Welcome to #MagicMondays! Every Monday, I will post an article exploring All Things Witch. I am also drawing tarot cards on Instagram for the rest of October if you want to follow @flashreads for #dailydraws. Plus, I love giving tarot readings so if you are interested, we can set up something IRL or on video chat for this Friday Saturday or Sunday Oct 25 – 27, 2013. Readings can help you answer a question, reconnect to a goal, or serve as a good spiritual check in for where you are in your life. We are all capable of magic because magic is within us! Now let’s get to work!

I feel compelled about 3 to 4 times a year (read: now) to stress the following: Astrology does not rule your life – you do! It’s just a tool or a map (like your chart) for deciphering the signs and symbols presented to you along the way. Some astro events happen more frequently than others and can feel especially dramatic on your path. In recent years people have been FREAKING OUT about “Mercury in Retrograde,” so let’s take a closer look to confront the these fears.

First and foremost, what is it? Fact: Mercury is a planet that orbits the Sun (just like all planets do) at his own specific angles. In this case, Mercury can be no more than 28 degrees from the Sun. Because of this distance, Mercury retrogrades about 3-4 times a year, more than any other planet (hence the frequency). When Mercury retrogrades 3 to 4 times a year, it appears to be moving backward in the sky. But, this is not actually possible. The reason for this sight depends on our own POV from Earth. During a retrograde phase we are merely under an illusion or at the will of a “trickster” planet who is playing with our perspective and showing something that is not true.

Mercury’s purpose in astrology is to show how you communicate (Look up where it falls on your chart for more info there!) and thus, like a trickster, retros can cause complications, legitimate breakdowns, and, at times, breakthroughs in communication. The key here is: It’s all about your perspective. Mercury wants you to think and communicate duality (he is ruled by Gemini, the Twins) and some attributes of the planet include curiosity, discovery, and translating between what you see and what you name things to be. The goal in a retrograde phase, when Mercury can literally halt discussions, interrupt your commute, and cause you to mistreat your communication devices is to use those signs and interruptions as moments to re/direct your course. Remember: A Mercury retrograde is never a bad thing. It simply means you need to slow down and reflect because life is going to present some direct ways for you to do the work. Mercury will call things out during a retro phase so listen closely to your surroundings and communications. In tarot, Mercury rules the Magician card (1), whose purpose, joy and gift in life is to make magic. You have all the tools at your disposal – what will you make of this astro event’s energy too? Mercury also rules the 8 , 9 and 10 of swords or the feathers in some decks. This is the suit aligned with communication. These are hard cards. The 8 asks you to take responsibility for how you became bound. The 9 shows you trapped in a cage, using negative behaviors to cope. The 10 depicts the fall of Icarus who flew too close to the Sun and burned his wings. These are shadow energy cards which expose victimhood/survivor dynamics and coping skills that are not good for us. Ultimately the cards ask you to free yourself because you can. The fall will hurt but there’s no other way. Something’s got to change.

Second, Is Mercury retrograde now? Yes! Mercury is retrograde in the sign of Scorpio from Oct 21 – Nov 10, with a shadow period of the event before and after those dates. With Scorpio we have a fixed water sign, “the scorpion” or “the phoenix from the flames” who rules the Death card (13) in Tarot. Scorpios can get down with the darkness and embrace the intensities and complexities of life. The death card can be about literal death, for this time of year is charged with that energy as the veil grows thin. At the same time, the card is about change, radical change that uproots your life, or a little death that redirects your course. A Mercury retrograde in Scorpio wants you to clarify your deepest priorities. Then let go of old haunts and wounds that prevent you from making your best moves. Move into healing. You don’t need to carry that darkness that haunts you any further. Talk it out. Use this phase to make some magic! Change = Magic. The Magician knows. Scorpio is aligned with intuition, insight, and the regeneration of the self too. Consider those themes as you navigate this retro phase over the next 3 weeks. Any re – word applies in these times too – renew, rebirth, reflect, review, revive, reunite, revolt. In the card here, from the Thoth Crowley deck, we see a skeleton that also resembles a ship, with wind and waves moving like spirits. There is a snake, symbol of regeneration and the Earth, a Scorpion, and a phoenix. Looking at this, I see that the figure is directing this death with the sickle he holds (a Tarot symbol for Death and “the reaping”) which simultaneously balances his course. To return, this view is about perspective. Is it time to change your course?