The Dance between Darkness and Light

by Wendy Stacey

One of our creation myths in Maori mythology is about Papatūānuku (Papa), the earth mother and Ranginui (Rangi), the sky father. Papa and Rangi are intertwined – they are one, embracing the damp and darkness until their fusion is culled by their own children who push them apart. Papa is turned into the earth where she presides over all of earth’s nature. Rangi is thrust up to the sky where he looks after all things above. As they are prised apart, streaks of light begin to shine through, vegetation and forestation spring forth and the early stages of physical sustenance emerge. A sense of space and freedom is experienced by all. But Papa and Rangi are separated forever. When we see the fog rise, Papa is yearning for her mate, and when the rain falls, we feel the tears of sorrow from Rangi. When the unborn child of Papa and Rangi stirs, it makes the earth shake. This is our understanding of how heaven and earth was created and evolved. This story is not dissimilar to Uranus and Gaia in Greek mythology or other creation myths from other parts of the world and these archetypes are familiar to us as astrologers.

We look at the characteristics of the planets and imagine how the cyclic relationship might be played out in terms of the past, present and future. The geometry (aspects) between the planets enable us to understand the nature of what stage this cyclic relationship is at and what kind of experiences might be heralded from this time. What can also be helpful, is to look at the core principles of the zodiac signs; where the planets reside can help us speculate or visualise the areas where these experiences might be felt.

Throughout most of the year 2021, Saturn and Uranus will be battling it out with the final three squares of their cycle, from the signs of Taurus and Aquarius. These will occur at the following degrees and dates:

17 Feb 2021 – 7° Taurus/Aquarius
14 June 2021 – 13° Taurus/Aquarius
24 Dec 2021 – 11° Taurus/Aquarius

The understanding of these two zodiac signs, Taurus, and Aquarius, can be understood within the Maori creation myth and where the attention to all things earth and all things sky become entrenched in the collective consciousness. We can feel this building at present, particularly with the political emphasis on global pollution and climate change, with increasing efforts to avoid using fossil fuels to reduce carbon emissions. These are earth and sky matters which are increasingly debated and on national and global policy agendas. As an earth sign, Taurus is about the present, it looks down - it is measured and slow to act. This sign needs to deliberate before it can feel secure making any change that may come forth. Aquarius being an air sign, is progressive, it thinks about tomorrow and likes to speed things along and only looks up. One of the key conflicts from these squares is timing. The pressure of time running out versus ensuring realistic and practical timelines will be key arguments in resolving the enormous issues of environmental pollution and climate change. Although both fixed in nature, these zodiac signs present contradictory principles here between the earth and the sky - they are preoccupied with different spaces and arenas so differing priorities are potentially what the debates will be centred upon.

The last conjunction and the beginning of this cycle of Saturn-Uranus began in 1988, with three conjunctions.

13 February 1988 - 29° Sagittarius
26 June 1988 - 28° Sagittarius
18 October 1988 - 27° Sagittarius

Here was the beginning of the global issue of climate change and where the issues involved shifted from a scientific discussion to a public and political one. In June 1988, James Hansen, a physicist and director at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, addressed a U.S. Senate committee and informed them that “global warming is now large enough that we can ascribe with a high degree of confidence a cause and effect relationship to the greenhouse effect.”(1) It was also an era that accelerated technological advancement and it was in 1988 that the concept of the world wide web was discussed.(2)It has also been a cycle which has highlighted religious and cultural differences and struggle – the fight for emancipation, awareness and addressing human rights. The three looming squares will spotlight these matters and as these are the last squares in this cycle, there is an urgent need to deliver the long-awaited resolutions.

The year 2020, with the momentous cycles of Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto, we observed and experienced one of the most challenging years in our lives. The principles of the astrological signs of Capricorn and Aquarius (and their rulers) have been at the forefront of every aspect of societal issues. With the Covid-19 situation we have seen the densely tenanted sign of Capricorn played out with constant ‘lockdowns’, the need for ‘testing, testing, testing’, the elderly being the most vulnerable, feeling caged, feeling fear, isolated from family and Saturn often symbolised by the grim reaper who signifies death, has knocked on many a door in all corners of the world. Capricorn (and Saturn) has been about controlling and restraining the masses, which has impacted billions of people. The aim of control was to serve a higher function in society, to ensure a sense of duty, maintain self-discipline - to install personal and public responsibility, to ultimately, avoid death. However, Aquarius does not see it this way and as we move into the new era of the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Aquarius and we hear a different point of view. Aquarius is also logical but does not see the way of obeyance as a solution and rejects the projection of guilt. Aquarius advocates for people to have the freedom to think for themselves and do not need to be restrained in all aspects of their lives or to have their personal liberties and human rights degraded. One of the emphases on these planets shifting from one sign to another is a divide in reasoning and a different perspective on morality.

