Libra, The Scales
September 23rd - October 22nd
Mode: Cardinal ~ Element: Air ~ Ruler: Venus Mythic Archetypes: Hera ~ Paris, the Trojan Prince ~ Eros & Psyche ~ Hephaestus (Vulvan) ~ Matt (Egyptian) ~ Pallas Athene (Minerva)

The sign Libra appears to have been inserted into the zodiac at a rather late date. Early Babylonian zodiacs contained only eleven signs; the constellation we now call Libra was known as the claws of the scorpion and was a part of Scorpio rather than a separate sign. The Greeks saw this star group as the scales held by Astraea, goddess of justice. Here it is linked with Virgo rather than Libra. The Egyptians knew Libra as Chonsu, the Divine Child who symbolized the birth of the New Year, who bore the symbol of the new moon on its head, and whose name means "traveler of the night skies." (The Egyptians were concerned with the night -time rising of signs, so Libra would have risen during the month of Aries.) Present day associations to Libra come from its position on the Autumnal rather than the Vernal Equinox.

As the scales of balance, Libra is the only sign which is represented by a mechanical instrument rather than by some human or animal figure. Although the scales seem a rather impersonal symbol for marriage and partnership, they symbolize the balance of forces which occurs at the equinox. At the sign of the Autumnal Equinox, the days and nights are of equal length so that outer and inner energies are balanced. In Aries, the Dayforce is growing stronger representing an emergent individuality detaching from the collective, while in Libra, the Nightforce is increasing depicting the individual beginning to recognize the needs of others and the collective.

The scales had a deep significance for the Egyptians. At the time of death, the goddess Maat placed the human soul on one scale and a feather on the other. If the scale tipped even slightly, the soul would be required to reincarnate to release the extra weight. As Libra proceeds Scorpio, the death sign, the prime goal of the Egyptians was to make the scales balance, or to prepare the soul for its afterlife.