Navigating Relationship Hurdles for Leo and Cancer Ascendants: Key Insights

Difficult Relationship Karma: Leo & Cancer Ascendants

Out of all the 12 ascendants, the two that experience the most challenges when it comes to relationships are Cancer rising sign and Leo rising sign. Why do you ask? Well, let's dig into this.

 

Vedic Astrology Rules

Both Cancer rising sign and Leo rising sign are somewhat similar. Leo never changes their behavior, and Cancer ascendants also find it difficult to change. The reason being is that they are directly connected to our individual soul, which is Leo, and the power of creation, which is Cancer. Both are ruled by the luminaries of the zodiac—the highest spiritualizing agents, which are the Sun and the Moon.

 

Cancer is ruled by the Moon, which is the natural fourth sign & water sign of the zodiac and linked to the principle which sustains us and binds us to our life. It's linked to the Arjuna Chakra, and its primary goal is to take you within yourself. The Moon is considered to be a friend by the Sun, Mars, and Jupiter. Being the ruling planet of Cancer, the Moon is considered to be neutral by Ketu. It's considered to be an enemy by Mercury, Venus, Saturn, and Rahu.

 

In addition, the sixth house for Cancer is Sagittarius, owned by Jupiter. Despite this being his sign, Jupiter is not considered to be a benefic for Cancer, though they don't have an inimical nature as such. Therefore, these five planets cannot be expected to give very good results outrightly for Cancer ascendants and need to be further examined in the birth chart. Whatever is represented by these planets may also be a little bit uncomfortable in life.

 

Mercury particularly hates his father, the Moon, so Mercury-related things can be somewhat distorted. Venus hates the Moon's brand of needy love, so all one-on-one romantic relationships are going to be adversely affected. Saturn, of course, is the worst for the changeable Moon, and here for Cancer, he's in charge of one-on-one partnerships and traumatic changes, represented by the eighth house because it rules the seventh and the eighth house. Rahu can drive him crazy with his endless desires, and Jupiter will expand the karmic sixth house service requirements.

 

Now, what about Leo? Leo is the natural fifth & fire sign of the zodiac. This is a personal connection to the divine spark or the Sahasrara Chakra, the crown chakra, your individual soul, self-ego, confidence, self-creativity, divine knowledge, love affairs, children, and creation of any kind, whether it's your business, project, or child. The Sun is considered to be a friend by the Moon, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Ketu. Being the ruling planet of Leo, the Sun is considered to be an enemy by Venus, Saturn, and Rahu.

 

These three planets cannot be expected to give good results outrightly and need to be further examined. Jupiter and Moon own the eighth and twelfth signs, but these are not their moon signs, which means they are less inclined to harm. However, the Sun considers the Moon, Mars, and Jupiter as friends and Saturn, Venus, and Rahu as enemies, with Mercury and Ketu as neutrals.

 

Mythological Stories

There is sheer power vibrating within the Sun, which exudes vitality and energy. The essence of the personality traits is ultra-radiant, and Leos have a lot of energy at their disposal, particularly if they have a very well-placed Mars. Health is generally good for them, but there is a propensity for heart-related diseases. Leo's analytical process and communication skills are normally high. Leos are usually observant and alert. They can be egoistic, self-centered, and have secrets. They like spending time with their friends. Affairs and long-term relationships are less common as they are not particularly emotional by nature.

 

The Moon rules Cancer, which is their 12th house, so passion and emotion will not interfere overtly with their decisions. Again, you have to see what else is going on in the birth chart. Even after marriage, Leos normally maintain their own separate circle from their spouse. They aspire to higher things, maintain useful contacts, and connect with people who are higher placed than them. They like luxury and can be materialistic by nature, sometimes interested in spiritual stuff, and certainly like a comfortable life. Their attitude, perceptions, and outlook are usually stable. They can be individualistic but quite regal. They are capable of appreciating higher things. They may be materially well-off but tend to want more, whether it's information, knowledge, or intelligence. They are not really gossips but are very observant by nature.

 

Real-Life Stories

 

Now back to Cancer. Cancer ascendants are generally a mix of contradictory attributes owing to the nature of the Moon, the waxing and waning. Analytical processes and the ability to think logically may be compromised here because of the fluctuations of the Moon. There can also be streaks of rebellion and immaturity. The vitality and energy of Cancer is normally good. It's a watery sign. They can be seen to be shy, gentle, and unable to express their innermost feelings. Their constitution is delicate, but they can be prone to bloating or salt imbalances.

