Mercury Retrograde and Shadow-mode

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The real life truth of
Mercury Retrograde

When Mercury turns retrograde (in any sign), look at the degrees of the Zodiac it will cover in its backward retreat. Mercury's "official" retrograde period lasts about three weeks if you go by the regular calendar, but objectively -- in real life -- Mercury's retrograde cycle takes a lot longer. It starts with what's called a "shadow phase."

This begins when Mercury, while still going direct, first crosses the degree of the Zodiac to which it will return when retrograde. This takes a little bit of awareness and extra calculation, but once you get the knack of it, it's fairly easy to do and quick. You just need to have your astrological calendar handy ... and for those of us who are "into this stuff" there's usually one around.

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Shadow-mode ... and getting somewhere

Mercury's shadow phase doesn't end until after Mercury goes direct again and passes the degree at which it turned retrograde. This is the point at which Mercury starts making progress again in its current tour of the signs.

And it's when we start making progress again in daily life on matters of communication, data sharing and handling information, reading, writing and learning, things related to using your computer, applying knowledge and employing physical mobility, work concerns, health and lifestyle issues and the usual daily business of life.

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How it is in real life

It's not glamorous and it's usually not really dramatic, but these are the trivia, the minor details and "little things" that can really mess up your schedule, your mood and your attitude, and play havoc with what you were trying to get done. Mercury entered shadow-mode this time on October 28. It turned officially retrograde on November 16. It turns direct -- according to the calendar -- on December 6. But it doesn't move out of its own shadow again until Christmas Eve.

Its effects are often subtle at first, but at this point you'll start rethinking your actions, your plans and your ideas and perspectives. As time goes along, you'll come up with new information, competing concepts and options, things that invite you to rethink what you're doing because you'll start to see another way, a better way, a reason why your current path won't get you where you really want to end up.

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It's an invitation to think differently

These initial indicators can be anything from interesting to intriguing to really annoying. You may be pretty invested in what you're trying to do -- and the way you're going about it -- and the idea of doing it over or doing it differently or approaching it from a whole different angle ... usually doesn't sit well. So, you'll brush it aside as long as you can ... and keep on going. (Until you learn better -- which is part of what I'm trying to teach here.)

But from the moment Mercury enters shadow-mode, you need to regard your decisions, plans, ideas and goals as "up for review" and decidedly tentative. Keep everything as flexible and open-ended as possible -- Mercury loves that kind of freedom and latitude.

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You'll make different decisions

Realize that whatever you do in the meantime -- until shadow-mode ends in a couple of months -- will be things you'll eventually decide to do differently, because by then, you'll be working with new information, new conditions, new options and a very different perspective.

This kind of acceptance is really nothing but being realistic -- however much you'd like to resist it in the meantime -- and it can be extremely liberating and even fun if you embrace this celestial invitation to open your mind and do some editing and revision and experiment with your intentions.

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The results will be better

What you do once Mercury moves on will be different than what you planned in the beginning -- and it will be much better in its results ... so the effort actually isn't wasted. These first-drafts and trial runs turn out a much improved product. For there to even be a better idea, it means there had to be an inferior one in the first place.

So maybe that's one reason these little intervals happen. Look at them as a chance to upgrade -- and get a wider view of what you're working with and what alternatives are possible.

When you look at it that way, Mercury Retrograde becomes a friend -- an actual benefit -- instead of another pothole you have to get past.

Thank you for stopping by!

If you've always known there was more to Astrology than Sun Sign material and the three line daily horoscope in the newspaper, climb aboard and follow this blog. You'll find a world of wisdom detailing how you were designed to work with life ... and why you are the way you are -- all in quick-to-read, easy-to-digest-and-remember, written-in-plain-English essays that offer plenty of food for thought.

Little by little, I'm doing a set of articles that talks about all the elements in your horoscope and what they have to say about you. If you "know something" about Astrology -- or know something about your chart placements, that will help you get more from this material.

If you don't ... well, this is one place you can learn. We all have to start somewhere ... because we aren't born knowing this stuff. Meanwhile, if you've never seen your horoscope ... and don't have a clue how to work with it, maybe it's time to find out. There are lots of "chart services" on the internet -- some of whom produce decent, readable charts "for free" and some are so awful and confusing that even I can't read them easily -- and I've worked with charts for decades.

One extremely user-friendly chart site is here: AstroLabe. I recommend them if you want a simple, easy-to-read chart. I think they even give a reasonable little interpretive reading of your horoscope as part of the package. You'll need to know your birth information -- day, month, year, time and geographical place. Without all that your chart will have limited accuracy.

Or, if you want to get serious and really talk about this, upvote this post and start a conversation in the comments section sometime in the next six days from the time of publication. We'll go from there depending on what you want to know.

Questions about any of this? -- Upvote this post and talk to me in comments. It's a terrific way to build value for yourself and the community ... and it will give me ideas of what to write about in future posts. Believe me there is lots to say about the way The Sun, The Moon -- and all the other elements in a horoscope, all the other components of Astrology -- work together to interpret you and your story -- and what it all means to the person you've become.

This is who I am.

Enchanted Spirit

About the art in our visual essays ...

Although sometimes the background pictures in our visual essays support the topic and text, they don't always. Sometimes the connection is clear. Sometimes it's symbolic and subtle. Sometimes, there's no connection at all.

The scenes depict landscapes and natural features, buildings and wildlife. They were chosen because they show something lovely or interesting ... or simply because the photo appealed to me.

Our spectacular and remarkable planet is changing at astonishing speed. Rarely are these changes for the better. Few people seem to know ... or care ... or have the will and power to do anything about this. It may not be long before the world humans have known and lived in for centuries is forever lost. We certainly won't be able to make repairs as fast as we destroyed it.

So a few years ago I began collecting pictures of the way things were ... and still are for now, a record of the beauty we have while it is still ours to love and honor.

The photos here are part of that collection, with sincere thanks to the artists who saw these moments ... and with their cameras ... preserved them. All of us at Enchanted Spirit are profoundly grateful to them for their generosity and skill ... and for the added grace, depth and dimension their art brings to ours.

Original images used under this Creative Commons license or this Creative Commons license and modified by added text.

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