What Are the Karmic Reasons for Saturn’s Role in Your Natal Chart?

You have been learning that your natal chart is indicative of past life lessons you need to learn. The different planets in your chart represent different roles and lessons. The houses and signs that have the most planets in your charts are indicative of the areas of focus in your life. Those are karmic by nature and there are a variety of reasons which most of it is karmic.

The other area of your chart that represents a major karmic lesson for you to learn is the areas represented by Saturn. That would be indicative through the placement of Saturn as well as the house where Capricorn is at, in addition to planets in Capricorn. That is because Saturn rules Capricorn.

Why is Saturn Such a Karmic Planet?

Saturn is known as the stern teacher and that is the planet that represents the lessons that need to be learned. That is the planet of karma. If you have karmic debt from previous lives in an area of your life, that will be represented by the placement of both Saturn and Capricorn. Those are the areas of your life that you would find to be the most problematic or difficult.

Let’s now examine the signs and houses that are directly affected by the energies of Saturn’s placements and/or Capricorn. These are the areas that you will find to be the major stress points of your life, and there is a karmic reason for it.

Saturn in Aries or in the First House or Capricorn Ascendant

Aries and the 1st house rule anything to do with yourself as a whole. Your self-esteem in general, appearance and the way you view life may be negatively affected. A sense of humor may be compromised. You are forced in this life to work on yourself as a whole and find it within you to be at peace with yourself. In a previous life you may have been incredibly vain, shallow, narcissistic, and believed to be above everyone else. In this life, you may fall into believing you are inferior to others, and the lesson here is to be secure within and to believe you are just as important as others are- no more and no less!

Saturn in Taurus or Second House Capricorn

In this case, there will be an obsession with money (worrying about the lack of it), or you may have a lack of money, depending on Saturn’s condition. You may question your personal values and are in danger of basing your self-worth on financial assets. Clinging to the material due to fear is common, and you could come off as extremely stingy. In a previous life, you may have been extremely wealthy and wasteful with your money.

Money and your possessions may have meant everything to you and you had forgotten what was truly important. Maybe you had robbed someone as well! Saturn’s lesson having to do with anything materialistic is there to teach you that there is more to life than money and your possessions. Once you find out there is more to life than the physical, you will be more giving of yourself and you may find yourself even physically and financially richer as a result.

Saturn in Gemini or Third House Capricorn

In this case, you will most definitely have stress in regard to communication and conveying your thoughts. Mental instability and fears are common with Saturn’s energies here. Siblings and neighbors could have posed a problem for you too. Quite possibly you had difficulty in primary school with subjects. In a previous life, you may have treated siblings poorly. You may have been condescending or was the type that just talked and never cared to listen to what others said or thought. Talking too much is what you did in a previous life with this placement without listening.

The lesson in this incarnation is to work on processing your thoughts and conveying them properly, as well as to listen to what others have to say and to take it seriously. Once you master that, communication will most definitely be less of an issue for you. If the lesson involved siblings, once you develop an understanding of your siblings, they will respect you more.

Saturn in Cancer or Fourth House Capricorn

The Fourth House is a very important house regarding past lives. However, with Saturn here, you will most definitely have issues in regard to feeling secure within your home and family life. You may feel like you want to run away from responsibilities in regard to your family. You may have had strict parents, and your emotions, in general, maybe ruled by fear! In a past life, you may have been scarred from your home being invaded (or you may have been the invader).

Perhaps you were abandoned by your parents or you abandoned your family. The lesson is to find it within yourself to develop a sense of security within your home, get a handle on your emotions, and to fulfill your duty as living up to responsibility in regard to your family. Once you are able to fulfill that duty, you will feel more secure emotionally within.

Saturn in Leo or Fifth House Capricorn

In this case, you will have a difficult time getting in touch with your creative side, asserting any kind of authority, may have a difficult time finding joy in anything. What is meant to be enjoyable would be considered to be a chore to you? You could have a child that would require your undivided attention and care, or you may have issues with infertility. Perhaps you may not have children at all. You may also see yourself having bad luck in the romance department. In a previous life, if you have this placement you may have been extremely creative but misused it for your own benefit (using your creative side to organize crimes, etc.). You may have abused your children as well or neglected them.

• What Are the Karmic Reasons for the Social Planets and the Outer Planets in Your Natal Chart?

Perhaps you were overly strict with them to the point of depriving them of any joy. If Saturn is in Leo, you may have issues with your father in this incarnation. Maybe, in that case, you may have had a sour relationship with that soul in a previous life who would be your father in this incarnation. The overall lesson with Saturn’s energies here is to learn how to find joy in activities that are meant to be joyful. Appreciate your children and focus on their development if that is what Saturn’s lesson is presenting to you.

Saturn in Virgo or Sixth House Capricorn

You may find yourself to have difficulty in work situations, obsessed with health, or even suffering from poor health often. Your judgment and ability to analyze things will be affected as well. In a previous life, you may have treated your body poorly by overeating or drinking too much.

You may have not taken work situations seriously and may have a poor employee due to a poor work attitude. In this life, you must develop good street smarts and common sense. You must learn to take your jobs seriously, or not allow yourself to fall into bad working situations. You must learn to eat well and maintain a healthy lifestyle. This area of stress will be less once you are able to do that.

Saturn in Libra or Seventh House Capricorn

You may find yourself in relationships that will be hard to maintain, whether it is business or marriage. Perhaps you may find yourself to be in trouble with the law, depending on Saturn’s position and condition. Marriage may be an obsession that you have. If you get married young, there is a good risk of divorce.

You may also fear marriage and never get married at all. You may have cheated on your spouse in a past life, or maybe the role was reversed. Either way, the lesson is for you to learn the value of maintaining a good relationship and to value it. Once that is achieved, not only will you succeed in finding balance in your relationships, but you will find balance within yourself too.

