Causalworks Articles by Emily Baumbach

The Four Pillars of Nations
(Excerpts from Expansion newsletter, August 2011)

One of the great pieces of the Michael Teachings is called The Four Pillars: our Life Task (or True Work), our True Play, our True Rest and our True Study. Knowing our personal "Trues" gives us an awareness of what our intention is for the lifetime (Life Task), an awareness of what helps us open to joy and natural happiness (True Play), what helps us connect with stillness (True Rest), and what hobby or intellectual pursuit gives our mind a way to expand (True Study).

One quick method of figuring out your Four Pillars is to look at your astrology chart. Your North Node's House and Sun's House point to your Life Task. Your North Node's sign and Jupiter's House point to your True Play. Your True Rest is described by your Jupiter's sign and sometimes your South Node's House; and your True Study is described by your Moon's House and Sign, plus major aspects to your Moon.

You can apply this to just about any astrology chart: the chart of a chicken, world event or organization. I was thinking it would be fun this month to look at the Four Pillars of some countries of the world, just to see if the theory works. Here are a few, with many thanks to astrologer/historian Nicholas Campion for his great compendium of national charts, The Book of World Horoscopes.

Note that it is nearly impossible to come up with a completely accurate birth chart for most nations. When is a nation born: Is it when a declaration of independence is made, or is it when the first constitution is ratified? In each of these countries below, the most likely chart has been chosen for its seemingly accurate indicators for the Four Pillars.

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Pakistan: Pakistani astrologers use a birth chart for August 14, 1947, 9:30 AM, Karachi, Pakistan - the time when Lord Mountbatten spoke to the Constituent Assembly and when the Muslim area separated from Hindu India. This chart shows North Node in the 9th House, pointing to the national Life Task of religion and theology. Pakistan's North Node is in Taurus, creating a True Play of the arts: shown in the beautiful music, textiles and clothing of the culture. Its True Rest of the cycle of death/rebirth comes from its Jupiter in Scorpio; and its True Study of huge tribes comes from its Moon in the 10th House (government) in Cancer (families, clans).

Modern India is Pakistan's twin, created a half day later than Pakistan on August 15, 1947 at 12:00 AM in Delhi. India's North Node is somewhat hidden in the 12th House (conjunct the Ascendant), with a national Life Task of direct experience of God, meditation and spiritual life; also sacred service to the poor. Like Pakistan, India's North Node is in Taurus, giving them a True Play the same as Pakistan's: a rich cultural heritage of music and the arts. With their Jupiter also in Scorpio, India's True Rest has the same themes of death/rebirth --- shown in their deities Ma Kali and Shiva (death) and Brahma (rebirth). India's Moon is in Taurus, so their primary True Study is farming, stability, and also music and money. Modern India is on the upswing in terms of being a world power.

China: A national chart for China is difficult to find as there are many parallel shifting events in its long history. One notable chart was the inauguration of Sun Yat-sen on January 1, 1912, Nanking (time unknown). We can't know the house of China's North Node (so we can't know its national Life Task using this method), but we can all guess it has something to do with mass tribal power focused on the support of families, possibly feeding people. Its North Node, however, is in the sign of Aries in this chart, giving it a national True Play of warfare and martial arts. According to this chart, Jupiter is in Sagittarius, pointing to a True Rest of spreading out reassuringly through theology, hugeness and wide open spaces. China's Moon in this chart is in Taurus, so its True Study is the same as India's: farming, stability, music, money.

Japan has a lot of charts as well. The most notable one (which may have been triggered off by the big quakes and tsunami in March 2011) is February 11, 1889, 12:00 noon, Tokyo, Japan. That chart at the time of the tsunami had transiting Uranus (quakes) just past a conjunction to its Moon (the homeland, food) and almost exactly opposite its Jupiter (breaking apart its Jupiterian sense of wellbeing). Pluto is almost opposite its Venus (money); Neptune (the ocean) is sitting on its Mercury (truck and car travel, local communi-cations) and squaring its Pluto (nuclear power plants). With North Node possibly in the 2nd House, it indicates a national Life Task of money and finance. North Node is in Cancer, with the True Play of feeding people and collecting the tribe together. Its True Rest, shown by Jupiter in Capricorn, is climbing a mountain to rest in memories of history. Its Moon is in Gemini in the 1st House, pointing to a True Study of national identity mixed with enhancing communications through intellectual pursuits/education of its children.

