God’s Jealousy. On June 30, the exact same day we had the Full Moon in Capricorn, Jupiter entered Leo, where it will spend the next 12 months.

Jupiter’s entry into Leo reminded me of Rumi’s profound verses from the poem God’s Jealousy:

“The whole world is jealous for this reason:

That God has surpassed even the world in jealousy.”

This metaphor resonates strongly with the energy of Jupiter in Leo. Jupiter, the planet of faith and expansion, now meets the heart of Leo, the sign of royalty, creativity, jealousy, and consuming passion. We are invited to look beyond the surface: it is not just about luck, but about that divine spark burning within us that, through its intensity, can awaken “the world’s jealousy.” Here are a few themes that Jupiter’s entry into Leo may bring:

Authenticity and self-expansion: Just like in Rumi’s poem, we are invited to embrace our greatness. If God “surpassed the world” through Creation, we too are called to create with courage, leave our mark, and shine without apologizing for who we truly are.

Personal belief system and magnanimity: Jupiter challenges us to see whether our belief system limits or elevates us. Leo rules the heart.

Are we jealous of others’ success or do we embrace our own radiance? Jupiter magnifies precisely what we carry inside: if we nurture our faith in our own potential, we will attract expansion. If we nurture our fears, we will amplify blockages. Ultimately, magnanimity (generosity and expansion of the heart) is the opposite of pettiness.

Leadership and the desire for recognition: This divine “jealousy” leaves no room for mediocrity. It is time to lead our lives with this intensity, transforming leadership into a form of veneration. As Jupiter tends to exaggerate everything it touches, certain challenges may also arise: if recognition does not come naturally, individuals might seek to be the center of attention at all costs.

Creativity as the engine of luck: With Jupiter in Leo, luck is closely tied to the ability to create. Success comes when an individual puts their unique stamp on their projects. It is not just about work, but about putting passion, art, and personality into everything one does.

Joy of living (Joie de vivre): Jupiter in Leo truly enjoys life. During this period, there is a need to live “on a grand scale”; people tend to be drawn to luxury, art, theater, and social events where they can feel at ease, and life is approached with much, much enthusiasm.

King’s Paradise. Starting July 27, the lunar nodes shift onto the Leo-Aquarius destiny axis, an axis also known as the self-collective. The change of the Lunar Nodes makes me belt out the lyrics from “King’s Paradise” (Rakim, I recommend the live version from NPR Music Tiny Desk) at the top of my lungs:

Welcome to Harlem, the home of innovating

Legacy, story of Gods killing Satan […] The renaissance in the making

Ellington, Garvey, Joe Lewis, Lena Horne

Malcom, Maya, Louis Armstrong

Now crime is the new crave, so there’s a new crusade […] No weapon and no cape on […]

Success brings sacrifice, and if you thinking it’s a piece of cake

You can have a slice

It’s like gambling with the Paradise,

but you pay with your life in the King′s Paradise.

This axis speaks about collective evolution versus individual expression, about social innovation (Aquarius) intertwined with pride, creative genius, and authentic leadership (Leo). Leo is the sign of royalty, personal radiance, art, fame, and the “crown.” The names of the great personalities mentioned (artists, leaders, champions) represent the quintessence of Leo energy: self-expression at the highest level, leaving an undying legacy, and cultural renaissance. Aquarius rules communities, social revolutions, equality, and innovation for the common good. Harlem is portrayed precisely as a laboratory of ideas and social innovations. Holding the “crown” means reclaiming your personal power (Leo), but not just any which way—in the service of the collective (Aquarius).

“Success brings sacrifice” / “It’s like gambling with the Paradise, but you pay with your life”

This is the shadow and the great lesson of the Leo-Aquarius axis. Leo demands recognition, radiance, and passion, while Aquarius demands detachment, the sacrifice of the ego (ego death) for a greater cause (the group, the neighborhood, the future). “Paradise” (the ideal society dreamed of by Aquarius) is not achieved without risks and without a huge leonine price: self-sacrifice or, better yet, self-renunciation. Through the lens of these lyrics, the shift of the lunar nodes onto the Leo-Aquarius axis means moving from mere survival in a difficult environment to the rebirth of a collective consciousness (Aquarius) through creativity, generosity, and individual power (Leo). This underground song combining narrative hip-hop and conscious rap is a modern monomyth of the everyday person becoming the king of their own community, paying the price of self-transformation. And the legacy Rakim speaks of doesn’t seem to be just about fame or success, but about the impact you leave behind in the place you come from. Thus, personal transformation is no longer an end in itself, but the starting point for a change that can also ripple out to others.

The Equation of Friendship and Joy. I started my morning with an indispensable coffee and a reel in which Colman Domingo (the actor who plays Ali in the series “Euphoria”, and also Joseph Jackson in the new biopic about Michael) shared that he had looked on Twitter at the comments regarding his performance as a guest host for Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show (kind of a backup while Kimmel is on vacation).

Although most of the messages received were positive, a certain Deborah made a point of writing, tagging the show’s official page: “Remind Colman Domingo to tone down the exuberance. Can’t take that much energy at 11:35. Shhhh…”I loved the authentic way he responds to her complaint: “Sorry to overwhelm you with my vivaciousness, Deborah. But we’re not gonna let the Deborah-downers of the world get the best of us!”

Then he continued with a piece of news about how White House employees are complaining about Melania Trump’s unpredictability. Colman: “Melania, if you’re watching, I don’t know what crazy shit you’re cooking up, but I think I speak for all of us when I say: «Live your truth! Do it girl!»” And after a few moments of applause: “I’m sorry! Was that too much, Deborah?”

The reel with Colman Domingo, the actor living his truth with his Mars in Aquarius radiating freedom, made me think straight back to a recent scene. An old friend recently told me that I am “too cheerful,” “too in a good mood”, “too much”. It was the very first time in my life that this “too much” label didn’t bother me at all. On the contrary, it made me wonder: how many times have certain people seemed “too much” to us, and what does it actually mean when someone is overwhelming to us? This opens up a fascinating dynamic related to Leo energy (the expansion of joy, creativity, unbridled self-expression) and Aquarius energy (the freedom to be exactly who you are, without filters).

Analyzing things deeply, I was able to understand a liberating truth: you can only be “too much” for someone who is not at peace with themselves. It is often said that we must be at peace with ourselves in order to genuinely rejoice in someone else’s success or happiness. But this raises an uncomfortable and profound question about friendship: If you cannot be happy for the other person unless you are entirely at peace with yourself, can you truly still say you are their friend?

Authentic joy should not be conditional. And just like in Colman Domingo’s comebacks in front of critics asking him to “tone it down,” the lesson from the Leo-Aquarius axis shows us that your light should never be dimmed, because you can never ever overshadow your true friends.