Using the image of Carl Jung’s birth chart provides an opportunity to demonstrate one of the simplest and most basic purposes of a Vedic Astrology reading, that of understanding how hidden desires of the unconscious relate to the activities of life.
Looking at the birth chart as a map of the karmic potential at birth we can associate each sign with the activities of its house. From there, by looking at the karmic goal of each sign we may infer activities that will align with his purpose in this incarnation and anticipate where challenges may occur. Comparing these to his actions and their results in various areas of life shows us the potential for using this method in reference to our personal chart.
All of this is coming from a high level view, the most generous and general way of looking at a life as one might when first encountering a birth chart. It is both possible and advisable to look much more deeply using other techniques, but having this initial understanding is foremost in importance. Much as an archaeologist might survey the whole area of a fossil discovery before beginning to dig or a detective take in the whole of a crime scene before starting to collect minute evidence, the good astrologist will discover the general tendencies indicated by the chart before spending time exploring further. In every case, this helps understanding to emerge with greater efficiency and accuracy than simply taking a shovel and digging holes at random.
The following table shows the general nature of the karmic goal of each sign:
| Aries | To incarnate | Leo | To create | Sagittarius | To aspire |
| Taurus | To intellectualize | Virgo | To serve | Capricorn | To learn |
| Gemini | To communicate | Libra | To relate | Aquarius | To teach |
| Cancer | To feel | Scorpio | To seize | Pisces | To believe |
The next table shows the top level activities related to each house:
| 1st | Overall purpose | 5th | Creativity | 9th | Aspiration |
| 2nd | Speech and resources | 6th | Health, service | 10th | Career, reputation |
| 3rd | Power, goals, ambition | 7th | Relationships | 11th | Gains from work |
| 4th | Home, emotions | 8th | Mortality, research | 12th | Transcendence |
Emphasizing again that these are very general terms for each area, the process can begin.
Jung’s first house, reflecting his overall purpose in life, is in Capricorn, reflecting a desire to learn. As a cardinal earth sign, the metaphor being a newly planted seed, Jung’s life would be best served by study for the purpose of bringing some new process, wisdom, knowledge, and the fruit of the same into the world. His work in the unconscious mind and contribution to the new science of psychoanalysis echo this karmic purpose and fulfillment.
His second house, expressing language and resources for his life’s work, is in Aquarius, a generous sign whose karmic goal of helping as many people as possible is best served by teaching. Jungian psychology schools and the education of practitioners of his methods are found throughout the world more than sixty years after his death.
His third house, reflecting passion, power, and goals, is in Pisces, creating a desire for transcendence or transformation. His work on uncovering the archetypal nature of the unconscious transformed the pioneering efforts of Sigmund Freud and now informs the humanities, social sciences, and medicine as well as aiding historians, archeologists, and anthropologists to understand the world. Whole branches of metaphysics have also arisen from this work, bridging the ego mind and unconscious realms in ways previously undreamed of.
His fourth house, in Aries, the seat of home and emotions, points to his many years of solitary reflection in his own home, researching the contents of his own psyche in order to present his discoveries in treatment of mental anxiety, depression, and other pathologies of the mind with confidence, caring, empathy, and effectiveness, and using Aries’ gift of initiating action to create a new incarnation in the world of the mind.
His fifth house, in Taurus, containing the creative intelligence of life, aligns with the most intelligent sign to build both an academic and practical discipline out of his work, the mark of the true intellectual. Having knowledge is never enough. In applying it effectively one becomes truly useful in life.
His sixth house, in Gemini, a space of service and health, uses communication on many levels as the basis for the work, and with the intense curiosity, inventiveness, flexibility, and data organizing power of the sign made Jung both prolific and important for generations of followers in learning and using his discoveries as well as continuing to advance the science of the mind.
His seventh house, in Cancer, relationships that were based on emotional connection, intellectual understanding, empathy, and nourishment led to lifelong professional and patient correspondence that insured the continuation of his work after his passing.
His eighth house, in Leo, facilitating a creative approach to esoteric subject matter, the inquiry into dreams and his own mind resulting in the articulation of an archetypal pantheon that allowed for access to the deepest secrets of consciousness.
His ninth house in Virgo, brought about an aspirational nature focused on service and healing on multiple levels and was a precursor to mind/body consciousness and integrated medicine.
His tenth house in Libra, found the communal nature of humanity through his travels, his collaborations, and his reputation in the global community of seekers of wisdom and truth making him a force in increasing opportunities across all aspects of human experience. Regardless of gender, race, or or belief system, Jung’s consciousness expanding work continues to have value in nearly every world culture.
His eleventh house, capturing gains from work done in his lifetime is in Scorpio, the sign representing the organization and categorization of data and energy related to all of the experiences of life. It is the gateway to the unconscious source of esoteric and metaphysical knowledge, one of the entry points to the unconscious, and contains the power of deep research for the benefit of the person. All of this relates to his work with the mind and the establishment of systems that continue to help patients 60 years after his passing.
His twelfth house, seat of losses, detachment, and conversely, the freedom that comes from letting go, is in aspirational Sagittarius. Here we find his enthusiasm for the work he chose, his ability to use language to draw others to his cause, and perhaps some of the dogma that has been attached to Jungian practice, especially those elements of it that strayed from Jung’s original vision poised to continue to evolve long after his death.
It is possible to go deeply into Jung’s biography and using a combination of techniques, all derived from aspects of the birth chart, see the mirroring of his work both in his intentions and the outside forces in life that he reacted to out of necessity. This project could easily fill several volumes. The key message in this point is that all of us have unique opportunities and obstacles in our lives that are reflected in the arrangement of houses, the quality of signs, and the motions of the planets through our birth charts. We are far from evolved sufficiently for our human consciousness to understand the why of all of this, but as Aristotle noted in relation to real events, particularly those that appear as matters of concurrence or coincidence, “Just because we don’t understand the mechanism of reality at work the events of our lives doesn’t make them any less real.”
For further exploration of your own birth chart, I am available for readings. You may contact me at stephen@jyotishamerica.com.
“Most people confuse ‘self-knowledge’ with knowledge of their conscious ego personalities…but the ego only knows its own contents, not the unconscious and its contents.” -Carl Jung
American Vedic Astrology 