D-12 ELEMENTS

Choose Your Sign [ Capricorn ] [ Aquarius ] [ Pisces ] [ Aries ] [ Taurus ] [ Gemini ] [ Cancer ] [ Leo ] [ Virgo ] [ Libra ] [ Scorpio ] [ Sagittarius ]

The Sea-Goat is a mythological figure symbolizing the dual nature of Capricorn. It alludes to the evolution of spirit from the sea of the collective unconscious to physical materialization and embodiment on earth. If you've retained the sympathetic nature of your fish-self, you'll eventually rise to serve humanity. But a duality of choices offers you the option of scaling the mountain to gain control over those below for selfish, personal ends. However, Capricorn represents the father figure, and unless you've been severely wounded by your own father, you probably have the welfare of the community or family at heart. You enjoy regulating and managing others' affairs and take pride in providing for,directing and protecting others.

Your keyword is SELF-MASTERY. You strive to be in control of your life and use it as a selling point to manage or master others. Constantly aware of your actions, you present a public image of confidence, poise and virtuosity. You may cut loose occasionally, but only behind closed doors. You're practical, serious and methodical with a cautious, careful attitude, because taking chances makes you unsteady and insecure. Unfounded fears, impatience or an insatiable appetite for power could bring out your unsympathetic, dictatorial, opportunistic side.

The ancient Egyptians associated Aquarius with a vital spiritual force that nourished and renewed life. Pictured as a man or woman pouring life-giving waters from an urn, the symbol portrays humanitarian efforts to nourish the earth with the spirit of collective humanity through communication of ideas and feelings. New life springs up with water --your sign is associated with what is new. You're often first at thinking and doing things that others follow. You're an idealistic, independent, inventive thinker -- quick-witted, positive, excitable and, when necessary, aggressive and combative. Your vision, purpose, or ideal is sharing your brilliant ideas with others in an effort to enlighten them for their own good.

Your keyword is ENLIGHTENMENT. Your sympathetic nature causes you to deeply sense mankind's suffering. Consequently, your attitude toward others is generous, kind, and humane. Guided by your innate foresight and appreciation for the brotherhood of man, you envision a utopian future for the human race in which everyone treats each other alike, regardless of gender, color, nationality or background. You're aroused to contribute to society by dispensing your humanitarian ideals, and carefully ponder the most expedient ways to inspire understanding among others. Realistic, practical, determined, persistent and faithful, you can become melancholic, despondent, retiring, stubborn, aggressive or rebellious when restricted.

Your symbol, the two fishes, dates back to Egypt around 2,300 BC. In the constellation of Pisces, one fish faces east and swims upward while the other swims west along the plane of the ecliptic, signifying a duality of nature. The eastern fish suggests an upward ascent or a heavenly/spiritual disposition; the western fish, a mundane/earthly alignment. You're more likely to head toward the spiritual direction of the eastern fish, which seems most intent upon altering its course. The alternate reality you envision and create with fantasy, dreams, meditation and spiritual bliss is much more attractive to you than the trials, tribulations and sorrow you encounter on the material plane. In the extreme, you could become an ascetic addicted to spiritual attainment, turning your back on the world.

Your keyword is UNIFICATION. Rather than retreating into TV, drugs, or drinking, you can tune into your higher self through meditation. You can channel wisdom and guidance for your own and others' practical, earthly good. Have your cake and eat it too by uniting your inner spiritual aspirations with your physical experiences. You enjoy practicing meditation in various forms including dance, yoga, loving devotion and contemplation. Its benefits will filter down into your everyday life, helping you rise above your emotions, fears, false imaginings and superstitions.

The ram first appeared as a symbol in early Egypt. It was depicted as the head of Amun, considered to be the leading deity whom all other gods followed. Aries is a leader by right of its position as first in the zodiac. Occurring at the beginning of spring, Aries represents the latent life-force of the previous cycle just starting to create growth. Your enterprising nature is reflective of the force of this energy reserve, ready to renew itself in actualization. To be independent, self-assertive, and to set an action in motion are your prime objectives.

ACTION is your keyword. Normally brave and courageous, you can be depended upon to assess a situation, take charge and act without delay in an emergency. However, your ambition, enthusiasm and need to see quick results may outweigh your capacity for patience and follow-through. Count to 10 before acting and speaking, so as to weed out any tendencies toward rash, impulsive and reckless action. You'll have to incorporate discipline as well as cooperation, if you want your creative potential to be fully expressed and for the projects you begin to be brought to fruition.

