About Aquarius

Aquarius is a Fixed Air sign. It is ruled by Saturn (traditional) or Uranus (modern) and associated with the 11th house. The Sun is in Aquarius from late January to mid-February, which is the depths of winter in the Northern Hemisphere. Aquarius embodies the certainty of following your own convictions even when they run counter to consensus reality.

The polarity of Aquarius is Leo, which is Fixed Fire. The Aquarius-Leo axis is about the collective vs. the individual, and the objective vs. the personal.

Aquarius Traits

• unconventional, individualistic, and resistant to conformity
• values personal freedom and independence
• principled & idealistic, wanting the best for all
• concerned with fairness & equality
• has a vision for a better future for humanity
• skeptical of popular opinion and conventional wisdom
• often feels like an outsider, but embraces this status
• approaches problems with unorthodox and innovative solutions
• motivated by a need for authenticity, truth, and ethics
• can be detached or aloof, prioritizing ideas over emotions
• often has an interest in science, technology, and the future

The Deeper Meaning of Aquarius

Aquarius as a sign has changed over the ~240 years since Uranus was discovered in 1781. It is now associated more with revolution and rebellion (Uranus's discovery corresponds with the French and American revolutions), but Aquarius was originally ruled by Saturn, which you can hardly characterize as rebellious or unpredictable. Aquarius was associated with discipline, contemplation, intellectual rigor, and the kind of humanitarianism that is big-picture and detached

You will probably not find Aquarius volunteering at the local soup kitchen—they love humanity in theory but practical love is more of a Cancer thing. But if you do find them there, it is because they believe it is an ethical action—the right thing to do. And they will be there earnestly. Aquarius does not perform virtue; they really try to understand what virtue is, and live by it.

Air signs are rational and logical—but to bring rationality to the thorny and paradoxical problems of human nature is a tall order. Aquarius can only do this by remaining detached, which is one of its most enduring associations. But this detachment is also its Achilles Heel, because it often just cannot relate well to people who feel life rather than thinking about it.

This detachment and need to remain faithful to an idealistic vision that is not bogged down by the messiness of everyday human life is also the underpinnings of the associations with being "unconventional" and going against the grain. It is not arrived at through a need to be rebellious so much as a need to be intellectually honest and internally congruent. The end result is that you are not wiling to go along to get along, to compromise your principles for the sake of smooth social functioning. You don't see the point; what even is the value of a society if it's not founded in eternal principles? Why would you want to cooperate with something that doesn't make rational sense?

The polarity of Aquarius is Leo, the sign ruled by the Sun. Leos seem to be the opposite of aloof—they are known for being expressive, generous, and warm-hearted. But the shadow of Leo is arrogance and pride, or the placing of oneself above others, as well as the excessive need for admiration. Aquarius is apart from the world, but doesn't place itself above it except in an intellectual way. The idea is the point, not the person who came up with it. Humans are all in a sense lesser to the pure brilliance of the right idea; the best we can do is commit ourselves to the best idea we can find. Leo wants to be the hero for personal reasons; Aquarius doesn't need to be seen as a hero; it needs to actually be serving the greater good according to its own ideals.

The downside of all this dispassionate humanism is that the actual fact of people being human is a bit distasteful to Aquarius. Human needs for comfort and consistency, and the human penchant for being irrational and hypocritical, are baffling to Aquarius. It sees emotions as messy and superfluous to the greater mission, and tries to approach them rationally (which never works), or ignore them completely. This can, for obvious reasons, be tough on relationships and connections that aren't solely dedicated to The Cause.

This is where Aquarius can learn from Leo because, ironically, Leo has a much easier time leading groups of people and rallying them to a cause than Aquarius does. This is because Leo knows how to connect at the heart level, person-to-person, which is what builds loyalty. While personal loyalty and devotion is not what Aquarius wants to build a movement on, the fact is that a movement made just of Aquarians would be a whole lot of armchair-philosopher debates punctuated by a few wild actions that were righteously defended but practically questionable. You can't change the world by yourself, or just with an idea: you also have to work with other messy, silly people, which means you have to care, at least a little bit, about their needs. This is the path of growth for Aquarius.

The Sextile Between Sagittarius and Aquarius

Sagittarius (mutable fire) and Aquarius (fixed air) may seem pretty different on the surface, but they share the values of intellectual curiosity, idealism, and a need for freedom, authenticity, and truth.

If you are familiar with MTBI, it's a bit like the famous bond between ENFPs and INFJs. Their styles are wildly different, but when they come together, they complement each other. Sagittarius wants to have zany adventures and metabolize insights from the way the world lands in their heart. Aquarius wants to survey the world from 1000 ft and arrive at insights through pure abstract thought. But they both love an intellectual debate, and they both need to maintain their independence. Like Scorpio and Virgo (another sextile relationship), they know when to give each other the space they need to thrive, and how to support each others differences.