Looking to dive deeper into astrology? Then a great place to start is with the zodiac wheel. By familiarizing yourself with each zodiac sign, you will come to learn more about the respective elements and star constellations that influence a person’s traits and characteristics. You’ll also be much more clued in when it comes to personalised birthday gifts that would suit them because of these traits!
There are different schools of astrology, the most popular being the western zodiac wheel, which starts with the First Point of Aries (the March equinox). This astrological concept dates back to the Hellenistic culture of the Babylonian era.
The order of the western astrology wheel is as follows: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Each sign is named after a constellation it passes through.
The respective signs are associated with the classical elements that emphasize the personality traits of each zodiac: Fire and Air signs such as Aries and Aquarius, are ruled by a positive, extrovert masculine energy.
Earth and Water signs such as Cancer and Virgo, on the other hand, are ruled by negative and introvert female energies. The more you come to understand the energies and elements of each sign, the easier it will be to spot the characteristics of each zodiac.
Let’s start out in the month of the spring equinox, namely March, from which the zodiac wheel commences with the First Point of Aries, the first sign in the chart.
Aries: March 21st – April 20th
People born between March 21st and April 20th, are fuelled by the fiery Fire of Aries – a cardinal sign always on the lookout for the next adventure, always ready to spring into action and take the initiative when others won’t.
The Aries is symbolized by the ram, an animal known to knock horns with anything and anyone challenging their innate stubbornness. In other words – you will never win an argument with an Aries, and if you’re really unlucky, you might also be witness to their short temper.
They don’t like to admit it, but they are extremely irritable, and when things don’t go their way, they can blow their fuse in a matter of seconds. Just don’t ever expect an Aries to ask for help – they’d much rather deal with things on their own.
On the flipside, Aries are always happy to offer their help to others. They also happen to be natural born leaders who will gladly take you by the hand and lead the way when you’re feeling lost.
While they can be selfish in their ambitions and endeavours, they are also very compassionate and will be the first to encourage open communication and a positive outlook.
They are tough cookies and know how to weather even the strongest of storms, and they will try to infect you with their own courage and will build you up, making you more resilient. Aries aren’t always the most patient but will make the effort for the people they love.
If you have an Aries in your life, you can always count on them to surprise you with spur-of-the-moment road trip suggestion, wild stories and laughter.
And perhaps a dangerous situation or two, several foot-in-the-mouth moments (on their part) and the occasional drama. Because Aries are impulsive and there’s nothing you can ever do to tame their spontaneity.
Pisces: February 20th – March 20th
Consider your social circle and think of that one friend who is as moody as they are multi-talented, idealistic as they are unrealistic, and you’ve probably got yourself a Pisces.
The last sign in the zodiac wheel, Pisces people are almost too good for this world – which is probably why they feel so disconnected from it. They are extremely intuitive and suck up other peoples’ energy like a sponge.
This can be great when combined with their tendency to be natural healers – i.e. spiritual and physical – but equally dangerous, considering they are highly empathic beings. Paired with their natural moodiness, absorbing other peoples’ negative energies can launch them into a depression.
Pisces often don’t want to deal with the realities of others if it doesn’t fit into their idealistic view of the world, especially as they’re not always the kind people can easily tap into. This can be taxing for anyone living in the real world.
Pisces are driven by boundless imagination they express creatively – hence they are the type of people who practice the arts across all spectrums, and they’re talented at everything they do.
This also makes them scatter-brained; they are the proverbial Jacks of all trades. They find it hard to focus, which makes them unsuited for regular nine-to-five jobs.
Pisces thrive in creative, outdoor jobs, professions that keep them on their toes and moving, exploring, building their perfect little world.
Represented by two fish swimming in opposite directions, Pisces are at their best when they are in constant motion, i.e. exercise religiously to burn off some of that intense emotional and physical energy they carry around.
If you have a Pisces in your life you can always count on a kind, compassionate ear and a shoulder to cry on, a fantastical world to explore and a movement to follow.
They are eerily good at anticipating your wants and needs, you’ll never have to worry about them taking you somewhere you don’t want to go, but they’ll surprise you by taking you to places you didn’t know you wanted to visit.