nature's zodiac

Virgo is often described as tidy or perfectionistic, but its deeper symbolism is regeneration. Jeremy Sherman, author of Neither Ghost nor Machine, reminds us that self-directed work regenerates a person. When the work is ours by choice, it restores rather than depletes.

Biologically, life itself persists through self-directed work. Cells continually repair and renew themselves, and on a human scale, we echo this process whenever we choose work that feels truly our own.This work doesn’t need to be someone’s job or career. It can be a hobby, a routine or ritual.

This week, while watching Wild Kratts with my son, I was reminded that plants are called “producers” because they make food from sunlight. Erich Fromm said we are productive creatures meant to create, not just consume. Virgo reflects this idea: we are here to produce light and be regenerative.

On the cellular level, mitochondria echo this. They entrain to long-wave sunlight, working more efficiently under steady illumination. Our bodies also emit biophotons, tiny pulses of light that appear to help order and coordinate living systems. When we sustain joy, focus, connection, and creativity, it is as if we are producing our own inner sunlight, training mitochondria, brightening our biophotonic field, and renewing our own coherence.

It made me think of a new technology I just heard about: screens that use sunlight itself as the backlight, instead of harsh artificial glow. And how fitting that five days ago I broke my own phone. The break has been so refreshing, like stepping out of a cave back into natural light. Virgo season seems to say: our inner screens, too, need sunlight. Our concentration, our chosen work, our quiet joy, these are the true backlights.

Like plants, we are not only consumers. We are producers of nourishment, of light. When we live with this in mind, our smallest efforts, an hour of focused work, a moment of joy, a connection shared, become photosynthesis for the soul, radiating light into the larger system of Earth.

This season, notice where you are producing light in your own life. Let your focus, joy, and connection become nourishment for yourself and for the wider world.