I have been trying to finish this article for a while now, but I find myself so depleted of energy that what I set out to do when the day begins, becomes undetermined by night-time. I find myself going from one extreme of energy to another: either completely drained and bed-ridden, as the weight of the world suddenly crushes upon me, or filled with energy but having to move through so many tiny obstacles that by the time I resolve them all, I am depleted of energy again. As a consequence, my usually prolific creative output has been low and inconsistent, and maintaining my passion for work has been a great problem. I feel both a sense of dread and an upsurge of excitement for the future.

I’m sharing this with you now because what I am experiencing is the felt reality of the great Saturn and Neptune conjunction, and I want to focus in this article on this specific cosmic energy. The reason this planetary configuration is affecting me to my core, is because I was born with a Sun in Pisces at 29 degrees (the anaretic, misfortune degree) in my 5th house (the seat of pleasure, divinity and passion) and a Jupiter in Aries at 4 degrees in the 6th house (the house of service work and daily routines). Therefore, the Saturn and Neptune movement through the final degrees of Pisces and the first degrees of Aries throughout 2025 and the Spring of 2026, is nestled right in between my Sun (energy and vitality) and my Jupiter (faith and growth), stunting them both. To say, that I am perceiving life as some form of prison of solitude is a minor understatement at the moment, and is conducive to a number of ailments I find hard to cope with. By writing about this experience, I reach out through the divide and feel less alone, less abandoned and sick.

The timeline

More broadly speaking, August 2025 is a very special month, marked by the retrograde movement of 4 planets (Saturn, Neptune, Pluto, including crowd-favorite Mercury, due to a retrograde through Leo) and more importantly it features the great conjunction between Saturn and Neptune, currently in the creative sign of Aries, moving around 0 and 1 degrees of this sign. Some astrologers would disagree in relation to the perfect conjunction of these two celestial spheres; some argue that only if two planets touch the same degree are they in perfect alignment, while others consider anything between 5 degrees of closeness a conjunction. Disenting voices judge the conjunction by the presence of planets in one specific astrological sign. I am of the latter group, and as such I want to bring out the importance of the month of August 2025, and then February and March 2026 for the great Saturn-Neptune meet up.

What is a conjunction? A conjunction is defined by Heather Roan Robbins as: “Anytime two celestial bodies conjunct – meaning they dance close together – they first work together and blend meaning and purpose, then begin a new cycle in their relationship”.

The present conjunction sees the blending of the energies of two of the least rational signs of the zodiac and involving the least compatible planets of our solar system, and this brings with it overt conflict and internal pain. The fact that the flowing, mystical and illusory energy of Neptune is meeting none other than that of the pragmatic, disciplined and separatist Saturn, is a symptom of tension, but what makes the conjunction so hard to bear is having to wake up daily to feelings of despair, pessimism and despondency (after all, Neptunian or Saturnian folk are not known in astrology for their cheery optimism).

In the battle of the giants, one wants to dissolve limits and merge with emotion (Neptune), while the other wants crystal clarity and harsh boundaries (Saturn); one wants to fight & win (Aries) while the other forgives and is letting go (Pisces). All the best and worst qualities of these 2 zodiac signs and these two planets are currently emerging into the collective in confusing and chaotic ways, guided as they are by rebel-rousing motor of Pluto in Aquarius. Pluto is stealthily working to change society through shocking moments of pain and outrage that amplify our collective awareness. None of these energies is tender or loving.

With the first movement of Saturn into Pisces in March of 2023, a temporal cycle was activated which embraced the loose movements of Saturn and Neptune through the last sign of the zodiac (Pisces) and the first sign of the zodiac (Aries), alongside Jupiter’s (for a brief period in 2023), Chiron in Aries and the North Node /South Node axis crossing through Aries and Libra in 2023-2024, and now through Pisces and Virgo. The preparatory ground was therefore created for their almost perfect encounter in the month of March 2025, when Saturn in Pisces was at 24 degrees just as Neptune in Pisces at 29 degrees was ready to switch into Aries.

