raindrops and reflections: a pisces season musing from philly
i let the internet robots write the title this week
Saturn is a day planet: There’s not a lot to say that’s specific to the coming week. I could talk about the Pisces New Moon that we have coming (you know the drill, plant your seeds, think about your Pisces house, vibe), but instead I’m going to talk a little about another planet that’s living in Pisces these days: Saturn.
Saturn is probably the second most familiar planet in the zeitgeist (fourth if we count the Sun and Moon). A little less colloquially familiar than Mercury’s retrogrades, the Saturn return has put Saturn ~on the map~ culturally. Kacey Musgraves is harvesting from this fruitful image for her new album and there’s a once-viral clip of RuPaul explaining the Saturn return to a contestant who, it turns out, had been lying about their age.
But I’m not talking Saturn return today. What I am going to chit chat a little about today is what it means that Saturn is a “day planet” and what it means that it’s currently in its morning star phase.
“Planetary sect” is a way of articulating whether a planet is more aligned with the Sun or with the Moon. This alignment has a multitude of implications in Hellenistic and Medieval Islamicate astrology, but a simple one to grasp is whether or not a planet “prefers” to rise before or after the Sun. The day sect includes the Sun, Jupiter, and Saturn while the night sect includes the Moon, Venus, and Mars. Mercury flip flops depending on if it’s a morning or evening star (Mercury is trans and gay).
Saturn, as a member of the day sect, prefers to rise before the Sun. While we can’t quite see it yet, due to its close proximity to the Sun, soon we will see Saturn on the east horizon just shortly before we see the Sun rise. Depending on where you are in the world, this may be more or less difficult, but sometime in the next couple of weeks, it will be visible to you without a telescope.
What does this mean for interpretation? There’s disagreement among astrologers, but, generally, we can say that when a planet, even a difficult one like Saturn, is better situated, it’s better. Kind of like how you wouldn’t want someone you dislike to be hangry because they’ll probably just be more difficult to be around.
So if you are like me and struggling somewhat with Saturn these days you can have a little hope. Saturn will be shifting into a more comfortable, less scorched location soon as the Sun approaches the end of Pisces and prepares to move into one of his favorite locations, Aries.
We had a peak into spring weather this past weekend in Philly and now that it’s wet and cold again I am feeling that wintery, depressy weight in a bigger way. I turned on all my lights in my house (yes even the overhead ones, just change out your lightbulbs if the vibes are harsh) and that is helping a little. Is anyone else feeling this? I assume at least some of you.
Here’s what I’ve been doing to deal with the soggy chill:
Take my medications and eat meals.
Still send a newsletter, even though it’s shorter.
Took a sick morning from work and didn’t spend it scrolling my phone. Caught up on Traitors US and am writing this.
Making many cups of tea instead of many cups of coffee. I want caffeine but know it won’t help.
I’m going to clean my apartment. I’m going to clean my apartment. I’m going to clean my apartment.
Reading Giovanni’s Room as escapism that feels enriching.
Watching an old season of the Challenge as escapism that feels enriching.
Do my laundry. Run the load that’s been sitting in my washer for a week back through again. Don’t be too mad at myself because it’s wasteful.
Call my reps even though electoral politics are a tepid method of achieving the changes we need to see in the world.
Read a poem.
Paint a mess on a canvas. Draw little drawings in the paint. Do it while listening to music.
Exercise and shower.
Make myself a fun NA drink this evening. Probably involving vinegar, idk.
Always a lot of credit goes to the people who have been my teachers, both directly and through their freely shared knowledge, and so many books.