Saturn in Sagittarius and Gemini Full Moon – Tarot

 

The final full moon of 2016 takes place with the Sun conjunct Saturn in Sagittarius, aspecting Chiron in Pisces, and the historic conjunction of Uranus and Eris in Aries (with Ceres stationing direct between them).  This is a truly powerful moment of cycles ending.  Last June, we experienced Sun opposite Saturn, the midpoint and peak of the Sun-Saturn cycle, and simultaneously experienced the Gemini New Moon, beginning a 6-month Gemini lunar cycle.  Now, we are at the end of that Sun-Saturn cycle, and the culmination of the Gemini lunar cycle, and it is the perfect astrological occasion to draw a zodiac Tarot spread.  (Jodorowsky Marseille Tarot)

 

Uranus, Eris, and Ceres Stationed Direct

I will start with the stellium in Aries, represented by Strength, the Ace of Pentacles, and the Knight of Wands.  The conjunction of Uranus and Eris is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and is activating the inspirations and stresses of creating an identity in a world where technology has re-defined literally everything about how we interact with community and society.  The ways that our parents and grandparents crafted their identities in society are not relevant to any of us anymore, and we have no blueprints for how to go forward.

Ceres has intense connection to these cycles ending- she first transited past Uranus and Eris in June, not long after the Gemini new moon opposite Saturn.  She then stationed retrograde at 5 Taurus on the same day as the Virgo New Moon Solar Eclipse.  Now she stays conjunct Uranus and Eris again for an extended period as she stations direct at the end of her retrograde.

Uranus is represented by Strength, the card that depicts the woman controlling the savage ego-beast with a tender touch. Uranus is the rude awakener.  When a pot of water boils for too long, Uranus is the moment it spills over.  On a global and personal level, Uranus releases energies that have built up to a breaking point.  Uranus as Strength embodies a major theme we’ve observed this year, the theme of non-violent protest, peaceful revolution.  When we feel pushed to the boiling point in our own lives, remember the peaceful force of the Strength card.

Eris is represented by the Knight of Wands, the pioneer that expands the area in which our passions and dreams can catch flame.  Eris is the chaos magician of the solar system, from one point of view she may be wreaking havoc, but from another point of view, the lack of order is actually more in tune with the natural rhythms of the universe.  How poignant to associate the insanity of Eris with a card like Knight of Wands, because indeed the process of pursuing passions and dreams is discordian AF.  One minute we feel that we are making great progress.  The next minute we are questioning everything about why we are doing this at all. The Knight always reminds us to keep our eyes on the prize.

Ceres is represented by the Ace of Pentacles, which holds the infinity of possibilities that we can manifest in the material realm- in context of conjunction to Uranus and Eris and 21st century redefinition of identity, this means the everyday material manifestations that comprise our identities: our chosen clothing and accessories, our chosen mode of transportation, our homes and the things we put inside, our jobs and the income it generates, and the things we choose to do with that income to express ourselves and pursue happiness. This is beyond status symbols or shallow “materialism,” this is about the reality of how we generate our identities, by interacting with our external environments and absorbing the things that are resonant with our inner environment.  Ceres is all about nurturing and allowing ourselves to be nurtured.  In the sign of Aries, we can direct our nurturing attention to ourselves, like a child would, transmuting all urges to be selfish into a holistic self-love.

In response to what Uranus may have at the breaking point in our lives, and the confusion re: who even am I anyway thanks to Eris, insulating ourselves in a bubble of ideological safety is a very common and safe cop-out. But we CAN openly and lovingly ingest the turmoil of what life has become in the 21st century, and discover new things within the turmoil that resonate with us- it is in the belly of the beast so to speak where we will find the tools with which we will eventually build entirely new identity constructs that reflect the change that we wish to see in the world.  Collectively, these new 21st century identities will mean nothing less than the total reinvention of society.  It is fucking stressful to be a part of this process.  It is more than okay to admit that- it is necessary to acknowledge it and integrate it as a part of our conscious journey.

