The Sun has entered Cancer, the sign ruled by the Moon. The Sun in Cancer marks midsummer, a time we associate with relaxation, forthcoming holidays and, for those of you born under this sign, it’s a time for celebration. In a few days time, I’ll be joining friends in celebrating the birthday of a close Cancer born friend – and she’s as typical a specimen of the Cancer tribe as it’s possible to get. A love of history, architecture and gardens have made her a genuine expert in her field; her Sun in Cancer reticence gives her a natural – and enviable – level of modesty about her achievements.
For me, I’ll be using my time to have a brief respite from writing my latest book, Real Life Astrology: The Planets in Signs, which I’m hoping to finish on my return. I’ll also be using my time away to visit my mother – and yes – that’s also a real Sun in Cancer use of my time too – especially as she lives close to the beach. So, to celebrate the solar ingress into the sign of nurturing, motherhood and all things to do with the sea shore, here is an abridged extract from the draft of that book to celebrate the Sun in Cancer. I’m also looking forward to some soft-shelled crab…
Extract from The Planets in Signs: The Sun In Cancer
When you are born with the Sun in Cancer, what are you aiming to be? We grow into our solar nature; it isn’t as instinctive as the ‘go-to’ pull of the Moon, so we often have to try – fail – and try again in order to learn how to maximise our solar potentials. Your Sun sign is ruled by the Moon, so the thing that you’re aiming to be is the conscious manifestation of a sign that is private, sensitive and vulnerable. Let’s remember the core attributes of Sun in Cancer energy by exploring the imagery of your solar symbol – the crab.
The symbolism of the place where the land meets the sea is redolent with Sun in Cancer themes. The solidity and security of the land is constantly undermined by the raging storms and swell of the ocean. For those of you with experience of dream symbolism – often used in psychoanalysis – you will know that the sea represents our emotions and moods; still one moment and churning the next. Maintaining a state of stability in the face of swirling currents is a challenge, yet the crab manages to cling to the rocks and avoid being swept out to sea.
However, danger lurks in the other direction too. The land is too arid for the crab; and there are those – like me – who rather like to eat crabs, especially those with a soft shell. Hidden under the rocks, the crab gets this. So under the rocks it stays, living and feeding where the land meets the sea, only venturing out when it’s safe to do so.
You may not live anywhere near the coast, but security is your motivation. Like the crab, you’re instinctively aware of deep emotional forces that could so easily overwhelm you, and a reality that you may find threatening outside of the space you regard as your ‘home’. Of course, I’m not suggesting that you never go outside the front door – home in this context simply means the space in which you feel safe – but it’s important to you that you know it well. It’s your territory. Familiarity is important to you when you have the Sun in Cancer.
Of course, the things that make you feel safe will vary between each and every Sun in Cancer person – after all, there are millions of you out there. The things that bring you together, however, are the ways in which you express that solar drive. There is a tenacity about you that surprises people who think that those born under this sign are, somehow, going to be a soft touch. This is a tough sign; you have the ability to absorb signals from the world around you and take actions that will prove to be in your best interests – every time. You read the room – and read the runes.
Those with the Sun in Cancer are rarely – if ever – surprised by anything and that’s because they’ve seen it all before. Cancer has a long memory, and many with this sun sign will be instinctively aware of the connections between the present and the past. This takes us, once more, to the image of the crab on the shoreline; the ground of our present reality is constantly impacted by the waves of the past.
With the Sun in Cancer, you are comfortable with history – and many with this sign have an active, conscious interest in the past. That’s not to say that you live there – though there will be some who are more comfortable with things that are more traditional than modern. That may be reflected in the clothes you wear, the car you drive, the job you do, the home you inhabit and the way you conduct your family life. This is a nurturing sign – and creating a secure family unit may be one of the ways in which you express your true nature.
Of course, there are many ways to define family – and again it comes down to creating that safe and impenetrable space. Being part of something that is strong enough to withstand life’s trials and tribulations may be how you regard any familial type of group that you’re associated with. And creating that kind of situation – or even place – is something that drives you, as you fear that it could be so easily washed away.
Cancer is a cardinal sign; there is no lack of drive or ambition, yet you may shy away from taking the lead in a direct and obvious way. You may make decisions or be the ‘power behind the throne’, but you’re unlikely to want your name in lights or be acknowledged as the prime mover. You’re happy to be under cover – it’s safer that way. And that’s true no matter what you achieve, or how you succeed in what you aim to do.
Sun in Cancer people are often successful; that tenacity we spoke about earlier, coupled with a natural instinct to hold onto what you have – makes you a shrewd operator in business, particularly where those businesses have Cancer related themes – such as property, food and catering, hospitality, or anything linked to history or the past. Even a ‘traditional’ type of career fits this bill – as would a vocational outlet. This is a nurturing sign after all. Healthcare – both physical and mental – is a natural fit with Cancer. Looking after people, objects, or interests is what you do best.
This is the sign of the mother, and many Sun in Cancer men may have a more caring and vulnerable side to their nature, when compared to more masculine signs. Here lies one of the the paradoxes that accompanies this sun sign; Cancer men are as ‘manly’ as any other – in fact, their intuitive sensitivity makes them relate well – but the Sun is associated with father figures and this makes those with a Cancer Sun ‘parental’ in the broadest sense.
The Sun in your natal chart also represents your own father. Every one of your fathers would have been different, so I cannot tell you whether he was a builder or a caretaker, but what I can say with certainty is this; we build our own authority from the example of the father figure we experienced as a child. With the Sun in Cancer, he would have taught you how to navigate the shifting sands at the water’s edge. He may have taught you to connect the past and present – and for some of you, he may still take care of business.
Real Life Astrology: The Planets in Signs will be published in 2023. For updates and further information, please subscribe to this site using the form below,
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© Sara Shipman 2023
Picture Credit: Image by Sathish kumar Periyasamy from Pixabay
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