by Robert Wilkinson
Yes, Mars is already very slow in speed, about to go retrograde at 7 Leo. What does this mean?
Mars will go stationary retrograde 3:33 pm PST, 11:33 pm GMT on December 6, 2024, at 7 Leo, affecting that area of our charts for the next 11 weeks (21 weeks if you count the third transit of the shadow zone in March and April).
I'll post more about this Mars RX throughout its retrograde period. Today we’ll review what a Mars retrograde might be associated with, both in general and in our chart.
I’ll begin by reminding you that a retrograde doesn’t necessarily mean something bad, since retrogrades are a function of how we on Earth view other planets’ orbits around the Sun from the perspective of the Earth. They are the midpoints of Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto’s yearly cycle around the Sun. That’s why during the Sun’s conjunctions with these, they are always in direct motion, and during the Sun’s opposition to these, they are always in retrograde motion.
So this is the midpoint of the cycle which began back when the Sun conjuncted Mars at 26 Scorpio in November 2023. We will experience the Sun opposed Mars on January 15 at 27 Capricorn/Cancer, and Mars will finally go stationary direct on February 23/24 at 18 Cancer. So let’s review some things related to Mars retrograde.
The Retrograde Phenomenon
First, there are many things that move forward exactly as they should during Mars retrograde periods. Though there may seem to be less momentum to some things, even delays or stoppages, that doesn’t prevent us from getting things done which need to be done. There may be a need to rework, reconstruct, deconstruct, or “reverse engineer” some things, or wait for other things to develop before picking up the original intention.
If we learn how to adapt to the different pace of things, not getting impatient because things aren’t working out as quickly as we’d like, we can navigate these recurring periods and keep everything on track quite nicely. It doesn't have to be much of a problem if we position ourselves correctly given the shift in the pace and unfolding of events.
Also, please remember that the planets do not "cause" anything. Whether and how things happen or don't during a retrograde period has everything to do with us and others' actions and reactions to things, both past and present. The free will of human beings has far more power than a planetary retrograde!
As I wrote in A New Look at Mercury Retrograde. Chapter 1, "What Is Mercury Retrograde and Why Does It Seem to Cause So Many Hassles?"
Throughout the year, all the planets go retrograde at some point. Usually one or more planets are retrograde simultaneously. Sometimes there are as many as four to six retrogrades occurring simultaneously... A planet, when retrograde, simply indicates a slowing of its orbital speed relative to the Sun from the perspective of the Earth.
Some planets slow for a few weeks; some for a few months.... In our Solar system, the motion of the planets and the "lights" (the Sun and Moon) symbolize the ebb and flow of the universal life that we all live within.
This is why it is inappropriate to attribute a problem to a retrograde; though there may be some apparent correlation, a retrograde cannot "cause" anything. This may be the most commonly held misunderstanding about astrology and how it works. Any astrological configuration simply symbolizes a state of time within which life manifests.
It is true that many things seem to happen because of an astrological association. However, the cause of all that happens (if and when there is a concrete cause at all) is a prior action, or inaction. All that is, all that occurs, is a part of a larger natural process of unfoldment. All our experiences give us opportunities to be led out of ignorance and fear of the unknown into a greater awareness of the interrelationships between all things.
Mars Retrograde – Past, Present, and Future
Mars retrograde represents a period where the timing and coordination of things, as well as how fast or slow things seem to be happening, take on a different pace and rhythm of development. At this time in history, with Jupiter square Saturn anchoring a bunch of Mutable T-squares throughout the month, slowing things down a bit might be exactly what’s needed!
Mars retrograde at 7 Leo will give us new ways to understand Cosmic patterns, as well as the apparently “permanent” patterns in our lives. Some will have major revelations about what they’ve known or felt since infancy, while others will get flashes of past life heart strengthening experiences which led them to the more permanent aspects of how they “attack the problems of life.” We will all “remember” our “constellation of Self” as we are expressing it in the present.
As noted earlier, Mars retrograde is good for “reverse engineering” many things, or decreasing recent friction or hostilities, or slowing many things down during a time of chaos and upheaval. Much will begin to “return to normalcy” by late February when Mars goes direct.
