otterspaceastrology

ASTROLOGY — THE IMPORTANCE OF SATURN — All true predictive work is based on a thorough understanding of the natal chart.  IF a client has an afflicted Jupiter in their natal, a Jupiter transit may not bring them the usual expansionary benefits.  Looking at the flip side, since Jupiter expands and Saturn contracts, most of my clients show  up when transiting Saturn is either in their Sun sign, or in square or opposition to their Sun.  Saturn can symbolize serious ordeals that don’t resolve quickly.  In this situation it is very important to study Saturn in the natal chart, and not only its sign.  Saturn’s house placement and all the aspects in the natal from Saturn to other planets need to be considered BEFORE making a judgement about the current Saturn transit. Aspects are the angles between the planets in the natal.  Transits are the angles to the natal formed by the planets moving through the heavens at this time, or any time frame you want to investigate.  Any aspect can express in both a positive or a negative way, and all planets can symbolize experiences on the physical, mental, or emotional/spiritual level.  The same with transits.  Is your head spinning?  Not to worry, we’ll just take things a step at a time.  Any time and effort you invest in understanding your own chart will pay off big time, and will also help you get a lot more out of any reading with an astrologer.  Astrology is a psychological language.  The first step is learning the order of the signs in the Zodiac and the planets that rule them.  Saturn interests me because if a person uses the energy properly, even an ordeal can bring lasting rewards.  If the Saturn aspects in the natal include some trines and sextiles, it will be a little easier to extract the positive side of Saturn transiting around the wheel of your chart.                                                                                                                                                            

 

        I’m going to use Bruno Mars as an example to illustrate the importance of Saturn. His Saturn is sextile his Venus and semi-sextile (30*) both his Mercury and his Part of Fortune.  No harsh Saturn aspects  in the natal. A little history on him first…I read his bio and I also came across his birth time. He is a Libra.   He grew up singing and playing multiple instruments, and he went to LA right after high school.  Hard times, no money, just the dream to keep him going.  And then along came the Saturn in Libra transit !!  He met his business partner Phil Lawrence when Saturn was on his Sun.  Saturn is a symbol for longevity, so we know these two will be enjoying their work together for a long time.  Hard times continued and finally they were forced to sell their songs, “their babies”, just to keep going.  Note that Saturn has been going back and forth over Bruno’s Mercury in the 8th the last few years.  The pressure of Saturn, and being forced to do something out of desperation, turned out to be the very key to his wonderful success.  Truly, this is a lesson for us all…

 

Now some people would take a Saturn conjunct Mercury transit and have communication difficulties. Some people will manifest it as education.  What did he do?  He used the Saturn qualities of hard work, long hours, discipline and concentration and composed non-stop, learning how to arrange and produce music for other people (8th house) as well as for himself.  Usually, Saturn transits are more difficult for younger people since Saturn respresents maturity and the ability to delay instant gratification for long-term rewards.  Yet this kid used Saturn on Mercury as a crash course in all the technical aspects of his art, and he also worked with older artists, learning from each one.  Pretty amazing and he definitely earned his success.  Saturn makes us dot every “i” and cross every “t”. 

 

Planets go forward and backward, retrograde, from the earth’s view.  Saturn went forward on 6-25-2012 and will again conjoin his Mercury in September.  Probably the wrap-up of his sophomore album.  I did a little research and he said he is struggling with it.  Not surprising, since he also has Neptune on his Ascendant right now.  Any good astrologer would suggest that he use Neptune as inspiration instead of confusion and/or self-doubt.  Dreams, meditation, asking the elders, including those who have already departed,  for advice, keeping paper and pen or a digital recorder on his nightstand — he would awaken with melodies and lyrics from tapping into the Collective Unconscious, the invisible grapevine that links us all…for him the key to this next phase is going deep, deeper than surface.

 

Naturally, I think everyone should have an astrologer they can call on from time to time.  A good reading should confirm your own deepest instincts about yourself and your life.  A good astrologer will be able to give you the current “weather report” — the transits — to help ease your way and maximize your potential.  My current advice to Bruno Mars?  Don’t release that next album when Mercury is retrograde — November 6th to 26th — work around those dates.  Same thing for all you readers — avoid initiating major projects, signing contracts, important meetings and allow extra time for travel during those dates.  Comments are welcome, more soon, Jenae