Nodes, you might assume, now that we know where we’re coming from, via the Moon, its dispositor, the South Node and its ruler (via sign, house position and aspects for all), we might know where we’re going. But we don’t. Not often, anyway.
The North Node is a mysterious thing. We are impelled towards it, but not compelled. We can try to ignore it (at our peril). Or it can beat us over the head on a daily basis, depending on aspects and the condition of the rest of 
the chart. The South Node is part of our definition of who we are, part of our conscious awareness. We are aware of our lives and ourselves through the focal lens of the South Node. Our interplay with life itself is determined by it. Our perceptions of the world are filtered through it. It’s so deeply integrated into our being that we have a hard time of conceiving another way of being. It’s amazing to me that we ever get to the North Node at all.
Fortunately, the Nodes work as an axis, and what stimulates one end of the Node will have repercussions on the other. Eventually, we become tired of what is familiar. We long for new experiences, new directions, a new perception. We make mistakes. We know that something is missing. When the South Node is stimulated by a transit or progression, a situation will come up, but what arises is born of our old awareness and old behaviours—and we soon learn that we need an adjustment. Sometimes our contacts with our South Node stimuli are helpful—others come in to our lives to support us, we become aware of talents or knowledge we have forgotten, we are given gifts. But sometimes, it brings us more of the same, and we simply say, ‘enough.’
And a great deal of the time, it’s our relations with others that get us to the other side of the axis. As we’ve said before, the Nodes are about the soli-lunar dynamic, and therefore reflect our relationship dynamics, even if they aren’t in relationship houses. Our Nodes are about the way our internal dynamic reflects in our external relationship to the world. Or, in simple terms, how our inside world is reflected in our outside world.
A lot of romantic wooze is written about contacts to the South Node. People with contacts to our South Node were former lovers, partners, teachers, friends and occasionally enemies. But no matter their role, our relations with them will reflect, reinforce and strengthen our South Node stance. This, in and of itself, is neither good nor bad. If someone’s Venus is conjunct our South Node, our interactions with them will be coloured by Venus’s rosy glasses. We will likely think they are just heavenly, and be able to forgive them all their faults (what faults?) because our entire encompassing awareness is wrapped up in their Venusian energy. They will see, appreciate and encourage the talents in us—talents we may only have been vaguely aware of. They will coax out the better parts of ourselves, effortlessly, through love, harmony and all things Venusian. But whether or not they further entrench us in the South Node, or whether we are motivated to use our newly-found talents and appreciation to reach towards the North Node—well, that’s up to us. Challenges will come into this relationship (as they come into all relationships) that will prick our North Nodes while they enhance our South Node. We are free to take up the challenge or not. It’s interesting that this nodal stimulation doesn’t need to happen with an actual person in our actual lives. It can happen with an author or performer or an historical figure, or even an event.
Contacts to the North Node from another’s chart are equally intense, but very different. The feeling of familiarity is not there to comfort us. In fact, that particular planetary energy from that particular person may seem quite alien. Contacts to the North Node will often be accompanied by adjustments and difficulties, and it usually isn’t an easy ride. But it often will bring something very new into our lives. To continue with the Venus example, another’s Venus on our North Node may show us ways of loving that never occurred to us before. They may appreciate us for things that seem completely strange to us. They may bring new things into our lives that we learn to love, things that expand our previously limited horizon. They may inspire us, through loving us, to be a completely different person, someone who has different reactions, different habits, different values. They will take us out of what we were. The North Node, once tapped, has that kind of power. We can become utterly changed.
As I’ve said before, we don’t so much need to leave our South Nodes as we need to open ourselves up to the opposite orientation of the North Node. It has been said that the two must be balanced, but ‘balance’ is one of those words that astrologers throw around far too glibly. (One day I intend to write a piece on astrological clichés.) As any Libra will tell you, the scales aren’t always stable. A little thing, a breeze, can tilt them this way or that. And often, especially in the beginning and when we’re young, we desperately cling to the South Node, because that’s where our safety lies. In fact, it’s rare to see people approach their North Nodes with any confidence before the second nodal return at age 37 and a bit. We spend the first Nodal cycle consolidating the South Node and the next refining, refurbishing and practicing with it. By the time we reach 37, we sense we need something new.
However, that something new is often fraught with difficulties. The second Nodal return can be a dangerous threshold. Many, many people have crises then—serious, destabilizing crises that force them to pull strength up from some unknown quarter of themselves. This is where life can take a turnabout, for better or worse. An uncle of mine developed schizophrenia at age 37—my mother only recently told me something interesting that my uncle’s psychiatrist revealed to her. He told her that age 37 was a kind of turning point in the psyche; if you make it past 37, you’re unlikely to develop this kind of serious mental trauma. He had noticed, merely from his own observation of his patients, that age 37 was a particularly intense crisis hour for the consciousness.
I have seen wonderful things happen at the nodal return, too—but they’re the kind of things that turn life around and force us to re-examine the way we relate to the world. I’ve seen people I know become famous at 37; it makes perfect sense, considering the way fame, real fame, makes you do everything differently and relate to the world in new ways, no matter how grounded you are. If something happens at a Nodal return, I always know that whatever it is will penetrate deeply into the psyche and cause a real opening in awareness, whether it’s a marriage or divorce, or success or failure in business or the arts. It will never be as simple as it seems, the way it often is with Saturn. If we move to a new town or have a child at our second nodal return, that event will affect us more deeply than we realize at the time. (Talk to people who have had a child at the Saturn return and another at the Nodal return, and you’ll see what I mean.) Events at the Saturn return and events at the Nodal return are two entirely different things, and hold different lessons for us. Saturn is about grabbing hold of life in a mature way. The Nodal crisis is about needing to alter the very fundamentals of the way we create our life through our conscious awareness.
