The Destiny Book

INTRODUCTION

Plato once said, in describing the human condition, that it is as if we are sitting in a cave, wherein there is a great central fire, but that we sit entranced by the flickering shadows cast by the flames on to the cave wall. Plato goes on to say that the huge fire within the cave is fed by a gigantic Sun beaming down from outside and above the cave through an aperture over the fire. This is an obvious reference to the human capacity for becoming trapped in the illusory world—the Maya of eastern understanding, the ‘veil of darkness’ in the hermetic understanding. This propensity to becoming trapped in the fleeting experience of the material world, and the bodily sensations associated with it, has been humankind’s greatest hurdle. It has been written that legions of cosmic hierarchies watch on in compassion, and sometimes bewilderment, as the human race seems utterly unable to ‘get it’, to even realise there is a huge interlinked universe of which we are a living, creative part.

According to Plato what we must do as humans is turn to face the fire, and so truly claim our inborn power, instead of living the less than half life that many of us do. However, this great philosopher of ancient Greece, whose words continue to influence our civilisation right down to today, said that to turn around and face the fire is not an easy thing to do. Therefore inertia and ignorance continue to hold humankind in thrall to the extremely limited and insubstantial flickerings on the wall, which have become the accepted ‘reality’.

In these times of travail for many, and of essential promise unfulfilled for most, it is clear that we must ‘face the fire’ in order to call in our birthright, thus rejuvenating ourselves, our lives and our world, as we grow into new powers. The Destiny Book has been written to help facilitate your ‘turning’ as you glimpse the power of your fire within, and awaken to the great potencies in the universe who would assist us.

The time has come to tune into your inner strength, and find the real power you have: to discover your inborn and destined potential as depicted by the Nodes of the Moon. This very ancient area of astrology pertains to the deeper, more spiritual dimensions of the human being. The Nodes of the Moon (The Moon crossing the ecliptic from south latitude into north latitude forms the North Node, and vice versa for the South Node) point to the soul path that has been chosen. The Ayavedic and Hindu Sidereal astrology tend to base the interpretation of an individual’s birth chart mainly around the Moon’s Nodes: Rahu (the North Node) and Ketu (the South Node) as they are known in these systems.

Classical western astrology referred to the North Node as the ‘Dragon’s Head’, and the South Node as the ‘Dragon’s Tail’—highly apt symbolism for the power represented by the Moon’s Nodes. Generally speaking, the North Node represents what an individual is striving to achieve, in other words, their future, their destiny this time around and the South Node represents the past the individual is coming from on their soul journey.

Shakespeare said ‘All the world is a stage’ (And he wasn’t the first), and implicit in this is that everyone has a meaningful part to play. Every human being has a special place (and value) in the greater scheme of things. Go to the table on page 7 to discover the placement of your nodal position, and then read on to awaken your soul and discover your stairway to heaven.

North Nodes and their

Sun Sign Relationships

In ancient wisdom the Sun was understood to be a living symbol, a potently active agent of the Source of Life itself. Forgetting the ‘mysteries’ side of it for the moment, even logically this makes perfect sense. Because if the Sun did not rise and set every day where would life be on this planet? Life, as we know it could not exist without the vital force of the Sun. Furthermore, our whole solar system owes its existence, and takes its bearings from the mighty power of the Sun.

The Sun is vast in energy, scope and operations (e.g. a recent scientific study revealed the Sun was emitting almost as much energy interrelating with the greater universe as it was into keeping the Solar System revolving and evolving) and vastly beyond the comprehension of most of us. (Especially for those who are fully conditioned into thinking of life as some kind of random accident, and are blind to both the miracle of life and the interconnectedness of all things.) However, the laws ‘as above, so below’, ‘as within, so without’ bespeak of another way of understanding the majestic Sun. Arcane wisdom sees the position of the Sun in the birth chart as signifying the ‘god-head’, the inborn spark of divine life that keeps the physical system functioning, and the incarnate entity evolving.