 

The Moon itself rules Cancer as the natural fourth house, so passion and emotion will control them to some degree. Their attitude, perceptions, and outlook will always change depending on what is influencing them at the time. They can be encouraging, sympathetic, sensitive, and emotional, and at times high-strung. Like Leos, Cancer-like luxury. Sometimes they are interested in spiritual stuff and also like a comfortable life. There will be unexpected changes in their personality and environment. Cyclical rhythms can be observed, again like the nature of the Moon, because of the waxing and waning movements, giving them a variable nature. They cannot sustain interest in one thing for too long and don't get deep satisfaction from anything. They can live a grossly materialistic life or attain Moksha. They can be fickle-minded and get into a series of affairs. The reason being, Cancer needs love. It's not an equal kind of love, which is more the Venus type of love. It's more of a needy, motherly love. They require support and security, and if they don't get this, they collapse.

 

Leo, on the other hand, is a fire sign. They are very intense. Whatever Leo takes up, they do so with full focus and commitment. They are completely involved in whatever has their attention at the moment and will ignore other aspects of their life. Similar to Cancer, they are unpredictable. They can abandon their interests as suddenly as they took them up. They can be a loyal ally but can abandon friendships if they feel betrayed by someone, and they will not look back. They have an unyielding nature due to Leo being a fixed sign. They do not deeply get involved in other people's affairs, including their own family. All one-on-one relationships can be a source of dissatisfaction to them, similar to Cancer but for different reasons. For Leos, their mates or partners are just not on their level, no matter where they look or how long they search. They just don't match the Leo personality or caliber. For Cancer, they tend to long for things they cannot have, so they always remain dissatisfied internally.

 

The Seventh House

 

Cancer ascendants have the most difficult seventh house out of all the twelve ascendants, and Leos are a close second. Their biggest trauma comes from one-on-one relationships. This can spill over to all one-on-one relationships with family, friends, profession, and business. The ascendants have a similar issue. The basic premise remains the same for both Cancer and Leo. The ascendant lord moves rapidly. For Cancer, the Moon covers one sign in 2.25 days, so the ascendant return is around every 28 days. For Leos, it's a similar story. The Sun covers one sign every month, so the ascendant return is once a year. Whenever the ascendant covers one complete movement around the zodiac, the personality also completes one cycle and noticeably changes. That's the rate of change. The personality and environment for these two ascendant signs are rather high, Cancer being the highest.

 

Now, let's look at the seventh house for both of them. The seventh house for these two ascendants is either Capricorn or Aquarius, both owned by Saturn. Saturn considers both the Sun and Moon his enemy. The slowest moving planet, Saturn completes his round of the zodiac in 30 years, so the partner does not change their basic personality for 30 years and also dislikes sudden changes. This factor alone is sufficient reason for disagreement in partnerships, marriage, or business.

 

The second reason is these two luminaries preside over the highest chakras—the third eye chakra and the crown chakra. The Sun represents the self-ego, and the Moon represents the summary of the present, past, future, and parallel self. Saturn is linked to the lowest chakra, the Muladhara, the root chakra, basic instinct, and basic survival. He is earthly, bound by karma, hard-working, resistant to change, and very sober. With Saturn, the divine spark is dimmed to the lowest denominator. This can lead to love and agreement in the marriage becoming irrelevant, where only duty remains. The person and the spouse can become uncomfortable on internal levels, feeling frustrated and alone in many cases, especially if the person marries before the maturity of Saturn, which is between the ages of 36 and 39. Though I prefer to take 39 as that number, in many cases, if the person marries before this age, true companionship is denied.

 

Both Capricorn and Aquarius are owned by Saturn, but there's a subtle difference between the two. Aquarius is the Mooltrikona sign for Saturn, therefore Saturn is more comfortable here. In other words, the energies represented by Saturn are more easily expressed in Aquarius. So there's a bit of discomfort for Leos but not as much as what's faced by the Cancer ascendant. For Cancer, the seventh house is Capricorn, which can bring a spouse that prefers privacy, is secretive, and never lets on how they feel or what they are doing. They can also be restrictive, unfriendly, attracted to material stuff, serious, rigid, conservative, hard-working, conscious of social structure, sometimes too conscious, and cruel at times. They can be unemotional and indifferent to their emotions. Capricorn is very clear on what it wants and has the determination to get it at any cost. All partnerships and one-on-one relationships for Cancer can have this energy at the core. For a Cancer ascendant, such a spouse can be traumatic, especially if they are not interested in religious or spiritual stuff. In relationships where the material life is a bit dim, but the emotional and spiritual life is supportive, the marriage will have its problems, but mutual sympathy for each other's emotions and faith can help the marriage survive.

