In a number of articles in this space, we have been taken through what the Moon represents in our charts (See The Mystery of Solar Fire (part two), The Marriage of Sun and Moon , and the articles on the way the Moon and Saturn partner in synastry). The Moon is the symbol of our consciousness, the repository of all of our experience and the emotional, psychological and spiritual resonance of that experience. The Moon is an echo of where we have been, what we are familiar with, the sum of our being, the totality of our incarnation.

But there is a mistaken notion that the Moon is complete, an absolute. We are what we are. But in reality, the are that we are is evolving minute by minute. The Sun creates and consolidates experience, and the Moon processes that experience as we go on living day by day.

I always thought it was a bit of a mystery, the way the Moon indicates our needs. If the Moon is what we are/have been, why would it hunger? What does the Moon want? A state of neediness, by definition, indicates that we are incomplete.

The Moon represents our material existence. Once born, we are separate beings. Our consciousness appears to be separated from everything around it. The act of being born into material existence appears to sever our connection with the All. It is hungry for its spiritual wholeness, its spiritual completion, which it will seek in this incarnation via the path of the Sun. The Nodes signify our journey towards completion, our one important step forward in this life.

We can’t begin to analyze the Nodes without first looking at the positioning of the Moon and the Sun. The Moon is our summing of what we are, the Sun indicates how we will move forward, and the Nodes tell us the road we must follow. The phasal stage of the Sun and Moon needs to be noted here, as well as sign and house placement. A first quarter Moon will react differently to the Nodal urging than a third quarter Moon, who has been around the block a bit and already knows the landscape. A full Moon may have more of a tug between Nodes, and may have particular difficulty moving forward, as the lunar draw is contrary to the Sun’s actions. A balsamic Moon is finishing up it’s journey, and may end up with a ‘last chance’ mentality as far as the nodes are concerned, going to any lengths to make sure its path to consciousness is developed and its lessons are learned.

Any planet contacting the Moon natally will colour the Nodal experience, particularly conjunctions, which will make their presence felt. They will give us an indication of what type of energy and experience has influenced spiritual development in the past and will influence it in this lifetime. The outer planets can be a particularly strong influence, but any planet can show us the theme of the developing awareness. Uranus/Moon will cause radical change and sudden loss leading us to higher Mind. With Jupiter/Moon, the Nodes will be prompted by the Moon’s inbuilt tendency to go beyond boundaries. Mars/Moon’s awareness may be stimulated by sexual issues, or by experiences regarding desire. The planet will play an important role in Nodal development, and the house it rules can define the types of crises that will nudge the Moon forward in its understanding. Anything that affects the planet will also affect the Moon. Transits or progressions of that planet will raise the awareness of that planet’s role in developing the Nodal themes.

The dispositor of the Moon, in particular, gives us a notion of where the developing lunar consciousness can best be put to its purpose. This is where we need to use what we learn. The house the Moon’s dispositor resides in plays an important role. It defines an area where we can directly focus our development. A Moon in Pisces with Neptune in the 7th house will develop its Nodal wisdom in its relation to others, whereas one with Neptune in the 5th will have the impetus to examine its methods of self-expression. The dispositor and its house best describes the arena where the Nodal gifts and lacks will be challenged, and are the indicators of the way the lunar energy processes its new experiences. For example, I may have the North Node in Sag in the third house and the South Node in Gemini in the 9th. The challenge is to learn to communicate my own truth from direct experience, and not be unduly swayed by others’ beliefs or opinions. My Pisces Moon is already inclined to take on the feelings of others, making the movement to the North Node a bit more difficult. If my Neptune is in the 7th house, this challenge is best met by learning to speak my truth to those I am closely involved with. If Neptune is in the 5th, I will have to find a creative means of self-expression as an outlet, and may find that following my own truth in an artistic sense is a difficult thing.

We will get into illustrations and examples further along in the series. The most important thing to remember now is that in order to get a full understanding of where someone is going in this life and what they need to take away from it, the Nodes cannot really be understood without that symbol of consciousness itself, the Moon, and any and all things that affect it. I like to think of the Moon as the soul of the chart, with the Nodes as its arms reaching out to embrace, experience, and understand life, in all its horror and its glory.

For the next part of this series, click here.

Please read the article “The Nodes: An Introduction“