Mars in Cancer - Femininity Turned Upside Down
As Mars is transiting through the sign of Cancer from March 25th - May 20th, I knew it was the perfect time to share some of my own research I have been doing on this specific placement and how it applies to women born with it in their natal charts.
My intrigue with the placement started in January of this year, when I posted a TikTok video detailing how as women, our Mars placement gives us great insight into the type of partner we’re attracted to. I broke down how Mars in the elements is attracted to key traits of that element. The video started to get lots of comments that agreed with my assessment. However, when it came to Mars in water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces), which I explained are likely to be attracted to an emotionally open partner and someone who doesn’t hide their sensitivity - an overwhelming amount of comments, specifically from Mars in Cancer placements disagreed.
“There's something here,” I thought. Why would so many Mars in Cancer placements disagree? Some comment examples were, "Um hell no! Mine is in Cancer and I don't like emotional men!" "I have a Cancer Mars and I don't think I do well with emotional men." "Mars in Cancer 6th house and I don't like sensitive men." Then I realized that of course, Mars in Cancer rejects sensitivity and emotion because it is such an uncomfortable sensation for Mars to experience. Mars is the fighter, the warrior, the initiator - it doesn’t have time to feel deep emotions, there is too much that needs to get done. These reactions definitely got my attention!
I decided to look up the natal charts of famous women who were born with Mars in Cancer and I couldn't help but notice a theme. I found that women like, Miley Cyrus, Halle Berry, Megan Rapinoe, Audrey Hepburn, Pink!, Halsey, Tilda Swinton, Selma Blair, Liza Minelli, Zendaya…and what stood out to me was that these are women who have cut off their hair at some point or currently still sport a short cut! To me, that was powerful and symbolic of this natal placement. Long hair on women has always stood as a status of traditional “beauty” and “femininity” and these women said, “No thanks!” They don't feel obligated to present themselves through society’s standards in relation to femininity. There is an empowering rejection of what the stereotypical ideal of a woman is and what she should look like. These women also share a balanced sense of masculine and feminine energy.
As I did more research on women with this placement I also found that it's the placement of women who have an incredible urge to advocate for fellow women, girls, and families and to push women forward in society. I discovered that Susan B. Anthony, one of the pivotal leaders of the women’s suffrage movement, was born with Mars in Cancer. So was Lidia Poet, the first female lawyer of Italy who currently has a Netflix series based on her life. In our modern world, Amal Clooney, an incredible lawyer and advocate for women and and girls on the international stage was born with Mars in Cancer.
We can also look at Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Rap star, Cardi B. — both women loudly and unapologetically break the mold of society’s projection of how a woman should act and behave. Women with this placement will always speak up and defend themselves and aren’t worried about how others will react.
This research proved to me that women born with this placement highlight and embody the strengths of womanhood. If you were born with this placement, do you agree? Even if you weren’t born with this placement in your natal chart, we’re are all able to tap into this powerful energy for the next two months! How can we advocate for our fellow women, mothers, and families?