What area of life holds the most success for you? Your lunar North Node placement in the houses reveals the answers.

Note from Tali & Ophira: We’ve been longtime raving fans of astrologer Jan Spiller, an incredible writer and teacher whose work on the lunar nodes and new moon astrology has inspired us for more than two decades. When our TV show Cosmic Love came out, we were tickled that it shared a title with one of Jan’s books. While Jan sadly passed away in 2016, we connected with her devoted team who are carrying on Jan’s legacy. Her editor, Stephanie Shea, is completing a sixth book that Jan didn’t get to finish, writing it from Jan’s notes. This post is based on that upcoming book—click here to learn more about it!

What is the North Node in astrology?

The North Node is a mathematical point in the sky formed by the moon’s orbit around the Earth intersecting with the Earth’s path around the Sun.

In astrology, the North Node represents an energy that will orient us towards success.

Why is the North Node important?

The meaning of the North Node in astrology has become more widely known ever since Jan Spiller wrote Astrology for the Soul in 1997. On the 25th Anniversary of Astrology for the Soul, I think Jan Spiller would be proud to see how many people have used her book for inspiration in their lives. While Jan Spiller didn’t pioneer the concept of the North Node, her best-selling book has helped millions of people to use knowledge about this powerful astrological point to change their lives.

The North Node contains an astrological energy that will lead us to our most purposeful, fulfilling lives.

The point opposite the North Node, called the South Node, contains energies we bring in from a past life. Some of the traits we bring in are gifts, and some of our South Node energy is expressed in unhealthy patterns that were overdone in a past lifetime. Astrology for the Soul focuses on the sign of the North and South Node for clues about tendencies to release and attributes to develop.

What does it mean if the North Node is in one of the 12 astrological houses?

That is precisely the topic of Jan’s final book she started before her passing in 2016. This book, titled, Awakening the Soul’s Purpose, will help people uncover another layer of information about their North Node.

The astrological houses are part of everyone’s birth chart and represent different areas of life.

By combining knowledge of the astrological sign our North Node is in with what house it’s in, we see what attributes to develop and what areas of life will bring us the greatest lessons. The life lessons we learn through our North Node house placement ultimately pay off in the form of a life that feels empowered, self-directed and on-path.

Example: Aries North Node in the 7th house

The house placement of the North Node can determine how the zodiac sign of the North Node is expressed.

For example, let’s say someone has an Aries North Node, but it’s in their 7th house of partnership. This might seem contradictory at first since Aries rules independence and the 7th house emphasizes collaboration. But, this helps us fine tune where this person’s Aries energy should be focused for best results.

It’s likely that in a past life they based their identity on their partnership (Libra South Node in the first house).

In this lifetime, they will be learning how to partner with others and keep their sense of identity. This doesn’t mean being completely self-focused however; the key to their self-identity actually lies in supporting others.

How do I know what house my North Node is in?

First, it’s helpful to know how the layout of your chart works. The horizontal line in the middle represents the horizon. The houses look like slices of pie and proceed in counter-clockwise order starting on the left side, just under the horizon.

The North Node symbol looks much like a pair of headphones. In order to be sure about what house your North Node is in, you must know your exact time of birth. With time of birth, the rising sign can be determined, which then sets the start and end point for all of the houses.

But, there are other ways to reverse engineer your North Node house placement if you don’t know your time of birth.

Some astrologers perform a service called rectification, which matches events from your life to planetary movements to determine time of birth.

Another way to learn about your North Node and its house placement is to read the description for all of the house placements and see which one resonates the most with you.

The astro-techie folk among us know that astrologers use a variety of house systems. This is another thing to experiment with to see which system feels right to you. The most common systems in Western Astrology are the Placidus and Whole Sign systems. If you don’t know how to read the houses in your own chart, the best way to learn about the house placement of your North Node is to get a professional astrology reading.

A summary of the North Node through the houses

Below is a brief summary of how the energy works when the North Node is in each of the houses. These lists are a useful guide, but they just scratch the surface of the themes present. That’s why there is an entire book that will be dedicated to this topic!