Astrology, Asteroids, and the Healing Power of the Cosmos
Astrology is the cosmic path to authenticity and self-expression, just ask Ell from Stellar Sanctum.
What I find absolutely mystical about her, is her intuitive nature of the stars, her knowledge of asteroids, and her ability to help others heal through the art of astrology. She is a Leo rising with a 7th House Aquarius Sun – naturally drawn to revolutionizing how she relates to herself and the world around her. She weaves the enchantment of the stars into childhood and past lives, but always with a focus to help you see the full spectrum of magic in your soul.
As the Sun enters Aquarius, there was no better time to speak to Ell, an intuitive astrologer and healer. We explored her journey of self-expression, cosmic curiosity, and how she helps others by using the cosmos as a map to help facilitate self-understanding and restoration.
The Stars Align
When Ell was around 18, she discovered she was a Scorpio moon – the more she started to investigate more into placements. One that really caught her attention was her moon fell into the 4th House of family and home and its conjunct asteroid called Chiron which represents our core wounds and how we can overcome them in this lifetime.
She explains, “I just started looking into this placement and it describes my life, I get emotional thinking about it. I just felt so seen. No one has ever described my experiences this way and validated the amount of pain my childhood contained. It was made to feel like my mental health symptoms were just an exaggeration; that I was being dramatic. When I read the descriptions, it was like no you're not - you're just a really deep person and you feel very deeply. That began to unlock everything for me.”
Over the last year, Ell has begun to reveal more about astrology by offering professional readings. Not only has it helped her expand her knowledge of astrology, but it also helped her inspire clients to go back home to their galactic selves.
Bridging astrology and authenticity is an undeniable force. When we allow the emerging of our cosmic souls to embrace the physical body, we can begin to understand how we can truly express ourselves and give a deep understanding of our core.
“Astrology gives you permission to be you, however that looks. It’s the map for finding yourself if you feel disconnected.”
We both agreed we would rather live aligned to cosmos versus unrealistic societal norms.
What place would you rather live from?
How Astrology Heals
When we search for meaning in our lives, often we look to self-help books and therapy. Both, are supportive in their unique ways to bring clarity. But what if the answer is glimmering inside us? Perhaps the hope we crave has been conditioned by society to stay silent; stay in line, follow the marks of what others deem as a successful person.
When we give ourselves the space to swim the cosmic vistas within, we find a new map. A map that brings us home to ourselves without the projections that have been placed on us.
Ell and I discussed how one of the most profound, and arguably one of the most overlooked aspects, is how astrology heals.
“Getting rid of all of the clutter, everything you've ever been told that you are, every projection, every wound you received, and getting right back down to like the core of your soul and astrology, is a language that helps me do that. I can tap into someone’s soul and see that chart - everything that they’ve been through and why that's struggling with certain behavioural patterns and getting stuck in karmic loops. I think it's so beautiful that I can reunite someone with the essence within,” she says.
I often hear the conversation around how we can’t heal others if we don’t heal ourselves – I agree with this statement. It’s not to say we overlook the darkness of life, but it’s how we learn from our past to mend our future.
“I want to reach out to people and say, ‘I see you and I see your chart in your chart sees you too,” she says. “And I think affirmation is the key to unlocking your healing because very often, and this was my experience, when we are in the depths of despair, deep in depression, trauma and anxiety, we feel a lot of shame and we're not able to function – it keeps you trapped in these cycles of despair. Astrology helps to see someone so deeply – I can say ‘I see you, I understand how you’re here and it’s okay’ – it’s the first step of affirmation.”
From there Ell examines how key aspects of your chart can help you with your routine and where you can find balance. Often the North and South nodes, Moon, Neptune, 8th house (sharing resources, death, regeneration) and 12th house (healing, spirituality, subconscious, past life, karma) house can hold nuggets of wisdom to fine-tune your healing needs. But it goes beyond these few placements.
“I really like to use the chart to apply some sort of healing process to the individual and then give them like permission to start doing those things and tell them it's OK if you mess up and it's OK if you don't stick to it. I'm so passionate about everyone’s healing journey looking so different and ditching this idea that you have to stick to something every day otherwise it's not worthy,” she explains.
