Fire, Earth, Air and Water
The building blocks of the physical world
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Masculine Signs / Feminine Signs
Astrology assigns each of the Zodiac signs a gender. A sign is either masculine or feminine, but this is far less titillating than it sounds. Gender in Astrology has nothing to do with sex. Instead, it refers to the kind of energy a sign exhibits, the characteristics found in those born under it, and the way it orients a person or event to meet and deal with the challenges of consciousness and material life.
Gender in Astrology describes the attitudes and strategies a Zodiac sign uses to form relationships, deal with problems and generally navigate through the world. A better comparison of these two divisions in Astrology (and metaphysics itself) would be the Oriental concepts of yang and yin -- light and dark, positive and negative.
They are two halves of the same whole, interconnected and interdependent in the natural world. Though on the surface they seem contradictory and exclusive, even antagonistic, they are, in fact, inter-related. Each needs the other for balance. Their duality expresses the oneness, the unity, of all life.
Two different approaches to life
The masculine signs are the yang side of this equation ... outgoing, positive, extroverted and pushy. The masculine signs are the Fire signs -- Aries, Leo and Sagittarius ... and the Air signs -- Gemini, Libra and Aquarius. Masculine signs make things happen. They seize the moment. They take action to change things that don't suit them. They make proactive choices that keep them in motion. They are always doing something and making progress anyone can see.
The feminine signs are the yin energies of the Zodiac ... quiet, observant, emotional and restrained. The feminine signs are the Earth signs -- Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn ... and the Water signs -- Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces. Feminine signs take a more subtle, cautious approach when dealing with challenges or working for change.
Active / Passive
Feminine signs are normally passive, conservative and calculating. They use the force and pressure of resistance more than coercion or aggression when working to get their own way in life.
Masculine signs are the movers-and-shakers. They connect with people, make noise and kick up a fuss. Feminine signs are patient, quiet and perceptive. They bide their time, watch what transpires and "wait to see what happens" before committing themselves to any one course of action -- especially one that might make them spend assets and energy.
Assertive / Cautious
Masculine signs are extravagant; feminine signs are conservative. Masculine signs are free-wheeling and free-spending; feminine signs prefer to hold on to what they have ... and "save for a rainy day."
Masculine signs believe you make your own opportunities, grab life by the throat. If you don't take care of Number One, no one else will. They crave action and excitement. They get things done. They want attention and glory. They aren't afraid of strife and controversy, for they believe those are all part of progress ... or the price of it.
Forceful / Patient
Feminine signs believe in the benefits of patience and time. If they don't like their current situation, they are convinced that in an ever-changing world life will finally come up with something better -- and to get that, all it takes is a little extra composure and self-control.
They practically invented passive resistance and passive aggression. They don't like conflict or confrontation. They use more subtle means to manipulate circumstances -- and people. They don't like to work up a sweat, cause a lot of hard feelings or upset anyone.
Masculine signs deal with force, identity and intellect. Feminine signs are sensitive, measured, more likely to act on hunches and feelings. Feminine signs deal with emotions, inner perceptions and material reality.
Dynamic / Stable
Masculine signs show initiative, overt ambition and the ability to conceptualize and communicate verbally. Masculine signs are active, spontaneous, overtly ambitious and more interested in imposing their will on the the world than accommodating others ... or adjusting to what currently exists.
The Feminine signs are the stabilizers. They maintain the continuity and cohesion that sustains life. They avoid the roiling chaos of radical change, and believe that by working slower and fitting themselves to the natural flow, they create better, more durable, more predictable results. They prefer that to the drama and turmoil Fire and Air signs create with their proactive tactics and get-'er-done attitudes.
Intellect / Intuition
Which are you?
With a majority of planets in masculine signs in your horoscope, you are a doer-and-thinker. You communicate with actions and words. You put out ideas or create changes with your energy. That constitutes "value" for you.
With a majority of planets in feminine signs, you are a feeler-and-shaper. You operate on intuition and have emotional depth. You communicate through sensations and feelings, symbols and nuance, and when you spend energy, you want something practical, solid or meaningful to show for it. This constitutes "value" for you.
Life is a constant balancing act between these two forces ... stimulus and response, event and consequence, action and reaction. Masculine / feminine is another way of saying this.
This article was exclusively written for Beyond the Veil -- a newsletter prepared weekly by a collection of people, containing articles on the spiritual and the supernatural. To subscribe to the newsletter and stay updated about our community, please follow 
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Little by little, I'm doing a set of articles that talks about all the elements in your horoscope and what they have to say about you. If you "know something" about Astrology -- or know something about your chart placements, that will help you get more from this material.
If you don't ... well, this is one place you can learn. We all have to start somewhere ... because we aren't born knowing this stuff. Meanwhile, if you've never seen your horoscope ... and don't have a clue how to work with it, maybe it's time to find out. There are lots of "chart services" on the internet -- some of whom produce decent, readable charts "for free" and some are so awful and confusing that even I can't read them easily -- and I've worked with charts for decades.
One extremely user-friendly chart site is here: AstroLabe. I recommend them if you want a simple, easy-to-read chart. I think they even give a reasonable little interpretive reading of your horoscope as part of the package. You'll need to know your birth information -- day, month, year, time and geographical place. Without all that your chart will have limited accuracy.
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Although sometimes the background pictures in our visual essays support the topic and text, they don't always. Sometimes the connection is clear. Sometimes it's symbolic and subtle. Sometimes, there's no connection at all.
The scenes depict landscapes and natural features, buildings and wildlife. They were chosen because they show something lovely or interesting ... or simply because the photo appealed to me.
Our spectacular and remarkable planet is changing at astonishing speed. Rarely are these changes for the better. Few people seem to know ... or care ... or have the will and power to do anything about this. It may not be long before the world humans have known and lived in for centuries is forever lost. We certainly won't be able to make repairs as fast as we destroyed it.
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