrologers feel that it shows the ideal to be reached by the Higher Self during the present incarnation
4) For some others, it shows the "soul blueprint" and the Higher Self's intentions for the present incarnation
One thing is certain - if we compare the tropical and draconic levels in a horoscope, we will find that certain life-themes will be indicated with great clarity. The links between the two levels (especially conjunctions and oppositions) are likely to represent what the Higher Self has in store for us by simply indicating what the soul should focus on to learn as much as possible and evolve during the present incarnation.
Interestingly, the "windows" Draconic Astrology opens on other (subtler) dimensions of our being, reflect the multidimensionality many of us are beginning to claim as our "real Selves". In this way, Draconic Astrology potentially complements the more common Tropical Astrology exquisitely well, giving clues to our Higher Self and its guidance. Placing draconic positions around the more common Tropical birth planets in a bi-wheel chart will clearly show connections and links between these levels, the most powerful being the conjunctions and the oppositions, particularly to the angles. In my opinion, what is particularly interesting to note for practical purposes are draconic Sun, Moon and Ascendant placements, which seem to give clues to the quality of a person's emotional body, his/her "hidden self".
What is an emotional body? If we accept the principle that we have an "energy component", according to our "subtle anatomy", we are made up of physical, emotional, mental and spiritual bodies. The spiritual body is the one that vibrates faster, feeding all the other "layers" of our being. If we objectively observe the progress of the human race in the past century, we will clearly see that we have evolved considerably on a physical and mental level - we tend to live longer and more comfortably, and technology advancements themselves witness to what extent we have progressed mentally and intellectually (mostly to the detriment of our emotions). But, however important and encouraging this progress is, sadly an imbalance has been created, and we have unquestionably been left with a seriously underdeveloped emotional body which needs a lot of healing.
As our emotional body tends to be unconscious and neglected, it vibrates at a rather slow frequency, seemingly being addicted to unproductive emotions such as fear, anger, worry, etc. Unfortunately, we cannot really say that rapture and bliss are part of our everyday emotional scenarios, plus the difficulties we face in life on a day-to-day basis seem to conspire against developing our emotions to a higher level. As many teachers have been telling us in so many ways, constant exposure to our own spiritual energies from the Higher Self via meditation, deep breathing, crystals, herbal remedies, or whatever other method one chooses to adopt, will eventually result in a natural evolution of our emotional body, and therefore of ourselves. I would argue that logically, if it is true that we are unquestionably heading towards perfection anyway, perhaps an attitude of playfulness, simply listening to our inner voice before making any decision and learning to trust our inner guidance, could be very good ways to speed up our evolution, after all. While we certainly do need more positive role models, perhaps relying on other people, leaders or teachers, is becoming less relevant and necessary, so it seems to me that what we really need for the 21st century is to embrace our own power and become all that we can be by awakening our fearless self. In short, to evolve our emotional body and survive on our planet we will have to learn to vibrate faster and thus embrace our multidimensionality.
As more and more people awaken to their multidimensionality, the "new astrologers" are likely to have an important part to play in the healing of emotions on a global scale, and Draconic Astrology might just be what we need to help people (and ourselves) heal their emotions and regain their power by integrating their unconscious, multidimensional, Cosmic Self. In this article, by using the charts of two well-known people, I'd like to show how a simple application of this method can help the astrologer understand the dynamics of the Nodal zodiac and its potential.
Before we begin, a brief explanation of how to calculate Draconic positions is in order: all you need to do is to subtract the longitude of your North Node from each planet's and angle's longitude. The easiest way is to convert all positions to ABSOLUTE LONGITUDE first, which is their position in the 360° circle (i.e. 0° Aries=0° ; 0° Taurus=30° ; 0° Gemini=60° etc. In this way, for example, natal Sun at 10° 30' Taurus will become 40° 30' in absolute longitude and natal Moon at 25° 15' Scorpio will translate as 235° 15' in absolute longitude). Of course, a computer program will calculate your Draconic chart in no time - doing it by hand is just a bit more lengthy, but not really difficult.
Once you have your draconic positions, write them (in a different colour maybe) round your natal chart (if you have a computer program, you might like to use a bi-wheel chart) and note any Draco planets on natal angles, and any powerful aspects formed to natal planets. Almost always, important life themes will become evident. It would also be wise to pay particular attention to the signs (and natal houses) that draconic Sun, Moon and Ascendant occupy, as they are usually very revealing and indicate hidden/unconscious talents or tendencies, as well as important areas of growth in this lifetime. As the clearest explanations can only be found in practical examples, let us now analyse very briefly two charts of well-known people.