Chiron in Pisces

Chiron is best known as the Wounded Healer, he is prominent in our experience of trauma and in our recovery from trauma.  There are many types of psychological and emotional wounds that will not ever truly go away, from the kind that we acquire through chronic abuse or a single horrific event, to the kind that we inherit in our dna from our ancestors. “Healing” is often mistaken to mean “making the wound go away” Healing could be much more accurately described as a journey to re-define the wound.  To let go of the shame, guilt, feeling broken, maimed, and unlovable despite the ongoing presence of the wound.  To be able to incorporate the wound into your wholeness in such a way that it brings hope and inspiration to others who suffer from the same type of wound. In the words of the recently departed Leonard Cohen, “There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.”  Chiron is a mentor, which means he guides you to benefit from your own experience.  I love that the card for Chiron, T-square to the full moon axis, is the Ace of Cups- the card that contains the entire range of emotions that are possible for humans to experience.  This shows us that we can choose to rise to the challenge of re-defining our deepest permanent wounds in a radical new way, that not only assists us in achieving a new state of wholeness, but also unites us with our fellow suffering humans.  If we can choose to feel any way we wish to feel, then we can be who we truly are.  Which brings us to the…

Gemini Full Moon

The card for our Gemini Full Moon, rising on the west coast, is the King of Cups, a fitting counterpart for a full moon square to Chiron, who was our Ace of Cups- While the Ace represents the infinite unlimited potential of the energies of the suit, the King represents mastery of those energies, for King of Cups it’s mastery of emotions to the level that it takes very little effort to self-regulate.  This has been a seriously difficult year, with Mars retrograde, Saturn square Neptune, etc etc but especially since June we have all been put through a wringer, and most people either already know or are beginning to realize that we are in a completely different world than the one we  expected, the one that we prepared for.  Those of us who are not interested in running or hiding from difficult emotional labor have had plenty of heavy lifting to do, especially in the last few months of 2016. We have been able to review the patterns that we are already actively working hard to break free from, and this full moon will undoubtedly bring us to a point of completion, and a greater understanding of our emotional reality and how we can best tailor and control our emotional powers as we move forward into 2017 and beyond.

Sun Conjunct Saturn in Sagittarius, “Chapter 2”

Which brings us to the final spread for the second conjunction of the Sun and Saturn in Sagittarius- The Empress, The World, and Priestess. The Empress represents the sign of Sagittarius and the Sun’s transit through it- Empress gives birth endlessly and explosively, filling every empty space with her creation.  The Priestess represents Saturn, forever pregnant, forever laboring and waiting, holding all knowledge and wisdom a secret in her belly.  Between these two opposites, The World represents total balance and harmony with the natural laws of the universe.  This is the essence of the relationship between the Sun and Saturn- the endless quest for progress defined by reaction to obstacles, the unbearable tension between “can” and “can’t” that whirls wildly around our existential center.

Take another look at the entire spread as it is laid out around the zodiac- see how every human face is turned towards the Empress?  The Sun is the key to consciousness. The Sun is Life Force.

The first half of 2015 was the “Prologue” to the Saturn in Sagittarius experience, before the retrograde back into Scorpio.  Chapter 1 began with the Sun’s first conjunction to Saturn in Sagittarius in November of 2015, and I thoroughly examined that cycle in this article.  Chapter 2 begins now, and my first glance at the charts ahead are amazing-  spolier alert lol- The final exact aspect between the Sun and Saturn in Sagittarius is September 0f 2017,  the third quarter square, featuring a grand fire trine between Saturn/Black Moon Lilith, Eris in Aries, and Venus conjunct the north node in Leo.  In December of 2017, Sun and Saturn build close to each other in the final degrees of Sagittarius, but the next exact conjunction between them happens on Winter Solstice- Zero Capricorn- and Saturn does not return to Sagittarius in a retrograde.  A year from now, Saturn enters the sign of its rulership and gets down to business immediately.

Astrology is context.  We look forward, we look back.  We know where we came from and we know where we are going.