S4 Ep15 - Crossing the Zodiac Threshold
I’ve been looking forward to this episode for a while.
If you use the tropical ayanāṃśa, you’ll know we’ve had a steady stream of planets crossing the gandānta threshold between Pisces and Aries. And right now, Saturn and Neptune are stationed almost exactly on that boundary—lingering there all year until their rare conjunction perfects at 0° Aries on February 20, 2026.
So when Jack Lyons, an apprentice in the Asheville Vedic Astrology Program, asked if he could write his imagery essay on Aquarius, Pisces, and Aries, I was immediately intrigued. Not only was he the first student to cross the zodiac’s edge in this assignment, but his timing couldn’t have been more perfect.
It got me thinking about Neptune—how it’s often associated with Vishnu, the sustainer. And how perhaps wherever Neptune is placed, that’s what will be sustained through that time period. Neptune has been in tropical Pisces since April 2011, and as it prepares to leave in early 2026, I’ve been reflecting on what this 15-year cycle has brought us.
Two fish swimming in opposite directions. That’s the image we’ve been living with. And in that time, we’ve seen a remarkable increase in the acceptance of difference—transgender identities, non-binary expressions, neurodiversity, gay marriage and a broader cultural embrace of fluidity and multiplicity. Pisces has held space for all of it.
But what happens when we move into “five rats and cats”?
That’s the cryptic phrase Jaimini gives us for Aries. And it feels like a shift—from integration to individuation. From collective compassion to every man for himself. These are exactly the themes Jack and I explore in this episode of The Vedic Astrology Podcast.
Together, we reflect on:
Aquarius as the burdened water-bearer—pouring out accumulated wisdom in service, without recognition
Pisces as the ocean of Kaivalyam—where the ego dissolves and we glimpse the interconnected field of all that is
Aries as the karmic spark—where the wave crests, the angel falls to earth, and the cycle begins again
Jack brings a beautiful blend of myth, science, and personal insight to the conversation. He shares how contemplating Pisces led him to quantum field theory, and how Aries reminded him of becoming a parent—of leaping into the unknown with nothing but hope and instinct.
And that’s where we found a shared thread. As parents, we both resonated with the Pisces-to-Aries experience: the surrender of control, the dissolution of certainty, and the fiery courage it takes to begin again. To say yes to life, even when we don’t know what’s coming.
It’s a leap of faith. A leap of hope. And perhaps the most Vedic thing we can do.
What have been your experiences of crossing the Zodiac threshold?
Crossing the Zodiac Threshold - Aquarius, Pisces and Aries
[00:00:00]
Introduction and Welcome and why now is the perfect time to explore Aquarius, Pisces and Aries
Fiona Marques: Hello everyone. Welcome to the Vedic Astrology Podcast. My name is Fiona Marques, and today I am joined by a fellow apprentice from the Asheville Vedic Astrology Apprenticeship Program. And we're going to be continuing a recent podcast with Michaela (S4 Ep11) about the imagery at the end of the Zodiac. But before we dive into the rich details of this imagery, I want to introduce my guest, a fellow Australian, Jack Lyons. Jack, welcome to the podcast and tell us a little bit about your journey into Vedic Astrology.
Jack Lyons: Yeah. Thank you. It's all extremely new to me. I came into this knowing absolutely nothing. Maybe I knew my Sun Sign in a Western Astrology. I'm a Pisces. About two years ago, I got this urge to start taking yoga really seriously. I've always enjoyed it as [00:01:00] exercise, but I want to learn what yoga is, and I want to be mentally stimulated in the philosophy. So I enrolled in a course and it immediately blew me away how deep this thing we call yoga goes. And the philosophy of the Vedic culture, all this ancient knowledge. It opened something inside that I just couldn't believe. I just did not know that this was here.
And so I finished that course and one of the students she recommended going to see an Astrologer. She got some really good insights and she said it is a really good compliment to yoga. I obviously had questions to the astrologer, but she just blew me away with what she could tell me about myself and it was really scary actually. But it was just really validating. She could just say, this is what time you are in, and she could explain all of it and it [00:02:00] just felt so good to feel that validation that someone can see me, see what I'm going through, tell me what I'm going through, so clearly.
