Eclipse Ruler Mars Conjoining Saturn in Pisces: Why it’s a Big Deal

Hey everyone, this is Adam Elenbaas from Nightlight Astrology. Today, we're going to take a look at Mars's upcoming conjunction with Saturn in the sign of Pisces. One of the reasons that this is an incredibly significant transit is that Mars is the recent ruler of the solar eclipse in Aries. Whatever the ruler of an eclipse is doing right around the time of an eclipse becomes very important.

In order to understand the signification of the eclipse and the themes that are most likely to accompany it, an eclipse doesn't act alone. It acts in the total context of the sky. So understanding that this solar eclipse in Aries, which is the domicile of Mars, is happening right as Mars and Saturn are conjoining in Pisces becomes really important. So anyway, that is our agenda for today.

Before we get into it, as always, don't forget to like and subscribe, and share your comments and reflections. We'd love to hear from you. If you have a story to tell about the solar eclipse, use the hashtag grabbed excuse me or email us grabbed at nightlight astrology.com With your story. Tell us the story as concisely as you can to name the transit; we really appreciate that. That is the most likely way that we're going to be able to share the story effectively in our storytelling episodes.

Anyway, you can find a transcript of any of my daily talks on the website nightlight astrology.com. There are a couple of things I want to share with you that I am promoting right now. One of them is an upcoming talk. Our monthly webinar series continues this month of April. If you go to the events page on the website and click on live talks, you will see the last in our series on the outer planets in love happening on April 18. I'm giving a talk called Uranus in Love. And that's April 18, from seven to 9pm. Eastern time, it's on Zoom.

When you register, you get a link sent to you so you can attend live. If you cannot make it, you get a recording link sent to you afterward. In this talk, we're going to be looking at the significations of Uranus when it's in your birth chart and configured to the topic of love and relationships, say through the seventh house or Venus or transits from Uranus to your natal Venus to your seventh house, etc. We'll be looking at a lot of other conditions as well. But we're going to be talking about how Uranus asks us to heal, grow, and transform, as it affects us specifically within the realm of love, sex, and relationships.

So anyway, check that talk out. Hope to see some of you there that's coming up on April 18. Just a couple of days before, Jupiter and Uranus conjoined in the sign of Taurus. The other thing I want to point out to you is the new round of courses that will begin in June. There is year two and horary. For those who are already enrolled in nightlight programs or if you have a background in traditional astrology, you're welcome to join the upcoming horary course, which begins in June. However, the first-year certification course Ancient Astrology for the Modern Mystic, a one-year immersion into Hellenistic astrology, begins on June 16. At the end of today's episode, if you stick around after I sign off, I have created about a 10-minute video, or maybe it's like eight minutes, diving into what the course includes, why it's unique, and why I think you might like it. And so you can check that out at the end.

The one thing I will say briefly is that it's almost an entire year's worth of courses. There are 30 classes in the year. They're held by webinar, but all the recordings are hosted online, so you can attend live or remotely at your own pace. This never expires. So, it's lifetime access to the program and all of its contents. We have interactive group forum discussions staffed with tutors and breakout study sessions staff staffed with tutors in between major units of study.

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Now, we are heading into today's talk on Mars and Saturn in Pisces. So, the conjunction of Mars and Saturn in Pisces is happening. Let's take a look at the timeline. First, you're going to give it about a three-degree range within which the significations really start to show up. So that dates back for us to right around Saturday, April 6. Now, the two planets then continue to come together slowly here on Tuesday, April 9; you can see they're just about a degree apart. Tomorrow, Wednesday, April 10. They come together, and then by Thursday, April 11, they are separating. Give it about three degrees of separation, and you get Monday, April 15, as the kind of total separation from Saturn within the three-degree engagement range that ancient astrologers use. So, put that out about a week from now. But the most intense part of the transit you're likely to feel this week. Today, tomorrow, Thursday, in the wake of the solar eclipse, let's back up and remind ourselves of what just happened yesterday.

