MASCULINE: Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Aquarius.

FEMININE: Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces.

The zodiac can also be divided into three ‘qualities’, which describe the way people respond to their environment and those around them. Four signs fall into each of the three categories: Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable.

CARDINAL SIGNS

Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn make up the quartet of signs that are known as Cardinal signs. In general people with Cardinal signs are active, enterprising and high achievers, although this can spill over into pushiness and over-ambition. Precisely how these Cardinal characteristics are expressed varies between the signs. For instance, in Capricorn, the Cardinal instincts will direct that person towards their career or public prestige. In Cancer, on the other hand, this energy will be directed towards the family, home life and emotional security, elements in the Sun sign of Cancer. Usually, where Cardinal signs lead others follow.

FIXED SIGNS

Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius make up the Fixed signs. As the name suggests, their qualities include consistency, loyalty and dependability. The Fixed nature usually denies change and can play King Cnut in their ability to challenge fundamental and natural law. Taureans are happiest in a predictable lifestyle, Leos like to know where they stand, whether in a relationship or a job, Scorpios prefer to keep things to themselves having examined and explored a situation – fixity therefore represents the status quo which they happily know. The contradiction to the rule is Aquarius, who adores change and new things. However, they are often loath to let go of what they already have.

MUTABLE SIGNS

Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces make up this group. In stark contrast to the Fixed signs, this group indicates flexibility, adaptability and an ability to move on and be mentally on the ball at all times. Very often this quartet enjoy having two or more things on the go at once. Gemini’s are notorious for getting bored – by having a second string to their bow they can work out their angst by moving onto something different when the time comes.

Here again the way the planets divide themselves between the qualities tells us much about a person’s personality. A large number of planets in Fixed signs, for instance, indicates someone who can be rigid in their views, perhaps even dogmatic. On the other hand, a preponderance of planets in Mutable signs suggests someone who is constantly changing and is unable to stick to anything for any length of time.

The zodiac can be divided up into the four essential elements of life: Fire, Earth, Air and Water. None of us can survive without each of them – we need fire for warmth, the earth to feed ourselves, the air to breathe and water to drink. The number of planets that fall into each of these categories can tell us much about a person’s fundamental personality.

FIRE SIGNS

Aries, Leo and Sagittarius are the three Fire signs. They are each energetic and enthusiastic signs; they represent a burning desire to be creative and expressive.

EARTH SIGNS

Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn are the three signs that fall into this category. As their name suggests, they represent more down to earth qualities such as steadiness and stability. They also represent a practical nature and an instinct to gain materially.

AIR SIGNS

This group is made up of Gemini, Libra and Aquarius. They each indicate a nature that thirsts for knowledge and communication. They also show a rational and intellectual quality.

WATER SIGNS

Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces are the Water signs. They represent sensitivity and an artistic nature. Water signs also suggest an eagerness to experience their true feelings. They are also a signal of psychic qualities.

The way the planets are divided into these four categories offers some telling insights into people’s personalities. If someone’s chart

indicates they have more planets in Air and Fire signs, for instance, this suggests an ability to express and communicate well. At the same time, a lack of Earth and Water signs suggest an inability to tune into other people emotionally as well as a lack of practicality.

Around 21 March – around 20 April

Symbol: The Ram Quality: Cardinal Element: Fire Ruler: Mars

Since Greek times Aries has been linked with the vernal equinox or first day of spring (autumn down in the Southern Hemisphere), when the days and nights are of equal length once more, but the Sun is ready to dominate the sky again. So for thousands of years it has been associated with the emergence of the ego, and the individual’s breaking away from the collective human world where he has lived until now. (To understand the background to the signs better, think of the collective nature of humanity as the darkness and the individual nature as the light.) For this reason, Aries is associated with the assertiveness and initiative needed to establish itself on its own. Its association with Mars, its ruling planet, can lend this energy an aggressive and impetuous edge as well. As the sign of the emerging ego, Aries is also associated with immaturity and naivety.

As a result, planets placed in Aries show their qualities by leading rather than following. They show themselves as individuals first and foremost, remaining true to their emerging selves. However, the Ram can sometimes be a ewe or lamb and follow the flock that depends on the position of the other planets to the Aries placements.

KEY WORDS: Dynamic, energetic, impulsive, passionate, egotistical.

Around 21 April – around 20 May

Symbol: The Bull Quality: Fixed Element: Earth Ruler: Venus

Taurus once represented the beginning of the zodiac. In Egypt it was during the period of Taurus that the cattle and oxen ploughed the fields. As a result, it has always been associated with earthiness and practicality. It has also been a byword for steadfastness, something that was underlined by the star Aldebaran, ‘the bull’s eye’, which sat fixed in the middle of the section of the sky that was Taurus. The bull has also been long been associated with fertility, both in terms of agriculture and sex.

Its links with Venus and the goddesses of love go back to Babylon and the battle of Gilgamesh, when Ishtar, the goddess of love, sent a bull into battle on her behalf. It’s no mistake that when Jupiter wanted to ravish the nymph Europa he transformed himself into a bull. Venus remains Taurus’s ruler in modern astrology. Again, today it is the most fertile and fruitful of signs. Planets in Taurus reflect its nature by behaving in a way that is linked to the bull’s traditional qualities of stability and abundance.