As these cycles have been forming over the last two years, the moral and political divide was already felt and evident in so many countries around the world, with several national protests which culminated in the distrust and disrespect of national and global politics and leaders. As Jupiter and Saturn move away from Capricorn and into Aquarius, a new political landscape will be shaped, the moral compass will swing, and the many voices of the younger generations heard.

2021 Cycles

During the squares of Saturn and Uranus in 2021, the globe will be in clean up mode, battling out the priorities of the previous year’s debris. Saturn’s job is to hold onto existing infrastructures and economic stability, crashed from the tribulations of the year before, to improve and recover and but now does this from the arena of Aquarius. Here, in another of its own signs, Saturn does this for the good of all. Saturn in this sign understands the need for greater rules, better social structures and this may be challenged by Uranus with further protests and a rebellion against the existing order (which will be echoed by Pluto journeying through the last degrees of Capricorn until 2024). Saturn’s role in Aquarius is to preserve and advance the economy, to serve all members of society, where Uranus in Taurus seeks to eradicate that which no longer serves society and bring forth new systems which serve new generations. Saturn in Aquarius is liberal and with Jupiter initially alongside it, will help achieve this for a short time, but Jupiter moves swiftly through this sign, particularly within the first few months of 2021 (it reaches Pisces by the 14th May 2021 and then only goes back to the 23rd degree of Aquarius when it retrogrades). 

Uranus is radical, and in Taurus, seeks to reinvent the economy and ramp up these radicalities and set them in stone. From the quieter and slower sign of Taurus, Uranus tends to stir things up, make us think differently about what we truly value and how this might be measured (and distributed). Uranus invites us to rethink what makes us feel secure as our previous systems have collapsed. As all Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions will occur in the element of Air now for the next 200 years, and along with Uranus’s journey through Taurus, we see vast innovative industries and new business models entering the new ‘Air’ economic realm. Examples of these are open source economics such as Bitcoin and Litecoin or sharing economies built from technological advancements such as Uber and Airbnb and a broader shift to user-based rating systems where the success of any business or entity will be decided by the masses. Uranus protests for new systems that enable freer working environments and a hard swing from the restraints of current protocols and expectations around work and time.  The flexibility as to where and when people work is changing dramatically. For example, working (or learning) remotely and the ability to have unlimited holiday leave are new models of business which are currently being explored.(3)(4) If business and workers benefit then we are likely to see further change in this area, like we did when Uranus was last in Taurus (in 1938) and the maximum eight-hour working day was introduced (which bolstered productivity).(5) These New forms of ‘how we earn’ money will also expand and new industry formed as we have seen with younger generations as ‘influencers’ on social media and Saturn’s job is to try and regulate this.

As we move into the Air era where Jupiter and Saturn for the next 200 years only conjoin in Air signs, we will see a huge shift to industry involving all things ‘Air’. Oxygen will become a commodity as it already has in polluted areas such as New Delhi in India(6), or the pop up of oxygen bars around the world(7), or the huge sales of body oxygen readers to detect one’s health status if they have Covid-19.(8) With Uranus in Taurus we see the revolution in dairy farming become high tech but also a literal detachment from the ‘cow’ and stock farming as the world becomes increasingly vegan(9).

The emphasis on aviation, building and recreational spaces, sky space and the cosmos will be paramount but as the squares take place, we will see the clash between regulation and de-regulation. An example of this is the jet pack that is becoming popular around the world – where humans can actually fly!(10) Innovations such as this, and there will be many, will require Saturn to step in and control the crazy.(11)The race to commercialise all things ‘air’ and in space is about to begin.

Saturn’s role is to ensure that all aspects of our economy and society are regulated to maintain a sense of order. Here, the restoration of big business and institutions become a priority and during these squares we might witness the demise of companies and institutions we have depended upon for several centuries, as the band aids wear thin(12). Judicial systems, social institutions and government agencies, written constitutions, big business such as banks and utility companies – all that initially bound and shaped our existing foundations are starting to crack(13). Saturn aims to preserve and reform. Uranus seeks to replace.  Progressively, the ‘middle agent’ in many service sectors is being eradicated, for example, in advertising, property, recruitment, travel and finance where people are becoming more independent and innovative in managing their own (diverse) income streams, assets and organising their own daily lives. Saturn is risk averse (and with Jupiter, the risk is often exaggerated). Saturn does not have the foresight of Uranus; thus, the discussions of 2021 will potentially be about the control of independence and risk and how this can be assessed and prioritised (and commercialised). Uranus demands the reset and reprogramming of the status quo, whilst Saturn resists and at the very least, insists, that this radicality is governed properly to ensure some form of control.

