The Sun in astrology, as in our solar system, represents the central organizing principle. It’s the light that everything revolves around, and without it, we wouldn’t be here. Similarly in our lives, the Sun sign that we were born with represents the way that we express our life force. When it is not supported, our light can metaphorically burn out, leading to things like fatigue, boredom, apathy, depression, and lacking desire and motivation.

While there is much more to astrology than just your Sun sign (you can read about a few of the other planets here), it’s very helpful to get to know the qualities of your Sun and what it needs. As a representation of your vital life force, your conscious will to evolve and engage with the world, and your soul’s purpose in this lifetime, it’s pretty important to get to know!  

The 12 Signs - Aries through Pisces

There are 12 versions of solar expression, all with their own nuances as we explore which house the Sun is located in and which other planets it is interacting with—making it much more than just 12 expressions—but the basic quality will still be present and need to express itself in some way. This expression of this is easier and more obvious for some than others, and the reasons for that can typically be understood by taking in the rest of the details of the birth chart. 

Below is a list of basic keywords and concepts for each of the 12 signs to give you a starting place to begin thinking about your Sun sign and how it shows up in your life. I’ve included both the high potentials and some of the more challenging ones, so please don’t be offended! Not all of it will resonate for you—take what does and leave what doesn’t. This is by no means a complete list as there are many layers to each one, so feel free to just use this as a jumping-off point.

♈️ Aries — Cardinal Fire

Keywords: Leader; pioneer; courage; bold; brave; assertive; trailblazer; headstrong; impatient; impulsive; fights for the underdog; freedom; energetic, decisive, risk-taking, independent, initiator or instigator; the warrior.

Learning about: How to take courageous action; meeting challenges head-on; managing the impulse to ‘shoot first aim second’; proper use of force and anger. 

Be cautious of: Being too impulsive; taking action without thinking of the consequences; being overly headstrong or independent; fighting yourself instead of fighting for a cause.  

Needs in order to thrive: Something to fight for; challenges to face; independence and freedom; passion for life.

♉️ Taurus — Fixed Earth 

Keywords: Stability; simplicity; grounded; practical; sensual; pleasure; nurturing; slow/resistant to change; stubborn; stamina; steadiness; focused on material resources; possessive; controlling.

Learning about: Being in your body and responding to body wisdom; establishing a sense of personal value independent of anyone or anything else; enjoying the simplicity of life through the five senses. 

Be cautious of: Being overly stubborn and resistant to change; digging your heels in and staying stuck; being controlling and possessive of things or people.

Needs in order to thrive: A stable environment; a solid sense of self-worth; access to financial and other material resources; pleasure and simplicity.

♊️ Gemini — Mutable Air

Keywords: Communication; curious; intellectual; logical; changeable; dualistic; always in motion; quick witted; talkative; connection through language and ideas; flighty; flaky; the writer; the speaker; the translator. 

Learning about: How to balance talking and listening; focus and clarity; opening up beyond the realm of facts; how to process and communicate their knowledge to others. 

Be cautious of: Talking for the sake of talking; being scattered and unfocused; gossip; getting too stuck in your own mind; anxiety and an over-active nervous system.  

Needs in order to thrive: Connection and communication with others; sharing ideas and information; to always be learning something.

♋️ Cancer — Cardinal Water

Keywords: Nurturing; protective; sensitive; emotional; intuitive; caring; warm; guarded; moody; ambitious; family oriented; cyclical; nostalgic; the great mother; the caregiver. 

Learning about: How to nurture themselves and not just everybody else; letting go of the past; emotional intuition; opening their heart. 

Be cautious of: Closing yourself off to avoid being hurt; putting everyone else’s needs ahead of your own; emotional eating; holding on to past pain / being stuck in the past. 

Needs in order to thrive: Someone or something to take care of; to be surrounded by people that feel safe; regular emotional outlets; a safe space to retreat to.

♌️ Leo — Fixed Fire 

Keywords: Creative; heart-centred; authentic self-expression; dignified; regal; passionate; warm; radiant; generous; inner-child; self-involved; dramatic; the performer. 

Learning about: How to express themselves from a heart-centred place; confidence; how to validate their own self-worth. 

Be cautious of: Being too self-involved; relying on the approval of others to validate your worth; allowing fears of rejection to stop you from being you. 

Needs in order to thrive: To live from the heart and shine your light on others as well as yourself; creative outlets; to be seen and recognized for your gifts. 

♍️ Virgo — Mutable Earth

Keywords: Refinement; mind-body connection; health-focused; discernment; practical; humility; helpful; desire to be of service; ordered; analytical; detail-oriented; perfectionist; critical; doubting; the craftsperson; the yogi.

