Mars Retrograde and More

OK, it’s here. Mars is now retrograde. It went retrograde on Jan. 23, 2012 at 4:54pm PST and occurred right after a New Moon. I’ll write about the significance of this later on. This retrograde period is unusually long as it lasts for 11 weeks, returning to direct motion in mid-April. As this cycle begins, Mars is moving slowly, so its full intention has not yet been revealed. What do I mean by ‘intention’? Every retrograde cycle has a purpose. They are not mere inconveniences or hassles. Often people think of them solely as just ‘something to get through.’ They may indeed cause delays or even reversals, but to only see these cycles in this way is too limited and even negative.

Instead, it is better to ask the following questions:

1.  What is being revealed to me?
2.  What do I need to discover?
3.  What new things are coming into my life?

Armed with this approach, we are open to understanding the meaning of both whatever happens or whatever doesn’t happen. Reversals and shifts are meaningful and important. While doors may close, new doors will open. And, without the closing of an ‘old’ door (the ending of a cycle of action) we wouldn’t see an approaching opportunity or ‘new’ door that will excite us, allow our imaginations to soar, and take us down new paths toward unknown territory that our Soul actually needs for it revival and growth.

At this point in the cycle, however, the new has not yet emerged. It is too soon. So, it can feel like things are moving more slowly or, for some people not moving at all. We could feel a bit lost or even frustrated not knowing what to do. Worse yet, we could blame ourselves for what is or is not happening. This is needless because for the most part we are not in control of the situation. We can only do what we can. It is so helpful to know about the existence of cycles and to perceive our lives through that awareness.

During this 11 week period Mars is in Virgo, but it will affect all of the mutable signs as well (Gemini, Sagittarius and Pisces). This is especially true if you have planets between 3° and 23° of those signs.

The General View of Mars Retrograde

The usual statements of astrologers about this period are that it is not a good time to start a completely new project. It is a bit more complicated than that however. Firstly, you may not want to do so, because it doesn’t ‘feel’ right. Or, you may find that circumstances don’t permit you to act, at least not yet. There are two things to look at that will be helpful:

1. This is a time to finish old projects or complete any activities that remain open for some reason. This part of the cycle is about ‘clearing the decks.’
2. Also, it is a time to be open to new ways of self-assertion or activity. It is important to note that as we get into February or March, we will be approached or approach others about some new and unexpected opportunties. In fact, there may be many opportunities showing up. The best thing to do if this happens is to explore whatever you feel good about so you can patiently determine if you want to move in that direction.

This is a very unusual Mars retrograde and may be much more favorable than most. There is a very powerful earth grand trine that will bring many of us some amazing possibilities. Thus, I cannot just glibly say, “Don’t start anything new.” In general, one should really take a good look at whatever emerges, but they should not be rejected out of hand. There’s even more than this.

But…..There’s Even More

Complicating things further, there are four coinciding transits of which we can be aware. They occur on February 6-7, 2012 and are as follows:

1. There is a Full Moon which can bring some new things to a head or to some fulfillment.
2. There is the Superior conjunction between the Sun and Mercury which is the fulfillment of the Mercury retrograde cycle two months ago.
3. Saturn will turn retrograde at 29° of Libra.
4. Neptune enters Pisces which will last until 2025.

Any one of these is important, but together they could bring about some unexpected opportunities. I will write more on this as we get closer to those dates. As you can see, the Mars retrograde may not act in a normal manner, so we will all get to watch it together over the next fewe months.

As always, we love your input so feel free to let us know your thoughts about this interesting period of time.