What is a Saturn Return?

Saturn takes about 28-29 years to complete one circuit of the 360 degree zodiac.  At some points in our lives, Saturn therefore ‘returns‘ to the same place in the sky that it occupied on the day we were born. So what is a Saturn Return? What does it mean, astrologically?

In short, Saturn Returns (we can have more than one in our life) are about growing up and becoming an adult. A learning experience. Saturn’s astrological quality is maturity, endurance, realism and structure (see my previous post about Saturn).

These qualities are understandably often overlooked in our younger years. The Saturn Return denotes a period of time that wakes us up to their importance. However unfashionable and difficult that might be.

The Practice Run

When Saturn returns to the place it was on the day we were born, it’s completed a complete transit cycle through our horoscope. The first 28-29 years of our lives are thus considered a ‘practice run.’ Think of our first 28-29 years as an athlete doing a warm-up lap, prior to the big race.

At the Saturn Return, the warm-up lap is over. It’s time to get set for the real deal: adulthood. Saturn changes gear. This time the race is serious. Time to ‘get real.’ To ‘wake up, dude.’

Getting real can mean letting go of the fantasies, wishes and expectations that might have been central to our lives up until this point. And that can be hard.

And so people often experience periods of toughness, heartache and trauma in the months around their first Saturn Return.

It can seem like a kind of ‘death’ on some level. A letting go. And that can be hard. Very hard. Like saying goodbye to a close friend, familiar habits and things you might have valued for many years.

I certainly experienced my Saturn Return like that.

The girl I was completely in love with … dumped me. And did so within a month of the exact day Saturn returned to the place it was on the day I was born. Totally unexpected. Shattering. She was, after all, meant to be … ‘the one.’ :-(

Ultimately the hardship and sorrow … made me stronger. It forced me to grow up. And be more responsible about my choices in life. Let go of stuff that in hindsight was rather naive, despite regrets.

That’s just my experience. Everyone’s experiences of their Saturn Return will be different. But it will have a few things in common. Such as …

Letting go

Maybe you put up with something for the first 28-29 years of your life. No more.

Around your Saturn Return, you do things differently. Whether by accident or design. It might be something you’re just not going to put up with anymore. You might stand up for yourself, in a way you’ve never done before.

You might confront someone. Not be a victim any more. Or be a ‘child’ on some level. You’re an adult now, whether you like it or not. Saturn pushes you to behave like one.

And to be thrown into that adult space around the Saturn Return time can be daunting. But given time, it will be seen as a necessary transition.

Being in charge

Saturn is not a very fashionable planet. That honour goes (mostly) to Jupiter. Jupiter promises a lot, but often doesn’t deliver. Saturn is the complementary opposite.

It’s the uncool planet that ‘is what it is.’ It can be heavy, dull, sombre and flat. But it’s got something to teach us. And that’s boring old ‘responsibility.’

If Jupiter ruled our lives, we’d quickly burn out, through over-doing everything. If Jupiter is a car’s accelerator, Saturn is the brakes. They are complementary, yet seem opposite. To live a reasonable life, we need to reconcile both.

Once you go through the months and years after your Saturn Return, you will find yourself better equipped to be responsible, to be an adult. And better able to look after yourself, do the right thing, and not get caught up in limiting adolescent stuff.

Later years

Saturn Returns are also experienced around the age of 58-59.

Once again, it’s the end of one cycle, the beginning of another. How has adulthood gone? What have you learned? This later Saturn Return can often relate to the earlier one. And is often a time of quiet reflection and consideration.

Reflection on the previous 28-29 years: what have I learnt? What is still to learn? What is a Saturn Return mean for me, this time?

Some of the same questions arise, but with additional maturity. You may still have to end something, experience a change in order to grow. Either by choice, or seemingly by accident and beyond your control.

What is a Saturn Return?: summary

We all experience Saturn transits throughout our lives. The Saturn Return is one of the significant transits. It’s a turning point. We are seemingly thrown into adulthood, and lose parts of ourselves that the universe deems as no longer relevant. And that can make for a difficult time, while the Saturn Return is under way.

I hope from all of the above you get a better idea of what is a Saturn Return. It’s a phase of life when we experience hardship, maturity, endurance – in some form or another. Ultimately,

Saturn is trying to help us. But it might not seem like that at the time.