Our friend, Hermes as he is known in Greek Mythology and
Mercury to the Romans, is often blamed for many things, especially when he goes
retrograde; which happens three to four times each year.
What actually is taking place is the slowing down of the
planet Mercury’s orbit of the sun, which eventually stops its motion in
relation to the earth.
This creates an illusion of moving backwards, similar to what happens when you
are sitting in your car at a light, and the car next to you moves forward,
giving you the sense that you are moving.
The earth would be the moving car and Mercury is the car that is now
stopped at the light (sun).
Another analogy I like to use is what happens when you are
moving forward in a boat and you stick an oar in the water; the movement of the
water as it swishes around the oar which is now moving with the boat and
creating its own vortex is what happens energetically with the Mercury
Retrograde. I like to use the analogy of
water for many things, but especially to help people visualize and understand
the movement and force of energy that is not always so visible to the naked eye. If we understand the universe as a living Sea
of Life, the movement of the planets and the energy they impart into that sea,
may be better understood.
Returning to the oar analogy; think about that movement in
the water, swishing and circling ‘around’ the oar. We see the returning of energy. This is what happens with Mercury. All the energy and information/lessons
attached to by degree, sign, house and aspect are refocused in our lens and we
are given another view/experience to literally, ‘review’ and perhaps make
different choices, or become culpable for our previous actions and this
includes karmic lessons back as a blast from the past.
If we take that a few layers back and ‘review’ what Mercury
or Hermes actually rules over, we find these:
Communications, travel, pens, writing, siblings, language, crossroads,
cue: “Went Down to the Crossroads” here is a link to Cream with lead Eric
Clapton: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-6OWBciRas
but the story made most famous is one by Robert Johnson and his trek to the ‘Crossroads’
where he met the devil and ‘traded’
his soul to become a blues guitarist legend.
Commerce is also
something that Mercury rules over, trade
that all through history creates the infrastructure and roads necessary to transport goods from their point of origin to
place of sale or market. Although ‘Pluto/Hades’
rules over treasures, it is Mercury who is given free passage to and from the
underworld of Hades, and of course, Hades loves music and Hermes invented the
lyre using the shell of a tortoise.
He was given a caduceus or staff from his father Zeus, which
in some stories originally were two white ribbons that entwined the herald’s
staff and later changed into two serpents.
Zeus also awarded Hermes, a cap with two small wings and a
pair of winged sandals when he appointed him as the Divine Herald. This gave Hermes the ability to travel over
both land and sea. Zeus also ordered
everyone give their utmost respect to Hermes.
Hermes also rules: astronomy, astrology, cleverness, cunning
wiles and wit, hospitality, heralds, diplomacy, thievery, persuasion, athletic
contests (Olympics), gymnasiums and is given credit as the originator of the
sacrifice to the God’s. He is the personal messenger and herald to his father
Zeus, the king of the gods.
It is said that he punishes anyone who does not help those
asking for directions.
Other Major attributes:
• hodios patron of travelers
and wayfarer
• oneiropompus,
conductor of dreams.
• poimandres,
shepherd of men
• psychopompos,
conveyor or conductor of souls and psychogogue, conductor or leader of souls in
(or through) the underworld
• the factor of
travelling or motion with or without others with respect to the physical
landscape, or the landscape of the soul , is the core attribute of the god as
messenger and guide
OK, now that we have a bit of a backdrop upon which to draw, let’s go ‘back’
to Mercury Retrograde.
Mercury stations retrograde on June 26th at 23* of Cancer
until he goes direct again on July 20th at 13*.
This is the second of three retrogrades this year and they are all in
water signs, the next one being from October 21 to November 10 in Scorpio.
He will almost manage to form an exact square to Uranus in Aries and
opposition to Pluto in Capricorn.
We can expect the usual, computer malfunctioning, dropping pens, paper
and pencils, electricity whirligigs, car trouble and miscommunications and
misunderstandings.