After the second Nodal return, which comes fast on the heels of the third Jupiter return (the harbinger of our spiritual adulthood), we are often impelled to cope with issues that are not only new and (relatively) unfamiliar, but that we fear we aren’t really ready for. We want to move forward and often feel as if we must, but events may cluster around that Nodal return that leave us feeling frazzled and unsteady on our feet. Much like a toddler learning to walk, we stumble, and sometimes fall directly on our behinds.
The events that cluster around our Nodal returns are often deeply internalized—we can feel very strongly that we need to adjust our lives, our mindset, and we aren’t able. Sometimes we go scurrying off in new directions, sometimes rather desperately, and they don’t work out for us and we don’t know why. There is a lot of fear involved, the fear that we just may not cut it. This fear is often highly diffused and non-specific. We often feel that something is ‘wrong’ with our way of being, of our way of relating to the world, but we don’t know what or why. This is quite different from the Saturn return. The Saturn return can also bring fear, but the Saturn return’s emphasis is on responsibility and doing the right thing (‘doing’ being the operative word). Saturn insists that we take up the reins of our lives in a practical way, and there are often clear cut decisions to make and a clear way forward (though we might not want to take it). The Saturn return won’t allow retreat. Whereas the Nodal return is slippery. It’s often about feeling as if we aren’t living up to our own expectations; that we aren’t committed enough to our own growth. We may feel that we might as well give up, because that new orientation that’s nagging at us probably isn’t really who we are anyway (or so we tell ourselves). Our reaction to our North Node direction at this time depends a great deal on aspects to our North Node and its ruler.
A North Node ruler will always have the capacity to give us a hand and help us reach out towards what we must become, but when the North Node ruler is not so well aspected, our lessons may be much more harsh, and we may be more unwilling–we may even turn away from our own progress and process. We may choose to retreat, but the Nodal lessons will still come knocking at our door via transits and progressions, and each knock we ignore will become more fierce and more insistent the next time. The most difficult thing about the North Node direction, even if we see it, is that we often don’t understand why our way forward seems to be blocked. Often the North Node ruler operates in a way that can be completely unconscious (this can also be true for planets that conjunct the North Node, or square the Nodes). The North Node has a bit of a built-in haze around it. Our North Node rulers often point the way to our greatest blind spots and self-deceptions, as well as to the place we can best access our spiritual growth. If we have a cluster of planets on the North Node that force us into awareness, accessing our North Node will be easier, but it may not necessarily be more conscious (ask anyone with Pluto on the North Node). For most of us, our North Node energy can only be tapped into through awareness, instinct, and trial and error. The more conscious we are of where we need to be, the easier it is to get there. (The phasal relationship of the Sun and Moon has a lot to say about how we process our nodal experience). The ruler of the North Node can be a kind of guiding star, as long as we keep our eyes open and don’t get led into a ditch along the way. And always, we need to remember that there is no ‘end’ to integrating the Nodes, any more than there is an ‘end’ to spiritual discovery. The Nodes are a lifelong project.
The rewards for the struggle are many. The North Node, once accessed, holds our greatest gift—a spiritual strength and an integration of consciousness that can’t be altered or destroyed by anything in the external world. We build an indestructible bridge between our inner consciousness and our external reality, so that our mind/soul and the life we live is fully integrated. We become one with the world, no longer under the illusion of separation. In doing so, we become fully ourselves.
For the earlier parts of this series, please see: The Story of the Nodes (part 4), Once Upon a Time (part 3), An Introduction to the Nodes, The Hungry Moon and Which Way Forward?
Amazing piece, I love it! My Aries moon is exactly conjunct the NN in the 7th, conjunct DSC. I feel like I am just now understanding my NN, it definitely takes a lot of conscious effort to maintain that Aries feeling! Getting into a relationship with a guy who’s ASC conjuncts my NN/moon has been pushing, actually thrusting me in that direction.
So my NN ruler mars is a Capricorn in the 3rd house conjunct the IC and on the other side of mars, still 3rd house, also conjunct Cap neptune. Could you give me a clearer idea of what this means?
Basically, Autumn, this makes accessing your North Node energy much more difficult. You’re lucky that your Mars is a Cap, because Mars is very strong and happy in Capricorn. Cap likes to do things, to achieve, and Mars helps get it done. However, having your North Node ruler conjunct Neptune always makes the way forward a bit foggier, with a necessity to turn to the higher ground of spiritual expression and inspiration in order to get anywhere. And often, things that are conjunct the IC are so deeply a part of our psychic make-up that we can’t sort out what they are intellectually–we access them through feeling. Your third house positions should help you there. You might want to turn to the house Pisces rules for guidance,in your NN expression and your relationship.
Hmm, Pisces rules the 6th house, service to others/health…transitting NN is on my Mars right now too, I’m sure that accounts for all the interest and insight I am currently experiencing with the NN:-)
When my progressed Sun was exactly conjunct my Libra North Node almost to the minute, my then live-in boyfriend of 3 years broke up with me. Of course there was more going on – my Mars, my SN ruler, was getting an exact opposition/square from Pluto/Saturn. It devastated me, but was ultimately a relief – he never let me be myself and I felt shrunken. (I was 35.) My current boyfriend has Jupiter on my North Node and his Sun widely conjunct my South Node. It’s so easy to be myself with him, and the stretch to be in a relationship is nicely supported by that Jupiter on my NN.
