Physical, Emotional & Spiritual Illness As A Symbol: Part 01

You can glean a lot about your health, and lack thereof, from astrology. Each planet and sign is assigned a part of the body and/or a bodily condition. The signs start at the top, with Aries associated with the head, Taurus the neck and the rest all follow suit down to Capricorn at the knees, Sagittarius at the calves and Pisces handling the feet. And each planet’s own traits make a certain logical connection to symbolically appropriate health concerns. You can look up the specifics easily at many places on the web.

When I look at a client’s natal chart, I can usually tell they may be prone to particular potential health issues. And that is exactly how I explain it to them. “I’m not saying you are going to get these illnesses, but if you do get sick, these symptoms & conditions are more likely to occur.” I look at illness and disease, and even physical ‘accidents,’ as a kind of choice we make.

In the book Seth Speaks, he says, “Illness and suffering are the results of the misdirection of creative energy. They are a part of the creative force, however. They do not come from a different source than, say, health and vitality. Suffering is not good for the soul, unless it teaches you how to stop suffering. That is its purpose.”

I would like to suggest, in general, to try and stop looking at health issues as things that happen TO us. As one example, we have in us, at any given moment, thousands of potential diseases circulating in our bloodstream. Our wonderful bodies keep these germs & viruses in check until… well, until what? What causes this balance to go askew? Even science cannot predict and pinpoint any illness and recovery 100%.

When I see an issue with good health, either my own or someone else’s, the first thing I look at is, what kind of a symbol is this illness creating for the person experiencing it? And what does that person have to do to get well? What does that symbolize.

Here’s an example from my own life: years ago, after a number of comments from friends, I was debating if I really did suppress my emotions. The idea that I did bothered me, but I wanted to know the truth. So I pondered and fussed and my body decided to give me an answer. Within a short time I developed an ingrown hair on my hand that became infected. I went to the doctor, who did not want to bandage it, and who suggested I hold my hand as elevated as reasonable throughout the day. I also got antibiotics and directions for a warm Epsom salts soak for my hand. OK.

If it isn’t obvious, here is how I saw it: something that normally comes out from by body (a hair) turned around and stayed inside. It wasn’t supposed to be there, and so it got infected. And what did I have to do to get well? Keep it exposed and elevated for everyone to see. OK. So I did suppress my emotions… thank you, body… thank you, me.

This is a fairly large area to examine, and I have only barely scratched the surface in a very simplified way. I will return to this topic in the next few weeks…