Blog Post
17 August 2023
Yes, it’s that time again! Mercury Retrograde is coming up once again and will be with us from 24 August until 15 September 2023, and this Retrograde period will fall in the energy of Virgo. This is the second Mercury Retrograde of 2023 and the third and final one will be from 14 December 2023 until 2 January 2024 in Capricorn.
As we know Mercury Retrograde so often gets a bad rap. It gets blamed for everything that can go wrong during its retrograde phase, and this would not be altogether incorrect, BUT as I see it, it’s a necessary evil. If we are continually switched to “GO” we are endlessly doing, producing, giving out and taking action and we don’t allow ourselves to focus on our inner worlds and all the background stuff that needs to be done to ensure that what we put out there is the very best we can do, and that it is in perfect alignment with who we truly are and what we wish to achieve.
As human beings we are conditioned from an early age to be productive, to do something with our days and lives, and to be someone more than who you naturally are. All of this pressure means that we then grow up with belief systems that make us feel useless, unproductive and a waste of space when we are not DOING, and this needs to change. We all know that when we give ourselves the opportunity to think more deeply into something, or to research it a bit more, or even to practise it in the background to further our knowledge and level of expertise, we do a better job. And so Mercury Retrograde is our divine opportunity to re-visit what we wish to achieve so as we can not only be better at what we do, but so as we can also feel more confident and assured in all that we do as well.
Mercury’s Retrograde in Virgo and his time spent in this sign of the zodiac will be a lot longer than usual. It usually takes Mercury around 3.5 weeks to move through a sign of the zodiac but with the Retrograde turn he is taking during his transit through Virgo he will be in this sign of the zodiac for around 9 – 10 weeks. This gives us an abundance of energy to use to reflect upon, fine-tune, update, re-jig and upgrade our plans, projects and intentions moving forward. The planet Mars is also currently sitting in Virgo energy, so Mercury will join forces with the planet of drive and determination at this time also which means that we will have even more energy and motivation to attend to details and really dive deeply into our plans and desires to formulate plans and strategies to make these the successful realities we wish them to be. The challenge here could be that Mars always wants us to take action sooner rather than later, and while Mercury is Retrograde it is never an ideal time to take action as we are being asked to give our intentions more thought and insight at this time. So, I would recommend that you hold on to that motivational energy of Mars and put it to one side as you work through your background details etc, and then when Mercury turns Direct you will have the passion and purpose you need all saved up and ready to go! Use the energy of Mars to inspire you further, to light up your passion for what you do and to put in exact detail what the action needed will look like when it is time to take it.
Once Mercury moves into Retrograde on 24 August, he will join Venus, Chiron, Saturn, Neptune and Pluto already in Retrograde motion and already helping and assisting us with our inner work and inner healing. When there are more than one or two planets in Retrograde motion it cannot help but have a significant effect on us all and this can be positive or negative depending on how you look at it, and on what you do with it. The challenge can be that you “feel” everything on a deeper level and that this can add to any confusion or negative feelings you may have about yourself and the life you are living. If you are struggling and feeling a bit overwhelmed with your life at the moment, do take some time out for yourself. You cannot and should not even try to be everything to everyone, or to have all the answers for yourself or others, it’s okay to have periods of confusion, inaction and negativity – you just can’t allow yourself to stay in them! So let yourself feel what you need to feel, and try doing some writing about your challenges or feelings at this time. (My latest Newsletter, due out 23 August 2023, has a short article on Automatic Writing that could be of use to you at this time).
And of course, no matter what sign of the zodiac Mercury is Retrograding in, it is never a good time during this transit for signing important documents, purchasing expensive products or planning and taking trips. As annoying as it may be to not be able to run with such things at this time, there is a very important purpose behind this and that is the purpose of further investigation. It’s not that things are meant to go wrong it’s more that you are not supposed to be trying to achieve outside of yourself at this time. So, just allow this process and take a step back in your life to re-evaluate everything you are working on or trying to achieve. If you allow yourself to do this and don’t see this as a negative thing or a handbrake you don’t want right now, you will not only see the benefits but you will reap the rewards.
I do hope you can all make use of this powerful retrograde period to really come to a deeper sense of peace and understanding with your inner world and with what you wish to achieve at this time. Its okay to take your time and its more than okay to re-assess all of it.
Wishing you all a very happy and productive inner journey through Mercury Retrograde and I look forward to seeing what you put into action once this period is finished. Blessings xox
