by Robert Wilkinson
Our natal chart shows our inherent tendencies. Our progressions show how these evolve in the world of inner space, and the transits show how things are evolving in the world of outer space. Many times people worry about transit to transit oppositions and squares, and then later are relieved to find out they weren’t as tough as expected. Today we explore why.
I last gave this to you about a year ago, and have updated parts in the light of the ongoing Saturn square Uranus. While some squares are difficult, others are very beneficial, since they help us release potential that’s been building, as well as turn corners in life where we align ourselves with broader allegiances and purposes or at least those things which are “true” for us. In interpreting how a square works in our chart, there a huge difference between transiting squares to our natal planets and transiting squares to transiting planets.
Transits represent “real world” circumstances. A transit to transit square where one or both make productive aspects to natal planets indicates that though circumstances may be intense and unstable, we can still find the best way to do our Being despite the outer tension. These circumstances help us release our potential, or move us into a view of how to be better people.
In one significant example of this a few years back, most of us “survived” the transiting Uranus square Pluto, for better or for worse, depending on how we handled those radical forces of transformation. Because the square was from early Aries to early Capricorn, it was unsettling to planets we had in the early degrees of these signs as well as Cancer and Libra. However, at the same time those long wave invisible energies of widespread tension and transformation worked wonders for planets we had in the early degrees of most of the signs, since Uranus made favorable sextiles and trines to planets in the early degrees of Gemini, Leo, Sagittarius, and Aquarius, and Pluto made favorable sextiles and trines to planets in the early degrees of Taurus, Virgo, Scorpio, and Pisces.
At the present time, we’re also moving through transiting Saturn in Aquarius square Uranus in Taurus. While this shows the extremely intense conflict between forces of progress and regress, future and past, vision and inertia, the good may be found in Saturn’s sextiles and trines to planets we have between 7-13 Aries, Gemini, Libra, and Sagittarius, and Uranus’ sextiles and trines to planets we have between 9-15 Cancer, Virgo, Capricorn, and Pisces. So the year-long dynamic tension generated by Saturn square Uranus is actually very beneficial to planets we may have in the above zones.
Transit to Transit Aspects Should Not Be Taken Personally
Transit to transit aspects cannot be taken personally, even when they accompany personal changes. Transits show us the patterns and gestalt of the times, and the interrelationships between the transiting planets show us the complexities of various types of “real world” forces in our lives. They give us clues about outer world factors which color our responses in each of our houses at any given time.
Where the transits fall in our charts shows us how those “planetary departments of labor” are focused in that area of our life. The aspects made by those transits, whether transit to transit or transit to natal, show when energy builds and when it releases, both in general and in our lives specifically. A transiting planet represents something in the outer world impacting our lives where it falls in our chart; how it aspects other transits shows the complexities of the outer world circumstance, whereas how a transit aspects our natal planets show how those external factors are impacting us personally.
Returning to our example of transiting Uranus square transiting Pluto, the tension of that Uranus square Pluto over those years could be used productively if we understood what was being revolutionized and/or purified, and responded appropriately according to our individuality. My life was certainly purified and revolutionized during those years! While some of it was extremely disruptive to past patterns (T Pluto square N Sun, T Uranus conjunct N Sun 2011-2014), other parts stabilized, despite unfortunate circumstances leading to peculiarly serendipitous outcomes (T Pluto trine N Venus, biseptile and tredecile N Saturn 2012-2016 and T Uranus sextile N Moon, trine and tredecile N Ascendant 2013-2017)
2020 put all of this to the test in graphic ways! In August, we had Mars in Aries square Jupiter, Pluto, and Saturn all in late Capricorn. Because the Sun and Mercury were in Leo and trine Mars, it created a stable flow of Fire, generating understanding and productivity for planets we had in late Fire and Air signs. Those Fire energies were productive or problematic depending on how well we handled the Venus in Cancer oppositions to the Capricorn planets in August, and the T-squares subsequently created by Libra transits squaring the Cap planets as they opposed Mars.
This is also where we have to remember that no planet exists in a vacuum. Last Summer when Venus in Cancer made its T-squares, it also trined Neptune and quintiled Uranus, making for a really productive and stabilizing time for our Earth and Water zones. This is where the outer world tensions and polarization can actually serve to make us more aware of the oppositions in circumstances we confront so we may use our inner skills to navigate the outer tensions.
Last year’s constant squares from Aries to Capricorn created voids in Cancer and Libra, showing what we needed to express to resolve the conflicts. Transits in Cancer created T-squares with a void in Libra, and transits in Libra created T-squares with the void in Cancer. As T-squares are integrative, it shows if we learned good Cancer skills last July and August we knew how to respond to the tensions of September and October. This is an example of how a long term square making occasional T-squares showed us what we needed when each of the T-squares were made during those months.
Getting back to using the tension productively, all of those transit to transit squares between Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto could have also made any number of aspects to our natal planets. If they were productive or harmonious, then the T-square released these into the world in productive or harmonious ways. A square between 2 planets each in a harmonious aspect to a planet in our chart will bring harmonious releases and turning points in our lives.
Between August 2020 and February 2021, we had two major transit to transit squares. In 2020 the square was from Aries to Capricorn, while the one dominating almost all of 2021 involves the square from Aquarius to Taurus. Because the voids are in Leo and Scorpio, we can use Leo transits to integrate to focus positive Scorpio energy, and then a few months later use the Scorpio transits to express the positive Leo energy we learn this Summer. So the T-squares formed by the Leo transits will generate what we need to know during the Scorpio T-squares of November. And all of those squares will help us integrate and release productive planetary expressions for anything we have in the middle degree of just about every other sign!
Saturn’s transit through early and mid-Aquarius is great for planets in early to mid-Aries, Gemini, Libra, and Sagittarius, and early to mid-Taurus is great for planets in early to mid-Cancer, Virgo, Capricorn, and Pisces. That means even when we’re in the thick of the squares this year, we can still use the transit to transit tension to make progress in various areas of our lives. If we have something in sextile or trine to the square, we can make great progress despite outer circumstances. If we have something that makes a quintile or tredecile to the square, we will find high specialization and unique circumstances that should help us to express something “quintessential.” And if the square creates a T-square to a planet or angle in our chart, we can use the tension to integrate the power and release it through the void in the configuration.
So please don’t sweat the afflictions to your chart by transit to transit aspects. They can all be used in productive ways. It’s all a question of finding the right point of view and the willingness to learn how to bring love, wisdom, and understanding to the circumstance.
Copyright © 2021 Robert Wilkinson
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