The Zodiac
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org,
please feel free to visit the school website)
The modern Signs of the Zodiac have a fullness of meaning brought forth from thousands of years of hermetic synthesis and observation.
Aries, the first sign of the post Latin Modern Zodiac, is the emergence of the seed sprout from the earth, the moment of all beginnings. Aries is the out-rushing force, sound and fury, primitive self-expression, the joy of being. Its forcefulness is like the ram which lowers its head and charges blindly. The Aries energetic influence gives an adventurous, pioneering spirit, courage and a blunt, direct manner. The forcefulness of Aries is so strong that restrictions are difficult to endure and usually aren't. Aries people are forever on to the next project, only sometimes completing the old ones. An Aries person stuck in routines and a sedentary life are likely to explode. The self centered attitude of Aries can go to the extremes of selfishness, crudeness, foolhardiness, and egotism if not tempered by sensitivity to others and strong guidance by ideals.
Taurus combines the concentrated nature of a fixed sign with earth's practicality. Taurus people, ruled by Venus, love beauty and are often quite charming. They're affectionate, but their neediness for security sometimes makes them possessive. Taurus people are rooted in their opinions and can be stubborn, not liking to be contradicted. They can change, but don't expect it to happen more than once, if ever. They're very patient and often very reliable, if laziness and inertia doesn't get the better of them. Taurus people have incredible endurance and often are excellent business people. They crave art, luxury, sensuality, and good food.
Gemini is the mutable air sign. Some say Gemini has neither positive nor negative polarity. This is the sign of Twins, Castor and Pollux, who are two sides of one personality. One brother is mortal, one is a god. In Gemini the restless intelligence of air combines with the adaptability of a mutable sign. Ruled by Mercury, Gemini emphasizes communication. Geminis are versatile, logical, often witty, inquisitive and spontaneous. They tend to be nervous, restless, superficial, and inconsistent. The metal of Gemini is Mercury which has no shape of its own. Try to hold onto it, it flows through your fingers, just like the elusive Gemini.
Cancer is the unstable, emotional nature of water expressed in the cardinal mode. It is restless and ever changing. However, the self-repressive nature tends to keep this energy below the surface, with Cancers pursuing very definite goals in secretive and unconscious ways. Much like their Crab symbol, Cancer people can appear hard and insensitive on the outside, yet they are soft and vulnerable on the inside, at times overly sensitive and easily hurt. Like the crab, Cancers are evasive, always side stepping, preferring not to confront anything too directly. They will hide away and will resist prying eyes into their secret or inner lives. Cancer is ruled by the Moon, giving it a flowing, emotional nature and an abundantly fertile imagination. Cancers are sensitive, cautious, kind, sympathetic, protective, shrewd, and resourceful. Their moody emotionalism can get out of hand at times.
Leo combines the burning enthusiasm of fire with the powerful expression of its fixed nature. Leo is ruled by the strongest celestial influence, the Sun. Leo always needs to be the center of attention. They're creative, graceful, proud, dignified, determined, and dramatic. They are very generous, enthusiastic, expansive, and often good organizers of people. Their negativities include conceit, being snobbish, intolerant, patronizing, dogmatic, and pompous. Leos need to feel the divine nobility of their existence. They can allow their warm-heartedness to shine through and they can be tremendous sources of love and encouragement for others.
Virgo is a practical earth sign, introverted like Taurus by its negative polarity, but enjoying the freedom and adaptability of its mutable nature. Virgo is addicted to practical, material objects, but is not as possessive as Taurus. Virgo, like Gemini, is ruled by Mercury but here the communicative nature of Mercury is used on a practical level. Virgos are discriminating, critical, analytical, meticulous, modest and orderly. They can be worriers, overly fastidious, finicky, too critical and too conventional. Virgo's intellect lacks breadth, but is great with details and facts. They analyze everything, which is valuable in dealing with our bureaucratic modern society. Virgo desperately needs to work, to feel useful, and be of service to others.