Norway is the home of one of my students, Bjorn Rune Nokleberg. He and I have been going over the chart of Norway, calculated for June 7, 1905 at 11:00 AM in Oslo - the moment Norway declared its independence from Sweden.
Norway's chart shows North Node in the 12th House, pointing to a national Life Task of developing resources of oil, seafood, natural gas and oceanic retreats (Norwegian Cruise Lines). Norway's True Play (with North Node in Virgo) is environmental health - validated by Norway's strong focus on green living and ecology. The country's True Rest comes from Jupiter in Taurus: enjoying a silent day in nature, perhaps on a farm; and its True Study is Moon in Leo in the 11th House: great dramas, children, the Sun and tribes. Children around the world think of Norway as the home of great Viking epics - one of the lands of the midnight Sun.

Israel's birth occurred when the first President, David Ben-Gurion, announced at an independence proclamation meeting, "Israel has been born! The meeting has ended," noted down at 4:32 PM on May 14, 1948 in Tel Aviv. This chart shows North Node in the 7th House of one-on-one relationships, creating a national Life Task of learning to get along with open enemies. With North Node in Taurus and Jupiter in the 2nd House, the True Play is farming, money and music; with a secondary True Play of teaching the children stemming from Jupiter's close proximity to the 3rd House of education. Israel's True Rest from Jupiter in Sagittarius is similar to China's: the satisfaction that comes from expanding one's religion and being out in nature. This national True Rest is colored by South Node in the 1st: hanging out by oneself as a separate entity. As for True Study, the country's Moon is in Leo in the 10th House: dramatic storytelling of great grandeur, particularly around the country's leaders and patriarchal lineage.

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It's fascinating how many countries have planets in Taurus/2nd House (money, finances, farming); planets in the 10th House (world power, national leadership); and planets in the 11th and 4th Houses in Cancer (tribes, clans). It's also fascinating to watch how a country's fortunes and even their national overleaves will change when political events create a whole new birthday and time and astrology chart. For instance, India was forced to be a Goal of Submission nation when owned by England. When India became independent, it began morphing into its current Goal of Growth - expanding its identity and trying out new things (including technology). With its North Node in the 12th House of natural gas, we may hear in coming decades of newly-discovered oil reserves within its borders; however, its Life Task of spirituality will continue to remain strong.

The Seven Roles as Parents
(Excerpts from Expansion newsletter, May 2011)

If you're a parent, you most likely have what's called a Parent/Child Monad with at least one of your children. The Parent/Child Monad is one of the 36 major types of relationships that we can have with someone, along with others like Husband/Wife, Sibling, Jailer/Jailed, Passionate/Repressive, etc. In the Parent/Child Monad we have a specific agreement to be the father, mother or child of someone - whether or not we're connected biologically.

The Parent/Child Monad most often shows up as our relationship with our parents and kids, but it can also be a symbolic "parenting" with our relatives, mates, friends, and even our pets. For instance, Hugh Hefner tends to pull in women with whom he plays a protective father. If a young woman has a history of abuse, she may love the protection of being in Child position with him.

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Although the way you parent is colored in general by what's going on in the 5th House of your astrology chart, in general your Role in the Michael system will follow a certain parenting style - and each Role has its pros and cons:

Server: Servers make wonderful parents, for they are able to set aside their own ego drives in order to serve their kids. The classic Server parent is Mom baking a pie or Dad helping you repair your first car (or heartbreak). Pro: Nurturing, comfortable, love taking care of things, kind, warm. Con: Protective Server parents may find it hard to release their kids to their own destinies.

Priest: If you're a Priest Mom or Dad, you're either trying to change the world for the better (so your kids wonder why you're out all the time), or you're trying to change your kids for the better (so your kids wonder why they're always in the bullseye). Priests made good parents, however, because (like Servers) they'll take the time to help out their kids. Priests are great trouble-shooters, so when the kids can't solve a math problem, the Priest Mom or Dad will jump in and help. Pro: Priests are exciting and experimental, inspiring their kids to do bigger, better things to improve life here on Earth. Con: Priests can ride herd on their kids to the point where the kids start hiding out in their rooms. If you're hard to please and so tightly wired that the family doesn't get a lot of rest, try lowering your celestial standards a bit. There's plenty of time for them to get it right.

