Motion · 3 min read
Retrogrades, without the panic
A planet appears to move backwards when Earth overtakes it. Nothing reverses; the territory turns inward.
The optical illusion
Earth and the other planets orbit at different speeds. When we overtake one, or one overtakes us, it appears to drift backwards against the stars for a while. Mercury does this three times a year for about three weeks.
What it means
The planet's territory turns inward. Mercury retrograde is a time to re-read, re-plan and re-connect rather than to launch. Venus retrograde revisits old loves and values; Mars retrograde asks you to stop pushing.
Retrograde at birth
Your chart shows an R next to any planet that was retrograde when you were born. Those are the ones you work out privately first and express later, often better than people who had them direct.