The new calendar year starts on a note of sobriety. The Sun conjoins Saturn – at its most Saturnine, in Capricorn — on the second day of January; Mercury does so on Jan 11^th -13^th.

These cool, retentive transits serve to emphasize the restrained nature of the season, winter in the Northern Hemisphere. Father Time looms over our entry into 2019, as if to make sure we remember the grownup virtues of forbearance and responsibility.

On January 8^th, these lessons will be tested, as Mars, newly launched into Aries, squares Mercury. The impulse (Mars) is to bolt into action, but the mind (Mercury) holds us back, mindful of obligations or of the need for better preparation (Capricorn).

Frustrated action

This push-pull dynamic is even more pronounced when Mars in Aries squares Saturn on Jan. 20^th – 21^st. As Mars placements go, this one doesn’t cotton to waiting. But we’re constrained here by the reins of Saturn, and forced to hold our horses.

If we refuse to follow Saturn’s rules, those rules will be forced upon us: Saturn/ Mars combinations are notorious for putting obstacles in our path.

To avoid the dark side of the transit – blame — we need to remember the purpose of the transit, not just its possible symptoms. Saturn isn’t trying to cause frustration. It’s trying to teach us the lessons of time (discussed in detail in this article).

Focus, don’t obsess

There are also a couple of transpersonal transits this month, signaling the kind of inscrutable drives that are good to know about in advance.

These are surges from the deep psyche, that the rational mind, all by itself, doesn’t know how to handle. To avoid being thrown off by them, we need to meet them with mind/ body/ spirit united.

For a couple of days starting around January eleventh, we will feel the power of Pluto as the Sun conjoins it at 20° Capricorn. Mercury will be on top of Saturn at the same time, minimizing mental distractions; a week later, on Jan 18^th, Mercury and Pluto will conjoin. The best way to use these transits is to work on something that requires an unusual degree of concentration.

Heavy hitters

That way, the obsessive quality of Pluto and the dead seriousness of Saturn will be put to constructive use, eliminating the need for these heavy hitters to force themselves upon you.

Don’t force these transits to make you an offer you can’t refuse. Use them the way they’re meant to be used, and they’ll show up as powerful productivity.

Images:

Double exposure photography by Sumyko

Seated men image by Michael Bilotta