In astrology we discuss the sun signs, which represents the ego or the outer personality—but what astrologers often fail to mention is the existence of the inner child, the earth signs.
In earth sign astrology, the earth sign is the mirror image of the sun sign—it is everything we are on the inside that makes us develop into our sun sign.
You may notice that as a child, you were more your earth sign than you were your sun sign. Your earth sign rules your inner self—the deepest and most hurt parts of you, and this is the inner child that the sun sign tries to protect.
In psychology we discuss the inner child often. Inner child work is key to understanding the outer psyche, but what we don’t discuss is how our inner children often differ, and how some peoples are more protected than others.
Remember that if you have other placements in the same sign, or conjunct to your earth sign, your inner child is going to be more prevalent and less protected in your personality. If your earth sign stands alone in your chart, then it is likely that only you know about it—and you protect it at all costs.
It is important to remember that earth signs are in the same degrees as sun signs, but in the opposite sign. This is similar to the ascendant and descendant, which represent how you appear to the world and what you expect from others, the midheaven and IC which represent the public self and the childhood stressors, and the north and south node, which represent the past and future selves.
Similar to these polarities, when looking at earth sign astrology, the earth signs and the sun signs show the inner children and the adult egos that develop to protect these children.
Related:
Earth Signs In The Signs:
Here are all 12 earth signs through the signs of the zodiac. Remember that each of these earth signs sits in the opposite sign from the person’s sun.
Aries Earth Sign
If you have your sun in Libra, that means that your earth sign is in Aries in the opposite house from where your sun is.
In earth sign astrology, having an Aries earth sign means that your inner child is rambunctious, energetic, and wild. As a child, you likely had an un-tamable mentality, liked sports and games, and were often immature and selfish.
Aries earth sign children are the ones who, when they dislike the way the game is going, take their ball and walk away so that the other children cannot play anymore. They like things to be their way, and will not settle for less—especially in early childhood.
They were the boss of their friend groups and often did not develop emotionally until later on. They love sports and competitive activities, but care less about winning than they do attention and glory.
As they develop into adulthood, Aries earth sign people likely still feel this way on the inside. Aries earth signs might have a hard time empathizing with people in the real world, and still want things to be the way they want them.
This often caused them pain in childhood, as people would have viewed them as selfish and unmanageable. This kind of pain caused the Aries earth sign to “other” this part of themselves and become more Libran on the outside.
The Libra Adult
The Aries earth sign developed Libran qualities of peaceableness, acceptance, and tolerance to help temper their true Arian nature.
Aries earth sign people become more easy-going, relaxed, and often struggle with decision making because they do not want to come across as overbearing or hostile, the way they did in childhood.
However, the inner child is the true nature—the Aries earth sign inner child still longs to be let out to play every once in a while, so it is important to let them have their turn calling the shots and making decisions.
Taurus Earth Sign
If your sun is in Scorpio, this means that you have a Taurus earth sign in the same degree, but the opposite house.
In Earth sign astrology, the Taurus earth sign child is stubborn, fixed and rigid. They like their home life, probably hate going to school and leaving their home, and don’t want to make too many friends.
The Taurus earth sign is extremely loyal to the family and friends that they do have, but they have a difficult time in disagreements because they cannot admit their wrongdoings, especially as a young child.
The Taurus earth sign child is not very emotionally developed in youth, but they have a strong sense of morality and can often be judgmental to others when they lapse in morals. As they mature, they develop rapidly emotionally, and use this sensitive side to protect their inner child, which may still be judgmental, though the adult would never show it.
They are rigid and not at all easy-going. These children find one thing that they like to play with, and this becomes their favorite thing. They are the same throughout childhood, never really changing their identity or experimenting with new things.
This is the kind of child that, if they did not want to go somewhere in the first place, they will not leave the car and go in—and would rather throw a fit than do what others want. As the Taurus earth sign develops into the Scorpio adult, they are less rigid, although they likely still have that inner part of them that does not want to go.
Most importantly, the Taurus earth sign child is very vain. They likely judge themselves and others based on looks and possessions. Who has the best toys, is the best at sports, and has the most friends, is very important to this person. This can lead to feelings of inadequacy in the Taurus earth sign child as they begin to feel like they don’t add up in these areas.
The Taurus child often felt stuck in their life due to their home-bound nature and this caused them significant pain. As an adult, the Scorpio sun will look for thrilling experiences that take them out of the comfort zone as a means to push back against their nature.
