by Robert Wilkinson
Which means that Mercury is rapidly slowing, preparing to go retrograde soon! Lots of Aries action ahead!
The shadow zone is defined by the span between where a planet goes retrograde, and where it goes direct after the retrograde period. In this case, Mercury goes retrograde at 17 Aries at 5:19 pm PDT on March 22, 1:19 am GMT (UT) on March 23. It will retrograde back to 5 Aries, where it goes stationary direct at 2:21 am PST, 10:21 am GMT April 15.
That puts the shadow zone between 5-17 Aries, and about 10 am PST today, March 8, Mercury enters 5 Aries. I’ll be writing quite a few articles about the coming retrograde which will post as it comes closer.
For now, we enter a period of Mercury conjunct Venus with both square Saturn over this next week, showing emergent turning points in this year’s Saturn in Capricorn lessons. As they are simultaneously sesquisquare Jupiter, they invoke the Jupiter semisquare Saturn, creating three points in an Octile pattern, indicating a lot of friction, both internal and external. Use it as a spur to action, since Mercury is slowing down and it’s time to prepare for the retrograde!
The Mercurial data you notice over the next 2 weeks will be clarified after the Sun enters Aries at the Equinox on March 20. Still, for the rest of March, adapt to the slowing pace of things, get all your papers in order, finish what you can in the next two weeks, and prepare to put some things on hold for a little while.
Take a look at what's been set into motion with an eye to building in delays, rehearsals, or more research before things again begin to move forward in mid-April. The time before Mercury goes retrograde is good for doing what must be done so that other related things can be done later, as well as reconnecting with people and activities from the past that are somehow related to the future.
With Mercury’s retrograde station at 17 Aries, get ready to do some sort of “dignified withdrawal” from something or someone in April. This retrograde requires us to do research and rehearsals, preparing to demonstrate our Saturnian wisdom that will enter a new chapter of expression after the Mars conjunct Saturn on April 2 at 9 Capricorn.
Try to make the most of the next 13 weeks, since this is a prelude to several months of “tag team” retrogrades! We’ll have Mars slowing to retrograde beginning in June, then a Mercury retrograde dominating late July through mid-August, followed by Venus slowing in September preparing to go retrograde in Scorpio in October. As Venus goes direct in mid-November, Mercury goes retrograde at the same time, that one lasting through early December. And these are just the inner planets!
if you want to know more about Mercury retrograde and how it may operate in Aries and affect your sign, please consider getting your copy of A New Look at Mercury Retrograde where you can find out all you need about this retrograde, as well as past and future retrogrades.
Here's the Amazon link to the page where you can purchase a paperback edition of A New Look at Mercury Retrograde. You can also get a Kindle ebook at that site, or go to Barnes and Noble for a copy on Nook. (Please note that if you go to amazon, make sure you're ordering the 2015 edition, and not the earlier one. There are plenty of used ones for sale, but they are far inferior to the newest edition.)
Enjoy the entrance into Aries energies for 2018, and I’ll post more about the coming Mercury retrograde next week.
Copyright © 2018 Robert Wilkinson
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