Saturn in Libra – what will it mean for your relationships?

Except for a brief period between April 8th and July 21st, Saturn is in Libra until October 5th 2010. Saturn is exalted in Libra which means that this is one of its most powerful placements. Saturn represents reality, challenges, structure, foundation, obstacles, hard work, obligations, restrictions, and limitations. As he transits through the houses of your birth chart, he teaches you important lessons that will improve the quality of your life in the longer term.

Libra governs partnerships and all kinds of relationships, both personal and business. Libra is objective, fair-minded, logical, social, charming, friendly, seeks balance, and appreciates the aesthetic beauty in its surroundings. Libra does not like conflict and will try to keep the peace at all costs. Saturn doesn’t operate on that level – if there is some unpleasantness to be experienced, then it is all for the bigger picture and the sooner we face the issues, the sooner we can construct new structures that are supportive and helpful in our lives.

With Saturn in Libra, we have lessons to learn about the challenges in our relationships, our commitment and work we need to put in to maintain healthy connections, the balance of power within our partnerships, and the objectivity that is sometimes needed especially when passions and emotions come to the fore.

Those of you who were born between 1982 and 1984 may be experiencing your first Saturn Return (embarking on adulthood); and those of you who were born between 1952 and 1954 may be going through your second Saturn Return. The way you dealt with your first Saturn return will have a strong bearing on how easy or how challenging your second Saturn return will be.

Let’s take a look at how Saturn will be affecting you through the various houses:

The 1st House represents you, your self-image, your being, your potential. Saturn's transit through house might bring self-awareness of your limitations due to various obligations in your life, situations forced upon you, or mental and physical challenges. This transit is about rising above whatever is pushing you down and keeping you from the success you desire; having the confidence and belief in your own determination and drive for achievement despite the odds; making lemonade out of lemons. At the beginning of this transit you may feel quite lost – as though much has been taken away from you and you are back to the beginning. This is because Saturn gets rid of anything that is extraneous and of no value to you and gives you a chance to rebuild your life. Decisions that you make during this period are the start of another 14 year period in your life. So take your time and don’t allow yourself to be rushed.

The 2nd House represents your material possessions, your income, your values, and your self-worth. On a higher level, it represents stability, inner peace, and being grounded through your own self-sufficiency. In these difficult economic times and employment worries, Saturn's transit through the 2nd house reminds you that your true worth does not lie in your possessions and inner peace cannot be achieved through material means alone. You may be forced learn to live within your financial means, discard the unnecessary, and have your resilience truly tested. This is certainly a time to be frugal and to make best use of the resources available to you.

The 3rd House represents short trips, communication, commerce, writing, speaking, thinking, planning, and ideas. Saturn's transit through this house might mean that you take up a serious course of study, one that will take a few years to accomplish. This should be in a field that will further your career. Remember that Saturn is a slow-moving planet, so don’t allow yourself to get bogged down with the details. Instead, focus on actively taking baby steps towards your future. For those with siblings this transit might highlight how relationships and interactions with them can be improved. You may feel as though your movement is restricted in some way – this is just so that you stay focused and don’t scatter your energies.

The 4th House represents the family - present or issues from the past, the home – buying or selling a house, moving, re-financing, re-decorating, remodeling, and your private life. On an emotional or personal level, it represents coming to terms with the past or unresolved family issues. A Saturn transit in the fourth house might prove truly challenging. Here, you are urged to put your raw emotions aside for the sake of reason and what's achievable. You may do renovations on your property. For example, you may insulate it and put in double glazing to save on heating bills for the winter.

The 5th House represents self-expression, creative projects, love and romance, fun, playfulness, and children. Saturn's transit through the fifth house makes you aware of your responsibilities while at the same time making sure that you have time for fun and pleasure too. This is not a time to speculate on the stock markets or property market, but rather a time to conserve what you have. It could be a good time to solidify an entrepreneurial venture that you have been working on for some time. It can indicate increased responsibilities with children or young people.

The 6th House represents health, work, service, comfort in routines, and finding order in the details. This transit might bring about forced lifestyle changes and changes in your health habits, your diet, exercise, how you work. You may have to take on the role of being of service to other people. It could be a time for you to set clear boundaries in relation to the people with whom you work. If there is a tendency for you to take on too much, you can expect to be extra-burdened during this transit. The key will be for you to learn to say no. It’s an important time to take care of your health and if there are any issues to get them seen to as soon as possible.

The 7th House represents partnerships and all your one-to-one relationships, committed relationships, and known enemies. Forced or long-awaited and much needed changes to relationships -- equality, cooperations, compromises, agreements, how we relate to others, how they relate to us -- might be issues that come up now. Long-term ties that have been significant in the past may be severed during this transit. If you are in a relationship, it will be sorely tested during this transit. If your relationship is solid, then once the transit is over, you will come out of it stronger and more together than ever. If however, your relationship is unbalanced and not nourishing, you may well separate.

