A spectrum of experience: Exploring the polarities in astrology

We are never just one sign, one planet, one house, one anything. We are all complex beings with personalities and experiences as vast as the starry sky.

One of the most helpful things I’ve learned in astrology is that each sign can benefit from its polarity sign, or rather, the sign that’s opposite from it on the birth chart. So for example, Sagittarius can learn a lot from Gemini, Cancer can learn from Capricorn, Pisces can learn from Virgo, and vice versa. Every sign has its gifts and shadows, strengths and weaknesses. There are no “good” signs or “bad” signs, houses, planets, or placements. We all have every sign in our charts; it’s just a matter of which signs have the most weight and energy to them in your particular set of constellations. Every sign presents unique opportunities for growth, power and magic making.

Depending on which sign has the most emphasis in your chart, you can learn a lot by balancing out the energy of that sign with its polarity sign. I have several planets in Sagittarius, including my Sun. Because I have so much energy and action going on in the sign of Sagittarius, I can use some of the energy and lessons of Gemini to balance it out. Again, each sign has its strengths and shadows. Some of the strengths of Sagittarius are optimism, generosity, openness, humor, and being a perpetual seeker of wisdom, while some of the shadows of Sagittarius are being overly idealistic/looking at everything through rose-colored glasses, overextension, restlessness, excessive risk-taking, being overly blunt, and self-righteousness.

See a theme there? Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion. Sagittarius usually wants to aim very high and just go for it, because we feel that things will generally work out, and often they do. But Sag can benefit from the more curious, inquisitive, looking-at-every-side-of-the-issue Gemini to make sure we consider all factors before making the leap. This is the balance of fire (Sag) with air (Gemini). Some of the qualities I’m learning to embrace from Gemini are listening and pausing more before I speak or react, allowing for ambiguity and embracing the unknown rather than needing all the answers right away, asking more questions, staying open-minded, and pushing myself to be more social and connect (my Cancer Moon can get very comfortable in its shell! (: ).

Gemini and Sag really do have a lot in common. They share a vitality and enthusiasm for life along with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and exploration. Rather than seeing them as true binaries, I have come to see the polarities as more of a spectrum or gradient of experience around similar themes.

These themes include, but are not limited to:

Virgo and Pisces - spirituality, healing, discernment, service, wholeness

Capricorn and Cancer - devotion, purpose, nurturing, connection, legacy

Aries and Libra - relationships, leadership, balance, drive, creativity

Taurus and Scorpio - pleasure, truth, depth, practicality, determination

Leo and Aquarius - individuality, confidence, ambition, innovation, revolution

Gemini and Sagittarius - curiosity, learning, exploration, expansion, optimism

That’s not to say there aren’t many other qualities associated with these signs, and of course there is overlap among them. But when we look at the axis of each sign, there is much to be learned from both ends of the spectrum. As we journey through life, our soul will likely find itself traveling through many of these archetypes and learning to balance them as it ebbs and flows from one end of the spectrum to the other. We are never just one sign, one planet, one house, one anything. We are all complex beings with personalities and experiences as vast as the starry sky.

To add even more complexity, your house placements will show you which areas of your life have the most action/emphasis. All those Sagittarius planets of mine? They’re mostly in my Third House, the House of Communication. The Third House is traditionally ruled by Gemini, which adds even more of a Gemini undercurrent to my personality! Not only that, but I have Mercury conjunct my Sun. Mercury is one of the planetary rulers of Gemini (along with Venus) and rules communication, thinking, and speech. As a writer, it was hugely validating and confirming to see all the emphasis in my chart around writing, speaking and thinking. It definitely lends me strengths, but also has its drawbacks, including anxiety and being too in my head at times. I continue to seek balance from the other signs, planets, aspects, asteroids, and every other element my chart has to offer.

Once you start exploring your chart in depth, you can see more clearly how these energies play out in your life. You’re able to work with the different components of your personality and experience more intentionally, and at the same time, surrender to what wants to flow through you. That can be truly freeing and healing.

-Lauren

Interested in learning which signs are strongest in your chart and how you can find more balance through polarities? Book an astrology reading today!