A Technique for Erecting a Past Life Astrological Chart

[dr. farr]

(Following is presented as a general information item only)

According to a certain esoteric tradition (which accepts the concepts of karma and reincarnation to the "earth plane") the following technique can be applied to astrologically delineate the factors of the most recent previous incarnation.

+obtain the current natal chart
+put this natal chart into an Equal House (or-my addition-into a Whole Sign) chart format
+the object is to convert this current natal chart into the Past Life Chart (PLC)

Method

a) find the cusp(sensitive point in whole sign: abbreviated sp) of the 12th house in the natal chart.

b) find the degree of the Dragon's Tail (DT; aka South Node) in the natal chart

c) add the longitudinal degrees of the natal 12th house to the longitudinal degrees of the DT: enter the result as the cusp/sp of the 1st house in the PLC
(explanation: sounds more difficult than it is: really only simple arithmetic; the zodiac wheel is reduced to 360 degrees, and handled similar to finding Arabic Parts: you take the number associated with the degree of the 12th natal house and add it to the number associated with the degree of the DT; zodiacal degree numbers may be determined from the following little table:
Aries = 0
Taurus = 30
Gemini = 60
Cancer = 90
Leo = 120
Virgo = 150
Libra = 180
Scorpio = 210
Sagittarius = 240
Capricorn = 270
Aquarius = 300
Pisces = 330

Thus, for example, 10 degrees Aries = 10; 20 degrees Capricorn = 290;
29 degrees Pisces = 359, etc etc

If the added together numbers of the natal 12th house and the natal DT exceed 360, then subtract the 360 degree circle of the zodiac from the sum and this will give you your answer:
For example:
natal 12th = 15 degrees Libra
natal DT = 29 degrees Pisces
Your total in this case would be 554 (thus exceeds 360 degree limit of the zodiac); so, subtract the circle of the zodiac-360-from this number, which leaves 194. Looking 194 up in the above table, we find this number corresponds with 14 degrees Libra: this would be entered into the PLC as the cusp/sp of the 1st PLC house)

d) once the cusp/sp of the 1st PLC house has been entered, carry that degree around for each of the other PLC houses:
Example:
PLC cusp/sp of 1st house = 14 Libra
so, cusp/sp of 2nd PLC house = 14 Scorpio; of 3rd PLC house = 14 Sagittarius; of 4th PLC house = 14 Capricorn; and so on, around the chart
(thus the final 12th PLC house cusp/sp would = 14 Virgo in this example)

e) now fill in the PLC signs/houses with planets converted from the natal chart:
+start with the Sun: find Sun's place in the natal chart, then subtract 30 degrees from it: this is the Sun's place in the PLC:
Example: natal Sun = 10 degrees Taurus; subtract 30 degrees from this, which = 10 degrees Aries: enter Sun 10Aries in the PLC
+ do the same with natal Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn (the outer planets or other natal chart elements are not included in this method)
+EXCEPTION to the above: in the case of any natal planet in retrograde, ADD 30 degrees to its natal position to convert it into the PLC:
Example: natal Jupiter is at 18 degrees Cancer-retrograde; add 30 degrees to Jupiter for the PLC; thus Jupiter's position in the PLC = 18 degrees Leo
+in the case of retrograde natal planets, they are also marked as retrograde in the PLC
+regarding the natal nodes, always ADD 30 degrees to both the natal nodal axis (that is advance the North Node 30 degrees to form the plc nodal axis, which means the SN would of course fall back by 1 sign in the plc)

You now have your completed Past Life Chart.

This esoteric tradition emphasizes including stars posited with 2 degrees of any PLC angle or planet or node, in the Past Life analysis. This tradition also believe that the PLC 12th house-and anything in it-describes the situation/condition of the incarnating ego during the period between physical incarnations (that is, the "other world" state of the individual prior to their current physical incarnation)

An interesting technique for those who might want to experiment with it.

 

[eternalautumn]

Very interesting. Is it possible we can get this in the Education Board?

