A Natal Chart Reading? In THIS Economy?!
On self-knowledge as a bridge to love
What’s the point of getting a natal chart reading? The world is falling apart, we may all be doomed, and prices are high. So why on EARTH would someone look to the stars for answers?!
Well, as is the way with such things, you certainly do not have to, gentle reader. No one could fault you for identifying your own priorities, your own way of navigating through life’s terrain. And admittedly, scanning the heavens for answers can seem futile in the face of systemic issues and (seemingly) intractable problems.
I’ve always been drawn to practical solutions that embrace rather than deny the existence of magic. For me, magic is a foundational part of life that includes the spiritual, the scientific, and everything in between. And we do best when we combine the lower case truths of daily life with the upper case Truth of Something Larger Than Our Ability to Perceive.
Astrology threads that needle for me because it allows for both self-knowledge (natal chart readings) and cosmic pattern analysis (mundane astrology). An astrological reading of your birth chart will touch on every area of your life (the 12 houses) all the major psychological drivers (the celestial bodies) and the various polarities that shape us (the 12 signs).
So, can astrology save the world? Definitely not. But people who use astrology can. Self-knowledge begins a process of self-trust that blooms into self-love. And a bunch of empowered beings who love themselves and through that transformation are able to lay down notions of scarcity, violence and separation can absolutely define a path forward that lifts all of us up. No exceptions.
A personal anecdote: When I first began to explore astrology, I was skeptical and in a state of deep self-loathing. OCD, undiagnosed neurospice and an ever-evolving list of physical ailments consumed my perspective, and made life a living hell. When I discovered that I was a Cancer sun, and then not only that, but a Cancer MC, I was so angry I cried. All I wanted to break out of the cycle of hopelessness I felt trapped in was to be powerful, financially abundant and FREE.
And here was this system of star maps telling me that my core nature was one of caretaking and nurturing. The Mother, in a world that reviles the feminine. Not only didn’t I feel like a nurturing presence to myself, but I was struggling to become one with my young son. Being a mom felt like a series of daily failures in a high stakes environment, and yet I am to believe that providing a container of safety and belonging are among my gifts, and that I am to express them out into the world. What a joke.
It would be years of working with astrology, tracking my patterns, relating my journal entries and struggles to these guiding lights before I could sink my teeth in deeply and love this reflection of my spirits full potential. I hung around because other parts of my chart revealed aspects of myself I’d hidden or repressed so deeply that reading about them was like reading my diary written by someone else’s hand.
And yet that journey of self-acceptance taught me so much. With all my self-hatred and denial, of course my very core would seem vile and useless. And now, when clients come in and they tell me that they completely don’t resonate with a piece of their chart, I understand and deeply empathize. And perhaps that part of their chart was their own repression, or its overshadowed by another piece of their chart, or the energy is there in ways they never thought to explore.
Natal chart readings, after all, aren’t just a dive under the hood of who you are – they are also a zen koan, a poem, a writing prompt for your soul. Your response to them is as much a part of the reading as the information itself. And having explored hated, repressed and misunderstood parts of myself in great detail, I feel well equipped to help others do the same.
And knowing yourself isn’t a destination. It’s an ever evolving journey – which the skies well know. There’s secondary progressed charts for deepening your understanding of who you are today with all your lived wisdom, solar return charts for getting instructions for the year ahead, and then of course the ever changing night sky, which is having a constantly shifting conversation with all your charts. Astrology does not trap you into a type and then tell you to stay there. Astrology embraces cycles, change and dynamism. Just as we are asked to do, if we’re to create love and beauty in the path ahead.
I would recommend a natal chart reading to anyone who enjoys patterns and archetypes. Who loves stories and myths and understands the truths they imbue. For anyone who feels disconnected from their power and unclear on who they are when no one is looking. And my place in all that? Well I am the nurturer, the loving container, the mother who cherishes all of you, not just the societally acceptable bits. It is the great pleasure of my existence to walk hand in hand with people who feel scared, alone and in need of comfort.
I am a Cancer, after all.