So it really left a huge impression on me. Honestly, I thought Astrology would be way too much for me, too great a leap to take in current life situation. But I did some researching and I found the Asheville Vedic Astrology Program. It was all online, self-paced and that seems to suit my needs right now. It's just filling my mind. But it's with all of this beautiful knowledge that I had been craving. And this is it. It's complimenting yoga so well.
Think that's one main aspect that's drawn me in is the rhythm of life, like the flow of life. If you can find that flow and go with it, things will unfold with much more ease. You're not fighting.
Fiona Marques: Yeah, [00:03:00] exactly. And who would've thought one year later that, here you are on the Vedic Astrology Podcast. And today we're going to talk about one of the essays that Jack has written for the course. So one of the strengths of the apprenticeship is that there is an assessment pathway available if you like to have your work discussed and get a chance to see that you are implementing the learning that you're getting in, maybe sometimes it feels like passive videos, a lot of listening. And writing the essays is a great way to bring that knowledge more deeply into the self because you have a chance to put it in your own words.
And one of the first essays ask our students to reflect on the imagery that's in the Sutras that relates to each of the Zodiac Signs or Rasis. And we ask our students to concentrate on three ancient texts. We look at Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra which forms in some ways quite a syllabus through the whole [00:04:00] Apprenticeship. And we look at the Jaimini Sutras and we look at the Yavana Jataka. So each three of these has some really imaginative visual and rich imagery related to Zodiac signs. And we ask our students to pick three consecutive signs and write a relatively short essay explaining how these signs are evolving through the imagery. And that's the essay that we're having a look at today. And I've been assessing the course for about two and a half, three years, and I've always been waiting to see if someone would choose three consecutive signs that actually go over that Zodiac boundary. So something that crosses from 12 to one. And sure enough, Jack came along and asked if he could do the signs 11, 12 and one. So that would be Aquarius, Pisces, and Aries.
All three signs are really different [00:05:00] and I was just intrigued to see how they all fit together and how do we go from transcending or ego dissolution or death or whatever you call it, into rebirth in this cycle. That was really what pulled me in and I wanted to figure that out.
Thank goodness because it's such a great thing for us to reflect on. And for those who follow transits in the sky, we've just been through a period of time in the year when the Sun and all of the planets that are near the sun make that transition. But not only that, depending on which Ayanamsha you use, we have other planets crossing that boundary as well. So it is a great time to reflect on these thresholds between Pisces and Aries, between endings and beginnings. So that's what we're going to explore.
Alright, so let's dig down into these Sutras.
Aquarius Imagery
Fiona Marques: In the Yavana Jataka, we've got, "In the [00:06:00] 11th sign, we see a pot being carried on the shoulders of a man being poured out. This sign is the shanks of the cosmic person. It indicates tanks, fields of grain, haunts of birds, areas suitable for women, liquor sellers, and gambling". So this is our description from the Yavana Jataka.
And if we move to look at the sutra from Jaimini, he's always very direct or pithy with the, the short statements. And for Aquarius Jaimini says "Makers of ponds, tanks, things related to shores in Aquarius". So it gives us a chance to do some really good contemplation.
And Brihat Parashara lists off for us some of these qualities that go with Aquarius. And the list includes deep brown, medium bodied, two feet, vigorous during the day. West. Shudra, standing in the middle of the water, [00:07:00] tamas and front rising".
Jack Lyons: So as we look at these images for Aquarius, what were some of the things that you pulled out or that really captured your contemplation? Starting with Aquarius, Parashara describes it as a man holding a pot on his shoulder, deep brown in complexion and of the Shudra cast. Representing the labourers, the servants, the workers who do the difficult, often thankless jobs that keep society functioning.
This sign is Tamasic in nature, connected with heaviness, inertia, obstacles. And that can also be seen through the imagery of the fields of poor grain. It's just a difficult place to be, to do hard work. It's a sign of duty and service.
And the pot on the shoulder, in some ways it can represent bearing a burden in this case, being an airy [00:08:00] sign, it's particularly an intellectual one. It's dealing with your ideals, your thoughts, your systems in your mind, the responsibility of sharing your knowledge.
By this stage you don't really have a choice anymore. Like what you're accumulated. All of this knowledge must be poured out. But that also includes everything else accumulated up to this point, ideas, identity, status. It, it's all got to go in these final stages. It seems quite negative because it's it's letting go and it's wrestling with the ego and like just letting it all dissolve or die off or deteriorate. But this pouring out notion, if it's aligned with one's dharma with the higher cosmic order, it's really powerful because it is serving humanity in ways that one might not even get to see the good that they can do. [00:09:00] But it's coming in this form of the tanks, the ponds, and these vital forms of infrastructure being built to serve humanity once that Aquarian dissolves away into that next stage.
