Capricorn

Andromeda in Chains

Symbol(s): Sea-Goat, Eye

Element and Modality: Earth, Cardinal

Planetary Ruler(s): Saturn

House: X, Social Status

Bodily Function(s): Knees

Tarot Card: The Devil

Hebrew Letter: Ayin

Appearances can be deceptive. Our physical eyes can blind us to the truth. If we look at the state of the world, we can see that this true. But if we dig deeper, we can also see that there is more to even that. There are many degrees of truth, but it is our level of consciousness that determines how that truth will manifest. Will it be slow and low? Will it be fearful and negative? Or will it be swift and liberating? All truths are half-truths until there is that reconciliation of opposites. And, even then, there can be no final truth. There can be no final frontier. Consciousness is always glowing. The light is always growing. And so the truth, too, is always expanding. Your truth is your light, eternal.

There are, however, certain immutable laws. But rules can always be bent. Rules can be broken. How far we can push the envelop? How far can we stretch? What can we bend? What can we go beyond? If there is a limit somewhere, it must be surpassed. Consciousness has no boundaries. But, Capricorn likes to play with that concept. Capricorn is Mercurial, Capricorn is a Trickster. The Devil is a liar. The Devil is a tempter. We foolishly believe our own lies, and we suffer for it. We throw temper tantrums. But through tantric temperance, temptations are overcome, and we see that we always get what we need. Karma gives us what we need, not what we want, until whatever we are facing is neutralized. The struggle in overcoming illusory obstacles strengthens us. Like the rub of a whetstone, we are sharpened. Sharpness implies clarity. Do we want to see through a glass darkly? Or would we rather radiate through the prism with crystal clarity? Prism or prison? Perception determines. Diverging in angles or converging in angels? If you're anywhere but the center, you cannot tune into the bigger picture.

Capricorn can imply severe materialism. "Keeping Up With the Joneses" is a befitting statement for this archetype. Capricorn oversees the house of social status. Like Taurus, they value material wealth and security. Like Aries, they value authoritarian power. Where there are horns, there are thorns. But every thorn has a rose, and every horn has plenty. That same externalized desire can be inverted to radiate the spiritual gold, which is truly evergreen.

Black and red are colors that I often see associated with Capricorn -- pregnant with multitudinous meaning. Capricorn (Saturn) is situated there near the root, overseeing minerals and the lead of the soul. This makes sense when we think of the rings around Saturn. Rocky minerals. And what do goats do? They climb (ascend) dams (that hold great reservoirs of water) to eat the nutritious mineral salts. Capricorn also governs the kneecaps. When we are seeking guidance from God or liberation from our problems, we get down on our knees to pray. Salt of the earth. Inertia. Salt in the seas. Seagoat. The earth and water temper the air and fire. The form, then, creates restriction or resistance. But, it also provides a channel for that energy, so that it can come to see itself. The dam, the cup, or the container allows that essence to pool into a new expression. That shape, that form, or that expression is temporary. New paths, new rivers, new avenues are always being carved, always branching off. Dams eventually burst and new seeds eventually crack. The wheel in the sky keeps on turning, by hand of the unmovable mover. That hand is the cause. The revolutions are the effects.

We are victims only when we identify ourselves with the effect rather than the cause. When we blame others, we project our fears and frustrations onto them, seeking out scapegoats (s-CAP-e-GOAT-s). This causes unnecessary destruction and suffering. However, if we can learn from the suffering we have created for ourselves (and others, being extensions of the Self), and seek to correct it through changed behavior, we can neutralize our Karma. Capricorn can either break us down and keep us there, or break us down in order to rebuild us. The destructive forces of Capricorn (Saturn) can be used for good. That which destroys us is also that which redeems us. Satan can then become Lucifer, which is the Christ -- the Bringer of Light.

When we look at the Tarot card of "The Devil", we see a plethora of symbolism. There is an inverted pentagram, a horned man and a woman ("The Lovers" -- complementary forces) with tails of fruit and fire. Both the male and female are shackled to a black cube, where a creature perches. The creature is an anthromorph. It is bat-winged ram or goat, with an overweight human torso, hairy legs, and birdlike claws for feet. In one hand he has a torch pointing downward and his other is upward with the palm spread open.

Don't you ever wonder where the term "horny" originated from? This is a slang term we use to describe lust, and it is no accident. When we see a horn of plenty, we think of "hunger", "abundance", and "fruitfulness". When we look at the imagery in the card, we can see that the female has a tail with fruit attached to the end. The fruit (seeds) of our loins is our horn of plenty. On one level, she represents the procreative forces. Outward use of this creative force generates a child of the flesh. The male, then, represents the masculine solar fire of Spirit that fertilizes the seed. When we repeatedly abuse this function, we are wasting those precious life-giving forces. That energy goes outward or downward. That they have tails means that they have given into their animal natures and are allowing themselves to be ruled by their desires and animal appetites (all manner of vices). That is, in part, the significance of the inverted pentagram and downward facing torch.

Seen in another way, the downward-pointing torch and the inverted pentagram is also an expression of the sacrum and the descent of the Holy Spirit into the fertile subconsious. The Holy Spirit (Saturn) is The Giver (and Taker -- think of Karma and Father Time) of life. Saturn relates to the pineal gland, the descent of the solar forces into the genitals ("The Hanged Man"), and their returning ascent. "The Devil" resides in the fiery Underworld (Hades/Pluto, Unconscious/Subconscious). This is within the sacrum and the solar plexus, where the secret fire (sleeping giant) lay coiled. The image of Baphomet can be exchanged for this archetype. If we superimpose Baphomet's head and the inverted pentagram over the top of an image of the pelvic region, we will see that they all miraculously align. That is their underlying (or overlaying) significance. 

