Free-spirited, humanitarian Aquarius.
For many, this sign is ideal & flawless,
inherently superior.In a perfect world, every sign IS perfect,
as an expression of a pure archetype, beyond duality.
But most of us live in a relative world and project
thru our complex, rich and varied awareness,
and shadow is often present.Shadow refers to an unbalanced, extreme or unconscious expression of a sign's energy.
Keep in mind that this concerns Aquarius energy
and not specifically Aquarius individuals---
we've all got this energy somewhere.And every sign has a shadow... Read onÖ
Ouranos, one mythical representation of Uranus-Aquarius,
was the distant, remote Sky god that engendered a great number of offspring with Gaia-Earth.
He was, however, utterly revolted by his "monstrous" children
and stuffed them back into Gaia, denying their right to emergence and growth.Here we see the connection to certain shadow-themes of Aquarius:
over-idealization and perfectionism, strong attachment to Principles and Ideals, of how things Ought to be;
remaining "stuffed" with potential and the vision of how great it will be, but never being able to actually give birth
or else rejecting the birthed creation=> repression of the "made flesh",
of the biological realm with all its flaws and inconsistencies;
devaluation of the body-nature realm, in favor of mind, progress,the original vision,
or the sleek new system, idea or principle.Think of all the systems (dietary, scientific, psychological, social, religious, philosophical, political, New Age, astrological etc!!) and the heated debates they engender.
This is the realm of
"politically-correct/ psychologically-correct" etc! .Reflect on the impressive advances of modern science---
and of the consequences in regards to environment, Earth and basic human needs.
Aquarian energy can become enamored, seized by the Vision.
When this is not well-integrated it can lead to
chaos, breaking, renting of the fabric of human life.One artist friend with Sun conjunct Uranus, destroys the bulk of her creations---
"That is NOT IT!! What SHIT! How pathetically IMPERFECT!!" she cries
as she rips to shreds her giant canvases covered with magnificent, striking images.
HeartbrakingÖwhoops, I mean heartbreaking.
(Hey, what a find, I didn't do that on purpose!)That leads straight to the theme of
devaluation of the heart center
in favor of mind-ideas-head;
distance, coolness, remoteness, and distrust of the emotional-feeling side,
giving an elusive, disincarnated feeling.Aquarian spirit can also turn into
righteousness, fanaticism, extremism, alienation, anti-social tendencies;
get gripped by Group-Think and peer pressure.Lurking in the shadows is a certain indifference and disregard
for the personal dimension of relationships,
because the raison d'Ítre of this sign is to go
Beyond limits and attachments, to break free of bondage.
Aquarius spirit is at times called:
oddball, weirdo, crackpot, crank, wacko, bizarre, freak, fringe, chaotic.....
On a more positive note, we can hear as well:
progressive, far-out, avant-garde, innovative, evolutionary,
leading edge, breath of fresh air, pizazz, knock-out, original.....In the end, we need wisdom to balance
the Ideal-Absolute with the Relative.
Shadow manifestations are the result of
the Duality of our awareness and of our world.Most importantly, it is really the
Quality of Consciousness
that determines how we vehicle any given energy...