So, here we have the solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. And that's happening as Mars is coming to within about a degree of Saturn as the ruler of the North Node, the ruler of Venus, the ruler of Mercury retrograde, and the ruler of the solar eclipse in Aries. So there's a lot of Mars, it's a lot of Mars. Now. What we have to ask ourselves is, what does it mean? What does it mean that Mars is conjoining Saturn as the ruler of the eclipse and, in doing so, in the watery, double-bodied, feminine sign of Pisces, the home sign of Jupiter, the exultation of Venus? All these little details add up? So, now that we've taken a look at the real-time clock, I'll pull it back up in a second to show you one more little detail. But I want to start by just reminding you that it is just a simple basic lesson in astrology: Mars and Saturn in Pisces. You have different levels at which you can interpret that pairing.

There's always okay Mars-Saturn. What does Mars-Saturn do together, in general, on an archetypal level? What is a Mars-Saturn combination like, regardless of if it's a conjunction, a trine, a sextile, or a square? You know, regardless of what type of aspect is connecting Mars to Saturn, what do Mars and Saturn do when they get together? That is always the most basic level at which we need to start and understand a planetary aspect. If you can do that, in you develop that skill as even just a hobby consumer of astrology, you're going to get things right in terms of your ability to accurately assess or interpret the conditions of the planets; you're going to get things right like at least 50 to 60% of the time because you're going to nail the basic archetypal combination and then to get a little bit more accurate, you have to start including more and more details. For example, what does it mean that they're conjoined rather than opposed? What does it mean that they're in the sign of Jupiter?

A feminine water sign and the exultation of Venus? And where are those planets in the sky right now? How are they configured to those planets in the sky right now? And oh, by the way, did you notice that Mars is conjoining Saturn as Mars is the ruler of a solar eclipse that just happened?

So all of this, there's a whole world; literally, it's like a tapestry, just filled with so much information. The question becomes, how do we access that information in a way that doesn't overwhelm us? That can make sense out of the sky and make sense of a Mars-Saturn conjunction. Without becoming just gobbledygook? You know, it just starts, and all of a sudden, we put it all together. What does it mean?

All of these things, you go, you're going to be a healer, you're gonna go through a transformational crisis. So we have to try, which all may be true. But we have to try to put the details together in a way that actually delineates the archetype more specifically so that you go from looking at a big tapestry full of images to more specific combinations of images. And then, the themes and images that you come up with because of the refinement of all those details lead to a more accurate, accurate ability to describe or predict. And, of course, in hindsight, it helps us to assess those details so we can understand what we're looking at in reflection.

So, any level of looking at transits past, present, or future require that we gradually learn how to add more things in. I say gradually because if you try to do it too quickly, most of the time, we get overwhelmed, and then it's gobbledygook, and then we're all just, you know, shamans floating around the ethers.

Alright, so the number one thing we'll start with is general Mars-Saturn significations. Mars is the gas pedal. Saturn is the brakes. So when you get the two of them together, in any combination, you're working with a refinement of the gas and brake pedals together. Obviously, the best thing you can learn is how to have a cooperative relationship between, you know, acceleration will force drive speed, exertion, you know, power and restraint, discipline, maturity, discernment, all factors that Saturn can bring when combined with Mars.

You also have to deal with the limiting factors of Saturn, like being overly conservative or afraid or restrictive or doubtful or controlling, and Mars is less risk averse, and so, you know, Mars is going to take those risks and sometimes has to tell Saturn to chill out a little bit. So they that, you know, Saturn can inflict itself upon Mars and offer Mars a container that's mature and wise like a discipline in the life of an athlete, or, you know, discipline in the life of a martial artist or something like that these are Mars Saturn ideas that come to my mind right away.

But there's also the sense in which Mars flexes itself upon Saturn and says, you know, don't be so controlling. Don't be so conservative; your conservative energy is acting as a prohibition or a block or something that's trying to limit or restrict movement. And so you have to chill out a little bit.

So it can also be like an unstoppable force meets an immovable object kind of situation, the gas and the brake pedal, the, you know, unstoppable force and the immovable object, the two coming together are often required when we have to go through tests that require a lot of effort and work and maturity and focus, and they test our mettle. And we might have to work through conflicts or frustrations and be persevering. But we also have to do so with great maturity and discernment. We have to do so with great focus and discipline; it's doing hard things and doing them well, Mars-Saturn. Mars-Saturn can also come up when things explode or break.

