Everything You Need to Know About the Nodes

In this episode, we're diving deep into the North Node and South Node—the cosmic knots of destiny. We'll explore what the Nodes actually are, how they're connected to eclipses, the differences between Western and Vedic astrology, and why they reveal both your path of growth and the gifts you bring with you.
We'll also discuss the 18.6-year nodal cycle and why major life turning points often happen around ages 18, 37, and 56.

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Hello, welcome. It is me, Danielle Carmelita, your favorite tarot reader and astrologer. I'm trying to do this unedited and uncut. Okay. And if you are new here, welcome. If you are old, hello. I wanted to do a brief lesson on the nodes. Hopefully it's brief. I get a little long-winded. But if you want to know about the north node and the south node, this is a great video for you. And today we are talking about the most important misunderstand misunderstood concept, especially for me, when I first learned astrology, and that is the lunar nodes. I was a little confused about it. I didn't understand it. And most people know about the north node and the south node. They know that they're points of destiny and karma. But exactly what is it? Where do they come from? Why do we have them? How are they connected to the eclipse? Are they connected to the eclipse? Well, I'm going to discuss all that and why do astrologers pay so much attention to attention to them. In this video, I'm going to break down some astronomy. Okay. I'm more of an astrologer, but more of the symbolism and the spiritual meaning behind the nodes. I'm going to talk about what the node actually means. I'm going to break it down and talk about the cycles of it. Hopefully, I can break down mostly everything that you can comprehend and learn about the north nodes and the south node in this video. Okay, so let's get started. You know, I tried to do a little intro there. Whatever. Anyway, so let's get into the nodes. Okay. I don't have visual aids. You guys are gonna have to actually sit and listen to me. You can put this on fast speed if you want. Do as you please. Anyway, um, so the nodes. This is a nodal shift, and it marks major collective change in focus. Okay, they're not planets, they're not celestial bodies, you won't be able to see them. Okay, nodes are also a Latin word for not, like tying a knot. Okay, now how do we have the nodes? Think of the earth's path around the sun as one circle, and the moon's the moon's path around the earth as another circle, and you know it's slightly tilted. Now, when these two paths intertwine with each other or cross each other, they're called the lunar nodes. It's two crossing points, a south one and a north one. Okay, the north is the moon crosses crossing from below the earth's orbitable plane to above it. Okay, that's the north, symbolizing where we're growing and where we're evolving. The south is when the moon crosses from above to below, and that symbolizes the releasing, the outgrowing, or what we already know. Okay, so why are they so important? Because normally when the sun and the moon and when they pass each other every month, that's usually dealing with the new moon, that's usually dealing with a full moon. But when they cross each other and it happens near one of the nodes, the south or the north node, that's when we get an eclipse. So that is why the sun and the moon and the earth line up so precisely is when we get these eclipses, it's so important. So imagine if you have two roads crossing each other, and at the crossing point is where you have the node. And when the sun and the moon meet together at this crossing point, that's when they have that eclipse because this crossing point was already calculated. Okay. I never calculate these things, I just look it up on an app. I use AstroGode, and that's what I normally use for the North Node and the South Node. Okay, the nodes are actual, they're not actual planets. You won't see them. They're actual calculations of a point in space, and they represent the north and the south node. I hope that explains that part. Okay. Now, the nodes are um, okay, so like I said, the north node, let's get into that, is about the future. It's about the growth, it's about destiny, it's about new experiences, it's about the lessons that we learn. The south node is the past, comfort zone, our habits, old patterns, um, what we're meant to release. Think of these two crossing each other again like that knot. That's why we were talking about the knot. It's like a knot in the sky where two paths intersect. And when the sun and the moon are meeting the cosmic knot, something could be tied together. That would be the north node, or untied, that releasing the tie, which would be the south node, okay? The lunar nodes tie together the sun and the moon, the past and the future, the faith and free will and eclipses come and it makes a major life change. All right. Now, again, let me break down the north node. The