The Jupiter-Saturn Synodic Cycle
thumbnail art courtesy of @jehbruce
The word synod is derived from the Greek term synodos or "assembly" (1), and also indicates an astrological conjunction. One synodic cycle is the period covering a planet's return to the same place relative to the position of the Sun. There are synodic cycles for single planets and conjoining planets. The Sun-Moon synodic cycle, for example, lasts approximately 28 days, the period from one New Moon (when the Sun and Moon conjoin) to the next. In actual practice, I encounter synodic cycles in financial and mundane astrology more often than in natal astrology. However, these cycles can be used to find deeper predictive insight derived from a natal chart. I look at the Saturn-Jupiter synodic cycle and consider its future implications as this is an important synodic cycle for mundane and financial astrologers.
Superior vs. Personal Planet Synodic Cycles
Significant events and collective themes that take place over the course of years and decades are the realms of the outer planets. These planetary cycles are also relevant to individuals; when outer planets form powerful aspects from within their synodic cycle to a personal planet, their influence can often possess subjective gravity. It is helpful for those with a malefic in a house related to money or relationships to note when their personal planets (especially a chart ruler) make a tight aspect to said malefic. In my personal experience, these aspects can manifest interesting, albeit challenging events and people.
A much-beloved example of a personal planet's synodic cycle is that of Venus. The Venus synod (2) completes once every 8 years, and the course of the planet around the Sun traces a pentagram. Entire books have been written about Venus' synod and the esoteric interpretations of the pentagram she forms. There are profound secrets deeply hidden within this ancient symbol, to say the least.
Outer planets:
Saturn
Jupiter
Uranus (non-traditional/medieval)
Neptune (non-traditional/medieval)
Pluto (non-traditional/medieval)
Personal planets
Sun
Moon
Mercury
Venus
Mars
Venus cycle and Stonehenge courtesy of Richard Heath at sacred.numbersciences.org
December 2020: Jupiter-Saturn Conjunction
This can simply be defined as Jupiterian opportunity and the expanse of Saturn's technological restriction. Saturn is still in his domicile Aquarius as he was in 2020 when the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction took place. This planetary meeting of law and karma was a major astrological event that will continue to resonate between the themes of Jovian expansion and Saturnine restriction. The economic and social trends impacted by this conjunction reflect most strongly the characteristics of airy Aquarius.
The constriction of physical assets necessary for economic growth is an overarching theme that clearly evolved throughout 2022. Saturn’s rulership over rocks and minerals points to the continued shortage of semiconductors and other metals (3) crucial to electronic production. Lack of technical talent is also thought to pose a 2023 challenge (4). Saturn’s 2023 ingress into Pisces could signal an uptick in this trend’s development as intentional withdrawal from an overwhelmingly technological Aquarian economy registers with analysts in 2023. This impulse may have started in 2021.
The “great resignation” of 2021 (5) that occurred over the course of 2020 – 2021 also bore the insignia of this cycle, if only according to popular media spin. Individuals seemed to want a closer alignment of personal values (Jupiter) and career (a 10th house, Saturnian sector of life). Saturn can relate to long-term goals or permanent structures. It is stabilizing and foundational. The 2010 google search meant to surface hyper-lucrative careers may have put many in the money by 2015. By 2020 these same career choices somehow seemed impossible to bear as a permanent livelihood for a significant number of people.
July 2024: Jupiter-Saturn Square
Saturn will move from restricting through Aquarian methods into limitation via mystical or Piscean experiences in 2023. Withdrawal and escapism are the darker aspects of this sign, while spiritual development or grounding could be seen as one of the more positive possibilities. All sectors of Piscean-ruled industry, such as those that involve water, alcohol, creativity, religion, hospitals, and chemical engineering will feel Saturn’s challenge. Likely in the funding purse.
This period will test faith. The astrological square presents tension in the synodic cycle. For the first time in the current cycle, Saturn is not at an advantage. Pisces is Jupiter’s domain and Jupiter is a friend of Mercury, ruler of Gemini. Jupiter is also in detriment in Gemini; his relationship with Mercury is generally oppositional in traditional astrology as the two planets' domiciles are opposed. Both planets sit in mutable signs, their action is never direct. The economic environment will probably not be one of steady growth but of mutable adaptation. The organizing action of Aquarius has passed but we feel stuck in a dream (Saturn in Pisces) or an endless cycle of new ideas that never come to fruition (Jupiter in Gemini).
