Understanding Your BodyGraph

When people first encounter their BodyGraph the usual response is - But What Does It Mean?

The best way to learn what it means is to move step by step through the components. Human Design synthesises four ancient wisdoms - the Chakras, Astrology, the I'Ching and the Kabbalah. Each of those wisdoms is represented on your BodyGraph.

  • The CHAKRAS are represented by the CENTRES

  • Each GATE on the BodyGraph corresponds to a hexagram of the I'CHING.

  • Your birth calculations place each PLANET in a gate on the BodyGraph.

  • The overall structure of the BodyGraph - the way the gates, planets and centres relate to each other - is based on the KABALLAH.

Check my links page for information about Astrology, the I Ching, Kaballah and the Chakras

You can see the major components of the BodyGraph here on JK Rowling's chart. Run your mouse over the different parts of the BodyGraph to see the explanations. (if it doesn't work, use a different browser. Mozilla doesn't always work, but Internet Explorer does.)

There are 64 gates that come out of the centres. When a planet activates a gate we colour in that gate on the BodyGraph.

For instance, J.K Rowling has her Personality Sun in Gate 33, so that gate is coloured in black - it comes down from the right hand side of the Throat Centre.

When two gates meet, they create a defined (coloured) channel.

A defined channel always connects two centres together.

When this happens, the centres are also defined - this means that they are coloured on the BodyGraph.

Defined centres give you constant and reliable access to the energy of that centre. If, for instance, you have a defined Throat Centre, you can always choose to speak... or not... and you have some control over what you say. If the Throat Centre is defined by a black channel there is more conscious control. If it's defined by a red channel it operates with less conscious awareness.

Undefined centres are energy centres that we cannot control in our life. An undefined Throat Centre talks without realising it, and often doesn't know what it says till the words are out it's mouth.

Undefined centres are where we need to let go of our illusion that we are in control, and learn to 'go with the flow'. They are where we must surrender and allow ourselves to become wise.

© Kim Gould May 2005
The Personality planetary activations are based on your actual birth time. They are coloured black in the gates. They represent the conscious part of you - you will usually recognise yourself in these parts of your design. The Design planetary activations are taken about 3 months before your birth date. They are coloured red in the gates. The Design gates represent a more unconscious, natural part of you than you find in the Personality gates. Sun - Our active principle - Creativity - Solar Identity - The light we are here to shine Earth - Grounding onto the planet, being receptive, how we are here to manifest the expression of our light. Moon - emotions, vulnerability, inner child, how we like to have our emotional needs met, unconscious emotional needs to drive our behaviour North Node - active after about age 40 - the direction in which you are designed to grow towards in this life - usually an uncomfortable area of life for you. South Node - the first part of life - a place where we feel comfortable and like to retreat to when threatened Mercury - how we perceive the world - communication and intellect - what we like to talk about - where in our design we are a natural teacher Venus - the Goddess of Love - what we look for in a partner - the areas of life where we seek harmony, beauty and idealism. Mars - courage, will and ability to maintain healthy boundaries through assertiveness - when a person doesn't have healthy boundaries Mars tends to seemingly unprovoked anger as a last ditch defence - a tendency to act first and think later Jupiter - development of faith, vitality and confidence in life, generosity and expansiveness - a tendency to try to avoid seemingly harsh realities Neptune - the place where the veil is weakest - the barrier between ego consciousness and the soul or god-consciousness is in closest contact - a tendency to delusion, a need to be operating from the big picture rather than narrow self interest Pluto - destiny, a place where we can find the enduring significance of our life - deep transformation for ourselves and others - personal empowerment Saturn - self- discipline, grounding your inspiration into form, where we can tend to act like children and must find the discipline within ourselves to become self-responsible Uranus - Individuality - desire to subvert the dominant paradigm - innovation and unusual traits - the place in our design where we need to learn to operate without outside approval Mercury - how we perceive the world - what we like to talk about - the place in our design where we are a natural teacher These numbers represent the gate for each Personality Planet. The big number is the Gate and the smaller number represents a "line" . In the I'Ching, each hexagram has 6 lines and each gate also has 6 lines, giving further layers of meaning. J.K Rowling has her Personality Sun in Gate 33 Line 1. Head Centre - equivalent to the Crown Chakra - inspiration - "where spirit gets in" - Biology - the pineal gland. Throat Centre - expression and manifestation - when the energy of any other Centre gets to the Throat Centre it can be expressed or manifested. Biology - thyroid gland Design Planetary activations - coloured in red on the BodyGraph - Gate 24 comes out of the top of the Ajna Centre. It is JK Rowlings Design Sun activation - Rationalising the Inner Mysteries and bringing them into a form that makes sense to others. Design Planetary Activations - each gate is coloured in red on the BodyGraph Ajna Centre - equivalent to the Brow or Third Eye Chakra - represents conceptualisation and operation of the mind - Biology - Pituitary Gland G Centre - Part of the Heart Chakra - Self, identity, life direction, connection with your higher self, unconditional love. Biology - Liver Spleen Centre - I take this centre as connected to the Root Chakra - knowing what's safe for you, letting go of anything that's no longer needed - physical wellbeing - intuitive knowing. Biology - Lymphatic System. Root Centre - survival instinct, being grounded, fight and flight. Biology - adrenalin glands. Sacral Centre - Vitality, sexuality, creativity. Biology - Ovaries, Testes. Heart Centre - part of the Heart Chakra - material support, deservability, ego, willpower, courage. Biology - Heart, Thymus Gland Solar Plexus Centre - part of the Heart Chakra - emotions. Biology - kidneys, pancreas. 64 Gates open out of the Centres. Each Gate corresponds with a hexagram from the I'Ching. Each gate has 6 further levels of meaning, called 'lines'. All gates connect to other gates and we call this a channel. This is a Channel made up of Gate 20, out of the Throat Centre, and Gate 57, out of the Spleen Centre. When two Gates are both activated by planets and form a complete Channel, we colour in the Gates, the Channel is therefore coloured in, and we also colour in the Centres at each end. We called these Defined Centres. When Centres aren't coloured in we called them Undefined Centres.