Ever since the planet Mars entered its home sign of Aries on June 27th, 2020, I’ve had an image in my head I couldn’t shake- a really angry and revved up toddler. In my head I’ve referred to this image as a “coked up toddler” and though it isn’t funny at all to think of a toddler hopped up on cocaine, the image is very fitting for the energy of Mars’ unusually long transit in its domicile of Aries.
Mars rules the cardinal fire sign of Aries (as well as was the ancient ruler of Scorpio, prior to the discovery of Pluto) and is in its most natural expression here. Mars in Aries fully and boldly expresses the following:
- Drive
- Will
- Assertion
- Lust
- Conquest
- Rage
- Aggression
- Masculine Energy
- Willpower
- Violence
- Initiative
- Sex Drive
- Survival Instinct
- Conquest
- Machismo
- Animal Instincts
- Life Force
- Anger
- Courage
- Animus
- Temper
- Force
I sometimes see Aries energy described as the baby of the Zodiac signs. It is where the astrological energy journey begins and is the point at which we say “I am” and deal with matters of self. Interestingly enough, Mars returns to the same degree and minute it was in when we were born when we’re around 2.5 years old. Our Mars return happens at an age when we first really start realizing our sovereignty, asserting ourselves, and saying every toddler’s favorite word- NO. Coincidence? Methinks not.
On a personal note, I would suggest being cognizent of when you’ll have your Mars return. Every 2.5 years roughly, it is a reset of the direction of your will, drive, and focus and can give you fatastic clues about how to best use your projective energy. Should you need a Mars return reading, feel free to hit me up.
Mars fueling the cardinal fire of Aries is very initiating energy. It is compelled into action and movement and can be spontaneous, explosive, and burn out quickly. Bursts of energy, anger, and drive ready and more than willing to GO, GO, GO are present. But what happens when this energy is retrograde? How is it expressed?
When planets go retrograde, from our vantage point on earth, they appear to be moving backwards. They aren’t really moving backwards at all, however, astrologers throughout time have noticed that when planets are not in direct motion their energy seems to be expressed differently. The energy can be described as being pushed inward as it isn’t flowing in its natural and direct way. Mars energy being collectively pushed inward is going to reveal a lot about the inner motivations, willpower, desires, and regrets of people. It’s gonna be one hell of a ride.
Mars stations retrograde on September 9th, 2020 at 28 degrees and 8 minutes of Aries. It will stay in retrograde motion until November 13th, 2020, when it will be at 15 degrees and 13 minutes of Aries. Though it will be out of retrograde motion, its retrograde cycle will still be occurring, as it must move forward over the area it retrograded over- 15 to 28 degrees of Aries. During its movement from 15 to 28 degrees, Mars will still be in its shadow period, meaning it is activating the degrees in direct motion that it retrograded over. This area is especially important as it was already covered by Mars in direct motion from July 25th, 2020 through September 9th, 2020, will be recovered during the retrograde, and then covered again until January 2nd, 2020.
What this means is that you got a glimpse or a preview from July 25th, 2020 until September 9th, 2020 of what issues Mars retrograde will activate for you. Not only that, you’re also getting a preview of what will be wrapped up regarding those issues when Mars completes the shadow phase of its retrograde cycle from November 13th, 2020 to January 2nd, 2021. What came up for you from the end of July until the beginning of September, particularly regarding areas of life mentioned in the Mars keywords at the beginning of this article? It would serve you well to give that some thought.
So, what could you possibly give thought about? Think about the following:
– When did I overeact or underreact to a situation?
– When did I enforce my will over others?
– When did I feel disempowered by someone else asserting their will?
– When did I face a seemingly unconquerable task, person, or event?
– When did I stand up for myself?
Mars retrograde can bring about the feeling that you’re unable to assert, agress, express, and live out what you feel encouraged to let out. You may feel as if you are being hindered from letting your desires and wants come up and out. The purpose of retrograde cycles are to get us to slow down and go back over what we have already done. While this may seem frustrating, it is an opportunity the Universe is granting us to exercise patience and restraint.
To better balance and achieve patience and restraint we would all be wise to embody positive Libran qualities. As Aries’ opposite sign, we can achieve harmony, quell unnecessary aggression and anger by embracing:
- Harmony
- Partnerships
- Balance
- Aesthetics
- Charm
- Tactfulness
- Fairness
- Concilliation
- Cooperation
- Elegance
- Relatedness
To best utilize this transit we must avoid acting impulsively. Giving sufficient thought before acting is key. A lot of the harsher themes of Mars like violence, rage, and abuse may become activated within us, bringing the need for healing and shadow work to the surface. If you can embrace what arises for you with grace and acceptance you’ll be all the better for it.
As we near the end of September, Mars is prepping for a square to Saturn, retrograde and at home in Capricorn. This square will be exact on September 29th, 2020, and as Mars approaches Saturn a build up of frustration may occur. Since Saturn represents restrictions, delays, structures, rules, government, authority, and rules time and karma, this squaring up intensifies the feeling that what we want isn’t coming fast enough, or at all. It can even seem that you cannot break through walls of authority that are impeding you. It is not that you cannot have that which you desire. It’s moreso that you need to restructure your plans, channel your desire into productivitely reworking existing plans, and realize patience is key. Come January, if you’ve done the appropriate inner work, you’ll be on task again.
Remember this transit is focused in the sign of self. That means it is up to you to execute self-control, self-accountability, self-restraint, and self-awareness to better handle whatever comes your way. Sometimes we may not like being aware of our negative behavior, holding ourselves accountable for it, and doing what needs to be done to reconcile it, but these are all necessary parts of having integrity and being responsible for ourselves. Incidentally, Saturn, retrograde in Capricorn, wants us to work in integrity in order to make manifest in the physical what we want. Don’t let Daddy Saturn down, beloved. He won’t appreciate it come September 29th. Restrain your inner coked up toddler. You’ll thank yourself later.
Need help navigating Mars’ retrograde cycle and want to know how it’ll personally affect you? Schedule a reading with me and I’ll help you to understand how you can best use this energy based on your natal and/or progressed chart.
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