Saturn in Scorpio or Eighth House Capricorn

This is also a water hose and a water sign. Saturn in this house will have a significant effect on you. Sensitivity in general is going to be an issue. Deep emotions will be hard for you to handle, and you may have difficulty with intimacy, have sexual hang-ups usually resulting in celibacy, and may have a difficult time finding love to give (and will have a hard time receiving it). Fear and obsession with death are strong too. In a previous life, you may have been assaulted or killed. Perhaps you may have been the perpetrator in that, depending on Saturn’s position and condition. In order to get in touch with your deep emotions, you will have to find it within yourself to get a lot of psychological counseling or coaching and to utilize it. Saturn in this house/sign is difficult but overcoming these challenges can be done.

• What is the Karmic Reason for Intercepted Houses? – Part 1

Saturn in Sagittarius or Ninth House Capricorn

You may have a strong desire to travel and to explore different philosophies, and you may have always wanted to take university courses but you found to be tied down with other responsibilities that made it difficult for you to fulfill that wish. Because you feel like you have no freedom, you will be finding yourself spiritually deprived and down.

You may also be forced by your family to follow a certain faith even though you do not agree with it. Perhaps in a previous life, you had abused your freedom, may have proselytized, or downright persecuted others for not sharing the same beliefs as you. Your lesson is to find other ways to nurture your soul by exploring in other ways such as reading instead of running out to travel. Remember, once you are able to fulfill your duties, you will appreciate your freedom a lot more and you will have earned it.

Saturn in Capricorn or Tenth House Capricorn

You would think this would be a very karmic placement considering Saturn is the ruler of Capricorn. However, whenever Saturn is in this placement, there is an underlying understanding of responsibility and self-discipline. Though, with this placement you could be in danger of being overly concerned with your reputation, being obsessed with your ambitions and career to the point of forgetting about everything else in your life.

Perhaps in a previous life you may have developed a poor reputation, and may have not taken your career as seriously as you knew you should have (and would have had these regrets about that later on in your previous life). Maybe you may have misused your authority, and in this life, you are having regrets about it to the point of becoming obsessive with developing a good work ethic and reaching positive goals.

These are all good, but if it is ruling your life, that is dangerous. The lesson is to, yes fulfill your goals but if you have become a work-a-holic, the one thing you will be responsible for is to find a 12-step program for it. In other words, if your good friends and loving family members are concerned, listen to them and let them take care of you!! You will be glad you did in the end.

Saturn in Aquarius or Eleventh House Capricorn

Your friendships and your hopes and wishes will be a huge area of strain for you. You may find yourself isolated and have a hard time relating to others. You may find yourself having to work extremely hard for your wishes to come true, and even then, having it blow up in your face. You may also be obsessed with humanity and donating to organizations that are important to you that it literally could take over your life. In a previous life, you may have been a bully, and robbing someone else of their hopes and dreams.

Perhaps you were bullied, and you did not live up to your wishes as a result of fear. You may have also been not overly humane in a previous life and the lesson for you is to develop a sense of humanity. Or you were not treated in a humane manner. Either way, your lesson is to learn to trust others and realize that not everyone is out to hurt you. You need to learn to open yourself up to forming new friendships and to develop faith in letting your hopes and wishes come true, even though it will require hard work. That is the most rewarding part of it.

• What is the Karmic Reason for Intercepted Planets? – Part 2

Saturn in Pisces or Twelfth House Capricorn

Another water house/sign, meaning whenever Saturn is in this house/sign, it can be debilitating. This is also the most mysterious sign/house. You will find yourself being your own worst enemy as there is a lot of karma within, as you will subconsciously sabotage yourself from achieving any sense of happiness. If Saturn is afflicted, there will be self-destruction such as engaging in addictive behaviors. If Saturn is in better shape, there will still be a difficulty considering Saturn’s placement, but a more spiritual and hard-working approach will be taken to soothing difficult subconscious emotions. Either way, there could be lessons in regard to having to face enemies, and/or institutions.

Perhaps a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder could be taking over your life and as a result, many hospital stays will be required. Perhaps you have this placement due to too many lessons from different previous lifetimes not taken seriously or ignored or abused. Perhaps you committed crimes and murder in several lifetimes and never learned your lessons in any of those lifetimes. Therefore, with Saturn in the 12th house/Pisces, you are forced once and for all to look within and deal with the hidden demons within. When you are constantly dealing with issues such as addiction, being faced with enemies (who maybe those who you had hurt or killed in previous lives or vice versa) and ending up in the hospital due to mental illness many times- you will not be able to ignore Saturn’s lessons in Pisces. Pisces is the last sign, and the 12th house is the last house on the chart. It is time to face these hidden unlearned lessons and to face them head-on in order to be on the way to peace.

Now that you have a better understanding of Saturn, and why it is the karmic planet- how does it affect you and what major lessons must you learn? And hard aspects involving Saturn to other planets will affect other areas of your life, which will stem right from the source of the house and sign where Saturn is located. As you can see, the house ruled by Capricorn will be affected the same way.

Positive aspects to Saturn are there as gifts to help you work on lessons in a positive manner that Saturn is presenting.  If you really have no or little positive aspects like trines and sextiles to Saturn, you can use easy aspects that you have in other areas of your birth chart and implement those gifts to help deal with the lessons Saturn is throwing at you. And when Saturn is in retrograde, that can be seen as double karma. In that case, perhaps the worst case listed in the signs/houses descriptions were the cause.

Remember, most importantly, Saturn is not there to punish you. He is here to give you lessons in order to evolve and grow properly so you do not have to face those again.