Still thinking about this post – very thought-provoking, as witnessed by all your commenters!
I commented about the most significant partnership in my life (maybe until now) breaking up when my progressed Sun was exactly on my NN because it seems like an awfully unusual thing to happen with that aspect! I only just discovered this recently (it was 17+ years ago). As you noted, it’s not about abandoning your SN, but expanding to incorporate the NN. I’ve also read one astrologer noting that with Aries/Libra nodes, the person may go overboard in one direction or the other (SN or NN) or may flip flop between them, when what they need is to find a balance of both. Not knowing how to do NN in Libra, I may have overcompensated in that relationship, giving up all of my independence and sense of self. So when my progressed Sun hit my NN, it blew up and I needed to go back and reclaim my SN before I could come to relationship (Libra NN) from a strong sense of self (Aries SN).
I actually never related to the descriptions of having SN in Aries, because I never felt that strong and confident. Maybe it was my mother’s nodal reversal to mine constantly attacking my need to be myself, including need for solitude sometimes to restore myself.
Anyway, any thoughts on this?
I think it’s kind of amusing that everyone here who has commented on this article has Aries/Libra Nodes. Since the Nodes are all about how we relate, it makes sense that Aries/Libra Nodes can take the brunt of it.
However, it’s possible to be out of balance with any signs on the nodes. It depends a lot on the condition of the nodal rulers. I really can’t stress enough how important they are, and how you can tell a lot about nodal balance from the weight they’re given in the chart and how they’re aspected. With some charts, you would look at the South Node in Aries and if it’s strongly aspected (or conjunct an angle, or in the first house; see below) you might think that this Mars is a little Arian, a bit wilfull. But it could also be that Mars was not tapped into or utilized properly–it wasn’t relating from a point of equality, which is what Libra is asking for. Aries SN indicates that Mars needs an adjustment–it’s going overboard in one way or another and isn’t functioning properly. In order to relate from equality, you need your Mars, your strength. This is why interpreting the nodes isn’t so simple, and why I teach a class in it. You can’t just say, oh, Aries, too selfish, too much about “me.” It doesn’t work that way. I’m just trying to provide an outline with this article. There isn’t really room for all the detail that must be considered before a judgment is made.
And yes, people whose Nodes ‘flip’ ours are our partners in discovery. Those are very significant contacts.
what would be the effect of having nodal rulers in apsect to the angles ?
in my chart – Mars in Leo – the ruler of a 6 th house Aries NN sits on the Midhaven – while Venus – the SN ruler – conjuncts the Ascendent from the 12 th house side. Mars overwhelmed things ( in particular the IC) for many years . it seems that nodal work also takes me into a reworking and a renewal of the angles.
When a nodal ruler is conjunct an angle, it dominates, and it highlights that angle to a great degree. It makes sense–the ‘guide’ that is the nodal ruler gets strong access to material reality via the angles. Your conscious development becomes directly entwined with the overt circumstances of your life. (Usually we approach the Nodes in a very oblique way.) When a planetary energy has access to an angle, it’s just there for us, things come to us via that planet that are easily grasped–perhaps too easily. When the ruler is conjunct an angle, the development of that Node just flows, because external life is feeding it. It’s no surprise that it was so easy for you to fall away from your South Node, with its ruler buried away in the 12th (even though it’s conjunct an angle, it’s power would have worked in 12th house ways). I didn’t mention this, but we can fall away from our South Nodes as well, under circumstances like these. Then the process of the Nodes becomes one of reclaiming, as well as readjusting. When an active planet like Mars is the nodal ruler and conjunct an angle, it’s easy for him to lead us down blind alleyways, which is one of the ways the North Node ruler can mislead us and set traps for us. Also, when Aries/Libra are the Nodes, the Nodes can be split down sexual lines, with men embracing their Mars Node and women embracing the Venus end more easily. The angles always work in tandem–if one side is ‘heavy’ with planetary activity, eventually the imbalance will lead to an awareness of the opposing side of the angle.
Hi Dawn – My North Node is in Libra in the 2nd, South Node in Aries in the 8th. During my first Saturn return, with tr Saturn conjunct tr Uranus, and tr Jupiter conjunct my 8th house South Node, I read a book called “Love and Limerence” that changed my life. Prior to that, my relationships had been all-consuming, intensely passionate and very limited – generally we had nothing in common beyond our mutual attraction. I was more comfortable acting out the Mars end of the Aries/Libra axis, maybe because my natal Mars is close to the MC (?).
I met my husband right after I’d finished reading the book, and I immediately recognized something different in the quality of our interaction, and in him. He was the first person I ever dated whose personal planets joined mine in my packed 2nd house, home to my Libra North Node/Venus/Sun conjunction. There was something about him that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. He was different. I was attracted to him, yet I wasn’t obsessed, and I had a genuine affection for him; we liked the same books, art, music, and we shared similar ideas about God and spirituality. I enjoyed his company and the longer I knew him the more our mutual affection grew. And shockingly, I was able to maintain a relationship with him and still function independently out in the world. I also liked that he didn’t idealize me.
