Dear Astrokp,
What can you expect from your Saturn Return?
Your Saturn Return Dates
Dates include 1 degree on either side of natal Saturn, which is when it is most intense
Direct Feb 14 – March 6, 2020
Retrograde July 23 – Aug 21, 2020
Direct Nov 6 – Dec 2, 2020
Truth be told, people have a wide range of experiences with Saturn Returns, and I’ve heard people say that they didn’t even notice their Saturn Return. It was smooth sailing. So, truly, you won’t know for sure until you experience it.
Most people, however, do find it to be quite tumultuous – bringing much change and even extreme sudden changes that took them in new directions. I’m 68 and have had two Saturn Returns and both of mine truly were times that marked a real change – good changes. But even if changes are good, they can be difficult. Mine were of this variety. Hard but good – and for the best. It involves letting of something so that something new can emerge – be in a concept, idea, habit, behavior, circumstance, etc.
Why is the Saturn Return a difficult time for a lot of people? Well, according to metaphysics, Saturn is like a home that is our body. Saturn brings all the energies of all the planets into a physical body in which we are born. with each planet in a room. But in a special secret place in the attic of our body-home, the Soul resides, protected and coveted away from our everyday living. The Soul has a directive for each lifetime – a challenge to heal something – to grow, change and become – to realize and become aware of a bigger and more spiritual self that is our essence. This directive is stated in the Moon’s Nodes. The Moon and Pluto also carry directives about how we are to evolve and change too. Saturn is called the Planet of Karma – for that reason. The Soul always wants us to see it and bring it more into everyday life.
Saturn tells us where we are narrowly focused on the life’s goal through the sign and house. They say it limits us because its job is to keep us focused in that arena. It’s where our attention must be to accomplish our goals.
So, the first 28-29 years, we grow up within a family and culture and we are conditioned by them. We develop our personalities around a set of beliefs and attitudes in our family and culture. But we also carry some baggage with us into the world at birth. By the time we are 28, we’ve had some time to live outside of our family system and encounter certain difficulties. We notice patterns. We begin to change and become adults – we make our own decisions. But we also notice what seems to be difficult for us.
So at the Saturn Return, it’s like a choice becomes available. We need to make changes so that we don’t repeat the same patterns. We want to face our challenges in new ways. We want to follow the directive of our souls. But for most of us, it means going against some part of our conditioning – what we learned in our family and culture. THAT is difficult. But it’s exciting too.
So let’s look at your chart.
In your case, because natal Saturn is conjunct your Sun and North Node, these planets will also be affected and you might feel it much sooner and much later than the exact Saturn return dates above. Saturn has already been conjunct your string of Capricorn planets the last two years.
There is also transiting Pluto conjunct transiting Saturn in January of 2020 – Capricorn – and it marks a new Pluto-Saturn cycle for all of us. Pluto will not conjunct your Sun-Saturn-NN during the Saturn Return dates, but it’s close by and Pluto will come conjunct them all too – which can be just as tumultuous. Pluto starts conjuncting your Sun about Feb 10, 2021 and then goes on to conjunct Saturn, North node – and this lasts until January, 2024 – and then pops into the 12th house in Aquarius – where it will go on to conjunct Moon and Venus.
Okay but what does this all mean for you?
When people have so many planets grouped together like this, it means that when the outer, very slow planets (Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) that have so much weight and power come around, many of your planets get hit in a fairly short period of time. You aren’t alone as many people have planets grouped as you do. But, still, it is an intense period coming up for you . . . and so, your question is well-timed.
Your South Node in Cancer is on the cusp of the 6th house. Chiron is conjunct SN. This tells me that one of the goals of this life is to know yourself from the inside out instead of being defined by your family or culture. You haven’t been able to separate that out easily – other they saw you or see you, what they needed you to be or wanted you to be, the way they treated you – all of these things could have defined you by making you think, feel or act a certain way. The challenge is to reach deep inside of yourself and begin to feel who you are, what you want, what you feel, etc. on your own terms – this is the North Node in Capricorn and it is aligned with your Saturn. Saturn wants you to live authentically, from the inside out – and then you have a special place in your community, tribe or social arena. This is your focus.
If you have already been focusing on this South Node problem, your Saturn return may be easier than it might be. But I think for sure, you can expect to have new insights and to break away from your conditioning much more during this period. All this Capricorn in your chart tells me that it is of utmost importance for you to find your True Self, live with authenticity, integrity and to follow your own path. Since you have all those planets in Capricorn, this may actually be easier to do. But I’m really not sure about that. Sometimes a person ends up with a lot of planets in a sign because they really need it to combat the difficult problem.
The South Node in Cancer in the 5th on the 6th cusp with Chiron could indicated that this is quite difficult. Jupiter is in Leo and the 5th is Leo’s natural house. You most likely very much identify with your family’s idea of who you are and maybe it’s a very positive image. That’s when it gets tricky. Maybe you’ve gotten a lot of praise or money or status because of this identity. Maybe it’s an advantage in a lot of ways. If it’s a negative image then it’s a lot easier to want to change it. If it isn’t working for you then you’ll be motivated to change, and all that Capricorn will help. I don’t know what your situation is, but your chart is saying that however you were defined by others and have adopted as your identity – dude, this is not YOU. You have other talents, other goals, other directives from the inside – from your Soul – and you won’t be entirely happy until you embrace it.
