Planetary Nodes in Astrology

This article aims to present some results concerning the Planetary Nodes in Astrology.

The case of the Moon

Almost everyone in the circle of astrologers has heard of the Lunar Nodes. Sometimes called Rahu and Ketu, or North Node and South Node.

These astronomical points, forming an axis around the Earth (hence their opposition when represented in an astrological chart), mark the intersection:

1- Of the ecliptic plane (the plane where Earth and Sun navigate)

2- With the plane of the lunar orbit (where the Moon revolves around the Earth)

These two planes are offset from each other, by an inclination: an angle, measuring approximately 5°.

This angle is small, but it “allows” the Moon to rise or fall, in relation to our ecliptic plane during its monthly rotation (this is why we speak of a ascending Moon and a descending Moon, not to be confused with waxing Moon and waning Moon). Almost damaging consequence: there is no solar eclipse every month! Because of this inclination, when Sun and Moon find themselves in longitude (an astrological conjunction), most of the time, the Moon is below or above the Sun. So, no eclipse.

But if, during this conjunction, the Moon is close to the latitude of the ecliptic, that is to say if the Moon is close to one of its Nodes, then the eclipse is possible.

In summary: a New Moon close to the Nodes = Solar eclipse. A Full Moon near the Nodes = Lunar eclipse.

These Lunar Nodes are not fixed. They evolve over time, going around the zodiac, retrogradely, every 18 years.

Astrologically, according to practitioners, different functions are attributed to these Nodes. Karmically, do they carry memories? Do they indicate the facilities and challenges of life? Do they behave as a complementary axis, illustrating our facilities and difficulties, opposed to each other? Or do they work in pairs, combining the symbols of the two opposite signs and houses? Does one give and the other receive? They are individual, spiritual, powerful issues. Undertaking a personal quest, whatever the form, is carried out with all symbols carried by this pair of nodes, according to their positions in signs, houses, and the aspects received (especially with planets ruling them).

In karmic astrology, one of these nodes is necessarily close to the pre-birth solar eclipse (also called Karmic Eclipse), which is the fundamental point, at the very origin of the cause of this incarnation. (if we’re interested in the cycle of reincarnations)

The other planets

Fascinating note: what is true for the Moon is true for the other astrological planets. They all revolve around the Sun. All navigate in a plane which is not exactly the one of Earth (the ecliptic).

Mathematical consequence: all planets have nodes. A pair of nodes, which represent the only two places where the planet is at zero latitude. In other words: the two points where the planet is at the same “height” (a word having no scientific reality, just for explanation) as the Earth.

A North Node, first of all. Or prefer the term “ascending node“. When the planet crosses this node, it then gains height. Its latitude becomes positive. It will peak at (roughly) the quarter of its revolution. Example: 3 years for Jupiter, 7 years for Saturn, 21 years for Uranus. Arriving at the first square, following this north node, the latitude will be maximum. The planet is at its highest point relative to our ecliptic.

A South Node, then. Or “descending node“. In a heliocentric frame (centered on the Sun), it is opposite to the ascending node. By crossing this point, the planet begins its dive below the ecliptic. Its latitude will become negative. It will reach its deepest point during the last square at the node, approximately 3/4 of its revolution. Then it will rise again until it reaches the ascending node again.

Specificities

So much for the theory. In practice, each planet will have its own specificities.

First of all, the inclination angle of this orbital plane. For the Moon, as said above, the inclination is a little greater than 5°.

The planets of the solar system have very disparate inclinations.

The record is for Pluto. A track with an inclination of 17° represents the orbit of the Scorpio ruler. This is one of the reasons why Pluto was declassified 15 years ago by astronomers and is no longer considered a planet. A digression: we can, if we feel this way, ask ourselves questions about the analysis of Astrological Charts when we see on a wheel a conjunction of a planet with Pluto. Conjunction in longitudes, yes, but often the latitudes are so different that it is not certain that the planets are that close in the sky. For generations, with Pluto in Libra, it is very true: Pluto is at the maximum of its latitude.

