Fifth: Leo

If you haven’t already, I urge you to read the article explaining how the zodiac may be seen as a collection of twelve psychological types and thus gain context.

In the Cancer stage of the zodiac, two basic needs are etched in the personality being developed: to abstract and express the Day Force received at its solstitial maximum, and to assume the responsibility of consciously participate in societal life. While the Day Force may be thought of as a “personalizing energy” that integrates concrete forms, idea abstractions and spiritual entities, the Night Force is more of a “contraction energy” that fuses personalities to develop social groups. The foundation of this social process is currently the family and its home. Cancer is the sign of this foundation, the source of Night Force that will gain strength until the winter solstice and the sign of Capricorn, the symbol of organized living in the all powerful State.

Leo represents the second stage of such a social process, the arrival of a progeny to a couple living under the social model of a home, further increasing their social responsibility. There is a new field of integration, parents with their children and the elders with the younger generations. In many ways, it relates the “present”, which quickly becomes the “past”, with the “future”, creating numerous social problems that are not easy to dismiss. Time becomes an issue with greater importance than before, as the couple gets used to their new roles of father and mother. He must be the liaison between the family and society, providing as much safety and comfort as possible, whereas she tirelessly adapts to life’s changing situations in order to provide a stable and nurturing home. (I realize that this sounds quite antiquated for our modern society, but the zodiac still presents us with a timeless order that once again may become relevant soon, without necessarily going back to tribal living.)

Feelings and Emotions

Leo is the sign of emotions whereas Cancer is the sign of feelings. A feeling is an internal and organic perception by which a personality as a whole judges what is constructive or destructive, good or bad, for the entire human being. To feel is to react to a situation or a person, where “react” simply means to be in favor or against the situation or entity confronted by the feeling person. As a consequence, the personality experiences a series of physical and chemical responses in the body, from changes in the heart rate, to stimulation of glands in the endocrine system. These changes are what psychologists call the “affect” or emotion. The emotion is then transformed into “action”, such as kissing another or fleeing the dangerous scene, or it is stopped in its tracks without a perceptible muscular action. Therefore, emotions follow feelings but one must distinguish between the two to differentiate between Cancer and Leo.

We can also talk about internal feelings. A person may feel good or bad as a result of whether his organism is balanced or not; all of us can feel if things are working properly. In particular, pain is a powerful feeling to indicate a psychological problem or some physical disease. Of course, these feelings also precede emotions. Through internal and external feelings, and especially through pain, a person progressively feels like a separate entity from the others, generating a sense of “I”, initially from the frustration and pain of lacking what it needs or desires. A person learns to act as an “individual ego” because he (or she) “feels” distinctly from the others, and this refers to Cancer. The individuality is integrated through processes fueled by feelings and pain, and it grows as it is expressed in the realm of Leo. It will be established in Virgo through the power of intellectual analysis and discrimination.

Expressing the Cancer Individuality

In Cancer, the Day Force integrates an individual. At the biological level, a human being becomes an organism with a definite growth rhythm; at the psychological level, he becomes a person, a feeling organism centered on an ego; and at the social level, he becomes the owner of a home which defines his social status. At all levels, however, the Cancer individual develops the basic capacity to receive as an integrated whole, an organism, the impact of other entities and act creatively in society. From this foundation, albeit less sure about the “social” aspect, the Leo individual lunges to the world brandishing a shining sword of his own beliefs of what is positive and negative. In Cancer, the human being is like a cubic base. In Leo, he is an ego standing on the base, extending his glorious “I am” as a model that will yield victory.

Leo has often been called the most individualistic sign of the zodiac, but this depends on what we mean by individualism. If it is exclusively about the external behavior towards social relationships and the day-to-day group living, then Leo’s expression of individuality is indeed paramount. In Leo, the individual feels responsible for his beloved and their progeny which forces him to participate in society in a manner more responsible than a college student, instead behaving as an independent personality capable of determining his course of action and accepting his failures. The end result is that the Leo individual exaggerates everything, trying to impress society like a seven year old would try with his family. He must be a focal point so the world will realize his importance for society. Thus, it will be just a matter of time before he is awarded the fame and riches he needs, not just for feeding and clothing himself but, crucially, to treat his spouse and children magnificently.

Leo’s Relationship with Society

Dane Rudhyar writes that Leo’s characteristic trait is “the theatrical externalization of his personality in order to acquire social value and obtain self-assurance as a societal individual”—his emphasis, at least in the Spanish translation of “The Pulse of Life”. The Leo person may not have the right or the talent to be a leader but, if he is, he will be determined to advance with exaggerated gestures, grand emotions and taking great risks, for Leo is as fond of taking risks as he is of manipulating others. That said, just as the so-called “aggressiveness” of Aries is just a consequence of his personal insecurities, the dramatic leadership postures of Leo are an attempt to hide the social insecurities he will seldom admit and often reside in his subconscious.