Like, you know, whether it's, you know, pulling a muscle or, you know, breaking an arm or something. Now, hopefully, you know none of that. I hate to even utter those things because I don't like putting them out there. You know, but, but it's like, there's legitimately a way in which, you know, limit limits, boundaries, barriers are broken through. And sometimes forcefully and destructively with a, there's a kind of it can be kind of a menacing quality to Mars and Saturn. But you also have this idea of how you carefully build and construct something where, you know, there's labor and effort, Mars significations, but there is a kind of restraint and methodical way in which you go about doing something. And oftentimes, those things are rewarded when the two planets come together. Whereas, you know, being overly restrictive or overly forceful ends up meeting some kind of karmic consequence.

So the two planets are also very good under pressure. Like I've heard a colleague of mine say this once, and I never forgot it, because I really agreed with it, which is that you know, if you're under a deadline, and you have to get something done really quickly, and it's a high-pressure situation, Mars-Saturn is pretty good for that. Mars-Saturn is also quite frequently associated with the signification of military armed conflict. And strict and sort of zealous war-like dogmas like that, the kinds of things that people will die for, the kinds of things that people will fight for, with a kind of what I want to say like a militaristic or fanatical religious or political points of view, and also just, you know, like, the healthy version of having principles that you stick to and fight for, or act on behalf of, but these are all things that can come up now.

When the two planets are conjoined, the archetypal qualities are blended, and you often see the conjunction of two planets blending their significations together rather than each planet having a dialogue. It is as though the two are being mutually inflicted upon one another. And it's as though a third thing emerges, you know, a Mars-Saturn. So, we get this kind of blending of the two archetypes. So these are the kinds of things that are coming this week.

Now, when you pair that alongside the fact that Mars was the ruler of the solar eclipse and a large stellium in Aries, that's when it gets really a lot more specific. And that layer of information, despite all the other levels or layers available to us, is probably the most important. Aries is a tropical sign. It's a fire sign; it's a masculine sign, and it's where the sun and Mars are exalted. Aries acts with tremendous force and vigor and speed and intensity on behalf of a few things, you know, the blazing of a trail or the staking of a claim or the, you know, the choosing of a path with great determination and kind of a heroic kind of quest motif.

Now, there's also Aries, who is often concerned with individuation and the need to feel and be strong in oneself. So these are the spring qualities of young life: grabbing a hold and becoming individuated. The cutting of the umbilical cord isn't like a kind of an Aries image. The baby becomes independent, even if it's just still an infant and totally dependent on its mother, were always dependent upon things. But Aries is a sign with the rulers of Mars and the exultation of the sun that often emphasize the path, the destiny, the blazing of trails, the pioneering the entrepreneur, the risk taker, the soldier, the warrior, often the hero and the part of us that is always seeking to self actualize.

So all of this energy, including a Mercury Retrograde in Aries, has us looking at a lot of these themes right now. A solar eclipse is like a very potent version of a new moon in that it is here to start something new and plant a seed. Tropical signs are the four signs associated with the equinoxes and solstices, which would be Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. They are all called Tropical, from the word troppo, which means to turn like a turning point.

Aries is the turning point of the solar year from a sociological standpoint in the northern hemisphere, where symbolic language comes from, and light takes over from darkness for the rest of this half of the year. It's like, now we're on the light half. That's the Yang half, that's the half that is associated with the metaphysical principles of light, which aren't any better or worse than Yin or darkness or the feminine. There's a story that plays out archetypally between opposites; the whole language of the Zodiac is rooted in the story.

So, in Aries, we have a turning point toward light; what is light? Well, light can be so many different things. It can be the will; It can be the individuality; it can be all of these things we've been mentioning, having a strong association with Yang to become a separate individual rather than join in a relationship to stand out and apart as opposed to commingle and relate. Those are Yang principles, and within all of us, it doesn't matter about genders; gender and sex categories are completely fluid. These categories we're talking about are metaphysical. So the principle of an Aries Eclipse is a solar eclipse, which is about the tremendous energy behind this impetus to individuate to start new things and strike out bold, assertive, aggressive actions. It's competitive at times, honestly.