Worship of Taurus' symbol, the bull, was celebrated during the Taurean Age, which extended from about 4,000 to 2,000 B.C. The bull's horns represented fertility, growth, and generation, analogous to spring, when the earth is fertile and everything is growing abundantly. Living under the first earth sign in the zodiac, you Taureans appreciate all the good things the physical world has to offer. In fact, the more beautiful and sensually pleasing something is, the better. You cherish luxurious material goods, fine food, financial growth, culture and everything that is pleasurable and comforting, and you don't mind working hard or long to acquire it.

ACQUISITION is your keyword. It is your motivating force. Your practical, down-to-earth qualities and your ability to be totally focused might go to waste if there weren't some material reward to be gained. You enjoy making steady progress along constructive lines, and you pursue your goals with persistence and determination. Your patience and tolerance stem from your self-reliance. You know you have the willpower and tenacity to bring about whatever you desire through routine and regularity. But if your pattern has been interrupted or you're overextended, you can become impatient, obstinate, argumentative and cantankerous.

The Twins, incorporated in most of the mythologies of advanced cultures, represent the duality of Gemini. In the zodiac cycle, your mental element of air is added to the inner fiery life spark of Aries and the earthiness of Taurus to produce the third sign, Gemini. But the air (heaven) is above the earth and therein lies the split or duality. Your role is to use your instinctive mind and ambidextrous abilities to alleviate contradictions. Fortunately, diversity and variety turn you on. You enjoy mental recreation, but you also appreciate traveling in search of adventure and amusement. Curious and inquiring, you collect information and facts and can learn by osmosis.

Your keyword is COMMUNICATION. It's your bridge to understanding and unity. Your enjoyment of the use of words enhances your ability to converse. You are quick, perceptive, clever, playful and imaginative, and you express yourself to feel alive. Though your content may not be the most profound, your engaging manner and interesting tales charm your audience. Like air, you feel fresh when you can move around mentally and physically unrestricted. But when traveling, you're likely to take along beepers, mobile phones, laptop computers, portable radios and televisions, and remote controls. You like being busy, juggling two or more things at once. Boredom, censure or repression could make you impatient, restless, anxious, snappish, sarcastic, gossipy, cynical or nervously exhausted.

In ancient Egypt, the scarab beetle represented Cancer and symbolized the immortal life of the soul. Later, the crab became associated with Cancer. Both symbols have hard shells that provide security for their interiors, just as the body is a vehicle for the soul. And like the crab who carries its home on its back, you carry memories of home and family with you wherever you go. A water sign, you're sensitive and receptive to emotional stimuli. You rely on your feelings to navigate your path in life and possess incisive emotional perception that verges on the psychic. You're impressionable, and your sensitivity to jarring external forces requires you to constantly reestablish emotional balance to function outside your shell.

SECURITY is your keyword. Memories of your early childhood emotional dependence and parental nurturing -- whether optimal or dismal -- are a permanent reminder of the importance of feeling safe. Once you get your grip on anyone or anything that makes you feel secure, you want to hold on to it, store it or stockpile it. You form emotional attachments to belongings that have sentimental value and will even accumulate things that you feel you may eventually need through some unforeseen circumstance. When your level of security is undermined, particularly by domestic disturbances, you can lose your equilibrium, becoming irritable, hypersensitive, snappy, unforgiving, self-pitying and brooding.

Your symbol, the lion, the king of beasts, has long been equated with your ruler, the Sun, king of the planets. Only the sun, the vital life force and the superstar of our solar system, emits light. You're naturally inclined to be in the spotlight on stage -- center stage. You project the confidence, nobility, strength, virility, and courage of the lion. Like the kings and queens of old, you feel it's your birthright to be in the center of affairs, with all others dependent upon you for leadership, guidance and solar energy. You love the enhanced sense of self that wielding power gives you, and you'll create ways to gain the position of leadership you feel you deserve.

Your keyword is RECOGNITION. You're happiest when others acknowledge your abilities, power, magnificence and authority. If they do, you'll be able to establish your place among the elite of the hierarchy. In your world, you make the rules, expecting everyone else to follow them if they wish to play your game. You're capable of expressing yourself in all your resplendent glory and make an even wider impression, which is your motivation. Taken to an extreme, your natural tendencies could lead to excessive egotism and the will to dominate and conquer without any concern for the welfare of your "subjects." The warning signs to watch for are stubbornness, dogmatism and biting sarcasm.

