Chiron has been aptly nicknamed “the wounded healer.” In Astrology, it is primarily about issues of wounding and healing and that process from being hurt and wounded to being healed. It is now transiting the sign of Pisces (prior to April 16/17, 2018) and will soon enter the sign of Aries.
Chiron was discovered on November 1, 1977. And, Chiron was initially called an asteroid (and, it is comet-like), but is now considered a minor planet. Some astronomers consider it a dwarf planet. It orbits the Sun between Saturn and Uranus (although, it occasionally crosses Saturn’s orbit), and it was the first-identified member of a new set of objects known as centaurs - bodies orbiting between the asteroid belt and and the Kuiper belt. Chiron’s orbit is elliptical in nature and it takes roughly 49-51 years to orbit the Sun. Therefore, most folks will experience their Chiron return at about age 51. This also means that Chiron does not spend the same amount of time in each sign. Its shortest transit of a sign is its transit through Libra - about 1.75 years. Its lengthiest transit of a sign is its transit through Aries - 8.25 years.
My favorite writing (or book) about Chiron is Martin Lass’ Chiron - Healing Body & Soul. This is what he writes about the Chiron paradigm:
Most importantly, Chiron’s higher message is that everything is about perception, Seeing one side of things (duality) is wounding. Seeing all sides of things (unity) is healing. As we heal, so the world around us changes, not because we have set out to change it, fix it, or get rid of things we do not like, but because we see things differently. In short, as we heal, we increasingly see things from the eyes of love. This is the ultimate gift in the wound. Surely, this is a journey worth pursuing.
Chiron enters the sign of Aries on April 17, 2018 at 1:10 AM PDT. It has been prominent for a while now since it has been transiting the anaretic degree (the 29th degree) of Pisces. Issues and themes are brought to a head in this degree. The initial degree of Aries is also an important placement.
In Aries, the wound is a profound lack or loss of self-worth. There can be feelings of unworthiness or of not being deserving of what life has to offer. It can cause a feeling of being unneeded, unwanted, or useless. There is a lack of focus - a feeling of being scattered. Our search is to find “self” or identity. It brings to mind the phrase “searching for oneself.” Who am I and what is my place in the universe? The gift is the discovery, acknowledgement, and loving of our own unique divine design - our self. It is the ability to remain firmly but gently in our own space. We do this despite the opinions and actions of others. We acknowledge the divine within us and our spirit becomes FAR less destructible.