Balancing Water and Air - a discussion

miquar said:

All this makes me wonder what the mental faculty is for. 'Invention', I guess is the answer that comes to me. I'm not sure that feelings are any good for finding brand new ways of looking at things.

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Hi Miquar,
I think the best use of the air element, or the mind, is as a tool for understanding and (self-)analysis. Also the ability to discriminate is a useful mental function.
To me inventions seem to be more of a fire thing, since they are often inspired and not so much the end-result of a thought process, although analysis can help as the preparation which leads up to the moment of inspiration.

miquar said:

I suppose I was what they call the 'identified patient' who acts out the feelings that no one else in the family is willing to look at in themselves. It really really hurt. The angrier I got, the more ashamed I was made to feel. And the more ashamed I was made to feel, the angrier I got. The pain is much quieter now, but its a funny thing knowing that I've never known myself (or life) through clear, loving eyes - that there's a suit of armour under my skin that I may always be there to some extent.

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I have had similar experiences with all kinds of emotions (anger, sadness, grief etc.), especially when others were unaware or didn't own their feelings, I used to pick them up and at times also act them out - it often made me feel like a fool. Perhaps using a bit of air can be helpful to deal with this kind of situation. As a child you just don't really know what's happening to you, only later can you learn to deal with this kind of thing more consciously. I feel all those layers of protection may melt away if you can feel safe with people again..
all the best, with love, Bina

The mental faculty is consciousness or awareness of what goes on around us and inside us. It certainly includes the application of logic and linear thinking, but isn't limited to those. Awareness includes feelings, from 'inspiration' and 'hunches' to past experiences that inform our current thoughts, from self-identity to a sense of the context we operate within, from instinct and "common sense" to visualization.

IMO, "emotional intelligence" and the theory of multiple intelligences are valid concepts. (Howard Gardner, who has Sun and Mercury both in Cancer, developed the theory of multiple intelligences. His list of learning styles includes linguistic; logical-mathematical; musical; body-kinesthetic; spatial; interpersonal; and intrapersonal. I think one or more may have been added since his original theory came out. Feel free to look him up!)

In any event, the purpose of the mind is understanding.... in whatever combination of ways we use to reach a state of knowledge. In astrological terms, consciousness and understanding are a combined effort by all of our planets and their configurations.

Reading everyone's insights on how their Water or Air manifests within themselves is--what's the best phrase here-- pleasing to the mind, especially since both the Water and Air elements are the "judging" signs (if I'm correct).

Considering my chart is purely made up of the Water and Air signs, I feel as if though this thread helps me understand myself in a constructive and positive manner, so thanks everyone, for sharing your wonderful reflections to the whole community. Though I myself have much to understand and learn as the years go by, especially considering the below:

My chart is composed of 4 planets in the water signs (Mars, Mercury and Sun along with the AC in Scorpio and Moon along with the PoF in Pisces) and 3 planets in the Air Signs (Venus and Jupiter in Libra and Saturn along with the IC in Aquarius). As one can see I have no planets or even powerful points such as the PoF or PoS [PoS located in the 8th house Gemini] in any of the Earth or Fire signs.

Sometimes I consider the above a curse and a blessing (and sometimes both at the same time). Though I may not have lived long enough to give a full psychoanalysis on my life yet (as many members have on this thread), it [my life's reflection] is still possible for me to give a somewhat analysis on what I have lived through currently (though discreetly).

Though I will remain short, I can write that my life has not always been pleasant and jovial. Sometimes life has thrown me like a roller-coaster going up and down at fast velocities; other times in my life, for months at a time, it is serene and tranquil in nature.

But through it all I try to remain jovial, optimistic and in a generaly good disposition (which I attribute to my Jupiter-Sun-AC conjunction). So maybe having too much Water and Air makes my life unstable and extremely prone to change, but it also makes it not so boring and much more tolerable. Not to mention great for creating stories! If anything, I sometimes wish I had a little of Earth in me.

Note: I can tell you this. I do NOT in any way (I should think) possess great intuition or even mild at that. I have a hard time picking up on people's moods and feelings without having to discern them for myself i.e. reading their face expressions, tone level and consistency and bodily functions by secondary nature. So about the Water signs having great intuition...I think is a load of stereotypical bogus.

Hi Sniperbomber. I take it that you're using 'intuition' in the sense of being psychic, rather than in the 'fiery perception of the whole picture' kind of way. I don't think watery people are necessarily psychic. But you may get strong gut feelings about people based on little information - not that these will necessarily always be accurate.

Ugh, my answer is I don't know if I balance them!!

My sun is in Pisces, and then the rest of my chart is predominantly air. The thing is, all of that air is in 2 water houses, a stellium in the 8th and then my venus in the 12th.

I'd say the issue of balance for me is particularly big in my life, especially with a libra stellium in the 8th - a house where balance is almost seemingly impossible to find. I am still learning...

miquar said:

Hi Sniperbomber. I take it that you're using 'intuition' in the sense of being psychic, rather than in the 'fiery perception of the whole picture' kind of way. I don't think watery people are necessarily psychic. But you may get strong gut feelings about people based on little information - not that these will necessarily always be accurate.

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No, what I mean by intuition is the basic understandment of a person's mood, current feeling or general, "hey I know what's going on in your mind" type of feeling. Intuition means perception of a fact or truth without any reasoning or logic involved (including much thought process) to understand a situation. My mind is quite the opposite; I must analyze a situation and give that situation some to a great amount of thought process before making a sound judgement.

Not the type like taking forever to learn something, or being able to think in an educational manner. No I can do those. Rather more in the sense of a person's mood, feeling, etc. as I have stated in the aforementioned paragraph. E.g. when a person is crying, I have to actually think about what I have to say or think about when it comes to those thought processes; or when a person is going through an emotional time, I try my best to figure out the right words to express what I think that person should do or think and not get him/her overworked, rather than the words coming by "second nature".

Basicaly I can't deal with emotional matters in an empathetic way without having to give some thought process (analyzing the face, gestures, etc.) to the person's current mood.

About the gut feeling part...not really. Most I ever get in relation to 'gut matters' is saying something like "I knew that would happen" or "I knew I should have listened to my instincts". Which I think happens to almost everyone (in the non-blatant standard).

OK. Thanks. I think I understand better what you mean now.