Dark Side

Should he find himself among confused or disheartened people, the Leo individual will quickly take advantage of the situation fueled by his desire for power. However, when success eludes him, he can fall into obscurity during the Virgo phase of self-criticism and self-humiliation. Then, the Leo pride will surprise everyone as he humiliates himself in front of others with dramatic gestures. He will accept his guilt and there will not be a more convincing penitent, although he will soon forget about it and start a new cycle of social affirmation.

Such dependence on large social gestures (and luck) signals a person’s insecurities amid social fears. He does not know how to cooperate with people and instead tries to lead them. His leaderships qualities, however, are those of a dictator based on a projection of his own insecurities onto receptive people or objects. As an artist, he tends to work the same way. Regardless of his field of creations, any resistance to the expression of his emotional vision will be severely met. The musical instrument will produce the sounds and the paint will reach the canvas after a good dose of Leo’s stubbornness. The goal is not to cooperate but to manipulate intelligently, relying on an intuitive (or acquired) knowledge of the objects’ reactions. Similarly, dictators learn to manipulate the masses using both dramatic gestures and propaganda, the “leaders’ technique”.

The typical Leo person has little true social conscience despite seeming to be on top of social issues. He tends to speak in generalities, incites the masses with words and dreams. and hypnotizes people with his intense self-projection. His spouse, however, knows that such theatrical gestures require focus and distance to be effective.

Spiritual Forces in Leo

The Leo phase in the zodiacal cycle has a strong but diminishing Day Force. However, when one of the Spiritual forces diminishes in terms of manifestation, it increases in subconscious activity. Just like the Night Force acted subconsciously during the winter and spring, it is now time for the Day Force to do the same. It is still acting but in a subjective and even introverted manner, assuming its transcendent features and, in some cases, the negative ones.

The personality, which was realized in its physical and mental aspects in Cancer, acquires an extra dimension in Leo. Art is born as a symbolic and transcendental projection of his individuality, although one must recognize that art is often a refuge for sensitive people and an escape from daily life. Art and children are both creative expressions of the integrated personality. The Leo individual who cannot be an autocrat, or, less extreme but with the same sense of power over others, a special-education or elementary teacher, may find his place in society and obtain prestige in an artistic activity. It has the right mix of inflexible individualism, needing to be alone and self-absorbed, and the desire of leaving a mark in society.

Leo is the individual’s first attempt at becoming a social being. As with many first attempts it is seldom achieved, perhaps due to the fear of failure, so he is used to exaggerate and dramatize all situations. He has yet to stop wanting to be the slave’s master, for he is certain he will never be a slave. Just the same, he fights instinctively the subconscious fear that society could absorb him and enslave him. This gives rise to his exaggerated attitudes and intense projections, for he feels the power of the Universe and of time on his misfit ego. The Leo individual must create, thus molding his ego in accordance to the world he wishes to organize in his own particular way. It is his valiant attempt to avoid being submerged by the rising tide, the Night Force of relatedness increasing inside his subconscious and making its way to the conscious mind.

Gift: Simplicity

In “Gifts of the Spirit”, the first part of his book “An Astrological Triptych”, Dane Rudhyar writes about a specific gift offered by Spirit for each sign. Spirit being the integrating Principle of Wholeness behind the Day and Night forces that uniquely define the characteristics of each sign. By accepting and utilizing its gift, the positive aspects of the psychological type are enhanced and the negative diminished. As we have said, Leo is the sign of emotions and these must be conveyed dramatically so as to evoke in others the feelings behind them. To such an individual, Spirit offers the gift of Simplicity.

I can’t do justice to Rudhyar’s writing in that chapter, he weaves a tale of sun worshiping, religion, spirituality, and occult traditions to explain how Leo, ruled by Sun, is the sign of the individual as a lighthouse, able to shine a light onto others. However, every light implies a shadow, both behind the light source and behind the illumined objects (or people). The Leo individual feels the need to make his light more noticeable, so he “is compelled to stage one grandiose drama after another, to summon one glamorous fantasy after another”, according to Rudhyar. Spirit has no better gift to bestow upon such an individual than simplicity.Leo rules the heart but has yet to know compassion, so Spirit offers stillness. As we saw, the mind of a Leo person is intent on conveying emotions and arousing devotion, so Spirit offers the gift of truth.

The essence of drama is complexity, the hero must overcome an enemy, for he thrives on tragedy. Without tragedy, how could there be heroic deeds? However, there is no peace for the hero, unless he meets tragedy with stillness of the heart. To be still is to be simple. Writes Rudhyar: “For what is ‘simplicity’, if not overcoming of duality and of drama? To be simple is to be of one essence only. It is to be that which forever is what it is, and that only. Which also means ‘truth’; for to be ‘true’, and to be ‘pure’, is to be completely and solely what one is, without any adulteration, admixture or conflict. It is to be resolved into unity … which is peace.”

Always Love. 🌹🙏💖