posted March 11, 2006 11:39 PM              

Aries...the impulse to be...the will to survive. It is the Spring Equinox...the Season of lengthening light. Seeds that have been slumbering below the ground since harvestime of the previous Autumn push upward, eager to be born. The sprout bursts forth into a new world, which is cold and often unpredictable. The innocent possess the courage to take on life and the fortitude to survive the winds of March.
Taurus...the desire to be...the appreciation of earthly sensation. Spring seeks and finds fullness. The air is rife with the melodies of life...in the rushing of the stream and the harmonious trill of the bird. The Earth is lush and green...an inviting place. The community tends to crops and hands are dug deep into the soil. Domesticated animals breed. May Day is an abandoned celebration of sensuality and delight in all that the Earth has to offer.

Gemini...the impulse to bloom and pollinate...buzz and share. The Season of Spring enters its final phase and the sprout of the Equinox is now in full bloom. Bees buzz busily from blossom to blossom and bright breezes carry the pollen. Everything seeks to know the other and life is effervescent in its enthusiasm. With the work of Spring completed, it is time to visit neighboring hamlets and share in the stories of Winter.

Cancer...the impulse to protect and nest. The Summer Solstice makes its entrance. Cancer begins with the longest day of the year. Full bloom gives way to the freshly-formed fruit and long, warm days summon forth new creatures into the world. The Earth is protective of her young and, in private reverie, reflects on the chain of life.

Leo...the urge to shine...the desire to be. Summer reaches fullness and the days are hot. With growing done, only ripening remains to be completed. Wheat dons its golden husks and the cheeks of crisp apples adopt a radiant blush. The early harvest fruits are the most succulent in this, the Season of Plenty. The world is now a stage and each individuals wants to shine like a star upon its burnished boards.

Virgo...the need to organize and analyze...to prepare for the harvest. Summer comes to its inevitable end as life adds a final touch to perfect the harvest. It is now time to store the bounty of the Earth. Life analyses this bounty, the needs of the community and plans the crop for the year which will follow. A detailed and organized determination is made. Some grain will serve as feed...some as future seed.

Libra...the need to partner...the urge to bring together. It is the dawn of the Fall Equinox. Day and night pause at a point of equality. Light dwindles as nights grow long. An awareness of chilly evenings soon to come creates the desire to share a nest. The crisp air of the day is a canvas of leaf paintings and the delicate filigree of early frost. With preparation and organization completed, the community gathers for the harvest of fruit and grains. Time in the sun has come to an end.

Scorpio...the desire to go beneath the surface...to merge. Life upon Earth's exterior mantle dies. The strength of the plant returns to the root, the potential of the flower secreted in the seed. Below the surace, life burns...waiting to erupt. The visible world has vanished, but mystery remains and individuals learn to see with more than merely the eye. With patience, the hidden lifeforce will wait...and plot its return.

Sagittarius...the desire to contemplate, to understand and to philosophize. The work of the Season is done. The harvest is stored and hopefully in sufficient abundance to serve the community until Spring. Fires burn brightly in hearths, illuminating the darkness of night and casting pictures upon the wall. Within imagination, visits are made to faraway places. The mind ponders on life's greater purpose...the meaning of existence and its purpose on Earth.

Capricorn...the need to conserve...the survival of the clan. Born on the longest night of the year, Capricorn enters on the heels of the Winter Solstice. The world is cold with limited resources and the harvest must be made to last until Spring. Light and heat are precious commodities, but the silence of a clear winter night is often likened to that of a lullaby. There is a struggle for space within the hierarchy of the community. Darkness is a dominating factor, but each new day tarries a little longer than the one before, demonstrating a slow but steady climb toward warmer times. Eventually, the Year will begin again.

Aquarius...the urge to individuate. Confined within the shelter but awakened by the lengthening light, the social animal demands freedom. The spark of such desire becomes apparent in all life...the bear in the cave and the sprout within the seed. Those imprisoned by the cold of Winter are summoned by the increasing day. Individuals observe those around them, fascinated by human nature. Together, each individual squirrel recalls the timetable followed by all squirrels and a great choir sings, "I want to be me!"

Pisces...the need to dissolve, to shape-shift and become one with a larger truth. Spring is not far away. Winter wants to dissolve into a new cycle of growth. The ice desires to melt and return once more to the oceans and seas. It seeps into the ground, becoming one with the soil, and rises into the air to encircle the Earth and return as rain. The seed gives up the shell that makes it a seed, in order that it might now become a sprout...birth requires sacrifice. The old must persih for the new to discover itself. This is the Season which knows what others might question...the great mystical oneness that transcends all physical form, time and space.

...And it was morning as God stood before his twelve children and into each of them planted the seed of human life. One by one, each child stepped forward to receive the appointed gift...

