In astrology, Mars represents how we need to pursue what we want in order to be effective. Ideally, your Mars needs to be spending most of its time in a state of focused action (the Hunter mode) to bring you closer to your goals. In reality, it’s likely that you also experience Mars as frustration and anger in your daily life. In this article we’ll explore the angry side of Mars in your horoscope and how it may uniquely express itself in your life.
Mars and the Cause of Anger
The primal purpose of anger is that of protecting your life. A baby first begins to express anger when its need for nourishment and nurturing is not met – at this stage, anger is a cry for physical and emotional survival. A little later in life, the ego also begins to feel and express anger in order to protect its identity. Astrologically speaking, these two causes of anger could correspond with Mars attempting to protect your Sun (identity & will) and Moon (physical & emotional need).
So your natal Sun and Moon may give us a clue as to what makes you angry (the ‘why‘), whereas your Mars placement represents how the anger tends to be expressed and managed. We’ll briefly go over the 12 signs in relation to ‘why’ and ‘how’ we get angry.
Mars Sign and Anger
Mars in Aries: “I get angry when YOU get in my way of doing what I want.” Here the anger will be expressed in highly confrontational, competitive terms in order to prove its supremacy. Mars in this sign is highly combustible, and anger converts itself into action quickly.
Mars in Taurus: “I get angry when you threaten to destroy my peace and control.” Taurus values order and equanimity, so it tries to minimize upsets in daily life. Compared to hotheaded Aries, it takes a lot more accumulation of frustration to make Taurus angry. When Mars in Taurus does finally decide to express its anger, we can expect formidable stubbornness that refuses to be pushed around.
Mars in Gemini: “I get angry when you don’t appreciate my wit and intelligence.” Air signs in general are a little too detached to hold on to anger for long. Anger tends to be converted into criticism and rationalization that leads to the feeling of social/intellectual superiority. Mars in Gemini would be quite articulate in pointing out the flaws of the offender, perhaps to the point of being sarcastic or witty.
Mars in Cancer: “I get angry when you don’t make me feel safe.” Sensitive and yet assertive at the same time, Cancer will not shy away from expressing anger when its emotional security is threatened. As the archetypal mothering sign, the protectiveness of Cancer extends to its family members, as well as larger groups it considers its own.
Mars in Leo: “I get angry when you don’t love and respect me.” Here the ego demands acknowledgement for its importance. Leo hates being ignored or taken for granted, and needs to work hard to earn the applause it craves. When its pride is hurt, Mars in Leo expresses anger in a dramatic, commanding manner that refuses to be disobeyed.
Mars in Virgo: “I get angry when things are not up to my standard.” As logical and rational as it is humble, Virgo, unlike Leo, doesn’t get too caught up in its own importance. What frustrates Virgo, however, is when things are not done “right.” Often there is an underlying perfectionism that is relentless when offended. Mars in Virgo can be devastatingly critical, both against itself and others.
Mars in Libra: “I get angry when you act unfairly and don’t appreciate me.” Being in the Air element, Libra is not a sign that is easily angered. Because of its highly developed social awareness, Libra instinctively tries to avoid confrontation unless absolutely necessary. In confrontation, Mars in Libra would evaluate its position in terms of fairness and justice, in order to establish a moral high ground and win others’ support.
Mars in Scorpio: “I get angry when you threaten to make me look weak or unimportant.” Scorpio seeks security through power and control (including self-control), and will fight back if anyone dares to make light of its importance. Mars in Scorpio can be icy cold in its anger, hiding its deadly sting until the crucial moment.
Mars in Sagittarius: “I get angry when you don’t respect what I have to say.” In Sagittarius, the ego asserts itself through strong opinions. The mind has to work hard in order to earn the right to be heard. Mars in Sagittarius will fight with full conviction of its moral/intellectual position.
