ALL SYSTEMS GO !!!

Mars, the planet representing the urge to get what you want, sexual drive, initiative, courage, raw energy and desires, completed its RETROGRADE journey Wednesday afternoon, 3/10, at 12:09 PM ... to reiterate, the purpose of a Mars retrograde ultimately is to evaluate what it is that motivates you and for you to determine if you are on the correct path to achieve your goal, and if you are doing what you should be doing to get there ... inside a Mars retrograde, it is time for all of us to adjust our actions and aggressive instincts to ensure that ones intent is accomplished ... this often includes going back over previous actions and having to redo them or let them go in order to move forward ... also, old resentments and personal issues that haven't been resolved in the past have a tendency of resurfacing during this period which yields the awareness that the time has come to develop new strategies and approaches for dealing with issues, anger and learning assertiveness ... it is often said that during a Mars retrograde we may become somewhat less "warlike" and that our energy can hit a lull to the point where it seems our get up and go truly got up and went !!!! ... Mars takes a retrograde journey for about 9 - 10 weeks out of its 26 month cycle ... now the question is just which, if any of these actions occurred during the retrograde period ...


This 26th month cycle becomes significant as we are used to Mars energy moving forward since it takes about two years to return to its natal position in ones birth chart and thus spends about two months in each sign ... Mars could be considered a "double twin" of the Earth as it tilts on its axis in almost the same way as the Earth, but Mars has 4 six month seasons instead of 4 three month seasons like we have here on Earth ... the Earth orbits the Sun in 1 year and Mars in 2 years thus the Earth finally catches up with Mars roughly every 2 years and 2 months = 26 month cycle ... often Mars retrograde will bring issues of frustration or hostility to the surface we have deliberately suppressed due to their disruptive qualities which can cause forward movement in our lives to be temporarily delayed ... sudden reversals of interest and drive may occur, as well as the termination of a long term goal as it may become apparent that the effort is innappropriate for the long term ... also old wounds, hurts and frustrations may arise seemingly out of context but usually there is a purpose for this ... during a Mars retrograde it is usually a good idea NOT to undertake any new beginnings per contract or verbally since the energy often isn't there to carry it through ... now sometimes you can't just "sit tight" for nearly two and a half months, but there are good reasons if at all possible, as the waiting may ultimately prove to be a blessing ... often things begun under a Mars retograde will run into problems when it stations back into direct motion - which was March 10th, at some point during the next two years, or even when Mars begins its next retrograde journey - which will be in January of 2012 ...

This Mars retrograde occurred from 19 degrees of Leo back down to 0 degrees of Leo ... if you've had a natal chart done, you can look to where these degrees fall and get an idea of where you might have done some rethinking of some kind of action you have taken, or where you encountered delays or a shift into a different direction ... if you were born with your natal Sun between 0 degrees and 19 degrees of Leo, at some point Mars crossed back over your natal Sun and, among other things, there could have been a few days when you felt as if someone unplugged your energy outlet !!! ... as with Mercury retrograde periods, sometimes those born with Mars retrograde will find this period was more productive as they are already were comfortable and used to this energy and have a better understanding ...

As Leo is the natural ruler of the 5th house we can certainly expect many of the issues that arose may have had something to do with romance, creativity and pleasure seeking ... yes, once again the relationship sector got another retrograde hit - did anyone out there break up or end a particular relationship???... and its a good bet that some romantic interest from your past may have resurfaced in your life or you in theirs, and issues that weren't resolved had to be addressed ... as Leo is ruled by the Sun, we had a Sun/Mars relationship working here in retrograde motion which will surely result in a weakening of vitality ... there could easily have been those who had health issues with the heart, circulation, and blood issues ...

Aries born, was your period of review and rethinking beneficial and productive since Mars is your ruling planet ??? ... what was going on in your life since January of 2007 that may not have worked out after all ... this would also include all of us, and what possibly was begun from November 15th, 2007 through January 30th 2008 had to be addressed and reworked or simply came to a necessary ending ??? ... Even though Aries born individuals as well as Leo born - since Mars was retrograding through the sign of Leo - may have been more sensitive to this reversal of energy, we all experienced it somewhere in our lives, and lights may begin to come on in our heads that perhaps we should have either waited a while longer before taking action or possibly never have taken action to begin with in certain situations ...

The New Year might now feel like it has really begun for a lot of people !!! ... for those of you who had birthdays between December 20th and March 10th - yes YOURS TRULY fell into this category, UGH !!!! - remember you can expect to have Mars retrograde energy in your birthday chart for the whole year ahead ... now that DOES NOT mean to sit idle for 12 months ... rather to be selective about what you begin, think it out thoroughly, and realize that self-motivation will be one of your keywords in the year ahead !!! ...

Mars remains in the sign of Leo until June 7th - yikes a long time to get it's energy back up to speed so it can resume it's normal transit time of roughly six to eight weeks through one sign ... and what better time for Mars to finally complete it's retrograde journey and instill in all of us that get up and go energy as Spring is just a week away and we need to start thinking about all that "cleaning" we need to do !!!