Out of the Retrograde, Into the Fire: How the Planetary Shifts Shape Our Future
Are we all here? Did we make it? Between February and April 2025 we had three major personal planets go through retrograde; Mars (action), Venus (beauty & relationships), and Mercury (communication and the mind). This is no small thing! Retrogrades bring introspection, review, and revision in the areas of life that the planet governs. While Mercury retrogrades 3x a year, Venus only does so every 18 months. And Mars? Mars retrogrades only every 2 years (24-26 months). And for all three of them to gang up on us like this in such a short period seems cosmically cruel. So congrats! We made it! Now what?
I want to say that we are finally out of the woods, but we are not. The times they are changing. Which might be obvious should you not have your head in the sand. The world seems once again on the brink of a world war/nuclear war - maybe both - and, as we say in wildlife biology, the baselines are shifting.
In science, a shifting baseline is a type of change to how a system is measured, usually against previous reference points, which themselves may represent significant changes from an even earlier state of the system that fails to be considered or remembered (Wikipedia). What does this mean in terms of our lives and the broader world on a whole? And how can astrology make sense of this? Glad you asked.
Everything is a cycle. From the moon and the tides to society and cultures. Let me explain, because astrology can use the placement of the planets to give insight into larger cultural and historical shifts. A great example of this is a cycle noted by William Strauss and Neil Howe who wrote The Fourth Turning. In it, they argue that history follows a recurring 80-100-year cycle divided into four generational "turnings"—High, Awakening, Unraveling, and Crisis—where each phase shapes societal values, institutions, and responses to major events, with the Fourth Turning marking a period of upheaval and transformation.
In astrology, the outer planets of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto act as generational planets and the signs they pass through often shape those generations. Uranus, the planet of innovation and disruption, takes 84 years to make a full cycle - spending approximately 7 years in each sign. Neptune, the planet of collective ideals and illusions, takes 164.8 years to make a full cycle around the 12 signs - spending approximately 14 years in each sign. Pluto, the planet that symbolizes massive shifts in power, takes 248 years - spending around 21 years in each sign. If you ask me, Pluto is to blame for the turnings, and Neptune and Uranus are responsible for the themes of those ‘turnings’.
You see, each of these outer planets has recently changed or is in the process of changing signs right now. Since March 2023 Pluto has been waffling between Capricorn (societal structures, authority, government, business, and the establishment) and Aquarius (progress, innovation, social reform, and the collective) till it finally settled into Aquarius in November 2024. The last time Pluto was in Aquarius was 1777 (this was right around the time of the American Revolution).
Neptune entered bold warrior Aries on March 30th, 2025, where it stays till October 2025. It will station direct in Aries in January 2026 till May 2038. The collective (Neptune) is about to get god-of-war-ish if you know what I mean. Neptune, the planet of illusion, seems to wear a mask of the sign it transits through, but because it is the sign of the collective we all get called into the play. The last time Neptune was in Aries was 1861 (this is the year the American Civil War began).
Uranus joins the “sign change party” this year when it will begin waffling its way into Gemini (the sign of communication, technology, media, and transportation) July 7 - November 7, 2025. This will be like a preview - so watch for themes that emerge around information revolution and disruptive communication till 2033. It will settle into this long transit on July 25, 2026. The last time Uranus was in Gemini was 1941 - 1949, the war years. Think Pearl Harbor, WWII, Japanese internment camps, Hiroshima, and the A-bomb.
If this paints a difficult period ahead, let me give you a silver lining to all of this. In a chart, planets play off each other. Sometimes they oppose and fight and sometimes they support and uplift, and a whole bunch of other interactions as well. In the aforementioned previous iterations, these outer planets playing their roles in these signs opposed one another. This time around they are forming a supportive trine. This energy should be supportive, loving, and ask each of the planets to reach for their highest calling - their highest vibrations.
Maybe this time around instead of Neptune bringing war against the other it will transcend the finite self through union with the larger whole. Choosing to fight for divine love.
Maybe this time around Uranus will enable each individual to honor their uniqueness in themselves as well as others and urge us toward liberation and bring divine wisdom.
Maybe this time around Pluto gives us divine power to transform, renew, and support Neptune and Uranus into all our highest calling.
If the ancients are correct that we are at the end of the Kali Uga and we are here to witness and birth a new earth, then birthing pains are to be expected. Anyone who knows what it is to become a first-time parent knows that the coming years are truly transformative years. For each new child born a mother is born also. I for one, am up for it.
Knowing what is coming and in what way helps to be informed, to know that this change was written in the stars and the turning is upon us. How we face it is our kuliana (our responsibility). Our jobs are to be of service, and to help, in any way we can. In the coming years we will have to rely less on government (Pluto in Capricorn) and more on each other (Pluto in Aquarius). Knowing that alone should help wrap your mind around how to behave in this new world; what energies will be supported and what will no longer be allowed.
Be kind to one another. After all, we're all just walking each other home.