Next comes Mercury with an inclination of 7°. Then Venus with 3.4°. Then Saturn with 2.5°. Then Mars with 1.85°. Then Neptune with 1.8°. And Jupiter, with 1.3°. As for Uranus, it is the only planet whose orbit closely matches that of the Earth, with an angle of 0.77°, less than one degree.

Does the tilt of the planet make the study of its nodes more interesting? A priori, we might think so. The steeper the angle, the higher or lower the planet will rise, relative to our ecliptic. The stronger the angle, the more the axis of the nodes will symbolize an axle of stability for the planet in question. The stronger the angle, the more the transit of this same planet on a node will make the event exceptional. So Pluto, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Saturn and Mars sound very important.

The other great specificity, for all these planets, from Mercury to Pluto, is the quasi-fixity of these nodes. Unlike the Moon, whose nodes revolve around the zodiac in 18 years, the other planets see their nodes evolve much more slowly. Most of their dynamics are even driven by the phenomenon of precession of the equinoxes. This precession marks an evolution of the zodiac of 1° every 72 years.

Not all nodes move in the same way, but if we had to summarize, although each axis of nodes has its own logic: we are in the same order of magnitude. North Node and South Node of each planet advance very slowly (directly, not retrograde like the Moon), this is counted in dust of degrees per century. In any case, if we look in a heliocentric frame of reference.

Technical note: like the lunar nodes, or like the Black Moon, a slight phenomenon of oscillations around a slower dynamic movement means that their positions can be calculated in two ways:

• A true calculation: it corresponds to astronomical reality.
• A mean calculation: it weights these oscillations by producing a temporal average.

The differences are very small between these two calculations. Given their application, we can consider that it is negligible (which is not the case for the Black Moon, however).

The Sun in the center

The big difference, ultimately, between these axes and those of the Moon, is the study reference frame.

The planet rotates around the Sun. We point the nodes, in each direction, from the Sun, and not from the Earth. For distant planets like Pluto and Neptune, the difference is slight. For the inner planets, like Venus and Mercury, the difference is notable.

Therefore, be careful, if you want to place the nodes around your birth chart, it is best to do so around your heliocentric chart. In such a drawing, the nodes of the Moon will be excluded.

For Pluto, Uranus, Neptune, it’s not a big difference. For Jupiter, Saturn: a few degrees of difference. For Mars, Mercury, Venus: this no longer makes sense.

Node Positions

Below is the list of Node positions (true calculation), in December 2022. Please note, this is the heliocentric reference frame.

• Mercury: ASC at 18°36 Taurus. DES at 18°36 Scorpio
• Venus: ASC at 16°53 Gemini. DES at 16°53 Sagittarius
• Mars: ASC at 19°44 Taurus. DES at 19°44 Scorpio
• Jupiter: ASC at 10°43 Cancer. DES at 10°43 Capricorn
• Saturn: ASC at 23°51 Cancer. DES at 23°51 Capricorn
• Uranus: ASC at 14°10 Gemini. DES at 14°10 Sagittarius
• Neptune: ASC at 11°59 Leo. DES at 11°59 Aquarius
• Pluto: ASC at 20°37 Cancer. DES at 20°37 Capricorn

We notice the conjunction of the Nodes of Mercury and Mars. Likewise, the conjunction of the Nodes of Venus and Uranus. And that of the Nodes of Saturn and Pluto. Those of Jupiter are close to these last two. Neptune stands alone.

All North Nodes are between mid-Taurus and mid-Leo.

One more remark for Pluto: its passage “above the surface” from the north node to the south node (from Cancer to Capricorn) corresponds to the section of its orbit where it is the fastest. On the other hand, its “dive” passage between the south node and the north node is 50% longer.

Symbol of Nodes

During its rotation around the Sun, as said previously, the planet will pass over these two special points, which are the nodes. It is precisely at this moment that the planet joins the movement of the Earth around the Sun. It is a meeting point, a fusion, which seems all the more important as the planet, due to its orbit, has a navigation plane inclined in relation to ours: Pluto and Saturn, in particular, in the case of the collective planets .

