The Sign of Scorpio

The sign of Scorpio is often called a mysterious or secretive constellation in Western astrology.

In Vedic astrology, we take a look at the foundation energy, which has to do with water, the depths and the ocean, and the mysteries of life.   That’s because the sign of Scorpio is considered the eighth natural sign.

The eighth house is a house where typically the sun and planets are setting.   It is the place of the unconscious mind, psychology, astrology, and energy.

Mystery and Great Depth

The eighth house rules over all of the things that we cannot see, our thoughts, emotions as well and energy. Those are all mysterious, unseen things. That’s why the word mystery is associated with Scorpio sometimes because it has to do with things that are not seen.

Being a water sign, this is a constellation of great depth. The way that I like to describe the sign of Scorpio is that it’s just like the oceans in our world have extremely great depths, so Scorpios do too.

If someone has an ascendant or their first house sign, a sun or a moon in Scorpio, these people usually have great depth.  Scorpios are not secretive actually, they just do not share what happens in their inner world and the abyss within them.

It is a world unto itself, and even the Scorpio born do not always know how they ‘know what they know’.  Their answers in life seem to appear to them, and they may not be able to describe where the answer or knowledge derives (come from).

Intimacy and Emotion

And just like the ocean, the Scorpio Sun, Moon, or ascendant person might take a long time to warm up to you. It takes a very long time to heat the ocean.

Those with this sign sometimes take a very long time to warm to you, but once they are in a deep relationship and connection, that connection is extremely loyal. The connection can be so loyal that it takes often extreme examples or experiences for them to cut off relationships.

Sometimes they are so forgiving that they will put up with things for a long time, but then just like a freezing pond, things might click and crack over into, “Nope.” You’re a person who’s no longer in the world of their deep, deep intimacy and connection if you were to cross the line one too many times.

Just like an ocean of devotion, the Scorpio sign has to do with a capacity for intimacy or a desire to seek intimacy in these more unseen ways. They often enjoy being able to develop psychological health, both conscious and unconscious health.

Knowledge from the Deep – Professions of Scorpio

Scorpios can find themselves in the world or the professions of psychology, not necessarily the brain or neurology, but rather psychology, the world of the unconscious mind, and might become counselors, coaches, and guides.

The 8th house is also connected with research, so Scorpio Sun people might be in research professions. The research would be deep (not as much a meta-analysis) or about the illnesses that cause death since the 8th house is also the house of death and taxes.

Finance, investing, taking care of ‘other people’s money’, trusts, and legal work to do with heritage, foundations, and trusts are other areas that the Scorpio born might find work, but they may not love the work.

This includes attorneys, tax consultants, financial advisors, and professionals who touch the world of other’s investments and heritage, trusts, or foundations.

The 8th house can sometimes be associated with inheriting money, but it must have certain connections in an individual’s chart with the other money houses (2nd, 9th, 11th, or 7th houses).

Scorpios can also be great poets since they speak another language about their experiences and how they see the world.

Heart Connections Not Facts

Scorpios make connections through the heart, emotions, and ideas, not with words, facts, or details. They don’t remember people or facts to store away and retrieve later.  But they have a deep sense of knowing, and all of their knowledge comes from a deep place within. Often they cannot describe where their knowledge came from.

The knowledge or answer is just something that appears at the surface of their mind.

Answers from the Deep

The analogy that I like to use for a Scorpio’s knowledge, is that it’s just like a depth finder that sends sound down which bounces back up to the surface to give you information of what is below.

A Scorpio sends a ping down into the depths of their inner knowledge, and the answer appears at the surface.   This is often why they don’t have words to describe how they know something. They’re also much more experientially based.  Facts do not get stored in their memory, an experience or feeling does.

So rather than reading a fact and memorizing it, a typical Scorpion puts much more merit on their life experience, on their known experience. The memories they have from an experience get categorized in a way that they can’t fully explain how they put it all together.

They might remember that someone loved cotton candy because they liked it too, or that the lake you visited together as children was cold. It is the experience that carries the memory, not the names of the people and what they were wearing. This is how I describe the Scorpio energy.

Relationship with a Scorpio

If you know someone in the Vedic system; who has an ascendant Sun or Moon in the Scorpio constellation, this might give you some more insights into the person.

There can be great loyalty and there is this quality of deeper friendship and intimacy on a heart-to-heart basis in Scorpio relationships, if you are in their inner circle.  That’s because Scorpios want to go deeper in their relationship and in the few conversations they have each day.  But a Scorpio might let very few people into the inner circle depending on how much personal development they have done.

Scorpios don’t want shallow language. So talking about the weather and other things like that, they have no interest in it. They’d rather talk about something meaningful or move on or not talk at all but “be together in silence” as they do what they want to do. That can be an ideal experience for a Scorpio – quiet, but connected.

