Possible—Full Moon in Sagittarius—May 23rd.

Possible—Full Moon in Sagittarius—May 23rd.

“May is the month of expectation, the month of wishes, the month of hope,” wrote Emily Brontë.

All things seem possible in May. Frothy hawthorn spills  along hedgerows, a diaphanous train of dazzling white. Slender spikes of foxglove thrust skywards. Daisies, bluebells, buttercups, and floaty cowslips tumble over pathways. Nature rejoices in her loveliness and as change swirls through our lives, scattering summer’s petals, May’s full moon falls in the expansive sign of Sagittarius.

Under these hope-filled moonbeams, we may glimpse what is possible as we imagine what William Ury, author of Possible: How We Survive and Thrive in an Age of Conflict describes as a balcony, a place of far-seeing perspective within ourselves.

For those whose birth charts are tuned to the “wavelength” of 2º Sagittarius, Pisces, Gemini or Virgo, this lunation may hitch up a yearning for freedom, hoist a longing to sample a smorgasbord of new experience, expand horizons, dare to do differently.

In Sagittarius, we soar above the triviality of daily routine. We become explorers, adventurers, pilgrims seeking signs and finding meaning. We challenge our bodies and our minds as we reach for the stars, dream the impossible dream, and are lifted and struck by a firm belief that it will all work out in the end.

Sagittarius is ruled by portly Jupiter, who so often evokes the kind of laughter that brings tears to our eyes and softens the hard edges of the world. We invoke the buoyancy and resilience of Jupiter when we keep the faith, when we look up, when we notice the silver lining in the dark clouds of circumstance. Although popular astrology associates Jupiter with “luck” and “good things”, inconstant Jupiter, the astrological ruler of Sagittarius and Pisces, is also an archetype so often imbued with a tincture of loss and longing.  Despite our prayers, despite our positive affirmations, the veils of illusion go up in flames, our lives scorched to the ground. Jupiter is the roll of the fickle dice, the ever-spinning Wheel of Fortune. In myth, Jupiter didn’t stay around long, he was always off, chasing the next conquest, taking what he wanted, when he wanted, just because he could. The shadow that stretches behind Jupiter’s cheery positivity is self-absorbed grandiosity, a cavalier entitlement, which may be highlighted as Jupiter moves through the mutable, easily distracted sign of the Twins from May 26^th to June 9^th, 2025.

Jupiter’s first aspect after changing from earthy Taurus into airy Gemini is a trine to Pluto (now moving Retrograde in Aquarius) on June 2^nd, expanding the potential for healing and renewal.

This could present as a realignment of our moral compass in a relationship power struggle, a readjustment in a situation where ethics loom large. This aspect prompts us out of a stuck place, it’s a call to make an important change, or a empowering recognition that we must free ourselves from a situation that has been stifling.

Jupiter is also associated with the Guru or the Teacher archetype and its contacts to sensitive points in our own birth chart deliver opportunities to embrace something new. This is an expansive, positive prompt if we are willing to stand on that imaginal balcony and see the world with new eyes.

“There is an Indian proverb that says that everyone is a house with four rooms, a physical, a mental, an emotional, and a spiritual. Most of us tend to live in one room most of the time but unless we go into every room every day, even if only to keep it aired, we are not a complete person” wrote Rumer Godden. As we air each room, every day, we may discover the confidence and courage to listen to the whispers of our heart’s desire.

Jupiterian themes may be prominent in our lives between May 26^th this year and June 2025 as Jupiter expands his influence across sensitive points in our birth chart and in the chart of nations. Jupiter’s presence in Gemini supports those things that require mental focus, careful choice, considered speach and attentive listening. As nature blossoms, the sun entered the sign of the Twins, on May 20^th to be joined by Venus on May 24^th. Mercury, winged messenger, also enters Gemini on June 3^rd. If we can avoid distractions, this will be a wonderful time to begin a writing project or seek new social connections. The danger here is that we may overextend our nervous system, scatter our energies, take on too much, too quickly, or too soon.

Jupiter is a complex symbol in astrology.

Jupiter’s shadow is all sparkle and shine, as arrogance and ego trick us into a false sense of our own potency and invincibility. We fall for appearances, can’t see that the Emperor is not wearing any clothes. On May 15^th, as the moon moved through self-mythologising Leo, Netflix released a three-part documentary, Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal.

Ashley Madison, the Canadian social networking and dating service dubbed as a “business built on broken hearts” was launched in 2002. Pluto and the south node were moving through the expansive, opportunistic sign of Jupiter-ruled Sagittarius back then.

In the Norse, Greek, and Roman pantheons, Thor/Zeus/Jupiter were celestial sky gods. Supreme deities, elitist, autocratic. They dispensed moral and religious justice, yet from the earliest times these self-indulgent gods were exempt from their own moral injunctions. On a whim, they bestowed good fortune, dispensed justice, and claimed Droit du Seigneur with impunity.

Jupiter and Venus were conjunct in Leo (passion, core aliveness, self-expression, feeling adored) when, in 2015, the premier destination website for clandestine affairs was hacked, exposing sensitive and supposedly confidential information, detonating the private lives of more than 37 million subscribers in 40 countries. The human cost of the data leak was devastating and tragic. The promise of security, discretion and anonymity made by Ashley Madison proved to be rancid snake oil. Reputations, relationships were ruined as the shame, the stigma around infidelity ricochetted through families, places of work, and communities. The hack didn’t destroy Ashley Madison. Business is booming, reportedly now with more than 70 million users. Jupiter sells aspirational dreams to the masses. Jupiter’s unbounded exuberance is also associated with risk-taking, the kind of entrepreneurial spirit that reaches for the sky, sets the stakes high in casinos and on racing tracks, merrily rolls the dice over a lover’s tender heart. This is Jupiter the Trickster, inflated with self-importance, flying too high, too fast, too soon.

Popular astrology associates Jupiter with luck, good fortune. There’s a more nuanced approach. We may ignore Jupiter’s bounty. Good fortune may be disguised as a crisis. A loss may actually be a gain. Over these coming months, may we embrace our human foibles and contradictions tenderly as we stand together on the imaginal balcony of possibility. “May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder.” John O’Donohue.

For a personalised astrology consultation, please get in touch: ingrid@trueheartwork.com