Sun Conjunct Chiron in Pisces: From Sol to Soul

This is the second entry of a two-part series. Here is the first. I’ve also posted an audio link below, sent in today by Melanie Reinhart, who helped with this article. It’s a song called From Soul to Soul, by a London gospel ensemble featuring Paul Carrack.

Today the Earth aligns with the Sun and Chiron to form a conjunction in Pisces. The conjunction is an extension of Tuesday’s New Moon, which was at the Neptune-Chiron midpoint. So today’s aspect is a kind of culmination. Whatever it represents has been brewing a while, and we will see different manifestations through the weekend and in truth for much longer.

The Sun is the only star used by many contemporary astrologers, and Leo is the only sign

In astrology, the Sun represents the adult ego. The ruling body of Leo and the one exalted in Aries, the Sun is the expressive principle — the big I Am. Egos come in all shapes and sizes. The adult ego is supposed to have a sense of both self and other; it wants a role in the world; it wants to shine out. It’s the basic statement of existence, but many more processes are operating that help that ego/I Am to mature — and those are usually represented by the outer planets (spending most of its orbit outside of Saturn’s orbit, Chiron has that property and in many ways exemplifies it).

As we mentioned yesterday, Sun-Chiron aspects can come with a struggle around maleness and around father. We live in a culture that doesn’t produce so many emotionally mature men. Whatever we can say about women, we might say that our culture specializes in the man-child — and the warrior.

We’re really great a creating warriors, who possess qualities which we then conflate with male maturity and extol as heroism. When you add Chiron to the Sun, by aspect or by transit, that hero can take a fall or be exposed as something less. Consider all the scandals involving corrupt cops and politicians previously venerated as heroes. For psychology heads, this is where the concept ‘shadow material’ comes into the picture, and the question of how we process it.

Taken another way, Sun-Chiron aspects can represent the very conditions that allow an immature man to grow into an expressive and responsible one. Often the way that happens is that a man gets hurt at some stage early in life, or experiences a sense of injury or of being outcast, and as a result of that injury or sense of injury goes through a healing process that allows him to gather power. What we think of as ego begins to express something deeper — that elusive quality we describe as soul, or in non-religious terms, you might say authentic personhood. Typically there is, however, little appreciation in our culture for the long process of initiation that it takes to get there.

One thing that stands out about Sun-Chiron in Pisces is how as part of this process, men must make contact with their feminine side and their emotional nature, but without sacrificing their maleness. This is like walking a razor’s edge, especially with all of the frantic homophobia projected onto men and that they project onto one another.

So, with this aspect, we encounter a whole bunch of contemporary gender issues that influence everyone on the spectrum. And it turns out that much of this has its roots in family material. If our society spent half its time addressing its family issues, that would be a good start. Summing up Sun-Chiron themes, here is how Melanie Reinhart put it in her book Chiron and the Healing Journey (recently issued in a new edition):

When Chiron aspects the Sun, we may feel wounded in the solar masculine principle, and our experience of individuality, ‘soloness’, vitality and purpose. Our sense of being at the creative centre of our own world falters, and we may seek to make someone else the centre of our universe. … Conversely, we may be charismatic, and shine brightly; we succeed in becoming the centre of attention, being loved and admired by many, but may be unable to recognize and enjoy it. … The key theme here is that Chiron-Sun aspects prompt us to become aware of our deeper self, as various layers of ‘identity’ are peeled back. We are not given the luxury of basking in the glory of a strong ego, but instead are forced to find our own deeper centre.

Dale O’Brien, one of the early astrologers to catch on to Chiron, described Sun-Chiron contact this way:

Astrological Sun without Chiron is complete, whole, and consistent, as reliable as the daily rising and overhead culmination in the sky of the physical Sun. For those individuals who tend to not fully own their own solar nature, there is a natural tendency to see someone else in her or his life as the ‘Shining One’, the Special One, the V.I.P. Where the Sun appears in a particular house will tell us in what area of one’s life where this assumption/association is likely to be made. Life goes on in this context until Chiron aspects that Sun by transit, particularly by square, opposition, or conjunction. Of these three aspects, the conjunction is the most significant, implying a significant new start.

