Astrology For Dummies. Rae Orion

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СКАЧАТЬ of transformation.

       Sagittarius pursues independence, adventure, education, and the wisdom of philosophy or religion. It is the sign of the seeker.

       Capricorn elevates purpose, shoulders responsibility, and creates civilization. It is the sign of structure.

       Aquarius seeks liberation, focuses on society, and simultaneously supports individuality. It is the sign of community.

       Pisces embodies compassion and the spiritual side of life. It is the sign of dreams and the imagination. It also oversees chaos, out of which will arise the creative fire of Aries. And so the cycle will begin anew.

      OPHIUCHUS AND THE 13TH SIGN

      It happens every few years, as reliable as the force of gravity: Someone announces that there are 13 constellations in the zodiac, not 12. Uproar ensues.

      This folly became a story in 1970, when a book called Astrology 14 by Steven Schmidt argued that two large constellations — Cetus the Whale, and Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer — lie along the band of the ecliptic and therefore the zodiac should be expanded to include them. The book received enormous publicity, including a write-up in Time magazine, and the idea caught on, although not entirely. Cetus, which barely grazes the ecliptic, never inspired much of a following. But Ophiuchus, a large constellation squeezed in between Scorpius and Sagittarius, did.

      Since then, books advocating for the addition of Ophiuchus as the13th sign have appeared with thudding regularity. In 1995, British astrologer Walter Berg published The 13 Signs of the Zodiac, which sold respectably in the United Kingdom but became a giant bestseller when it was translated into Japanese and published there. In 2011, the story flared up again when the Minnesota Planetarium Society announced that the constellations had moved. Ophiuchus was now part of zodiac, they said, and astrologers ought to sit up and pay attention. The BBC reported the findings. Fox news reported the findings. Even Time, which first publicized the story in 1970, weighed in. Their article began, “The cosmic news broke without warning.”

      For the zillionth time, astrologers responded. They acknowledged that due to the precession of the equinoxes, the constellations have shifted (a fact I discuss on a previous page). It’s not news to astrologers.

      Nor does it matter, because in western astrology, the signs are determined by the Sun’s position on the ecliptic, not by the stars. On the vernal equinox, when day and night are roughly equal, the Sun enters the portion of the ecliptic known as Aries and the astrological year begins. The other signs follow, 30 degrees at a time. The stars and constellations do not determine sign.

      So might you be an Ophiuchan? In a word, no. Not in this world.

The sign that the Sun occupied at the instant of your birth is the most basic astrological fact about you. It defines your ego, motivations, and approach to life. But the Sun isn’t the only planet, and your Sun sign isn’t your only sign. (For astrological purposes, both luminaries — the Sun and the Moon — are called planets. Do yourself a favor and don’t use this terminology when talking to astronomers.) Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto represent distinct types of energy, each of which expresses itself in the style of the sign it happens to occupy. When you look at your chart, you will see that not every sign has a planet within its borders. Nonetheless, every sign is in your chart somewhere. The entire zodiac resides within each of us.

Astrologically speaking, your Sun sign is the most essential fact about you. To determine your sign, use Table 1-1. But remember that the dates vary slightly from year to year. That’s because a circle has 360 degrees, with each sign allotted precisely 30 degrees. But a year has 365 days, not counting leap years. Thanks to that inconvenient difference, the signs don’t divide into days as neatly as one might wish, and minor variations pop up regularly. Take the first day of Cancer the Crab. Usually it’s June 21. But in 2012, 2016, and occasional other years, it was June 20. The bottom line? If you were born on the first or final day of any sign — that is, if you were born “on the cusp” — I advise caution. Before you don that Sagittarian sweatshirt or invest in that Scorpio tattoo, get an accurate copy of your natal chart and check your Sun sign.

TABLE 1-1 The Sun Signs

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Sign	Dates	Symbol
Aries the Ram	March 20–April 18
Taurus the Bull	April 19–May 20
Gemini the Twins	May 21–June 20
Cancer the Crab	June 21–July 22
Leo the Lion	July 23–August 22
Virgo the Virgin	August 23–September 22
Libra the Scales	September 23–October 22
Scorpio the Scorpion	October 23–November 21
Sagittarius the Archer	November 22–December 21
Capricorn the Goat	December 22–January 19
Aquarius the Water Bearer