Astrology and Mercury Retrograde November 2012 in Sagittarius and Scorpio - What Is Mercury Retrograde?

by Robert Wilkinson

Mercury went retrograde at 5 Sagittarius on Nov 6, 3:04 PST, 6:04 pm EST, 11:04 pm Greenwich. Over the next few days we'll examine the meaning of this phenomenon and how we can make best use of these recurring periods.

In 2012, Mercury has gone retrograde 3 times, unlike 2011 when we had a 4th Mercury retrograde period, making it an unusual year. When Mercury is retrograde, it seems to throw people and situations into a whirlwind of over, under, sideways and down. But does it really? Just what is Mercury retrograde? In the next few weeks we'll discover many things about how Mercury Retrograde in Aries affects us.

Mercury retrograde is one of the most misunderstood parts of astrology. Many have heard about it, but don't know what it really is. I've given an introduction about the general meaning of the phenomenon known as Mercury Retrograde in the article, Mercury Retrograde - A New Look at the Guide of Souls. It was written to assist readers to pierce through many of the superstitions and suppositions concerning this repeating phenomenon, and how it works in our lives.

There's too much to recap here, so if you're not familiar with the technical elements and basic meanings of this Mercurial phenomenon happening 3 times a year, please read that article so you can understand better what this coming period is about, and how best to approach its challenges and potentialities.

I'll be composing more about what the coming retrograde period is about in future articles. For now, I'll just mention that we'll get new insights about how to achieve a poised outlook on reality, and find a deeper peace, wisdom, and view of a bigger picture. The Grand Irrationality is in full swing, thanks to the Sun in the Scorpio zone and Jupiter in the Gemini zone of that long wave configuration I’ve explained extensively in other articles. This continues to show us how to achieve liberation from the ghosts of our past set into motion Summer 2011 that continues even now.

We'll get new insights into our truth, philosophy, expectations, visions, and potential futures wherever early Sagittarius falls in our charts. By the end of the process we’ll know why we had to eliminate some things, purify some things, reject some things, and accept some things, and hopefully can find a newer, broader view of things that helps us come up from a form of the “underworld” in our lives, finding light and warmth in what we’ve extracted from the experience of letting go. This will be in play by late November.

Since Mercury is behind both the Sun and Venus, but will wind up between them at the end of this retrograde period, when this period is over we will have insights, reflections, and new understanding about things we will capture and/or value by the time Venus crosses the Scorpio and Sagittarius span of degrees activated at this retrograde period. So in some ways we won’t achieve completion and appreciation around what we’re about to go through until the second and third weeks of December.

Some of what we’ll understand through review, reflection, and roundabout signals won’t really be crystal clear on a macro level until Saturn moves through the last half of Scorpio beginning December 2013. However, since Mercury will go direct on the exact degree that Jupiter went stationary retrograde in March 2006, expect echoes, insights, reflections, and remembrances of the Jupiterian visions, truths, opportunities, and philosophical openings that began then, and took clearer shape between October and December 2006.

For now, during this period we’ll review Sagittarius and Scorpio things in our lives. Keep an eye to the house where this retrograde falls since that's where returns, reviews, new insights, and new understanding of past things will be found. More on that to come in another article.

In Sagittarius, we find ourselves in a sign of natural expansion of view, truth, possibility, understanding, philosophy, and sense of freedom and life adventure. In Scorpio, we find ourselves in a sign of elimination, regeneration, magnetism, a sense of deeper feelings around life and death issues, and can see how past defeats and losses can and should be turned into victorious feeling insights. Here we get to review recent Sagittarius and Scorpio experiences and developments in our lives, and will have a chance to re-examine some things that will show us how to value deeply something we need to regenerate and renew in December.

Mercury retrograde can bring the return of old memories, old connections, old ways of doing our Being, and old friends and ideas. In Sagittarius it could lead us to memories of past ways we hoped for a greater truth and future, old life adventures that freed us to expand and grow in our view and sense of what was possible, and memories of old beliefs that either led us to wisdom or a sense of poise as we have learned to watch the world’s dramas.

When Mercury retrogrades back into Scorpio just hours after the Solar Eclipse on November 13, 2:06 pm PST, 10:06 pm Greenwich, it will lead us to memories of past desires, past frustrations, past losses and defeats, but also past ways of gathering our magnetism so we felt powerful in some way. It will be a good time for reviewing and finishing us issues related to shared wealth and values, societal values, old losses that need to be either embraced on a deeper level or eliminated from our emotional memory field. We can find power in old ideas given new applications, and in creating space we will attract the signs and signals of a new life about to burst into illumination.

