The zodiac sign of Cancer is extremely romantic in the true sense of that word. No-holds barred romanticism. The kind of romanticism that makes an exemplar of the scientific temperament such as Albert Einstein say, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”
Cancers are extremely sensitive to everything. Everything affects them acutely in the moment. Pisces, the second contender for most sensitive sign in the zodiac, at least has some remove and delay from the immediate sting of circumstances due to its mutability. Cancer has no filter. Like the mercury in a thermometer, they simply register in the inner emotional world what was said or done in the outside world. Cancer is like a feeling scale similar to how the sign of Libra is a thinking scale.
If someone says something to a Cancer like, “Why are you so fat?” they take it at face value and react completely emotionally. They don’t think about the motives for why the person might have said that or that it might have been something that really had nothing to do with them because that person may have been having a bad day. Maybe that person is wounded and is simply trying to wound others. No, none of that registers with Cancer. The only thing that registers is how much what they said hurt them, the effect it had on Cancer. Understanding other’s motives for doing things is not their forte. That capability would fall under the sign of Scorpio, the second water sign in the zodiac.
So, what’s the deal with water? Water represents feelings. Feelings are by their nature difficult to talk about in any objective way. Feelings are irrational. They just are.
And that is how it is to Cancer. Feelings are neither right nor wrong. Feelings feel either good or bad. They set up negative or positive connotations in the experiencer of them that prejudice them towards further experiences of that stimulus or future avoidance of that stimulus. Cancer likes to feel good as a general rule.
But, due to Cancer having no intermediation between itself and the outside, such as the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, they are the most liable to acute suffering of all the twelve signs. This leads them to either build a wall between themselves and the outside world or into the second most prominent trait of Cancer and their primary gift, self-expression.
Cancers more than any other sign need to talk about their problems and they always have lots of them because there is no end to the mortal miseries one may experience on this blue-green marble of ours. One can picture the natives of Cancer as the eternal psychological patients lying on the couch of the psychologist, going on about all the little things that have affected them since the last time they were there. The way their wife looked at them at dinner last Tuesday, the little thing that their mother said to them on the phone last chat, the way their boss made them feel unappreciated when they were trying to do their best to meet the company deadlines.
Cancers need to feel puffed up and enthused. That is the only way to motivate them. They of all signs respond least positively to negative motivation. Tough love? Don’t do it with Cancers. They won’t understand it. They basically require a neverending diet of esteem and applause. “You’re doing such a good job.” “You’re making a difference.” “You’re alright, you know that.” The reason they need to be told they’re alright is because they are always in danger of not being alright. More than any other sign they are moody as the Dickens. One simple off remark could send them plummeting down into the toilets of self-despair and self-pity and self-anything, as long as it has something to do with the self.
Yes, Cancers are very self-motivated. They are self, self, self. If something doesn’t touch the self of Cancer then it might as well not exist. It has no reality. Unlike the sign of Gemini that can work on anything as long as it gives them a puzzle to solve, it is not so with Cancer. Cancer needs to be personally moved by something in some way for them to pay any attention to it at all. And they tend to work on things in an all-or-nothing fashion. If they see a person, job, or situation as significant they will put all of themselves into it. They will be on fire, they will be manic, and nothing else will exist to them. This is the quality that makes them such quintessential lovers and romantics, especially in a romantic temperament.
You need to build Cancers up, blow them up into big fat puffy balloons. Then they can conquer the world. Many Cancers rely heavily on some mother-type figure to fix them up, however, they are challenged to become their own sources of nurturance. More than any other sign, the experience they had of their mother in early youth will set them up either for a life of victory or defeat. Cancers develop complexes and they need a particularly strong and astute psychologist to unravel the damage done if they happen to be clams. Cancers are straddling the fence between clannish secrecy on the one side and exploding out into unbridled self-expression on the other.
