Uranus is in Nakshatra gandanta between 29°12’00 Pisces – 00°47’59” Aries. This is the last muhurta of Revati Nakshatra at the end of Pisces and the first muhurta of Ashwini Nakshatra at the beginning of Aries.
Saturn is in Nakshatra gandanta between 29°12’00 Scorpio – 00°47’59” Sagittarius. This is the last muhurta of Jyestha Nakshatra at the end of Scorpio and the first muhurta of Mula Nakshatra at the beginning of Sagittarius.
Throughout the year, these two planets will go in and out of gandanta due to retrogression. They will go direct through gandanta, retrograde through gandanta, and direct again through gandanta. Uranus actually started its gandanta back in 2016.
Here are the dates of their gandanta. I am using the muhurta definition of gandanta being the last 48 minutes of a water sign through the first 48 minutes of a fire sign. (If you are unsure what gandanta is, I explain it here.)
June 3, 2016 – September 25, 2016: Uranus Gandanta (Direct, Station Gandanda, Retrograde)
January 18, 2017 – February 2, 2017: Saturn Gandanta (Direct)
March 24, 2017 – April 28, 2017: Uranus Gandanta (Direct)
June 10, 2017 – July 2, 2017: Saturn Gandanta (Retrograde)
Oct 16, 2017 – November 4, 2017: Saturn Gandanta (Direct)
December 5, 2017 – January 30, 2018: Uranus Gandanta (Retrograde, Station Gandanta, Direct)
Significations of Uranus
Uranus is a modern planet and not often used in Vedic Astrology. Bringing the significations of Uranus over from Modern Western Astrology, Uranus signifies the following people: reformers, rebels, prodigies, and outliers. The places it signifies are rallies, picket lines, and factories due to the modern assembly line technology. Some of the things Uranus signifies are technology, computers, cell phones, iPads, X-rays, CT scans, PET scans, electricity, machinery, robotics, and basically any modern invention or scientific advancement that uses modern technology. Some of the events that Uranus signifies are uprisings, revolts, riots, crises, seemingly sudden unexpected change, mass accidents, mass disasters, and shocking events. Some of its key concepts are ingenuity, change, freedom, liberation, reform, chaos, disruption, shock, and awakenings. Its actions are eccentric, shocking, erratic, bizarre, inconsistent, unconventional, and fluctuating. Vedic Astrologers will recognize some of the karakas for Rahu & Ketu in the significations of Uranus. Yet it is a very specific set of Rahu & Ketu’s significations that surface with the Western Astrological view of Uranus.
Significations of Saturn
Saturn’s significations, concepts and actions are very dissimilar. People Saturn represents include authority figures, farmers, masons, potters, miners, garbage collectors, laborers, servants, and old people. Some of the things Saturn signifies are agriculture, structures, walls, longevity, time, resolution, burdens, blockades, fatigue, depression, humiliation, misfortune, and misery. Some of the events that Saturn signifies are milestones, completions, commitments, resolution, dejection, and death. Some of its key concepts are responsibility, commitment, hard-work, limitations, restrictions, and obstacles. Its actions are reliable, disciplined, cautious, persevering, preserving, conserving, enduring, resolute, oppressive and demoralizing.
So, the world is in a 1.5-year period of time where these two very different energies are both very prominent. Saturn represents the authority and Uranus represents over-throwing the authority. Saturn represents the status-quo of the tried and true while Uranus represents change and ingenuity. Saturn represents oppression and Uranus represents liberation. Saturn is consistent and reliable whereas Uranus is inconsistent and erratic. Saturn represents the conventional while Uranus represents the unconventional. Saturn keeps us slave to the grind where Uranus promotes awakening. I could go on and on, and so could you.
