Please keep in mind, that NONE of the information included in Foundational Astrology is comprehensive or complete.

Cancer:

 

Symbol:           The Crab

Glyph:              A Crab’s Claws or a Mother’s Breast

Element:          Water

Polarity:           Yin

Modality:         Cardinal

Orientation:     Personal

Wills/Rays:       4, 6 and 6

(The Constellation of Cancer distributes Ray 3 and Ray 7.)

 

Relates to The Moon, Ceres and the 4th House.

 

The Rulers of the Sign of Cancer is the Moon, (exoteric) and Oceana [previously Neptune], (Esoteric and Hierarchical).

 

Core Meaning: “I Feel Emotionally

[I Sense, Esoterically]”

 

       Key Phrase:     “Where my emotional support is.” Or “I identify

myself through what I feel.”

Key Concepts:

Cancer is the sign of the World Mother … and represents the growth of the Soul through the sustaining efforts of the life forces. Thus, Cancer embodies the principle of tenacity. When a crab takes hold of something with its claws, you may have to sever the claw from the body in order to release the held object. “Never let go,” is a typical Cancerian quality. Cancer is always busy gathering the necessary resources by which to nurture her children. Cancer represents the first coming together of the physical elements vital to creating life. Therefore, Cancer is an extremely powerful sign because the life forces within are so strong.

Cancer brings the hidden emotional depths up to the light and then will withdraw and try to hide …these individuals are highly sensitive to their environment with emotions coming and going freely in them … Complex, fragile, unpredictable and temperamental are traits common to a person born under the sign of Cancer.

Cancer is the oldest Sign in the Zodiac … the Sign where Soul’s first incarnation occurs. This directly relates to the Genesis 1:2-3 and the beginnings of life on earth. Cancer energy is where we confront our root emotions and the deep security issues stemming from earliest memories. The Cancer water elementals are considered the most profound and difficult to experience … these energies seep into areas of our lives that can be initially inaccessible to our conscious mind. Later on, as the Soul and personality progress, these are the issues most likely to explode.

Cancer is the Sign of loyalty … The Cancer individual is usually blind to the faults of their loved ones, especially if their need for security has been met in the relationship. A typical Cancer relationship could revolve around the need for constant emotional support and encouragement and they may remind you of a needy child.

More than any other sign in the Zodiac, Cancer energies show us our contradictory nature. This Sign’s energy is like the shifting and changing tides of the ocean, showing powerful forces moving under the surface. Cancer’s symbol, the Crab, represents a hard shell which protects the vulnerable emotions underneath and the claws symbolize the need to cling in order to feel secure.

Cancer people are extremely generous, sharing their feelings as well as their possessions … however, they are often plotting to possess the object of their generosity. Cancer rules tribes and closely knit family groups. In Cancer people still feel the outward surge of life force energy associated with spring and the natural activity that flows from the Cardinal modality, but these are both mellowed and subdued in the languorous heat of summer.

 

The Summer Solstice occurs at 0° in the sign of Cancer. Planets in Cancer may be sensitized to the emotions and feelings … Cancer signifies all aspects of mothering and as a result most Planets will take on a protective and nurturing role. The exception might be Uranus and Pluto—these planets could reveal the buried emotional issues and wish to transform them. Venus, the Sun or Moon in Cancer could possibly bring out the natural love and affection inherent in Cancer’s energies or negatively, the glamours, with the focus on personal love and security.

Land Areas ruled by Cancer:

Scotland, Holland, Paraguay, Burgundy, New Zealand, and most of Africa

Peoples:

Black Africans

Plants ruled by Cancer:

Cucumber, squashes, melons, and all plants which grow in the water, such as water lilies and rushes.

Stones and Gems ruled by Cancer:

Selenite, chalk, crystal, pearl, emerald, onyx, and all soft white stones

Parts of the Body Ruled by Cancer:

Breasts, chest, sternum, stomach and digestive tract

Cancer on the Wheel:

Ordinary:   And the Word said: “Let isolation be the rule and yet the crowd exists.”

Reversed “I build a lighted house and therein dwell.”

Cancer ~ on the Path:

 
Undeveloped: The blind unit is lost
Advanced: The unit awakens to that which is around
Disciple/Initiate: The whole is seen as One – Humanity

 

 

Cancer from an Occult Standpoint:

Nurturer of form: “I incarnate and walk the ways of earth.”

Unskillful Qualities:

insecure, moody, defensive, over-emotional, non-trusting, hypersensitive, touchy, brooding, clinging, fearful, consuming, dependent, timid, withdrawn, grasping, afraid to let go, prone to worry, overprotective, smothering, demanding, emotional, irritable, hysterical, selfish, unfounded fears, shy, retiring, clannish, snobbish, lives in the past, long memory of past wrongs or hurts, hoarder, grudge holding, resentment

Skillful Qualities:

Sensitive to all feelings, cares for others’ needs, psychic, impressionable, understanding, empathetic, bonding, nurturing, resourceful, welcoming, perceptive, deep, intuitive, excellent memory, sharing, generous, humanistic, trustworthy, humorous, sympathetic, gentle, vulnerable, tender, protective, caring, tentative, cautious, collecting, tenacious, maternal, domestic, retentive