The major astrology of this time relates to the conjunction of Saturn and Pluto. While this was exact in mid January, it is such a big cycle that the energies and themes of this transit will be present for the next few years.
It is the connections between the slow moving outer planets that describe and define periods of time on a global scale. Some people will feel this more strongly than others based on their personal charts – especially Capricorns and Cancers (and also Librans and Aries) – however this impacts the collective energy of the entire planet and hence it will affect everybody.
When I talk about the planets, I’m not really talking about the physical planet out there in space. To say Saturn is a short-hand for the archetypal energies that this planet symbolises in our world.
Saturn relates to control, restriction, fear, structures and, in the case of Saturn transits, to the bringing down of those structures. Pluto was the Lord of the Underworld in mythology and signifies the personal and collective shadow coming to light. The hidden or dark side of life bursting through into consciousness.
Pluto transits signify destruction. In its higher form this is ‘creative destruction’. Bringing the shadow to light in order that the energy is integrated in a healthy manner and transformed.
When Saturn and Pluto come together, very powerful forces are set in motion. Saturn and Pluto together are heavy energies. They are both rooted in bringing major change.
Astrology is not a fated, deterministic system. All planets symbolise a whole spectrum of possible expressions. Whether the lower or higher sides manifest is down to our individual and collective will.
Saturn was opposite Pluto in September 2001. And they were exactly across the Ascendant-Descendent axis (the most sensitive point) of the chart for the United States when 9/11 happened.
Saturn, like I say, is structure, and it was in Gemini. The sign of the twins. The twin towers. Pluto, which relates to terrorism amongst many other dark things, was in Sagittarius – the sign connected to aeroplanes.
This aspect was perfect symbolism for the destruction of the towers. (Remember, the energy of the planets didn’t cause it. The movements of the planets describe the energies behind life events.)
What happened after 9/11 was increased restrictions and limitations on our movements – Saturn.
Right now, the same thing is happening, but in a much more extreme way.
When Saturn and Pluto get together it symbolises a pretty heavy time. The underlying intention, you could say, is to bring about widespread destruction of the structures (both internal and external) that no longer serve. This happens on both a personal and collective level – so that new, healthier structures can be built in its place.
When we’re talking about what happens on a global level though, we are talking about immensely powerful forces that have been created by the collective over a very long period of time. So these things will not change overnight.
While this conjunction happens every 33 to 38 years, the last time it was in Capricorn was almost exactly 500 years ago, in 1518.
The sign that the planets meet in signifies the arena in which the energies play out. Capricorn represents governments, corporations and the big controlling structures of society. So this is where the darkness will come to light and, essentially, a battle will rage between those with the Power who will do everything they can to maintain it, and those who want wholesale changes.
What happened the last time these two planets met in Capricorn?
The big event was the Protestant Reformation – an uprising against the authority of the Catholic Church and the Pope. The Reformation was initiated by Martin Luther, a German Monk, through his publication 95 Theses, right as Saturn and Pluto met in Capricorn. What came out of the Reformation was, in essence, the biggest transformation in Christianity that there has ever been.
Much of this was about the dark secrets (Pluto) of those in charge coming to light. Including the exposing of widespread financial corruption in the Church.
The Catholic Church was essentially the controlling power of a large part of the globe back then. Today that power lies with governments and corporations.
Little by little, more of the darkness of those in charge will start to come to light over the coming years. It is already happening and will continue to happen no matter how much they try and keep a lid on it.
The current situation regarding the Coronavirus is, for me, the most obvious example of this Saturn-Pluto conjunction right now. What interests see most is not the existence of the virus, but the governments’ response to it worldwide.
They are trying their hardest to control the virus.
The UK government’s new slogan is literally “Control the Virus”.
Here in Peru the government are talking about defeating it and wiping it out.
But it’s not going to happen. The virus will continue to spread regardless. And the lockdown measures in place are causing tremendous problems of their own, which will last long after the severity of the virus transmission has died down.
Here in Peru the vast majority of the population have zero savings, and they have not been able to work for more than two months. People cannot afford to buy even basic provisions. This situation is reflected all over the world. It is debatable whether the lockdown will save more lives than it kills in the long run.
And interestingly, deaths per million population in Sweden (who have had no lockdown at all) are lower than in many other European countries, such as UK, Belgium, Spain, Italy and France.
We are also seeing control in the form of censorship on social media. On Youtube I can learn tactical warfare, how to inject steroids, how to fire guns and how to make a bomb. But I cannot listen to the opinions of certain doctors because that’s dangerous!
Still the alternative messages are getting out there and millions of people have viewed the many videos on this topic.
For me the inability to control the virus is reflective of the important symbolism of this time.
That acting from a place of trying to control life doesn’t work… And indeed causes more problems.
So what I want to bring this round to is to say that these same themes are right now playing out on an individual level for all of us somehow. It is a time when our own personal fears, shadow, control mechanisms are also being brought to light. There are titanic forces at play right now (you may have noticed!)
While the personal circumstances will be different for everyone, an important message of this year (and maybe next year too) is to see where we are trying to control – either our own inner forces or situations or people out there in the world.
And in that seeing we can also discover what is behind those impulses. With the significators of Saturn and Pluto this will be, at its core, fear and vulnerability of some kind.
These patterns are becoming easier and easier to spot all the time. And these energies run very deep. So it’s not exactly a pleasant or easy process to confront our deepest fears and vulnerabilities. It’s much easier to try and control them. The only problem is that this is a time when our well-established control mechanisms just won’t work any more! They will create more and more problems now.
And so life is encouraging us, not always in the gentlest manner, to invite these shadow forces up into full awareness. So that the the energies of these old patterns of control and manipulation can be integrated.
And when this happens we then have access to their tremendous virtues of inner strength, maturity and personal power.
And if enough people individually transform their impulses for control and manipulation, then we might just see things shifting in a powerful way at the level of society and humanity over the next decade.
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By the way, one of the other events of 1518, when Saturn and Pluto met in Capricorn, was a plague…
A Dancing Plague that broke out in Strasbourg, France, in which hundreds of people danced without being able to stop for days on end in the blazing sun. Unable to pause to even eat or drink. Many dancers died from their exertions.
So maybe this is an omen to start dancing your way through this testing time a bit more. Metaphorically and literally. Just take a break for sustenance occasionally.