the challenges of the 6th

In the West, we think of the 6th house as Work and Service, but also as the health of the Body.

In the East, they relate to it similarly, but make subtle differences:

1. It is a Dussthana house.  Houses 3, 6, 8, 12 are all Dussthana houses.  They are ‘bad’ and bring misfortune.

2. Medical karma: ie. Illness and disease are all in the 6th house.

3. Armies and Open enemies too (the US has a ton of planets in Scorpio in the 6th….mmMMMmmmmm)

….I feel we can cross pollinate the two systems by saying, “The sixth house is all about “getting real” with ourselves, and with our work in the world.  If we arent “being real,” we then pay the consequences.

We get sick, we go to war, we over work, we stress, we  , and we don’t take care of our pets (another 6th house issue)

Also, being that Virgo rules over the 6th house, and Mercury rules it, there is an interesting combination between Earth   (Virgo) and Air (Mercury).  It brings the Mind into the earth.  It grounds us, so that we can actually make a difference.

Lots of doctors will have heavy VIrgo in their charts.  As do mechanics.

What is related to your 6th House?

namaste,

sOma

www.holestoheavens.com

Oppositions and conjunctions: A cacophony of thoughts

….This came up in a reading  I recently gave to my friend. She had an abundant of oppositions in her chart that all involved in some way the Pisces/Virgo archetypes. She basically has all these amazing dreams (Pisces). However, her entire life, whenever she has started to make them a reality (Virgo) she has gotten overwhelmed with how directionless she felt. She would start a project a zillion times, from a zillion different angels, and walk away from it just as many times.

I am soooo fascinated by oppositions, and why some souls create lifetimes in which evolution is contingent upon working them out.

Before I talk too much about oppositions, lets take a look at conjunctions. There are two kinds of conjunctions: 1. the New phase conjunction and 2. the balsamic conjunction.

The new phase conjunction between any two planets symbolizes the very beginning of a cycle. New phase simply means the faster moving planet is moving away from the slower moving planet (i.e Pluto 0 degrees Libra, Mars 5 degrees Libra= new phase conjunction). A soul born with a new phase conjunction is developing those two planets in relationship to one another in an entirely new way. This would be the first, or one of the first lifetimes in which this cylce is beginning. There will naturally be a freshness, clarity and openness to begin the journey.

The balsamic phase conjunction symbolizes the completion of a cycle. It’s the very end of an entire cycle between any two planets. Balsamic means the faster moving planet is applying towards the slower moving planet (ie Pluto 0 degrees Libra, Mars 25 degrees Virgo= balsamic conjunction). A soul born with a balsamic conjunction is required to relive certain dynamics of the past in order to bring to as great a completion as possible the intention those two planets have together. This is innately more challenging for most souls than the new phase conjunction because progress and newness is not possible until the old is completed. This doesn’t mean experiences of newness won’t come about- it simply means the archetype is directly associated with completing the cycle.

In between the new phase conjunction and the balsamic conjunction is the famed opposition. The opposition is the midpoint bewteen each conjunction. It represents the culmination of the evolutionary intention implied by any two celestial bodies.

By the way, aspects are indicate of cycles that started prior to this life

When we look at aspects, we often ignore the fact that the aspects on our chart means that each soul, in this partciular life, is at a particular phase of a longer evolutionary journey. Each lifetime is a little trip that the soul plans for itself. We’re here with one chart only- and that chart defines the parameters of the evolutionary journey.

Back to oppositions:

Souls that have an opposition in their chart are perpetually faced with the neccesity to release any patterns that do not allow for a harmonious integration of the polarity. This is very different than the conjunction. In the conjunction there is nothing to release in terms of conflicting patterns. The only intention of the conjunction (both new phase and balsamic) is synthesis. The sign and house of the conjuncting planets will indicate the nature of that synthesis. The opposition also requires synthesis, however in order for that to occur opposites need to be reconsiled.

My friend and teacher Adam Gainsburg calls oppositions “backwards facing conjunctions”. As a phase in a cycle, this lifetime symbolize the maximum level of achievement, and thus mastery that can be achieved in the cycle. It’s the “full Moon” of the cycle.

We all have oppositions in our chart. How do I know this? What natural oppositions occur in EVERY chart? The opposition between the ascendant descendant. Between the midheaven and the lowheaven. And between the nodes of the Moon!

And all of those points are nodal points. The 4 angels (ascendant descendant, midheaven and lowheaven) are the nodes at which the local horizon and meridians cross the ecliptic. And the nodes of the Moon are the 2 nodes at which the Moon’s apparent orbit around the earth intersects the ecliptic. Ecliptic and oppositions. Hmm…

Ari