I remember being really thrilled when I first discovered my north node was in Leo. Surely this meant that I was destined to be a Queen, or a famous actor, or something else spectacularly Leonine. Based on what I had read up until that point I figured this was certain to happen. I had learned that the north node represented the soul’s destiny in this life and surely a Leo north node wouldn’t settle for anything less than absolute superstardom.
I am a big fan of Joseph Campbell, the great mythologist who, among other things, defined the “Hero’s Journey” upon which many a great novel and movie has been based. And one of my favourite Joseph Campbell quotes is this:
“Follow your bliss, and the Universe will open doors for you when there were only walls.”If there has ever been a symbolic definition of the north node, Joseph Campbell articulated it in this timeless quote. Following your bliss, which is encapsulated in the energies of your north node, will ensure your alignment with Divine Intelligence, and you’ll suddenly see doors opening for you where previously you only saw walls.
Remember, the nodal axis represents the soul’s journey in this life. These mathematical points represent the places in your chart, and in your life, where are closest to the Divine Source and most clearly aligned with the purpose of your incarnation from that Source. Once you begin to view the rest of your chart, and indeed the rest of your life, through the lens of the north node in particular, you will be well and truly on track to living your true purpose in this life.
Make no mistake though, your north node can be much harder to pin down than your south. Remember your south node represents everything that is familiar and when you encounter either people, situations or things that align with your south node energy you will get the feeling of being greeted by an old friend. Information that comes to you through your south node feels more like remembering than learning. When you encounter people associated with your south node it is more a sense of recognition than meeting them for the first time. As for the skills and abilities you bring with you, these are the things you can ‘turn your hand to’ from an early age rather than things you struggle over time to master.
The north node in contrast represents information that really interests you, lights your fire or ‘rings your bell’. Your north node people are those that you feel drawn to for no good reason, particularly those who do not seem to fit with the type you are usually attracted to. And the skills or abilities that resonate with your north node are those that you feel almost compelled to master, no matter how long it may take.
Sometimes you will stumble upon north node energies by accident. You will meet a person and see fireworks. You’ll find a book, topic or subject area and feel a tingle or just intuitively know that this is important for you. It may be the first time a future chef enters a kitchen, an actor steps onto a stage, or a painter picks up his brush. There is often an electric charge that accompanies this knowing, but I have equally encountered people who have just said that they feel an overwhelming sense of happiness when they hit on their north nodes by accident.
One major indicator of connection with the energy of the north node is the phenomenon of ‘losing time’. I have spoken briefly about Kairos time, which loosely translated means “god’s time” as opposed to Chronos time which is “clock time”. When you are engaged in activities that magnetise with the energies of your north node you will feel a sense of timelessness and it is quite common that you lose all track of time, and not realise it until an alarm goes off, the sun goes down or someone arrives to jolt you back into chronos time.
There are of course many ways for you to discover your life purpose, or your true bliss in this life. For me though, the great value of astrology is that the connection with your point of bliss is laid out for you in black and white. And once you hit upon that point you will be instantly aligned with your true life purpose. This point is indicated by the sign and house placement of your north node, and becomes more individualised as you investigate the planetary ruler of the node, aspects to your node and other planets or points located in any sign at the same degree as the node.
I truly believe that if you view the nodal axis as the heart of your chart, and the north node as your Point of Bliss, then recalibrate your life around this central point, all your other planets and placements will begin to function in the way it was intended they would when you incarnated. And that is as the vehicles through which the soul expresses its purpose in your own life.
I will be going into greater detail regarding the sign and house placements as the indicators of your Point of Bliss, but for now it’s worthwhile considering the following when interpreting the north node in your chart:
- First look at the sign and house placement of your north node.
- Then consider the sign and house placement of the node’s ruler* and what aspects it is making in your chart.
- Note any planets conjunct the north node within five degrees, and what houses they rule in your chart.
- Note the degree of your north node and then look for any other planets or points in the chart placed at the same degree, irrespective of the sign.
- Note any planets or points that form aspects to the north node.
- The sign and house of your north node placement: this of course is
directly opposite the south node sign and house. Unlike interpreting a
planet in a house, where the planet represents the “what”, the sign in
which it is placed the “how” and the house as the “where”, I have found
that the energies of the sign and house where the north node is placed
tend to merge. I will write more on this in subsequent posts but for the
moment it is an excellent idea to start writing down keywords for both
the sign and house placement of the north node and begin merging and
blending them to see how they align you with your Point of Bliss.
- The importance of the node’s ruler cannot be understated. This
planet, above all others will be a leading vehicle in how the soul’s
journey manifests in this life. The sign and house placement and the
aspects to this planet will be strong indicators of where the life
purpose is most likely to be played out in your physical life. Most
astrologers will tell you that the soul purpose is lived out in the
house where the north node is located, however this rule has failed me
more times than I can count. Look to the ruler of the node to see where
and how the life purpose manifests in your life.
- Any planets or points conjunct the north node are also strong
indicators of where the life purpose and Point of Bliss will manifest in
your life. They are also the planets that will give added dimension to
your soul’s journey. These planets will colour and influence the
workings of the north node however depending on how aware you are, the
energies of these planets may be a bit latent. The soul has selected
them conjunct the north node for a reason – it’s imperative that you
develop them in this lifetime. But their presence conjunct the north
node, and therefore opposite the south node indicates that these
energies have been projected outward in past lives, ie, not ‘owned’ and
worked with. These planets more than any other may be the most
unfamiliar but their placement shows that their development is super
important in this life.
- The degree of your node is important for many reasons. If you’re
interested in numerology it’s worth looking at this number for added
guidance to your purpose, however from the astrological perspective,
this number operates like a power number in your chart and your life.
Any other planet or point at the same degree in any sign will be making
an exact aspect to the north node and this is extremely important. The
planet or point and your node are inextricably linked and the nature of
the aspect will determine the nature of this link. My north node sits at
18 degrees Leo, so 18 is the critical degree. I was born on the 18th of
the month, my ascendant is 18 degrees Capricorn and my Mars sits right
on my ascendant in the same degree. They form a quincunx or inconjunct
aspect back to my node and this behaves like an eternal balancing act. I
know that if I sit squarely in my Mars and Ascendant that I can be
forceful, motivated and get things done, but doing so without the
balance of my north node or Point of Bliss I end up with a bunch of
empty achievements that bring me no satisfaction or real success. My
Mars/Ascendant in quinciunx to my north node operates like two people on
either end of a see saw – when one hops off the other one drops to the
ground and doesn’t move. However if both ends are weighted, there is
balance, co-operation and fluidity of movement.
- Any planets or points that aspect the north node will form a complete pattern by also aspecting the south node in some way. These planetary patterns form an integral part of the soul’s journey, and once again the ease of the aspects denotes the ease of integration or the type of obstacles you are likely to encounter on your soul’s journey.
* The ruling planets of each sign are as follows:
Aries = Mars
Taurus = Venus
Gemini = Mercury
Cancer = Moon
Leo = Sun
Virgo = Mercury
Libra = Venus
Scorpio = Pluto
Sagittarius = Jupiter
Capricorn = Saturn
Aquarius = Uranus
Pisces = Neptune