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Horoscopes · Systems of many cultures

Western (tropical) · Zodiac sign 8

♏︎ Scorpio

Scorpion · Scorpion

Scorpio ♏, the scorpion: a fixed water sign ruled by Mars (modern: Pluto), 23 October – 21 November.

Scorpio, the scorpion with the red star Antares at its heart, is a fixed water sign traditionally ruled by Mars; modern astrologers assign it to Pluto. It is associated with intensity, secrecy and transformation.

The dates are approximate because the sun's entry into each sign shifts by a day or so from year to year; the calculator on this site gives the exact sign for a birth date and time. In traditional astrology a sign is read together with its planetary ruler, the house it occupies and the aspects to it, not in isolation.

Personality

intense · perceptive · loyal · determined · private · passionate · resilient

In Western astrology Scorpio is described as the most intense sign of the zodiac: deep, perceptive, private and powerfully determined. A fixed water sign traditionally ruled by Mars and assigned by modern astrologers to Pluto, it is given the temperament of the scorpion, still and watchful, slow to reveal itself and formidable when threatened.

Astrologers credit Scorpio with emotional depth, courage, loyalty and an instinct for what lies beneath the surface, making it a natural investigator and a steady presence in crisis. Its themes are transformation, endings and renewal. The challenges traditionally named are secrecy, jealousy, a long memory for wrongs and an all-or-nothing approach that finds compromise hard.

In love Scorpio is portrayed as passionate, devoted and protective, seeking complete trust and depth rather than casual attachment. At work it is linked with research, medicine and surgery, psychology, investigation, finance and any field that demands concentration and the handling of what is hidden or difficult. Popular modern lists give topaz as its stone, older lists beryl. Because traditional and modern rulerships differ, astrologers of the two schools describe the sign's energy somewhat differently.

Stone: Topaz

Sources and further reading