The Planets
beyond Saturn's orbit
23.1
page 1 of 12
A first general exploration
Leaving the personal field
In previous texts we got acquainted with the Moon and Saturn as the stewards of the personal field: The Moon enwrapping the Earth and Man, standing in the center of our soul field (22.12), while Saturn stands at the periphery, sealing off this field. Somewhere within this field dwells the Self. (22.20)
When we now turn to the planets beyond Saturn's orbit, we enter into a realm situated above or below this personal field, the realm of the Self. Because of our relative unfamiliarity with the Self (17.1), it seems like a good idea to take a closer look at that Self and its ‘outfield’ beyond Saturn.
The human factor
As we have seen before, the nature of Saturn’s boundary is different from that of the Moon (19.1). Saturn does not only contain the Earth and Man (as does the Moon), but also delimits the whole field of the classical planets, sealing it off from outside forces. While the Moon runs her rapid laps around the Earth in a physical sense, realizing a boundary by her orbit itself, Saturn’s border function is merely the result of our limited human eyesight. The Saturnian border is not an astronomical fact, like the Moon’s satellite position, but related to a biological, human (in)capacity. In other words, the nature of this border cannot be derived from an objective given, as in the case of the Moon with its protective, semi-permeable membrane that selectively either lets through or obstructs (22.9). The Saturnian boundary refers to a barrier that is only experienced as such by humans. Logically, this assumed boundary can only manifest itself within the realm of human experience (more about that later).
Functional boundary
So the Saturnian boundary exists within the imagination of its observer. Nevertheless, although there is no objective ground for it, within the human context this boundary is still functional. (16.1) By setting a boundary, the proprietor determines his own personal reach and tensional potency. With this, he names his Self-identification and delineates what for him is the non-Self at the same time (19.1). In establishing this boundary, the proprietor makes himself known and names all that he wants to acknowledge. All that is beyond that, remains unknown to him, or unacceptable to him. Our individual will is a significant factor in this.
Obviously, once the Saturnian Self has been able to collect itself into a point and is willing to take an impersonal stand (13.8), its boundary can be crossed after all (3.1). But for this to happen, it does have to find a new relationship to itself and to the reality of the non-Self (16.2).
Border consciousness
However, as long as the Self maintains its border control in an unyielding way, the forces in the realm of the non-Self will appear as (for the Self) uncontrollable factors. From that position, they can only function as opponents to the Self: they have been placed by the Self on the other side, the opposite side. From there, they can reveal themselves to us in two ways: either in a gigantesque, magnified form of one of the classical planets known to the Self, or in an inside-out form, as the occult version of one of those classical planets. There is a shift in the Self’s position relative to both forms expression of the non-Self: the Self is not really sidelined, but it is confronted with a polar reversal of the balance of power (17.3).
Boundary and identity
In the case of the planets beyond Saturn’s orbit, we are dealing with something out there that lives beyond our territorial border. Since the Self is setting and controlling its own boundary, using its own power (*), this transition is all about our deeper identity versus our self-assumed, self-defined, provisional view of ourselves. This question of our self-identity is presented to us by means of the planets beyond Saturn’s orbit, coming at us from that ‘outfield’.
If we want to get more insight in the relationship between the small Self’s view of reality and the uncontrollable reality beyond it, we are thinking in more than one dimension at a time. Therefore it seems sensible to see first (as we did before in texts 17 and 20) what insights other fields of knowledge have in store for us.
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