2021 - An Astrological Preview of the Year to Come
As we close what has been called by many ‘the most difficult year of our lifetime’, most of us find ourselves asking the same question - What’s next? How do we prepare for a new year with hope after what we have lived through in 2020?
When I feel anxious about the future, I turn to astrology for guidance, so I’ve compiled a few massive transits to look for in the year to come. I’ll be giving my two cents on how we may see these things manifest - and spoiler alert - it doesn’t get worse! Now let’s jump in ✨
The backdrop of 2021 is defined by strong and consistent Aquarius energy from start to end. On December 21st of 2020 we experienced the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in Aquarius, marking a new era of Air signs that will carry us for the next 200 years. It closed a chapter of the Earth element, moving the collective from what is tangible, profitable and structural, to something much more free, rebellious and digital!
While this conjunction went exact at the end of 2020, the two planets remain conjunct until early March of 2021, and will share space in the sign of Aquarius for the majority of the calendar year. Even our Mercury retrogrades in 2021 are taking place exclusively in air signs! This emphasis on the progressive sign of humanitarian effort, rebellion, and technology will set the tone for us as a collective in the year to come.
There are a lot of exciting and different things about this movement toward air, but there is a sense of destabilization and change that come with it that may be jarring for us. We are going to see even more things going digital in the next year (and beyond). What businesses experienced in 2020 pushed them to revolutionize the way they participate in the Global economic sphere. It’s safe to say we may see less in-office jobs, a rise in computer based platforms and technology, and a big push towards a digital world.
Outside of this, the air element is much less tied down to structures, and more concerned about philosophy and the intellectual sphere. This means we may see a push away from compliance to systems, and a step towards overthrowing them. One major reoccurring alignment that backs this in 2021 is Saturn in Aquarius square Uranus in Taurus.
This aspect goes exact three times this year - February 17th, June 14th, and December 24th - but stays in aspect for the entirety of 2021. In astrology. Saturn represents authoritative structures such as our governments, while Uranus represents rebellion, change and destabilization. With these two making a hard aspect, I see a bit of a revolutionary tone weaved through the blueprint of this year.
In 2020, we got a taste of this aspect when Saturn briefly moved into Aquarius, loosely squaring Uranus through late Spring/early Summer. During this transit we saw two very different ends of protest - first against lockdowns and mask mandates, and then on a much larger scale against systemic racism and corrupt police. Because of this, it’s likely we will see these themes play a part in the year to come.
Another analysis of this Saturn/Uranus square has to do with the themes of the signs they’re housed in during this transit. Uranus in Taurus is normally connected to themes of food, shelter, money and earth, while Saturn in Aquarius is connected to themes of technological progress, social movements and revolt. This relationship between the two of them could manifest in many ways - a complete overhaul of our banking systems, housing crashes, a focus on the climate crisis and technological progress towards solving it, or mass food shortages which will all spark a massive movement towards systemic change at a foundational level.
In addition to Uranus squaring Saturn, we also have Uranus squaring Jupiter, going exact for one day (January 17th). this adds an expansive element to Uranus that multiplies the changes and revolts taking place and carries them farther that ever before. Uranus (liberation/revolt) and Jupiter (expansion) formed a square on the day the Emancipation Proclamation was signed!
Inauguration day (Jan 20th) has some incredibly threatening astrology, so it’s safe to say there will be some kind of chaos surrounding Biden’s shift into presidential power - even if it is just behind the scenes. I wouldn’t be surprised if protests broke out from the alt-right, making the safety of President Biden a forefront of conversation and worry.
Adding to the Aquarian emphasis 2021 seems to have, be prepared for the pile up of SIX planets in the sign on February 10th. With this happening right after Biden’s inauguration, this emphasis could manifest as a mix of progressive policy being passed, Trump policies being thrown out, and protests bringing overall social unrest. This pile up will be squaring Uranus and Mars in Taurus. This aspect speaks of major disruption, and asks “What steps do we need to take to make this change?”.
Also coming up in the beginning of the year, Mercury stations retrograde in Aquarius, making three squares to Mars in Taurus over a 2.5 month span. When communicative Mercury squares off with explosive and fast paced Mars, it can bring bouts of angry arguments and a “let’s get to the point” manor of problem solving. This paired with the confusion of a Mercury retrograde, be prepared to face some puzzling yet heated arguments.
