Taurus - Starry Sky

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Costellation

The Taurus constellation is visible late at night in late Summer,

at midnight in Autumn and at evening time in Winter.

TAURUS

(21st April – 20th May)

THE CONSTELLATION

Taurus constellation is a zodiac constellation, which is located between Aries (at the left) and Gemini (at the right), closed to Orion constellation; it is visible from October (at the East) to April (at the West) in the Northern hemisphere. Visibility is very good in December looking at the South. Most of the ancient legends start with Taurus. Taurus was a mythical animal in the ancient Greece and represented enormous strength and virility. Jupiter transformed himself in a white and extremely beautiful taurus to seduce and kidnap the young girl Europe picking her up and, after they have crossed the Aegean sea, he brought her to Crete, where they joined together. In the Egypthian mythology this is the legend of Osiris and Isis; Apis bull, devoted to the Sun (Osiris) had a half-moon (Isis) between the horns. The ideogram of the sign is made of a circle (the Sun=Masculine) and a half circle (Sickle moon=Feminine) on the top of it.

THE STARS

Taurus includes two groups of stars: the Hyades are a cluster of more than 200 bright stars, which are V-shaped and located at the level of the Taurus snout; the Pleiades are located at the level of the Taurus neck. According to mythology, the Pleiades are the seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione, and for this reason the cluster of stars is also called “The seven sister”; while the Hyades are the daughters of Atlas and Aethra and are located at the level of the Taurus snout. Tauri, called Aldebaran (from the Arabic al dabaran = following, because it rises after the Pleiades), is located in the Hyades, is orange and represents the Taurus eye; the horns are made of two stars: ζ Tauri and β Tauri, called Al Nath “the butting”, finally there is ε Tauri “the eye”, located above the left one. The Pleiades are visible to the naked eye, as they are the brightest stars in the starry vault; the Pleiades are composed of many stars, which are well-known from ancient times due to their big visibility in the night sky. These stars are mentioned by Homer and Ptolemy and are also famous because their heliacal rising (the period of time when a star rises in correspondence to the Sun) happens during the vernal equinox, which corresponds to the beginning of the year in many populations. The brightest star is Alcyone. An ancient Greek myth tells that Alcyone is the daughter of Aeolus, king of the wind. She married Ceyx. They were so happy that one day they decided to call themselves Zeus and Hera, so Zeus was very furious and caused a storm, while Ceyx was travelling by sea and so he drowned. His shadow showed up in front of Alcyone and she plunged into the sea to reach him. Greek Gods had compassion on them and transformed Ceyx in a seagull and Alcyone in a bird, probably in a kingfisher. The nest of bride and groom, built near the sea, was continually destroyed by the waves. Zeus had compassion and calmed the sea for seven days, before and after the winter solstice, and so they could reproduce.

THE SYMBOL

Aries represents the seed of the year, while Taurus is the matrix. Indeed Taurus symbol represents not only the horned head of the animal, but also the cup, which is the case of the seed that attracts and waits for the ray stimulating life, the creation. It describes the circle overcome by the moon sickle, principle of impulsivity and fertility, linked to the feminine power and so the open mouth during ingestion, the female egg which receives the sperm. It is the second sign of Spring, from the 21^st of April to the 21^st of May, and it represents the Spring season, which is characterized by fullness and stability. Stability is a feature of the Earth element and the fixed modality, which define the zodiac sign Taurus. During this month, roses bloom and first fruits begin to ripen. Individuals born under this sign are very receptive, stubborn, sensorial, they touch and taste, are patient and hard-working, swing between two ends: if the cold dominant side (Saturn and the Moon) prevails, it is comparable to the quite image of the ruminating ox with calm personality; if the warm dominant side (Mars, Jupiter and the Sun) prevails, it is comparable to the image of the wild Taurus in the arena, exuberant, dynamic, jumpy and sometimes furious. The body parts involved in this zodiac sign are the neck and the mouth.

THE STONES, THE ESSENCE AND THE COLOUR

The gemstones of Taurus sign are devoted to Venus. Emerald has green colour and inspired ancient Greek people. Indeed they thought that this gemstone promotes relationships and love stories, because it is linked to the goddess of love. White-pinky coral, called “angel skin coral” promotes love too. Green tourmaline allows Taurus to preserve physical shape and perform well in intimacy. Rose is the essence of Taurus and green is the colour of this sign.

“I wonder if the stars are lit up because everyone will find its own one day.”

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry