Saturn in Pisces

“I will make you fishers of men” – Matthew 4:19

Saturn's not a light touch. Pisces is never straightforward.There is a theme of faith through austerity that will permeate 2023-2026. Saturn in Aquarius brought new technological infrastructures and questions regarding the authority figures trying to enforce them. Saturn in Pisces will ask us to consider what we truly believe. If Aquarius does the math, Pisces pulls it all together into human experience and intuition. Kronos is ancient ruler of Aquarius and Capricorn. He represents the intellectual and material as he moves through a sign fit for sailors, singers, and saints. Pisces, being the last sign in the zodiacal cycle, isn’t in sharp contrast with Saturn as it can represent endings, and Saturn is known for creating boundaries. However, the methods of Pisces are not heavy but fluid, considering many angles rather than sticking to one opinion like Aquarius is prone to do. It’s willing to entertain the possibility of higher powers, aliens, subterfuge, and silence in the face of adversity. The higher spiritual meaning of Saturn in Pisces over 2023-2026 is the collective realization of the end of an era before Saturn in Aries decides how cultural rebirth and movement will take place.

The End of an Aira and Building in the Ephemeral

Domicile Saturn in Aquarius is very effective, and since late 2020, Saturn has been working in his element. The last two years have been filled with the relentless thunderbolts of public thought and opinion. Attempts to find permanence (Saturn) or stabilization through technological innovation (Aquarius). Businesses and educators put more focus into online reach and operations. YouTube content creators proved to the rest of us they did, in fact, have a real job. As revolutionary as Aquarius, sign of fixed Air, can be, the sign also gives Saturn’s karmic edict an aura of intellectual rigidity. Aquarius knows he’s right. An opinionated online living public landscape will soon shift into the sparkling mysterious expanse of Pisces. It will be most palpable to those with a water dominant natal chart, while others may lose themselves in an underwater hall of mirrors—the two fish swimming in opposite directions. Pisces represents the realm of the subconscious, evoking emotion that is subtle but perhaps a more direct revelatory channel for some. The symbol for Pisces also represents duality and choice like Gemini. An overly opinionated or action-hungry public figure won’t be as appealing to societal sentiment as one that seems to consider all sides and make values-based decisions.There is a sense of impending loss or departure, as a I reference in this post, the 8 of cups is associated with this planetary transit. This is a card that classically indicates leaving a situation, usually in uncertainty or disappointment.

Note the planetary/sign emblems at the top and bottom.

 In the Solar Way, Nina Roudnikova states the main condition for cultural construction is the mastery over psychic energy, happening through a spiritual lens. Ironically, this isn’t an intuitive statement, but contains a sound Saturn in Pisces concept. Pisces is the realm of the psychic, kabbalistically tied to the astral element via Yesod. Like a thunderbolt’s light diffusing over an oceanic horizon, the events of the past two years could light up the mysterious tides of collective human intuition and feeling, pulling focus from the purely Aquarian factual realm. Thus, Saturn's entrance into Pisces takes on the solemn spiritual grandeur of a passing dynasty. As individuals, we may be forced to mourn the end of internal or external situations that no longer make practical sense, even if we only sense this on an intuitive level. Typical of Saturn’s tasks, if letting go doesn’t happen voluntarily, it will be perceived as forced and final. If the planet is the action and the sign is the nature of the action these boundaries will be Piscean in nature. For the individual, these changes will likely present themselves through the house matters in which Pisces rules. Before moving forward at a collective level, I believe there will be hallmark signs of Piscean Saturn urging us all to consider our choices through a values-based lens. The zodiacal end of an era appropriately brings much soul searching and all its ephemera.