The 8th House represents sex and shared resources or finances. On the psychological level, it represents power struggles within your own psychological makeup and your ability to embrace the darker version of yourself without it overpowering you. On a spiritual level, it represents transformation and regeneration -- the need for something to die in order for a rebirth to occur. The transit of Saturn through the 8th house can be very difficult but also very empowering as it requires endings and cutting off ties. What you have to give up and completely let go of depends upon the sign that Saturn is in and whether or not Saturn is aligned to any of your natal planets. This transit can result in financial loss in a partnership activity or with a banking institution. It’s a time to be very careful with your finances.

The 9th House represents personal and spiritual growth through higher education, adventures, travel, and cultural influences. The pursuit for continuing education or higher learning and the challenges involved in actively pursuing them might be issues that surface during this transit. The 9th house also represents publishing so, if you've authored a novel, non-fiction, or poetry and have been dreaming of having it published, then that dream may manifest during this transit. It’s a time for hard work connected with your education and learning. You may find that you have to travel on business.

The 10th House represents your professional pursuits, your long-term goals, and your public reputation. If you have been focusing on your career for some time, you will find that much comes to fruition during this transit. If you have not been focusing on a particular career, you may find that you change career altogether and start fresh. You may cut down the hours you work and focus on something that is more of an avocation to you. You may redefine your long-term goals. Your interactions with your superiors or those in authority may be challenged now. The need to establish or re-establish your public reputation might also be highlighted now.

The 11th House represents friendships and associations; your personal view of world, its state, and its varied societies; humanity as a whole and your place in it, as well as your collaborative responsibility to it. Existing friendships undergo changes that can either strengthen bonds or can end these connections altogether. New friendships may be created during this transit. You may find that you become more aware of the global situation and your beliefs and ideals change dramatically during this period. It’s also a great time to put some flesh on the visions that you have held and to set clear goals for the future. You may find that you take on some responsibilities in your community.

The 12th House, is the house of the subconscious, solitude, spiritual consciousness, secrets (ours and those kept from us), hidden enemies, and it represents institutions like hospitals and prisons. A Saturn transit through the 12th house requires a period of "aloneness" in order to "recharge your batteries" and sort through issues that are being presented subconsciously and psychologically to you. The most effective way to process the transit through this house is to surrender ... to give in to the much needed spiritual healing offered. You will find that clarity will follow. It’s a time when you might feel quite isolated and unable to connect deeply with others – this is because you have inner work to be done that can only be done in quiet moments when you are alone.

The Cardinal Climax – What Lies Ahead In The Next Year

We are coming up to what might be the most powerful astrological alignment of our lifetime: the Cardinal Climax.

It is similar to what happened in the 1930’s, only the aspects today are even closer. It’s happening in Cardinal signs, which means there will be new beginnings. Each Cardinal sign: Cancer, Capricorn, Aries and Libra heralds a new season, so they always initiate a change.

There are four slow moving planets involved in this configuration:
Pluto, the slowest planet, is about transformation, birth, death and ultimate renewal. Uranus which is about awakening and revolution and sudden change, Jupiter which is about expansion, new beginnings and hope, and Saturn which doggedly holds onto the old and resists the new at all costs. We are seeing the rigidity of Saturn in many areas, particularly political parties that want to keep things as they are just for the hell of it and are resisting change. This is happening with Congress right now as the Republicans are resisting Obama’s health reforms.

The year ahead, until March 2011 is peppered with huge astrological aspects from Saturn opposing Uranus, Jupiter opposing Saturn, Jupiter square to Pluto…the list goes on. What does it all mean? Mother Earth needs to cleanse herself and she is shifting. We’ve had three earthquakes in the last few months alone: Haiti, Chile, Turkey. There will be more changes ahead. You will need to trust your intuition. If you intuitively feel as though you should move from where you are living, trust your intuition. Even if people around you think you have gone crazy, it’s not worth taking a chance.

Early August 2010 is the peak of this aspect structure, but we are already feeling it and the energies of this are with us until at least the end of 2011.

There are also two lunar eclipses taking place around this cardinal climax:
June 26th there is a lunar eclipse at 4 degrees Capricorn for the Moon and 4 degrees Cancer for the Sun. This creates a grand cross with the T square of Pluto, Uranus and Saturn and it’s likely we will see some really crazy happenings around that time.

Another date to watch out for is December 21st when there is another lunar eclipse with the Moon at 29 degrees Gemini and the Sun at 29 degrees Sagittarius. Again, almost in cardinal signs, so it will have a serious effect.

Finally there is a full moon in Aries at 0 degrees with the Sun at 0 degrees Libra on September 23rd. I anticipate that this will be an intense time as well.

Overall, I think that these aspects will result in a complete paradigm shift on our planet. We are not going to be able to push our planet for more and more resources, more and more growth at the expense of the life of the earth. We will see that we are not about continual growth and having lots and lots of stuff. We are moving towards what I hope will be a kinder, more compassionate and heartfelt feeling towards one another and the ability to live on much less.

I am noticing that children born today are more spiritually open than ever before.

It’s time for us to start living in the way that we think the world ought to be. Don’t wait for the changes to happen, you live that change. Follow your intuition, allow yourself to be guided. We don’t need the outside authority any more, it’s up to us. Despite these huge changes, this is a very exciting time to be alive!

Pluto In Capricorn - An Issue Of Life And Death

Pluto is ruled by Scorpio and therefore signifies destruction, transformation and renewal. It also pertains to life and death issues. Capricorn rules aging, the skeleton and death. We will see a greater focus on assisted suicide, the medical profession and their use of drugs, people wanting to know more about death, reincarnation and what happens to us when we die. Indeed in my own life, I have had a number of clients who have recently committed suicide, others who have died suddenly.

I have other clients who are dealing with medical malpractice issues that have led to possibly unnecessary deaths. For example, doctors are giving out drugs with severe side-effects and are not recommending to patients that they do not drive whilst taking these drugs. A sister of a client of mine was killed in a car accident by someone who had repeatedly gone to his doctor with dizzy spells. This person probably should not have been driving as he was on drugs that can alter his mental state. We are going to see more and more cases like this coming up, and more and more cover ups by the medical profession and the drug companies. As a result, we will see new laws emerging that attempt to protect the public from these tragedies.

More and more scientists are researching the area of death, cryogenics and how to extend the lifespan. Do we really need to age? Can all our cells renew themselves? There will be an increased focus on longevity and the possibility of physical immortality.

Capricorn rules ancient knowledge and wisdom and with 2012 coming, there is a huge focus on the Mayan prophecies, the Hopis, the Waitaha tribe from New Zealand and this interest is going to grow exponentially. We will be examining ancient wisdom that was developed and lost. With Pluto in Capricorn, we are unearthing these ancient philosophies and this is going to help us understand ourselves and our way forward.

Expect new healing techniques concerning bones as Capricorn rules the bones. We will find a cure for osteoporosis or brittle bones. Scientists will find a way for us to have a permanently youthful skeleton.

Capricorn rules time and Pluto rules life and death so we will be learning more about time than ever before. Our perception and understanding of time will change. We will be able to see that it is not just linear in nature, but has many dimensions. Our understanding of time will deepen and once this transit of Pluto in Capricorn is complete, we will have a totally new outlook on time, aging, life and death. We will not be subject to the same limitations that we experience today, we will have a broader perspective that will be liberating and empowering.

What does astrology tell us about the economic crisis the world is facing?

Right now there are several planets in Pisces (Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus) and this tends to produce over-optimistic sentiments within governments and ruling parties. There is a tendency to exaggerate the growth that is anticipated and to minimise the job losses, the property market continuing to crash and the exorbitant price rises in our food and everyday living. The vibration of Pisces is such that a fog can appear in our minds and we can accept that there is nothing to worry about and that our economies are going to start growing very soon.

Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the Piscean energy, whilst it can be very compassionate and caring, it can also ignore the true reality and want to sweep anything unpleasant under the carpet. This is precisely what we are seeing in the world today. Even with the millions of people who are unemployed, the drastic cuts we are seeing in public services, most world economies in unsustainable debt, there is still a feeling that the masses have not yet awakened to the imminent dangers.

Let me explain this all astrologically to you. The aspects we are seeing over the next few years are very similar to those during the Great Depression of the 1930’s. With Pluto in Capricorn until 2023-2024, we are going to see issues around taxes and debt coming to the fore. No longer will governments without integrity be able to operate. Any scams and underhand dealings will be brought out into the open – if you think that Bernie Madoff was one of a kind, think again. He is just the tip of the iceberg. There are many more scandals to be unearthed.

The Cardinal Climax consists of Uranus in Aries opposite Saturn in Libra, both squaring Pluto in Capricorn. They are all in challenging aspect to one another and therefore we will see struggles, riots, civil unrest and the increasing possibility of worldwide economic collapse and warfare. Once Uranus goes into Aries by February 2011, it will be the end of all the talking and it will be time to walk the talk. Uranus in Aries can be very innovative and creative, but on the other hand it can be very aggressive, unpredictable and self-centered.

Saturn in Libra is about equality for the people. We will see a greater gap between the haves and the have-nots. As Saturn is opposing Uranus, we are likely to see uprisings which involve young people who are not satisfied to take the status quo and to be saddled with the debts of previous generations. Be prepared for a revolutionary spirit that can inflame emotions which can result in violence and bloodshed. We do have a window of opportunity during 2011 while Jupiter and Uranus are in Aries together – this will be a time when we may be able to come up with new ideas that catapult us out of this mess and into a new paradigm.

On the personal level, those of you with cardinal planets will be most affected by this configuration, especially if the Cardinal Climax falls on the angles in your chart. The Cardinal signs are Cancer, Capricorn, Aries and Libra – so you may know that your Sun is in one of those signs, but you may have your Moon, Mercury, Venus or Mars being affected by these energies. Let’s say you are an Aries Sun. You are going to be affected by the approach of Uranus onto your Sun. This means that the next few years will be a time of new beginnings for you. Even if you want to, you probably will not be able to hold onto the old – you will have to move out of your comfort zone and into new experiences and ventures. It’s a time for taking more risks in your life and for experiencing a new awakening. This can either be very disruptive if you resist it, or exciting and awe-inspiring if you take the opportunities with open arms.

Over the weeks, I will discuss how the various Sun signs, Moon signs and other planets will be affected by these vibrations in your own charts.