mercury retrograde in aquarius – Dr. Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD: The Sky Priestess

The Leo Full Moon was an intense one – we’re still very much within its energetic zone of influence. Against that backdrop, we have a potent conjunction between Mercury Retrograde (the Messenger Reversed) and Vesta (The Goddess Asteroid of Priestessing) at 3 Aquarius ’52 degrees. This occurred earlier today at 5:17 pm, Fen 5th 2015 (GMT + 8).

This Mercury Retrograde cycle has felt unusually intense as (previously) Mars, Venus and (currently) the Sun and Vesta have been co-habiting the same sign (Aquarius). Aquarius is doubly emphasized as the sign of the previous New Moon (January 20th) and the upcoming New Moon (February 19).

When Mercury Retrograde makes key aspects to other astrological bodies or points, it often brings us the opportunity to revisit, reflect upon and re-learn key messages or pieces of information. It can also open a doorway to look at something from different layers or levels of understanding. Mercury was the only being in Greco-Roman mythology to have been able to seamlessly cross over the the different realms (The Underworld, The Earth, Olympus, and so on). It invites us to engage with things we have already experienced, but at a wholly new level.

In this instance – it is Vesta whom Mercury opens the gateway within. So let’s look at her briefly. Vesta is the Goddess Asteroid of Priestessing. She represents many things – the place where you regenerate your energies, a focal point of devotion which you may be called to ‘give up’ as path of your Path, a connection with the energy and history of Priestessing (and Spiritual Facilitation in general). It is usually a placement that asks you to take the truer path, and asks you to release the ego as part of the facilitative work you have come to do. Whether or not we use titles, or recognize the concept of Priest/essing – we all facilitate each other in some capacity.

So when Mercury Rx conjuncts Vesta, we may receive messages, insights, that will open new doorways to furthering our spiritual paths and journeys. These messages may come out of the blue, or be delivered in a fairly strange way (owing to the eccentricity and spontaneity associated with Aquarius).

Ultimately the message is one that asks you to discover the unique gifts, perspectives and abilities that you as an individual can bring to the collective. It asks you to look at the groups and associations that you are a part of in bringing this message. It emphasizes the medium, form, style and delivery of the messages that you bring as part of the spiritual work that you do. And in some sense, we are all ‘working’ – at the very least on ourselves – and that too is a valuable contribution to the collective level of consciousness.

Mercury Rx and Vesta both sextile (60 degree aspect) Saturn at 3 Sagittarius ’47. The message you receive now is part of a larger, slower, long-term process through which you discover your Spiritual Path and the way you embody that Truth. Your relationship with gurus, mentors and teachers will also transform by way of the message received today – this is not a bad thing! If anything, it may help you break down more egoic-understandings of what is spiritual authority – moving to a less hierarchical understanding of the guru-student relationship.

You are likely to receive this message out of the blue from a friend, a member of a shared spiritual group/charitable network/altruistic cause, and most likely by way of electronic media. You may also receive it whilst in meditative work with Spirit. Other possibilities are there, of course, depending on where the conjunction occurs in your natal chart and what aspects it makes.

Remember that the power, delivery and consequent emotional responses you may have to the message received today is still tinging with the aftermath of the Leo Full Moon, and with the power of the Mercury Retrograde.

Try not to take things too personally and do your level best to find a perspective that is both compassionate and detached. Save yourself the energetic hassle of assuming the worst, or reading too much into things.

Those with placements near 3 degrees Cancer will experience this as a powerful Yod that will also bring you to a very, very significant karmic crossroad. The path that you choose here will anchor (for some time, at least) the way in which you connect with the energies of the Mother and the forces of tradition, culture and other things which give you a sense of home and belonging.

The asteroids shed more light on the Mercury Rx-Vesta conjunction and what they ask us to consider at this time:

Mercury Retrograde/Vesta —

– square Bienor (3 Taurus): We’re asked to use our power and authority with integrity, and with a view to creating abundance not just for the self – but for the collective as well

– trine Lachesis (3 Libra): We are asked to realize that whatever is coming through now is not a sudden development. It’s been there for a while, and it has just now entered your reality, in full view of your conscious perception. You get to choose how to deal with it, in the present moment, and are advised not to get too nostalgic / attached to a past idea, or too fearful/worried about the future. Be here now, and see the steps that the present context requires.

– trine Asbolus (4 Gemini): The situation is one which can lead to surprising insight into facts about your early childhood environment, the perceptions you learnt then, the relationship you had/have with your siblings – or even into ‘seeing’ (as in the way that a seer sees) dynamics about your current, immediate everyday circumstances. Some of you may also find the impulse that the conjunction creates as a jump-start to projects in writing, speaking, learning and exploring different avenues of self-expression. Honor your intuition!