I could tell you to try and be very clear before signing any
agreements, if one were to be so bold at this time, but during a water
retrograde, it is just asking for trouble to even try.
Now, if it is something with an ‘RE’ before the task, then by all means
go ahead! Re-pairing, Re-wiring,
Re-painting, Re-negotiating, etc.
This is also when we get those blasts from the past, like seeing people
we haven’t in years or meeting up with people we just seem to already know,
they are usually someone from a past life.
In this water retrograde, expect and even look for people from the past
to visit your dreams, and perhaps tell you something they didn’t or couldn’t
get the chance to tell you in person; they may have already passed over too. The message could be one you have been asking
for answers to, so PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DREAMS!
Now, think of how an object appears different when you look at it through
water, the light refracts and skews the dimensions and the location of the
object in the water. This is a good
analogy to comprehend what happens in communications. Things are just not what they seem. The message may become garbled or muffled,
either way we are just not hearing what we thought we heard, so best not to
come to any conclusions. Yes, this also
pertains to those messages in the dream state, but I would write them down to
come back to later, they will have something that will help us put the pieces
of the puzzle together and usually these will be more of the returning variety,
the view we didn’t or couldn’t see before and that is what we are looking to
benefit from during the Mercury retrograde period.
Secrets will have a much shorter life or half-life during this
retrograde, since we already have had that long Saturn retrograde in Scorpio
while in mutual reception to Pluto/Hades in Capricorn, all that was shuffled
under the table will find its way to the surface like a leak that you just can’t
fix.
Water will seek its own level and bring up from the depths of that
Neptunian/Poseidon Sea (who is also retrograde) the deeper spiritual truths,
the kind that were nipping around the periphery of your consciousness and
almost within grasp and then popped like a bubble before we could integrate
them. The closer Mercury gets to that
Uranus square, the closer those insights (ruled by Uranus) will come into our
awareness.
Squares can be challenging of course, but they are also what we use to
build upon, so after it all comes out in the wash, expect to become much clearer
about what and where we want to build our dreams.
Since the retrograde is in Cancer (The moon/home/family) Cancers can
expect to be affected the most, followed by all the Cardinal signs: Libra,
Capricorn, and Aries as well as where those signs are by house in your own
chart, including planets that are aspected too.
With Jupiter having just entered the sign of Cancer too, we can expect
a lot of expansion in the water sign and all things Cancer, so it is a good
time for family and nurturing ourselves with mother energy.
There could be some slowing of construction and housing during this
retrograde period, or the flow of money into the housing market could feel
strained, as if the river of loans is drying up.
This is a good time to clean and wash away the past, repair old
friendships if our review brings the light of a new perspective or
understanding but it may also mean the letting go of those friendships and
relationships that are just too hard to hold onto, with all that water pulling
those people who have served their purpose away and onto a different river in
life. I don’t say that lightly, since I
don’t let go of people very easily myself, I take people very deeply into my
heart, and it takes an awful lot of hurtful behavior for me not to overlook the
transgressions, so even writing that does not come so easy.
Now, since Mercury is in Cancer, expect emotional confusion most of
all, but also emotional healing.
I know that may sound contradictory, but that is how this works, the
energy gives and takes away.
(I am also writing this during a Mercury Retrograde, so that means I
will come back and rewrite this in the future AND it may not be as clear as I
would like it to be, she said as she laughed to herself).
Let’s go back to the statue of Mercury looking back: This is what we do best during this time, he
wants us to RE-member who we are, the road we have travelled, our hurts and our
accomplishments after we successfully negotiated the difficult times, the people
we have met along the way and how we treated them, the kindness and the love
that we have been blessed with and especially, our ability to laugh, to take
things less seriously and find a witty sense of humor about it all.
But we made it through those times, just barely though it may seem, but
we made it through.
So, it is compassion we can find now, and soothe our beings with the
balm of that love, letting go of the need to do more and to worry about the
future.
