As we near the end of this month's Mercury retrograde, I wanted to put out an article detailing the meaning of Mercury Retrograde in Astrology and its significance within our lives. This article will cover the astronomy behind planetary retrogrades, and their general meaning, and will touch on the mythology of the Mercury retrograde cycle. By the end, you will be equipped with all the information you need to better understand its significance in your life and how to best work with its energy.
What Does Planetary Retrograde Mean?
Each planet in the solar system has a different orbital speed relative to its proximity to the Sun. Being the giant mass that it is, the Sun's gravitational pull determines the speed at which a planet is moving along its orbit. As a general rule of thumb, the farther a planet is away from the Sun the slower its orbital speed. This is because the farther away a planet is from the Sun, the less it is impacted by the Sun's gravitational force.
Because planets have different orbital speeds, there is an optical illusion produced when a planet catches up and then passes Earth, in the case of Mercury or Venus, or, vice versa, when Earth catches up to a slower-moving planet and then passes it. The retrograde cycle begins when a planet is "catching up" to another in its orbit, and ends when it has fully surpassed the other.
To illustrate this principle in simpler terms, think of when you are passing someone on the highway. As you begin to reach the speed of the other car, there is an illusion of the other car slowing down beside you. But, when you begin to accelerate faster than the car that you are passing, suddenly it looks like that car is moving backward. Eventually, when you get far enough ahead of the other car, that optical illusion disappears and both vehicles appear to be progressing forward once again. This is the phenomenon that occurs during a Mercury Retrograde, or any other planetary retrograde for that matter. From our perspective here on Earth, when a planet stations retrograde it appears that it comes to a halt in the night sky, eventually even appearing to be moving backward in its orbit. Once the faster-moving planet has surpassed the other, the retrograde period is finally over and it begins to move forward in the night sky once more.
Mercury and the Underworld: Mercury Retrograde in Mythology
In classical mythology, the Roman god of travel, commerce, and communication, Mercury, synonymous with the Greek god, Hermes, was the god responsible for guiding recently passed souls into the Underworld. Out of all of the Gods and Goddesses, Mercury was the only one capable of moving freely between Earth and the Underworld. It was Mercury who was responsible for making sure that all souls went to rest. Without him, the world would become cluttered with wandering spirits in need of closure. In a sense, Mercury served as the spiritual housekeeper of the world, doing away with all energy that no longer served a purpose on Earth.
Metaphorically speaking, the Mercury Retrograde cycle is representative of his journey to the Underworld. Just as Mercury travels to the Underworld and rises back to Earth, during its retrograde, the planet itself moves backward, eventually journeying forward in its orbit. This concept of going under and rising back up is directly connected to the phenomenon of a retrograde planet moving backward and forward in the sky.
Out of all planets in the solar system, Mercury goes retrograde more than any other, occurring about three to four times a year. This is why he receives correspondence with being the designated guide to the Underworld because no other planet has a more intimate understanding of this retrograde cycle than Mercury does. As we will discuss further, just as Mercury's journey to the Underworld was responsible for keeping a balance within the energy on Earth, giving direction and respite to lost souls, and even returning them to their predeceased ancestors, much of what Mercury Retrograde means in Astrology is connected to this myth.
The Meaning of Mercury Retrograde in Astrology
The astrological meaning of celestial events is, in large part, determined by the visual and behavioral quality of the event itself. In the case of any planetary retrograde, this idea of slowing down, going backward, and then eventually moving forward again is the foundation for what Mercury Retrograde means in Astrology.
Mercury Retrograde in Astrology is all about the external stimuli in our lives related to Mercury slowing down enough, so that we may go inwards, reflecting, revisiting, and revising upon areas of our lives related to this archetype, eventually moving forward with clearer direction and energetic balance once the retrograde period is over. So what does Mercury represent in Astrology?
Mercury in Astrology is all about our relationship to communication, the thinking mind, travel, problem-solving, and planning. All of the "attributes" traditionally associated with the left brain are the domain of Mercury. Speech, linear thinking, pattern recognition, logic, and fact are all keywords for what Mercury presides over within ourselves, and our lives at large.
During the Mercury retrograde cycle, the outer events associated with Mercury begin to slow down, as we find that we come across roadblocks that impede our ability to realize Mercurial tasks. This can come in many forms, but often it appears as delays or cancellations in travel, logistical barriers that complicate our ability to connect and socialize, and difficulty with having clear communication and presentation of facts.
A personal example of this is, just as Mercury was stationing retrograde a few weeks ago, a long-awaited event that I had been looking forward to was canceled the day of, forcing me to navigate around the logistics of having taken time off and traveled, just for my plans to fall through. Another example of this is, at the start of this retrograde, I attempted to transfer my retirement savings to a new investment fund, and the money was placed on hold for weeks because the documentation from my bank had been lost in the mail. These are just some of the infinite ways that Mercury Retrograde can cause external restrictions that force us to slow down and rethink.
Internally, there is a purging quality to the meaning of Mercury Retrograde in Astrology. Just as the mythological Mercury clears the world of stagnant souls, Mercury Retrograde in Astrology serves to clear away our stagnant energy, in the form of outdated ways of thinking, reasoning, speaking, and planning. The inconveniences that we come across within our conversations, planning, and belief systems during a Mercury retrograde ultimately encourage us to lay to rest ways of engaging with the world that no longer serves a purpose, leading us to more clarity and balance. Halfway through the Mercury retrograde cycle, Mercury conjoins in the sky with the Sun. At this time, we typically see that the Sun illuminates new information, revealing facts that may have previously been hidden, that encourage us both individually and collectively to pursue new modes of thinking and behaving.
Another thing to note is that, just as the mythological Mercury returns souls to their ancestors in the afterlife, many times we see that under a Mercury Retrograde, we will return to relationships from our past in order to lay things to rest. We've all heard the warnings about texting your ex during a Mercury Retrograde, and there's a legitimate reason for this! There is a social element to Mercury, being the God of communication, so many times we return to connections of the past under the retrograde because we are going to be asked to confront new information about the relationship or the person that will ultimately move us in a different direction.
All in all, the meaning of Mercury Retrograde in Astrology is all about the reveal of new information that forces us to revisit, review, and revise our relationship to our beliefs, mental patterns, daily habits, and most importantly, the recognition and expression of the truth. Although it can be inconvenient, Mercury Retrograde is nothing to fear. If you can consciously go into a Mercury Retrograde cycle with the understanding that you will need to be light on your feet and intellectually flexible, you will move through these periods of time with grace, clarity, and embodied understanding. Be open, be willing to adapt, and listen for the whisperings of truth that come your way.
PS: If you'd like to learn more about what this retrograde has meant for you, please schedule a consultation with me Here:
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