Often stationary retrograde points make significant angles to previous retrograde stations. This one makes a novile to the October 2022 retrograde station at 26 Gemini, an opposition to the June 2018 RX station at 10 Aquarius, and a trine to the April 2016 RX station at 9 Sagittarius. That implies we’ll retrace elements of what’s been gestating since October 22 while undoing some things begun in June 2018. And in some way this RX period is showing us a higher regenerative truth related to the Mars RX of2016.
Other past related aspects include the June 2018 Mars SRX degree was sextile the previous April 2016 SRX degree of Mars at 9 Sagittarius, and quintile its June 2016 SD point at 24 Scorpio. The October 2020 SRX degree at 29 Aries was opposed the March 2014 Mars SRX degree at 28 Libra, showing that the review and reworking done in 2014 somehow was related to the emergent lower square of the SD degree of 2018 and the SRX degree of 2020.
By studying how different planetary stationary degrees relate to previous stationary degrees, we get a sense of the larger “pulse” of that planet in our lives across time. Look at the houses these occupied, and the aspects they made to your planets if you want to know how your response to your Mars function has evolved over time.
The Sabian Symbol for Mars’ Stationary Retrograde degree
The Sabian Symbol for the 7th degree of Leo is “The constellations in the sky.” In the original notes from Mark Edmund Jones’ classes published in The Astrology of Personality, Rudhyar says this is a degree of the “sense of primordial wonder and awe before life,” “unquenchable faith in a spiritual being complementing our own,” and “realization.”
We are told in the Astrological Mandala that this degree symbolizes “the power of basic human values which refer to (our) common humanity and to all enduring archetypes.”We are told it’s about the patterns of stars in the night sky giving humanity “as basic and archetypal an experience as that of sunrise, full moon, and seasonal changes.“ He continues “Every people on this Earth ahs developed the concept of constellations, probably because of a need to find order in existence and to personalize everything that could be given a permanent form.”
He offers that these personalizations could be “psychic projections,” but also offers that “if (we) project our nature on the star-filled night sky, is it not just as logical to say that the universe projects its own forever-evolving patterns of order upon human nature?” He states these are “archetypal factors which endure through a long series of generations.” He offers the keyword is “permanence,” and says this degree falls in the Span of Assurance, Act of Stabilization, and Scene of Combustion on the Emotional-cultural level.
Dr. Jones says this is a degree of “the infinite regression in all universal reality, not as a fact of some unreachable end in knowledge but rather as a demonstration that any abandonment of the known for the sake of the unknown is fruitless. The cosmos is illimitable in the sense that (our) questing may ramify in time and space to the extent of any given pertinence, but (our) assurance lies within (our) own being and experience.”
He continues “the stars are (our) confirmation, never (our) explanation.” He gives us the keyword SURETY, and says when operating in a positive way, this degree is “consistent effectiveness in understanding and self-ordering.”
From this symbol it seems the review of all thing related to Mars and Leo/Cancer in our lives is so we may find a new approach to seeing the permanent patterns in our lives, or the archetypal factors which show us how our own experience has fulfilled the patterns of our birth chart. This is a degree of emotional and/or social “combustion” helping us see the more permanent patterns in our lives by looking back on our early Cancer/Leo experiences. Much of what we’re about to review won’t really get into motion until late April and early May when Mars returns to early Leo and then leaves its shadow zone.
Keep In Mind…
Mars retrograde usually indicates there will be some things that must occur before other things can be done. Get clear about the priority of things, pay attention to the rhythm of unfolding events, and see much of what's come down the past few weeks as prelude to undoing, redoing, or reworking some things in December, January, and most of February before picking the pace back up in late February. All of this relates to the life areas (houses) where we have Aries, late Cancer, early Leo, and Scorpio.
Remember that sometimes a delay is the best thing that could happen as other things develop on their own, since I've found life is sometimes like a Charles Dickens novel. There are many chapters, many players, and some things cannot be known and/or acted upon until the plot develops.
But rest assured, that at the end of the play, all will be seen in proper perspective, the unknowns between the players become clear, and things have developed so that "the hero's journey" is perfectly completed. So during this Mars retrograde, do what you must, work and/or adapt the plan, don't fret at the apparent delays or slowness, and fit things into a long range perspective with an eye to the radical quickening to come in April, May, and June.
Copyright © 2024 Robert Wilkinson
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