Learning about: Managing perfectionism, self-doubt and criticism; being of service in a meaningful way; taking care of their body and mind as a spiritual act.

Be cautious of: Being overly critical towards self and/or others; analysis paralysis; crippling self-doubt; getting bogged down in the details. 

Needs in order to thrive: To feel helpful and to be doing meaningful work in the world; a sense of order in your world; knowing that your efforts are enough.

♎️ Libra — Cardinal Air

Keywords: Partnership; balance; harmony; beauty; creativity; justice; equality; fairness; communication; diplomatic; people-pleasing; indecisive; conflict-averse; the peacekeeper; the mediator; the lawyer.

Learning about: Maintaining balance and harmony through experiences of disharmony; communication and equality in relationships; when and how to put themselves first; saying no. 

Be cautious of: Being people-pleasing to your own detriment; caring too much what others think; inability to make decisions for yourself; shrinking and avoiding conflict to keep others happy. 

Needs in order to thrive: Companionship and open communication; a sense of fairness in your relationships; aesthetically pleasing environments; supportive people to bounce your myriad of ideas off of; possibly needs artistic outlets. 

♏️ Scorpio — Fixed Water

Keywords: Passionate; intense; resilient; calculated; strategic; deep; secretive; guarded; skeptical; ‘still waters run deep’; determined; patient; obsessive; possessive; death-rebirth cycles; the detective.

Learning about: Boundaries; letting go; forgiveness; patience; emotional depth; power dynamics in relationships; sharing resources with others; ego deaths and rebirths. 

Be cautious of: Possessiveness and obsessive tendencies; holding on too tight; being overly skeptical; lashing out; bottling up emotions. 

Needs in order to thrive: Passion projects; deep connections; emotional outlets; interesting topics to explore the depths of.

♐️ Sagittarius — Mutable Fire

Keywords: Adventure; exploration; freedom; knowledge & truth-seeking; expansion; optimism; resilience; travel; faith; goal and future-oriented; restless; reckless; difficulty staying in one place; the philosopher; the guru. 

Learning about: How to treat life as an exploration and allowing yourself to make mistakes along the way; how to balance trust and faith with practicality; cultivating the experience of freedom in everyday life; dealing with disappointment.

Be cautious of: Never being able to stick to anything and put your big visions into action; self-righteousness; dogmatism; adventure-seeking to fill a void.

Needs in order to thrive: To feel free; travel or exploration of different topics; adventure and inspiration; to be able to share your knowledge and wisdom with others.

♑️ Capricorn — Cardinal Earth

Keywords: Practical; disciplined; resourceful; responsibility; maturity; structure; building things over time; high achiever; gets shit done; awareness of limits; restriction; ambitious; gets better with age; attention to the rules; rigid; boundaries; serious; ability to do without; the CEO; the minimalist; the builder. 

Learning about: How to balance work and play; honouring limits and need for solitude; being easy on themselves; that productivity is not a measure of self-worth; responsibility and maturity.  

Be cautious of: Being overly rigid and serious; all work and no play; being self-denying; ambition in the pursuit of power; believing you can’t rest until you’re dead.  

Needs in order to thrive: Something to consistently work towards and put out into the world; structure in your daily life; support, so you don’t have to do everything yourself (even though you want to reject that support!)

♒️ Aquarius — Fixed Air

Keywords: Innovative; forward thinking; visionary; intellectual; logical; detached; remote; curious; progress oriented; calm, cool & collected; socially conscious; aware of the group; humanitarianism; the everyman; the inventor. 

Learning about: How to work within systems to create equity; patience with those that don’t share your viewpoints; balancing intellectualism and emotions. 

Be cautious of: Stubborn or rigid thinking; refusing to change your mind; becoming too detached from emotions; feelings of alienation.

Needs in order to thrive: Intellectual pursuits; ideas and systems to explore; to work towards the betterment of the whole group; to communicate your ideas with others.

♓️ Pisces — Mutable Water

Keywords: Creative; boundary-less; intuitive; imaginative; empathetic; sensitive to suffering; escapism; transcendence; psychic; desire to merge; surrender; allowing; being of service; the dreamer; the mystic; the healer.

Learning about: Boundaries; allowing; surrendering; how to stay grounded; belonging to oneself; unconditional love and compassion; divine healing. 

Be cautious of: Victim mentality; powerlessness; escapist tendencies; losing yourself in another or an ideal; martyrdom.

Needs in order to thrive: Spiritual connection; a big vision; to be of service in some way; creative or spiritual outlets.