The Saturn (in Aquarius) and Uranus (in Taurus) square is the most important transit of 2021 because it lasts the whole year! Their second square is June 14.
This year-long square is a pivotal piece of the profound reconfiguration taking place within our individual and collective psyche in 2021. Underneath the routine events of our daily lives, we are being rewired by new energies. We are gradually becoming aware that what we are experiencing is both penetrating and profound. By the end of 2021, we will have awakened to a new me and a new life.
During this life-changing year, we may be obliged to change our trajectory more than once. I have already noticed this, and the year is not yet half over.
Saturn Square Uranus – The Deep Process of Change
Saturn and Uranus collisions are between the old and the new, which means that change is inevitable and unavoidable.
Transits involving the fast personal planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Sun and Moon) come and go in one day (or a bit longer when the personal planets are retrograde). But because Saturn and Uranus both move slowly and go retrograde, they will remain within an influential orb that will impact every single day of 2021. You might have already noticed!
The effects of slow-moving planetary transits take place over time. The transformation that we undergo is gradual, subtle, and initially not obvious. Uranus transits sometimes furnish headline material, but usually they are not associated with single events. The changes sneak up on us as we adapt to changing circumstances. Their overall effect is to cause us to shift our way of operating and being in profound ways.
Catalytic Squares
Saturn, (the traditional ruler of Aquarius) and Uranus (the modern ruler of Aquarius) square each other three times in 2021:
February 17 – at 7º Aquarius-Taurus
June 14 – at 13º Aquarius-Taurus
December 23 – at 11º Aquarius-Taurus.
Saturn’s catalytic squares to Uranus instigate fundamental changes that require us to join together and think out of the box. Aquarian energy wakes us up the value of networking, collaboration, and the fact that together we can accomplish much more than we could separately.
Saturn symbolizes all kinds of form and structure, from personal ego, patterns and beliefs that create our reality, and collective institutions including governments, corporations, and financial systems. Where Saturn is in our chart (both at birth and transiting) is where we are learning about realistic limits, taking responsibility, and becoming our own authority.
Uranus activity relates to the breakdown of outmoded structures. The refinement of our individuation process takes us from limited wounded ego to soul identity. The location of Uranus in our birth chart and where it is currently transiting indicate where we are being challenged to be creative, inventive, authentic, and align with our personal truth.
Squares mark turning points, where we have to make choices and shift in order to move forward. The Saturn/Uranus combo helps us move beyond both resistance and rebellion. Squares between Saturn and Uranus advise us to make conscious choices that create constructive changes in our lives. On a collective level, Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus call for social, political, and technological reform in how we deal with money, resources, and the Earth.
The Saturn-Uranus Cycle
Each Saturn Uranus cycle takes about 45 years. The current Saturn-Uranus cycle started in 1988 with their conjunction in Sagittarius. This cycle will end in 2032 with a new conjunction of Saturn and Uranus on June 28, 2032 at 28º Gemini.
During every planetary cycle, the two planets form two squares and an opposition, which define pivotal stages in the cycle.
- The first square is a waxing or expanding square, which happens when the planets move into a ninety degree angle with each other.
- The second major marker is the opposition when the two planets move opposite to each other.
- The third marker is when the two planets move into a waning square or contracting square announcing the last quarter of the cycle.
The 1st square of the current cycle occurred between 1999-2000.
The opposition happened between 2008-2010.
The last major transit of the cycle, the current Saturn-Uranus waning square, is now (2021-2022), which means the last square and phase in the Saturn/Uranus cycle, which began in 1988. This second and final square produces the biggest external developments and internal shifts in consciousness. (See Footnote)
The Final Square in the Cycle – NOW!
The waning square that completes the cycle has similar energy to Capricorn and the tenth house, which is connected to our career and purpose in life, accomplishments, manifesting, and position in the world. Things happen that bring long-awaited results, culmination of hard work, and resolution of major life challenges.
During the last quarter at the end of a cycle, we finish a phase in our lives. We accomplish certain long-term goals and experience a sense of achievement, satisfaction, and completion. We are ending an old cycle and getting ready to begin a new one.
Typically the last ‘waning’ square precipitates both personal and collective crisis. A shift in perspective about how we operate is required to prepare the way for a new cycle and way of doing things. This is a pivotal phase, which obliges us to face the facts that instigate a paradigm shift.
Prevailing ideologies often dig in to hold on to what is familiar, convenient, and a justification for maintaining power and privilege. Fear of change increases polarization between conflicting interests, which intensify the game by labeling the other side as the evil enemy.
How Saturn and Uranus Work Together
Saturn and Uranus are very different, but they work together well. In our solar system, Uranus is the next planet to orbit the Sun after Saturn. There is a continuity. First we do our Saturn work, which prepares us for deep transformation in Uranus territory.
Uranus promises freedom and enlightenment, but we are required to work with Saturn on-goingly. There are no breaks from and no shortcuts to bypass our Saturn teacher(s).
The last planet visible to the naked eye, Saturn rules time and the material world. Uranus, the first ‘invisible’ planet (we cannot see it without a telescope) is associated with the ‘invisible’ non-physical world: the sky, intuition, divine insight. Uranus awakens us to the fact that there is more to existence than that perceived by our 5 senses.
Chiron Is the Bridge
Asteroid Chiron orbits between Saturn and Uranus, offering us a bridge, a helping hand, and homework! As we might expect, this is not a ‘free lunch’ rainbow bridge.
To pass over the Chiron bridge, we have to heal our wounds, deal with repressed traumas, and process the above through awareness, self-love, and forgiveness. This transformation process is not easy and generally not fun. But it is liberating when we reconcile our earthly experiences by connecting with our divine nature. Because our most basic wound is one of separation and disconnection, we have to connect with our soul self to cross the bridge. Healing our Chiron wounds are a pivotal ingredient in working through the Saturn-Uranus squares this year.
