Saturn in Libra – Dancing with the Tarot

On the 21st July 2010, Saturn will re-enter Libra and remain in his sign of exaltation until the 5th October 2012. It may seem strange that grumpy old Saturn is happy in Libra which traditionally rules relationships yet there is an elegant interplay at work.

Relationships of all kinds but perhaps most specifically our one-to-one relationships take work. Saturn’s entry into Libra reminds us that we cannot be at peace with another without experiencing peace within. Love takes time to build, needs a structure and we have a duty to cherish one another. Love is a responsibility which simply means love is the ability to respond to the other. In responding to the other we readjust ourselves, sometimes to our benefit and sometimes to our detriment. The endless round of give and take in a relationship can enable us to learn and grow or bring us to our knees.

Saturn teaches us mastery of these things. He will reduce issues to their bare bones in order for us to take a good hard look at the very foundations. He lets us know where we need to learn and grow and shows us where our fears restrict us. He holds us back until we have fully learned the lesson and demands that we overcome doubt. Through Saturn we learn the value of discipline, the consequence of our actions and where our inner authority lies. In Libra he will weigh upon us until we reset our inner scales.

In the tarot, Saturn in Libra is represented by The World (Saturn) and Justice (Libra). The associated minor arcana card is the 3 Swords.

 In the World card we see an hermaphrodite dancing. In the four corners are representations of the 4 fixed signs Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius. They stand for the four winds, the four elements, the four archangels. The hermaphrodite dances in the centre of the card carrying two wands. In the Magician card we see his arm raised with the wand pointing to the sky, the four elements under his control. The difference with the character in the world card is that now they have no need to control the elements – they have achieved an inner harmony with the universe so that they can simply dance with the energy, holding the batons lightly. They are simply part of the cosmic dance. But notice too that the dancer is surrounded by a circular wreath. This to me shows that there are certain boundaries that cannot be crossed on the earth plane (Saturn rules bounderies) and that where there is an end there is also a beginning. Once a goal is achieved, a new goal often comes to take it’s place – much like the goat seeks to climb higher and higher mountains.

Combined with the Justice card, the imagery shows that we can attain our worldly desires but only through balancing them with the needs of the Earth. Justice with the sword raised shows that we must cut away everything that is not the truth. It is not about punishment, only action and consequence. Sometimes we cannot see the bigger picture and therefore sometimes it feels that life just isn’t fair. The World and Justice bring a strong sense that we must have an awareness of both cosmic and earthly law.

The Major Arcana cards are rather like the transiting planets in that they suggest a tide of energy that cannot be ignored (much as we may try to!). It is the Minor Arcana however which shows us our more earthly experience and sometimes what we can do in order to move with the current flow of universal energy.

The Minor Arcana card which relates to Saturn in Libra is the sorrowful 3 of Swords. The pain of this card is very real. Here is a sharp and painful wound. What we once thought has now been cruelly cut away from us. We were wrong or wronged – maybe a bit of both. There has been heartbreak, loss, seperation.

This is a difficult card because it shows us that we can no longer deny our pain. A tarot master many years ago said she likened this card to an abcess that needs to be lanced in order for it to drain – painful but necessary. Sometimes we lock away our pain where it festers and grows, eating away at our ability to love. It is only by really experiencing the pain that we can move through it.

And perhaps this is what is required of us with Saturn in Libra. The universe tells us that we can achieve peace both inner and outer. To do this we must weigh our personal desires against the collective and our collective desire as a human race to the needs of the planet. In order to to this, each of us on a personal level is is asked to look within and deal with disappointment, sorrow, loss and heartache. Through doing this on an individual level, we learn to accept ourselves, take responsibility for our own emotions and in so doing, clear the way for us to relate to each other on a more equal level. I don’t believe we are ‘meant to suffer’ in order to learn however if we have suffered then we can learn a great deal from it. Another aspect of the 3 of Swords is having to face a ‘painful’ reality. Sometimes we don’t want to see something so we label it as something else, don’t think about it, ignore it and all manner of excuses. But in order to fully experience and appreciate reality we need to see it clearly for what it is. Saturn will force us to look at the facts and chip away at all the rest.

Whilst the 3 of Swords is the card that we don’t necessarily want to see in a reading, it is a very necessary part of life. We make a choice in the 2 swords, the consequences of which have to be faced in the three. We must recognise the truth, whatever that is in order to move to healing (the 4 swords). Saturn is bringing us an opportunity to deal with our inner pain in order that we can regain balance in the world and experience a deeper commitment in our relationships. Whilst his lessons may seem stern and heavy, once we have offloaded our ‘baggage’ we will discover that we too can dance lightly on the Earth.