← Encyclopedia of Astrology · lesson 197/235
Cardinal
The signs
The twelve signs are sorted in two ways: by element (fire, earth, air, water) and by mode or quality — cardinal, fixed and mutable. The cardinal signs are Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn, one of each element, each a square (90°) from the next and an opposition from the third. Together they form what is often called the cardinal cross.
The seasons
The name comes from the Latin cardo, a hinge. Lilly explains it plainly: these signs are called cardinal "because when the Sun enters into any of those Signs from that time we denominate the Quarters of the yeer". The Sun's entry into Aries marks the spring equinox, Cancer the summer solstice, Libra the autumn equinox and Capricorn the winter solstice. (The sign names follow the northern-hemisphere seasons; in the southern hemisphere the same ingresses mark the opposite season, but the turning points are the same.)
The older name is moveable, which Lilly also uses: when the Sun enters Aries or Libra, "the Weather and Season of the Year quickly varies and changes". In horary astrology this gives the cardinal signs a sense of speed: a significator in a moveable sign tends to show matters that happen quickly, are soon begun and soon changed, and Lilly measured the time to an event in days or short units when the testimonies fell in moveable signs and angular houses.
What cardinal inclines toward
Cardinal energy is the energy of beginnings: it initiates, takes the first step and meets life head-on. Each element shows it differently — Aries by direct action, Cancer by protecting and nurturing, Libra by reaching out to others, Capricorn by organising and taking responsibility.
A chart heavy in cardinal signs may incline toward enterprise, ambition, decisiveness and a taste for being where things are happening. The risk is starting more than one finishes, or pushing ahead without waiting for others.
A chart light in cardinal signs may incline toward difficulty getting things moving, a preference for joining what others have started, or waiting for circumstances to force a decision. Often the planets in the chart's other modes, and planets on the angles, show how a person makes up for it.
Patterns
Squares and oppositions usually fall between signs of the same mode, so cardinal planets tend to be linked by hard aspects. A T-square in cardinal signs is read as a drive to act and to resolve tension through initiative — energetic, sometimes impatient. A Grand Cross in cardinal signs, four planets across all four cardinal signs, is read as great pressure to act on several fronts at once, and a large capacity for getting things done.
The cardinal points also matter in mundane astrology: the charts cast for the Sun's ingress into Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn are used to read the coming season for a country.
In the tarot
The Golden Dawn's correspondences, which most English-language decks follow.
Cards of its signs:
- Aries: The Emperor, Two of Wands, Three of Wands, Four of Wands
- Cancer: The Chariot, Two of Cups, Three of Cups, Four of Cups
- Libra: Justice, Two of Swords, Three of Swords, Four of Swords
- Capricorn: The Devil, Two of Pentacles, Three of Pentacles, Four of Pentacles