The Mythos And Magic of Asteroids
When most of us talk about astrology, we focus on the core planets - but what about asteroids?
Ell explores asteroids in her chart readings and I was curious to find out more. How can these rocks show us even more about our past, present, and future?
When Ell began learning about them, it was an act of rebellion. Traditional astrology began to feel a bit constrained. Asteroids offer the liberty to play around with their wisdom and the stories that allow us to tap into the vast, oceanic psyche.
“I just like that freedom of not having to stick to the traditional planets and being able to be like hang on - you just told me this story that really reminds me of this myth. I can pull up that asteroid in there it is, it's on top of your ascendant and replaying this myth in your life over and over. It's the asteroid that is going to help us unlock the reason and the meaning and the answer to breaking out of a pattern. The sheer amount of Goddesses that are available once you start playing with the asteroids like that is beautiful to me,” Ell explains excitedly.
Elle opens my mind to how inclusive asteroids are. They have histories attuned with Greek mythology, Native American, Egyptian, African deities – they feel more aligned to what we are trying to change socially in the world.
It wasn’t found until November 1977, but when we look at other asteroids, it was one of the newer findings, for example, Ceres (1801), Pallas (1802), Juno (1804) and Vesta (1807). Chiron has become the bridge over the gap, but there is a lot more under the surface with asteroids when we tap in. Ell explains me to that discovery charts tell the story of what happened during that time when an asteroid was found.
Elle noticed Chariklo, Chiron’s Wife, under her ascendant. This asteroid is known as a feminine healer – she healed Chiron when he came home from healing everyone else. When we look at the discovery of it in 1997, there was change and improvement around the treatment of women.
For instance, in 1995 the UN declared women’s rights are human rights, women pressed governments to remove gender biases from justice and workplaces and combat violence against women. When I see what Ell is bringing to the world, I feel like Chariklo is supporting Ell on her vision to bring clarity to folk’s lives.
“It’s sort of a side-by-side occurrence to witness - we can look at when it was discovered. We can see that it was only discovered 20 years ago. What was happening in the world at that time? What was the news talking about? And you can get this holistic picture,” Ell says.
After all, how can we help heal the world if we don’t begin with our internal world? Perhaps we just need compassion and support from our systems, relationships, and guidance from truth seekers.
Taurus & Scorpio Axis Survival Tips
On January 18, 2022 we entered the Taurus-Scorpio Node cycle. We will be in this placement until July 17, 2023. This fixed nodal placement may leave us feeling like we are walking an elusive tightrope between the physical and spiritual.
“We are in big fixed energy, even with Uranus in Taurus. It is going to be very tangible, even though Taurus is focused on the body and subtle notions. Scorpio energy is just like making us so deeply aware of these things that are going on,” Ell says.
This is an 18-month transit, so how can we work with this shift?
“Get out of your head and into your body,” Ell advises. “Scorpion is beautiful for analyzing, and it's also that analytical nature that can be our undoing. North Node in Taurus is calling to us to put the books down and go meditate, take a nap; stop worrying about everything so much and let it be. I think this is a big lesson in releasing the need to control through fear because that's what this sort of tendency to probe is about. It's like I must investigate and get to the bottom of this because I fear the unknown."
Ell mentions that while it’s good to have information and be aware, it does go hand in hand with self-exploration - but we can do it too much and it can wreak havoc on our nervous systems.
“We have to balance that – we have to get in our body so that our nervous systems can regulate and we're not just constantly in fear mode wondering what is coming. Learn into that Taurus energy of getting grounded, floating in the void, not doing anything.”
What’s next for Stellar Sanctum?
Ell’s books are open for a wide range of astrology chart readings. If you’re looking to learn more about asteroid placements in your chart, check out Asteroid Quest. She is currently working on a Dreamology program that explores the moon placement in your chart and tending to your needs.
Stay connected with Stellar Sanctum
You can book a reading with Ell on her website and Instagram