Libra is a sign long associated with justice; most think this has to do with the traditional scales that represent this balance-loving sign. But if you listen for a while to the poetry that is the voice of Dr. Cornel West, Princeton Professor, philosopher, writer, civil rights activist, speaker and self-proclaimed “blues man”, you get a far deeper understanding of this sometimes superficial sign. Dr. West is a Sun sign Gemini, but with his Saturn placed in Libra, he walks his brilliant talk every day of his life. In his new memoir, Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud, the prolific, progressive, soulful story of his life is told with a intellectual fervor and a heartfelt, deep honesty. He is unafraid to reveal his deepest demons and his incredibly profound love of learning and letters.
Libra is thought of as the sign of love and romance, as one of the two constellations connected to Venus, goddess of love and beauty. Many astrologers see Libra as the esthetic, analytical inquisitor of all things beautiful, as opposed to Taurus, the sign that feels beauty in its bones and wants to eat it for dinner or roll around in a meadow of lush flowers. As for all signs and symbols, there is a higher octave and lower, demonic and unrealized energy. In Libra, the lower, darker and fearful expression of the sign is that which lives for vanity instead of substance and that which prefers superficial status (social climbing) to real relationships. Dr. West, however, shows us why Saturn is exalted in this sign: it’s because when you LOVE someone “out loud”, you will go to the ends of the earth to make sure they are protected. This is why he’s dedicated his life to helping the poor and the oppressed. If you’re a Libra or a Saturn in Libra, you’d do well to take your brilliant skills to the street to make the world a better place. That’s the fastest way to survive your Saturn Return (or Saturn on your Sun.)
Dr. West is about to face his second Saturn Return, but his should be a success story. People that run from their problems, live lies, refuse to face their inner lives — those are the ones that break down during the Saturn Return. Whether it’s the first of the second, it can be a time of ugliness, doubt, fear, and crisis. But if you do it right — that is, with a fearless ferocity and intense inner focus, the world will open to you in a myriad of ways.
I had the honor and pleasure of meeting Brother West in New York last night, and let me tell you, the man leaves a powerful impression. I have never encountered a scholar whose deep and abiding passion for education equals his fierce love of humanity. Such a beautiful and deeply balanced understanding of art and life is the essential embodiment of the energy of Saturn in Libra.
