Originally, before human beings really existed, the entire zodiac belonged to and was the responsibility of only the Sun and Moon. The Sun, specifically, made his home in Leo and cultivated it. The Moon made her palace in Cancer. So only two of the zodiac signs had really been developed at this stage of evolution.
But the smartest and most exchange oriented of all the planets, Mercury, got an idea. He went to the Sun and Moon and proposed a deal, “If you give me some space, I will take the responsibility for it off your hands.” The Sun and Moon agreed. They gave Mercury the space on either side of their own. The Sun gave Virgo to Mercury, the sign next to his own Leo. The Moon gave Gemini, the sign next to her own Cancer.
Mercury and Venus are always close and are good friends. So Mercury went quickly to her and told her the amazing news. She came back with Mercury to the Sun and Moon and said, “I too will take good care of the space you give me, and thus lessen the burden of your responsibilities.” Agreeing, the Sun gave Libra to Venus, the space just after Virgo – the closest available plot to his own Leo. In the same fashion, the Moon granted Taurus to Venus, the space just outside of Gemini – the closest remaining area to her own Cancer.
A few days later, Mars came to know of this and became angry. He went to the Sun and Moon saying, “I am always loyal to you! But you have given land to a poet and an artists before giving it to your loyal agent!?” The Sun and Moon apologized by giving to Mars the closest space still available: The Moon thus gave Aries to Mars and the Sun gave him Scorpio.
Seeing Mars come into the picture, Venus could easily foresee the future. He was going to try and conquer the whole remaining half of the zodiac if nobody else claimed it. She went to Jupiter and Saturn but they were uninterested in asking the Sun and Moon for material property. So she returned to the luminaries and said, “My dear Sun and Moon, Jupiter is too modest and unconcerned with material things. He will never ask you for any space to cultivate, he will never ask for any land. Still, he is your guru! Your revered teacher! It would be a grave insult to let him remain without any property, while the rest of us enjoy our own space! We will all suffer negative karma if we let this insult exist.”
The Sun and Moon then went to Jupiter and requested him to take possession of the next available space. Thus the Moon gave Pisces to Jupiter, and the Sun gave him Sagittarius.
Venus, who was present, then had the chance to fulfill her ultimate design – the gifting of land to her dear friend, the unloved Saturn. She pointed to him brooding off in the distance as usual. “Just see, Saturn broods in the distance. His anger will be great, and that will not be good. There are only two plots left and they are already the furthest from your own. He is already there by default, as well. So why be seen as generous and officially give him that space?”
They agreed. The Sun and Moon reluctantly approached Saturn and said, “We are giving you full possession of this area of space, Saturn. It is yours to develop and cultivate as you see fit. The Sun granted him Capricorn, and the Moon gave him Aquarius.”
Thus of all the wild stars in the sky, a narrow band called the zodiac became civilized and developed as a result of being occupied by “people” – the planets. This area became divided into 12 plots because the original owners, the Sun and Moon had a 12-based relationship to it: As the Sun would go around the entire zodiac one time and created a year, the Moon would become full 12 times, creating 12 months. And thus the zodiac divided into 12 distinct plots – one for each full moon. The Sun took special ownership of Leo and the Moon of Cancer. And then, beginning with Mercury the planets came to ask for (or were given) their own plots to be responsible for cultivating and civilizing according to their own natural characters.
This incident took place in cosmic history before the creation of the 8th and 9th planets: Rahu and Ketu. Therefore these two do not own any of the zodiac signs.
Aries: Cardinality and fire have a lot in common. They are both decisive and ambitious, for example. So the cardinal sign that also happens to be a fire sign, Aries, will naturally be the “most” cardinal of the four cardinal signs. Aries is very ambitious, more than any other sign even any other cardinal sign. It is extremely decisive and loves movement to new territory and new heights, like fire moving quickly to in a straight line to consume new fuel. This sign hates distraction the most: commitment and indecisiveness are like balls and chains around the ankles of Aries.
Cancer: Water and Cardinality don’t have much in common, so Cancer – which combines the two – is the most complex and uncommon of the Cardinal group. It is like a strong underwater current, hidden and private but still forceful and moving things in a clear and decisive direction. In Cancer, the ambition and decisiveness of cardinality expresses itself almost entirely in the watery realm of emotions and subjective emotional opinions. Were it not for the emotional decisiveness of Cancer, it could almost pass as a fixed sign.
Libra: Air and Cardinality blend in libra. The result is a sign with practical sensitivity (a trait of air) in spite of its strong opinions. Libra is like a strong wind blowing due north (or south, or in any clear, decisive direction). Therefore this sign is full of important opinions and evolutions of a practical and tangible nature.
