By Yara Obeid, July 23, 2026
July 2026 is officially one of the most intense, chaotic, and astrologically significant months of the entire decade. For the first few weeks of June, the planets were actually on their best behavior. I feel like every summer it feels this way for me, but this year in particular, July is extremely karmic. I think everyone to some degree has been feeling this more than usual and has been experiencing major beginnings and endings in the last month or two alone.
I believe that as a collective, but also on the individual level, we’ve been quantum leaping into a new timeline. With quantum leaping comes the destruction of what we know and are comfortable with: our old lives. It may feel unstable for sure, but it’s a true rite of passage for the new life you’ve been asking the universe for. How can you accept the new when the old is too heavy and blocking your blessings?
I wish I had been writing about this throughout this last month or two to help anyone that’s been really going through it, but I myself have been in the throes of my own “dark night of the soul” rite of passage. I’ve had to take things day by day with my world crumbling around and from underneath me just to get through this really hard time. But I feel this sense of destiny and a new life full of blessings right around the corner which keeps me going. This will be the same for you, I promise.
All of that to say, I’m here to talk about what we’ve been experiencing as a way to make sense of the chaos and to process it with you, but also to talk about what the next week or so will look like as we close out July and move into August. I promise you, things are going to calm down come August and really into September. I wish I could just jump in and talk about the Full Moon in Aquarius coming up and how we are now officially entering eclipse season. However, I do need to acknowledge the rollercoaster ride of these past 2 months. Hopefully, you may find solace in how I interpret it and feel empowered as things will continue to play out in the near future. Let’s take a step back to the beginning with June.
June gave us that dreamy, heart opening Venus/Jupiter conjunction wrapped in gentle water energy that felt like a warm embrace, focusing us on family, comfort, and deep emotional healing as both were in Cancer. The true chaotic energy didn’t start creeping in until the final days of the month. On June 28, Mercury crossed into Cancer, changing the collective tone to deep emotional sensitivity. Right on its heels, June 29 brought Mercury stationing retrograde while colliding head on with a heavy Capricorn Full Moon, suddenly dumping heavy emotional and professional weight onto our shoulders. Lastly, on June 30th, Jupiter left homey Cancer and entered loud Leo, where it will stay for the next 13 months. I’m actually really stoked for Jupiter in Leo and we’ll be talking about this transit a lot. For now, reflect on where Leo is in your chart and how it may affect you personally, but as always, I’m happy to meet and talk about how that will play out for you. There’s so much to embrace and take advantage of with this energy.
Then July rolled out the red carpet demanding our attention, in true Leo fashion. July took that late June buildup and completely blew the doors open. Astrologers have had July 2026 circled on their calendars all year because we are witnessing a rare, once in a generation dynamic between the outer heavy planets (Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto) working in tandem to tear down our old reality and write a completely new one.
Let’s start with July 4th, where Mars in Gemini conjunct Uranus. Think back to the 4th or the days leading up/after the 4th – were there any shocking events you experienced in your personal life? Especially in the house Gemini occupies in your natal chart. You may have also experienced breakthroughs or this restlessness to move forward or take action that seemingly came out of nowhere (that’s Uranus for you).
July 7th, Neptune in Aries stationed retrograde. Now Neptune, along with other generational planets like Saturn, Pluto, and Uranus, retrogrades almost half of the year, so the transit is underwhelming for the most part. No need to fear or feel any anxiety about this. Again, wherever Aries is in your chart is where you may feel a reality check or a clearing of fog that’s been diluting your perception for a while.
Skipping over to July 14th, there was a New Moon in Cancer, highlighting themes of emotional security and familial connections. Again, wherever Cancer is in your chart is where you may have felt it personally for yourself. On July 20th, Jupiter, freshly in Leo, created an opposition to Pluto which has been slowly moving through Aquarius, creating a massive, pressure cooker tension between our personal desire to expand and the heavy weight of collective influence, balancing where we want to step into our personal purpose versus feeling squeezed by external control.
You may have been feeling this buildup of energy for the two weeks leading up to the 20th and you’ll continue feeling this until the Aquarius Full Moon on the 29th, where you’ll likely feel a surge of raw ambition along with shifts in power dynamics all around you. This exact opposition forms the sharp, active edge of an extraordinarily rare geometry called Barbault’s Basket (or a Cradle alignment), bringing Jupiter, Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune into conversation. It’s a cosmic fingerprint that always signals massive collective resets, historical, and societal shifts. The Barbault’s Basket alone warrants an entire blog post (or more) about what this configuration is and how it will impact us collectively and personally. So much to look forward to.