After reading your post, I looked to see what was happening during my Nodal return, and sure enough, it was when my husband and I became engaged; his proposal surprised me (we’d already lived together for many years) and brought up all sorts of old issues regarding what I really wanted. In the end, I decided that much of what had drawn me to my old form of relationships was illusionary and not at all reflective of the person I was becoming. My husband is the first and only person I’ve ever known who really gets me and who seems to love me wholeheartedly, and vice versa. His presence in my life has actually enhanced my functioning in the world. Of course, our relationship has had its fair share of challenges, but on the whole, we’ve grown closer over these last 20+ years and I’m grateful.
This was a great post. It was very revealing to look back and discover how the transits to my Nodes affected my relationship choices. The comments were interesting as well. Thanks
Yes, Mars close to the MC gives it power. Mars likes being up there. It would make it much easier for you to grasp the Mars end of the stick.
Thanks for sharing this, because this is a good illustration of the way the Nodes, and these Nodes in particular, can work.
Hi Dawn, I’m going to add to the slew of personal north node questions if you don’t mind because I’ve found my nodal axes to be at the center of my consciousness but also a source of conflict and confusion for me. Perhaps you can shed some light if you don’t mind, or help me make some semblance from all this.
My NN is at 0 Aries, in the 12th but 1 degree away from my 1 Aries ASC.
My NN ruler, Mars is in the 7th at 0 Scorpio. It exactly quincunxes my NN.
My SN’s ruler, Venus, forms an exact conjunction to my Uranus in the 9th, but very close to my MC.
I feel a lot of conflicted energy and it might explain my issues surrounding relationships that I feel like this grand cross is setting off!
One is, how do you interpret an NN that is in the 12th but conjunct the ASC? Especially when in Aries?The 12th seems very behind the scenes to me, but at a critical degree of Aries with an ASC that is also in an Aries critical degree?
Secondly, my SN is Libra, conjunct my DSC although still in the 6th house, and my NN ruler is in the 7th. Again, this seems kind of confusing and counterintuitive to me?
I don’t want to say much about how this has manifested for me, unless of course you’d like me to, because I’m hoping that if you have the time/energy to share your thoughts you might see something I haven’t.
Anyway, either way, thanks so much for the post, given the grand cross coming up (tomorrow!) its been an especially satisfying read!
I’m going to try and consolidate your info and give you an overview, because with something complicated like this I would need to look at the whole chart, and it would take me half a day to explain the process in writing. So forgive me if I just boil it down to a few points.
Your nodal axis conjunct the Ascendant is pointing you towards individuation and self-actualization. Having the North Node in the 12th, so close to the Ascendant, means that some karma from the 12th house needs to be cleaned up before you can do that. You have Pisces on or in the 12th, so Neptune is involved in some way. (Make sure your birth time is absolutely accurate–the degree on the Asc moves every four minutes.) Mars inconjunct the Nodes means that you need to learn to integrate that Mars energy before you can move forward–things will occur in your life that will force you to take a look at how you’re using Mars, particularly in relationships. Mars in Scorpio points to issues with sexuality, but it can also revolve around the balance of power. You won’t get your North Node going until this is resolved. (Also, look at Pluto.) Having the SN in the sixth, conjunct the Desc, also means that something needs to be put in order (the sixth house is a Virgo house) and sorted out. Having this SN ruler conjunct Uranus and the MC makes me think that the independent face you show the world is not the whole story, but the passionate and very attached Mars is forced to take a back seat. There are a few scenarios Venus/Uranus can play here, but I wouldn’t be able to know what they are without looking at the whole chart. Let’s just say that being detached and freedom loving –in fact, keeping a distance from what you love (aside from the occasional obsession) is easier than relating in a genuine, intimate way. You need to get in touch with your true way of expressing yourself, both independently and within intimate relationships.
With all this angle activity going on, you need to pay attention to the I.C. and it’s ruler. It will most likely provide you with the missing link. Our I.C. is where our true power lies, where we are grounded, and all this planetary activity around the other angles may be causing you to neglect your emotional core.
Dawn, thanks so much for taking the time to consider this for me. I had a feeling you’d be pretty spot on and you are! I can’t say I have the best understanding of my NN (but I guess that would make sense right considering how comfortable I am with my SN, huh?) but I can say that you’re totally totally right about the conflicts I have with it and about my SN. Its interesting you mention the IC, I would have never thought to look there. My Chiron is down there but otherwise my MC and is pretty packed and I have nothing else below the ASC/DSC axes so I always end up ignoring it. Even my IC ruler is up in the 10th. Anyway, as soon as I can I’d love to email you about a reading like I just saw you’ve posted, your insights are really quite amazingly on point! Thanks so much again for taking the time. Always a pleasure to read your thoughts.
If your Chiron is on your IC, it makes it doubly important that you address the IC and its issues. Angles that are heavily weighted on one end usually have problems with the ‘neglected’ end of the angle. It can be complicated sorting this out, and yes, I would have to look at your whole chart to get the real picture.
Dawn, an amazing post and so much to think about. I was interested in your reply to sb2487 as there are similarities to my case. If I can somehow explain:
NN in Scorpio in 12th, 20 mins from Asc and conjunct Uranus in 12th.
SN in Taurus, conjunct Dsc and Jupiter in 7th.
Pluto singleton in Libra in 11th trine Venus, sextile Mars
Venus in Gemini in 8th heavily aspected inc all outer planets, sextile Mars.
Mars in Leo in 9th square node axis.
IC ruler is Uranus.
