Ending Your Retrograde Right: Your November Tarot Reading

November 15, 2019 9:45 am

Have you felt a bit foggy in the head lately? Or like the words just aren’t coming out right? Perhaps you find yourself having some of those hard-to-have talks recently, or overthinking things a bit more than usual. You may notice electronics have a habit of giving you a hard time recently, maybe your phone seems to load extra slow, or even the chip on your debit card is acting funny… It’s no coincidence, you have Mercury retrograde in Scorpio to thank!

To sum it up, Mercury, the planet of communication in astrology, orbits backwards three to four times a year. This period can bring challenges in conversation, expression, clarity, objectivity, judgement, coding, electronics, contracts, and the like. It’s for this reason that people believe it’s wise to avoid traveling, signing documents, big decisions, and important talks during this transit. The theme of this transit also depends on the season in which it occurs; For example, this current retrograde takes place from October 31st to November 20th, carrying us right through Scorpio season. Scorpio, the 8th house, is the house of spirit, occult, magic, death, rebirth… as if Mercury’s energy weren’t strong enough, we now find ourselves facing these issues on a much deeper plane than we’re used to. We are no longer talking about surface level trials and tribulations- this is the heavy stuff. Scorpio, ruled by Pluto, has many shadow associations. The keywords here are overthinking, suspicions, worries, fears, deep wounds, defenses; These are all pieces of the shadow-self that will come to light and demand to be recognized this season.

While retrogrades seem to have accumulated a notorious reputation in pop-culture, they are as important, productive, magical, and healing as they are frustrating! I like to think of a retrograde as pulling out a nasty splinter, or walking around on your feet after they’ve fallen asleep and turned to pins and needles. There is no way to go forward without a little pain.

Here is a spread & reading we’ve created to help gain a little clarity in the fuzziness of this event- the goal here is not to control, but to understand. The sooner we surrender our control to the bigger picture, the sooner we can begin to break away from fear, disappointment, and frustration. The best tool we have as navigators is clarity.

Here is our reading using the Universal Waite deck:

In this reading we’ve placed The Magican in the middle as the signifier, or representation of the reader, as he is the card associated with Mercury. We’ve also used a few crystals;
-amazonite for clear communication & intuition
-dumortierite for alleviating fear & obsessive thoughts
-blue lace agate for calming & quieting overthinking
-clear quartz for providing a clear channel

Here is the reading!

1) CURRENT SELF: THE STAR

The Star is hope, renewal, and spirituality. The Star follows The Tower card in our journey through the major arcana. After the chaos, destruction, and tumbling of our sacred tower, she is the one that picks up the pieces and begins again. She is motivated purely by her soul’s purpose, knowing she still has things to accomplish in this lifetime. She knows this destruction has happened for a reason, and knows how to transcend it.

2) LESSON LEARNED: THE SUN

The Sun is joy, optimism, life force, and fun. We have learned (or are learning) to activate & act from our solar plexus chakra, growing in confidence and vitality. We are encouraged to go boldly, even in the face of darkness, and to be fully authentic, present, warm, kind, and luminous in even the worst moments.

3) WHAT WAS RELEASED: 5 OF CUPS

This card is symbolic of regret, worry, past trauma, and failure… and it’s a great card to receive in this position. We are currently releasing some of our attachments to things that may have hurt us in the past- whether it was at the hand of others, or our own negativity towards ourselves. We are releasing things from the past that are affecting us in the present. Acknowledging these things is messy, painful, triggering, and daunting at times; but things must be fully realized in order to be accepted, and moved beyond. Release these old perceptions, coping mechanisms, thinking patterns; They are the things that keep you from making progress. Wisdom of the future is only made possible by clarity of the past. Treat yourself and others gently here, as it is a very vulnerable, intimate space.

4) DEEP WOUNDS TO HEAL: THE HERMIT

This card, in this position, can be interpreted as isolation, alienation, and loneliness. The hermit is a fantastic, important card, in his positive aspects. He is an absolutely necessary part of the spiritual journey, allowing one to take time for themselves and discover who they really are. However, his shadow aspects are that of isolation. You may feel like an outsider- you may feel left out. Perhaps you feel like you don’t fit in… These are all simply perceptions of the self. It may very well be a result of your past, and how you were made to feel like you didn’t belong at some point… This is your reminder that there are people around you who love & accept even your ugliest parts. You may have a deep, quiet dislike of yourself, that you believe are not “good” enough to be accepted… You may believe that everyone else see’s you the way you do, and you must hide because of this. Rest assured, you are loved, you are not alone, and your perception of yourself can change everything.

5) WHAT WAS GAINED: ACE OF SWORDS

The Ace of Swords is clarity, understanding, and mental breakthrough. You have shed something deep and looming, that may have been obstructing your view for a very long time. You are ready to cut through the nonsense. You have gained the ability to see clearly for the first time in what may seem like forever. You now understand how your eyes can deceive you- you must step outside of yourself, see yourself, and act from the higher perspective.

6) ADVICE FOR THE FUTURE: 4 OF SWORDS

This card indicates a period of rest, relaxation, contemplation, and peace. You are being asked to step back, breath, and let the daily muck and mire wash over you for a moment. Something inside is being asked to be put to rest. There are parts of you, your story, your experience in this lifetime that are ready to come to a completion. It is time to release, and then reset. You have done so much work up until this point, changing and growing, and you are finally able to take a break and allow those dying leaves to fall off.

Overall, this reading is very characteristic of our current transit. Lots of shedding, releasing, and clearing of the past. These periods are so essential for our growth, and it’s important to embrace and even thank our retrogrades, as ugly as they may be sometimes 🙂

You can shop all of our tarot and oracle decks in store and online, as well as our carefully curated selection of crystals… Happy Mercury Retrograde!

Categorised in: Astrology