Mercury in Retrograde

While I take no claim to being an expert on astrology or astronomy. I have studied this particular phenomenon to some degree as I find it quite fascinating. Have you noticed recently, in a general way, "things" feel a bit out of sorts? Your physical energy might feel a bit wonky, fatigued, sluggish. You may be noticing a shift in how you communicate with others and how people communicate back. Do you feel like your state of mind has moved into a more depriving manner? When you are traveling, does it seem to take you longer than usual to get to your intended destination? And lets talk about why your computer keeps crashing or car is not working the way you would expect. You may be wondering about some of these things right now. How do I know this? No I am not a mind reader but I do believe in the power of universal forces like the sun, the moon, the planets and how they relate to us. So what do the planets have to do with why it took you 8 hours to get to grandma's house for Christmas this year instead of the usual 4 , or why your car is stalled out, or why your cell phone not working like you would expect? It may have everything to do with a special time in the zodiac known as Mercury in retrograde.

The term retrograde is from the Latin word retrogradus–"backward-step". The affix retro- meaning backwards and gradi step or to go. Retrograde is most commonly an adjective used to describe the path of a planet as it travels through the night sky, with respect to the zodiac, stars, and other bodies of the celestial embodiment. In this context, the term refers to planets as they appear from Earth, to briefly stop and reverse direction at certain times, though in reality they perpetually orbit in the same uniform direction. So no, the planets are not actually moving in the reverse direction. In fact, scientist at NASA refer to this as "apparent retrograde motion".

Although planets can sometimes be mistaken for stars as we observe the night sky, the planets actually change position from night to night in relation to the stars. Retrograde (backward) and prograde (forward) are observed as though the stars revolve around the earth. Like the sun, the planets appear to rise in the East and set in the West. When a planet travels eastward in relation to the stars, it is called prograde. When the planet travels westward in relation to the stars (opposite path) it is called retrograde.

So what about all these inconvenient mishaps taking place with communication, travel, and electrical? Each planet has its own retrograde phase. Some occur more frequently than others depending on the planet and at different times. According to the zodiac, planets also contain certain dominating characteristics. For example, the planet Mars is believed to rule physical energy and efforts. He expresses the strength and direction of the physical force that drives your ego and your will to achieve. Venus, rules feelings and emotion, aesthetics and tastes, relationships, fashions and all forms of desire, money and wealth. She governs romance, marriage and other partnerships, capacity for humor, and the pursuit of pleasure. Of course none of this really means anything if you choose not to believe it means anything. However when we look at the planet Mercury and its effects the connection appears to be to coincidental.

In general when Mercury is direct it rules thinking and perception, processing and disseminating information and all means of communication, commerce, education and transportation. By extension, Mercury rules people who work in these areas, especially those who work with their minds such as teachers, writers, and politicians.

Mercury retrograde gives rise to personal misunderstandings; flawed, disrupted, or delayed communications, negotiations and trade; glitches and breakdowns with phones, computers, cars, buses, and trains. These problems usually arise because some crucial piece of information, or component, has gone astray or awry.

As you can see it may not be wise to make important decisions while Mercury is retrograde, since it is likely that such decisions will be clouded by misinformation, poor communication and careless thinking. Mercury is all about mental clarity and the power of the mind, so when Mercury is retrograde these intellectual characteristics tend to be less acute than usual, as the critical faculties are dimmed. Make sure you pay attention to the small print!

Once you become aware of this phenomena it always kind of stays with you. In fact I usually discover it intuitively. This current retro period is no different. I recall explaining to my wife during the shadow phase, the week or two prior to the retrograde, that I had been feeling different. Mentally more than physically I was noticing great shifts in how I was relating to certain aspects of my life. Weeks prior to this I had been in a very productive energetic state. Projects would arise and I would feverishly complete them. Soon though I consciously noticed that vigor had fizzled a bit. I wondered about this. Rather than waking at 5 AM to write for this blog or work on my website, or work on my book, I felt naturally more inclined to take a few extra minutes under the covers!

I have found that the real conflict about this time is the inability to accept what is and have it be OK, or better yet to be OK with it. Do we always need to be working at such a feverish pace? When those times arise and the energy is moving freely in that direction, we can appreciate it. At the same time we need to have some space to step back and to observe what we have created. Further, I see it more of a practice, if you will, to be able to sit back and relax into a change in flow. This is a practice because for many of us we are programmed through our surroundings to maintain a continuous go cycle. It takes a conscious awareness to notice this pattern, to accept it as the current circumstance, and to then direct it in a way that may be more empowering to us. I am finding from a series of recent personal events that I am more open to this now than ever and thankfully so. I can taste the ebb and flow of my process and can appreciate what each wave has to offer. After all it is all part of the same ocean. The ocean of LIFE.