by Cayelin K Castell
Chiron’s archetypal pattern is most connected to the Shamanic Healer taking us to new edges where our past wounds become the medicine, or gifts, we carry into new territory or new realms of experience.
Chiron transits facilitate a Shamanic Journey, or initiation, we all experience at one time or another whether we recognize it as such or not. Consciously choosing to be with this process does not lessen the intended impact of such a journey, but it does help us to successfully support the alchemical transformation intended to take place.
This process is the Chironic philosopher’s stone, changing base elements into gold, transforming poisons into medicine. At this time humanity’s collective Shamanic Journey includes healing the past wounds of all the limiting beliefs that have been the basis of how we perceive reality and the current cultural rules and laws that have resulted, greatly limiting our ability to realize our true divine potential and sacred expression.
Astrological patterns are recognized in terms of the meaning
that we bring to inner and outer experiences,
although we are perhaps in turn predisposed to the quality
of our experiences by the patterns themselves.
However, rather than trying to pre-empt fate,
to ward it off or pretend it does not exist,
we may perhaps work with it as consciously as we are able:
thus we participate in the alchemical opus,
the hero’s journey, the philosopher’s stone,
or the finding of the long lost kingdom.
Chiron and the Healing Journey
An Astrological and Psychological Perspective
By Melanie Reinhart
The Philosopher’s Stone is a key to how Chiron operates.
Here is one definition. “The stone, also referred to as the “tincture,” or the “powder” (Greek xerion, which passed through Latin into Arabic as elixir), was allied to an elixir of life, believed by alchemists to be a liquid derived from it. Inasmuch as alchemy was concerned not only with the search for a method of upgrading less valuable metals but also of perfecting the human soul, the philosopher’s stone was thought to cure illnesses, prolong life, and bring about spiritual revitalization. The philosopher’s stone, described variously, was sometimes said to be a common substance, found everywhere but unrecognized and unappreciated.”
(Encyc. Brit., 15th ed., 1976 http://www.quackgrass.com/stone.html)
This is a summation of an emerging archetypal knowing or awakening in the collective psyche. In part this has to do with the true essence of the Philosopher’s Stone, the Chironic Shamanic Journey, a profound initiation happening in these speeded times. This includes the common substance of thoughts, feelings and beliefs.
Our thoughts, beliefs and feelings when understood and applied wisely are the elixirs that heal all our ills, attracting and producing the experience of joy, abundance and prosperity while also revitalizing every aspect of our being. We all carry the ability to source these mysteries within ourselves once we have transformed the wounds that have prevented us from remembering our true divine nature.
Practicing daily trust in the divine unfolding – through self-love, loving acceptance, loving kindness, generosity, cooperation, gratitude and releasing attachments to outcome – greatly supports a fully embodied whole being experience of this transformative Chironic Healing Elixir or Philosopher’s Stone.
Chiron as the Shamanic Healer
Mythically, the story of Chiron comes to us as the archetypal Wounded Healer or Shamanic Healer, who teaches about the transformative power that lies within our wounds that is activated through the gift of acceptance. This is the key to no longer being at the effect of the wounds but rather where they become the medicine we carry. This transformation is not only possible – it is practically guaranteed.
Chiron’s story doesn’t necessarily seem to relate to the average human upon first glance, because Chiron is an immortal, or said another way, is someone with a highly developed divine nature. When we look deeper into the story we realize this God, this immortal being, was challenged to develop compassion for his human or animal nature through his encounter with a personal wound he, as a master healer (nor any of those who studied with him including Asclepius), could not cure with any known healing skills.
Chiron’s Wound
The short form on this story is Chiron was wounded with a poisonous sword (or arrow) that caused instant death to any mortal. Chiron was wounded by this sword but he was also immortal so he could not die. However, the pain from the wound was excruciating and the wound could not be healed. This was an incurable wound, a situation beyond Chiron’s, or anyone else’s, ability to heal . Chiron did not do anything wrong and he was not being punished for something. The wound was entirely accidental, becoming his greatest initiation.
When encountering difficult circumstances in life it is easy to wonder what we did wrong, or what we did to deserve the experience, or how our thinking created the situation. When we consider Chiron’s initiation it becomes clear that whatever is going on for us personally may simply be an initiation designed to take us further and deeper than we have been before into the feeling realm, into the human experience, into the place where we learn about acceptance and surrender, trusting that what is happening is designed to facilitate the initiation process and has nothing to do with how good or bad we have been.
All human beings have experienced some kind of wounding. It is the nature of living in this reality and no matter who you are it is unavoidable. From the shamanic perspective, from the point of view of the initiatory process, the purpose of any wounding is to learn compassion for our human experience. Acceptance of what IS and forgiveness of ourselves and others are keys to this process.
When we come to accept the wounds we carry then they can magically transform into our strength, into the magical elixir where we realize we are no longer at the effect these wounds but they have become our greatest teachers and the greatest gift we have to offer to others. This is where we can successfully detach emotionally from our story, and when we are emotionally detached the story no longer defines us but rather can now become a medicine teaching assisting and inspiring others who are going through a similar journey.
In Chiron’s story he transformed his wound through his desire to help Prometheus who was being punished for stealing fire from the Gods. Chiron reasoned that since he was in so much pain anyway, why should they both to suffer? When Chiron approached Zeus with his plan, Zeus was so moved my Chiron’s compassion he freed Prometheus and transformed Chiron into the starry constellation Centaurus.
Chiron’s story reminds us that even the gods themselves were at the effect of circumstances beyond their control – teaching them about things like compassion, caring, acceptance, and discernment. Ultimately, based on Chiron’s choice to accept and embrace his wound, and still be in service, he was transformed from the wounded healer to the Shamanic Healer dying to his old form, and birthing into a new form that continues to inspire our understanding of the value and gifts that are awaiting us when we embrace and accept our own Chironic wounds.
Everyone comes into life with a divine mission
particular to her or him and that mission is
to awaken a particular quality of consciousness within.
The ultimate destiny of us all is to unfold
all the facets of the ‘philosopher’s stone,’
which means all the attributes of our
inherent wholeness and perfection.”
Bothers of the Grape by Arnold Michael
© 2014 by Cayelin K Castell