Leo

Excerpt from Degrees of the Zodiac:

LEO (July 23 -August 21) is the natural 5th house. As such, it is interested in creative projects of all kinds. As a natural extension of the 4th house, Leo is associated with children. Leo represents our creative investment in the future. It is our effort to present something as an extension of ourselves. Leo people are also self oriented but in a different sense than Aries. Aries behavior is more or less unaware of self. It is self oriented but the action of self is not self-conscious. Leo is developing a self consciousness. S/he sees that s/he is on stage presenting himself/herself to an audience. S/he is vulnerable and wants to keep his/her distance from others except as an actor on a stage. S/he is like a child who is becoming aware of the attention s/he receives from others.

Leo rules the heart and the spine. These parts of the body are associated with generosity and affection of the heart and the will-power of the backbone. A Leo can be persuaded to do almost anything if you appeal to his/her sympathy. However, it is impossible to drive or force him/her to take one step.

Wherever Leo is located in the chart shows the individual ability to extend the self; to project one's self in a creative manner outside or beyond the safety of home. It shows how and where we are self conscious; that is, conscious of the presentation of our creative effort.

Leo is a fixed-fire sign. The element of fire provides the basic life-force. Vitality and the spiritual soul-force is expressed through fire signs. Leo, ruled by the Sun, reflects the fire of the Sun without which there would be no light to reflect from any of the other parts of our solar system. The Sun is the initiator of the vital energy on which we all depend for life. Leo rules the heart which pumps life-giving blood through the whole system without which we would soon die. Through Leo and the life-giving energy of its ruler, the Sun, we make our debut on the stage of life. We perform. We begin to function. In this area, we are alone, the star of the show. Leo takes the place of the Sun and radiates who we are, seeing it reflected back to us by our audience. It is in this area that we become true Sons of God. God being the radiator of love, most of us only reflect this light as the planets of the Sun. But as we become true Sons of God we radiate love rather than merely reflect it. It is in Leo that we first meet the challenge to go on stage and radiate rather than just reflect. Humanity is not sufficiently developed to reap the best from this influence. But the will-power to develop love is rooted in Leo. It is by studying our own reflection in those around us that we gradually true-up our own image and perfect what we are, and make it more to our own liking. In Leo, the individual studies the impression s/he makes on those around him/her in order to know himself/herself better. “To thine own self be true. Then it must follow as the day the night, thou can'st not then be false to any man.”

We all have a Leo influence somewhere in the chart. The Sun, as the ruler of Leo, takes precedence over the house where Leo is located. And the particular degrees where planets fall in Leo show more specifically what influence we are expressing in this area.