Following on from that brief tete-a-tete, we are now spectating their full-blown tango as the first two weeks of August 2025 sees Saturn at 1 degrees of Aries with Neptune overlapping. From the 17th of August onwards, and due to its annual retrograde, Saturn wil begin to slide back into 0 degree Aries and then officially back into Pisces on the 2nd of September. Saturn will stay in Pisces until just short of Valentine’s Day, on the 15th of February of 2026.

This means that whatever concerns and themes you are riddled with in July and August of 2025, they will make a comeback in full-force (as the planets will be direct) in the last two weeks of February and throughout most of March of 2026. As a sidenote, I will turn 39 under this auspicious sky on the 20th of March of 2026 and God help me, I hope to survive this transit since Saturn can bring illness conducive to death and my health has been in shambles under this conjunction, so far. The conjunction can also bring a sense of victimhood and delusions of contempt based on being of service to society but never been valued for it, so keep your victimising tendencies in check.

To recap, the baseline dates are: March 2025, July-August 2025 and February-March 2026. As a brief exercise, look back across the last two-to-three years of your life and see if any significant events took place during these months, as a way to foretell what areas of concern in your life will become activated next year in Spring again. For me, it’s my work and professional path, my relation to the public and my legacy, as the Sun’s transit throughout March and August is illuminating my 6th and 10th astrological houses. Whatever gets activated by the Saturn and Neptune conjunction will be set on fire by the Sun’s transit and next year promises to be pivotal since the final conjunction of Saturn and Neptune will be in a weird aspect to the Sun in Pisces loosely conjunct the North Node in Pisces.

It may be that events are more intense and impactful the more planets and points you have in the signs of Aries and Pisces in your natal chart. If you have none in these signs, then consider any Libra and Virgo placements, as these are opposite signs of the zodiac wheel and the Shadow zones of Aries and Pisces.

Personal Characteristics of the Saturn-Neptune Conjunction

I’ll begin by sharing with you, some personal things I noticed in relation to this Saturnian and Neptunian energy, the cycle of which began to be felt from March of 2023, when Saturn went ingress in Pisces.

Irrespective of the many problems this transit has brought into my life (the worst of all being my dad’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent death), I feel privileged enough that in my position as an astrologer I get to experience first-hand the effects of this once-in-a-lifetime astrological cycle. Some of the things I will describe below have been things I personally have been going through but also what I have noticed among my family members, work mates and clients.

The biggest theme seems to be that of illness, an illness that can lead to positive changes in your life or to having epiphanies during victim-like, trance states. Being put into a position to suffer, however difficult, can be exactly the pathway forward in life. If you refuse to feel your pain you get stuck in a weird limbo until you bravely accept to feel all of your uncomfortable feelings. By undertaking an emotional ordeal you not only heal your heart and relieve some of the physical symptoms they may be causing in your body, but you also reconnect or (for some connect for the first time) with divinity, a sense of a higher being watching over you. Your suffering therefore has a purpose.

In addition, I also noticed that things break down or are in need of fixing and repair, in a state of flow. Like a wave crashing onto the shore, a problem appears in your life needing resolve. One thing is resolved and another problem appears that requires immediate attention and effort, just like another wave crashing onto your life shore.

There is also a pervasive feeling of needing to work to survive, but work is chaotic. You may not know exactly towards what specific goals to work towards or where to put effort into, mostly because you may be feeling like your work does not yield results or it gains you an sufficient income. Even worse, the circumstances that offer your work some structure are falling apart right before your eyes: a flood destroys your factory, the company that employs you is merging with another or goes bankrupt over-night, you can’t seem to fit your skills into any job description, your work becomes redundant due to updates and innovations, etc. Moreover, the work effort necessary to achieve a specific goal is disproportionate to the task at hand or the tools and the materials needed to accomplish it, because there are constant updates, repairs and improvements.