Mars in Capricorn: “I get angry when you get in the way of my plans.” Controlled and mature Capricorn tends to remain objective in the face of frustration. If anger gets in the way of its ambition, it’ll be “managed” (just like any other obstacles in its path.) Mars in Capricorn tends to convert anger into decisive, productive action so that a progress will be made regardless.
Mars in Aquarius: “I get angry when you try to tell me what I can or can’t do.” A fixed air sign, Aquarius is probably the most emotionally detached sign among the zodiac. Because of this, it genuinely has a hard time getting in touch with any emotion, including anger. Mars in Aquarius tends to have an awesome array of intellectual rationales to justify its anger.
Mars in Pisces: “I get angry when you threaten to destroy my ideals.” Often idealistic to a fault, Pisces does not appreciate it when you mock or deny its beautiful vision. Mars in Pisces requires the fortification of ideals – otherwise it won’t be able to fight except through covert sabotage.
Mars Aspect and Anger: Additional Consideration
Mars Saturn aspect suggests the need to control one’s anger, so that its expression is tempered with wisdom.
Mars Uranus aspect intensifies the volatility of anger, and can lead to highly disruptive expressions.
Mars Neptune aspect suppresses the anger somewhat, so that it comes out sideways or not at all.
Mars Pluto aspect suggests extreme force added to the anger, which may be expressed as violent rage.
The Danger of Unexpressed Anger
Mars in 12th house suggests “hidden anger”, and retrograde Mars often indicates internal censoring and suppression of anger. Fixed signs may hold on to their anger for too long without expressing them.
In these and other cases, unexpressed anger tends to make us less emotionally expressive, and tends to invite emotional isolation. Often such anger has been carried for a long time since early childhood, and will be directed against partner, spouse or children that do not deserve it. Anger turned inward can also lead to anxiety and depression.
Yet another expression of hidden anger is that you tend to attract anger from other people in your home life – some marriage counselors say that your spouse could be acting the anger out for you.
Looking at Mars in Your Horoscope
Looking at your natal Mars placement, what does it suggest regarding how and why you feel anger? How do you manage the energy so that it is constructive? Please feel free to share your thoughts or experience through email or comment.
Related article: Mars in 12 Houses
I totally agree with all that you said about angry Mars placements! What can one do to release anger without hurting anybody, myself included? I feel stupid for asking but I don’t know what is playing up as my Mars in Libra with Saturn Pluto and Jupiter in 6th house, besides feeling repressed & unjust, it also shaped my long depressive tendency and often lose my grounds when facing off with close family with Mars in Leo conjunct MC and another Mars in Taurus conjunct Sun and Mercury in 3rd house. [I could never win, because fairness do not exist in their book.]
Hi Wen, overcoming this kind of long-established emotional pattern is not easy but definitely possible. Often it’s within the realm of therapy where you can dive deeply into this journey with a non-judgmental, supportive professional.
Hello,
Great article…learnt a lot.!
I have a Mars in Virgo which makes it very difficult for me to express my anger and take charge of the situation….how can I efficiently channel my anger/in what ways.? Guidance regarding that would be very helpful…thanks. Also I BADLY need someone to advise m on how to outmanoeuver a Mars in Scorpio and their mind games. A Mars in Scorpio has decided to target me now…and I am coping with it quite well…but I still need to beat them once and for all…coz they are getting on my nerves now. THANKS AGAIN.Do reply xoxo :)
Hi there, one way to channel the Mars energy, especially when you have an active mind, is to study something deeply on a consistent basis. It takes discipline, but your mental muscle will start to build. This is one way for a mental (Virgo) Mars to be constructively directed. As for arguing, think about how you want to feel after a conversation…If you come from anger, it tends to feel worse after an argument regardless of outcome.
Hiroki — you are right-on — and delightful, humble and knowledgeable.
Thank you so much,
A Leo + Mars conjunct Moon on Cancer Ascendant.
Thank you Lynn, glad you enjoyed the article!
Hello Hiroki!
I have just come through a progressed Mercury square natal Mars aspect. My Natal Mars is in Scorpio, 12th house house, while my progressed Mercury is in Aquarius, 4th house. The anger in my every day communications was hard to control during this period. Was I expressing that fixed sign hidden anger, that I have held on to since my childhood?
Hi Peter, that could be the case – this is a worthwhile question to ponder during a period of self-introspection…
Hello Hiroki Niizato
What is your take on Mars retrograde in the natal chart? Something interesting about my son and is that we share a large amount of natal chart aspects.
Moon in Aquarius bi-quintile sun
Mars retrograde in fourth house and mars opposite sun
Sun in ninth house (just before mid heaven cusp)
Hi Jasmine, Mars retrograde tends to hold energies in before letting it out. In terms of anger it can make direct expressions complicated. For a full analysis of yours or your son’s horoscope, please consider scheduling a private consultation.
Thanks for you article Hiroki! It’s a bit hard to find good information about Mars in signs. If Mars in Cancer is passive aggressive, would having it in Aries Point (0 degree) make it more aggressive?
Hi Luke,
Not sure if I agree with the statement about Mars in Cancer being passive aggressive – although it can be one of its possible expressions if being angry was not ‘okay’ in the early family environment.
With Mars on Aries Point, you can probably expect a more assertive behavior for sure.
both my son and I have Mars in 12th House.
His is an exact conjunct with the Moon (and also a very loose conjunct with Saturn) all 3 are in Virgo – he’s only 2 years old – so not sure how this will develop in him.
For though, Mars is in Scorpio, it has meant I repress my angry – a lot. And use food to keep my anger repressed.
I’d like to learn more about how to help myself and my son from repressing anger – as I don’t want him to go through the same experiences of repressing anger than I have lived with.
For many years I was a complete alien to the concept of anger. I have very tight grand fire trine between Mars Moon and Mercury. It’s a place of Nirvana. No anger ever. And then I met my wife, Her Mars opposing my Sun and her Sun squaring my Mars. So now I have the chance to get to know this feeling.
Just wanted to share that sometimes actually we attract the feelings that we lack to experience.
I like “I get angry when you don’t respect what I have to say.” but for Sags I would suggest: “How dare you not acknowledging that I have made that experience, and that there is a seed of truth right there.”
Much Love!
Thanks a lot for sharing some v practical wisdom on this subject.
I love Mars and exploring it so thanks for your work. My Mars is conjunct my Moon exactly in Scorpio in the 3rd house and I have spent much time trying to know what this is about, but am always intrigued as I learn and understand more about this placement – my anger, my mother, my way of moving about in the world and thinking about it. When I was younger there was extreme depression as my emotional world got turned inwards – to express anger in an emotional way was way too frightening for anybody to cope with – and I never wanted to hurt anyone, so I became a master at hurting my self. Then I had some incredible experiences one day when I was living in the countryside and was taught by nature that intensity of feeling might be able to be hidden from humans, but never from the sensitivities and oneness of nature. Let me know if you want to hear the story.
Thanks again Hiroki
Thank you for sharing your experience. And usually these feelings don’t stay hidden from people closest to us.
Hi Hiroki,
The Mars in Leo description is perfect. Thank you!
Great!
Hiroki:
I enjoyed your article about Mars very much. It is interesting that Mars’s two satellites are named after Greek Gods Phobos and Deimos, in translation Fear and Terror, respectively. Mars evokes anger and the necessary push forward. The public can therefore experience fear and terror radiating from a person full of anger. Having Mars in a mutable sing and mutable house my anger comes quickly and spreads out to many areas, yet diminishes within short moments. However, it is always misunderstood due to Neptune’s close touch to the natal Mars, and comes out rather in a comic way. People think I am joking, or just playing being angry, while I express the anger energies.
Sincerely,
Csilla
Interesting! Thank you very much.