HOW EMOTIONAL CONFLICTS TRIGGER DISEASE
An Astrological View
LAUREN DELSACK
How Emotional Conflicts Trigger Disease - An Astrological View Copyright 2005 by Lauren Delsack. Published by Lauren Delsack at Smashwords.
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Author’s Website: http://www.laurendelsack.com
Acknowledgements
With deep gratitude to, Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer for his medical brilliance, and unrelenting courage and determination to bring the German New Medicine into existence, and to Noel Tyl for his wisdom and remarkable contribution to astrology, whose unwavering guidance and support have influenced my life and professional path most profoundly and significantly.
A special thank you goes out to each individual who has graciously allowed me to share their life story, from their perspective and in their words, with the hope and desire to help others. Without their participation, this book would not be possible.
Nothing presented here by its author should be construed as being in the nature of a medical diagnosis, prognosis, or treatment. Nothing in this book is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice.
Chapter 1 The Relationship among the Psyche, Brain, and Physical Body
Chapter 2 Applying the Technique
Reviewing Astrological Symbolism and Body Weakness
Early Warning Signs of Critical Illness
Chapter 3 Emotional Conflicts and the Developmental Timing of Disease
Breast Cancer (Cases include Lymph, Lung, and Bone Cancer)
Biological vs. Intellectual Conflicts
Diabetes and Ulcerative Colitis
The Urinary System: The Kidneys and Urinary Tract
The Genital System (Cases include Bone and Lung Cancer)
Uterine Fibroid Tumors & Ovarian Cysts
The Eyes and Sight: Retinitis Pigmentosa
Chapter 4 The Consultation Process: A Case of Multiple Myeloma
Appendix I Organs, Diseases, and Associated Conflicts
Appendix II Planets and Signs, Natal Configurations, Midpoints
One of Astrology’s special strengths is the measurement of time: not just the orderly progress of calendar time, but also event time and, as well, response time. We seek to know when experiences will begin, how long they may last, and when they may take us where. Occurrence, Duration, Significance.
Our matrix of time coordinates – the planets working together in real time with the natal disposition and within frames of projection symbolisms leads us to locating critical times in our experience and perception. These occurrences define our sense of being alive, but they are also absorbed within our body and imprinted upon its systems. Our body is an extremely sensitively calibrated time machine.
We know further that psychological values are formed and attached to those occurrences in our development. These values take refuge and are anchored in the body. They take their toll. We become what we experience in terms of how we perceive happenings within time.
Our father dies suddenly, without our having achieved closure about unfinished business in our relationship with him. We’re distraught. Our life is affected for all time forward. --When and how might our body register the frustration, the pain, if we don't come to terms with it and find resolution?
We dislike our job. We’ve said many times: “It makes me sick.” But it is essential. We hold on for dear life, for years. Then suddenly we lose the job. Our life is in chaos. How will we ever get settled again? -- What does all this mean? --When and how might our body register the frustration, the pain, if we don't come to terms with it and find resolution?
As a single parent, I live for my child. She represents who I am; I will prove myself through her. Suddenly I learn she is killed by a car outside her school. --When and how might my body register the shock, the pain, the lifetime dissolution, if I don’t come to terms with it and find resolution?
Lauren Delsack – a brilliant astrologer, analyst and technician of world stature - studies these ties among life-shock, critical illness, and time. She has been inspired by the highly developed 20-year research and work with over 40,000 cases by Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer, embodied in the “German New Medicine.”
Delsack’s study tracks the understanding of cause. Description of symptoms is one thing; determining cause is quite another. What causes critical illness? --The great insight to gain is this: if we can understand cause, we can anticipate effect. Body and system breakdown can be warded off if the occurrence of life- shock is understood within time and assimilated within understanding.
Lauren Delsack shows this dramatically with the clearest astrology possible in 32 cases. She pinpoints the emotional conflict associated with the shock-occurrence and studies the astrological symbolism around the experience AND into the dramatically etched, critical period two to three years thereafter!
THAT’s when we can see the significance of a shock happening in bodily terms. It is fascinating, and it is exceedingly important information.
