“Astrology is the algebra of life” (Dane Rudhyar).
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people around the world change their place of residence. This can be due to various reasons and circumstances. Some are transferred to a new job location. Others are offered a more lucrative position. Some hope to find family happiness in a new place, while others flee from political persecution. As the popular song once went, some move “for money,” while others move “for dreams and the scent of the taiga.”
Why do some people’s hopes come true, while others soon realize that, despite the move, old problems have not disappeared anywhere? And this is the best-case scenario!
One of the branches of mundane astrology—astrocartography, the astrology of spatial movement—helps answer this question. Astrocartography is a relatively new astrological method developed by the American astrologer Jim Lewis in the 1970s. In recent years, especially with the advent of specialized astrological computer programs that significantly simplify calculations, this technique has gained increasing popularity among both Western and Russian astrologers. Among the most well-known practitioners are Emma Bell Donath and Bruce Hammerslough in the U.S., and S.V. Shestopalov and A. Kolesnikov in Russia.
Classical astrology considers the development of a person’s life and fate only in the temporal plane, ignoring their movement in space. Does the place of residence not influence our destiny? Research conducted by astrologers over the past century has convincingly proven that it does. To study changes in a person’s fate depending on their place of residence, which differs from their birthplace, one of the astrocartography techniques called relocation is used. Relocation (from Eng. Relocation—movement) is a technique in which a local space map (local space chart) is constructed for the same date and time as the natal chart (birth chart), but with the geographical coordinates of the place to which the person has moved or plans to move.
Some astrologers, especially beginners, tend to idealize the relocation chart. They believe that with a move to a new place, the natal chart ceases to work, and only the relocation horoscope should be considered. This is, of course, not the case! First of all, it is worth recalling another term used in astrology for the natal chart—radix. The word “radix” has Latin origins and means “root.” Can a person be separated from their roots? Everything given to us at birth remains with us, no matter where we go. All our inclinations, abilities, character traits, appearance, and, ultimately, the events that may occur in our lives with varying degrees of probability are all recorded in the natal chart. The natal chart is a kind of multidimensional matrix in which everything that can happen in our lives is written. What is not present in our birth chart can never happen, while what is indicated in the radix may or may not manifest, depending largely on the individual. This is where free will and choice come into play. A move does not cancel the goals and tasks set before us; it merely shifts the emphasis, making what was previously insignificant more significant, and vice versa. Nevertheless, the significance of the local chart should not be underestimated, but it must be considered alongside the natal chart.
What is the subject of study in relocation astrology? Suppose you moved to a different apartment in the same or even another district of the city. Obviously, the circumstances of your life have changed. But should this event be considered a “move” from an astrological perspective? Probably not. A different matter entirely is moving to another city, country, or continent. This situation should undoubtedly be examined using relocation tools.
When calculating the relocation horoscope and constructing a local space chart, we will see that the planetary configuration and their aspects in relation to each other remain unchanged, just as in the natal chart. However, the positions of the house cusps and, accordingly, the placement of planets and zodiac signs in the houses have changed. When studying the changes in the positions of the house cusps in the relocation chart, the following key points should be given special attention:
When analyzing the relocation horoscope, it is important to study the changes in the positions of all planets, but first and foremost, the changes in the positions of the Sun and Moon. This is because the Sun represents the goals and tasks that life sets before us, while the Moon represents the life circumstances in which we will pursue these goals.
The change in the Ascendant sign in the relocation chart is also of great significance. As the renowned Russian astrologer A. Podvodny writes, the Ascendant is a kind of interface of a person, the way they are perceived by those around them. Of course, your appearance will not change drastically. You may gain or lose weight if indicated in your local chart. You might change your style of clothing or hairstyle, and so on. However, those around you will perceive you in a completely new way. This is especially noticeable when meeting people from your “past life”—”You’ve changed so much!”
It is impossible to fully cover the topic of relocation, along with all the nuances of this technique, in a single article. In the next discussion, we will examine in more detail the influence of changes in planetary positions in the houses, as well as the change in the zodiac sign of the Ascendant.
NOTES:
