Natal Saturn in Virgo • The Astro Codex

With natal Saturn in Virgo, the analytical Earth sign becomes a generally tricky surrounding for the ringed planet to function and prosper. Virgo is all about details and organization, work and perfectionism – and all these are traits that Saturn likes a lot, and even desires and demands from an individual. The only real problems that can occur from this placement are connected with overdoing concerning these categories of traits and characteristics.

Saturn is officially considered to be peregrine in Virgo, but has some characteristics of exaltation too. He is considered to be exalted in Libra, so the last decan of Virgo is actually being perceived by him as his own territory. Saturn in Virgo is a great aspect to have for life areas concerning one’s job and career, while also all types of research, learning and other intellectual processes that need precision and details. On the other hand, this placement can bring some issues concerning one’s health patterns, over-exhaustion and toughness for the body as it can bring hard work, long work hours and generally breaching the person’s physical limits. Additional information about Saturn’s potency in each sign can be read in the article Saturn’s Essential Dignities.

Saturn is considered to be a social planet, along with Jupiter – its archetypal opposite force. While the personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars) directly affect the characters of each individual, social planets are giving trends that encircle the whole society. The reason is simple; the personal planets are performing a rather quick passage through the signs, which usually lasts a couple of months maximum. Yet, the social planets will need a year or more to pass through a sign; this way they grant similar characteristics to all the people being born during that period. More particularly, Saturn needs around two and a half years to travel through a sign of the zodiac, while its counterpart Jupiter needs a little more than a year. This blend defines a yearly generation; which is rather visible during the first years of a native’s life. During the childhood years, the placement of Saturn determines discipline delivered to the native, while also how it is perceived. As Saturn makes a full turn around the zodiac in approximately 29 years, it needs 14 years to make an opposition to its natal placement. This is roughly when the teen years strike, bringing the first responsibilities and the need to abolish naivety, slowly entering the world of the grown-ups. The joy of childhood is evaporating, father time is bringing the first signs of wisdom and not just knowledge, yet also the first adult problems, pressure and turbulence. The adolescent native is now feeling demands from the world around him, which is naturally not the most desired thing for a youngster. Of course all these steps are a natural process of evolution, preparing the native for his long path through life.

The placement of Saturn in the signs is important, yet a lot less than his placement in the houses and his aspects to other planets (especially personal ones). Each sign will give him some special flavor, a background on which he will operate and support the native’s life. Of course, he will indeed give some special characteristics connected to the sign he is placed in, and some extra boost to activities and archetypes that the sign represents. Yet, it is wrong to perceive any such placement as of high importance for the native’s individual traits; you should regard it mostly as a social phenomenon that develops certain social trends. Do not forget that generations of 2,5 years difference may have Saturn in the same sign, so even in synastries between charts the Saturn of two individuals of the same generation can easily conjunct (tightly or loosely) one each other.

Roughly, some of the periods when Saturn was transiting Virgo are the following ones:

• September 1948 – November 1950
• November 1977- September 1980
• September 2007 – April 2010
• The next time that Saturn will enter Virgo will be in 2037

Saturn is generally governing constriction, stability and seriousness – both on a physical and a spiritual level. He is responsible for long-term plans, while also obstacles that may appear on our way until reaching our goals. We tend to call him the grand malefic of the celestial dome, yet the planet itself does not have such a purpose. Indeed, he can bring delays, difficulties and even disappointments; on the other hand all these can be essential steps for reaching wisdom, experience and preparation for further steps on our path that might be more important. On the other hand, any success that we may receive with Saturn’s help, tends to be long-lasting; a stable platform on which we can build even more. It is not a surprise that on a physical level, Saturn is mostly connected with the human bones and teeth – the thickest and toughest parts of our body. Saturn is the natural ruler of the 10th house and Capricorn, which makes him strongly connected with terms such as career, public image, leadership, steady growth inside social pyramids, reign. Saturn as a planet enjoys organization and planning-ahead, keeping up with deadlines, serious approaches and even voluntary sacrifice of small daily things in front of the long-term goals. In case that those prerequisites are delivered, he helps with a good harvest of results. What Saturn does not like is childish and naive behavior, rushed actions, chaotic patterns and laziness. A real tactician, Saturn will always help those who think before acting, and who try to figure out the optimal decisions. He is logic, he is patience, he is clear mind, he is control. In many occasions, Saturnian interventions can be perceived by the individual as “necessary evil”, as his slap might hurt but in the same time prevent us from the real evil which would come in case we would not be shaken up.