Now astrologers can interpret developmental trauma in terms that can save lives. Understanding can be illuminated to allow remedy. Serious threats to the body can be pushed away. The strange sense of metastasis –the supposed spread of disease like cancer for example, beyond the site of its occurrence - is almost put aside in this work, since metastasis is undoubtedly dependent on further conflicts, issuing from the core shock-trauma. --Dr. Hamer has discovered that what he refers to as “psyche-related trouble events” all lie historically in time and systemically in occurrence very close together in our brain, and even have the same cell and tissue formation.
Delsack guides us so lucidly into this matrix, the blueprint of our bodily time machine. She persuades that once the conflict is resolved, the body can begin to heal.
Oh my! Astrologers: come cross the frontier! Thank you, Lauren.
Noel Tyl
Fountain Hills, AZ, September 2006
We all have encountered disease in some form or another, either by ourselves or through those we love, and we have probably asked the same questions. Why do some people become critically ill while others do not? Why is cancer fatal for some and not for others? Why is it that conventional medicine has yet to discover the cause of so many “curable” and “incurable” diseases?
In the process of doing research for this book, I was astonished by the medical industry’s lack of understanding as to the cause of disease. For almost every critical illness, I came across a similar statement, “Medical doctors don’t know what causes this disease, however statistics show that among men, women, Afro-Americans, Asians, or whomever, one in every ‘so many’ are diagnosed each year.” Is discovering the root of disease really that complex, or are there variables not being addressed or considered by medical science, such as the role and interaction of our psyche and brain with our physical body? Can our perceptions of the emotional conflicts and traumas in our lives trigger the onset of disease? The answer to that question is apparently yes, and that is the focus of this book.
Leading edge research in cellular biology has already established that cells dynamically adapt their structure and behavior to conform to their perception of the environment. Dr. Bruce H. Lipton, renowned cellular biologist, explains that each cell is an innately intelligent, independent being, adjusting its biology to its own perception of the environment. The cells in our body receive environmental signals via the central nervous system. The primary role of the nervous system is to perceive the environment and generate an appropriate behavior or response in order to ensure our survival. In truth he says, cells receive a “perception” of the environment as interpreted by the educated brain. The cell membrane, the “skin” of the cell, functions as an information processor. Protein receptors on the membrane’s outer surface observe and respond to environment signals or stimuli. Stimuli perceived by the membrane evoke a cellular response. In the process of experience, cells acquire a memory so the next time the same stimulus shows up they can engage faster. Memory systems store these previously “learned” experiences. Memories represent perceptions. Cell memory responsiveness is based on whether it supports growth or requires a protection response. Misperceptions can inappropriately increase or decrease physiologic mechanisms and produce disease. Breakthrough discoveries in cellular biology teach us we are not controlled by our genes, but by our beliefs. Rather than being the victims of our genes, we have been the victims of our perceptions. Our perception of our environment ultimately regulates our health.
What then influences how we perceive our environment? Our perceptions and attitudes are acquired through early parental conditioning and developmental experiences that accumulate to form our identity and awareness of who we are. Initially it is our parents that provide us with a positive or negative self-image. Remarks about our abilities or disabilities, our worthiness or lovability are recorded in our subconscious mind as perceptual facts. The perceptions and beliefs we acquire in our early formative years shape and control our potential, our expectations, and our behavior as adults. These early developmental experiences generate learned “stimulus-response” patterns and “routinized” behaviors. For example, if we are given a perception we can succeed, we will continuously strive to do so. If, however, we are given a belief we are not good enough, we will conform to that perception, even by sabotaging ourselves, in order to impede success.
Astrology provides us with an extraordinary tool for detecting these conditioned patterns, uncovering their origin, and understanding how and why they develop. So often these behavioral routines lead to “imbalances” because of for example, needs unfulfilled over time (represented by the planets); unresolved anger and frustration (Mars in the 12th or perhaps retrograde or under high developmental tension); defense mechanisms (such as Grand Trines) that keep us self-contained; expectations that are too high or impractical, i.e., idealism that runs off in wrong directions (symbolized by the Sun, Mercury, and/or Venus configured together, augmented by Jupiter or Neptune); or behaviors that over-compensate to extremes in order to prove a point or justify our lives (such as Saturn in contact with Jupiter) linked to concerns about being loved, recognized, or appreciated (11th house matters). As a result of these imbalances, our perceptions become oversensitive, distorted, or biased, and when we experience an unexpected emotional conflict in our lives our perception of the event can trigger the onset of disease in our physical body. The determining factor is not just what happened, but rather how we perceived the trauma the very instant or moment it occurred.
