Scorpio Full Moons and Mercurial Swoons: The Astrology of May 2025*

There’s a certain slowness to Sun-in-Taurus season that doesn’t jive with my big three — the heavy cardinal and air emphases make me impatient, impetuous, and easily frustrated when things don’t feel like they’re moving. This emotional baseline isn’t particularly helpful in our modern world with its emphasis on speed and bite-sized bursts of sporadic attention.

I’ve noticed this in the last few weeks especially. Maybe other millennials have witnessed a similar shift in their attention spans? As a kid, I could finish a mass market paperback in a single weekend, intensely concentrating on that very present act of reading; now, however, my mind wanders frequently. Even my meditation practice is suffering: I can barely hold uninterrupted space without copious irrelevant thoughts assaulting my brain like an artillery barrage. 

Perhaps it’s the plodding quality of the earthy Venusian sign that I bristle at? It encourages us to slow down, stay the course, find sensuous pleasure in everything from sipping our morning pour-overs to adding flourishes to our journals. Our purpose for those thirty days is not to get things done, but rather to bask in the glory of not getting things done — to find purpose in pleasure and to throw our carefully curated to-do lists out the window. 

Venus beginning the month conjoining Neptune in Aries (May 2) invites reflection. How do our burning passions bring purpose to our lives — a purpose that we might have trouble harnessing not because we don’t feel it acutely, but because Neptune has a diffuse and scattering tendency, preventing us from gaining traction. I don’t regard this is a bad energy, but rather one that urges us to honour the myriad ways that we express love, seek beauty, pursue pleasure, and bask in the eternal warmth of friendship. The fiery flame of Martial rulership trining Venus, Neptune and, of course, Mercury from its current position in Leo can help us find courage in our self-expression and articulation of our desires.

For those undergoing prolonged Pluto transits, anticipate a little roughness as the Lord of the Underworld retraces its steps (May 4-October 13). As a transiting-Pluto-conjunct-my-IC survivor, I understand first-hand the harrowing experiences, emotional turmoil, and darkness that this transit conjunct or in hard aspect to one's angles, natal Sun, Moon, or ascendant ruler can bring. Hang in there, even when everything feels like it’s falling apart. For those experiencing the lighter side of Pluto — trines or sextiles to natal positions — then this may be a transit under which a deep dive into the recesses of your psyche could bring positive illumination. 

Potentially complimentary to Pluto’s long trajectory is Mercury’s brief conjunction with Chiron (May 7), offering us a blink-and-it’s-over moment of conscious reflection. Wounds left unhealed can fester and with Mercury in Mars’ bounds, the terms and conditions on this transit no doubt force us to contemplate our actions. When did we shrink from stating our thoughts, feelings, and desires clearly and unreservedly? When did we prevent ourselves from acting in our own best interests? An opportunity may arise where we are tested yet again, inviting us to break a continuing cycle of biting our tongue to our own detriment. 

If sparks fly around Mercury’s union with Chiron, things will certainly cool down as the star of Hermes slips into gentle Taurus (May 10). In stark contrast to the speed and fervor with which Mercury in Aries was apt to take things, the gravity of fixed earth might help steady thoughts running rampant. This may be a strange allusion, but the pace of things with Mercury in Taurus may remind us of some of its retrograde qualities. Messages may take longer to reach us, people may not rush to get paperwork done, and, in general, Venus’ slight indolence could force us to accept that life ebbs and flows and everything cannot take place on the timeline that we want. 

However, this may also be a transit under which we contemplate practical matters, particularly financial ones. With the Sun still in this sign and approaching a conjunction with lightning rod Uranus (May 17), our thoughts for the duration of Sun-in-Taurus season may be about turning our dreams into financial realities. In past posts I’ve spoken about how Uranus in Taurus writ large may have spurred many of us to re-envision what financial security and financial freedom looks like. Is it a trade-off? Can we ever have both in a way that doesn't grind our souls in all the muck that late-stage capitalism brings? While the security-oriented sign can make us uncomfortable with risk-taking, this prolonged presence of the Promethean planet may have upended conventional takes on income. As Mercury transits this sign, our mindset could shift once again, leading us to re-imagine how we make money from a passion project. 

Scorpio Full Moons have a reputation for intensity and the one taking place May 12 is no different. The fixed-water profile already sets this plenilunium apart from its predecessors, bringing a kind of emotional severity. Under Scorpio Full Moons, I have historically had some of the worst fights and most anxiety-inducing experiences that leave me a little rattled and more than a little regretful. 

