All look your best, Peter warned them. First impressions are awfully important.
He was glad no one asked him what first impressions are; they were all too busy looking their best.
One strong tie between the Virgins and the Goats is their matching need to be thought of as proper people, therefore to speak and behave and live as properly as possible, so as not to incur either disapproval or ridicule from friends, relatives and neighbors. One does not make one’s self a laughing stock if one can help it—and one can help it if one tries. The way to be respected is to be respectable. Nothing could be plainer, more precise than that.
A second strong tie between these two Earthy ones—whose four symbolic feet are planted as firmly and practically on the ground as feet can be without being nailed down—is the attitude they share about money. It is something you earn. It is something you save. It is something you spend sparingly and wisely. It is something you absolutely never waste or throw away carelessly.
Another strong tie between them is the way they both feel about duty and responsibility. They love it. They adore it. The Virgin and the Goat would each be equally lost and aimless without it. Give them a sacred trust, a duty to perform, a responsibility to fulfill—and they’re in Seventh Heaven. It’s an interesting place for them to be—Seventh Heaven (especially for Cappy). Because Saturn, ruler of Capricorn has long been claimed by mystics, as well as hinted by the ancients, to be a Seventh Dimensional planet. (Never mind what you see with your eyes on Saturn, like on the Moon and Mars and so on. What you see with your eyes is very unimportant. We’re talking about the function of the planets.) Now, I can’t explain to you in detail exactly what it means that Saturn is a Seventh Dimensional planet. But perhaps generally …
You see, here on Earth, we are existing, living on a Third Dimensional planet, giving the large majority of us, at least, a third dimensional awareness (of Truth). The next, or the Fourth Dimension, is Time itself. Very Einsteinish. Gets into linear conceptuals and that sort of thing. (See Leo-Aquarius chapter.) The next level after the 4th is (logically) the 5th. The Fifth Dimensional level of awareness has something to do with the planet that rules Virgos, but I can’t tell you exactly what. Moving right along to the 6th dimension and the following one, well—look at it this way: if we haven’t the foggiest notion of what the 5th and 6th dimensions relate to, consist of, etc.—then it’s no wonder we’re totally baffled by the Seventh Dimension of Saturn. I mean, how are you going to comprehend the 7th if you don’t know a particle about the 5th and the 6th? That makes good, common sense, doesn’t it?
And that’s another thing Virgo and Capricorn share—good common sense. They have sensible heads on their shoulders. But we were discoursing about dimensions, a sound and practical thing to do, since we’re all involved with them, whether we like it or not. Isn’t it interesting that the word dimension contains within it the words die and dies? Especially interesting since one does have to experience some sort of death to reach a Higher Dimension. (Not necessarily, however, death of the flesh body.) You see how appropriate this is now, because Saturn, Capricorn’s ruler, is the planet astrologically associated with matters related to the dead. (Saturn and Pluto, between them, rule death in all its various forms.)
Our dimension discussion isn’t a digression. Not to the Goats and the Virgins, who are both super-alert to the fact that it’s very healthy to exercise one’s mental muscles now and then, not to mention one’s spiritual sinews. Dimensions, then. Take a shadow. What is a shadow? It’s a Two Dimensional object, having height and width, but no depth, correct? Yes, that is correct. Virgo just nodded in agreement, and Virgo always knows what is correct. Cappy is still silent. Goats never offer an opinion or endorse anything until they’ve had time for long and careful deliberation—whereas Mercury, the foster ruler of Virgos, causes them to speak up a bit more quickly (but never carelessly or impulsively).
Virgos and Capricorns share something in common with us all, for here on this Third Dimensional planet called Earth, we are, every one of us, Three Dimensional entities. We have height, width—and depth. (Depth being the third requirement for the third dimension.) Of course, so has a building, so it would appear that being three dimensional is not much of a distinction. Still, We (and the New York Public Library) are Three Dimensional objects—and when Brother Sun (a vital facet of this meditation) shines upon us, through us, from behind us or whatever (the terminology is relatively unimportant) we Three Dimensional objects are then able to cast a Two Dimensional shadow on the street or the ground, correct? Virgo says yes. We are correct. Cappy is still silent.
