Free Will Astrology: Week of May 12, 2025

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ARIES (March 21-April 19): What may appear to be slow or static is actually moving. The developing changes are imperceptible from day to day, but incrementally substantial. So please maintain your faith in the diligent, determined approach. Give yourself pep talks that renew your deeply felt motivation. Ignore the judgments and criticism of people who have no inkling of how hard you have been working. In the long run, you will prove that gradual progress can be the most enduring.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The most successful people aren't those who merely follow their passion, but those who follow their curiosity. Honoring the guidance of our passions motivates us, but it can also narrow our focus. Heeding the call of our curiosity emboldens our adaptability, exploration, and maximum openness to new possibilities. In that spirit, Taurus, I invite you to celebrate your yearning to know and discover. Instead of aching for total clarity about your life's mission, investigate the subtle threads of what piques your curiosity. Experiment with being an intrigued adventurer.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Gemini author Huston Smith was a religious scholar who wrote 13 books. But he was dedicated to experiencing religions from the inside rather than simply studying them academically. Smith danced with Whirling Dervishes, practiced Zen meditation with a master, and ingested peyote with Native Americans, embodying his view that real understanding requires participation, not just observation. In the spirit of his disciplined devotion, I invite you to seek out opportunities to learn through experience as much as theory. Leave your safety zone, if necessary, to engage with unfamiliar experiences that expand your soul. Be inspired by how Smith immersed himself in wisdom that couldn’t come from books alone.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): More than 2,000 years ago, people living in what’s now the Peruvian desert began etching huge designs of animals and plants in the earth. The makers moved a lot of dirt! Here’s the mystery: Some of the gigantic images of birds, spiders, and other creatures are still visible today, but can only be deciphered from high above. And there were, of course, no airplanes in ancient times to aid in depicting the figures. Let’s use this as a metaphor for one of your upcoming tasks, Cancerian. I invite you to initiate or intensify work on a labor of love that will motivate you to survey your life from the vantage point of a bird or plane or mountaintop.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): You now have extra power to detect previously veiled patterns and hidden agendas. That’s why I urge you to be alert for zesty revelations that may seem to arrive out of nowhere. They could even arise from situations you have assumed were thoroughly explored and understood. These are blessings, in my opinion. You should expect and welcome the full emergence of truths that have been ripening below the surface of your awareness. Even if they are initially surprising or daunting, you will ultimately be glad they have finally appeared.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Renowned Virgo author Nassim Nicholas Taleb has called for the discontinuation of the Nobel Prize in Economics. He says it rewards economists who express bad ideas that cause great damage. He also delivers ringing critiques of other economists widely regarded as top luminaries. Taleb has a lot of credibility. His book The Black Swan was named one of the most influential books since World War II. I propose we make him your inspirational role model for now, Virgo. May he incite you to question authority to the max. May he rouse you to bypass so-called experts, alleged mavens, and supposed wizards. Be your own masterful authority.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): I predict that your usual mental agility will be even more robust than usual in the coming weeks. Although this could possibly lead you to overthink everything, I don’t believe that’s what will happen. Instead, I suspect your extra cognitive flexibility will be highly practical and useful. It will enable you to approach problems from multiple angles simultaneously—and come up with hybrid solutions that are quite ingenious. A possibility that initially seems improbable may become feasible when you reconfigure its elements. PS: Your natural curiosity will serve you best when directed toward making connections between seemingly unrelated people and fields.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): You're ready to go to the next evolutionary stage of a close alliance. Although you may not feel entirely prepared for the challenge, I believe you will be guided by your deeper wisdom to do what's necessary. One way I can help is to provide exhilarating words that boost your daring spirit. With that in mind, I offer you a passage from poet William Blake. Say them to your special friend if that feels right, or find other words appropriate to your style. Blake wrote, "You are the fierce angel that carves my soul into brightness, the eternal fire that burns away my dross. You are the golden thread spun by the hand of heaven, weaving me into the fabric of infinite delight. Your love is a furnace of stars, a vision that consumes my mortal sight, leaving me radiant and undone. In your embrace, I find the gates of paradise thrown wide."

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In ancient Egypt, mirrors were composed of polished copper. To remain properly reflective, they required continual maintenance. Let’s take that as a metaphor for one of your key tasks in the coming weeks. It’s high time to do creative upkeep on your relationships with influences that provide you with feedback on how you’re doing. Are your intended effects pretty close to your actual effects? Does your self-image match the way you are perceived by others? Are you getting the right kind of input to help you stay on course?

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Chances to initiate creative transformations will come from unexpected sources in the coming days. I guarantee it. But will you be sufficiently receptive to take maximum advantage? The purpose of this horoscope is to nudge you to shed your expectations so you will be tenderly, curiously open to surprising help and inspiration. What sweet interruptions and graceful detours will flow your way if you are willing to depart from your usual script? I predict that your leadership qualities will generate the greatest good for all concerned if you are willing to relinquish full control and be flexibly eager to entertain intuitive breakthroughs.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): For many Indigenous people of California, acorns were part of every meal. Nuts from oak trees were used to create bread, soups, dumplings, pancakes, gravy, and porridge. But making them edible required strenuous work. In their natural state, they taste bitter and require multiple soakings to leach out the astringent ingredient. Is there a metaphorical equivalent for you, Aquarius? An element that can be important, but needs a lot of work, refinement, and preparation? If so, now is a good time to develop new approaches to making it fully available.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): When Pisces-born Jane Hirshfield was a young poet, she mostly stopped writing poetry for eight years. During that time, she was a full-time student of Zen Buddhism and lived for three years at a monastery. When she resumed her craft, it was infused with what she had learned. Her meditative practice had honed her observational skills, her appreciation of the rich details of daily life, and her understanding that silence could be a form of communication. In the spirit of the wealth she gathered from stillness, calm, and discipline, I invite you to enjoy your own spiritual sabbatical, dear Pisces. The coming weeks will be an excellent time to relax into the most intriguing mysteries.