Today, at 04.30 BST, we entered the sign of
Leo, astrologically speaking. This sign
is associated with the heart – and gold, the metal associated with the sun
(which rules Leo), is used in homeopathic remedies for the heart. It’s also associated with royalty – with
kings, in particular. The brightest star in the constellation of Leo (‘Leo’
being Latin for lion), Regulus (Alpha Leonis) was called ‘qalb al-Asad’ by the
early Arab astronomers – which translates as ‘heart of the lion’. Allegedly, it was Saladin who called Richard I
the ‘lion-hearted king’. The lion has
been called the king of the forest, or jungle – long before Disney came along
with ‘The Lion King’ – and has come to symbolize natural leadership, as well as
royalty.
‘Leo’
©Alison Coals
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Leo’s ruler, the Sun, is the star at the
centre of our solar system. The sun gives us life – without the light and heat
that it provides, life as we know it wouldn’t exist. Psychologically, the Sun is said to be the
core of our being or centre of our personality. It’s the fiery, creative spirit
- our essential vitality - that drives us to seek out our individuality. In medieval astrology, the Sun is called ‘the
Great Light’. No surprise then that we think of Leo as a sunny, warm-hearted,
larger-than-life sign – a sign that loves to be centre-stage, in the
spot-light.
Leo is one of the three Fire signs, along
with Aries and Sagittarius – all signs concerned with the discovery and
fulfilment of future possibilities and passions. In Leo, the focus is more on
the self – in terms of mythology, you could say it’s about seeking an answer to
the question ‘Who am I?’. The myth of
Parzival (Sir Percival in the Grail legends) is a wonderful example of the hero
on a quest for self. Hero and protector of the ‘weak’, Leo is associated with generosity,
loyalty and steadfastness, but as a ‘yang’ sign is also outgoing and sociable.
Another quality associated with Leo is
pride – and what do we call a group of lions?!
Leo is the ‘I want’ part of the zodiac, and the lion symbolises this
self-interested drive, which we all have – it’s what we use to survive.
‘Alchemical Leo’
©Alison Coals
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The fixity of Leo also takes us back to the
idea of being in the spot-light, of being centre stage – and the ‘shadow’ side
of that. Leo may expect the world to
revolve around his ideas; taking other people’s views or dreams into account,
or even acknowledging them, may be one of the challenges that Leo has to deal
with.
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