This is the remarkable discovery of Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer of Germany who established that disease is indeed a synchronous and symbiotic interaction among the psyche, the brain, and the physical body, occurring simultaneously on all three levels. Dr. Hamer’s empirical research over the past 20 years in over 40,000 cases of critical illness emphatically proves an incidence of severe emotional trauma precedes the onset of disease, and such an unforeseeable conflict occurs not only in our psyche but also simultaneously in the brain and on the corresponding organ.
By analyzing patients’ brain scans with their personal history, Dr. Hamer was able to determine that every disease is initiated and triggered by an unexpected conflict-shock or traumatic event in which we are unprepared or caught totally off guard. If the conflict is resolved, the process of disease is reversed, repairing the damage equally and simultaneously on all three levels (the psyche, brain, and organ) and returning the individual to health.
Dr. Hamer further discovered that over the course of evolution each brain layer was programmed to respond instantly to conflicts with certain biological responses that ensured the survival of the species. When we experience a sudden conflict such as a separation from a loved-one, a loss of a job or territory, uncontrollable anger or worry, or an unexpected insult, the brain activates a special biological program to respond to the specific conflict. The brain layer that receives the shock determines how the corresponding organ will respond.
A lecture given by Dr. Hamer in 1991 helps illustrate this point. A doctor in attendance asked Dr. Hamer to analyze his patient’s brain scan and disclose the person’s organic state and its associated biological conflict. From the brain scan alone, Dr. Hamer was able to diagnose five specific areas of the body, the corresponding emotional conflict, and determine what ailment the patient currently suffered from and what ailment he had before: a fresh bleeding bladder carcinoma in the “healing” phase, an old prostate carcinoma, diabetes, an old lung carcinoma, and a paralysis of a specific area of the body. The doctor stood up and congratulated Dr. Hamer saying, “Fantastic! That’s exactly what the patient has!”
Throughout my investigation of disease, I became captured by the ingenuity and logic of Dr. Hamer’s theories. I thought if we astrologers can already observe when health crisis hits, then we should also be able to determine exactly when the emotional trauma which initiated the disease occurred. By incorporating the research of world-renowned astrologer Noel Tyl, presented in his book, Astrological Timing of Critical Illness, we learn how to detect potential weakness in certain areas of the body. More importantly, we learn how to target early warning patterns of crisis and systemic breakdown to uncover when disease occurs, focusing primarily on activity involving the health center Ascendant, its ruler, and the 12th house of critical illness. Throughout this book we will learn how to apply various astrological techniques (such as Solar Arcs, Indirect Solar Arcs, Transits, and Tertiary Progressions) that enable us to track the development of disease to its initial source, the emotional trauma that triggered disease. We will see how imbalances detected in the natal horoscope allow us to understand why emotional conflicts were perceived as they were, and how a link between critical illness and the theme of the emotional conflict is often reflected in the natal horoscope. We will explore Dr. Hamer’s findings, officially called the German New Medicine, to discover how and why disease occurs, and to ascertain the specific nature of emotional conflicts, which instigate disease.
Medical diagnosis is not the purpose of this book, nor is it our role as astrologers. The purpose of this book is to establish the link between early warning patterns of illness to times of emotional conflict and trauma, to identify the timing of the emotional factors that led to a medical diagnosis so our clients may see this connection, i.e. why a particular illness happened at a particular time. By establishing when the conflict took place and working with Dr. Hamer’s correlation between each body organ and its associated conflict (outlined in Appendix I), we can assist in saving lives. Once our clients are armed with knowing which emotional conflicts need to be resolved, healing can begin to take place. It is not until a situation is acknowledged and known, that it can be dealt with constructively. The astrologer is the right person to make this connection, to encourage our clients along an emotional healing path, assist them in taking appropriate action, and help them regain the willpower and strength to become responsible participants in healing their “dis-ease.”
