TRANSCRIPT Ep. 296 (6.23.25)
Cancer New Moon: Phoning Home!
Hello, invisible friend, April here, and the date today is June 23rd, 2025. Welcome to Episode 296 of the Big Sky Astrology Podcast.
This week, the Sun squared to Neptune tells a story of identity crisis. Who are we really? And as the Sun conjoins Jupiter just in time for the Cancer New Moon, we learn something about traveling far to find our tribe and the wandering ways we might have to sacrifice in order to belong. And Mercury enters Leo for a storytelling journey that involves the mentorship of Saturn, the imagination of Neptune, and the soul bearing honesty of Pluto. Plus, I answer a listener question about the Part of Fortune.
Sun square Neptune (June 23, 2025, 1:29 am PDT)
The Sun squares Neptune on June 23rd at 1:29 AM Pacific Time at two degrees, eight minutes Cancer and Aries. The Sun in connection with Neptune often talks about a bit of a crisis of confidence or an identity crisis when we ask, who am I really? What do I want? But the square aspects to Neptune often do make us wrestle with this question more than if the aspect were a gentler one, like a trine or a sextile.
When the Sun is square Neptune, and this happens twice each year, it means that we’re really forced to ask that question of ourselves, to stand as a strong example to people in our lives. This is especially so with the Sun and Neptune in these two cardinal leadership signs. But also, this is an aspect that is about emphasizing kindness and spiritual awareness over just doing things that get us attention.
The Sun is also a symbol of physical vitality, and when it comes together with a planet like Neptune, you can feel as if you have a little bit of an energy leak, and you might see that even a day or two leading up to this aspect. So, between say, June 21st and June 23rd, you may need a little more time to rest and a little more time alone than usual.
The Sun conjoins Jupiter (June 24, 2025, 8:17 am PDT)
The Sun makes its annual conjunction with Jupiter on June 24th at 8:17 AM Pacific time at 3º 21’ Cancer. The Sun’s sign tells the story of what will light us up during a given month, what will give us energy, the story of which qualities we should cultivate.
Cancer is first and foremost, a symbol of home where we feel that we belong. And Jupiter is the symbol of where we want to expand our horizons and carve out a bigger life for ourselves. So put the Sun and Jupiter together, and what we’ve got is a hankering for a really big, bold adventure that gives us a chance to be part of a community.
One of my favorite films is Local Hero in which a Houston oil man is sent to a tiny community in Scotland to negotiate for some oil rights. It’s a delightful story that makes numerous great points, but chief among them is how this lonely man travels to a place far away with no expectation of finding anything but oil rights, but slowly becomes part of the community. That happens sometimes when we find ourselves in a foreign place. It doesn’t even have to be another country. Just a place that makes you feel unconstrained from your regular personality and set loose from all the tricks that you use to keep yourself solitary.
Cancer New Moon (June 25, 2025, 3:31 am PDT)
And now it’s time for the Moon report. And we begin, as always, with the week’s major lunation. On June 25th at 3:31 AM Pacific Time, the story of belonging reaches another turning point in the chart of the Cancer New Moon at 4º07’ Cancer on the symbol 5 Cancer, An automobile is wrecked by a train. Don’t take this too literally as a story of vehicular danger. Instead, just squint a little and you will see that the automobile is a stand-in for the individual, the American oil man, and the train represents the collective, the charming people of the little Scottish fishing village.
In the case of this particular story, the oil man is “wrecked,” in a way, by this encounter with the beautiful village and its warm people. We see him return to his sterile apartment in Texas, unloading his pockets full of stones and shells and something else, a phone number for a red phone box in the village. The next scene is of that phone box at dusk, and the phone is ringing.
The process of becoming part of something means that the scrappy individualistic Aries part of us is in some way broken down. Warriors aren’t comfortable in their own village at supper with the people they’ve fought to defend. This New Moon, ask the question: How much of your individuality are you prepared to set aside so that you can sit comfortably at that supper table?
Lunar Phase Family Cycle
This is the New Moon in a lunar phase family cycle that begins a story that will unfold over the next three years. At this New Moon, the thoughts, the intentions, the wishes that you set forth in the Cancer area of your chart in particular and generally about these themes of family, home and belonging will unfold.
And the first action point in this cycle comes on March 25th, 2026 with a First Quarter Moon at 5º08’ Cancer. At that time, we take some first step toward achieving the goals or visions that we envisioned at this New Moon. Then nine months later, on December 23rd, 2026, the Full Moon at two degrees 13 minutes, Cancer reveals all that we actually planted at the time of the New Moon and how well it’s doing up to now.