This is to say, when the Sun contacts Chiron, we can make contact with our true solar nature, but often this implies something much deeper — an initiation that puts us in contact with our soul.

Reinhart adds, “Women with Chiron aspecting the Sun may define themselves by the man they are with, and serve as his reflection. In this way they may live vicariously their own masculine side, and take their sense of identity, purpose and achievement from the relationship.” And that may shift when there is a Chiron transit from the Sun. To find out when these transits happen in your natal chart, you may need to consult an astrologer. Yet when they happen as mutual aspects (that is to say, in the current sky, as is happening now), we all get a taste of the energy and an invitation to awakening.

Weekend Astrology Overview

Let’s take a quick look at the rest of the weekend. There’s actually a lot of feminine sexual energy that’s going to be rising up in the wake of Sun-Chiron. On Saturday, Vesta ingresses Aries. Vesta is devotional energy, the kind that you use to tend a fire, to tend to someone who is growing or healing, or to tend your own creative process. In the article ‘Sacred Space of Self’, Eric describes Vesta as “the incarnation of the goddess as fire; the living spirit of the element.” Vesta gives us fire and passion when she is in Aries, so plan to be fully expressive of your passions this weekend.

Also, since the Aries Point is where the personal becomes the political, we may be looking at another level of controversy (beyond what came to light with Ceres on the Aries Point) regarding women and sexuality. Who knows -– somewhere in the current race to deny women the right to control their bodies, we may discover that independent women and free choices about sex are something we really want.

Saturday there will be a Venus/Moon conjunction stirring up your ambitions around love and sex. The Pisces Moon was nice and cuddly and nourishing; Aries is bold about what it wants. And the next day, Sunday, Venus conjoins Eris. The goddess of love and sex meets the personality on a quest for identity, and asks: Who am I as a sexual being? And how do I connect sexuality with self-love?

All these goddesses meeting in the very masculine sign of Aries make an interesting counterpoint to the very masculine energies of Sun and Chiron currently in feminine Pisces. Given the sexual energies and relational questions at play, it may be perfect timing to feel your way in from Sol to Soul, and to take your place in the Sun with your feminine and masculine halves fully present and accounted for.

34 thoughts on “Sun Conjunct Chiron in Pisces: From Sol to Soul”

  1. We will be celebrating Betty’s video in the Tampa Bay, Florida area. Wouldn’t it be fun if PW’ers held a worldwide collective celebration?

  3. Currently in my Chiron return, [2nd house] I am celebrating many exciting choices and changes. This is one wonderful ride of a year! I have to say, this week has been confusing as if two separate worlds are within me. In one, I am daring, celebrating, planning, changing, reflecting, dreaming, etc. In the other, the odd obstacles, which I think are described well in this and the last article, especially regarding the mature male and reflections of the father. I can see the external manifestation of the concepts, but as I work through what I can or need to heal within, that remains murky and mysterious. Love that ego kicking in!

    It all seems so delicate and raw; very scary and exciting as if no matter what level of understanding I grasp in the moment, the moment is going to happen anyway. And aint that life?! So when the little demons pop out, knives drawn, I am trying to take a deep breath and realize I am not going to die, at least not just yet. I have got too much to do.

    PS. Thanks for sharing the info on Betty’s latest video. I ordered it and I am planning a women’s group to view it when the Merc retro/shadow phase is complete late April. I figured I would get the invitation out now before Monday, research a little, then hold it when it would seemed to be received in its best light.

    Love the new site also. Thanks everyone. -G

  4. Maria if you work in advertising is that good money? Could you work 4 days instead of 5, or save to take a year’s sabbatical, or relocate some place where your money went far. Soapstone.org might be another possibility. For Carrie too.

    should also say, like Carrie I feel I am too direct (that’s not quite what she said and that was about her writing), and that these things I’m asking are tied in with making my own relationships better – not necessarily in a poly sexual way for the moment (tho who knows) but better relating in my primary and other aquarian relationships to do with aquarian blindspots and 12th house. There is something here eluding me. (Bear with me if you can pls!)