You will be mesmerized by Dr. Hamer’s findings on every illness from a sore throat to terminal cancer. You will become better Astrologers in the process by learning how to uncover the trigger event of any dis- ease.
Chapter 1: The Relationship Among the Psyche, Brain and Physical Body
“That nobody ever thought that the brain, computer of our organism, might be responsible for all the diseases is very strange in the era of computerization.” Dr. Hamer
We are about to embark on a study of the relationship between disease and emotional conflicts. More specifically, how unexpected emotional conflicts are perceived the very moment they occur in our lives. By combining this knowledge with the science and art of astrology, we can better understand critical illnesses and help promote successful healing. For some of you, what you are about to read may shake up your views of conventional medicine. For others, it will confirm what you already believe to be true, that disease is a synchronous and symbiotic interaction among the psyche, the brain, and the physical body (specifically, the corresponding organ), occurring simultaneously on all three levels.
The cases of critical illness that follow all have something in common: the onset of disease occurred approximately one to three years after an unexpected emotional conflict-shock. This is the extraordinary discovery of Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer of Germany whose research categorically proves the occurrence of an emotional conflict-shock precedes the onset of disease. Dr. Hamer’s findings are called “The Five Biological Laws of the New Medicine,” officially named the German New Medicine.
Dr. Hamer began his work in cancer research with his own personal tragedy after his teenage son was killed in 1978. Shortly after his son’s death, Dr. Hamer was diagnosed with testicular cancer and survived. Three years later he had the opportunity to research cancer cases, analyzing each patient’s brain scan with his or her personal history to determine if an acute emotional trauma preceded the onset of cancer.
After studying some 10,000 cases, he was able to establish that every disease is instigated and set off by an unexpected conflict-shock or traumatic event of which we are unprepared or caught totally off guard.
According to the German New Medicine, every disease originates from a DHS (a “Dirk Hamer Syndrome,” named after his son Dirk whose death instigated his own cancer), a highly acute and dramatic emotional shock that disrupts the normal biological functions of our organism. At the very moment we suffer a DHS, the very moment the trauma occurs, the conflict-shock impacts a specific area in the brain causing a lesion that is clearly visible on a brain scan as a set of sharp target rings or circles (similar in appearance to a stone falling into a pool of water). Because each area or relay in our brain is linked to a particular organ, the localization of the brain lesion determines which organ will be affected. Upon impact the shock is communicated to the corresponding organ. Stated more clearly, the affected brain cells send a biochemical signal to the cells in the corresponding organ manifesting as a tumor growth (cell multiplication), tissue loss or necrosis (cell decrease), or as a functional disturbance (such as diabetes, motor paralysis, visual or hearing impairment, etc.). Whether the tissue controlled by the affected brain area responds in such a way, depends on the nature and content of the conflict and on the precise area of the brain that received the conflict-shock.
By studying the evolution of the brain, Dr. Hamer discovered specific conflicts impact distinct areas of the brain, and that each brain layer was encoded with a special biological response program enabling an organism to tackle an unexpected crisis. For example, the brain stem (the oldest part of the brain) is programmed with basic survival issues such as respiration, nourishment, and reproduction. The cerebrum (the youngest part of the brain) is concerned with more advanced matters such as self-devaluation, separation/loss, and territorial and identity conflicts. Therefore, every so-called illness (such as a growth or loss of tissue) has a special biological meaning and purpose in order to solve an unforeseen biological conflict. For this reason, the German New Medicine refers to illness as a “Sound Biological Special Program of Nature” instead of the term “disease” which implies a disorder or malfunction of the organism.
