Blog — Saturn

Saturn is transiting over my natal Sun, so I am trying to walk my talk – working like a maniac, in other words, trying to keep my eye on the prize.

At the same time, my progressed Moon is passing through the twelfth house. True to form, I don’t know exactly what I am doing.

It is a strange astrological combo-platter, as you can plainly see.

At times such as these, my appreciation of astrology really goes through the roof. I look into that bright mirror in the sky and, among other benefits, I feel a whole lot less crazy than I might feel without astrology.

I bet that you feel that way too, or you wouldn’t be tuning into my monthly astrological ramble.

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by Steven Forrest

Chiron makes a Station on the Fourth of July, turning retrograde at about 2.5 degrees of Aries. Meanwhile, Saturn is already retrograde at about 5.5 degrees of Capricorn. So they are making a square aspect within about a three-degree orb right as those Chironic energies come to a peak.

Here’s where it gets strange. Since both bodies are retrograde after the 4^th, Chiron is already “ahead” of Saturn in the backwards race – and Saturn is too slow to catch up. Chiron escapes into Pisces on September 26^th. Saturn, already seeing the futility of the chase, gives up on September 6^th, turning around at about 2.5 degrees of Capricorn and heading direct again.

Chiron doesn’t venture back into Aries again until mid-February 2019. By then Saturn is too deep into Capricorn for the square to form. The next perfect – or “partile” – aspect that the two bodies make does not happen until 2021 when they are sextile for a few months. By then Saturn is out of Capricorn and into Aquarius, while Chiron is still in Aries.

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Saturn has begun its three-year passage through Capricorn. The King has returned to his own land, in other words. In a way, it’s Judgement Day, but don’t worry – if you’ve lived with integrity, you’ll be rewarded. (That coin has another side, however.)

In our December newsletter and podcast Steven looked into the mirror of history,  exploring some of the past events that illustrate this epochal transit. He reflected on its current collective significance in the larger world. That free offering provides a solid foundation for the deeper material he's just recorded for a new audio download.

In this new recording, Steven offers a more intimate perspective. What does Saturn’s return to Capricorn mean for you personally?

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The big news in the astrology blogosphere this month is the Mars-Saturn conjunction on August 23. Seeing these two so-called malefic planets come together might give you pause, but with Mars moving briskly forward and Saturn at a standstill, this transit will be over before you know it. It might help to think of this as a “trigger” transit – a faster transit that sets off a slower transit. In general, slower transits make a more lasting impression because they have time to “cook.” Faster-moving planets often trigger events that engage with the bigger-picture story told by the slower transits. In this instance, Mars will activate the year-long Saturn-Neptune square that has been in range since last fall.

Here are the technical specs: Mars, at 6° Sagittarius, will apply to the conjunction with Saturn, at 9° Sagittarius, on August 17 within 3° orb. As transits apply within 3° they really start to heat up. As the conjunction forms, Saturn will be at its slowest, since it stations direct at 9° on August 13 and doesn’t move to 10° until August 30. The station emphasizes Saturn’s impact. On August 23 the Mars-Saturn conjunction will be exact. By August 25, Mars will begin separating from the conjunction.

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February is Black History month. So in this edition of the newsletter, we’d like to honor a couple of folks who braced themselves against our racist culture and overcame their obstacles to achieve success. These two may not be as well celebrated as Rosa Parks or Martin Luther King, but their stories take us into some revealing cultural detours.

We’d also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and commend a few bright stars in our astrological community who will be featured speakers at this year’s NORWAC conference in Seattle: our very own “Forrest Trained” Cheryl Hopkins, Marie O’Neill, and Vernon Robinson. Congratulations! Can’t wait to see what you cook up for us.

And a shout out goes to Samuel Reynolds, returning to NORWAC for his second year. Reynolds is the co-founder of the International Society of Black Astrologers and can be found at UnlockAstrology.com.

