Astrological Deep Dive: Retrogrades
Part One: Overview and Mechanics
As per a request which resulted my recent post, I Need Your Help, we are going to do a deep dive on all things retrograde in astrology. What are retrograde planets? Why are they important? How do they differ in transit vs. the natal chart? What’s the impact of personal planets vs. outer planets? What challenges do they present? What gifts do they offer? How can we best utilize this energy?
I have partly chosen this topic because we have a very important Mars retrograde coming up in December, but we are already feeling the energies of that transit right now. There is so much to be said about retrograde planets that this is going to be a multiple part series. This first article will give you an overview of retrogrades going into the logistics and dynamics of what creates them and how that impacts us.
In later articles we will explore in further detail the impacts of natal retrogrades (folks born with retrograde planets in their birth charts) as well as examine the workings of specific planetary retrogrades (such as Mercury, Venus and Mars). This should lay a nice groundwork for your understanding as we prepare to move into this upcoming Mars retrograde cycle.
This article is going to be more “technical,” which I know can be nauseating for some people. However, I find it is very helpful to understand the physical components of retrogrades in an astronomical sense to derive further symbolic meaning from them. All that being said, I am definitely not a math and science person, so have no fear, this isn’t going to get too technical. I will do my best to illustrate this topic in ways that are relatable and coherent.
First thing’s first, for those who don’t already know, retrograde planets occur when their motion appears to move backward as viewed from Earth. In reality they are not actually moving backward as all the planets revolve around the Sun in a continual motion. However, everything in astrology takes place from the perspective of Earth because that’s where we reside and live out our incarnational experiences to serve our soul’s evolution. As we watch the other planets make their concentric dances around the Sun, sometimes they cross Earth’s orbit in a way that makes them appear to move backward. This is when we consider these planets to be in retrograde.
Since everything in astrology is symbolic, this means those seemingly backwards-moving planets carry specific energy that impacts us differently than when they are moving forward. Here’s your first generalized note on retrogrades: when a planet is retrograde, its energy becomes inverted. That is, instead of propelling in an electrical, forward motion, the energy of the planet flows inward magnetically. A good way to think of this is the difference between the ocean’s tide going out vs. coming in; when a planet is retrograde, it’s like the tide is coming in.
This is why people often complain when a planet like Mercury is retrograde. As we attempt to move forward in our daily lives with our typical plans and activities, we come up against resistance. We find ourselves swimming against the tide. When this happens, things tend to go haywire or fall apart. Hence, when Mercury is retrograde – the planet of communication, learning, local movement and electronics – we tend to encounter delays, miscommunications, accidents and computer crashes. We’ll explore more of the details of Mercury-in-retrograde in a later article.
These retrograde cycles are not meant to torture us or make life harder. They are part of the natural cyclic rhythm of our universe and actually serve a very important purpose in humanity’s evolutionary growth. Consider that when planets go retrograde, particularly the personal planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars), most activities that begin with the prefix “re” are sanctioned. Some examples of this: reflection, reviewing, revisiting, recognition, remembrance, returning, redesigning, recreating, removing, readdressing, etc.
Retrogrades are essentially times when we need to “go back over things.” They require us to slow down and devote more conscious focus toward contemplation and consideration. This is necessary for our evolutionary growth because if we were constantly in a state of forward momentum, we would end up repeating the same mistakes and never change. Evolution is not possible without this reflective energy. This is true on a personal and collective level.
We’ll get more into the influence of retrogrades later. For now, let’s go back to some of their physical dynamics. As I mentioned, retrogrades occur when planets appear to move backward as viewed from Earth. All the planets have retrograde cycles except for the Sun and Moon. This is yet another thing which holds astrological symbolism.
On a basic level, the Sun represents our consciousness and the Moon our unconscious self. The Sun is our ego and creative self-expression while the Moon is our emotional security needs and unconscious memories. These two facets of our personality are so fused into our existence, so instinctual, that they are not things we can “step back from.” They are always in forward motion, always operating on an automatic level. This doesn’t mean we can’t utilize the functions of the other planets to learn more about our Sun and Moon expressions, but what we learn is still coming through those other functions.
