Henry Seltzer – The astrology of May features Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Pluto. There is quite a bit of emphasis on Neptune in the April 18th New Moon that began the current monthly cycle, with Jupiter also emphasized, being across the zodiac from most of the other planets, in aspect to Pluto, and in a T-square with the Sun and Moon at the time of the May 3rd Full Moon configuration. Later in the month, Mercury turns to backward motion in its own sign of Gemini. This means that that after May 18th we will have all the usual symptoms of the Mercury Retrograde periods, in Air signs all this year, to include missed communications, mechanical breakdowns and plans that go awry without warning. Mercury turns to direct motion on June 11th, still in Gemini, and does not escape its retrograde shadow until the 26th. This second half of May thus represents an excellent time for some constructive introspection, and for journaling or other activities designed to put us into a more complete understanding of our current arc of development, as well as how to give this important inwardly-oriented task a boost where needed.

The transformative energies of Pluto are also still very much with us, even while this month sees a temporary retreat from the recent series of close collisions with Uranus. At the timing of the recent mid-April New Moon, a yod was formed from Neptune and Pluto to positive and expansive Jupiter, bringing a definite sense of serious productive change to the way we see our faith blossoming into a beneficial future for ourselves. There is a strong dose of idealism present in this aspect pattern, and as well the danger of seeing the world as not perfect enough, something to escape, rather than to inhabit. The truth is that the world is what we make of it, meaning that we need not be discouraged when it does not match our naïve vision, but only when we do not live up to our own intention to make the best out of any and all circumstances. Continue reading →