The pattern seems strangely balanced, but the IC sends me back to the 12th house and karmic issues related to Pluto? Is Mars a positive outlet and good balancing point for the node axis?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
The most important factor out of this whole list is that you’ve got Mars squaring Nodes which are conjunct the Asc/Desc. This tells me that you have not properly integrated Mars and must come to terms with Mars issues in this life. (Mars in Leo can be too ‘me’ oriented, but it can also mean that your creative energy was thwarted.) This includes incorporating your desires in a healthy way, including your sexuality. Mars in the 9th strives to take the higher ground, and here is asking you to gain a perspective on relationships (Mars is the co-ruler of Scorpio, and is also Pluto’s agent in the world.) The heavily aspected Gemini Venus in 8th ruling the Taurus SN also tells me that you must undergo a rethinking of what it is you actually want and value so that you can merge with others in a more emotionally honest fashion. You may have Uranian issues about abandonment and detachment that are also preventing you from being yourself. Your nodes are asking you to gain some perspective on how you relate to others; don’t cling to past patterns, and avoid using your uniqueness as a mask to hide your true self behind.
Dawn, thanks for your really informative reply. Lots to think about. I had already wondered about my Mars as I don’t like displays of Arian will, but my Mars always has a difficult time as I also have Saturn in Leo – very self-critical.
Whenever we have a planet square the nodes, it’s vital that we re-orient that planet. Either the Leo Mars was too willful previously or, as I suspect, with Saturn there as well, that many of your best instincts were thwarted with ‘shoulds’ and ‘oughts’. It’s impossible to tell without a full natal reading, because houses and rulerships are also involved.
Uranus is about to start transiting through my 5th house, maybe that will help. Thanks Dawn.
Hello Dawn,
Just found your site and this very interesting series on the nodes. It’s making a few things much clearer, and also raises questions! If you ever have time to comment, I’m curious about what you think happens when SN ruler and NN ruler are conjunct and involved in major aspect pattern.
(I have SN at 1’49” Gemini in the 12th with Mercury in Aries at 7’31”, NN at 1’49” Sag in the 6th with Jupiter in Aries (11th) at 5’02”. That conjunction is opposed Pluto in the 5th at 7’36” and square Saturn in the first at 12’31” Cancer. Nodal axis is exactly square MC/IC axis (1’54” Pisces/Virgo) with Mars in Aquarius (27’33”) conjunct the MC from the 9th.)
It seems that the nodes are much more important in understanding my chart than I previously realized!
Thank you again for this though-provoking series,
Best regards,
Noemie
Hi, Noemie–Yes, the Nodes are certainly an important part of the chart, especially when the North and South rulers are conjunct. This is too complicated a configuration to get into here, but when the south and north rulers are conjunct it points to unfinished past life business which must be cleared in this life. There also can be blockages to understanding what the real issues are. The 12th and 6th opposition is about learning to balance the mundane and the divine–often it’s about finding a vocation that uses one’s natural talents. It would take a deeper look to understand what the Nodes are trying to tell you.
Hi Dawn, I hope you might have some thoughts on the following. I have a NN Cancer in 1st house, Gemini Asc. Similar to the previous post I have the nodal rulers conjunct- Moon and Saturn in Aquarius the 8th house. Jupiter in 9th(/10th) 2 degrees from MC. MC/IC axis and Jupiter square the nodal axis. Jupiter is also at the axis of a yod (with Pluto in 3rd house/Neptune in 5th house).
How do you think Jupiter works in the square to this nodal axis? Following on from your info above I guess it also implies unfinished past life business in the 9th? -I have in the past travelled a lot and immersed myself in other cultures avoiding the 8th house intimacy, and avoiding family issues too.
I am puzzled by the rulers being conjunct – NN ruler conjunct Saturn seems harsh, SN ruler conjunct Moon seems a little kinder and easier. ?
I do identify with the general story around the Cancer NN 1st house and the Capricorn SN 7th house. I’ve experienced a big shift from being in a relationship with heavy responsibilities and toughness to being independent with more emotional awareness.
Also it feels relevant to say, my Sun is Scorpio in 4th house, it feels like a link or a good forward direction to the Moon and the NN.
It’s a complicated configuration I think, or so it feels. I hesitated ‘commenting’ as it may not fit this format but I’d be grateful for your thoughts.
A great in-depth and stimulating read anyway. Thank you.
That’s an awful lot of information and you would need a proper chart reading to interpret it, particularly because rulerships would explain a lot. But a few clues to help you interpret this configuration: 1) Figure out what the eighth house means to you. It has to do with opening up to intimacy and true sharing, and knowing what we bring to the table of life. Obviously, in this life, the 8th house attitude needs adjustment. 2) The square from the MC/IC axis (which has also to do with the Moon and Saturn) is a clue to figuring out the 8th house issues. Remember that both the Nodes and the Angles need balance in expression. 3) The seventh house is not only about intimate partnerships, it also has to do with our attitude to ‘other’–to whoever is out there that we need to work with on a one to one basis.
Hope this helps.
Thanks for the clues, you’ve given me lots to think about. 8th house issues of several types have confronted me in the past few years and it is due to the imbalance of both of those axes(now there’s a slip!). Its not as easy as moving from one angle to the other, its the integration, (this might be esp. true with my rulers conjunct).
