TRANSCRIPT EP. 291 (5.19.25)
Saturn enters Aries: Be the Author of Your Own Story!
Hello, invisible friend. April here, and the date today is May 19th, 2025. Welcome to Episode 291 of the Big Sky Astrology Podcast. It’s a busy week in the big sky as the Sun kicks off its Gemini season with aspects to Saturn, Neptune, and Pluto. Gemini’s Ruler Mercury comes together with Uranus, follows the Sun into Gemini, and then reports to Saturn for a reality check. The cosmic lovers Venus and Mars throw out passionate sparks. And the Last Quarter Moon in Aquarius is on a pivotal degree that shows karmic resolution in the air. Saturn leaves the turbulent waters of Pisces for the fires of Aries. And our second mini lesson on Saturn and what its journey through Aries means for the houses of your horoscope.
Sun sextile Saturn (May 20, 2025, 2:38 am PDT)
The Sun in Taurus sextiles Saturn on May 20th at 2:38 am Pacific time at 29º 37’ Taurus and Pisces, which are what we call anaretic degrees, where we find ourselves at a crossroads and endings, final attempts and longstanding challenges will tend to rise to the surface. When we have planets on these critical degrees they mark turning points and they urge us to confront what we need to complete before the new cycles can begin.
The Sun and Saturn both represent authority figures, especially male leaders, and we might see them particularly in the spotlight this week, symbolizing broader themes like responsibility, legacy, earned respect. But the Sun’s aspect to Saturn emphasizes the symbol for Saturn, 30 Pisces, A rock formation like a face is idealized by a boy who, as he grows up, begins to look like it. Be careful what and who you look up to because that is what you will tend to become.
This is a fantastic transit for building real strength. One that endures, not because it’s flashy, but because it has been painstakingly built through discipline and persistence. The Sabian symbol for the Sun, A peacock parading on an ancient lawn, serves as a little bit of a cautionary note.
Superficial displays of grandeur and success will not impress Saturn. However, if we’ve toiled quietly and diligently, this transit might finally bring the recognition that you deserve.
Last Quarter Moon in Aquarius (May 20, 2025, 4:59 am PDT)
And now for the Moon Report, and we begin, as always, with the week’s major lunation, which this week is the Last Quarter Moon in Aquarius on May 20th at 4:59 am Pacific Time, at those anoretic degrees 29º43’ Aquarius and Taurus. So this Last Quarter, Moon arrives with that powerful symbolism that we saw with the aspect between the Sun and Saturn, and this really underscores a collective and personal moment of culmination where long running cycles are drawing to a close, and we need to make decisive final efforts to wrap them up. This lunation builds on any intentions that we planted at the Taurus New Moon on April 27th, and this phase invites a final informed push to bring those goals to fruition. Saturn is also perched on that anoretic degree, and it is the ruler of the Aquarius Last Quarter Moon. So there is a deep sense of karmic resolution in the air.
Aquarius governs friendships and chosen communities, the people we bond with, not out of duty or necessarily blood connection, but because we genuinely get each other. We like each other. We’re interested in the same things. As you reflect on your values, your personal growth, the evolution of your most intimate relationships, this is a Moon that offers clarity about where you stand and with whom.
The lingering influence of that Sun-Saturn sextile brings strength and maturity to the choices that you make. But this phase can still require you to make some tough decisions and maybe even say some unexpected goodbyes as you realign your life to greater authenticity and purpose.
Lunar Phase Family Cycle
This is the Last Quarter in a lunar phase family cycle that began on February 19th, 2023, with a New Moon at 1º22’ minutes Pisces. That’s when we planted some kinds of intentions that have now been unfolding and making themselves known ever since. The First Quarter in this lunar phase family cycle was on November 20th, 2023 at 27º 50’ Aquarius. The First Quarter is a time we take some kind of action in what we initiated at the New Moon. And then the Full Moon in this cycle was on August 19th, 2024, when we really began to see what it was that we had initiated at that New Moon. A and now this Last Quarter is the final action phase in this family phase cycle that began back in February 2023. And with what we have been through in the first three major phases of this cycle, we now have a much clearer picture of what it is we started, how we could have tended it differently and exactly what it now resembles, and now we make a final action toward completing this cycle and maybe putting it in some perspective as well.
