Astrology of Wellness

Libra:
The Path of Love

by Ted PanDeva Zagar

Note: The author uses Sol and Luna instead of generic terms like "sun" and "moon" when referring to the two most important spheres in our solar system. Folk remedies, herbs, foods, micronutrients, and other substances and therapies are included as information and not as replacements for the diagnoses, advice, and treatments provided by competent wellness professionals.

Autumn is that magical realm located between endless summer sunshine and the biting chill of winter. Brandishing no extremes, the fall season quietly mixes the best of both worlds as it winds through the astrological months of Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius.

This meteorologically balanced quarter of the year is launched on September 23, one of two annual equinoxes, when day and night each lays claim to twelve hours. Fitting then that Libra (September 23 to October 22), fall's first month, holds aloft the symbol of the Balance, those scales long associated with objectivity, impartiality, and justice.

In our less-than-perfect world it is love's loom alone which weaves the magic carpet that carries us inward toward the heart's loftiest abode. Because only those partnerships formed between genuine equals can attain the purest level of intimacy, Libra has been selected by stargazers to reign over love, with Venus named its patroness/goddess.

Understandably, the sign charged to protect cooperative couples also holds sway over the harmonious strains of music. As if deigned by the stars to mix the magic of song with the joy that grows out of our dearest relationships, Libran John Lennon penned The Word, that Beatles tune which promised to set free those who spread the word of love.

Weapons are poised toward foes, not friends. Hateful relationships end in wars, but those whose hearts have found love will also come to know peace. The peacemaker is a fair-minded person who listens to those who have a story to tell or an opinion to share. No surprise here that Librans are often the pacifists as well as the lawmakers in society, hammering out the rules and regulations which bind us together within the safe and warm embrace of justice. Mohandas ("Mahatma," or "Great Soul") Gandhi was at once a lawyer, a peace activist, and a child of Libra (b. October 2, 1869).

Interestingly, the Peace Corps became a permanent agency of the government of the United States of America on the cusp of Libra (September 22, 1961).

Libra influences one of the most important balancing processes within our bodies. As the ruler of the kidneys (as well as the lower back and the lumbar vertebrae), Libra assures a harmonious relationship between the acids and alkalis in the blood for those among us who adhere to our primate diet of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Herbs useful for maintaining healthy kidneys include borage (cleanses), gravelroot (clears urinary stones), and buchu (a kidney stimulant).

Venus performs another physiological balancing act through Taurus (April 21 to May 20), the sign which oversees the manufacture of thyroxin, the iodine-rich hormone produced by the thyroid gland charged with regulating our body weight. If rooted in some dysfunction of the thyroid, the imbalanced states of obesity and excessive thinness can be countered by a diet where sea vegetables (e.g., dulse and kelp), garlic, and other sources of iodine are given adequate representation.

Just as the trees will discard their leaves as fall progresses, the soft Venusian influence of Libra urges us to let go of food and drink harmful to our physical well-being. Fresh juices extracted from fruits and vegetables, along with several glasses of distilled water, should replace the daily round of caffeine-laced teas and coffees, alcoholic beverages, and chemicalized soft drinks. And because protein is acid -- as in amino acid -- a diet containing concentrated proteins (i.e., flesh, fish, fowl, eggs, and milk) will overburden the kidneys and elevate the acid level in our bloodstream.

The circle of life is intimately linked with the cycles of health; when we make peace with the animals partitioned on our platters, then our vitality will inspire us to live a life that truly matters.

Nature reveals itself to us in an endless display of cycles and seasons. Like steps on life's stairway spiraling from youth to old age, things pass before our eyes in an orderly progression. The perceptive, intuitive souls who developed and organized the science and art of astrology tied this grand scheme of things into their craft.

After Libra, love, and marriage will come Scorpio, sexuality, and reproduction.

NOTE: This article was first published in ASTROLORE, an astrological magazine published quarterly in Britain.

copyright 1999 by Ted PanDeva Zagar, Wellness Astrologer

Recommended book:

"Sun & Moon Signs Library: Libra?
by
Julia & Derek Parker
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