 

[Pallas-trine-Mars]

Suggested tool-
http://www.noendpress.com/pvachier/arabicparts/index.php

I'll try this out later, but I'm not sure, if I have Neptune retrograde in Capricorn does that mean my Neptune 'was' direct in Aquarius?

 

[Arian Maverick]

Is such a "past life" chart supposed to represent, through the planetary placements and aspects, many past lives, or is it the exact natal chart of a past life?

Arian Maverick

 

[eternalautumn]

AM: "...the following technique can be applied to astrologically delineate the factors of the most recent previous incarnation."

 

[dr. farr]

Pallas-trine-Mars:
-according to this tradition, the outer planets are not used in these calculations (probably because this method was developed long before the outers were known; however, this does not mean that experiments with the outers in such a chart couldn't be made: according to the method regarding rx, the rx in the natal remains an rx in the past life chart: in your example the natal Capricornian Neptune rx would remain Neptune rx, but posited in Aquarius, in the past life chart)

ArianMaverick
-according to this tradition, the past life chart represents only the cosmic state of the individual's immediate past life (this past life chart-according to the tradition-does not represent the past life nativity, but rather delineates the astrological state representing "what developed" as the essence of cosmic influences "summing up" the nature of the immediately past life)

 

[Arian Maverick]

AM: "...the following technique can be applied to astrologically delineate the factors of the most recent previous incarnation."

Ah, this is the result when I attempt to multitask. This happens quite often, with my Aries stellium and Mars in Gemini.

I will try this method tomorrow and see if it corresponds to an incarnation I had within the last century. I think this may have been my last incarnation, but I may have had one incarnation between this life and my current life.

ArianMaverick
-according to this tradition, the past life chart represents only the cosmic state of the individual's immediate past life (this past life chart-according to the tradition-does not represent the past life nativity, but rather delineates the astrological state representing "what developed" as the essence of cosmic influences "summing up" the nature of the immediately past life)

Do you suppose it may indicate the cause of death? 'Cause if I'm right about my last incarnation, there should be some indication of death by fire and/or death by falling nine, ten, or eleven floors to the pavement below. I am almost certain that I was a victim of the Triangle Factory Fire in 1911. I can even identify my prior incarnation in the list of victims.

Arian Maverick

 

[dr. farr]

ArianMaverick:
If the 1911 death was the terminus of your most recent past life, then-according to the tradition behind this past life chart method-that death should show in the plc; however, if there was an intermediate life between that time and your current incarnation, then this would not show.

NOTE: I present this plc technique here because nothing like it is in the books dealing with the astrological consideration of past lives, and because there might be AW readers who will experiment with it and who I hope will report their findings (positive or negative) here on the Forum.

More in regard to karmic considerations than to past lives, I have used a simple and interesting technique which I came across several decades ago purely by accident, this technique-when I wish to obtain an idea about operative karma in a case or situation-has worked very well for me; I'll describe this "to know the karma" method in a future posting here on the Karmic Astrology forum.

 

[Kannan]

dr. farr

Excellant article you have presented . Vedic astrology says your past life is represented by 5th house in your native chart "Poorva Punya Sthanam" i.e. Poorva means "Previous" and Punyasthanam means "place of deeds")and future life by 9th house.On this basis your 5th house Ascendant in your current chart should be your Ascendant in the plc. Keeping this in mind I worked out the plc using the above method and found plc Asc. as Virgo. I am Tauras and my 5th house is Virgo in my native chart. This means my Ascendant in plc should be Virgo. Surprisingly this tallies. May be this is just one sample. other members can verify this in their charts

Thanks

Kannan

 

[athan]

Interesting and thank you for posting!

Could we please know about the specific esoteric tradition this method comes from?

Thanks
Athan.

 

[dr. farr]

Without intending to be cryptic, I can say that this tradition is alchemico-hermetic in regard to its metaphysics, that it is a "Western" oriented tradition (as opposed to Vedic, Taoist, Buddhist etc), that it is quite secretive, and that it's members claim it to have originated in Europe, founded by the immediate followers of Paracelsus.
I myself am not a member of this tradition, but I have had contact with a couple of its member and I have been permitted access to some of its material.

