Saturn, the master timekeeper of the zodiac, arrives in Aries on February 13, 2026, not only pointing us towards a new hour, but a new cycle. Aries is the first sign of the zodiac. If Saturn brings lessons in growth and maturity, then in Aries we stand on our own two feet.
Think back to when you were younger and those moments you had to learn something the hard way. Or, when you really pushed yourself to take on a greater role of responsibility. Or, when responsibility was thrust upon you and you had no one to count on except yourself.
Saturn represents the process of growing older and, hopefully, growing wiser by learning by our mistakes and reaching for a better version of ourselves. Maturity isn’t handed to us. Sure, we may have more wrinkles, maybe some gray hairs, but true maturity is something we need to find within ourselves. (Watch my Facing Saturn: Learn to Master Your Life webinar.)
That said, Saturn is also time. It marks different hours and different chapters, taking 29 years to go through the zodiac and spending 2-3 years in each zodiac sign. When Saturn changes signs, it’s a big deal because the cosmic clock points towards a new collective hour. Further, based on our own astrology, Saturn points us towards a new area of our lives. It’s a shift in priorities. (Read Saturn in Aries: Sign by Sign.)
With Saturn now in Aries, we begin a chapter that will take us until April 2028. Saturn — time and maturity, lessons and responsibility — joins forces with a sign that’s about new beginnings, taking action, finding courage, individuality, and leadership.
In Aries, Saturn will teach us deep lessons about:
- Self reliance versus being overly self reliant
- Individuality versus individualism
- Accountability
- Personal responsibility
- Accepting our incarnation
- Power, control, and the karma of Mars
- Authoritarianism
- Boundaries
- A demand for better leadership
- Learning to ask for help
- Learning to listen to others
- The power of negotiation
You may have noticed that some of these points lean into Libra, the sign opposite of Aries. That’s because, traditionally speaking, Saturn is in its “fall” in Aries, which means that Saturn doesn’t do its best work in Aries. But Saturn does do its best work in Libra, the sign of its “exaltation“.
Saturn isn’t in Libra, but Libra has medicine for Saturn in Aries — and medicine for us. Over the next two years we will need to learn to temper our Aries individualism with aid from others. Libra reminds Saturn in Aries that no man is an island. We cannot do life alone.
Let’s not forget that we had a preview of Saturn in Aries from May 24 to September 1, 2025. Our experiences in 2026 through early 2028 may have its roots during that time.
The Saturn Return in Aries
If you were born between April 1996 and March 1999 or March 1967 and April 1969, you were born with Saturn in Aries and it is your first or second Saturn Return. (Read The Saturn Return.)
Age 28-30 is the first Saturn Return, a transformative 2-3 year period as well as rite of passage where we get handed the proverbial contract of life. Saturn says sign and we do. Depending on where Saturn is in our astrology and how it is aspected, we can get a picture of the framework we will be learning and growing by for the rest of our lives.
Sometimes pivotal life events happen during the Saturn Return. We get married. We get sober. We change careers. We have a major breakup that sends us in a new direction. These are just examples.
The second Saturn Return is when these core life lessons and priorities come back to the forefront. What have we learned? Have we missed the mark? It can be a stepping into a major role that we have spent the last 30 years working towards. Or, it can be a major recalibration that gets us back on track. Whatever we experience during the second Saturn Return has its roots in the first Return.
Note that you are in the Saturn Return as long as Saturn is in Aries. Again, Saturn will not leave Aries until April 2028.
Saturn in Aries Key Dates
May 24, 2025 — Saturn in Aries
July 13, 2025 — Saturn Retrograde 1 Aries
September 1, 2025 — Saturn returns to Pisces
February 13, 2026 — Saturn in Aries
February 20, 2026 — Saturn-Neptune conjunction 0 Aries
July 26, 2026 — Saturn Retrograde 14 Aries
December 10, 2026 — Saturn Direct 7 Aries
August 9, 2027 — Saturn Retrograde 27 Aries
December 23, 2027 — Saturn Direct 21 Aries
April 13, 2028 — Saturn in Taurus
Read More:
Webinar: Saturn in Aries (2025-2028)
Webinar: Facing Saturn — Learn to Master Your Life
The Saturn Return
Saturn is Why I Became an Astrologer
In Defense of Saturn
Saturn in Pisces: The Look Within
Saturn in Pisces: Sign by Sign
Photo by Tom Morbey on Unsplash
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