But it also says I'm going to face fears with courage. I'm going to act decisively on behalf of new impulses and desires that are forming. I found out recently that when I was watching this video, they were talking about the etymology of words and desire. The word desire came from de solitary, which means something like from the stars or so anyway; I can't remember. I think maybe I shared that already with you guys. I have zero memory at this point, I guess.

But anyway, so yeah, desire comes from the stars. It comes from an an ancient view that our desires and whether or not they will be fulfilled rests in the power of the gods and the stars. Aries signals the beginning of new desires that are planted in the heart and that we're going to act on, and they come as dramatic turning points with solar eclipses in Aries. Now, take all of that. And let's now interpret the Mars Saturn significations in the background that rule this eclipse.

Right, so if this is a Mars Eclipse, a fiery spring, like Aries Mars eclipse, what is Mars doing? Mars is conjoining Saturn and Pisces, where we have things like the refinement of the Will, the prohibiting of the will, and the maturing of the will. We have great, tremendous situations that could call for some kind of militaristic activity or response. Now, that could be just psychological; it doesn't have to be literal warfare. But the call to arms psychically, the feeling that we have to work through some kind of prohibiting or limiting or frustrating factor as Saturn and Mars come together, that we have to deal with fears and constraints and doubts and various conservative elements that we have to try to push through but also maybe do some compromising with, you see, so the everything we said about Saturn and Mars is a qualifying hurdle that we have to sort of jump over, or it's, you know, it's a ball of energy that we have to somehow sit and contemplate as this sort of area new beginning tries to establish itself so And now the other thing that's really important to look at here this is all greatly amplified by the fact that Mars and Saturn, as they can join this week as the ruler of the eclipse are in the domicile of Jupiter, that's Pisces, one of its two domiciles and they are in the bound of Jupiter as well. What is Jupiter doing?

Jupiter is about to conjoin Uranus. Now we have now we're cooking with fire, right? Because they're in the bounds of Jupiter. They are acting on behalf of things that they believe in. They're acting on behalf of virtues or they're acting on behalf of beliefs that is for sure one of the potential significations, so this gives you a kind of holy war Joan of Arc type of feeling behind this eclipse; you might be ready to go to battle or war you might be trying to start something new but being faced with people or things that are challenging your beliefs or challenge you to act on behalf of them or to stand strong in some kind of principled conviction about something that's happening around you. Jupiter is also about to conjoin Uranus in Taurus, which, by the way, has the signification of breakthrough and revolution behind it.

Now, this is happening, of course, in Venus's sign, but Venus is in Mars's sign, and Mars is in Venus's exultation. I suspect that behind all of this is the difficulty of trying to make important changes and start new things in the way that Aries likes to start, but that we're dealing with principled conflicts that, ideally, we would like to resolve peacefully with other people. Is it possible? Is it not possible? We'll see.

Another way of looking at this would be to say that when Mars and Saturn are acting together in Jupiter's term, and we're bound and domicile and Jupiter are about to conjoin Uranus, this conflict, this challenge this pressure cooker of Mars-Saturn this week behind the eclipse is fueling some kind of principled act actions that are, you know, they're behind an even larger and bigger impetus than just the solar eclipse in Aries. But the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction, which means that this new thing we're trying to start is really the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus, and so let me just back that up a second.

So, in case it doesn't make sense, you could say well, you know, the sun in Aries is trying to start something new, and it's very Aries like that would be totally fair for a solar eclipse in Aries. But then you obviously have to combine the ruler. Okay, well, it's trying to start something in an Aries-like way, but it's also dealing with a Mars and Saturn in Pisces kind of conflict or frustration or challenge that it has to work through. Maybe very watery emotions are rooted in things like your beliefs, ideals, and visions. But when that Mars-Saturn conjunction is simultaneously in the bounded domicile of Jupiter and Jupiter is in a rare conjunction with Uranus, I think we can safely say that what's really happening here is we're having some there are some very strong energies that are behind the impetus to revolutionize that Jupiter-Uranus represents this because it's all coming together in the next you know, ten days, you know, 12 days. Jupiter-Uranus likes to create sudden, tremendous breakthroughs.

