Aquarius (The Water-Bearer) Tattoo Meaning
The Water-Bearer — the visionary air sign: independence, humanity, and the new.
Aquarius is the eleventh sign of the zodiac — the Water-Bearer, an air sign ruled by Saturn and Uranus, spanning roughly January 20 to February 18. Its glyph is the waves of flowing water, and its spirit is the visionary's: independent, humanitarian, inventive, unconventional, pouring out the waters of knowledge and renewal for all humanity. To carry Aquarius is to carry the water-bearer's gift — independence, vision, humanity, and the pouring-out of the new.
In Greek myth the water-bearer of Aquarius is often identified with Ganymede, a youth of such beauty that Zeus, in the form of a great eagle, carried him up to Olympus to serve as cupbearer to the gods, pouring out their nectar and water and granted eternal youth in return. The image of the figure pouring out an endless stream became the constellation Aquarius — the bearer who pours forth the life-giving waters from above. Though water flows from his vessel, Aquarius is, fittingly for its airy and intellectual nature, an air sign: the waters it pours are the waters of knowledge, truth, and renewal poured out upon humanity.
As an air sign ruled by Saturn and the revolutionary Uranus, Aquarius carries the water-bearer's generosity joined to a visionary, independent, and humanitarian spirit: originality, idealism, intellectual independence, and a deep concern for humanity and the future. Aquarians are inventive, freethinking, and unconventional, often ahead of their time, devoted to progress and the collective good. The Aquarius water-bearer is the pouring-out of vision — independence, humanity, originality, and the renewal of the new poured out for all.
As an astrology tattoo, Aquarius is worn as its wave glyph, the water-bearer, or the constellation, by those born under the sign or drawn to its visionary, independent nature. It is often combined with waves, birth dates, or stars. In tattoo symbolism it speaks to independence, vision, originality, humanity, and progress.
Aquarius (The Water-Bearer) across cultures
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