The Main Challenges You're Meant To Overcome Each Year, Based On Your Solar Return Saturn Placement
Find out what challenges you should prepare for in the coming year — and the good things that will come of them.
Rafico Studios, Julia Dreams and Max Reyes / Canva If you want to predict what the next year of your life will look like, the best way is using solar return astrology. This special branch of divination focuses on each year of our life between one birthday and the next. And because it uses our current place of residence instead of our birthplace for its charts, it also blends the principles of astrocartography into it, allowing us to fully take charge of our lives.
Your solar return chart has its own solar return ascendant, solar return moon, solar return Venus, and more, just like any other astrology chart. The only difference is that these planets and angles will affect you only for a short duration of time.
When it comes to your solar return Saturn, it can tell you what challenges you should prepare for in the coming year.
Here's the meaning of your solar return Saturn in each of the 12 zodiac houses.
Solar return Saturn in 1st house
When your solar return Saturn is in the first house of self, the challenges are heavily focused on issues related to self-esteem, confidence, your place in the world, and how you come across to people.
Since the latter has an impact on the opportunities you can have and the friends you make (along with enemies), the presence of Saturn here is no joke. Solar return Saturn in the first house can make you more serious and come across as so to other people, it can dramatically reduce impulsive actions but give rise to decision paralysis and make you crave praise for your hard work even as you find yourself working more than usual.
All of these challenges and changes ultimately have a positive effect on your self-esteem and make you more confident about how you put yourself forward in the world.
Solar return Saturn in 2nd house
When your solar return Saturn is in the second house of finances and security, the challenges faced can have far-reaching effects on your future.
If you have bad spending habits, you will suddenly find yourself facing the consequences of those decisions. Some people can get in trouble with lending agencies and credit bureaus during such a year. If instead, you are conscious of your responsibilities and diligent about securing your future, solar return Saturn in the second house can enable you to invest your time and money in endeavors that slowly bring fruits over the course of many years. In fact, it can give you a bearish attitude towards the stock market, which can prevent you from catastrophically gambling away your securities.
Ultimately, the challenges of solar return Saturn in the second house make us more conservative and conscious of our present and future and also instill positive habits that benefit us in the long run.
Solar return Saturn in 3rd house
When your solar return Saturn is in the third house of communication, the challenges faced during the year can be significant because everything in our world depends on the ability to communicate effectively. These challenges can range from being tongue-tied more often than not to finding it difficult to form connections with people, maybe even offending them without meaning to.
Solar return Saturn in the third house isn't all bad. This placement can actually invite deeper conversations with acquaintances by making one severely abhor chit-chat and small talk. It can help you develop your bond with your friends and even make you come across as wise and circumspect.
Facing the challenges of this solar return Saturn placement ultimately improves our communication skills and makes it easier to establish our authority in a given field or community.
Solar return Saturn in 4th house
When your Solar return Saturn is in the fourth house of home, the challenges faced during the year are not as extreme as one might think given that Saturn rules the diametrically opposite 10th house of career. You may not be as warm and compassionate with your loved ones and may even find it difficult to express your feelings properly (especially if you are building a budding relationship with a romantic partner), but you will be very responsible towards those you consider under your care and protection.
Solar return Saturn in the fourth house can actually make a person come across as a dependable friend and family member and improve one's reputation and respectability in the home sphere. However, the gifts are not freely given (Saturn doesn't do that) but need to be earned through one's actions.
This Saturn placement teaches us that love doesn't always look like hugs, kisses, and feminine nurturing, it can be silently evident through actions and strong commitment.
Solar return Saturn in 5th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the fifth house of creativity, the challenges faced can be extremely stifling for those who are creative or have creative professions. It's not uncommon to feel a block during such a year or even feel as if you are an imposter pretending to have talent.
Solar return Saturn in the fifth house can also make one come across as boring or stiff in romantic situations. And some people have a tendency to stifle other people's creativity or come across as too critical during such a solar return year.
Overcoming the challenges of this Saturn placement can be difficult, but if you approach this situation with the mindset of a student, you will eventually break past the creative blocks while gaining deeper mastery over your gifts and talents.
Solar return Saturn in 6th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the sixth house of work and health, the challenges faced can be multi-faceted. Some people face a lot of health challenges during such a year. Others find themselves turning into a workaholic without receiving credit for their work or recognition for their hard work. Your self-esteem may also be intimately tied to how productive you are during a solar return Saturn in the sixth house year.
