Mars stations retrograde on the 23rd of January 2012, 18 hours after the bold and brave January New Moon. Mars will traverse up and down 3 – 23 degrees Virgo and will spend roughly 10 days on a degree while it stations These degrees will become highly sensitized. My take on Mars retrograde is as usual different from most Astrologers. The retrograde effect is an illusion, but the fact that it aspects one degree 3 times is very real. Just as I said for Mercury retrograde, I believe this period gives us a chance to look at things from a right-brain perspective. The effect is cyclical not linear, it is internalized and intuitive. It is suggested that this a time where we find it hard to express our anger and become passive aggressive, I’m not sure I believe this to be so.
Mars Retrograde Meaning
Mars is in retrograde motion for an average of two and a half months every two years, which is only 10% of the time. What I do think happens, is that the Mars impulse is slowed down and deepened. Mars retrograde makes a lasting impression and every move is planned carefully and strategically. I have read that Mars retrograde is akin to it traveling in the 12th house, which to me makes more sense as I was thinking the feel is quite Neptunian/Plutonian. I believe Mars retrograde is about karmic rebalancing and it’s mission is spiritualised.
The effect of the fixed stars that Mars hits on it’s path with be the coloring factor to this retrograde in 2012. A Mars retrograde is a long drawn out affair that happens every two years. Since Mars is about sex as well as well as war, it will cause us to re-evaluate our sexual relationships. Our ambitions and goals also come under scrutiny. If you look at the chart you will see the dates when each of the degrees in Virgo get retraced. Things started in the shadow period from the 19th November until the 24th of January will get two more hits. During the retrograde you will be able to turns things round and see them from another angle. Then when they are direct again in the out-going shadow you get to see if the decision or idea was really viable or not.
In my opinion then, I think Mars could do with having the heat taken out of it at times, this gives it a chance to make daring decisions with a cool head. Another point to consider is whether to start a war. In modern days, war-mongering could be to start legal proceedings or initiate a new business venture. Tradition opinion is to wait till Mars is direct again. I think it all depends on whether your intentions are honorable, because the universe will take charge of the outcome. Retrograde cycles are fated times, one must surrender to the forces. Mars is about bravery and confronting danger. So Mars retrograde is like riding a choppy 12th house sea. More Saturnian/left brain types may like to wait until things are calmer and have more control of their vessel. But true swash-buckling adventurers will trust that if Neptune loves you, he will get you there unexpectedly faster and award you a bounty of treasure for your courage.
Mars Retrograde 2012
Mars set sail into the shadow zone on November 18. Our hero hit the fixed star Zosma in constellation Leo on December 5, it was also benefited by a kindly trine from Venus. This could’ve been a time of turning things around if you have been feeling victimized. Some compromises were made after a row. Hasty words to Mars from Mercury square. On the January 8 Mars was on the cranky lions tail Denebola, just before the Full Moon – Thaw! This moon also talked about victimization, since we had a grand trine to Sedna. Mars was also revving up Eris too. You will not see the last of skeletons let out of the closest on this day, they come back to haunt you around the 1st week of February and are resolved between June 16-18. January 22 sees Mars hit the fixed star Alkes, the Holy Grail. This star refers to gifts and talents passed down through the family. However, those gifts can come with a price as there is some unexpected events and disorder indicated. This star is activated for a good few days while Mars is stationing retrograde. So we are made to look what family traits we want to keep and which ones are causing upset in our lives.
Mars stations retrograde January 23 and remains within orb of Alkes until January 30. The retrograde chart itself gives us a very powerful Mars/Sedna/Mercury grand trine. Mercury is exactly on the Peacock while Mars is still on Alkes of course. We have already talked about Sedna and it’s history of betrayal from the father. There certainly seems to be a theme of ancestral inheritance, for good or for ill. Peacock was said to represent Argos the builder of the famous ship Argo (A constellation). I think this is quite apt since I was likening this whole Mars cycle as being somewhat like a voyage.
Fixed star Peacock gives a long life and sometimes fame, maybe this is our prize if we are brave enough to set sail during a Mars retrograde. There is certainly a sea-faring theme to this cycle with Sedna featuring in a few grand trines. We may risk being thrown overboard by a treacherous boss or father figure, but in our despair we find our true calling. Since this retrograde occurs after a new Moon, then the seeds of intention we plant here carry extra poignancy. We go deeper with them, but these are longer term goals and we will have to wait for June 19 before they bear fruit. What sweet fruit they will be!
Mars re-visits the turbulent feline Denebola February 6 and opposes Mercury/Moon on February 22, which could bring on a tempest. Time to batten the hatches. What’s more the transiting nodes are on the powerful Antares/Aldebaran axis. This is an incredibly fated, nodal time when the archangels will be watching. We revisit December 22 2011 again as a pre-christmas ghost bellows about the sails. March 12 we get an interesting grand trine that involves a the Lilith conjunction Jupiter and Pluto. This is a fantastically potent and magical moment. Mars on Zosma in Leo again suggests the possibility of transforming the victim into the saviour. So a time when pussy-cats lions get their courage from Oz and belt out an almighty roar. This trine lasts until March 22.
