Mercury Retrograde in 04° Gemini

 

• 04/25/22      11:42 PM      26° TAU 05'     Begin Pre-Shadow 
• 05/10/22      04:47 AM      04° GEM 51'    Mercury Retrograde 
• 06/03/22      01:00 AM      26° TAU 05'     Direct Motion / Begin Post Shadow 
• 06/18/22      03:35 PM       04° GEM 51'    End Post Shadow

What is Mercury Retrograde ?

Mercury Retrograde is a term that you have probably heard before but aren't sure exactly what it means. During periods of retrograde, a planet appears to move backwards from its normal trek around the sun. Those areas of life governed by the planet tend to suffer setbacks and breakdowns. There are many retrogrades including Mars Retrograde, Venus Retrograde, Jupiter Retrograde, in fact all the planets turn retrograde at some point. However, Mercury Retrograde is arguably the one you hear about most often.

Mercury is believed to rule communication and travel and so during a Mercury-Retrograde it is common for breakdowns in communication and interruption of travel plans to occur. People become short-tempered, computers break down, get viruses, cars and other vehicles may breakdown, flat tires may occur, communication slows or grinds to a halt, etc.....

The Pre-Shadow is when we can begin to see Mercury start slowing down and this is where we will begin to feel the beginning of Mercury Retrograde. This period of time can be marked by errors in communication, travel, and electronics. These are just general events that usually occur during periods of Mercury Retrograde. The Sign or Signs that Mercury RX occurs in also influences events that occur during Mercury RX.

The Pre-Shadow began in Taurus on 4/25/22. Essentially, those events that occur during the Pre-Shadow will frame your experiences during the retrograde phase. These experiences are believed to be necessary for our own personal growth and soul-evolvement. Taurus rules over money, material resources, and personal values so these are area of life that we, as a whole, will need to review. To figure out exactly how Mercury Retrograde will affect you on a personal, individual level, you will need to see what natal house your Taurus (and Gemini) is in. The area of life represented by that house is the area of your life that will most be affected by Mercury Retrograde.

The Retrograde period starts on 5/10/22 and this is when Mercury starts moving again, only from our perspective on Earth it will appear to be moving backwards across the zodiac.  It is during this period that we will most strongly feel the effects of Mercury Retrograde. Generally speaking, we can expect communication, travel, and electronics to go all wonky on us.  During Mercury Retrograde, we refrained from making any major decisions or changes. Instead, we are told to RE-lax, RE-evaluate, RE-assess our issues and conditions. On a personal level, this is where we confront the issues of Mercury Retrograde that were hinted at or started forming during the Pre-Shadow period. Towards the end of this retrograde period, Mercury will begin to slow down again before coming to a full stop and sit there for a few days before it starts moving forward again.

Mercury is said to Station Direct when it starts moving forward again. This is the period when many people feel like they can start breathing again (metaphorically speaking). They hear Mercury Direct and think that it’s over. But that is not the case. Mercury Stationing Direct is really the beginning of the Post-Shadow period.

Finally, we experience the Post-Shadow. This is the period between the time Mercury stations direct and it reaches the point where it initially began to slow down in the first place. Just like when you get in your car to drive somewhere, your speed is not constant. The speed of your vehicle is constantly shifting, slowing down, stopping, and speeding up again. In like fashion, Mercury's speed is not constant. Mercury usually moves at about 2 degrees per day, however, during the post shadow period is may move only about 1 degree (or less) per day and will pick up speed as the days go forward.

The post-shadow period of Mercury Retrograde is characterized as a period in which those issues raised during Mercury Retrograde are still present but may be winding down, that is, they are still present but not as intense as before. During this post shadow phase is where we take what we learned during Mercury Retrograde and apply that knowledge to re-dress and re-solve those issues and conditions that were raised during Mercury Retrograde.

- Carolina Dean