The stars never cease to fascinate, as they have done the many tens of thousands of generations our species of modern humans walked the earth.
It has even been claimed that elephants study the sky and seemingly worship the moon by waving branches at it in its waxing phase. We humans postulate that they practice a sort of religion. Perhaps assigning meaning to the twinkling heavenly bodies as we have and still do, even today in our seemingly “modern world”.
This is known as the study of astrology. Looking for meaning in life by looking above us.
The movement of those beacons, studied over millennia’s by sage watchers and recorders of the skies, who taught their knowledge gleaned from keen observation, passed on to their disciples through the ages, and they too in their own in turn.
Brave souls followed them to go distances never attempted without the guidance of those reliable, yet mysterious luminous globes that brought them to far-flung shores.
The practice of the zodiac is ancient.
I mean, that is the line you were sold or the story we were told in the sixties and seventies by popular culture, right? That it is older than all the religions we are familiar with and holds more spirituality than science, and more truth than religion.
Whether this is fact or fiction is neither here nor there. The point is that the zodiac and astrology were a popular subject of that era, and has been ever since. It saw a resurgence from ancient times. A come back you could say.
This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius. I do not think I would know it so well without that popular song in 1969 by The 5th Dimension.
I learned later it was not just some modern esoteric charlatan tall tale. This practice and tool of the stars system is older than some of the most ancient cultures that we have discovered and studied. Its practices are deeply rooted in the foundations of a scientific practice we study and lean on today more than ever known as astronomy.
Though the word 'zodiac' is Greek and the traditional art most familiar to it is based upon the iconic representations the Greeks used to categorize the zodiac, it did not originate in Greece. Many archeologists believe it was the Mesopotamian civilization that first developed the practice of astrology. However not quite in the way we understand and practice its use today.
I will go even so far as to add that there is debate that the art paintings in Lascaux, France, dated to around 12,000-17,000 years ago could hint at a longer-standing practice of zodiac significance.
As to why I just went into a history regurgitation, that is me at the core. The ram, I have questions to seek, and lands to discover. I was born under a wandering star, lead by my questioning, seeking mind.
You can probably guess at this point, I am an Aries. The lead sign which opens the horoscope wheel. The one who acts before they think and learns their lessons the hard way. In fact, it can even be interpreted that each consecutive sign after the other learns something from the sign that preceded it.
Aries are the trailblazers according to those carefully calculated and almost unworldly roadmaps of personalities in the sky. Coinciding with births and alignments, this system claims to tell us our core traits and reactions to environmental factors both here on this ground we stand as well as above where the heavenly spheres dance their choreographed movements.
“As above, so below.”
My sign burns red and is associated with fire and chaotic passion. It is also notably known as the first of the cardinal fire trigon. The three being Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius. The cardinal aspect meaning “important”, as it transpires in conjunction with a major seasonal shift. The other three cardinal signs are Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn.
As an Aries, a fire sign, I classically feel in almost a shameful cliche manner that I burn so hard and so fast that I run out of steam so close to the end. I often feel doomed to come up short.
As much as I would not wish to believe it, despite the wonderful attributes of the ram, I fit the negative personality trait classifications of my zodiac sign like a surgical grade, glow-in-the-dark glove. Even before I knew what it was, I naturally was quick to temper and almost as quick to cool.
The first to jump headlong into a project while throwing the instructions to the sideline, thinking I don’t need it, or can get it done faster without.
I am just lucky to be spacially clever, not needing instructions much of the time for the things I attempt. But heaven help me if I do. If I must sit down and focus to process step one and step two, match part A into part B, locate C, and match with X, Y, Z… I am liable to flare up into one of those predictable Aries tempers.
As a child, I would break things in frustration. Rip my homework up, or just primally scream when I had to go through the laborious computation of reading through a manual. Aries do not like to follow rules either… or maybe that is just me. But I do believe that is also a common trait. We don’t like to be given boundaries.
