Life is highly personal for this individual; what he can see, taste, hear, smell and feel, and how it might affect his world, is all important to him. The larger, detached viewpoint is usually lost on him. He may need to learn how to move just a little out of his well-defined groove so that life does not become too stagnant. And like quicksand, his mind can suck him down.
Relationships
The Earth – Water person normally finds immense satisfaction in a relationship that brings out the innate dependable, resourceful, gentle, devotional qualities of this combination. This individual feels affirmed and valued when he knows he is needed and valued for his useful accomplishments.
People with this combination are particularly good at serving and caring for others, and once they find their romantic niche they get on with nurturing and nest-building. Hence they make excellent partners, and tend to prefer sitting around the fire drinking hot cocoa to lots of razzle-dazzle on the town. This type helps to ground and contain the more unstable, exciting Fire – Air type, and there is likely to be a mutual attraction due to the striking differences.
Male v. Female
This is a primarily receptive, feminine combination and has all the hallmarks of the female stereotype – caring, domestic, loyal, quiet, persevering. Both male and female of this type will tend to be introverts and could work well on their own in an artistic medium, but they could also develop a shrewd business sense and do well in the marketplace. They can employ their pragmatism and sensitivity in quiet but purposeful ways, ‘sussing out’ the climate of the times and the integrity of would-be business partners.
Air – Water Combinations (See nos. 28, 32, 36, 39, 43, 47, 76, 80, 84, 87, 91, 95, 124, 128, 132, 135, 139, 143)
Air and Water together produce mist which is a seemingly insubstantial, rather ethereal mixture. In fact, this combination of mind and emotion can produce a wonderful sense of humour and an extremely creative imagination, making for an equal interest in both sciences and the humanities, in people and things, in fact and fiction. This individual is enormously sensitive and potentially insightful, but may need to exert terrific effort in handling the real world. It is potentially a romantic, poetic combination, powerfully expressive and often theatrical. The Welsh poet Dylan Thomas (Sun Scorpio, Moon Aquarius) expressed this ironic blend of mind and heart in a note about his Collected Poems:
These poems, with all their crudities, doubts, and confusions, are written for the love of Man and in praise of God, and I’d be a damn ‘fool if they weren’t.
When the Sun is in Air and the Moon in Water, the individual may be a thinking type who consciously reflects upon the mysteries of life. This person thinks he is a free spirit, but soon finds out how deeply attached he has become. The Scottish birth-control campaigner Marie Stopes (Sun Libra, Moon Pisces) was typical of the combination in her idealism, which was concerned with the realm of human values and the mysterious world of feeling and emotion. She expressed this well when she said:
There is nothing in the world I so reverence as beauty, whether of the world, of character or in a soul.
Shadow
The Air – Water type may sometimes get confused as to whether he is thinking or feeling something. An apparently detached viewpoint may in fact be tinged with personal bias. This individual may also experience a mind – emotion split, feeling both emotionally involved and even dependent, and yet detached from the object of his affections at another level.
In general, there can be a tendency for a rich imagination to remain somewhat ‘up in the air’, and for procrastination and an impractical approach to limit the possibilities of successful self-expression. If Water is the stronger element, there can be intense emotionality, receptivity and self-dramatization, but with a lack of strategy about one’s creative energies. If Air is the stronger element, the individual initiates well-thought-out schemes but they may lack that touch of originality which comes from the depths of an inspired heart. To find out which element is stronger, you need to know further details about the horoscope, such as whether there are several planets in Water or Air.
Relationships
The Air – Water type is interested in relating and communicating, and makes a delightful and stimulating partner. But there may be a kind of divine discontent in this individual, a sort of unconscious yearning for something more and a sense that the grass is greener somewhere else. Relationships can be problematic because there is a need for intimacy and security as well as for variety and change.
Women with the Moon in a Water sign may tend to gravitate towards men with a strong Water component, for they will help bring out their sense of femininity, which could otherwise get suppressed and intellectualized. For similar reasons, men with the Moon in an Air sign may find themselves drawn to Air-type women, with whom they will feel a spontaneous affinity. It may be possible for this combination to drift into new intimacies without realizing it is happening, and they would expect to be able to remain friends with all past lovers.
Male v. Female
This combination is probably best handled by females who can stay in touch with their feelings and also reflect on them without too much distress. The female role requires ‘diffuse awareness’ – the ability to be aware of many different things at once – and it also requires tremendous adaptability, which this combination provides. It is likely that males will tend to polarize towards the mental and intellectual dimension, defending themselves against the overt expression of feelings. This will especially be the case when the Moon is the water element.
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SUN ARIES
An actor’s a guy who, if you ain’t talking about him, ain’t listening.
MARLON BRANDO
Glory to Man in the highest! for Man is the master of things.
ALGERNON SWINBURNE
Themes
FIRE/FIRE Bold; quick-thinking; innovative mind; extrovert; passionate; blunt; impatient; self-centred; courageous; intuitive; adventurous; nervous energy; touchy ego; optimistic; progressive; integrity; maverick and crusading temperament.
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread – this expresses a core truth about you, and one of your greatest strengths, which is this: you embody the ‘beginner’s mind’ with all its hope, vitality and yearning for life. This makes you an exciting companion because you live in the present, in the moment, although that moment is inevitably geared up to take you into a fabulous future. Always ready to take up a challenge and express what is on your mind, you have a forceful, eager, adventurous personality and a basic assumption of total independence. Your ‘beginner’s mind’ is not strong on forethought or patience, but your