With every Aquarius on the planet being a keen individualist, from dress sense and life philosophy to personality and appearance, how can one humble star sign truly describe them all?
To understand an Aquarius person, you have to understand the Aquarius sign.
A deep analysis of Aquarian signs and symbols will help you get up to speed, as well as covering the many layers of mythology and reasoning behind one of the zodiac’s most inspiring and intriguing star signs.
What is the symbol for Aquarius?
Across the ages, the various constellations of the night sky have been subject to interpretation by brilliant minds and intelligent eyes.
It’s from this wisdom that the knowledge of astrology and the zodiac first sprang forth, with each of the twelve zodiac signs finding a face in an animal or mythological creature.
Yet Aquarius, ever the individualist, doesn’t fit the mould – and likely wouldn’t want to! While some say that birds are the Aquarius star sign’s animal, in truth they aren’t defined by any creature.
The Aquarius zodiac symbol is instead the Water Carrier or the Water Bearer – an individual, sometimes depicted as a young woman and other times as a wise man, carrying a vase of nourishing water and letting it flow freely.
It’s almost more a concept than a solid and definitive representation of a figure or animal as most other star signs have.
Again, doing things differently in the Aquarius symbol suits those born under these stars just fine. Theirs is to blaze the trail, to dare to be different, and to show humankind how things can be done better.
The deeper Aquarius symbol meaning of the water bearer
There are countless ways of interpreting the Aquarius symbol, because the idea of the water carrier altogether can be conveyed in countless ways.
Consider the water as representing collective wisdom, for example, and the meaning takes on new life – the Aquarius soul is the one responsible for carrying the collective wisdom of humankind to those who need it.
It’s a lofty vision, and one that any Aquarius you know would likely approve of at a deep level, but as with anything involving this sign, it’s far from the whole story.
For example, water is a tremendous healer and is the essence of life, and an Aquarius individual takes great pleasure in acts of altruism, bettering their community or making the lives around themselves brighter.
Better still, they do these things for the right reasons, never looking for credit and praise.
Exploring the Aquarius zodiac symbol further still, think about how far the water carrier travels to dispense this nourishing wisdom and kindness.
In ancient times, in the most remote areas of the world, the water carrier would walk for miles to retrieve fresh water for the family and community.
Similarly, the Aquarius spirit is one willing to put themselves through meagre times and sparse roads less travelled if they believe it will bring to light the truths and ideas needed to carry people along.
And of course, anyway in which they can walk the path others do not is always appealing to the Aquarius soul too!
The Aquarius glyph and its meaning
When star signs are being described shorthand in the written form by astrologers, special glyphs are used. These are unique to each star sign, and add some wonderful mystique to the entire zodiac.
Yet the glyph for Aquarius is so simple, it can be surprising to think it sums up such a complex character with such highbrow thoughts on the world.
Some people have probably seen the like of an Aquarius symbol tattoo without even realising it, since the glyph for this star sign looks like some choppy waters or bolts of lightning.
The fact that there are two watery glyphs, one atop the other, hints at the secret side of Aquarius. Although an intellectual sign by their nature, they also have a keen intuition that leads to them knowing things without often understanding why.
The second layer of the water’s surface in the Aquarius glyph describes this undercurrent they’re so effortlessly and subconsciously attuned to.
They have their own internal well to draw from, filled with the collective waters of humankind – an infinite font of knowledge and wisdom to guide their own hand.
The matching imagery of the glyph also describes the Aquarian need to see equality in all things.
These are broad reaching conversations, if you’re lucky enough to have them with an Aquarius person you know.
He or she will wrinkle their noses at the disparity between the rich and the poor, the haves and the have nots, and the lazy versus the productive.
Aquarius people have a deep, unspoken urge to see the world more equal and friendly, and they believe that by seeking great truths and bringing them to light, all of humankind will benefit.
They also know that doing this will see them isolate themselves, or even feel alienated, and take that step bravely.
After all, they know that they have all of the inner waters and nourishment to go it alone when they need to.
Surprise – Aquarius isn’t ruled by the water element
Every one of the twelve zodiac signs has a ruling element, be it earth, air, fire or water.
In this way, the twelve signs are sub-categorised into four trios under each of the elements, and it’s why you’ll often see a little common ground in the personalities of those star signs who share an elemental ruler.
In the Aquarius symbol overall, the relationships with water are obvious. The symbol itself is of one who is carrying water, and the glyph is a series of waves at sea.
Yet those getting into astrology and learning how to understand an Aquarius reveal quite the surprise – the ruling element of the Aquarius star sign is actually air!
As with everything, the Aquarius individual has no interest in bowing to expectations or entertaining conventions.
