The nodes of the moon represent sensitive areas on the ecliptic where the moon crosses on its pathway around the earth. The north node represents the point where the moon crosses the ecliptic moving north, while the south node (which is always directly opposite from the north) represents the point where the moon crosses moving south.
The nodes point to areas of life (houses) where integration is needed. The north node describes where growth is needed. It encourages new experiences which, while not always comfortable or easy, ultimately bring about growth and illumination. The south node, on the other hand, represents what comes easily or naturally. It shows what you can fall back on when your load gets too heavy, but it can also point to the "easy way out", discouraging growth and encouraging dependency on old habits.
Every new experience met in life must be assimilated by the moon to guarantee mental and emotional stability. If mercury, for example, brings home a new slice of information, but the moon cannot find something in your past to link mercury's data, the new information cannot be processed. It is either lost or misunderstood altogether. It is impossible to comprehend new concepts that cannot be linked to your current level of understanding. If you accepted every thought or belief that comes your way, you would become hopelessly psychotic.
For example, you cannot be a Christian, an orthodox Jew, a dedicated Buddhist, a practicing Muslim and a devout Atheist all at the same time, even though you might meet people who try to convert you in the very same day. Likewise, it is not realistic to expect to understand the complexities of calculus if you have no knowledge of basic mathematics. It's simply too much to expect.
Webster defines psychosis as: any major mental disorder in which the personality is very seriously disorganized and contact with reality is usually impaired. Without the moon functioning positively in your life, you would fit this definition. The moon enables you to prioritize your life based on what you know, and what you need, at any given point in your personal development. It gives you the potential to assimilate new experiences and new information at a rate that is safe for you.
You define you future potential based on your own awareness of what is possible for you. If you have only known abuse, you have obviously developed skills in survival, but may not know how to survive in a joyful world. If you have only known joy, you may not know how to deal with sorrow. If you have been pampered throughout your entire life, you might not know how to deal with stress. In other words, your current level of wisdom is limited by your life experiences and the level of knowledge you have thus far acquired. In order to grow, we are challenged to face and accept certain risks. We must learn to weigh the risks that growth requires against the security that lies in maintaining the status quo.
If, for example, you are illiterate, you could be threatened when your own children start to read. It's possible that you will fear losing your children's devotion and respect if you allow them to achieve in the academic world. It is also possible, however, that you will be strong enough to encourage your children to learn, believing that, in doing so, you will not lose your children, but will find opportunity to learn along with them. While the latter option requires a certain degree of risk, a part of you knows that it is the right thing to do. Sometimes the benefit of taking risks far outweighs the alternatives. It is the moon's job to make this determination. It's nodes point to where such challenges will be met. It is easy to get stuck in loops that perpetuate repetition. The moon, more than any other member of your inner family, faces that challenge almost every day of your life. The moon "part" of you "senses" when the climate of your life is changing. And, to the moon, change is often scary.
The house containing the moon in your natal chart describes an area of life where you are constantly being challenged to adapt. The experiences you encounter here evoke strong emotions in you. Your inner mother is concerned for your emotional well-being here more than in any other area of your life. Memories accumulated around the experiences ruled by this house strongly color everything else that you do. If you are insecure here, all other experiences in your life, shown by the other houses, will be affected in some way.
The moon's house shows where you experience somewhat predictable but constant changes. Just as the moon rules the ever-changing tides of our own planet's oceans, you encounter constant fluctuation in this department of your life. Here, you must learn to go with the flow to maintain your emotional equilibrium. Just as it is impossible to stand at the ocean's shore and demand that the tides stop changing, it is impossible to stop the constant movement that occurs in the moon's house. These are not major, earth shattering changes, but subtle changes that require you to frequently realign your focus. If adjustments are not made, emotional instability results.
You have learned in your past that certain behavioral strategies will keep you safe (moon), but you may not easily recognize when you have reached a point in life when these strategies begin to thwart your potential for growth. You may have developed attitudes that worked to keep you safe in the past (in fact, they might have saved your life), and you could easily assume that they will always protect you. The problem is that the very patterns that worked to keep you safe in your early in life may not work effectively in your future unless you can learn to adapt.
The north node of the moon points toward the direction you must follow in order to grow and evolve. By pursuing north node activities, you learn how to care for yourself. Developing new skills by exploring experiences ruled by the house containing the moon's north node, will help you fine-tune your internal nurturing skills so that you have the strength and wisdom to orchestrate your life. Here you find experiences that provide you with new skills. Setting aside some time in your life to explore new north node experiences is sometimes not an easy task.
If you choose to avoid expanding your consciousness through north node experiences, you could find yourself stuck in old ruts that perpetuate repetition and conflict, even though the old patterns are comfortable and much easier to control. These old patterns are described by the south node of the moon.
Security is not found by holding on to the past. Your inner protector (moon) needs to realize that what was adequate yesterday may be obsolete by tomorrow. Security can only be assured when you know that you can change, when you are willing to evolve.