Void-of-Course Moon periods
Let’s look at the Void-of-Course Moon periods for this week. On May 20th, the Moon in Aquarius squares the Sun at 4:59 am Pacific Time. It’s Void-of-Course for 29 minutes, and then enters Pisces at 5:28 am. So this Aquarius Last Quarter Moon is in fact beginning a Void-of-Course cycle, a kind of a short one, but a void of course cycle nonetheless.
Most people on the West coast of the United States will probably be asleep during this Void-of-Course Moon. If you happen to be awake, use this period to develop a habit of checking in with your gut to find your own way in life, even if it means going against the crowd. And this will be a little bit of the message of that Aquarius Last Quarter Moon as well.
On May 22nd, the Moon in Pisces makes a conjunction with Saturn at 9:06 am Pacific time. It’s Void-of-Course for just 20 minutes, and then enters Aries at 9:26 am. When the Moon is coming together with Saturn, there are often feelings of inadequacy or kind of being down in the dumps and having a hard time keeping going. But don’t put a lot of confidence in these feelings. They will pass. The Moon moves quickly and won’t stay here for long. Authority figures could be making your life a little difficult, perhaps on this day. Try not to take it personally. Basically, use this Void-of-Course period to get in the habit of creating healthy boundaries in relationships, structuring your life in such a way that you are able to grow while still feeling safe.
On May 24th, the Moon in Aries sextiles Jupiter at 4:44 am Pacific Time. This is the longest Void-of-Course period for the week at five hours and 54 minutes, and then the Moon enters Taurus at 10:38 am.
The Moon sextile another planet as it turns Void-of-Course is an opportunity or an invitation or maybe a new idea. This could be a good opportunity for travel or hosting house guests and offering any kind of educational or philosophical gathering, especially in your home. This could be a great time to embark on a home improvement project. This could even include building something like a website, because Jupiter is in Gemini, which has that online feeling about it.
Use this Void-of-Course Moon period to initiate a habit of respecting your limits, whether that be about how much money you’re spending. On things like renovation or traveling, or the emotional toll of maybe hosting too many people in your space, or for too long.
Sun enters Gemini (May 20, 2025, 11:55 am PDT)
The Sun enters Gemini on May 20th at 11:55 am Pacific Time. And as it enters this curious and communicative sign, we step into a solar season that is characterized by adaptability, restlessness, and a hunger for knowledge and for connection with others. This is a time when youthful energy takes center stage, and that might be youthful in terms of age or just in terms of spirit.
It’s a sign that encourages exploration, lightheartedness, and the gathering of context and pieces of information. But underneath Gemini’s, exterior lies a strong sextile aspect with Saturn, and that usually characterizes a lot more structure and endurance to Gemini’s otherwise fleeting thoughts and impulses. It helps us anchor our ideas in reality.
The Sabian symbol for the first degree of Gemini where the Sun ingresses this week is, A glass bottomed boat in still water, and it invites us to look a little deeper and to question what lies beneath the surface of our daily chatter and routines. Emotionally, the Gemini season can challenge us to explore uncharted territory, even as we’re laughing and learning and connecting along the way.
Venus trines Mars (May 22, 2025, 12:42 am PDT)
On May 22nd at 12:42 am Pacific Time, Venus trines Mars at 15º 59’ Aries and Leo. So Venus is forming this very vibrant aspect with Mars in fire signs, and it is a very passionate aspect. This combination is really amplifying themes of attraction, desire, and creative expression.