The whole world is experiencing these two transiting planets in gandanta. If there is an aspect to the chart of a country or its leader, then the affects will be more pronounced for those countries. What is happening underneath it all is that we as humanity have some karmic knots to unravel around the structures (Saturn) that are in place in our lives and the changes we want to affect (Uranus). The astrological fact of the matter is that anything that takes an action to demoralize or oppress the rights of certain groups of people is indicated by Saturn. Anything that is repealed or reformed is indicated by Uranus. And yep, sometimes the case for Saturn or Uranus can be argued for an issue – like overturning a Saturnian issue or restricting an Uranian issue. The issue can belong to one planet, while the action taken on the issue can belong to the other. (And of course not all issues that face the world are ruled by these two planets – every planet has its significations that reach into the global sphere. i.e. War is Mars; the arts are Venus; communication, commerce and trade are Mercury; etc)
Jupiter’s Opposition to Uranus
One thing for sure, things are getting very bizarre. We turn on the news and often don’t even know what to believe. Jupiter the planet of beliefs and the truth is retrograde in Virgo, opposite Uranus. The whole sign opposition between Jupiter and Uranus is in effect from August 11, 2016 and lasts until Uranus enters Aries on April 8, 2017. This opposition will pick up again when Jupiter is in Libra from September 12, 2017 until October 18, 2018.
A major difference in these two oppositions of Jupiter – Uranus oppositions can be gleaned by their dispositorship. The opposition affecting us now is in Virgo and Pisces which are ruled by Mercury and Jupiter. Therefore, Mercury and Jupiter show the motivation of these planets. The vision, ideals, beliefs and philosophy of Jupiter are motivating the disruptions, change, and over-turnings of Uranus. (And true we do not all share the same ideals! Hence the conflict of the opposition for Jupiter’s ideals, beliefs and philosophies are also motivating the rebelling against the changes.) Another function of Jupiter is to seek the truth, not the truth of one side of a situation, but universal absolute Truths. Jupiter is in Mercury’s sign where it is motivated not only to seek out the facts but to judge the facts.
Uranus’s Gandanta in Pisces, Revati Nakshatra, opposite Jupiter
Part of our job as readers and listeners of the media is to untangle conflicts of information and ferret out the truth. But to find Truth with a capital T, we have to set aside our own bias. This is easier said than done! And on one level, this is indicative of Mercury being enemy to Jupiter. Our discriminating Mercury mind can get in the way of seeing the higher wisdom of our Jupiter mind. The bubble or knot at the end of Pisces where Uranus is currently transiting is in the Nakshatra Revati. Revati is ruled by the deity Pushan, the nurturer. He is the protector of travelers and of the herd. The Shakti power of Pushan is nourishment and protection. The issue of refugees, travelers seeking protection, is one thing we are currently wrestling with globally under this gandanta. There are two sides to this issue, put protection of the travelers first or put protection of the nation’s people first. Both sides are a Revati issue of protecting and nourishing the masses. Thinking about it can get one’s mind in a knot! Any action we take can get us further entangled in a karmic knot around this issue that is probably as old as time itself. It doesn’t just apply to humans. We see it in the animal world when a nursing female of one species takes in a stray from another. However, this isn’t the only issue related to Uranus gandanta in Reveti just because it is the most obvious one. This karmic knot expands to everything we believe is worth protecting and nourishing in this world, including Mother Earth herself and all of her inhabitants.
Uranus’s Gandanta in Aries, Ashwini Nakshatra
When Uranus enters Aries on April 7, 2016 two things are going to happen astrologically regarding signification. Uranus gets a different dispositor – Mars, and, Uranus enters Ashwini Nakshatra. Ashwini is ruled by the Ashwin’s twin horseman gods that are the celestial physicians. Power, stamina, speed and vitality are associated with a horse. The Shakti power of Ashwini is to heal, rejuvenate, and reach things quickly. The Aries portion of Uranus’s gandanta is going to be more action oriented due to Mars as the dispositor and the Shakti power of Ashwini. Mars is planet of war and of courage, bravery, prowess, and will power. The ideal outcome of this gandanta is that under Uranus in Revati, we find a common ground on protecting the Earth and each other and then move quickly on it under Uranus in Ashwini, healing rifts between individual groups of humanity with the recognition that we are all one humanity. But, we probably aren’t at that stage in humanity’s evolutionary process yet. (Remember that the purpose of the Nakshatras is to assist with cosmic evolution.) That however is the higher octave outcome of the knot at the end and beginning of the zodiac itself. What is more likely is that one agenda will be pushed and acted upon quickly, thus tightening the karmic knot in a one-sided action that humanity will continue to revisit any time a planet is at this Pisces/Aries juncture of the zodiac.
