Neptune Retrograde ♆ 2025

artist: Kim Young-Hun

Neptune Retrograde in Aries: July 4 – Oct 22

Neptune Retrograde in Pisces: Oct 22 – Dec 10

Neptune re-enters Aries: Jan 26, 2026

Planets in retrograde are not spinning backwards – it is an optical illusion as seen from Earth due to the fact that planets travel at their own respective speeds around the sun. In astrology, this illusion manifests as a “backwards” functioning of the planetary roles. Click here to learn more about retrograde.

Since March 30, Neptune has been blazing a path in fire sign Aries for the first time since the mid-1800s. Neptune turns retrograde in Aries for the first four months of the cycle before returning to Pisces for the last six weeks: one final visit in her home constellation until she circles back in 165 years!

Let’s talk about the last three months with Neptune in Aries. I think we can all agree that it has been pure chaos, violence, and adrenaline. Rage and ego rule the scene; moments of calm are increasingly difficult to find. The entire world seems at war, including us as individuals, at war with ourselves.

What do I mean by this? Outer conflict reflects the inner wars we wage against ourselves. Aries rises in overwhelming waves of fury, thwarting our ability to pause and consider. This fire is extremely impulsive, impossible to control. As this energy passes through humanity, we feel it to varying degrees. Some of us feel it in the form of righteous anger. We feel motivated, ready to help our brothers and sisters. Others act before thinking and cause even more destruction.

But again, these are all just mirrors for the wounded inner child who was never acknowledged, who could never express his anger, who never felt worthy. We have men in grown bodies in positions of extreme power who are operating with the emotional intelligence of children and this has never been more obvious.

Neptune’s long transit in Aries makes it clear that the process of reckoning with our collective anger will be a slow one. The secret to incorporating the insatiable fire of Aries lies in the body. This will be the key that saves us. Rather than bodily harm, we must call on bodily strength. Exercise, sports, and performance are all healthy outlets. Physical modalities will present themselves as the necessary alternative to simply exploding with rage.

Therapy, too, is just as important for understanding the fire within. Aries represents not just the body, but also the first years of life and the foundations of Selfhood. This means that we must return to our earliest years to understand our anger.

We are awake and alive now, more than ever perhaps. There is a cosmic urge to play catch up, to overcompensate, to take revenge. But a trajectory fueled by rage takes us only so far. This is not the answer, and mystical Neptune will make this clear with time.

Neptune Retrograde is an extended meditation on our beliefs, as well as our hope. Her pools are deep, introspective, and reflective. Neptune Retrograde in Aries cannot pause the wildfires that have taken hold of the planet, but she can at least sprinkle some water for consideration. The retrograde is essential because it allows us to examine our anger and consider next steps. We cannot continue like this. Our anger is valid, yes, but without a strategy we will simply be overcome by the flames and never succeed in doing anything but begetting more violence.

Neptune Retrograde finishes in Pisces, her home constellation. Neptune dipping back into her home ocean signals that our work in that realm is not over. A visit back to these ancient waters is much-needed to understand the turbulent fires we find ourselves in now. Here we will remember all of the things that we learned inside the cocoon of Neptune in Pisces: self-care; therapy; music; spiritual practices; meditation; patience; mindfulness.

This last round of Neptune Retrograde in Pisces will also be a refresher course on how not to proceed. We need to stay sharp to avoid being manipulated or deceived by popular narratives. We need to take care of ourselves so we don’t fall back into escapist, self-destructive behaviors. We need to stay true to ourselves so we don’t give anymore energy to unhealthy relationships. Neptune Retrograde in Pisces, unlike Aries, operates according to the magic of time. Slow it down, whatever it is. Take in the whole cloud, not just the little details.

The big date on the horizon is next year on Feb 20, 2026 when Neptune forms a conjunction with Saturn in Aries at zero degrees Aries. A conjunction between these planets is rare enough on its own. The chances of it falling at 0 degrees Aries, at the very dawn of the zodiac wheel, are simply astronomical. Please stay tuned throughout the year for more updates on this historic, extremely powerful conjunction.

Listen to Neptune, the Mystic from The Planets Suite by Gustav Holst. I was born with Neptune Retrograde in Capricorn. To find your Neptune sign and whether this planet was direct or retrograde at the time of your birth, click here.