Love, the Opposite
The Dyadic Zodiac
Today — short and sweet — I am sharing a lesson I just shared with beginning students. It’s my goal to share more high-quality educational content about astrology fundamentals. So this begins, or perhaps continues that journey. Recently I shared an article about the elements in astrology.
My books for February are open, including my new offering, the Radical Election Diagnostic, which invites you to understand your relationship with opportunities in time through the perspective of your birth chart. Attunement Sessions are my natal chart offering. Also don’t forget to pick up my Free 90-minute Teaching on Aspects.
Without further ado: Love, the Opposite.
The Dyadic Zodiac
Signs in opposition are more similar than they are different.
Of the signs' three fundamental qualities, listed below, opposite signs share two, and only differ in one area -- their element.
1. SAME: Signs in opposition share a POLARITY (yin/yang, masculine/feminine, diurnal/nocturnal) -- example: Aries opposes Libra and both are yang signs, Taurus opposes Scorpio and both are yin signs
2. SAME: Signs in opposition also share a MODALITY (cardinal, fixed, or mutable) -- example: Gemini opposes Sagittarius and both are mutable signs.
3. DIFFERENT: Signs in opposition differ and do not share their TRIPLICITY or ELEMENT (fire, earth, air, or water) -- example: Leo opposes Aquarius, and one is a fire sign and one is an air sign
As practice, I would like you to explore the sign of your SECT LIGHT (Sun if you have a day chart, Moon if you have a night chart) alongside its opposing sign. So if you have a night chart with the Moon in Leo, I want you contemplate the Leo-Aquarius axis.
How would you describe the DIFFERENCES of your sign pairing? What are the two traditional rulers of each sign in the pair? Which two elements are on the axis?
How would you describe the SIMILARITIES of your sign pairing? What is the polarity of the pair? What is the modality?
Aries/Libra, Taurus/Scorpio, Gemini/Sagittarius, Cancer/Capricorn, Leo/Aquarius, Virgo/Pisces are sometimes called "dyads". The Pythagorean philosophers, ancestors of our astrological tradition in some ways, talked about the dyad as "the cause of things which are altogether similar and identical and stable [... yet] on the other hand, the dyad is the cause of things which are altogether dissimilar."
Both can be true!
Thinking about yourself and your own nature, can you see similarities between yourself and the sign opposite your Sect Light? It could also be interesting to hear how any planets (especially traditional planets) in the opposing sign shape your experience.
The dyad for the Pythagoreans was called "Erato" because they thought about the dyad in terms of Love.
Do you love your opposite? Can you?
Thanks for sharing these! Just wanted to add this regarding the elements in how they do share movement in their pairings ~
DIFFERENT: Signs in opposition differ and do not share their TRIPLICITY or ELEMENT (fire, earth, air, or water) -- example: Leo opposes Aquarius, and one is a fire sign and one is an air sign
What they do share in their pairings of Fire - Air and Earth - Water are movements. As Fire - Air are both uplifting, moving upward and outward. Earth - Water draw energy down and within.
I commented on my own chart in the class forum, but do you think this pairing between your sect light and it’s opposite is an often overlooked as an overall view in a person’s chart? Just as (or almost as) important as looking at ASC, Sun, and Moon?