*This is for the Sidereal Zodiac, not your Western tropical sign; click here to find out your sidereal chart. Read this from either your lagna (ascendant) signs or your moon signs.
*Lahiri ayanamsha; Mean Node; EST Time zone.
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© 2018-2028 Hindustan Astrology, All Rights Reserved
By Katya Faris, M.A.
This May 2020 is going to be an intense month with 4 planets retrograde and none of them are Mercury! We start off with Mars going into Aquarius, joining Neptune, which should make oil prices rise. Then we have the Full Flower Moon on the 7th in Libra, Vishaka, the “Star of Purpose”, and we’re all missing each other at the end of this quarantine. Then we have first Saturn on the 11th, then Venus and Jupiter both on the 14th going retrograde joining Pluto who already went retrograde last month on the 25th; these are heavy hitter planets, so this will especially felt by governments when the Sun enters Taurus and trines them on the 15th. We have the New Moon in Taurus, Krittika the “Star of Fire” on the 22nd; our healthcare workers are sad and worn out; conjunct Venus retrograde means that restaurants are getting back to work, so we must support everyone. On the 25th Mercury enters Gemini which is one of his signs, so our communications will improve, as well as our mental outlook. At the end of the month Venus starts her combustion with the Sun until she winds up on the other side to be the Morning Star around mid-June. There is a Kala Sarpa Yoga from the 11th to the 25th, so those days will be particularly intense.
May 4th-Mars Goes Into Aquarius
Mars the soldier is moving away from the party in Capricorn, and is now joining Neptune today in the sign of Aquarius. Even though Mars is the planet of action, and Aquarius rules the calves and ankles, you would think that this would be an excellent placement for dance. Actually, the way this energy pans out is in awkward motion; Aquarius is an oddball, and so people that have this placement are essentially uncoordinated with their legs/feet. Now, Mars is exalted in Capricorn, which is Saturn’s sign, and here in Saturn’s other sign of Aquarius it’s not such a bad placement. Here Mars can put his energy into activism, and political radicals often have this placement. The rebel and the revolutionary are seen here, so use this energy to break through to level up. Mars is giving his 4th aspect to Venus in Taurus today, so this will produce a lot of passion! May 1st is the Celtic holiday called Beltane when fertility of the fields was celebrated in hopes of a good harvest in the fall, and we can certainly still feel this pregnant energy today. Having Neptune conjunct Mars today will help to burn away some of the fog surrounding hidden issues, and also if you haven’t been exercising then today is a good day to get back on the wagon. Neptune is the planet of deception, and Mars is action, so we will hear about a lot of secrets regarding things the governments have withheld from us, as we have this Saturn/Jupiter/Pluto retrograde at Mars’ back right now.
May 7th, 6:44am-Full Flower Moon: 23 degrees Libra, Vishaka
Today’s Full Flower Moon takes place at 6:44am at 23 degrees of Libra in the nakshatra of Vishaka, which means “the forked shaped”. This nakshatra spans from 20 degrees of Libra to 3.2 of Scorpio. The symbol is the triumphal arch, or a potter’s wheel. The deity that rules this lunar mansion is Indragni, which are a pair of deities: Indra is the chief of the gods, and Agni is the fire deified. This is called “The Star of Purpose”, and the stars that rule this nakshatra are the four stars forming the scales in the constellation of Libra. Zuben El Genubi gives the ability to concentrate on goals and overcome obstacles; it is social and clever but can be unforgiving and vengeful, especially on the Scorpio side. The planet that rules Libra is Venus, and the planet that rules Vishaka is Jupiter. In Persian astrology the planets Mars and Saturn rule this portion of the constellation.
The mythology of Vishaka is about Indra, the king of the gods, who when combined with Agni, the god of fire, created the energy, strength and potential of this nakshatra. As “The Star of Purpose” suggests, people born with this prominent in their chart are goal-oriented, competitive, and are tenacious in achieving success. They are persistent and patient and can out-last many competitors; their ambition can lead to unpopularity as they push their opinions on others. They can become frustrated and angry if they don’t get what they want, and they see others having it; it’s best to use this warrior energy towards spiritual enlightenment and become the Spiritual Warrior. They have more success in the second half of life.
