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The Lunar Nodes - Komila Sutton
Pub. by The Wessex Astrologer £14.50
www.wessexastrologer.com
Reviewed by Stephanie Norris
First published in Astrology Quarterly Autumn 2002
 
Another well-presented book on Vedic astrology from the Komilla Sutton/Wessex
Astrologer partnership.
The lunar nodes, or Rahu Ketu as they are known in Vedic astrology,
are “the karmic axis of our lives: the invisible link between past
lives and the psychological dilemmas of the present”. In classical
texts, according to the author, this axis has been described in enigmatic
terms and while she has made a study of those texts, her aim in this book
is to demystify the ancient teachings and present them in a way that everyone
can understand – an objective in which she succeeds admirably.
In Western astrology the moon’s nodes tend to play second fiddle
to the planets – a reflection, perhaps, on our attitude to karma
in general and our focus on this, the present life – but in Vedic
astrology they are given the status of planets, or shadow planets, chayya
grahas. Rahu is the head of the serpent, Ketu the tail.
Each is given a chapter to itself. In the one on Rahu, the Rahu personality
is described as one driven to experience life, ambitious, intense and
manipulative. In Hindu myth Rahu was the only demon among the gods and
so the person in whose chart Rahu is emphasised may also feel like an
outsider. To Rahu is assigned the co-rulership of Aquarius and it is considered
to act like Saturn, both of which “shape and change our destiny
– one on the material level and the other on the psychological”.
The Ketu personality, by contrast, is a wanderer who has renounced the
world in search of moksha, or enlightenment. This is the sadhu or Indian
holy man – the “poor philosopher”. To Ketu is assigned
the co-rulership of Scorpio and it is considered to act like Mars, which
bestows the courage needed to explore our inner world and make progress
on a spiritual level.
In this comprehensive study of the Nodes there are also chapters on
Rahu Ketu through the houses and signs, in the nakshatras or lunar mansions
– “Past Lives and Soul Lessons”, the longest chapter
in the book – conjunctions with the nodes, Rahu Ketu dashas or cycles
and transits and the remedial measures you can take to heal issues described
by the nodes.
The book is produced to The Wessex Astrologer’s usual high standards,
with every page charmingly illustrated with a little sketch of a snake
spiralling up out of its coil, an image of the awakening kundalini or
“sleeping fire” or power that lies dormant within us. In the
chart this energy is symbolised by Rahu Ketu and when we become masters
of it, the author says, we are able to change the course of our lives.
Even if you are not a student of Vedic astrology, this book is well worth
getting for its in-depth coverage of a topic often neglected by Western
astrologers. There is even a chapter on Vedic astrology basics and a glossary
to help you to get to grips quickly with the subject.
The most reader-friendly book on the Nodes I have yet come across.
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