Some of the most psychologically damaged and greatest artists that have ever existed have been Cancer rising natives, or had the sign of Cancer prominent in their birth charts. Basically, a Cancer must become an artist in some way if they are to psychologically survive in this world. Some people have to be artists. It isn’t a choice. It is so with Cancer. In a romantic temperament, this need reaches its zenith.
You can also err with a Cancer by spoiling the living hell out of them. Yes, they are difficult. You’re fucked if you do and fucked if you don’t. And did I mention that Cancers have some of the biggest potty mouths this side of creation. Picture the proverbial Brooklyn guy saying, “Hey, fuck you buddy” in that mumbly-mouthed and insular way, like they were speaking through cotton gauze. Cancer is the sign of the lower square aspect in astrology, making them particularly susceptible to their id impulses. This means totally irrational and inelegant expressions from the toilet of existence.
Cancers may not know why other people do the things they do but they have the best potential of all twelve signs to understand how they tick and what works or doesn’t work for them. This is more in the sense of action rather than being.
It has to be actionable. That is the key to Cancer’s success. Otherwise, Cancer can get stuck in a neverending morass of neuroses and fears. The personal and the public are inextricably connected for Cancer. Unlike Capricorn, they don’t know how to quash the personal and just put on that public face to meet the faces they have to meet. No, Cancers have to let it all hang out in public. If they are successful in business or enterprise it is usually by including some very personal elements in their offerings. Cancer is so subjective in orientation that it can’t effectively draw the line between what is public and what is private.
Thank god they are the luckiest sign. Cancers can get away with being obscene little buggers. The public instinctively likes them and is particularly tolerant of their personal foibles. Remember when Mel Gibson got in trouble for getting caught saying something about Jews. Remember when Michael Richardson, of Seinfeld fame, got caught on video calling someone in his audience a nigger.
Both Cancer Risings. Both potty mouths. And both will probably be forgiven. And they should. Because Cancers don’t mean anything by it. I mean, Michael Richardson is a Jew and Mel Gibson is a nigger so they can probably just go ahead and cancel each other out.
Hey, I’m using Cancer logic here. This ain’t Gemini I’m talking about. And don’t even bring up those politically correct Aquarians.
Hey, fuck you buddy.
So, dude, I just have to say it: you are absolutely brilliant! I have learned more about INFJs from your site in a few days than I’ve learned from all the articles and forums ive scoured over for the past 3 freakin years! And this insight you bring: it has such depth and nuance! You’re language: it’s so poetic and soulful and yet guttural and incisive. I hunger for every new article like it’s my next meal. And it’s not just head-knowledge either, though. Your points on Fi in INFJs (don’t you dare say something like this in a forum) have proven to be especially beneficial and immediately actionable. Work has become a joy rather than a burden. People are emotional vistas to be explored again instead of the insidious energy vampires they had become. Thank you deeply for sharing your gift with us.
I just found out that I am a Cancer rising native, and the emotionally stormy experience you describe here couldn’t be more familiar. I have a question regarding my Sun sign, however. I was born on the 23rd of November, and technically that means I’m influenced most by Sagittarius, yet the description of Scorpio seems to describe my ego-orientation best. What is the experience of those born at the cusps like, particularly for this particular period.
Jesus, thanks!
Regarding your question about cusps, I wouldn’t know because I don’t use cusps. I am of the opinion that your Sun (or any other luminary or planet) is in one sign or the other, not a blend of two signs when near one of the cusps. However, if your Sun is in Sagittarius there is a good chance that your Mercury and/or Venus sign position is in the previous sign of Scorpio. Mercury will either be in the same sign or one sign behind or ahead of your Sun. Venus will either be in the same sign as the Sun or one or two signs behind or ahead of your Sun.