It is principled and defiant. But because Jupiter is principled, people always think of Jupiter's Oh, it's just expansion. Jupiter was Zeus. Now, Jupiter was the ruler of law, societal order, religion, and institutions of higher learning. Jupiter is this kind of virtuous principle of, like, you know, a fair and just government, a fair and just legal system, human rights and dignity. Those are the best qualities of Jupiter. I'm not saying that we live up to those things.

Certainly, the institutions that are supposed to represent those things are often totally corrupt in our world. But as a planet as a god, Jupiter represents the cohesion of our world and our cosmos as a well-ordered, beautiful sort of symmetrical thing. Now is that all there is no there's a reason that Jupiter's, you know, underworld brother is Hades. And that's important. That's a really important dichotomy in ancient mythology and in ancient philosophy, right that Hades and Zeus are like opposites. They are by different worlds: the underworld in the overworld. Oh, it's nice and sunny and well-ordered up here, and in Hades, things are literally described as everything is upside down. Did you know that?

So anyway, Jupiter at its best conjoining Uranus, the sort of Prometheus principle is about breakthroughs that are in the name of Venusian things like peace, beauty, rest, luxury, wealth, stability, and ease, and Jupiter Uranus is saying more of that. And, and I'm, you know, it's a revolutionary and sort of defiant impulse with Jupiter and Uranus. Well, that's coming through at the same time that this solar eclipse in Aries, very Mars, very fired up about trying to strike forward in very strong, active, aggressive, assertive ways. At the same time, Saturn and Mars are together in Pisces, wrestling with intense and not so, you know, the complex emotional territory where we're entangled with other people in webs of love and respect. There are probably very different values and beliefs that are conflicting as well.

So you have this, although the Jupiter-Taurus or Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus looks very sort of like a peaceful revolutionary situation. There are a lot of little ones that look really nice. Yeah, at the same time, it's being fueled by some really intense and complicated-looking conflict. Now, I believe that we'll all resolve what we're going to be moving into; I mean, this is sort of phase one of the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction; let me just show you something that happens afterward. So, if you take a look, we can move this forward a little bit to the actual Jupiter Uranus conjunction on April 19, and into the 20th, the sun enters Taurus.

Not long after that, Mercury stations directly, and Venus enters Taurus. Not long after that, we'll eventually also have Mercury entering Taurus. So, like, things do calm down. I mean, we get everything moving into a stable earth sign. We also have this super lovely-looking new moon. Let me show you this one. This is kind of nice. New Moon in Taurus, right around May 8. It might be just a touch before that. Yeah, it's gonna be like late May 7. You can see that Venus in Taurus, the New Moon in Taurus exalted New Moon, and Taurus, Jupiter, and Uranus are just separating within three degrees. You know, Mercury's direct, since it is on Mars, is in its own domicile by that point as well.

My point is that there are greener pastures, and I do believe that the revolution of Jupiter and Uranus is probably, for many of us, legitimately leading to a stabler, more peaceful kind of situation. And maybe one that is, you know, where we've stabilized and done some healing work in Venusian territories like relationships, art, sensuality, and pleasure. But right now, you know, we're in eclipse season and, as you can say, see, like the lay of the land is is turbulent, you know, this week, especially with Mars and Saturn conjoining in Pisces, you have to remember the double-bodied water sign is it reminds me of the knight of cups in the tarot, you know, you have a kind of chivalrous crusading romantic, and very principled, and sometimes even fanatical and sort of crazy religious side to Pisces, the visionary and romantic quality to Pisces.

When Mars and Saturn are behind that with an Aries Eclipse, it's like, oh, there's very strong feelings at work here. And maybe some are almost fanatical. And then you're pairing that with the revolutionary impulse of Mars, Saturn being ruled so strongly by Jupiter, who's conjoining with Uranus, what we will do for the name of peace for the name of prosperity? I mean, there are famous examples of Tauruses throughout history who have been ruthless, Hitler being one of them, right?

