angstoic.com Astrologer, Ang Stoic
Yesterday, March 7th, 2023, marked the conclusion of Saturn’s journey through the tropical zodiac sign of Aquarius, a significant celestial event with profound implications for our lives. This formidable planet, with its 29.5-year orbital cycle, spends a considerable chunk of time, roughly 2-3 years, in each zodiac sign. During this period, Saturn exerts its trademark no-nonsense, disciplinary energy to shape and influence the dominant themes and issues associated with that particular sign.
As we bid farewell to Saturn’s austere energy in Aquarius, we find ourselves on the cusp of a new chapter of reconstruction, as the planet moves into the zodiac sign of Pisces. The upcoming phase will bring new challenges and opportunities, and we must be ready to face them head-on, armed with the lessons and experiences gleaned during Saturn’s sojourn through Aquarius.
Before we explore Saturn in Pisces, let’s take a look at what we’ve learned from the past couple of years:
ASTROLOGICAL SATURN:
Astrologically, Saturn represents the archetype of the authority figure, the stern patriarchal taskmaster, and the teacher of hard lessons. He is associated with linear, measurable time, karmic debts, and consequences for past actions, as well as the duties and responsibilities we must endure to build up discipline and come to terms with our limitations.
Outwardly, Saturn represents the cumulative pressure of the collective consciousness and consensus rule, embodying the structures and systems that govern our society, such as governments, institutions, enforceable laws, and unyielding norms and traditions of the status quo.
As we face the stern discipline and caution of Saturn’s transitory influence through each zodiac sign, we are compelled to encounter and accept the level of experience represented by established patterns of fear associated with that particular sign. Whether driven by our own conscience or by external pressures, we respond to the inherent fears associated with these patterns. However, such fears often arise from an old, rigid, and oppressive way of life that still holds sway over us, like the sword of Damocles. While the discipline and caution connected with these established patterns may still be valid towards current growth, they can only serve as a motivating force if accepted and integrated into a consistent, concrete expression in that area of life.
Therefore, Saturn’s 2-3 year transit through each sign indicates at what level of expression we tend to be fearful or inhibited and where our energy is blocked or restricted. Individually, we become overly concerned with that level of experience, which reveals to us which areas we are blocked or resistant. Saturn shows us where we tend to be stuck, tangled up in denials. By trying too hard to resist the energy or by avoiding or repressing it, we tend to restrict the natural flow of Saturn’s disciplinary energy, which can develop into crises of difficulties, trials and tribulations, often experienced as sustained periods of frustration, extreme heaviness and delays.
SATURN IN AQUARIUS:
On March 21, 2020, Saturn made his initial entry into Aquarius, returning briefly to Capricorn on July 1 of that year before re-entering Aquarius on December 17, 2020. This transit would last until March 7, 2023 and include an epic Grand Conjunction with Jupiter (00°♒29′) and several squares to Uranus.
During Saturn’s run through Aquarius, our concerns, fears, inhibitions and judgments regarding social approval and our respective societal obligations rose to the surface. We were compelled to establish and preserve ourselves by demonstrating disciplined mental capabilities, clearly defined knowledge, and compliance with collective norms or futuristic agendas or be somehow deposed by Saturn’s merciless hand of fate.
From the offset, the March 21 –July 1 spell of 2020 marked an immediate turning point, requiring us to adjust our mindset regarding how we interacted in society. The outbreak of a global pandemic demanded compliance with new codes and practices to “flatten the curve” and limit the spread of a virulent infection, which curtailed our social interactions and physical mobility. These sudden changes in cultural norms and restrictions caused frustration and delays in our daily lives as we struggled to adapt to Saturn’s new normal. The message permeated TV and all media.
Saturn’s limiting force further exacerbated our isolation and detachment from society, as prevailing social trends forced us to discipline and present ourselves in ways deemed more socially acceptable. A heightened fear of public disapproval, guilt and a reluctance to deviate from established social norms soon pervaded our willingness to engage in the social contract. However, through this initial period of social restriction and limitation, we were also forced to confront our fears and inhibitions and seek out new ways of connecting and interacting with others in a socially distant world. As a result, individuals may have experienced either a total withdrawal from social interactions or a fresh appreciation for the power of community and a heightened sense of responsibility towards society at large. This shift may have prompted individuals to reevaluate their position and significance within the social hierarchy.
As Saturn returned to Aquarius in the second instance, its urge toward eccentricity and extremism manifested in both positive and negative ways.
On the one hand, we observed a surge in inventive problem-solving and collaborative thinking as individuals harnessed technology to unite and navigate the hurdles presented by the pandemic’s constraints. This led to novel and resourceful solutions to longstanding problems, as people leveraged their collective ingenuity to adapt and overcome the pandemic’s challenges. The restrictions and delays forced us to think outside the box and find new ways of working, learning, and connecting, as well as an accelerated push from institutionalised science, medicine and governing bodies to impose new measures and cures.
On the other hand, the frustrations of prolonged lockdowns and stifling social restrictions led to an increase in rebellious and erratic behaviour. The urge to break free from the constraints of the pandemic and express ourselves freely became more intense, leading to protests and wild insurrections of defiance in some quarters. Highlighting the need to balance individual expression and collective responsibility, Saturn’s transit through Aquarius has brought our most deep-seated fears and inhibitions around social approval and fitting into accepted societal roles to the surface. It challenged us to galvanise and preserve ourselves through the disciplined development of new mental skills to reform our communal thinking and commitment to social goals while testing our resilience and adaptability in the face of unprecedented challenges.