It is the content of the conflict that determines the location of the lesion in the brain and the location of the disease in the organ. Our subconscious or subjective feeling associates the conflict or event the very instant it occurs with a specific biological conflict theme therefore determining which part of the brain will receive the shock and which organ or tissue will be affected. For every type of conflict there is a specific type of disease and a specific area in the brain where these processes are controlled. Hence, specific biological conflicts cause specific physical responses in the body. For example, a “self-devaluation” conflict triggered by an unfair remark or insult can affect the bones (the bones are derived from the new brain mesoderm, the middle brain layer, controlled by the cerebral medulla). A “death fright” conflict instigated by an unexpected cancer diagnosis can affect the lung alveoli (the lung alveoli or air sacs are developed from the endoderm, the inner germ layer, controlled by the brain stem). An “identity loss” conflict such as not knowing where to belong or the inability to find one’s territorial place can affect the bladder (the bladder is derived from the ectoderm, the outer brain layer, controlled by the cerebral cortex).
Unless you are a medical practitioner it not necessary to know what specific area of the brain received the shock. However, as astrologers, working with clients diagnosed with disease, it is important to understand laterality (hand dominance) needs to be taken into account because the brain plays an integral role in the German New Medicine.
Our dominant hand determines which side of the brain an emotional conflict impacts, and which side of the body will be affected. People who are right-hand dominant develop problems on the opposite side of the body from those who are left-hand dominant. If a right-hand dominant person suffers a conflict with his or her mother or child, then the left side of the body will be affected (such as, the left breast). If the conflict is with a partner or another individual (anybody except the mother or child), then the right side will respond (such as, the right breast). For left-hand dominant people the situation is reversed, i.e. a conflict with the mother or child registers on the right side of the body, and a conflict with a partner or with others registers on the left side. Laterality is insignificant with the oldest organs that originate from the oldest germ layer controlled from the brain stem such as the lungs, kidneys, liver, colon, uterus, and prostate.
A clapping test can determine whether someone is right or left-hand dominant. To establish this, clap spontaneously as if you were in a theatre. The hand on top striking the other hand is the leading hand and will determine which cerebral hemisphere is predominant and will first suffer a conflict. This condition may vary with hormonal changes resulting from the use of birth control pills or menopause. In case of uncertainty, this relationship can easily be established with the help of a CT Scan. Referring to the patient’s brain, it can then be concluded whether one is functioning right- or left-handed, independent of the training he or she received as a child.
Let’s look at an example of a biological conflict that illustrates all possible physical manifestations depending on how the unexpected emotional conflict was perceived:
A woman discovers her husband in bed with her best friend. She suffers a sexual frustration conflict. In biological terms, this is a conflict of “not-going-to-mate-with” bringing about a cervical cancer. The very same situation need not produce the same conflict in everyone. For instance, if the woman did not care much for her husband and had for some time been considering divorce, then she may experience this shocking scene not as a sexual conflict, but rather as a human conflict of mangled family solidarity. This conflict would be a partner conflict and may bring about breast cancer in the right breast assuming she is right-hand dominant.
This same set of circumstances could also have produced a disgust conflict (experienced as fear or revulsion) with hypoglycemia (abnormally low blood sugar), if the woman had discovered her husband with a prostitute or some other offensive situation. Or it could arise as a breach of self-worth (a self-devaluation conflict), with or without the additional sexual conflict, if she had discovered her husband with a woman twenty years younger than herself. The feeling might then be something like “I cannot put up with this, yet I cannot compete.” In such a case, skeletal system cancer may develop in the pubic bone of the pelvis, or it may begin osteolyses (decalcifying), as the organ level’s response of the psyche level’s sexual self-worth breach. If the lack of self-worth had been due to a failure in sportsmanship rather than being sexually related, then the problem would have arisen in an arm or leg instead or possibly in the fingers or shoulders.1
As with the example above, three people can experience the same event quite differently. One person may associate the experience as a separation conflict, the second as a conflict of sexual frustration, while a third might experience the event as inconsequential. Our emotions are triggered by how we perceive or interpret an event, not by an objective response to the event. The interpretation is highly subjective and not always accurate. It depends on the attitudes and beliefs we have built up based on our conditioning and past experiences.
Let’s add some variables to the example of a woman who did not care much for her husband and had for some time been considering divorce. We will assume she is no longer in love with her husband, has no children, has suspected or perhaps even known her husband has been having an affair for some time, and has been waiting for proof of infidelity in order to file for divorce. Will she perceive the event as shocking or in the same way as a woman who is recently married and deeply in love with her husband? Most probably, not.
