A client called last week wondering if the dumpster fire raging at her work is part of a bigger story. She wanted to know if what was happening now is connected to her question from last year, which was: how can I be successful in this work environment? She wanted to know if NOW IS HER TIME.
To start, I pull the chart from last year and look at transits. Saturn and Mercury are making connections via transit to significant points in this horary chart. Yes, it is clear from the transits happening to this horary that there is a direct connection between what is happening today at work and the situation which she was navigating last year.
Last autumn, this woman contacted me out of desperation. She’s in senior leadership at her organization and is well-known in her field. She wanted to know how to navigate to success in her current role. She loves the work itself, the organization’s mission, and most of the people, but she had serious issues with a VP who enjoys a protected relationship with the CEO.
What a tough situation! The chart that I cast reflected the situation clearly, and a possible path toward navigating this.
The querent is signified by Jupiter retrograde in Aquarius.
The consultant, the “Queen’s advisor,” is signified by the ruler of the 11th house cusp, Mars in Libra, who is essentially weak but elevated by position.
The Moon is waxing in Aquarius and separating from many of the planets as it heads into fertile, dreamy Pisces.
There’s an applying trine between Jupiter and Mars in Aquarius and Libra respectively. What this chart seemed to say at the time is that success could be possible with the VP, especially if they connect intellectually in the realm of big ideas. I encouraged my client to keep an open communication channel and not to silo, hide, avoid, go dark, or, importantly, engage in workplace gossip.
When Jupiter is retrograde, it is more susceptible to its shadow. The shadow side of Jupiter can bleed into defamation, slander, and libel if it is misdirected. With Jupiter retrograde, it is critical to speak with benevolence and good intentions. Otherwise, it can go sideways…bigly.
Fast forward a year – now a crisis is brewing at her workplace, and she wants to know if it connects to last year. She wants to know about karma. She wants to know how, or if, she will survive.
First, I look at what Saturn is doing. Saturn, who brings cosmic balance, who is inescapable, and who is one of my closest friends, is paying the querent a visit. This is in astrological time, the time-space of the horary.
By transit, Saturn is nearly conjunct Jupiter’s position in the horary chart. Saturn is Jupiter’s dispositor in this horary. Saturn wants what it always wants: accountability. When Saturn visits, it is like Zeus arriving at your doorstep disguised in tatters. Your actions determine the quality of the rest of your life.
I ask my client how she has operated this past year facing the challenges.
She said that she did the best that she could – she took the high road; she tried to improve things for others; she engaged head-on with her fears and developed a workable relationship with the VP. She avoided gossip.
When I heard all of this, I felt confident that this is her time. Saturn doesn’t always punish, not at all. Saturn is a kingmaker. Saturn releases you from bonds of suffering. It depends on your actions, not your intentions. Saturn reminds us that what we do in the world matters, not what we hoped to do.
I told her that things may feel tough; she may come face to face with authority, but she has nothing to fear. She’s done the hard work already.