The Cross of Planning
Human Design is a system that can be used on multiple levels. For most people, it is practical in the way it deals with the mundane plane, on a highly personal and individualised level. For others, it is not only symbolic of the microcosm of our lives but describes larger mechanical processes in the macrocosm.
It is not just a “tool” which eliminates resistance. It is a sociological, historical, and cosmological framework that explains how everything works; it is the mechanics of the maia, it is a system of truth.
When we think about the rise and fall of civilisations over the course history, we do not know how or why an empire that is thriving disintegrates overnight. There seems to be no overt reason, even if there are external factors we could blame it on.
In Human Design, we see this as indicative of Global Cycles and the changing of the background frequency. Approximately every 400 years, the keys (gates) of one era shift into another with the precession of the equinoxes, thus changing global themes and values. We are currently five years away from a cycle change; what we see now is both the peak and dissolving of the Cross of Planning.
When we talk about the Cross of Planning, it is not something “ethereal” or “intangible” that’s “out there”. It is the very bedrock of society. We take it for granted that we can go to the grocery store and expect it to be open with food available that has travelled for miles to get there. We take it for granted (in some countries) that governments provide support and assistance to those who need it. We take it for granted that we can call up an emergency service and expect someone to pick up on the other end.
The 40-37, a definition in the wheel between the ego and the emotional centre, forms the basis of this era. This is the Channel of Community, a part seeking the whole. It is the glue which has kept vast amounts of people living in close proximity without frankly, killing each other. When Marshall McLuhan described the “global village”, he was foreseeing the potential of 40-37 uniting the world through shared communicative infrastructure. The internet would have never been possible without the support of the current background frequency. Globalisation is the epitome of the Cross of Planning.
The emergence of the nation-state, institutional structures both national and transnational, political, social, and economic ideologies which hold people together, are all functions of the 40-37. We assume the way society is structured today has been a result of humanity “evolving” and becoming more “civilised”. But the traits and characteristics of the 40-37 are not a representation of “human nature”. It is just a mechanism — we are driven blindly by this background frequency as conduits and agents of the program.
The locks are on the outside and remain constant (based on the Vessel of Love and the Sphinx), whilst the keys are on the inside and shift every 400-ish years. The other cross of this era is the Cross of the Maya — I will go further into these keys in an upcoming post. Image originally created by Mary Ann Winiger, likely copyrighted by Jovian.
Gate 37 fits into the lock of the 25th gate, which is keynoted as “The Way”. This is a time where the way has been the way of the family, our friends, our colleagues, our neighbours. The need to belong to a group, the need to “support” our family and those close to us in our “tribe”, is a function of this gate. But this hasn’t always been the way. This has been the way since 1615. But it will move into a very, very different gate, the 55.6 come 2027. The line of this gate is selfishness. It is individual and it is moody and it is not about support.
As a Projector, I often contemplate the meaning of “work”. Gate 40 fits into 46th lock, “The Temple”. We worship at the temple of work. It is expected that you get a job and work for the betterment of society, because that’s just how it is. You do your part, you work your eight hours, and in exchange you get your paycheck and your two weeks of holidays a year. It’s a bargain.
Jobs are a relatively new phenomenon. Yes, there have been certain professions which have existed for thousands of years — farmer, scribe, blacksmith, prostitute — but not in the way it does today. I mean, there are jobs for everything. The creation of new types of labour that did not exist just five years ago. We farm our children through the educational system (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing — the Cross of Planning has led to higher rates education across the board) and prepare them by teaching them “skills” for the workforce, funnelling them into directions which best nurtures their talents and interests.
The bargain of work is breaking down. That is obvious. The gradual transition from “secure” jobs, with benefits and union support, is a way of the past. The growing gig economy, rooted in instability and precarious work with little to no benefits, is a symptom of the 40-37 dissolving. Increased entrepreneurialism, the highly individualised nature of working for oneself and taking sole responsibility for income, is reflective of the upcoming cycle dominated by the 34-20 definition. This is rooted in Integration; it has a keynote of “Self-Empowerment”. It is about being busy for oneself. It is about survival in the now.
The other polarity in the Cross of Planning is the 16 - 9. The 16th gate, the gate of “skills” which forms part of the Channel of Talent, is obvious in the way it has impacted this epoch of history. As discussed above, it is expected that we develop the “skills” necessary to attain a job. We are identified with those skills, as we are identified with our job title. What is the first thing you ask a stranger when getting to know them? What do you do? This is how we logically classify and identify other people, by skillset and labour.
To not be identified by what you do, is, well, absurd in the times of the Cross of Planning. To not have a job is to be ostracised from society as somebody who must have personal faults of their own. We are unaware that this is just the background frequency. And yet, I am not dismissing the very real need to make a living and provide for oneself (and others) through work. It is unavoidable.
The 9th gate is the gate of “focus” and “details”. We see an incredible amount of detail in the world today — the example that comes to mind for me is what it takes to create our mobile phones, our laptops, electronics. The amount of detailed skill and focus that goes into it, the mining of specific rare minerals necessary to build such devices, is a function of this key. It has led to the maia — or the “illusion” — becoming very dense. If we think about the development of our world over the last 400 years, it is the increased detail on all fronts which has made it so complex.
When we discuss the effects and impact of Global Cycles, it has nothing to do with morality. The Cross of Planning has brought incredible benefits to society; it has also brought absolute horror, genocides and world wars alike. The world is by far from perfect today and yet, what we see is the culmination of what this cross has given humanity. It has brought a lot of good. Standards of living have increased exponentially. But evolution does not happen in a vacuum. And it certainly does not stand still.
Human Design is ahead of its time. To be homogenised and not-self during this epoch of the Cross of Planning is easy when larger institutional structures are ready to catch you. It feels safe to outsource one’s authority to such larger structures and trust that they know what’s best for you. To reclaim one’s authority in a time conditioned by tribal support takes radical courage. It is not easy to stick out amongst the crowd as an individual when the pull is towards tribal community.
But the miracle of strategy and authority is that it prepares us for a time that’s coming. When the dominant global themes are Individual and Integration, when the very glue that was holding us together disintegrates along with the background frequency, there will be a lack of knowing what to do. How do you make decisions for oneself when there is no more reliable infrastructure or authorities to tell you how? You rely on what is within yourself. You rely on an inner authority, an inner decision-making process, to know what's right for you.
Human Design came into the world on the cusp of this transition for this reason. There is absolutely nothing to fear about these changes for anybody who has entered into their process. This is really the time to get it because as we move into this new era, it’s going to be harder and harder to find such information. It will only come through fractals. It will only come to those who are there to meet Human Design on their lines of geometry.
You may be asking, “what’s the point of knowing of all this?”, because it’s not like you can stop this larger mechanical process from happening. For people who are interested in history and sociology like myself, it’s always fascinating to both understand and to be the observer of major global upheaval. It provides context to what we are seeing in the world currently, where there is mass confusion and radical change which has only been exacerbated since 2020 (a seven-year genetic cycle out from 2027).
It is important to have those who carry this knowledge forward in their cells. We will need it to both understand our past and to understand our future. It can further cement the love of your own process, because there really is nothing else to do. It is a privilege to know of all this, to be a witness of it. All we can do is be ourselves in a world which carries so much instability. To be grounded within yourself, your own truth — nobody can take that away from you. It will always be there. And you can always trust it.