In April, there will be a Sun, Mercury, Venus, Uranus stellium on the Day of the Scorpio Full Moon that majorly activates fixed signs for the second time in 2021. This stellium will be opposing the Moon in Scorpio, and squaring Saturn in Aquarius, thus forming a T-Square. The moon is also in mutual reception with Mars in Cancer during this lunation, offsetting the aggressive nature of the T-Square. This mix of energies creates this feeling of intense emotional buildup that explodes into laughter. We can balance this energy by leaning into the Leo in our charts. Check the houses ruled by the fixed signs in your natal chart to find out what areas in your life to be mindful of this lunation.
One of the notable high points of the astrological year ahead occurs May 13th when Jupiter dips into Pisces for two months before retrograding back into Aquarius on July 28th. Jupiter traditionally rules Pisces, making this a much more positive and joyous time than Jupiter’s previous home in Aquarius. This time will give us a sneak peak of what 2022 might look like when Jupiter ingresses into Pisces for the whole year.
With Jupiter Ruling travel, we may see COVID related travel bans lift during this time, or even just see the ropes loosened in regards to travel in general. With this transit being short and followed by Jupiter’s trip back into Aquarius until December 2021, I see whatever restrictions that were lifted being reversed again in the late summer until early 2022 when Jupiter enters Pisces for good.
On May 26th, we will witness a Sagittarius lunar eclipse that we close up a 6 month story that opened during the December 2020 eclipse season, so refer to that time to better understand some major themes we could see pop up. The Solar Eclipse in Sagittarius that we saw December 14th, 2020 marked the first COVID vaccine being given in the USA, as well as the official electoral college vote that dismantled the Trump Presidency for good. With this May 26th eclipse being in Sagittarius and the ruler of the eclipse being in its domicile, it will bring Jupiter’s ingress into Pisces to the forefront, highlighting the topic of travel. Right after the eclipse, Mercury retrogrades in Gemini, squaring Neptune, indicating that we were given a sense of false hope or that we missed a detail that will set us back until Jupiter moves back into Pisces in late December 2021.
On June 10th, there will be a Gemini Solar Eclipse that will sit conjunct Mercury and square Neptune. This gives the vibe of major misinformation, unclear communication and over all confusion for this event. We may notice more contradictory news headlines or new alt-right conspiracy theories arise around this time. Some of these miscommunications will be cleared up when Mercury stations direct at the end of the month.
In August we will have Venus in its domicile unaflicted by malefics for the first time in a few years, and instead is forming beautiful trines to Saturn and Jupiter in Aquarius. This energy feels like a coming to agreement of sorts and is one of the more positive and helpful transits of the year. This energy, however, is squashed in September when venus moves into Scorpio as if to say, “all bets are off!” In October we will have a culmination of planets in Libra (Sun, Mars, Mercury, New Moon) that will trine Saturn and Jupiter in Aquarius. This is a helpful aspect for restructuring old agreements to make them work better for everyone!
In November, we will have an eclipse in Taurus, giving us a sneak peak of some themes we may see pop up when the nodes shift into Taurus and Scorpio in 2021! The energy feels especially volatile for this eclipse - Mars in Scorpio opposing Uranus in Taurus (unfair fights, aggressive revolt, chaos, upheaval).
On December 4th, we will see our final eclipse on the Sagittarius/Gemini axis, closing a chapter in the themes of travel, truth, ideology and information and moving towards a focus on our finances/financial systems (this will be a huge theme in 2022 - especially for the US).
We close the year on a high point, with Jupiter’s ingress into Pisces where he is to stay through 2022. This transit feels like a breath of fresh air and will be incredibly helpful to you when it comes to the house Pisces Rules in your chart!
Overall, 2021 is a year of serious rebuild. While it is much less chaotic and painful than 2020, it’s clear that social unrest and major restriction are themes that we can expect to see as we shift to this Aquarian centered year. We aren’t going back to brunch in 2021 - that’s for sure - but it feels super hopeful when it comes to real change and forward progress into a more people-centered world.