the third mercury retrograde journey of 2016 is upon us and this mercury retrograde is a potent one! first of all it’s in virgo- one of the signs mercury rules. second of all it stations retrograde on august 30th at the karmic 29th degree of completion, closure, endings and letting go. and third of all one of the defining signatures of the mercury retrograde cycle is the triple conjunctions he makes to jupiter- the planet of expansion, abundance and positivity! wherever virgo is in you natal chart you are getting amplification of some big time growth/evolution energy due to the presence of mercury retrograde, the two benefics venus and jupiter, the solar eclipse on september 1st and the evolutionary north node all in virgo. so pull up your natal chart and look to see where the sign of virgo falls (it could be in two houses) and know that these key areas of life are set to shift in exponential ways! you can also read the weekly horoscopes to get the download about what this all means for your sign (be sure to read for sun sign and rising sign)
at the end of this blog i have a listing of all the important dates for the entire mercury retrograde journey- so please refer to that if you like to mark things down in your calendar. in this blog i will go over the major themes of this retrograde so you can get the download for how to best use this 2 month journey.
as i mentioned the front end shadow of mercury retrograde began on august 10th. this is the day mercury entered 14-15 virgo- the degree he will station direct on september 21st after his 3 week inward/downward journey. the front end shadow involves the planet’s journey over all the degrees he will go over a total of 3 times- so it’s like a preview of what is to come making august 10th-30th a good one to pay attention to what transpires for you as it will give insights into what this mercury retrograde is about for you personally.
during this pre-shadow phase mercury trines pluto, quincunxes eris/uranus, opposes chiron, and cojoins jupiter and venus. he triggers the uranus/pluto square, the uranus/chiron semisextile, the uranus/eris conjunction and he forms a triple conjunction with venus and jupiter just days before and after he stations retrograde on august 30th. mercury/uranus/pluto can bring deep and penetrating communication as well as sudden and unexpected information, ideas or communications that bring Truth to Light. mercury with chiron has a focus on deep wounding in communication and thinking and what we need to do to heal our minds or connections with others. both of these can make thinking or incoming information or communication pretty intense and revealing- but also brings the potential for radical shifts, awakening, healing and shifting into a new relationship with the mind.
mercury/venus/jupiter is VERY auspicious and is exact from august 22nd through september 2nd (mercury/jupiter on the 22nd, mercury/venus on the 28th and mercury jupiter again on the 2nd). pay close attention to what is occurring during these days- as both the mind (mercury) and heart (venus) are getting a cosmic upgrade. jupiter is expanding our mind’s vision and our heart’s capacity to love and care for ourselves and others. this is a call to THINK WITH THE HEART and FEEL WITH THE MIND. in many traditions enlightenment is a process of bringing the mind into the heart or the heart into the mind- so that they are no longer divorced and operating separately but have instead joined in Divine Union and operating together. with this triple conjunction in virgo there is a big focus on being of service in the world but also on our own personal path of mastery, integrity, self-honesty and inner work. virgo is one of the most humble signs that is constantly working on itself to become a better human being. of course virgo can go overboard and be overly self and other critical- but most of us on planet earth could benefit from learning from virgo about humbly seeing where still have work to do rather than spiritual bypassing things and putting on a false ego sense that we have it all together and have already made it ;)
mercury stations retrograde on august 30th at 29’04 virgo. the 29th degree of any sign is the karmic completion degree as the next degree any planet would move into after crossing the 29th would be the 1st degree of the next sign. yet mercury is not moving into libra until october 7th- so he hovers at this karmic completion degree for several days around his station bringing focus to what is needing to complete, end and be brought into some finality so that we can move on and grow into new directions in life. wherever 29 virgo falls in your chart is the focus of what is needing to be completed right now (again check you chart and/or the weekly horoscopes).
in addition to the house placement the sign mercury is retrograde in (virgo) brings additional information about where we are being asked to rethink, review and revise things (keywords for mercury retrograde). this can relate to our health and well being, our work and daily routines, our mind and analytical/discernment capacity. the daily aspects of life and how organized, efficient, integrated and healthy we are (or are not) is up for us to review during the 2 months of mercury’s retrograde journey (including both pre and post shadow)
because the mercury/jupiter conjunctions happen just before and after the station- the last 10 days of august and first few days of september are HUGE. pay attention to what you think, hear, say, dream, intuit and conjure up in your mind. amazing ideas for expansion, growth and positivity can be incoming- also important connections can be made and powerful conversations can be had. so PAY ATTENTION!
mercury will trigger uranus, eris and chiron again from september 9th to 10th- so pay attention to the revealing information, ideas or communication that comes in. also be aware of how you communicate and do so with care as chiron can unearth old wounds and make communication wounding if we are doing so from a place of reactivity. this is also the weekend of the last saturn/neptune square- big time energies flying around that make it hard to discern Truth from lies, fact from fiction, fantasy from illusion. being honest, forthright and aligned with your deepest reservoirs of integrity and self-honesty are a must that weekend!