It is no simple coincidence that the heart is governed by the Sun in medical astrology. We all know what happens when a heart stops beating. Life ceases. (Interestingly, medical research has found that every human heart creates its own unique note as it beats, adding an interesting slant on the ‘symphony of life’.) And it is no coincidence that many religions place the seat of the soul in the heart. In classical Sanskrit, for example, the Atman, centered in the heart, was seen as ‘the soul or selfhood; the spark in man emanating from divinity’, and also as ‘the spirit or highest principle of life in the universe’. (Helping us to make great sense of ‘Honour the highest thing in the Universe; it is the power on which all things depend; it is the light by which all of life is guided. Honour the highest within yourself; for it too is the power on which all things depend, and the light by which all life is guided.’ Marcus Aurelius)

The last word on elucidation of the relationship of the external Sun and the internal Sun belongs to one of the first that gave it, the great teacher Thoth. Who from his quest to bring wisdom and freedom to humankind says, ‘Know ye, o man, whatever form ye inhabit, surely it is one with the stars. Thy bodies are nothing but planets revolving around their central Suns’.

One’s star path as signified by the Moon’s Nodes (which, incidentally, the Sun has a major role in forming astronomically), showing the colour and direction of one’s destiny this time around, is driven by the position of the life-giving and purposeful Sun in your birth chart. Hence this book would not be complete without understanding the interrelationship of your Sun Sign (a.k.a. Star Sign) and your Destiny Point (The North Node). Your consciousness is then better equipped to attain the purposes you are here for, and to richly survive in this changing world. Given that the Sun is now discharging more energy into the Solar System, and onto Earth, a quickening which indicates universal evolution, that ancient Greek admonition to any who were seeking the truth of truths, to ‘know thyself ’ may never have been more relevant.

ARIES

NORTH NODE

LIBRA

SOUTH NODE

‘Graceful courtier

becomes courageous

champion.’

Your star path mission this time around is to become a fully formed independent entity. To become strong, centred, and confident in your sense of special individuality is a major star impulse on your cosmic quest. How you achieve this will depend on the choices you make. However, your decision-making ability may need some work.

The eonic background from whence you herald is one in which you developed high powers of love, but you may have tended to abnegate yourself and submerge your own identity in relationships and partnerships. It is important to be aware of this tendency on your current divine destiny path, and not try to find your identity through a partner, or any other kinds of external identification. You have to find yourself first.

A little like the mystic pelican of Christian metaphysical understanding, which feeds its young from a self-inflicted wound in the breast—a strong symbol of sacrifice—you may still allow yourself to be trapped in a relationship or societal context and end up becoming drained by others. In fact, one of the signs that you are not moving forward on your life path is when you discover yourself becoming a prime target for psychic vampires.

Focus

Within you there is a strong sense of justice and fairness, which has taken some time to develop. (Eons in fact!) However, be careful not to manifest this as a continual ongoing conflict between opposing views. You can be so open to all sides that the ability to make up your mind, leading to decisive action, may be paralysed. This, of course, does nothing to further your progress, or joy, on this lifetime’s star path. Whilst you remain in a confused or vacillating state, opportunities to promote a growing sense of selfhood pass you by, and you can feel crushed by life’s seeming futility. In contrast, being astute and focused, and according yourself the same rights and respect as all others, enables you to perceive and grab hold of the special chances the universe offers you.

At those times when you may perchance find yourself stressed or overstimulated, just seek out peaceful, beautiful surroundings, and see how quickly you relax. When these are not readily available, listening to a favourite classical piece, for example, will work as a balm and salve to your soul, attuning you more deeply to the power and glory you are connected to in the grand scheme of things. Within you is an innate appreciation of the beauty of form and nature, the arts and the harmonious flow of life. Visiting an art gallery, the rainforest, the botanical gardens or a tranquil beach will not only calm and cultivate your spirit, but will also double your inner strength.

People with this destiny axis value peace tremendously, but may too often find themselves in acrimonious conflict with others. When this is your situation it indicates that you are stuck in old patterns that are no longer relevant to who you now are. They may have served you before, but no longer. Allowing yourself to be pushed by other people or circumstances into situations, which, when you are there you realise you would rather not be in, only sparks resentment, which then smoulders away. This is a real misuse of your destiny fire. A certain laziness or weariness can dull your effectiveness as well.

