Congratulations to all of us who survived the spring and summer of what amounted to a massive traffic jam of planets. This planetary traffic jam can be likened to a one on a busy urban bridge in the middle of the summer surrounded by diesel –fueled tractor trailers.
As the planets begin to disperse, we still have the journey in front of us, and we might be feeling tired, discouraged, and looking for the energy to move forward. What is left is a big conjunction in fiery Leo and, as of this writing, we still have the Sun, Mercury, Mars and Venus hanging out together. Venus has passed the point of close conjunction, but the Sun, Mercury, Mars are still combust as if they are all fighting with one another to be first to hit the clearest lane on the highway. By the 8th of September Mercury, Venus and the Sun will have moved beyond Mars’ degree in Leo. By the 11th, Mercury and Venus will be in Virgo and by the 17th, the Sun will also be in Virgo. At that point Mars will be all by himself in Leo. These movements will bring lighter energy, and it will be nice to let Mars play alone for a while.
The energy of the fall will be lighter and, hopefully, we will be able to recognize and take advantage of a better personal flow in our lives. We can certainly look forward to Jupiter coming home to his own sign of Sagittarius on 11/4/19. Jupiter is not badly placed in Scorpio, and he has certainly brought positive things to those who have strong placements of planets in Scorpio. Scorpio (being an intense sign which has an association with the subconscious mind) has the ability to get very dark in perception and attitude, and I think that Jupiter being in this sign has served the planet by protecting it from going even darker in emotional actions. Going into Sagittarius will allow Jupiter to give the boons for which he is known. Most likely he will not be completely free until Saturn moves into Capricorn on 1/24/2020.
Saturn, as usual, is always the biggest player in the transit journey of the planets. (Transits are the current positions of the planets and interact with our birth chart planets.) It takes approximately three years for Saturn to move through a sign and, during that time period, he will often slow down the progress of the affairs of the house placements and frustrate those who try to push Saturn to give what he doesn’t want to give or to move him faster than he wants to move. Saturn will shed light on the darker side of one’s self and life because Saturn is the truth-bringer. Saturn is also one of the keepers of the karma we brought into our lives to work on this lifetime. Karma, despite what some of today’s teachers are proclaiming, does exist but not as a punishment (that’s a western world concept) for past transgressions. Karma indicates action/work – in other words it indicates that we can work through whatever it is that blinds us to our true identities as unlimited souls. It is karma which brings us back to a physical form, and no other planet shows us the way better than Saturn. Once we are focused on the truth of “being,” Saturn can become a big source of comforting strength.
Saturn does not do particularly well in Sagittarius because Sagittarius, among other things, is about expansion, freedom and prosperity. Additionally, this cycle of Saturn also includes a very close conjunction to Ketu, the South Node of the Moon, and Ketu is known for his own tendency to align with karma. Ketu is an energy that operates through negation and can be very challenging when it comes to ease of mundane life. These two in combination can feel like one is walking through a dark tunnel in which the light has to come from within. They’ve been closely conjunct for a few months and could play a role in why even with the messy planetary summer, we’ve had many do not feel the lightening of the energy around us. Saturn will move into direct motion on 9/17 whereby he will “once again” conjunct Ketu from 9/23-9/30; by 10/14 Saturn will be three degrees past Ketu and on his way to moving into his greatly improved position in Capricorn. Saturn and Ketu operating together will help facilitate neutrality and objective thinking. Try to rise above emotions and be an observer of the actions of others without taking everything so personally.
While it is reasonable for all of us to focus on what our individual planets and karmas indicate, we are always part of a greater whole and the greater whole also deals with karma. Saturn in Sagittarius is currently in the first house or ascendant of the chart of the United States. Saturn and Ketu being closely conjoined in the ascendant of the chart of the US brings about the issue of our country’s own karmic challenges. We are dealing with the racism upon which a great part of America’s prosperity was founded as well as the truth of the fact that, unlike the lore of America being founded for religious freedom, it was always about money and the expansion of empires. Every freedom achieved by the people has had to be fought for – from allowing the common man to vote, to women being able to vote, to removing the legal mandate that gave black people only 3/5 of a human being designation along with stealing this land from those who were here before the Europeans. This is a large number of “original sins” and, in many ways, these anti-human policies have only worsened over the years as we became a world-wide power via war and our corporate structure. Saturn and Ketu are presently showing us all that we’ve become so out of balance that the top-heavy energy is too much for us to function in a healthy manner anymore. Thus, it seems that we no longer even have a functional government.
However, we also had some enlightened people write our original goals and constitution, and the fight to live up to those ideals will continue. Saturn was in Sagittarius (Sagittarius is considered the sign of the oligarchy and the Republican party.) for the crash of the economy in 1929, and it was under a republican/corporate administration that the Great Depression occurred. The economy began to recover once Saturn moved into Capricorn (Capricorn is considered the party of the Democrats and the people.) and began to restore a balance which favored people. Today’s fighters for America are much more savvy and forthright than those in the early 20th century, and I expect that when we restore balance this time, it will be a stronger balance than what was restored for white male Americans the last time. No matter how dark it seems now, we should not underestimate the power of Saturn’s sojourn through his own sign of Capricorn.
On a personal level, once Saturn has moved beyond Ketu in October and Jupiter moves into Sagittarius, we should be better able to see a light at the end of the tunnel. In the meantime, with some focus and detachment, we can also see the light within us which will light up that tunnel.
***Due to the historical significance of this time period I am currently working on an article based on the historical and mundane results of prior placements of Saturn in Capricorn. It will be published in the near future.
annaicenter 