But regardless of much of the negativity that comes with my sign, there is a power of self-confidence to be bold enough to toss the directions aside. Perhaps it’s even arrogance.
Other signs like Cancer, Gemini, or Virgo may likely not attempt a project without first reading the guide for fear of missing something. Aries, or should I say my manifestation of the sign, would rather make mistakes and correct them after than do it by the book.
Perhaps it is pride or audacity? We would rather invent the wheel despite the prototype being right in front of us. Learn by the sparks of our own mind than the already established ideas of others. After all, we are the openers of the zodiac. Maybe it is in our nature to want to come up with the idea organically.
Aries are not stupid, mind you. Quite brilliant, independent thinkers in our own right. But there are instincts of the ram that must be curbed. One, the habit of fizzling out on projects, I am guilty of.
I still have so many projects nearly finished, but not quite because of this tendency to get it to the point of just good enough. Yes, at the beginning of the task I could be ruled by perfectionism, which will slowly ebb away as the task nears the end of the road.
Aries are known competitive individuals and as far as self-reflection goes, my mirror is wiped clean and I see my image sharply.
But your sun sign is just the tip of the iceberg on how deep the well can go as far as personal attributes. If you know the hour and minute you were born, as well as the location, you can have a natal chart drawn up.
For example, Aries is my sun sign.
The sun sign is used to determine your ego. And I am a classic Aries. But when I plug in my place of birth, including hour, and it takes into account the precise alignments of the planetary bodies at the moment of emergence into this plane of existence, more can be gleaned.
My ascendant is in the house of Virgo. This is and can be interpreted as the mask I portray to people. First impressions. Which hit the nail on the head because people see me as such a peacekeeper, but once trodded on my Aries drop's his head and shocks many who have seen my ascendant mask fall and my horns come out.
My moon is in Pisces, and the moon rules the emotional side of your personality. Mine is highly sensitive, and vulnerable, wishing for a partner who understands me.
My Mercury is also in Pisces, which determines communications. For me, this indicates my intellect is emotionally determined. I am open to new ideas and other people's perspectives and am a good listener.
My Venus is in Aquarius, and is the category used to determine how one loves. Though I am romantic intellectually according to the layout of the planets. It also claims I am somewhat detached. And this I would say is true, and has always been so. I have struggled on my own to understand why this was. Within my horoscope I was able to find answers.
My Mars is in Taurus. This determines aggression. The chart tells me that I rarely make the first move. Which is true. It also says I put faith into philosophy, education, and perhaps even politics.
My Jupiter is in Aries, meaning I prefer to grow to understand things independently. Probably why I keep tossing away the instructions. Philosophy is very strong here as well, and that to obtain understanding I prefer long stable social relationships.
My Saturn is in Sagittarius and this means I have discord in my family because of my restlessness and boredom. I perhaps even hurt those around me with my bluntness of word.
My chart also fits me well. As to my faith in it, I wish I did not believe it. But I do.
Though Aries are enviable in ways, they also have a negative and hard to manage side. Not just for our partners, or family. We are hard enough to learn to manage on our own, and remember? We don’t like help.
Against my nature, for my children, I have found assistance in the last two years with the guidance of a therapist I have been working to overcome my ego.
But what if you need your ego? What if your ego lends you strength where you feel weak, meek, and lost?
What then?
I do it for my sons. My three stars, Orion, Sirius, and Seren.
Orion for the constellation, Sirius for the binary star system, and Seren, the Welsh word for Star.
My three little stars.
My sign does not excuse my negatives or explain all my positives either. But I will attest, I am a perfect reflection of my astrological sign whether I like it or not.
(Sources)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_behavior_in_animals
https://www.costarastrology.com
http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/news/index.php?id=Relating-Ice-Age-art-with-astronomy
About the Creator
M. K. Dockery
That mildly mad, introverted writer with a questionable google search history. That is probably me.
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