The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 3

As we found in the study of previous Saturn returns (The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 1 and Part 2), every 28-30 years, the US is challenged by the transit Saturn over the US natal position. During each past occurance, problems with the structure of government were pushed into the public spotlight and the future course of the nation was decided by a single generation. The US was, in a sense, challenged to "grow up" and take on greater responsibilities through drastic reform in government structures. Often, there was also a cosmic call for humility.

The current Saturn return is likely no different, and the fate of the US again hangs in the balance. Today, we are in the midst of what may become known as the worst depression in US history, with prolonged and record levels of unemployment, blatant fraud and corruption running rampant throughout the highest levels of our economy, and sweeping policy changes, such as health care, being made (and possibly undone) in a mere matter of months. The US is entrenched in what has been dubbed a "global war on terrorism" at the same time as the nation has become intensely divided amongst itself over a veritable laundry list of political, social and economic issues. We are bombarded daily with headlines that scream at us the extreme importance of making the right choices today, and the dire consequences that await our nation if we don't.

In the conclusion to this extended three part posting, I will take a closer look into the current Saturn return. I'll begin by first analyzing the global and generational forces, namely those of Pluto, Neptune and Uranus, that give us clues to the forms of challenge the US currently faces. This will establish a sort of framework that was put forward during the initial transit of the Saturn return on December 3, 2010. I will then take a look at the more "personal" aspects of this return, taking into account other planetary transits, and the various aspects to the US natal chart, at the subsequent transit points of the Saturn return. This should give us the detail we need to "flesh out" the framework established.

In January of 2008, Pluto began it's 18 year long transit through the sign of Capricorn, which will culminate in 2022 with the first Pluto return to be experienced by the US. This sign placement has, as it did last between 1762 and 1777, turned the global focus toward revolutionary transformations in both government and "big business". The flavor of this transit has an organizational quality, lending to the structural, Saturnian nature of Capricorn, where new organizations are brought forth from individual desires for transformation.

December 3, 2010

Currently, Pluto is transiting the US natal 1st house, placing its influence on matters of personality. In fact, the nature of 1st house transits on the US chart could be said to define the "face" of the nation, both domestically and internationally. The 1st house acts as a dividing line between "self" and "other", represented in the opposing 1st and 7th houses. Activation of the 1st house by any planetary transits tend to focus a spotlight on this dividing line. In 2000, when Pluto entered the 1st house in Jupiter ruled Sagittarius, issues of personal freedoms and of philosophical or ideological conflicts, all Sagittarian issues, were dragged into this spotlight. The US quickly found itself at war with opposing ideologies all over the world through the expansive "War on Terror". Since entering Capricorn, however, this "expansive" nature of the war has been under constant public attack. A more conservative, Saturnian desire to define and restrict the line between "self" and "other" has taken the spotlight. Focus has turned toward the individual's place in the world, and toward the governmental structures that directly represent him. In a sense, the John Q. Public is being compelled to literally transform the "face" of the nation into a more accurate representation of himself.

Looking to Neptune, and the role it plays in defining the "American Dream" (see Part 2 for more on this), we find it conjunct the US natal Moon placement in Aquarius and the 3rd house. The US natal Moon here has often been thought to represent the "melting pot" mentality of the public, the high ideal of "equal rights", as well as the "Don't Tread on Me" attitude that the US has always held in high regard. Neptune in this place, however, is said to create a fog that causes confusion, and potentially delusion, surrounding the functioning of a natal planet. Neptune first moved into Aquarius in 1998 while in the US natal 2nd house, and it transited into the 3rd house, making its current conjunction with the US natal Moon, back in the early summer of 2008. This was just as the presidential election campaigns were reaching their fever-pitch. Neptune's transit here had led to a sense of confused devotional fanatiscism surrounding the campaigns, especially that of Obama who was heralded on more than one occassion as a messiah and was subsequently awarded a Nobel Peace Prize before he had even completed a year in office. Obvious, too, was the effect it has had on the campaigning of Sarah Palin and the continued frenzied support of Ron Paul.