And then lastly, there's this image of the man standing in the middle of the water. He's not fully in, he's not fully out. And to me this evokes imagery of isolation. He's standing apart in many ways. Like he's an outcast. And again, that links back to Saturn in a way where he was outcast from the Sun. And Saturn is distant. It's cold, it's far away from the inner Solar System. So maybe this standing in water reflects these qualities of needing solitude. Maybe it's a place to go to refill the tanks the pitchers. Or maybe it's pointing to that next stage of dissolution and preparing for Pisces. [00:10:00] After all that labour and all of that service, maybe this is a place where one goes just to surrender and release and dissolve.
Fiona Marques: It's pretty special in the imagery, the standing on the land and in the water at the same time. That if we think about it as evolution, maybe it is pointing to that humanity has evolved to be both grounded and in touch with our emotions. Hopefully that's the evolution that we are all learning through these fields in the zodiac. It's easy to think of Aquarius as being negative, that it's restricted, you were mentioning, that it's a fixed sign, it's a fixed air sign. So all of this intellect and thoughts and ideals, they're all locked in from all the experiences that we've had.
So we can project onto Aquarius that it's fixed but once we accept the restrictions of reality, which is what Aquarius is all about, then the creativity really happens. Then we are really [00:11:00] building tanks and, we're really contributing to that next generation because we are no longer fighting against the framework of reality, we are surrendered to it.
And then I was thinking about how, even our bodies return to the earth and everything that we've accumulated, all this food that we've eaten in our lifetime and the minerals that we've stored in our bones and everything that we've cellularly accumulated has to be returned. So, Aquarius is definitely the pouring out of the pot.
Jack Lyons 1: It seems like one of the hardest signs to really wrestle with. If you are not aligning with your dharma, which is hard enough to do, but by this stage, if you haven't figured that out, it's going to be a really challenging experience to release, to surrender, to be fixed in Saturn's lane basically. And it's this one way pouring everything [00:12:00] out. And there's no way back. It's very challenging, I can imagine. But while they say there's no reward, there really is, it's for the greater humanity. If you can leave a legacy that's extremely fulfilling.
Fiona Marques: Leave the world better than how it was when you came. It's a great vision to have.
Jack Lyons: It really rests on the intellect and the soundness of that intellect to be aligned with the higher cosmic principles, the dharma, if you will. It really relies on one to have a good conscious and good ideals and be doing this for the collective good, but not taking it too far.
There's a lot of responsibility with that one way flow. It is a huge task. And Aquarius carries a big burden if they don't get it right or if they distribute poor information. There's a [00:13:00] lot of humanity weighing on the shoulders of Aquarius.
And all this collected wisdom to get to this point needs to be, I don't want to say pure, but it really needs to be well thought through and developed in a way that others can benefit.
But there's a real flip side as well where you're serving others, but sometimes you can become a slave to that as well. You go too far and it becomes a burden. And this is like the tight rope I feel Aquarius exists on.
Fiona Marques: Because also the other side of that is that if we hold onto too much and we don't let it go, this is where we get some of that other imagery where we have liquor sellers and gambling. That liquor is wheat or the off cast of potato scraps or the stems of the grapes. It's what ferments, when we store, when we've got [00:14:00] too many grapes or too much produce, we can create fermented products like alcohol. And then they have all of their, as you were saying, we've contributed something, in Aquarius, but actually it's gone on to cause more of the Tamas experience. If people are getting inebriated and they're getting demotivated and they're not as alert and awake. So there is this kind of, the 11th, what you are saying, the need to contribute something pure. But with the 11th there's also the need to detoxify the self in order to come to Pisces and to end this cycle. That we can accumulate through life a lot of resources, perhaps financial or maybe a lot of assets that we have, and as you were saying, the responsibility, I was thinking about all of people that have passed and there Will have either not been written or it's written in such a way that it causes the following generation fighting over the Will. So I was thinking about that [00:15:00] in, in terms of Aquarius.
But also that we can be in a delusion as humans that the zodiac maybe is only 10 signs long. That the whole point of life is to gain status in the 10th sign. It's to become secure, to have earth-based security that involves money and property. And, that's what our status and our identity is all connected with if the zodiac was only 10 signs long. But, but it really is 12 signs long. And our Hero's Journey is to to go through that 10th house of the great battle and to really stand up to our moment of greatness and contribute in a karmic way the actions of the 10th. But immediately then it becomes the 11th. How do we divest ourselves of any of that earthly material that we must be ready to let go of? [00:16:00] Because otherwise we are just accumulating and in fact, we are not allowing those resources to be available to the other people who are in another part of the zodiac who are in the 2nd House, who are looking for resources, who are starting their zodiac journey. So the man pouring the water out of the pot really encouraging us that those resources need to come back in for the rest of the Zodiac to play.
Jack Lyons: Another thing that I found striking was that it's directly opposite from Leo, which is the Sun. And the Sun in a whole sense it's such raw power that radiates out. And then we're on the complete opposite end of that. We have to let go of all our power, we have to dissolve it all. It's Saturn, it's the furthest away from the Sun.
Fiona Marques: That links to a couple of the images here from Brihat Parashara talks about it being the west direction, it's the setting Sun. Which is what you're saying, it's the setting sun is glorious. Everybody loves a sunset. It's that thing that we're all taking [00:17:00] photos of. But it is the sun dipping down and letting go the end of the day. So Aquarius really has that energy to it. And even that plays into what you just mentioned there about the Sun and Saturn that relationship in fact the father and son, that the Sun inadvertently is the father of Saturn but rejects Saturn and, sends Saturn as far out as the naked eye can see.
So Aquarius does have that uncomfortable in a way relationship with the Sun and it is almost doing the opposite of what the Sun is about. So it's got that westerly kind of dying solar energy.
Jack Lyons: Yeah, it makes you think differently once you start to tie in mythology and all these ancient texts. It really starts to expand your mind into all these other realms of thought. And then when you start to explain these things to people, perhaps like in a reading, you can [00:18:00] draw upon all of this wealth of knowledge and connect with other people because it's got that human storytelling element that we all connect to.
Fiona Marques: And that's why the course is so based on these Sutras and that we do ask our students right from the beginning to become comfortable contemplating them. So it's great that you brought that up and that's what you're experiencing.
So let's take that
Pisces Imagery
Fiona Marques: to have a look at the imagery in Pisces. If we return to the Yavana Jataka, it is said that the final sign shows a pair of fish in the water. It's said to be the best sign and represents the feet of time. Its places are auspicious. Here there are Gods knowers of Brahma, pilgrimages, rivers, oceans, and clouds. In Jaimini, it says In Pisces elevation, perpetual Dharma and Kaivalyam. And [00:19:00] in Brihat Parashara some of the list of qualities and words associated with Pisces, Medium-bodied, footless, day strong, North, moving in the water, Sattva, and rising both ways. So what were some of the things that you picked up on in relation to Pisces?
Jack Lyons: The concept of dharma was a big one. So this idea of perpetual dharma, connotating, something that's everlasting. It's forever. It's all pervasive. It's everywhere around you.
And the other imagery of like elevation, seeing things from a higher vantage point. To look down and beyond and oversee things. They go hand in hand with this idea of wisdom or knowledge or the right path.
Sattva as well. The Gunas. We're learning about these primordial [00:20:00] energies of all of evolution and existence that kind of hold everything together. Sattva being this element of purity. But it's like a deep resonance. Not just, it's calm and relaxed, but it's binding everything together, but in a deep resonating, almost like an intense vibration, but it's absolute peace and clarity at the same time. There's there's so much power to this idea of Sattva.
I needed to understand this through my Western brain as well. Western science and like the idea of Brahma and the oneness and the Supreme Source. Where does that fit in my Western mental model? And I went digging and I found some really fascinating things about quantum fields, universal fields, unified fields. The idea that quantum [00:21:00] science has proven to some degree that there is a quantum singularity. The field that if you zoom in, you've got atoms you keep zooming in you've got quarks and you keep zooming and you keep going and you get this pure field of energy. This pure, radiant, unified field that is all pervasive. We have a Western scientific answer. While it's not agreed across the board, it explains a lot about the universe and about the fabric of time and space. And sure, there's a lot of unknowns, that's a given, but it ties in so nicely with this concept of Brahma and the Supreme Soul and Kaivalyam. This is the recognition of lifting the veil of illusion because it [00:22:00] shows us this interconnected web and or this field of what we are. I still don't quite fully understand it, but I feel like I can reconcile West and East through that lens.