north node is your destiny, it's your future, it's your evolution. It shows when you're growing or when growth is happening, it's associated with the hilltop, a place of evolution uh evolution, it's a place of elevation, not evolution, a place of incomic, incoming karmic energy. It's like your cup is overflowing, it embodies our capacity to respond to new experiences, a place of intake and new substance. This is where new karma can be created. The North Node signifies hunger and increase, and it is called the dragon's head, and in Western astrology it's called the Cap Cut, which is like a new editing program. Um, but also it's called the Rahu, represented by the North Node. What rep what presents the evolution of future and where we are heading? It feels unfamiliar. Sometimes um we want to reject it because who wants something new? Even though some people think they love new stuff, but a lot of people don't like change. But the north node contains your health, your maybe your health insanity. Okay. Um, we are uh it's when you're giving up something, like you um, even though that's the south node of releasing, but it's like you decided to quit smoking, so now there's this new habit or this new way of doing things you have to uh take over. It takes us forever to finally do what we wanted to do. It also um is such a relief because it feels right, you know, quitting smoking and starting this new life or starting to work our out or starting to pay attention to your health. It's a new experience, it's growth, it's opportunity, it's future development, it's evolution. It introduces material that is unfamiliar. It asks us to stretch beyond our comfort zone. So that is the north node, okay? A lot of times when you have an eclipse associated with the north node, and wherever the eclipse is happening, wherever that moon is by, that usually lets you know if it's a north node eclipse or a south node eclipse. And everything I just discussed, if an eclipse is happening by that north node, your destiny, your karma, getting new experience, growth, that's usually what the eclipse is associated with. Now let's talk about the south node, and it's about karma. The other one's dharma, um, release and endings. The south node is what about is you know, it's all about releasing in a simple term. The south note represents um katu, kata in western astrology. It's represented by um the tail of the dragon. Um, it's also like junk food in Western astrology. And um, the north note is like going to the gym. Okay, it's associated with the valley, the more vulnerable end of the dragon, where uh you sacrifice and there's restrictions with it. Um, it's like a swampland. It indicates where waste products are shed. Um, again, it symbolizes our karmic past, um, where you came in your past lifetime, and the north node represents what you are supposed to do in his current lifetime. There's a sense of responsibility and knowing regarding the debts that you owe, your debts, um, our timeless service to perform. It's about releasing again and uh evacuation. It represents an empty cup, empty, empty cup, where the north node represents the cup as being full. Okay, and the empty cup must be filled. That's the north node. Okay, the universe expects something expects something from the north node, I mean the south node, and the effects are everlasting. It represents the life we had before, and um it also represents um it's the life you had before with all your problems, okay? Because it's that karma. It's your heritage, it's your early childhood if you're not really into the past lifetime or the karma. The self note also can represent addiction, what you're obsessed with, what you're willing um to hold on to, um, what you're unreasonable about. Um, it's what you've been, you're already developed in this and highly skilled in the self node. There's expertise with the self-node, there's natural talents, your past experiences, um, sacrifice. The self node is simply something to abandon to a lot of people in astrology. It's also what you contribute to the world. It's your wisdom, it's your experience and gifts we bring with us when we're already born, our natural talents and abilities. Okay. Now, the north node and the south node, they work as a pair. The north node and the south node are not enemies, they are just separate destinations. Well, they're not separate destinations. Actually, you got to work with them together. They function as an axis, meaning there's two ways. Um, let me pull up a chart. Well, actually, okay, so if you look at uh a Natal chart, there is an axis of every house in a natal chart or an opposite sign. So, for example, coming up, we have Leo and Aquarius. So that is on one axis. Think of them as a seesaw, okay? When one rises, the other one has to support it. You can't have one without the other. Together, the pair of nodes function as a two-way flow, complementing one another. When giving new material to the north node, right, you have to sacrifice and give up others something else from