If the planet were to emit information, or receive information, in trans-communication with Earth, it would be at this moment.

• At the time of the South Node, before diving.
• At the time of the North Node, before ascending.

During the transition from North Node to South Node (in the case of Pluto, Jupiter, Saturn: from Cancer to Capricorn) the planet rises above the Earth, this is the moment when everything seems permitted, when plans concocted at the time of the conjunction with the North Node (let’s see this as an analogy with a New Moon), are put into place, are experienced. A period of free will (limited, all the same, we are only humans!) and experiences. Of creativity. Let’s try something new with this planet. Are the stars more favorable at this time? No. Above all, let’s say that they allow you to try. Humanity has the cards in hand to try something new, with the excesses and failures that are part of these collective experiments.

At the time of conjunction with South Node, before diving beneath the Earth, a reverse pattern occurs. There are accounts to settle. Abuse must be paid. But wisdom involves remembering the lessons of the past. This period can be difficult for people experiencing the illusion of suffering the events. Some will then speak of inevitability. The collective becomes more uncontrollable, it even seems to want to sink, to experience more difficult events. It is of course during this period that the new cycle is being prepared, the day after the next conjunction with the North Node.

Combining Nodes and Planets: The Planetary Nodes Index

All this is experienced at the rhythm of the 8 planets. Some will be on the north side, others on the south side, at a given time. Some will be emerged, others submerged. Some close to the axis, others on the contrary squared. And everyone at their own pace. An annual rhythm for Mercury and Venus. A rhythm of 12 years for Jupiter… up to a rhythm of 250 years for Pluto.

Two years ago, in the Olympia software, we were pleasantly surprised by the relevance of the calculation and plotting of a curve evoking the cyclic index (the interplanetary differences of collective bodies, from Jupiter to Pluto). This index indicated in particular the conflicts of the 20th century, the Covid pandemic… Thank you to Mr Barbault for raising awareness about this simple mathematical calculation.

For the planetary nodes, it was decided to try the same thing: combine the positions of the collective planets with their Nodes, thus constructing a synthesis index to draw the resonances, in a curve.

This index, qualitatively, works like this: the closer the planets are to their north nodes, the lower the index will be. The closer the planets are to their south nodes, the higher the index will be.

Concretely, thanks to the Olympia computer tool, two curves were first drawn. A first including these 5 planets. A second, by removing Uranus from the calculation, its inclination being considered too weak (therefore its influence on the index having to be removed).

Below, the curve of this index, plotted between 1900 and 2030.

The first thing that stands out is this maximum curve, reached in February 2020, at the time when Covid became a pandemic, triggering this massive and divisive international mess.

The second thing was to note that the lowest obtained, even looking back several centuries, corresponds to December 1918, after the First World War.

Several dates stand out when examining the various oscillations, such as the reversal (or turning point) of the Second World War, at the end of 1942, marked by the end of a decline in the index, which had been underway for many years. Likewise, the reunification of Germany in 1990, or the start of the war in Afghanistan at the end of 2001, which turned the geopolitics of the Middle East upside down for several decades.

Remarkable fact: if we trace the curve since the Hundred Years’ War in Europe, therefore if we go back 6 centuries, the two lowest points obtained by this index are:

• The armistice of the First World War. Everything is chaos in Europe, millions of victims to cry, and a global pandemic arriving, the Spanish flu.
• The year 1942: at that time, you have to be quite an optimist, or be an astrologer studying the planetary nodes, to imagine a bright tomorrow. The Reich is on the verge of overthrowing Russia, England is almost defeated, France is invaded and sinks into collaboration with the Vel d’Hiv roundup, the United States has lost its fleet at Pearl Harbor, and we start gassing innocent people in camps. The turnaround to follow synchronizes perfectly with the rise in the planetary node index.

