A Traditional Tryst | Mars in Cancer

This post contains mature content and is the first highlighting Mars placements in the premium content series Venus and Mars | Love and Desire where we explore love, sex, and relationship. While Mars represents, among other things, focused action, motivation, and drive, here we’ll examine its role in attraction and sexuality. As the expression of masculinity regardless of gender, Mars serves as an archetype for your own sexual performance as well as what you might expect from a lover.

This Mars enters the sign of Cancer as part of a grand water trine indicating a wellspring of inner emotional resource that allows self-comfort when feeling abandoned or alone. This is the reserve of strength used in the face of difficult emotional periods that might otherwise push one over the edge. The response to self-soothe is likely a choice to withdraw from harsh words or criticism that may center around one of the partner’s need for independence or rebellion against restriction. The problem is that the influence of Cancer encourages a preference for a mate who’s somewhat dependent. Despite the intent to protect, provide, or care for, one of you may feel smothered.

Family could be high priority and your ambitious efforts as a hard worker may be in support of this. In fact, for some, the motivation behind physical intimacy is a desire to start a family. If you already have children they can impact your relationship at this time. They may be more difficult to deal with due to disobedience, argumentative responses, and minor conflicts. Perhaps they’re demanding greater independence because of starting school, learning to drive, a first job. or leaving home for college or to live on their own. You’re probably not ready for these changes and may even disapprove of their choices or behavior. While less patient, you should understand that they’re coping with new situations, abilities, and problems that are stressful.

Indeed, the home/private versus career/public axis is in anaretic degree indicating an urgency to matters that reach crisis point and difficulty in decision-making. An ending will bring a matter to conclusion and it may be too late to do anything. The degree ruling the end of the matter sits in the cluster of stars known as The Pleiades or Seven Weeping Sisters indicating events that bring closure with something to cry about. This may also pertain to the end of a cycle involving real estate or a monetary cycle of either filing bankruptcy or finally pulling out of debt. You may be dealing with the burden of financial responsibility left by someone who has passed, or it may be the end of probate, or excessive tax or inheritance issues, but some sort of debt is denoted with a new financial cycle on the horizon. Unfortunately, a death may be experienced at this degree placement. (As an aside, a chart will provide much information dependent on the intent of the interpretation. As I write this post, a school shooting (Mars/guns/violence) has occurred resulting in the death of a number of children (fifth house) which will obviously stimulate anger (Mars), a call to action (Mars) and the urge to protect (Mars) family (Cancer). A stellium of energy in this ingress chart sits in both the sectors ruling self worth and that of primary education. Events are likely to focus on sexuality (Mars) as the shooter is transgender. Additionally, Venus (the shooter is a biological female) is conjunct the Arabic lot, Part of Sex-Hermes. Hermes is the mythological god equivalent to Mercury who is androgynous and associated with the ability to change sexes. Mars is in tense square aspect to a shadow Neptune (Neptune|Mars – criminal act) in the first house of self (a person with identity and mental health issues). A Pluto/Eros conjunction triggers an interest in suicide or the power over life and death.)

Sexually, you may desire a partner who’s emotional or your own expression may build toward considerable intensity with a tendency to be ruled or to rule others by your instincts and passion which can feel overwhelming to your love interest. Perhaps you demand to be yourself and to express to others exactly who you are. Positively, you’re particularly sensitive to the physical needs of a partner and may intuitively seek to fulfill them even without verbal request.

This Mars also sits in the sector ruling casual sex, fun, romance, and entertainment thus energizing sex as a form of self-expression. A light-hearted approach to physicality may be either alarming or liberating depending on the openness or conservative tendencies of a partner. For the person who views sex playfully, a traditionalist attitude seems puzzling, stuffy, and stifling. While you may not be likely to start a love relationship, if you do, it can be very exciting and based on intense sexual attraction. Your desire nature is strong; you know what you want and will try to get it. Your relationship choices may be propelled by the desire and passion you feel for the person you’re seeing and this passion may play an integral role in the romance.

However, conflict and temper can also emerge as you struggle to balance the draw of attraction with the need for self-expression. You may be battling your desire for union with the need for freedom. The lesson is one of self-control and self-expression while maintaining a relationship. Your relationship can also be complicated due to other needs or issues in your life that may involve traditional monogamous values that cause guilt in relation to passionate involvement or vacillation in the intensity of emotion or desire.

But both Eros and Pluto have now entered the sign of Aquarius, and while linked together, they lend a heaviness to the sexual experience with the suggestion of complex motives that bring into awareness that sex is anything but free when control, dominance, and manipulation are part of the exchange. This can manifest through ultimatums and revenge, withholding sex, a lack of intimacy, or the failure to take responsibility for sexual encounters. Alternatively, sexuality can be part of a neurosis that makes physical intimacy a challenge to initiate or as a compulsion used to initiate radical change.

Pluto’s power in the psychological confines of the hidden sector of this chart suggests you’re preparing for a transition that first involves clearing away old and psychic garbage before rebuilding yourself. What happens behind-the-scenes rather than the external may be more important in your growth consciousness. Perhaps you’re having a love affair and power lies in what you know, but do not reveal to make others aware. Whatever the situation, you’re given the opportunity to examine the hidden side of your nature, understand, and control it.

As you do so, the hidden side of external elements of your life that you haven’t adequately faced in the past also arise. This may present as deja vu experiences related to relationships that have failed or actions or behavior that you’re aware of but don’t wish to discuss. The tendency may be to project the blame onto others without taking responsibility for your contribution to difficulties prompted by your own psychological idiosyncrasies. This might mean a compulsion toward a new love relationship coupled with your urge to control  the unconscious that comes with the frank realization of of just how difficult this struggle is.

What’s the sexual (or conflict) potential for your sign indicated by Mars in Cancer? (If you’re sensitive to card decks with nudity and sexual overtones, this post is not for you.) To continue…