About Maridel Bowes

This is the story of my Evolving Journey with astrology…

Twenty four years ago, when I was just beginning my counseling practice, I had the most vivid visualization of my life. Beneath the surface of a lake, I discovered a box of custom-made rings. There were layers and layers of them, each of distinct and detailed design. By the time the visualization ended, it was clear that my task was to somehow distribute these rings to others.

I was deeply moved by this experience, but didn’t really understand the symbolism. What were these rings? And where would I get them? Despite my lack of understanding, I found that overtime, my work developed around the spirit of the rings: supporting others to accept and trust their own innate design—their own particular needs, experiences and feelings. 

Some years later, I trained in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and found it to be a powerful ally for encouraging others (and myself) to trust preference, to trust inherent design, rather than striving to be like others. This felt like another step into the symbolism of the rings.

Then, in 1988, at the encouragement of a friend, I had my birth chart read in the tiny coastal town of Inverness, California.  When astrologer Judah Betz, laid the chart before me, she said, “Well, here it is—your own one-of-a-kind design.”

It was several days before the significance of that statement dawned on me. Here was the custom “ring”  that I was to distribute to others: the 360 degree design of the sky at the moment of birth, a reflection of the self with all its gifts and challenges. Only in hindsight, too, did I remember that the road that led to Judah's house was named "Vision Road".

Gradually, I began to study astrology—but my greatest classroom was at Judah’s table, as I made my way time and time again to witness the readings of my clients. It was the best training possible, hearing the charts of people I knew deeply. To this day, I thank Judah and my clients for that rare gift.

In 1992, I began to give readings, and soon thereafter, started teaching astrology. I designed and created a course of study called, “Charting Your Own Course.” My goal was to present astrology in an organized and experiential way, so that the ancient symbolism would be easily accessible, and the chart of each person would come alive in them, a constant reference to their wholeness.

In 2000, I attended a talk by evolutionary astrologers Jeff Greene and Steven Forrest.  A few months later, I attended one of Steven’s apprenticeship workshops in southern California, and was deeply impressed by his humorous, but penetrating approach--his unrelenting focus on the deeper questions that could be asked of a chart. In subsequent years, he held several workshops for my students, giving me the opportunity to integrate his evolutionary approach over time. Again and again, I saw how he moved beyond description and into what he called “prescription” i.e., given what we know about ourselves, what is the assignment, the call, the remedy, or the action that will take us beyond mere understanding, and usher us into the realm of evolution?

Both of my mentors have shaped me profoundly as an astrologer, but they have also supported me to find my own voice and style. Today I practice evolutionary astrology with a heart and an eye not only to the description of one’s talents and challenges, but  to the deeper questions posed by those descriptions.

Whether the reading is of a birth chart, or of the current dilemmas and opportunities emerging in one’s life, I endeavor to speak to the person as well as to the soul. I endeavor to address the underlying themes and questions of the life, while never pretending that I have the ultimate answers. My work is to lay out the nature and parameters of the energies, and offer useful support for their expression, while ultimately trusting the person to use the information in their own way.

As a corollary service to readings, I also have an astrological counseling practice . In this capacity as both counselor and astrologer, I offer phone sessions that are interactive, using astrological information to address the current issue, challenge or dilemma of the individual.  As people make their way through some of the deeper passages and decisions of life, astrological counseling can be a source of support and illumination, as well as a guide for wise timing.

The third component of my work is the teaching of  “Charting Your Own Course” in a new format. After years of teaching it on a weekly or semi-weekly basis, I am now offering it as a year-long program of study, delivered in four quarterly, three-day workshops. At the end of this time, participants will have an in-depth, experiential connection to their own charts, a deep understanding of the charts of people close to them, and a working wisdom with astrological language and symbolism.

Please contact me if you have any questions about my work or would like to schedule a reading, a counseling session, or receive more information about my workshops.

With gratitude for the ever Evolving Journey,

Maridel