This is not to say that there is no cuspal influence, it’s just that I don’t pay a lot of attention to it, because I consider it a rather minor factor in the whole scheme of astrological interpretation. It is much more likely that you would identify more with Scorpio because you have Mercury, Venus, or some other planet(s) in this sign, rather than because your Sun is almost in Scorpio. A strong Pluto or 8th house influence in the birth chart could cause a similar affinity with the sign of Scorpio because Pluto rules the sign of Scorpio and the 8th house is the house equivalent of the sign of Scorpio (too complicated to go into here).
Also, and this is more important, a person can identify with any of the twelve signs, even if they don’t have it tenanted in their birth chart, because of a little thing called temperament type (Myers-Briggs). For example, since you mentioned the article I wrote on introverted feeling in the INFJ, basically what I am describing in that article is the INFJ experience of the sign of Scorpio, even though I do not mention astrology in that article (If I remember correctly). So, if you wanted to bring in the astrological correlation for Fi in INFJ, I would say that an INFJ temperament type has an implied Scorpio Moon sign, Scorpio being the primary astrological sign denoting introverted feeling. Notice I say implied and not actual. An INFJ can be born with any actual moon sign (or Sun sign etc.) in their birth chart, but every INFJ has an implied Scorpio Moon, whether that is the position of the Moon in their birth chart or not (which based on pure statistics of a 1 in 12 chance of this being the case, isn’t likely).
So, the way INFJs experience introverted feeling in their nature (strongly but difficultly) is similar to the Moon in Scorpio position in astrological nomenclature.
This article is very intriguing. I’m a cancer native, first Decan and I can relate to some of things mentioned above with a sense of humor. I’d like to add that cancerians do mature emotionally as they grow older and we learn how to navigate the emotional realm that cancerians live in.
It’s true that we are sensitive and easily get hurt but also we have the power to get back on our feet and we are resilient! Let’s not forget that cancerians are a cardinal sign and that pretty much plays a big factor in our lives. Overall, I did enjoy your article.
I wish you would write more on astrology. I love the way you layer it with the Myers Briggs. I can’t seem to figure out how my husband tests ISTJ but has his sun, Mars, Jupiter, all in cancer. He also has Saturn in Pisces. His rising sign in Virgo. He has moon, midheaven, and Venus in Gemini. I have considered ISFJ for him. That would put Fi in the Id position. Can that have the same effect on ISFJ as it does on INFJ. I would consider INFJ for him but he seems to have NO Ni. In fact, my Ni drives him crazy. He wants everything in black and white. As you can imagine, we don’t have a lot of common ground. Can someone with all this water in their chart be an ISTJ?
Yes, I should definitely write more on this astrology/Myers-Briggs relationship. But, briefly, here is the basic rule for what you are describing: A person’s Myers-Briggs type is NOT determined by their astrological birth chart. The birth chart amends the MB type, but, does not determine what that type will be. EVER.
So, if your husband was an ISTJ with a lot of Cancer emphasis in his chart, he would be a somewhat more atypical ISTJ because Cancer correlates to extraverted feeling, but he would still be an ISTJ. The astrological chart explains a lot of the differences between people of the same type, for example.
Thanks for your reply. I love your posts. And thanks for all the insights on INFJ Fe. Very helpful!
To echo what others have written, I enjoy your blending of astrology with MBTI.
I’m an INFJ, who’s heavy on the Ti, but unfortunately prone to extended periods of plumbing the Fi depths when relationships go sour. I can flex my Fe like nobody’s business, so what you see is usually not at all what’s going on below the surface.
Meanwhile, my natal chart puts me in sunny, magnanimous Leo with a Libra rising, Venus in Leo and moon in Sagittarius. To fuck up things even more, Mars is in Aquarius and Scorpio in Jupiter. I feel like I’m drawn and quartered half the time.
Anyway, love your site.
