Along the annual path of the solar cycle, four events distinguish themselves as seasonal reference points. These events are the natural result of the interplay of Earth’s rotation around its axis with its revolution around the Sun. While Earth’s orbit around the Sun occurs on a relatively flat plane, our planet’s axis is tilted so that our Earth’s equator is not parallel with the plane of its orbit. The two equinoxes (in Spring and Autumn) are points of equanimity, when the Earth’s equator receives the most direct angle of sunlight, resulting in roughly equal periods of day and night. The two solstices (in Winter and Summer) are the points of extremity, when the angle of Earth’s equator relative to the Sun’s rays are the most extreme. The solstice in June is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, when the Sun’s path tracks highest in the sky. It is celebrated as the first day of the summer season.
In Astrology, the summer solstice coincides with the Sun’s movement into the sign of Cancer. A water sign, Cancer has been designated as a “feminine” sign, meaning it has receptive qualities. Water is symbolic of our inner knowing, including our emotional makeup, primal intuition, and potential psychic sensibilities. Cancer has long been associated with the Mother principle. The mother’s ability to connect and communicate with her child in pre-speech years provides the iconic image of intuitive ability in the human consciousness. Corresponding with the time of year when the natural environment is swelling with ripening fruit, it is easy to see why our ancestors associated this season in the yearly cycle with the qualities of pregnancy and motherhood.
The symbol for Cancer is the Crab, keeper of the threshold between the sea and the land, water and earth. Although it may not be immediately apparent, this representation also has symbolic ties to the Mother archetype. The developing fetus lives in an aqueous environment, brought into earthly form by way of the Mother. Additionally, the Crab is known for its tough exterior and its soft underbelly, much as the “maternal instinct” implies twin aspects of defense and nurturing. Cancer contains a multi-layered symbolism that is a dense expression of the unity that suffuses our dual reality, for it is in the season that as the Sun reaches its fullest power, so too does the Moon. (For further discussion on this topic, see my Cancer New Moon blog appearing later this week!)
In springtime, the heightening solar energy is fresh and invigorating. In contrast to the inspired and industrious activity of this earlier season, summer affords time to relax and enjoy. The extended daylight hours and warmer temperatures simplify certain aspects ofdaily life. If our season of sowing was well spent, there follows a celebratory respite in which we may watch our intentions organically strengthen their foundations in co-creation with the external world, to blossom authentically into manifestation. In the lunar cycle, the summer solstice corresponds to the full moon--the phase of culmination and completion. With the additional light to our advantage, it is an excellent time for witnessing one’s self and one’s place in relation within the whole of creation. This information is invaluable in helping us to “course correct,” should the manifestation of our efforts not align with our envisioned intention.
Mirroring the movement of the physical Sun, summer is a time when our internal fire is also strong. It is a time that encourages us to both receive and radiate--allowing the light to penetrate our shadow selves to illuminate the internal energetic structures that shape our behaviors. This is the symbolic essence of the Cancerian lessons of the home and heritage--that the clarity and integrity of our inner light emerges from a secure internal foundation, one that houses both healthy channels and sound supports. So exposed, emotions may run high at the time of the summer solstice. Cancer teaches us the importance of feeling these emotions (as she deftly navigates her watery terrain), while maintaining appropriate boundaries (symbolized by her hard shell).
The Summer Solstice provides a container of nurturing in which we may relax in the arms of Mother Nature and embrace the lessons of vulnerability that will lead us to our most authentic self expression. When we embody the mother archetype in relationship with our self, we are able to shine a light on the darkest aspects of our shadow and maintain a compassionate perspective in view of our faults and missteps. By endeavoring to honor this principle, we can approach ourselves with honesty and foster creative solutions to the setbacks we experience, knowing we are fortified by our own internal knowing.