As you read this, you may be wondering: when will the index fall back to such low levels? Well it won’t be until the year 2417. This is an interesting observation: over a period of 1000 years, the two lowest points reached correspond to the two world wars.

Be careful however with the last three quarters of the 21st century. Not an easy time.

We live in wonderful times

What can we say about the highest, then, after having spoken of the lowest?

As mentioned previously, we experienced a historic summit in February 2020. In the West, that is when we heard about Covid 19, and its dangerousness which risked leading to drastic containment decisions.

Opinions differ. This could be the event that will mark the beginning of an ecological shift, which will put the Earth, instead of humans, at the center of our thoughts and actions. For some less optimistic people, it is perhaps also the triggering of a new era of vicious, manipulative dictatorships, aimed at dehumanizing beings, before the great robotization and transhumanism of the Age of Aquarius (sorry, I am not excited about what will happen soon). Everyone analyzes the event as they wish. Still, this event, even if ultimately not very morbid (compared to wars and other epidemics) was an electric shock. And its consequences have not yet all appeared, surprises to be expected in the 2030s.

Same comparison as earlier, over several centuries: the last time the index was so high, before February 2020, was in… the year -2926! It’s dizzying: it’s been 5,000 years since we’ve seen an index so high. The cliché phrase “alignment of the planets” has never lived up to its name so well.

And the next time it will be so high? Unfortunately, we do not have the answer because the ephemeris we have does not go further than 15 millennia (15,000 years) into the future. And during this period, the index will never reach the 2020 peak.

A brief summary of our times:

• Our parents, grandparents, experienced the greatest lows, known over an interval of a millennium, with the two world wars.
• We are experiencing with Covid19 the greatest high in 20 millennia!

The astronomical explanations are simple. As of February 2020:

• Pluto is on its south Node, in Capricorn
• Saturn is on its south node, in Capricorn
• Jupiter is on its south node, in Capricorn
• Neptune is not conjunct its south node, but is only 30° away
• It is not taken into account in the calculation, but note that Mars also conjunct its south node

At the end of 1918, it was the opposite: Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto were close to their north node this time.

Only Uranus, in both cases, was in the opposite dynamic.

Looking back

A curve is by definition something very cold, impersonal. We can make it say anything and everything. It’s very easy to stick whatever you want on it. Very easy to open a history book and find the right event. But a curve which, over several centuries:

• marks a low at the end of a terrible war, a continental suicide, the worst symbol of collective unconsciousness
• marks another great trough, at the moment when an equally terrible war finally reverses itself, and when democracies take precedence over Nazism
• marks a historic high, at a time when humanity is becoming aware of the disasters of globalization and when we are finally starting to talk about happy degrowth, where a simple virus derails capitalist machines and forces us to pollute less

…this curve shouldn’t be that bad!

We must be transparent: even looking at the last 100 years, which are very well documented, we will not necessarily find world events as telling as those already mentioned, at times when the curve changes direction. As a reminder: there is no question of trying to make everything and anything fit, because it suits us. Here are a few ideas, a few remarks, a few caveats, a few questions:

• The index reached a low, one month after the attacks of 09/11/2001. Does this mean that it was more the start of Bush’s war in Afghanistan that had global consequences, rather than the tragic events of September 11? This does not seem absurd.
• The highest peak of the 20th century was in the summer of 1996. Difficult to put anything on this date. Unless we consider, as will be written below, that a summit symbolizes a point of no return, which would allow (in the conditional, it’s just for rhetoric because in concrete terms, it doesn’t work) to avoid tragic events to follow. A curve that reaches a peak is a point of resonance on the South Nodes. At the level of peace talks in the Middle East, on the Israeli question in particular, these points of no return had to be reached, 5 years before the attacks in New York. One last bad seed was sown during this period (Note: the Cyclical Index also mentions this). On a lighter note, let us note that this is when the internet network took off. The world was entering its final phase of globalization. Another explanation: there were still many conflicts in the world (Yugoslavia, Africa, Palestine) but overall things were improving and the conflicts were local, not global as during the 20th century. Things subsequently deteriorated, notably with the rise of international terrorism and the tragedies in the Middle East. The conflicts have become more religious.
• The second peak of the 20th century was in 1984. It was the unofficial end of the Cold War (economic victory of the USA, start of Perestroika, war in Afghanistan with USSR), but the communist dictatorship had not yet fallen (it will fall during the next trough).
• The third peak of the 20th century was in 1960. Why then a decline from 1960 to 1966? No answer to this question :o)
• No particular trace of the Chernobyl explosion, the Cuban missile crisis, the crash of 29, the Apollo mission…