The Scorpio Adult:
The Scorpio sun person may struggle with vanity issues in life, although they are much kinder to others than they are to themselves. The judgments they made in childhood may follow them into adulthood, as the Taurus earth sign inner child tells them that they are still not good enough.
This may lead the Scorpio sun to seek validation through sex, aggression, exercise, and anger. It is important that after these experiences, the Scorpio sun person can retreat back into their inner child and have some alone time.
Gemini Earth Sign
In earth sign astrology, having a Sagittarius sun means that you have the earth sign in Gemini in the opposite house, but the same degree.
The Gemini earth sign child is very playful, easy-going, and talkative. They are chatty with strangers, and probably developed language skills very early in childhood. Every person they encounter, they care deeply for—they see all people as valuable and necessary.
As a child, they may have been scolded for “talking too much,” and people may have found them annoying to be around. This energy translated into developing the Sagittarius sun, which protects them from those people who did not care about them in return.
The Gemini earth sign child was open and vulnerable to the world, believing that If they could just be nice to everyone then the world would be a better place. They picked up on the art of small talk, and were likely nice to everyone at school, making them well liked in many instances.
However, as they got older, this chatty nature made them less liked. As things began to get complicated and cliques began to form, the Gemini earth sign child did not know where they fit, so they became somewhat of a drifter and began to develop the qualities of the Sagittarius adult.
The Sagittarius adult protects this inner Gemini earth sign child by focusing on the big picture rather than each unique conversation with the individual.
The Gemini earth sign inner child is so enthralled and vulnerable to the world that they make every conversation the most important one they ever had, and cannot take anything with a grain of salt.
The Sagittarius Adult:
As an adult, the Sagittarius sun person only takes what works for them. They rarely rely on other people’s information or opinions, though they are open to hearing them all. The Sagittarius sun person focuses on the greater meaning of things rather than each single person, which helps their Gemini earth sign inner child to not be so hurt by the things people say.
It is important for the Sagittarius adult to not cut out their inner child too much—the Gemini earth sign inner child gives them compassion for the world around them, and is the fundamental reason that they are the way they are.
Cancer Earth Sign
When the sun is in Capricorn, that indicates that the earth sign is in Cancer in the same degrees, but the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the cancer earth sign child is extremely sensitive to the world around them. They likely empathize with everyone and everything including animals, other families, and even their own parents.
The Cancer earth sign child has the rare capability of parenting in early childhood—meaning that they may provide support to siblings or even parents or caretakers. People often perceive this Cancer earth sign child as “too soft and sensitive,” as they cry over a lot of things and can be very hurt by the world.
Cancer earth signs likely preferred home life to school, as they found other children mean and abrasive. The Cancer earth sign child was incapable of deciphering whether something was true or not, so when someone said something mean to them, they believed it wholeheartedly and took it to heart.
The Capricorn Sun:
The Capricorn sun adult attempts to objectively look at the world and see whether people are good or bad. They protect the sensitive inner child earth signs by providing a tough exterior, staying strong in the face of hurt, and providing structure so that they do not “over-give”.
The Capricorn adult likely still feels like the Cancer earth sign on the inside—and when they begin to feel over-sensitive, they attempt to go back to the cold and stoic nature of the Capricorn to protect the inner child from those distressing feelings.
What the ego doesn’t understand is that the inner child is affected, regardless of how cold and stoic the Capricorn sun is in the face of adversity. The child still feels all the pain and hurt, so rather than protecting the child by remaining cold to the world, the Capricorn sun should attempt to find ways to soothe the child and help it to deal with those emotions.
The Cancer earth sign inner child is one of the most difficult placements to have, as it represents the softness and vulnerability that comes with childhood, while the Capricorn sun represents the outer layer of protection developed in adulthood.
Leo Earth Sign
People with their suns in Aquarius also have their earth signs in Leo in exact degrees, but in the opposite house.
The Leo earth sign child is playful, excited, dramatic, and indulgent in life. They may want to be the star of their family, or innately feel like they are the star. They crave love and attention at an early age, but it is likely that this is the cause of their pain—leading them to become more Aquarian in nature.
In earth sign astrology, the Leo earth sign represents a very playful and outgoing child. They were cheerful, fun, and adventurous— and were very independent from a young age.
They did not need a lot from the people around them to feel important—the Leo earth sign child knew they were important regardless of what others thought.
The Leo earth sign focused a lot on personal relationships. They put everything they had into their relationship with their parents, their siblings, and their very close friends, and unfortunately, this kind of love and adoration was not always returned.
