#retrogrades

What is a Retrograde (RX) in Astrology?

A retrograde (or RX) is when a planet is moving in the opposition direction in the sky, a backward direction. When a retrograde flow starts to happen, it’s considered a time of retrograde for that specific planet that is moving backwards. (For example: When Mercury is moving backwards in the sky, we are now in the time of Mercury retrograde. Mercury Retrograde happens usually in the earlier 3 months of the year)When a specific planet is in retrograde, it can cause “backward”, challenging, or “opposite” effects for us regarding the themes of the planet. (For example: For Mercury Retrograde: You can expect misunderstandings, disruptions in sources of communication. You can also expect chaotic, unorganized feelings or energy. “Be careful to sign contracts, make major financial decisions, and start a new job during this time.”)

What is a natal retrograde?

The current retrogrades that are happening in the sky whilst you were born will be your natal retrogrades. (For example: Pluto, Venus, Neptune, Chiron, and Uranus were in Retrograde when I was born. So these are also my natal retrogrades.) Now when you were born during a retrograde that is now your natal retrograde, you can expect yourself dealing with the opposite, backwards, challenging energy of that regarding planet for most of your life. Natal retrogrades are like major life lessons, and karma. (For example: Natal Venus retrograde will make someone struggle with insecurity, tight finances, and distant relationships for most of their life until they learn how to accept, love and be happy with themselves first.)

You ask, we answer - let’s all set the record straight on these backwards babes. But before we do, you need two pieces of crucial information:

First:I literally do not give a fuck about retrogrades. Don’t use them, don’t pay attention to them, never have, never will. If hearing about them makes you feel gross and nervous and confused, just set that shit down and go on living your life like you were ten minutes ago before you got spooked to your core. You’ll be fine and you won’t miss a damn flight or forget to send an important email or whatever the fuck.

Second: if giving a fuck about retrogrades helps you live a better life and makes you feel good, then you go right ahead with giving your fucks. Different strokes for different folks. No shame in the game.

Alright. Here are the cold hard facts:

(1) Looking at your chart and seeing that you have a birth planet(s) in retrograde isn’t going to give you any new information. I cannot say it enough, people: every chart has an overarching theme, all the planets are working together to tell you the same shit, over and over again. When we’re trying to understand a chart, we want functional information and we want ease.

Which set of information feels more functional and accessible to you?

This: Aries Sun in an intercepted first house quntile to a Gemini Moon in the third house conjunct the IC, both opposite retrograde Pluto in the 8th house and retrograde Jupiter conjunct the ninth house cusp semi-square a conjunct Uranus and Neptune in the eleventh.

Or this: Man, this bitch has a fucking Aries Sun in the first house and her Gemini Moon is down there in the same quadrant - from that alone we already know she’s all about discovering herself and learning how to apply her damn brain in a flexible, influential way. Of course with an overarching theme like this she’s going to have to learn to be empathetic and sensitive to others so she doesn’t become a ruthless-ass, self-serving cunt with literally no awareness of other people’s realities and experiences (Jupiter and Pluto up top).

The placement of the Sun and Moon alone tell us 90% of the shit we need to know about a person. Everything else is supporting information, and none of that supporting information is going to contradict the overarching theme.

Did knowing that Jupiter and Pluto are in retrograde tell you anything you didn’t already know? No. Seeing both an Aries Sun anda Gemini Moon in the first quadrant already tells you this bitch is clearly all about developing and exploring herself - of course someone with such self-focused priorities is gonna need to spend some extra time building an awareness of other people’s realities, and of course that understanding is going to come from inward withdrawal and reflection - with the way this chick operates, it couldn’t come from anywhere else. So, seeing that Jupiter and Pluto are in retrograde should just confirm what you already knew from looking at the more important elements of the chart.

Being a quality Astrologer requires just as much formulaic thinking and logic as it does intuition and sensitivity, bitches. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re not intuitive enough to read a chart, bust out your math and destroy them.

(2) That being said: Retrogrades typically represent inward withdrawal and reflection. What even is a retrograde?It’s a going back over of degrees we already covered. It’s an opportunity for revision, reflection anddeeper understanding.

Is a retrograding placement good or bad? Neither. A retrograde planet means nothing on its own-every individual element needs to be considered in the context of the rest of the chart. That is why retrogrades are a detail you could completely overlook and still miss nothingfrom your overall understanding of a chart.Guaranteed you’re going to catch the same information somewhere else in the chart: there will be other, strongerindicatorsof (1) the need to put extra time and attention towards a particular area of your life, or (2) a person who has more reflective, introspective nature in general.

(3) The same logic holds for transits: again: every individual element needs to be considered in the context of the rest of the chart. Mercury, Venus, these mfs aren’t just floating up there by themselves randomly going in and out of retrograde - they’re part of the entire landscape of the Solar System!! They have family and friends!! You’re better off looking at the current chart as a whole - seeing where allthose sweet celestials are hangin’ in relation to each other - than randomly jumping to conclusions based on a single piece of (honestly, extraneous) information.

That’s all, folks. And again - to each her own. For all you Retrograde Queens out there, keep on keeping on, you moon walking lunar lovelies, you.

Peace, bitches. Happy Charting.