Ancient Egyptians associated Virgo with the goddess Au Set (later known as Isis), who, among other things, taught women to grind corn. The Virgin, symbol of your sign, often holds an ear of grain, alluding to the harvest of late summer. You understand the harvest of hard work, which entails observation, measuring differences, tabulating details, memorizing data, systematizing and organizing methods of operation. Your love for order and harmony is revealed in the way you approach life. You function on a cerebral level, but because you're an earth sign, your mental approach is pragmatic. You want to see results, your own personal harvest.

Your keyword is DISCRIMINATION. It's what you use to resolve the various conflicts you're faced with on a daily basis. Not much gets by you without questioning it, because you need to allocate a place and system for everything. You're perpetually in the assessment and preparation stages of making adjustments. You prefer to make your own decisions. Your process of judgment involves analyzing everything down to the last detail before taking action. You can be fault-finding and very sarcastic, but you are not naturally aggressive. Your poised, cool or retiring exterior is an indication of your need forinner peace.

The Greeks saw this constellation as the scales, an instrument of justice and balance. As an air sign that marks the midpoint of the year, you strive for mental equilibrium and harmony in your life and environment. You weigh things one against the other, considering every angle of an issue in an attempt to reach equanimity. By taking a logical approach to reaching an objective judgment, you can save time and make wise decisions quickly. Otherwise, you can find yourself miserably bound in indecision and fluctuation, straddling the fence or wavering from one extreme of the scale to the other.

BALANCE is your keyword. And to maintain it, you must be willing to constantly re-evaluate situations in an ever-changing world, accepting positive and negative developments as valid and vital ingredients necessary for life growth. It's important that you maintain an inner connection to the voice within that tells you when to make adjustments for your highest good. Take time out to ponder and refine your thoughts, building wisdom, stabilizing yourself and bringing order to your mind. You're liable to strike out aggressively when your inner equilibrium is challenged. A lack of confidence in your decision-making skills can cause you to choose manipulative or deceitful tactics, or become co-dependent.

According to the ancients, there are many variations of Homo Scorpius. This is testimonial to your well recognized complexity. The scorpion symbolizes a hotheaded warrior who is violently passionate, bluntly sarcastic, egotistical, controlling and manipulative. The soaring eagle symbolizes the calm but intense, focused, determined, intuitive and perceptive Scorpio who often develops healing, clairvoyant, and counseling abilities. The sacred serpent, an Egyptian emblem of cosmic wisdom, was grounded in earthly reality, but penetrated the higher levels of consciousness. The serpent periodically sheds outworn habits, beliefs, and illusions to facilitate growth through rebirth. The phoenix is the confident, courageous, positive transformer that transcends the personal ego. The sympathetic, generous dove, a natural healer, is infused with love, which it transmits to others.

Your keyword is TRANSFORMATION. You likely will experience all the traits of your sign's varied symbols to some extent through the psychological death and regeneration process. Contrasts and extremes of virtue and vice are imbedded in every Scorpio, waiting for employment or transcendence. It can be a difficult journey or a blissful one depending on your choices. There's no middle-of-the-road playing around with you. Your feelings are very strong and unyielding, and you can be extremely sensitive and willful. It would be good for you to work at being cooperative.

The Centaur-Archer is associated with Chiron, the wise centaur of Greek mythology, and some say with Artemis, the Lady of Wild Beasts and goddess of the hunt. Half-man and half-horse, the centaur points a bow and arrow straight up to the heavens, symbolic of aiming for a direction, goal or target. Sagittarians usually have more than one objective or destination that they are aiming for and prefer to follow their own course unhampered by any type of restrictions. You're a dual sign with your feet on the ground and your head angled toward the heavens. Your earthly animal side is drawn to the open road, where you relish speeding on a quest for adventure and knowledge. Luckily, you're blessed with foresight that verges on the prophetic. That protects you -- to an extent -- from misadventure.

Your keyword is SELF-PROJECTION. Whether you're running a race, arguing a case or teaching, you live for self-expression and desire diverse outlets to exert your spirited energy. You are enthusiastic, gregarious, generous and cheerful. But watch out: Your lightheartedness and penchant for exaggeration can be misleading. When you project your thoughts and knowledge in earnest, your listeners learn. It's the spirit of the human upper half of the centaur that yearns to know all the answers and to find the truth that will set us free. And it's in your altruistic nature to share what you've learned with others. Experience and embarrassment will temper your tendency to be recklessly outspoken and tactless.