Sometimes a retrograde indicates a period of returns and/or rediscoveries; other times it's a period of looking back to change some things so that we can "get it right" when Mercury again goes direct. In any case, we can understand the challenges and opportunities by looking at the sign(s) and house(s) where the retrograde is happening.

As noted in the previous Mercury retrograde article linked at the bottom of this one, this Mercury retrograde will feature different aspects indicating energies that are at cross currents to each other, as well as a host of non-rational aspects involving almost every planet in the chart. There are so many aspects of a non-rational, obsessive-compulsive nature that this will be one of the more important Mercury retrogrades we’ve had! Please refer to the linked article, since it explains a lot more about this most important time.

Throughout the retrograde period, we'll get many insights, returns, and renewals. Some hints of these have already begun to manifest in my life. Mercury retrograde is always good for looking back to see what we didn't in earlier times. However, also remember that there also may be delays, misunderstandings can occur and/or be resolved, and that much may come in roundabout or even apparently contradictory ways.

So the coming weeks will give us a new look at recent Sag and Scorpio developments, as well as herald important developments that will show up beginning later this month. Again, since this retrograde is in early Sagittarius and the last decan of Scorpio, take a look back at events and truths offered when Jupiter was in that degree span between October and December 2006, setting into motion a deeper subtle knowing we prepared for beginning March 2006.

And of course, keep an eye on the fact that Saturn will enter this span beginning December 2013 and be there off and on for many months afterward. So besides getting to look back or remember something of a Jupiterian nature from 2006, we should also get flashes of insight into future conditions concerning Saturn’s transit of late Scorpio and early Sagittarius in 2014.

So keep following through on keeping things on tracks and continue adjusting to the different pace symbolized by Mercury slowing down very quickly during the past and current weeks. Get ready to take an unusual view, do your research, rehearsals, and examine peripherals since they may be more important than we initially thought. More on all of this, plus how it affects individual signs, in future articles.

Already posted: The Guide of Souls in November 2012 - Mercury Slowing Down, Preparing to go Retrograde at 5 Sagittarius

Copyright © 2012 Robert Wilkinson

Comments

[H]

Hi Robert, great synchronicity on many levels :) it's near the witching hour here in the UK & i've been awaiting this post this evening.... just prior i commenced reading 'Light on the Path'... Superb & wonderful to contemplate these matters during a mercury retro. period.
Also just wanted to add that although i'm not very politically aware i was heartened to hear that Obama will continue his presidency. Though probably naive i would like to see a day when countries are 'run' by 'councils' for want of better words... specialist council members - health, economics, ecology etc would apply for 'the job' which would have a fixed salary scale (as do most professions) & they would be interviewed for the post- the results of interviews of several candidates considered by 'a jury' of 'regular folk' - the 'best' people for the job/s then hired. Then instead of elections 'the people' would be 'polled' on their opinions on all the matters concerning the evolution of their country to be taken & discussed by 'council' members. This would cease the wasting of billions of dollars on political campaigning & dilute possible 'power seeking' mentality. It would be more translucent & as there would be a group , the 'council' would have more stability/continuity as when one member left it would not involve a complete re-start (as when current political parties are changed post election time)- a factor i think that delays the whole process of maintaining some sense of balance whilst allowing for changes that require to be made.
Hey Ho that was a bit o a rant ;-).... am i harking back to the days of old & the Knights of the Round table??
Wishing you & yours a pleasant 1st Mercury Retro in new abode. Namaste :-)

[H]

PS: Mercury conjuncts x3 natal mercury sun neptune stellium in 5th/6th this retro - an energetic, idealistic blabber mouth!!! LoL - shutting up know!! Love to all of this magic cantina.

[Jonathan W. Maxson]

Robert, you are incredible! I just referenced this article on my own blog here and have added the Aquarius Papers to my feed reader for regular study. I first crossed paths with your work back here during a "tredecile" search. Hope you won't mind my dropping in again now and then with synchronous postings. Let me know if you have any problems with the way I am quoting and crediting you.

On a long-term note, I want to initiate a serious cross-blog conversation with several authors about the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Aquarius on the December 21, 2020 solstice. I am looking for arguments for and against this Great Conjunction as the axis of the Aquarian Aeon. I have proposed a similar scholarly process for a different set of issues called The Pisces Papers. I was not (consciously!) thinking of your Aquarius Papers at the time, and I do not want to interfere with web-traffic to your site, so dialogue on the Aquarian Aeon would need a different name...but otherwise I would like to mirror The Pisces Papers concept as I outline it in the article just referenced. I look forward to any thoughts you may have for me on all of this.

Ditto "H," above, on Namaste and the Grail quest :-)

[caliban]

Summer 2011. I'm completely lost as to that period of time. It's like it is cut out of my memory. Normally I can remember what transacted within the last year or over periods of time. Will have to check my journals. Very strange.