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DRACONIC ASTROLOGY - A legacy from an ancient past -- Patrizia Trotta

Tracing the origins of Draconic Astrology would be a very difficult task; all we really know
about it is that it was used in ancient Babylonian astrology and that it seems to have a "spiritual
flavour", so much so that Edgar Cayce himself used it in his readings, in the sense that when
given people's birth details, he very often described (under hypnosis as usual) their
characteristics as seen from the draconic level of their astrological charts, rather than the more
commonly used tropical. Somehow, Draconic Astrology seems to describe the "soul
personality", bypassing the more usual physical and psychological levels of reading a chart. This
does not mean that Draconic Astrology is not suitable for practical purposes - astrologers using it
will soon find that it adds a lot to consultations, as it describes people's inner nature so well.
How do we interpret draconic charts? Is this nodal zodiac different? Not really. In fact, because
it seems to describe motivation from the soul level, it tends to express the higher principles of
signs/aspects/houses, which, being purer, are easier to interpret.

This interesting and increasingly popular branch of astrology uses a zodiac beginning at the
Moon's North Node (Nodal Zodiac), which is treated as 0 Aries. The meanings of signs, aspects
and houses do not really change - as stated above, their principles are simply expressed in a
clearer way. J ust to get to the point, what is the meaning of a draconic chart? There are various
theories, but to name a few:

1) Some people say that the draconic level of an individual's chart shows what he/she has
done in previous incarnations

2) According to some theories, it is supposed to show people's soul qualities

3) Some astrologers feel that it shows the ideal to be reached by the Higher Self during
the present incarnation

4) For some others, it shows the "soul blueprint" and the Higher Self's intentions for the
present incarnation

One thing is certain - if we comparethe tropical and draconic levels in a horoscope, we will find
that certain life-themes will be indicated with great clarity. The links between the two levels
(especially conjunctions and oppositions) are likely to represent what the Higher Self has in
store for us by simply indicating what the soul should focus on to learn as much as possible and
evolve during the present incarnation.

Interestingly, the "windows" Draconic Astrology opens on other (subtler) dimensions of our
being, reflect the multidimensionality many of us are beginning to claim as our "real Selves". In
this way, Draconic Astrology potentially complements the more common Tropical Astrology
exquisitely well, giving clues to our Higher Self and its guidance. Placing draconic positions
around the more common Tropical birth planets in a bi-wheel chart will clearly show
connections and links between these levels, the most powerful being the conjunctions and the
oppositions, particularly to the angles. In my opinion, what is particularly interesting to note for
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practical purposes are draconic Sun, Moon and Ascendant placements, which seem to give
clues to the quality of a person's emotional body, his/her "hidden self".

What is an emotional body? If we accept the principle that we have an "energy component",
according to our "subtle anatomy", we are made up of physical, emotional, mental and spiritual
bodies. The spiritual body is the one that vibrates faster, feeding all the other "layers" of our
being. If we objectively observe the progress of the human race in the past century, we will
clearly see that we have evolved considerably on a physical and mental level - we tend to live
longer and more comfortably, and technology advancements themselves witness to what extent
we have progressed mentally and intellectually (mostly to the detriment of our emotions). But,
however important and encouraging this progress is, sadly an imbalance has been created, and
we have unquestionably been left with a seriously underdeveloped emotional body which needs
a lot of healing.

As our emotional body tends to be unconscious and neglected, it vibrates at a rather slow
frequency, seemingly being addicted to unproductive emotions such as fear, anger, worry, etc.
Unfortunately, we cannot really say that rapture and bliss are part of our everyday emotional
scenarios, plus the difficulties we face in life on a day-to-day basis seem to conspire against
developing our emotions to a higher level. As many teachers have been telling us in so many
ways, constant exposure to our own spiritual energies from the Higher Self via meditation, deep
breathing, crystals, herbal remedies, or whatever other method one chooses to adopt, will
eventually result in a natural evolution of our emotional body, and therefore of ourselves. I
would argue that logically, if it is true that we are unquestionably heading towards perfection
anyway, perhaps an attitude of playfulness, simply listening to our inner voice before making
any decision and learning to trust our inner guidance, could be very good ways to speed up our
evolution, after all. While we certainly do need more positive role models, perhaps relying on
other people, leaders or teachers, is becoming less relevant and necessary, so it seems to me that
what we really need for the 21st century is to embrace our own power and become all that we
can beby awakening our fearless self. In short, to evolve our emotional body and survive on our
planet we will have to learn to vibrate faster and thus embrace our multidimensionality.

As more and more people awaken to their multidimensionality, the "new astrologers" are likely
to have an important part to play in the healing of emotions on a global scale, and Draconic
Astrology might just be what we need to help people (and ourselves) heal their emotions and
regain their power by integrating their unconscious, multidimensional, Cosmic Self. In this
article, by using the charts of two well-known people, I'd like to show how a simple application
of this method can help the astrologer understand the dynamics of the Nodal zodiac and its
potential.