To add to this, nothing is as it seems and you may be feeling like you are living under a perpetual state of dreaming, which often feels good like a sedative and other times it can quickly morph into your worst fears and transform your reality into a night-mare. If something initially looks terrifying or unappealing it is most likely a flash in the pan; while on the other hand, if something is appealing and beautiful it is most likely a mirage. Illusions of the mind abound and as such, mental health issues are on the rise. Waking up to reality can feel like taking a cold shower. What is a good opportunity can turn into something awful and what is a difficult path to walk on, can prove to be easier than imagined. It helps if you find courage to feel your fears and do what is right anyway.

To add to this, we collectively experience a need for boundaries, for some form of control or regulation that establishes fairness. Individually, we may feel that only with discipline can we succeed in these uncertain times, but all of these tough desires seem to evaporate as soon as practical implementation begins. Schedules change throughout the day as people change their minds or fall in and out of conscious awareness, and the paradox is that the changes should be welcomed rather than resisted because the outcome will be much better for everyone involved. The part that requires some work is the one about needing to cope with the uncertainty and the delays caused by such readjustments, and here is where practicing flexibility becomes a way of life. Much like that old saying the reed that bends the wind cannot break, or something similar…

Probably the worse side-effects of the Saturn-Neptune conjunction are the physical ailments that multiply when emotions are overwhelming. The body parts mostly affected are the skin, the feet, the eyes, the head, the circulatory and the nervous systems. In terms of astrological body archetypes, these are the organs and biological components traditionally under the rulership of the sign of Aries (the head especially) and Pisces (the feet).

There are also frequent sleep disturbances and problems with drinking water and keeping hydrated: wanting so badly to sleep but having your sleep interrupted by other people’s activities (noise pollution especially and auditory hallucinations), then not being able to fall asleep because of all the things you are thinking of doing. Living within such altered mind states makes us more prone to consume narcotics to self-sedate and achieve relaxation at all costs, even at risk of dissociating from reality.

This then creates a mixture of deep fear and excitement but one that is not conducive necessarily to sexual arousal. In terms of sex, there are mixed feelings about it: either too much or none at all; either complete disconnect from the sexual impulse and reverting all the energy into creative work, or being suddenly overwhelmed by horniness and not knowing what to do with it. Masturbation can prove difficult to complete in the absence of imagination. You may need the fantasy as well as the physical stimulation to reach an orgasm (with or without a partner).

And lastly, I noticed some changes to the process of manifestation. Once needs to imagine the path and the action in order to understand what the next logical steps are. If you wake up and feel listless and confused as to what to do with your day, rather than jumping outside and engaging in any form of activity just for the sake of it, sit back for a couple more minutes and imagine your next steps. As you prime your unconscious mind with a conscious dream-plan, actions and activities begin to emerge organically, as if you are moved by something unseen on the path to achieving your goals. It is a soft and yielding process of allowing your subconscious mind to guide you in the direction of manifesting some powerful desires rather than making logical plans and sticking to them with the discipline of a field marshal (hint: it’s not going to work).

The more you try to impose control and restrictions to how you go about getting something (or someone), the less likely you are to actually see your desires become reality. Instead, adopt a Yeats-ian approach to living, something akin to what he wrote in his poem He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven: “I have spread my dreams at your feet / Tread softly for you are treading on my dreams”. Softly, slowly, messily, sensitively, build in flexible bursts of activity. And when you run out of energy (which may happen sooner than you think), rest and dream your next steps.

Interruptions to your plans are also possible due to distortions of speech and thinking, such as believing dreams and fantasies are real, and witnessing as the boundary between the real and imagined is frequently broken and in need of rebuilding. To feel real, check with your body, the only solid thing you actually own in this world. Delusional socialization is prevalent under this energy so forming and maintaining new relationships will be excessively tricky. This is why solitude is fruitful and benefic for living under a Saturn and Neptune transit, because you can sense and hear your inner voice and intuition better when you are not distracted by another person’s energy.

