Element:
Water Modality:
Mutable Ruling
Planet: Neptune
Personality
Traits:
Compassionate, Humble, Sympathetic, Unworldly, Intuitive
General
Compatibility:
Cancer, Scorpio
Color:
Lavender, Pink
Gemstones:
Amethyst, Aquamarine, Rose Quartz
Foods:
Fish (vertebrate), grapes, dates, figs, caviar
Child of the pure,
unclouded brow
And dreaming eyes of wonder!
Though time be fleet and
I and thou
Are half a life asunder,
Thy loving smile will
surely hail
The love-gift of a fairy-tale.
—LEWIS
CARROLL
Pisces,
the twelfth and last sign of the zodiac, is ruled by the planet
Neptune and symbolized by the Fish. To say that Pisces is represented
as two fish is one thing, but to say that one is swimming upstream
and the other down is quite another; therein lies a clue to the
nature of its natives. There's a certain contrariety to this sign
which makes Pisceans restless or sometimes at odds with themselves.
As symbolized by the fish swimming in opposite directions, these
natives often find a conflict between their conscious behavior and
subconscious promptings or their mortal desires and spiritual
yearnings. There's a part of their consciousness which tends to
another realm of existence, a dimension less troubled by material
things, ego gratification or grossness, and their conception of this
idyllic place persists in the back of their minds at all times.
Another aspect of the Pisces symbol is that one fish is above the
other, representing the distinction between heaven and earth. These
natives will tend to live on two planes of existence at once, the
spiritual and the physical, and they can have an unusual capacity for
integrating the two in their lives. The waters they inhabit are the
mist-like emanations of the distant planet Neptune, and their ties
with the earth are its manifestations of spirituality, psychism,
intuitive powers and creativity.
Before you write off your
Pisces friends as 'way out' or some kind of incurable dreamers,
there's more you should know about the natives of this watery,
mysterious sign. First of all, they can be giving, even
self-sacrificing, to a fault. After all, who was it who answered your
call in the middle of the night to rescue you from being stranded
with a flat tire, or lent a sympathetic ear when you really needed
it? Pisceans can never say no to a friend if his need is genuine, and
even if sometimes it's not so genuine. Their hearts naturally go out
to those less fortunate, the underprivileged, the underdog, the sick,
even if for the moment, that happens to be you. They can be duped
into helping others through false pretenses, but even then Pisces
natives will not bear a grudge. They tend to see only the good in
people and can be as forgiving as they are compassionate. They'll
sometimes spend themselves to exhaustion in their outpouring of
compassion to others, not only emotionally, but physically. At these
times, they'll have to be alone, to submerge themselves once again in
the subtle vibrations of Neptune's healing power, indulging in
meditation, prayer or spiritual reverie in order to regain their strength.
You may have trouble
spotting Pisceans in a room full of people. The more masculine ones
might be mistaken for a weak Leo, the more feminine types for the
passive form of Cancer. The appearance of these natives is greatly
affected by other planetary positions in their natal charts, but
there are some physical characteristics which are unmistakably
Piscean. The general character of the facial features, for example,
will be of a singular softness. Everything will seem to be rounded,
especially the cheeks, which may be prominent in some way, reminding
you of the gills of their zodiacal mascot. The eyes similarly, may
appear to bulge with somewhat of a sleepy or dreamy expression, and
in them you can get the distinct impression of wisdom, mystery or
spiritual depth. For this reason, Pisces' eyes are perhaps the most
beautiful in all the zodiac. The lips will tend to be full with a
pursed or puckering quality, suggesting a certain sensuality. The jaw
is generally weak or subdued, and in some natives, there will be a
tendency to double chin. The neck is generally graceful, meeting at
the shoulders with a certain smoothness of line. The hair is most
often fine and wavy, usually ranging in color from blonde to dark
brown, and the nose is generally small. You'll notice something
peculiar about the hands and feet— they'll either be small and
petite or large and cumbersome. Most Pisceans are short, although
you'll find a few tall, lanky specimens wandering about the misty
clouds. Many of them, especially the females, can possess an ethereal
or other-worldly quality.
Pisces, being the last
sign of the zodiac, is said to represent the culminating point of all
the other signs and as such, implies a completeness of understanding
on the part of its natives. In the Piscean personality you may find
the quickness of Gemini, the peacefulness of Taurus, Leo's love of
pleasure, the congeniality of Libra, the sensitivity of Cancer, the
wanderlust of Sagittarius, Scorpio's mystic penetration, the
helpfulness of Virgo, Aries' originality, the melancholy of Capricorn
or the humanitarianism of Aquarius. Neptunians themselves may not
exemplify any of these qualities in particular, but they embrace them
all through their breadth of perspective. Basically, it is up to them
which qualities of each sign, positive or negative, they will choose
to cultivate in their own personalities. If they are judicious,
acceding to opportunities for spiritual growth, they will take from
each sign its own particular gem of wisdom, incorporating each one
into their own crown of cosmic consciousness. Pisceans' expanse of
vision is different from that of Aquarians, whose view of the
universe is limited to what they can grasp intellectually. Pisceans,
on the other hand, transcend this limitation by receiving impressions
of the universe through their intuition or sixth sense, and can have
an inkling of truths far beyond intellectual or emotional understanding.
From this perspective, it
is easy to understand the Piscean's sometimes lackadaisical attitude.
Try to impress on him the need for punctuality, organization and
efficiency or the importance of money and career, and he'll seem
vaguely interested; try to get him excited about the social unrest in
Afghanistan, the instability of the world's economy or the political
candidates for an upcoming election, and he'll give you a serene yet
knowing smile. His actions may seem like laziness or apathy at first,
but on closer scrutiny, you'll find behind them a greater wisdom.
There is a part of the Piscean which recognizes, subconsciously at
least, that some things are just not that important, that in the
larger scheme of things, all that really matters is one's own inner
development. In the deep recesses of his consciousness, he
instinctively recognizes that the temporality of materialism will
ultimately yield to the incorruptibility of spiritual values. Some
March-born will carry this kind of thinking too far, becoming the
irrepressible dreamers or the followers of blind religious
devotionalism. On the other hand, some may deny this aspect of
consciousness altogether, seeking to substitute spiritual experience
with the euphoria of alcohol or drugs. A goodly share of skid row
bums will be Pisceans, their wasted lives as testimonials to the
negative side of Neptune. As with the fish, these natives have their
choice of swimming upstream, against the currents of vanity,
pettiness and contention to increasingly clear waters, or to let
themselves be swept away to the murky waters below.
The challenge to Pisces
natives is to somehow integrate their affinity with the more subtle
planes to some constructive work on the physical level. They may
achieve this by working in artistic or creative occupations where
intuition and creativity are necessary attributes. Neptunians can
make excellent musicians whether classical, jazz or rock, imbuing an
intriguing, soulful quality to their performances. In painting or
sculpture, their works manifest an other-worldly quality, capable of
evoking profound emotion. Piscean writers can be very fluent and
voluble; their words seem to flow from them in a torrent. In dance,
they will exemplify a fluidity of motion not found in other signs.
Neptune rules the feet, and these natives can be capable of some
pretty fancy footwork whether on stage as ballerinas or on the dance
floor of a local discotheque. No matter what their occupation or
interest, they will never feel happy in their work unless it somehow
entails a certain amount of creativity or involvement in the realms
of the spiritual, the subconscious, the psychic or the unseen.
Similarly, Pisceans will not be able to maintain for very long
friendships or associations with those who are too materialistic or
worldly. They may actually get physically ill if obliged to subscribe
to their mundane philosophies for very long.
Neptunian energies can
also find a positive outlet in the medical field, especially in those
occupations where there is a direct personal involvement with the
sick. Their outpouring of sympathy and a desire to help the weak or
infirmed are natural attributes for doctors, nurses, medical
receptionists, assistants, attendants, etc. In these occupations,
Pisceans find outlet for their Neptunian drives of compassion and
mercy while their professional statures curb the likelihood of their
being taken advantage of. So penetrating is their sensitivity that a
touch or words of understanding from these natives can sometimes be
as curative as the medical treatment itself. In the same way, social
work, caring for the handicapped, counseling for child abuse,
alcoholism, drug abuse, for the dying or bereaved, etc. are
occupations uniquely suited to Pisceans' sense of mercy and their
sensitivity to spiritual and emotional needs. If they're typical
March-born, they are not discriminatory to whom they extend their
consoling words or actions whether to saint, sinner, murderer, thief,
liar, rich or poor, deserving or undeserving. They instinctively
recognize the integrity of each person's spirit and with a forgiving
heart can overlook the apparent causes of their particular situation
of problem. You'll never get judgmental remarks or condescending
glances from these natives. Their ultra-sensitivity allows them to
see the spiritual essence within each individual with a certain
reverence. Their insight into the spiritual realms can sometimes lead
them to commitments in the religious life as priests, reverends,
monks or nuns.
The super-subtlety of
Pisces can often lead the natives to confuse the material and
spiritual planes, taking the shadow for substance or reality for
illusion. Indeed, because their outlook is not entirely from a
physical perspective, Neptunians can in some cases, regard everything
as dream or illusion. Although Shakespeare was a Taurus, he left
words with profound insight into this typically Piscean frame of thought:
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women
merely players;
They have their exits and
their entrances;
And one man in his time
plays many parts.
To the March-born, life
can be a masquerade with one big illusion after another. They
understand the superficiality of life with its many facades and
pretenses, and how society tends to identify with roles rather than
with the persons within them. Pisces natives may purposely put on
weird masquerades almost in sarcasm of this shallow perspective. The
rock star who paints his face, wears strange clothes and indulges in
outrageous behavior is definitely of the Piscean persuasion. If a
woman wears too much makeup or dyes her hair an odd color, you can
bet she's a Pisces. Human fish will often personify the glitter of
illusion by wearing dazzling apparel and wild colors. You'll find the
colorful neons and the shimmering tinfoils, but you'll also find the
conservative brown oscars and the blushing angel fish, other
Neptunian disguises. Sometimes they'll change masks so fast, you'll
wonder what's real and what's illusion yourself, and they'll delight
in keeping you guessing, forever hiding their vulnerable, sensitive
souls behind the many masquerades of earthly life.
———————————————
Excerpted
from The
Astrology Diet,
Copyright © by Jon Stevens. All rights reserved.
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