Saturn’s position in the solar system is at the threshold where the outer planets begin their journeys around the Sun. Saturn stands between the common experiences of man ruled by the inner planets between Earth and Sun and the potentials of transformative enlightenment ruled by Jupiter outwards. If one passes the tests that Saturn requires, one can go on to be challenged to higher states of consciousness ruled by the planets of Significance, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto.

Saturn’s tests occur in 7-year cycles, but the significant lesson of maturity is at the time that Saturn returns to its location in the horoscope at each person’s age of 29 and a half years, 59 and a half years, and 84 years. The story of Buddha is archetypal and points to the first Saturn return when the Buddha encounters suffering and struggle for the first time. He was 29 years old when he left his cloistered palace and entered the real world with its harsh realities.

Buddha’s first encounter with experience outside the palace gates was with old age. His attendant told him that it was only change. His next encounter was when he came in contact with a sick man and asked his attendant what that was. Then the third encounter was when he came in contact with death through seeing a corpse. Impermanence, suffering, and death are inevitable and they are brought to our attention through the teachings of Saturn through its 7-year cycles. We experience losing baby teeth and gaining adult teeth about the age of 7 when Transit Saturn is squaring its natal position. We attain puberty at about age 14 when Transit Saturn is opposite its natal position and at 21 years when we are considered an adult. Then Saturn returns to its natal position and a review of the first third of our life takes place. Here is when we encounter our present conscious state of awareness and acquired knowledge and resolve to live within the dictates of a more sensitive and mature conscience. It is a coming out of the innocence of early life, to take the first steps on the threshold of the second cycle of social responsibility and the beginning of wisdom. Here is the transition from youth to adulthood in the completion of the first Saturn return.

How does Saturn test the soul and character in these sensitive aspects? In our youth, we believe we have the freedom to do and act as we like. We learn about life by stepping beyond boundaries set by those in authority over us and by the arbitrary standards set by society. We test the waters and experiment with life. It is only later on when we reach the time of Saturn’s Return in our late twenties that we are confronted with the results of the choices we have made in our youth.

Saturn is like a mirror set before us. That mirror is our own conscience. In the privacy of our minds we can view our mistakes by the pain we feel known as anxiety. A feeling of discomfort sets in when transgressions accumulate. We may not understand what is happening to us, and so we look for causes of anxiety in many ways that are not real. We think there is something wrong with us and that we alone, and a handful of other unfortunate beings, are suffering something unknown and mysterious. As society is not centered on a true understanding of right and wrong, and the consequences of proper and improper behavior, we have no easy way of understanding the process of accountability we are compelled to experience. This ignorance results in a guilty conscience and causes pain of mind, heart, and soul. Since we do not understand the process of catharsis; the elimination of our faults by viewing them, we end up seeking countless ways of distracting ourselves from problems and suppressing the uncomfortable feelings we have in private.

If we are not encouraged by those who have spiritual knowledge to face the pain of wrongdoing directly, we will seek ways of assuaging our guilt and anxiety through drinking alcohol, drug abuse, and involvement with co-dependency with those as lost as ourselves. All these ways are a distraction from the nudge of self-consciousness. Brave souls that seek Truth may be fortunate enough to find that there are many ways to confront ourselves and thus resolve the issues of a bad conscience. A state of being in need of correction does indeed have a way to lessen the pain of conscience, but it entails facing the truth of the ways that we have indulged in that have caused the unconscious mind to be disturbed with memories buried and awaiting review.

One method of enhancing self-awareness is to sit in the stillness we call meditation. Meditation is a tool that assists Saturn to do its job of reviewing past unacceptable behavioral patterns. The conscious mind is like a sentry blocking the entrance of unconscious content to the conscious mind. Meditation puts the conscious mind “at ease” so that the contents of the unconscious can slip onto the screen of conscious awareness. It does this by degrees. One can recall emotional responses backward in time, even as far back as the birth process and beyond.

By going through this process willingly, one stands firm in the face of truth about oneself. It may be a painful process as we may see that we do not measure up to our better conscious ideals. This enlightening process is a direct self-encounter that may cause a high degree of emotional pain for a time. Seeing the truth is painful to the ego who always wants to think it is right. Those who are not ready to see themselves as they really are may contemplate even more escape from reality, and even thoughts of suicide can enter the mind. It would be easier to go through this Saturn process if society were more familiar and supportive of the need for self-renewal. There are techniques that one can find that allow the process to proceed toward success and a clearer conscience.

