From ground to sky
A hero's journey in 2025
This past week I started previewing the astrology of 2025 for you.
Here’s a recap of my thoughts on Saturn in Aries, one of the most important shifts of the year ahead, which I also explored in an IG Live with
. (follow me over there @anthrosophist)The best medicine for despair is effort
Perfecting the art of imperfection
The choice between hard and hard
Personally and collectively re-defining courage
Humbly committing to learning so that no experiment is a failure.
As the song of the sky reaches a new key, new harmonies are needed from our voices.
What is your harmonic role in the future?
Join me for live-streamed and in-person workshop on this topic this weekend!
FROM NOW ON: Building your Future in 2025: Get Tickets
UPDATE: The workshop was a hit! You can now pick up the recording here: 2025 workshop
Interested in setting up an in-person astrology session December 15-20? Email me drew@archeastrology.com to inquire.
Now let’s continue last week’s exploration of 2025.
The Balm of Jupiter in Cancer
Jupiter is a planet of solutions. The so-called greater benefic has a 12-year cycle and spends a year in each sign.
The types of benefits Jupiter brings you in a year can be expressed in two main ways, one collective and one personal: first collectively, Jupiter improves the topics of the sign he is in, and second, he boosts topics of the house he’s transiting in your chart, which is specific to you and people born with your same rising sign.
Here are the topics Jupiter will be improving for your in 2025 and 2026 based on your Rising Sign:
Aries Rising: Home, family, foundations, the past, land
Taurus Rising: Local world, kinship, siblings, daily flow, interests
Gemini Rising: Resources, values, talents, cash flow, offering
Cancer Rising: Being, self-articulation, strategy, life, motive
Leo Rising: letting go, surrender, isolation, “your demons”
Virgo Rising: Social sphere, groups, aspirations, beneficial causes, friendship
Libra Rising: Role in society, objectives, contributions, public image, authorities
Scorpio Rising: Learning & teaching, publishing & media, prophecy, pilgrimage & travel
Sagittarius Rising: Sharing, collaborating, delays, debts, death
Capricorn Rising: Relationships, agreements & disagreements, projections, reciprocity
Aquarius Rising: Illness, physical upkeep, labor, service & servitude
Pisces Rising: Pleasure, art, sexuality, desire, children
Importantly, Jupiter’s time in Cancer will be hot on the heels of Mars’s long retrograde visit in the sign, which won’t conclude until mid-April.
The ground that Mars tills this winter and spring will be planted and watered by Jupiter in the summer.
Put another way, the Cancer topics of your chart are being offered a chance for “short-term pain, long-term gain.” Effort and exertion in the coming months promise rewards later.
Mars & Jupiter: Planetary Fall & Exaltation
Where Mars is “fallen” in Cancer, Jupiter is said to be “exalted.” These technical terms use the metaphor of elevation to describe planetary experiences.
The Greek term for exaltation is hupsoma, meaning height or elevation, whereas the astrological word for fall is tapeinoma, meaning low to the ground, or humble.
I find great empowerment in reading fallen planets as benefiting from humility. The word humility comes from the same Latin word that gives us “human.” Though gods in their own right, fallen planets are temporarily humbled, brought down to earth.
When fallen in Cancer, Mars benefits from consistent effort and accepting small steps toward progress. Struggles flow from this planetary position when we expect too much from our efforts. But defeatism can be replaced with the perseverance of a humble routine. A sign-environment ruled by the ever-cycling Moon, Cancer teaches Mars the value of repeated action that leads to enlightened adaptation.
The more we do, the more we learn. This is a humble way to act and be. How can you apply this insight to the Cancer house of your chart, as laid out in the list of rising signs above?
Turning now to Jupiter in Cancer, Demetra George describes “exaltation” in Hellenistic Astrology in Theory & Practice Volume 1 as follows:
“An exalted planet is held in high esteem and treated as an honored guest relative to the topics of the house it occupies. His or her thoughts, positions, and actions have great influence over the behavior and deeds of others” (page 191).
Where we have humbly persevered in the coming months, we gain respect when Jupiter enters Cancer next June.
The time ahead can be read through the hero’s journey, from the ordeal to the reward.
In the hero’s journey, the transition from the ordeal to the reward is a critical turning point. The ordeal is the hero’s moment of greatest challenge, a confrontation with death or deepest fear. Emerging from this trial, the hero gains new insight, power, or treasure — the reward — that signifies transformation and a step toward fulfillment.
Mars in Cancer symbolizes the hero’s ordeal — a challenging period where courage is tested amidst emotional turbulence. In this sensitive, protective sign, actions are indirect, emotions cloud clarity, and motivations may be driven by instinctive protection rather than strategic thinking. This ordeal for the hero manifests as an inner battle against insecurity, fear, or clinging to the past. The hero must navigate the emotional currents of Cancer, feeling the weight of past wounds or unresolved family patterns. With Mars being retrograde as well, the struggle is not purely external; it is an internal reckoning with vulnerabilities and suppressed feelings. Like a hero fighting through a stormy sea, the challenge lies in maintaining resolve when emotions surge unpredictably.
During Mars in Cancer, the hero humbly learns that raw force cannot always conquer the waves, but adaptability, emotional intelligence, and patience are just as important. This phase demands the hero face the discomfort of the unknown. The ordeal might strip the Mars-in-Cancer hero of preconceived notions of strength, revealing the power of persistence and resilience rather than imposing will.
When the ordeal reaches its climax, the hero emerges — scarred but transformed. This sets the stage for Jupiter's transit through Cancer, a symbol of the reward phase. Exalted, the hero reaps the benefits of persevering through the ordeal. From the murky depths, the hero is lifted by a tide of worldly esteem. Respect is earned. Where Mars in Cancer called for bravery from below, Jupiter in Cancer offers security and a sense of belonging — the hero is a child of Earth & Starry Skies.
Jupiter in Cancer heals over the wounds of needing. Instead of a liability, vulnerability is revealed as a source of strength and connection. The hero’s reward is not just personal success, but a renewed capacity to give and receive emotional nourishment. Courage and compassion are united under the same banner. The reward may take the form of restored relationships, hope and inspiration, or a newfound sanctuary in a strange and exciting world.
Thank you for reading! I will be helping you work with these energies in your own chart and interpret their significance in your life at my workshop this weekend, December 14!
Register Here (live in-person and livestream tickets available; full recording will be sent to both kinds of ticket holders)
For now,
Drew