Are you a Taurus? Everything you need to know about your zodiac sign

Toro mothertruckers!

From April 20 – May 20 we are under the skies and influence of Taurus. Symbolized by the bull and ruled by Venus, Taurus governs the physical world; earthly delights, animal appetites and material possessions. 

The second and most sensual sign in the zodiac, Taurus natives view beauty as necessity and pleasure as their birthright. See perennial bull babe Cher refusing to let her hair go gray, in a pledge to be young and beautiful forever. The earthiest of Earth signs, they seek comfort at all costs and aim to have an unapologetically good time all of the time, guilt and gout be damned.

As a Fixed Sign, Taurus is about endurance, the ability to see projects, seasons, campaigns and relationships through to their bitter end. Seriously resistant to being told what to do or how to do it, they have no issue bestowing orders or literally writing the book on how to get it done, see Karl Marx and Machiavelli, both bulls. 

With her sun in Taurus and her moon in Libra, Cher is double blessed by the influence of decadent Venus.ABC via Getty Images

At its most essential, Taurus energy is both primal and sublime, insisting we aspire to higher consciousness not in spite of, but through, our animal selves. As Taurus prince of prose Vladimir Nabokov advised, “Let all of life be an unfettered howl. Like the crowd greeting the gladiator. Don’t stop to think, don’t interrupt the scream, exhale, release life’s rapture. Everything is blooming. Everything is flying. Everything is screaming, …Laughter. Running. Let-down hair. That is all there is to life.” 

Planetary ruler: Venus

Taurus is ruled by Venus, planet of love, beauty, art, aesthetics and ambient light. While sex is the domain of warrior planet Mars, seduction through the senses is the modality of Venus. At its highest expression, Venus generates and venerates beauty. As my friend, dyer of leisurewear and fellow Taurus, Annie Marder admits “I get physically angry at ugly things.”

In general, Taureans can’t abide the uncouth or unattractive, a virtue epitomized by Taurus pianist and candelabra enthusiast Liberace who designed a retractable toilet that disappeared into the wall of his bathroom when not in use. As he explained to Rolling Stone, “There’s just no reason why you should walk into a bathroom and see a toilet. It’s unglamorous.”

Famed Taurus and venerator of opulence Liberace could not abide the unglamorous, or visible toilets. Corbis via Getty Images

The darker expressions of Venus are greed, indulgence, entitlement, vanity and envy, exhibited in full force and single body by bad bull and convicted ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff.  There is danger among Venusian types to follow the misguided Hellenistic belief that what is good must be beautiful and what is beautiful must be good. A hypothesis easily disproved by this picture of a young Joseph Stalin looking very, very hot and not wholly unlike Zayn Malik.

Mythology

Taurus aligns with the Greek myth of Zeus’s bait and switch seduction/abduction of the Phoenician princess Eurpoa. Taken by her babeliness, the god transformed himself into a beautiful white bull and beckoned her to climb on board his alabaster back. He swam with her across the Mediterranean to the island of Crete. There, they beget Minos, the famed king who eventually became judge of the dead in the underworld. Observation of the Taurus constellation is ancient, with evidence of its veneration found in the prehistoric cave paintings of Lascaux. Sumerian and Babylonian cultures correlated the Taurus constellation with the arrival of spring, and by default, fertility, abundance and renewal.

Bulls like Adele are known for melodious voices and the militant curation of a vibe.WireImage

Charms/strengths

The sign of Taurus is associated with rabble rousing, nectar nursing, nude god of wine Dionysus, who was often portrayed with bull horns. Known as Eleutherios, the liberator, Dionysus released his followers from fear and order through wine, music and ferocious dancing. Similarly, at their best, Taurus folk are gregarious, nurturing and freedom loving.

Deeply committed to a life of sensual experience, Taurus honors their appetites and elevates routine to ritual. This conscious corporeality encourages others to be fully embodied and wholly present in their own lives. In the words of a  sommelier I once knew, “Food without wine is an insult to the gods, sex without tenderness is an insult to your body, sleep without dreams is an insult to the imagination and a day spent without laughter is an insult to life.” At their best, Taurus takes pleasure seriously, pairs it wisely and shows us that a prayer can be made of it.

