On December 23, 2014 following a Solstice New Moon, the demanding task-master Saturn entered the shifting, fiery, and focused sign of Sagittarius. This new transit of Saturn in Sagittarius has resonance with the Solstice, as Saturn will not leave Sagittarius for good until the Capricorn Solstice of 2017. Saturn holds together the structure of our consciousness within our skeletal system on a personal level, and on a collective level coordinates the innumerable ingredients that form our consensus reality, or the predominant agreements that define what we mean by “reality.” Saturn has a palpable impact on our lives by transit, and we can immediately feel the impact following its ingress into a new sign through personal experiences and collective events. For example, both the massacre at the Charlie Hebdo satirical Parisian newspaper that sparked the “Je suis Charlie” movement around freedom of expression, and the publicity surrounding the plan of Pope Francis to present an encyclical on climate change that will urge action are signs reflecting the shift of Saturn into Sagittarius.
Yet to claim I know that these recent events are connected with Saturn shifting into Sagittarius from a tropical zodiac perspective brings up the potential shadow of Saturn in Sagittarius reflected by a rigid belief that “I know.” In the recent massacre in Paris, dogmatic religious beliefs led the perpetrators to believe that they “knew” that their violent terrorism was justified, just as in 1956 when Saturn was previously in Sagittarius the racist beliefs of White Southerners in the United States led them to believe that their violent terrorism against Black Southerners protesting for equal rights was justified. Cultivating a perspective that we “do not know” with Saturn in Sagittarius will help us open our mind to direct experience of the moment that is less conditioned by our previous beliefs and cultural understanding.
“Not knowing” also connects with how Carl Jung’s idea of archetypes has been integrated into astrology, in that although Jung saw archetypes as being archaic patterns connected to the farthest reaches of time, he also defined the concept of archetypes as a manifestation of archaic patterns that are forever changing. It is worth remembering that when Jung described the meaning of archetypes, he said that we can never actually consciously “know” them, we can only deduce their meaning as reflected in such things as stories, symbols, and images. Astrology or any other methodology of belief we utilize to help us navigate our reality can lead us astray when what we believe we know becomes so crystallized that our fixation on our own perspective causes us to be in denial of our actual reality. While this is one potential pitfall of Saturn in Sagittarius, at the same time Saturn in Sagittarius brings the potential to deepen our understanding of reality through focused exploration of a belief system, practice, or subject matter.
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Some thoughts for Saturn's last passage through Scorpio,,late June through September 19. 2015, as Saturn symbolically leaves the depths of the Unconscious and enters Sagittarius, an activist, extroverted, Conscious Sign that takes direct and forceful aim at its goal.
Whenever an outer planet leaves Water and enters Fire, it signifies a powerful shift.for the Collective, Whatever one's cause, it will easier to attract followers.
Att the personal level, there's also a shift, especially for those with Scorpio Rising, They've been experiencing Saturn moving through the Persona House for the last two years,offering deeper perspective in writing, art, therapy.,.(Many of my clients who are psychologists or psychology students have Scorpio Rising, so, it's worth a mention on the Alliance site.) Everyone will experience a shift in the House with Scorpio on the cusp, but it's usually a more dramatic shift for the Persona (First House.)
In esoteric astrology, the passage of an outer planet, moving from Retrograde to Direct over the 29th degree for last time is very important. Individuals and nations have become accustomed for several years to the planet's energy being in a certain Element, a certain Sign, and a certain Mode, and then, suddenly, as it sits for a few days or weeks in the last degree of the Sign, there's a sense of changing energy, of a cycle ending,, followed by a quickening of energy for--in this case---the new, extroverted cycle.
For example, at the personal level, students will say, "if I don't finish this dissertation by the end of the summer, I'm giving up on it and taking a full time job for a non-profit." (The Cause.) The pervasive sense is that we need to stop thinking or writing, and begin doing something larger, more meaningful, in the Outer World. In a Water cycle we feel we have plenty of time (though time may be getting away fro us) but i a Fire cycle, we expect things to move quickly.
An example at the Collective level: as Saturn Retrogrades for the last time from early Sagittarius to late Scorpio, a nation's Fire Sign President identifies his purpose for the years ahead, after the White House, he founds an organization called My Brothers Keeper,."which he expects to keep him busy for the rest his life. In esoteric level, leaders are viewed as symbols of the Collective.
Excellent, Gary, thank you! One hopes each of us will become a bit more practical as we re-formulate our goals in the House with Sagittarius on the cusp. There's plenty of time between now and the Solstice of 2017. Saturn tempers the grandiosity of Visionary Sagittarius, making it easier to aim one's arrow, to focus consciously, persistently and realistically on the target.
On the subject of Pope Francis, it's interesting that his list of newly-appointed cardinals includes so many from Asia and Africa, where Catholicism is growing more rapidly than in the West. Globalization (Sagittarius) combined with practicality (Saturn.).They were only a few Italians on the list this time.
Thank you for your comment Kathleen! I complete agree about the aim of Saturn and Sagittarius being to re-formulate our visionary goals on a more practical level, and like you wrote "to aim one's arrow, to focus consciously, persistently and realistically on the target." I also appreciate your insight about Pope Francis and Sagittarius in the way of globalization of the Church- totally right on.
I think there is a lot of demanding work ahead of all of us- it seems like everyday I keep getting an even deeper sense of how demanding and challenging it will be.
all my best,
Gray
Yes, every day, there's something new to learn. The President's speech tonight focuses on education (Sag) as well.