And it's quite exciting because in Pisces, being the end, like there is this idea of death in a way that's our human experience, death, because we don't know where we go or what happens when we die. But learning this provides a different framework. And I'm not talking just about like reincarnation or those sorts of things that are very much Vedic worldview principles. It's more that, if we are all connected in this unified field, we're not going anywhere. We are right here, and we always have been right here.
Fiona Marques: Pisces is one of those [00:23:00] fields that, the more that we talk about it, the more bliss we experience, but the less words can describe it because, as you were saying in your answer, it's something that's so sublime that it's beautiful for the intellect to contemplate, it feels really lovely to be in that space, but it's not long before words begin to let us down in the subtle nature of the interconnectedness and the perspective we get in Pisces.
And perhaps as we move towards Aries, one of the ways to make that transition is to talk about Pisces as a water sign. So the final sign of the zodiac is a water sign. And in some ways, the water gives us this great analogy, doesn't it? Of the ocean and the waves. In some ways all the water is in the ocean. It's all connected and it's formless as Pisces is. But then out of the ocean form these individual waves. This identity, this [00:24:00] peak that has a shape and has a momentum and is moving somewhere and doing something. And then crashes and returns to the ocean. So we have in water signs and in Pisces already this bridge for us between interconnected non-identity and complete belonging. And then the urge, the natural momentum of the water to peak and have its own journey which takes us towards Aries over the threshold of the end of the zodiac, the 12th sign to the first sign.
So let me share then
Aries Imagery
Fiona Marques: the imagery of Aries from these Sutras. In Yavana Jataka the first sign is said to have the shape of a ram. It is called by the ancients, the head of Kala. Its places are the paths of goats and sheep, caves, mountain hideouts of [00:25:00] thieves and places where there are fires, metals, mines, and jewels. Is our description from Yavana Jataka. Jaimini, as usual, us something really to get our minds thinking about. He says five rats and cats for Aries. And then in Brihat Parashara we have some qualities such as red coloured, large limbed, four footed, valorous by night dwelling in the East, relative of kings moving on rocky places, endowed with Rajas, back rising, fiery Ram ruled by Mars. So with this imagery and our ocean, moving from that integrated enormous field of water into the crest of a wave, what caught your attention in the essay around Aries? What was the imagery that spoke to you?
Jack Lyons: First and [00:26:00] foremost, just getting to this point was something I really had to contemplate because we're in a cycle and that's understood. But how do you start it again? There's many analogies like the wave and through my research, I kept coming back to this idea of karma. That for every action there is a reaction. And this is what kind of creates the seed for a new life or a new beginning in a way to resolve that karma. It made a lot of sense in within this framework to then understand, okay, so that's how we continue on.
So for me the things that stood out, first of all, Jaimini, like just couldn't get past the five rats and cats. What do you do with that? It's so short. There's not much to go by and yet it's so packed with potential. Just like the [00:27:00] seed of potential that is Aries. It's this bursting of creation. And so I did a bit of digging into Jaimini because I couldn't quite figure it out. And just this number five, like how does that fit in? We're at the first, so why is there a five? And it was quite interesting. I started digging into the Jaimini Sutras. I got myself onto an old copy of a Jaimini Sutras with some translations and footnotes. And in one of the Sutras, it, it says that they're using this ancient encoding system. I think it was Kaṭapayādi is the name of this system where numbers assigned indexes to sounds in the Sanskrit language. And it's a way to distract those who aren't initiated. And I found that really fascinating because it flips five rats and cats around a little bit, [00:28:00] essentially breaking that down and getting the syllables and then dividing the count by 12 equals one. And we're at one, we're at Aries.
Fiona Marques: And I think that's great to share that for those listening who not familiar with Jaimini Sutras, that it is written in a code in order to survive the times that it was in. And as westerners, maybe we have some familiarity with that. Like something like Nostradamus or other texts in Western esoterica have also themselves as a way to survive a brutal regime or an authoritarian time where that knowledge was about to be destroyed. And another way of saving it is to encode it in something that seems either completely harmless or completely meaningless, just nonsense or whatever. And that allows it to just slip under the radar and perpetuating itself into the future. Jaimini's a little bit like that, that it's full of the mystery of is the meaning of this sutra, on the [00:29:00] surface level or is it deeper? And as you were saying, there's no shortage of interpretation. So it's very beautiful that you share that, for example that it would be a syllable based, it would be that encoded.