Then July 22nd, the Sun entered Leo kicking off Leo season. This is a really exciting (and chaotic time) to tap into your creativity, confidence and power, and get comfortable with being in the spotlight. July 23rd, Mercury stations direct, clearing up a bit of the carnage of the past 3 weeks of this retrograde. I wish I didn’t have to gloss over Mercury retrograde because this one has probably been the most brutal retrograde to date (at least for me and I feel like from what I’ve heard from so many others), but we have to keep it pushing since we’ve got a lot to talk about and look forward to. But if you feel like you were victimized by this particular Mercury retrograde, just know that I’m here to tell you – you’re not crazy.
Also keep in mind that just because Mercury stations direct on the 23rd does not mean we’re in the clear. I’d even argue the shadow periods that come before and after a retrograde are just as brutal if not even worse. The pre-shadow period of this retrograde is honestly when my life started to fall apart in June (pre-shadow began June 11th so think back to wherever Cancer is in your chart to see how it has played out for you), so stay alert, review and reread your texts, contracts, agreements, etc., hold off on making any major decisions, and make sure to tip toe until August 6th. True clarity will be available by then. But for now, in the trenches we remain.
Finally, we’ve got the Full Moon in Aquarius on July 29th, causing a breakthrough and transformation on a collective level. I’m so excited to talk about this Full Moon and honestly the eclipses we’re about to experience. We have 4-7 eclipses a year, so we’re not new to eclipse seasons per se, but this one is special for a few reasons. And maybe it’s because I’m an Aquarius rising so I am both petrified yet magnetized by anticipating how this might play out for me these next 18 months.
First off, what determines the sign eclipses happen in are the nodes of the Moon, the South Node and the North Node. The North Node represents where we are being called to rise to the occasion – wherever the North Node is located in your chart or is transiting is destiny knocking at your door asking you to make bold changes and grow in whatever area of life that may be. The South Node on the other hand gently, but firmly, nudges us to recognize an area of life where a cycle or a way of being is ready to be ‘eclipsed out’ due to past life karma, skills that no longer serve you and may stunt your growth, and resistance to leaving your comfort zone.
The nodes shift every year and a half or so and are always in sister signs. We’ve had the nodes in the Virgo/Pisces axis, so we’ve been experiencing eclipses causing major breakthroughs and changes wherever Virgo and Pisces fall in your chart since September 2024. Virgos and Pisces placements, you can finally take a break! Especially with Saturn and Neptune having been in Pisces up until earlier this year, I know you have been through the wringer. Now the nodes are shifting into Aquarius and Leo for the first time since 2008-2009 and 2017-2018. Think back to that time of your life and reflect on what transformed or occurred for you. Then think on where Aquarius and Leo fall in your chart to get a sense of how it personally played out and can hint at how it may potentially play out this time around. This eclipse cycle will be different of course, considering the fact that the planets will be having different conversations than the last, but it’s a good place to start when reflecting on how you’ll be impacted. This is where I can come in and help you translate the possibilities that can transpire.
The next reason that makes this Full Moon so special is that it will be tightly conjunct Pluto in Aquarius. This injects an intense, deeply psychological, and raw subterranean current into the days and weeks following the 29th. On the very same day, the Sun aligns right on top of Jupiter in Leo, fully igniting that jackpot expansion and peak momentum energy from the Jupiter/Pluto opposition we talked about. We have the Moon and Pluto standing shoulder to shoulder in Aquarius opposing the Sun and Jupiter in Leo; two cosmic power couples facing off across the sky. If you were obsessed with mythology like I was as a kid, that’s equivalent to Zeus and Hades fighting for power in a massive tug of war. This energy creates a high stakes turning point. Anything you’ve been turning a blind eye to or struggling with since mid July is going to rise right up to the surface to demand your attention for radical change. This isn’t a light Full Moon by any means. It’s a mirror, forcing a sudden, undeniable moment of clarity where you have to look at where you’re surrendering your authority and power, where you’ve been allowing yourself to be manipulated or to shrink yourself, or where you’re frantically trying to control things you really just need to let go of.
Because this Full Moon lands right above the massive Solar Eclipse on August 12, it acts as the exact doorway into eclipse season. What shows up around July 29 isn’t random as it’s the opening scene for the major transformations coming in August. I’ll be making more posts about the upcoming transits because I feel like they are truly the doors to the next season of your life. You’ll have a new script and plot, new characters and new challenges, but also new blessings and plot twists. Whatever you’ve been experiencing up until this point has served as clearing out the old way of existing and is now handing you the key to unlock that door to a new timeline at the end of July. Until then, please take it easy and take it day by day.
While I’ll also be talking about how this affects everyone personally, I’d be remiss to gloss over how impactful this energy is on a collective level. The world stage is now at a tipping point where we will begin seeing the shifts in power – I truly believe we will witness the collapse of empires and power trips. What goes up must come down; the pendulum always swings back and forth.