Part One
By Daniel Giamario
2018 will be the 48th year since creating and integrating the basic elements of what has become the Shamanic Astrology Paradigm ™, and now also known as The Giamario Approach™.
Over the years, I have been generally conservative about adding too many new elements, for example, adding many additional asteroids, or using minor aspects. I have felt that the journey of the soul can be pretty easily discerned by working with the basic set of zodiacal and planetary elements and the major aspects that symbolize our involvement with our physical and initiatory experiences. When this is combined with an updated understanding of archetypes, and removing the patriarchal bias of traditional astrology, there is no need for unneeded complexity.
So I will not be proposing any new elements here, but rather the evolution of certain features that I have been teaching over these past decades in the Shamanic Astrology Mystery School and in my own practice. I will cover three areas of insight and enhancement:
1) Outer planets Saturn through Pluto, squaring the Nodal Axis.
I have been somewhat skeptical here in the past, and have dissuaded these being used, and have only emphasized the conjunctions. I have had philosophical reasons for this. HOWEVER, based on my experience, and the experience of many others, I have conclusively changed my opinion. I now suggest using these transits, using the same transit initiatory window that is currently being taught in the school.
Additionally, on a natal chart, the nodal axis in square to an inner planet (Moon, Sun, Venus, Mercury, and Mars) is now considered significant factors for interpretation. Considerably less important is outer planet natally squared by the nodes, since this would include too large a number of people in a given range of years to be personally significant.
2) A Reconsideration of the How the Pluto Initiatory Cycle Works
Although it’s not really possible to claim that outer planet initiatory processes always work the same way for everyone, I have previously in classes suggested a basic framework to use for Uranus,
Neptune, and Pluto. As these initiatory cycles are always a good 18 months to 20 months long for Neptune and Pluto, and often that long for Uranus, I have taught that the first 10-11 months are the hardest, and that the final pass that occurs during the second year is the time to deeply incorporate and be empowered by the teachings.
The implication was that after the first 10-12 months, and the transiting planet passed the target degree, no more “events” would transpire for one to be at the effect of. I still think that this suggested framework works for Uranus and Neptune, though I have changed my mind about Pluto, also due to my own experience, as well as the experience of numerous clients.
With Pluto, there is no gradient of ease. There is not always the experience where the essential powerlessness and surrender slowly gets less and less. In many cases, quite extreme irrational circumstances beyond our control can happen even at the very end of the cycle and may even be the most intense near the end. If you can surrender, and not take it personally, the depth of energetically reborn strength and a deeper wisdom quickly emerges.
As always, do remember that any general framework will not clinically work the same on everyone. These are general guidelines.
An aside: I am quite sure that some of you reading this, including those who have taken the Shamanic Astrology training, are smiling, because you have already sensed that these two areas of revision are the way it is. Anyway, I am in agreement.
3) New Insights about the Shamanic Astrology Timeline
Based on the book “The Fourth Turning” that I have mentioned in a previous book recommendations article, I have fresh insights about how the Shamanic Timeline works in contemporary times. A presentation of those insights will be in PART TWO of this article.
MORSELS AND TIDBITS
I will be including in my future articles interesting morsels and tidbits of information that have been of interest to me, and hopefully will be to you.
Here is an example:
TABLE OF ECCENTRICITY OF PLANETARY ORBITS, in order of eccentricity
Pluto 0.2482 Notice just how eccentric Pluto and Mercury are!
Mercury 0.2056
Mars 0.0934
Saturn 0.0560
Jupiter 0.0483
Uranus 0.0461
Earth 0.0167
Neptune 0.0097
Venus 0.0068 Notice how nearly circular are Neptune and Venus!
NOTE: The orbital eccentricity of an astronomical object is a parameter that determines the amount of its orbit around another body (in the examples above, a planet orbiting the Sun) deviates from a perfect circle. Zero is a circular orbit, between Zero and One is an Elliptical Orbit. One is a parabolic escape orbit. If it is greater than One, it is Hyperbola.