posted June 19, 2004 08:05 PM              

The North Node (NN) is also interchangeably called the "Head & Tail of the Dragon", or also, the Ascending Node. It is not a planet, but an invisible point.

And then you have a South Node (SN) which is always in the opposite sign. Briefly in terms of how we think of all these in interpretation, the NN is showing where the emphasis and lessons and life will be trying to get to, whereas the South Node, is the lessons you are coming from, which you already learned and are bringing with you in this lifetime.

"The Lunar Nodes -

The points where the orbit of the Moon crosses the ecliptic. Can be mean or true. It is a matter of debate which is more accurate. The node moves backwards or retrograde around the zodiac. The mean node is always retrograde, the true node moves direct occasionally as if it's wobbling along. These occasional forward movements can be significant for progressions.

North Node: what you do not know are/should be moving towards
South Node: what you have mastered and are/should be leaving behind

Associations, large groups of people, clans, family, society."

Here's a very detailed article:
http://groups.msn.com/HOROSCOPESCHAT/lunarnodes.msnw

And yet, more food for thought:::

"The True Node oscillates according to the Moons "wobble" caused by the earth/moon gyroscopic action. The Mean Node averages this "wobble" out. The problem is that at any given moment the Moon may be "aiming" at a different part of the ecliptic (where is crosses), but by the time it gets there, the Node position will probably have changed.

The Moon’s Nodes are not planets. They are points in space indicating the intersection of two orbits. The elements to be considered are a) the Ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun around the Earth, which is actually the orbit of the Earth around the Sun; and b) the orbit of the Moon that which revolves around the Earth. The planes of these two orbits intersect each other at 5 degrees, 8 minutes and 40 seconds. The line of intersection is the axis formed by the Moon's Nodes.

The Nodes do not move at an entirely predictable speed and vary from day to day. They are either calculated as “True” or “Mean.” True is the ' exact' position of the Nodes at any given time, while Mean is the presumed position based on the average speed. With the assistance of computers, most astrologers have opted to use the True Node, but the matter of which is more eloquent is still debated. The Mean Node is always retrograde, whilst the True Node may occasionally be direct, as if it's wobbling. That's because the True Node takes the gyroscopic relationship of the Sun/Moon into account. It may be argued, then, that it now makes little sense to use the Mean Node when it is just as easy to calculate the True Node.

However, this is somewhat illusory, since "in the strict sense of the word, even the ”true” nodes are true only twice a month, viz. at the times when the moon crosses the ecliptic. Positions given for the times in between those two points are just a hypothesis. They are founded on the idea that celestial orbits can be approximated by elliptical elements

This works well with the planets, but not with the moon, because its orbit is strongly perturbed by the sun. Another procedure, which might be more reasonable, would be to interpolate between the true node passages. The monthly oscillation of the node would be suppressed, and the maximum deviation from the conventional ”true” node would be about 20 arc minutes" See the Swiss Ephemeris for further explanation. I would therefore recommend experimenting with both systems. An obvious advantage of using the Mean Node is that it is what was used traditionally, so most commentaries of the meanings will have used this method.

We do know that the Nodes are an important element in predicting eclipses of the Sun or Moon. NASA '"confirms that eclipses only occur if the satellite of a planet is located within 0.5 degrees of the plane of the Ecliptic, on a line which passes through the centre of the Sun and the Earth. The Moon travels along an orbit which is inclined by 5 degrees to the Ecliptic plane, so there are only two opportunities each month when it passes through the plane of the Ecliptic, called the ascending and descending nodes.

These two points connected to the barycentre of the Earth- Moon system ( roughly the centre of the Earth ) define a 'line of nodes', and eclipses of the Sun and Moon will occur if this line of nodes coincides with the line drawn between the centre of the Earth and Sun. Again, the Moon also has to be within 0.5 degrees of one or the other of the nodes so that the disk of the Sun is partially or totally covered in a solar eclipse. A similar argument explains why lunar eclipses do not happen every full moon at the node opposite the Sun from the Earth." .

The image below shows the conditions necessary for an eclipse. Note that the North Node is pointing to the Sun.