A One Dimensional object is a fine line which has only height (length) and no width at all, certainly no depth, impossible for us to image perhaps—but be assured that it does exist. The thing is that, if we are Three Dimensional objects, who cast Two Dimensional shadows (but only with the help of Brother Sun or one of his weaker, light bulb assistants), then THINK! Would it not follow that we, ourselves, might be merely Three Dimensional shadows, cast by our Four Dimensional Selves? Silence now from both Virgo and Capricorn. Well, I’ll tell you, even without seeking their approval. We most definitely are just that. This is exactly what we are—Three Dimensional shadows who have been cast (through the alchemy of Light many times brighter and stronger than Brother Sun himself) by Fourth Dimensional beings—called the Supra-Conscious, the Higher Self, the Higher Angel of One’s Self, and so on. There are many names for the Fourth Dimensional entities who cast us as their shadows. Capricorn is wondering now about the buildings, and Virgo is wondering about the New York Public Library. No. Buildings do not have a Supra-Conscious. The difference between the Two Dimensional shadows they cast and the ones we cast is that their shadows can’t move. Neither they nor anything higher than themselves have any choice in the matter. They should be glad we even allow them to cast a stable, unmoving shadow, that we permit them to be three dimensional at all. And we do allow it, for we created these inanimate objects in our own three-D image, you know. Like dolls, toy trains and the like. For our own amusement, shelter and other trivial and serious uses.
What sort of choice do our shadows have? They can’t move without our decision. We control them, as our Higher Selves control us. The only way we can gain that sort of control over ourselves (our destinies) is to get in touch with the Fourth Dimensional being who has the control, tune in—and cooperate, demand some choice over our shadow selves—or should I say—over ourselves, mere shadows that we are. Our own shadows are silly things or they could do the same—demand of us that we give them more choice over their own selves. The symbolism of Peter Pan and his shadow was intended by author James Barrie to be far deeper than simply an amusing bedtime story.
None of the multi-dimensional entities, of course, have any power whatsoever without the Sun—and beyond that—ever greater Lights. Otherwise, all beings, of whatever dimensional awareness level, are helpless puppets. Including us. Praise Brother Sun! Likewise are our powerful Fourth Dimensional Supra-Conscious Selves totally dependent for their power to cast the shadows of us upon even more brilliant Light than our Sun. No bright, dancing colors would be created by prisms or crystals without Light. In darkness, there are no rainbows. In darkness, stained glass windows are dreary and lifeless. There are no reflections. In effect, be kind to your shadow. It needs you. You are its Creator. What you do and think, it also does and thinks. Well, Virgo and Capricorn, can you prove that shadows don’t think? Believe me, you may not pay constant conscious attention to your shadow, but you’d be lost and drifting, with no Saturnine or Virgo responsibility, were you to be without your shadow. You would miss it dreadfully. Because, to live without your shadow would be to live in darkness. Now you understand why Peter Pan was so upset when he lost his shadow. And wasn’t it nice and kind of Wendy to sew it on for him, attach it so he’d never lose it? Wendy was a Cancerian, but sewing Peter’s shadow to him, so it would be safe, was such a practical idea, she clearly must have had a Virgo Ascendent and the Moon in Capricorn.
As for trying to imagine what a 5th, or say a 7th dimensional being would look like, I believe you won’t go far wrong if you image the 7th dimensional being as looking and behaving quite like Capricorn. Stern, but loving. Wise. Patient and quiet, stable, dependable, and reliable. (But also more than a trifle stubborn.) Like most all Goats. The 5th dimensional being or entity strongly resembles Virgo. Stern, but loving. Wise. Patient and quiet, stable, dependable and reliable. (But also a little critical, cranky and restless.) Now you know what the higher dimensional angels look like. A Goat and a Virgin. At least when you step off the escalator on the 5th and 7th floor levels. We may not know a whole lot more than when we began, but I told you I couldn’t explain it all in detail. Just generally …
Virgos intensely dislike generalities. They are refined men and women, with alert minds, acute perceptions and an exquisite sense of discrimination. They analyze every feeling, then say they’re not that way at all. (That’s because they’re analyzing your analysis of them.) The Goats find no wrong in Virgo’s attitude. It seems sensibly cautious to Capricorn that Virgos should devote the time and trouble to take clocks and problems and people apart to make sure the works are in good shape before they buy the clock, solve the problem or decide to be friends with the person. Both Virgo and Capricorn have a certain sweetness and gentleness about them, a shy and reserved manner that seems to quietly draw them together. There will be times when Cappy thinks Virgo worries too much, talks things over to excess. There may be times when Virgo thinks Cappy is too stubborn and set in his (or her) ways, refusing to compromise or submit to the excitement of mental stimulation. Nevertheless, these two are far more alike than they are different, far more compatible than not. Their association is graced by the sympathetic 5-9 Sun Sign Pattern, making it easier to relate and to forgive each other’s mistakes.
Every Capricorn projects a singular kind of detachment. When an obstacle appears, the Goats just step over it and climb steadily on their way to the top of their goals. That’s what makes Saturn-ruled people sometimes appear to be cold and unsympathetic—their lack of outward emotional response to stress and strain. They consider unnecessary displays of emotion to be wasteful and extremely non-productive. Most Sun Signs are unable to comprehend such an attitude, and so mistakenly interpret it as cruelty or at the very least, a lack of warmth. Yet a Virgo will instinctively know that Cappy is truly brokenhearted beneath Saturn’s iron curtain of composure, and the Goats are pathetically grateful for the Virgin’s compassion.
In the same way, Cappy comprehends the hurt felt by Virgo when others call him (or her) critical, fussy and uptight. No one can better relate to Virgo’s self-chastisement and guilt over neglecting duty and responsibility better than the Saturnine man or woman. Cappy senses the gentle dreams and longings locked up inside Virgo, needing so much to escape, yet kept firmly subdued beneath a surface reticence and shyness. The Goats know. For they are much the same. They too have yearnings difficult to express. The Virgo’s declaration that he (or she) prefers to be a loner, Cappy knows is not really true. It’s just an easy way to hide your loneliness from those who would only ridicule you if they knew how vulnerable you are, how much emptiness you feel at times. Yes, Capricorn well knows Virgo’s need to pretend to be more self-sufficient than he (or she) really is, recognizes it as a form of protection against hurt. Both Capricorn and Virgo take Life seriously. They’re both earnest and sincere, loyal and dependable. And both realize the frustration of being the often unappreciated guardians of common sense and practicality among those who find taking care of business boring, and are able to accept the process of living more casually and carelessly than either the Goats or the Virgins can bring themselves to do.
Yes, the 5th and 7th dimensions of awareness have much in common. For one thing, 5 and 7 are odd numbers, not even. There’s an implied isolation about being odd, whereas the even people are more adaptable. Virgins and the Goats are lighthearted when they’re together, because they know each other’s secrets. They trust their private selves with one another, and this allows them to laugh and weep together, to share the kind of excitement, daydreams and rich experiences only Earth Signs can fully enjoy. Deep down within the Earth lie veins of pure gold, waiting to be discovered—just as deep down within the quiet hearts of Virgo and Capricorn lie veins of pure golden wisdom, far more beautiful than any metal ever mined—for those who are patient, and know where to look.
Virgo Woman and Capricorn Man
Oh dear! I am sure I sometimes think spinsters are to be envied. Her face beamed when she exclaimed this.
You remember about her pet wolf. Well, it very soon discovered that she had come to the island and it found her out, and they just ran into each other’s arms.
As with everything else in astrology, there’s a reason why Virgos are symbolized by the Virgin. Both sexes. If the truth be told, almost every Virgo would prefer to live alone forever. (Not necessarily as a literal virgin, of course, but unmarried.) The Virgo woman is seldom thrilled by the thought of trying to match her life style to the habits of another person (especially if the other person has messy habits). It’s a terrible dilemma for her, actually, because she can fall in love as deeply and as liltingly as any other woman. And once she’s fallen in love, she’s tortured by conflicting feelings.
She’s aware that she’d be much more comfortable in a relationship recognized and respected by both the law and society. Namely, legal marriage. Second, when she truly loves a man, she feels it’s her duty to marry him, bear his children, darn his socks, grate his celery and carrots, keep his shirts from humiliating him (and her) with ring-around-the-collar, help him with his income tax, all those necessary human burdens. Her lovely, clear eyes become cloudy, and her pure forehead wrinkles with worry over the situation. The more she analyzes it, the more troubled she is. Fortunately, she’s an Earth Sign, not an Air Sign like Libra. If a Libra lady had the Virgin’s problem, she’d really go bananas, trying to decide what to do. Virgo will keep her cool while she’s analyzing all the details of her marital dilemma, and view the whole thing in a reasonably calm manner. But she may bite her nails a lot, and those worry wrinkles will reveal her inner turmoil. Mostly, she’ll keep it within, hash it out with herself, Narcissus-like, while she’s still unsure.
The plus side of her conflict over whether or not to marry we just covered a paragraph or so ago—all those reasons why she feels she should give in and renounce her single status. The minus side is what marriage means—or what it will probably mean to her, as a Virgo. It will mean adjusting her life to the whims of another individual, adapting herself to being constantly on call, 24 hours a day, to cook, sew, make small talk, make love, have children, raise children, dust, sweep, clean … then there’s the laundry, the bills, the necessity for compromise concerning social activities and a hundred other areas where her preferences and those of her husband might clash. (Virgos hate clashes. Clashing makes them nervous.)
Despite her reputation for neatness, cleanliness and tidiness, not every Virgo woman in the world is a born homemaker. In fact, very few of them are. (We’ll discuss why a little later.) Consequently, the possibility of becoming a household drudge is high on the list of the reasons she’d rather not wed—and it’s why lots of Virgo women decide early in life that the institution of marriage is for the weak-minded But then, there are always one’s friends, relatives and neighbors to consider. What will they think of her decision to remain single? And what of her responsibility to the man she loves? How can he possibly manage without her by his side at night and in the morning, in case he should need something, and she’s all the way crosstown? If they don’t legally marry, but just find a suitable apartment halfway between her job and his job, and live together, wouldn’t she be forced to do all those wifely things for him anyway (become a household drudge) even though they weren’t actually man and wife? I can answer that for her, without spending a lot of time analyzing it. Yes, she would.
So the Virgin is left with the choice of either remaining a virgin—or becoming his bride. These are the only two sensible solutions for a lady who feels such a sense of duty toward her lover that just seeing him every other day or so isn’t enough to remove her nagging worry that he might need her in some way during those hours they’re apart. If you haven’t already gathered that most Virgo women privately enjoy being needed (never mind how they complain about it) then consider yourself informed now that they do.
Should the man she loves happen to be a Capricorn, her dilemma is a waste of perfectly good hours which could have been profitably spent otherwise. If she’s involved in a meaningful affair with a Goat, she can forget analyzing. Not always, but at least eight times out of ten, a Capricorn man who really loves a woman will either make her his proper and respectable wife—or leave her and grow bitter, nursing his loss for years, rather than consent, for any length of time, to a relationship that isn’t legally, socially and religiously sanctioned, or is contrary to general custom—and especially one that could conceivably be frowned upon by his sainted family. The sexual revolution changed many former traditions, patterns and concepts, but it has yet to make a real dent in the basic Sun Sign personality of the Goats. It takes a lot to convince Cappy that living in sin is not living in sin, even when he’s reluctantly living in it. Besides, he nearly always wants a family, this man—and he’s not about to bring up his sons and daughters illegitimately, deprived of the great privilege of bearing his family name. That’s unthinkable. It’s sacrilegious. Even worse, it would be humiliating.
Another reason it’s difficult for the Virgo woman to avoid marriage with her Goat is because the two of them are emotionally guided in their love relationship by the 5-9 Sun Sign Pattern, the most basically compatible vibration the planets see fit to bestow upon mortals. It isn’t an absolute guarantee of happiness, naturally. Even 5-9er’s have to work at it—and there are always those few 5-9 couples whose Luminaries are in adverse aspect between their birth charts. They’ll still be unusually sympathetic to each other, but may find it hard to compromise their disagreements. Nevertheless, it’s a beneficent influence to have as a foundation for love, and whether 5-9 lovers exchange a positive or negative natal Sun-Moon aspect between them (in addition to their trined Suns) they are always more miserable when apart than most other men and women who separate for one cause or another.
So there’s really not much use for her to indulge in a dance of doubt with this man. When the Virgin and the Goat first meet, they’ll feel a karmic tug of long ago and far away, mixed with an almost instant empathy and comprehension of one another’s viewpoints. Their auras blend, lock into place harmoniously—and after that, untangling them is as difficult and delicate a task as untangling the fur balls of a Persian kitten. (Most Virgos own a cat or two. Virgos have a thing about cats. They either worship them or they can’t stand to be in the same room—or even the same neighborhood—with anything feline. But they are never just neutral about pussycats.)
These two communicate beautifully, whether they’re dancing (which they don’t do often, especially not on a night before they both have to be at work or school early the next morning), just talking and relaxing, working on a project together … or making love, which is a mutual endeavor they’ll both enjoy tremendously. Neither of them finds it easy to be natural regarding sex. Secretly, each of them has always feared that he (or she) is inadequate in some way. But when the Virgo woman melts snugly into the secure arms of the Capricorn man she loves, she seems to lose all her coolness, detachment and inhibitions. Likewise for him, when this woman nestles trustingly against his shoulder in the dark, then moves uncertainly nearer. Their need grows slowly, until it becomes deep and overwhelming. When two Earth Signs express their desire for each other physically, their feelings can be mighty powerful—in a word, earthquaking. The women he used to know and maybe thought he loved—the men she used to know and wondered if she loved—would be amazed. Until they discovered an emotion they could trust to be wholly reciprocal, both the Virgo woman and the Capricorn man may have been more than once accused by others of being cold and romantically unresponsive. That’s why their sexual union is frequently such a warmly intimate interlude within their other levels of togetherness. It may be the first time they have ever felt free to just be themselves, holding nothing back, loving with an abandon and a sense of human completeness they always wistfully longed to know and to share, but were never quite able to attain with anyone else—until they found each other and were able to experience an unexpected earthquake of passion.
I promised earlier in this section to tell you why lots of Virgo women aren’t thrilled about housekeeping and homemaking. Some of them are, of course, and when they are, they revel in it—but a surprisingly large percentage of them are not. A person who hates to live in disorder is not necessarily a person who enjoys keeping things in order. Aside from the Virgos who do have spotless homes, the others are made nervous by the sight of the continual disarray of daily living. Make a bed, wash a dish, mop a floor, wash a bag of laundry and almost before you’re through, the bed is again unmade, the dishes are once more dirty, the floor is tracked with someone’s muddy boots, and the clean clothes are soiled as soon as they’re worn. It’s discouraging, and it keeps you forever analyzing how to cope with it all more efficiently, which fatigues the brain, makes you tired and unable to do your work (creating a vicious circle), besides which there’s really no answer to the problem of beds that simply won’t stay made, dishes that stubbornly refuse to remain spotless, floors that perversely need sweeping and mopping only a few hours after they’ve been left freshly waxed and gleaming—and clean clothes that insist on needing to be washed and bleached and dried repeatedly. You see, the reason so many neat and clean Virgo women contradictorily dislike housekeeping almost neurotically is because they are all perfectionists, and there’s nothing so discouraging to a perfectionist as something you’ve managed to straighten out and make nice and neat that simply will not remain nice and neat, no matter how much effort you spend. Because this creates the most ulcer-inducing worry of all to a Virgo, which is, simply: is it either sensible or practical to waste so much valuable time retracing one’s steps? When they finally decide it’s neither, the Virgins often leave the dishes stacked in the sink, the beds unmade, the laundry undone, the floor streaked with scuff marks—and desperately rush out to find a job of some kind where their talents for bringing order out of chaos and confusion will mean something. It doesn’t always work, unfortunately, because then Virgo begins to develop all sorts of physical and emotional complaints, due to a consciously unrecognized sense of guilt for neglecting a duty. This woman can use lots of sympathy.
Although Goats aren’t excessively sensitive, the 5-9 cord that binds them will allow the Goat to treat the little baby torments and traumas of his Virgo woman with more genuine consideration than is normally his custom. He knows what it’s like to endure agonies of guilt and frustration over exaggerated self images of neglecting responsibility. Indeed, the moods of depression with which the kindly, earnest Goat is periodically afflicted, often stem from the same twinges of self-criticism and self-chastisement his Virgo lady suffers. He tends to discipline himself as severely as she does herself, holding his hurt inside, like her, restricting his emotions as she does, seldom allowing them to escape into the freedom of natural expression.
As for those scattered areas of tension between them, they could arise if she’s overly critical of his family in any way or nags a bit too much. All Goats tend to balk and butt with their stubborn horns when they’re nagged or pushed. Some quarrels could be caused by his refusal to spend enough time talking with her about the hundreds of things she reads and hears that stimulate her active, alert mind. She likes to always be either verbally analyzing something or physically doing something. Idleness bores her and makes her restless, whereas his metabolism and day-to-day behavior are keyed to a much more leisurely, relaxed pace. Then too, there’s his self-protective Saturnine selfishness—the Capricorn me first attitude he’s seldom aware he possesses. Should he take undue advantage of her instinctive unselfish urge to serve, their relationship can become lopsided, and she could resent it inwardly for a long time before it spills over into a serious confrontation.
Then she might decide she was right in the first place about a single life being the only sensible and peaceful way to live, pack up her vitamins, her dictionary, her pocket calculator, her toothbrush and other personal belongings—and leave him. The separation may not last long. In a month or so, after she’s settled into her bachelorette apartment, luxuriating in being a loner again, she’ll surprise herself with her own tears some night, in the stillness she thought would be peaceful, but turned out to contain instead only the awful ache of emptiness. She’ll realize she misses snuggling in his arms … his soft, twinkling Goat’s eyes and his shy humor … even his occasional gruffness, his grumpy moods and his unthinking selfish moments that hide such a gentle, devoted and loyal heart. As gentle, devoted and loyal as her own.
Is that the doorbell ringing? Yes, it is. Surprise! It’s him. He has the perfect excuse to stop by and see how she’s doing without him. She made a mistake and took his toothbrush when she left. He is returning hers, so they can trade. She stares at him for one shocked moment, then exclaims, But I didn’t notice, and I’ve already been using your toothbrush for nearly a month! He’ll tell her he didn’t notice either right away, and he’s been using hers. Then they’ll run into each other’s arms, because they’ll know there’s no use fighting it any longer. They love. How could they possibly have used each other’s toothbrushes if they didn’t? They couldn’t. For Virgo and Capricorn, that’s the ultimate intimacy, the final proof of destined Oneness. Otherwise, obviously, they would both have surely turned into stone statues as punishment for such an improper trespass against custom, so warned against in childhood as a no-no. Unexpectedly, the two of them feel as free as birds! He drives her back home, so sweetly familiar, but still feeling free, instead of going inside, they race each other into the back yard. He takes off his stuffy tie, and tosses it over the outstretched arms of the nearest tree … she removes her uptight Virgo sandals … and they dance barefoot in the moonlight, under the surprised stars, the grass tickling their toes deliriously, intoxicated by the heavy fragrance of honeysuckle vines. Finally, they fall down beneath the tree, laughing and crying at the same time … and suddenly, without warning, it’s silent between them. The only sound is the chirping of crickets. They both know what the silence means. Sometimes, need won’t wait. After all, it’s their yard, it’s surrounded by a high wall, tall spruce and hedges, and the neighbors are asleep… …
It’s about time they broke the chains of restriction, to learn that love will not be imprisoned by anyone’s rules. A soft, steady rain begins to fall. They don’t even notice. His very best tie will surely be ruined. But who cares? His Virgin will knit him a new one, now that she’s back home, where she belongs.
That night, of course, there was an earthquake—though not the kind that can be measured on the Richter scale.
Virgo Man and Capricorn Woman
But you simply must fit, and Peter measures you for your tree as carefully as for a suit of clothes; the only difference being that the clothes are made to fit you, while you have to be made to fit the tree. Usually, it is done quite easily, as by wearing too many garments or too few; but if you are bumpy in awkward places, or the only available tree is an odd shape, Peter does some things to you, and after that you fit. Once you fit, great care must be taken to go on fitting, and this, as Wendy was to discover to her delight, keeps a whole family in perfect condition.
Since Goat Girls prefer to face facts without flinching, the Capricorn female who thinks she can mold the Virgo man she loves into what she considers the proper image of a lover, husband, father and respectable wage earner is hereby astrologically counseled that succeeding in such a goal may not be a piece of cake.
As tough and patient and intractable as her ruling planet, Saturn, may be, Virgo’s ruling planet, Mercury, gives him a quick intellect and agile mental cleverness, along with a swift, wing-footed way of escaping uncomfortable situations. Consequently, in the long run, the odds are pretty even that he might end up being the one to cause her to fit his notions of the way things should be measured instead of the other way around. His notions, at least in the beginning, may not include marriage. It’s not just the idea of a long-term commitment that disturbs him. It’s the restriction of his freedom. The necessity to harness his personal habits to the strange and unknown personal habits of another. The lack of … well, the lack of privacy marriage involves. What if she’s the kind of person to fill the bathroom medicine cabinet with all her feminine glamour trappings, cosmetics and such, leaving no room for his Pepto Bismol, Tums, bee pollen, vitamins, Band-Aids, iodine, Rolaids, Alka Seltzer, Excedrin, and toe nail clippers? She’s not. Very, very few Goat Girls are addicted to make-up and glamour. Saturn blessed most of them with a flawless skin that only improves with age. Since all Capricorns look younger as they grow older, she doesn’t need all that artifice. She thinks it’s a big bore, and besides it’s expensive. She has no intention of supporting Revlon, so they can buy commercials to annoy her with interruptions when she’s watching television.
Well, all right, but she could have a dozen or so other habits that will upset him. For example, he likes his poached eggs cooked a certain way, and it’s taken him years to train a certain waiter in his favorite restaurant to fix them just right—how long might it take to train her? She could even be the kind of woman who talks incessantly on the phone, or worse yet, in bed—until he develops those migraine headaches again—or a recurring attack of his intestinal disorder. He just paid two months’ salary to a homeopathist to get rid of his asthma and allergies to scented soaps, his headaches and his intestinal disorder (actually, severe constipation) and he’s not about to repeat that ordeal if he can help it. He’s probably worried about nothing. Being a Cappy, she most likely can handle poached eggs, and she certainly isn’t inclined to be a chatterbox on the phone, in bed—or anywhere else.
If he really loves her, he’ll have to get it together, take hold of himself and realize what anxieties he’s creating in this gentle lady who’s really a lady—who is so capable, loyal and appealing—by being so skittish about formalizing and legalizing their love. She wasn’t born to carry on an endless love affair. She feels vaguely uncomfortable about flouting convention, she can’t bear the disapproval of her family—and she has definite ambitions for the future. To her, both Life and Love must have a clear purpose, a definite direction and goal. Besides, she’d probably like to be a mother someday. Not a whole houseful of children, no. But maybe one. Or possibly two. And she would like them to have a surname, other than her own.
The Goat Girl has an innate reverence for the family circle and she believe with a rock-bound conviction that it should be protected as the stronghold of civilization herself. She’s right, of course. Capricorns usually are. Saturn, her ruler, symbolizes wisdom gained through experience, faith in the old and dependable over the untried new and doubtful. In the end, Saturn’s judgement is always proven to have been sound. Sometimes it takes many years, even centuries of patience, but Saturn itself is never wrong. That’s why Cappies can become so depressed at times. They catch it from Saturn, like a disease. Surely it’s lonely and depressing to be so enlightened and have to wait so long to share it, while in the meantime, everyone resents you, calls you stuffy and straightlaced. Or worse yet, ridicules you because they don’t understand that Father Time will justify your wisdom. That could depress anyone. It has depressed Old Man Saturn (the planetary Master of Karma) for so many eons, it’s no wonder that those born under his influence periodically retreat into icy-blue doldrums, just sitting around and brooding for no apparent reason. But there is a reason for this woman’s silent spells, and now you know what it is—although she may not. She only knows she feels sometimes an inexplicable sadness and loneliness, a sense of the futility of everything—and while she’s feeling it, the greatest good news in the world couldn’t jolt her into a joyful smile. Not until the mood has passed. It isn’t very helpful of the Virgo man who loves her to add to the Goat Girl’s gloomy periods by causing her to become concerned over what people will say if they don’t plan to eventually marry. Now and then, it will be Cappy who avoids the altar, because it might interfere with following an ambition or a career, and the Virgo who feels rejected—but not nearly so often as the other way around.
In general, however, their relationship will be rich in mutual affection, and has an excellent chance of becoming permanent. Thanks to the basic harmony of their 5-9 Sun Sign Pattern, their love will be more stable and enduring than most, although there will be occasions when their matching stubbornness causes them to disagree. It probably won’t be over financial matters. Allowing for the few exceptions, like a Goat Girl with her Moon or Ascendent in a Fire or Air Sign, or a Virgo man with the same (when hers are not—and vice versa) these two will tend to view money in a similar way. To state it bluntly, both Virgo and Capricorn are capable of being as tight as a tick with cash. This is fortunate, because it means he probably won’t mind her working, following her own career or profession. Not only because he was born under a Mutable Sign, and is therefore more adaptable than most males, but two jobs mean double income. Double savings. Double investments. Double interest. And only half the time required to accumulate enough security to move to a house in the country, where they’d both prefer to live, if they’re typical of their Sun Signs. See? There are advantages to being married! Of course, these two may not, in the beginning, be aware of their need to escape into Nature’s woodlands. That will come later. For a while, she’ll be too busy carving herself a secure position in society, or in some profession where she can quietly and calmly, but surely—lead others (she’s Cardinal) or at the very least, be her own boss. And he’ll be too busy finding a variety of interests that need his alert mind and critical talents, trying a little of this and a little of that, and usually leaving things in a smoother flowing condition than he found them.
