Understanding Cancer’s Strong-Willed Nature

My ex of many years had a Cancer stellium in his chart. In astrology, a stellium refers to three or more planets located in the same sign. He had the Sun, Mercury, and Venus all in Cancer. 

In many ways, he was a wonderfully kind, considerate and empathetic person. His emotions ran very, very deep. But he could also be quite inflexible at times, which I struggled to understand. I could never really grasp how someone so fundamentally kind could be so challenging at times.

However, all signs can be a bit rigid to various degrees because at the end of the day, stubbornness is a human trait. We all have different thoughts, ideas, moods etc. And as we all know, humans are incredibly complex beings!

It should be noted that Cancer isn’t a zodiac sign traditionally associated with stubbornness, though. In fact, quite the opposite as it’s a water sign, which is associated with empathy and intuition. It’s modality is cardinal — meaning it’s open to starting new things — as opposed to the fixed modality which is associated with rigidity.

Additionally, Cancer is directly opposite Capricorn on the zodiac wheel. Capricorn is associated with inflexibility as is Saturn, it’s ruling planet and opposite signs have a lot in common. There are also many other reasons why a Cancerian can sometimes have a fixed outlook on life and I’ll talk about that below.

Emotional Attachment to People, Places and Things

Similarly to Capricorn and Taurus, this sign is known to form strong emotional bonds with other human beings, places and possessions. Many people with strong Cancer placements in their birth charts are incredibly reluctant to let go of the things — and people — they hold dear. They love what is familiar and peaceful and what makes them feel safe, secure and cared-for.

They are the sort of people who could live in the same house their entire lives and keep the same people and items around them until the very end. They also aren’t the kind of people to let go of their pets. Even if some of the things they own are long out of use, such as worn or dated furniture, they are likely to still hold onto it. As a result of these character traits, they could be viewed as difficult by others who don’t share a similar sense of die hard sentimentality.

Unwavering Loyalty 

Cancer is a loyal and loving sign although occasionally, their loyalty may be misplaced. Sometimes they could be loyal to the wrong people. Friends and family might often warn them about their relationships with certain people who they view as bad company, but the Cancerian will still stand by them. 

Their feelings towards any unpleasant people they defend may only change if they feel wounded by them in some way, which may never happen. In this way, their loyalty may come across as obstinacy because they aren’t doing what others think is in their best interests, which in this case would be dropping potentially bad company.

Fear of the Unknown

As I mentioned above, Cancerians are very fond of what is familiar to them and what makes them feel safe and secure. They can be resistant to changes, especially big changes, because they don’t know what they might mean for them. Being a water sign, these people are extremely sensitive to both small and large changes in their environment. Consequently, many seem inclined to avoid stepping into the unknown by making too many changes, especially big ones, in their lives and settle for what is familiar instead. Some might interpret this sort of mentality as fixed.

Protective Instincts

These individuals love deeply and form strong emotional bonds with others, especially their own family members. If they believe that what they think about someone they love is in their best interests, they will stick to their viewpoints. Sometimes, this is regardless of how unreasonable or illogical their ideas and perspectives may be. Understandably, this can cause friction in their personal and professional relationships.

Exceptionally Good Intuition

Cancerians feel deeply and have remarkably good intuition about people and situations. Because of this, they might put their foot down and go with their gut feeling even if this occasionally means going against the wishes of others. For instance, if they belong to a group of friends and someone new joins it, but they sense that they aren’t good natured, they may choose to avoid them.

They naturally pick up on vibes and in some cases, can also predict what will happen down the line. While this might be good for them, their behaviour might be viewed by others as difficult.

To use a personal example, the ex I mentioned earlier here had outstanding intuition. When we broke up he warned me about moving into a particular apartment which he viewed with me. He said he didn’t like the feeling he got from it and he thought that there was something off about the immediate neighbors. I just thought he was being overly cautious or he didn’t truly want me to move out of his place. 

Sadly, I ignored his advice and I moved in anyway. It turned out that he was absolutely spot on about everything. The apartment and block elevator had paranormal activity, and the neighbors frequently played loud music and had disturbing rows which sometimes went on all night long. Suffice it to say, it was a living nightmare and I moved out just three months later. He wasn’t being obstinate; he had just read the atmosphere accurately and still cared enough about me to let me know what he sensed.

Need for Approval From Others

Like a lot of people, Cancerians also like to receive the approval of others. If they feel insecure in themselves, they might want to stick to their guns to affirm to others that they are in fact, confident and assertive. They might need people to see them as being in charge of their lives. In some cases, they might like being admired and respected for having strong convictions. They could perceive others who are easily swayed or are especially open minded as being too meek and consequently lack respect for them.

Issues with Personal Identity

When we make big changes in our lives, no matter what Sun sign we were born under, they have the potential to change our personal identity. Like many people, no matter what their astrological profile looks like, they might not feel like changing their personal identity. They might be comfortable with who they are, where they live, what they do for a living, who they associate with, and so on. Or they might just not enjoy leaving their comfort zone by altering what is familiar to them. This can be viewed as stubbornness by some but I think this is just one way of looking at it.

How Is the Sun Sign Aspected?

The strong presence of Cancer energy in one’s chart may not be the cause of someone’s apparently fixed nature. There are planets in our solar system that astrologers view as being more rigid and regimented than others. These are Saturn, Mars, Uranus and Pluto. If the Sun, which is in the sign of Cancer, forms strong aspects in the chart with one or more of these planets, then this could explain why someone may come across as having a particularly strong-willed nature. This is especially true of square, semi-square and opposition aspects.

My Final Thoughts

So, to wrap things up, while Cancer isn’t known for being especially strong-willed, their loyalty, intuition and depth can just sometimes mean that they dig in their heels — not out of defiance, but out of deep emotion.

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