Saturn Retrograde
Catalyst Through Contemplation
Saturn has been hanging out at the 19th degree of Pisces for almost a month now as it has slowed down before stationing (appearing to stand still before changing direction). The impacts of this stationary period have ramped up in the past week as Saturn moves into its retrograde cycle June 29th/30th. This will be Saturn’s second retrograde in Pisces and this time around it’s backtracking through the second decan. What can we anticipate from this cycle and how will it help us?
First, let’s clarify what kind of energy Saturn carries. This planet embodies the principle of contraction (the opposite of Jupiter, which embodies expansion). Saturn is our master teacher planet and utilizes pressure, limitations and boundaries in order to facilitate growth and learning. In other words, Saturn tests us to ensure we have the strength and integrity required to build stability for ourselves and accomplish our goals.
Saturn is often called the Lord of Karma and wherever it lies in your birth chart signifies an area of concentrated energy in your consciousness and life experience. The positive realization of Saturn will always seek to refine these dimensions of your personality so you are evolving into the highest expression of which you are capable. For those who rise to meet the challenges of Saturn, they are rewarded with gifts – these gifts often arrive once a transit of Saturn has concluded, when it shifts out of a given sign or house. These gifts can manifest as a release of pressure, materialization of goals, and always involve some new level of self-attained mastery.
Now let’s talk about the energy of retrogrades for a moment. Any planet that is in retrograde has its energy “turned inward.” A good way to think of this is like being on a beach and having the tide come in; whereas direct motion planets signify the tide going out. Therefore, the normal functions of Saturn when it is retrograde become more self-directed and usually involve some kind of internal reflection process. Since Saturn spends approximately 3 years in each sign as it transits, you can expect about 3 retrograde cycles in its sign.
We can also look to the decans for further insight. For those who don’t know, each sign contains 30 degrees total, ranging from 0-29. These degrees can be divided into three sections: 0-9, 10-19, and 20-29. In astrology these sections are referred to as decans and each decan carries a different energy. All the degrees hold the same energy of the sign itself, but each decan has a unique quality of energy.
One way to consider this is there are no “hard lines” of distinction in astrology. When we get to the borders or boundaries of house cusps or sign degrees – for example, the boundary between Pisces and Aries – it’s not like, “This 29th degree here is just Pisces and that 0 degree there is only Aries.” Rather, when planets move near these cusps or boundaries, we begin to experience a blending of those different archetypes. Think of it like you’ve been swimming in a pool and decide to climb out. When you emerge from the water and stand on the adjacent concrete, are you immediately dry? Obviously not. In that moment you are no longer in the pool, but you are also not completely dry; you’re a little of both.
This is how the decans in astrology work as well. The first decan tends to take on a little bit of the energy from the previous sign, whereas the last decan takes on energy from the following sign. Therefore, the middle decan represents the most “pure” or undiluted quality of a sign’s energy. So in the case of Pisces and Saturn’s retrograde cycles, when it moved through its first retrograde, it was in the first decan of Pisces (0-9 degrees), which carried a bit of Aquarius flavor. When it retrogrades next year in the last decan of Pisces, that energy will have a little bit of Aries flavor.
We now find ourselves at the point of Saturn’s retrograde in the second decan of Pisces – the purest form of Pisces energy. While outer planet retrogrades do tend to be experienced more subtly than the personal planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars), we could consider this second retrograde cycle as a kind of “crescendo” of Saturn’s time in Pisces. I often compare it to a three act play or the basic structure of a story: beginning/introduction, middle/climax, end/resolution. Keep in mind this concept applies to Saturn specifically due to the timing of its orbital cycle. A planet such as Neptune, which has been transiting through Pisces since 2012, is going to have many more retrograde cycles in that sign.
Why am I going into so much detail about this? Well, for one, I’m an astrology nerd and I like teaching people this stuff. Beyond that, Saturn’s cycle is just short enough or just long enough (depending on how you look at it) that we can really reflect on its transit through different signs to gain insight into the growth we’re undergoing. Think back to the start of 2023 and what sort of changes you’ve experienced since then. I’d be willing to bet you remember March of 2023 more clearly than you do March of 2012. If you know what house Saturn is transiting through in your birth chart, you can consider those areas of your life experience and how they’ve been impacted since Saturn moved into Pisces.