For example, during a Mercury retrograde, we may realize that we tend to emotionally react to confrontation in ways that make our communication style defensive and combative (perhaps we have Moon in Aries). We can bring conscious awareness to ourselves with this realization and try to communicate in ways that are gentler and more cooperative, but the emotional reaction will still come from Aries – and it’s our communication we’re choosing to change, not the instinctual reaction itself.
Likewise, maybe during a Venus retrograde we recognize that we feel devitalized and listless because we don’t feel seen in our relationship (perhaps we have Sun in Libra). We acknowledge that our lack of feeling seen and heard is because we sacrifice our personal expression for the sake of “maintaining the peace.” We may then make an effort to be more honest and better about balancing our personal needs with our partner’s needs. While this may enhance the vitalization and expression of our Sun, making us feel happier and more energized, the changes we make are made through Venus – how we relate to others and want to be loved.
As mentioned, apart from the Sun and Moon, all the other planets do have retrograde cycles. Is there a difference between these cycles? There definitely is. First, each of the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto) experiences a retrograde cycle every year. Due to their longer orbital cycles, these planets spend about half their time in retrograde. As well, these planets tend to function on more unconscious levels with us to begin with, so their retrograde cycles are more subtle to our perception.
The personal planets, on the other hand, have a much more conscious impact. When they turn retrograde, we experience that energy in a more acute and obvious way. Mercury is our personal planet which turns retrograde most frequently. This is because of its proximity to both the Sun and Earth. Mercury turns retrograde approximately three times per year and spends about 3 weeks in retrograde.
However, there’s something else I should mention about retrograde cycles. The energy of the retrograde, that magnetic force of the tide coming in, is not only felt while the planet is “officially” moving backwards. We also feel that energy as the planet prepares to slow down or speed up during its cycle. This preparation period consists of two parts: the shadow period and the planetary station.
I like to compare this to driving a car. When you’re driving full speed, you don’t just suddenly stop; you have to brake and slow down first. The car has inertia propelling you forward which must be overcome to slow down and stop before changing direction. As you brake, you feel the resistance of the inertia pulling you forward as the vehicle comes to a stop. It's the same with planets turning retrograde. As they slow down, they move into what we call “station.”
In astrology we track the course of planetary movements by looking at their position in each of the zodiac signs. Each sign is the same “width” of 30 degrees. So we can view a planet’s position by tracking which degree it’s at in the zodiac. Each planet moves at a different speed depending on its distance from Earth. The planets which are closer to Earth move faster from our perspective.
For example, Mercury moves approximately two degrees per day. So on Monday, it may be at 2 degrees of Scorpio, Tuesday 4 degrees, Wednesday 6 degrees, etc. This is the normal “speed” of Mercury; however, when it moves into station (that is, slows down prior to its retrograde cycle), we will see Mercury’s change of degrees slow down as well. Suddenly, on Thursday, it’s at 7 degrees of Scorpio, and again on Friday, then on Saturday it’s 8 degrees, and again on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, etc. This is when Mercury is considered stationed, or “hitting the brakes.” It appears to be coming to a stop.
Eventually, the planet will cease being stationed and actually change direction (again, from our Earthly perspective). It will slowly regain its normal speed as it does this. Mercury will move away from its station into retrograde – Wednesday it’s at 7 degrees of Scorpio, and again on Thursday. Friday it moves to 6 degrees, Saturday is 4 degrees, Sunday is 2 degrees, etc. It appears then that Mercury is “backing up” through Scorpio (in our example).
This process then repeats once more during the retrograde cycle as the planet prepares to move direct, or “forward,” once again. It will hit the brakes on its backward movement, slowing down into station when it appears to stop at a certain degree. From there, it will shift into direct movement once again and slowly regain its normal speed. We call these changes in motion “stationing retrograde” or “stationing direct,” as the shift occurs prior to each change of direction. Every planet (except for the Sun and Moon) goes through this process of stationing, but the time it spends in station is different for each one.
The outer planets, which are much slower moving, take a longer time to change direction. That is, they spend more time stationed than the personal planets. Think of it like the difference between a sports cars, a pickup truck, and big rig all going 60mph and suddenly slamming on the brakes. Which one is going to come to a stop first? The larger vehicles have more mass and therefore, more inertia, so they will take longer to stop. It’s the same case for the outer planets in astrology (although, they don’t necessarily have more physical mass, but that’s a different topic).
