Before discussing Chiron in Aquarius, we must first understand the concept of Chiron. What is Chiron, and how did this concept enter astrology?
Moreover, how do his teachings serve and guide our lives?
It’s essential to clarify that Chiron is not a planet, but a planetoid, which orbits in our solar system.
Historical Background
Chiron was discovered relatively recently compared to other astrological discoveries. American astronomer Charles T. Kowal identified it in 1977. At that time, there was still no previous knowledge or specific archetype to attribute it to.
In the 70s, many astrologers said it was a “rogue” celestial body since it was significantly larger than any comet.
Still, it also did not have the necessary size to be considered a planet.
As a result, they slowly began to uncover what Chiron brought to astrology – that mysterious body located beyond the asteroid belt, crossing the orbit of Saturn and Uranus chaotically. That was striking since it challenges the themes of these two planets.
Chiron in Mythology
Since an astronomer discovered this unique planetoid that orbits in our solar system, astrologers had to find the corresponding archetype.
Most of the time in astrology, they turned to ancient Greek mythology since each planet represents a god or goddess’s form, energy, or archetype.
Therefore, it tells the story of its birth, history, and the teachings it brings us.
Chiron, in mythology, is the son of Titan Chronus and a beautiful nymph called Philyra. The story tells that Titan Chronus insisted on forming a connection with Filira, but she did not reciprocate. According to one myth, to avoid repeated harassment, she decided to disguise herself as a mare.
Seeing this, Titan Chronus decides to transform himself into a horse and have intercourse with her, resulting in Phylira’s unwanted pregnancy.
Their forced union is also the origin story of Chiron. He was born as a centaur – a combination of a horse and a human.
Chiron’s appearance and how he came into the world disgusted Philyria and forced her to abandon her son. However, she was not the only one. Titan Chronus, Chiron’s father, didn’t care about his son or his further destiny.
Chiron is helpless until the god Apollo finds him and adopts him. Apollo raised Chiron, taught him art, and shared all his knowledge with him.
Chiron had a unique childhood and background, causing him to become a centaur different from others. Chiron was kind, empathetic, educated, generous, and intelligent, unlike other centaurs.
He helped others heal but carried within himself the pain of having been abandoned by his mother, a pain that he will never be able to recover.
The Meaning of Chiron in the Natal Chart
After learning about the myth from which the archetype of Chiron arises, it’s time to discover what he represents in the natal chart.
He is a character who changes the paradigm of having been abandoned by learning and instructing himself in the positive and luminous things of life but still carries a deep pain within that he will never be able to heal.
When we talk about Chiron, we talk about the “wounded healer” since it is a place in our natal chart where we have the gift and power to empathize with others, advise, and even help heal. Yet, when we see this placement in our own life, it feels like something unfinished that we have not healed yet.
Chiron can act as a companion in healing, a shaman, or a mentor because he lived the pain in his own flesh, and even though his wound never heals, he identified the tools to transform the pain.
These are the themes that this planetoid touches and that align with the myth from which it arises. However, it’s crucial to add that Chiron is immortal. Hence, this pain is truly endless. But with its knowledge, Chiron manages to channel that pain through compassion towards others. He cares about other beings and their impulses and sincerely desires to be a healer beyond being wounded.
It speaks to us about resilience, a tremendous chironian word, which is precisely the awareness of pain, what has generated it, and how we must follow the path and move forward despite the cruel wound that often feels overwhelming. We must find the will and ability to transform that pain within us, become healers of other beings, and learn to use what hurt us as strength.
The Shaman Archetype
The myth of Chiron includes the shaman archetype because he can give experienced insights and make others resonate, encouraging people to reflect on their pain and experience certain things to help heal and reach the ultimate metamorphosis.
Chiron in our birth chart speaks of that painful place we can leverage to be great teachers or shamans concerning healing issues, even though they feel unfinished in our lives. These wounds continuously open, preventing us from getting the proper closure, testing our resilience, and transforming and healing power.
He can represent that place in the card where we have hurt and are usually hurt.