the South Node. They reveal our interactions with each other and our connections in the big picture. The north node is pulling towards growth. The south node is providing that foundation when you're trying to grow. So without the South Node, you have no experiences. It's very important. Without the North Node, you're not evolving. So you need to balance between the two. Okay. So the North Node says, What am I here to learn? The South Node says, What am I here to give up? How does my personal journey contribute to the collective story of the South in the North Node? Okay. And you never, as an astrologer or someone who's reading their own chart, you never just look at the north node on its own. Um, you know, there is this, um, I forgot the website. It's a very popular website where you look at um your astrology and it says true node, you know, and it gives you just one. But when you look at that, you need to know what you are releasing. So that's usually the north node, and you need to look at what the south node is. Um, there is an access principle. So the north node entering Aquarius and entering a Leo, then you have to understand both signs, Leo and Aquarius. Okay. So if Aquarius is all about the people, Leo is all about the self. And there needs to be a balance between the two, or maybe not being selfish and working towards a greater cause, which is Aquarius energy, the people. And when you're reading your horoscopes, so you look at your rising sign, for example, if we look at Aries, right? In Aries, Leo, um, the north node will be the south node, will be in the fifth house, and the north node will in Aquarius will be in the 11th house. So you are focusing more on your friends and networks and commute net community and um organizations, and you are releasing the energy of selfishness, okay? Um, the north node and 11th house means focus on friends and community, but there needs to be growth and releasing of that creative ego, of that personal recognition, because that's what that Leo energy represents, right? That's well in conflict. Conflict, okay, Leo. Okay. So, for example, let's do Taurus Rising. Taurus rising, the north node and Aquarius is going to be in the 10th house, the south node and Leo is going to be in the fourth house. So you put them together, you're talking about public leadership, you're talking about achievement, you're talking about your goals, while you're releasing the comfort zone of your family, of your safety, of your past, um, and that emotions kind of energy. Okay. So that is what you do. So if you're trying to read your chart, just look at the notes, look at the south and north, and look at both houses because that's how you do it. And also, too, when you when um I do horoscopes for the north and south note, which we will do in a future video, um, in the next video, then you will see that I will be discussing two rising signs at the same time because we're really talking about an axis, we're not talking about one point, okay? So that is what we have. Do other planets have nodes? Yes, they do, okay? Um, not just the moon. The moon is important because they create eclipses, they move quickly. Um, you're talking about the earth, the moon, the sun, all that relationship together. Those are big doozies, and a lot of them have power, and those planets and celestial beings have powerful effects. So that's why we look at those nodes and the eclipse with them. Venus has a node, uh, Mars has nodes, Jupiter has nodes, Saturn has nodes, Pluto's have notes. Just so you know, even asteroids and comics, uh comets, they have notes, okay? So I want to talk about the nodal access. Um, and then I'm gonna talk about the difference between western and eastern astrology, okay? So the notal uh the nodal cycle, first of all, there is a book. I actually want to show you a few books, but this is a great book if you want to look at different cycles in life. Um, this is really about the Saturn return, but from what I remember, it has um uh does this have a Chiron return? It has different returns on here. Um, Uranus Square, Neptune, it talks about the different cycles of life. It doesn't have the nodal return, from what I remember, but it's a great book if you're really getting into astrology or you want to know even more. If you just want to know about your life too, this is a great book to read. And this is called Midlife Is Not a Crisis and is by Virginia Bell. Okay, so um the nodal node, it takes 19 months to move from one sign. So each year, just about it changes signs if you want to go about a year, but it's really 19 months, and 18.6 years is when it returns back to its original sign. So, right now, if we start it now and we're in the Pisces, it's gonna take 18.6 years to come to this exact point, okay? What is 18.6 years? That usually means when you're 18, when you're 18 and a half, right? So around that time is when you have your own nodal return. And this is when you are becoming, are you becoming who you came here to be? Okay, so think about when you