On this day of the May Full Flower Moon we have the Moon in Libra in Vishaka nakshatra isolated away from the other planets, and Mercury and Uranus are sitting with the Sun in Aries. Having the deity of Vishaka as Indragni means that this is an excellent time to do agnihotra, or fire therapy, for purification. This suggests that information will reveal itself at lightening speed; the Sun in Bharani nakshatra indicates that we are birthing a new world now that we are coming out of quarantine and things will be happening in a push-pull fashion. Bharani is “The Star of Restraint”, and Aries wants to go go go; Yama the god of death rules Bharani, and indeed we are dealing with a lot of death with the pandemic right now. Many in the healthcare industry are saying that they are feeling like they are fulfilling their life’s purpose, their dharma, with this pandemic, and having this Full Moon in the lunar mansion of “The Star of Purpose” highlights these sentiments, but having the Moon isolated and away from the other planets shows how lonely so many of them feel. We need to continue to reach out and show them how grateful we are they chose this path in life. Venus rules Libra and she is still in her sign of Taurus making the difficult 6/8 quincunx aspect to the Moon today; many truly do not feel loved or appreciated, so reach out to those who are alone now. Jupiter rules Vishaka and he is debilitated in Capricorn but slowing down as he will go retrograde on the 14th in a week. Jupiter here shows false hope, and what I fear is that having Pluto retrograde now shows that we will be seeing a backtracking of the virus; we will lose ground on it once the businesses open back up, but with so many out of work it really behooves us to start rolling out the openings. Jupiter is approaching Saturn, and this gives governments the upper hand; they will have the strength to deal with this crisis. On the 11th Saturn goes retrograde so he is slowing down, too; things may feel like they are standing still or we are going in slow motion on the one hand, yet things thrusting forward quickly on the other. Mars is now in Aquarius, but it is still Saturn’s sign so he does well here; sitting with Neptune this will give oil prices a boost, which will actually help the economy. We also may hear more about the NASA Mission to Mars during this transit; they have a rover there now so maybe we will get some data and pictures. Mars is giving his 4th aspect to Venus today, so this should be a passionate Full Moon! We don’t have any planets with Rahu or Ketu today, and that’s the first time in months; I feel this will take some of the intensity off.
May 9th-25th-Mercury Goes Into Taurus
Fast moving Mercury in the slow sign of the Bull means that our speech is slowed down now, which may be a good thing considering that he was a thousand miles a minute in Aries sitting with Uranus. Now Mercury is sitting with Venus, and they do well together; the Venusian influence will soften our speech and making it more loving. He will also be trining Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto retrograde; this means that our leaders will be communicating better, and also dark secrets concerning world power may be revealed during this time. Pay attention to the news, and especially to the obscure or hidden news; where there’s smoke there’s fire.
May 11th-25th-Kala Sarpa Yoga
The Moon will be between Sagittarius and Gemini between the 11th to the 25th of this month, and this is a Kala Sarpa Yoga, or a “time serpent connection”. This is when all of the planets are between Rahu and Ketu, and right now all of the major planets are there, and it is just the Moon going around that knocks us out of this yoga right now.