Modern Western astrologers do not tend to see the Nodes in the same light as either Vedic or Traditional Western astrologers and have invented some very exotic meanings without much coherent rationale. Often they take the politically correct route, suggesting nothing can be wrathful or malefic in the 'New Age' and that the very idea of 'malefic' belongs to a less 'enlightened' age. There are many who consider the nodes as essentially karmic signatures, but then become surprisingly vague or aggressively retributional and dogmatic. In the case of the latter, I'm thinking of the 'tone' of much of Schulman's work on the subject. William Lilly makes his own position clear:

The Head of the Dragon is Masculine, of the nature of Jupiter and Venus, and of himself a Fortune; yet the Ancients does say, that being in Conjunction with the good he is good, and in conjunction with the evil Planets they account him evil.

The Tayle of the Dragon is Feminine by Nature, and clean contrary to the Head; for he is evil when joyned with good Planets, and good when in conjunction with the malignant Planets. This is the constant opinion of all the Ancients, but upon what reason grounded I know not; I ever found the North Node equivalent to either of the Fortunes, and when joyned with the evil Planets to lessen their malevolent signification; when joyned with the good to increase the good promised by them: For the Tayle of the Dragon, I always in my practise found when he was joyned with the evil Planets; their malice or the evil intended thereby was doubled and trebled, or extreamly augmented, &c. and when he chanced to be conjunction with any of the Fortunes who were significators in the question, though the matter by the principal significator was fairely promised, and likely to be perfected in a smal time; yet did there ever fal out many rubs and disturbances, much wrangling and great controversie, that the businesse was many times given over for desperate ere a perfect conclusion could be had; and unlesse the principal significators were Angular and wel fortified with essential dignities, many times unexpectedly the whole matter came to nothing.

The nodes are crucial and revealing; not inherently malefic, but quite capable of being so. They are no more 'karmic' than any other element of the chart. However, an astrologer may use the nodes as part of chart analyses far beyond the predicting of an eclipse. They are read to determine the directional axis of a chart. They describe the flow of energy into the chart and the direction in which that energy will move. It must be understood that the Dragons' Head and tail should be read in concert with the chart as whole. This directional axis is used in natal, mundane, predictive and many other forms of astrology. In general, the South Node indicates the energy we bring into this life and feel at home with. The North Node shows where this energy is being drawn and the native challenged.

The signs will always be opposite so, for example, if the dragon’s tail is in Cancer, the head will be in Capricorn. These configurations will also lend themselves to archetypal interpretation: the chart’s native will be found to “inherit” a force that represents all that is Cancerian, including concerns with the home, feelings and of course, the Mother. In order for the soul to proceed it must overcome the limitations or gravity of the South Node in order to embrace that of the North. In the example given, there will be inevitable resistance to moving from the relative comfort of the “home” to learn the saturnine lessons of the comparatively cold, but productive and independent qualities of paternal Capricorn. If the South Node is in Pisces and the North in Virgo, the native will need to learn the importance of detail, and so on.

posted June 19, 2004 08:06 PM              

"North Node in Pisces: means that you have to develop your imagination, intuition, and sympathy. Your South Node is in Virgo, showing a tendency to put too much emphasis on little details, so much so that you get bogged down. Virgo is the sign of lists. Put some free time on your schedule. Do nothing a few times a week. Just hang out and let your imagination drift. It’s good for your health. If you insist on “keeping busy”, do some volunteer work at a hospital, nursing home, orphanage, even a prison. Some place connected with restriction (Pisces rules places of restriction). Don’t forget animal shelters. Or do something creative. Perhaps a workshop in art or dance. Study Yoga, Tai Chi, or take up meditation. And don’t be so insistent on details when it comes to sex."

AND

"North Node Pisces/South Node Virgo:

posted June 20, 2004 08:16 AM              

I wouldn't think that would be a bad thing since the NN is where you are trying to be, and having the Sun or Asc in the same sign should help. Maybe someone else has another answer for you. In the meantime, I found this. Let me know if it sounds true:

"Sun aspecting Node:

The illusion of being.