by Robert Wilkinson
This is a question I’ve been asked over the years. Can “evil” be seen in the birth chart? It’s a complex question with an easy answer if one finds the right point of view.
I last gave this to you almost 4 years ago, and given the collective concern over the evil words and deeds that seem to be happening with greater frequency by the month, it’s probably a good time to take a new look. The last time we explored this topic, a fan of the site wondered if evil could be seen in the charts of psychopathic killers who use guns to commit mass murder on children and adults. I told her I believe this is probably not a fruitful line of research after a point, since the same chart configurations can make for a tyrant or a Saint. It's all how we choose to deal with our life challenges.
I also offered that I do believe that violent imagery seduces mindless people into mindless horrible actions. Whether self-absorbed narcissistic spoiled children of rich clueless parents sitting in a BMW, or psychopathic white supremacists willing to bomb a church, or unhinged gun nuts slaughtering dozens of people in Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, or Las Vegas, It’s clear their tendencies were overlooked many times before their murderous deeds. The clues are there for those who want to know the truth, and much is excused that shouldn't be.
I try to be realistic that it is in a scorpion's nature to sting, even if it kills itself in the process. So I suppose some destructive qualities are inherent in most of us, but I also believe that it’s our task in this world to shed those behaviors which are hurtful to self or others, and embrace those that lead us to happiness and fulfillment.
Anyway, for those who want a quick response, I have found some birth charts are more challenging than others, but since we all are Eternal Sparks of Light-Life-Love, if someone is hurtful, it’s likely they have fallen into toxic learned illusions. When we are in the presence of this, the only thing to do (if it's not our Karmic duty to deal with) is to put some distance between us and them, since it’s in the nature of a hurtful creature to hurt.
Related to the topic of whether some charts are more “evil” than others, the ability to see the inherent “goodness” or “badness” in a birth chart seems to be something that perplexes even the best astrologers, as it seems to land somewhere outside of analytical techniques. Can we actually see whether there are tendencies toward “good” or “evil” in a birth chart?
Answering this question involves two big issues. There is the primary issue of defining what "good" and "evil" actually are. Then there are the usual astrological issues of how "free will" interacts with difficult aspects, circumstances, and head spaces.
As I've written before, we cannot find “good and evil” in the aspects or sign positions, since supposedly “bad” sign positions and "negative" aspects between planets can manifest for good rather than difficulty, and supposedly great sign positions and great aspects can be in the chart of a person capable of very bad actions. That implies a factor beyond planets and aspects is at work in producing Sages and sinners.
Some students of Astrology believe that certain configurations are purely good, while other indicators seemingly show evil, whatever that looks like. However, throughout history there have been many evolved people with both harmonious and frictional sign positions and aspects, as well as toads in human form with both "favorable" and "unfavorable" sign positions and aspects. This is part of the "free will" element of astrology.
Here I’ll remind you that we have nothing to fear from "bad" sign positions and aspects, whether natally, progressed, or transit. We also should not assume that "good" aspects and sign positions will always yield results that are harmonious to what we believed would happen. Whether we are moving through harmonious or disharmonious aspects, we always have the potential to grasp the wheel of our "fate" and steer ourselves in a more productive direction.
While a chart can show elements of difficulty or malfunctioning personality traits, whether natal, progressed, or transiting, there is no chart factor that is purely evil or good. If that were true, it would imply that we don't have free will to determine our internal and external actions.
If a person were born with "evil" indicators, then how "good" could that being be, or become? By the same token, if we were born with purely "good" indications, then how could we ever manifest "not good?" If we had nothing left to learn and were purely good, then why be born at all, since we'd be perfect?
If evolution is a continuum, then there will be lifetimes when we are more prone to "missing the mark," while other lifetimes we could be magnificent in some ways and not so magnificent in other ways. Here it is important to remember that "good" and "evil" are often in the eyes of the beholder, and what is good in one culture or situation could very well be disastrous in others.
Our birth charts show us what we’ve learned and demonstrated in prior incarnations, We bring both the “good” traits as well as the “bad” traits into this lifetime. These healthy and unhealthy ways of manifesting planetary energies are shown in the birth chart, and it’s our task in any given life to maintain and improve our gifts and skills we bring forward from other lifetimes, cultivate new ones (however perfectly or imperfectly), and transmute negative tendencies into positive ones.
I truly believe that defining “good” and “evil” is one of the more difficult things to do, given our limited perception and understanding, since there are those things which are obviously and/or inherently “evil” and things that are conditionally “evil.” Similarly, there are things which are obviously and/or inherently “good” and things that are conditionally “good.”
We all confront these throughout our lives. By our choices we either further tendencies or negate tendencies. Knowing which tendencies are “good” or “evil” for us, and under what conditions, is one of the thorniest issues of human existence.
In part 2 we’ll take a new look at these issues and more, since by knowing these we can begin to get clear as to what is appropriate and what is inappropriate in our lives and circumstances.
© Copyright 2018 Robert Wilkinson
Thank you, Robert. This is an excellent read.
Posted by: sw | January 22, 2018 at 12:21 PM