The year 2020 just keeps on delivering the curveballs, hey? This Wednesday (September 9), the planet Mars goes retrograde until November 13, an astro alignment likely to stir up our love and work lives. Brace yourselves…
First, a very quick primer: When a planet goes retrograde, it appears to be moving backwards. In truth, it’s simply passing the Earth in its orbit, but it certainly feel like certain aspects of our lives are going backwards as a result. Sometimes issues and people from the past can resurface, other times we can feel stagnant.
All planets go retrograde on a regular basis, but it’s when the planets closer to Earth do it that we feel the effects most acutely – namely, Mercury, which is well known for its retro hijinks (more about that here). Mars – which goes retrograde every two years – is the planet of sex, passion, motivation, power, impatience as well as (unfortunately) anger and violence. I mean, with an energetic cocktail like that, what could go wrong?!
(Photo by Chris Sabor on Unsplash)
This year, Mars is retrograding in Aries, the sign of leadership, drive, competitiveness, initiative and high tempers. Aries is the sign ruled by Mars, meaning this could be a double whammy of challenging energy (ugh). This retro may hit you hardest if you’re an Aries or Scorpio (another sign ruled by Mars, in part), or have a lot of planets Aries or Scorpio (refer to your astro chart).
During this retrograde you could find your sex drive goes MIA, your work freedoms get curbed, your motivation plummets and your courage feels shaky. (So. Much. Fun!) If you rush into things there could be consequences, and if you let your temper get the better of you (something that will feel oh-so-tempting), that could end badly. Self-care will be crucial during this time.
In spite of all this, I don’t see retrogrades as a bad thing, because they teach us so many important lessons – even though, yes, they can also be very challenging. Here are a few things that may be highlighted this Mars retrograde:
· How you approach confrontation (or don’t )
· Where you’re using sexual intimacy as a substitute for emotional intimacy in your relationship (ie is there a conversation or issue you’re trying to avoid?), or if you’re single, perhaps casual sex for escapism or validation
· Any desire to control outcomes and force things to happen on your schedule (hello, my fellow Scorpios!), eg if you rush into things instead of waiting until you have all the information
· Any tendency to throw a tantrum when you don’t get your own way
· How you deal with difficult emotions – ie do you acknowledge and process your feelings as they come up, or do you suppress them until you eventually explode in anger?
· Any competitiveness that’s harming your relationships (ie a desire to always ‘win’)
· Where there are old wounds from the past that need to be dealt with.
If you’d like to work with me to heal any of the issues in this article, you can book energy healing sessions here. More information about how I work is available here.