Mars Goes Retrograde

Mars went retrograde on 26 June 2018. Mars will be retrograde for two months, going direct again on 26 August 2018. Mars is the planet of action, so expect major things to happen in the coming months.

Mars retrograde happens at the same time with this year’ eclipse season so you can bet the coming months will bring life-changing events in your life. Karma (eclipses) and action (Mars) act as one. You will have the feeling you cannot escape your destiny.

Of course, you can try to run, but with Mars retrograde, it will be difficult to hide. He will find you – when retrograde, Mars takes his time.

Contrary to beliefs that things slow down when Mars is retrograde, Mars retrograde intensifies action. Things may slow down in your life, but you will take action more forcefully than usual, and from a more authentic place.

You will embody Mars, you will act like Mars – you will be Mars. You will finally act on your true desires, and do what you wanted to do since Mars started its cycle on 26 July 2017.

When Mars is retrograde, it is always opposite the Sun. It is closest to the Earth and shines at its brightest. The Earth is basically between Mars and the Sun, becoming the mediator between the divine consciousness (the Sun) and action (Mars). Mars retrograde is manifestation in action! 

Mars opposite Sun is like a Full Moon of Mars and intensifies, brings to culmination whatever Mars stands for in your natal chart.

Why Mars Retrograde Is So Important

Mercury retrograde might be more popular because it happens more frequently (Mercury goes retrograde every 3-4 months and is retrograde 20% of time), but Mars retrograde is more important, because it happens only once every 2 years. Last time Mars was retrograde was April – June 2016.

It’s the rarest of retrogrades and also the longest of all the personal planets. That’s why the most significant events in one’s life tend to happen when Mars goes retrograde.

Mars goes retrograde at 9° Aquarius, and goes direct at 28° Capricorn. This means Mars spends two months covering only 12° of the zodiac. Have a look where you have 28° Capricorn – 9° Aquarius in your chart. There is something about that part of your chart you need to understand, to revise, and ultimately take action upon.

These are the most important aspects Mars makes during the retrograde:

• Mars goes retrograde June 26
• Mars is conjunct the South Node on July 20
• Mars opposes Sun on 26 July 26
• Mars is conjunct the Total Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius on July 27
• Mars is square Uranus on August 1
• Mars re-enters Capricorn on August 12
• Mars goes direct on August 27

Mars – The Hero, The Warrior

Mars is the archetype of the hero and the warrior. Whenever you are fighting for something, whenever you say ‘no’ to what goes against your will, you are embodying Mars.

Mars has free will. The only personal planet that travels across the zodiac on its own (not along with the Sun) is Mars. No other personal planet (Mercury, Venus) has really a will on its own because both Mercury and Venus never travel too far away from the Sun.

But Mars does. When you act from your Mars power, you have the ability to make it on your own, against any rules and obstacles. Mars brings transformation in your life. If Pluto, the higher octave of Mars brings long-lasting, complex transformation, Mars brings rapid transformation. Your life gets changed when Mars is strong in the sky, like it is now.

Mars goes retrograde in Aquarius and Capricorn. The signs Mars is transiting will give you deeper insights into what this transformation is about.

Aquarius is a paradoxical sign. On one hand, it’s a fixed sign, which means it’s stable and inflexible. On the other hand, Aquarius is ruled by Uranus, which is the most unpredictable planet in the sky.

Aquarians are known to be unique, special and original – like no one else. In the same time, Aquarius is all about teamwork, groups of people and working towards a greater goal, rather than an individual goal.

How can we reconcile these apparent conceptual conflicts?

Aquarius is a fixed air sign. Fixed air is not an easy concept to grasp. You can probably relate to fixed earth (Taurus) – and you can instantly picture a piece of land. You could also eventually picture fixed fire (Leo) and see the Sun, or fixed water (Scorpio) and picture some ice (BTW, did you know that Scorpio’s ruling planet, Pluto is covered in ice?). But what about fixed air? (Aquarius).

Aquarius And The Invisible Threads

A good way to think about fixed air is invisible (air) threads (fixed). Aquarius is what is stable (fixed) yet invisible (air) to the eye. Invisible ties are the unwritten rules of the society. It is what keeps people together and makes them loyal to each other. It is what makes friends stay friends even if they live in different parts of the globe.

This is why Aquarius seems unpredictable…but just because you don’t see these invisible ties, it doesn’t mean they are not there.

