Jung, Astrology and the Structure of the Psyche

I’m very changeable. Sometimes I’m very quiet. Other times I talk or write too much. I can be a pleaser or a boat-rocker, logical or witchy. What’s going on? Who’s the real me? My astrological birth chart says it’s all me and it all fits together.  

Each one of us is a completely unique mix of characteristics and conflicts, wounds and abilities. Many of those traits and tensions are opaque and slippery. Carl Jung found that consulting a patient’s astrological birth chart helped him see exactly which tensions were at play and what larger archetypal forces were coloring them.  In 1950 Jung wrote:

“The basic meaning of the horoscope is that, by mapping out the positions of the planets and their relations to one another (aspects), together with the distribution of the signs of the zodiac at the cardinal points, it gives a picture first of the psychic and then of the physical constitution on the individual. It represents, in essence, a system of original and fundamental qualities in a person’s character, and can therefore be regarded as an equivalent of the individual psyche.”  (CW 9ii p.212)

That is a staggering idea. It’s way beyond the scope of this blog to approach the question of how the position of the stars at one’s birth might describe (not determine) the unique features of one’s soul.  All I can say here is that “synchronicity”, “archetype-as-such”, “archetypal image” and “psychoid” are some of the terms Jung used to point to these deepest mysteries, the uncanny and precise bridges between the physical and psychic realms that initiated people have known about since ancient times.

But you don’t have to settle any metaphysical questions to see if there’s truth about your soul in your birth chart. Just take a look and see for yourself.  You might ask, why? What truth could a birth chart reveal about me that I can’t access by inner work or other therapies? 

The answer is that when we do inner work on our own we rarely see our blind spots.  And when we work with therapists it’s also true that some of them don’t know how to distinguish what’s really us from what isn’t. Some therapists have a pre-programmed idea about how their patients’ psyches should look, what kind of inner house the patient should ideally live in. 

A birth chart, in contrast, shows you the house that’s already yours, and only yours. It shows you the floor plan of your psyche, where the supporting walls are that can’t be torn down, whether your main orientation opens to the north, south, east or west. These are things that can’t be changed. Attempting to do so will cause serious damage to the structure and make the house unlivable. If you’re trying to be somebody other than who you are, you know how painful that can be.

Accepting these given features as the foundation of who you are gives you a firm and fitting home in the world. It can bring a feeling of immense relief to see your confictive traits reflected in your chart. It is what it is. You came with the structure you came with. Now what are you going to do with it?  This is where our freedom lies. You can see your signature stuckness as just one piece in a mobile made of many other pieces that balance each other and move freely around one point. And with gentle attention, that irritating piece may even soften and take on a more benevolent aspect of its archetypal core.

Archetypal astrology describes what we experience as gifts, wounds, birth, death, meaning and purpose through the archetypal images of planets, signs, houses and aspects.  The ultimate nature of archetypes remains a mystery, but we know that it clicks when we hear that the Sun is related to leadership and the King, and the Moon is related to feelings, reflection and the Queen.

A first approach to archetypal astrology, and mistaken if it doesn’t go farther, is to memorize lists of correspondences between planets and human qualties. The deeper intention of archetypal astrology is to develop an awareness of the collective waves and tissues that are shaping us, and to realize that the web that forms us also responds to how we approach it. Our conscious attitude can transform, freeze or infuriate the wild beasts of the psyche, the givens of our birth chart.

Astrology helps us remember that we have an in-born purpose, something we came here to do. There is a reason your body, talents, trials, family, friends and experiences show up as they do. Archetypal astrologer Alexander von Schlieffen says that  “your soul chose its birth chart.” Your birth chart won’t give you a Google map to get to your destination, but it can blow away the clouds so that you see your guiding star or planet and know which direction to go. You can be in a state of not knowing without being lost. With your birth chart in hand you can put what’s moving inside you in its place. And take your next step with freedom and confidence that you’re aligned with the stars.

Master astrologer Alexander von Schlieffen is offering a 9 class course A Deeper Look at Astrology on the Jung Platform. Alexander is an exuberant teacher who makes the often complex ideas of astrology clear and accessible. He approaches astrology as a form of depth psychology. For a taste of his teachings, have a look at the free 30 minute lecture The Joy of Astrology. Learn More Here.