Reading the Stars with Native Hawaiian Astrologer Hokulani Beale

Native Hawaiian astrologer Hokulani Beale, whose name means “heavenly star,” was born to help others tune in to the cosmic rhythms around us.

Text and images by
IJfke Ridgley
「天の星」という意味の名を持つホクラニ・ビールは、私たちを取り巻く宇宙のリズムを読み解くネイティブハワイアンの占星術師です。アロヒラニリゾートのプラント・ユア・インテンションズ・パッケージのサービスの一環として、宿泊ゲストが明確な目的意識を持てるよう個別のリーディングを提供しています。

“I always knew in my blood that Hawai‘i was home,” says astrologer Hokulani Beale. Though she was raised in California, she’s had a connection to the islands from a young age, cultivated during frequent childhood trips to visit her mother’s Hawaiian family. She eventually moved to Hawai‘i as an adult to care for her tūtū (grandmother) and now calls the back of Maunawili home. It’s here against the stunning backdrop of her lush green garden and the three misty peaks of Mount Olomana that she does my astrology reading.

She starts off the reading by referencing dates of significance in my life. They are markers in my timeline: a move, a breakup, personal milestones, dramatic events. Then she goes into detail about my chart, which she compiled based on the time, date, and location of my birth.

This chart is a map meant to depict the cosmic configuration of the planets at the moment of my birth, which she says influences my personality, fears, and patterns of behavior—a blueprint of sorts used as a “roadmap to discovering your highest potential.” For more than an hour she is able to talk about my personality and experiences with surprising accuracy, regularly checking to see what resonates.

You might say that Beale’s destiny was written in the stars. She was named in the ancient Hawaiian tradition—the name Hokulani, meaning “heavenly star,” was revealed to her kupuna (elder) in a dream. As a child, Beale was fascinated by astrology, studying the constellations and poring over metaphysical books in the library, but it wasn’t until later in life that she pursued it as a career.

We forget our connection to these rhythms in the place that we came from.

Initially she thought her name meant she was destined to work in the movies, so she went into film and television production after college. “It was fun,” she says, “but the spiritual element was missing for me.”

Then in 2015, on a mission to figure out why a bad breakup was affecting her so profoundly, she found therapist and astrologer Debra Silverman.

“[My natal chart] helped me understand why it was so dramatic,” Beale says. “I wasn’t losing my mind, there wasn’t something wrong with me. There was a reason why—something outside of myself explaining the experience I was having. That brought a lot of validation and relief.”

She began studying under Silverman, working on the administration side of Silverman’s business before branching out on her own in November 2019. Called to help others find solace, clarity, and purpose, she’s partnered with ‘Alohilani Resort to offer hotel guests personalized readings as part of the resort’s Plant Your Intentions package, a set of curated experiences geared toward wellness and self-discovery.

She hopes her clients are able to get from their session what she did from hers: validation and a better understanding of who they are.

The initial 90-minute reading, which she often gives over the phone, is meant to provide insight into your personality based on your birth chart. From there, she can use astrology in subsequent sessions as a predictive tool. “It’s really about awareness,” she says. “What cycles are being presented to me right now?”

Newspaper horoscopes are typically based on your “sun sign,” which is determined by the sun’s position when you were born.

But according to Beale, your sun sign isn’t a thorough reflection of your unique personality and character traits, and considering this sign alone inevitably results in a vague and impersonal reading.

Instead she takes into account the position of all of the planets in the solar system at your time of birth. During our session, she tells me my sun sign (which indicates personality), my moon sign (indicative of one’s emotional nature), and my rising sign (according to Silverman’s esoteric astrology method, this sign describes the soul).

At the end of the session, Beale gives me a copy of my chart—a map of mysterious lines and symbols designed to illustrate how I’m influenced by the larger cosmic system around me.

“Why would we be separate from everything else in the universe when we are literally made of stardust and the same elements?” she says. “We forget our connection to these rhythms in the place that we came from.”