This Full Moon is opposed by Uranus, a planet whose reputation for disruption and chaos should, to some degree, live up to its promise. Conjunct the Sun, we might expect something about our best-laid plans to go awry, potentially kicking up a storm in a teacup. Although the orb is wide, Pluto in a sign-based square to the Moon adds further depth and even drag as we are asked to confront visions about our future that may not have been fully formulated or that require additional introspection. 

The Sun-Uranus conjunction may introduce a much-needed reprieve to the contours of the month, particularly after the intensity of the Scorpio Full Moon (May 17). I do like the positive sides of these transits — their brief but sometimes helpful bursts of insight, particularly as the aspect separates. There is, of course, the buzzy side: Uranus' dizzying, disorienting quality where we may find our senses heightened. Still, if one can open their mind to possibilities, the inspiring side of Uranus may bless us with sudden brilliance.

If the amplified, nerve-tingling effects of the Sun conjunct Uranus didn’t satisfy your need for speed, the Sun in Gemini invariably might (May 20). I personally crave the movement that this period brings, with the untethering effects of air sweeping messages, connections, opportunities, and engagements into my immediate orbit. 

As far as shifts go, the deliberate care we may have found ourselves taken during Sol’s sojourn in Taurus will give way, potentially inviting less method and more madness into our processes. This is the month of brain dumps, of mining social networks, taking classes, striking up random conversations, and putting oneself out there, so to speak, all in the service of expanding your intellectual and communicative horizons. Embrace child-like curiosity, chase whims, willingly descend rabbit holes, and shift with the mutability that the modal profile demands. By May 24, when Mercury conjuncts Uranus, we may be glad we took advantage of this fluidity as an unexpected communication, invitation, or idea could be particularly game-changing.

Gird your loins as Saturn enters Aries (May 25). I may be in a minority, but I am certainly eyeing this ingress with all the necessary suspicion that a planet in fall demands. Saturn is the rule-maker, not the rule-breaker, and, on some level, I fear that this is precisely what Saturn may do when it heads into the precocious ram-ruled sign and not always in a good way. Saturn in Aries might not give a darn about following the straight and narrow. Its natural predisposition to play the long game, put in the work, and take the more difficult path will no doubt be of little interest. 

This is also our crystal-ball moment, allowing us to peer into the planetary architecture of 2026. How do those two months of Saturn-in-Aries treat us? What themes are immediately highlighted by house placement and in relation to our natal Saturn? Kronos will turn retrograde July 12, re-entering Pisces in mid-August and remaining there until February 14, 2026. This latter period is certainly the tie-up-loose ends transit, but its initial dip into the sign of the ram will no doubt be edifying, so keep your astro journals close!

Mercury enters Gemini (May 26) on the heels of a New Moon in this same sign (May 27). I particularly relish the powerful Mercury at the moment of this lunation, no doubt making this an excellent celestial signature under which to craft a new intention. With the traditional malefics sextiling this lunation, I imagine their influence to be mildly supportive rather than injurious, allowing us to embrace more fully the energy of a Mercury in domicile and term.

What do you want to learn? What story do you want to tell? How do you want to show up in the world? Are there ideas that you need to manifest? With benefic Jupiter also blessing this house, this could be the moment where the conscious architect meets near-optimal celestial alignment. 

The month ends with Mercury’s superior conjunction to the Sun and the mid-way point of this current Mercury cycle (May 30). This is the turning point where we begin to take-stock and prepare for Mercury’s next retrograde — a sunny summer retro beginning July 17. During Mercury’s previous retrograde spanning mid-March to mid-April, we were likely thrown into a wading pool of emotional reflection. The Piscean depths likely disturbed Mercury’s more cerebral predilections, although we no doubt made vows to ourselves to do better and be better after encountering a few inconvenient lessons. As we grew and developed in the intervening eight weeks, the brevity of the cycle demands swiftness of integration and a willingness to slap on band-aids and muddle through as best we can. Between now and July emotional realizations can be integrated intellectually, permitting us conscious moments to more constructively manage any counterproductive doubts and questions. 

--

*DISCLAIMER: All astrological forecasts are for ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY. Any decisions that you might make as a result of reading this or any other astrological blog entry are YOURS ALONE and the creator of this blog will not be held responsible! For any legal issues, see a lawyer; for medical ones, consult a physician. None of the information in this blog constitutes actionable advice from a licensed professional. Once again, this forecast is for ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY!