British astrologist Carolyne Faulkner published her book The Signs: Decode the Stars, Reframe Your Life to help people understand themselves better through astrology. She also launched the website Dynamic Astrology, a useful tool to check your birth chart and interpret it yourself. When Speak Up met with Faulkner, she began by telling us about her early years in astrology.
Carolyne Faulkner (English accent): I’d always been fascinated with astrology, but I never found a way to learn. And all the people that I knew who knew astrology, they wouldn’t give up their secrets. And then I studied it for a long long time, but it wasn’t until 2014 that I had this idea that I have to share it. I didn’t actually set out to do it either, I just fell into it.
MODERN LIFE
And, says Faulkner, astrology can help us deal with the high level of stress we are exposed to today.
Carolyne Faulkner: I do have a heightened sense of awareness, and I think a lot of people these days, especially children, do because they’re so bombarded by internet, phones, people… And it’s completely overwhelming, and people have meltdown. Especially children who are just not equipped to deal with that level of stimulation.
MIND CARE
According to Faulkner, taking care of one’s mind is essential because it enables us to connect with the authentic part of ourselves.
Carolyne Faulkner: Astrology is very subjective. So everything is subject to interpretation depending on the mind that’s viewing the information. In terms of using astrology in our everyday lives, it’s best not to get fanatical about it. So you have to take care of your mind first, because your mind creates your life, it creates your future. And so in terms of taking care of the mind, meditation is key.
BE OPEN
While she is an astrologist by trade, Faulkner believes that one should have compassion for everyone: sceptics as well as believers.
Carolyne Faulkner: It’s important not to judge people and also not to get cross if people are not open to astrology. It’s really important that we have compassion for people with closed minds because the reason they have closed minds, even if they’re coming across as the most intelligent scientists on the planet, is fear.
reading a birth chart
Every zodiac sign has its ruling planet, as shown in the image above. In astrology, each planet is considered a facet of our personality, while the sign represents how a planet expresses itself. Signs are divided into categories according to the element they belong to – fire, earth, air, water – and their qualities –cardinal, fixed and mutable. Signs of the same element have common features. For example, Aries, Leo and Sagittarius, which are fire signs, share impulsiveness, passion and rapidity, while air signs (Gemini, Libra and Aquarius) are curious and intellectual.
When interpreting a birth chart, astrologists take into account three different levels: planets, signs and houses. Each house represents a different area of our lives, suce as relationships (seventh house) or spirituality (twelfth house).