Synastry — the comparative analysis of two or more horoscopes to illuminate the dynamics of relationship — occupies a distinctive and theoretically rich position within the depth-psychological astrology corpus. Liz Greene's 1976 Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil remains the foundational text for psychologically inflected synastry, devoting an entire chapter to the subject under that very heading. Greene's central argument is that the apparent conscious choice of partners is neither conscious nor truly chosen: the unconscious projects its own contents — shadow, anima, animus — onto the other, and the inter-chart contacts describe precisely these projective mechanisms. Saturn contacts, in particular, are read as expressions of the law of psychic compensation: those persons most internally unbalanced attract the most Saturnian friction, unconsciously using the other to build what they fear building within themselves. The cross-aspects between Saturn and the outer planets (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) and the personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mars, Venus) are each examined for their capacity to either constrict or structurally reorganize the inner life of both parties. A recurring tension in the corpus is the degree to which synastric contacts remain unconscious projections versus becoming vehicles for genuine individuation. Greene insists that consciousness must be brought to these contacts if their integrative potential is to be realized rather than destructively enacted.
These cross-aspects hinder or stabilise the urges of each person and as such are extremely common in close relationships because for the majority of people relationships are fields for the development of the personality.
Greene establishes synastric cross-aspects as structural features of the relational field, arguing that inter-chart contacts function developmentally by impeding or stabilizing each person's psychological urges.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976thesis
This same association also holds true in synastry where the power of the archetype, stripped of any personal feeling, is perceived by another person through the medium of a very vulnerable Saturn.
Greene argues that in synastry Saturn-Pluto contacts operate archetypally rather than personally, making the Saturnian person acutely vulnerable to the transformative energies carried by the other.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976thesis
The underlying impetus in the majority of relationships lies not with the apparent conscious choice of partners, which is neither conscious nor a choice, but with the more ambiguous purposes of the unconscious.
Greene grounds synastric interpretation in analytical psychology, asserting that partner selection is driven by unconscious projection rather than conscious will.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976thesis
Saturn expresses his energy of either constriction or a sense of discipline and responsibility to the house where Uranus is placed and the house which he rules.
Greene delineates how Saturn-Uranus synastric contacts operate both on the mundane plane of house themes and on the deeper inner plane of structural psychological reorganization.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
Those men and women who have the least developed defenses and the greatest inner imbalance tend to attract the greatest frequency of relationships where there are difficult Saturnian contacts.
Greene applies the law of psychic compensation to synastry, showing that internal psychological deficit correlates with the frequency and intensity of Saturnian inter-chart contacts.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
What he sees as coldness, criticism, and rejection in the other person is merely the outward display of the same kind of terror of being hurt or proven inadequate that he himself is feeling.
Greene analyzes Saturn-Saturn synastric contacts as a hall-of-mirrors projection in which each partner misreads the other's defensive behavior as external attack rather than recognizing it as a reflection of shared vulnerability.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
The shadow as well as being the dark or destructive side of the personality is also the helpful hidden brother and cannot be ignored or abandoned because these two brothers together make one life.
Greene interprets Sun-Saturn synastric bonds through the alchemical metaphor of gold contained within lead, arguing that mutual dependency in such contacts reflects an unconscious complementarity of shadow and ego.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
If consciousness is brought to the relationship, it can be an excellent partnership; even if left unconscious, it will be highly productive even though painful.
Greene articulates a central therapeutic principle for synastric work: the difference between a productive and a destructive Saturn-Uranus contact lies entirely in the degree of consciousness each partner brings to it.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
The moment a projection becomes conscious, it ceases to be a projection; and the individual who becomes aware that the threat lies not in the other person but in his own shadow is free of the unusual compelling quality of this contact.
Greene identifies the mechanism by which synastric Mars-Saturn compulsion is dissolved: consciousness of projection liberates both parties from the unconscious choreography of attraction and disarming.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
There is frequently a tie of financial obligation involved with Venus-Saturn contacts which binds two people long after the affection has ceased to exist.
Greene extends synastric Saturn-Venus analysis to the material plane, noting that financial entanglement often persists as a concrete residue of the emotional bond these contacts initially create.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
When a Mars-Saturn contact occurs in situations where no sexual association is involved, such as a parent-child relationship, the inferences of unconscious undercurrents are nevertheless still sexual in nature.
Greene argues that Mars-Saturn synastric contacts carry an inherently erotic charge even in non-romantic contexts such as parent-child dynamics, grounding this in the broadest Jungian understanding of sexuality.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
Neptune can inflict very deep hurt on a person who has not come to terms with his Saturn for the man will then be extremely vulnerable on his dark side.
Greene analyzes Saturn-Neptune synastric contacts as particularly wounding for the Saturnian party, whose rigid conscious attitude renders the shadow-side acutely exposed to Neptunian dissolution.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
Although Saturn-Pluto contacts are not personal, they often accompany intense emotional effects such as rage, impotence, jealousy, and frustration.
Greene characterizes Saturn-Pluto synastric contacts as collective-archetypal rather than personal, yet notes their capacity to generate intense, destabilizing emotional experiences in the individuals involved.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976supporting
For many people the energies of Uranus are too fine to be utilised, and so he has the reputation of being either a dumb note or a malefic.
Greene contextualizes the Uranian end of Saturn-Uranus synastric contacts by explaining that Uranus's intuitive energies are inaccessible to those centered in feeling or body, a precondition relevant to how such inter-chart contacts are experienced.
, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, 1976aside
SYNASTRY Penny Thornton
A bibliographic citation in Sasportas's series introduction establishes that Synastry was recognized as a distinct and publishable sub-discipline within the Aquarian Astrology Handbook series, confirming its institutional standing in the corpus.
, The Twelve Houses: An Introduction to the Houses in Astrological Interpretation, 1985aside