How to Live in Harmony with Your Birth Chart

Have you ever taken a close look at your birth chart?

I have to confess that I have often found it to be a very confusing map of clues. I have looked at mine a lot of times, and read lots of information, over the years, about what it all means, but I always end up overwhelmed.

But I heard something, recently, that was so interesting to me that I decided I better take another look. I ended up being glad that I did.

I was listening to a podcast, and on it, Tenae Stewart suggested that when things are going wrong in your life, it may be because you are not living in harmony with your birth chart.
 
I had never thought of that before. Had you?

​That would make our birth chart more than just an explanation, it also would be a lifestyle guide. 

And if you’re meant to live in harmony with it, that suggests that you are meant to be exactly who you are, rather than being a fixer-upper who shows promise!

She gave eight examples of what you can know by paying close attention to your birth chart, including feeling lost about what your soul purpose is, and finding it hard to feel joy. And then, she connected each one to corresponding parts of your birth chart, and said to look there for answers.

She pointed out that if you understand, for example, the combination of the energies of your sun sign and the house it’s in, you will know what to do to create more joy.

Once we identify the way each planet and sign work together, we look to the houses to discover exactly where that energy is manifesting. -​Allure Astrology

How to Create Joy

​After hearing that recipe for finding out how to create joy, I wanted to find out if that would be true for me. And here’s what I came up with for creating joy in my own life...

My sun sign is Gemini and it is in the 4th house, which Tenae said normally connects with Cancer. 

​And I discovered that that means I blend the offerings of both signs to maximize the possibility of joy in my life. Which means my home needs to be nurturing and that I need to get clear on what I need, or what feels nurturing to me, and then focus on creating that in my reality.

By creating a home, we create a sanctuary, a meeting place, and a sacred place to return to for ourselves and other people. The domestic space we create serves to keep us safe, nurture us, and provide comfort.
-AskAstrology.com

The article I read in Allure Astrology says that depending on which planet comes along for the ride, with your sun sign in the 4th house, you might see an impact on the way you look at home and family. And see encouragement to create private, nurturing places for yourself, within your home.

Plus, it suggests a focus on deep, meaningful interactions with family, rather than surface ones. And a focus on intellectual stimulation and the need to have a place dedicated to learning, curiosity and study. Interesting!

I have Jupiter in the 4th house, which, apparently, suggests having a sense of family and connection to it is important to me, but comfort and leisure at home, are equally important, and I am likely to focus a lot of time, attention and energy on creating the home I want. 

Ding, ding, ding! That is totally right about me.

One need that the people with the Sun in the fourth house have, has to do with soul growth or inner development. For some, this need for inner growth will actually supersede the trappings of success that so many of us perceive to be necessary in the exterior world.
-Astrology Club ​

That is the story of my life, right there in that quote. It explains why I have never been very ambitious when it comes to creating success, but have made it my mission to figure out how to be happy.

Adding it all together, I came up with this joy wish list…

(1) Maximize coziness and comfort & make time for self-care

(2) Simple, everyday pleasures and indulgences

(3)Journaling, blogging and meaningful conversations with others

(4) Carry on with my devotion to creating the home I want.

(5) Create and sustain daily rituals that elevate all of those experiences listed above.
​

Elemental Influence
​in Your Chart

Gemini is an air sign and air is the element I have the most of in my chart, so I could take this deeper by diving more into air qualities and considering what that would mean for both daily activities and decorating my home, since I’m a homebody.

Do you know what your primary element is?

And according to Tenae, it’s the element in your 4th house that gives you clues about how to avoid overwhelm and burnout. That’s one thing I really like about astrology - the way it explains you to yourself, and helps you understand why you are the way you are. 

Have you ever thought about which element you might need more of, especially in your home? If you have any birth signs in the 4th house, it might be worth exploring, from what I understand.

The element of Air suggests that it might be better to focus on air qualities. Let’s look at what that could mean…

An Air home is very organized. Everything is in its proper place. There are minimal design elements, an elegant style and a sense of openness and balance. 

Well, I love the idea of having everything in its place, but I need comfort and coziness, too. And that is likely because Cancer is normally connected to the 4th house, and Water is its element.

Water homes are warm, cozy, comfortable and romantic. They impart a sense of belonging and comfort, with lots of objects that have sentimental value and evidence everywhere that relationships are what's important.
​Denise Linn

What you might find in a water home is French country style, country cottage or Victorian design. You might see overstuffed, wooden furniture, with comfy cushions, lots of candles, warm lighting, draped fabrics (think blankets and throws) and scented soaps.

All of that sounds perfect to me. 

Which confirms the need for both Air and Water as elemental influences I would need in my home. And it suggests that my tidyness better not feel sterile, and my coziness better not become clutter.
​

Soul Purpose: What You Came Here to Do

As I understand it, the midheaven is found at the top of a line in your birth chart that says “MC” and it is connected to the 10th house. This sign, which for me, is Sagittarius, points to an ideal career or life path for you.

It’s what you came here to do.

The Sagittarius midheaven suggests a free spirit, who marches to the beat of her own drum. She might be an offbeat teacher or a philosopher. Or a healer who creates her own healing techniques and modalities (me, me, and me).
​

The Healer Archetype

The healer archetype has been around for so long, that it has developed some sub-archetypes that can help you in your exploration of this archetype, and some of those include The Intuitive Healer, The Wounded Healer, The Caregiver, The Nurse, The Therapist and the Healer Priest.
​- Susanna Barlow

I was a therapist during my early adulthood, and then, became a holistic health practitioner, and then, healer. The sub-archetypes that I believe fit best for me are wounded healer, intuitive healer and healer priest.

