What happens when the planet of reality slips into the zodiac sign of fantasy? It’s what’s inside that counts! Surrender to the predictably unpredictable current of Saturn in Pisces from March 7, 2023, to February 13, 2026.
If life starts to imitate a season of The White Lotus, well, blame it on Saturn in Pisces. Every 29.5 years, the ringed taskmaster planet takes a three-year voyage through the deep, dark waters of Pisces. And it all begins March 7, 2023.
Goggles on! What seemed so clear could suddenly become mind-bogglingly murky. This will take time to excavate, so surrender to the process. Then, grab your SCUBA gear and plunge in. The three-year Saturn in Pisces transit can help you find a buried treasure—in your very own psyche!
After decades of being so externally focused on our Instagram followers, success profiles, brow game (shall we go on?), Saturn in Pisces creates a new metric for success: emotional intelligence. Over the next three years, those kindergarten platitudes may finally ring true. It’s what’s inside that counts.
So what will happen during Saturn in Pisces?
We wish we could tell you that Saturn in Pisces would be smooth sailing across placid seas, but it probs won’t work like that.
Stern, suppressive Saturn likes everything to be orderly, systematized and focused on a future goal. As the ruler of chronological time, Saturn (AKA Kronos) makes every millisecond count!
Shape-shifting Pisces, on the other hand, operates best flow state, also known as Kairos. This malleable energy knows how to bend and melt time, like the clock in Salvadore Dali’s The Persistence of Memory. Can you see the conflict here?
To win the game of Saturn in Pisces:
– learn to be a time traveler
– know when to stick to a schedule
– loosen up and make space for new ideas to flow in!
You can also read your Saturn in Pisces horoscope in our article here and the Saturn in Pisces retrograde here.
When was Saturn in Pisces before 2023?
Saturn takes 29.5 years to orbit through the entire zodiac and visits each sign for approximately three years. The last Saturn in Pisces transit was from May 31, 1993 to April 7, 1996. Before that Saturn floated in the cosmic Fish’s pond from March 25, 1964 to March 4, 1967.
If you were born during those years, you might be starting your Saturn return—a powerful rite of passage that connects you to your destiny, drive and purpose! You can (and should) read more about your Saturn return here or at the bottom of this article.
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A few things you can prepare for during the 3-year Saturn in Pisces transit
Technology will become even more unbound
As Saturn moves into Pisces, it wraps up its three-year tour through Aquarius, the sign of community and technology, which began right at the beginning of the pandemic, on March 21, 2020. No coincidence that Saturn, the planet of restriction, was housed in people-centric Aquarius for these achingly lonely years. “Social distancing” is basically another way to say, “Saturn in Aquarius.”
But as we always assure people, Saturn is cruel to be kind. Quarantines forced us to connect virtually, which had the effect of breaking down geographic barriers. Zoom is officially a verb now and our social networks have gone global as a result.
But not all technological advances are airtight. Excitement over AI has brought a gold-rush of venture capital. But how will this affect the labor force, digital rights of creators and data security? With Saturn in boundary-blurring Pisces we may struggle to know where humans end and machines begin. Yes, it could get that bizarro!
We won’t be strangers to sacrifice
Here’s one way that Saturn and Pisces collide: Neither one is a stranger to sacrifice. Saturn holds out for the big win while Pisces wants to absorb the suffering of others. Together, they can strengthen the resolve we put behind our ideals.
The clock seems to be turning back on many human rights as autocratic forces grow in power. Other planets transiting through Pisces might allow us to bury our heads in the sand, but not Saturn. The ringed realist puts ugly truths in our faces and demands that we deal.
Will we make the same sacrifices for our beliefs over the three years?
If Saturn in Pisces has a say in it: yes. During this same transit in 1965, late civil rights activist and Congressman John Lewis (a Pisces) risked his life in the “Bloody Sunday” march through Selma, Alabama, that ended in violent attacks from police and the Ku Klux Klan on the peaceful protestors. The attacks were televised, evoking national civil rights action that ultimately led to Congress passing the Voting Rights Act on August 6, 1965.