I have NN transiting my DC soon which is why I’d read your articles, I’m curious about that. And your comment on balancing the angles reminded me that Saturn is transiting my IC too, seems appropriate.
thanks Dawn
i’ve met, and resisted for years now, a man whose north node in Capricorn conjuncts my Cancer south node (opposing n.nodes – any comments?? seems like we could help each other), which also holds my Capricorn moon. verrrry deep connection that’s stimulated a lot of growth for me – mostly to get away from him as he’s a clone of my first b.f.; i feel drained by him, no reciprocity. besides being geminis we didnt share much (his moons aries) and i couldnt understand it til i got into these nodes. THANK YOU!
Lovely article. I guess I am finding out more and more about the timing of things. The North Node return. Around 37, I started to reflect on the direction I really wanted to go – and what model to take me there.
Crisis did ensue – as discussed in another article – and I felt that I had to delay my want of a plan to handle that crisis as best I could.
NN in Capricorn does reflect me. I am ambitious probably beyond my capabilities to date. But that will either work out or I need to get back to my truest calling – and will see.
I hope you’ll write more on the site. Know you are busy!
Happy Holidays!
Thank you, Jason. There will be more available on The Inner Wheel soon.
Hi again Dawn,
I am hooked on your articles. It is long past bed time at my time zone…but glued to the computer. Wondering why I didn’t explore your site more in the past…:(. Reading on Nodal rulers, just made a new discovery on the couple with the soulmate synastry under study(www.eastwestastrology.blogspot.com) Couldn’t resist the urge to share what i found with you.
His NN ruler Saturn is in the sign of her NN ruler (Aries)
Her SN ruler Venus is in the sign of his SN ruler (Leo)
His Saturn and her Venus TRINE EXACTLY in synastry.
AND
Her SN ruler Venus and his SN are in the same sign (Leo)
His SN ruler Sun and her NN are in the same sign of (Sco)
Her Venus and His sun SQUARE EXACTLY in synastry.
You will also see that both sign SETS are owned by Mars and Sun. His Mars is EXACTLY on her Sun/Moon midpoint while her Sun is EXACTLY on his AC/MC midpoint.
(Mirroring again) Isn’t that taking it to spooky heights…?….:)
I like Marion am staying up way past my bedtime. Thank you Dawn for sharing your wisdom and knowledge with us.
I found it so interesting your comments on the age of 37. I am 37 and this has been a hard year. At the same time as my nodal return, pluto is transiting my ascendant and saturn is conjuncting my midheaven then my sun.
Good times. I have a slight tendancy towards hypochondia and hearing about the crisis at 37, and reading other info about the crisis of Pluto crossing the ascendant in Capricorm, I worry about things falling a part especially my body.
So insightful to think about the rulers of the nodes and how they are aspected. Saturn will soon be crossing my north node in the 10th. It all seems very intense like i am being forced to change, I am doing mostly ok with it. But fear an even bigger health crisis on the horizon if I do not change my relationship to my work, which is very physically intensive. The ruler of my 1st house is in my 7th. Wondering how my relationship to other plays into this dynamic?
Having north node(scorpio) in the 10th feels like there is something calling me to bring my career or life purpose more out into the world and for that to sustain me. But I feel stuck in my south node in taurus mode of working too hard and exausting myself, or feeling lazy and caught up in the pleasurable aspects of life. So in this, not moving out of my comfort zone of doing work that feels safe and somewhat rewarding, but that my body is really burnt out on. (I do bodywork) Also feeling as though I am not activating the potential of my 10th house by staying in a job that is hurting me, and that I am often times bored with. Feeling unsure of what the direction I need to go to create work in the world that is connected to my life purpose and is supporting me financially.
My venus (ruler of my south node) is square to my sag moon in the 12th. Thank you for suggesting to look there for clues on how to activate and remove blocks to embodying the NN.
I have found it so interesting that all the men I am attracted to recently have very strong aspects to my moon/venus.
On another note, I have uranus conjunct mercury on the MC in Scorpio. I had never thought of needing to balance the IC.
How does one go about balancing the angles if one end is heavy with planets?
Do you do chart readings?
It’s hard work if one end is heavy, because we naturally gravitate toward the planetary energy. You need to look at the opposite end, and the condition of it’s sign and ruler, to find balance. Often there is a sense of emptiness surrounding that house/angle. That something is missed, some key element of the personality. We need honesty to do this level of work. Transits and progressions help with the balancing act.
I give both natal and synastry readings. Email me at alcuin9@gmail.com.
Hi Dawn,
As a nodal person myself, I love your articles. I’ve got North Node in Cap in 4th, South node in Cancer in 10th, conjunct Saturn & MC. Then a stellium in Libra all in early Cardinal degrees. Whew! When I turned 37 – the nodal return was brutal. I am 40 now and fascinated at the impact of the Nodes and the attraction og folks to these axis points over and over and over.
I am curious to know what the meaning is of having the Nodes flipped (Cap in 4th, Cancer in 10th with Saturn in South.) Does that have a balancing effect? Saturn conjunct the node (and MC) in the 10th can be tough sometimes. It is hard to break ruts for sure and I really do not ever get away from responsibility in this life no matter what I do – ha ha! Either direction I go, Saturn is there…boy!
Luckily I have been able to balance my career (mix of business and home/real estate things.) Not so sure how it affects my romantic life. I am curious what it means to attract folks to my South node & Saturn. Can it ever be good or should be both run for the hills? ;}
And per the other person’s comment below, does that mean I should balance with more emphasis on my DESC? (That is the only unaspected part of the Cardinal Cross pattern in my chart.)