When the trumpet (life breath, kundalini) is blown, the fire of Judgement will rise up (serpent of holy fire ascends to the crown). The pentagram will then point upward rather than downward into the subterranean realms. Capricorn is uneasy in the sphere of the Moon. The Moon is its detriment. Saturn is considered to be the higher octave of the Moon. This lunar force represents the sphere of Yesod, the feminine soul that is "trapped" in matter. Capricorn and Aquarius connect the sphere of Malkuth (matter or physical body) to the sphere of Yesod (the vital body) on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. So its weakness, then, can be transformed into its strength (through regeneration). The same forces that bind are the forces that liberate (perception). Always two sides of one coin.

Capricorn heralds the Winter Solstice, which is the "death" of the sun. This symbolizes the "Dark Night of the Soul". Saturn's (both Capricorn and Aquarius) metal is lead. This is the heaviest metal, the most dense. So it has the most gravity. The same can be said for the planetary spheres of Jupiter and Saturn. They're the heaviest in our solar system, so they have the most gravitational pull. This also gives them a significant amount of spiritual influence over us. Saturn has rings of rocks, minerals, and ice around it. This is symbolic of a boundary or a limit. Wherever you see a circle or a line drawn, you see a boundary. Our bodies and our minds are that way. We're constantly perceiving boundaries and limits. We're constantly facing obstacles due to alleged mental, physical, or emotional limitation. They're self-created. They're also temporary.

The form needs structure and stability. The consciousness also requires that in order to focus itself into a point of concentration. It is this same constricting force that matures and evolves the consciousness. In the struggle to go beyond limitation, virtue takes shape within the psyche. When we figure out what is harmful to us and to others, we take steps to correct our actions. In doing so, we cultivate habits that enable further growth.

In that dark night is the seductive light of the Moon. We know that this is not true sunlight, but is reflected light. When we are feeling desperate or impatient, we have a tendency to give in to temptation. We feed the shadowy vices lying in the subconscious. We give in to our animal natures, we give in to sensual pleasures, we feed our diseases, and we get lost in our fears. The dream, then, becomes a nightmare. We lapse into depression and hopelessness. We stop taking care of ourselves. And the horrors start stacking up. These are karmic debts we've accrued through misunderstanding and harmful actions. We all know it's a crime to abuse another, but we should also be aware that self-abuse is just as criminal. You are the vehicle of and for God. But the light of Divinity cannot shine through you if you are destroying the temple.

Complementary/Opposing Sign

On the globe we will find that the Tropic of Capricorn is South of the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer is in the Northern hemisphere. The Gate of Death and the Gate of Birth. The shortest day of the year and the longest day of the year: The Winter Solstice and the Summer Solstice. Cancer's designated ruling planet is the Moon, which, as we know, is Capricorn's detriment.

Saturn

Adding onto what we've previously covered with the planetary sphere of Saturn, it is also the ruler of Capricorn. Saturn is the disciplinarian. Saturn, therefore, is our most fearsome adversary or our greatest ally. The Reaper is the Harvester. Melancholy, mechanicity, and malady are the negative expressions of this sphere of influence. Here we find grief, decrepitude, and darkness. Darkness, too, has dual meaning. In darkness there is death, but there is also the potential for rebirth, regeneration, and transformation. In darkness there is uncreated potential. While unfulfilled potential eventually expires, there is always that eternal seed of hope should we choose to unearth it. But we must have the courage to dig under the surface rather than safely wading in shallow waters. The comfort zone is an illusion. Security can always be ripped out like a rug from underneath us. Saturn is always waiting in the wings with the scythe, ready to reap should we hesitate too long to act. (When consciousness stubbornly stagnates. When we trap ourselves in one mode of consciousness, replaying it on a loop, refusing to see things in "another way".)

Darkness represents ignorance, self-imposed bonds. Our minds are the prisons. Our emotions, thoughts, and desires are the criminal inmates. But the realization that it is all a self-creation illusion is the key that unlocks the cells. Think of that in terms of the physical body. The body is a holographic representation of our psyche. It, too, is an illusion (although that should NEVER be used as an excuse to abuse or stop caring for it). This self-made illusion locks up mysteriously powerful spiritual forces. Our negative thoughts, vices, and emotions being the jailer. Forces that are patiently awaiting transmutation and transfiguration.

Time, too, is a construct of the mind. One that we've given power to by stepping down into matter. This is the mechanicity of nature at work: Seasons and cycles ever-revolving. Day passes on to night, night gives way to daybreak, and so on. Atoms in the body are always on the move. Creating electric current-seas. Moments in time, a streaming chain of thoughts. Never ceasing, always flowing. Apparent circumstances shift. The light of awareness grows brighter. Consciousness evolves. The body changes. A veil that we outgrow and cast aside. Then we don (dawn) a new mask. One that is much "lighter", one that better reflects the steady growing light of our consciousness.

There is only Now. The ascent goes on forever. The inner sun never reaches its zenith. There's no getting off this train. This is the never-ending story, and the uni-verse is a collection of many verses ("yours" and "mine", "us" and "them"). Every conceivable and inconceivable (uncreated potential) possibility. It's all happening, now.

By releasing limiting (negative, fear-based) thought-forms and emotions, we can start to liberate the limitless power stored in the animal body. The body, then, ceases to be burdensome. We live as grounded flight, soaring intuition. With our Eagle Eye in the heavens, we have the best of both worlds. We can enjoy our creations but not become overly identified with them. Change is inevitable, but we are eternal. "This, too, shall pass."

Exaltation: Mars

Detriment(s): Moon

Other Earth Signs: Taurus, Virgo

Other Cardinal Signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra