CAPRICORN
Capricorn is the 10th house sign in the astrological wheel. It is depicted as a goat, usually with a curling fish tail. The goat is a persistent climber, logical and methodical outside with deep feelings running through a sensitive inner landscape. They are soft inside but with a hard determined exterior shell. Being an earth sign, Capricorn has a special relationship with nature. Time spent outdoors in nature is never wasted time.
Capricorns work hard at everything they do. They are disciplined, serious, responsible, ambitious, rational and determined. Goats are motivated in both their careers and their social standing. They tend to be trustworthy and loyal because they understand innately the value of a good reputation. Caps want security and consistency, and will work diligently to attain a comfortable life style with a good income. Capricorns love to be in charge, and usually are quite good at it. They make steady business managers, company presidents, even millionaires because of their capacity to initiate solid business ideas. As a cardinal sign, their joy lies more in the building and climbing than in the day to day minutiae of business. If Cap feels stagnant in a job or business, she may need to change jobs, or sell the business and start another.
Capricorn’s planetary ruler is Saturn, the Lord of Time, the serious teacher who presents challenges and gives opportunity for introspection and concentration. Knowing that everything takes time, Capricorns work hard to build things that will last, or to release their karma in the evolutionary process.
Every sign in astrology has positive and negative expression. If Capricorn does not spend time and energy nurturing themselves and others, eventually they will burn out. Burnout that comes from over-work and over-dedication to a task can be eased with sandalwood, patchouli, vetiver, lavender, chamomile, melissa, marjoram, bergamot, lemon, petitgrain and/or jasmine. Essential oils to help one re-connect with one’s emotional needs are jasmine, peppermint, vetiver, elemi, rosemary, basil, melissa and helichrysum. Often one’s greatest talent is also the greatest liability. Capricorn is responsible and cautious, but can be too pessimistic, focusing on negative aspects of a situation to the point that she is blind to the opportunities available. This can bring about stagnation and depression. Oils to encourage belief in oneself and help one see beyond negativity are bergamot, clary, grapefruit, rosemary, chamomile and cypress.
Some Caps become so involved in their work that their social life revolves around the office and their colleagues; that is, if they take time to have a social life. This status seeking, corporate mentality can lead to greed and paranoia if Capricorns are not careful. Essential oils can help with these negative traits. Oils that assist the sense of aloneness that paranoia brings are neroli, frankincense, chamomile, rose, jasmine, melissa and lavender. Greed and aggression can be tempered by geranium, lavender, sandalwood, clary, cedarwood and vetiver.
The goat is a hard working, sure-footed climber. But the fish tail alludes to a connection to the water, symbolic of emotions. Always trying to move up in the world, these goats need to have an unshakable sense of self and faith in their own power. To support a healthy sense of self, Capricorn needs to honor her sensitivity and embrace the energy of the opposite sign, Cancer. Cancer is motherhood, the nurturing force that sustains life, the need to retreat into quiet relaxation to recharge the soul. Achievement satisfies Capricorn deeply, except when it is won at the expense of her own feelings— or those of others around her. Capricorns may like to imagine that they do not need others, but alas, whether or not they realize it, this is not the case. If they do not acknowledge their feelings, sooner or later these suppressed emotions will emerge most powerfully, perhaps as health issues. Best, then, to honor them before they become a problem. Essential oils that can help to bring them out of their internal emotional world over-laid by a hard shell are hyacinth, cedarwood, elemi, rose, geranium, rosewood, helichrysum, palmarosa and cypress.
Capricorn, like fine wine, gets better with time. Caps seem to age in reverse, as if they were born old and become younger as they mature. Goats tend to be late bloomers, not coming into their own power until later in life.
Saturn rules the bones, and Capricorns have to be careful of their joints, especially the knees. Knees often reflect fears of moving forward. With Saturn as a restrictive influence, and the goat’s inclination to keep climbing onward, these knees can be very vulnerable to strains, inflammation, osteo-arthritis and joint pain. Essential oils that help alleviate swelling and stiffness from the knee joints are eucalyptus, camphor, tea tree, cypress, ginger, lavender, rosemary, lemon, juniper and pine.
Going up the ladder of success is both a challenge and a joy to the Capricorn. There are both positive and negative aspects to being to that disciplined, persistent, pragmatic and responsible. But no matter what, you can’t change the will and desire that our little goats have to do that climb. All you can do is get out of the way so you don’t get trod over on their ascent!
Many thanks to astrologer Molly Cliborne for her wonderful website north-node.com which is informative and user-friendly.