May 11th-Sept 29th-Saturn Goes Retrograde, 7 degrees Capricorn, Uttara Ashada
Well here we are again at Lord Shani’s yearly retrograde; he’s in retrograde for six months out of the year, and today marks the beginning of his sojourn for 2020. Saturn rules time, and when he goes retrograde it can feel like Mercury retrograde, and all things that calculate time, like watches, computers, etc., will start to go wonky. Shani delays, but he never denies; that’s Mars’ job. So when Saturn is retrograde we have delays and setbacks, but it is because he is asking us to work harder; to review our work, put in the extra effort to get that A+. He wants us to succeed, and to be the best we can! So, when he goes retrograde it may feel like everything is on hold concerning the houses he rules in your chart, but don’t fret; put your nose to the grindstone and prove to him that you have what it takes, and he will reward you! Shani’s rewards are the best; he knows our hearts and will give you what you deserve. This year it is particularly poignant because we have Jupiter with him, and Pluto; by the end of the month all will be retrograde. Remember, retrograde is not always bad; it is the planet standing up saying, “hey, I have something to say!” He will stay in his own sign of Capricorn for the duration of this transit, and will be separated from Jupiter next month. This will create a lot of tension for world governments as they try to transition back into opening their businesses; we will also see news stories at that time concerning scandals of religious leaders when Jupiter steps away to join Ketu again. He will go direct on September 29th, and this is after the nodes switch signs on the 19th; we have to review the lessons of Saturn before we can fully embrace the new eclipse cycles.
The last times that Saturn was retrograde in Capricorn; you can see the Saturnian themes of authority, war, soil, hegemony (ruling elite).
- 1992 – Bill Clinton becomes president; Balkan War; Great Chicago Flood; 2 of the strongest California earthquakes; Prince Charles and Princess Diana separate
- 1963 – JFK assassination; MLK “I Have a Dream” speech & arrested; Beatlemania
- 1934 – the rise of fascist dictators like Hitler, Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung; Great Oklahoma Drought; FBI arrests famous criminals Dillinger, Bonnie & Clyde, and Baby Face Nelson
- 1904 – USA ends occupation of Cuba; first Times Square NYE celebration; Russia at war with Japan over territory; Wright Brothers first flight.
- 1875 – First Kentucky Derby; US Congress passes Civil Rights Act, which was then invalidated in 1883; first recorded hockey game; Alexander Graham Bell makes first sound transmission.
- 1844 – Samuel Morse taps out first telegraph message; Brigham Young chosen as head of Mormon Church; James Polk elected US President.
- 1816 – Eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia created the “Year without a Summer”; Argentinian independence from Spain; first savings bank in US opens, the Philadelphia Savings Fund Society.
May 12th-Mars Trine Rahu, 5 degrees Aquarius/Gemini
Now that Mars is in Aquarius he has Saturn retrograde, Jupiter, and Pluto retrograde at his back, and today the Moon is there, too. This translates as immense pressure to get things done; Mars is the planet of action, and having these heavy hitters behind him pushing him to perform means that he is feeling the stress. Luckily, Mars is receiving some help from Rahu right now in the form of a trine; they are both in air signs, so Rahu is going to excel the drive of Mars tenfold. Having Mars sitting with Neptune right now means that oil prices should go up, and this will help the US economy.
May 14th-June 25th-Venus Goes Retrograde, 27 degrees Taurus, Mrigashira
Shukra is the planet Venus in the Vedas, she is retrograde in her own sign of Taurus until June 25th, and then she leaves it by July 31st to enter Gemini. This is an extremely long time for Venus to be in a sign, let alone her own sign, so I feel this will help to mitigate some of the negative influences of a retrograde cycle. When Venus is in retrograde old flames can come back to rekindle the romance or to have closure. You can lose money with this transit, but you can also have money come back to you that is owed to you from the past. In the US chart this transit is happening in the 6th house, and so I feel restaurants will get a big boost from this journey. The nodes will switch signs on September 19th, and Rahu will be in Taurus then, so I feel this is a positive influence and a foreshadowing of the rebuilding that is to come once this pandemic subsides.