The placement of the chart where Chiron is represents two parallel facets: two sides of the same coin, the healer and the wounded, the rejected and the savior.
These aspects we all have within us are necessary to balance. However, how it manifests and feels depends on where this planetoid lies in our natal chart.
Chiron takes approximately fifty years to go around the Sun. Hence, its orbit, in addition to being chaotic and very different from that of the other planets in the solar system, is extensive and travels several years around each sign.
Because of that, Chiron is known as transpersonal placement.
Chiron in Aquarius or House 11: Meanings and traits
This part dives deeper into the transit of Chiron through the sign of Aquarius, its characteristics, and how it affects the natives born in this Zodiac sign.
Who has Chiron in Aquarius? – Those born between January 1955 and March 1960, February and July 2005, and those born between December 2005 and April 2010.
Chiron is usually approximately five years in each sign, including his retrograde movements such as those of 2005, in which he left to enter Pisces and re-enter Aquarius. Still, in this case, he made a complete turnaround through the Zodiac in 35 years.
But how does Chiron behave when it positions itself in the rebellious and intellectual sign of Aquarius? What wounds does this placement highlight, and how can its natives use that knowledge to address their pain?
To understand this, we must first know the characteristics of the Aquarius Zodiac sign.
Aquarius Characteristics
Aquarius is the eleventh sign of the Zodiac, the last of the wheel before the cycle ends in the Zodiac sign of Pisces. It is the last sign of the air element and the upper octave of air.
The air signs themselves have an increased and vibrant mental activity. Moreover, they are closely related to the bonds between human beings.
For example, in Gemini, the first air sign we find in the Zodiacal wheel, it’s possible to see how humans adopt the language and how they adapt to communicate with their peers in their closest circles, such as family and friends.
In Aquarius, a sign ruled by Saturn and Uranus, the last air sign of the Zodiac, we can see that this theme of communication and bonding continues, but now on a higher level. Aquarius tells us about the network that connects us all as human beings, and what we collectively form as a society, both negatively and positively.
Having Chiron in Aquarius is equivalent to having Chiron in the 11th house. It tells us about a wound that arises from identifying oneself as part of a whole, where that whole is humanity as the highest power of social groups.
Those who have Chiron in Aquarius, or the 11th house will struggle with finding the balance between considering themselves individual beings and simultaneously considering themselves part of the whole and finding the perfect balance between these two currents.
Aquarius is a unique sign that always stands out for its originality, creativity, and freedom. Chiron in Aquarius can limit these sensations and make the native feel that no matter how original and different they are, they will always belong to a great herd that is society.
It will make them feel that despite doing everything differently, they will always be part of the same mass. That causes these individuals to have difficulty being themselves, forcing them to identify with their social group instead.
An over-identification with the group itself occurs, perhaps adopting or proclaiming ideas that are not entirely their own or not their own at all. That can be observed, for example, in people who are too adept at a political party, a sports club, or a religion.
There is an exaggerated fanaticism with the concept of personality that their peer group prioritizes. But also, everything said above can easily be transposed to the other extreme, causing it to happen entirely oppositely.
The individual with Chiron in Aquarius or house 11 has difficulty identifying with the social group to which he belongs, whatever it may be. Since these two are the opposite signs, it’s fascinating to consider how differently Chiron behaves in Aquarius’s contrary sign – Leo.
An individual feels bright and complete in Leo, a fixed and fire sign. The outside world can give or take nothing from them that will change their state of wholeness.
In Leo, one is proud of who he is. But that can cause them to see every support as unnecessary and always refuse help from others or belonging to someone.
Chiron in Leo often makes these natives isolate themselves or believe that their network never recognizes their worth and talents, resulting in the sense of desperation and self-inflicted loneliness.
Contrary to that, Chiron in Aquarius typically gives individuals who are somewhat phobic about participating in spaces or social groups because they fear that would steal their independence and what makes them unique.
These persons are somewhat isolated and tend to retreat into solitude, perhaps because they feel that no one and nothing can give them what they need. Even as children, these individuals often feel different and as if they don’t belong to their families.
