The Zodiac and Spiritual Energy

Aries - This is the first sign of the zodiac. Corresponding to the spring equinox, Aries energy is primal. Bestial is another word. It is the basic life force, the will to exist. Raw, uncompromising, it will battle against all obstacles for the survival of the individual. The lesson of this sign is courage in the face of overwhelming odds. It is the blue Pict's charging Hadrian's wall, it is the mother flinging herself in front of the sword to save her child, it is the flower growing on the cooling lava field where everything was destroyed two months ago. Aries will survive. And the energy expended in the quest for survival is tremendous.

Taurus - Exhausted by the efforts to survive, the energy of the spirit now settles down to savor victory. The Bull sits on the hill surveying his domain. Placid, grounded, content with life the Taurian energy seeks that in life which provides stability, peace and safety. Often doing this at the cost of missing opportunities for growth, the lesson Taurian energy teaches is that of making decisions, the decisions between peace at the expense of growth or growth at the expense of temporary turmoil. For it is only in living life fully that true peace is obtained and this requires that on occasion peace be sacrificed for the growth of the individual.

Gemini - Revitalized by the decision to take chances the energy of Taurus is transformed into the Gemini quest for the impossible - the Twins seek to know and learn all there is of the world around them. They do this by communication but this communication is only a cover for the deeper meaning of the energy of this sign which is perception. Perception of that which is obvious and concrete and perception of that which is subtle and intuitive. This perception leads to confusion. The energy can get caught in a web of its own making and become static or, in the worst case, can be denied as being real. The lesson Gemini energy teaches is to make a conscious decision to let perceptual ambiguity exist.

Cancer - In response to the demands perception places on the individual, barriers are built that allow the person to express themselves safely and positively. This is the Cancer's shell. In the Crab's shell the energy is turned inward towards the subjective field of the emotions and feelings. What is found is a boiling pool pot of emotions that are scary as a walk at night through a graveyard. Cancer's nurture others because they see in others a reflection of the intense battle inside themselves. But this is not enough. The lesson that Cancer energy teaches is to love, trust and accept themselves in spite of what they experience inside. This is the only way the shell can be molted and for new growth to occur. Otherwise stasis overwhelms the Crab.

Leo - The Crab's shell has been broken and with what has been learned a new octave is begun. Leo's energy imparts a need to leave a mark on the world stating "I have passed this way." Wiser than the Arian Ram, the Lion has more cunning to do this because there is injected into the mix a degree of self knowledge that Aries does not possess. Leo demands the development of a personality, a style of living that reflects the minds inner dimensions as perfectly as wet T-shirt fits the contours of the body. This is the lesson demanded by Leonine energy. He must learn to joyously accept life and express this with all that is in him.

Virgo - Living with everything exposed gets tiring. In Virgo the energy again goes inward. But it doesn't seek the emotions again, it seeks meaning. What is the use of roaring if you don't know what your roaring about? In the quest for an answer, the Virgin comes across perfect ideals and adopts them. She understands the need for setting the highest goals a human can strive for and accepts them. In that acceptance there is turmoil as well, for these are seemingly impossible goals. Perfection? Bah! Can't be done. Yet if the lesson Virgo needs to learn is accepted, a beginning of a lifetime process can be begun. The Virgin's lesson is humility; the acceptance of imperfection as a means of seeking perfection. This is the place in the Zodiac where the spiritual life becomes energized because for the first time the goals have been articulated and true self-sacrifice is possible. Cancer energy can usually only nurture others at their own expense. Virgo can nurture from a position of self-knowledge.

Libra - The symbol of balance, the Scales, Libra weighs everything endlessly. Caught in this trap, Libran energy can paralyze the individual into inactivity because they cannot make up their mind. As the energy expands in Libra, new insights are gained which ease the paralysis and transmute it to a higher plane. The transformation Libra seeks is the development of inner harmony, independent of pleasure or pain. It is the ability to stand still in the middle of a whirlwind. This is an additional goal added to that of Virgo's. Virgo sets the goal, Libra is a'tizzy trying to get started. The lesson imparted by Libran energy is to calm down and let the whirlwind carry them onward. This can only be achieved by the action of the will on the conscious mind. It is by Liberian energy that the positive transformational functions of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are activated.