Artisan: An Artisan parent will introduce the child to the wild world of creative self-expression. Whether it's by teaching their child how to paint or play the piano, or taking their child to art galleries and wacky festivals, the Artisan Mom or Dad knows how to step outside the bounds of normal reality. Pro: Children of Artisans love the nonphysical realities the Artisan brings home, for the Artisan finds it easy to pretend we're all in a universal movie set. The kids can find their Artisan parent's quirkiness a source of delight - as long as there's a Warrior around to do a grounding reality check for the family. Con: Your kids might never know where you're at, literally. Artisan parents who can't figure out the physical plane can slide into the Child part of the Monad, with the kids taking on the Parent part.

Sage: Sage parents are often bold, brassy, playful and fun. If you're a Sage, your kids will love going to big events with you, for chances are you'll end up on stage with a microphone in your hand while they giggle from the sidelines. Pro: Sage parents (like Artisan parents) really know how to play and bring out their inner child through impromptu skits and big parties. Con: Children of Sages wonder if their parent is actually who they say they are, for Sages like to play act even in normal life. The kids might feel that their Sage Mom or Dad doesn't take their teenage tragedies seriously enough. The Sage parent might try to help the child by taking him or her out into a loud noisy crowd wearing a loud noisy shirt, which can be terminally embarrassing to a shy, retiring child of another Role.

Warrior: Warriors make great parents. They protect their brood like Momma and Poppa Bears, and they enjoy helping kids push the envelope of their fears by taking them camping in the wilderness - or signing them up for martial arts in a dangerous part of the city. Warriors are earthy and will teach their kids how to survive. (My Warrior Mom and Stepdad taught me how to irrigate a wheat field, feed and ride horses, round up cattle on an Indian reservation and make oatmeal over a wood fire when the power was out.) Pro: Warriors will not only give their kids a sense of safety but they'll teach them how to defend themselves in all sorts of situations. You'll always know where they're at. Con: A Warrior with a True Grit straight-shooter communication style can overwhelm an artistic, sensitive child. Children of Warriors might sometimes feel they need to mimic the Warrior energy by showing toughness.

King: If you're a King, your word is Law. You'll have high standards of mastery that you'll pass on to your kids, and your rulership of the home will be unquestioned - even if you have Chief Feature of Self-Deprecation. Pro: The children of Kings often feel like princes and princesses, for Kings insist on the best of the best in life. They rule their family like they'd rule a castle - with dignity, honor and a sense of entitlement. This can trickle down into a pretty nice lifestyle for the kids, unless the King delegates all the non-royal chores to everybody else in the family. The King can instill a sense of solidity and safety in their kids, for the King always knows how to handle all situations (or at least they'd like you to think so). Con: Kings don't usually question themselves, so the kids might feel instead like they're never really heard. It's important that you honor their opinions (even if you think they're wrong).

Scholar: Scholar parents like to spend their time reading and collecting information that they can share with others. They love to put big concepts into systems - fine as long as the kids feel they're not living with a walking dictionary and can get some warmth once in awhile. Scholar parents need an ivory tower in which to escape, for Scholars almost more than any other Role crave solitude. Pro: The Scholar parent enjoys teaching kids about the world, taking them on educational trips to exotic locales or maybe just the local cheese factory. Con: The kids might take it personally if the Scholar needs hermit time. If you're a Scholar, explain to your kids that you love them and you need solitude. Teach them to clear their minds with solitude just like you do.

Role Combinations in the Parent/Child Monad
This probably needs to be a small book, but the combination of Roles in any Parent/Child Monad will take the relationship patterns up a notch. For instance, if you're a Scholar and your offspring is a Warrior, the two of you can enjoy going out in nature together. You can study the bugs and trees, and your Warrior child can listen for bears. If you're an Artisan and your child is a Sage, definitely put on plays and skits. You can have fun together designing the stage sets and costumes and plot lines. If you're a Priest and your child is a Server, you'll enjoy going out together to feed the homeless at Thanksgiving. If you're a King and your child is an Artisan, let your child perform for youwhile you sit on your kingly chair in the living room.

One of the great things about being a different Role from that of your child is you get to trade Role experiences back and forth. Kids get to step into your Role and you into theirs, and everybody gets to learn firsthand about different types of people. That's in fact one of the most valuable things about being in a family: learning tolerance for those who are different from us.