Saturn conjunct the Sun

Last time Saturn joined my Sun I was promoted. It wasn’t just a little promotion, it was a huge promotion to a job that lots of other people wanted. It was the sort of promotion that makes you dance around singing crappy songs like “moving on up.”

The role was as branch manager for the bank that I worked for. Traditionally these roles were given to men, and usually to men much older than I was.

I was relatively young- in my late 20s, newly married, and ambitious. Jupiter was on my Midheaven, so rather than being a tad scared of the responsibility, I gave the only answer that I could: ‘Sure, how hard can it be?’

It was hard. I was dealing with traditions, expectations and responsibility beyond anything I had dealt with before. I thought I was being all grown up, but this job made me mature. In a hurry.

It was also the fulfilment of a lot that I had been working towards.

In the process, I felt chronically tired and isolated. There was no time for anything else.

As a transit, it did what it said it would on the box- it was both difficult and satisfying.

When Saturn joins the Sun, things that you have been working towards will either come to a successful fruition or they will fail.

If it’s the former, with success will come responsibility and burdens- you might feel bound and restricted. Patience is essential- as is concentration on the task at hand.

If it’s the latter, the challenge is to objectively complete a root cause analysis and identify what can be salvaged in order to move forward.

The thing is, because Saturn restricts the vitality of the Sun, you have a limited amount of energy and vitality available to you, so make sure that you focus only on those activities that are already underway and important.

Anything else is a distraction- and that may include relationships.

Saturn square the Sun

With squares, the challenges are generally provided by external factors.

As with all Saturn/Sun contacts, your vitality is low- things might seem all too hard.

With the opening square, think about what happened 7 years ago when Saturn was conjunct the Sun.

At that time did you concentrate on the things that needed your attention or did you allow your energy to be scattered?

Did you hang onto something that had failed? Rather than salvaging what you could, did you try and make it happen?

If you’re on the right track, the challenges that you deal with now, the roadblocks (often in human form) have been sent to test your resolve, your patience.

If you’re on a lost cause that should have been laid to rest 7 years ago, the crises that you face now are a reminder of that- and another opportunity to close it down. Completely this time.

With the closing square, think about the choices you made 7 years ago when Saturn was opposite the Sun and apply the same rationality.

You now have the opportunity to withstand the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune to see something through to a successful conclusion…or end it.

This is the archetypal 7 year itch.

Saturn opposite the Sun

This one is recent enough that I can remember so clearly it’s like my breath has been taken away.

And, when Saturn opposed my Sun (between December 2008 and August 2009- yep, I got 3 passes) it literally was.

The first indication of trouble came earlier that year when Saturn opposed Mercury. I had some devastating news- the type of news that felt like the guts had been ripped out of me, the type of news that knocked the wind out of me and left me gasping for breath. I had my first asthma attack in nearly 14 years- yep the last was when Saturn was conjunct the Sun.

Things were at rockbottom- in many areas. I knew what wasn’t working, but was still hanging on- hell, in some ways I still am.

I felt like the weight of way too much was sitting on my shoulders.

And then my shoulder went.

Uranus was also conjunct my Sun at this point so the initial injury to an unpronounceable muscle was acute. Saturns influence meant that it was chronic.

I felt old, I felt incapable, I felt chronically tired and I felt incapable.

All of my self-confidence had gone, I no longer believed in anything and I felt that the relationships around me were limiting me. This was magnified somewhat as Saturn was also conjunct my Descendant.

No matter how I tried to crawl out and over it, I was being blocked at every point.

The effects of the transit were textbook perfect.

Saturn opposite the Sun marks an ending. It can be a catastrophic ending if whatever is ending now should have ended 7 years ago or 14 years ago. Saturn doesn’t like his messages to be ignored.

The thing is, endings- if you allow them to happen- leave the way open for beginnings. And yes, I know how hard it is to look for the light when dark is all around. Wallow a little if you need to, but only as long as the transit is in effect.

Whatever you begin (once this transit is through- now is not the time to start anything fresh- you simply don’t have the energy for it) will be tested in 7 years and then come to fruition in 14 years when Saturn once again joins up with your Sun.

The message? As with all Saturn transits, what is required most right now, is patience.

Saturn trine the Sun

As far as Saturn transits go, this one is relatively smooth.

It’s a good time to achieve stuff, accomplish stuff and generally get stuff done.

This is Saturns version of a gentle nudge, a hint.

Opportunities will come up to take on extra skills, bolster your health, build your strength, create your structures.

Whatever you do now will set you up for success later and make it a little easier for you to overcome obstacles later. Oh, and whatever you achieve now will be recognised- and doesn’t that make a nice change?

Saturn sextile the Sun

Sextiles present opportunities.

With Saturn involved, these are opportunities for achievement and opportunities for those achievements to be recognised by the people who should be recognising them.

The only catch? You have to identify the opportunity and take active steps to go after it. Doors will not open simply because you will them to do so- there will be some effort required on your part to turn the opportunities into something quite fortunate.

That’s how Saturn gets lucky- because he puts the work in.

Thanks and credit to Robert Hands’ “Planets in Transit” and Adam Smiths’ Saturn: Fatal Attraction”