Ruled by Mars

So I hope this has helped you understand the Scorpio energy, that in Vedic astrology it is ruled by the planet Mars, but because it’s a water sign, it acts very differently than the constellation of Aries.

It just so happens that the planet Mars is in a constellation for two months at a time. So over two years, you will get Mars in each of its constellations, in Aries and then Scorpio for approximately two months at a time. When Mars is in Scorpio, and when the Sun is in the constellation of Scorpio, these are times that we all feel more like Scorpios.

So when the new moon is in Scorpio or the full moon is in Scorpio, we all feel this energy of depth and a desire to slow down and a desire to connect with ourselves and others in a certain way, in a more deep way.

And this is why the new moon in Scorpio usually occurs in winter when we’re all slowing down and ideally resting and taking care of ourselves and connecting in different ways.

The Sign of Scorpio is also called the Natural 8th House in Vedic Astrology. Vedic Astrology uses a sidereal skymap, just like astronomers use.

Sun in Scorpio

Sun resides in Scorpio from November 16 through December 15 in Vedic Astrology. Want to see what your Sun Sign is in Vedic Astrology? Click Here to see our blog that maps each Sun Sign.  

The Sun resides in Scorpio in the winter months, in the northern hemisphere. The season of darkness adds to the theme, mystery, and tendency of the Scorpio born to be comfortable swimming in the unseen forces of life, psychology, and the unconscious mind.

Winter is also the season of death, when all the trees and perennial plants appear to be leafless and their energy is stored deep into the roots. The darkness is a necessary process in all living beings’ natural rhythm in their seasonal bio-rhythm to renew and repair.

We each are naturally directed to repair and restore during the winter months and reflect and contemplate how loss and death bring meaning to our lives. If we lived forever, we would not be spurred to evolve on our spiritual path or appreciate what we have as much. The season of quiet brings us gifts when we take time to “be” and rest.

Since this is the constellation associated with death, we can then see people’s relationship to death based on what planets reside in Scorpio.

Saturn in Scorpio

Saturn in Scorpio, for instance, can bring a great fear of death. Often, people born with Saturn in Scorpio, if well placed, will turn this fear into an investigation and learn to meditate so they can come face to face with the void.

Moon in Scorpio

The Moon in Scorpio in Vedic Astrology is challenged (called debilitated or bhanga in Sanskrit). The moon is exalted or in its fullness of consciousness in the constellation Taurus. The Moon is in a deeply wise and devotional place in Scorpio reflecting the 3 nakshatras that span it.

The 3 Nakshatras that span Scorpio are Vishaka, Anuradha, and Jyeshta. 

Vishaka Nakshatra is ruled by the gods of transformation and Agni, Vishaka has a shakti that helps one achieve varied fruits in life.

Anuradha (the most devotional place) contains the star Alpha Centauri (the closest star to our solar system) and the body of the Scorpion. Anuradha is ruled by the god of friendship, Mitra, and brings skills of compassion and helping humanity cooperate.  Anuradha’s Shakti gives the power of devotion, selflessly giving oneself over to a guru, cause or purpose.

Jyeshta (the eldest) is an important transitional Nakshatra, or lunar mansion, which is ruled by Ketu. This lunar mansion can bring a fear of water, and so if a person is born with a significant planet in this place, they may have a fear of drowning or be afraid of deep waters. Jyeshta’s association with Indra, the protector, and the power of Shakti to gain courage in battle or challenge can give the person adventurous or daring abilities or crumble to fear, depending on the house and planets in the lunar mansion.

Scorpio Ascendant or 1st house Scorpio

Scorpio as ascendant makes the person a ‘Martian’ or ruled by the planet Mars. The placement of Mars in this person’s chart will determine how they deal with the immense power they have to go to the depths of their psyche and evolve with the unseen world.

Sometimes this will encourage the person to enjoy delving into fantasy worlds, history, and ancient knowledge. Mars’s placement in the birth chart determines much of how the Scorpio qualities play out in their lives, but the depth of the unconscious mind will undoubtedly still influence their personality.

Jupiter in Scorpio

Jupiter in Scorpio is usually associated with the Year of the Pig in the Chinese Zodiac. This is a cross-comparison that Kathleen has studied for over 20 years, ever since her teacher mentioned that Jupiter in each constellation represents the Chinese Zodiac Year.

Jupiter in Scorpio expands the appetite, and desire, and encourages avoidance of the fear of death through pleasure. Those born in the Year of the Pig tend to enjoy food, buying, video games and dive quickly into experiences.

Those in the sign of Scorpio also move along quickly from anger, regret, and anger. They may be quick to anger but also forgive quickly, even if they do not fully investigate and fully forgive. They move on in life appearing to be Type A personalities sometimes because the voracious appetite for life’s stimulus keeps them moving.