“…there is a genuine fascination with the self, and a desire that others be similarly fascinated. But only in defective strongly Leonine personalities does this pattern emerge as egotism or show-off behavior. In most adult Leos it comes out as a need for personal recognition, a desire to be impressive, and a need to control one’s destiny. The desire to be impressive is usually a desire to be genuinely so – that is, to be an individual of real significance, not merely appear significant.”
– Robert Hand
I believe all astrological signs need a PR campaign to salvage their reputation. Astrological stereotypes are fodder for endless memes and clickbaity articles. When it comes to Leos, the accusation is always the same: egocentric and even narcissistic. Now that the term narcissistic has reached newfound notoriety, it’s been bandied about to describe an allotment of sins.
But why link to Leo?
The need to be the center of attention treated like royalty, and be the receiver of undying adoration has often been linked to the sign of Leo. But scratch the surface just a little, you’ll see that this is about an early wounding, not the irrevocable sin of a Sun Sign, or a person (Leo or otherwise.)
Why Narcissus?
Because it’s the origin name for what is now a DSM diagnosis: Narcissism, I won’t dive into the complexity of the mental health definition of narcissism, but here’s a short description.
Narcissistic personality disorder — one of several types of personality disorders — is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others. But behind this mask of extreme confidence lies a fragile self-esteem that’s vulnerable to the slightest criticism.
Mayo Clinic
Of course, I’m not saying Leos are narcissists. However, I feel that in exploring the myth of Narcissus, we gain insightful clues about the tragic misunderstanding of some key characteristics of Leo – a developed ego, self-confidence, a need for self-expression, and a need to be admired. At its core, Leo says: I AM, and I want/need to be seen and liked for being ME.
What can the myth of Narcissus teach us?
The short version of the myth of Narcissus is that he was the most beautiful young man, admired by many, a heart-breaker, but who had only eyes for himself. Upon seeing his reflection on the water, he falls in love with himself. Eventually dies staring at his reflection.
Ovid, the author of Metamorphosis, tells the story of the nymph Echo and love for Narcissus. However, he gave her no time of day, and she was relegated to spend the rest of her life just as the empty echo of other’s voices. Out of revenge for such callous behavior, Nemesis (or at times it’s Aphrodite), Narcissus is cursed to fall in love with his reflection and pine away, unable to leave the allure of his beauty. At the spot where he parishes, the flower narcissus blossoms, and thus its name.
A more interesting version
Narcissus’ mother, the nymph Liriope, took her baby newly born to see the famous seer Teiresias. He was famous for having been blinded because of his answer to who had more pleasure in sex: a woman or a man, angered Hera. (His answer was: women had more pleasure.)
When asked if her son would live long, Teiresias tells Liriope: ‘yes, if he never knows himself.’ Because of this, Liriope never allowed her handsome son to see his reflection, understanding that ‘knowing himself’ was to be able to see his reflection.
But that didn’t mean that others didn’t see her beautiful son. Wherever Narcissus went, he left a trail of broken hearts as admirers fell under the allure of his beauty, and yet, he never felt seen for who he was.
His affliction and ultimate anger was much like a celebrity or a famous rock star, who feels hounded by their fans, but never indeed seen or accepted for who they are in their essence. Every more, Narcissus preferred to steer away from others and escape into nature, until one day he falls in love with this other being smiling at him inside the lake – his reflection.
The seer Teiresias’ enigmatic prophecy is a warning for the ages. Knowing oneself is to embrace an ego death and be reborn through the Self. To indeed be able to see one’s reflection is to lose an idea of oneself and to dive deeper into the age-old question: who am I?
Narcissus and the search for the true Self
We’re taught that Narcissus pines away with the unmet desire to meet the other in the reflection. He’s under the enchantment of the reflection on the mirror, but it’s only the surface.
We can approach his myth in two ways:
- The narcissistic wound of staring at the abyss and never feeling indeed seen or nourished, the true wounding of our culture, one that can’t get enough of all the admiration, desirous looks by others, and stays on the surface of what is to be.
- The exploration, search, and desire to truly see our SELF reflected is an ego death that we all must (or should) face so that we can be genuinely mature.
How does this relate to Leo?
At its heart Leo is about the heroic quest to find who one is – it’s the quest for the Self – the inner Sun. Leo is ruled by the Sun, and it rules the heart. With Leo, we’re learning what it means to our (true) SELVES, to be seen and loved as such, and also to express what is in our hearts. That’s why Leos are known to take things ‘so personally’ or ‘to heart.’ It is personal because it’s about self-expression of one’s Self and how one is seen and accepted by others.
The issue comes, much like Narcissus, when one is admired and applauded for what they seem on the outside, without the necessary psychological robustness of genuinely knowing oneself. In this case, the reflection given by others becomes a never-to-be-satisfied hunger of the Self. For one needs to see who they are through reflection. One of the challenges for Leos is the need to continue doing and performing in such a way because that’s how they get the ‘applause.’
This way, self-expression is no longer tied to what’s really in their hearts, but what is performative and expected by others. Narcissus’ beauty functioned this way. It became an armor of sorts, where others couldn’t see his true self, but only what was at surface level. How many instances in our lives have we done or performed in such a way because it was what was expected or how we knew to ‘receive love?’
The gift of Leo
In our culture, there are mirrors everywhere. We take selfies, store windows are gigantic mirrors, and everywhere else we go, we can see reflections of ourselves. However, this is also the time where the hunger to be genuinely seen seems almost impossible to be satisfied. While we stare at all these mirrors, we’re still unable to admire and wonder at our SELVES wholeheartedly (not the little self, we do plenty of that, but the bigger Self.)
The etymology of the word mirror is linked to MIRACLE, as an object of wonder, astonishment, and regard. The gift of Leo is to show that we’re all wondrous works of the Divine, something that is astonishing and able of remarkable feats. I like to say that Leo shows us that when we can express what’s in our hearts, creativity flows through us, and life can be felt like play, rather than a slog. Plus that in being fully our SELVES, we make room for others also to express themselves on the stage of life.
Remember, the Sun rules Leo. It’s a star at the center of our Solar System. All forms of divinity, one way or another, are linked to our ancient adoration of the Sun. In the birth chart, the Sun holds court and needs to find expression in one’s life. I’d venture to say, that the entire birth chart is our personal Sun’s court, with all the other planets serving and challenging our Sun to become more fully itself.
Perhaps Teiresias’ prophecy means: we may live a long and happy life if we just stay on the surface of things. Surface life may give us many years on this planet, but will it be fulfilling? Will it be creatively and self-expressively satisfying? This is when we need to call on the courageous quest of Leo in all of us to go out there and find WHO WE TRULY ARE – at the core of our heart.
Here’s to all the Leos in our lives, and the Leo within, as reflected in our birth charts.
