Spiritual Discipline

I looked back at the last time Saturn transited through Aries. It entered Aries shortly after my birthday in 1996 and exited in March of 1999. This time period was a very significant period of my life. It marked the start of my life overseas during which time I visited Meherabad in India with my then wife Sylvia. My appreciation and knowledge of Meher Baba deepened and culminated in Bhau Kalchuri's visit to Singapore in 1999. I also travelled to China and Nepal with students from the school at which I was teaching. I'm sure I've reviewed my Saturn's transits before but I'll push on as if I hadn't and maybe compare the two time-separated reflections later.

Saturn's first transit through Aries took place from March of 1969 until May of 1969. This was again a very important phase of my life. It marked the start of life beyond school. In 1967, I inadvertantly came across mention of Meher Baba in a book by Paul Brunton, titled "A Search in Secret India". It had been lent to me by my good friend Steve Ross and remember sitting in the sun at University and reading it. The next year, I attended a talk by Bill LePage about Meher Baba. That cemented Baba's name in my memory and proved the trigger to my acquisition of the book "God Speaks" in 1981. Academically this period was rather dismal but I made good friends during this time and was slowly growing into adulthood.

So the two previous transits of Saturn through Aries marked transformative phases of my life and both involve Meher Baba, the first laying the groundwork for my later epiphany and the second consolidating this same epiphany. Perhaps third time around there will be further developments in my relationship with Meher Baba. The presence of Neptune in Aries at the same time certainly makes this a possibility. However, it plays out I must embrace these dual influences and perhaps "Spiritual Discipline" is a good phrase to describe their very different energies. Lately I've been in a very negative state of mind but I have snapped out of it in the last couple of days and I need to ensure that I don't relapse.

I'm not sure what "spiritual discipline" entails but my physical discipline has certainly improved. I'm doing my usual round of exercises at least once and sometimes twice a day. This upcoming Saturn transit offers the opportunity to really make concrete skills and proficiencies that I've dabbled in but never fully mastered. 

A Bad Day

Yesterday I felt very bad psychologically and not good physically either. I wasn't good in the morning and by midday I took two panadol and lay down to rest. Psychologically, I'd been feeling quite negative for a few days but physically I'd been OK. Yesterday I felt I was coming down with the flu or a bad cold. However, today I feel much better. What was happening transit-wise yesterday. Well, as it turns out, quite a lot. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

Let's list the transits that were active yesterday.

• Chiron R was in 25º31' of Aries was conjunct my Ascendant in 24º15' of Aries: still active
• Mercury was in 24º39' of Libra, conjunct my Descendant: still active
• Sun in 10º15' of Libra, opposite my Mars-Venus conjunction: still active
• Ceres in 9º27' of Aries, conjunct my Mars-Venus conjunction: still active
• Moon in 18º07' of Aquarius, opposite my Ceres-Pluto conjuction

Transiting Neptune and Saturn of course are in early Aries and late Pisces respectively and remain very influential in the long term. Given the transient nature of my condition, it would seem that the Moon's transit was the probable culprit. However, notice how transiting Venus in 16º47' Virgo is exactly conjunct the Moon's South Node in 16º55' of Virgo. This very transient aspect might be a contributing factor although it doesn't seem to impact my natal chart in any obvious way.

Coming Mars Transits

I won't divulge the details of this "accident" that was quite trivial in the grand scheme of things but it could have proven very embarrassing had there been witnesses. Fortunately there weren't and so it remains my little secret. However, it was a salutary reminder of my increasing age and the consequent physical decline. I thought it might be interesting to look at the astrological configuration at the time of the "accident". This was around 10am on August 2nd 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

What struck me was the almost exact square between transiting Mars in 26º55' of Virgo and my natal Uranus in 26º52' of Gemini. Transiting Mars is on the cusp of the sixth house which is appropriate enough. Given the minor nature of the event, only fast moving transits need be considered and so Mars qualifies in that regard.

I tend to neglect Martian transits because the aspects that they form to natal planets are usually short-lived but this incident reminds me that they can produce "results". I'll try to monitor my Martian transits more closely, especially when Uranus is involved. Talking of which, Mars will oppose the transiting Saturn-Neptune conjunction in Aries on August 7th. Mars will just have entered Aries. This is the day that I'm having my potential skin cancer excised. This will involve cutting (Mars) into the skin (Saturn) with an element of mystery (Neptune) involved because it's undecided if it is cancerous. Only a subsequent pathology examination will reveal that. See Figure 2.

Figure 2

By the time I get my results on August 21st, Mars will be in 8º50' of Aries and thus almost exactly opposite my natal Mars-Venus conjunction in Aries. Transiting Mercury will be in 9º46' of Leo and so it will aspect both ends of the opposition. Transiting Venus in 24º25' of Cancer will be exactly square my Ascendant-Descendant. See Figure 3. 

Figure 3

Saturn and Neptune Stationary Retrograde

I can't remember if I've commented on this before but both transiting Saturn and Neptune will turn stationary retrograde in July. Here are the details along with some other relevant astrological factors:

• On July 4th 2025, Neptune turns stationary retrograde in 2º10' of Aries
• On July 12th 2025, Saturn turns stationary retrograde in 1º56' of Aries
• On July 7th 2025, Uranus enters Gemini

These positions are almost exactly conjunct my natal Mercury in 2º14' of Aries. As Uranus enters Gemini it will form an exact square with my natal Saturn. During this period from early to mid-July, Ceres will pass over my natal Sun, Chiron is close to the natal North Node of the Moon, Venus passes over my natal Moon and Mercury passes over my natal Ceres-Pluto conjunction. However, it is the big three (Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) that carry most of the weight. The faster moving planets will determine the timing. The timing of what is the big question both personally and on a global level.