The latter is based on ancient helper roles, both shaman and priest included, that combined caring for spiritual needs as well as emotional or physical ones.

The wounded healer becomes a healer as a direct or indirect result of an emotional injury or trauma so profound, it seems to change who the person is, or divert them away from the path they would have been on, onto the healer path. Intuitive healers often find that they know instinctively what their people need, even when the presenting problem was something altogether different.

When I was looking up the healer archetype, I came across a quiz that helps you identify your primary way of being a healer. Naturally, I decided to take it. 

Who can resist a quiz? If you want to take it, as well, here’s the link: Healer Archetype Quiz.

My result was the Nurturing Healer Archetype, which is about being emotionally intuitive, having an open and compassionate heart, and having people be drawn to you because of your instinctive nurturing quality. Although that is true of me, it always surprises me when people can tell, or describe me in similar terms, because I don’t think I act that way - I think it must be that they connect with my energy.
​

Those with the Nurturer as their Lead Healing Archetype are naturally affectionate, caring and warm. Known for their ability to generously support and give to others, Nurturers are known for having a knack for opening the hearts of others - just by their sheer presence. -The Nurturer Handbook

Have you ever thought of yourself as a healer? Some people say we all have that capacity, but don’t always bring it to life. Do you agree?

I walked away from my birth chart exploration feeling like I know more about who I am, what makes me happy, what I need at home, and how to avoid burnout and overwhelm. And it made me curious about what else I might learn.
​

By the way, the podcast’s focus suggests that this close look at your birth chart is only necessary if something’s not quite right. If you are in love with your life, then you can be sure you are living in harmony with your chart. 

And if you are, I think that’s wonderful! That is my heart’s wish for everyone. My ultimate goal for this blog and the work I do is for you to fall in love with yourself and your life. 

But if you’re not quite there yet, then have a close look at the interactions between your signs, the houses they are in and any planets coming along for the ride. See if doing so inspires & empowers you to make things better.
​

What about Birth Chart Roadblocks?

What if you understand the guidance of your birth chart, and you intend to live in harmony with it, but can't do so fully, for some reason?

​​For example, I know that I am meant to long for comfort and simple pleasures. It’s right there in my birth chart. 

And living in harmony with that part of my chart would mean filling my day-to-day life with as much comfort, coziness and everyday, lifestyle pleasure as I can manage. But what if circumstances prevent it?

Here's one example: I would LOVE to have a fireplace! But I don’t have one at the moment, and am not sure when that might be possible. 

If I had one, though, it would 10x anything else I could do to create a comfy cozy feeling. So what do I do with the fact that I can’t have such an easy win?

I mean, in that specific case, harmony with part of my chart can’t happen fully. And I’m guessing that that is not an uncommon problem.

Here are my suggestions…

(1) Get as close to the ideal as you can, with the part that won’t work. In my case, that might mean a few candles, and/or a YouTube fireplace video. Maybe even fairy lights.

(2) Amp up the other things in that category. For example, if you were aiming for coziness, you could increase the cozy factor in other ways - blankets or throws, fuzzy socks, soft and warm lighting, daily tea rituals, frequent hot chocolate treats, your favorite comfy sweaters.

(3) Put whatever is missing on your wish list, and meanwhile, create harmony with other parts of your birth chart. 

If the area where you have hit a snag is only one part of the total picture, do as much as you can in that area, and let go of what you can’t do. Then, focus on attending to the other things in your chart.

And at least you’ll understand why it might sometimes feel like something’s missing.

But I also found something else in my birth chart that I thought of as a definite roadblock, about who I am as a person…
​

A Planet in Retrograde

Retrograde essentially means the planet's energy is somewhat blocked externally, so those life areas that come within that planet's domain are not as easily expressed.
​-Ambi Kavanaugh

I have Neptune in retrograde, and I never knew that before. I guess I never noticed it, in the past.

It helps to understand challenges I have experienced, and basically, haven’t been able to overcome, even when I throw every healing technique I know at them.

.Those born with Neptune retrograde in their chart might tend to hide their vulnerabilities, their spiritual side, or their compassion, as they feel somewhat uncomfortable expressing them. Deep faith can be missing, so that these people can be naturally mistrustful. When they are left to fill in the blanks, they might expect the worst. There can be a big fear of dreaming too big dreams, as they are afraid of being let down.
-can't find the source for this quote

Ugh! It’s all true. And though I have been able, at times, to make different choices than this quote would indicate, I remain the same on the inside.

Something else I read suggests that a major theme for me will be challenges around spirituality, which is also true.

Has that ever been true for you? You can’t wish it away, decide it away or heal it away, whatever it is?

Well, I came to understand, through this process, that your birth chart doesn’t just give you an explanation for why you are the way you are, it gives you permission to be yourself. Which means I can stop trying to get over myself.

The energy of the cosmos can be an explanation, but its real function is permission. It is 100% okay to be exactly who you are, and in fact, the universe needs you to be. That's why you were born at this moment, in this energy. - Tenae Stewart

So there really are no roadblocks. Just a guide to who you are meant to be. And permission to go right on being you.

How would it feel to really understand that, at a deep level?
​
Have you ever come to a better or deeper understanding of your true self by looking at your birth chart? If you want to explore your birth chart and connect with someone whose perspective and approach you really respect, I recommend Tenae Stewart.

See you tomorrow!