Aquarius

What the sign is like

Aquarius is fixed air, thought that has settled. The older books saw it as the most humane of the signs, drawing its sympathy from all of humanity rather than from one circle.

It is tolerant and sensible and never a fanatic. It brings new ideas into the world gently, helping what is already there to grow rather than tearing it down.

Its challenge is the emergency. It prefers patience and calm when quick action is needed, and its care for the big cause can make it seem distant from one person in pain.

With other people

Friendship is where Aquarius shines. It values friends who share ideas and help each other in practical ways.

At home it is respectful and gives the people it loves their freedom. In love it can find it hard to focus all that care on one person, and when it does, it is sincere.

The older books paired Aquarius with the other air signs, Gemini and Libra. With Taurus, Leo and Scorpio they said Aquarius should hold its ground.

How it was read before

The old picture is a figure pouring water from an urn. The books read it as the urge to give, which grows into the joy of sharing what you know.

Aquarius stands for the human face among the four living creatures of the fixed signs: the bull, the lion, the eagle and the human. The older books said Aquarius holds the best of the other three in balance.

Before Uranus was found in 1781, Saturn ruled Aquarius. By the 1920s it had passed to Uranus.

Its tarot card

The card most decks pair with Aquarius is The Star. The 1927 book I draw on names no card for this sign, so I follow the Golden Dawn's pairing, the one printed on most decks.

The Star is hope after hard times. The figure on the card pours water just as the Water Bearer does. It is a quiet promise that healing is possible for everyone.

Sit with this

You care about the world. Let the world care about you, too.

Sit with this: is there one person near you who needs your warmth more than your wisdom right now?