Jack Lyons: Because you can see it from both ways. What is five? What could it represent? Five signs from Aries is Leo. And then in Brihat Parashara he's talking about a relative of kings. So Aries has a relationship here with Leo. So five being Leo and the Sun being exalted in Aries there's this real connection there. So even if you didn't use this numerical encoding system, you're still getting a lot of value out of one number, one word. So this is the thing.
And same with all of Jaimini. Rats and cats. There's just two other things in that. And then you can discern a lot from that and. Again, with the yin and the yang, I thought of rats and cats. Because [00:30:00] rats are these kind of relentless little creatures. They chew and dig and they're impulsive, they're inexperienced, and they just want to claw their way through anything. But cats are a bit more refined and pure and calculated. They prefer isolation. And they strategically think things through. And yet both of them symbolize like purification, burning through, having their desires met creating, clearing away. There's so much that overlaps as well. So I, I thought maybe it's like the yin and the yang. It's seeing rats and cats and seeing two sides of Aries. This impulsive side that just wants to butt heads and get things done in the world. And cats, which might be a bit more calm, collected, calculated and individual [00:31:00] and strategic. So there's just so much in that alone.
Fiona Marques: I think it's also a really beautiful contrast with two fish swimming in the water, isn't it? That in Pisces we have two fish swimming in opposite directions in the water. Then right next door we have five rats and cats. And I think that this tells us something about the completely different approach between Pisces and Aries. That Pisces through the whole journey of the Zodiac, all of those fields that we've spoken about, we come to a place towards the end of the zodiac where there's this acceptance of variety and of difference. And so these two fish are actually swimming in opposite directions, but they're completely at peace in Pisces. This is not two fish fighting to swim in the same direction or, two fish trying to force each other to go in one way. [00:32:00] Pisces it's a container where it's every bit of variety that is human, finds its home in the ocean. As, and as you said earlier, we don't even understand the variety of life forms that are in the ocean. Occasionally we have these things wash up, on the, to the surface. And we realize that there's a lot of life down in those deep depths of the ocean that, that we don't even see. So I think that as we go through Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, we tend to see this two fish swimming in different directions, or we see the birds and the clouds, and there's a lot of allowing for variety, an integration end of the zodiac. And then we see these rats and cats, and they're really scattered and interested in getting what they want. We talked about Aries being a fire sign as well, that, that inspiration the Pitta, the visual inspiration of what I want directs me to go. And off go these five rats and cats.
And I guess through all of this [00:33:00] understanding of evolution I still wrestled with it's a cycle but where does it begin and where does it end? Like it's infinite and like how does it transfer across?
Jack Lyons: One of the things that I think about, is that you feel the change from Pisces to Aries. It makes me think of this film called Wings of Desire, by Wim Wenders? I think it was probably made in the eighties maybe the early nineties. And it's these angels that in the film they're living in Berlin and they're watching the humans who are living in Berlin. And it's wonderful to be an angel. You can see everything. You've got that Pisces perspective, the elevation. They're literally sitting on the top of skyscrapers and watching with all this compassion and care for all the humans that are going through the drama and the struggle of being in physical bodies. It could stay like that forever, it's okay to be an angel. But in the movie, occasionally what [00:34:00] happens is the angels see some suffering occurring and they cannot by and witness it. They have to come into the drama. And usually that's to save the life of someone, for example, a child. As an angel, you can see that a child is about to be run over by a car or experience some terrible suffering. And as an angel, you can't stand by anymore. So they incarnate, they crash down to earth and they prevent this suffering. But then they become physical human beings. And they go through the experience that we have here in the body and all the suffering that brings.
Fiona Marques: And I think that crashing down to earth is a little bit this feeling from Pisces to Aries. That there is this lightness and perspective and an understanding that Jupiter gives us that ability to see the big picture. But if we want to make a difference, we crash down into the physical realm once again. And in the movie it's quite goes with this imagery because [00:35:00] in the movie, all that they are given when they crash is the, it's like a brass suit of armour, like an angelic suit of armour. And they sell it to get some money and then they, have got at least the beginning of their life here on planet Earth. And it just reminds me of, in Aries, where did it say something like fire and metals and mines and jewels. So these angels get that.
