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I ask you.

Is this fair? I work hard, pay my taxes, give to charities, try to get plenty of fiber in my diet. And THIS is the solar return I get?
hideous solar return chart

Observe the Sun conjunct Saturn. AND the Moon conjunct Pluto. But wait, wait, it gets better: every single friggin’ house cusp has the 29th degree on it, except the 5/11 houses – which have 0 degrees. In my experience, the 29th degree of any sign has a horrible sort of suspenseful, must-finish-up-now feeling about it, and 0 degree is not much better. A friend of mine once said it always makes her think of Little Orphan Annie’s blank, blank eyes: clueless.

For the uninitiated, a solar return chart is a chart calculated for the moment each year when the Sun returns to its longitude at your birth. In other words, it’s your birthday chart. According to the rules, you calculate the solar return chart for the location where you’re currently living. But some folks advocate a “go to a different place for your solar return and get a better wheel” policy. I’m not sure I buy it, though; I sort of believe that wherever you’re going to be spending most of year is the right location to use for calculating your solar return. To do anything different might give you a better birthday, but probably not a better year.

On the other hand, I’m feeling a little desperate here, people. This just may be the year I put the “get out of Dodge” theory to the test.

4 comments to " I ask you. "

  • Karly

    Hm, what do you make of those conjunctions?
    Jupiter in your 2nd house is kind of nice though, no?

  • April

    Hi Karly,

    Mary Shea, in her excellent “Planets in Solar Returns,” has this to say about Sun/Saturn aspects in the solar return chart: “The refusal to accept responsibility for one’s own life situation or to work within obvious limitations can lead to frustration, isolation and loneliness.” On the other hand, “Many times a major project is being worked on for most of the year.” Which is quite possible in my case, actually.

    As for the Moon with Pluto – I’ve always thought of that combination as being a bit like a carton of milk (the Moon) that you’ve left in the refrigerator, right next to a festering Limburger (Pluto). Later you realize you left the milk carton open, and now your milk now smells like old gym socks.

    The Moon is all those things that say “safety” and “security” to us; Pluto wants to take away anything that is not strictly necessary. So when the two come together in a solar return chart, it seems to me that one is looking at a year of penetrating and often painful self-examination, and a reevaluation of the emotional and domestic structures of one’s life. On the other hand, I went through transiting Pluto opposed Moon boot camp a few years back, and the two are square in my natal chart; with any luck at all, this will be a year for more fully integrating all my past Moon/Pluto lessons. Maybe this process will fit into the Sun/Saturn “major project.” We’ll see, I suppose. If you’re facing a similar Solar Return, Karly, let us know it works out for you!

    And yes, where God closes a door he opens a window: I’m pinning great hopes on that second house Jupiter! 😉

  • David

    My partner and I have both Moon conjunct Pluto and Sun conjunct Saturn in our composite natal chart. Pluto, ruler of death is the child of Saturn, ruler of Time (according to Myth). Sun and Moon are archetypes of relationship (Father and Mother). Kill the Mother and put time restrictions on the Father. Or Transcend the need to be mothered and structure the yearnings of the soul. I have bumped into each of these aspects in separate relationships before; never with awareness in the same. Moon conjunct Pluto by synastry has been harsh on the Moon. (Me being the Moon). I have been in Sun conjunct Saturn composite relationships that I have gotten out of before they hardly began. Honestly, I do feel for you. But, being money loving, my eyes too went to the Jupiter in the second and I then proceeded to read your complaint without further looking. Jupiter is also a son of Saturn (and thus a sibling of Pluto) according to myth. Perhaps the Jupiter in the second will give great joy to your value system thus reinforcing your stamina under trying circumstances. The eighth house is commonly associated with stamina, which is the gradual expense of resources. And the second is the maintaining of the resources. Great website! (I resubmitted this after correcting an error: Jupiter is a sibling of Pluto.)

  • roz

    i’ll bet you are making more money through work. jupiter trine uranus is one of the best transits.