Saturn Transit

strangebrew

I have Saturn transiting my 7th house...16 degrees

Not sure this is right, but i read that Saturn stays in each house approx 2-2.5 years? I was trying to establish how to calculate when it would have started to transit my 7th house, as in how long ago?


Thanks
:)
 

Minderwiz

I have Saturn transiting my 7th house...16 degrees

Not sure this is right, but i read that Saturn stays in each house approx 2-2.5 years? I was trying to establish how to calculate when it would have started to transit my 7th house, as in how long ago?


Thanks
:)

I think we need to distinguish between Signs and Houses at the outset. The 2 to 2.5 years you refer to is the transit time for Saturn in regard to the Signs of the Zodiac. Actually it takes 29.7 years to complete one revolution of the Sun. Traditional Astrologers fixed its lesser period as 29 or 30 years, which is a reasonable approximation in whole years. Depending where you were born in it's retrograde cycle you might find a small difference in your own return cycle.

Now the most used house systems in Western Astrology today are quadrant systems, such as Placidus. In those systems a house is not co-extensive with a sign. It can start and finish part of the way through a sign. It's therefore possible for houses to be less than a sign in length or more than a sign. Sometimes you may get a house that has portions of it in three signs (one sign is intercepted in it).

Now luckily you asked how long ago did it start. All the quadrant houses that have any serious relevance to Natal Astrology use the Ascendant as the cusp of the first House. That means that the cusp of the seventh House is the same degree of the opposite sign. In your case that is 2 degrees 30 minutes of Libra. Saturn first reached that degree on November 24th 2009, which was a Tuesday if that's of any importance.

The point at which the transit stops depends on the house system. Placidus has it finishing at 19 degrees Scorpio, Regiomontanus takes it on to 26 degrees. Of course if you use Whole Sign houses, it started a little earlier on 29 October 2009 and it's already completed its transit!!!
 

strangebrew

I think we need to distinguish between Signs and Houses at the outset. The 2 to 2.5 years you refer to is the transit time for Saturn in regard to the Signs of the Zodiac. Actually it takes 29.7 years to complete one revolution of the Sun. Traditional Astrologers fixed its lesser period as 29 or 30 years, which is a reasonable approximation in whole years. Depending where you were born in it's retrograde cycle you might find a small difference in your own return cycle.

Now the most used house systems used in Western Astrology today are quadrant systems, such as Placidus. In those systems a house is not co-extensive with a sign. It can start and finish part of the way through a sign. It's therefore possible for houses to be less than a sign in length or more than a sign. Sometimes you may get a house that has portions of it in three signs (one sign is intercepted in it).

Now luckily you asked how long ago did it start. All the quadrant houses that have any serious relevance to Natal Astrology use the Ascendant as the cusp of the first House. That means that the cusp of the seventh House is the same degree of the opposite sign. In your case that is 2 degrees 30 minutes of Libra. Saturn first reached that degree on November 24th 2009, which was a Tuesday if that's of any importance.

The point at which the transit stops depends on the house system. Placidus has it finishing at 19 degrees Scorpio, Regiomontanus takes it on to 26 degrees. Of course if you use Whole Sign houses, it started a little earlier on 29 October 2009 and it's already completed its transit!!!


Thanks David!! The chart system i use is Placidus. I am somewhat confused as i found this at an astro site

Saturn will spend approximately 2-1/2 years in an "average"-size house of 30 degrees.


I thought, like you stated that it spends that amount of time in a sign and not the house?
 

Minderwiz

Thanks David!! The chart system i use is Placidus. I am somewhat confused as i found this at an astro site

Saturn will spend approximately 2-1/2 years in an "average"-size house of 30 degrees.


I thought, like you stated that it spends that amount of time in a sign and not the house?

Sue,

The operative phrase here is "average size house. That, of course is the size of a sign but as I said before, using Placidus (or any quadrant system) and "average" size house is infrequent - though of course all 12 houses in any chart must average to 30 degrees each. In your case, using Placidus, your first and seventh are 54 degrees 19 minutes, whereas your ninth and third are just short of 13 degrees and that spread is not uncommon. So, as a general statement it's correct but as a practically useful statement, it is not. :):)
 

strangebrew

Sue,

The operative phrase here is "average size house. That, of course is the size of a sign but as I said before, using Placidus (or any quadrant system) and "average" size house is infrequent - though of course all 12 houses in any chart must average to 30 degrees each. In your case, using Placidus, your first and seventh are 54 degrees 19 minutes, whereas your ninth and third are just short of 13 degrees and that spread is not uncommon. So, as a general statement it's correct but as a practically useful statement, it is not. :):)

Thanks for the info David.....one thing i do know, i will be glad when Saturn moves out of Scorpio on 24th December, i have felt quite squashed down by it and will be glad to see him move on!


:)