The reason this is significant is because when a planet is stationed, it carries a stronger energetic signature. We feel its effects more intensely. Just like the difference between cruising along at 60mph vs. suddenly slamming on the brakes – you’re going to feel the motion of the latter much stronger. As I mentioned before, the outer planet retrogrades tend to have more subtle effects and operate on more unconscious levels. When they move into station, we feel those directional shifts more obviously than when they are operating at their normal speed.
As an example, Pluto recently stationed direct after being retrograde since early May. Though it’s now moving forward again, it’s still regaining momentum. As our slowest moving, most outer planet, Pluto’s impacts tend to be the most subtle/unconscious. Have you noticed any themes arising for you in the past couple of weeks which could pertain to Pluto’s functions? Any old shadows, compulsions, triggers or power struggles arising to be dealt with? Particularly related to authority figures, society, father figures, family, heritage, traditions, financial institutions, government, corporations, etc.? These are all elements of Capricorn and Pluto has been stationed direct in Capricorn at the 29th degree. When you begin to pay attention to these cycles, a lot of information can be gleaned from them, especially with the outer planets.
So we have the retrograde movement itself as well as the stationary periods which give us fluctuations in planetary impacts. However, there’s an additional period within the retrograde cycle in which we are influenced by the retrograde impacts. This is known as the shadow period which precedes and follows the actual station-retrograde-station-direct process during which time we can also feel the energy. The shadow period is more subtly felt than the station or actual retrograde and acts as a kind of buffer period or “insulation wrap” around the actual retrograde movement.
To better understand retrograde shadows and how they can be experienced, I like to compare them to the cycles of the Moon. Each month, the Moon goes through a four-part process (at its most basic level). We have the new moon, waxing period, full moon and waning period. Retrograde shadows are similar in that the pre-shadow period (prior to the planet turning retrograde) acts like the waxing period of the Moon. We begin to feel the retrograde energies gradually build during this time. The closer we get to the planet stationing and then turning retrograde, the more intense they can be felt. After the retrograde, once the planet stations direct and moves forward again, we enter the post-shadow period which is similar to the waning period following a full moon. The energies start intense and then gradually fade.
The length of the shadow period, like the stationary period, depends on the orbital cycle of the planet. The longer the planet’s orbit, the longer the shadow period. Since the outer planets spend approximately 6 months of the year in retrograde, including their shadow periods, they spend most of their time holding retrograde energy. Once again, these planets operate on a more unconscious level, so this energy signature makes sense. In some ways we are always “contemplating and reflecting” on their energy to fully understand it.
Thus, the shadow periods are mostly felt with the three personal planets. This is especially noticeable with Mercury’s retrogrades, but if you pay attention as we approach the Venus and Mars retrogrades, you may notice their shadow energies as well. For example, we are currently in the shadow period for the upcoming Mars retrograde. I have personally been noticing some of these signatures. I even had a random ex-boyfriend pop up from my past, from many years ago, which is a characteristic of retrograde cycles.
I’ve also noticed certain things have been difficult to accomplish lately. I recently moved this year and have had some miscommunications with my bank and new utility companies (I moved during a Mercury retrograde, by the way). As I’ve attempted to “stay on top of” these responsibilities and try to resolve the issues, I’ve come up against roadblocks. I’ve had several people reach out and ask me, “Is Mercury retrograde or something?” No, it’s not, but we are feeling the Mars retrograde energy start to flow in now. While this energy is different from Mercury, it’s still that same signature of the tide flowing in, and we may find resistance as we attempt to move forward with our typical daily activities.
In my next article we will discuss the significance of having retrograde planets in your birth chart and how this may impact you. Following that, we will delve into the specific functions of Mercury, Venus and Mars retrograde to better understand how those energies can be best utilized for our growth. Those articles will also cover transits and the “dos and don’ts” of retrograde periods.
I hope you found this information interesting and helpful! I know the technical dynamics of retrogrades may not be as interesting as their symbolism or energetic impacts. However, I hope having an understanding of the mechanics of this energy will give you a better idea of the timing of retrogrades and what to expect as we enter those cycles. Thank you for reading. Until next time!