Pisces - Sun Sign - Dates: 12th March to 18th April
Definition: [Sun Signs - Solar Zodiac] [See also: Age of Pisces] Pisces, the sign of the Fishes, is the 1st sign of the Real Solar Zodiac.
Pisces Astrology: Below can be found the fundamentals of the astrology of Pisces. The quotations are from the Magnum Opus of astrology, Tetrabiblos, composed by Claudius Ptolemy [c 130 - 170 AD] - the father of Classical astrology.
| The Power of the Fixed Stars: | "Of the stars in Pisces, those in the head of the southern Fish act in the same way as Mercury and somewhat as does Saturn; those in the body, as do Jupiter and Mercury; those in the tail and the southern cord, as do Saturn and, in some degree, Mercury; those in the body and backbone of the northern Fish, as do Jupiter and, in some degree, Venus; those in the northern part of the cord, as do Saturn and Jupiter; and the bright star on the bond, as do Mars and, in some degree, Mercury." |
| Character of the Sign: | "Bicorporeal" [now Equinoctial (Cardinal) - see below] |
| Planet and House: | "Jupiter; Feminine Aspect." [now Venus; Feminine Aspect - see below] |
| Triangles: | "The Fourth Triangle - Feminine: Cancer, Scorpius, Pisces. Assigned to Mars, the Moon by night and Venus by day are co-rulers." |
| Exaltations and Depressions: | "Venus exalts in Pisces. Mercury is depressed in Pisces." |
| The Egyptian Terms: | "Venus = 12; Jupiter = 4; Merkur = 3; Mars = 9; Saturn = 2" |
| The Chaldean Terms: | "Venus = 8; Jupiter = 6; Merkur = 6; Mars = 5; Saturn = 5" |
| Countries: | "Phazania, Nasamonitis, Garamantica; in the centre, Lydia, Cilicia, Pamphylia. " |
| Effect upon the Weather: | "The sign of Pisces as a whole is cold and windy; but, taken part by part, its leading portion is temperate, its middle moist, and its following portion hot. Its northern parts are windy and its southern watery." |
Movement of the Ages : Ptolemy's astrology described the heavens in the Age of Aries. However, nearly two thousand years later we are now in the Age of Pisces. Therefore, some of the astrological features noted above are no longer accurate. Pisces is no longer a Bicoporeal sign, but is now an Equinoctial sign, marking the Vernal Equinox. In modern terminology this makes it a cardinal sign. [See Tetrabiblos Book i Chapter 11]
Which planet makes its 'house' in Pisces [in modern terms the planetary ruler] is even more complex. In the Age of Taurus, 4000 years ago, Leo was the Summer Solstice sign in the northern hemisphere and hence the Sun made its 'house' in Leo and the rest of the signs followed from this starting point. But by the time of Ptolemy, in the Age of Aries, Cancer was the Solstice sign and should have been assigned the Sun. However Ptolemy assigns Leo the Sun. Even Ptolemy kept out-dated astrology, as we do today. [See Tetrabiblos Book i Chapter 17] In our time at the end of the Age of Pisces, Gemini is the Solstice sign and so should be assigned the Sun. Hence in the Age of Pisces the planet Venus makes its 'house' in Pisces.
|
The Powers of the Stars of Pisces: |
Pisces, the Fishes. From Uranometria, Johann Bayer, Augsburg, 1603 AD. The horizontal dashed line is the Ecliptic, with the darkened area the band of Planetary Zodiac. The line running through the Ecliptic and the head of the second fish of Pisces is the Celestial Equator. It crosses the Ecliptic at the Vernal Equinox Point, which, when this map was drawn was just entering the the region of the tail of the second fish of Pisces. It is now much closer to the head of that fish because of the Movement of the Ages. |
| Sun Sign | Meaning | Dates | |
| 01: | Pisces | the Fishes | 12 Mar to 18 Apr |
| 02: | Aries | the Ram | 19 Apr to 13 May |
| 03: | Taurus | the Bull | 14 May to 19 Jun |
| 04: | Gemini | the Twins | 20 Jun to 20 Jul |
| 05: | Cancer | the Crab | 21 Jul to 9 Aug |
| 06: | Leo | the Lion | 10 Aug to 15 Sep |
| 07: | Virgo | the Maiden | 16 Sep to 30 Oct |
| 08: | Libra | the Scales | 31 Oct to 22 Nov |
| 09: | Scorpius | the Scorpion | 23 Nov to 29 Nov |
| 10: | Ophiuchus | the Serpent Bearer | 30 Nov to 17 Dec |
| 11 | Sagittarius | the Archer | 18 Dec to 18 Jan |
| 12: | Capricornus | the Sea Goat | 19 Jan to 15 Feb |
| 13: | Aquarius | the Water Carrier | 16 Feb to 11 Mar |
| * | The Non-Zodiac Constellations | ||
© Dr Shepherd Simpson, Astrological Historian
Historical Astrology
See the new Astrological Index for the meaning of other astrological words and phrases