Today I’ll guide you through the esoteric mysteries of fixed star Antares, also known as the heart of the scorpion. Antares is one of the fifteen Behenian stars, and in our sky we find her in the Greek celestial Scorpio constellation; she is the brightest star within that constellation, with a bright deep red colour.
Antares is also one of the four Royal Stars of Ancient Persia, which were essentially markings of the cardinal directions and considered guardians. Antares is the guardian of the west, known as the Watcher of the West. In the Tropical zodiac, Antares is currently found around the 9th degree of Sagittarius, and the Sun joins her around December 2nd of each year.
Nature’s intelligence often mirrors celestial wisdom; as above, so below. So what happens during that time when the Sun travels along its eliptic path through this constellation? We enter a quieter time; longer nights, cold enough for absolute honesty as the branches too begin to bare not to hide us from our eyes.
A moving inward, on the medicine wheel we are pulled now towards the inner wildlands of our spiritual body – the space we find who we are. A sacred unfolding. A time of trust, and of listening. A sacred month has begun, with the birth of Christ in few weeks, where we will light the inner candle with our inner flame, to see further, to see clearer, to warm our hearts.
Sometimes at the end of November, and even in the first week of December, I’ve still seen wild roses bloom. Even when the grounds were covered in snow a few years ago, a wild rose was still blooming, as if convinced it’s spring. These are the kinds of things that sometimes happen: unexpected, defying our logic, calling us to consider that not all is as previously written. But – not everyone may see the rose, they may walk right past her; and even those that do see her, may still not choose to treasure her beauty, let the awe of her open them and allow the inspiration of her move them. So there is a choice here to be made, and there is also mysticism here in this part of the sky.
Coming natively from Bulgaria, our lands are of deep mysticism and wise forests. The stag is an animal we consider sacred in our folklore and beliefs. And I always think of the stag during this time of year when Antares becomes more visible. The mystical stag, showing up in the sky, as if calling us to go deeper into the wild unknown lands, both the inner and outer ones.
As a poet, if I were to describe Antares with a phrase, I’d call her, “fire is a dance, ice is the prayer”.
Antares serves often as a calling to trust the fires of our heart to purify and open us; to mature us into wisdom through allowing the wisdom of time itself to rise us. She is a churning of a present moment, so vast and wild like an ocean. A swimming beyond the borders of the known. To taste the hidden nectars.
Antares is a bright red star, a red fire, fires of fires within fires. But it’s alchemy, not wars. If you choose so. If we choose her higher calling, it is alchemy. Sometimes god is an iceberg. Sometimes god is a moth in the candle flame. And sometimes it is the wax itself.
So what hides inside the heart of the celestial scorpion?
An opportunity for purification. A purification portal. Mysteries, of voices and stories woven through the history of humanity from all parts and corners of our world. Also, fires of passion. Deep passions and feelings also are found here; so deep, it sometimes needs to freeze itself, because it may feel too out of the control if it allows itself to feel it all. But it is ocean inside it. Land of fires and ice, an opportunity for a deepening to become ocean; ocean of wisdom of both soil and heaven waves, speaking long lost languages.
When you choose to use fire properly, you may allow it to burn everything inside yourself which isn’t serving you anymore. On the other hand, if you choose the fires to lead you astray externally, to act of fear and separation, then eventually you’ll get burned or destroy things. Fire can serve you. It can be your spiritual ally. An inner transformation where the inner fires alchemize you. You can rise and reclaim your true inner power.
Fire is a powerful element, and if one learns how to master it, it becomes healer nor destruction; it feeds, it warms, it inspires, and it lights up. It nurtures people’s inner flames, it raises them, it lifts them up as encouragement and support. This is the power of fire. People who have fire in their charts are here to encourage others, to nurture their flames, to support them, raise them, lift them up.
As we walk the the mystical celestial wildlands of this part of the sky where Antares resides, and there are three things we find:
One, in Navajo cosmology, we find her reside in the heart of Átsé Etsoh, First Big One, who is depicted as the elder man, the one who holds the wisdom, contentment and stability within that comes with age.
Two, we find Antares’ connection to fire and oaths through the ancient Mesopotamian goddesses Lisin and Ishara, and the importance of purification and inner alchemy towards self knowledge.
And three, the mystery of the stag, and her association with hunter goddesses like Artemis; and through stone carvings and ancient myths, we find that perhaps this part of the sky was not a scorpion but rather a long lost stag constellation.