As Neptune transits the rebellious sign of Aquarius and the 3rd house of mind, a push for more open and high-minded ways of thinking has, in fact, become important to the individual. The American Dream today is to actively stand up and fight for the highest ideals, including personal freedoms and the rights of man himself, rather than to stand by while a greedy and powerful elite strip these freedoms away. This placement of Neptune in the early 3rd house, however, is also a harbinger of lost direction and mistranslations. Neptune confounds the sense of logic while in the 3rd house, causing rational decision making to become difficult. With Aquarius considered the sign of the masses, this confusion becomes most apparant when looking at large groups of people.

A more intuitive approach to thinking is required under this placement, as Neptune is capable of revealing hidden truths while in this house. It can be expected, however, that neither will the books balance nor the truth be spoken with any sort of elloquence. Poetry, art and music become more effective means of communicating with this placement, and deep meditation or occultic research will prove fruitful. Public speeches and the figures of accounting will suffer. George W. Bush, with his natal Neptune placement in the 3rd house, shows us how difficult it can be to say what you mean under this influence with his countless blunders ("Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.").

Uranus, the planet of revolution itself, also is seen transiting late in the 3rd house, near the cusp of Pisces and Aries. It was last in Pisces during the Saturn return of the 1920s, which manifested as a sort of "drunken revolution". Since it entered Pisces in early 2003, it has called for a return to a conservative balance in all things, and to avoid the decadence of extremes that forever challenge planetary placements in Pisces. Just as it did then, it shows we are in a time of fiscal extremism where the money supply has been increased beyond all reason. The threat of the wrong decisions with this placement are clear, as 7 years after the Saturn return of 1922 and 1923, with Uranus transiting early in Aries, the US found itself experiencing the Great Depression.

So our framework is established, as Pluto tells of a time where the symbolic face of the nation is being transformed through radical adjustment of governmental structure and big business, and Neptune of a time where the American Dream itself has become an irrational, confused frenzy of devotional fanatiscism, personal freedoms and high ideals. Uranus tells us that the time of Piscean extremes and the "too much is never enough" mentality are nearing an end, that we may be about to experience an Aries induced financial hangover.

December 3, 2010

As we look to some of the aspects of these generational influences, we do find a spectacular opposition from Pluto to the natal US Jupiter and Venus conjunction at the first transit of this Saturn return. These planets, often considered the Greater and Lesser Benefics, respectively, play an integral role in international relations by their placement in the 7th house. Specifically, these planets lend a pleasantness to international affairs, and help ensure the US is held in high regard by our closest allies. With Pluto making an opposition to them, however, the very nature of these alliances is being pushed to transform, and the "self versus other" paradigm is again brought to mind.

The 7th house, however, defines all close relationships, both "good" ones and "bad". This opposition, then, also marks relations with US enemies. The placement of Jupiter conjunct with Venus has given the US an appearance of almost mystical strength to such "enemies" throughout much of American history, but this opposition is highlighting every weakness of the US on the world stage.

We also find a sextile from Uranus in Pisces to the natal Pluto position in Capricorn and the 2nd house. In this relationship, an easy exchange of energies between the revolutionary nature of the transiting Uranus and the transformational nature of the natal Pluto is being manifest through the push we see for revolution in our monetary policy. Debt has been called front-and-center, as it becomes the biggest hurdle to American progress. The US public has found itself shackled with credit card and mortgage debts that it simply can't pay, and big business is drowning in their pools of "troubled assets". Debt relief is on the ticket and Uranus is daring us to go for the ride.

Jupiter, itself loosely conjunct with transiting Uranus, is seen in a loose opposition to the natal placement of Neptune. This is marking a time when the American Dream is itself seemingly opposed to our own philosophical ideals and direction of growth. This can also be seen manifest in the financial troubles afflicting the country. Americans have found themselves unable to save, barely making it paycheck to paycheck, when they know that's exactly what they should be doing.