However, this Saturn placement can teach us to be dependable and more critical about life and decisions so we don't get carried away by the big words of others or fall for collective delusions.
Solar return Saturn in 7th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the seventh house of partnerships, the challenges faced are not all bad. This is because Saturn is exalted in the sign of Libra, which is the natural ruler of the seventh house.
On the one hand, you may come across belligerent people who think they have authority over you or try to place obstacles on your path in situations involving multiple people, whether in contracts, marriage, or government work. On the other hand, it's also common to come across people, especially teachers, who wish to mentor you during such a year. The positive relationships still have an element of hard work and dedication attached to them since it's Saturn, but the experience and journey can be rewarding just as much as the eventual fruits.
Ultimately, this placement teaches us to be more careful of who we associate with and carry our share of the responsibilities in partnerships.
Solar return Saturn in 8th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the eighth house of the occult, the challenges faced can be quite frustrating. You may suddenly face a dry year in your sexual life or encounter issues with romantic partners with whom you engage sexually. You will also come across people in positions of power who may try to take advantage of you in a myriad of different ways, not always sexually.
Financial gains from your spouse and issues with inheritance also crop up during a solar return Saturn in the eighth-house year. And sometimes one can find themselves in a conflict situation with religious leaders as well, especially those presiding over niche religions that are more cultish in nature.
These challenges can open your eyes to the dark underbelly of the world and ultimately teach you to be more aware as you navigate through life. Plus, it teaches us to cherish those who do good in the world without any expectations.
Solar return Saturn in 9th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the ninth house of philosophy and higher education, the challenges faced are either experienced strongly or not noticeable at all. It depends on your life story and circumstances.
People who are in university, post-graduation programs, and careers that deal with hard facts, scientific research, and technical know-how often face problems with their superiors during such a year. They may even find it difficult to come across opportunities for advancement or may start feeling disillusioned about their chosen path.
Solar return Saturn in the ninth house can also make people not very keen on exploring the world, learning about new things, or engaging in discussions about philosophical matters. It can really make a person come across as small-minded and pond-ish, so it's important to watch out for such behavior during such a solar return year.
Ultimately though, this Saturn placement teaches us to deal with frustrations in an effective manner and also shows us how to find the vastness within ourselves.
Solar return Saturn in 10th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the 10th house of career, the challenges faced are often in your favor because Saturn is the natural ruler of the 10th house. Your efforts, strategies, and patience will always be rewarded, in one way or another.
But like everything with Saturn, the efforts, strategies, and patience called forth from you can be significant during such a year. Nevertheless, depending on the zodiac sign in the 10th house, some people can become quite pedantic during this solar return year. You may also find yourself seeking to be an authority in your own life and sometimes in the lives of others, whether they want it or not.
For the most part though, solar return Saturn in the tenth house can have a good effect on one's reputation and make one grow wiser, although the experiences can proceed at a snail's pace.
Solar return Saturn in 11th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the 11th house of futurism and humanitarianism, you can often become stiff about the needs of the world and not wish to focus so much on the greater good. You may also find yourself preferring what is established to new breakthroughs.
The challenges faced during such a year can often make one averse to standing out from the crowd by making it painfully obvious that they are an outcast. But because Saturn is the co-ruler of the 11th house alongside Uranus, solar return Saturn in the 11th house can temper your ideas and creative breakthroughs so you remain rooted to reality instead of flying off into the world of science fiction and speculation.
Solar return Saturn in 12th house
When your solar return Saturn is in the 12th house of spirituality, the challenges faced either help you understand your spiritual side better or can turn you completely against spirituality. It often depends on the aspects to Saturn in your solar return chart.
Of course, because of Saturn's stifling nature, its presence in the 12th house can make it difficult for you to close out necessary chapters of your life. You may drag on relationships and experiences that are past their expiration date. On the flip side, solar return Saturn in the twelfth house can enable one to become a spiritual authority or guide in a professional capacity or as a public figure. This Saturn placement often has strong ties to karmic cycles and can make a person feel trapped. But these challenges can open one's eyes to the mistakes they are repeating and the lessons they are failing to learn. So a simple mindset shift here can make such a year incredibly powerful for our soul's journey through life.
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Valeria Black is a Tarot Card Reader, astrologer and YouTuber with expertise in charm-casting, runes, and all things magic. She writes about astrology, tarot and spirituality.