The Leo earth sign child looked at their parents as superheroes, and when the parents did not live up to this expectation, the Leo earth sign child was extremely hurt. It is likely that with this placement, there was some kind of wealth or status issue in the child’s early life which led to a lot of pain and heartache.
Ultimately, the Leo inner child gave their love, compassion, and admiration to many people that did not return the favor. This caused great pain in their life, which led them to develop more detached “Aquarian” qualities.
The Aquarius Adult:
The Aquarius suns attempt to protect their earth signs, or inner children, by remaining detached from relationships and loved ones, and focusing less on intimate bonds and more on objective experiences.
The Aquarius adult feels that getting too close to someone, and relying on them too much, may only lead to pain and anguish.
However, on the inside, they still feel these feelings when someone does not return the love they know they deserve. The Aquarius adult protects the inner child by trying to look at things objectively rather than emotionally, but often to no avail as the inner child is still hurt by the world around them.
Virgo Earth Sign
Pisces sun people have their earth signs in Virgo in the same degrees, but the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the Virgo earth sign person likely grew up in a very rigid or judgmental household. The rules of the world mattered a lot and there was a great focus on perfection and living up to the expectations of the parent—which the child never felt they could accomplish.
The Virgo earth sign child probably struggled with self-image as a child and could be extremely judgmental and critical of themselves and others. Virgo earth signs are likely to notice the smallest details about people, and, especially in childhood, they point out these details.
While this overly critical nature is something they learned through their life experiences and from their parents, it does not bode well with peers and friends. This judgmental attitude leads to wounding in the Virgo earth sign child as people begin to shun them and turn away from them for being unkind—even if the Virgo earth signs believed they were helping.
The Virgo earth sign inner child is also very judgmental of themselves (as well as of others) because of this perceptive nature. They learn to despise themselves for rather insignificant details and they believe that anything less than perfection is unacceptable.
As life goes on, this attitude causes Virgo earth signs nothing but pain—they have to learn to embrace a more Piscean outlook to protect themselves.
The Pisces Adult
As the Virgo earth sign child develops into the Pisces sun adult, they begin to put a shield over this nature. This shield develops into empathy and kindness; they start to focus less on the rigid details of life and more on the bigger picture.
Deep down, the inner Virgo earth sign child still exists. The Pisces sun person may find themselves being overly judgmental and critical of people around them, only to reel back in their true nature and cover it with a mask of acceptance and approval.
This Virgo earth sign child may come out in the form of humor every now and again in the Pisces adult person. Pisces sun sign folks have quick wit and can be detail oriented in their humor. When they make these strikingly perceptive jokes and comments, this is their inner child surfacing and having some fun with their true nature.
While it is important for survival that the Virgo earth sign inner child is protected from the world, the Pisces sun person may be too afraid to let this child out to play that they allow other things control their nature instead. They may turn to alcohol, drugs, or depression to try to suppress this critical inner nature.
Libra Earth Sign
People with the sun in Aries have their earth signs in Libra in the same degrees and opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, people with the Libra earth sign just wanted peace as a child. They would have done anything to make the people around them happy, and in doing so, likely gave up their sense of self or what they wanted as children.
These were the kinds of children who were “over-sharers.” Libra earth signs never took the toys they wanted to play with if they thought it would cause a fuss with another child. The worst thing for a Libra earth child was a fight—this meant they had failed.
These children are deeply sympathetic and caring for others, and believe in justice and loyalty. They feel guilt more strongly than other children, and it is likely that in youth the Libra earth sign felt either guilt or shame surrounding most of their actions.
The Libra earth sign child was soft and agreeable. In youth, they were the glue of the family, keeping everyone together and giving up anything necessary to keep the family unit. This, of course, is the source of their pain.
The Libra earth child had to learn that life is not fair and equal, and that sometimes, people want power for the sake of wanting it. Their guilt about hurting other people became so prevalent that, if they had allowed it to, it would have swallowed them whole. Libra earth sign children had to learn at a very young age that they could not make everyone happy—but this hurt them deeply.
In learning this lesson, Libra earth sign children needed to develop qualities of the Aries sun adult in order to become less sensitive to the world.
On an inner level, they likely still feel guilt associated with their perception of others’ emotions. In order to do what they must in life, they had to learn to separate from these emotions and focus on themselves. In this sense, the Aries sun person was developed.
The Aries Adult:
The Aries sun person appears selfish on the outside—sometimes rash and rude, but that is only because the inner child is feeling guilty and inadequate. These Arian qualities were developed to protect the Libra earth sign on the inside, though they can be very helpful.