Kindness goes a long way. Here
is where I find POWER in our amazing ability to look back, to remember the
times we have had with loved ones we may not be able to see in the physical
world anymore, to glean a lesson from the lens of history and turn that into a
better fuel and heraldry to turn around and implore the God’s when Mercury goes
direct.
It is not the time to march forward; it is the time to bask in the
afterglow of the road less travelled.
Happy Trails.
The secret is...I told you I would be adding more to this post ( I always do, so it is best to come back and reread the post's to get all the secret pearls I will cast out along the way).
Unless
that is, you are ready to go deeper into the meaning? Would you like to go down to the ‘Crossroads’and
meet our friend Hermes? Then knock and
the door shall be opened unto you.
The heart is
the doorway, the bridal chamber with (4) chambers into the divine abode of
Venus or Aphrodite, where one learns true beauty that rises up from the
Sea. The Way of the Heart is THE WAY to
the TRUTH and the LIGHT that comes from the singular eye. To divine, is to use discernment and trample
the Lion (Ego) and the Serpent (consumerism/consumption/lower earthly
drives/lust/greed that keep one crawling on the belly for more things that will
only turn to dust) and to enter the Bridal Chamber where the male becomes
female and the female becomes male.
Balance and Harmony reign in the forces of the Divine Charioteer.
This opens into the Thymus. (The
mystical colours of the Thymus are purple and deep teal).
Heart Thymus...HearThyMus...Hear…Thy...MUSE...Hearthearthearth…earthearthearth..earth.
Hearth Y Mus...Gather around ye hEARTH and entertain your muses...your teachers
stand at the gate of the crossroads...where Hermes stands as the messenger to
help you across the river. (Hermes is the ruler over the throat, arms, hands
chakra). He is Mercury in Roman symbolism.
“I went down to
the crossroads, fell down on my knees”
© Gloria O'Neil-Savage 'Sangreal' 2013
I went down to
the crossroad
fell down on my knees
Asked the lord above "Have mercy now
save poor Bob if you please"
Yeeooo, standin at the crossroad
tried to flag a ride
ooo ooo eee
I tried to flag a ride
Didn't nobody seem to know me babe
everybody pass me by
Standin at the crossroad babe
risin sun goin down
Standin at the crossroad babe
eee eee eee, risin sun goin down
I believe to my soul now,
Poor Bob is sinkin down
You can run, you can run
tell my friend Willie Brown
You can run, you can run
tell my friend Willie Brown
(th)'at I got the crossroad blues this mornin Lord
babe, I'm sinkin down
And I went to the crossroad momma
I looked east and west
I went to the crossroad baby
I looked east and west
Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman
ooh-well babe, in my distress
friend, Mercury, is swimming in a trine to Poseidon/Neptune (the watery deep world of the 12th house and Pisces, music the arts, hearing, dreaming, subconscious, MUSE, illusions, delusions) who is happily communicating to us in flashbacks and total recall. Poseidon is ruling this astrological ship while Jupiter (Zeus) is happily dignified in Cancer the Crab ruler of the moon. We can see a watery theme ~ yes?
What are your dreams whispering to you? Are you running and hiding, seeing things in a new light or being dressed in royal colours and dancing in the moonlight?
e. We are after all in one of the fixed crosses of the zodiac, wheels within wheels and the gates of the garden of paradise (Eden) where all things are possible. What would you like to fix your gaze upon, have you had insights into what the future looks like? These players are doing their very best to guide you now, shining down and through the waters of birth.
Yes, we now have Jupiter/Zeus retrograde (20* on November 7th.) in Cancer, but remember he is dignified in the land of the moons domain. He wants to be comfy at home and he has decided to stay here, restless as he is, and read a book by the fire, engage in a long philosophical conversation or make new plans looking over maps, on where to voyage into next. (He will go direct at 10* of Cancer on March 6th.)
tting the works.
