Pisces and the Practice of Leaving

Recently I have been writing about the ways in which we can learn about the nature of a sign by understanding the nature of the environment or ecology it is associated with. Each of the 12 signs ‘rule’ certain places which carry the significations of that sign—these are the places on earth that the signs manifest themselves, thereby influencing us. There are simple lists—each sign associated with one type of ecology or environment—and then more complex lists that can encompass any possible environment on earth: a courtroom, for example, would be Libra due to the association of the scales and justice. A graveyard would be Capricorn—for reasons I won’t go into here.

I’ll stick with the broader regions and associations for the purpose of this article, and I’ll focus on the sign of Pisces—because I happen to be near the ocean and that is where my mind is wandering to these days!

Pisces is the end of the zodiac—the last of the 12 signs before we begin again in Aries. It’s associated Environment is the ocean—the life-sustaining body of water whose coastline creates a very abrupt and obvious ‘ending’ and ‘beginning’ between water and land. Pisces signifies endings in various ways: the end of life (death), the end of the day (sleep), the end of the self (moksha or spiritual liberation), the end of the body (the feet). The way the sign and its ruling planet Jupiter are disposed in an individual’s chart will show how that person relates to these things.

There is an art to endings, and leaving, and a real utility in clear demarcations of ‘before’ and ‘after’ and ‘together’ and ‘apart.’ If you look out at a coast you will see a thin band where land ends and ocean begins. If the two were too deeply entangled we would have miles of mud and quicksand instead of the clear indication of change that is the coastline—and in fact, this can start to happen in places whose natural ecologies have been disrupted. Being “stuck in the mud” is an excellent description of how it feels when we cannot, in life, make a clean break where it is necessary.

Jupiter —the ruler of both Pisces and Sagittarius—is the primary planet governing decision-making. In Sagittarius (a sign ruling the battlefield) the primary decision is whether or not to fight, in Pisces the decision is whether or not to leave: through sleep, death, moksha or even dissociation (Pisces also ruling the unconscious, which when it overpowers the conscious mind can cause dissociated states).

Although there is a certain amount of discipline required in the art of leaving that Pisces teaches, you will see that the ocean itself is not a highly ‘disciplined’ environment in the way a vegetable garden might be (an environment ruled by the sign opposite Pisces: Virgo). Leaving is much more about surrender to the reality of circumstance than it is a personal power trip.

Anyone who edges up against the ocean will have felt the pull toward surrender that such an expansive environment encourages. And anyone who has attempted to surf or otherwise navigate those waters will also understand that the human is not in control in such a situation—they are only playing by the rules dictated by the water. There is a giving oneself over to the larger rhythms of the water and the dictates of life, here.

As we come to this final sign of the zodiac there is, ideally, an acceptance of what is, after the resistance has been thoroughly exhausted in the previous signs. Sleep comes as we accept that our energy is not infinite, death comes and we see that one lifetime expires, and moksha comes when there is absolutely no resistance between the container and the contained. The analogy for moksha, or returning to the infinite, is that it is like a doll made of salt walking out into the ocean.

Pisces teaches us this dissolution. I suspect that the art of leaving takes a lifetime to learn. It is a potent contemplation, though: how do you leave? Willingly or by force? Do you hang on until a situation is toxic and you are forced out, or do you leave before anything has even had the chance to fructify? This becomes a question of ‘when is the fruit picked? Too early, too late, at the moment of most deliciousness? Jupiter is the planet ruling fruit, so we see again how all of the indications of planets and signs weave into and inform one another.

Jupiter, as ruler of Pisces, is the planet governing the space element. So ultimately, everything that has been discussed here—endings, leaving, decisions— can be best understood as a function of space, which itself is the binding factor for the other elements. Space holds things together or allows them to separate. The healthier the space element (i.e. Jupiter in a chart) the higher the probability is that endings are healthy. This means also that decisions are clear.

One of the best ways to create healthier space is through meditation, where the internal space is allowed to expand through bare observation, awareness and equanimity.