Evolutionary Astrology - Managing Transit to Transit Squares and Oppositions

A recurring concern to many people are how to deal with transiting squares and oppositions as they impact the planets in their charts. These are excellent times to make evolutionary leaps in our ability to live our wisdom.

Our life is about evolving physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Our birthchart shows our gifts and our deficiencies, our strengths, gifts, blind spots, and malfunctions. Our task is to change our dysfunctional planetary expressions to healthy and even enlightened functioning in our world. As we are eternals having a human experience, then it helps to see our chart as that of a Soul/Spirit and its “cycles of becoming.”

While we all want good times, due to our evolutionary karma we must learn certain skills to fulfill this life. That’s why in moving through this dualistic reality, we oscillate between pleasure and pain until we learn how to break the link between pain and suffering and BE our Higher Self in our world.

In my long life, I’ve learned that most people don’t get it together because they see the light; they get it together because they feel the heat! It is in our challenges that we achieve greatest growth. Challenges force us to think outside our own perceptual box, set aside certain assumptions, and learn how to manage our responses as best we are able. Both “good” challenges and “bad” challenges give us opportunities to practice “right action.”

Our natal squares and oppositions show what we were born with, and the areas where we have to learn “right action.” Transits to our planets activate our natal energies within the complex of aspects our planets make to each other. That’s why transit to transit squares and oppositions become great times for us to accelerate our evolution from ignorance to awareness and hesitancy to competency.

Transit to transit squares may accompany circumstances which are intense, frictional, and/or unstable, but if the planets in transiting square make productive aspects to our natal planets, we have the opportunity to grow spiritually despite the outer tension. A transit to transit square may be just what we need to redirect the energies to chart a better course in our spiritual life!

Uranus Square Pluto

Though there were some very erratic things happen during those years, we all “survived” transiting Uranus square transiting Pluto during 2010-2016 when that aspect was in force, for better or for worse, depending on how we handled those external forces for transformation. During that time we were all learning how to cope with that “superpersonal tension” and use the “real world” tension of that square in countless ways depending on where it fell in our charts and how Uranus and Pluto aspected our natal planets.

Because they were outer invisible planets, their influence was transpersonal. It was a global energy which taught us to use productive Uranian and Plutonian energy to become purified spiritual individuals, even if it was a bit disruptive at the time!

Remember that 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 forces in our lives.

Where the transits fall in our charts indicates how those “planetary departments of labor” are focused in the area of our life shown by the house they’re in. The aspect those transits make, whether transit to transit or transit to natal, show when energy builds and when it releases, both in general (transit to transit) and in our lives specifically (transit to natal or progressed planets).

That’s why the tension of 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 evolutionary path and the level of our awareness. By way of example, my own 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 Asc. 2013-2017)

Jupiter Square Saturn

This year, we’re experiencing an on-again, off-again Jupiter in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces. The square was in orb between late July and late September, and now that Jupiter is retrograde, it will be back in orb of a square from mid-November through late January, again from mid-Gemini to mid-Pisces. During this time T-squares will be formed by inner planet transits through mid-Virgo and mid-Sagittarius..

These will help us integrate the square energies through healthy expression of the void zone of the T. The first challenge was in late August through September, when Venus, the Sun, and Mercury were all in Virgo opposed Saturn and square Jupiter, throwing the void into Sagittarius. The second challenge is most intense in early and late December, when the Sun and then Mercury transit Sagittarius and oppose Jupiter while squaring Saturn, throwing the void into Virgo.

The void of a T shows the problem and the solution to that problem. In this case the August/September void in Sagittarius shows us what we’ll need when the T-squares of December throw the void into Virgo. It would seem we needed truth, inspiration, and a greater vision in September and we’ll need focus and discernment in December. As we learned to use productive Sagittarius energies in September, it helped us practice navigating the T-squares from that sign in December.

These are transit to transit aspects which will release tremendous power wherever they fall in our charts. And both Jupiter and Saturn are making lots of other aspects in our charts, some very favorable, some specializing, and some bringing spiritual realizations. It’s useful to remember that the Moon makes short term T-squares helping us get a sense of what they’re about through reflection and/or imitation.

If this square makes productive or harmonious aspects to one or more of our natal planets, then the square will release 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 to those planetary departments in our lives.

Because Jupiter square Saturn is a transit to transit square, it shows that the ongoing expansive and protection principle (transiting Jupiter) has and will hit a “turning point” or “braking point” relative to what we must learn from the binding forces of the collective situation (transiting Saturn). This could indicate that the expansive adventure into infinite ideas (Jupiter in Gemini) has hit a point of critical emergence (waxing square) relative to the ongoing finishing and restructuring of collective delusions and widespread suffering in the global feeling-field (Saturn in Pisces).

As the square throws the voids into Virgo and Sagittarius, it shows outer circumstances will bring a need for open-minded exploring of ideas and larger possibilities and greater freedom (Sagittarius) as well as a sharpened discernment to understand how everything fits its proper place in the larger scheme of things (Virgo). Wherever we have Sag, Pisces, Gemini, and Virgo is sure to be under pressure from larger worldly pressures. Again, transit to transit cannot be taken personally!

Jupiter’s position shows that those with planets in mid-Aquarius, mid-Aries, mid-Leo and mid-Libra will stabilize those parts of the inner life to be expressed through Saturn. The main challenges here involve keeping things positive, structured, aligning our values with our ambitions, and throwing off oppressive rules and restrictions. These challenges involve long wave renewed adventures for Geminis, long wave emergent developments for Pisces, long wave relationship changes for Sagittarians, and long wave fulfillment for Virgos, with various transit to transit aspects bringing temporary openings to whatever discoveries Jupiter points us to.

Saturn’s position shows that those with planets in mid-Taurus, mid-Cancer, mid-Scorpio, and mid-Capricorn will stabilize those personality functions to be expressed through Jupiter. There are the same challenges listed above, with the difference being they involve a renewed long wave sense of purpose for Pisceans, long wave emergent developments for Sagittarians, long wave relationship changes for Virgos, and long wave fulfillment for Geminis. As with Jupiter, these will all be activated by various transit to transit aspects which offer us opportunities to bless the endings and be compassionate as old ways flow down the time stream.

Mars Opposed Pluto

In another transit to transit example, Mars in late Cancer is sextile Uranus, trine Neptune, and opposition Pluto. So even though Mars opposed Pluto is associated with tension, things spinning out of control and underhanded events, at the same time there is understanding and productivity in terms of what we can awaken to in the collective field which stabilizes and harmonizes.

We’ve already begun the Mars opposed Pluto in play through early November. After the opposition it moves farther into Leo, and then retrogrades. As it will make a second opposition in early January from 1 Leo to 1 Aquarius, it generates an awareness factor and an ability to act productively for any planets we have in early Fire and Air signs. So despite the polarization, it will be beneficial to planets we have in those elements. Any opposition gives us the ability to triangulate, using points outside the opposition to resolve the tension.

Even though an opposition may feel like we’re “sailing against the wind,” any trines and sextile Mars and Pluto make to planets in our charts can help us “tack into the wind” and catch the forward momentum in our sails despite the headwinds.

It’s the same with any other transit to transit opposition that affects a planet or angle in our charts. If we have something in sextile and trine to the opposition, we can make great progress despite outer circumstances. If we have something that makes a quintile or tredecile to the opposition, we will find high specialization and unique circumstances that should help us to express something “quintessential.” And if the opposition makes 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.

Reprinted on crystalwind.ca with written permission from Robert Wilkinson. Copying this article to other blogs is strictly prohibited. It is copyright protected. 

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