Libra is active and aggressive, but usually more inwardly and not as obviously. This mode of communication combines with the flowing expression and intelligent nature of the air signs. Libra's energy is searching for balance. While Libra is considered to have positive energetic polarity, it is ruled by a negative energy planet, Venus. Libras idolize harmony. fearful of discord, they can become indecisive. They easily see the value of all viewpoints, often because they can't hold a definite opinion. In the search for true balance, Libras strive to show all sides. They can be frivolous, gullible, and flirtatious, but also diplomatic, idealistic, romantic, easygoing, and will usually have a refined appearance.
Scorpio, a fixed sign, is true to its convictions and ideals. Scorpios are very set in their ways, ruled by energetic Mars and by Pluto, the planet of most intense desires and obsessions. The negative polarity gives Scorpio a responsive nature, with much of its Martian forcefulness hidden in the depths below. It is also a water sign, giving it an unstable, emotional nature with overwhelming feelings and sense of purpose in its endeavors. The dualism of Scorpio's fixity and simultaneous instability often leaves Scorpio at odds with itself. Scorpios are very imaginative, subtle, and determined, but can also be resentful, stubborn, secretive, suspicious, and jealous. They're self contained, but may also be self-centered, and have a lot of saved up energy ready to bust forth at any time. Whatever Scorpios want to achieve, they will. Scorpio has a great deal of personal magnetism and healing power.
Sagittarius is the centaur aiming for the heights. Aspiration and introspection are the keys to Sagittarius. They aim high and cover a lot of ground, even more than Gemini, their complement. They have the adaptability of a mutable sign, with self-expressiveness of positive polarity and the energetic enthusiasm of fire. Ruled by expansive Jupiter, they are travelers and philosophers. Sagittarius people are freedom loving and need space. They're friendly, sincere, optimistic, outgoing, versatile, dependable, open minded, excitable, jovial, but can also be irresponsible, tactless, capricious, arrogant, and dogmatic. They are usually beautiful, encouraging and conscious people.
Capricorn is earthy, outgoing and its cardinality is applied on the practical level of everyday necessities. The sign's negative polarity gives Capricorn the ability to withdraw from the turbulence of the mainstream and bide their time until it is correct for their ambitions to manifest. Capricorns are reliable, practical, ambitious, prudent, efficient, persistent, and patient. They usually have a dry sense of ironic humor. Ruled by Saturn with its contracting, concentrated energy, they can also be cold, pessimistic, and overly conventional. Saturn's rulership makes Capricorns consider time as very important. Capricorns are often slow to develop, requiring more time than others. At middle age they feel as if on a plateau while their peers age and get old much faster than them.
Aquarius' outgoing, self-expressive positive polarity combines with the communicative nature of air. Intellectual Aquarians are teachers and disseminators of knowledge. With a fixed nature, they're unlikely to move from their preconceived ideas, but usually have a progressive outlook. They're original, inventive, friendly, independent, idealistic, and revolutionary, sometimes even straining to be unconventional. They're very loving, but this is more easily expressed in a detached concern for groups rather than individuals. Aquarians, ruled by Uranus, the erratic revolutionary, must have their freedom, and close personal relationships are often too restrictive.
Pisces is unstable, flowing water combining with the mutable ability to easily drift through change, making it the most fluid sign of the zodiac. The introverted nature of the negative polarity predominates. Pisces is the most sensitive of signs, with very strong and deep emotions. Pisceans are much too impressionable, too susceptible to outside influences and often need to escape. Ruled by the nebulous planet Neptune, they can be hard to understand. It helps to remember that unworldly Pisceans operate on an intuitive level, often needing to retreat to maintain their equilibrium. They usually can't be understood through logical means analysis or pressure. They can give vast amounts of compassion, are self-sacrificing, often kind, sympathetic, receptive, intuitive and humble. However they can also be indecisive, vague, secretive, careless, and not good at dealing with the physical world.