  6. Carrie: thanks for mirror. Whenever I’m in a class and people start to talk about the process of writing, what they want to write, voice, etc., I lose patience and say: just write something. Forgot my own advice. How dull my complaints are. Pam, I do make a living writing, but it’s advertising. After eight hours a day of it, I’m literally slapping myself in the face to stay awake to write fiction, poetry, and blogs. But I love these, so I’m stuck.
    Eric: do tell.
    But really, what I decided to do is let go of that dream of being paid to do what I love, and all the resentment and disappointment that goes with it. I’ll keep working, keep writing, and keep stealing hours from sleep and enjoy whatever comes my way. That’s what this reset is for. That was my answer, so I thank this site for providing the conduit and energy source.
    “Oh, what genius to go unrecognized and uncompensated! It’s just not FAIR.”
    That’s the voice in my head I won’t miss. What a silly bitch. She needs something to do.

  7. Pam, I so agree; had I not separated the light and dark, I would not have had to meet the darkness face to face. For better or worse.
    Maria, I realize now when I left that face-to-face with my darker side despite my concern of being “alone” or never finding another partner was the moment when everything changed because there IS no “one” partner and I am constantly expanding now into a larger universe.
    Chiron is and has been on Natal Sun 8th house intercepted (in Pisces. Ascendant in Leo ruled by said Sun) Interesting that an artist uncle has now resurfaced in my life; a man-of-family that is different than the rest….take the 5 min window and remember that Time does not exist except in our need for order —- and from Chaos order comes — so embrace the Chaos and remember there is no such thing as time…..the window is wide open.
    Lovely every One; lovely here today — I can Feel the sky opening.
    Fe – thank you!

  8. This little owl says “Woot!” to that. (Or should I stick with a passionate, from the belly “hoot”?) As a female owl with a historically dampened sun, I welcome and celebrate this cosmic invitation to finally shine as me, no longer hiding behind projected grandeur onto larger-than-life friends & lovers. Thank you PW family…

  12. Carrie maybe write the things you think you should be getting out there and post them here, or when they are written the place to place them may be evident

  14. Maria I love what you write – it is your honesty that is so compelling. I don’t know who ‘the man’ is so don’t know how you are stuck. Why shouldn’t you make a living writing.

    Masters of the Living Energy by Joan Parisi Wilcox explains how to make a creative offering to the earth, you could make one for making a living with your writing. I realise I have been making one of these bundles for a while now, and today, like a surge of energy I did something completely different spontaneously, as tho I was pushed. It may take some years to come to fruition but I am free free free already of a burden I have shared from 94 and carried from 99.

    So so grateful. Like I graduated from it. So grateful.

    Otherwise I don’t understand why you aren’t making a living with your writing.

    love Pam

  15. HS: yes lovely! I had a boyfriend once who loved to read Henry Miller to me, in bed, in the pub, on the bus, everywhere. What a lovely guy!

  16. PS

    The comments are footnotes to the main text right?! And sometimes conversations that take off apart from that.

    Just noting that I give myself freedom to speak on that understanding, and

    that this is a free (speech) forum

    that I am honing my communications skills and authenticity (aiming for concert pitch)

    that I prefer an honest person in the room to a yes man, I am immensely grateful for gentle treatment

    I understood we are looking for what is sound and true here not defending a position (other than that)

    That I still have grave (and honest) doubts about polyamory (I think Carrie’s view why she thinks polyamory is equally valid is the one I’m waiting for – over to you Carrie – something to write!) Sex has hooks I think – all the experience I have of polyamory is profoundly selfish and futile. Saw a video of HHDL speaking – no charisma, simple simple things, but no hooks: the guy is real. That book on peruvian shamanism, I know that, the stuff I’ve written this week is all that, how do I know that except thanks to that meeting with HH 12 years ago, in effect what he set in motion in an instant. Something I read today is the assumption in Peru that if you win a race and beat me you teach me how to win. if I say I am a higher level than you you have the right to draw on my higher spiritual energy but if we are equals I have the right only to draw on your heavy energy (to help clean you and feed the earth). All this I believe.

    If what I write is good and true the credit must largely go to the peopel who love and have loved me.