Of course, the Sun, Mercury, and Venus pass through here every year. Mars passes through every two years, Jupiter every twelve years, Saturn every twenty-nine years, and Uranus every eighty-four years. It is when the social (Jupiter & Saturn) and outer planets (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) sit at the gandanta points for longer periods of time that it heightens the importance of the faster moving personal planets (Mars, Venus, Mercury, Sun, Moon) being gandanta. When the personal planets are gandanta for a couple of days, not much significance is noticed. However, when the faster planets gandanta coincide with a social or outer planet gandanta, it tends to amp up and time events already indicated by the slower planet’s the gandanta.
Retrograde Mercury’s Conjunction to Uranus
For instance, Mercury’s gandanta coming up at the direct station at 0° Aries is going to time something already in place by the Uranus gandanta. Mercury is gandanta conjunct Uranus in Aries from April 29 – May 7, 2017. Things may move quickly based on intelligence received, intelligence we are already seeking and get during that week. Truth regarding facts of matters that have been under investigation may find enough evidence to come to a decision or conclusion, and action on those facts will likely be taken swiftly. Something may happen related to commerce and trade that is already in the works.
Saturn’s Gandanta in Scorpio, Jyestha Nakshatra
Saturn in Scorpio is disposited by Mars, making this is a Saturn motivated by action, courage, prowess and battle. The Nakshatra Jyestha is ruled by Indra, a divine warrior who wields a thunderbolt. It’s Shakti power is to rise and conquer through courage. This represents the karmic knot we find ourselves in to fight for or against the systems and structures that govern our world. We see this in the rallies and the protests happening all over the world on various issues affecting different countries. We see this on a very personal level in the attacks we instigate or defend against on social media. Indra is also the slayer of dragons and he represents the power of truth. So again, we are back to a theme of ferreting out the truth, and slaying the dragon of ignorance (meaning darkness, unenlightened, under the illusions of maya). Our focus should not be on what side of an issue is right or wrong and fighting those who do not share our view. Our focus under this gandanta should utilize the investigative qualities of Scorpio to ferret out the Truth of the matter. We should be warriors of Truth, fighting to figure out what is really going on, rather than fighting each other.
Saturn’s Gandanta in Sagittarius, Mula Nakshatra
Saturn in Sagittarius is disposited by Jupiter, making this a Saturn motivated by ideals, beliefs, philosophies, and universal Truths. The Nakshatra Mula is ruled by Niritti, the goddess of death and destruction. Mula means toot. The galactic center is in this Nakshatra. Mula’s Shatki power is to destroy the root to create or re-create. So the dragon of ignorance becomes destroyed in Jyestha, then the roots of that ignorance become destroyed in Mula so we can create from a place of enlightened awareness. That is the cosmic evolutionary purpose around the gandanta between Scorpio and Sagittarius. But we are probably not at this stage in our human evolution, when we destroy the ignorance of our separateness and embrace the truth of our oneness as a humanity. So what we are more likely to see is one group of humanity calling the other the dragon or demon, which makes us more likely to seek to destroy each other instead of the ignorance that divides us.
Humanity’s Calling for 2017
Regardless of what goes on in the world around us, during this year of karmic knots tangling, untangling, and re-tangling, we should strive as individuals to help to further the evolution of humanity. We should strive toward healthy debates that are non-critical and non-judgmental when we encounter a social media friend with different political, religious, or philosophical views on issues. If we can’t have a healthy debate because we are so angry that we just want to attack the other side, then we should stop, and look within at why this issue bothers us so much that we want to lash out and hurt other human beings. By finding peace with our inner conflicts, we can extend peace to others where we used to extend conflict. We can divide and conquer each other. Or we can unite and conquer the ignorance that blinds us into thinking we are separate. This is what humanity is being called to do under these particular gandantas of 2017. What we will do with this calling?
2 Responses to Saturn & Uranus Gandanta in 2017