With Venus and the Moon transiting the 11th house in Scorpio, we glean an important element of how the return initially manifests itself. Specifically, we see a feminine energy, likely a woman, brought into the spotlight in the international affairs of the 11th house. This relates to secrets, which is the domain of Scorpio. The Sun is also seen conjuncting the natal ascendant, a time of world attention being focused, for better or worse, on the personality of the US itself.

Interestingly, on November 29th, just 5 days before the first transit of Saturn to its exact natal degree, WikiLeaks released the first group of US diplomatic cables. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was seen frantically traveling the world trying to minimize damage to international relations leading up to the release of what was subsequently dubbed "Cablegate". Since this time, of course, the US government has been publicly pursuing various ways in which to charge Julian Assange of WikiLeaks for espionage.

Also of note is the sextile aspect of transiting Mars in Sagittarius and the 1st house to the US natal Moon. This speaks clearly of anger relating to human rights, and matches nicely to that caused by the increased security at airports nationwide during the latter half of November. This reached it's climax just before the first transit of the current Saturn return, marking it as another key event in deciphering the root challenges facing the nation.

March 22, 2011

On March 22nd, the US will experience the second, retrograde transit of Saturn over the natal point. At this time, we find the Moon again transiting the 11th house and Scorpio, bringing a woman into the spotlight on international affairs, though it appears she's in effect "distancing" herself from domestic issues, signified by a striking lack of accompanying aspects during the hours of closest conjunction.

Venus, this time, is seen conjunct the US natal Moon, along with transiting Neptune, showing some form of confusion being brought to light surrounding an issue connected with immigration or humanitarian aid. This could signify Obama, as well, with his election under this placement and the continuing debate over his official birth certificate. Also likely here is a public outburst of political dissent, organized by a woman of some prominence, over a personal rights issue.

Mars is in a strong opposition to the natal Neptune placement, and is loosely squaring its natal position in Gemini and the 7th house. This, I hate to say, is a very warlike aspect, showing outward hostilities against the US and the "American Dream". Though war is unlikely, rhetoric and posturing is to be expected with this placement, and issues relating to oil (Pisces) will be likely to make the headlines on a daily basis.

Jupiter is seen loosely opposing the natal (and transiting) Saturn placement, and squaring the US natal Sun, as the transiting Sun conjuncts with Uranus and the IC in the first degrees of Aries. This portends an especially heated time domestically, when national security is on a literal knife's edge. It's likely that we'll see a man come into the public eye at this time who is vehemently indicting the US on the world stage, through the exposure of some form of corruption in the highest levels of government or big business. This, in turn, causes public outcry. Protests and demonstrations, domestically and internationally, are very likely. Another possibility is that this man is actually being tried in the court system by the US government on charges that are contrary to the public opinion, thus sparking the protests and public outcry.

Synthesizing these aspects and placements with the framework we established earlier shows us that late March and early April will most assuredly become the pivotal point in this Saturn return. Protests, political dissent, posturing and rhetoric will be grabbing headlines. The US will be domestically, and maybe also internationally, challenged to take a conservative, face-saving approach. It will be called out to rectify political and financial excesses of the last 7 years as the confusion that has surrounded issues of individual human rights and immigration, and even delusional political divisions, will begin to be lifted. The exposure of corruption, human rights violations and what look to be "decidedly un-American practices" by government or big business, through trials or public hearings, will cause public outrage, civil unrest and protests.

With Uranus entering the first degree of Aries, and conjunct the IC, the threat of a sudden and violent uprooting of domestic life and culture in the US, through natural or unnatural disasters, and possibly a complete collapse of the financial system, is a looming threat throughout both the spring and summer. It also shows us that the only good solution to the challenges of this return are in reforms that bring us back to our roots, as represented by the IC. Truly conservative, constitutionalist or libertarian policies will be debated on the floor of Congress and in the Senate for the first time in a more than century, almost certainly with support from the majority of Americans.

