Elizabeth Smith, Master Astrocartographer
The share economy of the internet has given people free access to astrocartography maps. But once you have yours how do you use it wisely?
Using powerful tools comes with big responsibilities. If you want that access to power to work to your advantage, it’s essential to educate yourself before using it to make big life decisions.
BECOME FAMILIAR WITH YOUR BIRTH CHART
Your free astrocartography map is a visual picture of the placement of the planets at the time and from the point of view of the location on Earth where you were born. All the planets have their own energetic nature or personality which then gets projected into the 12 houses of your birth chart that determine which areas of your life they will effect. The distances between them, called aspects, also have a profound effect on how they play out as do the zodiac signs they are connected with.
Although free astrocartography maps can give you a generic description of each planet’s general personality as it effects a certain house, it is essential to know how that planet in that house is influenced by the rest of your unique natal chart. Taking computerized interpretations out of context with the rest of your birth chart is like examining a fish that’a been removed from water and thinking that you know the nature of fish.
THE PLANETS ARE RELATIONAL
For example, you may read that living under a Jupiter in the Midheaven line will bring good fortune in the area of career, or even fame and a world class reputation. Under ideal circumstances that can be true. But if in your birth chart Jupiter is afflicted or in a disharmonious sign or aspect (relationship) to a more restrictive planet or to several, its expression can be drastically different from this oversimplified understanding of and assumptions about its reputedly positive behaviors.
POSITIVE VS. NEGATIVE OUTCOME
Like all living things, Jupiter’s potential will be determined by environmental factors, by what is around it. Its renowned association with generosity and abundance can transform into excessive materialism, a destructive drive for pleasure or the tendency to judge and make assumptions about those who have less. If you only know about its light potential, you might move near it expecting career help and wind up encountering more hardship in your life instead of less.
PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS
While reading descriptions of the main planets is key, considering the impact of the aspects and most importantly, of each crossing or paran that is active in any location you are interested in, is equally essential. The local lines can sound very attractive and seductive in their descriptions but if the parans at that latitude out weigh their impact, or if challenging paran planets are more powerful or far reaching than the planet represented by the line, then living under the otherwise positive line may not be a wise choice.
TAKE A HOLISTIC VIEW
Each map offers a wealth of information and it is time consuming to study it all. Do you believe your future is worth investing in? Time studying the map is time well spent. The information offered in an astrocartography reading is as deep and complex as your life’s journey. It’s a visual map OF your life and so it holds endless possibility. Those who take the time to study it deeply,, ideally with someone who has years of experience connecting the map with real life experiences in those zones, make the best use of its potential.