Parents might find raising them challenging because they are highly curious and ask questions others may not be able to answer. They prefer to spend time playing alone or learning than being with other kids, who typically don’t understand them.
As a result, these individuals often feel like outcasts from a young age. They wish they could be like everyone else, but they refuse to blend in at the end of the day.
These individuals want to preserve their inner worlds from everyone. Yet, they wish others would admire those worlds and acknowledge their uniqueness.
People with Chiron in Aquarius are contradictory beings. They wish to receive praise for their originality but avoid sharing their thoughts and ideas because they fear that would make them ordinary and braggy.
Moreover, Chiron in Aquarius natives are progressive thinkers and dream about how they could improve humanity. They are innovative and often becomes the one to change the world with quirky devices and concepts.
When they confront their fears and learn to control their wounds, they can help humanity achieve higher heights and admirable things. In the best case, these individuals could create a global humanitarian system and universal values.
They also have the potential to become stellar politicians and world leaders. After all, people with Chiron in Aquarius can propagate the ideas of equity, diversity, fairness, and inclusion.
These individuals can solve significant social issues and help people on the margins of society. They are also giving and rarely expect anything back.
However, these individuals often have low self-esteem, numerous internal fears, and distorted body image. Because of that, they aim for perfection and block themselves from being emotional.
People with Chiron in Aquarius may struggle to fit in a group or refuse to be a part of it. They are super self-conscious and overanalyze how others perceive them.
Women with Chiron in Aquarius or House 11
Women with this placement are usually independent and fully aware that they do not need anyone to be able to achieve what they set out to do.
The hurt may come from the fact that women are sometimes over-demanded to fulfill many obligations simultaneously while being asked to do so happily and with a constant smile.
The role of women has changed considerably over time. Still, old patterns sometimes continue to be repeated from the collective unconscious, such as that they can’t combine motherhood, work, career, and daily chores efficiently.
Women with Chiron in Aquarius loathe when people believe they can’t achieve the same as men and often go beyond their limits to prove themselves. They fear others will see them as incompetent and often internalize this belief, striving to show they can do everything.
These females are empowered women who can find a solution to every matter that concern them.
Yet, they wish they could go beyond their personal problems, help the world, and erase global suffering.
These women fight for their beliefs and never let others treat them poorly. People often perceive them as mysterious and detached.
Men with Chiron in Aquarius or House 11
Like their female counterparts, men with this placement are independent, original, and creative in their projects and work. They are focused and determined men, but they also want within themselves to identify us as a network.
Men have suffered from the patriarchal system in which we live, the lack of being free to recognize their own emotions and share them with others. That is often the wound that Chiron in Aquarius depicts in the case of men.
They struggle with accepting their emotions and showing others their vulnerabilities.
They are terrified of being seen as less of a man and want to do everything on their own. As a result, these men refuse to be a part of a group or seek their identity in belonging to something.
Otherwise, these men are typically highly skilled and can accumulate a lot of money. However, they may have fragile health and troubles with romantic partners.
Other people struggle to understand them and might perceive them as aloof and cold. Moreover, men with Chiron in Aquarius tend to let things in their life flow instead of having set goals and objectives.
Interesting read: Vesta In Cancer | Pallas In Libra
Summary
When talking about Chiron, it’s essential to remember the archetype of the “wounded healer” – the one who has experienced pain firsthand and who, thanks to that experience, can guide those who share its pain and struggle with similar suffering.
We all carry within the intense power to be resilient, even if that resilience comes from our wounds. As life teachers, we can perceive the situations that cause us grief and self-doubts, guiding us to recognize our transforming power.
And thanks to that transforming power, when we genuinely accept our inner pain and turn it into light and service for someone else, we can grow and overcome our struggles.
Moreover, it’s crucial to emphasize that even though the archetype of Chiron talks about a wound “that will never heal,” astrology gives guidance people can use to confront their struggles and make themselves more resilient, helpful, and complete.