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Most of us have experienced something that has hurt us deeply. Whatever this experience may be, there is a tremendous amount of growth and understanding that comes from tending to our wounds. Healing is hard, but it is a necessary part of life. Chiron is an asteroid in astrology that represents the wounds that we all carry, and how we can turn our woundedness into healing for ourselves and other people. Tackling the often painful job of addressing our wounds is important because it allows us to create something positive from painful experiences.
The Story of Chiron
In Greek mythology, Chiron was a centaur, half man and half horse, who became highly regarded for his medicinal knowledge, healing abilities, and wisdom. The story of Chiron speaks of an initial wounding via the rejection by both of his parents. Chiron was the child of rape inflicted on his mother, a beautiful nymph named Philyra, by the Greek god Kronus, also known as Saturn. When Chiron was born, Philyra was turned off by her child’s half man half horse appearance, so she abandoned him. Eventually, Chiron was adopted and raised by the Greek sun god Apollo who mentored Chiron teaching him all that he knew. Chiron later went on to become a great mentor himself to some of the greatest men in Greece such as Hercules.
Ironically, the great Hercules would accidentally end up wounding his mentor, Chiron, when he accidentally shot Chiron with an arrow in the leg. The arrow used was dipped in the blood of the Hydra, a nine-headed water serpent. These blood coated arrows caused painful wounds that never heal. Since Chiron was the offspring of a god, Saturn, he was immortal. Thus, he would have to live forever with a painful wound that would never heal. This meant that Chiron would never be put out of his misery. Most would agree that this is quite a sad and painful existence.
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Hercules, feeling bad about Chiron’s suffering due to his accidental mistake, made a deal to free Chiron from his pain. Hercules had freed the Greek Titan hero Prometheus who was imprisoned by Zeus for stealing fire from the gods to benefit humanity. Zeus wanted Prometheus returned and killed. Instead, Hercules bartered a deal where Chiron agreed to give up his immortality and die so that he could finally be freed from the pain of his wound. Chiron was immortalized in the stars as the constellation Centaurus for his selflessness and dedication to helping others heal.
Knowing and understanding Chiron’s story is important to integrating the lessons and liberating oneself from Chiron’s wound.
Getting to the Wound
In the natal horoscope, each of us has a Chiron influence represented by a specific sign and house placement. Very often, people attempt to avoid that which pains them. However, with Chiron, the pain is deeply rooted and unavoidable. Just when we think that everything is okay, we are reminded of our longstanding pain. This is Chiron calling and asking to be noticed and addressed.
How are you wounded? Chiron’s sign placement shows the general essence of the wound, and the house placement shows how the wounding manifests in your life. For example, someone with Chiron in Gemini may feel there is an incessant issue with how they communicate. Perhaps they were made to feel deeply misunderstood. Perhaps this person was the subject of gossip that deeply hurt them or perhaps the holder of this placement gossiped about someone and it led to harsh consequences. With Gemini, the sign of communication, this could even show up as speech impediments.
Let’s add a house placement for further understanding. With Chiron in Gemini in the 11th house, these issues of wounding may show up in dealings with groups, acquaintances, and in relation to personal hopes and wishes. Perhaps there was gossip orchestrated by a friend group or by acquaintances and now the person with Chiron in Gemini in the 11th house is wary of forming new friends for fear that they will be hurt.
Look at your personal Chiron sign and house placement to see where and how the wounding manifests in your life.
Until we are willing to acknowledge that we have a wound, it will be difficult to address the wound for ourselves and then ultimately help others.
Becoming the Wounded Healer
Being wounded or enduring something that “leaves a mark” provides an opportunity to heal…if not totally, at least enough so that you can be helpful to others.
Chiron is the wounded healer who manages to teach, inspire, and encourage others despite his own never-ending pain. In fact, it is this pain that is the source of his ability to help others. It is the idea that a person is able to help others overcome their own woundedness because they were wounded too.
As an asteroid, Chiron’s orbit lies between two very important planets in the zodiac…Saturn and Uranus. Saturn is the planet of responsibility and accountability and Uranus represents being liberated from that which oppresses us. Chiron’s position between these planets asks that we acknowledge and take responsibility for healing ourselves which one of Saturn’s greatest lessons. Once we are able to do so, we are in many ways liberating ourselves from the wound, and we can help others heal themselves as well. This liberation is akin to the energy of Uranus.
No matter when, where, or how we have experienced wounding in our lives, we each have the opportunity to turn the wounds into personal insight and healing that can ultimately be used to help others.
This is the path of Chiron, the wounded healer.