At the Last Quarter Moon on September 23rd, 2027 at 0º 10’ Cancer, there’s a final action point, a final opportunity to make a last push to achieve those New Moon goals, and also a chance to reflect upon and to review the things that we initiated at this New Moon.
Void-of-Course Moon periods
Let’s look at the Void-of-Course Moon periods for this week.
On June 23rd, the Moon in Gemini squares Mars at 1:26 AM Pacific Time. It is Void-of-Course for a staggeringly long time, 43 hours and 18 minutes – which has got to be some kind of record in the time I’ve been doing the podcast – before it enters Cancer on June 24th at 8:44 PM.
The Moon square Mars is often an emotionally volatile combination, but sometimes we have to get good and angry about something or really excited about something before we will act. This is the lunar transit that’s occurring just before the Cancer New Moon, and there is a higher than usual probability of hurtful words being exchanged during this time. If you find yourself in an argumentative situation, this is the time to practice mindfully controlling your emotions. Use breathing exercises, counting to 10 before you respond to a provocative comment or doing some practical chores- Mars is in Virgo.
On June 26th, the Moon in Cancer sextiles Uranus at 10:16 PM Pacific Time. It’s Void-of-Course for just 49 minutes, and then enters Leo at 11:05 PM. This Void-of-Course Moon is beginning on the last degrees of the relatively homey signs of Taurus and Cancer. It’s pretty late in the evening here in the U.S., probably a little early elsewhere, and it is not a very long Void-of-Course Moon anyway.
But if you’re getting ready to go to bed or you’re just getting up in the morning, this might be a good time to review what you have consumed during the day. And I’m not really talking about food that you eat so much as emotions that you have taken in from being around other people, worries and stresses, and look for a way to change them into something that is actually energizing. Just as we do with actual food – when we eat it, it gets transformed into energy. Maybe just make a short list before you go to bed or as you’re having your breakfast, depending on the time of day, about what you’ve been feeling, what’s been going on for you, and how you can change the way you frame these things into something that will motivate you.
On June 29th, the Moon in Leo squares Uranus at 4:03 AM Pacific Time. It’s Void-of-Course for 40 minutes, and then the Moon enters Virgo at 4:43 AM. Erratic behavior is really not going to go over very well during this Void-of-Course Moon period. People might be a little more prone once they get angry to really hold a grudge. If you find yourself in a sticky situation, make an effort to go with the flow, to practice forgiveness and to make forgiveness more of a habit.
Mercury sextile Uranus (June 26, 2025, 2:45 am PDT)
Mercury sextiles Uranus on June 26th at 2:45 AM Pacific Time, at 29º 28’ Cancer and Taurus. This is the first of several aspects Mercury makes this week. And as it makes a connection with Uranus, we know that we get an opportunity to change how we are looking at something, to change the story that we are telling.
Now, Mercury and Uranus are at the very end of their signs, and this could mean that there are stories you’ve been carrying around, ideas and thoughts that are really weighing you down. And as we were talking about before with that Void-of-Course Moon, there is a way to take the things that we have been feeding our minds and our brains, and transform them into a form of energy. The energy that Uranus calls for, the willingness to think for ourselves instead of thinking and talking and doing things as everyone else does or as we are expected to – Uranus doesn’t like that mode of thinking, and will offer an opportunity during this sextile aspect to make you think, “Hmm. What if I didn’t do it that way? What if I didn’t say this particular thing that I normally would say in this situation?”
Mercury at this sextile is on the Sabian symbol 30 Cancer, A Daughter of the American Revolution, which is a kind of a historical. Institution here in the United States and it is about tradition and about the old ways. And I think Mercury in Cancer, anyway, has a great sympathy with the way things are traditionally done.
But the sextile to Uranus, which is on the Sabian symbol 30 Taurus, A peacock parading on an ancient lawn says, yes. These may be the old ways, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t break with certain old ways, certain traditions, if that is more in keeping with who we are and the story we are trying to tell.
Sun sextile Mars (June 26, 2025, 7:11 am PDT)
Also on June 26th, at 7:11 AM Pacific Time, the Sun sextiles Mars at 5º 13’ Cancer and Virgo. Energy and focus and competition can really be awakened when the Sun connects with Mars – sometimes anger as well, or conflict. But this is a sextile aspect and generally we would expect them to manifest in somewhat friendlier ways.
This can bring great creative inspiration as well. This aspect, because the Sun does symbolize our creative side, the way we do things, in a way only we can do them, and Mars is just a really good motivational planet. And since Mars is in Virgo, the motivation is to do work that has a practical application as well, and to do it the very best way we know how.
Mercury enters Leo (June 26, 2025, 12:08 pm – through Sep. 2)
In the second part of this week, between June 26th and 29th, Mercury goes on an extended journey of growth and awareness, and so does the way we look at ourselves and our lives.