Saturn is self-conscious awareness. With aspects of Saturn, we find we are in the times of self-analysis and we reflect on our own behavior. Right and wrong become important. Wrongdoing promotes a guilty conscience and when we follow our conscience we simply have an absence of painful conscience. The more fear we have, the greater the buildup of guilt. We don’t know where the uncomfortable feelings of anxiety come from, so we blame all kinds of outer circumstances for our anxiety rather than acknowledge that it is a direct result of accumulated wrongdoing. Mistakes and bad decisions create a guilty conscience and a guilty conscience produces feelings of fear. Fear is the way our higher selves can get our attention. When we do pay attention and acknowledge wrongdoing we go through a period of sadness and sorrow for having fallen away from a better path. When we know the truth about ourselves, that truth sets us free of guilt and fear.

Saturn marks the boundaries that are imposed on us from our own conscience, as well as with established societal conscience in the form of rules of behavior and laws of conduct. The cycles of Saturn point to the times when we have the opportunity to become more than what we were before.

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The Hubble telescope was launched into space on April 24, 1990. Little did astronomers know that the first images that would be transmitted to Earth by the reflective mirror would be blurred. That flaw in the mirror’s curvature was caused by a faulty instrument that had initially fashioned its surface. Astrologically, tools are ruled by the 3rd house of taken-for-granted utilities. The tool or instrument that fashioned the mirror left a small amount of paint missing from its surface, and this missing segment was just enough to create a problem of over-flattening its surface area. That oversight would cost NASA millions and was a great embarrassment. It needed several years of research to fix the billion dollar space telescope.

Looking at an ephemeris for the date of the Hubble’s launch, one can see that Transiting Mercury was Stationary going retrograde at that time. The public is getting used to hearing, “Mercury is Retrograde, stop the presses!” But why is it that Mercury Retrograde is a time of difficulties? Why is Mercury known for all things flawed, and a time to refrain from important purchases and new undertakings? It is because of two basic factors. One, because Mercury rules the mind, and planetary retrogrades turn the focus of attention inward, leaving the outer world of activity on “back burner” for a time. It’s a period of either mindlessness or a time for extra mindfulness.  And second, Mercury is the natural ruler of the 3rd house of CONVENIENCE. The 3rd house rules everything taken-for-granted in the function of daily living. Tools, appliances and anything that makes life easy to navigate is under the rulership of the 3rd house of routine conveniences of the environment. That means that when you walk out your door to get into your car, the car is there for your convenience. And when you start up the engine, it turns over and you are on your way without a hitch. Unless there is a part about to malfunction, which can often be detected on a Mercury Retrograde. Issues in need of repair surface at these times, or items with high ticket prices can have hidden problems that will reveal themselves in the future. A myriad of daily activities that are relegated to doing things without obstacles to successful fulfillment are a 3rd house Mercury ruled circumstance. We may never be in a situation to invest billions or even millions of dollars in our projects, but it is wise to watch for potential malfunctions when the ephemeris shows a Retrograde on the way.

When Mercury is Retrograde, expect that if there is a problem that you are unaware of, under the radar of your conscious knowledge, you most likely will be confronted with it at the Station of Mercury and into the time of its apparent backward motion. Retrogrades are times of opportunity to fix problems of inconvenience, including health issues, and anything that indicates that we are not ready for smooth and unencumbered activity.

What actually happens when Mercury appears to have a backward movement from the earth’s point of view is virtually unknown. We cannot say that there is a change in the electro-magnetic field or gravitational pull emanating from the planet, because we know that Mercury is not actually stopping for a time to move in a backward direction. It only looks like it is standing still, which is called Stationing, and it is only an illusion caused by the relative speeds of the earth and planets we see that effects our visual perception. This gives us the clue that the source of the issue of Retrograde planets lies in the mind itself, and normally subconscious factors and flaws in the actually world of people and things become apparent during this time. Direct motion of the planets focus our attention on the outside world in a manner of getting things done without unnecessary concerns or blocks in expected accomplishments. That is convenience of the 3rd house in the horoscopic wheel.

It is important to note that discovery is part of the Mercury Retrograde phenomena. Retrogrades are a perfect time to uncover causes and cures for illnesses. If you are suffering from some bodily concern, try researching the symptoms you are experiencing at the start of the retrograde. By the time Mercury begins to Station to turn Direct once again, you may find that elusive solution to the problem you have longed to know and acquire.

If you are moving to a new location or abode on a Mercury Retrograde, it is likely that you will be staying in that place a shorter time than you expect. Remember that Mercury is ruled by the 3rd house of location, convenience and immediate environment. There will be something in the rental contract or deed that may need to be followed without neglect, or there may be several internal malfunctions in the building itself that need to be addressed at some point in the future.

It is important to keep living a normal life during Retrograde periods, but always be aware of the tendency to be seeing only a portion of what is going on before your eyes. Observe and be ready for unexpected changes, and bend to them as there is no way to avoid the message and lessons of Mercury; that it is important to correct problems that inevitably present themselves during these unavoidable shifting times.

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