"To you, Aries, I give the seed first that you might have the honor of planting it. That for every seed you plant, one million more will multiply in your hand. You will not have time to see the seed grow, for everything you plant creates more than must be planted. You will be the first to penetrate the soil of men's minds with My Idea. But it is not your job to nourish the Idea, nor to question it. Your life is action and the only action I ascribe to you is to begin making men aware of My Creation. For your good work, I give you the virtue of Self Esteem."
...Quietly, Aries stepped back into place.

"To you, Taurus, I give the power to build the seed into substance. Your job is a great one, requiring patience, for you must finish all that has been started or the seeds will be wasted to the wind. You are not to question nor change your mind in the middle nor to depend upon others for what I ask you to do. For this, I give you the gift of Strength. Use it wisely."
...And Taurus stepped back into place.

"To you, Gemini, I give the questions without answers, so that you may bring to all an understanding of what man sees around him. You will never know why men speak or listen, but in your quest for the answer, you will find my gift of Knowlege."
...And Gemini stepped back into place.

"To you, Cancer, I ascribe the task of teaching men about emotions. My Idea is for you to cause them laughter and tears so that all they see and think develops fullness from inside. For this, I give you the gift of Family, that your fullness may multiply."
...And Cancer stepped back into place.

"To you, Leo, I give the job of displaying My Creation in all its brilliance to the world. But you must be careful of pride and always remember that it is My Creation and not your own. For if you forget this, men will scorn you. There is much joy in the job I give to you, if you but do it well. For this, you are to have the gift of Honor."
...And Leo stepped back into place.

"To you, Virgo, I ask for an examination of all man has done with My Creation. You are to scrutinize his ways sharply and remind him of his errors so that, through him, My Creation may be perfected. For doing this, I give you the gift of Purity of Thought."
...And Virgo stepped back into place.

"To you, Libra, I give the mission of service, that man may be mindful of his duties to others and that he may learn cooperation, as well as the ability to reflect the other side of his actions. I will put you everywhere there is discord and, for your efforts, I will give you the gift of Love."
...And Libra stepped back into place.

"To you, Scorpio, I give a very difficult task. You will have the ability to know the minds of men, but I do not permit you to speak about what you learn. Many times, you will be pained by what you see and, in your pain, will turn away from Me. You will forget that it is not I but the perversion of My Idea that is causing you pain. You will see so much of man that you will come to know him as an animal and wrestle so much with his animal instincts in yourself, that you will lose your way. But, when you finally come back to me, Scorpio, I have for you the supreme gift of Purpose."
...And Scorpio stepped back into place.

"Sagittarius, I ask that you make men laugh, for amidst their understanding of My Idea, they become bitter. Through laughter, you are to give man hope and, through hope, turn his eyes back to Me. You will touch many lives...if but for a moment...and you will know the restlessness in every life you touch. To you, Sagittarius, I give the gift of Infinite Abundance, that you may spread wide enough to reach every corner of darkness and bring it light."
...And Sagittarius stepped back into place.

"Of you, Capricorn, I ask the toil of your brow, that you might teach men to work. Your task is not an easy one, for you will feel all of man's labors upon your shoulders...but the yoke of your burdens contains the Responsibility of man, which I put in your hands."
...And Capricorn stepped back into place.

"To you, Aquarius, I give the concept of future that man might see other possibilities. You will have the pain of loneliness, for I do not allow you to personalize My Love. But, for turning man's eyes to new possibilities, I give the gift of Freedom. That is your liberty and you may continue to serve mankind wherever he needs you."
...And Aquarius stepped back into place.

"To you, Pisces, I give the most difficult task of them all. I ask you to collect all of man's sorrows and return them to Me. Your tears are to be ultimately My Tears. The sorrow you absorb is the effect of man's misunderstanding of My Idea, but you are to give him compassion that he may try again. For this, the most difficult task of them all, I give you the greatest gift of them all. You will be the only one of my twelve children to understand Me. But this gift of understanding is for you, Pisces, for when you try to spread it to man, he will not listen."
...And Pisces stepped back into place.

...Then, God said: "You each have a part of My Idea. You must not mistake that part for all of My Idea, nor may you trade parts with each other. Each one of you is perfect, but you will not know that until all twelve of you are One. Then, the whole of My Idea will be revealed to each of you."

...And the children left, determined to accomplish the job assigned to the best of their ability, that each might receive God's gift...but none fully understood the task undertaken or the promised gift and when puzzled, they returned, God said: "You each believe that the other gifts are better. Therefore, I will allow you to trade." And, for the moment, each child was elated, considering all the possibilities of the new mission.

...But God smiled as he said: "You will return to Me many times asking to be relieved of your mission and, each time, I will grant your wish. You will experience countless incarnations before you complete the original mission I have prescribed to you. I give you countless time in which to do this but, only when it is done, can you be with Me."

posted March 13, 2006 12:41 AM              

Thanks for posting this! Interesting way to look at the entire wheel of the zodiac as a spiritual unit. It also points out where the seasons focus of the "tropical" zodiac comes from.

Wheeling,