Saturn

The farthest out of all the visible planets, as such it marks the boundary of our personal solar system. Saturn has a mysterious quality about it with its beautiful ring formations. To the Greeks he was Kronos, Lord of Time. He also rules karma, and his influence is the 'Ring Pass Not', (symbolised by its rings), it both contains and protects our psyche. They are akin to a container, which restricts the soul's movement until it has grown fully and understood that lesson. The knot is then loosened.

Recently a whole new ring system was discovered around Saturn. Esoterically this symbolises a quantum shift in human understanding of the world of form, and a pushing back of the boundaries of human potential and understanding of the natural universe we live in.

Saturn is often perceived as being a rather dark influence, one which is difficult. Really it identifies the material plane, with its structure and form. Keywords are contraction, consolidation, crystalisation and time. It is associated with the spleen.

Qabbalisitcally Saturn sits at Binah, beyond the veil, one of the supernals. As such it represents the feminine archetype and the gateway to higher consciousness.

Lead is the metal associated with Saturn. Of the 92 elements foundin nature, lead is number 82. All the elements beyond this point are radioactive, ie unstable, and ultimately all will decay into lead. In some ways the transmutation of lead into gold is an allegory for our personal journey from Saturn to the Sun, or allowing the light of Sol to illumine and inform the physical plane in which we live and operate.

Literally speaking, create the Kingdom of Heaven [the realm of light]
upon the Earth [the realm of form].