Yet if you dig deeper, the association with the air element found in the Aquarius star sign makes a great deal of sense.
Aquarius people share the air element with Libra and Gemini, who have a similarly intellectual, witty and fast-moving outlook on life.
Yet the Aquarius star sign, as always, distinguishes his or herself remarkably in how the air element is brought forward in their actions.
In the zodiac, the air element often represents thoughts, ideas and intellectual reasoning. The Aquarius individual, for all their love of humanity, actually finds feelings and emotions very tricky to wrestle with for that very reason.
They say that the Aquarius sign is one that speaks of being unlucky in love, but it’s not the fault of the charming Aquarius individual themselves.
Rather, it’s because they find things like love and heavy emotions such as grief or sorrow very difficult to approach intellectually.
Without having reason to rely on, Aquarius individuals get confused and frightened by these feelings, so keep that in mind when talking with them.
That said, their grand ideas certainly don’t shy away from the profound, and they’re anything but shallow.
A distinctive artist, a provocative and humanitarian singer or a surgeon capable of healing with his intelligence as much as intuition could all fall under the influence of the Aquarius constellation.
Talking vividly and passionately, but always swiftly and with countless ideas, the Aquarius individual in conversation will often veer off on tangents. Be patient in these moments – their minds move fast, and in thousands of directions.
The Aquarius ruling planets
Every star sign in the modern zodiac has not just a constellation and a glyph, and not just an elemental ruler. In astrology, the so-called ruling planets are what give each star sign an even more concrete identity.
The fact that there are more star signs than there are planets in the solar system, however, means that many star signs share their planets with other signs.
In some cases, the advance of science means that, as new planets have been discovered in the more recent centuries, the ruling planets of certain star signs have changed, too.
Scorpio is one such example, originally ruled by Mars, but today commonly held to be ruled by Pluto, far out on the very edges of the solar system.
Because Pluto was discovered by astronomers much later than Mars, these changes had to be considered by astrologers.
It’s a similar story for Aquarius, who is said today to be ruled by Uranus, but also Saturn.
The Aquarius interpretations of each of those planets differ a lot from one another, yet each bring a complementary element of the Aquarius personality to the fore.
Saturn is the stern teacher of the solar system, at least as far as astrological interpretations are concerned. The giant ringed planet rules over order, method and self-discipline.
Even at their most outlandish, Aquarius people still go through life with an inner code of conduct they adhere to, even if – or especially if! – that code of conduct is distinct from everyone else’s.
Uranus as an Aquarius ruling planet, on the other hand, tells a story all its own. Uranus is a distinctive planet in our own solar system, doing things its own way, just like Aquarius loves to do.
More than this though, Uranus is said to govern wisdom, higher learning, freedom and the great drive for change and new possibilities.
This meshes extremely well with Aquarius people, and is about as good a description of the Aquarius symbol meaning overall that anyone could hope for.
While so many of us are nervous about the concept of big changes in life and society, Aquarius embraces them, and believes that inciting them will allow us as a collective to come together and ask the pressing questions that will move us all forward in peace and harmony.
Lofty ideals, pursued with wisdom and delivered compassionately – that is what it means to have an Aquarius spirit.
The Aquarius lucky colour is blue
Every zodiac sign tends to mesh well with a certain colour, although you’ll often find that an Aquarius person dresses in vivid colours and quite unlike anyone in their surroundings.
Nevertheless, many astrologers agree that a light, airy blue is lucky for Aquarius.
This colour speaks of the wisdom in the water that the Aquarius individual spiritually carries, but also of the open clear skies their ideas and visions fly through day to day.
Another colour to keep in mind for the Aquarius is a vibrant purple, as seen in amethyst, which is an Aquarius gemstone.
Long believed to be a psychic stone, the amethyst fits well with the Aquarius person’s capability to think the unseen and speak the unknown.
Compassion, idealism and wisdom are all represented well in amethyst too, further enhancing its meaning to Aquarius people.
The persona of Aquarius is compassionate and intelligent
When looked into with a little more depth, and considered from the perspective of planets and elements as well as the Aquarius symbol overall, this complex star sign comes into focus wonderfully.
Aquarius people are giving and generous, but also often lost in their own mental realm of ideas, plans and creative solutions.
Bringing them back down to earth doesn’t always please them, but it’s definitely necessary sometimes to make sure they don’t get too lost in thought.
At the same time however, understanding the powerful insight held by Aquarius people is vital to understanding them.
Don’t let the wacky clothes, outlandish antics and big cheeky grins fool you – these are the pioneers among us, guiding us into the future one wild idea at a time.
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