Leo Season

Individuation Invitation //

This is the Leo edition of the "Sun in Signs" series that shines a spotlight on each zodiac sign during the time the Sun moves through it each year. For about a month, that sign takes center stage, influencing the collective atmosphere. Each monthly blog post is written and formatted to capture the essential pulse, rhythm, style, pace, and energy of the featured sign in its season. 

The Life of a Beating Heart

Most astrologers begin by describing Leo from its outer appearance: confident, dramatic, charismatic, creative, attention-seeking. But this is not necessarily what Leo feels from the inside. A good place to start understanding Leo is to recognize its rulership over the heart. A beating heart is the one thing that stands between life and death. This organ and its operations are responsible for the primary life force. It is not possible to breathe if your heart isn’t beating. 

Non-physically, Leo can be defined by a big heart. This is life force, and Leo is life force looking for somewhere to go. It translates this force by asking, “What wants to come alive today?”  It does this every day as sure as the Sun rises and sets. That’s because Leo rules the Sun, the center of the solar system, providing power and support to the other planets. The Sun’s gravitational field holds the planets in our solar system in place, and its rays are what give life on Earth. 

A Radiant Sun

Fundamentally, Leo is not so much about seeking attention as it is about radiance. The Sun shines because that is its nature, not because someone is watching. Leo calibrates around the archetype of becoming source rather than searching for source, although it may struggle to separate the two. This is a lifelong process of seeking to individuate through expressing the life force. 

It follows, then, that it has a similar function in our personality. The Sun’s gravitational field holds all the other planets in place. It plays a similar role in your personality, where the ego holds all the parts of your psyche in place, so they can function as a whole to form a sense of self. Each person’s unique makeup is a layering of factors, astrologically speaking, but the base and foundation is the Sun sign. It is more than a star; it is an organizing principle. 

Organization Central

Psychologically, through the Leo function, consciousness is organized into a stable sense of self: ego development. Without this, thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and experiences remain fragmented. In this sign, there is a sense of internal coherence that reframes the desire for appreciation so commonly associated with Leo. Leo represents the active principle in its universe. It relates to reality beyond itself and is conscious of its effect on the outside world. 

This is the self that enters the world. It is by its very nature an extroverted sign. Leo needs and wants to radiate in order to be healthy. Its ability to charm and inject life and new energy into others is palpable. Even if Leo tends to be on the quieter side, they will seek out the company of others just to be around them, radiating a quiet presence, with the deep expectation all Leos have of being the center of attention in some way, shape, or form. Able to overcome their own fears, they can help others overcome theirs. 

Creativity as Identity

This is a very creative sign, and every creative act generates life. It asks for a witness to its creativity in order to experience completion. Through creativity, Leo rules the 5th house of love and children, by participating in the creation itself. Whatever lies in the sign’s orbit will be the beneficiary. The sign reminds us that creations naturally long for a relationship to bring the cycle full circle.  A creation received creates space for the next creation, and in Leo, this is a moment-to-moment event. 

Astrology is like chemistry in that we are all made up of parts of this or that substance. The chemical reactions these substances undergo are involved in an individual's development as they mature: the experiences had, the transitions undergone, the locations lived in. The product of all this is what makes up our unique compositions. Leo is the creative expression of that. One of the main ways this creativity manifests is in entertaining others. 

Out in the World Inside Themselves

With a natural flair for extraversion, it generally loves an audience and revels in feedback and applause. This is not a petty sign in any way, and expressing such a lack is offensive to Leo. It won’t argue about the small stuff. Self-sufficient by nature, it will likely never starve if it invests in the life-giving creative force inside itself that is the Sun’s energy. People are naturally drawn to Leo, to be in its orbit and experience the warmth and generosity it generates. It is both magnificent and magnetic in its effect on others, and has often been associated with royalty. 

In return, it needs appreciation and will suffer greatly if its efforts go unnoticed. A natural leader, this is the lion king of the jungle; a sign that doesn’t follow easily. It can teach us how to worship, if we are open, and this is where it shows itself to be a fixed sign. They are capable of a love that only wants to give in a way that only the strong can give. This is not an insecure sign, and it generally doesn’t resist change because it doesn’t resist life. Improvements to the existing order bring change that is comfortable, because this keeps life exciting and prevents stagnation. 

Sunlight casts a Shadow

Now, if life isn’t happening, they are also capable of acting to bring out the action they would like to see. This is why they love entertainment and are often the life of the party. They need to see the bounceback of a reflection of themselves in the world they created for themselves. It is more interested in gathering people into its orbit than in things. Leo is also capable of manipulation by forcing its leadership on others. This is because Leo's attention is focused not on the actual self, but on the effect they have on those around them. 

This can go too far, leading to self-aggrandizement with too much worship of self. Even quiet Leos will have an internalized sense of self-importance with an almost pathological need to be where the action is. This is less arrogance than a forgetting of one’s own light and instead borrowing it through status, admiration, or performance. Leo needs to remember that it is the source, and the question to ask is not, “How can I stand out?”, but, “What wants to come alive through me?” These are two very different things. One is comparison, and the other is purpose. 

On Being Proud

This is a sign of pride, and there must also be something to be proud of. Leo is most content when its solar system doesn’t become too large. It is a loyal sign and expects love, loyalty, and respect in return from others. The most painful thing that can happen to a Leo is to have its pride hurt. Be careful not to pull the plug on the Sun in your life. 

If you want to have a Leo in your life, let them know you are aware of them; court their favour and show them respect. Because deep inside itself, Leo is always on the great journey of life looking for the source itself. Even the applause they seek from others is a confirmation that they mean something. More than any other sign, they are connected to source, and this will touch anything that comes into their presence. Some pride is healthy and natural for a Leo, and if close by, you can consider yourself lucky to experience its warmth. 

Signs & Symbols

Leo carries some of the strongest symbology in the whole zodiac: Sun, heart, spine, lions, ego, life force. It is important to note that the Sun sign is something that grows and matures out of an individual as a sense of purpose in life. This central focus quality means that, inherent in every person, the Sun represents the possibilities life holds. Leo represents the superconscious part of ourselves that looks to the future to manifest its purpose. 

When looking at a birth chart, the Sun sign is the first item we take note of. All people, regardless of whether they know anything about astrology or not, know their Sun sign. That should tell you something right there. And since we all have Leo somewhere in our birth chart, we have access to it as a birthright. There is a magic to life, and it is not asking us to become extraordinary, but to remind us that life itself is extraordinary.