Many clients ask me how to find their soul purpose using astrology and if there is a form of Astrology called “Soul Purpose Astrology“. And I excitedly tell them, yes, that’s the role of the Lunar Nodes (amongst other things!).
The Lunar Nodes known as our North & South Nodes are not planets but mathematically calculated points directly opposite each other on our birth chart.
The nodes are points in space where two different orbits intersect: the orbit of the Moon around the Earth and the Sun’s orbit as it appears to move around the Earth. The point at which these two orbital paths cross is where we find the north node and the south node.
There are two variations of the nodes the ‘true’ node and the ‘mean’ node. The true node’s movements are the exact transit of the nodes, whereas the mean node’s transits are based on an average. I use the true node.
The move through each zodiac sign approximately every 18 months and take 18.5 years to circle the entire zodiac. This means that every 18.5 years we will experience a ‘nodal return’, when the nodes return to the same sign and degree as our birth and this can be quite an auspicious time.
How to find your Soul Purpose using Astrology
The Lunar Nodes hold so much gold for us in aligning to our soul purpose and living our best life as well as understanding our karmic lessons and why we might fall back into old ways or be afraid to step into our power.
The lunar nodes are predicated on the concept of past lives and karma, so ultimately, some belief in this concept is required to fully apply soul purpose astrology in your chart and your life. However, in this blog, I am not going to discuss interpreting past lives with your south node. If you’d like to dive deeper, you can check out my Past Life Astrology Toolkit here.
Let’s dive into what the nodes mean for us…
Your South Node – Karmic Debts
Your South Node is a karmic point on your chart representing your most recent past life – what you mastered in your previous life and therefore a point of comfort or ease in this life but also a point of potential stagnancy.
Our South Node is what we gravitate towards and what we often come back to.
Look to the sign and house of your south node in your chart to reflect on this in your life (and past life!).
Our South Node represents the skills you already have that you have mastered and they are therefore easy to express. It’s your comfort zone and you can see it as part of your ancestral lineage or past life karma (depending on your beliefs).
Your North Node – Soul Purpose
Your North Node is a very special point in your astrology chart, especially for Soul Purpose Astrology. It is the point of your soul purpose or ultimate journey in this lifetime.
Your North Node path won’t always feel easy, and often will not feel comfortable – but it is where your essential happiness and sense of purpose will be found.
The North Node is also about the lessons we came here to learn. It’s about our Soul Mission (as opposed to the often Egoic journey of our sun) but like our sun it will be a place of expansion.
Is our Soul Purpose easy?
Soul Purpose Astrology is not always about Ease and Bliss – but it can be!
The quote from Joan of Arc “I am not afraid. I was born to do this” is often mistaken to mean that if it is our soul calling or soul purpose that we won’t feel afraid. To my mind that’s not what this means – what it does mean is that when we are truly on our soul path – the sense of determination and soul calling will far outweigh the fear.
This is what discovering your north node is all about. Aligning to your true soul calling.
Soul Purpose & Astrology
You can discover your soul purpose with astrology!
Look to the sign and house of your North node in your chart to reflect on what it might mean for your soul purpose astrology.
Finding your Lunar Nodes
Your nodes can be found on your chart as seen below, be sure to check that you have chosen the ‘True Node’ (rather than mean node) and on astro.com you select ‘Descending Node’ to show your south node as well as your north node. For directions to create your free astrology chart click here.
My Nodal Placement
My south node is in Aquarius, right on the cusp of the 5th/6th house and my North Node is on the cusp of the 11th/12th house. I spent quite some time tuning into this placement and I absolutely feel that my placement is as shown in the 11th/5th houses.
What is interesting about my nodal placement is that my North Node sign (Leo) is ruled by by South Node house (5th) and my South Node sign (Aquarius) is ruled by my North Node house. (11th). I feel that this means that I am really meant to find a way to merge the energies of both in my soul work.
South Node in Aquarius
I tend to work with groups (the collective) rather than a lot of 1:1 work (very Aquarian).
I have a humanitarian streak – I studied international relations and worked in aid and development for a number of years. I always wanted to do something that made a difference and I get frustrated in my business when I don’t feel like I’m having enough of an impact.
My comfort zone is in Aquarian new technologies, the online world, earning money differently.
I love to be creative, which ultimately drove me to quit the corporate world in my early 30s. I tend to gravitate back to work in the 5th House/Aquarius zone even when it’s not entirely my soul purpose work – like when I created a graphic design and website business!
It feels easy and like the path of least resistance – but not the path of soul contentment!
North Node in Leo
My North Node is in Leo, and this sign is all about being seen and heard, being a leader and shining their light and I do this through the zone of community – I’ve been leading online communities for over 13 years now.
My work is meant to be soulful and deep, bringing Leo’s bold and creative energy.
But showing up and being visible doesn’t come easily to me – I have the heart of a hermit, I’m introverted with just a small inner circle of important people, so it’s massively out of my comfort zone to embrace the Leo energy.
This is often the case of your North Node!
Find your Soul Purpose using Astrology : Understand your North & South Node
Once you know the sign and house of your north and south node you can ask yourself the following questions:
What does the sign of your North Node tell you about your soul purpose or needed growth?
What does the house of your North Node tell you about where this must play out in your life?
What does the sign of your South Node tell you about your comfort zone and potential stagnancy?
What does the house of your South Node tell you about where this plays out in your life?
Ultimately, with a North Node in Leo, I know that my soul purpose must involve creativity, bravery, and not being afraid to shine my light. So whenever I feel scared about what I want to do in my business, I know that is the best possible sign I could get to do it!
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