By: Janette Dalgliesh – Confluence Daily is your daily news source for women in the know.
This weekend sees not just one, but two heavenly bodies doing the Retrograde (Rx) dance.
There’s our old friend Mercury, the messenger of the gods and the trickster, who invites a reassessing of old beliefs and thought habits.
And then there’s Chiron, which also goes Rx this weekend until mid-December this year.
I love Chiron!
For me, he’s the embodiment of our dual nature.
Astronomically, this intriguing body is something of a mystery. Believed to have started out as a comet coming into our solar system from the space beyond, it has become trapped by our Sun’s gravitational field and now inhabits a long, oval orbit around the Sun.
It’s one of a class of bodies known as “centaurs” – bodies with strange orbits that often behave with characteristics of both asteroids and comets. They are named for the mythological centaurs that were a mixture of horse and human, and it’s particularly apt here since mythological Chiron was himself a centaur.
Many astrologers view Chiron as representing the ‘wounded healer’, and suggest that a Chiron Retrograde is when we might be invited to heal an old, not-yet-processed wound. This is useful, but it’s by no means the whole story!
Chiron’s story begins with the Oceanid Philyra and the Titan Cronos (known to us as Saturn), who disguised himself as a horse to avoid trouble with his missus. The result was Chiron’s birth as a creature of dual natures – man and horse.
Ultimately rejected by both parents, he was adopted by Apollo who, along with his sister Artemis, taught him the arts of medicine, music, gymnastics, prophecy, archery and hunting, and helped him rise above the bestial nature common to other centaurs. He became known for his wisdom, kindness, intelligence and willingness to teach others.
There are several stories about Chiron’s being wounded by a poisoned arrow and, since he was an immortal, finding himself caught between life and death. These gave rise to his reputation as the eternally wounded healer (though the stories are inconsistent – in some versions he dies and is placed as a star in the heavens by Zeus, in others he exchanges places with Prometheus).
But his role as the wounded healer is not the most interesting thing about Chiron. His life and his life’s calling are far more interesting than the manner of his (possible) death.
Chiron’s name comes up again and again in stories of over two dozen different heroes and warriors.
He was their teacher, their mentor, their guide and their friend. Among his students were such famous folks as Jason, Heracles, Ajax, Perseus, Achilles, Odysseus, Dionysus, and Asclepius (the god of medicine).
It’s the dual nature, again.
The coach who believed his students could do the impossible. And the wounded healer who helps us to heal our own wounds.
Think of Chiron as your own inner audacity coach (hat tip to Kim Falconer for that phrase – one of my favourites!), and consider how that might aid in any healing you may need.
How could you tap in to your own inner audacity, to promote healing?
How could you tap in to healing, to open the door to something you previously thought impossible?
Can you see how those two things might be linked?
Chiron, with his dual natures – horse and man, comet and asteroid, healer and coach – is also linked to our capacity to ‘step outside’ our own selves at will.
We can change perspective, see our own complex nature, and connect to different parts of ourselves – even more so at key Chiron moments.
This retrograde begins with Chiron at 5 degrees of Aries, where he ‘stations’ (appears to stop) then moves back to 1 degree of Aries by 12 December this year, where he will station again before moving forward.
This does NOT mean you’ll have an intense ‘must heal that wound’ experience for the whole six months. It means you have the grace of time to do any work that needs doing.
But it doesn’t mean ‘put it all off until December’.
The greatest impact of the Chiron Rx happens at the start and at the end of the retrograde period, when Chiron appears to change direction (exact times below).
And, of course, if Chiron transits any planets in your natal chart you’re likely to feel the impact at that time too.
If you know how to read your chart, check out any planets sitting at 1 to 5 degrees of Aries, Cancer, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius and Capricorn especially – those are likely to light up and become activated.
For example, the whole Rx period will be impacting my Moon, at 3 degrees Capricorn. It will invite healing to do with my most intimate and vulnerable emotional home ground. I’ll benefit from having the audacity to go through the discomfort of healing old emotional wounds. I’ll benefit from consciously amping up my self-compassion. And I’ll be well-supported to reassess my boundaries and make sure they’re set up the best way for me. (It’s probably not a coincidence that I recently took some actions to remove myself from a situation where bullying was becoming a regular occurrence. Chiron Rx says NO to that kind of boundary breach, and stands up to help heal and protect from emotional injury.)
And this retrograde all happens in Aries, a sign linked to fresh starts, new beginnings, and the undertaking of impossible quests – the kind where you don’t yet know the ending of the adventure, but you take the plunge anyway.
This is a fantastic combination, especially when you view it in the context of the current ‘build a solid foundation’ dynamic of the Pluto-Saturn convergence we’re currently in.
If the Pluto-Saturn thing feels overwhelming (and there can be some heaviness to it), the Chiron-in-Aries dynamic has the power to blast through that.
Here are some activities you might like to pursue, to make the most of this cycle:
- read or watch or listen to an ‘impossible quest’ story, either one you already know and love, or one that’s new to you. The story of Jason and the Argonauts is a classic Aries-Chiron inspiration (try and find the Ray Harryhausen classic 1963 movie, it’s a corker!) Or you might prefer a more recent adventure, such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, or Kim Falconer’s excellent Quantum Enchantment series.
- if you like to work with angels in your practice, seek to connect to Archangel Raphael, known for his role as a healer
- reassess some of your physical and mental health habits, remembering to look within for any healing that’s required
- if you don’t already have someone with whom you feel safe doing any ‘shadow work’ that might be required, now’s a good time to find someone. Start with a clear intention for the right coach or counsellor to show up in your world at the right time, then get a referral from a trusted friend. (I’ve also provided some suggestions, below)
- connect with your mind and body via a mindfulness practice such as meditation or by a touching therapy such as massage (or both)
- make a list of your own strengths and keep it handy to remind you that YOU are the hero in this story
- revisit your relationship with your own boundaries – are they clear, do you manage them well, how might they change with more feisty audacity in the mix?
- look at any old habits which you know are holding you back, and which you only keep repeating because they feel safe. Make a decision to replace them with a new and better habit. Seek support for that if you need it
All in all, while Chiron Rx may not be a 24/7 rainbows-and-puppies fun time, it has the potential to support you with fabulous breakthroughs and new possibilities.
My suggestion? Listen for the hoofbeats, and embrace the potential.
Exact times (US Eastern timezone)
- 7 July 2019 at 7:14PM – Mercury Rx at 4 deg Leo
- 8 July 2019 at 7:39PM – Chiron Rx at 5 deg Aries
- 12 Dec 2019 at 10:47PM – Chiron direct at 1 deg Aries
Janette Dalgliesh has a simple mission in life – to help every person unlock their capacity for resonant joy. A keen student of astrology, brain science, chaos magic and Law of Attraction, she serves her people through astrology consults, coaching, teaching and writing. You can find Janette via Facebook, or at her website, Resonant Joy
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