In the mythology of Greece and Rome there was a race of beings called Centaurs, who were half man and half horse. This is the current symbol for the sign Sagittarius. According to the ancient legends CHIRON was the immortal version of the Centaur. He was a very wise and kind being who lived in one of the caves in a high mountain in Greece. It was in this cave that he taught valuable skills to his chosen pupils whom he mentored. Among these students were Hercules, who he taught the art of battle to, Caduceus, to whom he taught medicine, and others to whom he taught Astronomy, Astrology, Poetry, Music, Art, Farming and Healing. In Greek mythology the Centaurs were a rowdy and unruly group. They would drink excessively and engage in tests of manhood and strength which would often get out of hand, so they were famous for brawling, raping and pillaging any unfortunate who got in the way. One day they went too far and upset the gods on Mt. Olympus, who called on CHIRON to do something to stop their bad behavior. CHIRON decided to throw a huge banquet with the intention of reasoning with them and convincing them to behave in a civilized manner. But this was useless, the Centaurs immediately got drunk at the banquet and a fight broke out between the hosts and their guests. Hercules succeeded in overthrowing them, since his skill in battle was so great. But during the fight CHIRON was accidentally wounded in the leg by one of Hercules’ poisoned arrows. CHIRON was an immortal so he could not die from the wound, but the poison was too effective for him to be able to heal from it either. Since he was in constant agony, and deeply mortified by his failure he went to the Gods and asked them to allow him to die. They refused, but they took pity on his torment and decided to change his physical form to that of a constellation of stars and thus placed him in the heavens where he would no longer be in pain.

Therefore in Astrology CHIRON rules all relationships of a Mentor/Student nature, as well as any ancient knowledge made new. He is the figure from ancient myth that is responsible for unlocking hidden knowledge and talents in his chosen pupils. He is said to be the planet of the ‘wounded healer,’ representing people who have gifts to help and heal others, physically, emotionally or spiritually because they themselves have had to undergo an intense healing and purification process.

In my Astrology practice I view CHIRON as the modern ruler for Virgo. The old ruler ship of Virgo by MERCURY still has validity, but I see CHIRON as relating to Virgo because of its connection to healing. In the Virgo personality CHIRON makes his influence felt in the Virgo need to be of service, and also in their attention to health related issues. The Virgo who has managed to surmount their natural nervousness and gleaned a direction from the huge amounts of information that CHIRON has presented them with will be a strong force in their natural realm; healing. This healing can take the form of mental, physical, emotional or spiritual work, but essentially it will be about bringing wholeness to the individual. The Astrological symbol for Virgo is the Virgin, and this is entirely appropriate to CHIRON as its ruler. In Astrological terms Virginity can be equated to individual wholeness and self-sufficiency, rather than sexuality.

As the ruler of Virgo CHIRON represents all the holistic health practices including Chiropractic, Acupuncture, Homeopathy, Hypnosis, Massage Therapy, Herbology, and Astrology among others. CHIRON is especially responsible for bringing these practices into popular use since its discovery in 1977.

All though I attribute a special relationship between CHIRON and Virgo, CHIRON will make it’s presence felt in each individual’s personality differently. In the Natal Chart CHIRON would represent the area in the individual where a deep psychic pain existed and where they could achieve a level of knowledge, healing and wholeness that could be of universal use to others. For more information about CHIRON in your life you may want to have a Natal Chart Interpretation