Bit of Background...
I started studying astrology in the year 2000 after continually noticing how accurate sun signs seemed to be in describing people I knew in my life. I was in med school and thought, "this could be helpful in understanding patients..." Not too many students in allopathic (traditional western MD) med schools are studying astrology. But I am not like most students. I was also studying Ayurveda, meditation, yoga, herbalism, Chinese Medicine, energy medicine, art therapy, shamanism, and basically every holistic thing or indigenous method of healing I came across. I am an anthropologist at heart. I love exploring different bodies of wisdom and ways of living...
So, I dove into astrology and never came up! I've been studying it for almost 20 years now and working as a professional astrologer for 10. One of my favorite things to do with astrology is MANIFEST SOME MAGIC! â¨Astrology is by itself a pretty magical thing. It helps you see how connected everything is... Once you realize how much useful information is available in the patterns of the chart, it is truly mind-blowing. It feels like magic! But it's really quite technical. Astrology is a grand system of patterns and symbolism. But, because of its magical associations, some people are still scared of astrologers!! (I guess they haven't heard that magic is cool.) That is not really too rational, but it's a deeply rooted fear that I imagine started in the middle ages and still remains in fragments... Astrology is not even "magic" in the way some people think. It's COSMIC information that codes our lives! đŤ
One of the first things you need to do when getting started with astrology is get your birth chart done. Ideally, you would do this with a professional astrologer, but if you absolutely cannot afford that and are ready to be an amazingly dedicated student, then you possibly can learn a few useful things on your own. Websites like astro.com have tools you can use to cast your own chart for free. They do not analyze them, however. That's where the astrologer comes in...or your hard work.
To understand what kind of MAGIC you are here on this planet to MANIFEST, you want to look at your sun sign, the location of your sun sign, your north node, the location of your north node, and the position and sign of Jupiter. Really, every detail in the chart is important and gives further information about the purpose and gifts (as well as challenges) of your life ... The rising sign, the moon, Venus, Mars, Saturn, Uranus, Pluto. All of it matters and gives ever more intricate detail. But I have found Jupiter (and in some cases, Venus and/or Neptune) to be especially strong when magical synchronicities happen.
The sign and position of your sun tells you what your core energy is about... It gives you strong indications of your driving force (which the sun is for our solar system) in this life. If your sun is in Scorpio, like mine, then your driving force is passion and transformation. If it is in the 8th house (location), then that is even more true because those are themes of that area of the chart. If it is in the 6th house, then those forces of passion and transformation will be blended with and into the energy of service, duty, honor, purity, work, & routine--Virgo themes associated with the 6th house. If your sun is located in the 5th house, which mine is, then you will have more emphasis on fun, play, drama (for good and bad!), exploring, self-expression, creativity, LOVE, and children--Leo themes.
These "locational" themes are important overlays on your sun sign. It's one reason you really need your birth time to use astrology to its fullest potential. So, combining the sun sign with the location of the sun will tell you quite a bit with what your soul is wanting to explore in this life. Add to that the sign and position/location of the north node (destiny line), and you've got a great sense for the themes that are really important to your Spirit. For me, my n. node is also in my 5th house in Scorpio, so there is some consistency there. My sun and my north node are both in the same sign and same house location. Thus, my energy has double the drive towards creativity, self-expression, love, and exploring. Scorpio also is passionate about mysterious and esoteric things, so exploring tarot, astrology, ancient cultures, etc. definitely really resonates and is aligned. (Hello!)
Now, for Jupiter... The position and sign of Jupiter tells us where the expansive, positive, adventurous energy of this planet will be active in your life...This planet often brings blessings, so if it is prominent in your chart, you may be an "easy manifestor" (We've all met those, right?? They are often found teaching other people how to manifest because it comes naturally to them.) This is especially true if Venus is well-placed in the chart. (Venus, too, is associated with blessings, among other good things...) So, find your Jupiter. See where it is, if it is direct or retrograde (marked with an R), what sign it is in, and how close it is to other things. If it's next to your sun or on the ascendant line, congratulations: you are a natural manifestor (but you already knew that!). A professional astrologer would also look for the angular connections it makes to other planets. This is more detail than an absolute beginner usually wants to manage for themselves, so don't worry about that for now.
Jupiter moves pretty slowly, so it will be in the same sign for everyone born within about a 1 year period. The sign of Jupiter gives everyone born in the same year a certain energetic "tone" to them. The north node is also in the same sign for a year and half. That, too, creates a certain energy for your "classmates" that differs from those the year above or below you. So, right now, for example, Jupiter is in the sign of Sagittarius. This is its "home sign"--the sign it "rules". All signs have planets that are considered to rule their energy, a detail that gives important nuance to astrological readings but may be beyond what you need to be thinking about right now. Just know that Jupiter's energy is very similar to the energy of Sagittarius, so when these two are together, you have a clear energetic picture of spiritual expansion, exploration, teaching, travel, movement, and (to some degree) freedom ... all Sag themes.
If Jupiter is in Libra in your chart, then you may have more emphasis on themes related to beauty, justice, balance, relationships, and harmony--all Libra themes. If Jupiter is in the 1st house, then blessings usually abound. If Jupiter is in the 12th, then spiritual development is high, but the energy is less easily accessible for manifesting (because the 12th house is a kind of "hidden" area of the chart). So, find the sign and location of your Jupiter and read up on that online or in a book. Blend that information with the location of your sun and north node and you have some pretty great orienting information for what your most natural life strengths and direction could be... where you could most ease-fully manifest some blessings and magic. Factor in the position and sign of Venus and moon for even more detail.