August 28, 2011

On August 28th, the third and final transit of the Saturn return will likely take place without much fanfare. At this point, Neptune is in retrograde, moving back into a tight conjunction with the US natal Moon placement, and thus bringing confusion back to the masses until late spring of 2012. With the Jupiter in Taurus and the 5th house, however, a sense of optimism is possible as there appears to be a clear direction established. This placement of Jupiter shows an increase in creative innovation for the nation, and a likely time of material stability, that should also last until late spring of 2012.

The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 2

In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 1, I reviewed the previous seven US Saturn returns and the events that coincided with them in order to illustrate the nature of Saturn returns in the US natal chart. In this, part 2, I will review some of the planetary placements during these previous returns, hopefully shedding some light on the other factors that shaped the events and gave each return it's own unique flavor of challenge.

To avoid too much analysis, and keep things more to point, we'll look specifically at the 3 outer planets beyond Saturn: Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Pluto, the slowest moving of the 4, plays the largest role in each Saturn return, especially when looking at national charts, coloring the events of each return with both it's sign, on a global level, and by house placement for entire generations of Americans. The transit position of Pluto during each of the Saturn returns tells us exactly what area of life, and through what means, the US itself is being challenged to transform.

US Natal - July 4, 1776

Neptune, also, gives us important generational markers, showing us what the "American Dream" looks like during a given time. For example, its natal placement in Virgo tells us that the original "American Dream" was that of structured work ethic and a more conservative spiritual or religious ideal. The highest ideal was a job well done. Being in the 9th house, this also gives us clues about a more joyful, freedom seeking spirit, with deep philosophical undertones, through the eyes of which the words "pursuit of happiness" make much more of an impact. As we follow Neptune's travels through the houses and signs, we can see the attitudes and values of the masses shift on a national level, giving us a barometer with which to judge the public sentiment and, for lack of a better term, cares.

And Uranus, the revolutionary of the chart, also gives us some key details in deciphering each of the returns; namely, its placement shows where the new systems, to replace the old and outdated ones, are rooted. The natal placement of Uranus, in the sixth house and at approximately 9 degrees Gemini, tells us that when the Constitution was signed, the revolutionary spirit of the first Americans dealt directly with a new type of or approach to work, or service, itself. A different way of thinking, about communications and the philosophies of science, was necessary to bring forth a new paradigm. The darker side of its placement, however, tells us also where dangers may lurk or what the wrong decisions to make may be. By tracking the progress of Uranus through the houses and signs, we can further pinpoint the source of the challenges faced during a Saturn return, as well as divine the new systems that may evolve from them.

December 16, 1804

The Saturn return of 1804-1805 was hallmarked firstly by Pluto's transit of Pisces, showing a certain interest in the secret affairs of the ruling class. This also highlights an attitude of heightened public awareness of the original Neptunian "American Dream" itself, which would not only be in danger of being dissolved through controlling power structures, but also would be primed for a transformation into something greater and more powerful in itself. In transiting through the 3rd house of the US chart, Pluto was emphasizing the need to transform areas dealing with communication as well as organizational structures, and the way of thinking that underlies them. Combined with Neptune's transit through Scorpio and the US natal 12th house, much of this was brought to a spiritual, though unconscious, level. The values of every day Americans had a more open, mystical or spiritually "transformational" tone. The people wanted to know the truth, by whatever means was necessary, and were willing to put in the hard work to discover it.

Uranus, transiting Libra and the 10th house, was pointing to a need for judicial reforms specifically, as well as a visible revolution in the existing political structure. This was exemplified in the ousting of the Federalist party, which had become predominately bankers and businessmen, by the much more popular "Jeffersonian Republicans". The Revolution of 1800, as it was later called, led to the major reforms during the Saturn return which were largely founded upon issues of the elitism among the Federalists as well as a push by them to stifle dissent, especially from the newspapers of the time. Darker paths for this Uranian drive would have been for a restructuring of the existing party, providing a false paradigm shift, or for the newly empowered party to take a tyrannical or monarchical approach themselves (which, in fact, almost did occur through the "witch hunt" impeachment trial of Justice Chase).

October 15, 1834

As we reach the second US Saturn return, we find Pluto in Aries, traversing the 4th house. Pluto here signifies a truly global time of struggle in forming a new beginning, if need be through extreme actions. The fear of relying on other nations became a real concern, and a drive to return to the principals of the "founding fathers" through complete reformation was at play. Of special concern would be homes and property, as well as family and traditional values, as signified through Pluto's 4th house placement. Neptune's placement in Capricorn and the 2nd house, loosely conjunct the natal Pluto placement, showed an even stronger drive to reform monetary policy to that put forward originally by the US Constitution, the literal "birth" of the nation. There was a sense of disillusionment with the economy and government finances, with the American Dream being an individual's own accumulation of wealth and property, guaranteed them as a God given right.

Uranus is seen transiting the 2nd house as well, but placed firmly in the sign of Aquarius. It showed a strong need for revolutionary reforms specifically in money and wealth of the individual, especially relating to the debts of the masses and the establishment of a humanitarian aid of sort. The failure of the US to fully restructure the financial system, instead opting to just pull government monies from the Second Bank of the United States, allowed the bank to "call in" all its loans led to the "popping" of the debt bubble. The ensuing "Panic of 1837" was followed by a severe, 5 year long depression and massive unemployment.

November 25, 1863

Moving forward to the Saturn return of 1863-1864, we see Pluto in Taurus and the 5th house, Neptune moving through the 4th house in Aries and Uranus transiting the 7th house in Gemini. Pluto's placement in the 5th house shows a lot of issues regarding gambling or speculation, and it's placement in Taurus shows issues regarding monetary systems in general and agriculture specifically. Neptune's placement in Aries gives us signs of people working toward anarchic goals as well as a blurring of the lines between religion and war. The American Dream was being "born again", in a sense, as something entirely new. From the synthesis of these factors, it's truly hard to imagine a nation going to war with itself, but that's exactly what had happened as the South gambled it's money and property to hold on to the traditions of their fathers.

Uranus placed in Gemini tells us of the needed revolutions in not only communications and new ways of thinking, but in learning to deal with opposing points of view. It took a revolution in the approach to waging battles, as well as the way of thinking by those in power, for the North to finally win the war. However, both sides had aggrandized the respective battles won and their war heroes to the point of blurring the lines between that of religion and war, making it harder to find common ground even after the war was over. The new way of "dealing" with one-another, 14 years later, still was not acceptable by many.

September 30, 1893

The Saturn return of 1893 has Pluto and Neptune conjunct on either side of the US Descendant in Gemini. This placement of Pluto shows a chronic, long-term "illness" that has built up over the years becoming an acute problem. Specifically, this illness dealt with ideas and ideologies as they related to work ethics, much of which was legacy from the Civil War period and the Reconstruction Era. Neptune here screamed of the want for scientific breakthroughs, industrial revolutions and the geniuses that rose later to prominence. Americans all wanted to be the next great inventor. However, the past 15 years had been full of Neptunian issues regarding the avoidance of monetary issues. The culmination of this resulted in the Panic of 1893, who's resolution lay in the placement of Uranus as it transited Scorpio in the 11th house.

Specifically, Uranus here foretold the need to use its political allies in a truly unusual way to regain footing. The US needed to firstly become more outspoken, and secondly to give up the resentment it had held for European countries up to this point. By preferring to stay isolationist and not tapping the resources of its allies, breaking the paradigm seen up to this time, the US quickly fell into another panic. Before the next return of Saturn, the US will have had to endure its place, finally step up on the world stage and becoming a key player in one of the most horrific and bloody wars to date.