It's interesting that Saturn gets to within 0º14' of Neptune before turning back. An exact conjunction will not occur until late February of 2026 in 0º43' of Aries. By that time, Uranus will have retrograded into Taurus (27º34') and will be moving toward another conjunction with my natal Moon. Chiron will still be on my Ascendant and joined by Ceres. Incidentally, the celestial latitudes of Saturn and Neptune at the time of their near conjunction are not far apart (-2º15' versus -1º19'). Once Uranus enters Gemini, it will advance to 1º27' before turning stationary retrograde on September 5th of 2025.

Overload

Desy slipped on the steps outside our bedroom. Water had leaked onto them and they were slippery. This was about 2:15am. Figure 1 shows the transits to her chart at the time of the accident. 

Figure 1

We see that the Moon, Ceres and Neptune are all conjunct in the second degree of Aries very close to her Ascendant. The transiting Sun, on the cusp of the third house, is in the second degree of Gemini and thus in sextile aspect to this conjunction. The transiting Sun forms a sharp square to her natal Sun in 0º of Virgo.

Fortunately the fall doesn't appear too serious but it would seem that the Moon hitting the already overloaded second degree of Aries triggered the accident. Of course, Saturn is also headed to the second degree of Aries shortly to join up with Neptune. Looking back, we see that the previous passage of Saturn into the first degree of Aries occurred in April of 1996 but later, having entered Aries, the planet turned retrograde and stationed in 0º36' of Aries on the 4th December 1996.

Saturn in Aries: A Personal Overview

With so many planets and sensitive points in Aries, the 29.2 year cycle of Saturn through this sign should have a major impact on my life. Let's look back and review. In my lifetime, Saturn's first entry into Aries occurred on March 4th 1967 which was close to the time that I started my University education at the University of Queensland. See Figure 1.

March 1967 to April 1969

Figure 1: Saturn enters Aries 1st cycle

This was obviously a big deal. Saturn left Aries on April 30th 1969. A year later I would be in the army but that period, covering my initial two years at University, was very important to my growth. I made new friends and enjoyed novel experiences even if my academic performance was woeful.

Saturn's next entry into Aries occurred on April 8th of 1996, soon after I arrived in Singapore. This was a major turning point in my life as I embarked on a new life abroad. See Figure 2. Saturn later turned retrograde in Aries until it stationed in 0º36' on December 4th 1996. It did not reenter Pisces and left Aries for the final time in that cycle on March 1st 1999. The next year my new life in Jakarta would begin.

April 1996 to March 1999

Figure 2: Saturn enters Aries 2nd cycle

As Saturn leaves Aries, if spends the next two and a half years in my first house. The passage of Saturn through Aries seems to usher in a new era that sweeps aside the old way of life and thus makes way for even bigger changes less than a year later. To go back to April of 1969, it was clear that I was not going to graduate from the teacher's training college at Kelvin Grove. I was still sleep-walking through life. My transition from school life to a leisurely and lazy lifestyle was drawing to a close. I was on a collision course with the Army and we would collide a year later. Going back to March of 1999, I knew my life in Singapore was coming to an end and I was preparing for a transition. I didn't know where but eventually I was to land in Jakarta in early January of 2000. 

Of course I won't see another cycle of Saturn but if things follow the same pattern then there should be significant changes coming up for me in the next couple of months. What sort of changes remain to be seen. We are already contemplated visiting Melbourne in June but we've done that twice before so that's hardly something new. See Figure 3. This time around Saturn only spends a brief amount of time initially in Aries. On July 13th, it stations in 1º56' and then crosses the First Point of Aries again on September 1st before returning (moving forward) on February 14th 2026. Saturn leaves Aries on April 14th 2028.

May 2025 to April 2028

Figure 3: Saturn enters Aries 3rd cycle

Neptune and Saturn Stationing

Figure 1

Today, Sunday the 18th of May 2025, we have (see Figure 1):

• transiting Sun (27º25') conjunct transiting Uranus (27º18'), very close to my natal Moon (29º25' Taurus)
• transiting Venus (12º22') conjunct my natal Sun (12º47' Aries) and closing
• transiting Mars (13º51') conjunct my natal Pluto (14º16' Leo) and closing
• transiting Chiron (25º01') conjunct my Ascendant (24º27' Aries) and separating 
• transiting Moon passing through my 10th House
• transiting Jupiter (24º56') is conjunct my natal Uranus (26º22' Gemini) and closing

Overall it's an active time with a lot more activity coming as Saturn moves into Aries in a little over a week and comes closer to transiting Neptune. Ceres (0º25') has already entered Aries and will team up with Saturn and Neptune is a stellium that is right on my natal Mercury. 

The midpoint of transiting Chiron and Jupiter is close to both transiting Uranus and my natal Moon. If there is to be a health crisis, then I'm trying to look at precipitating factors. So far I've focused mainly on the exact conjunction of Uranus with my Moon in late June but this is just the first of three contacts, the others occurring in November of 2025 and April of 2026. There are no stations of Uranus on my natal Moon similar to the station of Uranus on my Ascendant when I had my gall bladder crisis.

Looking at planets stationing on sensitive points of my chart, I have Neptune turning stationary retrograde in 2º10' of Aries on July 5th of 2025 (see Figure 2). Soon after this, on July 14th, Saturn will turn stationary and so this might be the critical time period for some crisis: July 5th to July 14th. I hadn't noticed this before but now that I have, I can't un-notice it.

Figure 2

With the involvement of Mercury, any health crisis would likely be neurological or pulmonary. Natal Mercury and natal Uranus are in a square aspect in my chart, although the separation is about 5º22'.