We are generally more sensitive to energy as this transit unfolds, and it’s crucial to be aware of and to interpret emotional cues from your body when interacting with other people. For example, if you bloat around a certain person, chances are you are being lied to; if your chest warms up as you feel drawn towards someone than that person is helping you in your spiritual development.

Reflecting on the recent events of this summer, I think I can safely conclude that a tight Saturn-Neptune conjunction also has a lot to do with the creation of cults, since Saturn offers structure to religious rituals and beliefs, which fall under Neptune’s jurisdiction. However, and because Saturn is considered a malefic planet with a limiting energy, the cults which are created are giving religion a bad reputation, increasing the fears that many people have of believing in God or of practicing any form of organized religion. Saturn can indeed materialize what is divine and Neptunian, but it may also sully and dirty up the spiritual energy which Neptune unleashed into the collective, especially when Saturn is in an incompatible Fire or Water sign, like it is during the 2023-2027 era.

To wrap up I would say that the best consequence of this transit has been gaining keen insights into the world beyond the veil, or the realm of ghosts and those departed. If you use the Saturn-Neptune conjunction to harvest the power of the increased sensitivity to hearing and to actively listen, you can develop a greater capacity to foresee. This increased capacity to divinate usually gets activated once you do something pragmatic or physical: like after a work-out, or after you clean up your house, and often after you eat something.

Finally, and the least important but the most noticeable has been the fetishization of goods and a state of hypnotic and mindless consumerism provoked by them: from the Stanley Cup craze, to the long lines waiting to get a Crumbl Cookie, or the current trend of purchasing boxes of eco-wasteful Labubus, people are irrationally driven to consume as a replacement for purpose in their lives and a as a way to fill up the dread created within their souls by wave upon wave of disappointment, abandonment and chaos. Like a scared child clinging onto a beloved Teddy bear as his parents are fighting in the living room at night, we are collectively clinging to our ‘Labubus’ in an effort to find some comfort as we are overwhelmed by rising taxation, forced migrations, the threat of war and the lack of cessation of other world conflicts or being obliterated by the forces of nature.

It’s fascinating to see how the Saturn-Neptune conjunction is happening simultaneously with the Solar 25 cycle, which had space scientists forecasting a decade ago, that 2024 and 2025 will be harsh-weather years due to our Sun’s activity reaching solar maximum. In a truly weird, scary and wonderful way, we are literally being shown the true meaning of the saying ‘as above, so below’, as the Sun’s boiling super-energy is manifested on Earth in our crazed, social tensions. We are faced with the uncertain dawn of a new era of evolution, so of course, many of us are freaking out.

Views from Other Astrologers

To add some depth to this article and help you understand better the force of this transit, I thought of compiling some information I found in my astrological research. The month of August 2025 will usher in an opportunity that will help you finally see the path forward in your life, in that area that has been like an open wound since 2023. Whatever frustrated you and you had not clarity on, whatever you lost, will now be replaced and will provide an open doorway for you to pass onto the next level.

However, to do so you’ll need to fulfill the requirements of the one Rudolf Steiner named “the guardian of the threshold“, a spiritual energy which can be manifested in your reality as: a difficult romance, a tough and new workplace, a qualification you have to study for and earn, a relocation to a foreign and unwelcoming land etc. You will nonetheless get a chance to begin anew, and effort will be needed to support your pioneering dreams.

