Last Updated on July 30, 2020 by astrologerbydefault

Can planets really move backwards? Not really, if we could stand at the centre of the solar system, on the sun, we would see them moving regularly in their forward motions in their orbits. But then when we stand on the earth, which itself is moving around the sun, and then we look at these planets which are also moving around the sun, we sometimes get to see a planets moving apparently in reverse. Perspective is everything!

Generally everyone on earth has 2-3 retrograde planets. Very rarely none or all of them are retrograde in a particular chart. Sun and Moon are never retrograde. If you can check your horoscope, the retrograde planets will be specifically marked or mentioned as they have quite a bit of astrological significance. There are a lot of free websites for calculating your horoscope . Or if you want a handy app to calculate your horoscope, download any of the phone apps for vedic astrology. For android I have found “Hindu calendar” by developer “Alok Mandavgane” and for iphones “Drik panchang” by developer “Adarsh apps” to be quite accurate and user friendly.

The Lunar Nodes Rahu/Ketu always are retrograde. But if you calculate the their true motion, ‘true nodes’ occasionally around eclipses they move in a forward motion. Some astrologers do not consider this significant, but I have seen that direct nodes indicate a tremendous potential blocked by heavy karmic factors. These resolve by the age of 49yrs when Rahu/Ketu mature.

(A bit of statistics, Mercury will be retrograde in approx 8% of the charts you will get,  Venus 5%, Mars 7%, Jupiter 22% and Saturn 26%. In the charts you will get, at least one planet will be retrograde at 52%. So in plain english, half of the charts you will get to see will have at least one planet retrograde, with the likelihood being Saturn> Jupiter> Mars> Mercury> Venus being retrograde.)

So what do these planets in reverse do? Retrograde planets are energies which are directed inwards. Rather than going out from you to others, these energies enter your inner self, your past lives and traumas, replaying them again and again. It is like you replay an event in your mind again and again to analyse it again and learn more from it. Retrograde planets are linked to specific traumas or learning events from your past lives which have made such an impact that you want to review them again and extract the maximum learning possible from them. So let’s see what can be expected from the retrograde planets in your horoscope.

Retrograde Mercury–

• You are afraid to speak or express yourself creatively, you are scared of saying the wrong thing. If asked to speak in public you may actually feel ill. You are not sure about your intelligence and perhaps you stammer or have some speech impediment.
• Perhaps in your past lives you misused your power of cutting, logical analysis and communication to cause harm to a large group of individuals.
• In this life you have learn to believe in your intelligence and communication skills. Practice speaking in front of a mirror, try to start a blog, or vlog, draw/paint, sing. Do anything that gives you a creative outlet.
• You have to power this intention daily, “I will speak out and express myself”

Retrograde Venus –

• You find relationships very unfulfilling and may have a string of girlfriends/boyfriends or divorce/remarriage patterns. You seek fulfilment from your partner but may have issues with intimacy and give up quite easily. You are searching for the love of your life but no clue on what it is that you really want.
• Possibly in your past, you and your soulmate have been separated by forces beyond your control and you never learned to have a mature relationship. If you have never learnt what self love is, loving the other is also not possible.
• Now, sit down, think deeply  and write down what you want in a relationship and what you want in your soulmate. Review this list after a week. Then try to look within you and think of what you can give back to such a partner, write it down. Later share these lists with your loved one.
• Intend very strongly, “I know how to Love and I Love my own self”

Retrograde Mars

• You feel guilty and shy for no reason. And you are unable to regulate your anger, you lose your temper spectacularly and may get violent, but then you feel extremely ashamed and guilty. You know a lot but cannot express yourself in competitions. Maybe you are a good sportsperson but for some reason prevented from actually playing.
• Perhaps in your past life you were a thug, soldier, slave, goon, someone of significant physical power who served a master/king. And your master made you perform atrocities on a large number of people against your will. You followed your master’s cruel orders but your internal conscience accuses you.
• You need to learn to relax and forgive yourself. May be do actual some physical charity work helping other people, not just giving donations. Maybe a simple 5 min daily routine where you can listen to your subconscious self.
• A suitable daily intention for you is, “I forgive myself”.

