Astrology

Transiting Saturn conjunct the Moon: Removing the Pacifier

A lot of people are curious about what happens when transiting Saturn conjuncts your natal Moon sign. Well, after having endured this transit myself during Saturn in Scorpio, I can tell you that it?s one of the roughest transits you?ll have to go through. I don?t like to dwell on the negatives but it is going to be really tough. Saturn restricts and challenges and pushes us to mature. And it?s at odds with the safety-blanket nature of the Moon. This planet is about what makes us feel emotionally comfortable. So, when Saturn crosses your Moon, things will get very uncomfortable on a deeply inward level, to a degree that can drive you crazy. It?s not uncommon for this to feel like ?rock bottom.? But, this is going to happen in order for you to become more of a grown-up internally.

I like to look at this transit like this: it?s like you?re a baby with a pacifier. The pacifier is your Moon?s sign and house combination: the things you pursue that make you feel safe. The aspects to your Moon, which is how you pursue those things, will be impacted, as well. So, you?re just sucking on that pacifier and it feels good. But, you?re a baby. You don?t know that this pacifier might not be entirely good for you anymore. And Saturn is like your mother or father, pulling the pacifier out of your mouth, through the conjunction to the Moon. That comfort zone is going to be difficult, restricted, maybe even taken away altogether. And what will you do? You?re going to cry and cry and cry, not understanding what you had to have that thing that felt so good taken away.

Like the baby in that metaphor, we don?t know any better. We don?t know that this is helping us grow. We?re just very in the moment with these difficult feelings. But, it?s for our own good. The Moon represents your habits and they?re not always great ones. Our fearful, needy, insecure, compulsive side also comes out through the Moon; the side of us that?s going to scream its head off, in some way, when its needs aren?t met. And Saturn recognizes these bad habits and wants us to get into better shape. So, when he conjuncts your natal Moon, he will either take away the thing you cling to the most or make it really difficult for you to be happy in this area.

It sounds depressing and it will feel depressing, for a while, until you gain perspective. Then, you?ll realize the reasons why it?s all happening. But, it doesn?t make it any easier or make the process go any quicker. In fact, depending on the degree of your Moon and where it is in its house, this feeling can last throughout the whole transit through that sign. That?s very important to stress and I know that from personal experience. As long as Saturn is in the house that your Moon is in, expect for your comfort zone to not be so comfortable and easy anymore. Saturn?s now in Sagittarius. So, Sagittarius Moons, buckle up for this transit.

Let?s say you have your Sagittarius Moon at 8 degrees and it?s conjunct your Sagittarius Nadir, which is at 5 degrees. So, your Moon?s in the 4th House. These feelings have already started brewing, as immediately when Saturn entered Sagittarius, it was conjunct your Moon. But, when it actually enters your 4th House, you?re really going to feel it. The exact conjunction can bring on a lot of sadness that continues until Saturn is far away enough from your Moon. However, as long as Saturn is in your Moon?s house, it?s going to be tough to get comfortable. So, in this example, you?re not going to be able to completely get settled again until Saturn?s left your 4th and entered your 5th.

Wherever our Moon?s house is, that?s where we truly feel at home. And so, Saturn passing through that house can make you feel, on a psychological level, like you?re homeless. It?s a time where you?re really stripped bare and where you?re forced to look at all of your insecurities and fears. Don?t be surprised when childhood stuff starts coming up like a vengeance, as the Moon is rooted in our inner child and our childhood experiences. It vividly remembers that painful moment when we were 10 when we felt so sad or like nobody cared about us. And when Saturn transits through your Moon?s territory, it can feel as if you?re a scared little kid just crying out for some love.

There are two solutions to this process: 1) you must grow up and be an adult 2) you must be sensitive enough to the child within. Saturn confronts us with realities and there is a dual nature to the Moon that forces us, as adults, to be our own caregiver and take responsibility for ourselves yet in a way that still supports the vulnerable side of us. You have to remove the pacifier for your inner-child?s mouth while still comforting him or her while she cries because he or she is going to cry, for sure. And it?s easy for people to be unbalanced during this time. You may feel like you just have to toughen up and push through the difficulties, ignoring how much it hurts. But, you may also totally sink into the pain, feeling a victim who just can?t catch a break. It?s common, in fact, for people to alternate between both when Saturn conjuncts their natal Moon. So, find a happy medium.

This time is going to show you how vulnerable you truly are. And when the things of our Moon?s house are minimized or out of reach, it?ll be easy to respond from the really hurt side of your Moon sign. And when we?re hurt, we can go off the deep end. So, transiting Saturn conjunct your Moon and in your Moon?s house will show you your psychological limitations. You?ll learn just how vulnerable you are, via this sign and house, and how you must work hard to build security for yourself in this area. But, building that security will happen inwardly, as well. The Moon is internal and Saturn is going to remove all of these external things that you?re so dependent on so you can learn to find that safety you need on an inner level. So, one of the good things of this transit is that you have the chance to learn to be happy with a minimal amount of what your Moon?s sign and house represents. You can grow up by finding those things on the inside, making you a more self-sufficient person, and making you less insecure and needy in this life area.

I?ve already shared my story of this transit in my post Reflecting on Saturn in Scorpio. As Saturn has moved through my 10th for almost three years, I?ve basically learned how needy and obsessive I am when it comes to ?success? (10th House Moon conjunct Midheaven). Spending so much time unable to gain that recognition showed me how much of a need it is as well as how I can efficiently give myself that feeling of achievement, with or without others. But, let?s not talk too much about me. Let?s look at the aforementioned example. If you have Sagittarius Moon in the 4th House, Saturn?s passage through this territory is going to show you how much you need a secure private life and family connection. It?ll make this area of your life difficult, as long as it?s in this house.

With this combination, you may find yourself feeling more distanced than usual from your family members. Maybe it?s more difficult for you to visit them, particularly because you?ve moved somewhere else. And it doesn?t help that Saturn transiting the 4th can bring problems with the actual home, often times through renovation issues or difficulties paying your bills and keeping that roof over your head. You may have to move into someone else?s home, as a guest, which could further alienate you. Your 4th House Moon gives you a deep need for a safe foundation, a private haven to really feel comfortable in and call your own. So, in some way, you?ll struggle in this area. And your Sagittarius Moon can act out this in ways that are very irresponsible or thoughtless.

Sagittarius Moons have a tough time dealing with their heavier feelings. So, during this transit, you all may be acting out your disappointments in ways that make you increasingly reckless, restless, or tactless. And the fall-out from this behavior can make you feel even lonelier. But, do not fear. It?s natural to feel lonely during Saturn?s trip through your Moon?s sign and house. This is a transit that a lot of people might not even know was that difficult for us, except the ones who are close enough or perceptive enough. The Moon is the inner self, after all, and Saturn is forcing you to become your own island for a while. It won?t be easy but if you stay the course, in ways that both honor your needs and heed these tough lessons, you?ll come out of it stronger and more evolved than before.

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