July is an "8" Universal Month [7 (July) + 1 (2026) = 8] in a "1" Universal Year. 8 months go around and around like an ouroboros; they often include the highest highs and the lowest lows. This makes a lot of sense in a month with lunar nodal movement, drawing in both the future (North Node) and the past (South Node). If it feels like another turn around that same old merry-go-round, you are right on time.
We begin the month with the Sun and retrograde Mercury in Cancer, Venus and Jupiter in Leo, Mars conjunct Uranus in Gemini, Saturn and Neptune in Aries, and retrograde Pluto in Aquarius. By the end of the month, the Sun will be in Leo and Venus in Virgo. Additionally, the lunar nodes will have entered Aquarius (North) and Leo (South). We note here that Mercury did not change signs this month due to its ongoing retrograde, which ends on 7/23.
All eyes are on Leo all month long as we build towards multiple conjunctions in Leo that will happen first in Leo season and then later in the year during Scorpio season. Jupiter entered Leo on 6/30 from the "front end" (prograde/normal motion), the Sun enters Leo on 7/22 (official "Leo season") - also the regular way, and the South Node enters Leo from the back end (in retrograde at 29° Leo) on 7/26. This is a vice, adding pressure to every degree between Jupiter and the South Node that will tighten all year long as they head towards their inevitable conjunction on 11/11 (yes, you just read that right).
Circle that date on your calendar; everything leading up to this - including everything that happens this month in July- is the setup.
In a more immediate way, we spend the first half of the month in Mercury's retrograde and the second half in its post-retrograde shadow, so the energy - overall - looks dark and murky.
Although this technically happened "last month", on 6/30, we will be settling into this yearlong transit all month, which isn't so bad because Jupiter is our Greater Benefic. Jupiter loves to live large; what better way to do so than in bougie Leo?
Jupiter in Leo is quick to point out that there can't possibly be too much of a good thing. Those with more careful Jupiter placements may not enjoy this energy quite as much, but overall, most people will benefit from Jupiter in Leo energy. Especially because this Jupiter in Leo transit includes a Sun-Jupiter conjunction (on the full moon), a Mars-Jupiter conjunction, and a slightly wilder Jupiter-South Node conjunction.
These are our big Jovial days in the months ahead:
6/30 - Jupiter enters Leo
7/29 - Sun conjunct Jupiter during the Full Moon at 06° Aquarius
8/15 - Mercury conjunct Jupiter 10° Leo (bonus)
11/11 - Jupiter conjunct the South Node 25° Leo
11/16 - Mars conjunct Jupiter 25° Leo
We should note here that the period from 11/11 until Jupiter conjuncts Mars should be considered an ascending stellium between Mars, Jupiter, and the South Node, which goes exact on 11/16.
Expect Jupiter in Leo to be larger than life, at least for as long as it moves in the forward direction (Jupiter retrogrades on 12/12). This will make people braver, perhaps irrationally so. Soap boxes will be in ample supply. It will make people friendlier, but not necessarily easier to get along with.
This is a lucky aspect for all of us (prograde Jupiter is always somewhat lucky), but it is especially lucky for Sagittarius Suns and Ascendants, as they benefit from the extra fire Jupiter currently provides. Happy Jupiter return to anybody born while Jupiter is in Leo.
Our Lights: the Sun and the Moon
We start the month weepy, a feeling that may continue for most, if not all, of the month. The transition between Cancer and Leo is often sloppy, and this looks like no exception. Saturn is making the Sun in Cancer increasingly uncomfortable, and Mercury is retrograde in Cancer as well, backing over the Sun on its inevitable journey. The most muddy day of the month (at least from a solar perspective) looks like 7/12, when the Sun meets up with retrograde Mercury at 20° Cancer.
There is a strong urge to move forward this month (Cancer is a cardinal sign), but Saturn and Mercury are holding us back. There may be a way around your obstacles, but you will need to bend and adapt (Mercury in retrograde ideals) to find them.
The STOP sign is most apparent on and around 7/6, when the Sun squares Saturn. Saturn in Aries teaches us how to handle the cosmic pause when all we want to do is disassociate and run ahead as fast as we can; those skills will come to great use in the month ahead.
The new moon will feel low and slow. It sits at 21° Cancer, still closely conjunct retrograde Mercury. This is a good day for watery things: cleansing, divination, pathfinding. As with most of this month, it focuses on our internal journeys rather than the hype of the modern day-to-day.
The Sun enters Leo, the sign of its domain, on 7/22. This supports all types of solar magic.
In Leo, the Sun immediately picks up on the energy of Jupiter, sitting a mere 06° away. From 7/22-7/29, this solar conjunction will continue to grow and expand. That's 8 days to build something momentous. Remember that 8 is also the Universal Number for July 2026 - so doubly heightened during this time. And, of course, we are entering a natural 8-month period that begins in August.
With the Sun, Jupiter, and the South Node in Leo, this is going to be the most Leo season of all of the Leo seasons. Your comfort level with this will depend largely on how you feel about Leos and Leo energy. The big flex is blending into the pack and enjoying the ride.
The full moon for July falls on 7/26, just as the Sun conjuncts Jupiter at 06° Leo. This is the real deal, and it's a perfect day to get lucky or work magic to get anything in the world you want. Venus is square to Mars, so I would (personally) steer away from relationship magic, but you do you. Relationship problems during this time will highlight the places where we are being egoic rather than working as a team.
The Lunar Nodes enter Aquarius (North Node) and Leo (South Node)
This, like Jupiter entering Leo, is the big movement of the summer; the other switch-off that will feel like a changing of the guards.