Another thing to note about retrogrades is, much like when planets change signs, we tend to feel a spike of energy right as they near those aforementioned boundary lines. With retrograde cycles, we experience these spikes as the planets move into station, or slow down before changing direction. In other words, the process of a planet “hitting the brakes, turning the wheel, and then slamming down on the accelerator” tends to be felt most dramatically. However, I also want to note that you will also experience energy spikes as transiting planets make aspects (angles) to other planets or sensitive points in your birth chart.
All of this is to say, Saturn is station right now (slowing down before it shifts into retrograde), so there is a spike of energy as we experience its “deceleration.” Because Saturn will be moving retrograde in the second decan of Pisces, the themes it deals with are going to be essentially very Pisces. To further elucidate these themes, we need to consider the energy of Saturn in Pisces, the house it’s moving through in your natal chart, and any aspects it’s making to other planets.
I will use myself as an example. Saturn has been moving through my 11th house of community, friendships, technology, social media and long term goals and wishes. In a general sense, Saturn-in-Pisces represents cultivation of spiritual discipline. That discipline can show up in different ways, but one of the primary lessons of this transit involves each of us learning to refine our discernment and trust in our own spiritual authority. This may involve tests of faith and lessons in spiritual solitude. As Saturn has transited through Pisces, it has also formed a square aspect to itself in my natal chart, which happens to be conjunct with my natal Mercury.
Since last year, I have undergone lessons in spiritual community, particularly through the medium of social media and technology. I’ve been practicing my long term goal of astrology by conducting appointments for clients online. This blog is part of that venture. When transiting Saturn squared itself in my natal chart, I experienced a crisis in several of my relationships, particularly involving communication. I found myself needing to practice discipline in my communications with loved ones, both through active compassion and empathy (Pisces) while still setting boundaries and holding strong personal integrity (Saturn). I also joined several online spiritual forums/social media groups in 2023, only to later realize that I needed to isolate myself (Saturn) from these interactions in order to better hear and discern the vibrations of my own heart.
This is what I’m referring to when I mention spiritual solitude. Part of the lesson of Saturn involves learning to be okay with being alone. When we resist this isolation, despairing when it’s inevitably thrust upon us, we experience the lower expressions of Saturn such as depression, melancholy and loneliness. When we rise to the occasion and discipline ourselves to make the most of our solitude, we can suddenly tune into the “still, small voice within,” attaining a new level of self-awareness and spiritual insight.
Have you ever experienced a truly magical synchronicity and eagerly shared that experience with someone else, only to find that in describing the experience, something gets lost in translation? Even in conversations with other spiritual people who completely understand this phenomenon, there seems to be an inability to truly convey the magnitude of such experiences. I often find when I have these “miraculous moments,” it can actually diminish the experience when I attempt to verbalize something that is beyond words.
In this sense, while it is true that “we’re all in this together” and we’re all part of the same team who came to earth during this important time of ascension, the spiritual path truly is an individual path, and one that can feel quite lonely at times. The lessons of Saturn, particularly as it transits through Pisces, involve accepting that loneliness and using it to enhance your growth. While we can spark light in each other, share ideas and be creative together (principles of Jupiter), at the end of the day, we must contract and withdraw into ourselves in order to make sense of what was shared and apply it to our individual journey.
This particular Saturn retrograde cycle has many different elements of significance that I want to mention:
The day it shifts retrograde, Saturn will be trine Venus and Mercury in Cancer and sextile Mars in Taurus.
Saturn is also making aspects to the goddess asteroids, bringing in a particular Divine Feminine element that will hold greater significance as we move through July.
In particular, the day it goes retrograde, Saturn is opposite Juno in Virgo (Juno represents marriage, the twin flame, and Hieros Gamos energy).
There are two grand trines occurring on this day: a grand earth trine between Juno in Virgo, Ceres in Capricorn and Mars in Taurus; and a grand water trine between Saturn in Pisces, Pallas in Scorpio and the aforementioned Venus/Mercury in Cancer. Together these two grand trines form a Star of David aspect pattern. (If you’ve been reading my blog since last year, you may remember we had a similar Star of David aspect last November, also involving Saturn.)
Saturn will square Jupiter-in-Gemini through most of August.
Saturn will be part of a kite aspect pattern to the new moon in Cancer on July 5th.
On July 21st, Saturn will be exactly sextile with asteroid Mary Magdalena, the same day as the second full moon in Capricorn, the start of the Lion’s Gate portal and just prior to Magdalene Feast Day.
The September 3rd new moon in Virgo will be opposite Saturn.
Saturn will impact both eclipses in the upcoming season (September-October).
Saturn will be stationary at 12 degrees of Pisces during the U.S. November 5th presidential election, moving direct 10 days later (since Saturn also represents authority figures, hierarchy and the structures of our society, this is especially significant).
