Leo is known as the Lion for those born July 23 through August 22nd. This is an approximation because of the irregular rotation of the earth and therefore not every year will Leo begin exactly on the 23rd or even end on the 22nd.

When I think of Leo what comes to mind is the most charismatic and extroverted of all the zodiacal characters.  You are the monarch's among humans as the lion is king of beasts. You are ambitious, courageous, dominant, strong-willed, positive, independent, and self-confident. Born leaders, you are at your most effective when in a position of command, and your personal magnetism can bring out the best of loyalty from followers.  Your followers know where you stand. 

The symbol associated with your sign is the Lion. The Lion has derived its meaning from many ancient stories. Of course he is the king of beasts, the leader and protector.  The lion is a wild beast of great passions but he doesn’t get angry unless seriously wounded. A lion is not greedy, but leaves off eating when he’s had enough.  He never eats leftovers.  And the lion is very protective of its cubs.

The Sun was regarded by the ancients as the king of the planets and thus was given rulership over the sign Leo. Leo is reputed to be kingly and dominating.  The planets circle the sun, the center of the solar system.  Leo’s often find themselves, or place themselves at the center of affairs, with many of their relationships dependent on their need for leadership, strength and direction. 

The Sun which rules Leo is all about power, whether for good or evil, and when allowed to run wild, without conscious direction, it leads to arrogance and the urge to control and dominate others.  Dictators represent the negative aspects of Leo. Most dragon slaying myths are the taming of this powerful life force and bringing it under conscious control. The ancient Greeks attributed the first of Hercules’ twelve labors, the slaying of the lion, as descriptive of Leo. The story is about Hercules who represents the human and civilized aspect of man who gains control over the passions of the beast within, represented by the lion. And so, Leo’s must learn to conquer their powerful natures just like Bill Clinton and Madonna who are Leo’s.

The quest of Leo is found in a leadership role in the outer world – staking out their kingdom and conquering it.

Like the Lion and Hercules your vitality and sexuality is very strong and powerful.  And I know it sounds like a cliche about the lion’s mane but it’s just amazing how most Leo’s wear their hair as a royal crown often with the mane being their best physical quality. Your nature is fiery and therefore exercise is important but so is showing off your competitive nature to win and look good at the same time.  Therefore most of you take great pride in your overall physical appearance, which in turn gives you a robust and sexy body.

Loyalty and devotedness are characteristics of Leo, who is no philanderer when involved romantically.  Leo is a gregarious, big-hearted sign who needs plenty of affection.  Confidence is the key to your personality, and if it is shaken, you won't be able to move forward as smoothly as you might wish. Being stubborn, change is hard for you to adjust to, at least initially so surround yourself with only your most supportive friends.

Marriage, family and children hold a special place in your heart.  You want to be the king or queen of the household, whether as a successful papa breadwinner or the super mom who does it all. So regardless if its the boardroom or the kitchen you have a powerful need to be the best you can be and when it  comes to marriage you fill the role to the hilt.

When you fall in love you want the courting game and romantic dinners, and hopefully onto the lavish wedding party and gifts, the exotic honeymoon, and finally the beautifully decorated home which will be your showcase as the backdrop of the perfect home and family.  You want it all and with flare and style.  And after all the hard work to get there you aren’t going to jeopardize it by fooling around indiscriminately or at least you won’t leave the marriage because of a weak lapse of character.

So when you fall in love your object of desire will certainly know it for your intense enthusiasm can sweep your lover off their feet. But if you are reject or deeply hurt you can shut down your heart and become ice cold but you won’t give up easily but when you do it’s usually over completely with no turning back.

When a Leo matches up with another Leo incredible sparks of passion will flare-up instantly but it’s important that each wants to put the other on a pedestal because if one of you is doing all the giving and not getting back any adoration the affair will fizzle fast; Virgos and you do best in financial affairs as long as you remain honest with one another; Libra is a good intellectual partner but the passion often turns to a feeling of brotherly or sisterly love; Scorpios will want to set up house with you but the passions could burn the house down; Sagittarius is your eternal lover and playmate; Capricorns will not court you like you need and best left alone; Aquarius is your opposite sign and therefore your marriage partner; Pisces will cause you to rethink your life too much to keep the romantic illusion burning; you will want to travel the globe searching for greener pastures with Aries; Taurus and you generally locked horns too much but it could be a good business alliance; Gemini’s make great friendships which is the basis for a lasting marriage; and Cancers will be your secret or unrequited love affair.

Intellectually you think and act grander than others would normally dare; your aspirations often intimidates others, and your ability to go straight to the heart of any situation reassures those who depend on you. You make choices like a natural born leader, never wavering that would show weakness to the troops but quick, decisive and confident with whatever your choices maybe.

If artistic, Leos can become stars of stage or screen and as painters; anything grand in conception and scale appeals to them. Even in the meekest of Leos there is a theatrical quality, only some play it out on the operatic stage and others simply rule the kitchen with flare and intensity.

In professional life you do well at any vocation when there is room at the top. As politicians you are content with nothing less than a powerful position in government; like Clinton.  Being a natural leader you must be in a position of authority. Doing your own thing is not as attractive to you even those there is no one over you, you still have that need to lead a group of people to depend and look up to your direction.

Financially you do well in business but you also have a tendency to spend too much because of your grand outlook on life.  You gamble big and you can win big but you will also spend too much to impress others thinking that you need to look successful to attract success.  And I suppose there is some truth to that philosophy but you have to remember not to overdo the extravagance when your ego needs starts running your pocket book.

Leo governs the upper back, spine and heart and most of your upper back pain is from shouldering too many responsibilities in life and not delegating duties to others to take up the slack.. And taking on too much stress has often caused heart problems for those career-obsessed professionals who kill themselves striving to the top of the ladder. Since your sign also rules the domain of children perhaps taking a little quality time out during the day to spend with children would release a great deal of pressure off of your back and heart. Be a kid again and live a long life.

One of my favorite ploys I learned in handling Leos is that when they are roaring in their jungle demanding attention that the quickest way to turn them into a pussycat is to compliment them.  It works like a charm.  As you are bellowing and carrying on just say something like, I never noticed how beautiful your eyes are when you get upset.  They love to be adored. This was how Delilah had power over Samson, for with all of his physical strength he was like a pussycat in her hands with a little affection and charm. And that little trick came in handy when I met Madonna who is a powerful Leo.  I was nervous and she was Madonna, the Star.  But when I told her how much I loved her music from the very beginning and mentioned her early songs by name the great star softened into the sweetest person.

Your faults can be as mind blowing as your virtues, for an excessively negative Leo can have extreme arrogance, pride, and a quick temper.  Fortunately it is rare that a Leo is so undisciplined as to not notice how others are judging them and since they want to be liked they know how to change their ways for the good.

Outgoing, warm hearted and kind, Leos are more disillusioned than the average if let down by those they trust. You are not good judges of character and you are inclined to put others on pedestals, which too often ends in disappointment. The reason being that your emotions can be easily manipulated with a little charm and the right compliment, just like Delilah did to Samson.

You have a powerful mind and many of you are often philosophical, sometimes religious, and always of a spiritual nature.  Those of you who are devout may become very obstinate in upholding traditional beliefs and will cling tenaciously, but with complete sincerity, to practices and doctrines which liberal thinkers regard as absurdly out-of-date.

However, with all your self-pride you are well aware of a higher power outside the self-importance of the ego. Some of you can get seduced into believing that God has chosen to speak through you and no one else but mostly you have a great reverence for a greater intelligence.  And it is this quality that keeps you from falling from grace and maintaining your charismatic hold over others.