I particularly like the Sabian symbols for this aspect. Venus is on 16 Aries, Brownies dancing in the setting Sun, and Mars is on 16 Leo, Sunshine just after a storm. And these symbols both make reference to sunlight, suggesting this warmth and renewal and an almost mystical sense of harmony.
Romances that happen under this influence can accelerate quickly. They may lack the stability for lasting commitment unless they’re grounded with intention. This is a really good aspect for artistic pursuits though, and channeling passion into projects, but it can also tempt us with impulsive spending. This would be maybe starting a new creative project and thinking, oh, I can’t really do this unless I go out and spend a bunch of money to have just the right tools and supplies that I need to make it happen.
But still, this is a really radiant aspect and it encourages us to follow the things that light us up.
Sun sextile Neptune (May 22, 2025, 5:40 am PDT)
Also on May 22nd, at 5:40 am Pacific Time, the Sun sextiles Neptune at 1º40’ Gemini and Aries. The Sabian symbol for the Sun is 2 Gemini, Santa Claus filling stockings furtively, and Neptune is on 2 Aries, A comedian entertaining a group. It’s a nice aspect. It represents a chance to be inspired by others and maybe receiving gifts from them without falling under that Neptune temptation of deluding ourselves.
So this transit opens our eyes to the talents and visions and uplifting messages of people we look up to, but it also kind of burns away that fog of idealization. It reminds us nobody has all the answers, and the responsibility for shaping a meaningful life ultimately rests in our own hands. It’s a call to be your own hero, to create your own dream and to trust in your ability to manifest purpose from within instead of looking for it outside yourself.
This is a theme that is also echoed by Neptune’s recent shift into Aries. Saturn’s shift into that sign this week underscores a new era of spiritual and personal accountability. The Sabian symbol for the Sun, Santa Claus filling stockings furtively really talks about believing in the abundance of life, that life will provide for us. And Neptune’s symbol 2 Aries, A comedian entertaining a group, talks about the importance of honest self-reflection, learning to see ourselves through another’s eyes. When someone gets up and performs in front of a group, they get immediate feedback, and that’s somewhat what is available to us at the time of this aspect. Together this Sun and Neptune bring a quietly powerful message that inspiration is only meaningful when it fuels genuine growth and self-made transformation,
Sun trine Pluto (May 24, 2025, 8:55 am PDT)
The Sun trines Pluto on May 24th at 8:55 am Pacific Time at 3º43’ Gemini and Aquarius. This is an aspect that brings a potent opportunity for renewal and it’s a chance to get rid of, to shed, what no longer serves your growth. We see the outworn aspects of the self getting burned away, not with drama – this is a trine, so it’s quieter-, but it’s deep. Pluto doesn’t deal in surface wounds. It reaches deep, to dissolve the dead weight that we’ve been carrying without even realizing it. It has a kind of a cleansing fire, very intense, but ultimately liberating.
And both of these are happening in air signs, and this purification process may be taking shape through communication, our social interactions, ambitions, political beliefs. It’s about letting go of old narratives, expired ambitions, or the masks that we wear for social acceptance, and it can create space for a more authentic self to emerge. There is strength in transparency, having nothing to hide – a source of true empowerment.
Embrace this trine as an invitation to clarify your message, to clean up your mental and social environments, and to emerge lighter and clearer and more aligned with your own inner truth.
Mercury conjoins Uranus (May 24, 2025, 4:15 pm PDT)
Mercury makes a conjunction with Uranus on May 24th at 4:15 pm Pacific Time Pacific at 27º42’ Taurus. And when these two come together, it’s like the air is crackling with sudden insights, bold ideas and breakthroughs, unexpected conversations that give us new ideas. This transit can make it challenging to feel heard, especially if you don’t really think the way most people think, or your opinions are quite different, or you generally have a feeling that you don’t quite fit in. But the very thing that makes you different from others can be your greatest strength when you speak.