One thing that’s almost certain to be smooth flowing between them is their sexual chemistry. Earth knows exactly how to bring happiness to Earth. Even with adverse Luminary aspects between their horoscopes (which could cause coldness between them periodically), their trined Suns allow each of them to sense how to give peace and contentment to the other through sexual union. If their Luminaries and Ascendents are trined also (or sextile or conjunct) their passion will be a deep and stirring experience. Sex is often a quiet emotion to Virgo and Capricorn, yet also a powerful magnet that steadily adds strength to their relationship. As with all Earth Sign couples, their closeness will grow with Time. There’s a slow sensuality about their lovemaking that makes it rich and meaningful—and since neither the Virgin nor the Goat find it easy to express his or her feelings verbally, this shared silent sensuality gradually becomes a private code between them.
Intimacy is not something this man and woman have to learn, or teach each other, through experience. It was there, trembling between them, when they first met. Reflected in their eyes and their shy, uncertain smiles. Something they recognized without the need for words. They simply knew. As with many 5-9 lovers, Virgo and Capricorn are instantly familiar … as the Bible tells, they know one another.
When a man and woman who are influenced by the Earth Element of the 5-9 vibration part for some reason, there’s always a feeling of emptiness. And so they hide their naked longing, as Earth Signs will, beneath a detached reserve. But the separation shakes them to their roots, never mind how they try to escape the desolation. The wounds can heal eventually, of course, but it takes a long, long time. (Barbra Streisand is an Earth Sign Taurean, former husband Elliot Gould is a Virgo.) Since parting is so painful for 5-9 guided lovers of the Earth Element, it’s worth a lot of effort to compromise their differences. Allowing for the always present exceptions that prove the rule, when Virgo and Capricorn (or any Earthy couples) end their relationship, it’s seldom due to the death of love—or the intrusion of a third person. It’s almost always ambition, the career or goal of one, that leaves the other behind. This is usually the seed of their problem, though they may hide it, and call it by other names.
The Virgo man and his Goat Girl are both stubborn. They both use coldness as a weapon when they’re hurt—to hurt back. They’re both reserved, and to each of them—love is a very private thing. But neither will ever let the other down if it can possibly be avoided. They are loyal. And loyalty is the strongest foundation on which an enduring love can be built. Even when love seems to have been destroyed, it can always be reconstructed on the firm foundation of steady loyalty that never cracked through freezing weather, that withstood the fires of anger and the floods of all kinds of temporary emotions. When Cappy and Virgo have had a disagreement, they may pretend the song is over. But it’s not. That was just the first verse. There are choruses yet unsung.
Some night they’ll run into each other at a party somewhere, each privately hating the crowds and wanting to be elsewhere—anywhere but in the babbling confusion of people talking about nothing. Then she’ll realize that the only quiet in the whole room is in his eyes … gazing at her softly, but waiting. He’ll realize the only stillness and peace in the whole room is in her uncertain smile. She looks even younger now than she did years ago when they met, he notices. (Of course. Cappies grow younger as the years pass, blessed by Saturn’s hard-earned gift of age reversal.) She notices how clearly more intelligent, thoughtful and self-contained he is, compared to all the other men with their polished sophistication and aggressive behavior, their tired jokes. Their jaded attitudes. His shy humor is so much more perceptive.
After a while, the Virgo man will walk over to his Goat Girl … slowly, but very, very surely … and say hello again. She’ll try to answer him with some reserved, dignified greeting—but the words will unexpectedly become a lump in her throat, so she’ll just smile at him, silently. It doesn’t matter. Because it’s still there. The trembling between them. The knowing. The intimacy. It’s time for the second chorus of their song, with the old familiar melody, but new lyrics.
| Virgo | Aquarius |
| Earth—Mutable—Negative | Air—Fixed—Positive |
| Ruled by Mercury | Ruled by Uranus |
| Symbol: The Virgin | Symbol: The Water Bearer |
| Night Forces—Feminine | Day Forces—Masculine |