In the Heart of Átsé Etsoh
To the Indigenous people of Navajo and their beautiful cosmology, in this part of the sky where Antares resides is the constellation Átsé Etsoh, First Big One. Átsé Etsoh is depicted as an elderly man with a cane and a basket of seeds. He represents the wisdom of the elders and the concept of Sá’áh Naagháii Bik’éh Hózhóón, which is that “with old age comes happiness or contentment.”
His a cane provides strength and stability; and his basket signifies the entire cosmos and regeneration. This constellation holds the beautiful truth and reminder to us as humanity of the wisdom and knowledge that come with old age, and that we stand strong in assurance and stability of life like the elders do. Though today’s generation focuses on remaining young, the mindset of the elders back in the day focused on becoming an elder, and gaining the wisdom and respect that came with it.
Átsé Etsoh as a constellation holds the upper parts of the Greek Scorpio constellation, including the heart of the scorpion with Antares, as well as stars from both the Sagittarius and Libra constellations.
Antares, the bright red star, resides within the heart of Átsé Etsoh. So within the heart of the scorpion is the heart of the wisdom of the elders and the knowledge we may learn from them.
The “Tail” of the Scorpion, consisting of λ, κ, υ and ι1Scorpii is called Gah Haat’e’ii, the “Rabbit Tracks.” Navajo hunters used these stars to determine when the traditional hunting season would begin. As long as the “Rabit Tracks” remained up right in one position, young deer still depended on their mothers for nourishment and thus, deer were not hunted. Only when these stars tip to the east, deer hunting season was to begin.
I live in Canada and our winters are deep in snow. We have many rabbits here, and I have a deep connection to them, see them always, especially during evening walks. And in winter, it is such a special magical thing to see their steps in the snow. Rabbits are magical and mystical, just as the stag, and so in this part of the sky, we are always called to explore further the wild unknown lands, within and without; and let life reveal its wisdom to us.
And moving further into the Scorpio constellation, adjacent to the First Big One, Átsé Etsoh, is the Kaalogi, the Butterfly constellation. It is considered a summer constellation, visible during the time when butterflies are migrating through the Navajo Nation. Navajos, like other southwestern tribes, respect the butterfly as a symbol of the process of change, transformation, growth and regeneration.
Oaths of Fire
Antares is associated with scorpion goddess Ishara in ancient lore and spiritual practices. Ishara was an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, oaths and connected to the city of Elba. But if we dig a little deeper, we arrive at another Mesopotamian goddess associated with Antares, goddess Lisin.
Lisin, sometimes written or translated as Lisi, was an ancient Mesopotamian deity associated with the star Antares. Lisin was regarded as a goddess and addressed as ama, meaning mother, and she was associated with fire. She was referred to with names such as “the burning one”, “the one who burns”, “who burns with fire”, and “who burns on an offering”. Many believe that Lisin and Ishara may have been quite similar, and both are goddesses of fire and oath.
Antares carries these ancient voices and oaths of fires within her heart. There is often loyalty and deep feeling we find in her, and she supports us when we make a vow to something, when we stay true to our words, and when we don’t break promises made nor stray away from our oaths or vows. It’s kind of like the knight’s code of honour, “my word is my bond”.
But here it’s also important to know what and whom we give our vows to. When we join with someone, whether emotionally or physically, there are threads created energetically, and the fires of Antares remind us of having discernment and wisdom of heart. Stay in integrity, stay in loyalty, and stay clear what you choose to entangle with.
A Nature of Jupiter and Mars
Antares’ name comes from ant-ares, meaning rival of Mars. With her bright red colour, she often is much brighter than Mars in our sky, though her name is also referred to her intensity and powerful energy. There is intensity here, but also the opportunity, if she uses her power wisely, for meaningful transformation, inner growth, intuitive and emotional maturity.
According to Roman mathematician and astronomer Ptolemy, Antares is of the nature of Mars and Jupiter, and the dharma of Mars is essentially to protect. With Jupiter, she carries wisdom and spiritual development. Mars is called for a higher calling to protect those who are more vulnerable, and to be a knight of honour, valour and integrity.
With this energy, Antares may hold in her wise heart the nuances of humanity and the human emotions, their fires and their tears, and preserve what true love is; preserve the heart of humanity, protecting what’s worth protecting in both legacies, and the honour of people. She may protect their privacies, vulnerabilities, and has the courage and strength to hold people’s hardships in a way that they feel protected and safe, rather than destroyed or betrayed or strung or abusing their trust. There is power here, and with power comes responsibility. So Antares asks us, “whom do you choose to be?”