We are all susceptible to disease. The determining factor is how we perceive an unexpected emotional conflict or event the very moment a DHS occurs. It is the person’s subjective perception of whether an event was shocking or traumatic that determines the bodily response, not the objective reality of the situation. Please reread the last two sentences carefully! For example, why was the event so traumatic? Why was it experienced as isolative (no one available or able to discuss it with)? Why was it conflictive (either the person was unable to make a choice between several options or did not have the possibility of addressing the problem)? ONLY the person who experiences the conflict can answer these questions by recalling how the conflict affected him or her at the very instant it occurred.
Certainly our early developmental conditioning influences how we perceive life events. If, for example, as a child we developed a fear of abandonment due to issues of infidelity in our parents’ relationship, then as an adult our perception may be dramatically over-sensitive or over-reactive when we discover our partner has been disloyal or unfaithful. Likewise, if our self-image or self-worth was debilitated from a young age because of being constantly put down by one of our parents, then we may perceive an unexpected insult or remark from a colleague or friend with great impact as opposed to someone who was consistently recognized and praised throughout their development.
According to Dr. Hamer, it is not a childhood trauma that instigates the onset of disease in adulthood. It is triggered by a more recent conflict. A DHS can however reactivate memories of childhood traumas and affect our perception of a current emotional conflict or event. Examples of this are presented in the cases of “Veronica” and “Amanda.” Further, an emotional conflict whether real or imagined, can register with the same impact on the physical body. A recurring conflict similar to the original DHS that caused cancer can bring on a recurrence of cancer. Even an imagined conflict is sufficient to bring back a relapse of the cancer symptoms. This is what Dr. Hamer refers to as “tracks,” which will be discussed in the cases that follow.
According to the German New Medicine, every disease runs in two phases, provided there is a resolution to the conflict. In the “conflict-active” phase, the unexpected emotional shock activates a “Sound Biological Special Program” that allows the psyche, brain, and organ to focus exclusively on managing the situation. This phase is characterized by mental preoccupation and emotional stress, lack of sleep and appetite, weight loss, increased heart rate, and cold extremities. If the conflict is resolved the “healing” phase is then initiated, a period where the psyche, brain, and affected organ attempt to heal and restore equilibrium. We no longer think about the conflict day and night, have warm extremities, regain good appetite, sleep well, and gain weight. The duration and severity of the healing phase is variable and determined by the intensity and duration of the “conflict-active” phase (the healing phase will last roughly as long as the conflict lasted). In general, however, the “healing” phase is considerably more dangerous than the “conflict-active” phase because it is often accompanied by swelling, inflammation, infections, fever, fatigue, and pain. For that reason most diseases are detected when we are already healing!
Many of us have probably experienced the two-phases of disease without even knowing it, but since we were able to resolve our conflict in a timely manner, our body healed before critical illness developed. For example, we usually make changes in our lives when circumstances become unbearable or intolerable, such as in our personal life when cohabitating with others, or in our professional life when working with employers or co-workers. Usually some event becomes the “final straw” compelling us to find a solution. The final catalyst may have been an unexpected biological conflict-shock (i.e. a conflict of which we were unprepared for, and was perceived as shocking or traumatic) such as an unfair remark or insult, or someone’s deceitful, disloyal, or unsportsmanlike actions. Therefore we may have entered the “conflict-active” phase of disease with mental preoccupation and stress, sleeplessness, and weight loss.
We then resolved the conflict with a practical solution such as finding a new job or new place to live, finding a middle ground with the person involved, or ending a relationship no longer beneficial to our growth. In other words, by resolving the conflict, we initiated the “healing” phase of disease. We no longer thought about the conflict day and night. We regained good appetite and slept well. We resolved an unexpected biological conflict, a conflict that may have been detrimental to our health if we had allowed it to remain active and unresolved.
