The soft breeze coming through the open porthole stirred Phereby from her restless slumber. Her linen nightshift clinging to her muggy skin prompted her to seek the night air. They left Scotland weeks ago, the crossing delayed by the dreaded doldrums. Captain Chalmers said they would reach North Carolina in the next few days. Glancing over at her parents to be certain her mother’s watchful gaze was softened by slumber, she ascended the creaky ladder carefully to the open deck of the Ulysses.
The stars beckoned to her from their glittery abode above the ship. She had never seen the sky like this before. Soot hung in the air of her village in Scotland, cloaking the heavens in a thick haze for most of the year. Skirting quietly behind the rigging she evaded detection by the night watch and crouched behind the aft rail to watch the stars.
“Star light, star bright. First star I see tonight, show me my path and grant me your sight,” whispered Phereby to the twinkling companions she had come to adore during the long voyage across the sea. “Guide me true, lovely lights. I hope our new home grants me your vision every night.”
Those same stars still shine down upon Phereby’s daughter over 200 years later as they twinkle with promise above my head. She is my 5th great-grandmother and her wonder lives on in me.
I was introduced to the importance of guiding stars only recently. Much of the work I do when conducting a reading of a client’s stars occurs in a state of trance. This loosening of the mind allows me to “hear” with my primary gift of clairaudience. It was during just such a recent session that the astral realm tutored me on this subject.
They led me to a vantage point where I could see beyond the zodiac. There are 12 constellations of the zodiac, the star systems along the ecliptic. There are 76 other constellations with stories, lore, myth and importance of their own. The guiding stars have been largely ignored by modern astrology, let’s dig in and see if they matter.
Meet, Jane
Jane Doe is a reader who graciously served as the case study in Star Story: The Alchemist’s Astrology. She was born on June 30, 1999 at 1:06pm, this is the sky from the perspective of Austin, Texas. You’ll notice immediately that the Sun is nowhere near the sign of Cancer (tropical astrology dates of June 23-July 22) but is firmly in Gemini instead.
To find her guiding stars we need to observe what stars are closest to the cardinal points on the horizon at the time of her birth.
East
East is the direction of air and represents new beginnings, opportunities and innate abilities — or the spiritual gifts we are born with.
Jane’s rising sign is Virgo, we can tell by seeing which sign is on the border of the land and sky, we can see the maiden just peeking above the horizon. The first star on the eastern horizon is Zavijava, just above Virgo’s left shoulder.
Zavijava or Corner of the Barker
Zavijava is located next to the left ear of the maiden. This star is called the “corner of the barker” in Arabic. It is a yellow star, much the color of sun ripened grain. Virgo is associated with the goddess of harvest known more commonly as Demeter (Greek), Ceres (Roman), Sif (Norse) or Brigid (Celtic). Our English word, “cereal” is an objectification of Ceres…recognizing the source of the grain in our morning bowl of break fast.
Having Zavijava on the eastern horizon indicates that Jane has the ear of this goddess. There is a deep connection between them and once Jane begins to listen for her whispers in her ear (particularly Jane’s left ear) their partnership will bloom into a harvest. Jane can trust that Brigid will be with her throughout her life’s journey, always at the ready to assist in the harvest.
South
South is the direction of fire — or our energy and passions. The guiding star on the southern horizon helps us understand what charges us up and fuels our mission. This direction is critical to ACTION and it’s all about purposeful direction.
Canopus, Suhayl or the Star of Eridu
Canopus is the 2nd brightest star in the night sky, outshone only by Sirius. It is a primary navigational star for the mid and southern latitudes. It was the star that represented the Babylonian temple city of Eridu and was considered the domain of the god Enki.
Suhayl is the name of this star in Arabic and represents the stern of the ship of Argo Navis, or the front edge of the ship carrying Jason and the Argonauts.
Jane has a powerful ally in this star anytime she needs to take action. She can trust the navigational direction or course correction it will provide. She should look to the color of this star to understand its guiding light. The star pulses in shades of pink to purple to indigo blue, indicating transmutation. It is heavily associated with the Mercurian gods — Enki and Odin. This is a big clue for Jane about the role of magic and shamanism in her life’s work.
West
West is the direction of water, emotions, inner reflection, dreams, and the unconscious. It represents maturity and understanding of our place in the cosmos.
The Whale & Shackled Woman or Andromeda’s Ribbon
Jane’s descendant sign is Pisces, you can see the tail of the first fish diving below the horizon at the time of her birth. Jupiter is present and he is the ruler of Pisces. The ribbon that connects the two fish is also called Andromeda’s Ribbon.
Andromeda is the mortal daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia who was chained to a rock as a sacrificial offering to Cetus, the beast of the abyss in Pisces. She is rescued by Perseus when he slays the beast and earns her hand. The name, Andromeda, means “to be mindful of her husband.” This indicates that Jane’s marriage is of the utmost importance…and is another clue that she and her husband share a common path in the spirit realm.
Jane and her husband are from the same soul group…in gamer terms they are a part of the same alliance and they will slay the beast together.
North
Alahakan or Second One of the Andiron’s
The Northern star will always be a circumpolar star if you’re in the northern hemisphere. Northern folk are either of the Bear’s or the Dragon. Jane belongs to the serpent. Jane’s true north is Alahakan or the left side of the andirons (andirons are the metal legs that support the wood in an open hearth fire.) The word means “fire-dog” or the red sprites. Left gives us another nod to the otherworlds governed by the light of the Moon.
Fire is Jane’s primary mode of operation in the astral realm. She has the ability to control this element, but it will take work and experimentation to hone her skills. Calling on and uniting with the dragon folk, especially the dragon mother will teach her to shape shift into their form while traveling the realms.
Forward this to your favorite woo woo bestie.
If you want to discover your own guiding light stars you can use any sky and star app that allows you to set the date and location. I use Stellarium, it’s available on the web and in the app store. Grab my video course that teaches you how to use it.
If you’d like a guiding light reading send me an email request. I do a limited number of readings per month…I’m all caught up from Sept-Oct and opening Nov-Dec bookings. I have 10 spots available @ $75, grab one if you’d like me to read your guiding stars.
Grab my guided workbook to discover your own Star Story using the astrology of the alchemist in paperback on Amazon or as a printable pdf.
xo Indie 🌟
Wow, this is amazing, Indie! I had no idea about guiding stars.