Lessons for history?

Analyzing the past, of course, is easy by looking at a curve. As said above, we reached a peak in February 2020. What can we say about the world after? Until the end of the century, the index will fall, accompanied by the movements of slow planets like Pluto and Neptune, which will approach their north node.

They are currently diving beneath the Earth, but this is only the beginning of this process. For Pluto, remember, the descent lasts longer than the ascent.

The first major descent corresponds to 2020-2025. Pluto, Saturn, Jupiter leave the South Node and dive below the surface, heading north. Neptune began this dive in 2003 (we then start again for 80 years of religious extremism ? unfortunately, it seems so).

Then an increase until the end of 2031.

Then it will be an equally impressive fall until 2037.

And rises, again (Jupiter rotates every 12 years, and therefore causes the index to rise and fall cyclically). But Pluto and Neptune take it down, with lows in 2061 and 2096.

However, we will not reach the values ​​of 1918 and 1942.

The past teaches us: when the index rises, we build, we try. Like this League of Nations which was to put an end to wars after 1918. With the success that we know. The index rose from 1918 to 1925: time for hope? There was then a decline, from 1925 to 1930. Then an increase until 1937, before the new fall until the end of 1942.

In these curves, the essential is marked by the breaking points. There were construction attempts, from 1918 to 1925. If very very strong, even revolutionary decisions (example: construction of the United States of Europe, where all the countries which had been fighting each other for centuries would have been brought together in a large federation) had to be taken, this should have been done before 1925. Afterwards, it was too late: fascism arrives, Hitler leaves prison… Once these barbarians came to power, the curve says (and this is not a historian who talks, be careful, just a curve!!) that they could have been stopped until 1937. After that it was too late. Always this idea of ​​a point of no return when we reach a peak.

For the First World War, the peak preceding the conflict was in May 1913. Was the point of no return crossed at that time? There was another in 1901, marking the peak of what was called “the Belle Epoque”. It must be interesting to study this historical transition, from 1901 to 1914, how so many countries went from a “beautiful” era to the massacres in the trenches.

That’s what the curve shows, anyway. Strange: unlike the Second World War, the curve of the First War only really ends at the end of the war, at the time of the armistice. A sign that until the end the outcome was uncertain? Whereas for the second, from 1942, the fate of the Nazi-fascist axis was sealed? That the world was already rebuilding itself (in bipolarity) before the fall of Berlin and the atomic bombs?

An astrologer with these data, in 1914, must have suspected that the war would last at least 4 years. It was the end of these long cycles of diving into the depths for the collective planets, before their immersion on their respective north nodes.

It’s just a curve…

A huge downside to all these studies: we are only talking here about one astrologic side, a single curve, which is a synthesis of the movement of collective planets (like the cyclical index) and does not substitute the deep study of finer aspects, from positions to signs, lots of subtleties that we see by completely analyzing the ephemeris.

Checking a high or a low, orientates the study, it triggers warnings. But then, we must analyze the chart (heliocentric, or geocentric) of the moment. Take into account Uranus, obviously, which is left aside with these nodes stories. And aspects between planets, eclipses, lunar nodes, planetary stations. The work of an astrologer, in short!

And on an natal chart?

If this seems to work well on a humanity scale, we naturally want to check what it gives on the analysis of a Birth Chart.