The lunar nodes aren't physical bodies in the sky, but rather mathematical points where the Sun and Moon would have to be at any given moment in time to create an eclipse. They always occupy a set of Sun sign opposites - the North Node represents what the focus of the population will be, and the South Node represents the energy we need to move away from.
From a wide-angle perspective, the North Node in Aquarius (and the South Node in Leo) is a time when society as a whole is being asked to work together more rather than be individualistic. Aquarius is a very collectivist sign, with both its mature and its immature energies.
Mature Aquarius is future-facing, an early adopter even. Mature Aquarius understands that the entire population of this Earth is all one, no matter what arbitrary lines have been drawn on a map. This is Uranian energy; the big flex is to understand that no matter what - all of us - not just the humans but every form of life - are in it together. This type of Aquarian energy supports technology that will work to improve the planet, such as renewable energy sources and global vaccine initiatives. Mature Aquarius understands that when we help the salamander, we all benefit.
An immature Aquarius can get stuck in a Saturnian mindset. They only see limits, and they can get very hidebound out of a desire to preserve what they think is "theirs". This is the mentality that prioritizes individual tribes over civilization as a whole; it also assumes humans are the only thing that matters.
In a world that seems increasingly polarized, the North Node in Aquarius is likely to further this divide, at least in the beginning. Those who will feel this the strongest are those with Sun, Moon, Saturn, or the lunar nodes in Aquarius or Leo. But we will all sense it to some extent, at least when we have to interact with the general population.
As the lunar nodes change signs, we should also look for the switch-off in eclipse season. We have two lunations left before eclipse season begins with a total lunar eclipse in Aquarius in August.
Mercury will be retrograde for about two-thirds of the month as it moves backward from 26° to 16° Cancer. Although Mercury retrogrades can be really impactful, this one is pretty simple in that it occupies only one sign (Cancer) and only aspects one planet (Mercury always conjuncts the Sun during its retrograde). This means that if this retrograde doesn't strongly impact your natal birth chart (and you weren't born while Mercury was retrograde), it could just be some off-putting and weepy vibes.
Standard Mercury retrograde advice always applies here: check your work, don't call your ex, and try to stay out of it if it isn't "yours". Anticipate delays and detours.
The general population is always a bit wonky when Mercury retrogrades because there will always be people who can't handle their shit if there's a traffic jam, or the self-checkout machine doesn't work right. The big flex all month will be to not be this person.
Things - especially things involving communication, technology, and travel - will get messed up during the retrograde cycle. It's not about you, and it's not personal. Getting impatient or dysregulated over nothing helps nobody.
The more you can shrug off the small stuff, the easier your life will be. It only takes one person to break the chain of the bad day blues - you know the one where the first person gets stuck in traffic, so they yell at the cashier of CVS, who then snarls at their co-worker, who then is rude to their next customer, who then snarks at THEIR co-worker, and so on.
Don't let a nobody ruin your day.
I've written more extensively about this retrograde here.
Our Personal Planets: Venus and Mars
Venus spends the beginning of the month in Leo before entering Virgo, the sign of her fall, on 7/9. Mars spends the month in Gemini. Neither planet is particularly well placed all month, but things will get more tense after Venus enters Virgo. On top of her discomfort in Virgo, Venus conjuncts the South Node at 02° Virgo on 7/11 - a challenging day, no matter how you dice it, and then squares off with Mars under the light of the full moon on 7/29. We should note that Mars squares the lunar nodes earlier in the month on 6/4.
Mutable squares are pretty hit or miss; some people will be really in it during this square, and others won't notice it at all. In general, our two relationship signs being square to one another creates more tension on an interpersonal level; there's just no way around that. In this case, it is more likely to show up as passive aggression or other ways people try to control each other without seeming to do anything at all. Mars in Gemini is quite passive, stuck in the state of possibilities too wide to make a choice. Venus is nitpicky and demanding.
It's not a great combination, and both planets have to contend with their past this month through their contacts with the lunar nodes. This could indicate breakup weather for some people, but it's definitely focused on the people who likely shouldn't be together to begin with. Combined with Mercury's retrograde, this strongly indicates that some people will be dealing with folks from their past, perhaps even the consequences of past relationships or mistakes. This is most likely for those with a strong planetary placement in the first degrees of the mutable signs.
Saturn retrogrades 14° Aries
This is business as usual, as Saturn spends part of every year in retrograde, and it's most notable to those undergoing their Saturn return, as this will cause Saturn to suddenly change course and move towards or away from their natal Saturn.
In retrograde, Saturn doesn't tend to appear as pushy on the surface, but that's a ruse because Saturn is always pushy and demanding at the end of the day. Watch out for shirking your responsibilities - immature Saturn in Aries behavior - because it will come back to bite you in the ass.
August is the real deal. We will experience our first eclipse season on the Aquarius/Leo axis, and the Sun will conjunct Jupiter and the South Node. The time to get ready is now.
7/4 - Mars conjunct Uranus 04° Gemini
7/6 - Sun in Cancer square Saturn in Aries
7/7 - Neptune retrogrades 04° Aries
7/9 - Venus enters Virgo
7/11 - Venus conjunct South Node 02° Virgo
7/12 - Sun conjunct retrograde Mercury 20° Cancer
7/14 - New moon 21° Cancer
7/22 - Sun enters Leo
7/23 - Mercury stations direct 15° Cancer
7/26 - The Lunar Nodes enter Aquarius/Aries, Saturn retrogrades 14° Aries
7/29 - Full Moon 06° Aquarius, Sun conjunct Jupit
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