CHIRON RETROGRADE IN PISCES FROM 24TH JUNE TO 27TH NOVEMBER 2015

Chiron was discovered in 1977 between the orbits of Saturn and Uranus by C.T. Kowal and since it didn’t fit into the existing categories of celestial bodies at that time it has been re-classified several times and now has two definitions; as a minor planet and as a comet. We now know that it is part of the Centaurs in the Kuiper Belt, a huge zone of celestial matter surrounding our solar system.

Chiron in the Greek myth was the son of Kronos (Saturn) and a sea-nymph called Philyra, when he was conceived both parents were in their horse-form and thus Chiron came forth as a Centaur, half-horse and half-human. Upon seeing him, his mother was horrified and prayed to be turned into anything but what she was “the mother of a monster” and the gods agreed and she became a linden tree. Philyra’s reaction reveals the primary state of mind that causes our suffering, the incapacity to accept reality and responding a negative way by feeling rejected in some way. Chiron was taken to the Sun god Apollo who raised him, reminding us that our suffering needs to be brought to the light of compassionate awareness.

Chiron, who under Apollo’s tutoring had become a healer, teacher, musician and prophet, was awarded his title of the “wounded healer” after Hercules, one of his students, accidently wounded him with a poisoned arrow. Chiron was a demi-god and he was unable to die yet, at the same time, unable to heal himself from the poison. After many years of agony Chiron had the opportunity to change places with Prometheus who had been chained to a rock as punishment for deceiving Zeus (Jupiter) so both were free and Chiron was able to finally die as a mortal.

Chiron in astrology can also represent that which we can do for others but not for ourselves.

It is still unclear in astrology about which sign Chiron should be associated with, some say Sagittarius, others Virgo. Therefore it is appropriate to consider only the sign and house placement of Chiron in the natal chart. It is not to be interpreted as the other planets (as having a rather fixed set of characteristics) but rather its transits to the various planets in the natal chart should be observed and note taken of the more subtle effects usually at subconscious level that these bring up for you.

Chiron’s transit of Pisces began in March 2011 and this present retrograde period is the second of its stay in the sign. From 24^th June to 27^th November 2015 it will retrograde from 21° Pisces to 16° Pisces. If you have planets or angles in these degrees in the signs of Pisces, Virgo, Sagittarius or Gemini you will already have experienced a forward moving transit over these points, now it is back-tracking over the same placements and at the end of November when it starts its forward movement once again, it will pass over these points for the third time.

If the above transits do affect you during this period you may begin to feel, or have already felt, some discomfort about certain issues in your life (nearly always things or memories coming from the past) so try to welcome the opportunity to dig deeper inside yourself to find the reasons and perhaps even the answers to your uneasiness. It’s usually more of a mental or subconscious cleansing than a physical one although in some people it can also manifest as physical “dis-ease”.

Chiron has a rather weird orbit, spending more time in some signs than others, but he does manage to complete the whole circle of the zodiac in approximately 51 years. The Chiron return (when Chiron conjoins your Chiron placement in the natal chart) more often than not marks the onset of the menopause for women.

Bibliography

http://pandorastrology.com/transits-this-year/planetary-retrogrades-stations/chiron-station-retrograde/ accessed on July 1^st 2015

Reinhart M. (ed. 2009), Chiron and the Healing Journey, Chapter 3, pp 54-61, Starwalker Press, London UK

Sasportas H. (1985), The Twelve Houses, Part 3, 29, pp 345-348, The Aquarian Press, Chatham, Kent UK

Tompkins S. (2006), The Contemporary Astrologer’s Handbook, Chapter 7, pp 306-310, Flare Publications, London UK