A raging bull in her own right, Taurus Teresa Giduice routinely uses tables and flatware as her weapons of choice.WireImage

Unsurprisingly, Taurus is very thoughtful about a vibe. If they aren’t creating beauty, they’re curating it. They prefer to entertain in their own spaces as they insist on being in charge of the charcuterie board, the dimmer switch and the soundtrack, often to a militant degree. See apex Taurus Adele requesting that Spotify remove the shuffle option for her latest album in an effort to control and protect the listening experience. Their approach may be extreme but it is ultimately, like all things Taurus does, for the aesthetic benefit of all.

While much is made of the ‘seeing red’ temper of the Taurus ilk, looking at you Teresa ‘I’ll flip this table’ Giudice, Taurus is more often reserved than raging, rarely lashing out without serious or persistent provocation. Further, they are more likely to take a stand or start a war on behalf of a loved one than for their own purposes. This ride or die, cut a bitch sensibility makes Taurus folk wonderful friends and reliable allies. Bonus, they usually carry snacks and are unfailingly generous with a tendency to love hard and give big, looking at you Dwayne ‘you get a car’ Johnson. 

Taurus Vladimir Lenin rallied revolution with the decidedly earth sign promise of “Peace! Land! Bread!”Getty Images

Challenges/weaknesses

Stubborn and spiteful with a pension for tailored uniforms and an inability to concede control, Taurus at their worst is the absolute worst. Unsurprisingly, a high tally of tyrants have been born under the banner of the bull, including but not limited to Pol Pot, Adolf Hitler, Vladimir Lenin (whose battle cry of “Peace! Land! Bread!” is the most Taurus political promise of all time), Sadaam Hussein, Jim ‘drink the Kool-Aid’ Jones  and Oliver Cromwell. 

While we’ve established that bulls love their earthly delights, there’s a fine line between self-care and self-indulgence. The glutton is Taurus at its lowest vibration; taking things, most notably online shopping, trans fats, dodgy political beliefs and personal vendettas too far. Case in point, Easy Riding Taurus Dennis Hopper, who held a grave long grudge against Peter Fonda, even making arrangements to bar his former friend and co-star from attending his funeral.

Taurus Tammy Wynette displayed her zodiac sign’s pension for masochistic levels of loyalty. Getty Images

In addition to sustaining serious disdain for their enemies, Taurus can remain loyal to situations, substances, jobs and partners that are abjectly bad for them. It is of little surprise that Tammy Wynette, who loved a long line of louts and losers and penned the ballad to end all ballads about it, “Stand By Your Man,” was a Taurus. 

This self-destructive stubborn streak bleeds into the realms of work and art, as is the case with Taurus Daniel Day Lewis who was so dedicated to his role as Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York that he actually learned how to butcher meat and refused to wear any clothing not authentic to the 19^th century. As a direct result of donning a threadbare tailcoat in freezing conditions, he contracted pneumonia. He rejected the modernity of antibiotics and only consented to treatment (and wearing microfiber fleece) after collapsing on set. 

If gluttony is a Taurus’s favorite sin, pride is not far behind. They would rather eat government cheese than admit fault, accept defeat, receive assistance or reveal the soft underbelly of their needs. Yoked as they are (get it?) to their own idea of rugged individualism, they often miss out on the opportunity to be truly seen or fully known. 

A die hard method actor, Taurus Daniel Day-Lewis learned to butcher meat and caught pneumonia for his role in “Gangs of New York.”AP

Tarot

In the Major Arcana, Taurus is represented by the Hierophant. Greek for “high priest,” the Hierophant is the lord of mysteries, tasked with translating the sacred into the tangible. He sits between two temple columns symbolizing stability and the dual pillars of spirituality and tactility. He wears a three tiered crown denoting his rulership over the physical, spiritual and psychological realms. In one hand he holds the Papal Cross, denoting his religious authority as well as his mastery of matter, thought and emotion. With his other hand, he pushes two fingers towards heaven and two towards earth, indicating the blessing of ‘as above, so below.’