Remeber how Uranus, the ruling planet of Aquarius has been discovered? With a telescope. Uranus was always there, but people couldn’t see it, within the technological limitations of the time. This is a good way of thinking about Aquarius.

There is another apparent conflict with Aquarius – does Aquarius make an individual unique, or a team player?

A good example for this is team sports: each player has an individual role: quarterback, center, linebacker, cornerback. But all players work towards a common goal – to win the game. Aquarius is exactly about putting the unique creative energy of each individual into use, to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

Aquarian teamwork is not the assembly line workers who may work towards the same goal, but perform the same repetitive activity. Aquarian teamwork is more like an agile scrum team, or a boardroom: each person has their unique role, yet they work towards a common goal, a goal that is beyond their personal concern.

Mars retrograde spends most of the time in Aquarius, however, it does go back into Capricorn from August 13 until August 26.

Go Back To The Drawing Board

When a retrograde planet moves back in the previous sign, is giving you a second chance. This is when things from the past come back to you so you can finally deal with them. Mars’ journey back into Capricorn is your second chance to get it right in the matters of the house where you have Capricorn.

Let’s take an example: let’s say Aquarius is your 8th house, and Capricorn your 7th house. In the first 2 months of Mars retrograde, 8th house themes will come into focus: maybe you need to get your joint finances in order, ask for a loan, or pay your taxes. You will be busy with this from 26 June (when Mars goes retrograde) until 12 August. From 13 August on, your focus will shift to the 7th house. You will have a second chance to fix some issues related – this time – to your relationships and partnerships (7th house themes) which in turn, will help you with your 8th house matters. Maybe you need to set better, fairer rules in the relationship (7th house) so you can proceed to the next level (8th house). This is how this retrograde works.

Capricorn and Aquarius have many things in common (they are both traditionally ruled by Saturn) but the fundamental distinction is that Capricorn sets the vision.

Capricorn is the Manager who sets the vision, who sets the strategy. And Aquarius is the Team who makes it happen.

Mars going retrograde from Aquarius to Capricorn means you need to go back to the drawing board and re-adjust your strategy.

If something in your life is not working (look where you have Aquarius, to get some clues about what exactly is not working), then this retrograde is your chance to make it work again.

Instead of getting stuck in doing the same thing over and over again, go back and revise your strategy. Go back to the drawing board.

Ask yourself: What battle am I fighting? What am I really trying to achieve? What is my true goal? What is my strategy?

Mars is the planet of action, drive, and decisiveness. Is about acting from your instinct. In the past, acting from your instinct usually meant acting against someone’s else instinct. It meant going to war. Things have changed, and with time we learned to work with the energy of Mars without causing too much harm to others, but ultimately Mars is about acting form your instinct, even if it goes against the whole world.

Haka – The War Dance

If we put all the symbolism together – Aquarius (teamwork), Capricorn (strategy), Mars (action) that flows from Aquarius to Capricorn, I cannot NOT think of the Haka.

Haka is a ceremonial Maori war dance that has been popularized by the New Zealand rugby team. The All Blacks (New Zealand rugby team) perform this war dance before every rugby match. Haka is a posture dance with shouted vocal chanting accompanied by hand actions, foot stamping, and facial expressions.

It is very powerful to watch and it looks like it’s working. Despite its small population, New Zealand has the most successful rugby team in the world.

Haka is a war dance, meant to warn the opponent that they are better off to stay away from trouble. Haka is an honest war dance – the team shows the opponent what they are up to, what their goal is. It’s a territory marking activity: “You can’t cross here”.

Who knows how many wars could have been avoided if the opponents had been straightforward about their intentions and about their abilities. When Mars slows down and gets closer to the Earth like now, he is very straightforward about his intentions.

Ultimately, the upcoming Mars retrograde will ask you to perform a war dance and get to the core of what you want.

Questions to reflect upon when Mars is retrograde:

• Am I crystal clear about what I want to achieve?
• Do I act with integrity?
• Does my goal serve a higher purpose?
• Is there any way I can avoid ‘bloodshed’ and still, have my objectives met?
• Which areas of my life need honest, decisive action?

You will feel the Mars retrograde energy more strongly if you have planets or angles between 28° Capricorn – 9° Aquarius and 28° Cancer – 9° Leo.

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