Entering the Vedic Lunar Mansion Jyeshta
In Vedic astrology, this part of the sky where Antares resides is related to the lunar mansion, or nakshatra, of Jyeshta. The deity connected to Jyeshta is Indra, and whenever I think of Indra I think of Indra’s necklace.
Indra’s necklace is a necklace woven in the heavenly kingdom of Indra; an infinite net and in each hole a jewel is woven. In each jewel is the reflection of the other jewel. This is the interconnection of life, the web of life. In each is the other, and is everything else.
Jyeshta natives may often deal with some karmic battles or the need to balance out the scales from past lives; and this usually manifests in their interpersonal relationships. Indra was someone who had to eventually spend some time in introspection and fight a dragon alone; he single handedly defeated the dragon, the most fearful serpents of all, though he won not by strength of arms but rather by his own courage, effort and willingness to face his inner shadows.
The dharma of Jyeshta, which aligns quite beautifully with Antares’s nature of Mars and Jupiter, is to lead and to protect, but only of wisdom not fear. Strength comes from wisdom and purity of intention and integrity; not from fear. People who hurt and harm and destroy are driven by fear. Wisdom inspires us to act of true leadership and protection.
The animal totem of Jyeshta is the male deer, or the stag. We may not think of celestial scorpions as stag-like, but if we dig a little deeper, it seems the ancients may have believed this constellation to be a stag not a scorpion. This also connects to Artemis, the hunting goddess with her stag, and the time of our year when Antares is most visible and shining brightest.
The Mystery of the Stag
Artemis was goddess of the hunt, the moon and the wild forests, and her beloved stag was her sacred companion. The myth of Artemis dates back to Paleolithic times; her realm is the wilderness, and her concern extends to protecting all wild, untamed things. Fiercely individualistic and independent, she remained in her vow of chastity, though some believed she may have had a strong fondness towards fellow hunter Orion. She was also a healing and soothing goddess; protector of births, she alleviated the sufferings of women in childbirth.
Artemis is a goddess of the Moon, and of that she became goddess of the universe, residing in the center of the Milky Way. She is seen as the symbol of Sagittarius; and is also often seen as a ruler of Cancer and creator of Scorpio, thereby giving these two water zodiacs to the humans. With the Tropical 9th degree of Sagittarius that holds Antares, and the two watery signs, oceans within oceans, Artemis serves as higher expression of this part of the sky.
The stag was sacred to Artemis, and he is also sacred to many other hunter or lunar goddesses. In our Bulgarian folklore, the stag is the sacred and beloved companion of our samodivas, who are woodland spirits similar to forest nymphs.
A Long Lost Stag Constellation
As we dig into history and various ancient cultures in Europe, and possible beyond, we find evidence of their interpretations of the constellations, and how they may have been seeing the Scorpio constellation as a stag not scorpion animal.
Aside from Jyeshta and the male deer or stag as its animal symbol, we also find various stone carvings in Europe about the nightly sky – which essentially carved animals to portray the constellations. One such is the Shandwick Stone in Scotland, a Class II Pictish symbol stone, which features a hunting scene that some interpret as depicting a stag and potentially relating to ancient constellations, particularly the Scorpio constellation and a possible stag constellation in that region.
Many cultures including for example, Hungarian and Persian, have similar stories describing a hunter, or sometimes twin hunters or brothers, perpetually chasing after a stag in much the same way as Hercules. This stag is no ordinary stag, but he is white and holds the Sun in his antlers, also known as the Legend of the White Stag. This chase story might have arisen as a result of the relationship in the night sky between Gemini and Scorpio; because at the autumnal equinox, the Sun is in Scorpio between the “antlers”. As it sets in Scorpio due west, Gemini rises in the east, and is present in the sky until the dawn.
In this way, the two constellations are on opposite sides of the sky, appearing to be chasing each other, yet never catching up. The Shandwick Stone, whether intentionally or not, seems to portray this relationship, with the twin warriors in the bottom left hand corner and a stag in the bottom right hand corner.
Whether this part of the sky is a long lost stag constellation or not, we may not know, but it is interesting to see how from various cultures and beliefs and traditions, we find the same pattern repeating itself with a stag in the place of the scorpion. Examples include various European traditions, a Pictish stone, Welsh mythology, Vedic astrology, Greek mythology, a German poem, and an Anglo-Saxon carved arch. I invite you to do your own research, if of interest.
