Livre d'heures de Jean de Montauban - Signe du Zodiaque : Le Lion
(Image by Bibliothèque - Les Champs Libres - Rennes) Details DMCA
Leo, the Lion. Symbol of the Sun. The Heart. King of Animals.
Leo,
the Lioness. In ancient times, the lioness ruled Leo as Sekhmet and
her sister, the Sphinx. All powerful, life-giving, mystery of life.
The Queen. The King. The power to nurture and sustain.
Because of precession (the Earth's wobble that causes a shift in Earth's relationship with the constellations) different constellations mark the solstices and equinoxes in different eras. 6,000 years ago the constellation of Taurus, the Bull, rose at Spring Equinox, and Leo, the Lion ruled the Summer Solstice. Leo symbolizes the Sun shining at its brightest with the longest daylight hours. These two power signs, along with Scorpio for the Autumnal Equinox and Aquarius for Winter Solstice, contained the 'royal stars' of the ancient world, the stars that were called the 'pillars' of the world.
When the Sun entered the sign of Leo in those days, people were assured of warmth and plenty and hopefully peace and prosperity. The strength of the sunlight helped crops grow and brought warmer days. The Queen and King came to symbolize those things. The lioness queen was a symbol of the fierce love, fruitfulness and bounty that makes a good life. The lion king was a symbol of the strength, health and wealth of that bounty.
The Queen. The King. They stood before their people as representatives of the God/dess. They stood before the God/dess as the representative of their people. They were and are the mediators between heaven and earth. They were responsible for their people and to their god/dess.
This is the potential of our royal nature. This is the quest of the sign of Leo: how to do I find my original nature, the nature that combines heaven and earth? How do I take up my destiny to create, to birth, to empower my unique vision? Instead of wondering what our 'royals' are up to, we could spend the time becoming royal ourselves. Becoming who we are each meant to be and expressing that uniqueness in the world in a gracious and joyful way.
When we finally awaken to our true nature, we naturally want to balance it with others. We want to come up against what is Other, and see what new thing we might become. We've learned that we have to balance the masculine and feminine energies within us to find our true uniqueness. As Above, So Below. As Within, So Without. We also need women and men working together to create the new world that our times demand of us. Male and Female--we see the world from different perspectives--we are two sides of a wholeness that needs to work in a balanced way if we're to change the direction our world is headed in.
We're seeing very clearly the negative masculine energies at work in the world, energies that refuse to work with the feminine spirit of life. Donald Trump's vitriol about women is just another outer expression of patriarchy's need to control women and our bodies. The negative masculine gives rise to wars, competition, domination, greed, violence, exclusivism and ignorance. With Saturn finishing up his business in Scorpio, it's time to let go of this negative energy and discover a new way to use the powerful masculine energies that we need to change the world.
Many women have awakened to the New Feminine power arising in the world. It seems as if the New Masculine King is finally waking up. On this past Summer Solstice, the new King--not just in men but in the Divine Mind as well--was invoked and re-birthed, and it feels as if he is stirring. While wise women hold the space, we invite men to awaken to their divine nature and listen to their inner feminine wisdom. You are loved. You are needed. You must balance the divine feminine with your courage, your integrity and your strength.
This Leo New Moon is the call to the King. Our children, nature and all species need our nurturing and our protection. Plant seeds for the future. That's what the wise King and Queen do.
Leo New Moon, August 14, 2015
This New Moon in Leo is about developing our leadership abilities. To lead means to take a stand on what you're passionate about. To lead is to explore the unknown and leave the known behind. To lead is to act courageously despite your fears. Both the King and the Queen within us want to do just that. Leo invites us on a journey of self-discovery--to find our unique vision and create it with joy and love. There is a generosity to Leo, an open-heartedness that isn't afraid of the give and take of life.
The Sabian Symbol for the Sun and Moon at 22* Leo is: A homing pigeon fulfilling its mission. This image suggests using our spiritual energy wisely to 'get the message' life is sending us. It also suggests that it's time to commit ourselves to a larger purpose--the Aquarian vision our last Full Moon brought up for us. What do you long to express to your community, your family, the world?
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