For the sake of discussion, we may refer to this tradition as the "Paracelsic Esoteric Tradition" (or PET for short) This is the same tradition from which I have taken the "3 sealings" concept described in my postings under the "Descent of the Soul considered Astrologically" thread, and also the "blood-line karma chart" described in my posting under the "Family and Group Karma" thread.

 

[dub.tribe]

I just calculated PLC to see what it would say about death in past life. It turned out that 8th was empty, its ruler Moon in 7th, not making any heavy aspects. IC in Pisces, containing Mercury in Pisces as well, no hard aspects except inconjunction with Uranus in 11.

I've always had a theory that I died of a shark attack, but never thought about it too seriously. I had a recurring dream around ages 3-5 that I was under water, which was light blue, perfectly clear, there was absolutely nothing around and I was relatively close to the surface. It was beautiful! And then shark comes out of nowhere and bites off lower half of my body. I'm tempted to think that could be a memory from past life because during that period of my childhood memories from the womb also used to pop out in my mind while I was awake (I couldn't have figured out what they were at that time).

Anyway, I have some massive 8th house related transits going on now, so I'm thinking about these things more than usual. I actually freaked out yesterday when I read about study of correlation between birthmarks and past life - I have 2 medium sized ones on the back, bellow waistline that match the dream I even googled to double check whether such attack is possible. Back to PLC - according to dr.farr's method, 4th house (grave) is in Pisces (sea)...

Sorry for getting carried away with this, I can't stop thinking about it these days but I didn't want to start new thread. I've read most of the posts in this section and I found only Arian Maverick's description of past life death - which is few years old. Maybe she knows more now?? Any other stories from other members??

 

[Arian Maverick]

Sorry for getting carried away with this, I can't stop thinking about it these days but I didn't want to start new thread. I've read most of the posts in this section and I found only Arian Maverick's description of past life death - which is few years old. Maybe she knows more now?? Any other stories from other members??

I'd love for you to create a new thread about this topic, dub.tribe, because your account is fascinating. Unfortunately, I have no additional knowledge of this past life than I had several years ago. I know the member freedomlover has recalled several of her past lives...

I am still in the process of erecting my past life chart from my rectified natal chart. The planetary placements have not revealed much, but I still need to research the fixed stars that are within two degrees of each planetary placement. Perhaps a pattern will emerge.

EDIT: I have not finished researching each fixed associated with each planet in my past life chart, but thus far, there seems to be a recurrent theme of water and drowning.

Arian Maverick

 

[dr. farr]

I would definitely encourage investigation of the star connections in the plc's and don't forget star connections particularly with the cusps/sp of the 1st, 10th, 7th and 4th houses in the plc. In the "PET" (see above) tradition the stars (including the Sun, which is our star) are regarded as the Lords of Karma, with planets considered as their "ministers" or executors.

Also, if in the plc a star is:
-conjunct the 1st house cusp/sp
or
-conjunct the 12th house cusp/sp
or
-conjunct the 10th house cusp/sp
or
-conjunct the Sun,

...then find what starry constellation that star is in, and bring into your delineation the factors/meanings related to that constellation as well.

(easy reference is constellationsofwords.com, go to "star lists", then go to the list entitled "arranged by longitude')

 

[dr. farr]

Some members have been particularly interested in finding out about the circumstances surrounding death in experimenting with the plc.

A few tips in this regard:
-look not only to the plc 8th house, but equally consider testimony from the plc 12th house

-the plc Dragon's Tail (South Node) may yield information in this regard also, as well as information regarding difficulties and problems of import in the past life

-just as the outer planets may be incorporated into the plc experiment, so too may other factors not used in the original PET tradition: regarding the end of the past life, as well as reflective of possible serious difficulties encountered in the past life, the WittePoints (transneptunians) may be considered, especially "Hades" (find Hades in the natal, subtract 30 degrees if "direct", add 30 degrees if "retrograde", and enter this point into the plc)

