Planetary
Symbols and their Meanings
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The planetary symbols of the Sailor Senshi are
derived from real planetary symbols used in astronomy, astrology, etc. For the Inner Senshi, usually the circular
part of the symbol is replaced by a heart.
There are three main sub-symbols that make up a planet’s
sign. They are: a cross, which looks
like a plus-sign [+]; a semicircle [ ) ]; and a circle [O]. In astrology or alchemy, the cross
represents the body, the semicircle represents the soul, and the circle
represents the spirit. Whichever
sub-symbol is on top means that it takes precedence in terms of
characteristics.
The Moon Symbol ‚
Sailor Moon’s crescent moon symbol consists of two
semicircles, meaning that she has a very soulful (emotional?) personality. This might be, in a way, inaccurate, because
she seems to depend on materialistic things like food, etc.
The Mercury Symbol )O+
The planetary symbol for Mercury looks originally
like )O+ but upright. That means Sailor
Mercury values her soul first, her spirit second, and her body last. This seems kind of true, but what’s the
difference between your soul and your spirit?
I’m not really sure, but I think the soul is like emotions, and the
spirit is like something above emotions, like your mind or something
heavenly…? But if that’s the case,
Sailor Mercury doesn’t fit the description – she seems to value her mind more
than her emotions… But then her eyes are always sad!
The Venus Symbol O+
The symbol for Venus consists of a circle with a
cross under it. It means that the
spirit takes priority over the body. In
a way, since she is the self-proclaimed goddess of love, it sort of fits, but
then again, she also seems to highly value materialistic things, like clothes,
glamour, etc.
The Mars Symbol +O
There are two symbols for Mars: the one that’s
exactly the same as the male sign, and another that’s an upside-down
Venus/female sign. Taking the
inverted-Venus-sign version, a Mars personality means that the body comes
first, then the spirit. This isn’t
really like Sailor Mars at all, especially in the manga. In the manga, Sailor Mars is supposed to
despise men, and has no interest in boys.
The Jupiter Symbol
The symbol for Jupiter consists of a cross with a
semicircle coming up from the left prong.
It symbolizes the soul taking precedence over the body. Seems fairly accurate, since Sailor Jupiter
seems like a very caring person.
The Saturn Symbol
The symbol for Saturn consists of a cross with a
semicircle (or two) attached to the bottom.
This means that a Saturn personality is supposed to value the body over
the soul. This is debatable. However, it is suitable in a way, because
the body is sometimes associated with the earth, and “Tomoe” is sometimes
translated as “springing from the earth.”
As well, as her astrological sign is Capricorn, her element is Earth.
)+(
O
The Uranus symbol consists of a cross with
semicircles attached to the left and right, and a circle attached
underneath. This means that the body
and soul take precedence over the spirit (I think). When Sailor Uranus’s talisman was revealed, the mark on Sailor
Uranus’s forehead showed an inverted (upside-down) Uranus sign. Perhaps this was done for consistency, to
look more like the marks on the other scouts’ foreheads, or maybe because it
looked weird on a forehead the other way.
Does this described Sailor Uranus’s personality? The meaning of the body and soul taking
precedence over the spirit is quite vague…
The Neptune Symbol
The Neptune symbol consists of a cross with a really
long top prong, with a semicircle overlapping it. This means that the soul takes precedence over the body, I
guess. But isn’t this the same as for
Jupiter? Anyway, it somewhat suits
Sailor Neptune, because the soul is like emotions, and she seems like a very
emotional person, with the water and all.
Water symbolizes emotion, and her eyes seem watery and sad, kind of like
Mercury’s. She is very talented in the
arts – painting and music – and art is often associated with great emotion or
passion.
The Pluto Symbol O)+
There are two symbols for Pluto: one that looks like
an underscored “P”; and another that’s a circle with a semicircle under it,
with a cross under the semicircle. The
first symbol is really made up of the letters “P” and “L”, after the person who
discovered the planet. The second one
is the one to be used for analysis, though.
In Sailor Pluto’s personality, the spirit is supposed to be most
prominent, then the soul, then the body.
This suits her fairly well, I think, because firstly, she seems
eternally patient and omniscient and rational (circle); and secondly, she is
supposed to be somewhat lonely (semicircle).
If the spirit is supposed to mean higher virtues, and the soul is
analogous to emotions, I think it works!
Other Symbols
There are two other “planetary” symbols. The Sun ť,
and the Earth, which is a circled cross.
Tuxedo Mask/Kamen was at one time the Prince of Earth, so his
representative planet is Earth.
