The First Cycle of Saturn
The first Saturn return is at age 28-30. Understanding the themes built into each of these 29-30 year Saturn cycles provides a chronological curriculum as to how we might live a purpose-driven life in tune with Father Time.
Soul Individuation Cycle #1
First Breath: Saturn conjunct Saturn. Knot of destiny defined.
Age 7: Saturn Square Saturn. Child learns to discern between right and wrong, fantasy and reality, and learns the basic rules and the consequences of breaking them. Development of depth perception needed to cross the road unaided. First testing of boundaries and the status quo.
Age 14: Saturn Opposition Saturn. The dawning of a provisionally separate sense of self. First stirrings of healthy opposition to authority (puberty) and the creation of personal rules.
Age 21: Saturn Square Saturn. Learning to deal with the world in its own terms and become accountable. Seeds of dissatisfaction birth new goals.
Age 29-30: First Saturn Return. This is the threshold of astrological adulthood. Every planet in your chart has now been squared, opposed and conjoined by Saturn, enabling you to become free of indiscriminate rebellion against – or robotic allegiance to – one’s social and familial conditioning. The provisional sense of self yields to a degree of sovereign direction and destiny. This culminating cycle of individuation often requires a painful severance from previously treasured work, roles and relationships that are discovered to be based on unconscious conditioning, not sovereign choice.
About Saturn's Return
Saturn Signs present challenges to us which make us grow up. Saturn represents restrictions, limitations, delays and authority. If you've ever heard your parents tell you they were doing something for your own good, well, that's Saturn.
Just like listening to your parents, our Saturn Sign is out to teach us mastery over our lives. And, as usual, that means plain hard work and practice, practice, practice. Saturn is a big fan of the schools of trial and error and hard knocks. What better way is there to learn, right? For some of us, that means being ridiculed for our errors, feeling inadequate and inferior. Feeling like you need to measure up to a standard is part of your Saturn Signs lesson.
Saturn Signs help us mature. It takes almost 30 years for Saturn to return to the place it was when you were born is it any wonder there is a big difference in those under 30 and those over that age. Structure and discipline are needed for life and society to succeed. Saturn keeps reminding us how true that is and makes sure we learn it.
June 25-28
The Lessons
As Lord of Karma, Saturn brings you what you've earned through your disciplined pursuit of goals and experience. You'll find out during the Saturn return what you've manifested up to that point, how well you've used your talents. No wonder it's a feared transition -- this is like the mid-semester exam!
In myth, Saturn is also the God of the Harvest, and it's harvestime during your Saturn return. If nothing's been sown, and therefore, very little reaped, you'll realize it's time to get busy. The scythe of Saturn prunes, cuts away the useless bits, and that can feel like a death of the self. Saturn often brings a death to the old ways of doing things, but later on, you're likely to say, "Good riddance!" The death phase is never easy, but keep in mind that rebirth will come.
Saturn is like the wise old man who sees right through your excuses, and empty boasts. Try to make friends with Saturn through discipline and finding a step-by-step path to your goals. It's the simple, but not always easy task of making your dream a reality by doing it on a daily basis.
It's never too late to be who you were meant to be. The Saturn return reminds you of what truly important, and makes sure you're on the path to claim your highest potential.
http://astrology.about.com/od/advancedastrology/p/SaturnReturn.htm