While we tend to focus on the outer world when talking about peace and harmony, justice and fairness, these qualities cannot exist outside of ourselves if we do not embody them internally as individuals. When we create the necessary balance and integration among the sometimes conflicting parts of ourselves, our deepest wants, needs and desires, we exemplify the best expressions of Libra. 

In astrology we view the planets as representations of archetypal forces within the human psyche. Our personality has many facets, each with their own drives, principles and urges. The planets in your birth chart describe the different facets of your multi-dimensional personality. Like characters on a stage, they each have a specific role to play in the development and expression of your character. One archetypal part of your psyche may get along fine with some of the other archetypal forces, but have difficulties with others. Astrologers examine planetary aspects in the horoscope to get insight into this. 

Learning how to implement, balance and integrate the different archetypal forces within us into a healthy, balanced and cohesive whole can be challenging. We must find ways for each of the different parts of our personality to express themselves and function in a productive manner. If we utilize only some parts of our planetary personality constellation and repress others, we feel out of sorts, incomplete, unfulfilled. Repressed or unexpressed facets may erupt at inappropriate times or in extreme forms, or may be projected onto others instead of owning them ourselves. The inner conflict between our “characters on the stage” is then played out in our outer relationships and experiences. 

Alternatively, we may strongly identify with specific parts of our personality, mistakenly thinking this is the only way we are supposed to be. This can lock us into limited ways of thinking and behaving, and keep us from fully utilizing our potential. When we successfully engage and express all parts of our personality in balanced ways we experience satisfaction and a state of peace, wholeness, and completeness.

Each of our personality facets, the “characters on a stage,” must play out their roles. We can allow them to work collaboratively by finding common ground where they can cooperate. If they cannot share the spotlight, perhaps they can take turns being center stage, or in different parts of our life. Ideally we want them to come together in a respectful “meeting of the minds” where we can listen to each of their viewpoints and honor the contribution they can each make to our current situation or endeavor. Learning to value and trust the unique gifts and skills they provide is a first step in integrating and balancing the different facets of our complex psyche.

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.”  – Thomas Merton

Sometimes we think an issue we are struggling with lies in the way someone treated us. Perhaps our mother did not nurture us in ways we needed. Or our father was remote and uninterested in us, or stern and critical. We may place blame on them for our current problems, chronic issues, or unhappy life situations.

The Ego-Mind likes stories. It tries to protect us and provide explanations for experiences in our past that cause us pain. However a story can keep us stuck in the past. A story is static, while we are dynamic. Change is the only constant in life, and if we want to move forward and evolve we have to let go of our old stories.

What if we reframed our perspective and re-wrote the stories about our past relationships? What if we let go of playing the role of passive victim and, owning our experiences, viewed them as opportunities for our growth and development?

Perhaps the relationships we have with others are soul contracts to help us gain self-awareness and to work on our own issues. Other people may trigger something in us, or reflect something back to us, thereby helping us see something we were not aware of. An emotional reaction to something outside of our self provides a clue that draws our attention.

Instead of giving our power away by blaming someone for triggering or mistreating us, and spinning into story, we can take responsibility by turning inward. What is coming up in us that needs resolution or healing? What changes can we make for our self? This is empowering and puts us in the driver’s seat of our own life.

From this place we can adopt a higher, broader, more spiritual perspective for understanding our life experiences. We can see that relationships are what I like to call “the crucible for self-awareness and transformation.” We can honor the soul contracts we have with others and have gratitude for the ways others serve our spiritual growth.

“What angers us in another person is more often than not an unhealed aspect of ourselves. If we had already resolved that particular issue, we would not be irritated by its reflection back to us.”
– Simon Peter Fuller

The positive, outgoing polarity of Libra is expressed in its desire to connect with others. Libra believes that personal interaction is the basis for all major insight and advances in society. Libra desires a civilized, cooperative meeting of the minds in an atmosphere of refinement, reasonableness and harmony. This cardinal sign is the “iron fist in a velvet glove.”

A social air sign, Libra uses its intellect to understand opposing perspectives and to find ways to extend fairness to all. It shares its views, and strives to convince others of their credibility. It uses compromise to resolve opposing and competing views, and reach agreement. Libra is a diplomatic mediator, a just peacemaker. The key phrase for Libra is “I Balance.” Its symbol is the Scales, an instrument used to measure or weigh by balancing objects.

Libra can become out of balance by putting other people’s needs and aspirations ahead of its own. When it avoids confrontations out of its desire for peace at any price it sacrifices its own identity and desires. As it compromises its self, its personal identity fades into the “we” of partnership. Libra can then become miserable dwelling on the lack of fairness and justice for itself.

Poised, gracious and charming, Libra rules interpersonal skills, social behavior and etiquette. It refines and polishes its efforts to create successful interactions between people. Keenly aware of other people’s preferences and desires, Libra tactfully strives to please and avoids offending at all costs. Libra can appear superficial and frivolous when avoiding issues that may provoke disagreement or anger. It can be passive, flattering and phony out of fear of discord or conflict. Libra touts honesty, but shies away from holding opinions that might be offensive. As a result, Libra often appears to be indecisive. 