are turning 18, more the middle of 18, to 19, and what happens around there? You usually graduate from high school, are you leaving home, you're starting college, um, you're joining a military, you're joining a workforce force, you become legally responsible for yourself. Life starts to begin adulthood, adulting. I like to call it young adult, but if you are um if you have a different upbringing, it may be full adulting, okay? So the life of your family plan for you, the life you choose for yourself, is what happens when you turn 18 to 19, okay? Um, at um from 18 to 19, you have your first nodal return, 37 to 38, your second, 55 to 56, your third, 74 to 75, your fourth. Each one is a spiritual checkpoint, okay? The lunar nodes acts about every 18 years to return to where you were born. This is called the nodal return, and it's about representing your soul's path. Are you truly aligned? This is also when eclipses start happening. So God is eclipting your life to come back to your life's paths, and this happens around 18 years, 18.6 months years, okay? All right, so that's what um you have to look forward to. We all experience it. It's fine. Even Saturn return, we all experience it, it's fine. There's nothing to fear, it's just that you get closer to what you're meant to do in life, okay? Um, will you take your responsibility uh to your life? Are you headed on the right direction? You get that around at that time. Now, I want to talk about Western astrology versus Eastern verdict, um, Hindu astrology. I'm a Western astrologer, but uh a lot of times those things come together, Western and Eastern astrology, okay? Now, again, as I said earlier, the north node and the south node, they have different names um in different astrology, but it's either the dragon's head or the dragon's tail. You have for uh Western astrology, Cap Cut or Kata. We just normally call it the North and South Node, and it and it's the head and the tail. In Western astrology, the north node is gaining something, right? It's about growth, future, destiny, success, achievement, new experiences, personal evolution. And the south node in Western astrology is about the past, old habits, comfort zones, what you master, what you meant to uh move beyond. Now, in verdic astrology, in eastern astrology, the north node is called Rahu, and the South Node is called Ketu. I hope I'm saying it right. And it's a whole different meeting. It's almost flip-flop. Okay, so Rahu is here for desire. That's the North Node. And it wants more, it wants more power, more fame, more status, more recognition, more experiences. It brings prestige, success, obsession, greed, addiction, mass psychology, fats, illusion, and psychic phenomenon, right? The self node, and let me see if it has if I have anything else in my notes. Getting what you want isn't the same as finding peace. It's the greed, right? Who wants greed, right? And the self-node in Katu, in um Hindu astrology, is more spirituality, it's more being in solitude, mysticism, liberation, wisdom, past karma. Um, could be dealing more occult and spirituality. Katu often removes the ego and wants you to grow your soul, right? So it's more into being comfortable and embracing the things of the past. And the reason why I'm explaining this in your video, because I didn't learn this when I learned uh uh first learned a north and south note. I want you to understand that sometimes when I'm translating predictions or understanding what's currently happening in the world, sometimes the south node is more positive than a north node. That is what I realized. That's why you have to understand both Western and Eastern astrology. Sometimes marrying the two and bringing your own translation makes more sense. Okay. Um, I have Gemini placements, so I'm here for all of it, but I wanted to bring this to the table so you can understand. In Western culture, things like success, wealth, recognition, and achievement is often viewed as a desirable goal. That is not the same in Eastern astrology. Western astrology um tends to think of the north node as positive, where verdict astrology in a philosophy, Rahu can make you successful, but katu, the south node, can bring freedom. Okay? So there's something that you need to understand between those two, and that's how it works. Western astrology often sees the north node as a path of success, and verdict, eastern astrology, Rahu is the path of desire, and katu is the path of liberation, spirituality, connecting with one's true self. One acts, what do you want? The other acts, what are you, what are you ready to release? Okay. So just bring a balance to both of them. And now do you understand the south and north note? And I hope I explained it in a very simple, easy way, simple than what I learned, uh, the north and south note to mean. Um, once you understand these things, then you're able to translate it a lot better. So when they enter each different energy or zodiac signs, you're able to understand a balance of releasing and the seesaw effect and