A Greater Push Toward Legalization of Psychedelics

I am not talking about mushroom coffee, but the mushroom species which cause what could be likened to ‘spiritual’ experiences. Whether mushroom, tree bark, or ketamine, the use of chemicals that cause significant shifts in the psyche could see more popularization and regulation. Saturn’s touch here is the regulation, or essentially, the standardization of an industry. Society will be even more receptive to healing modalities that offer a uniquely Piscean experience of spiritual transcendence. The darker aspect of this trend is an increased public awareness of drug abuse, coupled with Saturn's will to restrict and limit. This could lead to a higher authoritarian social system or a Reagan era “War on Drugs” response.  It could also mean a shift towards psychedelic research meant to solve drug dependency. Pisces isn’t the most individualistic sign of the wheel and is fine with handing over responsibility to more ambitious authority figures until they interfere with a sense of personal values, strongly engrained by ruler Jupiter.  

A Return to In Real Life (IRL) Experience

This is a simple trend that will continue to keep on giving. Saturn in Pisces within the nativity can create isolation tendencies in individuals, but on a societal level this will play out in interesting ways. With Jupiter, Saturn’s dispositor in medieval astrology, transiting through Aries and Taurus, I expect that Saturn’s flavor is going to take on a more social flavor due to Aries being an active and energetic Fire sign, while sensual, Venusian Taurus delights in physical experience and inclines to the arts. People miss festivals and recreational activities in the physical world. Saturn in Aquarius may have intrigued many air-oriented individuals, but ultimately left us feeling forced into a virtual experience of normality. Aquarius might like the internet, but he certainly doesn’t like feeling trapped. We’re out of the airy experiment of Aquarius and back in the waters of human interaction. Isolationist impulses aren’t out of the question. Reactions to IRL experiences could result in the very real Saturn in Pisces impulse towards isolation in the name of emotional salvation. Can we handle the real world? Or do we prefer living online? Once again, choices.

Moody Sad Bastard Music and Art

I connect this trend with that above, and I’ve outlined this briefly in my last blog. Music was in a different state the last time Saturn was in Pisces, around the early 90s. Hip Hop, TikTok, and Body Rock were not a thing, although Body Rock was around. We had sad collegiate poet laureate type individuals with drug problems creating complex melancholy music that defined an era. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see the resurgence of many 90s bands via reunion tours or collaborations. We are due for a return to musical, artistic, and emotive Piscean trends. There is a grounded emotional connection to art and music again that could ironically, create bridges of experience into another realm, fostering not only personal but cultural development. Film, music, and art feel more important than technological development for the first time in a long time. The technologies that bring these experiences to us are acknowledged as evergreen, but in terms of public spending trends, the technologies that allow us to consume niche and curated content will probably see growth. We’ll also prefer technologies that direct us toward IRL consumption of artistic mediums. There is a strange need to live in our imagination, if only to understand the part of ourselves that is reflected there. As always, there are dangers here as well, but the collective impulse to escape through a good film or a bluegrass festival just feels appropriate. For some, this will be amazing. For others, it might just be a time for a bunch of “sad bastard” starving artist types.

An Attempt at Spiritual Reality

This is the most literal manifestation of this transit. At the least, there could be a renewed fascination with the spirit world, similar to the strangely occult “spirit photography” era following the US Civil War. Highly contested as a farce, but highly relevant to a nation of people in national mourning for their loved ones and economic future.

There may even be a “legitimacy” rift within spiritual or psychic circles regarding beneficial spiritual teachings versus what is merely Yesodic, hypnotic and otherworldly. The astral realm in kabbalah is Yesod. In this realm, there is no veil between good and bad. We rely on a higher archetypal power of judgement, sourced from Binah, to assist with those psychological divisions. While technology isn’t always the big bad wolf, it’s convergence into the spiritual is a challenge. Postindustrial culture lends itself to technology; it is a harbinger of deeply materialist culture powered by deep earth minerals. The essence of matter. While some technologies can improve physiological response and regulation, it’s influence on the soul is a matter of conjecture. With Saturn in Pisces, we realize that the realm of matter is inextricable from human spiritual reality, but purely spiritual reality is closed from material manipulation. Human beings more connected to this higher spiritual realm can often feel isolated or alone even within their relationships as this closed gate between the material and archetypal is “spiritual” reality. Parapsychological activity is the closest humanity can get to a Saturnian “real” display of spiritual pragmatism. Phenomena like telekinesis and clairvoyance, however, are more like parlor tricks in the belt of an awakened human being.