May 15th-Jupiter Goes Retrograde, 3 degrees Capricorn, Uttara Ashada
The final planet to go retrograde this month is Jupiter in Capricorn, he will go back into Sagittarius on June 30th, and then go direct on September 12th. He re-enters Capricorn on November 20th, and then has a conjunction with Saturn on December 20th. This is a big year for Jupiter, as a Saturn/Jupiter conjunction means a game changer, a point of manifestation and growth. As it is in an Earth sign this indicates that governments, economies and oil will be affected. When Jupiter goes back into Sagittarius he will be conjunct Ketu again; this indicates a Spiritual Awakening and Knowledge of the Truth that has been previously hidden. As Ketu is conjunct the Galactic Center and is ruled by the Goddess Nirriti, an aspect of Kali the goddess of destruction, we will have a deep transformation that can only happen as the result of destruction. This may be the most important conjunction of the year, even though these two grahas were together last year; things will surface from when they were together during last November, and we now know that COVID-19 was brewing in China then and they did not inform the rest of the world. So, now China will be held accountable for not telling the truth; it’s not about them creating the virus, it’s about them not admitting how bad it was then or how many deaths they’ve really had. As they are a Communist country, we will never get a straight answer, but you’d better believe that when Jupiter goes back into Sagittarius we are going to hear the truth about what transpired during the fall of 2019.
Here are the dates when Jupiter was last retrograde in Sagittarius; Jupiter goes in a 12 year cycle:
- 2008 – economic collapse; Dow Jones plummets for the third worst stock market crash in history; Hadron Collider built in Switzerland; oil prices increase causing inflation.
- 1996 – Prince Charles & Princess Diana get divorced; Mad Cow disease hits the UK; massive snowstorm paralyzes the US Midwest; US eases sanctions on Cuba; Mars Global Surveyor arrives at Mars.
- 1984 – DNA profiling developed; AIDs is identified; US recession, 70 US banks fail in one year; Band Aid, the music charity, began.
- 1972 – digital watches are introduced; first scientific hand-held calculator developed; Atari releases the game PONG; Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland; Watergate scandal with US President Nixon.
May 15th-Sun Goes Into Taurus
Today the Sun leaves his sign of exaltation in Aries and moves into the Earth sign of the bull, Taurus, and joins Mercury and Venus retrograde. The natural expression of Surya is muted here, and he has a hard time being himself. The ruler of Taurus is Venus, and having Venus here in her own sign means that she is combust the Sun. Wherever the Sun sits he is the Superstar and puts a shadow over those around him; Venus doesn’t like to be in anybody’s shadow, plus she is retrograde, which means she is brighter than usual right now. So I see this as a bit of a showdown between the Sun and Venus; she is fighting back for attention that she feels she is due. Having Mercury there means that we will be fighting for recognition with our speech, and Mars is giving his 4th aspect to the Sun today, emboldening him to take action. I am hoping that this pans out as artists stepping forward to take action to make others feel better right now; California is coming out of their quarantine today, so we should see a flood of new material releasing over the next month.
May 22nd, 1:38pm EST-New Moon: 7 degrees Taurus, Krittika
This May 2020 New Moon takes place at 7 degrees of Taurus in the nakshatra of Krittika, which means “the one who cuts”. This nakshatra spans from 26.4 of Aries to 10 of Taurus, and the symbol is a knife or razor. The deity that rules this lunar mansion is Agni, the god of fire, and it is known as “The Star of Fire”. The stars that belong to this nakshatra are the stars in the Pleiades star cluster known as “The Weeping Sisters”. Alcyone, one of the six Pleiades, is the star of sorrow, success and prominence; Algol which sits at 2 degrees of Taurus is one of the most evil and malevolent stars; it deals with decapitation of literally “losing your head”. Venus rules Taurus, and the Sun is the planetary ruler of Krittika.
The mythology behind this New Moon in Krittika is about Karttikeya, a powerful warrior, who was born in the Pleiades and was nursed by the six weeping sisters, who were falsely accused of infidelity by their spouses for helping this young warrior. As indicated by the name “The Star of Fire”, this nakshatra is sharp and piercing; people born with this prominent in their chart will have a cunning wit and biting sarcasm. They are passionate activists and will fight to defend what they love. They love children, and oftentimes find themselves defending the rights of children. As Agni the god of fire rules this lunar mansion people with this in their chart will have excellent metabolisms, and good digestion; they are often excellent cooks, as this nakshatra’s symbol is a knife and the deity is fire. These people are larger than life and can have illicit sexual affairs; their passion can lead them to fame and fortune, even though they experience extreme ups and downs in life.