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by Steven Forrest

The current square between Neptune and Saturn has been a weird elongated one, long-foretold but only now flowering. Technically, the aspect made first “partile” (exact) contact just a few weeks ago—on November 26, 2015. The reality is, we’ve all been living with it since December 23, 2014, when Saturn first crossed into Sagittarius. Neptune was only in about 5 degrees of Pisces then—thus, well within the orbs of a square. The aspect has gone on, stronger or weaker, since then—and it will continue through this year, as two more exact squares form on June 17 and September 10.

Saturn teaches patience. In eternal Saturn fashion, the square seems to be taking longer than it needs to.

All square aspects are about tension, but this is a particularly tense one because of the antithetical natures of these two planets. In other words, there seems to be a “natural square” between Saturn and Neptune, just in terms of their basic energies.

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by Steven Forrest

Light soon returns to the world. Hallelujah, hallelujah . . . but you have heard it all before and it’s not exactly shocking news. Of course I am talking about the Winter Solstice.  And you might be yawning already.  You don’t have to be an astrologer to know that the season of ever-lengthening nights is now about to turn.  Yet, buried beneath the veil of numbing familiarity, this yearly turning of the tide of light still holds some riddles for us.

For us in the northern hemisphere, the coldest parts of winter still lie ahead, but at least there’s a reason for hope.  As the eloquent jazz pianist, Bill Evans, put it, “You must believe in Spring.” If you are in the snow-belt, there’s a lyric to tape to your refrigerator!  Even here in the southern California desert where I live, I am looking forward to the days getting longer again. Who can reflect even for ten seconds on the notion of “the return of the light” without a little whisper of optimism arising? Who can think of it without hope?

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by Tony Howard

The Saturn-Neptune cycle is fairly common - we experience a major aspect between the two planets (Conjunction, Square or Opposition) every 9 years. But that frequency doesn’t diminish its important role. Metaphorically, interactions between Saturn and Neptune can express on the high end as “sobering up.” And with Neptune currently in Pisces, we could probably use regular reminders to come back into balance. Because one shadow side of Neptune in Pisces is a weakness for succumbing to the pull to binge on things that give us the feeling of escape. And that doesn’t just apply to the usual suspects, like alcohol, drugs (legal or otherwise), or food.

Binge-watching TV shows became prevalent as Neptune entered Pisces, with online streaming services like Netflix and Hulu making it easier than ever to sit on the couch for hours at a stretch. We no longer talk about this week’s episode of a show over the water cooler, we talk about the entire season we watched over the weekend. Andy Samberg's pre-filmed skit for the 2015 Emmy Awards offers a hilarious take on this.

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In planetary transit news this month, Venus goes direct, Mercury goes retrograde, and Saturn settles into Sagittarius. That's a lot of shifting energy, perhaps fitting for the "back to school" season.

Venus will station direct on Sunday, September 6 at 14° Leo. Check your chart for any planets close to that degree of Leo, Aquarius, Taurus or Scorpio. You folks will likely notice the station the most. Take note, and if you have any good stories to share after the station, Tony would love to hear them. Email tony@forrestastrology.com. If you track the shadow periods of retrograde cycles, Venus will remain in the shadow through October 9, when it passes the degree at which it stationed retrograde, 0° Virgo.

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by Tony Howard

At this point you’re probably well aware that Saturn is now transiting Sagittarius. I know a few Scorpios who were impatiently waiting for the ingress! Now the Sagittarians get to quiver (but if you’re really quivering, keep reading). For Steven’s take on this transit through each of the 12 houses, check out the audio release from last month.

Here are the dates of Saturn’s time in Sagittarius for those who don’t have them:

• December 23, 2014 through June 14, 2015
• September 17, 2015 through December 19, 2017

But rather than wax poetic about what this transit could hold in store, I want to see what folks born with Saturn in Sagittarius can teach us via the hard-won lessons they’ve already learned.

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