In 1964, Nelson Mandela delivered his I Am Prepared to Die speech at a key anti-apartheid event, the Rivonia Trial. In his words, “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”
Water works
Will Saturn in Pisces bring a reckoning from sea god Neptune (the planetary ruler of Pisces)? Turning the tide on environmental damage seems more and more like a distant dream. But that’s not to say collective efforts and civic plans could not produce a miracle. Conservation, in fact, is one of infrastructure-builder Saturn’s favorite words.
Fantasies become realities
Will life in the metaverse become the new normal? Some might argue that it already is, as the Internet becomes more immersive and interactive by the day. And there’s no telling where this will go when the planet of reality (Saturn) weaves through the sign of fantasy (Pisces).
During this same transit lasting from 1935-38, the world’s first regular TV program was transmitted from Berlin, Germany and Walt Disney premiered the world’s first feature-length film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, at LA’s Carthay Circle Theater, on December 21, 1937. Both events were considered groundbreaking in their time.
Delusions of grandeur could plague world leaders
Pisces is a sign with a slippery grasp on reality. We need to be extremely mindful of both fringe groups and dominating leaders that seem to be touting the next world-changing ideal. Unchecked, this Saturn cycle could make these groups look relatively tame.
During this transit in 1966, the Chinese Communist Party issued the “May 16 Notice,” marking the beginning of the violent and chaotic Cultural Revolution. Mao Zedong (AKA Chairman Mao) rallied school-aged youth as his rebel army to “purge remnants of capitalist and traditional elements from Chinese society.” The personality cult, which lasted ten years, led to the killing of 1.5 million people. Millions more were imprisoned, tortured, humiliated and left in ruin.
China’s current leader Xi Jinping began his precedent-breaking third term in 2022. While his ideals and approach are different, his strict “zero COVID” policy, crackdowns on Hong Kong (remember the 2019 Umbrella Movement?) and authoritarian rulership style have chilling echoes as we enter Saturn in Pisces.
Mind over matter is the way to regain a sense of control
Pisces is the sign that rules fantasy, and even dour Saturn can’t stop us from escaping into our imaginations as stressful headlines loom. But this pragmatic planet can help us work with unseen forces to manifest material-world results.
While Saturn toured Pisces in March 1937, Napoleon Hill’s then-groundbreaking self-help book, Think and Grow Rich, was published, making a case that mindset and wealth are inextricably linked. Hill wrote of creating a cabinet of “invisible counselors.” Each night before drifting off to sleep,
he imagined himself as Chairman at a table of great historical figures who he would ask to “impress upon my subconscious mind” the answers to whatever question he posed.
Are these the types of ethereal guides who appear while CEO Saturn drifts through the Pisces dream field? If so, we might summon late marine biologist and conservationist Rachel Carson. She advanced the global environmental movement with studies and books including The Sea Around Us (1951) and was born with Saturn in Pisces during its prior tour, in 1907.
We’ll add Pisces Albert Einstein to the cabinet while we’re at it. While Saturn trekked through his sign in 1905, Einstein submitted a series of groundbreaking papers. One on the particle theory of light became the foundation of modern physics. Another paper established the theory of special relativity and the famous equation of E=mc2. Scientists call 1905 Einstein’s annus mirabilis, his year of miracles.
Will Saturn’s three-year circuit bring more divine breakthroughs in science—perhaps ones around green energy, carbon capture and water purification? Here’s hoping.
Big Pharma Could Be Coming for Your Shrooms
Saturn’s tours through reality-bending Pisces have brought both legislation and developments in the world of drugs, pharmaceuticals and general addictive substances that fall under this water sign’s domain. Eerie fact: Pisces Kurt Cobain, whose addictions haunted his daily life and threaded through his music, was born and died while Saturn was in Pisces in 1967 and 1994, respectively.
