Cancer – The Crab

Here’s a fact sheet about your sign. It gives a lot of quick answers at a glance. These little tidbits of information regarding your sign can help you understand some of the ways you act and react to situations. For those reading about someone else’s sign, these bullet statements can help with everything from choosing an appropriate gift to seeing if someone will fit in with the mix at a social gathering or employment setting to helping plan a Crab-friendly vacation spot!.

Sign Name: Cancer, the Crab

Sign Glyph
Glyph description and meaning:
The glyph for Cancer is emblematic of the claws of the crab raised in defense. Another allegorical meaning of the symbol
is that the inner circles represent nipples while the outer curves represent the curve of the female breast. Ancient symbology puts the two circles as representative of the sun which are connected to crescent moons. The moons
represent Cancer’s perchance for storing memories and possessions. Tying the moons are circles that represent the energy that emotions and imagination can generate.

Ruling Planet:
Cancer is ruled by our closest celestial neighbor, the Moon. Many born under this sign are called “Moon Children.” In some ancient cultures children born during this time were considered to be able to see beyond the veil. Closest to us, the Moon exhibits a tremendous force…it is the pull of the Moon’s gravity upon the waters of the Earth that causes tides. Linked with water, the receptive energy of the Moon may well indicate strong intuitive skills.

Placement and Symbology of placement in the Zodiac:
Cancer is the fourth sign of the Zodiac. It completes the cycle of elements and begins the second round of the cycle of Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable signs.

Duality:
Duality in Western Astrology is much like Yin/Yang energy in the Eastern Tradition. The idea of opposites came from the Pythagorean School of Ancient Greece. As a water sign ruled by the Moon, it would be difficult to imagine Cancer energy as anything but feminine. Whether you are masculine or feminine in physical gender is not the issue here. It is the receptive, passive, and accepting qualities normally seen in the Crab personality that are seen as feminine.

Polarity:
This is the sign that is opposite the Zodiac Wheel from Cancer, being the Goat – Capricorn. Where Cancer carries the sign of the home life, Capricorn rules the public life.

Cardinal/Mutable/Fixed:
A Sign is either Cardinal, Mutable or Fixed. Cancer, as a sensitive, imaginative and sympathetic being can be nothing but what they are…a
Cardinal Sign. You can fade into the wood work when it suits their fancy, but normally Cancers don’t mind center stage.

Dominant Keywords:
The best phrase for you is “I Feel.” Whether it is emotions about your own situation or feeling for those far away suffering a disaster, your natural capacity for empathy and caring make “I Feel” the keywords for your sign.

Most Likeable Trait:
Loyalty – plain and simple. It may take some time for your emotional nature to warm up to someone fully, but once you do and give your loyalty to them, it’s rock solid. They can take that to the bank. Your friends know they will have a Cancer on their side for life!

Lucky Day:
The best day for Crabs to wave their claws and put their best foot forward is Monday (named for the Moon).

Danger:
Because of their love of home life, Crabs tend to be prone to accidents within the home. Further, because of their tendency to collect and horde, they are prone to be victims of theft.

Cities and Countries:
The following cities and countries are associated with the sign of The Crab. If you want to charm your special Crab mate with a fantastic honeymoon, try a visit to the Canals of Venice, Amsterdam too would be a good location. Of course, New York with its five boroughs and so much water traffic is also a good place. When looking for a country for your Cancer child to write a school report try recommending Scotland, Holland or New Zealand – these countries will spark the imagination of the Crab.

Element:
A being of the Water you move easily from situation to situation, but you have no problem raising your claws in defense when challenged. Your association with the water is also seen in the emotional realms.

Metal:
Silver, the metal most associated with the Moon, is also the metal for Cancer. Seen best in the glow of moonlight silver has long been a metal of power and beauty – either in its natural state or worked by the hand of man.

Magical Birthstone Stone:
Pearls were thought by many cultures to have the ability to change good luck to bad. During the Renaissance pearls were believed to be a curative for poisons. Even today beauty secrets include the luster and beauty of ground pearl. Crabs, bringing the bounty of the sea, saved many a coastal town from starvation by providing sustenance. The Crab is strongly aligned with the pearl, a “stone” that can only be formed in the watery realms.

Stones of Power:
Besides the obvious Pearl, Cancers should look to Moonstones and chrysocolla for trying to work with stones. Wearing a Moonstone was thought to give the wearer the ability to see through lies. With Cancer natural intuition, it’s no wonder why!

Special Color:
Of course, silver and sea green. Think of the mist of the spray of the ocean on the night of a full moon. You don’t have to have seen it. Just close your eyes and imagine it. Silver is the color of the Moon and the name “sea green” describes the color of the seas…that pretty much says it all. A great gift for a Cancer friend is a sea green scarf or tie.

Flowers:
Larkspur and Acanthus are the flowers associated with the Crab. It should be noted that the Acanthus has been used to symbolize fertility, richness and fecundity. (Think of the number of eggs laid by the crab!)

Trees:
It may seem strange to associate the Crab with a tree, but the connection truly isn’t difficult. Crabs are associated with all trees rich in sap. For example, the birch and maple trees have been harvested for centuries for the rich sap they provide. Turned into sugars, syrups, wines, beers and a variety of other consumable goods, the sap of the tree is the liquid representation of the bounty of the seas manifested on land.

Animals:
All animals with shell coverings are associated with the Crab. Not just crabs, it includes a wide range of living beings, those which have an exoskeleton.

Myths and Legends:
Long a foodstuff of those living by the waters, the crab has held place in many tales and legends. Hercules and the Crab, the myth of Asherah and that of Hecate may all help to understand the Crab personality and symbology.

Famous People:
Here’s a sampling of the level of achievement that a Cancer personality can attain. Here are born some of the greatest in their fields!

Alexander the Great – Yul Brenner – Lena HorneLouis Armstrong – Sylvester Stallone – Ernest Hemingway – David Brinkley – Neil Simon – Nathaniel Hawthorne

Emotional energy is some of the most powerful energy available. Science can measure the increase in adrenaline and other compounds and chemicals in our body in response to different emotional stimuli. Cancers believe and can achieve!