on september 12th the sun/mercury conjunction marks the midway point of the mercury retrograde cycle (at 20’37 virgo). typically this can be a time of important insights, information or communications arising- yet with mars squaring both that day (mercury square mars around noon on the 12th, sun square mars around 2pm on the 13th) the mars energy can make communication, thinking and travel extra feisty, fiery and aggressive. watch out for impulsivity and reactivity. it’s a great day to be exceptionally present and to count to 10 before you speak or act ;) if we can harness mars’ energy to be direct and deal with things head on while still staying in our hearts and coming from a place of compassion we can use this energy most efficiently.
mercury’s 2nd and 3rd trine to pluto are on september 20th and 23rd- bookending mercury’s direct station on september 21st. it’s interesting to note that jupiter dominates the retrograde station and pluto dominates the station direct. if you recall jupiter was trine pluto from last fall until this summer- so this mercury retrograde journey is activating that aspect and it’s potential for massive growth, evolution, transformation and empowerment when we fully commit to our own path of self-mastery and really show up to do the work asked of us! mercury/pluto is deep and penetrating- with a desire to get to the root and Truth of things and to take off the rose colored glasses so we can see the Truth as it is rather than as we wish it would be. this is a great time for diving deep and getting real. it’s also great for research, investigation, shamanic journeys and therapy- anything that takes you below the surface and helps you see what lies beneath is recommended at this time.
with the fall equinox on september 22nd- one season ends and another begins and this is the prefect time to take stock of the past and what we are ready to let go of so that we can create the new conditions in the present that will take us into a new evolutionary directs into the future. it’s interesting to note that the 2nd uranus/eris conjunction is on the 25th as well as the saturn/nodal square on the 26th. big energies are present around the equinox- and navigating them with as much consciousness as we can muster is highly recommended.
uranus/eris on the 25th is great for change and no longer putting up with shit from the past that we are over and done with! yet it can also unearth anger, rage, aggression and incite impulsivity, reactivity and restlessness. saturn square the nodes on the 26th brings us to a pivotal point of choice on our paths of evolution and karma. we are called to rise up and take action in our lives from a masterful, self-aware place where integrity, self honesty and doing our work is what leads us forth. any tendencies towards denial, delusion, self or other deception, addiction or playing the victim or the martyr (the shadow of pisces south node) can and will cost us right now. saturn is a wake up call to REALITY and WHAT IS. if we have been doing the work to see reality clearly in 2016 then this can be a pivotal time of choices made that take us into new directions in life. but if we have been avoiding dealing with reality then this astrology can bring a Universal 2 by 4 whack on the head to wake us up. which one will you choose? ;)
mercury is direct from september 21st on but it’s not util october 6th that he exits his back end shadow. he makes his last activation of chiron, uranus and eris from october 1st through the 2nd- so pay attention to what you hear, think, say or find out and allow this to awaken and heal rather than bring chaos and more wounding.
on october 7th mercury moves into libra and starts a fresh new journey- bringing focus to relationships, connection and collaboration. on october 11th mercury aligns with jupiter at 6’52 libra- activating jupiter’s new year long journey in libra (he just moved into libra on september 9th). if we have worked the mercury/jupiter in virgo energy and really opened up our minds to see where our work lies and where we need to make self adjustments for greater wholeness and healing to fully take root- mercury/jupiter in libra can bring amazing new energy into relationships, collaborations and connections of all kinds (romantic, business and otherwise)!
this mercury retrograde cycle is one to keep your mind and heart open. be willing to question things and dig deep to get to the Source of things so healing can happen at the root. with so much virgo present right now- the more self honesty and self awareness you can deepen into the more healing this 2 month period of time will be. and it will prepare you for the good things ready to come in the fall in the libra area of your chart due to jupiter’s presence in libra! so make the most of this portal of time- the amount of presence, effort and work you put into will be well worth it :)
blessings…
~divine harmony
MERCURY RETROGRADE DATES
8/10 front end shadow begins
8/10 mercury trine pluto (15’25)
8/18- mercury quincunx eris
8/19 mercury opp chiron
mercury quincunx uranus
8/22 mercury conjunct jupiter 26’13 IMPORTANT
8/28 mercury conjunct venus 29’00
8/30 stations RX 29’04
9/2 mercury conjunct jupiter 28’34 virgo IMPORTANT
9/9- mercury quincunx uranus/eris
(jupiter into libra)
9/10- mercury opp chiron
(saturn square neptune)
(9/11 juno conjunct BML on my uranus)
9/12- mercury square mars 20’49
sun conjunct mercury- MIDPOINT 20’37 virgo
(sun square mars 9/13)
9/14- mercury semisex venus 19’00
9/20- mercury sextile juno 15’04
mercury trine pluto 14’56
9/21 DIRECT 14’49 virgo
9/23 mercury trine pluto 14’55
(uranus eris 9/25)
saturn square nodes 9/26
9/27- mercury sextile juno in scorpio 17’11
10/1- mercury opp chiron 22’10
10/2- mercury quincunx uranus/eris
10/6 back end shadow ends
10/7- mercury into libra
10/11 mercury conjunct jupiter 6’52 libra IMPORTANT