3 Positives of Mars Square Saturn

Mars square Saturn is one of those aspects that gets a lot of people worked up in fear.

If you do a Google search to learn more about Mars square Saturn, you’ll likely find a lot of articles telling you how awful it’s going to be.

Mars and Saturn are known as the two “malefic” planets. A square aspect — when two planets are at a right angle — is known as an angle that brings friction between the two energies.

Friction between two difficult energies certainly doesn’t sound like fun. But maybe it’s not all bad.

Read: 5 Ways to Navigate Obstacles on Your Path

In fact, I’ve actually found a few positives in it.

Before we get to the positives, let’s understand the energies at play here.

The Energy of Mars Square Saturn

In many ways, Mars and Saturn are opposite energies:

• Mars wants to go; Saturn says stop.
• Mars initiates possibility; Saturn imposes limits.
• Mars is hot; Saturn is cold.
• Mars is impulsive; Saturn is cautious.
• Mars is aggressive; Saturn is restrained.
• Mars wants to move fast; Saturn is slow.
• Mars wants instant gratification; Saturn is about what delayed rewards.
• Mars is “ASAP” energy; Saturn wants patience over the long arc of time.
• Mars wants to power through; Saturn wants to take a measured approach.
• Mars is the impulsive initiator; Saturn is the patient teacher.

Fire is fueled by oxygen. Mars is currently in Gemini, an air sign, where it has the power of air to fan its flames. Saturn in Pisces is like swimming with a lead weight tied to your back.

The friction between two “difficult” planets in the sky mirrors a friction between those parts of our personality.

The Inner Conversation: Finding the Archetypes Within Ourselves

Every planet represents energies and archetypes that exist within us. When we talk about how astrology lands on a personal level, we are talking about how the planetary positions mirror an internal dialogue between different parts of ourselves.

It’s a battle between our inner impulsive action taker and our inner wise teacher; between our inner fighter and our inner taskmaster. It’s the part of us that puts up a brick wall against the part of us that wants to push through those walls.

If it sounds exhausting, it can be. It can also be helpful.

Here are 3 positive outcomes that can come from Mars square Saturn — or other hard aspect between Mars and Saturn, such as a conjunction or opposition.

3 Positive Outcomes From Mars Square Saturn

(1) Learn How to Operate Within Constraints

One thing is for sure: we can expect Saturn to show us our limits.

Saturn is the Teacher, Taskmaster, and the father of time. It likes to remind us of the often grim realities of life.

One of those realities is that our resources — time, energy, money, attention, cognitive bandwidth — are not unlimited.

Saturn teaches us how to work within the reality of our constraints.

• What can you do with the limited bandwidth you have on any given day?
• What can you do with the time you have available?
• What can you do with your limited attention?

In a culture that tells us to push through and break down walls, Saturn tells us not so fast. Learn to work within your constraints.

This can lead to surprising outcomes.

As I’ve been dealing with the effects of ADHD medication shortages, I’ve been forced to navigate within the limits of my capacity on any given day. In the gym, I’ve tailored my workouts to mostly work well within my capacity rather than pushing close to my edge.

And yet in that span of time, I’ve hit several new personal records in my lifts.

In my cognitive work, tackling tasks in smaller chunks and giving myself rest when needed has led to better output.

Perhaps there’s something to be said for working within your limits.

(2) Catalyst for Creativity and Innovation

If you had unlimited resources, you wouldn’t need to get creative for how you approach things. If you had unlimited capacity to do your work you wouldn’t need to innovate new ways.

Recently, astrologer Michael Morris gave me a new understanding of the malefic planets. They said that they are understanding the malefic planets not merely as “difficult” but rather as contrarian: doing things in a different way than others or than what has been established by tradition.

This immediately resonated with me.

For as long as I can remember, most established systems of how to work haven’t worked for me. I’ve spent most of the past 30 years figuring out or innovating different ways to get things done that work for the way my brain works.

Whether it’s doing my writing in the gym or listening to the same song on repeat while I complete a task, or working at odd hours, most of my systems don’t make sense to neurotypical people. But they work for me.

When the road is blocked, you need to find another way to get to where you want to go.

Ironically, it’s only by coming into acceptance of the obstacle that this can happen.

Instead of being angry at myself and fueling a fire that would only further drain energy, acceptance creates a space for for new ideas and insights to emerge. The result is being able to do more with less energy.

(3) Builds Strength

My favorite metaphors for Mars/Saturn in hard aspect come from the gym.

One of my deadlift drills is to pull the bar up against the safety bars on the squat rack. As the bar hits the squat rack, it sends a jolt through my body.

When I practice back squats, sometimes my coach will press down on the bar as I’m standing up. With his weight adding to the weight of the bar, it’s harder to stand.

We’ve done other drills of a similar nature, where I have to push against the resistance of the weight and his added resistance.

After a few reps, I’m exhausted, if not also frustrated.

I just want to stand up with the weight, and his added resistance makes it harder.

That’s Mars/Saturn. In some ways, that’s weightlifting in general: pushing or pulling against heavy steel, fighting the reality of gravity.

The push or pull against that hard limit may break you down, but it’s also how you build strength.

The more I do those types of drills, the easier it becomes to pull, push, or stand up with the weight when I don’t have the added resistance of a squat rack keeping me boxed in or someone pushing down against me.

There’s never a reason to be afraid of the astrology; it is simply an invitation to go within and deepen your relationship with these parts of yourself. Engaging in this dialogue within yourself can open doors to new awareness and understanding — and that’s always a good thing.