The Occultation of Saturn: Structured Intuition by Leela Williams

On the evening of June 27, skygazers on the east coast of Australia can watch Saturn disappear behind the Gibbous Moon. This cosmic dance in Pisces, known as an occultation, invites us to harmonise our emotional and practical needs through reflection and ritual.

As the Moon, representing emotions and intuition, moves across Saturn, the planet of structure and discipline, we are encouraged to bring hidden feelings to the surface and address them with sensitivity and discipline. This event may be felt as emotions and subconscious patterns overshadowing or obscuring practical concerns and responsibilities. The Pisces influence will heighten intuitive and emotional insight.

The Moon occulting Saturn in Pisces is a potent time for introspection, clarity, rebalancing and restructuring your reality through discipline and sensitivity. Work with this energy to coax hidden issues to the surface where they can be forthright in their demand for attention. Once revealed, they can be acknowledged and resolved. Saturn will be under the influence of Pisces until 2026, giving you time to organise your world by putting emotional, practical, communal and individual needs on equal footing. Approaching matters of the heart and spirit with a sense of discipline and routine will help to elevate their importance in your day-to-day affairs.

You can tweak the below ritual or create your own using the associations listed below. For best results, perform the exercise during or before the occultation on the evening of June 27. This celestial event is aligned with dream magic. If you feel at ease with the feelings and thoughts that arise during your ritual, invite the combined charms of the Moon and Saturn in Pisces into your sleeping realm. They can charge your intuition and begin resolving any hidden or shadowy aspects uncovered by your ritual as you dream. Working with the occultation is also good preparation for Saturn turning Retrograde in Pisces on June 30.

Viewing the Occultation

The Moon will block Brisbane’s view of Saturn at 10:49 p.m. with the ringed planet re-emerging almost an hour later at 11:47 p.m. In Sydney, these times are 10:55 p.m. and 11:41 p.m, respectively. The Moon and Saturn will be low in the eastern sky. Binoculars will give you the best viewing experience. However, you can work with this cosmic vanishing and re-emergence in Pisces regardless of visibility.

Associations for the Occultation of Saturn

Possible Intentions: Release and Reset Responsibilities; Balance Dreams and Disciplines; Elevate Emotional and Spiritual Needs; Revealing and Resolving Subconscious Limitations

Deities: Saturn, Selene, Luna, Artemis, Diana, Neptune

Crystals: Moonstone, Selenite, Pearl, Onyx, Hematite, Amethyst, Fluorite

Symbols & Talismans: The Triple Goddess, Key, Pewter or Lead Rings, Starfish, Fish, Trident

Tarot Cards: The World, The High Priestess and The Moon

A Ritual

If the night is clear, prepare a space where you can see the moon. You may like to adorn the space with herbs, crystals and talismans to enhance your connection with the Moon, Saturn and Pisces. Breathe deeply and invoke your magical self and any deities you would like to work with. Hold your hands open to signify a circle of offering and receiving. Imagine that this circle embodies the Moon, Saturn, you and your intention.

Say out loud:

This circle is safe and nurturing. All that happens here is for my highest good. As the Moon obscures Saturn, so does intuition take precedence over limitations. My spiritual and emotional selves dance into the light, unhindered by tradition and expectation. When Saturn returns, it will be with love and support for my true and balanced nature.

Watch the disappearance and reappearance of Saturn as let yourself drift into a dreamy state. If you cannot see the Moon or are doing this ritual before the occultation, you may like to burn a dark-coloured candle while you meditate or draw patterns on paper for around an hour. Use purples, blues and deep greens and let the colours flow into a dreamscape of circles, spirals, clouds, moons and stars. The image is not meant to be of anything, but the feel movements may reveal something to you later. Extinguish the candle when you are finished drawing.

Close your ritual by thanking the energies you have connected with and inviting them to be with you in sleep over the following three nights. After those three nights, consider how you can balance your intuitive, emotional and spiritual insights with life’s practical demands. Set out a new routine with the blessing of your magical self.