Mercury Retrograde in Capricorn and Sagittarius
Kelly briefly explains the concept of retrograde planets and then dives into what you can expect from this month’s Mercury Retrograde. She gives tips on what to look for during this period and how you might navigate it. Have a listen and see how you can work with Mercury Rx through a three-point process of returning, remembering and revisiting.
For more information about sect light or the ascendant ruler, please check out Kelly’s course ‘Guiding Lights’ here https://www.kellysastrology.com/product/guiding-lights/
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SHOW NOTES
Ep 25 Dec 9
How to Work with Mercury retrograde in Capricorn and Sagittarius, December 2023
Mercury retrograde begins on December 13. I know a LOT gets said about Mercury retrograde, so I wanted to share some helpful info – and dispel a few myths.
As I talk about Mercury retrograde today, you’ll hear me reference things like the sect light and the ascendant ruler in a chart. If these are terms you’re not familiar with, I’d encourage you to check out my course, Your Guiding Lights. It introduces you to two of the most important planets in a chart from the perspective of traditional astrology. I’ll share the link below or you can pop over to kellysastrology.com and search for guiding lights course. You can sign up today
So let’s talk about Mercury retrograde. First off, what is Mercury retrograde?
- Apparent backwards motion of a planet, from our view here on Earth
- Retrograde means reverse, go backwards
- Mercury’s retrograde is a bit like a loop, like on a rollercoaster, that takes Mercury back over a part of the Zodiac Mercury was just moving through
- Key words and concepts for a retrograde are things like re-vise / re-do / I also like re-activate
So this review and redo energy with Mercury retrograde will be around until January 2
Some of the details about this Mercury retrograde:
- Mercury will be retrograde / moving in reverse from December 13 – January 2
- Mercury will retrograde backwards from 8 Capricorn to 22 Sagittarius
- Mercury will be retrograde in two different signs, the early part of Capricorn and the end part of Sagittarius
Technically, the part of Mercury retrograde in Capricorn is better / less confusing than the part of Mercury retrograde that will happen in Sagittarius.
Mercury will return to Sagittarius on December 23.
So from December 8 – 23 Mercury will be retrograde in Capricorn. And then from December 23 – January 2, Mercury will be retrograde in Sagittarius.
So that’s a lot of the details and data of Mercury retrograde.
But you’re probably wondering what does it mean that Mercury is retrograde, and even more importantly, what can you do to work with this energy?
My 3 favourite things to do with Mercury retrograde are:
- Returning
- Remembering
- revisiting
I often use these Mercury retrograde periods to catch up on stuff I’m behind on, you know that life admin that builds up? Like returning something you bought that wasn’t quite right, or returning that tupperware or baking dish you borrowed from a friend.
I also love Mercury retrograde for helping me remember things I’ve forgotten or have neglected. Like that I love walking every day but often fall out of the habit. Sometimes the remembering is really easy to spot as it’s tied to remembering things around the topics or areas of life tied to the house that Mercury will be retrograde in for me. So think about the topics of your Capricorn or Sagittarius house, and how you might be ready to get back on track with something that’s been neglected or ignored for a while.
I also love Mercury retrogrades for revisiting unfinished business. While Mercury is retrograde I send a lot of follow up emails to see if plans or opportunities that have been discussed will be moving ahead, like let’s revisit this idea. Is it still something we want to do? If so, Ok, great let’s get a plan or timeline together. If not, then delete – from email/ from my mental list. I also love this cycle for helping me catch up on email and paperwork in general.
Mercury is the planet of communication, travel, logistics, business and technology. So it’s common to hear how these areas of life can go awry when Mercury is retrograde. And sometimes that is the case. I’ve definitely had some travel experiences where one thing after another goes wrong when travelling with Mercury retrograde.
But since Mercury is retrograde so often – 3 or 4 times a year, for about 3 weeks each time, that’s a fairly long time to avoid doing so much of what helps our daily lives run.
The station, the very start and very end of Mercury retrograde, can be the most problematic part of mercury retrograde. This is when Mercury is treading water and not moving at all. For this Mercury retrograde, think about December 13 and January 2 plus or minus 3 days to get the dates when the Mercury station influence will be in play.
Trying to finalise anything then can be tricky, so they might be days to avoid or delay big decisions or signing paperwork. But outside those dates, even in the middle of Mercury retrograde, you can fairly safely proceed with regular life.
I know people say don’t sign anything when Mercury is retrograde, but in the past I have booked travel, taken flights and even bought my first house all while Mercury was retrograde.
So there’s a lot you can still do! That said, if you’ve had a classic Mercury retrograde snafu story, definitely let us know in the comments below.
Now, while Mercury retrograde does form part of the astro weather for the rest of December, it may or may not have a major impact on you. And this is why you may or may not notice some of the classic Mercury retrograde crossed wires or mix ups.
If Mercury is super important in your natal chart, you may be more sensitive to Mercury retrogrades in general. This would be you if you have a Gemini or Virgo ascendant, or if you have lots of planets, including the Sun or Moon, in Gemini or Virgo.
If Mercury is your current time lord, either by annual or monthly profection, then you might be especially attuned to Mercury retrograde at this time.
If the signs where Mercury will be retrograde – in December 2023, that’s Capricorn and Sagittarius – are important in your chart, like if the retrograde pathway will go directly over your ascendant or MC, or key planets in your chart like your sect light or ascendant ruling planet, then you too might notice this particular Mercury retrograde more acutely.
For the rest of us, it might just be one theme amongst many others.
And just to go back to something I said earlier, about how the portion of Mercury retrograde in Capricorn is a little better than the portion of Mercury retrograde in Sagittarius.
The reasons for this have to do with the other planets Mercury will interact with while in Capricorn vs while in Sagittarius, as well as its sign condition.
So while Mercury is retrograde in Capricorn, from December 13 – 23, Mercury is ably guided by Saturn in Pisces and Jupiter in Taurus. You’ll likely be working through details and logistics about a major plan or goal, something that’s tied to a long term thing you want to experience or achieve.
While Mercury is retrograde in Sagittarius, from December 23 – January 2, Mercury will have to navigate Mars and Neptune, and has to do so while also being in one of its detriment signs. This is much more complicated and muddled for Mercury. Day to day matters might be messy and full of some of those classic mix ups, crossed wires and bloopers.
I’d invite you to keep this in mind throughout Mercury retrograde, to see if you can tune into the differences in experiences, priorities and topics you’re focussed on during these different portions of Mercury.
So hopefully this helps you understand a little more about what Mercury retrograde is, how it works – and most importantly – whether it will have a big impact on you or not. Armed with all that info, my wish is that you can work with Mercury retrograde this December to help you reorganise, get caught up and sort out any unfinished matters.
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Thanks for joining me – see you next week!