Slow and Steady Wins the Race

This is the tenth part of my essay series “Inner Work with the Planets”. If you haven’t read the earlier parts yet, I suggest you start with part 1 to get the most out of this essay.

Still being somewhat drenched by all the showers of Jovial abundance, today we continue our ascent through the planetary spheres. With Jupiter shrinking to a distant ball of bright-white light behind us, we once more take a deep breath, and slowly continue working our way upwards towards the next (and last) planet which, alas, is still some distance away.

While we tackle this climb one patient step after the other, let’s use the time we have together to continue our discussion from last time, shall we? 🙂

As you might remember, at the end of the last essay we were pondering fate and karma, and how they relate to the Hermetic notion of the planetary influences on our lives.

Fate, as in things which are predestined for you, and which your current “you” doesn’t have any influence on – and which are at least to some extent represented in the planetary coins you picked up during your descent into incarnation, as expressed by your birth chart. And karma, as in the consequences of your own actions, and how they play out in your life.

But if it’s not the current you, i.e. your personality in this life, then who decided which coins you picked up? After all, throughout this series, I’ve been saying “you” picked up these coins on your descent.

Well, that’s a really good question! Before we can attempt to answer it, though, we need to disentangle some terms, and also answer some other questions which it raises in turn…

Let’s tackle the terminology first, to put everything else on solid ground. 😉

Throughout this series, I’ve been using the term “you” without ever defining what I mean by it. Now, you might be inclined to think there isn’t much to define there anyway, and maybe I’m just being a bit contentious today.

In a practical sense, you’d be right, of course: You is you, and we both know who I mean with this term.

(Or rather, you know for sure – I’m writing for an audience at large, even if I address each reader directly through stylistic means. Still, we both “know” what and whom I mean by this term, even if I should have no idea who you are. Well, this is getting somewhat convoluted, isn’t it? 😀 )

Anyway. One point I have elegantly danced around so far is the idea that there are different levels, layers or parts of “you”. By this, I don’t mean your body parts, of course, but various layers which are all present and active at the same time and the same place. Broadly speaking, these layers can be split up into two parts:

There are the layers which belong to your current incarnation: Your body and energy body, your personality, emotions, thoughts, habits, etc. And there are the layers of you which will not die or stay behind when you leave this life: your divine aspects, your spirit, etc.

For the purpose of these essays, I’m not going to wade into the muddy depths of the finer distinctions – especially as all the relevant terms can have a ton of different meanings and interpretations. E.g. is your “soul” part of your immortal being, or does the term denote something else entirely and refers to some (very mortal) aspects of who you currently are in this incarnation?

Instead of sorting out all these terms one by one, coming up with waterproof definitions, and then getting into arguments about which terms means what anyway, I propose we simply agree that there are elements of you which are tied to your current life, and elements which are beyond incarnations, so to speak – the latter being parts of you which are eternal or at least exist for a very long time, and transcend this particular earthly life of yours.

(Of course, if you should be a die-hard material atheist, you’d probably insist that the latter doesn’t exist at all. To which I’d reply: Fair enough, and to each their own!

Still, since you are obviously reading this essay series, you should be aware that I presume us humans have such parts which exist independently of our current existences as “you” and “me” – and that this essay series is drawing on this assumption. Since I’m not going to enter any discussions about whether this idea is “true” or not, I suggest you simply adopt it as a working hypothesis during your read to get the most out of these essays…)

To keep things simple (and readable!), I’ll continue to use “you” and related terms wherever the distinction doesn’t matter, or when it’s clear enough who I’m talking about. Wherever I explicitly refer to the parts of you which are tied to this particular life or incarnation on earth, I’ll use terms which should be clear, like “current you” or “your current personality”. And wherever I refer to these immortal or divine parts of your being, I’ll call them such, or use a term like “your divine spirit” or “divine spark”.

Again, I’m not too set on the fine definitions of the terms in the context of these essay, and will thus mix’n’match them as I see fit. The important distinction is between “is it only a part of this life” and “does it transcend this life; has it existed beforehand and will continue to exist afterwards”.

Well. [wipes sweat from brow] We’ve clarified the terms, to the extent they need clarifying. However, all this talk about your current you vs. your divine parts raises the question: From a Hermetic point of view, is this your only life?

I mean, if there are parts of you which endure, why should they not reincarnate again? And again, and again, and … Well, you get the idea. 😉

Of course, I can’t give a comprehensive, reliable, “true” answer to this question. Nobody can, or rather: no human being. We can all state what we believe to be true with regards to reincarnation, or what our religion teaches, or what our society believes in.

But which of these beliefs is “true”, that’s beyond us to determine, at least as long as we are incarnate in our earthly lives.