To begin to consciously, if not already started, actualise your deepest potential (located where the earthly existence connects to the invisible field of creation) and true life purposes, all that is needed is to incorporate, on a daily and disciplined basis, activities into your life designed to develop the energies of the essential you. Strengthening your higher-self connection is the gateway to power, glory and love beyond compare, and supreme fulfillment of human destiny within the Magnum opus.

Magnum opus is Latin for the ‘great work’, and is how the alchemists refer to creation. The prime alchemical pursuit was not merely to transmute lead into gold, but to transform themselves. Throughout the ages, the alchemist saw him- or herself as a ‘field of forces’ (which is an exact description of one’s astrological chart). The aim was to transmute this essence and become a ‘denizen of the universe’, and a ‘co-creator’ in the Magnum opus. Fire was of prime use in all alchemical procedures. Nostradamus obliquely refers to its importance in his discoveries where he writes in a letter to his son, ‘…by means of the thin blue flame.’ The inner fire was, if anything, seen as far more efficacious than that employed on the outer plane, to heat their bellows and burn in their crucibles. This shouldn’t surprise us when we remember the great alchemical dictums ‘as above, so below’, and ‘man is a microcosm of the macrocosm’, meaning that everything in the universe also finds its correspondence within the human. Including your own connection to the divine Source of All; and to the true alchemist, there was no higher pursuit than this. Throughout the millennia there have been stories of those who achieve it: great joy, wealth and abundance are around them, age disappears, and, mostly, so do they! They just appear now and then at crucial intervals for humankind, for example as Comte St Germain did in Europe between 1710 and 1822, and Fulcannelli in Paris in 1939.

Concluding this small dissertation brings us right back to the main point: the power of your inner fire which must find appropriate expression in your life. The inner martial arts, such as tai chi, chi kung and pa kua, can work particularly dynamic alchemy on the development and evolution of those travelling the Libra-Aries path. Undertaking study with a good teacher, and daily practice, positively changes your life. You have taken charge, and your inner fire is now constructively engaged. Like a flame tree on good water, your inborn gifts and qualities can now begin to naturally unfold.

Creative Seeds

Another activity that positively stimulates the template of your destiny is learning how to assert and express yourself appropriately. Joining a debating society or public speaking course can certainly help with this. Taking up a cause you feel strongly about or taking more of a leading role in community affairs will also speed your development. So will study in areas that interest you, as high levels of intelligence and intuition combine in this star nodal path to bestow a very gifted intellect upon those able to receive it. (And don’t forget the cosmic fact that when you truly commence focussing your will to develop the spirituality within your humanity, the universe responds. People and events begin to flow into your life to assist you, and divine synchronicity speeds up.) Then the power of your thoughts is able to light up others around you, and your every thought can become a creative seed for new beginnings. As well as greatly increasing the success in your life, this faculty of destiny can even bring a renaissance to human thinking. (Thinking is one of our prime modes of creation, individually and collectively, as Descartes’ famous conclusion ‘I think, therefore I am’ illustrates.)

Whether studying martial arts or not, you should definitely learn to use your body more. Work it out at the gym, take up dancing, aerobics, pugilism, or go bushwalking into new horizons. Learning to assert your unique independence of spirit in a balanced way is your deep blueprint of soul growth now. Here is where you begin to touch on the force of your being, and make the unique contribution to the planet which is yours to make.

‘Flower gatherer

becomes seed sower’

Relationships

Find yourself first in order to enjoy

healthy relationships with others.

Otherwise you risk becoming stuck in old

patterns and unfulfilling partnerships of

co-dependency and little joy.

Career

A ‘commanding’ and ‘active’ professional

role draws out your best. Don’t even

attempt being a square peg in a round

hole, because whether captain, politician

or performer, room to move can make you

an icon.

Money

The more you attune to your current

destiny, the more your powers of natural

prosperity can manifest what you need.

Archangel for Aries

North Node: Sa mael

Burning pure incense from ancient blends,

especially when coupled with a sacred fire,

allows Samael to infuse new strength,

resolve and understanding within you.

Archangel for Libra South Node:

Sandalphon

Oils of frankincense and myrrh and/or

contemplation or meditation in pure and

natural places promotes connection with

Sandalphon, enabling the qualities of

inner harmony, healing and vision to

fruitfully visit you.