On June 26th at 12:08 PM Pacific Time, Mercury enters Leo where it will stay until September 2nd. It’s a good long stay for Mercury in a sign, because it will retrograde here between July 17th and August 11th. In Leo, Mercury tells of our individual heroic journey. How are you the star of your own story? You must tell it vividly with fire and color in a way that compels others to watch and listen because Leo, when it isn’t heard, shrivels and disappears.
Now if you don’t yourself have Mercury in Leo, in your chart, it kind of doesn’t matter. Your story is your story, and that’s always Leo’s message that each of us is special and unique. And Mercury in your chart in another sign just reveals your storytelling style. But while Mercury is in the sign of the hero for this long storytelling period, learn the secrets of owning your story. Tell it lively, tell it compelling, and make the world see you as the stuff of legend.
Mercury trine Saturn (June 27, 2025, 8:52 pm PDT)
On June 27th at 8:52 PM Pacific Time, Mercury trines Saturn at 1º 44’ Leo and Aries. This is the part of the story where we hear about how the hero has been trained by a master who strips away the hubris and sentiment that can all too easily sneak into our tale. We have to earn respect in the world, and part of that is the way we express ourselves. Are you speaking kindly? Are you speaking in a way that asks people to take you and your message seriously?
Mercury trine Neptune (June 28, 2025, 4:58 am PDT)
The next day on June 28th, Mercury trines Neptune at 4:58 AM Pacific Time at 2º09’ Leo and Aries. Mercury trine Neptune is a transit that makes it easy to align our thinking with fantasy. If you are a person who is very imaginative, who likes to work in that realm as an artist or a writer, this is a really good day to sit down and do that kind of work.
That said, there is a fine line between being imaginative and being untruthful. And you want to make sure that you’re walking the right side of that line.
Mercury opposes Pluto (June 29, 2025, 12:57 am PDT)
And on June 29th at 12:57 AM Pacific Time, Mercury opposes Pluto at 3º 10’ Leo and Aquarius. Sometimes when we tell our story, when we speak our truth, when we open our mouths and demand to be heard, others might not take it well. They might feel that we are trying to get more power for ourselves. That in being noticed. We’re trying to show that we think we’re better than other people.
As you are speaking in a way that demands attention, others might decide to try to to make their voices even louder so that yours can’t be heard. Don’t let your message be quieted. But there is a good reminder here that 50% of communication is listening, and sometimes when Mercury is in Leo, we get so caught up in our own narrative that we might forget to stop and hear what other people have to say as well.
Listener Question: The Part of Fortune in the Houses
This week’s listener question comes from Listener Joanie, who writes, “I keep trying to find more information on the Part of Fortune throughout the natal houses, but I’m coming up dry. There is information on the Part of Fortune in the signs, but I have found almost nothing helpful about making the most of the Part of Fortune in the houses.
Every website seems to have been written by AI and each repeats the same gobbledygook from the last. Would you be willing to give a mini lesson on the meaning of the Part of Fortune through the natal houses and how to make the most of each house placement?”
Well, Joanie, thank you very much for that question.
Boy, I really haven’t worked with a Part of Fortune much in so many years. It’s symbolized by a circle with an X in the middle. And it’s helpful to know what the Part of Fortune is. It’s not a physical point in the chart. It’s derived from a formula involving the Sun, Moon, and Ascendant. So, it’s kind of a snapshot encompassing your ego, your unconscious, and your personality.
But foremost, it’s considered an indicator of material wellbeing, and this includes health and body as well as financial fortune, and its placement in your chart will describe something about your worldly success.
Planets or angles that are in close aspect to the Part of Fortune, the planets ruling, the sign of the Part of Fortune, signify your calling and talents as well as how easy or how difficult it will be for you to make something of them. The sign and house placement of the Part of Fortune describes how and in which areas of life you are likely to find success.
I tend to think the house placement of a Part of Fortune is especially important. And when transits or progressions connect with this point, the Part of Fortune really comes into its own.
The year my Part of Fortune, which is at 29 Degrees Virgo in the 10th house, and it’s in a close trine to Jupiter – the year that was conjoined by the progress Sun, I published my most popular book for a major publisher. I was chosen to speak at the big UAC conference for the first time. I look back to that time, that year as a real turning point for me professionally – 10th house – and was a time of tremendous fulfillment. But I think it’s because I’d been carefully building that career in, in a Virgo Way, piece by piece for 20 years or so before all that happened.
So maybe the Part of Fortune is a point that pays off if you have been following its formula all along, which means you’ve been building the kinds of foundation, and very importantly, the integrity that will support you in these areas of your life. Because again, this is a formula of the Sun, Moon, and Ascendant, three of the most important points in your birth chart. And so it represents something about the integrity of all that, the you of you.
