North node and south node: past life astrology
In Western astrology the south node marks what feels familiar and comfortable, read as a pattern carried from earlier lives, and the north node marks the direction of growth. The two always sit exactly opposite each other in the birth chart.
| South node | What is familiar, skills and habits carried over |
|---|---|
| North node | The direction of growth |
| How to find them | From your birth date, time and place |
What the nodes are
The nodes are the two points where the Moon's path crosses the Sun's path across the sky. They are calculated, not observed as bodies. Astrologers read them as points of meaning: the south node is behind you and the north node is ahead.
The south node as the past
The south node is read as your comfort zone, the talents you use without effort and the habits you fall back on. In past life astrology it is the part of the chart that points to earlier lives, and to patterns that may have outlived their usefulness.
The north node as the direction
The north node is read as what feels unfamiliar and a little uncomfortable, and that is why it is called the direction of growth. Astrologers say the chart asks you to practise its sign and house, even though it feels awkward.
Reading yours
The sign of each node shows the theme, and its house shows the area of life. A north node in the seventh house, for example, is read as growth through partnership, with the south node in the first house read as a habit of going it alone. A calculator on your birth details gives yours in a moment.
The nodes and eclipses
The nodes matter in astronomy too. An eclipse can happen only when a New Moon or Full Moon falls close to one of the nodes, because only then do the Sun, Moon and Earth line up in three dimensions. That is why eclipses come in seasons about six months apart. Astrologers read eclipses that fall on your own nodes as turning points on the path from south node to north.
Rahu and Ketu
Indian astrology has read the nodes for well over a thousand years as Rahu, the north node, and Ketu, the south node. In that tradition Rahu is hunger and worldly ambition, and Ketu is detachment and what was mastered before. Western past life astrology borrowed much of this reading, which is why the south node is so often called the node of the past.
Your nodal return
The nodes go once round the zodiac in about 18.6 years, so they return to where they were at your birth around the ages of 18 or 19, 37, 56 and 74. Astrologers call this the nodal return and read it as a year when the chart's direction of growth comes back into focus, often marked by a change of course in love, work or where you live.
The north node by house
The house of your north node is read as the part of life where growth happens. In the first house it is read as growing into yourself, in the fifth through creativity and joy, in the seventh through partnership, in the tenth through career and in the twelfth through solitude and quiet service. The south node's house, opposite, names the familiar ground.
North node and south node: past life astrology: questions people ask
What does the north node mean?
In Western astrology the north node is read as the direction of growth, the qualities of its sign and house that the chart invites you to develop.
What does the south node mean?
The south node is read as what is familiar: talents and habits carried from earlier lives, and patterns that can hold you back.
Are the nodes planets?
No. They are points on the Moon's orbit where it crosses the plane of the Sun's path. Astrologers read them as points of meaning.
Keep exploring
- Past life astrologyThe nodes, Saturn, the twelfth house and Pluto, read as earlier patterns.
- Old soul signsTraits of an old soul, and how astrology reads them.
- Karmic relationshipsBonds that feel familiar and intense, and what traditions say they ask.
- Signs you have lived beforeThe experiences traditions read as echoes of an earlier life.