In 2021, a six-week clinical study revealed that psilocybin, which is found in magic mushrooms, was a faster treatment for depression than the serotonin reuptake inhibitor, escitalopram, which is marketed as Lexapro. Psilocybin mushrooms are now legalized for therapeutic use in Oregon and decriminalized in a handful of U.S. cities including Denver, Oakland and Washington D.C. Ketamine, also classified as a psychedelic, is currently legalized for medical use in all 50 U.S. states.
Will this trend continue? This could go several ways under Saturn’s watch. During its passage through Pisces in 1966, LSD was made illegal in the United States—both for recreational use and any scientific research programs. But Saturn also rules “big pharma.” We may see corporatization of psychedelics in a similar vein to legalized marijuana.
No matter whose pockets are lined, there’s no denying that Saturn in Pisces has converged with groundbreaking developments in medicine. The origins of the BCG vaccine for tuberculosis began during this transit in 1906. During the succedent Saturn-in-Pisces cycle, the first broadly effective antibiotic, Prontosil was discovered and clinically developed (1935) and streptococcus meningitis was successfully treated with a sulfonamide in 1936—a condition that was overarchingly fatal prior to this.
During Saturn’s 1995 pass through Pisces, the FDA approved Saquinavir, the first protease inhibitor to treat HIV and AIDS. Within two years, AIDS-related deaths in the U.S. fell from over 50,000 to approximately 18,000.
As we grapple with new strains of COVID, there’s also reason to believe that a medical breakthrough could arrive to put an end to the deadly virus while Saturn circulates in Pisces from March 7, 2023 to February 13, 2026. We’ll certainly put that on our vision board. Bring on the miracles, Saturn in Pisces—we could use them more than ever in 2023.
So, what date does Saturn enter Pisces?
The Saturn in Pisces transit begins on Tuesday, March 7, 2023, at 8:35 AM ET.
Key Saturn in Pisces transit dates
Saturn enters Pisces: March 7, 2023, 8:35 AM
Saturn in Pisces RETROGRADE: June 17, 2023, 1:27 PM
Saturn DIRECT in Pisces: November 4, 3:03 AM
Saturn enters ARIES: February 13, 2026
Want more Saturn astrology?
In astrology, Saturn governs time and the wisdom and expertise that comes from slow, steady and structured growth. As a slower-moving outer planet, Saturn shapes longer trends.
What’s my Saturn sign?
Saturn is the planet of discipline, structure and responsibility. For you personally, it reveals your work ethic, where you’ll pay dues and where you may have to overcome fear and doubt.
The placement of your Saturn sign in your natal chart can reveal some of life’s toughest lessons. Here’s where your dutiful side kicks in and makes you modest and process-driven. Perfectionism and self-criticism can stall progress. Restriction and suppression are Saturn’s signature moves, so you may constantly hold yourself back in this area of life. Understanding your Saturn sign can help you identify your blocks and make your ascent.
Enter your birth details in the calculator below to find which zodiac sign and house Saturn occupies in your astrology chart.
Once you know your Saturn sign, you can learn what your Saturn Sign means here.
Am I in my Saturn Return?
A maturing rite of passage marks Saturn’s homecoming to the sign it was in when you were born.
The first Saturn return happens between ages 27-30, depending on Saturn’s degree in your chart and is generally the first intro to adulting.
The second Saturn return occurs between ages 56-60.
The third Saturn return in one’s early 80s.
The planet’s heavy-hitting energy will make itself known, bringing opportunities to quickly grow up and even take on powerful roles of authority. Use our calculator below to see if you’re in your Saturn Return!
If you’re having your Saturn Return in 2023
Get ready for some eye-opening lessons in adulting. You may be called to play a more active leadership role this year. Expect to hit some speed bumps around personal identity. Redefining yourself may feel like an act of rebellion and liberation rolled into one. Either way, a newer, truer you is emerging. Status-conscious Saturn can bring up “what will the neighbors think?” worries while also helping you build a stronger backbone when it comes to sticking up for your values.
Feature art by Rosie Dienhart
