An Introductory Overview of Sun Sign Characteristics for Virgo

The ruler of Virgo is Mercury. The glyph is said to be connected to the Immaculate Conception of the Messiah. It's symbol “The Virgin” originated from the star Spica in the constellation of Virgo.

The Virgo character is precise, refined, and a lover of cleanliness, hygiene and order. Conventional, with a rather reserved manner, they are usually observant, shrewd, critical, and patient. Supporters of the “status quo,” and conservative in all areas of life, Virgos are undemonstrative due to a coolness in their nature. Very selective, and non committal in friendship, they prefer to keep relationships on a superficial basis.

The twelve signs of the zodiac are ordered by their constitutional natures and their elemental natures. The constitutional nature indicates the manner in which we engage the world or face circumstances in life. The constitutions are grouped in three squares. Virgo is one of the Mutable signs of the zodiac along with Gemini, Sagittarius and Pisces. The Cardinal signs are Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn. The Fixed signs are Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius.

The constitution of a Virgo framed through a mutable nature demonstrates the qualities of an individual with a focused yet adaptable intellect driven by the desire for mental stimulation and an understanding of the life experience. A Virgo's intense intellectual engagement with the world is fueled by a yearning for direction and an fixed implementation of energy. Absent of such firm direction the energy of mutable signs will trend to be dispersed into a variety of unproductive activities. Mutable sign natives are concerned with intellectually stimulating and constructive activities and lean in to endeavors which promise a sense of fulfillment in exchange for attention and service.

Those born within a mutable sign will pursue activities so long as the activity provides a sense that they are generating some improvement or meaningful change. Mutable folk thrive on being busy. In similar sentiment to the popular expression “it's not the destination that matters so much as the journey” a mutable mind might profess that “it's not so much about the result as the process.” Keenly sensitive to flaws and errors mutable natives move immediately to adjust, fix, replace or adapt. The focused activities of Virgo mutables is often a wonder to behold as they move from one object of fascination to another, finishing one project they rush off to begin another.

The zodiac is also divided into four "triplicities" which are: the fiery, the earthy, the airy and the watery. These are the elementary natures of the astrological signs. Virgo shares the element of Earth with Taurus and Capricorn. Each of the Earth signs relates and responds to the world through the filters of a practical intellect. As the element implies, Earth sign natives are grounded people. These are not the dreamers, romantics or visionaries of the zodiac. Those born within Earth signs are more inclined to be the workers, managers and builders in society. Earth sign natives exhibit a strong attraction for the trappings and rewards of the physical world. Accomplishments are appreciated insofar as they satisfy the appetites of the senses for Earth sign folk do love their comforts, sumptuous food and all manner of delights which the physical world has to offer. In relation to Virgo consider some Earth qualities such as patience, tenacity, endurance, caution, practicality, composure and economy.

Sun Sign Personality Traits for Virgo

Quietly reserved, Virgos are polite and soft spoken people. Unassuming, outwardly cheerful and agreeable, they can be sensible, discreet, wise and witty, with an understanding of other people's problems which they tackle with deftness. Virgos find their friends among those who can help them move up the social strata. They can be name droppers as they like to associate with achievers.

They are practical, mental people, possessing inquiring and logical minds. In this respect, they make excellent students, and good teachers. Their mental bend gives them the ability to analyze and solve the most complicated problems. Virgos have a wonderful eye for detail and often neglect the overall issues. Practical and good with their hands, they are excellent technicians and have good inventive talents. Hard workers and conscientious, they are perfectionists with little tolerance for shoddy work. There is no place in their world for people who are footloose and fancy free.

Where is the Planet Mercury in Your Birth Horoscope?

Of all the planets within our solar system, Mercury is nearest to the Sun. There is a direct correspondence to this fact in the mapping of an individual's birth chart. With the exception of the Moon, Mercury has the fastest revolution through the zodiac. Mercury's proximity to the Sun insures that its placement will always be near to or on par with the subject's Solar sign.

We are often able to determine where Mercury was at the time of our birth without consulting an astrologer. By reading the three potential profiles, it is often uncanny how clearly one of them will fit to us. I thought you would enjoy trying this out for yourself. You can explore the three positions of Mercury through the following links:

Mercury in Leo Mercury in Virgo Mercury in Libra

I am always interested to know what you think and discover. Feel welcome to write! Material is currently being developed on the other planets. If you are interested, we would be pleased to keep you updated on their progress. Just send me a brief request!