November 8, 1922

The fifth Saturn return, in 1922 and 1923, placed Pluto in Cancer and the US natal 7th house. Here, it showed an absolute need for transformation of both home and family, as well as the security of the nation itself, through relationships to other nations. Neptune, moving through the 8th house in flamboyant Leo, warned of dramatic issues with taxes and "other people's money". At the same time, an illusory, theatrical "dreamer" mentality was given free range to run amok throughout society. The American Dream had transformed into a drunken collage consisting of art, music and just "having fun". This, at a time of prohibition, was an explosive thing. Even the Federal Reserve, set up in 1913 during the first world war, inflated the money supply by some 60% during this period. Many of these added dollars went directly into the markets, which inflated stocks to truly unprecedented levels and gave the whole nation a false sense of wealth and optimism.

Uranus at this time was moving through Pisces, showing itself as another sort of drunken revolution where too much was never enough. It called for a return to tried and true systems, and conservative attitudes, to avoid too much excess. The challenge of Pisces is always to find a balance in the middle rather than allow yourself to live in the extremes. As well, Uranus traversing the 3rd house called for a renewed sense of concentration and maturity. These struggles presented in every arena of American life, and the failure of the US government, as well as the Federal Reserve System, to renew a sense of conservative responsibility, led the country down the path of hedonistic decadence. The crash of 1929 and the start of the Great Depression occurred 7 years later.

January 10, 1952

In 1952, upon the sixth return of Saturn to its natal US placement, we find controlling and transformational Pluto has taken Neptune's place as it traverses Leo and the 8th house. Here in Leo, it sows the seeds of extreme nationalism, and placement in the 8th the seeds of secrecy. Indeed, the times were that of intense political drama and power plays. Neptune is seen making its way through Libra and the 10th house, putting its emphasis on careers made up of the illusion of justice. A sort of Neptunian dream fog had fallen over the country's public image and it was hard to tell what was really up and what was down. Neptune's American Dream was that of being in the spotlight and being important - of becoming the boss and shaking all the right hands. Idealism can run rampant with this placement of Neptune, and deception is not only easy, it's expected.

With Uranus moving through Cancer and the 7th house, we can see a great need to start going it alone when it came to public image, and to become much more "choosy" when it came to close allies and partnerships. In fact, any allies or partners of the US should have been allowed to do as they would during this time, as a large allowance for freedom was called for. This allowance for freedom was most emphasized in the domestic sphere, in order to avoid potential hysteria. As we know, however, the "Second Red Scare", McCarthyism and even "blacklists" came to the forefront during this time. From the proxy war in Korea and the first joint military exercises with NATO, to 7 years later, Vietnam, it's clear the correct path was not chosen. Covert and dishonest wars were fought, the people were lied to, and the hysteria eventually brought the people of the US to a fever-pitch of anger and resentment that nearly resulted in a revolt 14 years later.

October 22, 1981

And finally, when we look to the last US Saturn return, in 1981, we see this time Pluto in Libra and the 10th house. This signifies a time when being "top dog" is of the utmost importance in the US. Balance in relations, justice and cooperation, however, also took on a sense of urgency. The potential for power plays was high, but more likely was just outright sabotage in efforts to "level the playing field". Neptune, transiting the 1st house in Sagittarius, gave the American Dream a renewed sense of optimism about the future and a strong yearning for individual freedoms. Dreaming big became the norm, and this was to be expressed in every aspect of the American life. However, it also gave many the option of fanaticism in regards to spiritual or emotional matters, and it made it difficult to discern where the US ends and the rest of the world begins. This gave the US public a feeling of obligation to help the rest of the world, along with a lack of true sense of self.

With Uranus in Scorpio and the 12th house, there was a need to be truly focused as a nation, like the stinger of a scorpion, and to dig up the truth wherever it lies, by whatever means necessary. This was the proper resolution to the problems put forward during this return. Instead of this, however, investigations were half-hearted. The fraud and corruption was allowed to continue, leading to much larger problems down the road with politics, the markets and the economy. The corruption later uncovered throughout big business during the late 80s and early 90s should still be fresh in the minds of most of us.

In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 3, I take a closer look at the current Saturn return, including the US natal "personal planets", which I have left out here for sake of brevity, and offer an analysis of what challenges may be in store for the US, as well as potential solutions to the problems the nation faces.