Since the ancient times, the second bigger planet of our solar system took the name of the Cronus, the legendary Titan-God who was father to 6 other Gods of the Greek Pantheon (Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter and Hestia). According to the Greek Mythology, he is afraid of his children becoming stronger than him and overthrowing him, the same way he did to his own father, Uranus. Thus, he decided to devour them – yet his wife Rhea hid the last child (Zeus/Jupiter) in a cave and gave him a rock to devour instead. Zeus managed to overthrow him when he became an adult, releasing his five siblings from Cronus’ stomach too. Eventually, Cronus and the rest of the Titans were defeated in a legendary battle, called Titanomachia, and the young gods became the rulers of the Greek Pantheon. The Latin equivalent of Cronus was Saturn, and it prevailed as the name of the ringed planet both in astronomy and astrology. Saturn’s opposite counterpart in astrology is naturally Jupiter, and they form the Jupiter/Saturn axis as another archetypal Yin/Yang. The one expands, the other constricts – and the balance between those opposite forces is giving a healthy stability.

Natal Saturn in Virgo creates perfectionists. Of course, this is a double-edged knife, and other aspects of planets towards natal Saturn will define if perfectionism will become a drive for success or a self-destructive obsession. Such people will always observe all the details, both in their work and others’ work; and will easily exercise strict criticism. The expectation and need for perfect results will naturally bring more stress and anxiety, which in extreme situations can even have negative effects on one’s health or psychological condition. The possibility of failure during the quest of reaching perfection may furthermore complicate this process, as they will constantly put more and more pressure both on them and other people. On the other hand, this natal placement is a paved road that can indeed prompt them to create masterpieces, without even one mistake to be found in the final outcome. Naturally, this precision considering task fulfilment is a powerful tool in all those jobs where details do matter: scientific research, programming, surgical operations, handling of dangerous materials and situations, while also all types of jobs where people’s life depend on such small things.

Their mind is very methodical, and putting everything in its own box brings them pleasure. Thus, organizing data or processes may become for them a joyful experience. Such people are definitely great in categorizing things or information, putting their own order to anything. In case someone needs a person to run a huge library, a Virgo Saturn individual is probably the best they can find. In addition, this placement also grants a lot of stamina for never-ending work, because such people feel a stronger need to see the project they are involved in completed, than resting their body. As long as the project is unfinished, they will be tortured by this situation – so resting does not even feel much appealing.

Generalizing is the only way that we can describe a natal placement of slow-moving planet, and it gets even more difficult as we move further from the Sun towards the outer planets. Pluto, for example, can even define a whole generation of 25 years, so it would be even absurd to try to fit one third of the world’s population into some stereotype. At the same time, as Virgo is the natural ruler of the 6th house in Astrology, Saturn in Virgo could for many individuals give similar characteristics as would give Saturn in the 6th house. Still, it is mostly the flavor of this aspect that would have similarities, and not events or predispositions themselves.

Natal Saturn in Virgo usually gives people who prefer their individual space, and especially considering their biosphere. They might be conscious loners, and would rather stay at home than be present in collective social activities. This placement usually makes people have a serious approach on life and responsibilities. They despise laziness, and will always find something to organize, to clean and generally something that will make them feel in control of the situation. In addition, they like to put their own order and not depend on the order that someone else is putting – this is also another reason that tension can occur with other individuals who also have controlling characteristics.

Since Virgo is a sign connected with disorders of the nerves and the mental health, while also with bio-cycles and health patterns, Saturn placed in Virgo can indeed create tension between the body and the mind. Virgo Saturn individuals are prone to disorders such as hypochondria, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, anorexia, distorted perception of their own body and its functions, and all type of insecurities and subconscious fears that can easily evolve to paranoid actions.

In their relations with other people, Virgo Saturn natives are very loyal and responsible. They expect the same type of approach from their significant others, which can complicate relations when their partner is less organized and more chaotic. They can become suspicious, even without reason, and may frequently check or even criticize their partner when self-confidence issues arise. In addition, they might be hard to live with, as their home and way of domestic life have their own rules. When those rules are not followed, even if it is simple things such as the placement of material objects in the house or even cleaning patterns, discontent can arise and nervousness will follow. On the other hand, such people will really care to grant their partner everything they feel that is proof of their love and dedication. The problem is that sometimes they grant their partners not what the partners would want, but exactly what they themselves would expect to receive. Overall, such individuals can be tough in a relation, and should have a special, relaxed approach from their significant others, so that they can gradually be less stressed about patterns in the relationship and dedicate more time to experience the magic of it.

When a Virgo Saturn is well aspected in a natal chart, the native will be in the long-term successful in the life area that the sign of Virgo rules, and any possible obstacles will just empower his march to his goal. On the contrary, bad aspects to Saturn can bring complications, and may be even connected to karmic debts that the native has to pay, as Saturn is considered a planet who connects cosmic energies from the past and the future, and even from previous and future lifetimes. In any case, Saturnian difficulties should be perceived as lessons, and the more open someone is to understand those lessons, the less they might hurt.

Each planets have a different effect on you, depending on which house and sign they reside in. In order to find out where they are located in your natal chart, you can use our free birth chart generator.
Also, examine the aspects that they form with other planets in your chart. You will understand a lot more about the detailed role that they have in your horoscope.

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Xaos

Xaos is the author of all astrological articles available on The Astro Codex.