Vocational Interests Suited to Virgo Tendencies

Due to the Virgo preference for detail rather than the big picture, they make better workers than they do leaders. Virgoans are essentially tacticians, admirable in the attainment of limited objectives. They have a basic distrust in their nature, not only of other people but themselves as well. They project this mistrust to others and therefore make exacting employers. Although, they will never ask anyone to do what they won't do, it asks a lot, because most people will not go to the pains a Virgo will.

Virgos possess a strong potential for the arts, sciences and language. They are well suited for any career where analysis, detail and precision are required. They make excellent programmers, accountants, and statisticians. Many go into medicine, law, and the teaching profession. With an avid interest in history, some Virgos make excellent writers and researchers.

Insights Into Virgo Relationships

Both sexes have considerable charm and dignity, which make some male Virgoans appear effeminate when they are not. In marriage they can be genuinely affectionate, and make good partners and parents. More concerned with the outcome than the process, Virgos lack spontaneity. They are meticulous planners, considering every detail and its effect. There is seldom much room for emotional involvement because the mind is always engaged and dominant. What they lack in passion they make up for in preciseness.

Physical Tendencies of Virgo

On the shadow side, Virgos have a penchant for turning molehills into mountains, difficulties into stress and cleanliness into obsessive behavior. There is a need to pay attention to health concerns, particularly those related to overt stress. Virgos are predisposed to worry and hypochondria, even to the point of exhibiting symptoms of the latest diseases. It can be beneficial to take up a pastime which occupies the mind and the hands, while providing a sense of accomplishment. A Virgo finds peace where his or her physical mark can be measured on Earth.

The Lore of Virgo in Mythology

Mythology is closely interwoven with Astrology. Despite all that we do not know about the origins of either lore it is certain that starwatching began with passion on humanity's first night beneath the open sky. Somewhere in time, shapes were perceived, figures imagined, names given and stories were told about the densely populated tapestry of the heavens. All elder cultures throughout the world developed tales of the constellations which over time were imbued with meaning to explain various phenomena of our existence within the cosmos.

Astrology and Mythology serve a similar function in this regard. We benefit from Astrology not so much as a tool of fortune-telling but as a directional guide to understanding who we are individually and what our unique role ought to be in this life. As Carl Jung stated, “Astrology claims only that we each possess the qualities of the year and of the season in which we were born.” To discern just what those qualities are is as fascinating to each of us as the night sky.

Virgo, also known as Astraes, was the daughter of Jupiter and Themses and considered the “Goddess of Justice.” The constellation is one of only three which represent women. The others are Andromeda and Cassiopeia. In combination, these can be seen as the three aspects of the feminine: maiden, mother and crone.

An alternate belief associates the constellation with the tragic Coronis, lover of the Greek god Apollo. Coronis was mortal and feared that the god would tire of her as she aged, so she took another mortal, Ischys, as her lover. In his rage, Apollo shot her fatally, with an arrow. In some tales, this unjust act was carried out by Artemis, the sister of Apollo.

That Coronis was pregnant at the time, did not stay the god's sense of vengeance. Her child, Asclepius, was saved by Hermes, who delivered the baby on the funeral pyre. Entrusted to the care of Chiron, the child grew to become one of the greatest healers of ancient Greece.

“Once I ventured the guess that men worked in response to a vague inner urge for self-expression. But that was probably a shaky theory, for some men who work the hardest have nothing to express. A hypothesis with rather more plausibility in it now suggests itself. It is that men work simply in order to escape the depressing agony of contemplating life – that their work, like their play, is a mumbo-jumbo that serves them by permitting them to escape from reality. Both work and play, ordinarily, are illusions. Neither serves any solid or permanent purpose. But life, stripped of such illusions, instantly becomes unbearable. Man cannot sit still, contemplating his destiny in this world, without going frantic. So he invents ways to take his mind off the horror. He works. He plays. He accumulates the preposterous nothing called property. All the while the thing that moves him is simply the yearning to lose himself, to forget himself, to escape the tragic-comedy that is himself.”

—H.L. Mencken,
born September 12, 1880

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