The Time of Libra

The bright sun of the autumnal equinox as experienced on my most excellent friend's boat Gaia. 2007


There can be no doubt that summer is finally over and now we in the western hemisphere have come into that most magical time of the autumnal equinox or the beginning of the time of Libra. Today is October 1st and as we in the western hemisphere understand this month – it is truly the autumnal month. The equinox took place late last month when the day and the night were of equal duration and the fall actually began. Elsewhere in the world Muslims are fasting and Jews have been atoning. This time of year to me is kind of an antidote to the summer with its long days of incessant activity and light; full out activity is the norm in July with little time for reflection!



Here in Burlington, Vermont USA we humans and animals alike are often caught in the web of a bipolar existence in which a powerful sun propels us into a whirlwind of activities on the good weather days or the lack of sun coupled with plentiful rain drives us all into deep introspection or even despair on the bad weather days. For any Libran this kind of behavior is crazy making. The scales can’t seem to balance within this kind of lifestyle. What is especially true of this situation is a lack of harmony. To me Vermont weather feels to my physical body like a punishing surge of Redbull and adrenaline in the morning followed by a handful of Xanax in the afternoon. This is a kind of play that goes on during this time of year in Vermont as we all get used to a decrease in light and activity time. Should we run around like squirrels gathering nuts or should we mope like old dogs by the fireplace?

If we take October as an example of the spirit of Libra, I believe it to be easy to recognize some characteristics of this time of year in New England. The leaves are changing and the dazzling colors bring us into an amazing field of explosive scenery coupled with some still warm sun that simply creates a beautiful landscape that is ever so fragile for it is so fleeting. Cool winds blow. The forest and mountains seem to be so full of life now, yet the time of Scorpio is just around the corner when all must truly die and the world will turn once again into grayness. To me this all seems so very reflective of the time of Libra. There exists a poignant balanced fragility that is just about to go out of balance!

Here, then, arrives the vibration of Libra – anxiety. Observe the big hitter Mark Maguire or the cigar-chomping Groucho Marx, both are obviously connected to easy-to-spot manly phallus symbols, yet they are mostly soft-spoken men who have gained power and fame through keeping lightly on their toes either at home plate or on the comedy movie set. There is a razor’s edge lightness to both these figures because they need to be able to quickly move to the next thing in their daily and hourly interactions. Buster Keaton’s masterful and athletic pratfalls exemplify this Libran quality perhaps even better. Female Librans such as Serena Williams and Susan Sarandon bring to mind another kind of quality of the sign being that of adaptability and creativity within such varied pursuits as tennis, acting, social activism, music, and fashion and glamour. Enough has been said about these qualities of Venus types that it is perhaps unnecessary to mention that disharmony, ugliness, nihilistic behavior and imperfection drive Libra to drink. Think about the aforementioned qualities and how much of all that there is in the world in order to develop a sense of how many Libran drunkards walk our streets! As a rule, I feel that Librans cover their anxiety and unease with that strange spaciness of theirs.
As a practicant of Buddhist meditation and ideation, I feel that what is most neglected in examination of Libra is indeed its connection with anxiety. As I embrace the Buddhist ideal that all is forever changing and that clinging to attachment is just plain ridiculous, I really get freaked out when I begin to see how futile is the Libran’s battle toward perfection and what I like to call homeostasis – that state of being in perfection and perfect balance were all “can get no better”. My proposition is this: If all is forever changing, then the achievement of a perfect state of balance is damn near impossible! This says much I think about the Libran’s psyche – it is in constant turmoil. It is indecisive about being both decisive and indecisive at the same time. It sees the foolishness of having to constantly choose when in doing so already so much has been given up by doing so. It sees the futility in both action and inaction! Yikes! Where to go from here? Perhaps it is best to reach for the Paxil or the yoga mat – avoid the coffee and the Red Bull.

Finally … a bit of trivia. What is the most common birthday in the United States? October 5th is the answer. This is my birthday. And since Cancer rules the United States and currently there is a Cancer president in the White House, it is my theory that the US is in some kind of a Libra-Cancer (4-10 vibration) always. The Libra-Cancer “battle” is a serious one. Feelings versus intellect. Intuition versus empirical evidence. The summer picnic sun versus a splash of cold color before the decline of November.

Is it any wonder that US elections take place in the cold drizzle of November?
Be nice to your scale friends – even if they don’t move a muscle they have a lot going on!