Taking into account the following elements: the nodes do not move, or very little, over time. We have all the nodes placed in the same place. So if we want to analyze them in a chart, it is the positioning in houses which is the most appropriate.

Furthermore, their very definition only makes sense on a heliocentric chart, not a traditional geocentric one. We can of course project the positions of the nodes, by intersecting with the orbit of each planet, and therefore position them around a birth wheel (Olympia does this). But this calculation is quite shaky, and we lose the north node – south node opposition, especially for planets close to Earth.

At the time these lines are written, it seems difficult to extrapolate this study of nodes in the context of a birth chart.

In literature, I have only seen mention once of the study of nodes: a yogi teacher advised looking at the axes of the nodes, to symbolize some past lives (karmic astrology). Mainly with the study of houses. The beautiful favors of Jupiter? What Jupiter favors, karmically, or where it blocks? The houses impacted by Jupiter’s nodes would show this. It’s a big project.

We can apply this at least to the study of generations: looking at the group of people who have the same configurations, that is to say if this or that planet is in immersion, at the highest, at the lowest, close to a node.

On a very personal level, on the birth chart, I received interesting and concrete messages thanks to the nodes of Neptune, Mars, Venus, Saturn. And the Moon of course (in a birth chart, the Nodes of the Moon are preferred). If you have Olympia software, feel free to have fun with it.

Some dates

The cyclic index curve synthesizes several collective planets. To look, planet by planet, in detail, at the transits (calculated heliocentrically).

Pluto:

• South Node: late 1770
• North Node: September 1930
• South Node: end of 2018
• North Node: 2178

Neptune:

• South Node: 1839
• North Node: June 1920
• South Node: August 2003
• North Node: 2085

Uranus:

• North Node: end of 1777
• South Node: April 1817
• North Node: September 1861
• South Node: February 1901
• North Node: July 1945
• South Node: December 1984
• North Node: May 2029

Saturn:

• North Node: September 1916 … battles of the Somme and Verdun
• South Node: October 1931
• North Node: March 1946 … UN and Iron Curtain
• South Node: April 1961 … first man in space
• North Node: August 1975 … end of the Viet-Nam War
• South Node: September 1990 … reunification of Germany
• North Node: January 2005 … Indian Ocean tsunami
• South Node: February 2020 … Covid
• North Node: July 2034 … (good luck to all)

Bonuses

Latest addition: the nodes index at the beginning of our contemporary era, after the Age of Enlightenment. Between 1770 and 1830.

Historical and very eventful period, especially in France of course, but which had consequences on the world.

• A slight dip in August 1776: one month after the declaration of independence of the United States
• Rise until the beginning of 1783: it is the end of the war of independence of the United States (aided by France), England recognizes this new country
• Descend to the summer of 1788: at the moment when Louis XVI decides to convene the States General for next year. Would the Revolution have occured if this decision had not been taken? Probably, but not in the same context.
• Rising until the fall of 1794: it was a first saving break during the Revolution, the end of the Terror (execution of Robespierre in July), the Directory took over. Another “turnaround” which could have changed History: at that time, Napoleon Bonaparte, incarcerated, could have been executed. It would have changed a lot of things.
• Next descent to the year 1800: the end of the Revolution and the beginning of the Bonaparte era.
• Back to the summer of 1806: it is the peak of Napoleon’s reign, with decisive victories which destroy the German and Austrian enemies. But this is the start of bad diplomacy and unfortunate decisions. Concretely, and to repeat what was said above: he should have stopped there. He should not have attempted anything military until 1812 (date of the next trough), keep a low profile and be defensive. The enormous mistake of going to conquer Spain and Talleyrand’s diplomatic betrayal with the Russian Tsar were turning points.
• Descent to 1812: the devastating Russian campaign and the Berezina marked a new turning point for Europe. Yet it was written: Napoleon should have been careful between 1806 and 1812, he scuttled himself.
• The curve rises until 1818, but there is a break in slope at the beginning of 1814 (passage of Saturn over its south node), when the coalition troops, during the Battle of France, won the decisive victory.