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« on: June 09, 2011, 01:40:39 AM »
EVOLUTION OF THE ELEMENTS: by Gina Lake
Excerpt from: Symbols of the Soul: Discovering Your Karma Through Astrology (2000)
“The elements play an important role in evolution. Earth and water preserve and maintain the status quo, fire strengthens our vision and capabilities, and air expands our mental abilities and social skills. Thus, earth and water are basic to human survival, and fire and air expand human potentials.
The lessons of some elements need to be learned before others. Earth is the element most crucial to survival, so its lessons must be learned first. Consequently, earth signs are prominent in the charts of those just beginning their evolutionary journey. Water is the element developed next. It provides the glue that binds social groups, which ensures their survival and advancement. Fire is next, providing the inspiration and energy to seek new ideas and avenues of expression that will expand the boundaries of society. Finally, Air develops intellect, allowing for refinement of social mores and improved technology, which frees people to seek goals beyond survival and maintenance.
The elements evolve in this general pattern, with each overlapping the next: earth continues to develop followed by water. Earth and water continue to develop followed by fire. Earth, water, and fire continue to develop followed by air. Please keep in mind that these are generalization and that you can’t determine how evolved someone is by the signs in his or her chart. Older souls choose earth signs, too, but for different reasons than younger souls do. The names used for the stages of evolution are the ones used in MFM (by C.Q. Yarbro), but for simplicity the Infant stage is included in the Baby stage, because there are very few infant souls on the planet today. Each stage - or cycle - of evolution has its own purpose and way of viewing the world, and its favorite signs or elements.
What follows is a description of how the elements evolve in each of the cycles and their role in evolution:
EARTH SIGNS: The qualities developed over many lifetimes with the earth element ensure our survival. Earth signs teach us responsibility, reliability, practicality, realism, perseverance, patience and caution. Saturn, the ruler of Capricorn, in particular, develops these qualities through its transits to the natal chart. Because these qualities are essential to our survival, the earth signs are the signs chosen most frequently in the Baby cycle, with Capricorn being the first earth sign to be developed.
CAPRICORN
Teaches Us: to develop survival skills, self-preservation, self-development, caution, responsibility, patience, basic survival, social conscience, importance of law, structure and self-discipline, enterprising leadership, active citizenship, political/financial contribution to community
Baby Cycle: Capricorn is the first earth sign to be developed; particularly helpful in Baby and Young cycles, because it arouses distrust, fearfulness, pessimism, which inspire caution, responsibility and patience, which help us avoid what we fear; baby souls are destined to find out about life the hard way - through trial and error
Young Cycle: helpful in Young cycles to learn to value caution, responsibility and patience; once mastered in early lifetimes, provides a foundation to grow in other ways; nurtures a budding social awareness; we begin to function as members of society; social conscience is often not developed until we have first broken the law and learned respect for the law and convention
Mature Cycle: caution, responsibility and patience are deeply ingrained by the Mature soul stage if we have spent many lifetimes as a Capricorn; Mature souls choose Capricorn for its ability to contribute to society through enterprising leadership; skills acquired earlier are applied for the good of society and less for selfish reasons; capture positions of prominence in social and business world; become active citizens who contribute politically and financially to the community
Old Cycle: deeply ingrained by the Old soul stage once mastered in earlier lifetimes (qualities are available even when Capricorn is not in our chart); once in the Old cycle, need for earth signs diminishes unless they help with our life task
TAURUS
Teaches Us: to develop practical skills, comfortable living, sensual pleasures, lessons regarding values, fierce loyalty, love and responsibility within the family unit, family bonds, work/productivity, perseverance, determination
Baby Cycle: enhance our practical skills through Taurus lifetimes; focuses our energy on work and productivity for the benefit of our family and ourselves; late Baby and young Taureans often live simple lives within small communities; family unit begins to hold real meaning for us, and we feel fiercely loyal to those family bonds
Young Cycle: unlike Capricorn lifetimes, Taurus lifetimes are not as concerned with status and wealth as with comforts; want comfortable living; begin lessons about values; fierce family unit loyalty in Young cycles
Mature Cycle: increase our ability to produce something useful for others, to raise the standard of living and degree of comfort for others; mature Taureans are excellent workers, capable of great accomplishments through perseverance and sheer determination
Old Cycle: once in the Old cycle, need for earth signs diminishes unless they help with our life task
VIRGO
Teaches Us: to develop intellect and manual skills, basic hygiene, health care, common sense, planning, organizing, economizing, desire to serve, path of service, healing professions, reliability
Baby Cycle: Virgo lifetimes usually follow Taurus lifetimes in the late Baby cycle; Virgo chosen in late Baby and Young cycles to develop the mind, manual skills, and attention to basic hygiene and health care; to develop and refine practical skills, e.g. sewing, blacksmithing, shoemaking, basket weaving, pottery, other crafts as a means of survival; Virgo teaches us to plan, organize and to economize; function more efficiently; become more self-sufficient
Young Cycle: continue to develop mind, manual skills, attention to hygiene, health care; better able to apply common sense and knowledge to refine specific skills; Virgo lifetimes in the late Young cycle enhance our desire to serve, and mark the beginning of the path of service
Mature Cycle: chosen to enhance service and intellectual accomplishment; efficiency and dedication developed in earlier lifetimes is applied to service in its many forms, especially in the healing professions
Old Cycle: chosen for the same reasons as in the Mature cycle; once in the Old cycle, need for earth signs diminishes unless they help with our life task