The mutation of the Jupiter and Saturn conjunctions into Air along with Pluto travelling through the last degrees of Capricorn will echo the Saturn-Uranus squares in that there is a clash on what and how society can be renewed and restored. Pluto will be desperate to condemn and expose the abuse from corruption and the subsequent loss of faith in existing social and governing structures we have historically depended upon.

The next conjunction of Saturn and Uranus will be on 28 June 2032 when these planets conjoin at 28 degrees of Gemini when social issues will shift from the travel, higher education, cultural, ideological and religious differences and give rise to more community based ones, how we communicate with one another (with emphasis on the mobile/cell phone and the internet – or the replacement of them) will be spotlighted. The focus will be on the youth and how we educate our young along with the importance of universal language and scripture. How we breathe, the air, our lungs and sympathetic nervous system will become a priority in health. How we ‘commute’ will be shortened even more, adding to both the struggle and excitement for the world to become even more globalised.

The 20th century sped up travel and commuting (spearheaded by the Neptune-Pluto conjunction in Gemini in 1892 and 1893) and we saw a society become dependent upon trains, planes, and automobiles. This era will undoubtedly prepare us for the next one, where these areas will be extremely enhanced when in 2032, Saturn and Uranus conjoin once again in Gemini and whilst the journey of the Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions start their journey through the Air element. This period will continue the story of Rangi and Papa, but this time the emphasis will be on the youth - the siblings that prised their parents apart and what is now accessible to them as they move into a new world which they have made for themselves. How they might they think, how might they talk, how might their curiosities be quenched… what new ideologies and systems of communicating might be cultivated. What a stimulating era this looks to be.

Endnotes:
1 https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/1988-climate-warning-mostly-140036892.html (accessed 05 November)
2 https://webfoundation.org/about/vision/history-of-the-web/ (accessed 05 November 2020)
3 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47338096 (accessed 03 November 20230)
4 https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200824-why-the-future-of-work-might-be-hybrid (accessed 03 November 2020)
5 The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Title 29 of the United States Code is a code that outlines labor regulations in the United States – also Ford introduced this in Britain in the same year.
6 https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/world/asia/india-pollution.html (accessed June 22 2020)
7 https://www.healthline.com/health/oxygen-bar (accessed 05 November 2020)
8 https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/publication/pulse-oximetry-to-detect-early-deterioration-of-patients-with-covid-19-in-primary-and-community-care-settings/ (accessed 22 June 2020)
9 Stacey, Wendy, ‘2020 and Beyond’, Astrological Journal, July 2017 – noted that veganism would also increase due to the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction into Aquarius (as it did the last time in 1224)
10 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-41915072 (accessed 20 November 2017)
11 https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pilots-report-mysterious-man-jetpack-flying-planes/story?id=72755638 (accessed 02 September 2020)
12 Stacey, Wendy, ‘Saturn ingresses into Capricorn’, The Career Astrologer, OPA, December 2017
13 Note the industrial revolution occurred when Pluto was in Capricorn and following from this (in the 19th Century) was the mutation of Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions in earth

Published in: The Career Astrologer, December 2020.

Author:
Wendy Stacey, (BA, MA, Dip LSA) is the principal of the international Mayo School of Astrology and tutor for the London School of Astrology. She has written numerous articles for the Astrological Journal and is the author of Consulting With Astrology: A Quick Guide to Building Your Practice and Profile (2012), Uranus Square Pluto: New Perspectives on the Current Planetary Line Up in Mundane Astrology (2012), Covid-19 through the Microscopic Lens of Astrology (2020) and contributed to The New Generation (2012) and The Professional Astrologer (2016), Bitcoin (2018). Her book on Unaspected Planets is due for release 2020. In 2014 Wendy was the recipient of the UK's Charles Harvey award for "Exceptional Service to Astrology."
Her website is: http://www.wendystacey.com/

Images:
Earth and sky: Image by Pandanna Imagen from Pixabay

© 2020 - Wendy Stacey - The Career Astrologer

All articles at a glance