(There is a fine irony to this point, which you’ve probably noted. However, it also means this is one of the issues in life where any heated arguments are pointless. As soon as “belief” is part of the equation, there is no absolute right or wrong, at least none we as humans could determine.

Thus the best we could do, at least in my opinion, is to accept that beliefs are personal, and to leave it at that. Of course, this would rob humanity of a large chunk of its opportunities for war, strife, and discord, and is thus not likely to happen…)

Since we can’t conclusively settle the issue of reincarnation-or-not, let’s have a look at what the Hermetica have to say about it, shall we? After all, its their ideas which inspired this essay series!

Thankfully, this can be summed up rather succinctly: There are various passages within the Hermetica which either hint at or spell out explicitly the idea that after our very first descent into matter (aka material incarnation), our divine spirits will keep on incarnating in different human lives until we have finally learned the lessons we need to learn from our dual nature as both material and divine beings. After having thus succeeded, we’ll ascend back to the divine again. This ascent is the main point of hermeticism, after all.

Oh, and there is a twist to the Hermetic concept of reincarnation, too: fail all too spectacularly as a human, and you might even find yourself being reborn within the animal kingdom, just to make sure the lessons really stick… 😉

Having cleared all this up, let’s return to the topic at hand, namely fate and karma, while we continue the long and arduous climb up to the next planet – slowly and steadily, so that we won’t run out of steam.

Assuming there is something to the idea of reincarnation… what would this mean for fate and karma? In particular, how would or could this affect fate and karma across lives?

Before we continue, I’d like to stress that the Hermetica can certainly be understood in different ways (as the different existing interpretations prove). The following is my personal interpretation of the Hermetic teachings – I don’t claim it to be the infallible and only Truth™!

Considering what we discussed last time, your actions in each incarnation cause a certain amount of karma. Some of this “good” karma (i.e. with pleasant effects), some “bad” (with unpleasant effects). However, not all of this karma might be able to be resolved in that particular lifetime of yours. And this is where things get muddy…

So let’s say you’ve got some karma left over to resolve from a previous lifetime, which could well play out in this one. Then one possible way for this karma to play out would be through the planetary coins you picked up before this current lifetime, right?

More specifically, your divine part might deliberately have picked some specific coins which would allow you to experience certain specific lessons during this lifetime – at the very least to resolve said leftover karma, but ideally also to learn from these lessons and be able to move on to others.

Thus what would be “fate” (= predestined stuff you don’t have any influence on) from the point of you view of your current personality and life, might be “karma” (= consequences of prior actions) from the point of view of your divine, everlasting part.

Would this explain all of fate and karma? Maybe, maybe not – again, we don’t have any way of knowing for sure while we’re down here on earth.

(And just to be clear, this isn’t spelled out as such in the Hermetica, but is an idea I find worth considering to deal more productively with one’s own planetary coins.)

But what we can do is try this perspective on for size, and see what we could gain from it. 🙂

Let’s say, for example, you’ve ended up with some really bothersome planetary coins in your soul’s pockets. Some hot-headed Martian agressiveness, for example. Or a high-strung Mercurian mind which will never shut up. Or some over-powered Solar sense of ego and of your own importance. Whatever they might be, these coins sure keep getting you into difficulties!

Thus whatever personal vices you might have identified during the past few essays… instead of being annoyed about them, how about you view them through this lense of karma and fate instead?

Maybe your over-inflated ego is there for a reason, as you have some important lessons to learn related to it: How to keep it in check, say, without becoming a doormat.

Does this make some of your more annoying traits any less of a bother? Not really – you’ll still need to find a way to turn them into planetary virtues. But it gives you an angle to view them from which might just help you in this endeavour…

We’ll leave it at that for today, at least as far as fate and karma are concerned, but I hope I’ve given you some food for thought! 🙂

And now, finally… after a slow and grinding climb up to the next planet’s sphere, and after you’ve been showing commendable restraint, self-discipline and patience in reading my musings about fate and karma… let’s enter the sphere of the planet which rules over exactly these things!

Nope, not over fate and karma (although that, too, in some specific way) – but over slowness, perseverance, restraint and patience… 😉

Saturn, ’cause that’s the planet whose sphere we’ve entered with glacial speed today, is the outermost of the seven classical planets, and thus the last one we’re visiting on our journey up the planetary ladder.

As has become a habit by now, in order to get an idea of the nature of the planet, we take a peek up at the sky first:

Up there, Saturn is not that hard to spot – once you know what you’re looking for. He doesn’t stand out through striking brightness like Venus or Jupiter, the Lesser and Greater Benefic. He also doesn’t impress with his Martial red shine, like the Lesser Malefic. He also isn’t as elusive and changeable as Mercury. Instead, Saturn appears in a brownish, steady, almost dull tone.