That moment when you KNOW someone isn’t a Cancer because of how incredibly ignorant they are. Like you know anything. Have you even met a flippin’ Cancer ‘Cause I read this and all I see is ‘stereotype’ written over and over again. Get the hell out! Why would you even TRY to write about something YOU KNOW NOTHING OF! jesus. Just ’cause we have an emotional side doesn’t make us weak. We’re probably stronger than you could ever be, we just usually choose not to let you see that, not that you COULD since you love your stereotypes so much. And ya know what? If you do know a Cancer, try to go a week without them. You other signs call us weak yet you ALWAYS come back. Think I’m lying ‘ cause I’m just some Cancerian emotional mess? Well screw you guys. Go through what we go through every day and you’d be more of a mess then we are.
What exactly is your problem? What is so offensive about this description?
You know what is funny is that you are showing the hyper-defensive and reactionary mode of Cancer.
Also, you are making many assumptions yourself. Maybe I am a Cancer, do know Cancers intimately, and am not at all ignorant of this sign’s psychology.
So, tell me more specifically what you are reacting to. I would be glad to discuss it with you.
Does this article apply to people with Moon in Cancer as well?
Yes.
So I’m a Cancer Rising with my moon in the first house. Technically it’s in the 12th but it’s so close that it’s interpreted as if it’s in the 1st (why is that?). Im also an INFJ. My moon is in Gemini, but would having my moon in the first house bring out my implied Scorpio moon more? I experience my first house moon as a strong drive to “water” people, to provide them with the empathy, encouragement, nurturance, that sort of thing. I also like recieving a lot of that stuff, though sometimes I try to hide it. It also makes me extremely moody. I can go through one day experiencing every level of emotion, from intense grief and despair to glorious ecstacy and exuberance. I’ve read that the Moon is also a symbol of the mind. I’ve always been very curious, intellectual, and categorical, but in what sense is it the symbol of the mind in distinction from Mercury or Uranus?
I’m nowhere near as knowledgeable as any of the other people on this site when it comes to what kind of Cancer I am (12th July if it helps) but I am mesmerized by some of the stuff you’ve written on both INFJs (yep, that’s me too) and astrological Cancer. It feels like you’re giving me some kind of a handle – after decades of looking – into what makes me so infuriating to myself (and I’m pretty sure, to others too). The older I get the more tongue tied, totally lacking in self belief, introverted and massively frustrated I become. So does being an INFJ male and Cancerian to boot mean I’m clusterfucked? I might sound like I’m trying to make that a light-hearted inquiry, but believe me, I’m utterly serious.
Many thanks – M
Ha – A Gemini (ENTP) who almost married a Cancer – and they cannot take tough love! They take it totally the wrong way. Having been drawn repeatedly to Leo men prior to this Cancer, well I had kind of learned how to hold back somewhat on any constructive criticism or pushing someone to grow too fast type stuff, tough love and not being too emotional about stuff working for me as a motivator I had learned that doesn’t work well for others and had evolved in how I deal with people at least in the romantic realm and at least for the most part though I was hardly perfect all the time at this. And I had seen with Leo men at least it is best to really puff them up prior to saying anything that might not reflect on their greatness lol kind of like a Cancer. It wasn’t as much that Leos needed to be puffed up to be motivated, they just needed to be reassured as to where I was coming from I guess, that I really adored and respected them, and if that was sure well most anything could be said to the Leo in certain doses and they wouldn’t take things personally, at least that was my perception in my Gemini/Leo pairings, and they appreciated what I had to say and would at least give consideration to things and be able to discuss things on a constructive level.
But a Cancer! I mean I love em (my Mom is a Cancer) but it is really hard to go about in any way giving constructive criticism or encouraging growth in a Cancer. I don’t think I have ever figured out how, it is almost impossible not to make things a personal attack with them, even when that is far from one’s intentions even in being logical and very impersonal, because they take everything so personally. I think me and my Cancer lasted as long as we did because I had learned to a degree to dish out Gemini/ENTP “light” to people I think needed it, and especially in situations with romantic love where having things get misunderstood can just create an unnecessary mess that isn’t as easy to avoid and eventually fix with people not as close to you, I do give full strength to most others I have just learned to try to be more sensitive in romantic relationships but it is work and not natural to me. Though in the end I felt with a Cancer for me I just had to stuff a lot of thoughts and not say anything to keep things in a good place, which is pretty much impossible for me to do and be comfortable and happy and satisfied. I now have a lot of misgivings on any future Cancer pairings for myself, I think Geminis and Cancers might make one of the worst romantic pairings in the zodiac, I mean it is pretty passionate and great on some levels, but in the end the good wasn’t enough to overcome what couldn’t work between us for the long haul.
Any thoughts on what MBTI is at home in Leo? Just curious, because I do have a habit of being drawn to Leo’s, and they have seemed to mesh well (at least the ones I have known) with me as a Gemini.
Cancer… crabs, beaches… islands… Rum. Rum goes nicely with Cancer relations. Discovered this a little late in life, but it helps. And I’m not being flippant. Both my parents are Cancers. It comes out differently due to their type being different, but yeah, sensitive.
This actually is only really necessary when I am trying to cook and have people milling and chatting at me and requiring this and that and basically getting underfoot whilst trying to help.
That sounds rather terrible, so, I’ll leave it. Really the rum is for me, to quiet the Fi that my Fe not need to work so hard.
And as a last note, my parents are both wonderful, giving and very strong folk.
Ok, so when I was a child maybe I was a crab with a melted shell, but for the last 20 years playing amateur competitive pool, nothing gnaws at me more than false flattery. Tell me I’m playing like shit and I need to get my act together to motivate me, otherwise leave. I am quite intuitive as an INTP about logically deducing the pat on the back that is false flattery which is insulting to my intelligence, but understood as what the speaker thinks a woman wants to hear. I smack my teammates on the hand moderately hard after an avoidable error. Maybe that’s the effect of the trine of my Aries moon in 00 degrees, and my Aries rising, plus a conjunct Mercury & Mars in Leo. Perhaps it’s my Aries rising that makes me a counterphobic 6w5, and my north node in Pisces that influence my tritypes 1w2 & 3w2, desire to help others worthy, not bottomfeeders or soulsuckers. The only talents I have for self expression are my appreciation for music with minimal training in theory (a twitter group is after me to share my selections on their music theory website, but how am I qualified as a failed musician) from my music educator mother who I had otherwise no good relationship, and my talent for free reading astrological charts after a lifetime of disjointed but devoted study brought together by a meeting & reading from Steven Forrest. Not everyone is interested in that. INTP trying to make sense of the nonsense, I am.
INFJ Aries sun, Sagittarius moon & Cancer Rising. I sincerely love how you constantly rake me over the coals while also getting my nature down to a T, as so few do. (Excluding perhaps the large part of me that wants to bristle and cry at criticism — as you so eloquently touched on in this article.) Keep being fantastic 🙂
Hi,
your approach to typology really fascinates me and after some years of trying to figure out my type (I guess I’m doing something wrong, as I haven’t settled to this day for one type and basically, at this point, I don’t even care anymore (but deep down I never stopped caring lol)), I got a bit into astrology because of you, and generally my Gemini Sun Cancer Moon combo really describes a conflict I think I observe in myself. So with you being pretty much pro in Type and Astrology, any tips or thoughts?
my Gemini Sun Cancer Moon combo really describes a conflict I think I observe in myself.
Which is?
starting something, imagining it to become an integral part of my being, like a meaningful stage on my way; passively incapsulating it in me and changing, growing with it
–>
getting confused, unmotivated, as suddenly some other thing seems to be better suited for me
–>
staying with the old thing, fighting with myself, because out of experience I know, if I just stop now I end up with not having anything at all
–>
watching this self-conflict poison my honest motivation slowly more and more
–>
surrendering, but unconciously already looking for something new
so basically wanting something to be meaningful, to get a deep connection to it, but deep down having an inability to find peace with one thing while left and right everything seems more suited to focus on