Retrograde Jupiter

• You do not feel comfortable with ‘religion’ and ‘show of religion’. You have never thought your teachers to be good enough to teach you and were never really comfortable in school. You follow non conventional religious and spiritual beliefs. You know a lot of unconventional knowledge but are not sure about teaching it to others. You feel that your students may not be well received in the society.
• In your past lives you have left the society, either by force or choice, for following unconventional spiritual beliefs. Maybe you were a sadhu/tantrik/wise woman witch etc. Thus you have learnt to keep your spiritual beliefs inside you for fear of persecution/alienation. This is bad as the cycle has to be complete, if you learnt something from someone you are supposed to pass it on to others so that your internal balance is achieved.
• Accept that what you know is valuable and deserves to be passed on. However weird your spiritual teachings may be, your students are waiting to learn from you. Write a blog on what you have learnt in this life and want to pass on. Even if no one reads that blog at least you have sent the energies out from you.
• A daily affirmation with intention, “My knowledge is valuable and and I will teach”.
• (Detailed post here)

Retrograde Saturn

• You have issues with authority, boss and father figures. You work and work without support or recognition. You deeply resent it from the inside but these authority figures can make you do what they want. You cannot resist a direct order from your boss.
• Retrograde Saturn means, in your past lives you were perhaps enslaved, tortured and abused by your masters. You never learnt to speak up to injustice being done on you. You worked and worked as a slave, dominated, bullied and without an identity. You are caught in this viscous cycle and now you need to learn to come out of a servile mindset.
• You will have to learn being assertive and to work not just for the boss but also for the greater good.  You have to recognise that your hard work is a thing to be proud of. If you have such an opportunity, stand up for someone who is being abused or in a position of a servant. Help someone as act of charity, it will help you with your retrograde Saturn.
• Affirm this with intention, “I have an Identity, I am (your name)”. Your name is your personal mantra, repeat it so that your sense of identity wakes up.
• (Detailed post here and here)

Retrograde Uranus – 

• You rebel against established norms. You were a student leader and won college elections. You like to fight the intellectual battle and you do it just because it is against the establishment. You are high strung and this lifestyle has destroyed the other facets of your life.
• In past lives you have caused havoc in the lives of a large group of people by leading rebellions just for the sake of it. Your led revolts have succeeded and then the loss of establishment ruined the lives of several. This is the trauma that you are carrying around. You cannot continue experimenting with revolutions.
• You must learn to compromise, win some lose some. Make out list on why establishment and structure is important.
• Affirmation should be, “I am a part of Society”.

Retrograde Neptune

• You incessantly daydream. You have a history of alcohol or drug abuse. You are always trying to escape reality. You are extremely creative and extremely intelligent in your own way. You are eccentric and cannot stand the humdrum of routine society.
• You, in your past lives have run away from responsibility. You are still avoiding this lesson of living and functioning in the real world.
• Now utilise the full potential of your tremendous creativity. Choose a creative outlet to stabilise yourself.
• Remember that, “I am intelligent and I will create”.

Retrograde Pluto

• You do not trust the world. You do not even trust yourself fully. You think you are unique in your own bubble and do not really care about the others around you. You are internally alienated from even your close family and friends.
• In your past lives, there is a trauma where you were blamed, made a scapegoat and punished for something you perhaps did not do. You were alone at the receiving end and the entire community went against you.
• Now, feel the universal love and connections between every little particle in the universe. You have to learn to trust yourself then your immediate family.
• Intend, “I trust the Universe and the Universe trusts me back”

These were how the impressions and events from our past lives still influence us. Life is a series of teachings and we a bundle of the series of lives that we have lived. Retrograde planets are very useful markers in horoscope analysis. Use these markers and interpret them to add more joy and peace to your lives.