what you're gaining, your dharma versus your karma. You can understand the nodal return every 18 years and how that is a spiritual awakening of some sort. And these eclipses start to happen in your life. You understand those things, and that's all connected to the north and south node. Okay. So in the next video, I'm going to talk about the current north and south node, what signs they are entering currently. And if you are watching this and this is years later, I hope you understand and got some energy uh information out of this, and it's open hopefully started your journey on loving the north and south node. I actually have some books here. I have a few. And I wanted to talk about different books that I have that help me. First, we have the moon in focus. This is the signs, notes, and eclipse. This book is really good on understanding the north and south node and how it helps with the eclipse. Okay. It's really an easy uh read. And it really also has the tables of eclipse. It might be dated from some time, but um, the basic understanding of uh the north node and south node is in here as well. So that's a book I recommend. Another book I recommend is called The Lunar Nodes. Explore your past life, your life purpose beyond what the new node uh with a new approach to lunar nodes. This is also a lot of aspects. Um, all these books really talk about the aspects. For example, um, let me see in this book. I don't want to read it. Um, working with aspects with the nodes, it really breaks down if the if the south node is conjunct your ascendant, okay? Transiting in the sky. So that's really what this book is really good to have about. And so the other one, but that one's more about the eclipse as well. Um, this one here, I think this is a really good one. This one is called Um, it's really about breaking your chart down if you're not into astrology or being an astrologer. I mean, you're into astrology, but you're not trying to be an astrologer. This is called Lunar Nodes, Discover Your Souls, Karmic Mission. Um, it was something else. Oh, it gives examples of other people's charts and how to read them so you can translate yours and also breaking it down per house. Um, also, this has aspects in it, too. Um, all these books are really good. Notable transits to the planets, transiting planets and aspects. So it breaks down everything in this one. I I find that this one is more the best one to get if you're trying to understand it all. Okay. And the other two are extra bonuses, but the other first one was more about the eclipse. And this one here, this one is uh key to emotion and life experiences. This one I find more spiritual. Um, and it also breaks down, I have like makeup statements in here, um, but it also breaks down it um per sign. Um, also different aspects in here, too. Um what else? I have something marked here that I wanted to read. Um, lunar nodes, uh, touch, experience, and relay sensations back to our moon where information is stored. Once in storage, these feelings become the wealth of our moon, her sense of worth, her individual treasure, because all experiences is a special value to the moon. Our moon guards these treasures, and over the years will pluck them out to consider re-evaluation and reliving. And um, it really talks about the moon and how it's really holding on to the past as well, and our past experiences, but this as well is a great um beginner's book on the north and south node, and it talks about the emotions, which is very moon energy. Um, yeah, each one gives different aspects as well. This one gives aspects. I'm trying to see what else. Um, and it also talks about, I think it gives uh calculations to the north and south node as well, too. So that's really good um to have. And then lastly, this one here explains the difference between western and eastern astrology when it comes to the nose. This one is called the Lunar Nose. Did I say what the title of that one is? This one is called Lunar Nose: Keys to Emotions and Life Experiences, and it's by Diane. I can't say the last name. Rongreen, Rongren, and this one is written by Judith Hill. Um, I find that this one is really informative if you want to know both about the Western and Eastern astrology. Um, it talks about um the nodes transiting in your NATO chart. Um, I think it has aspects as well. The other ones were more focused on aspects, um, but this one really explained to me um the the Eastern and Western astrology. Yeah, it also gives transits, um, and if it's conjunct, the nodal uh the nodes, um, yeah, and them going through the polarities. Um, all these books are really great books if you want to, you don't have to own them all, okay? I'm just one who constantly likes to read and put all the information together. Okay, so that is what we have. I hope you guys enjoyed this lesson of the north and south node. I will see you guys in the next video where I talk about the north and south node evolving into the sign, Leo, and Aquarius. All right, thank you guys for watching. Bye. Bye bye.