LESSONS HARD-EARNED:
One thing we did learn on our heroic Saturn journey was the common misconception that Aquarius is a “freedom-loving, liberal-minded hippie type”. This is only partially accurate. Over the past 3 years, Saturn through Aquarius showed us that it is actually one of the least likely of the fixed signs to respond willingly and freely to an external demand for change. As we endeavoured, oftentimes without success, to pressure and coerce our loved ones into changing, we came to realise that true transformation must stem from within. When change is imposed from an external source, those who are hesitant and fearful will inevitably resist and even counteract it, often disengaging and forming their own groups of resistance and liberation.
Ultimately, Aquarius prefers to be the initiator and spokesperson for the changes rather than respond to them, and the real epidemic here was that many of us struggled to understand this fundamental truth, making it harder and harder for us to come together under the same cause. We were so focused on pushing for change in others that we failed to see the importance of cultivating our own desires for change and allowing them to guide us. This led to a lot of anger, resentment, even war towards those unwilling to change, when in reality, they were simply responding in a way that was true to the Aquarian spirit, paved by Saturn in concrete terms.
Another lesson that Saturn in Aquarius taught us was the importance of solidarity and collaboration of community networks and hive-minded activity, new alliances, treaties, mandates and collegiate pacts.
Aquarius is the sign of the collective, and Saturn’s journey throughout this period called us to work together towards a common goal. Whether we liked it or not, we learned that we cannot create meaningful change in isolation or resistance, and that it takes a diverse group of like-minded individuals with different perspectives and skills to succeed in making any widespread impact. This was not only evident in the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, where people from all over the world came together to fight against a common enemy, but through other social movements and issues that gained momentum during this period, such as the Black Lives Matter movement, environmental activism, LGBTQ+ rights, anti-authoritarianism, the fight against corporate technocratism and the rally against wars and other disasters. Through Saturn’s transit, we learned the importance of listening to each other, acknowledging our differences, and working towards a common goal for the greater good, often through suffering the consequences of refusing to do just that.
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SOCIETY AT A DISTANCE:
Aquarius reminds us of our interconnectedness and the need to take collective action with the hope of building a better future for all. However, Saturn’s transit through Aquarius challenged us to confront our social distrust, ignorance, narrow-mindedness, bigotry, and group identity biases. As a result, we had to face our most ingrained fears and inhibitions surrounding social integration and formally accepted societal roles, which tested our imagination and brought us back to earth.
Those who refused to take on the challenge willingly risked having their minds crystallised with anachronistic values drawn from antiquated perspectives, expired points of view, superstitions and ideologies. This was particularly evident during the squares to Saturn from Uranus in Taurus, which precipitated the massive show of defiance and insurrection towards ‘those other groups’, or ‘the establishment’, which, through forced alienation, censorship, cancellations, imprisonment, and even death, highlighted the need to step up and progress towards taking part in a more inclusive and equitable society. Ultimately, Saturn in Aquarius showed us that we must be open to reforms of all kinds and work together towards a common goal to create a better world for ourselves and future generations.
In the end, we must come to realise and accept the call and embrace the challenge. We can tap into the fascinating uniqueness of Aquarius, breathing new life into the mind of a whole new collective. As Pluto approaches Aquarius, it is dawning upon humanity that only a realised and accepted call to collective action will bring out the Aquarian intellectual dynamism and brilliant originality. This unexpected shift, though often fantasised as being wonderful, can throw anyone with fixed signs in their chart off-balance, but it can also, after enough bumps and bruises, help establish a new and more relevant status quo.
To truly progress as a society, we must recognise the critical distinction between mere performative displays of “wokeness” and authentic engagement with groups and causes. The former only serves to exacerbate existing divides by phoney alliances, whereas the latter requires genuine expression of our emotions to build bridges between us. Furthermore, our advancement towards a more just and inclusive society is impeded by narrow-mindedness, bigotry and adherence to outdated or prejudiced beliefs.
HUMANISM AND BEYOND:
Saturn’s passage through Aquarius served as a test of our biases and predispositions, prompting us to be more receptive to fresh perspectives and ideas, and fostering meaningful exchange through better research, innovation, discourse, and debate – even with those whose views differ strongly from our own. It urged us to resist the temptation to seek solace in siloed echo chambers and instead listen and learn from those with whom we disagree.
With this recognition, we can cultivate a greater sense of ease in expressing our true selves, leading to the emergence of a genuine new earth community that embraces both rationality and empathy. By accepting the challenge of celebrating both our unique identities and our interconnectedness, we can create a more just, compassionate, and sustainable future for all.
As Pluto descends into Aquarius, the ominous lessons imparted by Saturn’s previous transit remain just as relevant as we brace ourselves for a gruelling war in the dark realms of transhumanism. The transformative power of Pluto threatens to bring even more chaos and disruption, but only by heeding the hard-won lessons of community, individuality, and authenticity can we hope to build a brighter future. It falls to us to take ownership of our own growth and remain open to learning from those who hold opposing views, lest we succumb to the few who cling stubbornly to their narrow-minded and inflexible ideologies. Only by shattering the structures of systemic injustice and inequality can we create a society that embraces the rich diversity of each member, and rise above the shadows of an uncertain future.
Overall, the past three years with Saturn in Aquarius have taught us valuable lessons about the importance of internal motivation for change, the power of community and collaboration. Here, the true nature of the Aquarius sign becomes redefined by Saturn’s passage. As we move forward, we can take these lessons with us and continue to work towards creating a better world for ourselves and those around us.
