Eris is so slow moving that its sign is not that important, but rather its house and aspects.Eris, named after the Greek goddess that set off the Trojan war by throwing the golden apple into the circle of goddesses that would ultimately be for the fairest of them all. The goddesses (Athena, Aphrodite and Hera) competed for the apple, and the Trojan war was the famous result.
Eris is a troublemaker: the goddess of strife and discord, and her Roman name was Discordia.
Eris is a sister of Ares, the god of war, and as a nurse to dying soldiers she has been known to fill their hearts with hate and the desire for revenge. Aeschylus says, "discord is the last of the gods to close an argument."
Eris is likely to rule over the domain of revenge which has previously fallen under Pluto's realm. The role of Eris in the Trojan War did not begin from spite but from wounded feelings since Eris was not invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. So Eris is concerned with wounds to the ego that result in a disturbed psyche.
Hesiod saw a more positive side to Eris: "She pushes the shiftless man to work, for all his laziness. A man looks at his neighbour, who is rich: then he too wants work; for the rich man presses on with his ploughing and planting and ordering of his estate. So the neighbour envies the neighbour who presses on toward wealth. Such Eris (Strife) is a good friend to mortals."
Perhaps this is the lesson that Eris comes to teach:
Herakles was making his way through a narrow pass. He saw something that looked like an apple lying on the ground and he tried to smash it with his club. After having been struck by the club, the thing swelled up to twice its size. Herakles struck it again with his club, even harder than before, and the thing then expanded to such a size that it blocked Herakles's way. Herakles let go of his club and stood there, amazed. Athena saw him and said, 'O Herakles, don't be so surprised! This thing that has brought about your confusion is Aporia (Contentiousness) and Eris (Strife). If you just leave it alone, it stays small; but if you decide to fight it, then it swells from its small size and grows large."
- Aesop, Fables 534 (from Chambry 129)
Eris may embody the principle that a small gesture can instigate a big chaos (she is after all referred to as the goddess of discord AND chaos.
The principle of scarcity is what causes competition: if there is more than enough of everything to go around, as the principle of abundance teaches, then competition isn't necessary. There can be more than one true religion, more than one best athlete, more than one beautiful goddess.
So perhaps the light in this dark tunnel of strife and discord is in expanding our sense of trust in the Universe even when we feel it is collapsing in on us. This has historically been Pluto's realm, and perhaps as we become more attuned to the transformational process the process itself is becoming more specific as it divides between Eris (the strife and discord that creates the endings), Pluto (going into the underworld of endings and grief), and Ceres (the process of regeneration).
--- So, what are your experiences with Eris? What house does it land in? Strong aspects?...