I'll give an example, if your north node and sun is located in the 6th house and your Jupiter is located in the 9th house, then there is a decent chance that you have very career- or work-oriented (6th house) "magic" that also involves teaching, travel, and higher learning (maybe an advanced degree)(9th house + Jupiter themes). There could be emphasis on health or healing (6th house issues), pets/animals (also 6th house themes), or being of service in a variety of organizational settings (working for a nonprofit, school, or variety of companies). If your Jupiter is located in the 3rd house, there's a good chance that speaking or writing is where you might focus your energy for some magic.
If your Jupiter is in the 10th, then you will likely want to incorporate teaching (a Jupiter theme), maybe even teaching along spiritual lines, into your career and public image (10th house theme). I have Jupiter in my 10th house, by the way, which is why I designed an astrology apprenticeship and a holistic medicine mentorship. I also teach at med schools, I teach workshops, and I lead women's groups. I teach my patients. I love to teach. It is an area of magic for me. I love to be creative (5th house), self-expressive (5th house), explore things (5th house), and TEACH. And I usually see my biggest blessings and am able to generate the best, most magical energy in those areas, too.
Now, to take this a step further, you really would want to have a professional astrologer's help. I just want you to be inspired by this little intro into the magic and fun astrology offers. It definitely doesn't stop anywhere near here. In fact, it's a bottomless abyss, from what I can tell. There is always more to learn--more nuance, more detail you can research or explore about every single little thing in the chart--birth chart or predictive charts. If you start tapping into the current movement of the planets and compare that to your birth positions, that's how the timing of MAGIC, miracles, blessings, and manifesting can be shown. If Jupiter in the SKY (currently in Sagittarius at 17 degrees retrograde) is aligning with any of your BIRTH planets, then there is a chance some positive event or blessing (or magic or ability to manifest something) is happening. There's a portal open đ! Take it!!
Anyone that has planets in Sagittarius is potentially in such a window. This is true for the birth chart or another chart called the "progressed chart", which you'd need an astrologer to do... Jupiter right now has been aligned with my progressed sun in the 6th house (work), so it has been a positive few months for me, work-wise. Some things have aligned, I've felt inspired, I've felt forward momentum. I've been teaching a lot. I've been launching a few things, including this blog! I've harnessed that energy to move towards some of my dreams. I wouldn't say every little thing I've wished for has happened. That's not really the way it works! But if you understand the energies a little and start to realize when the time is right for different kinds of action, then you are starting to understand how astrology can be used for MAGIC in your life!!
Another example is if someone has Jupiter moving through their first house (Sag risings would have this right now), then this is a REALLY good time to get out into the public eye a bit more. Step it up on social media. Write a blog, circulate a post to a bigger blog, launch a program, start a business, write a book, etc. This is a peak time...when the light is shining on you (and you may be more comfortable with it)!! I started my first blog the last time Jupiter transited my first house (happens once every 12 years, btw). It was a poetry blog. Pretty vulnerable for me at the time, but I felt ready to share some of my creativity and my adventures more publicly. I grew the blog over the following year and really enjoyed the self-expression. Wrote many poems. Never in my life have I written so many poems. It was really cool! I consider that time a favorable phase of personal development for sure.
There is so much I could say about Jupiter... I could probably write a book! Maybe I will... For now, I just wanted to give you a tiny little introduction to how manifesting and magic really are energies that involve astrology, whether we realize and use it or not. If things you wish for do manifest, then most likely a favorable astrologic alignment was present (even if you didn't know it or consciously use it). If things you wish for aren't manifesting, then yes there may be some kind of energetic or psychological block, but it could also be that the stars (and planets) are not in appropriate alignment for that thing or event to happen. All of this is perfect (though disappointing, sometimes) because the stars orient and organize our soul's progress through each life. They help regulate our growth and learning... What happens and when it happens is all part of that. If we need certain lessons and growth before we are ready to meet our life partner, then we can do all the "lists of traits" and rituals we want to try to bring him or her into our lives, but if the timing isn't right or that isn't part of our destiny in this life, then it cannot manifest. (The ritual fails.) It's a bit sad, yes, but I find so much peace in knowing that there is some kind of organizing force, higher principal at work in what happens.
I'm not sure that every single detail in our lives is set by the stars or the chart, by the way. It is hard to read a chart with that level of precision, even with 20 years experience. I see the chart as an outline of THEMES (or karmic objectives) that a soul needed or wanted to work with. Certain events that suit these themes will be likely to happen. There may be higher and lower octaves of those themes that could manifest, depending on our karma and how fast we progress in a life. In the end, the Mystery prevails. We still cannot know everything about our future or our potential. Maybe if we understood how to analyze every detail of the chart with exquisite precision, we may be able to predict every thing, but thus far I have not met anyone at that level of mastery. Still, astrology is the most amazing tool I've found to give a bit of structure to the otherwise completely open Mystery. (Tarot also offers incredibly interesting texture to the structure astrology provides.) It has proven itself useful for many years now, and it seems to be only getting better with time.
Hope this little post has inspired you to dive deeper into the mystical world of astrology! A good intro book is The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need by Joanna Woolfolk. It is not true (that it's the only book you need) if you go on to become a serious student, but it is still a great introduction. There are many great beginner astrology books though. This is just the one I used. Look what happened to me....
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Your destiny awaits...