Having the Nodes flipped will give you a hand in balancing the polarities–remember that we want balance between the Nodes, not linear growth away from the South Node. Saturn in the 10th will also give you a boost, it’s where Saturn belongs. It won’t be easy (the Nodes never are) but the chart is giving you a helping hand.
Contacts to the South Node often bring people into our lives who help us to either 1) discover our latent gifts and abilities or 2) help us figure out where or how we screwed up our South Node. The South Node is not always complete within itself–sometimes it needs work, too. Aspects to the Sn and its ruler will tell you what is needed.
Hi, I really enjoyed this piece on the nodes. I have known the common interpretation of my pisces/12th north node for some time, but never tried to analyze Neptune’s relationship to that story. My Neptune is in my 9th house but only 3 degrees from my MC which is conjunct my moon. If I think what kind of blockage this could mean– it seems to be something like my life calling seems illusory, or my place (fitting in and finding a role) in the world has been always in question (not to say most people don’t have this feeling often).
Since my south node is in virgo/the 6th with my sun and mercury, the dualism between worldly”work” (job) and ethereal spirituality has seemed apparent to me as I continually analyze my life. Also it is a bit difficult to separate the 6th and the 10th/MC, in the sense that they both revolve, in my mind, around work and career (these are different, but are hard for me to separate). My point– I know this is cloudy– is that it is hard for me to understand how my MC could be the key to the future, while the 6th could be the past. Thank you so much for any insights and sorry for the long post!
Hi Tony–The key to your Nodes is understanding the ‘work’ quarters of the chart, which encompass the opposition between the 4th and the 10th and the opposition between the 12th and the 6th. The 10th house is about our status in the world, our position (unfortunately, in this culture, we are defined by the work that we do). But when you have the Nodes in the 6th and the 12th, one of your jobs is to find a vocation in life–not just any work, but work that you find satisfying in a spiritual sense. It doesn’t have to be grand, it just has to be the right work for you, allowing you to process your life experience and gain deeper understanding and compassion. In essence, you have to reform and transform that idea that the sixth house is mundane, and begin to understand that so-called ‘ordinary’ life is actually divine.
Hi Dawn, thank you for your amazing articles! What is the significance of nodal axes squaring each other in synastry? There’s nothing about this anywhere. Someone who had a profound effect on me has his Aries NN exactly square to my Cancer NN. Also, his Scorpio Mars exactly squares my MC/IC.
Hi Diana–Yes, Nodes crossing one another are highly significant in synastry. Think of it this way–when the transiting Nodes cross the natal nodes, we reach a crossroads in life, we are stimulated to move forward into the North Node and to enrich and balance both ends of the nodal axis. When another person’s Nodes cross ours, they provide this stimulation on a continual basis.
Dear Dawn,
I’m stunned by your article very insightful thank you for making astrology easy to understand.
What you wrote is my story, I will be 54 this year, I moved to another country and got married had children by 38. Marriage only lasted for 4 years followed by mental illness, at the same time I ceased everything to raise my kids, since last year my life purpose beginning to unfold. For long time trying to find definition on my nodes. The 12th house clearing past unfinished business still. Being in solitary and detached from my family since age 17 ,parents passed, lost and struggled with unknown disability trying to decide on finding a right career.
Nodes 13 Virgo – Pisces in cusp of 8th Mercury rx conjunct Neptune 10 Scorpio in 9th house Jupiter 3Cap ruled by Saturn 13 Capricorn in 12th.
Now that im older and so called wiser I am going back to finish my what I stopped many years ago. That Virgo pluto is stuck to my NN in progressed chart and the Pluto transit going over my progressed Sun ,mercury, Jupiter and Saturn all in 12th. Pluto is our root and ancestors he is also rules both nodes, I believe he is there for the last push. During the time I became single parent my progressed Mars was traveling backwards in Cancer from 18 to now 6 degree opposite all the Capricorn planets , Mars is going out of orbs with them now so I think I can handle it but I hope I’m making the right choice this time.
This is not about nodes but regarding your other article I just have to share I have a close orb Moon28 Uranas 25 leo opposite 27 chiron Aquarius indeed was a painful death of my mother at age 18. This pain never ends but I found a way to live with as I became a mother. My AC is Aquarius but not sure of degree its between 2 to 12 degree?
Thank you again for your insightful articles.
Hello Dawn
hope to receive some help on this !
in synastry, do you see anything different about nodal ruler conjunct the other’s nodes vs just planets conjunct the other’s nodes?
i have seen a lot of SN ruler on the other’s SN and also NN ruler on the other’s NN. That sounds nice.. Familiar past.. Same journey ahead.
But a guy I am seeing – My Moon in 29.53 Saggi is on his NN at 29.39 Saggi. (My chart has Cancer Asc + SN) Anything interesting dynamic in this I should watch out ? 😐 . Like him moving forward makes me move back..umm?
(btw he has a lot of harsh aspects to his own natal moon.. And I was wondering does this provoke in anyway his own moon issues? I have never seen something like this- Moon conjunct Saturn, oppose Chiron, square Pluto..within few degrees.)