Watcher of the West, Antares, you hold a feeling of the eternal, as if oceanic. A feeling in truth perhaps quite subjective, but that’s irrelevant, because it is a language, a contact, like a touch. A spiritual experience. One of fires within, of burning ancient scrolls, of things unspoken only felt.
You are here to walk the path of the adventurous quest for knowledge. You are here to walk through the portal of purification and into the inner alchemy of self knowledge. Your dharma is to lead and protect of wisdom, not fear; and whatever battles or obstacles you may face, know you have the strength and courage to persevere. It’s not about the strength of arms; it’s about the inner knowledge.
This part of the sky allows you to reach the summit of your personal power, but it requires courage, effort and willingness to master your energy, especially the energy of fire. The stag walks with you, supporting you with his nobility and wisdom and ability to walk the terrains, inner wildlands and various landscapes of life. The lands of fires, secret lakes, bottom of the wells, ancient voices from the mist and depths of rivers as we ride the boats; forest cathedrals, where we’ve build altars for our heart’s desires and we keep nurturing these flames even if no one knows of them.
A huntress Artemis. One loyal to her heart, her vows, her freedom. Fiercely independent and individualistic, remaining true to herself, and reminding us of our need for solitude, freedom and our connection to the wild and untamed parts; our heat underground, our need to feel the breeze in our hair and on our skin as we are riding into the mystical unknowns. She is the protector of those more vulnerable, the guardian of the forests and the animals. And her beloved stag, her protector, her guardian in turn. Not an animal, a king in his own right, with loyalty in his heart and strength and courage to guard her and protect her and follow her in her soul’s calling and mission. With his strong body he carries her where she needs to do her mission and fulfill her purpose.
With her bright fire red light, Antares is a fuel that may inspire a deep inner alchemy, a transformation and the ultimate undoing, so that you may share yourself in a love without fear nor conditioning. If Antares connects to your Uranus for example, your third eye may be one with the watcher’s eye, seeing beyond the mundane and beyond the conditioning.
In our current changing times which invite us to reflect on the redistribution of power and the importance of speaking out and standing for truth, this part of the sky reveals a portal, offering us to merge with higher consciousness, bringing in a revelation and clarity in the heart of change. The heart of the scorpion is perhaps precisely the heart of change itself.
Antares reminds us of a wisdom – to have the discernment and wisdom to know when to enter certain cycles, and at what time, when to act and when to listen. She reminds us of the importance of solitude and self knowledge, of seeing horizons clearly, of the responsibility of the choices we make, and of the power of our voice and words we speak into life.
The human narrative and celestial wisdoms have been almost plagued by negativity, darkness, egocentric actions, and interpretations from outdated texts written in the dark ages. For example, that Saturn is a malefic – no, that’s just not true. And if you read these old texts you may find some quite scary things written about fixed stars or aspects. We need to evolve and grow past these old narratives because they are no longer aligned to the evolution of our consciousness. We are now living in a time when the old paradigms of fear, separation and limitation are just no longer serving us, as they are no longer supportive of our growth and path ahead.
Although we call them fixed stars, they are still moving, just slower than we can perceive with our eyes because they are so far away from us. And we too are moving – the axis of our Earth and her relationship to the Sun, and what rises on our horizons slightly changes through time also; different lights are seen, a different way in which the light reflects a new nuance on the canvas.
Many people often talk of Antares in a negative way, and this was part of the reason I wanted to dedicate of my time today to share about her. There is wisdom to be found always if we choose to. Like all else in life, it’s a ritual of approach. The way we approach a topic, an animal, a person, a star above us – this will be the way it too reveals itself to us. So if you seek to the stars out of darkness and fear, they may reflect to you these within you. Don’t fear the stars, nor planets, nor anything else in our world and within yourself, but rather, look for the wisdom and choose to embody love, beauty and wisdom.
From wisdom in the heart of elders, to ancient goddesses weaving oaths of fires and walking with their sacred stag protecting wildlife and those more vulnerable, they all speak and remind us as humanity of the wisdom that time allows us; we are reminded of the stories we weave in and out of, of the stories we’re made of and the stories we make. If we choose fire as a sacred light, an inner flame, to nurture our heart with wisdom and to light our path with actions of intention, purpose, integrity and reverence, we create fires that warm people, feed people, and we raise each others in love.
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The beautiful cover art is by Susan Seddon Boulet. I love her art and have a collection of her paintings as prints, and this is one of them. All rights reserved to the artist.
