Myth of the Month

This may not at all sound as it could have something to do with Libra, but the story goes like this:

Teiresias one day happens into the sacred grove of Hera, where he comes upon two snakes coupling in the grass. The moment is ill chosen, for it shows that Hera and Zeus have been quarrelling about who has the greatest pleasure out of the sexual act, the man or the woman.

Teiresias shouldn't have stopped to watch those snakes, for later Hera shows herself to him and in her wrath turns him into a woman. He now has to live as a woman for seven years with all what that entails. Thereafter he returns to the grove to see the snakes once again coupling. Hera now transforms him back into a man and he is required to judge in hers and Zeus´ quarrel, as he now has the unusual experience of both man and woman.

Now, let's remember Teiresias is a Libra , so he feels he has to give a truthful answer and he says that it is the woman who has the greater sexual pleasure. Hera is enraged, as she has made Zeus believe that men get the greater pleasure. She strikes Teiresias blind, but Zeus takes pity on him and gives him the gift of prophecy.

It is also told that after Teiresias dies, he is the only mortal soul in the underworld that keeps his intellect intact.

The connection to Libra:

Teiresias is a strange figure and the connection to Libra is maybe both the fact that he has the experience of androgyny. Libra is the only sign in the zodiac that is not connected to man or animal. It's a "thing". It's ruled by the intellect - air - and often placements in Libra tells of intellectual achievements or interests.

In Libra balance in all things lie beneath most issues. Teiresias experiences a kind of balance between the female and the male, something that is often at play with Libras.

But this balance is not limited to male - female experiences. It has also to do with how one perceives the universe. Often Libras need an orderly structure where everything is meted out in a just way. The gods are supposed to be just and fair - but stop! Look at Teiresias. He said what he felt was most true and he got struck blind for doing that. The universe and the gods weren't good and just after all, he learned this the hard way. And because of that he also got the gift on inner vision (which is told elsewhere in myth too), and this inner vision enables him to stay conscious also in the underworld where everyone else succumbs.

What is that supposed to mean? Surely it doesn't mean a Libra is immortal? No, I don't think so, but the intellectual capabilities are a necessity to help us out of the difficulties we can encounter when the unconscious threatens to engulf us.