PRINCESS DIANA
Details: dr.Venus conjunct Asc.; dr. MC conjunct Venus; dr.Mercury/Sun conjunct Jupiter; dr.Jupiter conjunct Mars/Pluto; dr.Saturn conjunct North Node/Mars; dr.Asc. conjunct Sun, opposition Saturn; dr.Sun in Aquarius in the 2nd house; dr.Moon in Virgo in the 9th house; dr. Asc. in Cancer.
If you observe her natal/draconic charts in a bi-wheel format, you will find that Lady Diana's draco Venus is very prominent, obviously indicating that both loving and relating (Venusian energies) were very important for her soul growth (in her case also doing so publicly). It was one of the areas she had to teach and learn about. Draco Mercury conjunct Jupiter shows how important broadening her own and other people's horizons was. Draco Sun on Jupiter emphasises her love of sports and freedom, as well as her philosophical and philanthropic nature, also well described by dr. Moon in the 9th house. Dr. Asc. conjunct Sun in the 7th might indicate that sharing her own life with the world was necessary for her own growth, too. I find draconic Jupiter conjunct Mars very interesting, as it indicates freedom of action, learning the importance of asserting herself and how to do so effectively (lessons concerning her 'will' are clearly indicated in the Tropical chart as well). Draco Saturn on her North Node/Mars and dr. Asc. opposition Saturn (limitations and restructuring of her energy and public behaviour) seem particularly revealing, in view of the fact that she had to bear many restrictions to her precious freedom in her royal role. It is public knowledge that through all her personal suffering she learned a lot, and accepted the responsibility of sharing what she had learned with the world. Her interest in humanitarian causes is well described by her Draco Sun in Aquarius in the 2nd house, and her eating disorders are indicated by her Cancerian sensitivity mixed with a draconic Moon in Virgo (=psychosomatic ailments), which also describes her wish to be of service. She will certainly be remembered for what she taught the world about love and caring (Venus and Cancer), as well as for her own personal suffering (Saturn), through which she raised people's awareness and showed the importance of personal freedom (Jupiter).
EDGAR CAYCE
Details: dr.Chiron conjunct MC/Pluto; dr.Uranus opposition North Node, Mercury, Saturn, Venus; dr.Asc. opposition North Node, Mercury, Saturn, Venus; dr. Mercury, Saturn, Venus conjunct Sun; dr. Sun in Aries in the 9th house; dr.Moon in Gemini in the 10th house; dr. Ascendant in Virgo
Interestingly, this very well known psychic known as "the sleeping prophet" had a pioneering role to play (see draconic planets in Aries in the 8th and 9th houses) and was a great teacher of metaphysical realities (dr. Sun in the 9th and Chiron on the MC). Draconic Uranus/Asc. opposition his 7th house stellium in Pisces emphasise how powerful Uranian energies were in his life and in his work with people. As we know, Uranus stands for psychic abilities, innovative tendencies and breaking new ground. Interestingly, he was sometimes plagued by a terrible temper, which bothered him more than anybody else, as he was usually a quiet man - don't the prominent Uranus and the draco planets in Aries "account" for it really well? Draco Moon in Gemini in the 10th really shows how important communication was to his career and personal life. This is confirmed by draco Mercury, conjunct Sun. Draconic Saturn/Venus are also conjunct his natal Sun, indicating that both discipline and love were necessary for his life work and soul growth. In view of what we know about him, is it surprising to find the placement of his draconic Asc. in Virgo, the sign of service?
The above examples were only meant to give ideas and to offer guidelines as to possible uses of Draconic Astrology. I truly hope that you will be encouraged to explore this wonderful legacy from the ancient past to learn more about your own life purpose. It is my belief that Draconic Astrology is coming back on the scenes with perfect timing to help all of us become all that we can be and embrace our Cosmic heritage.
ó Patrizia Trotta (Mailing address: Via Gradisca 18/d, 21100 - VARESE , Italy ;
E-mail: )
CHARTS DATA:
Princess Diana = July 01, 1961 7:45 p.m. GMD Sandringham, England (0E30' 52N50')
Edgar Cayce = March 18, 1877 3:03 p.m. CST Hopkinsville, KY (87W29'19" 36N51'56")
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