Now under this influence, you might really strike a chord with people and kind of electrify others to be bolder or more original in their thinking. There’s a real chance to give voice to your inner rebel or your independence or your long-suppressed thoughts. They will get triggered by a sudden flash of inspiration or an outside influence, even like a conversation or a book or a film.
Saturn enters Aries (May 24, 2025, 8:36 pm PDT)
On May 24th at 8:36 pm, Saturn enters Aries. It’s been in Pisces since March 2023, and this is the first time it will have been in Aries since 1996. This transit lasts through April 2028. It makes a brief return to Pisces between September 2025 and February 2026.
This transit really demands that we stop making excuses and take full ownership of our lives. Saturn is always uncompromising and in Aries it’s really asking us to step up to be leaders, to forge our path with discipline and courage. There’s no room here for blame or complaint, just the clear call to become the author of your own story. What are you building? Where are the boundaries? What are the obstacles and how can you be a stronger and more mature version of yourself?
Now, fortunately, Neptune is standing pretty close to Saturn at the time of this ingress. So, it’s offering not just discipline, but vision, an inspired Neptune dream that with effort, with the help of Saturn, can be made real.
Use this moment to define what it is you want, what is your vision, and begin to lay the foundation for a life that reflects your deepest values and desires. And with Aries we might say passions as well.
For a deeper dive, Episode 290 offered a mini lesson on Saturn in Aries generally. At the end of this episode, we’ll take a look at Saturn through the houses of the horoscope and how this powerful shift may be playing out in your own chart and your own life.
If you were born with Saturn in Aries between April 1996 and February 1999, you will be having your first Saturn return sometime in the next few years. And if you were born with Saturn in Aries between 1967 and 1969, you’ll have your second Saturn return. These are really important milestones and you might want to check in for a reading with me to talk more about what it means for you.
Mercury enters Gemini (May 25, 2025, 5:59 pm PDT)
Mercury enters Gemini on May 25th at 5:59 pm Pacific Time, and just a short time later, sextiles Saturn at 6:45 pm. The pace of life picks up when Mercury goes into Gemini, it’s in its own sign, it’s very strong, and we will feel the air buzzing with bright ideas, fast conversations, curiosity. It’s in this sign through June 8th, and we can just expect a whirlwind of multitasking, distractions, opportunities for learning and connection.
Mercury and Gemini thrives on variety and stimulation, moving around from place to place, and it’s an excellent period for brainstorming, for exploring new perspectives, engaging in light chat.
Later the same day, Mercury forms a sextile to Saturn, freshly in Aries, and this marks the first major aspect to Saturn since it’s moved into that new sign. So, this delivers a grounding and clarifying influence, a moment when Mercury in Gemini meets the structure and seriousness of Saturn. We might receive early messages about what’s coming in the years of Saturn in Aries and what that might ask of us in terms of responsibility and ambition and personal integrity.
This is a transit that also strengthens focus and productivity and offers a stabilizing influence on Mercury in Gemini, which can be a little bit frenetic and move sometimes a little too quickly from one thing to another. It is an ideal time to clarify goals, take accountability, and gain deep insights into relationships with siblings, neighbors, and peers.
Mini-Lesson: Transiting Saturn in the Houses
In this week’s mini lesson, I bring you the second of three lessons about Saturn moving into Aries, which happens this week on May 24th. Last week I gave just a general overview about Saturn moving into this sign. I believe that our greatest work over the next two and a half years that Saturn is in Aries is to take personal responsibility for making our little part of the world look the way we want it to look, and also to figure out how to set boundaries that help us restrain our energy, our temper, in ways that are appropriate and use our energy constructively. Saturn in Aries is just a little bit like Mars and Capricorn in that way, and we know that’s a really good sign for Mars because it takes that raw energy of Mars and in this case, Aries and makes it more restrained and more constructive.
The house or houses of your birth chart where this transit will take place tells us what areas of life will offer the opportunity for you to do this kind of work. As Saturn enters a new house, we can often feel kind of crushed under the weight of responsibility in these areas, and we have to also be really careful about taking on burdens that don’t really belong to us, and we need to be able to draw boundaries appropriately. So, let’s take a look at transiting Saturn in Aries through the houses of the chart.
