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Beginners Astrology Tutorial
4. Polarity, Modes and Elements

	Names of Zodiacal Signs Note on the left of the inner wheel is the number "1". In the outer wheel is the symbol for Aries.On the outside of the wheel is the word Aries. The name and symbol of each sign proceeds in order around the wheel.
	Polarity of each sign. Positive/Negative. Note that Aries, the first sign, has a "positive" polarity. Taurus, the second sign, has a "negative" polarity. Polarity alternates each sign around the wheel. Polarity is explained below.
	Mode of Activity: Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable (Common) The first month of each season, Aries for Spring, Cancer for Summer, Libra for Fall and Capricorn for Winer are all Cardinal signs. The mid month and signs, Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius are all Fixed signs. The last month of each season, Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces are Mutable signs, also called Common signs.
	The Elements: Fire, Earth, Air and Water. The element order of Fire, Earth, Air and Water repeats three times around the zodiac beginning with Aries a Fire sign and ending with Pisces a Water sign.

The One, The Two, The Three and the Four

Energy is conditioned by flowing through 'images' which are themselves a condition of energy. These 'images' are more properly called Archetypes.¹

"FOREWORD--Archetypes are created by archetypal forces working in the four lower Regions of Concrete Thought. Archetypes live, move, and create as a mechanical Appliance made by man works--but without reason. When the archetype is built it is set into vibration, and as long as it continues to vibrate the form which it sustains continues to live. When the archetype ceases to vibrate the form disintegrates."²

The Two
The basic polarity is hard to describe. Life and Form, energy and substance, masculine and feminine, yang and yin, positive and negative, aggressive and passive are all word pairs used to point at this basic polarity. In essence, the odd numbered signs (1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11) are relatively outgoing or extroverted while the even numbered signs (2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12) are relatively introverted. Usually this sign division is ignored unless a horoscope has a very marked dominance of one type of sign occupied.

The Three

The signs are divisible into groups of three signs:
Cardinal	Fixed	Mutable
Aries	Taurus	Gemini
Cancer	Leo	Virgo
Libra	Scorpio	Sagittarius
Capricorn	Aquarius	Pisces

The signs are divided into a pattern of three, the modes of activity. Signs are cardinal, fixed and mutable (also called common). Signs which begin each season are Aries begins Spring, Cancer begins Summer, Libra begins Fall and Capricorn begins Summer. These signs are the turning points of the year and their natural energy is oriented to beginnings. The pattern of life is to 'turn' at these points in the horoscope.

The middle month of each season is a fixed sign. As the word fixed implies, these signs, Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius, are fixed in nature, things begin slowly here and stop slowly, their affairs are persistent.

The last month of each season is a mutable sign, Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces. Affairs of these signs are changable, flexible, more mental in nature.

It is well to see some planets in each of these three sign types to give initiative, persistence and flexability to the life.

The Four

The signs are divisible into groups of four signs: The Elements
+	-	+	-
Fire	Earth	Air	Water
Aries	Taurus	Gemini	Cancer
Leo	Virgo	Libra	Scorpio
Sagittarius	Capricorn	Aquarius	Pisces

This division is called elemental. Each sign aligns the consciousness, the feelings and actions to one of the four elemental affinities.
The firey impulses, warmth and light.
The practical and substantial 'down to earth'.
The love of ideas denoted by air.
And the sympathy and empathy denoted by water.

More: -Click Here- For the rules of horoscope intrepretation and a brief explanation.

References:
1) Compiled Information Concerning ARCHETYPES From the Writings of Max Heindel
2) Forward to 1) above.

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