Lunar North Node Moves into Virgo

By November 12th the North Node of the Moon will have entered the sign of Virgo until May of 2017.  That’s 18 months.  What does this mean and does it have personal meaning for you?  Before I attempt to answer those questions, I direct you to the diagram which shows clearly the path formed by the Moon’s orbit of our Earth which is simultaneously orbiting around the Sun.  The ascending and descending points where the Moon crosses our ecliptic plane are called the Lunar Nodes and they move counterclockwise and complete a full rotation every 18 years.  Solar and Lunar Eclipses occur within a close range to these nodal paths  thus emphasizing the signs in which the Lunar Nodes inhabit.

The North Node is traditionally called ‘The Dragon’s Head’ because it is the point of ascent closest to our North Pole.  The South Node is traditionally called ‘The Dragon’s Tail’ because it is the point of descent closest to our South Pole.  Both Nodes are always 180 degrees apart.  This analogy implies that the head of the Dragon/North Node is where we gain nourishment and take in those experiences implied by the sign and placement of that point.  The tail of the Dragon/South Node is considered excrement and where it is important to release whatever the sign and placement imply.

Most astrologers agree that you take in and gain at the North Node and that the South Node can become your achilles heel if you spend too much time there without enough effort at the North Node.  The South Node is often called the path of least resistance.  Many astrologers assign karmic meaning to the natal placements of these nodes.  Transiting Nodes impact every living being on the planet, but most books written on the subject address the natal placements of these Nodes.  Mundane astrology directs its attention more to the Eclipses as they occur along the path of the Nodes.

Generally speaking, we now need to focus on the sign of Virgo for the next 18 months and determine to what degree it will emphasize themes in our own lives.  I believe it will produce some major themes in the collective as well.

The Mutable Dilemma will only increase for us all.  I refer you to a recent article I wrote on just that theme entitled The Mutable Dilemma Return…  Jupiter is in Virgo expanding upon the meaning of this sign.  Opposite we have Neptune, Chiron, and now the South Node in Pisces, and in the squaring sign of Sagittarius we have Saturn.

Where is the right place to put one’s emphasis?  I suggest it to be Virgo!  Saturn  in Sagittarius may object, Neptune and Chiron in Pisces may openly weep, but let’s see how Virgo can be of extreme usefulness in the months ahead.  Virgo says “I can.  I can do this.  I can take care of this.”

Better yet, Virgo says “Just do it!”  Get the job done.  Do the work.  Put your money where your mouth is.  Of course the overwhelming problems and obstacles seem daunting in life especially now that we have climate change to deal with, endless wars to worry about, sweeping tides of the dispossessed to try to help, the ugly sides of racism rearing their heads again, violence, mayhem, and money woes at every turn.  The list seems to get longer every day.

 But Virgo just keeps plugging away and doesn’t yield to false hopes nor  anxious pessimism.  Virgo is where we build confidence by clearly defining our goals and objectives one step at a time.  Virgo is where we develop the ability to discriminate between what is truly worthy of our sympathy and what is just a fantasy.  In Virgo we can make critical judgments without being swayed by our emotions as we discriminate between what will work and what won’t.  Virgo doesn’t avoid things by escaping into lala land through daydreams or substance abuse.  Virgo likes to improve through good diet and good health practices.  Virgo likes to raise the bar of efficiency in all work places and bring order out of chaos.  Virgo is service oriented.  Virgo is right dharma in the here and now.  Yes, Virgo says “Be Here Now!”

Virgo is where small is beautiful and where we are humble yet proud of the quality of our work or contribution.  It’s not where we need to be humiliated or enslaved.  It’s where we can choose to be of service without being a slave.  It’s where we notice all the details, even focus on them, because every single minute particle contributes to the whole and we are all a part of that great whole.

That North Node in Virgo will be moving through some part of your life as symbolized by the ‘house’ in your birth chart.  Perhaps it will cross over planets that you have in Virgo.  Those energies will benefit and grow stronger under this North Node.  Perhaps the South Node will cross over planetary energies you have in Pisces.  Those energies need to be allowed to release whatever they are hanging on to. That could be a release of compassionate service in a positive sense or a release of victimization or escapist tendencies.  Note that the Conjunctions and Oppositions to natal planets are the most important with the transiting Nodes.

Let’s look at the United States as an example:  We see that the North Node has just recently crossed over this nation’s Midheaven and is now going to move counterclockwise through the 9th house.  This implies foreign affairs and the beliefs of the collective body of this nation. What is the ‘philosophy’ of America?  With Neptune in Virgo posited here, the North Node will conjoin this position some time in January/February of 2016.  Neptune square Mars implies both the desires of this country as well as its military stance.  I wrote an article on America’s foggy Mars in March of 2012 entitled The U.S. Mars Dilemma.  This is an aspect that we now see unfolding with endless wars that lead nowhere.  Will Virgo’s ability to discriminate help the US out of it’s muddled mess in foreign relations?  The North Node is now beginning its journey through all the arenas that symbolize relationships for the US.  Outside forces may be at work here signaling a time of critiquing the role played by this nation as a world power undisputed for a very long time.  This may be especially true as transiting Saturn goes over the Ascendant and gradually squares Neptune and opposes Mars which further sobers and limits how America approaches its destiny ahead.

Note also that North Node in Virgo for the US is in its ’12th house phase’ before North Node in Leo aligns with the Natal Leo placement.  The ’12th house phase’ is often one of coming to grips with the past and completion themes.  In this case, it would be a cycle beginning over 18 years ago in 1997/1998 approximately.  These were Clinton era years and the Monica Lewinsky scandal kept the media busy for most of  ’98.  The Iraq disarmament crisis was beginning in earnest leading to where we are now with the aftermath unfolding in the Middle East.  It was a record El Nino year.  There was also the U.S. going against Microsoft in an anti-trust case.  We can see some of the 9th house/Virgo themes in these topics.

This is probably enough to get you started in your own assessment of how North Node in Virgo will impact you.  Here is a list of books and authors should you desire further research on the subject.

The Node Book by Zipporah Pottenger Dobyns

Lunar Nodes by Mohan Koparkar PhD

The Moon’s Nodes and Reincarnation by Martin Schulman

Astrology for the Soul by Jan Spiller

The Astrologer’s Node Book by Donna Van Toen