Remember — All that is happening now – especially with the role of Saturn and Asbolus – is for your spiritual development and maturation. Moreover, we have the Sun – Jupiter opposition (Aquarius-Leo) coming up in just over 30 hours’ time. We’re likely to get more insight as to the fuller implications and opportunities created by the Mercury/Vesta conjunction, and their sextile to Saturn in the coming days.

Have faith and let this energy unfold in as graceful a manner as possible. Know this this too, will lead you to new horizons, even if you’re not sure what they are.

It’s a beautiful possibility and one born of the energies of friendship – altruism – compassion and your link with the collective (Aquarius). Be thankful to receive this gift and all the doors that it opens for you 🙂

This message is likely to be revisited on March 4th, 2015 when Mercury conjuncts Vesta again at 17 Aquarius ’45. Mercury would have just ended its shadow phase by that point, moving at full speed in direct motion. I’ll address that in Part 2 – closer to the time of the second conjunction.

Blessings to all of you,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD
www.bairaveebalasubramaniam.com

Image: Louis Welden Hawkins (1849–1910), The Priestess [public domain via Wikimedia Commons]

The skies and energetics of today have been very strange. It feels as though the veil is thinner at this time than it normally would be. Turning to astrology, I see the most likely explanation to be the MERCURY RETROGRADE – NORTH NODE trine. The North Node asks us to evolve into new cycles of Balance (Libra), positions were we can be ourselves and let others to be who they are, and understanding of partnership dynamics (both inter-personal and intra-personal – they both reflect each other). Mercury Retrograde may pose us challenges in communication, particularly in friend groups or as expressed through social media (FB, Twitter, etc.) — that we may look deeper and find new, or better ways of expressing ourselves to the collective.

Even if you’re saying something as best you can, the other person might hear something different (and vice versa from their perspective). Same words, different meanings. Things like that. But What For, you might ask?

Mercury gives us the chance to reflect upon the ways we communicate in these larger group/collective dynamics and to refine both our listening/expressing skills – In Aquarius, it asks us to become aware of how we bring layers upon layers of meaning to what we say and how, by virtue of being the unique individuals that we are. it asks us to take ownership of the assumptions, the meaning, the perspectives we bring into communication – both conscious and sub-conscious. It also challenges us to put our individual ego-minds aside at times and see the truth that the other is offering, even if it seems opposed to your own. Practice the principle of compassion – and resist the temptation to respond in anger, defensiveness or fear.

Simply state your truth and be – no one has to accept it but you. For as a Collective, are we not entitled to Plural or Multiple Truths?

(I should add that – right now – Mercury is conjunct asteroid Icarus (12 Aquarius) — if you’re going to explore an idea of form of expression that is ‘out there’, try to do so with some restraint. Try not to leap too far ahead too quickly. Baby steps!)

Trined the North Node in Libra, it is likely that these opportunities for learning may come through a partner (at work, in life) or a social setting of some kind. It may occur as part of a intellectual discussion, legal arguments, or attempts at mediation between conflicting parties.

Rather than obstacles, I’d call them stepping stones towards a fuller expression of your being. The specifics of how that plays out depends on which houses that Mercury Retrograde and the Noth Node sit in for you.

In fact some of you might actually enjoy this time and find it a great moment to re-connect with people! It’s not always bad, or good – just depends on how you work with the energies with your own Free Will.

This is the second time that this trine is happening. The first trine between the two occured at 2:31 am, January 16 (14 Aqu-Lib ’09) , the second occured earlier today at 4:57 am, January 28 (13 Aqu-Lib ’31) and the third will occur on 5:57 pm, February 27 (11 Aqu-Lib ’54 – all times in GMT/UTC + 8). It is likely that the seeds of whatever is going on now may have been set during the first crossing, and that some form of culmination/release may come during the Feb 27th crossing. The fact this this back and forth is happening is of course due to Mercury’s apparent retrograde motion through the skies. (It’s not really moving backwards, it just looks that way to the observer on Earth)

Also – not all of you must or will experience this sequence in the way described, but some of you will – and so I hope it is of use.

At this moment, Mercury Retrograde is also sextiled the South Node and Uranus in Aries. This suggests the opportunity to find a harmony in the way we think, articulate, express and communicate by drawing upon the Truth of the Self. No… Not the Ego-I, but the I AM 🙂 Work with the revelations (which for some of us, have struck like lightning in recent times) you have about yourself and – Dare to Step into a New Dynamic in the way you Think, Express Yourself, etc.. This is a fantastic opportunity to break out of old karmic cycles, related to the themes described above.

Those with placements at or near 13 Virgo will experience this as a powerful Yod – a potential karmic crossroad which punctuates, intensifies and accelerates your spiritual journey in many ways.

Blessings to All,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam, PhD
www.bairaveebalasubramaniam.com

Image: Blackbird, singing.JPG By HTO (Own work (own photo)) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons