TESTING OUR FAITH, BELIEFS AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE "BIG PICTURE" !!!

Saturn – planet symbolizing the lessons we have to learn in life; what we fear; force of circumstances through which we are driven to find the discipline, effort and sense of order to overcome limitations and obstacles; the taskmaster and teacher – emerged from the watery depths of Scorpio, where it has been transiting since October 5th, 2012, and began its initial transit through the philosophical, broad-minded, religious, fiery sign of Sagittarius back on December 23rd, at 11:33 AM EST … Saturn's energy now shifts its focus from deeply personal issues - sex, personal power, joint finances, psychological issues, deep emotional issues and spiritual matters ... now  its mission is to test our faith, higher beliefs, philosophical views, our personal understanding of life and what our relationship to it is in relation to how and where we individually fit into the greater scheme of the expansive universal picture ... in other words a major shift from validating our deep emotions to validating and in many cases adjusting our mental processes - a daunting task no doubt !!! ... wherever Saturn goes, it brings a heaviness with it that slows us down and in many cases restricts and limits us in order for us to hopefully take an honest, hard look at whatever area of life is represented by the sign it is in ... if we are strong and patient enough to deal with the pressure, Saturn will ultimately reward us with a much stronger foundation even though we often must be willing to release and give up something or even someone in order to bring about greater personal and spiritual growth !!! ... Saturn was last in Sagittarius from 11/17/85 through 11/12/88 ... if you were born during that period, you are now entering the year of your first Saturn return which usually occurs between the ages of 29 - 30 ... that means Saturn has now made one complete transit around your natal chart since birth having taught you valuable life lessons in each area of life represented by the house it was transiting through ... have you gained wisdom and helpful insight from the "cosmic teacher" ???

Many would say that Saturn is not favorably placed transiting through Sagittarius ... Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter so it can be said that now Saturn and Jupiter are in a "working relationship" ... here we have restrictive yet highly organized Saturn working with free-spirited, expansive Jupiter ... yet this combination can actually yield extremely positive results ... as Saturn elevates our concentration it compliments the urge to study to increase our intellectual and philosophical beliefs and views of life ... this transit encourages honesty and being straightforward as well as bestowing the ability to speak up ... here we have the potential to manifest inspirational energies and raise higher thought forms on a global scale ... Saturn in Sagittarius will empower us to take a serious approach to religion, philosophy and higher education ... it may encourage us to be more honorable and adhere to a more strict moral code ... this energy is independent and capable allowing us to search for truth and justice ... it can yield intellectual discipline and bestow great powers of concentration ... those born with this natal energy, in addition to those who harness the energy of this powerful transit, can become excellent teachers, religious or spiritual leaders, or even political leaders - but we should not forget that "sometimes it is the enthusiasm of the messenger that is more important than the details of the message" ... physical exercise to promote circulation is very important ...

One of the greatest challenges of Saturn in Sagittarius is to guard against the tendency to set high hopes and then be fearful that they will be decimated or not going to come off the way we had planned ... but if there is one thing that Saturn repeatedly tries to teach us is NOT to give into fear but keep moving forward one step at a time and not rush ... this is why Saturn is known as the teacher and the taskmaster ... and as such while it is transiting the sign of Sagittarius restrictions, lessons and tasks to improve may present themselves in the following areas : wealth, leisure time, big business, the higher mind, optimism, growth, morality, prosperity, indulgence, higher education, philosophic reasoning, aspirations, vision, idealism, sports, luck, long-distance travel, hunting and fondness for animals - all of these areas ruled by Jupiter ... also there could be issues to deal with involving the super conscious, law, religion, science, psychology, profound mental study, your dreams and your visions, foreigners and foreign cultures, commerce, imports, exports, the church as a spiritual factor, the clergy, in-laws, grandchildren, intuition, ethics, public opinions, and the lessons we learn just by living - all of these being areas governed by Sagittarius the natural ruler of the 9th house of the horoscope ... as far as health is concerned, there could be issues during this transit in regards to the liver, hips and thighs which are the areas of the body ruled by Sagittarius ...

Saturn in Sagittarius through its testing what we seek hopefully allows us to keep our feet firmly planted on the ground as our minds are seeking a higher meaning ... realize that the most valuable knowledge comes from within so contemplate and even meditate ... realize that in your personal journey you must take both the high and the low road in life ... this Saturn likes searching for the truth, furthering ones education, adventures that serve a particular purpose, a good reputation, physical as well as metaphysical exercise ... it does not having what we hope to discover blocked in any way, being aimless and simply wondering about, being dishonored, and simply being static failing to move forward ... the energy of Saturn in Sagittarius can be expressed in the following ways:

POSITIVE: honorable, high moral fiber, prudent, superior but not in an obnoxious way, philosophical, able to reflect intellectually on life's meaning, devoted, fearless, earnest, trustworthy, a good teacher, well informed, highly focused attention, strict yet simple way of living, skillful and clever

NEGATIVE: high-minded, self-righteous, superior in a snobbish manner, offensive or irritating in a pointed manner, intellectual pride, hypocritical, easily hurt, lacking tact, insincere, fearing disapproval, brow beating, smug

Sagittarius born, the Universe has placed you on a huge learning curve in the "school of life" for the next two and a half years giving you the opportunity to achieve positive personal and spiritual growth even though at times it might not be easy … my fellow Capricorns, our planetary ruler has moved into a new sign and is now ready to teach us another set of lessons that will do the same for us if we release fear and allow change to take place … but we all will experience restriction, challenge, necessary change that hopefully produces beneficial growth somewhere in our lives through this transit … if you’ve had a natal chart done, you will probably get a good idea where Saturn transiting through Sagittarius is going to “school” you especially in regards to the area or areas of life governed by which house or houses of your natal chart are affected by Saturn's transit !!!

Scorpio born, no doubt you are breathing a sigh of relief at what has truly been a challenging period of over two years - and for many, not just Scorpio born, it is not over just yet !!! ... due to retrograde motion, Saturn will return to Scorpio for some last minute business from June 14th - September 17th ... it will only be going from 29 degrees back to 28 degrees Scorpio in its retrograde journey ... many of us may be reviewing what was occurring in our lives from December 6th through December 23rd when Saturn was transiting through these last two degrees of Scorpio ... in addition there are many of us dealing with two energies of Saturn in our lives ... those born from December 23rd back to January 1st of 2014 are still being influenced by Saturn in Scorpio until your birthday occurs this year ... HOWEVER, the exception will be those with birthdays this year from June 14th through September 17th who, as a result of their solar return, will have this dual Saturn energy for one more year until their birthday in 2016 ... the universe is obviously still trying to bring something to our attention from deep within - how many will release the fear and deal with it once and for all and move on ???

Saturn is currently the only planet transiting through the sign of Sagittarius … Saturn remains in Sagittarius until December 20th, 2017 ... 

Once again,I feel it necessary, as a Capricorn born who will be ruled lifelong by Saturn, to explain, especially from personal experience, that the transits of Saturn aren’t always a bad thing that should be dreaded … while its actions can be difficult and challenging, Saturn’s main objective is to help us grow and become a better person by taking a deep, serious and honest look at where we are and where we should be going by making sure our foundations in life are strong and solid !!!