At his feet sit two crossed keys, the balance of the conscious and subconscious mind, necessary for unlocking sacred mysteries. Before him, two bald followers kneel, ready to receive the divine knowledge the Hierophant possesses and is tasked with transmuting. The card is a reminder of the ordained responsibility of the bull herd to bridge the sanctified and the ordinary, to keep eyes cast towards the sacred unknown and hooves pushed into the sure, unblessed dirt.

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Astrology 101: Your guide to the stars

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Gollum expresses some of the less stellar qualities of the Taurus ilk. New Line/courtesy Everett Collection

Second House

Taurus rules the Second House of values and possessions. The Second House relates to self-worth, how we feel about ourselves and what we feel we deserve. There is a danger among Taurus natives to measure their own value on what they have rather than who they are. Further, because the Second House is the house of assets, natives have a nasty habit of treating people as possessions and/or prioritizing possessions over personal growth. Gold rubbing Gollum? Suspected Taurus.

The great lesson of this house and of Taurus itself comes from one of their own, Roman emperor Marcus Aurelieus who urged, “Receive without conceit, relinquish without reluctance.”

Taurus rules the throat and thus it comes as no surprise that bull queen Lizzo trades in staggering vocal power. Getty Images

Body

Taurus rules the sinuses and neck including the throat, tonsils and thyroid glands. This distinction leaves them vulnerable to maladies in the same region; thyroid issues, choking on their own spite, sore throats, tonsillitis, putting their self righteous feet in their mouths etc. On the uptick, and given the planetary influence of Venus, Taureans tend to have remarkably attractive necks as exhibited by bull babe Audrey Hepburn, whose jugular was so beguiling it inspired an entire novel. Additionally, Taurus natives usually have melodic speaking voices or for the likes of Barbara Streisand, Lizzo, Cher, Luther Vandross, Roy Orbison, Ella Fitzgerald, Grace Jones and Adele, staggering vocal power.

Scorpio Bo Derek and Taurus John Corbett are an example of zodiac opposites attracting. Getty Images for Santa Barbara I

Compatibility

True astrological compatibility is divined through the art of synastry, a kind of birth chart cross-examination that takes into account the whole star scape of two individuals. But for general, expedited purposes it’s safe to say the following signs stand a good chance of going the distance: 

Scorpio sits opposite Taurus on the zodiac wheel and the attraction between the two polarities is mighty powerful. Both signs are Fixed, meaning they tend to dig in and hold on when it comes to partnership. For evidence look no further than long term, painfully pretty power couple Taurus John Corbett and Scorpio Bo Derek. 

Mutable Water sign Pisces is grounded by Taurean practicality and seduced by the bull’s propensity for fine wine and good weed. Pisces teaches Taurus that feelings are to be expressed not repressed. Elementally, water brings earth to bloom. Both signs crave the comfort of a stable partnership and Pisces Javier Bardem and bull babe Penelope Cruz.

Taurus Penelope Cruz stares into the camera while her dreamy Pisces counterpart Javier Bardem stares into space. Getty Images

Taurus finds their match in Mutable, meticulous fellow Earth sign, Virgo. Elementally similar, each has a great propensity for ambition, longevity and ritualistic romance. Case in point, Taurus dandy daddy Salvador Dalí and his wife, Virgo Gala Dalí. Gala gifted Dalí her inborn business acumen, helping to make him an art star and command the kind of cash consistent with his genius.

Despite her being married to someone else when they met and continuing affairs throughout their half century romance, Gala became and remained Dalí’s most enduring muse. So much so that he took to signing both of their names on his works, admitting,“It is mostly with your blood, Gala, that I paint my pictures.” When Gala died, Dali himself designed her final resting place, a chess board crypt. Be still my goth heart.

Earth signs like Taurus dandy daddy Dali and his Virgo wife Gala share a great propensity for ambition, longevity and ritualistic romance.Getty Images

Recommended Listening

“Bulls on Parade” – Rage Against the Machine 

“Feelin’ Alright” – Joe Cocker 

“Many Shades of Black” – Adele 

“We’re In This Together” – Nine Inch Nails 

“Private Life” – Grace Jones 

“The Passenger” – Iggy Pop

Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.