 

So then, what about Leos? How is it different for them? Partnerships are ruled by the seventh house, and for them, that's Aquarius. A spouse tends to be hard-working and maybe a bit dull, methodical, and conscious about spending money, calculative, self-centered, and individualistic. This can lead to clashes and incompatibility, and then Leos will stop paying attention to the spouse and start keeping secrets. In any case, Leos don't trust easily and are not made for equal one-on-one partnerships. However, Leo ascendants are generally not unfaithful, so they likely won't have affairs outside of the marriage. They might just shift their focus to other things. Cancer ascendants, on the other hand, can be unfaithful.

Marriage and Karma

 

Now, let's say despite all this, Cancer and Leo decide to get married. Marriage is an experience undertaken to exhaust karma, but you also take on additional karma when you marry someone. You take on the characteristics of his or her seventh house. So, if you're a Cancer ascendant, then this is a Cancer mixed with Capricorn. All the attributes of Cancer are now overlaid with Capricorn—quite passionate, traditional only when convenient, mixing with others only when you want to, and to some extent a bit immature. This is how a Cancer ascendant may behave after marriage as Capricorn gets fully activated. Cancer's own personality becomes very uncomfortable for them, and they start to affect all the relationships with close friends, family, and associates.

 

What about Leos? Leo ascendants also face similar challenges as internally there is a lack of trust, affection, compatibility, and empathy. On the business and professional front, it's better to go it alone rather than with a partner, or choose a partner who is less assertive.

 

Mitigating Relationship Challenges

 

So the question is, with so many challenges connected to relationships and the seventh house, how does one mitigate the challenge and use this seventh house energy? Well, you can get married but do so after the age of 36, and if you can wait, do so after the age of 39. Maintain your own life after marriage career, family, hobbies, interests, and friends. If you cannot rely on the seventh house to boost you and feed you energetically, you need to consider engaging in sadhana on a regular basis. The most important energetic boost is spiritual practice. The seventh house governs spiritual practice as well and your relationship with your higher self. If you are aware that your birth chart is spiritually oriented and you choose to immerse yourself in a spiritual practice, especially pranayama, you are feeding yourself and empowering yourself on all levels. Something on a daily basis, even if it's just for 30 minutes, will help you gain the internal stability to endure the disappointments on the material and emotional levels.

 

For Cancer and Leo ascendants especially, this is important. At the moment, Saturn has returned to his own sign of Capricorn after 30 years and will move next to Aquarius. These five years are going to be very crucial for Cancer and Leo ascendants. If the person is more than 36 years of age, then this will not be as difficult as maturity has set in. Whatever path you commit to now will be difficult to revisit in the future as it will be powered by the irreversible Saturn in Capricorn power. This may have implications for the remaining and next lives, especially true at present for Cancer Lagnas.

 

For Cancer, the lord of the seventh and eighth, which is Saturn, is in the seventh house, which is Capricorn, and later will shift to the eighth house, which is Aquarius. This could result in deep changes in personality and environment as the psyche will change. This time period has to be navigated with some care and reflection. For Leo, the sixth and seventh lord is in the sixth house and later goes into the seventh house. This could have a variable effect on Leo's karmic requirements of service and work. However, as the lord of the seventh is in the sixth, this will mean that one-on-one partnerships will have karmic repercussions, similar to Cancer. So it’s an opportunity to either create new karma or choose to dissolve the root of karma itself.

 

The question is, will this happen in this lifetime or not? This is your own choice and your own free will. But if the horoscope is spiritual in its orientation and you've chosen the spiritual path at birth, then you will be able to see the big picture and not get bogged down by the disappointment of one-on-one relationships. The supreme possibility of self-realization is very active for Cancer and Leo ascendants more than any other ascendants. So this is a very big blessing for both of these Lagnas.

 

Saturn, the seventh lord, is malefic. Venus, the agent of desire, is malefic. Jupiter, the benevolent benefic, cannot be counted upon. Mercury shows his immature analytical processes. Rahu and Ketu are unpredictable. But Yogakaraka Mars supports these two ascendants fully and completely. Personal courage, determination to conquer, pioneering spirit, strength to fight, ability to strategize, power to control prana, wake the kundalini, and ultimately attain Moksha—all is possible with the help of this Mars. Of course, the entire horoscope needs to be seen, and as usual, if the person chooses, because free will will always prevail.

 

Try to understand your purpose in life. If you are a Cancer or Leo ascendant, you've chosen the highest luminaries as your ascendant owners. Why did you do this? Reflect on this. I'm going to leave you with that thought.

 

That's all for now, folks. Watch the full video.