I also want to mention once again that we have Pluto’s final retrograde cycle in Capricorn happening during this time, the sign which Saturn rules. If you read my full moon in Capricorn article from a couple of weeks ago, you know that Capricorn holds special significance for us this year since we have two new moons and two full moons in this sign, thus further highlighting Saturn’s significance.
I am no expert in Chinese astrology, but earlier this year as we entered the year of the Wood Dragon, I researched the influence of these two intermixed energies. Dragon has fire energy that is transformative, changeable and passionate. Wood holds a slower, more stabilizing energy that juxtaposes the dragon. It can create frustration because the dragon wants immediate movement and change while the wood wants to move slowly, but steadily through growth, which can have a start-stop kind of effect on our experience. It seems to me that Saturn makes a nice symbol for this wood energy, which creates stability and structure leading to growth, but does so in a very slow, consistent kind of way.
Another way to consider Saturn is the analogy of how diamonds are created from great pressure. On a spiritual level, you could say the diamond, crystalline structure is activated in our DNA as we undergo immense pressure from spiritual tests and challenges this year. We need stamina to withstand this pressure and endurance to keep moving forward despite the hurdles we encounter.
I mentioned before that Saturn offers us “gifts” as we pass its tests. What sort of rewards are available to us through this retrograde cycle? Particularly with Saturn’s involvement with Mary Magdalena, the Lion’s Gate portal and it ruling Pluto’s retrograde cycle, we are offered opportunity for spiritual alchemy and transformation (dragon energy). We have a chance to integrate the opposites within us in order to merge into Hieros Gamos divine union with our Higher Selves. This is spiritual mastery and a potential upgrade in our soul’s mission. As the Lord of Time (Saturn is akin to Kronos from Greek Mythology), this also represents an opportunity to shift timelines — another theme present from last fall.
Through this retrograde cycle, we may find ourselves confronted with the use of our own energy. Where have our boundaries been violated? When have we been made to feel powerless or subject to the whims of external authority? Have we been toiling away, working towards our goals and hyper-focused on future outcomes for ourselves, meanwhile losing our sense of joy in the process? Have we lost our connection to zero point/present awareness as we’re caught up in the illusions (Pisces) of time (Saturn)? Do we find ourselves caught in “karmic loops” in which past experiences are rising up to be confronted once again? Have we become stuck in some way, whether that’s our perception, approach to action or the ideas we’ve conceived for ourselves and our lives?
Saturn represents crystallization into form, so it can assist us in manifesting our goals into the 3D matrix of reality. However, that crystallization process can also hinder our growth and potential, so it is necessary to undergo a self-reflective process (retrograde cycle) in which we examine the ways we feel stuck, depressed, stagnant, uninspired, frustrated or dejected. Your emotions are your guide posts, so tuning in to feel them is essential, especially when they are “unpleasant.” I repeat: your emotions are your guide posts. When you are experiencing negative emotions, it is a sign you need to listen deeper to yourself.
Some of you may find it helpful during this period to meditate (Pisces). Mindfulness meditation or similar forms such as Vipassana may be particularly helpful. It often feels like “nothing is happening” when we work with this kind of meditation. However, I have found that simply observing my body, thoughts and feelings has a profound effect which often leads to some sort of transformation or release. The catch is that this process is often indirect – the transformation may occur hours, days or even weeks after the meditation practice, making it easy to disassociate the two events. If this resonates with you, I highly recommend checking out The Presence Process by Michael Brown. At the very least, meditation has a soothing impact on the nervous system and helps to reorient you to the “voice within.” It can shift your focus from external dramas back to the eternal zero point.
This is part of the “spiritual discipline” of Saturn-in-Pisces, and it will look a little different for each of us. Once again, the house through which Saturn transits in your natal chart will offer further insight into the areas of your life where you’re being called to cultivate this discipline. As we undergo this process of reflection, contemplation and self-observation, we are offered an opportunity to transmute our negative energies and unite with our Higher Selves. For some of us, this may reunite us with our twin flame counterpart. For others, a sense of inner peace and bliss can be experienced, which may result in opening the flow to abundance, prosperity, higher inspiration and creativity.
The bottom line is that greater stability and confidence in ourselves results in a blossoming of our outer world. As we withstand the pressure of Saturn, we undergo our own process of transformation and spiritual alchemy. We come out the other side of this process shining bright, unafraid to stand on our own, and fully aware of the manifestation potential always available to us in each breathing moment.