-Arabic Part calculations may be applied to the plc, just as if it were a natal chart:
+if investigating the death, compute the "Part of Death" (asc+cusp/sp of 8th house-Moon) and/or the Part of Peril (asc+lord of 8th house-Saturn); the Part of Suicide (asc+ Jupiter-cusp/sp of 12th house) and/or the Part of Danger & Violence (asc+Mercury - Saturn) might also be calculated;
+for these (or other) Parts, examine where they fall (signs particularly), and equally their significators (dispositors of the sign in which each falls) and the condition and relationships of these Parts and significators in the plc; also examine any star close (2 degrees longitude or less) to the Part (or its significator)

 

[The_Sundance_Kid]

As an AW user, I used the PET system to create a PLC and discovered that Dr Farr likes acronyms

But before I say what I found I have one question- if you put a retrograde Mercury forward 30 degrees and a natal sun back 30 degrees they can be way more than the normal 28 degrees apart. So this chart is purely symbolic right?

And aspects between direct planets will always be the same- I was hoping to get rid of my Sun-Mars square. So this system inherently entrenches aspects as more important and karmic elements that come through in several lifetimes?

Strangely enough my PLC Asc is *exactly* the same as my current North Node. So my current North Node in Aries in the 5th house (freaky eh Kannan?) was my past life Asc? What might that even mean? My future growth is the same as it was before?

And my sun and moon, forever stuck in wide opposition just swap houses, from 1 and 7, to 7 and 1, while my current Scorpio-Taurus Asc/Dsc is replaced by Aries-Libra. Where would the MC be- the 10th house cusp?

I get the feeling that I didn't really learn anything I was supposed to in my past life, maybe that is why the same patterns keep cropping up?

As for how I died, Pisces on the 12th house cusp (so nice to know the transition across the heavens from one body to another was otherworldly ) and Venus and Mercury both retrograde in Sagittarius in the 8th house. Maybe some wild and extravagant gamble really didn't pay off, or maybe I died for a cause? Who knows.

I've also heard the idea that for left handed people, you should reverse the chart. That would be weird because my past life chart would be eerily similar to my corrected left handed chart.

Cool technique, will need to look at it harder to derive inspiration! Is there anything in the chart which might indicate the length of the previous life?

 

[dr. farr]

SundanceKid:
+good point, YES, these plc's are to be understood as symbolic (just like for example, the various systems of progression, which were once actually referred to as "symbolic progressions")

+I remind you and others who are experimenting with the plc to take star and even starry-constellation connections into account when experimenting with finding possible meanings in these charts (I have given some tips in this direction, above)

+I am aware of the "legend" regarding reversal of charts for left-handers; can't say I have investigated this, but, since I have been influenced by swara-shastra ideas regarding astrological considerations, there might be something to that legend!

+I am not aware of any information regarding trying to estimate length of the previous life from the plc: but, again, this might be another area of investigation open to creative research and experimentation.

 

[dub.tribe]

Unfortunately, I have no additional knowledge of this past life than I had several years ago. I know the member freedomlover has recalled several of her past lives...

Thanks for pointing this out. I feel I'm learning a lot and starting to be amazed by things I haven't been noticing before. And this forum helps a lot!

Just a thought, couldn't the same techinque be applied to the past life chart to get a chart for a life before? I actually haven't given this much thought, but I suppose if you do it 12 times, you'd get a chart same as current one....

 

[dr. farr]

Certainly experimentation may be done-what I have presented is only the material I gathered from the PET members I knew. There are several other "karma" techniques which I have been made aware of over my 45+ year involvement with the more hidden byways of the world, and, if members are interested, I'll outline them in a couple of future threads here in the Karmic Astrology section.

 

[catastrophe]

I would definitely encourage investigation of the star connections in the plc's and don't forget star connections particularly with the cusps/sp of the 1st, 10th, 7th and 4th houses in the plc. In the "PET" (see above) tradition the stars (including the Sun, which is our star) are regarded as the Lords of Karma, with planets considered as their "ministers" or executors.

I find this really interesting... I have Spica and Arcturus on my Asc line and Peacock (Alpha Pavonis) on my Sun. How exactly does this make a more specific translation for PLC ?