They were indeed constantly colliding—if they saw a cloud in front of them, the more they tried to avoid it, the more certain they were to collide with it. Aries likes to generalize, hates dealing with details, and is bored by minute analysis. Virgo is minute, likes to analyze details, and hates generalities. This gives you an idea of the distance that exists, to begin with, between these two Sun signs—and while we’re at it, here are a few more facts. Rams start all their actions from pure feeling: they trust their emotions and are skeptical of the excesses of practicality. Virgos are practical, trust their intellect, and are skeptical of pure feeling and emotion. When Aries are upset, they usually shout it from the rooftops and display their grievances to vent them. When Virgos are upset, they hide it and lock away their grievances so that they gather the rust of resentment. Rams neglect their physical health, yet they rarely suffer from chronic illnesses. Virgos take extreme care of their physical health, yet they often complain of various symptoms of illness. And this is only a partial list of their differences.
Both are almost always quick to help others, though their motivations are a little different. Aries do it because they take pleasure in being a cause of happiness, since it proves to them that they can perform a minor miracle whenever the opportunity presents itself. Virgos do it because the Virgo is nervous about standing by and watching confusion turn into chaos, when, in their practical minds, a modicum of clear thinking would suffice to untangle the tangle. The Virgo instinctively steps forward, applies a snip and a cut here and there, and then moves on, neither expecting nor wanting gratitude. Aries won’t wait long for thanks, either, but believe me when I say the Ram wants it. If not returned, Aries will feel aggrieved and angry, unlike Virgo, who doesn’t really expect much from people anyway, and so can dismiss ingratitude as just another of the many imperfections of human nature. True, both gravitate toward purity of intention. Both eagerly crave beauty of spirit and seek a shining ideal. Aries and Virgo ride together in search of truth and beauty, but when their snow-white steeds come to a fork in the road, they ride off in different directions.
Rams blindly and instinctively believe that they will find what they are looking for, despite all the disappointments and the seeming impossibility of success. Virgos entertain little or no hope of ever discovering the Holy Grail, and if they do, they are sure to find fault with it. Yet, despite all these disparities in their personal patterns, the Ram and the Virgo can find a strange solace in their relationship when their paths cross. If it is business, the results of the partnership will almost always be admiration and respect, and a mutual desire to help each other. If it is friendship, it will probably lead to business at some point along the way. In the family circle, the fusion of these two divergent idiosyncrasies, influenced by the vibration of the 6-8 Sun Sign Configuration, can also bring much comforting satisfaction. Aries and Virgo often tell each other secrets that they would not confide to anyone else. They seem to sense that the mutual trust implied in this intimate confession will not be violated… and it rarely is, although the Ram may find it difficult to understand how the situation Virgo described could have come about, given his own personal philosophy. Likewise, the Virgo will feel genuinely sympathetic to the Ram’s experiences, although deep down he will not be able to understand how the Ram could have allowed them to materialize.
However, even though Aries and Virgo are very closely linked, the former cannot help but sense the latter’s grimace of disgust when he (or she) is late for an appointment, commits a foolish act, or acts carelessly and irresponsibly. The Ram never finds it as easy as the Virgo to enjoy work. What Aries sees as harmless procrastination, Virgo interprets as an almost sinful waste of valuable time. Of course, after their work, study, or family obligations (which can demand endless time and attention) are duly dealt with, and when they can no longer experience pangs of conscience because everything is neatly filed away in their respective pigeonholes, Virgos often enjoy a rather interesting and, on rare occasions, even outrageously unorthodox private life, once freed from their compulsive worries. Sooner or later, after these two have spent a reasonable amount of time together, the Ram is sure to remind the Virgo of his tendency to worry unnecessarily, and he will receive a reply along the lines of: “What are you talking about with compulsive worrying? I don’t let anything worry me excessively.” Upon hearing which the Aries is likely to reply: “Oh no? What about that morning last week when you skipped your daily shower because you couldn’t find the soap you always use and can’t substitute for another–that same morning when you got an ink stain on your shoe and found a fly in your soup at lunchtime? For days you had a terrible headache and nervous indigestion.”