For example, here is how British astrologer Sue Tompkins in her book ‘Aspects in Astrology‘ describes the social landscape created by this great meeting of the gods of time and flow in the sky:

Society was feeling guilty (…) Saturn-Neptune seems to describe poisoning and, more generally, lessons around purification and refinement (…) Sometimes the issue is paralysis and a psychological feeling of ‘caving in’ and not being able to cope (…) Typically, Saturn-Neptune people are frightened of loss of control and occassionally fate seems to ensure that they literally have to relinquish some form of control in order to learn lessons of some sort of non-attachment (…) With these contacts the father is not attached to the world in some way (…)

The pattern of a missing or weak father figure, the ‘father’ who gets it wrong not because of what he does but of what he fails to do. A father who is not and doesn’t set himself up to be, the voice of authority (…) Guilt is very much a feeling that one might attribute to this combination (…) for the individual on some level often feels as if they are in debt for something and must continually be making reparation, paying a penance, often paying the father’s (or society’s) debts or avenging those that are indebted to him (…) Saturn-Neptune can be associated with renunciation (…) it is surely the combination of the ascetic. Indeed, the image in one’s mind is of a monk or a hermit (…)

Saturn-Neptune would seek a simple and uncluttered life, free of any kind of opulence and excess (…) At best, this is the combination of the practical idealist, the person who has an awareness of their own limitations and the limitations of the given situation but nevertheless works to make some ideal a reality in the concrete world.

(p. 240-243)

Indeed, I can personally vouch for the theme of the sick father (due to the overlapping Saturn-Neptune link with my Pluto on the IC transit, I experienced my father’s passing away this year). In addition, it seems that emotional severity, financial hardships and the theme of sickness is also reported by the Astrology King:

What you thought were safe and secure relationships, possessions, employment or general structures and patterns in your life may dissolve away, leaving you feeling anxious and depressed. In its higher manifestation, this transit allows you to make sacrifices and do without something to do good. You can help others or reach a particular goal. In the lower manifestation, a gift would be forced upon you to teach you a lesson about responsibility.

Whatever the case, this is a severe phase of life, and you will tend to see the worst and not the best in everything. Pessimism can get out of control; therefore, it is essential to do your best to avoid it. Negativity must be avoided because Saturn can materialize Neptune’s illusions or delusions. It is essential to take care of your health; now is a good time for a general check-up with your doctor.

Moreover, one of the astrologer’s I have been following for years and who taught me most of what I know in terms of relational astrology, the Bulgarian astrologer Lada Duncheva describes the Saturn-Neptune conjunction as a breaking down of illusions in one’s life and reminds us all of the fall of the ideology of communism when Saturn and Neptune met in Capricorn during the 1988-1990s era in Eastern Europe:

When Saturn and Neptune are together- like now and in 2026, they tend to burst illusions, deceptions and long going schemes.
Neptune in Pisces was able to operate for many years under the table, leading to many deceptions, underhanded games. Now Saturn nearing it- it is time to bear the consequences, to pay the karma, to reveal the deceptions.

And finally, in an exhaustive exploration of the Saturn-Neptune conjunctions throughout history, the evolutionary astrologer Maurice Hernandez lays out some of the core themes of this epic transit and what it could manifest in the collective from next year, as both planets rejoin Aries:

• A call for leadership, entrepreneurial or political. Fate can prompt a person to take the reins and step into positions of authority and command.
• A boss or parental figure may go through a crisis, requiring care and adjustment. We may see those who once were in their prime exhibit tremendous vulnerability.
• Accountability and ethical realignment. Unethical behavior may surface and prompt a person to take responsibility for possible misalignments. Conversely, the person with this transit prominently positioned may be the whistleblower, exposing unethical behavior.
• The loss of meaning; losing the grip on what was once important or held in high esteem. Possibly experiencing a vacuum or emptiness until a new goal emerges.
• A spiritual realization. Possibly the meeting of a spiritual teacher who will provide a new form of guidance or body of knowledge. Following the calling to lead a more spiritual life.
• Adopting a new lifestyle and reinventing oneself in one shape or another. Depending on the house where the transit occurs, it may affect professional, relational, or academic matters.
• Health vulnerabilities may affect adrenal function. Autoimmune reactions can engender inflammation in different parts of the body. This may be an opportune time to adjust our diet and get self-care support to sustain or increase vitality.

With universal love,

Lexi