On this day of the New Moon in Taurus, Krittika nakshatra, we have a Kala Sarpa Yoga, which means “time serpent connection”. This takes place when all of the planets, including the outer planets, are between Rahu and Ketu. Today the Sun and Moon are sitting with Mercury and Venus retrograde; as Mercury rules legal tender, and Venus rules the luxury items money can buy, I believe this energy will pan out as money previously withheld now coming to people that need it, or it could mean losing money; either way, money will be the focus. We also have the intense Saturn/Jupiter/Pluto conjunction and THEY’RE ALL RETROGRADE. They are forming a square aspect to this New Moon, so lots of old territory will be coming up at this time. Most states will have ended their stay-at-home order, so a lot of backtracking of the virus will be happening. It’s imperative that people get back to work, but this virus doesn’t really care; so I feel that there will be an immense sadness of the healthcare workers just like the “Weeping Sisters” of the Pleiades that nursed Karttikeya back to health, only to be blamed for infidelity. This nakshatra is incredibly protective of those they love and is associated with protecting children, so children’s mental health will be in focus, as we have Mars in Aquarius sitting with Neptune; this will also indicate oil prices going up, but this is a good thing, as it will help the economy. Mars is giving his 4th aspect to this New Moon, and since it is in the nakshatra of cutting and fire, this gives restaurants a green light to get opening again; everyone is being so careful, so I pray that everything goes smoothly. A New Moon’s energy is a new beginning, so let’s use this to forge ahead and cut through the negativity of the past.
May 25th-Mercury Goes Into Gemini
Today Mercury moves from the Earth sign of Taurus where he is very slow to his own sign of Gemini. His other sign of Virgo is actually his moolitrikona sign, or best sign, but here in Gemini he does much better than Taurus. Our communication and thinking should be much faster and clearer now, and he joins Rahu during this transit. Rahu is the head of the serpent without the body, and Mercury conjunct just means that our thinking will be smooth, but we need to be careful of anxiety and over-analyzing everything. Rahu is now in Mrigashira which is the “Star of Purpose”, and we find our dharma here, or our reason for incarnating in this lifetime. We may find ourselves pondering our life path and destiny at this time; today the Moon sits with them, so this will increase our psychic abilities and intuition. Once the Moon moves past them on the 27th it will break the kala sarpa yoga until he goes into Sagittarius.
May 28th-Mercury & Rahu Conjunction in Gemini, 5 degrees, Mrigashira
All of this energy will be intensified, and you may get a breakthrough with communication, maybe that phone call you’ve been waiting on, or a message from someone significant. This is more so if your lagna or Moon are Gemini or Sagittarius.
May 30th-Venus Retrograde Combust the Sun in Taurus
This is a common occurrence every year as Venus passes by the Sun in the summer to go from being the Evening Star in April to be the Morning Star in mid-June. As Sun is the Superstar of our solar system, he always takes the spotlight, and throws shade on anyone sitting with him. Venus is a bright and beautiful planet, and as she represents the feminine, we often feel like we cannot express our receptive and artistic side at this time. People that are born with this conjunction in their chart often feel like their feminine voice is repressed, and especially more so for a woman. Just being aware that Venus retrograde is passing by the Sun now can help us to mitigate some of these negative self esteem issues. If the solar energy can be harnessed with Venus then it’s an excellent time to express love and most artistic projects will benefit. As Venus is in her own sign of Taurus now she has more strength to stand her ground, and being retrograde means that she is brighter now, so she is taking on the challenge of the Sun to see who is brighter; Venus must shine at night, but the Sun must shine during the day. The Saturn/Jupiter/Pluto retrograde conjunction is happening in the Earth sign of Capricorn so it’s giving a trine to the Sun and Venus; so the Sun is shining a flashlight onto the problems of the governments trying to restart their businesses again, but having a hard time with it. We have broken the kala sarpa yoga at this point of the month, so that should take some intensity off.
© 2018-2028 Hindustan Astrology, All Rights Reserved
By Katya Faris, M.A.