Virgo will probably reply, “You’re a bit exaggerated and incorrect about that. The indigestion lasted only three hours and forty-five minutes, and it was caused by that horrible, greasy soup I had, not by my nerves. The headache lasted sixty-five minutes—not several days—and it was due to not getting enough sleep the night before, not by being compulsively worried. I didn’t skip a shower because I couldn’t find my usual bar of soap, but because I was going to be late for an appointment. As for the ink, it’s one I’ve used for a couple of years. I can’t afford to be as careless about money as you are.” This last comment serves as a discreet accuse for Virgo of wasting money. Virgos are careful to maintain scrupulous politeness when they’re upset, so their typical politeness mitigates their irritability. Because Virgos are highly analytical and fond of clarity, Aries often regard them as prim and cold. Far from being cold, however, Virgos stand out of all the Sun signs as the most intimately sentimental. (The key word here is “intimately.” This is the one that causes all the misunderstandings.) Their very punctiliousness is a testament to the high ideals to which people and things should adhere. And when they don’t adhere to them… well, anyone would have periodic bouts of exasperation if they were constantly disappointed.
Virgos are often nervous in the presence of Aries because the Virgo dislikes being overtly forceful—and dealing with the Ram forces this on. Aries impulsiveness can cause the Virgo to feel secretly incompetent because he or she lacks the means to change a situation, so he or she will sometimes try to cover this feeling with a critical attitude, a kind of silent disapproval. It really matters little what kind it is. Any kind of disapproval will upset the Aries, even if it is only vaguely hinted at and not expressed in words. He or she feels it or senses it all the same. The typical Aries man or woman does not go looking for reasonable arguments, or for Virgo’s cool, sensible comments about what is right and wrong, what is right and practical and what is not. Rams respond wonderfully to generosity of spirit in others and very poorly to pomp or criticism. The Aries closely associated with a Virgo will often rebel and fight in defense of his identity because he considers calm and rational conversation to be a poor substitute for affectionate warmth, cordiality and frankness.
However, when the Sun and Moon in their charts are placed in favorable aspect, Aries and Virgo can grace each other with reciprocal blessings. In an Aries-Virgo partnership where this harmonious luminary influence operates, the Ram may be surprised to find himself following Virgo’s serene lead and paying serious attention to Virgo’s always well-meaning and helpful advice. And Virgos will also be surprised to find themselves cajoled by the Ram, who causes them to lose many of their inhibitions and to discard several layers of their generally calm demeanor. For this combination to meekly blend, it is really only necessary for each individual to spend more time concentrating on the other’s virtues than to poke at differences. The supermarket clerk who frowns at the checkout and nastily scolds you for not taking your place in line is probably a Virgo. But the placid-smiling, mild-mannered, bright-eyed clerk who politely tells you where things are and where to find fresh melons, and who cheerfully helps you pick up the groceries you dropped from your cart, is probably a Virgo, too.
The customer who aggressively demands immediate service in a store, who leaves all the clothes hanging on a hanger in the dressing room after hastily trying them on and deciding they’re all hideous—is probably an Aries. But the friendly, trusting person who lends ten dollars to a lost stranger without even asking what he needs it for is probably an Aries, too. What Virgo rarely understands is that Aries can unerringly sense whether the Aries’ concern for his welfare is genuinely emanating from love, affection, or friendship—or merely from a sense of duty. And when it is emanating from the latter, the Aries would rather fend for himself than accept help from someone who doesn’t offer it from the heart and with genuine understanding, no matter how much he needs Virgo’s assistance and advice.
However, even though Aries and Virgo may seem very distant from each other at first glance, they can both be in for some pleasant surprises if they walk together and are careful to avoid the thorns and briars of disagreement. Virgo can find in the Ram someone truly worthy of help to progress, someone who will in return pour out upon Virgo a torrent of passionate and moving gratitude, someone who may even succeed in opening the little doors of Virgo’s inhibitions and secret longings. In Virgo, Rams will find the sincere esteem they need – and a heart as honest and loyal as their own. Virgo can teach Aries to discover the beauty of insignificance, to understand that it is wise to wait, to believe in the final triumph of patience. Aries can teach Virgo to discover and believe in themselves.