Before we begin, a brief explanation of how to calculate Draconic positions is in order: all you
need to do is to subtract the longitude of your North Node from each planet's and angle's
longitude. The easiest way is to convert all positions to ABSOLUTE LONGITUDE first, which
is their position in the 360 circle (i.e. 0 Aries=0 ; 0 Taurus=30 ; 0 Gemini=60 etc. In this
way, for example, natal Sun at 10 30' Taurus will become 40 30' in absolute longitude and
natal Moon at 25 15' Scorpio will translate as 235 15' in absolute longitude). Of course, a
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computer program will calculate your Draconic chart in no time - doing it by hand is just a bit
more lengthy, but not really difficult.

Once you have your draconic positions, write them (in a different colour maybe) round your
natal chart (if you have a computer program, you might like to use a bi-wheel chart) and note any
Draco planets on natal angles, and any powerful aspects formed to natal planets. Almost always,
important life themes will become evident. It would also be wise to pay particular attention to
the signs (and natal houses) that draconic Sun, Moon and Ascendant occupy, as they are usually
very revealing and indicate hidden/unconscious talents or tendencies, as well as important areas
of growth in this lifetime. As the clearest explanations can only be found in practical examples,
let us now analyse very briefly two charts of well-known people.

PRINCESS DIANA

Details: dr.Venus conjunct Asc.; dr. MC conjunct Venus; dr.Mercury/Sun conjunct Jupiter;
dr.Jupiter conjunct Mars/Pluto; dr.Saturn conjunct North Node/Mars; dr.Asc. conjunct Sun,
opposition Saturn; dr.Sun in Aquarius in the 2nd house; dr.Moon in Virgo in the 9th house;
dr. Asc. in Cancer.

If you observe her natal/draconic charts in a bi-wheel format, you will find that Lady Diana's
draco Venus is very prominent, obviously indicating that both loving and relating (Venusian
energies) were very important for her soul growth (in her case also doing so publicly). It was one
of the areas she had to teach and learn about. Draco Mercury conjunct Jupiter shows how
important broadening her own and other people's horizons was. Draco Sun on Jupiter
emphasises her love of sports and freedom, as well as her philosophical and philanthropic nature,
also well described by dr. Moon in the 9th house. Dr. Asc. conjunct Sun in the 7th might
indicate that sharing her own life with the world was necessary for her own growth, too. I find
draconic Jupiter conjunct Mars very interesting, as it indicates freedom of action, learning the
importance of asserting herself and how to do so effectively (lessons concerning her 'will' are
clearly indicated in the Tropical chart as well). Draco Saturn on her North Node/Mars and dr.
Asc. opposition Saturn (limitations and restructuring of her energy and public behaviour) seem
particularly revealing, in view of the fact that she had to bear many restrictions to her precious
freedom in her royal role. It is public knowledge that through all her personal suffering she
learned a lot, and accepted the responsibility of sharing what she had learned with the world. Her
interest in humanitarian causes is well described by her Draco Sun in Aquarius in the 2nd
house, and her eating disorders are indicated by her Cancerian sensitivity mixed with a draconic
Moon in Virgo (=psychosomatic ailments), which also describes her wish to be of service. She
will certainly be remembered for what she taught the world about love and caring (Venus and
Cancer), as well as for her own personal suffering (Saturn), through which she raised people's
awareness and showed the importance of personal freedom (J upiter).


EDGAR CAYCE

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Details: dr.Chiron conjunct MC/Pluto; dr.Uranus opposition North Node, Mercury, Saturn,
Venus; dr.Asc. opposition North Node, Mercury, Saturn, Venus; dr. Mercury, Saturn, Venus
conjunct Sun; dr. Sun in Aries in the 9th house; dr.Moon in Gemini in the 10th house; dr.
Ascendant in Virgo

Interestingly, this very well known psychic known as "the sleeping prophet" had a pioneering
role to play (see draconic planets in Aries in the 8th and 9th houses) and was a great teacher of
metaphysical realities (dr. Sun in the 9th and Chiron on the MC). Draconic Uranus/Asc.
opposition his 7th house stellium in Pisces emphasise how powerful Uranian energies were in his
life and in his work with people. As we know, Uranus stands for psychic abilities, innovative
tendencies and breaking new ground. Interestingly, he was sometimes plagued by a terrible
temper, which bothered him more than anybody else, as he was usually a quiet man - don't the
prominent Uranus and the draco planets in Aries "account" for it really well? Draco Moon in
Gemini in the 10th really shows how important communication was to his career and personal
life. This is confirmed by draco Mercury, conjunct Sun. Draconic Saturn/Venus are also
conjunct his natal Sun, indicating that both discipline and love were necessary for his life work
and soul growth. In view of what we know about him, is it surprising to find the placement of his
draconic Asc. in Virgo, the sign of service?

The above examples were only meant to give ideas and to offer guidelines as to possible uses of
Draconic Astrology. I truly hope that you will be encouraged to explore this wonderful legacy
from the ancient past to learn more about your own life purpose. It is my belief that Draconic
Astrology is coming back on the scenes with perfect timing to help all of us become all that we
can be and embrace our Cosmic heritage.

Patrizia Trotta (Mailing address: Via Gradisca 18/d, 21100 - VARESE, Italy;
E-mail: skymate@iol.it)

CHARTS DATA:

Princess Diana =J uly 01, 1961 7:45 p.m. GMD Sandringham, England (0E30' 52N50')
Edgar Cayce =March 18, 1877 3:03 p.m. CST Hopkinsville, KY (87W29'19" 36N51'56")