Cancer
Cancer is ruled by the Moon. Common associations are the colour silvery pearl, and the number 2. It rules the breasts of the physical body, and its zodiac symbol is the crab. The sign is connected to nurturing and feminine mysteries. Its keywords are I feel.
Cancer is the sign of the home, and whilst children belong under the sign of Leo, it is Cancer which links to mothering. The ability to nurture is crucial in ensuring male and female Cancerians are happy and well-balanced. The connection to the family will be strong, for good or bad. Even if a Cancer Sun remains childless, they will need to nurture something or someone, whether it's friends, a partner, or animals. The worst quality of this sign has to be the fussing and, in some cases whining. In my head, I get visions of a woman in a pinny going through the checklist of a hat, scarf, umbrella, sun cream, etc., and preparing her child for all eventualities before he even steps out of the door. Home-cooked meals and ironed sheets with flowers in vases. Thinking about it, I wonder if it’s more difficult for this sign to manifest a lot of its potential in today’s society. One thing is for sure, Cancer cares and puts a lot of effort into ensuring everything is taken care of. The crab as the emblem gives insight into the need for the sign to periodically retreat and that, at times, it could appear more intimidating than it is; crab pincers can hurt, but they can’t kill you unless you’re incredibly small. This sign will only fight if the home or loved ones are being threatened somehow.
The gift of clairsentience has strong connections to this sign, and the ability to feel the emotions of others is a valuable tool but a difficult one to live with. There is no need to be in the same space to pick up on loved ones, and Cancerians will often experience feelings that belong to anyone and everyone. The crab carries its home everywhere, and it may be that Cancer is more comfortable when they're actually at home, but they don't have the same fears around moving that Taureans do. Being ruled by the moon, they are traditional moody. It is said that they are tuned into the lunar tides and will often switch moods every couple of days as the moon itself changes sign. They have a knack for picking up on the direction relationships are heading, which can be useful when dealing with others. Still, the one thing they must guard against is becoming overly obsessed with their own internal dramas and relying too heavily on others. Cancerians will be either unashamedly needy or sensationally supportive, but rarely anything in between. Their ability to draw emotion from others can be both healing and parasitic; developing emotional intelligence is important here. This sign needs to use the emotional gifts they have. We constantly expect to be mentally educated yet dismiss emotions as something troublesome that has to be tolerated. We have as much to gain through increasing our understanding of the world of feeling as we do by exploring the ocean itself.
Cancer in the chart shows us where we need to nurture more and where we are more vulnerable and emotionally open. The Moon in Cancer is particularly powerful, and Saturn here will restrict the feeling nature. Prominent Cancer anywhere will think nothing of crying in front of others.