THAT’s what your Saturn Return is going to be about. THAT’s what TR Pluto will come round after Saturn to help you accomplish. It’s a shake up or shake down – however you want to see it.
Then, as TR Saturn goes into the 12th house, it will direct you to let go of the old you – whatever isn’t truly yours – and that whole period will be about letting go, letting go, letting go – of all the ways you perpetuate the old self-image in thought, emotion and behavior.
The TR Saturn crosses your ASC, and asks you to change the way you come across to others. How does the new you look to other people? How do you want to present the new you?
Pluto moves much more slowly than Saturn, but it will finish contacting all your 11th house planets and move into the 12th too – but it doesn’t conjunct your natal Moon until May of 2028 – just to give you an idea of how long it stays in your 11th house messing with all your planets. Pluto asks you to evolve – to change – to really change – to transform yourself – to take the positive sides of all the planets it touches. All the planets have a positive and negative side. If you are doing any of the negatives, Pluto will ask you to see it, acknowledge it, admit it and then change it to the positive sides of each planet.
This does not have to be as hard as it sounds. If you are at least making an effort to do the personal inner work, this will not be a negative time. You will be much supported by Saturn and Pluto. You’ll only have trouble if you don’t do the inner work. Truly, Saturn and Pluto can be extremely helpful and supportive when you don’t resist what they ask of you. The more you reach inside of yourself for what really feels right to be doing, the better off you’ll be. Don’t be egotistical. This is not the time. You have the ability to truly transform yourself here and it is a precious opportunity.
There’s something else happening in your chart at the same time. Your Secondary Progressed Sun and Moon are moving through the 11th-12th houses too. That is highly significant. It is helpful to this whole process – it’s just more energy giving you strength, stamina and focus upon what needs to be done. You are highly supported for making big changes in yourself. The 12th house is all about "LETTING GO".
By 2026, your SP Sun crosses over the ASC just as Pluto has begun its 12th house journey. It is possible that this is when you will feel like you have started to benefit from all these changes. If you don’t feel it then, I think you will soon enough. You will still have letting go to do, but you will start to see light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak, so that you really start to be able to feel like this is a new beginning being the real you.
Trust me, when we’re talking about a huge transformation, 6 years is very little time.
If I’m correct in all this, my advice to you is to truly know that tremendous forces of change are upon you and it’s going to take time for you to sort it all out. If it feels overwhelming or like there’s too much upheaval, too confusing, try to tell yourself it is only temporary – that – it’s normal and okay – given your chart and the hugeness of the goal. In order to change, we MUST first let go of what we are clinging to – let it go so that the new can emerge. So confusion is going to normal and expected – feeling LOST would be a reasonable feeling in these times.
If you like to write, keep a journal. If you’re feeling Lost, for instance, just say so. This is how I feel right now. Accept it. Let it be what it is and don’t worry about it, because it’s a necessary step.
I think you will be doing something that is of service to others, and you’ll shine doing it – in a quiet way. But you’ll know that it is coming from the True You – from a You down deep inside of yourself.
I think you might be very empathic. Most certainly you are a sensitive person. You need to have some protections around you – because you can be easily impressed by others. You need to set some boundaries. You have some fears that are rightful earned, because of how sensitive and vulnerable you can be. The way to deal with these is to learn to protect yourself while being with people. You may want to make sure you spend enough time alone to regenerate. Capricorn doesn’t mind solitude. Give yourself as much as you need. You don’t have to be out there all the time. You don’t have to be in the limelight. It isn’t for everybody. It really isn’t. We can impact the world in many ways and make a difference. I’m someone who does not like the limelight. I give in very quiet ways – like I am right now. I sit in my solitude and give my hard-earned knowledge. I personally feel better when I’m alone and giving quietly, one on one. You might be more Out There than me, because of the planets in the 11th house, but, your Moon is in the 12th and the ruler of your house of career, 10th is in the 6th house – these are inward houses – not in the limelight. So, maybe you go both ways.
You could be an intuitive, psychic, or astrologer – but you could also like working with technology, science, medical fields. I do think the latter is the stronger possibility. But I think you might like working alone or quietly in a team but with the goal of helping people – or at least, working out of the limelight that an actor, politician or news anchor would be. You need more privacy and solitude. You may be an excellent writer with Mars in the 3rd house – good with languages – a good communicator. There are many possibilities – I’m just throwing these out there.
So, back to your question. What can you expect from your Saturn Return? My guess is you are about to truly grow and change A LOT, starting now and into the next 6 years. It could be very exciting. You have much support for doing what you really want to do if you go down deep inside, clean out the closet, and discover the hidden jewels. It’s a good time to follow your dreams and do your heart’s bidding. Don’t be afraid. There will be ups and downs, for sure, because life is like that. But, there is nothing more thrilling than finding your own voice and speaking it and following your heart and loving it. It makes life worth living.