It made me think about that feeling that we have between the threshold between Pisces and Aries. It's a Gandanta point in Vedic Astrology between a water sign and a fire sign where we get the water evaporating into steam. But then we have the desire and the motivation to start something in Aries. That initiative that Aries gives us, that this is the direction I want to take.
And I think we talked about areas being the direction of the East, right? It's looking at the sunrise, it's looking at the new potential.
Jack Lyons: When the sun shines down, it creates [00:36:00] things like photosynthesis reactions that then spawn new life can begin because of that Sun. Pisces is just holding the energy, holding the potential and it's just waiting for the time to be right for that fire, that Pitta to come and energize everything. And begin a new form of life, whether it's a sea grass or an anemone or who knows, a fish or a human being.
Fiona Marques: You see that all the time, those little bits of life that form in the crack in the pavement or a little corner of a building where there's just enough soil that a seed has just lays dormant until what you're speaking about. And that's all of us in this karmic cycle, isn't it? That we might think that the whole point of the karmic cycle is Pisces and Mosha and let's go. But, karma and life have other plans for us that, that bring us into the cycle of life as you shared with your recent [00:37:00] becoming a parent, is a great example of in with both feet into the future where we are saying, I want to contribute my DNA and my attention to the next generation. And here we go. Aries once again, off, off the cycle goes.
Jack Lyons: I guess in Aries it's got this passion and drive to hopefully do things right this next time around.
Fiona Marques: I know, I think parenting is a great example of Aries, isn't it? That choosing to become a parent is the complete unknown. And we all have that, I'm going to do it as good as my parents or better, I'm going to improve this. But we have absolutely no idea. the child that is coming to us. So we don't know at all the personality of the child or the challenges that child may face, even physically from the material that they inherit from us. But one can only conceive the child with Aries. You can't see the whole [00:38:00] cycle of what it's going to be like. You have to jump in with both feet knowing that you'll be able to solve the problems that come along as a parent as they come up. Because, if we thought about it properly, none of us would become parents. It's too overwhelming. All the risks outweigh the potential through path that's there. And yet, a large percentage of humans do the Aries thing and become parents.
Jack Lyons: I could say, a large part of wanting to learn Vedic Astrology was so that I could learn this wisdom to pass on to my daughter. To look at her chart and see what's coming up for her life. And as a parent, guide her as best as I possibly can.
Fiona Marques: It's a great tool as a parent. Highly recommend it. All right, so we've had a chance to talk about these three signs and their imagery. And you spoke about, in terms of wrapping up your essay looking for a way of understanding that with your western mind or for the reader.
Sleeping, Dreaming, Waking and the Final Question
Fiona Marques: How can we [00:39:00] understand this 11, 12 and one. And perhaps in fact, it leaves us with more questions and answers. Where did you get to towards the end of your essay?
Jack Lyons: In the end, I just wanted to find a way to make it a bit more relatable to myself and everyday human experience. So I wrapped things up with this idea of a person retiring to bed for the evening. You're beginning with this conscious withdrawal, all your thoughts your intellect, you're starting to detach you're starting to reflect review and contextualize everything that's just gone on in your day. Gradually starting to release your attachments. Let go and enter into this Piscean, dreamlike state. Your ego is softening and you enter this realm where you do dissolve. You let go. And dream dreams are magical, beautiful things that [00:40:00] we have no control over. And we let them happen. We let all these impressions release from the day. And then you begin anew the next day, Aries is this like fire to get up and with this fresh energy and do things a little bit better, let's hope. Or just do things based on all of that came before you, but now with this renewed energy and vigour. And that to me resonated as like a human experience we go through every day.
But then I ended my essay still with this question how can we explain the cycle itself and its beginning? I know we're in it, but where did it come from and how did it begin?
Fiona Marques: Very beautiful. And your question at the end of the essay brings us to the gift of our ecliptic. This is our university here on planet Earth, [00:41:00] and it has these 12 fields, the Rasis, and you can start anywhere, and you can end anywhere. And the fields will provide for you the resources that you need to learn and experience. So it's a very special place to incarnate and a great place to leave your essay.
Thanks, Jack. And thanks everyone for listening, and I'll look forward to catching up with you the next time that we are together on the Vedic Astrology Podcast. Bye everyone. Bye.