Transiting Saturn in the first house of the chart emphasizes what I just said about being careful about what responsibilities or burdens you take on. Don’t take on stuff that doesn’t belong to you, and resist having a pessimistic attitude. Because Saturn does tend to make us want to dwell on what’s wrong and to completely overlook what’s right. Your appearance and your personality might be a little more subdued or serious, or business-like. And during Saturn in the first house, I think it’s going to be especially important to make sure that you have worked up to the more challenging things that you want to try. Focus on building strength and patience.
Transiting Saturn in the second house can be about finding a career direction that is meaningful, that feels valuable to you. It’s about making solid, long-range plans to improve your financial circumstances. Saturn always brings our chickens home to roost, so whatever we’ve been doing in the previous 29 years, since Saturn was last in this area of the chart, here is where we begin to see the consequences, so to speak. So, if you’ve been handling your physical health, your finances, this kind of thing very responsibly over the last 29 years, this can be a really rewarding period for you. If you’ve been, like most of us, skirting around the edges doing something things right, and maybe there was some room for improvement in other areas, this could be a period when you discover that you don’t quite have the kind of financial stability that you’d like to have, and that physically maybe you’re not as strong or as fit as you would like to be. So this is a period of time that you’re going to need to take responsibility for handling the physical world with a new level of responsibility.
When Saturn is transiting the third house, it’s a time to learn by doing. Think of it as a time of apprenticeship where maybe you’ve wanted to really master the basic elements of anything that you do, mastering skills that you already possess, and maybe learning new ones. This can be a time when you begin to teach others the very basic skills or techniques of something you know very well, maybe the field you work in, or a hobby that you have.
Over the next couple of years, you really need to learn to choose your words very carefully. People will be paying attention to what you say. Many of them will be looking up to you. So, this is the time to really focus in handling communications in a clear and upfront way, which Aries likes to do, but also in a very ethical and responsible way.
Transiting Saturn in the fourth house, that’s the house of home, and home is something we tend to take for granted. But when Saturn is in the fourth house, we can’t so much just take it for granted.
It’s really a time to define what home means to you. It might be that we’ve moved to a new place and we’re having to go through the process of really making it feel like home. This can also be a time when you find that your parents or other family members might need some extra help from you, but it can also be about making sure that you have appropriate boundaries with your family.
This might be a time when you do work on a house or you purchase a home. It is very much related to real estate and where you live, and it’s natural at this time to feel like maybe you don’t have a really solid foundation. But then by the time Saturn is finished there, you’ll probably find yourself in a place where you’ll stay for a good long time.
Transiting Saturn in the fifth house is a time when we need to create something that will last. The fifth house is usually associated with things that are strictly enjoyable. It’s the house of children, of creative activities, of recreation, and when Saturn comes into this house, it says, take the thing that is near to your heart and create something from it that’s tangible and that will last.
If you have romantic relationships at this time – and these aren’t really partnerships per se, this is more of a love affair. As Saturn goes into the fifth house, we get to really figure out where this particular kind of relationship is going. Sometimes we find ourselves in romantic relationships that are kind of a mentorship, with someone who either we are a little bit ahead on our path, or they are, and we’re kind of helping each other figure it out. There can also be blockages that have to be overcome in a romantic relationship.
And becoming a parent, changing career, all of this can be really joyful, but it also entails a lot of hard work, and Saturn likes to test our commitment along the way. So sometimes we’ll experience these little obstacles or blockages on the road to having and doing the things we want most, just so that we can prove that we’re really ready for it and we really want it.
Transiting Saturn in the sixth house forces us to buckle down and work our hardest to break down any barriers that have been holding us back. This is a transit where we need to work hard and form really good daily habits. We might struggle with health issues, or a lack of recognition or status at work during a transit like this. But if you show up consistently and put yourself in situations that could lead to success and you commit to working hard there, then this is a time where you’re really planting seeds for what could become your great success.