    Blessings to all

  19. Free2BeC: awesome. I share your experience completely. Almost word for word.

    This article is so helpful it’s just amazing. I’m just…well, humbled.

  20. “what i want most in the world is to make a living doing the writing i want to do, not the kind the Man wants me to do,”

    You and me both, Maria! I am fed up with group-think and others telling me my voice isn’t the “right” voice even as others tell me to “find my voice” in my writing! I have things to say and a unique way of seeing things; I feel I should write these because they may help someone out there. Getting paid for doing that would be icing on the cake but not the reason I feel compelled to write.

  22. All of this is also conjunct my midheaven and natal chiron. I have so much work for the Man i can barely talk to anyone or sleep. i really don’t want the rest of my life to be overloaded with work. worried i’ll miss what i need to learn and won’t get anything from this experience, or worse, have it come back harder til i get the message. at the same time: all my work has to do with veterans in some way, and my father (also a veteran, whose cruelty has faded into civilized distance) is being tested for some mysterious heart ailment. so this post actually made me laugh. what i want most in the world is to make a living doing the writing i want to do, not the kind the Man wants me to do, though yes, i’m aware few achieve this, and yes, i know how lucky i am, and no, no, no i won’t dare ask for more. except i will. how to take an action to use this conjunction reset button to get out of this cycle, in a five-minute window? any insight wildly appreciated.

  23. From a friend today:

    ‘… Two things cross my mind on ruminating over it. For me, the Dark One can be thought of as analogous to a G.U.T. conceptualized in mathematical terms, in other words, it’s the face of It, it symbolizes It, but it ain’t It.

    On the shadow. Once the shadow is integrated or as you say owned, maybe ACIM is right in saying there is no darkness, but if there’s no darkness, then there’s no light at the same time. It’s all one at that point. Call it anything you want.

    Light and dark in that sense are just symbols anyway, for good and evil I daresay, which Doc Jung thinks are not only relative terms, but are also: “absolutes”, both of em. They morph into something else when they can’t be seen as related. Let’s hope for the best, collectively the species seems to be learning and mutating, and selfishness aint as PC as it used to be….. I intuit the non dual realm as the true definition of unselfish….’

  24. Thank you for a resonant article. I can indeed feel the energies ramping up inside me too, Kelly! Coupled with the part of me that is travelling in the underworld, it is a strange state to be in. I’m trying not to question it all too much.

  26. giving yourself over to the work, letting go of any preferred outcome, opening the situation towards the best good (aligning with the note of ‘best good’, a concentration of focus, stepping into), let go the ‘prejudice of names’ and where you see the colours clearly move towards what is needful

    ?!

    xxxp

  28. Family and social ‘issues’. Not sure. Rather that this is the palette, what matters is that you work, not the outcome, tho if you work in it authentically the outcome is dealing with your/the issues. it is being in the work rather than the goal that is crucial? The artistry if you like that is the living water. Broken or whole, wounded or whole, male or female, good or bad, in a sense this is irrelevant, doesn’t hamper the artistry just provides different expression.

    O the laughter by the sea and under the stars. I bought a several books for my husband’s birthday to give the widest possible spectrum on a subject, he didn’t like several but one especially. I was on the look out for a word that would ‘answer’ for someone else, and found one. And both tailor made for me in passing.

  32. Thank you for this piece, which i am sure will touch many. The quote from Dale O’Brien was especially perceptive. The Weekend Overview is a most welcome addendum.

  33. The reference to “adult” ego is striking to me. Yesterday i had an experience in my healing work where I witnessed how my adult self acts as father figure in pressuring one of my child aspects to do things he’s not ready for. It was really powerful. My relationship to my father and the masculine is highlighted right now, and there is a relationship going on between my adult self and a part of me that needs healing. It feels like the perfect personification of the Chiron-Sun conjunction.

  34. I was hours earlier thinking ‘what has ramped up the voltage a couple of amps?’ Literary speaking it’s really hot in Melbourne today and tomorrow is set to be a scorcher! But, judging by the tone and saucy glances from other women around me –it’s not the weather that’s on their minds either 😉

Leave a Comment