Aries sun people are still extremely loyal and loving deep down, and if you do not make them feel guilty, they will likely let out their Libra passive nature which is intuitive and caring.
Scorpio Earth Sign
If you have your sun sign in Taurus, then you have your earth in Scorpio in exact degrees but in the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the Scorpio earth sign person was extremely soft and sensitive in youth. They likely went wherever they were told, played with extreme imagination, and appeared vulnerable to their parents and those around them.
Scorpio earth sign children are very malleable and transformative in youth. They likely go through many phases, never being too attached to one thing—but they fully throw themselves into a different identity or phase.
The Scorpio earth sign child may appear to be very psychic in youth, experiencing situations and phenomenon’s that would not likely occur to others. Because of this experience, they probably do not mind alone time—they are never really alone and have many imaginary friends to play with.
In youth, the Scorpio earth sign’s parents probably took them anywhere and everywhere and they may not have felt that they had a solid basis of what “home” was. This may have led them to feel less important than other family members, as they were so easy-going and felt that it was being taken advantage of.
Scorpio earth sign children are extremely open and vulnerable and may cry easily when hurt either physically or emotionally. People may have judged this, calling the child overly soft, which caused them significant pain in life. This led them to develop the qualities of the Taurus adult.
The Taurus Adult
The tough Taurus exterior protects the Scorpio earth sign inner child by providing it with stability and a home. The Taurus exterior often forgets to nurture the inner child and to let it feel the emotions—it rather pushes the emotions down and forgets about them, which in turn, only hurts the Scorpio earth sign child more.
In focusing so much on protection, the Taurus adult may lose the innate ability to connect with the universe. While the Taurus sun develops primarily as protection for this soft and sensitive inner child, it also dims the light that the child had when it becomes too fixed and rigid.
It is important for the Taurus sun to allow the Scorpio child out to play every once in a while, so they can realign with their highest purpose and allow information from the universe.
Sagittarius Earth Sign
If you have your sun in Gemini, then your earth sign is in Sagittarius in exact degrees in the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the Sagittarius earth sign child was very solitary, wise, and happy on their own. Unlike other children who needed friends to play with, the Sagittarius earth sign child was fully content being on their own for most of their childhood and did not need friends, but rather craved experiences.
This was the kind of child that could float from house to house, be nice and kind to everyone, but really longed to see the world and get the most they could out of it. These Sagittarius earth signs are adventurous and fun at heart, though they do not need others the way that others may need them.
The Sagittarius earth sign child really would’ve gone anywhere, with anyone, as long as the place they were going offered a new experience. People around them picked up on this energy and began to dislike them as they often felt used by this child.
This is the source of these Sagittarius earth signs’ pain; they had to adapt and learn to care for others. These lessons created the Gemini Sun person—the individual who navigates the world by becoming everyone’s best friend.
The Gemini Adult:
The Gemini sun individual protects the adventurous inner child by interacting with people. These interactions hide their true nature and make them more likely to be accepted in the world.
People will often find that Gemini sun people are “fake,” but this is not the case. They are just protecting their Sagittarius earth sign inner child, who cares less about people and more about experiences.
That inner child still exists within the Gemini sun person. The Gemini sun person may long for new experiences or adventures, or they may treat life itself like an adventure. They develop incredible people skills and intellect in order to help them achieve these goals.
The Sagittarius earth sign child lives within the Gemini exoskeleton, always longing for more experiences and less people.
The Gemini adult must remember to let the child out to play. This can be done by adventures alone, or simply space from other people to help the Sagittarius earth sign child recuperate from all of the work that the Gemini adult does.
Capricorn Earth Sign
People with sun signs in Cancer have their earth signs in Capricorn in the same degrees, but the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the Capricorn earth sign child is very stoic and strong in youth. They do not exhibit many emotions, and rather turn their focus to other things, like competition and glory. These Capricorn earth sign children are likely very good at what they do, whether it be sports, academics, or any kind of competitive event.
Capricorn earth sign children likely grew up in households where glory was expected. Their parents cared more about achievements than emotions. Capricorn earth sign children tried to buy their parents’ love and approval by being the best at what they did.
Where they succeeded in achievements, Capricorn earth sign children were lacking in compassion. People called them cold, controlling, and dismissive. They were not the nurturing older siblings that the Cancer adult became.
Instead, these Capricorn earth signs were cold and controlling. If they did not like the game that was being played, they would simply force everyone else to play a game they did want. People called them bossy and annoying.