When Saturn is in the seventh house, if you have important relationships that are kind of faltering, sometimes Saturn will end them. And if you’ve been wavering a little bit on whether or not to commit to somebody, Saturn might give you a little push toward the altar.
What Saturn wants to see in the seventh house is a commitment to relationship. So, we have to take responsibility for where we are at in this area of life and commit to making our relationships work, or at least make our very best effort at that. Or it just simply isn’t going to work and we might need to let some existing relationships go. This can be very close friendships, and business partnerships as well as romantic partnerships.
The question while Saturn’s in the seventh house is, do you want this relationship badly enough to overcome whatever obstacles come your way?
Transiting Saturn in the eighth house is a time to shore up your self-sufficiency. During this transit, your usual sources of support might dry up. People who are usually there for you or extra little bits of income that have always reliably come your way. But by the time Saturn leaves the eighth house, you will have really proven that you can take care of yourself, proven it to others, and more importantly, proven it to yourself. And then you are in a much stronger position once Saturn moves into the ninth house for you to have some adventures.
Transiting Saturn in the ninth house is time to share what you know with others. Accept some important professional challenge that comes your way. Stand up for your knowledge. Accept yourself as an authority in your field. This is a time when you really need to resist getting into battles with other people about what you believe. Instead, it’s really a time to stand up and just live your truth, so that others can recognize you as an authority and a force to be reckoned with.
Transiting Saturn in the 10th house usually finds us at a career crossroads. Saturn’s really kind of coming home in a way when it comes to the 10th house. It’s pretty comfortable there, but the road forward isn’t always clear.
What is it that you really want and where are you going? For now, you don’t necessarily have the answers. As Saturn goes further through that house, it becomes more evident to you and your questions don’t even have to be all that specific. You just have to find the wherewithal to get up every day and put one foot in front of the other. And in time, as Saturn gets further into this house, the way forward usually becomes much more clear.
Transiting Saturn in the 11th house, you begin to find your reward and your status and your respect. This is especially true if this transit happens when you’re a little bit older. Professional networks and groups that you belong to might become a little bit of a challenge or a little bit more of a burden.
You are expected to give service to give back more to your community, and you really do have to be careful about taking on too much and too impulsively, with Saturn in Aries. But Saturn will reward you in the future for doing your best now. I do warn people when Saturn’s in the 11th house, you really can’t just completely overdo it because then by the time Saturn goes in the 12th house, we find our physical limits.
Saturn in the 12th is a transit that emphasizes that we are mortal and we do have limits. If we’ve been overextending ourselves, especially with Saturn in the 10th and 11th houses when we’re out in the community engaged in a lot of activities, then being overextended can really catch up with us. So, learn to say no to more things. Be very careful what you say yes to, and make sure that you’re taking care of yourself and establishing strong boundaries.
Next week I’ll be taking a look at transiting Saturn in aspect with the planets of the charts. And then I’ll be returning to listener questions. So, if you have a question you’d like me to answer on a future episode, please leave a message of one minute or less at speakpipe.com / bigskyastrologypodcast or email me at april (at) bigskyastrology (dot) com and be sure to put “podcast question” in the subject line.
Donor Thanks
Well, that is everything I have on my show sheet and it is plenty. So I’m going to wrap up this rather long episode. Thank you for listening to the Big Sky Astrology Podcast. If you like what you’re hearing, please be sure to subscribe or follow the show in your app of choice. Leave a rating or review. Spread the word by telling an astrology loving friend about the podcast. You can read show notes and full transcripts and leave your comments about each episode at bigskyastropod.com.
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That’s it for this episode. Join me again bright and early next Monday. And until then, keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars!
Writing and images © 2017-25 by April Elliott Kent
For more on this week’s planetary news, read my column!
