An Opposition:
[180° with 7° – 10° orb] Keyword: Duality
“Planet Y reflects planet X. X and Y complement one another. Planet X causes planet Y to vacillate between expressing its own nature and reflecting the nature of X. Planet Y increases Planet X’s consciousness of itself.”
Theos assigns Ray 4 to Oppositions: the “release of limitation through conflict” aspect. Oppositions can produce extreme swings of attitude or paralyzing indecision [representing the quintessential Ray 4 friction of polarity]. Theos often tells us that “an Opposition causes 2 sides of the same coin to see each other, face on.” Oppositions can also lead to a “split,” whereby one end of the Aspect is “owned,” while the other is unconsciously projected onto others … thus our “abandoned self” is returned to us … again and again and again.
Given that the Opposition energies are inherent in the Full Phase, Theos asks us to consider how the Will to Know/Ray 5 energies fit into the energies of the Opposition? How do the Will to Know/Ray 5 Qualities get represented in the Full Phase?
The Aspect Potential for the Opposition: Integration through Balance.
Key Concepts for the Opposition: Opposes or creates tension with, needs to balance with … Conflict in recognizing the other, the not-self….
Next to the Conjunction, this is the second most powerful Aspect in any chart. It represents opposing energies which confront each other and pull you in opposite directions. If you allow yourself to look objectively, you find that each end of these Planetary Aspects are two sides of the same coin … and therein lies the answer to successfully using this Aspect. You can reach a complementary balance that provides opportunities for deeper self-awareness. A re-evaluation of the energies involved leads to an equilibrium of inner perspective.
The Opposition links Planets in Signs of the same Quality and Polarity, but different (though compatible) Elements. This Aspect signifies conflict which results from a feeling of being pulled apart by opposite tendencies, although each end of the Opposition also has something to offer that the other lacks. A good question to ask is: how it is that this works? If the Signs are of the same Quality [Modality] and Polarity, and have different but compatible Elements, where is the opposing Energy at work here? In examining our own Oppositions, it seems to be that the opposing Energy comes through the Orientation … for instance, Aries opposes Libra because Aries is about the personal, whereas Libra is focused on the other [or interpersonal].
However, in Astrology for Yourself, D. George states: “The Opposition Aspect is especially interesting because it usually involves opposing Signs which both complement and contrast each other. Rather than identify with one pole or the other, the key to resolving a Sign Opposition is to integrate the two sides, for each Sign needs its opposite in order to be balanced and complete. Therefore, when you have an Opposition, besides comparing the planetary keywords, you can also interpret the Aspect by using the keywords of the opposing Signs. You can use these keywords as an aid in interpreting the Sign polarities that are activated by any Oppositions in your own birth chart.” For Aries-Libra, the keywords they have are: Independence vs. Interdependence … similar to what was deduced from asking about the Energy at work here….
This immediately brings to mind the principle of mirroring and shows one way in which those who mirror us can, in fact, be showing us our “reverse” mirror image … the obvious “other” face we wear but cannot see. This also shows that, what is called for here is more of “the hair of the dog that bit you,” i.e., continuing to invoke Will to Harmonize so that the two opposing forces can be blended and harmonized … which produces balance … which is just another way of saying that you are merging the opposites to make a whole unity.
This means that the main challenge of an Opposition is to Recognize both ends as facets of ourselves. Given that Planets in Opposition are able to “see” each other “face-on,” the possibility of such resolution is usually strong. The psyche insists upon wholeness and thus insists that the energy of the rejected Planet will intrude upon our lives in some way … and will intrude to the extent that we have disowned it. Any planets which are Trine or Sextile to either end of the Opposition will be instrumental in the resolution of the difficulty. While the Opposition is an Aspect of challenge it is usually accompanied by less tension than the Square.
Sometimes, with an 8° orb, planets can oppose one another and be neither in complementary Elements nor in the same Quality, for instance Moon at 28° Aries and Mars at 2° Scorpio. Here the possibility exists that the Opposition is made more indirect and therefore “weakened” in its effect or even nebulous because the Elements and Qualities are not the same as in a “typical” Opposition.
From a more personal perspective on the Opposition, we come to understand that many of the qualities in ourselves which we won’t own are qualities we “unconsciously” project onto others — or even onto Ourselves as Soul … rather than identify with these “unsavory” sides of ourselves. This refusal to recognize our Shadow self is a quintessential hallmark of the Opposition….