So imagine throughout history, imagine a golden age, a golden era of peace and prosperity, but only for the right people, you know, and like death to everyone else. So, you know, I'm not saying that any of us are, you know, on that level of monstrosity, right? But, we have to be careful of the shadows of what we're desiring and the lengths we're willing to go and the, you know, the bridges we might be willing to burn. I think there's something about this right now that says, like, just steady, you know, like, just walk through this conflict with a principal but moderate, you know, the revolution. Can it come peacefully? Can it come because you have worked through a pressure cooker and not lost your cool and worked to resolve conflicts and harmonize?

I just recently watched this movie. It was a movie about Bob Marley, and I think it was produced by some of his family members or something. I just thought, well, this kind of looks like a fun thing to watch. So I like Bob Marley, and I was just impressed. I don't know; I'm not like a Bob Marley historian. And I'm not trying to what's the word? You know, like, I'm not trying to make him into a saint or anything. But I was very impressed by some of the choices that he made around trying to be something of a political peacemaker in Jamaica; that was sort of the point of the movie. And there was like a lot of danger and violence involved in doing that. And he had this strong belief that music could bring people together and could heal things, and anyway, I was thinking, Oh, this is very appropriate that I'm watching this kind of musical, reggae revolutionary, around the time that Jupiter and Uranus are coming together in a Venus-ruled earth sign. Makes a lot of sense. Anyway.

So I think what we're dealing with is what we will do in the name of in the name of things that we find to be beautiful, or stable or peaceful or luxurious, you know, what will we do in the name of Venus, so to speak. And in the look of things this week, we might do more than we should. We might be a bit crazy at work.

So, on the other hand, there's something about a very, kind of like mature management of desires and emotions that leads to careful mediation of conflicts or conflicting desires, even within ourselves, that maybe finally allow us to really experience a powerful breakthrough by the time Jupiter and Uranus come through.

Anyway, I've been just sort of rambling with these reflections. The last thing I'll say, as the other really important factor behind this Mars-Saturn conjunction is right as they can join, look at what else happens. Let me take this back just a little bit. So, we have Mars and Saturn coming together. You can see at the bottom of the chart there, right after they come together and separate by Thursday of this week, and I'll be doing a separate video on this one. Mercury goes through its cazimi at the heart of the sun. Resetting that rebirthing of Mercury moving into the Morningstar position is really important.

So, I'm going to do a whole separate video on the Mercury cazimi this week, because I've got a bunch of other things to say about it. And some specific significations I think go along with it. But one of them has to do with, you know, feeling empowered, but also being careful of the wise use of our will, you know, and so we're going to talk about that anyway, with a little bit more care in a future video this week. So that comes through on Thursday, right after the ruler of the eclipse, Mars, is done with the conjunction with Saturn. So anyway, I hope that this was useful for you guys and interesting and prepared you with some, you know, fresh ways of thinking about the energies of the week. It's always a pleasure to break these things down.

I've really been enjoying layering and giving you more context this year. That's been sort of a point of mine that came up in my reflections during the Kickstarter at the end of the year. I always try to think about what I can do differently in the year ahead. I've decided this year that I really want to try to give you extra layers of context so we can all grow in our understanding and development of a solar eclipse. You know, there's a lot more to just the solar eclipse and the fact that it's happening in Aries. Anyway, that's it for today. Stick around afterward after I sign off; I'm going to tell you a recording that I tagged on to the end of the video where I talk about the upcoming First Year program.

Come study astrology; studying astrology is absolutely amazing. It completely transforms your life, whether you go professional or not, to dive into this ancient spiritual worldview in practice, which you can take forward into your life like absolutely any other kind of practice, and it makes a huge difference. It's like adding a spiritual GPS to your car or something, and it's truly amazing to study astrology in depth. So, I welcome you and invite you to check it out and make sure you check out the need-based tuition. I will also say more about that in the video. Alright, that's it for now. Bye