You may have heard of Mercury Retrograde, but what about Mars Retrograde? How does it manifest and what can you learn as you go through a Mars Retrograde?
Mars is the planet of passion, anger, action, the physical body, aggression and your willpower. With Mars in retrograde what often happens is that the qualities described above will be internalized, and you may end up with frustration instead… because you may find it more challenging to outwardly express what you feel internally. The action and projects that you wanted to launch may be delayed. With Mars in Gemini, your own thoughts tend to be more scattered and you may be driven to take action in many different directions, and as a result, not get anything done because your mind is distracted. Arguments and debates (because of the intellectual Gemini) may also happen. With the Mars retrograde, you will be called to re-examine your own passion, desire, and anger. Conflicts may arise, and while they are not the most pleasant thing we go through, conflict gives us opportunities to renegotiate our boundaries with each other. What may have previously been acceptable may no longer be acceptable. Delays may bring up frustrations, and bring you further opportunities to reconsider if your endeavors and projects are truly what you desire, or if they are a something you are pursuing when you are out of alignment with yourself.
Mars in Gemini happens between 8 to 25 Gemini and including its shadow period, it would have started on 3rd Sept 22 and will end 17 Mar 23. How will this impact you? If you have any planets or have your ascendant within 8 to 25 degrees in the signs of Gemini, Aries, Sagittarius, Pisces and Virgo, this Mars retrograde will impact you more strongly than others.
Gemini – Mars is directly in your Zodiac sign and it may be a time when you find yourself letting your impulses go and your temper may go through the roof. It’s a good time for you to give yourself a clear look at where you may have not allowed yourself to be angry. Where you have just let things go, just because it was easier for everyone. Now is a good time for you to re-examine those boundaries again and fight for what you truly want, assert yourself and be true to what you desire. You may also find yourself also looking for physical ways to express yourself and becoming more physically active at this time.
Sagittarius – you may feel that your partnerships, marriage, 1 to 1 relationships may go through a tumultuous period of time. This is an opportune time for you to work on your relationships with others, and if there have been any long standing disagreements, it’s a good time to come together to talk through things and work them through. It may feel as though you’re being opposed a lot during this time, and its really a good time to keep your communication channels with others open as conflict can help surface long standing issues to be resolved through discussions.
Virgo – At this point in time, you may want to take a look at your career, and examine your desires and take action in terms of your professional life, or your calling. Some projects may be delayed in your career and you may have to re-think the options ahead of you at this time as well. You may see that in this area of life, things have slowed down, or something has held you back somehow from advancing. You may find diversions coming up for good reason.
Pisces – You may find yourself having to go through some frustrating situations at home, with your family or in your personal life in general. Things may seem scattered and it may be messy, as you may be trying to navigate this time to get a better understanding of your roots as well. It would well be that you find that your mind gets very busy internally but things are just not getting done too. Now’s a good time to ask yourself what you have to learn or unlearn about your personal life and your home/family.
Aries – with Mars being the ruler of your sign, this may be an especially significant time for you as well. You may initially find yourself asserting yourself when it comes to communicating what you think, using your words, connecting, or even when it comes to short distance travels. It may be a time for you to really prioritise what is important for you and communicate with others clearly. You may also find it an opportune time to find out what kinds of ideas can re-ignite your passion.
Personally, I went through a pretty hard time during these last few weeks with both Mercury Retrograde and Mars affecting me. Mercury Retrograde affected all the planets in my 4th house of family and home. Many issues cropped up in September, starting with my sudden need to tend to some family matters in the UK. As we would have expected it, Mercury Retrograde for me also meant many changes or missed connections (flights, etc). I was so frustrated even before our trip started and I only realised that I had to put aside my responsible, rational self and just allow myself to be angry. Mercury was in retrograde and Mars was crossing my Gemini Ascendant at that time, making it a lot easier for me to assert myself and acknowledge my anger. I found it a lot easier to move forwards with our travels soon as I gave myself permission to be angry (being a people pleaser doesn’t make it easy for me to allow this!). And so I found myself so much more at ease and was able to better articulate my wants with my family members.
Let me know how your experience the Mars retrograde has been so far and how it’s showing up for you. What have you learnt about yourself so far?