Scorpio - The energy of this sign is the culmination of the process of developing a spiritual life and is the energy which transmutes ordinary consciousness into Cosmic Consciousness. What happens when your faced with a scorpion? You freeze. The mind becomes clear as a bell. There is only one thing in the world at that instant and it is the scorpion. If you move wrong you are stung. For most people this is a matter of life and death. We have wimpy scorpions here in Texas. Ours don't kill but most scorpions can kill a human. It is the life or death situation that is the Scorpion's main energy. It produces one-pointedness, the ability to focus on only one thing at a time and let that thing be as important as all that has gone before or all that will come after. The main lesson of Scorpio energy is to accept the inevitability of our own death and live every moment as our last, developing this one-pointed way of being. If done, this is the culmination of the beginning of the spiritual process. It is the point of personal transformation of our energies into the deeper aspects of the spiritual life. If attention and practice is added to Scorpio energy, witness consciousness arises at this point in our spiritual evolution but is not constant.

Sagittarius - What do you do with this new state of being? The Archer's arrow is flying into the unknown. It is seeing new things, experiences, ideas. It is consciously seeking those unconventional situations and experiences that will cause us to grow. It is perfectly valid to do this in an outer manner. But there is also another outer layer to be explored. It is the outer layer of our psyche. Exploration of this is most often done in meditation. We delve into our psyche, uncovering those cancers on our soul which prevent us from becoming what we could become. These little "demons," to use the archaic term, are what stand in our way of experiencing the fullness of Higher Consciousness. It isn't easy. Sitting in meditation we can open a can of worms that we never suspected was there and the impact of this hitting your awareness all at once can literally make you jump from your sitting. Tremendous fear is aroused. There is only one cure and that is to go ahead and jump off into the unknown. The lesson is the leap of faith. With a history of safely going through this process repeatedly, and the knowledge that, in most cases, the experiences start slowly and progress slowly, the lesson of Sagittarius is assimilated.

Capricorn - Capricorn? Inward? Yes! The picture of the ruthless Capricorn, driving with all their might for earthly power is just the reflection of what happens when Capricorn's energy is not transformed by the action of the will on consciousness that began in Libra and is necessary for the manifestation of all the higher vibrations of the remaining signs. What I'm discussing here is what happens when the upper road is followed. In Sagittarius, new experiences were gathered, both outer physical and outer psychologically. For further journeying into the heart of darkness, the individual must be able to withstand the temptations of worldly power that Capricorn brings us. Self discipline has already been established or we would not have gotten this far. Capricorn requires one more indispensable ingredient - integrity: the ability to hold fast to principals and resist the seductiveness of the power of the spiritual path. Integrity can only be developed in interior contemplation and here another requirement for Capricorn energy is found. To the lesson of integrity is added the lesson of becoming a master of one's solitude.

Aquarius - Aquarius, the fall of the Sun. Correct. With Aquarian energy activated, ego dies. The process of merging with the Infinite becomes one of balancing one's principals so that your outer actions reflect your inner state. As a result you become an outcast from others. Society tells you that you're doing the wrong things, that you are being hard on yourself, that what you're doing is impossible: the litany continues. The tribe is trying to keep you in the fold and you must not let them. The energy of Aquarius requires that you forever abandon the safety of the group for the heights and isolation of the mountains. Aquarian energy gives you freedom, personal freedom. The energy in Aquarius knows that it has found the Truth. It is not the truth of the clan, but of the individual soul. The lesson that Aquarian energy impels us to learn is to accept our destiny and be the spiritual outcast, resisting all attempts to betray ourselves and join the tribe again.

Pisces - The culmination of all the processes of the spirit have led us to Pisces. The energy imparted by Pisces is the energy of Pure Consciousness. Witness consciousness has become firmly established and there is nothing else. In witness consciousness, the Universe acts through us. We no longer control our own lives yet we do: we have a paradox. There is one lesson yet to learn. That lesson is: cooperate. Cooperate with the Universe and with the power that flows through us into the world. When this lesson is learned, then we have the ultimate experience. We see the Unity of all life. Not just now and then, but as an ongoing second by second experience that allows us to create in the world the energy that has been bestowed on us. But first we must learn to cooperate with the energy in our lives. It is We are. I AM.

Jim Joy is a professional astrologer and writer. He has been "in" astrology for twelve years. His main astrological interests include Transformational Astrology (astrology as a tool for spiritual growth), Uranian, and Draconic astrology.

As an astrologer, he seeks to place the emphasis on finding solutions, and considers it very important never to present a possible problem without presenting its solution. His search for answers to his clients' problems has led him to learning the techniques of spiritual direction and the use of modalities drawn from modern psychology.

His focus in life is very much on the spiritual, but he includes all aspects of ones life in his definition of the spiritual. Jim is a Scorpio with Taurus rising and the Moon in Gemini, and lives with his dog and two cats in Austin, Texas. Please contact him by e-mail if you are interested in receiving astrological counseling.