KEY WORDS: Practical, possessive, stoic, faithful, artistic.

Around 21 May – around 21 June

Symbol: The Twins Quality: Mutable Element: Air Ruler: Mercury

The constellation of Gemini is dominated by two stars of seemingly similar sizes. In mythology these were representative of Castor and Pollux, the inseparable twin sons of Zeus. While Pollux was immortal, Castor was not. When his brother died, Pollux insisted on being placed in the heavens alongside him. Together, Zeus decreed they should spend half their time in heaven and half in the underworld.

This notion of the divine twins repeats itself throughout mythology, from the Indian Ashvins, a pair of healers born to the Sun god, Surya, to Nissyen and Evnissyen, the very different siblings in the Cymraeg (Welsh) epic, the Mabinogion. While Nissyen is a peacemaker, Evnissyen provokes war. So it is no surprise that duality, ‘two sides’, is the element most commonly associated with the sign of Gemini. Gemini is symbolic of the struggle between the positive and the negative aspect of a personality, between the light and the dark, perhaps the ying and the yang. The intellectual side of Gemini is drawn from Mercury, its ruling planet.

Planets in Gemini tend to reflect the duality of the sign. For instance, the Sun in Gemini can reflect itself in a need for adventure and travel that betrays a restlessness to find the real self.

KEY WORDS: Clever, cerebral, versatile, volatile, mercurial.

Around 22 June – around 23 July

Symbol: The Crab Quality: Cardinal Element: Water Ruler: Moon

The Egyptians symbolized Cancer with a scarab beetle, while the Greeks denoted it with a turtle or tortoise. Later, however, it became the sign of the crab – like its predecessors, a creature with a hard exterior and a soft interior.

In the annual cycle of the Sun, Cancer marks the summer solstice (winter in the Southern Hemisphere), the time of the year when the longest day (and therefore the shortest night) occurs. It is, if you like, a moment of maturity, much like an adolescent reaching adulthood. Just as Aries marks the beginning of the journey away from collective humankind towards the individual, so Cancer represents the moment when the Sun turns back. The ego has essentially reached its high-point and is ready to be merged into society once more. For this reason, Cancer represents home and family, and their protection.

Cancer is also ruled by the Moon, which means it is also strongly feminine and in touch with its emotions, something that is underlined by its position as the first of the Water signs, of which we will see more later. The powerful, lunar influence also lends this sector of the zodiac a moodiness and insecurity. Planets placed in Cancer reflect themselves by nurturing relationships, and bringing out instinctive and intuitive aspects of the personality.

KEY WORDS: Habit-forming, tenacious, sensitive, moody, emotional.

Around 24 July – around 23 August

Symbol: The Lion Quality: Fixed Element: Fire Ruler: Sun

Leo’s lion symbol was probably derived from an Egyptian goddess, Sekhmet, a lion-headed deity who represented the Sun at its height in the sky at mid-day. This time of the year also coincided with the Sun at its brightest in the sky. Since then, the king of the planets, the Sun, and the king of the animals have been strongly linked. Leo is associated with so-called regal qualities such as fearlessness, courage and wisdom. As we saw while looking at the planets, the power of the Sun can be a force for creativity and dignity, but, if left to run amok, can lead to a need to conquer, rule and dominate as well.

The planets reflect different aspects of these qualities when they reside in Leo. For instance, Mercury can display his creative abilities through thoughts and ideas.

KEY WORDS: Proud, noble, generous, creative, warm-hearted.

Around 24 August – around 23 September

Symbol: The Virgin Quality: Mutable Element: Earth Ruler: Mercury

Virgo is associated with the harvest season. Indeed, the allegory or symbol for the sign represents the harvest goddess holding grain. It is during this season that summer gives way to mellow autumn. In a personal sense, this marks the transformation from a virginal or childlike state into a more mature, fully grown personality. With the transition from the individual now complete, this is also the phase when devotion to the collective needs of others is at its most heightened. For this reason, Virgo has long been seen as the sign of service, associated with carers and healers.

Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the planet of the mind, but because Virgo is an Earth sign, this results in a more analytical and precise kind of intellect than in Gemini. Planets in Virgo reflect these qualities; for instance, the Sun in Virgo focuses on creating a world that is perfect in every fine detail, while the Moon in Virgo will concentrate on caring for the feelings of others.

KEY WORDS: Systematic, discerning, critical, conscientious, helpful.

Around 24 September – around 23 October

Symbol: The Scales Quality: Cardinal Element: Air Ruler: Venus

Libra represents the period of the autumn equinox (spring in the Southern Hemisphere), another important transitional moment in the year. Once more, the days and nights are of the same length. Unlike Aries – when the forces of daylight are growing stronger – during Libra, night is beginning to dominate once more. As with Virgo, this reflects itself in the needs of the collective whole taking precedence over the individual. Indeed it is the opposite of Aries – the sign of the self – and is associated with partnerships and marriage in particular. This period is therefore all about balance, hence the symbolism of Libra, the scales, constantly weighing up situations.

In general, Libra brings out the least self-centred aspects of the planets. For instance, Mars’s energy can be turned to fighting for equality, while Mercury’s flair for communication can be used for diplomatic purposes.

KEY WORDS: Harmonious, tactful, refined, fair, indecisive.