Thanks
I have to say that I read these posts with great interest and the importance of the node rulers started making a lot of sense to me as they play a great role in my chart.To be precise I have SN-NN in Cancer-Capricorn(8th house-2nd house) and then there is a tight T-square which involves a Moon(SN ruler)-Pluto(governor of the chart) oppositon on the ASC-DSC angular houses tighty squaring Saturn(NN ruler) which falls right on the IC(with a Ceres,Lilith and Saturn conjuction there).Although I feel their dymanics tearing me apart sometimes,in fact I feel like two beasts fighting furiosly,I have to admit that I am very confused with Saturn on the IC.Because,according to my understanding,this Saturn-IC conjunction square Moon is intensely heavy but it also indicates a rough access to both ends of the spectrum(nodes).But what scares me is the missing fourth leg of Leo-MC which is required to evolve in order to bring balance on the overall chart.And there is no planet near the MC,although there is Jupiter in the 10th house Virgo squaring the MC ruler Sun(8th house) which is conjoined with Venus(7th house) and Mercury(8th house) in Gemini.But I still don’t find this connection enough.It’s just that sometimes I feel that there is great dynamic there,from different directions and that the only way they are communicating is through fighting,while the other option is coldness and conscious oblivion of each other.
hallo dawn! i am just at this crucial point of nodal return (NN 6.15 libra, in 4th), and…it really has got me in the corner. i have a feeling that a lot of it is connected with my mars, being in cancer (1st), retrog, and o.o.b. .. No, its not in square to my nodal axis, but is in a wide (8 degr) square to my pluto (also libra,4th,10 degr from nn). Venus is in pisces, in 9th. Although mars in first, i am not the typical martian type. Το others i appear much independent and self-reliant (at least for a woman), (and i try to be independent and self-reliant), but also i seem and (most important) i feel, lonely and increasingly disconnected. Could you please try to give me some clue? (maybe difficulties bound because also trans.pluto is on my dsc, and trans.neptune on my venus). Thank you for all your thought-provoking work.
Sorry, but you need a whole reading to answer the questions you are asking.
Dawn: I’m currently in the midst of a mad, wild binge on your website. It’s been amazingly helpful in my current pursuit of growth and healing (currently, my progressed asc is making its way past Pluto, and my progressed sun is on the verge of entering Aries in a month or so).
I know this thread is a little ‘over,’ but I’m stuck on a, well, sticking point, so I figure “what the hey, may as well put it out there, right?” So with that, here’s my little nodal bugaboo:
NN is at 29 degrees in Leo. Leo, but in the 12th house, which is a little confusing already.
But then, my SN (obviously, at 29 degrees in Aquarius, 6th house), conjuncts my sun – which means, of course, that the ruler of my NN is opposing my NN.
To further confuse matters, my sun itself is actually in the *5th* house, which is ruled by the sun, at 25 degrees in Aquarius.
Thus, my whole pursuit-of-growth quest has currently derailed into a bit of a nasty, mind-bendy möbius strip. Dawn … what on earth could it all *mean*??!! 🙂
Thanks a bunch in advance. I appreciate you reading.
P.S. In case these aspects shed any light:
– Uranus (3rd house, Scorpio) squares both nodes
– sun trines Pluto (2nd) and mc, but quincunxes this little bit of nastiness:
– both Lilith and retrograde Saturn conjunct my asc (and each other … all opposing Venus, yay!)
Whoops! Forgot: asc is 23 degrees Virgo. Possibly relevant Mercury connections:
– MC is in Gemini (and would be at the pointy end of both a kite and a yod, if angles could do that – I guess we could call it a would-be kite/yod?).
– Mercury is in the 6th at 11 degrees Pisces, conjunct Pallas and opposing a conjunction of retrograde Mars and retrograde Jupiter in the 12th (which are at 7 and 12 degrees in Virgo, respectively – a little too wide to call a NN conjunction, yes?).
Sorry, last thing, promise! (Is my Virgo asc/6th house SN showing? :/): The anchor point for my non-kite-non-yod is Neptune (sigh, I know, I know …), in an airtight conjunction to my IC at 22 degrees Sagittarius.
(Last piece I may as well toss in, in case it’s helpful: Moon (balsamic, obv) is at 22 degrees Capricorn, 4th house …
Oh, and that retro Jupiter is at ten degrees, not 12 – it was a typo earlier. Sorry, now I’m just going Virgo mad … Time to stop!!! I apologize for what might be an excessive amount of detail regarding a question that only concerns one planet – the sun – with respect to my nodes. Feel free to skim anything that makes your eyes cross. The only real question I have is, how the heck might one make sense of that kind of planet-depositor-ruler-NN-SN feedback loop involving my sun?)
I’m sorry, but if you’ve been on this site for any length of time, you’ll know I don’t comment on lists of aspects. If you can form a question that can also be of help to others, I will answer it.
I’m astounded at your comment of 37 being very common for developing severe mental trauma! At the start of 37 i was the happiest i’d ever been – high achieving, doing something i was passionate about, strong in myself, and in the best relationships of my life…..At my nodal return, i lost everything unexpectedly – my house & possessions, millions in assets, my reputation, the great lover, lots of friends, got arrested. I very nearly died from the trauma….. Got diagnosed with PTSD & chronic reactive depression, was extremely suicidal, broke my pelvis & couldn’t walk for 6 months & developed weird anaphylactic shock reaction to food….. So within 6 months went from happiest i’d ever been, to the most traumatised. However being so ill gave me lots of time to study astrology, & has made me passionately dedicated to kicking large holes in the status quo 🙂 I used to think i could use mainstream business to achieve my goals. Now i feel no choice but to be a radical reformist, given what i’ve experienced of the mainstream business culture. I have natal North node in 11th Scorpio, conjunct Uranus. I also have natal moon conjunct M.C & my natal M.C closely aspected by all three outer planets 🙂