Areas of our life ruled by Libra include all face-to-face relationships including business and marriage partnerships, social circumstances, and interactions with peers and open enemies. Libra governs our interpersonal skills, including how well we cooperate and collaborate with others. It rules our inner attitudes about compromise, harmony and agreement. Contracts, agreements, and joint endeavors fall under its domain.

Spiritually and psychologically, Libra represents the search for greater self-awareness and understanding through relationships. We project onto others unresolved issues in our psyche we have difficulty acknowledging, our “shadow side.” In face-to-face relationships the other person is a movie screen for our own projections. They mirror back to us elements of our self we are not consciously aware of. We are forced to see them, so that we can take steps to resolve, transform and heal them.

We have opportunities to learn more about our self through family relationships and business and marriage partnerships. Problematic issues arise and we must find ways to reconcile them. We learn how to balance our needs with the needs of others. We discover ways to share power, and to give and take. In the crucible of relationships we are subjected to forces that result in our own growth and transformation.

Libra archetypes are arbitrators, moderators, negotiators and emissaries; judges, mediators and lawyers.  Designers and interior decorators, art dealers and curators are examples of people who exhibit the Libran love of beauty and refinement. Colors for Libra are deep rose pink and magenta. The gem for Libra is opal. White roses, cosmos, hydrangeas and poppies are Libra flowers. Lizards are Libran animals. Parts of a house that are ruled by Libra include living rooms, picture windows and draperies, and rooms containing works of art. Parts of the body ruled by Libra are the lower back and kidneys.

“What angers us in another person is more often than not an unhealed aspect of ourselves. If we had already resolved that particular issue, we would not be irritated by its reflection back to us.”
– Simon Peter Fuller

We mark the seasonal transition from summer to autumn this afternoon as the Sun moves from the sign of Virgo into Libra. The positive, outgoing energy of this cardinal air sign is expressed in Libra’s desire to connect with others and to create beauty and harmony. Libra uses its intellect to understand opposing perspectives and to find ways to extend fairness to all. Libra rules relationships, cooperation, mediation and balance.

The planet Venus is the traditional ruler of both LIbra and Taurus. Astrologer and mythologist Valerie Vaughan makes a compelling argument for assigning modern rulership of Libra to the as yet undiscovered planet beyond Pluto she names Persephone.

In Greek mythology Persephone is the maiden daughter of Demeter, who is known to the Romans as Ceres, goddess of grain fields and crops. Persephone enjoyed an idyllic childhood, raised by her nurturing and loving mother. One day as Persephone played in a meadow, she plucked a flower. With this act she unleashed the forces of the underworld. Through a gaping crack in the earth came Pluto in his chariot, who carried her off to the underworld to be his bride.

Ceres, stricken with grief and mourning the loss of her daughter, caused the crops to wither and die. Famine threatened humankind. Through negotiations with the gods on Mount Olympus, a compromise was brokered to save humanity. It was decided that Persephone could return to her mother so long as she had not eaten any food during her time with Pluto in Hades.

Not wanting to lose his wife, Pluto offered Persephone a pomegranate as she was preparing to leave. She ate some of its seeds, which prevented her from returning to her mother and resuming her role as daughter. Ceres was unrelenting, and again another compromise was brokered between the gods. Persephone would spend part of the year above ground with her mother helping her cultivate the crops, and part of the year in the underworld with her husband Pluto, bringing solace to the dead.

These themes are clearly represented in the ingress chart for the Autumn Equinox. The maiden Persephone is at 0 degrees Virgo, in close proximity to her mother represented by Vesta and Ceres at 5 and 11 degrees, respectively. These planets are opposed by Neptune and Chiron retrograde in Pisces, suggesting illusionary thinking on the part of an impressionable day dreamer, which results in pain and suffering. The South Node conjunct the Moon in Taurus represents a need to release past attachment to the comforts of mother and home. The North Node in Scorpio beckons Persephone to leave her world above ground and join the Lord of the Underworld, Saturn in Scorpio exactly conjunct the North Node. Venus in Scorpio entices with her deep knowing of the inner world and its rich gifts. These planets sextile and disposit to Pluto in Capricorn. Persephone will need to undergo deconstruction of her psyche, unearth the powerful forces within her that she has kept hidden. Pluto continues its ongoing square with Uranus in Aries, causing tension, upheaval, turmoil and anguish.

Into the fray comes the Sun in Libra, semisextile Mother and Daughter on one side, and Lord of the Underworld on the other. It is the midpoint, the fulcrum, shining its light to illuminate ways that create fairness and balance. Can both viewpoints be taken into consideration? Can opposing interests be respected and honored? And what about young Persephone? Will she be able to descend into the Pluto’s realm and complete her transformation into wholeness without succumbing to the extremism and destruction of Scorpio? Can she emerge with greater consciousness and self-awareness?

Libra moderates opposing forces and leads us back to the center, to the still point where there is peace and harmony. In the quiet place where there is no movement we can listen to the wisdom of compromise, make concessions, collaborate for a greater good. While we may feel pulled off center from time to time, and even to extreme when the pendulum swings wildly, focusing on the center point keeps us from falling off the edge. It keeps us sane.

As we undergo deep transformation personally and collectively, we experience discord and strife, imbalances and extremes, both internally and externally. Libra can help us by leading us back to center. And like Persephone we will become more conscious of our own powers of renewal within the cycles of birth, separation, death and regeneration in our life.