Capricorn: Cardinal earth makes this sign is something like a mountain – the earth moving upward. Creating a mountain is not easy, and Capricorn is not an “easy” sign. Earth makes Capricorn solid almost like a fixed sign. But unlike fixed signs Capricorn has the ambition and decisiveness that comes from being a member of the cardinal group. Capricorn’s decisiveness is not the quickest of this group, but is the strongest and heaviest. Practical and economic growth (a trait of earth) is the main focus and unshakable ambition of Capricorn.
Taurus: Earth and fixedness – the two factors combining in Taurus – have a lot in common, and this is what makes Taurus the archetype of all the earth signs. Taurus is like a fertile plain: solid, reliable, useful, and able to produce food to support you. More than any sign, Taurus thrives on commitment and impenetrable strength. It is the unmoving earth beneath your feet, unshakably stubborn, yet unquestionably reliable.
Leo: Fire and fixedness – the constituents of Leo – don’t have much in common, and this is what makes Leo unusual and complex among the fixed signs. Leo is like fire in a stove, or contained in some useful device like a lamp. Leo uses its power of moral commitment and its fiercely stubborn strength as a tool to further the bold objectives of fire. Because fire makes Leo quite ambitious it could almost pass as a cardinal sign, but stubbornness and emphasis on loyalty and commitment give away its roots in the fixed group.
Scorpio: The deepest ocean is Scorpio, which combines the depth of fixity with the reflective emotional qualities of water. Like the ocean floor, this sign likes to become inaccessible. Scorpio makes its emotions impenetrable and unshakable via this inaccessibility.
Aquarius: A combination of air and fixedness is difficult to achieve, and this makes Aquarius a challenging place. You can think of Aquarius as the motionless wind, like in the famous “horse latitudes.” Aquarius is unshakably committed (fixed) to being sensitive in practical ways to the wants and needs of others (air). Were it not for this quality of commitment, the Aquarian sensitivities could almost allow it to blend in among the dual signs.
Gemini: Duality, which seeks to explore every option, and air, which blows things into every nook and cranny – are very complimentary and have a lot in common. Combining dualism and air in a single sign makes Gemini the archetype dual sign. This sign is the least interested in making a decision or a commitment – it wants to enjoy every possibility and explore every option. Gemini is like the air blowing every which way.
Virgo: Duality wants to move equally among all options, but earth wants to be heavy, solid and still. Combining these two in a single sign – which is what Virgo does – is a challenging task. You can envision the dual earth of Virgo as something like an earthquake, the earth attempting to move in many directions at one. This sign is particularly well suited for exploring every option (dual) of practical and economic topics (earth).
Sagittarius: Combining dualism with fire we get Sagittarius. It is is fire moving here and there in search of fuel. In Aries fire burns most brightly, because it blows in a single, constant direction. In Sagittarius the fire sometimes blows back on itself and diminishes. Yet, in some ways the Aries fire is too strong, and Sagittarius strikes the perfect balance. Sagittarius is bold and daring (fire) in its pursuit of understanding every idea and viewpoint possible (dual).
Pisces: This combination of water and dualism creates a very unique sign. If you have ever gone underwater in the ocean and allowed the flows to carry you back and forth, here and there, you have a good image of Pisces energy. This sign focuses on trying to understand every angle and viewpoint (dual) while reflecting deeply and emotionally on topics (water).
Water is the only element that makes reflections. If you look into a pool of water you can almost always see a reflection of yourself. The main quality of water in astrology is that it provides resources for your to reflect upon yourself. The water signs – Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces – share (to different extents) that quality. They need and love and want to reflect upon themselves. So water signs have a lot of potential to be either self-absorbed or self-realized. You know, these are just two opposite extremes of the same pole. Water creates signs with a reflective environment. Surrounded by reflections of oneself one can become narcissistic and self-absorbed on one extreme or enlightened and self-realized on the other.
On the negative end, the earth element makes us superficial and materialistic – only caring about tangible things and financial stability. But on the positive end earth makes us very responsible and allows us to relish our practical duties and accomplishments.
Fire is the most dangerous element, but at the same time the most useful. Popular history of humankind always talks about “The Quest for Fire” and all that, saying that the ability to control fire was a huge turning point setting humans apart from other animals. Indeed with fire we could cook, bring warmth into the cold, and light into the darkness. But if fire can provide for us and take care of us better than any other element, it can also hurt and destroy us faster than anything else as well.
Air can create vagabonds who just blow about in the wind from one place to another with no root, and no “feet on the ground.” This air makes guys who just fly from place to place not caring about anything except a quick and superficial sensation before they blow away to some other unimportant destination. On the other end of the spectrum air creates pure genius: the ability to quickly come up with a way “out there” idea and make it a tangible reality. Air is quick, and the air signs make us quicker and lighter. So on one side air can make us lose stability in life as a result of only caring about superficial sensations, but on the other side air gives us the ability to quickly change direction and leap to new levels of perception.