I’ll go sort of quickly through what I think about the Part of Fortune in the houses of the chart.
The Part of Fortune in the first house says the formula points to being a self-made person, someone who will listen to their gut and go after what they want without asking others for their opinion. The payoff is to find yourself in a position where you’re doing what you want to do, and preferably something nobody else has done before. Singer Madonna has the Part of Fortune in the first house, and she’s a good example of someone who became wildly successful for being unlike anyone else in music at the time she debuted.
The Part of Fortune in the second House brings rewards and satisfaction through having managed your assets and your talents wisely. And the payoff can be a great amount of money, but it can also be something more intangible, a sense of tremendous pride and the opportunity to create something that will last. Oprah Winfrey has the Part of Fortune in the 2nd house, and transiting Saturn was squaring it on the day her nationally syndicated talk show debuted. Eventually, of course, she made a tremendous fortune from that show, after a good deal of very Saturnine hard work.
The Part of Fortune in the third House brings great satisfaction through some form of communication. You innately need to feel that you’re being heard by the world and that your message is of the highest integrity. And when you get some kind of good transit or progression to your Part of Fortune, it can be a time where you have just really perhaps for the first time in your life felt that people are really listening. Walt Disney’s 3rd house Part of Fortune was getting a trine from the transiting Sun and Uranus on the day Disneyland opened, taking his revolutionary and visionary ideas to a huge audience.
The Part of Fortune in the fourth house brings a tremendous fulfillment from something that’s related to home and family. And if you have a big transit or progression to this Part of Fortune, maybe this is when you buy your dream home or you start a family of your own. George Harrison of the Beatles had this placement, and to escape from the tensions of his career he immersed himself in gardening, and made his home Friar Park into an enchanting show place.
The Part of Fortune in the fifth house brings some kind of great gift involving recognition of your creative talent, the job of having children, or a great love affair. This sounds like a very joyous Part of Fortune. Actress Ally Sheedy, with a 5th house POF, was a child prodigy. She danced with the American Ballet Theater at six, and published her first book four years later. She was writing reviews for the New York Times and The Village Voice at the age of twelve.
The Part of Fortune in the Sixth House brings fulfillment and reward in doing work that you love. And being recognized for it, you’ll probably be tremendously skilled, particularly with manual dexterity and the ability to do troubleshooting. And a good progressed planet or transit to this point might find you in your ideal job.
The Part of Fortune in the seventh House says that when you have really connected with the right partner is when you feel that you have hit the jackpot. The way they support you and complement you is a big part of your sense of reward. And furthermore, you are probably a source of great fortune to others in your life who are close to you. Pricilla Presley, with POF in 7th, was best known as the ex-wife of music icon Elvin Presley, and as chairwoman of the board of his estate. And she turned Graceland, his home, into a multi-million dollar tourist attraction.
The Part of Fortune in the eighth house is the gains often come through eighth house professions such as banking, psychology, or through inheritance or shared resources or psychological insights. One woman I know with this placement became the first woman vice president in her bank. Another is a well-known author of psychological horror fiction.
The Part of Fortune in the ninth House says that joy comes from exploring big ideas through travel or philosophy or education or spirituality. One man I know with this placement published his own newspaper back when that’s the thing you could do and another works in the travel industry.
The Part of Fortune in the 10th House says, career and public life are very important to you, and recognition and success will follow when you have pursued your calling with Integrity.
The Part of Fortune in the 11th house, points to community friendships and shared ideals as sources of joy. Support from these groups is what really helps you realize your dreams. You would never be completely happy without connections with some kind of group or community, I know one woman who has this placement who gave a lot of time and love to an organization devoted to animals. And another is very involved in the organizations related to her profession.
The Part of Fortune in the 12th House says. You need time to be alone. Inner peace, spiritual practice. These are the things that will bring true fortune and even enlightenment, solitude, healing and transcending ego lead to a quieter kind of success.
I know one person with this placement who overcame a terrible physical setback and in doing so, actually found a sense of peace that he had never really had before.
Joanie, I hope that that helps. As I’ve said, I don’t work a whole lot with the Part of Fortune myself when I’m doing readings or the rest of it, but I have certainly noticed at particular moments of my own life how rewarding the Part of Fortune can be when it is getting an important transit or progression from something else. And I hope that you find the same is true for you.
If you have a question you would like me to answer on a future episode of the podcast, please leave a voicemail of one minute or less at speakpipe.com/bigskyastrologypodcast. Or you can send me an email at april@bigskyastrology.com and just be sure to put podcast question in the subject line.
Donor Thanks
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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!