There is no “one-size-fits-all” resolution for conflicts. Each conflict may have a multitude of solutions. Likewise, a solution that is feasible and realistic for one person may not be for another person. If, for example, we are suddenly fired from our job without good cause, we may resolve the conflict by taking legal action, filing for unemployment benefits, finding another job, becoming self-employed, or retiring (depending on age). We must assume responsibility and resolve our conflicts with solutions that are practical for each of us. In Chapter Two and Chapter Four, we will touch on this subject again, as well as what the astrologer can do to promote resolution.
1 This example is sited from an interview with Dr. Hamer on Radio TORONTO, March 13, 1999, translated from a tape recording produced in German by Amici di Dirk Publishing House, Verlag, Koln, Germany in 1992 as an introduction to Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer's, New Medicine and his books Cancer, Disease Of The Psyche and Legacy Of A New Medicine, Volume 1, The Ontogenetic System of Tumors including Cancer, Leukemia, Psychosis and Epilepsy.
Chapter 2: Applying the Technique
Pinpointing the Emotional Conflict: “Jean” - Liver and Pancreatic Cancer
We begin by studying the case of “Jean” diagnosed with cancer of the liver and pancreas. We will follow an outline that I recommend using when pinpointing an emotional conflict that triggered disease.
I. We need to synthesize Jean’s natal horoscope to get a feel for the core issues in her development and how these concerns can affect her mindset, perception, attitudes, and beliefs.
Synthesis of natal horoscopes is an acquired art. Certainly there are guidelines most astrologers follow such as the importance of angular planets, peregrine planets,2 and planets forming the closest aspect with another planet or point in the natal horoscope. The technique I use for synthesizing natal horoscopes is based on the teachings of Noel Tyl presented in his book, Synthesis & Counseling in Astrology: The Professional Manual. In the discussion of horoscopes throughout this book, there is no special order as to what natal planets or natal aspects are being discussed first.
In Jean’s horoscope (Chart 1), Pluto ruler of the self-worth 2nd is in mutual reception and square the Sun ruler of the 11th. We immediately sense tension with issues of self-worth and lovability spurred on from stifling of personal power potentials. Someone or some situation in Jean’s development frustrated or suppressed her drive for power (suggested whenever Pluto is conjunct, square, or opposed, or quindecile3 the Sun). Jupiter ties into this scenario through its quindecile to the Sun.
Concerns with lovability (Sun rules the 11th), self-worth (Sun in the 2nd which may be influenced by her financial status as an adult), and feeling valued and supported by others (Jupiter in the 8th) carry over onto her mindset and affect the way she perceives the world (Jupiter rules the 3rd).
Sibling tension may very well be involved here, reinforced by Mercury and Venus both peregrine in the 3rd house. Peregrine planets tend to “run wild” with the affairs of the house they rule or are positioned in. Peregrine Mercury may suggest excessive mental anxiety with siblings. Peregrine Venus ruling the 8th relates back to our deductions about feeling supported or not by others, and again the concern may be with siblings, and its effect on Jean’s identity development (Venus also rules the Ascendant). Tension with self-worth and lovability may be linked to siblings as well with Pluto sesquiquadrate Venus, perhaps sibling rivalry or competition with regard to education with Mercury ruling the 9th house. How might these issues in Jean’s development impact her mindset, impinge on her perceptions, and ultimately affect her health with Mercury ruling the 12th house of critical illness, and Venus ruling the health center Ascendant?
Two natal midpoints are important in our analysis, both involving the Ascendant, outer planets, and the Moon: Moon=Neptune/Ascendant (“great sensitivity; open to hurt; easily deceived”) and Moon=Saturn/Ascendant (“depression due to the environment; difficulty being accepted”).4
Certainly there is more to study in Jean’s horoscope, but we have established some key developmental concerns: her perceptions are influenced by her sense of self-worth and lovability, and by feeling accepted and supported or not by others, and siblings are probably an important part of this. We need Jean’s corroboration to take this further, to fully understand why she perceived an unexpected emotional conflict the way she did.
II. Next we explore the areas of the body that may be susceptible to weakness, focusing on two or three dominant aspect configurations in the natal horoscope.
Before we study Jean’s horoscope for bodily areas predisposed to weakness, let’s review some astrological symbolism.
Reviewing Astrological Symbolism
Body Weakness