The Saturn Process
Saturn and Uranus have opposite functions. Saturn creates structures. The Saturn Process adheres to a logical structure. There is a logical sequence to Saturn keywords (indicated in bold)
- We experience restriction and limitation.
- We realize that something is controlling us that is the source of unnecessary struggle.
- We commit to a physical and spiritual practice to free ourselves. This requires following the rules of a tranformational discipline.
- Our disciplinary practice uses Saturn’s contracting energy to create personal boundaries and its gravitational pull to establishing inner stability in our body. As a contracting and stabilizing force, Saturn glues and keeps us together.
- We take responsibility for integrating all of the above into our daily lives.
- Gradually, with deep inner work, we become our own authority and achieve new levels of self-control and self-mastery.
The Uranus Process
Uranus breaks down structures so that a new, superior order can emerge.
The Uranus process wakens us up through sudden and unexpected breakdowns and breakthroughs, flashes of insight and awakenings, rebellion, and revolution.
Uranus’ energy is unpredictable and electrifying, stirring things up and creating excitement and restlessness.
We are forced to adapt. The quicker we adjust, the less resistance we exert, the quicker (and less painful) our transformation.
A Dynamic Tension
A square is an intense 90-degree aspect where confrontation and change are both imminent and required. The planets in the square share the same modality (in this case, the Fixed modality). Each sees the world and themselves from the lens of their current zodiac sign.
It is interesting that the current sign of Uranus (Taurus) is more compatible with Saturn. And the current sign of Saturn (Aquarius) is associated with Uranus. Thus there is a complex interaction that both resists and seeks resolution. Uranus in Taurus deals with the physical body, health, connecting with the Earth, and grounding. Saturn in Uranus connects with solutions through wake up calls that require a shift in how we interpret the events, especially focusing on how we find mental and spiritual freedom.
There is not only a clash between these two titans, there is a serious tension inherent in each one caused by the necessity to integrate the seemingly conflicting energies of the signs that they now occupy. Of course, we are the ones who feel the tension, as our individual lives are impacted and we witness the world in crisis.
Fixed Signs
Add the fact that both Taurus and Aquarius are fixed signs, which often means that they are fixed to their own ideas and way of doing things. We can take advantage of how Saturn and Uranus employ different strategies. Saturn’s strategy is to maintain. Uranus strategy is to interrupt. The key is to know when to use the appropriate strategy. For example, maintain your practice and focus on interrupting self-sabotaging programming.
Fixed signs don’t rush into things. They are dedicated to the work that it takes to accomplish goals, but they have to have clarity about their feasibility for success before investing precious time and energy. Cardinal signs love to initiate grand ideas, but if they don’t see results quickly, they move on to the next exciting thing. The mutable signs adapt to the circumstances and do what needs to be done, often in the background without getting credit for their actual work. They know that through adaptation, they make steady progress possible.
The changes that are slowing unfolding with the Saturn-Uranus square take (1) Cardinal creativity, (2) Mutable adaptability, and (3) Fixed perseverance. We are talking about profound, long-lasting structural changes to both our collective institutions and our personal lives.
2021 Is a Great Transition Year
The defining predominance of Aquarian energy, plus the year-long Saturn-Uranus squares, signify that 2021 is a time of extraordinary developments. Longing (or waiting) for things to go back to normal is a waste of energy. And most of us can’t even think in those terms. Returning to “business as usual” would only further entrench the current exploitative structures and help them amass even a greater portion of resources and wealth. This prospect is even more disturbing when we add the power of innovative technology that can be used to control and manipulate those not in positions of power. The Aquarian opening is for another pathway, where we individually and collectively take responsibility for the well-being of all life.
2021 is a transition year in every area of our lives, including what we eat, how we take care of our bodies, the energy we use, the information that we deem useful and acceptable, the role of government, and the power of of drug and insurance companies in defining the nature of the health care system.
We have entered an era of creativity, innovation, responsibility, freedom, and conscious choice. Every human is being called to participate more fully and take greater responsibility for living on Planet Earth. There is great promise if we do so. We face a scary future if we do not.
How The Saturn-Uranus Transit Will Influence You
There are two basic ways to identify how the Saturn-Uranus square will influence you.
- Take a stroll down memory lane and try to recollect major events and themes that dominated your life during the previous cycle transits (conjunction, squares, oppositions.)Did you experience any major life events around 1988-1989 (when the current cycle started)? What happened in1990-2000 (the 1st square) and 2008-2010 (the opposition). Do you see any common themes? Usually, the events of a cycle unfold around certain themes. How does what is happening now during the last waning square fit in?
- To further understand how you are currently being impacted, identify the houses in your birth chart where 7-13 degrees Taurus and Aquarius reside. Once you figure out which houses are impacted, you can identify themes in current events in your life. Some people will experience this transit more intensely than others, but we are all impacted by this year-long transit.
A Higher Perspective
A higher perspective can help us deal with what is transpiring. There is a speeding up of personal and collective evolution during this pivotal phase is the transition into the Aquarian Age. Many of us have talked about waking up for decades. We are being massively supported in doing so. So don’t complain. Join the cosmic party and take advantage of this rare opportunity. The Universe is on our side. What side are you on? Personal practice and team work are our foundations for magic and miracles!
Footnote:
The last time Saturn and Uranus were in a waning square was from October 4, 1975 to April 22, 1977 (five times, 1-10º Leo-Scorpio). This period coincided with a swine flu outbreak in the US and a rushed mass immunization program which was suspended three months later, as reports of increasing cases of paralysis, respiratory arrest, and death, termed Guillain-Barré Syndrome, were reported in eleven states.