Aries North Node Natives

Winston Churchill

Prince Phillip

Kylie Minogue

Alfred Deakin

Helen Clark

Aries North Node

Sun Sign Connections

ARIES

image 3 The Sun is termed ‘exalted’ in Aries. Primal fire is the element associated with this Sign, and the Sun is right at home in it, and can function freely and rather originally, hence it is ‘exalted’. Hence, too, the legendary Arien energy and healthy sense of self. (As we know, this can tip over into insensitivity towards ‘lesser mortals’ and a ‘me first’ attitude in Ariens who aren’t paying enough attention to what life is really about.) Fairly obviously, Aries Sun coupled with an Aries Destiny Point can be a winning combination. There is no conflict. The person with it is naturally drawn to their destiny, plus has the energy and desire to achieve it. People who have this usually fortunate arrangement of Sun and North Node in the same Sign are those who have a strong sense of being on planet Earth for a reason, that they have a mission to fulfill. This feeling can be stronger or weaker, depending on the amount of space between the celestial placements.

If you are blessed enough to have both Aries Sun and Aries North Node (said to suggest an inborn karmic tendency towards good luck and good timing in manifesting purposes this time around, because of arduous efforts previously made that benefited the bigger picture for all), it’s pretty important that you tune in and make the most of it. This combination is comparable to owning an absolute top of the range, hand-built exclusive car. Why wreck it by driving along as if it’s an old bomb stuck in second gear? The way to ‘tune up’ and get top performance from your star power is to work from your inner dynamics. Cultivating patience and powers of observation is a good start. Replacing impatience with inspiration, aggression with courage, and rebelliousness with resolution will attune you to the higher vibrations that are ready to manifest and connect you to the real power and glory of your life and your self. Studying the archangels Samael and Sandalphon well also helps you with this.

TAURUS

image 4 The Taurean Sun Sign position denotes one who is (normally) calm and who quietly assesses situations from the inside. These individuals are seemingly not on the same wavelength as the fast-paced and in your face, out to conquer the world, colourful Ariens who people the globe. (However, we all know what happens when that seemingly placid Taurus is pushed too far. Bulls in a rage are deadly creatures, and even Ariens have been known to quail before a sudden Taurean eruption.) Taurus is an Earth Sign, and the mode is Fixed, meaning persistent, persevering and able to bring things to completion. Aries is a Fire Sign, and the mode is Cardinal, meaning the ability to initiate, be active and start things. You might think on the face of it that these two Signs may not combine too well when trying to achieve one’s deepest life purposes. But in fact, in the integrated human with this combination we have a potent formula for actualising the great power and potential that lies in the Aries North Node. Even the element factor tells us that: a well-tended fire can burn well when based on earth.

It is actually tuning into the destiny power and potential coded into their chart that can be the biggest hurdle for those with this combination, as it can be blocked out, confined to the unconscious and left to boil away like some forgotten kettle. Needless to say, this inner dissatisfaction only fuels greater and more destructive outbursts when the Taurean feels that final straw land on their back.

Waking up to the deeper meaning running through your life is really the only key you need to open the door and enter the richer and fuller life that comes from connecting with your destined power and potential. Studying the Aries North Node section again, and noticing what strikes a deep resonance within you, will initiate the first accelerating steps towards your unique enlightenment and evolution, if it hasn’t already begun. A daily meditation will also keep those fires burning. Becoming familiar with the presence and meaning of the archangels Samael and Sandalphon further amplifies your awakening. Studying the section on the archangel Haniel will not only open your eyes, but also further augment the strength and belief you were born with.

GEMINI

image 5 The Gemini Sun placement blends well with the Aries North Node. The natural curiosity of the Gemini is aroused and given depth, right from birth, by the Aries destiny sigil, or seal. Therefore those with this combination may have always been on a quest, whether consciously or unconsciously, towards finding and fulfilling those special opportunities life provides for them to recognise and realise the nature of their destiny potential. The element of Air belonging to Gemini makes this Sign highly compatible with the Fire of Aries and makes it somewhat easier to create and encounter the circumstances that will lead one sure-footedly along one’s star path. This is especially true when one is conscious of the sense