There’s good news for film buffs and art nerds as Saturn in Pisces could create a greater demand for entertainment and “in real life” (IRL) experiences that facilitate escape. If there was ever a time for the resurgence of the mainstream but moody film (and drug culture), this would be it. Saturn was in Pisces throughout the early 90s, when cult classic films like “Reality Bites” and “Dazed and Confused” were made. “Heroin chic” was unfortunately a thing. This era’s very commodifiable Western world archetype was Kurt Cobain. At once an artist (Pisces) and an old man (Saturn) in his 20s. His suicide was probably the penultimate negative expression of Saturn in Pisces.
The collective impulse to escape or isolate could feel as gloomy as it sounds: without a community or group that offers human support or sympathy, individuals acting in faith, sacred to Pisces, could feel isolated or in need of grounding. The irony of Saturn’s presence in Pisces is in the impossibility of escaping human reality. As the mythical Saturn eats his children, the archetypal Saturn can destroy the very boundaries he creates internally. Those looking for the positive will seek out IRL experiences almost intuitively, as Pisces Saturn rewards us for empathizing with others and supporting them in ways that we can no matter how natural it feels to shut in, engage our coping mechanisms, and cry.
December 2029: Jupiter-Saturn Opposition
I tend to think of all oppositions as being like full moons. Full moons usually bring messages or visits, unexpected or not, from astrological or subtle channels activated by the new moon. If squares demonstrate a sense of tension, oppositions consciously acknowledge conflict. The cardinal energy is back and seeks to move things forward from the energy of the mutable square. We’ll ditch flannel and stop moaning about employment prospects.
In the case of the Saturn-Jupiter opposition with Jupiter in Libra and Saturn in Aries, both planets are out of their element with Saturn especially afflicted in the sign of his fall. Jupiter in Libra wants growth through partnerships, law, and peace treaties. Libra loves fairness, so most political changes seen at this time will take place legally and without outright conflict. Jupiter’s last stint in Libra brought about the launch of World of Warcraft (6) (a very Libran thing to virtually partner up with others to achieve a goal) and the establishment of the Union of South American Nations via the Cuzco Declaration (7).
Legal rights for Libran-ruled matters such as marriage, cosmetics, and even the legal system itself could see a lackluster re-brand. Saturn lacks power in this opposition, so the changes that take place don’t feel quite as permanent as those that took place in his domicile when he was strong in 2020. Mars, the Lord of Saturn’s sign, assembles with Jupiter in Libra for the first quarter of 2029, defiant and supporting Libra’s relationship-oriented energy. As Jupiter does, he will expand the impulse towards Venusian issues and industries while Mars supports him emphatically.
There will be massive changes brought about through new and surprising alliances between countries, corporations, and institutions. For the first time since the beginning of the cycle, I don’t sense outright conflicts or even wars in a traditional sense. If anything, the conflicts we are currently witnessing could get Libra’s “velvet glove”. Mars shouldn’t ever be underestimated, so while conflict goes on, it could take the form of Czechoslovakia’s mainly peaceful velvet revolution (8) that coincidentally also took place at the ingress of Jupiter into Libra. Perhaps rage itself becomes passe to society as Jupiter and Mars team up in a sign that best embodies peach Bellinis and swaths of glittered tulle over Saturn’s more aggressive position in Aries.
It is here that we come to the end of the dream that is the Air synodic cycle of Jupiter-Saturn.
Sources :
1. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (1998, July 20). synodic period | astronomy. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/science/synodic-period
2. Best, N. D. (2022, October 18). Venus Retrograde and the Synodic Cycle. The Mountain Astrologer. https://mountainastrologer.com/venus-retrograde-and-the-synodic-cycle/
3. Alexander, M., Kirschstein, T., Meissner, F., Fey, A., Alexander, M., Kirschstein, T., Meissner, F., & Fey, A. (2022, November 9). Semiconductor shortage 2023: A different kind of trouble ahead. Roland Berger. https://www.rolandberger.com/en/Insights/Publications/Semiconductor-Shortage-3-2022.html
4. Marr, B. (2022, November 10). The Top 5 Technology Challenges In 2023. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2022/11/10/the-top-5-technology-challenges-in-2023/?sh=7a1231f130c9
5. Anwar, M. (2022, March 25). The “Great Resignation” Is Your Company’s Culture Wake-Up Call. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2022/03/25/the-great-resignation-is-your-companys-culture-wake-up-call/?sh=27743a292964
6. Koch, C. (2022, December 7). World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight Review In Progress - Who Says You Can't Go Home? GameSpot. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/world-of-warcraft-dragonflight-review-in-progress-who-says-you-cant-go-home/1900-6418011/
7. Union of South American Nations | UIA Yearbook Profile | Union of International Associations. (n.d.). https://uia.org/s/or/en/1100059453
8. History.com Editors. (2021, November 18). Velvet Revolution begins in Czechoslovakia. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/velvet-revolution-begins-in-czechoslovakia