Mars stations direct on April 14. Mars passes over Zosma again May 22 and seals the deal as a result of the brave outburst back on March 12. Mars is also still empowered by a trine from Pluto on ruthless Facies. Mars back on spikey Denebola on June 16 which may bring up a bitter and vindictive backlash from who ever got shafted during the nautical shake-up. But that’s just a blip. At the end of our journey we can all drink Rum punch from the cup of Alkes as Mars says its last goodbyes to 23 Virgo and sails off into the sunset.
Mars Retrograde Dates
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Karmic rebalancing – yes please! So can we also be freed from not only the patriarchal oppression but the diametric opposite of the puer eternus anarchy! I’m fed up of being in the cross fire.
I’m loving this Mars in Virgo – its in my first house mostly and I have become a human tornado! Not only am i tearing through my written work but the house is looking good too! Am taking no prisoners!
uberqueen, this retrograde is all over my first house too but I’m not having your success! It’s been a rebalancing for me though – I am forced to recognize how my work has hurt my health and repair things. I do feel that the Mars energy in my first house prompts aggressive impulses whenever I feel (rightly or wrongly) my freedom or individuality is being challenged. Yoga helps me avoid unnecessary battles. The puer eternus anarchy – very cleverly put.
UQ-they’ve wore me out trying to communicate to them how the pattern has to change.No more bloody revolutions.Fight or flight wont work anymore.All revolutions have directives/inspiration from the shadows though the motives/ideas may be just,but the change needed demands a new way of thinking and feeling.Right brain/left brain needs the added dimension of an evolved HEART and empowered intent,WILL.
I too am empowered by this Odyssey of Mars as my placements in an earlier post indicate.My PERCEPTION could have been very different if there had not been an awareness of balancing the outer male with the qualities of the feminine inside.The Odyssey for me will extend to the Mars con Mars/Asc 12th-0&1Libra,where it will transfer what has been learned/gained to the 1st and to the angles and G Cross.
so Mars retrograde sounds like a fine opportunity to act on ones heartfelt passions rather than fighting the outside world. good Ive had enough of that and like LizaJane i am very hopeful for karma to balance the unfairness of november 2011 for me and all others who have been in tough times
Debbie…Keep me posted….whatever the result may be…I love the changes starting with others……this Leo/Virgo cusp…will have a good time..no matter what!
I’ve synchronistically stumbled on a great article about the Mars-Virgo to Neptune-Pisces opposition (our current Venus & Chiron transits, with Neptune on the brink)in The Mountain Astrologer. This was in effect for some time in the 60′s, but the last time the complete Mars transit/opp was in Virgo was in the 30′s. Therefore, my parents who are now in their mid-70′s are experiencing a poignant Mars return to their natals. Starving and surviving (Virgo) through WWII Europe now becomes their mission to thrive (Neptune) through their own old age ? Each of them are confronting their first serious medical conditions, and managing their recuperations in light of the “big picture” (Neptune) that they’d like to continue to dream big despite the trials of daily self-diagnosis.
http://mountainastrologer.com/tma/scratch-some-virgo-find-some-pisces
On a more personal level, Michael and I share a vastly stelliumed 6th house Davison. Ironically, neither one of us has a 6th house planet in our natals, but he has Saturn 12th and I have Neptune 12th. The only way we’re understanding the directive power of the Davison 6th is through that 12th house portal. Organizing the dream is the action in play, and will be for some time.
Namaste, Moira
Thanks for that link Moira, I have several logically trapped pisces and uber critical virgos tieing themselve in knots just now and that article just made so much sense! kind regards Debbie
Hi Marina and Jamie. I find it interesting the decan astrology by the month that whilst I (just) fit into decan 2 19.44 leo. The transits you speak of hit at the exact date of transit 3. Does this mean I am a decan 3 even though I am just in the decan two and does it mean that the effects as such transit at different times for everyone during the decan phases? If the mercury sun opposition hits me on the 8th for example, do I get it right through till the completion of this transit or just for a couple of days? Mmm. Where can I find out how long the transits effect me?
ALSO. I’m a littl;e worried after reading your post on gaddafi and fixed star menkalin as I have this fixed star next on my MC sextile lilith along with betelguese sex lil, which sits almost at the exact degree in both true and eliptical reading and both stars trine jupiter in eliptical reading (don’t know which one to read true or eliptical) Any thoughts on this. I would think the trine with jupiter would emphasise menkalin and betelguese and the sextile to lilith – sex death??
I do apologize for this being in the wrong discussion. I thought I was in the FEB horoscopes section
A little OOT, but Retrograde means its becoming weakened? Vedic Astrology says Mars controls the left brain hemisphere and venus the right brain hemisphere. Any congruity there?