Capricorn earth sign children learned to temper this cold nature by learning compassion. As adults, they developed emotional Cancer qualities such as compassion, acceptance, and love.
Deep down, the Capricorn earth person still wants to control the situation. As a parent, they may come across as a helicopter parent or may be overly involved in competitive events for their children. This is because their true nature, the Capricorn earth inner child, still views the world this way.
The Cancer Adult:
The Cancer sun adult tries to have compassion for the world around them. They attempt to protect their “cold” inner child by appearing and acting warm towards others so that they may be accepted.
Sometimes, these Cancer qualities they develop may stifle their inner child’s ability to play. The Capricorn earth sign inner child begins to feel powerless to the world around them, as they are no longer exerting their control over it.
It is important that the Cancer adult does not become too passive in his/her own life. The Capricorn earth sign child has needs that must be met. Capricorn earth signs need to know that their inner child is taking an active role in life.
Aquarius Earth Sign
People with their sun signs in Leo have their earth signs in Aquarius in the same degree, but opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, Aquarius earth sign children felt very detached in their early life. Their parents likely left them alone a lot and they spent a lot of time feeling lonely and wanting friends to play with.
These children feel disconnected from the world around them. They often don’t feel like they belong in their family situation, or even on earth. They are very logical to the point of coming across as detached– which causes them significant pain in childhood.
People want more compassion from them, but Aquarius earth signs often struggle with showing and giving that kind of compassion.
These children have knowledge beyond earth’s capacity, and may be attracted to space of alien life. This is an indicator that the Aquarius earth sign child is a Starseed of some kind, but they have trouble integrating on earth.
Because of this disconnect and loneliness, the Aquarius earth sign child feels that they need others to cope. They long for personal relationships, and become the Leo adult to deal with this internal loneliness. However, the Aquarius earth sign inner child likely never feels fully accepted.
The Leo Adult:
The Leo adult strives to work on personal relationships and wants to fit in.
Ideally, they would be surrounded by many friends and family, and would find themselves at the center of attention. This helps them to feel less lonely in their life and to feel as though they are meaningful and important to the world.
The Aquarius earth sign inner child still exists, dealing with loneliness no matter who they are surrounded by. This earth child is especially vulnerable when they are not surrounded by people, so in moments of alone time, the Leo sun adult feels like the child again.
These negative feelings lead the Leo sun adult to fill their lives with many different types of people. Leo sun people do not just have friends; all of their friends are “best friends.”
In actuality, they still feel very disconnected to others because of the Aquarius earth sign, and Leo suns can be hurt when these situations do not pan out the way they expected.
It is important for the Leo person to practice self love and spend time with the Aquarius earth sign inner child– telling the child that they is not alone and are always important.
Pisces Earth Sign
People with their sun signs in Virgo have their earth signs in Pisces in the same degrees, but the opposite house.
In earth sign astrology, the Pisces earth sign child is soft, sensitive, creative, and imaginative. They appear to live in their own world as a child and are not strongly affected by other people’s thoughts and actions.
Pisces earth sign children are exceptionally well connected to the universe. Sometimes, they’re very psychic. They may have dreams or premonitions about what is to come, or even manifest experiences using their imagination.
The Pisces earth sign child may struggle with addiction in childhood, whether it be to foods, television shows, or even games and activities. Their childhood may be relatively unsteady, leading them to create their own internal world that serves their emotional needs.
Pisces earth sign children are incredibly compassionate and empathetic towards everyone in their lives. They take on the emotions of everyone around them, leading them to feel deep existential sadness.
At some point in childhood, this existential sadness causes the Pisces earth sign too much pain and they must learn to separate their own emotions from those around them. They may have hurtful people in their life that try to shatter this bubble; this forces them to face the world around them.
The Virgo Adult:
In turn, they begin to create the discerning Virgo layer which is hyper-vigilant about the world around them.
This Virgo sun adult lives primarily in the present and is always on guard. This Virgo sun adult looks at the details of life. They try to live in the present as to preserve the innocence of the Pisces earth sign child.
If this is done correctly, the Virgo adult may become more health conscious and less addictive, while still maintaining the open and vulnerable nature of the Pisces earth sign child.
The Pisces earth sign child struggles with overindulgence in life, but the Virgo sun adult may be so tempered that they do not allow the child to have any fun. It is important to let Pisces earth signs, or the inner children, out to maintain the connection with the universe, while still being healthy.
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