When we talked about Mars in Cancer, we talked about strategies for dealing with a feeling of being out of control. Now, we talk about strategies for maintaining or keeping control.

Mars in Capricorn is extremely sexy. This is a placement that is sure of what it is doing and how it will get there. This is a Mars that will craft out a plan, a Mars that functions not according to someone else's timeline but fully within its own power. Mars in Capricorn is self directed.

Mars exalts in Capricorn. An exalted planet is a planet that keeps its expectations of self very, very high. Mars in Capricorn doesn’t do things unless they are reasonably sure that they can do them successfully.

I have often felt impressed at a Mars in Capricorn’s capacity for self control. It can manifest intellectually. These are people who are aware of their own biases and reckon with their criticality totally, destroying one mindset in exchange for a thirst for knowledge readily. It can manifest emotionally. Mars in Capricorn is ready to say no to things that they know they must refuse. It can manifest physically. These are people who can train for long term championships or find ways of doing acrobatics that take decades to integrate into their physical systems.

Have you ever seen a street performer do a trick built to amaze and wondered to yourself, “how do they do that?” Well, it takes years of training and practice. This is what a Mars in Capricorn excels.

There is a never ending patience with the Mars in Capricorn. They’re not patient because they’re trying to be easy going and have let something go. They’re patient because they are rigorous. They will wait for the right time. They will be precise about timing. They will be ready when the right time appears.

There is also a tendency for Mars in Capricorn to try to go at it alone. These are people who love to travel by themselves. They don’t want to move according to someone else’s schedule. They want to make their own decisions. They are more comfortable when self directed even when this means taking on all the risk for themselves. They are comfortable taking on risk because they trust themselves to be careful in their planning.

Sometimes, it is easier for a Mars in Capricorn to go at it alone because they are quite used to having things go their own way. It isn’t that they are inflexible. Mars in Capricorn is quite flexible because they understand that the best strategies must remain flexible. It’s that they retain the right to be flexible for themselves.

Mars in Capricorn will only do things when they are assured of their own success. Sometimes, the need to succeed can be a method of self protection.

This is a dignified malefic. This means that you have the tools you need to confront pain. A dignified malefic means that you have had to develop a certain strength in response to suffering.

Usually, Mars in Capricorn shows up in a very dictator-like way. I’m not saying that people with Mars in Capricorns are dictators. I’m saying that there is a part that lives with them that feels that it is absolutely necessary for them to retain all of their power and control at all times. I’m saying that holding such a part can be a painful experience. I’m also saying that it can be a completely moving and powerful experience.

Mars, at the end of the day, is a means of emotional expression. Mars in Capricorn is controlled in the expression of their emotions.

Not everyone tries to forge control through self restriction. Sometimes, it happens through friendliness. Mars in Capricorn can be very friendly since friendliness is about social dominance. Mars in Capricorns can be very silent also, especially when Mars wants its holder to retain control of what information is shared and when. Lastly, Mars in Capricorn can be very direct but Mars in Capricorn doesn’t usually show directness through venting about something that is frustrating them. Mars in Capricorn will only show their upset when it fits their overall strategy.

Mars in Capricorn is usually successful. Their power is unmistakable. People will know them as people who can’t be fucked with. It feels funny writing an article about power and Mars in Capricorn. Power is unequally distributed in our society but Mars in Capricorn will fight for power and will often win. And yet—what is power for? Why might they feel the need to fight for power and what does their power try to protect?

What or who does your success try to protect? What kinds of things might compel someone to make victory a necessity?

I don’t mean to imply that Mars in Capricorn is always about pain. It doesn't. It actually signifies success. It’s just that Mars is a malefic and malefics are more likely to hold painful memories for us since they respond against things so much of the time and I start to think about how our expectations around success are signifiers for what we have survived and for the pain of enduring. A lot of the time, Mars in Capricorn is just a startling capacity to get things done in the long term, to make large projects that take a huge amount of endurance not just started but also through to the end. Mars in Capricorn can go for a very long time. It’s a Mars that keeps going even when you are tired.

It doesn’t let you give up, Mars in Capricorn. It sees things through to the end. It drives things that have been unpopular or small for a long time. It keeps driving these things until they grow up. Mars in Capricorn understands that true strength is forged through the passage of time. It will not give up on unpopular things because it is unafraid to go alone.

I think that a lot of the power in Mars in Capricorn is in its ability to endure. Mars in Capricorn knows how to make things of quality. It doesn’t really settle for less and it’s more than willing to put in the time for more.

I think that there is another power in Mars in Capricorn. Mars in Capricorn has the capacity to accept its own need for control. It understands that it is both appropriate and reasonable to need some kind of control over your own life. Mars in Capricorn will not allow you to feel out of control. It will rebel when you are disempowered, making you push back and yell. It will make sure that you have control. It will demand a plan from you, push you into work, or give you a loudspeaker for your message. It will do whatever it takes to earn back control.

We don’t often give the means of control to everything. When we are disempowered, we often feel a lack of control over our lives. Mars in Capricorn can become furious about this phenomenon.

Mars in Capricorn has a tremendous desire to teach about quality, about endurance, and about all of the things that it takes for us to learn true maturity. It is willing to bring the difficult into full fruition. It is willing to do these things when we accept Mars in Capricorn’s right to control their own lives, when we stop dismissing control as neuroticism or expecting that someone will drop all of their defenses and provide vulnerability on someone else’s timeline.

Mars in Capricorn is capable of anything but they are only willing to work on their own timelines. They can’t be forced. They can’t be nudged. They can’t be persuaded. They will act contrary if pushed. They will do what they say they will get done and they will do it at their own pace. They will inevitably be powerful and they will understand what power means to them when they understand what demons success might protect them from.