Hmm… left brain/right brain… I’m assuming you’re a female . So you have a 10 percent larger corpus callosum – the connective bridge between the two, than a male. I think Mars retro probably works better for women because we’re more tuned into energy ebbs and flows in our bodies. If the left brain is Mars and the right is Venus, depending on how your Mars is situated is going to be important. If you had Mars in Cancer say, perhaps you’d be retreating into your shell to plan your actions first or not to act at all. In a woman it could just be careful planning. In a man with Mars in cancer it could be being at the mercy of a woman due to lack of male assertion! And so on…If it is in Aries, under a retrograde in Venus it would be quite hard to get going because of the inconjunct – so it might be a question of actually becoming more aggressive because of frustration. I think its imposcible to give one blanket analysis.
Its working really well for me at the moment because I’m a Virgo asc and its in my first house. I have all the Martian energy and strategy afforded in my left brain from its natal position but also the stamina to go over things which need working on again – plus knowing when to stop, down tools and stare at the ceiling before going into action again.
My natal Mars in in Leo conj Sun and PLuto so its pretty charged up and in the 12th its relentless. I never give up. The retrograde is not necessarily weakened, it just times things differently. If you look at cats, they are very active in bursts and inert otherwise. That’s very Mars retro.
A little eye candy from Mars;
http://youtu.be/Gr1169ZsEt0
Michael
I really enjoy your deapth of knowledge on this subject. I hope your version is “Truth and trust worthy”. I am in the midst of a battle for my self expression that started back in November and has esculated right up to January 23, 2012.
This shall be an interesting journey, and I will let you know the outcome; as I am using your version for guidance.
Mars retrograde touching the fixed stars of
Alkes & Sedna has seen direct expression for me re ancestral inheritance via the father. My father has just told me that he is giving my siblings and I some of the money he has reently inherited from a distant relative. This marks the culmination of a family ‘myth’ about my father’s family being done out of a rightful inheritance by a weak father & a wicked stepmother. The money was left to him by the relative expressly to redress this wrong. I am very struck by the timing of this.
getting ready to plant those daring seeds….
A very strong solar flare is heading this way and Mars is also in its path! So our little red retro friend is going to get a little – or big! – kick up his little red bottom!!
Thanks Marina, genuinely insightful, as ever. Like Sarah on Jan 23rd, this is whipping up finances and fathers for me too – well, for my 6 year old son – whose (rather wealthy) father pays for his private education while contributing nothing to the general daily costs of raising him. On Jan 18th I formally requested that he begins to pay his half (I am sinking ever further into debt). It will be most interesting to see whether he decides to contribute or if his son is, figuratively, ‘thrown overboard’.
Interestingly Mars will retrograde over my natal Mars at 16 Vir and Pluto at 14 Vir, both fourth house, while rx through his dad’s 10th with his Pluto at 20.
Excellent! Two phrases come to mind with mars retrograde in virgo: ‘Seperate the wheat from the chaff.’ and ‘Beat your swords into plowshares. Also this is a particularly challenging mars retro since mars spends it’s greatest time retro in virgo and virgo is inconjunct aries by nature emphasizing the need for teachable flexibilty that retrogrades require.
I have mars in the 10th house, in Virgo…how is this current mars retrograde position likely to impact me just now? Also, I have pluto and Uranus (both retrograde) in the same place too. And have the ‘gift’ of a mutable grand cross…phew! Life has been oddly intense, especially this week…really having to deal with issues of power and control and stepping into my own assertive power. Is this a life changing aspect or just part of life’s ongoing opportunity for growth?
Wow, Marina, I have to say thank you again because of a recent turn of events and only your site provides the layers of meaning from Alkes and Sedna to my situation. My father has heart disease and a history of heart attack, so when I felt some strange symptoms on January 22 that seemed to add up to heart attack as opposed to anxiety, I allowed myself to be convinced by a few close people to go to the hospital. I was admitted, all the right tests were done, and all were negative for heart attack. I happen to work for my father. His response was “so there’s nothing wrong with you.” My thought, “well I wouldn’t go that far.” I have never felt my heart do what it did on Sunday. Maybe it is anxiety but if so, then I had better reduce stress. The dates of Mars’ transit through Virgo are really significant too for me regarding the sources of my stress – work and my ex husband (a bully). I am actually considering looking for another job which is a strange idea in this economy but if the inheritance or gift from my father is working in the family business, and the family business is making me so stressed I feel like I am going to die, then I guess it is time for a change.
Mars retro – examine what it aspects and see what actions or restraining of actions might be creating karma. E.g if you have Mars retrograding on Pluto this might bring up reactions or actions from a very primitive base. Emotions or urges triggered then might well be creating more karma. As Marina says, it’s about karmic rebalancing and that is done through choices.