Minderwiz
Some good points Isthmus. I think the importance attached to Saturn transits stems from two things.
Firstly until 1781 no one knew that the trans Saturns existed. So Saturn represented the longest time clock in the heavens- transits of Saturn marked maturity, middle age and death.
Secondly, whilst it is possible to just about see a Uranus return, if you survive into your mid 80's, Saturn is really the outermost planet where the return is a meaningful marker of life's progress, and when it comes to Pluto we may see a the first sextile and square and if the Pluto in Leo generation are luckythat the first trine comes relatively early on in their 50s, but none of us will survive to the Pluto opposition to natal. We've only known about Pluto as a fact for something over 70 years, its difficult to build reliable evidence over that period of time to compare with theory.
What Astrologers are often looking for is a lifetime 'clock' something that strikes the important 'hours' of our lives. Saturn has perhaps the advantage of providing a clock that's not ringing every minute (like the Moon) or every 5 to 10 minutes like Mercury through Mars. Although they still may be important timers.
As a lifetime clock, Pluto transits may be of limited value. Transiting Pluto is likely to form only a limited number of major aspects to natal planets, whereas Saturn will make all major aspects to all natal aspects at least twice in an average life.
I'm not saying Pluto transits are things to ignore, they are certainly of great significance, as you have rightly shown and they may well symbolise and encapsulate those rare single moments in life when everything changes - but their value lies in that once in a lifetime possibility rather than regularity.
It comes down to what do you want to use for regular cycles of life and hence prediction. - Saturn's 29 year cycle is a good one, Jupiter's 11 year cycle also has strong advantages. Mars and the inner planets at most give two year cycles, which might be two short for important lifetime events. Uranus and beyond give only one lifetime at most in terms of cycle.
Firstly until 1781 no one knew that the trans Saturns existed. So Saturn represented the longest time clock in the heavens- transits of Saturn marked maturity, middle age and death.
Secondly, whilst it is possible to just about see a Uranus return, if you survive into your mid 80's, Saturn is really the outermost planet where the return is a meaningful marker of life's progress, and when it comes to Pluto we may see a the first sextile and square and if the Pluto in Leo generation are luckythat the first trine comes relatively early on in their 50s, but none of us will survive to the Pluto opposition to natal. We've only known about Pluto as a fact for something over 70 years, its difficult to build reliable evidence over that period of time to compare with theory.
What Astrologers are often looking for is a lifetime 'clock' something that strikes the important 'hours' of our lives. Saturn has perhaps the advantage of providing a clock that's not ringing every minute (like the Moon) or every 5 to 10 minutes like Mercury through Mars. Although they still may be important timers.
As a lifetime clock, Pluto transits may be of limited value. Transiting Pluto is likely to form only a limited number of major aspects to natal planets, whereas Saturn will make all major aspects to all natal aspects at least twice in an average life.
I'm not saying Pluto transits are things to ignore, they are certainly of great significance, as you have rightly shown and they may well symbolise and encapsulate those rare single moments in life when everything changes - but their value lies in that once in a lifetime possibility rather than regularity.
It comes down to what do you want to use for regular cycles of life and hence prediction. - Saturn's 29 year cycle is a good one, Jupiter's 11 year cycle also has strong advantages. Mars and the inner planets at most give two year cycles, which might be two short for important lifetime events. Uranus and beyond give only one lifetime at most in terms of cycle.