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.