This dullness is deceiving, though. After all, Saturn is still bright enough to stand out clearly among the many stars. But his shine is neither frivolous nor enticing, neither aggressive nor in-your-face.

Saturn is a matter-of-fact brown up there. Compared to the other planets, it almost seems as if he had passed the most shining of his years a long time ago, and this brown is what is left over after a long and arduous life.

(Admittedly, I might be exaggerating a wee bit here. But why don’t you go look up at him yourself and see what your own impression is!)

And then there is his speed on the sky to consider. Compared to the other planets, Saturn is sloooow. To circle around the heavens just once, through all the signs until he is back at his current place in the sky, takes him almost 30 years.

(Or, in other words: If you should spot Saturn somewhere up there in a certain constellation, treasure the view. You won’t get that many more chances to see him in this exact spot during your human lifetime!)

Just like the other planets did, he gracefully grants us some clues about his nature through his physical appearance up in the sky:

Saturn is slow and patient. Waiting isn’t a problem for him – but moving fast is. He moves along in steady, small, and precise steps. All these things can be a virtue in your life where they are called for – or a massive hindrance.

His slowness and diligence make him patient, and give him restraint. Again, both of these coins can be vices and virtues, and sometimes both at the same time…

As the outermost of the planets, he is the farthest away from earth and from our life, giving him a detached quality, and an emotionless, ice-cold precision. Apply it in a situation where you need to make an emotionless, clear-cut decision, and you’ve used Saturn’s coin to your advantage. Apply it in a situation where empathy is called for, or a compromise, and, well… you can imagine the outcome.

Due to his willingness to pursue his goals patiently, steadily, and for however long it takes, Saturn’s coins also include perseverance and diligence. Again, all these are vices as well as virtues:

Sometimes it’s important to persevere, diligently, with a task. And at other times you’d be much better off changing course, being flexible, or throwing yourself into the matter with all you have, instead of chipping away at it in small increments.

As the furthest away from everyday life on earth, he is also the one “above things”, so to speak. Wisdom and knowledge come naturally with this high-vantage position.

(And in case you might wonder about the downsides of these coins: Detached wisdom is nice and well… until you encounter one of the very many mundane and very human demands of life, like dealing with sick pets, changing diapers, or having to prepare dinner or to console a grieving friend. 😉 )

His position at the outer edge of the planetary spheres and his specific traits also relate Saturn to old age and to death, as well as to endings of all sorts. Where the Moon represents birth and beginnings, Saturn brings things to a final end – the other side of fertility, as the resulting dead matter can then become the soil on which new things grow.

Based on this it won’t be a big surprise to you that the slow, reliable passing of time, second by second, is a very Saturnian thing, too!

But being at the very outer edge also means being at the limit – and having to set hard limits in order to keep things where they belong.

And while limits bring with them, well, limitations, they are also thrusting blocks and offer chances. Where Jupiter would keep on ever-expanding, Saturn is the one to decide firmly and rigidly that nope, here is the limit – so far and no further. He has to do that, after all, or there wouldn’t be any planetary spheres, only vast space…

It’s easy to understand, then, why Saturn is classically called the “Greater Malefic” – after all, who enjoys dealing with age, sickness, limitations, and endings? But then there are occasions where an end to a story is just what you long for. Saturn can help bring such an end to pass, although he won’t do it swiftly.

In short, ice-cold, slow and grim Saturn demands a lot. Get caught in his vices, and you’ll end up as a slow-turning, mechanical clockwork – strive for his virtues, and you’ll gain patience, perseverance, restraint, diligence and accuracy from him.

Saturn’s coins aren’t fun, but they are an important part of human life. Without them, many things would never come to an end – either to be done and over with, or to build the soil on which something new can grow.

Now, a bit further up I wrote that in some specific way, Saturn is related to fate and karma, and by now you might be able to imagine what I meant:

Emotionless Saturn will judge your actions by their merits, and will dole his consequences out to you in return. And while his rewards will not always be enjoyable (or rather: to Saturn, it doesn’t matter whether they are enjoyable!), they will always be fair. Reap what you sow… and Saturn is the one who judges the harvest at the very end.

The connection to karma is obvious, isn’t it? 🙂

Thus while we’re in his sphere, I’d encourage you to take some time to reflect not just on the Greater Malefic, his vices and virtues, and how they manifest in your life – but also to ponder if karma might have an effect on your life. And as usual, feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, insights, questions… with us in the comments!

Next time, we’ll step out of Saturn’s sphere into… well, let’s apply some Saturnian restraint and keep that a secret for now, shall we? 😉

The next essay will go up in two weeks, as usual (on Sunday June 15th, in other words). See you then! 🙂

---

Image: Stephanie LeBlanc on Unsplash